Network - Wireless & Wired Connections

[JR12]

HI All,

I have Roku Express that's connecting to an ASUS AC3100. When I initially set it up, it kept having trouble connecting to the router. I finally got it to connect after just retrying a bunch of times and did the set up. Now, it wil never conec. 

I set up a guest network with no password and it connects and works fine. The first attempt with a password is just alpha numeric with no symbols. Anyone had this issue or know how to resolve this?

Thank you in advance for any help!

[Basil]

Roku Express will work just like the other Roku boxes.

It could be that one of the characters in your password is troubling for the Express. For testing purposes, try alpha-numeric only (no special characters) password on your guest account and see if that doesn't work.

If so, we know it's one of the characters you are using. If not, let us know.

[jhd51]

I have the same problem. The setup screen says it connects to my network and on to the internet but then chokes. Then it starts the search for networks all over again. I've spent hours on this and run it many times. Once it returned the error 003 dialog. I tried setting up a guest SSID with a simple password but nothing. I was high on the Roku but if I can't make this work soon I'm returning it and getting Apple TV. 

Customer support is non-existent. There is nothing addressing this type problem in the FAQs and tech support is not available for my Roku. 

[RokuShawnS]

There have been instances in the past where a customer's password used characters they thought were the correct ones on the Roku keyboard, but weren't.

It's been suggested previously to try something as simple as abc123 temporarily (if I remember correctly, those characters appear on the primary keyboard).  If it doesn't connect with that, then remove the password completely and try to connect.

If that doesn't work, you're probably facing interference of some sort.  If you're using a Roku Stick (and possibly the Express very near your TV), that's likely the culprit.  Just move it around a bit, and try a few more times.

Other things that can interfere are any other "connected" devices, such as pads, phones, smart fridges/washers/dryers/microwaves.  Many of these devices can output a lot of interference, even from as far away as a next-door neighbor's house.

Another good test is to take the device to another house outside of your environment.  This can help isolate local interference, especially if it does connect properly.  If it doesn't, there could be on-board issues.

[fluke]

Make sure the ASUS RT-AC3100 is on the latest version which as of today seems to be 3.0.04.384.21045.

I have seen problems with the DHCP service for devices acquiring an IP address with the ASUS access points.  A reboot of the AP will temporarily address the issue but really only a update can help resolve the issue long term.  It might be possible the DHCP service wasn't responsive on the primary network but is working fine on the guest network, despite it being the same AP for both.

Roku, for their part, could do a lot better in the feedback it provides while attempting to connect to a wireless network.  

Roku currently shows the process as two steps: (1) connect to wireless and (2) connect to internet

What Roku should do is break the process into as many steps as possible such as: (1) connect to wireless, (2) acquire IP address, (3) ping local router, (4) connect to internet

Showing the process in more steps would go a long way in helping troubleshoot issues.

As far as interference, if the Roku and Access Point were kept in the same physical locations for both attempting a WPA password enabled wireless connection and a password-less/open wireless connection then interference should have impacted both equally.  Unless what you are trying to say is someone just happened to be microwaving each time attempting to connect via WPA and then happen to be done with the microwave when performing a passwordless connection?  But interference should, to some degree, also be reflected in the signal strength meter presented when scanning for networks on the Roku.

[JR12]

HI Everyone,

Thanks for all the replies!  Quick update - password still not working.

The statement that Roku is confused by it's own keyboard input was very unsettling! I really don't want to leave an unprotected network open - even if it is a guest one. This thing may be returned very soon.

I've used the simplest 8 character passwords, I can. Including all the same character.  This is just an exceptionally bad experience for what should be a standard feature. 

[fluke]

Were you able to confirm the ASUS AP is on the latest firmware version?

Can you check the wifi security settings to make sure it is set to WPA2-Personal and AES?

How many curved bars of signal are highlighted in the roku network scan?

[Basil]

"JR12" wrote:
...
The statement that Roku is confused by it's own keyboard input was very unsettling! ...

Perhaps it wasn't stated clearly. Some characters look similar to other characters. O (capital letter) and 0 (number) look a lot alike. In some fonts, 1 (one) and l (lowercase L) look a lot alike. This is also true for some special characters. For example ” (right-quote) and " (standard quote) look a lot alike. Roku isn't getting confused, but the visual similarities of some characters can confuse the user. It's not the Roku getting confused, it's the Roku user. Happens a lot. That's why it was the first troubleshooting step suggested.

Note also that no one is saying remove security. These suggestions are to determine what circumstances cause the issue and what circumstances don't. Once determined, an acceptable solution may be found. It's standard troubleshooting to try things, not necessarily to fix, but to determine a fix.

Now, in your instance, using a simple alpha-numeric (A-Z, a-z, 0-9) password doesn't allow connectivity. That would indicate either something about your particular Roku, or something about your network. That's where fluke and others are directing the troubleshooting in an attempt to determine if your network might be the issue, or if it's the Roku.

[atc98092]

Something just occurred to me. What is the IP address range of your network? Is it 192.168.something.something? Unless you've changed something on your router, it should be. Just need to be sure it's in the correct private network ranges. There are a couple of other private IP address ranges, but I've never seen a home router using them by default. 

[jwing]

One thing you may consider which I think may be happening to me is there is an ip address conflict. It appears Roku keeps stealing my computers ip address. Not sure if this is why my moms brand new tv with built in Roku takes a router reset and at least 15 minutes of constantly trying to connect before finally connecting. Very frustrating indeed. Though it's supposed to be wireless no way is that going to work so I gave up on that a long time ago and now have it hard wired to the router. Still have issues connecting. I'm a technical person so I've tried most things already. Even went into the router and assigned ip's to all devices ...didn't work. Very upset since too late to return to best buy and being able to connect to the internet was the whole reason for getting the TV.  If anyone has any ideas for me...do tell. 

FYI - after some time (it varies from 15 minutes to sometimes longer) and after she's good and frustrated.....she is finally able to connect, but wow, really? It's either bad firmware or just a bad product