Wi-Fi & connectivity

[AvsGunnar]

@Bomber501 

Lets see if you can manually fix this issue yourself without needing Xfinity/Comcast.

What is the model number of your affected Roku device. (Settings/System/About)?

Go to a web browser and type in 10.0.0.1 in the address bar and see if an admin interface for your router shows up. If you are presented with a login page, enter admin (for your username) and password (for your password) in these boxes.

If this admin interface pops up for you, try following the steps provided in the walkthrough with images posted in this thread (https://community.roku.com/t5/Network-Wireless-Wired-Connections/Error-014-30-stuck-for-three-days/m...) to make these changes yourself.  

If still having issues, post back the model number of your Roku device and your router model number.

[Bomber501]

I have an Express model 3900x. This wasn't a problem really until this morning and I got a hold of Xfinity to add the 5 GHz. Which as I said isn't connecting, but then again the 2.4 that I had been using won't let me connect either now. I don't know what you mean by channels but I've had Roku Express for 3 years

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@atc98092 wrote:

@Bomber501 What model Roku do you have? Not all support 5 GHz.

The problem you're having sounds suspiciously like your router is using a channel unsupported by Roku devices. On 2.4 GHz, Roku can only see channel 1 through 11. If your router is set to channel 12, 13 or 14, it won't appear in the WiFi window, just like you're seeing. Comcast doesn't permit the user to change the channel, so you will need to ask them to do it. 

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with access to everything on there and I've never had this problem before. I can get to the Roku menus and see all the apps there. it simply won't connect to my Wi-Fi. 

[Bomber501]

Thanks AVS...

I spent over an hour with Xfinity on their chat and they took me through the process of that 10.0.0.1 admin screen and WiFi editing process.

That's how I was able to add the 5 GHz profile.

Meanwhile... miraculously in the last 5 minutes my Roku finally connected using the 2.4 GHz WiFi that I had been using these last 3 years. 

Who knows how long this will hold up LOL.

By the way while using the Wi-Fi editing screen, there's a page header announcement saying that Xfinity will no longer be using the website to do Wi-Fi profile editing and it will only be on their app going forward starting next week. 

[AvsGunnar]

@Bomber501 

No worries, you should be able to access these settings through the Xfi app as well.  There is a web-based Xfinity/Comcast login option as well, (xfinity.com/myxFi ), so that may that message is referring to. (using an Xfinity ID to login to the router).  The 10.0.0.1 admin panel "should" not be affected and there are workarounds to this if this occurs.

Just be aware that your Express 3900 is strictly 2.4ghz.  It cannot see or use your 5ghz band, so all your settings affecting this device will be on that 2.4 ghz band. (Edit 2.4ghz to make changes)

So are you currently set to b/g/n on the 2.4ghz.  The issue with these ISP routers is that they will disconnect when set to another mode and will have difficulty re-connecting easily until you make this change.  After making this change, you should find that you will not be losing connection as much (if again), and that a reconnection will be very easy with all your 2.4ghz band devices.

[atc98092]

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@Bomber501 wrote:

I have an Express model 3900x. This wasn't a problem really until this morning and I got a hold of Xfinity to add the 5 GHz. Which as I said isn't connecting, but then again the 2.4 that I had been using won't let me connect either now. I don't know what you mean by channels but I've had Roku Express for 3 years. 

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OK, the 3900 is 2.4 GHz only. It doesn't support 5 GHz, so don't worry about those settings.

The WiFi bands are broken into channels. On 2.4 GHz there are 14 channels, but Roku only supports the first 11. What happened is that the Xfinity modem is set to Auto for channel selection, so it has apparently made a channel change to one of the unsupported channels. The reason it suddenly worked again is because it changed the channel again, this time back to a supported channel.

[atc98092]

By the way, before I changed my modem to Bridge mode, I did use the app as well as the web page to make changes. I found the same limitations to changing things like channel and mode with the app as I did on the web config page. My understanding is that Comcast doesn't allow access to some settings on rented modems. If you purchased your own modem (instead of renting theirs) then you should have full access. 

[Bomber501]

Right on thanks.... It's never occurred to me to get my own modem. Wouldn't you be risking compatibility issues if Xfinity made some kind of signal change that your modem doesn't support? 

[atc98092]

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@Bomber501 wrote:

Right on thanks.... It's never occurred to me to get my own modem. Wouldn't you be risking compatibility issues if Xfinity made some kind of signal change that your modem doesn't support? 

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Certainly possible. But unless something drastically changes to their method of providing their services, that would be an enormous expense for them to replace everyone's modem, even if it's just the ones they provide. I looked into buying my own, but I discovered it would cost me $5 per month less for unlimited Internet data to rent their modem than to buy my own. Unlimited data comes at a lower cost when you rent their Gateway modem (which by the way doesn't have a problem with Roku connections with only Mode G/N) rather than providing your own modem. So I saved about $150 by not buying my one, plus $5 each month. Seemed like a win-win to me. And some months I do exceed their data cap, so it's smart for me to have unlimited data.

[AvsGunnar]

@atc98092 

Not really the leased vs. owned router affecting the configurability.  It is the custom firmware being installed on the particular router by the ISP.  Currently, the leased Arris TG1682 and others should still be able to be user configured on Xfinity/Comcast.  On Cox, this same router has been locked down, though.

Some Xfinity/Comcast leased routers are still user-configurable, some are not.  Dependent on model number (which in turn determines version of firmware installed).

You are correct though regarding owned.  As long as you purchase your own router, (and it does not have the ISP branding on it), it should be configurable.  This is in contrast to CenturyLink routers.  No matter where you buy those, if it says CenturyLink on the packaging, it will come with the CenturyLink firmware pre-installed.

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@Bomber501 

Normally, the ISP router is really both a Modem and a Router.  Modem is for the internet.  Router is for the network and organizing your connected devices.  The preferred setting is that mentioned by @atc98092.  You leave the ISP router in place and set it to Bridge Mode.  This means it will only act as a Modem. (your internet signals).  You then connect your own router (usually via an ethernet cable) to the ISP router.  Your new router now controls all your connected devices and and free to use whatever settings you want.

The ISP likes to control the settings because then they can manage all the bandwidth and speeds through their preferred settings to users. No matter how they try to market it, this is for their benefit, and not the end-user.

Personally, Bridge Mode of the ISP router, and using your own router is the way to go for most setups.  However, you will need to learn a little about setting up a router and some ISPs are not very helpful to customers with their own equipment when an issue arises.  FYI, setting up your own router is not very difficult.    

[atc98092]

My Xfinity modem is the TG3482G. The only controls I had (if it's not in bridge mode) was the SSID name, the ability to use different SSIDs on each radio (which I do), turn the WiFi radios off, and a couple of minor things I can't remember. I was locked out of Mode, Channel, and bandwidth, along with some others that again I can't recall. And port forwarding never, ever worked, even when their tech insisted they had resolved the issue. Fortunately, being set on Mode G/N was never an issue with my Roku devices. Much simpler to just bridge it and install my own Linksys. 

Oh, and bridge mode disables the WiFi completely on the modem, so Ethernet is the only way to connect the modem to your own router. 😄