Wi-Fi & connectivity

[rastamanrusty]

Every time I turn on the TV and switch from cable to Roku, I get a "Roku Not Connecting" message. I have to restart the router and the Roku system to get it to work. This is really annoying. Anyone else have this problem?

[renojim]

What's the model number of the Roku device displayed under Settings->System-Power?

If applicable, are you using the TV's USB port to power it?

Does it have a "power saving" option under Settings->System->Power?  If so, try disabling it.

[SoCalsurfer]

Just encountered the same problem after switching to Cox Panoramic latest Wifi 6 protocol device, last Friday. All 4 of my Rokus ( Express, simple remote, 0- 3 years old Rokus)  now disconnect each time they are turned off for more that a few hours. Never had a disconnection problem before ( with 5 year old modem). Everything else i.e. all other connected devices perform much better with faster speed. Have to go though the multi step process of rebooting the Rokus each use. Not acceptable.

(not using USB to power, plenty of signal everywhere in the house ( much more than with old router)..

(Have tried to give 5GHz  band a separate SSID, does not make any difference.)

[AvsGunnar]

@SoCalsurfer 

Try configuring the 2.4ghz band to use b/g/n under the Wireless Mode/Protocol setting in 2.4ghz Wireless Settings and see if both the disconnection and stubborn reconnection issues are now resolved with the Express devices.

[SoCalsurfer]

Thanks very much for that suggestion... First one that worked ! I am grateful to you !

I'll report back in a few days to ensure that all the Roku boxes maintain stable connection to WiFi. (note :on my Gateway router, the option avl was:  g/n (not the suggested : b/g/n) , which I used...). all Rokus had to be rebooted after the router setting change, fyi..

BUT ..... by my download speeds on 2.4Ghz have dropped drastically in this mode (50-60 Mbps, (by speedtests) vs 175+ ,prior to mode change). 

 This is a huge tradeoff for a patch and implies that Roku needs to step it up and make some changes to make the product compatible with modern routers, protocols and speeds...

Any Roku tech support /programmer(s) willing to comment or commit to providing an updgrade ?

Best regards to all ..

[AvsGunnar]

@SoCalsurfer 

Using the legacy b protocol will impact the speed of the 2.4ghz band. (these are speed protocols).

Unfortunately, the cable ISP (Cox, Xfinity/Comcast, AT&T) introduced firmware updates last year that have caused issues with 2.4ghz devices (including Roku devices).  Technically, speed protocol g is backwards compatible with b (so g/n setting) will still work for those not using cable ISP equipment. (not all router model numbers used by these cable ISP are affected though).

The only way around the speed limitation you are now seeing is to either purchase your own router equipment and place the Cox router in a "bridge mode" so that it only acts as a modem.  Then you can set your own router to g/n and avoid having to use the slower b protocol in order to connect your Roku device. 

You could also leave the new Cox router in place (in router mode), and use a second router with a seperate LAN IP address (essentially creates a second network), that can be used for just your streaming devices and will not affect the overall speed of your Cox router's 2.4ghz network.  There are multiple ways to address the above issue, but generaaly requires extra hardware (router) and a bit of configuration.  Another option is to add an access point device (basically, think of it like a mini-router that just serves as a connection point) that can be configured solely for the streaming devices, depending on their location, that again should allow you to keep the Cox router in g/n mode.  You can generally configure access points seperately from the router.

The second method, of course, is to upgrade to dual-band Roku devices that are capable of using your 5ghz band and avoid the 2.4ghz issue.

As of now, the above 2.4ghz issue only affects those using cable ISP equipment (again, because of their firmware.  Their firmware has incorporated a smart learning feature which is designed to help them manage their bandwidth, and not necessarily designed to benefit the end-user).  Now, it doesn't help that the older Roku devices are using older hardware, but that used to ensure that minimal requirements were needed to get their basic devices connected to user networks.