Fvs338 problems

[Bill Griffin4]

I'm having issues with my FVS338 and am at a loss. In the past few days connectivity to the Internet vanishes and I get the "low or no connectivity" warning. The network has 3 PCs and two (internal staging) servers that are on 24/7. I've tried re-booting both the modem and the router. The modem cycles up and indicates it's online. The connected PCs are visible to each other. A call to Cablevision (Optimum Online Boost - 30mbs) indicates that there are no network issues and the tv portion works fine. I had tried hooking up a Samsung BD-P1600 Blu-Ray player to add the YouTube and Netflix functionality. I kept getting a "network setup incorrectly" message from the player - and then randomly it would see, and connect to, the network. Watched 2 Netflix movies last nite perfectly. This morning checked email and some websites at 7-ish. Came back at 7:30 and all connectivity to the 'net was gone. Could this be an issue with the router caused by setting up the Blu-Ray player? I'm not a pro at network issues, but I have a feeling that this is something to do with the router itself as opposed to my ISP. Any help would be most appreciated...

 

[Guest]

You could try connecting directly to the cable modem to see if you loose connectivity. Don't forget to power cycle the cable modem if you connect it to another network device.

 

[Bill Griffin4]

Thanks for the pointer. I tried the connection you suggested and the Blu-Ray player connected and was able to play YouTube and Netflix video. Disconnecting the player and then restoring the connection to the FVS338 brought back the connectivity to the Internet. I then went in to the Admin function on the router and manually added an address for the Blu-Ray : 192.168.1.21 along with the MAC and then manually added the network information on the player itself before I connected it to the network. It worked and I was able to watch a movie on Netflix and still retain connectivity on the PCs. Turned off the Blu-Ray and went to bed. This morning all the PCs still have connectivity to the Internet and when I tried to watch Netflix, the player failed it's Gateway Ping and was unable to connect. (The player passed the IP, DNS, gateway check).

This is so frustrating! I had gotten the FVS338 to replace a 318 that was somehow limiting my download speed. The speed issue was dramatically resolved with the switch and I now can top 30mbs a couple of times a week. I'm getting to the point I may just return the player to Best Buy - the lack of support from Samsung has definitely soured me on the brand.

Is there a way to remedy the gateway ping error and get this player to work. The only other idea I came up with was to get a small switch and use it to split the ethernet out of the Modem between the FVS338 and the Blu-Ray. Kind of Rube Goldberg, but I'd rather find a solution to the router itself before I go that route...

Thanks!

 

[Guest]

Aren't you using DHCP? Why are you adding an address for the Blu-Ray?

 

[Bill Griffin4]

Manually assigning the IP/MAC on the player is the only way it seems to prevent the entire network from failing. When DHCP is on in the player, it has a 50% chance of making a connection. Setting it "on" on the player will generally cause network failure though. Failure in the sense that the PCs are visibile to each other behind the firewall, but cannot make a connection to the Internet. I looked in the FVS338 manual to see about setting the IP address of the player as an exposed host to see if that would remedy the issue. I'm going to try that later. From what I've been reading - these Samsung BD-P1600 players are quite troublesome to set up on a multitude of routers...

 

[Guest]

Are you using a Wired or Wireless connection?

 

[Bill Griffin4]

Wired - prefer the stability and security...

 

[Guest]

Sounds like there's something wrong with the player. You should be able to set it to DHCP and not have any problems with other computers on your network. Can you try it on a friends network?

 

[Bill Griffin4]

I'm going to give it a shot - but I'm not all that optomistic. The more I read about this player , the more I feel like returning it...

Going to take it across the street and give it a shot...

 

[Bill Griffin4]

I gave up on the Samsung. Worked across the street no problem. Returned it to Best Buy and picked up a LG player. Same issues. Plugging the player in and attempting to connect results in a complete failure of the network. Had to reboot both the modem and the router. Pretty much convinced that the router is the culprit. I am so frustrated at this point. I'm "stuck" with the FVS338 since it's one of the few routers that allows me full speed on Optimum (30mbs+). I sent an email to Roku asking if the 338 worked with thier players and got a generic - "they work with Netgear products but not all models have been tested" All this to attempt saving a bit of money by leveraging our Netflix account...

 

[Guest]

Did you check if there's a firmware update for your FVS338?

 

[Bill Griffin4]

The router was updated with the latest update from Netgear: fvs338_v3.0.5-24. It stillbehaves the same. Anytime I attempt to connect to the Internet through the LG or Samsung (a friend brought hers over to test) - the internet connection is lost, causing the need to reboot the router. This is one of those things that sends me crazy about the way technology is evolving. I'm guessing the router is sensing the players attempt to connect as a threat? I'm going to try and open Ports 80 and 443 by adding them as "allow always" inbound services. I'm also adding netflix.com as a trusted domain to see what happens. Can't hurt...

 

[Bill Griffin4]

Well I tried adding the inbound and outbound services as well as adding netflix and the IP address of the player as trusted domains. Nothing works. Only difference is that when the IP address is hard coded to the player it doesn't crash the network. At least that's 1/2 the battle. I also discovered that when this whole scenario unfolded - the original attempt to get the Samsung attached to the network somehow took out the Belkin wireless router that was being used as an access point on the wired network as well as doing something to one of the servers that now prevents it from connecting to the network. Haven't even tried to fix those situations yet. I can rule out power surges or the like as we have a conditioned line in the house and every device has its own ups. I may end up just replacing the Netgear equipment with another brand at this point. Can't really afford it at this point - but then again can't really afford the way things currently are.

 

[Bill Griffin4]

Well - this situation has been resolved - and I'm not sure completely how it happened. To summarize the total problem: Plugging the BD-P1600 into the network crashed the router and a Belkin wireless G router being used as an access point. The router originally had no custom settings - everything was default factory. I updated the firmware on the router and was able to regain connection to the internet on ethernet connections. The Belkin (router) access point did not function no matter how many times I tried to reboot or reset its settings. I should point out that all of the PCs had hard coded IP addresses and the FVS338 had DHCP enabled in case I needed to plug a device in. I had given up and then decided just to clean up the server/router area in the utility room. I unplugged all of the cables from the router to re-tie them. Then unplugged the router to move the power cord. I plugged everything back in - the router powered back up. On a whim - I plugged the BD-P1600 back in - and it worked. And the connection to the Internet for the PCs stayed. Everything worked. I don't get it at all. The only difference between all the other attempts to get this up was that I unplugged the devices from the router this time. Good news is that Netlix, YouTube and Pandora all work fine. PCs are as fast as ever. Does this make any sense to anyone? Even if it doesnt make sense - if you've been having issues with a BD-P1600 - try disconnecting everything, powering everything down and starting up. It worked for me...

 

[Guest]

makes sense to me if you did your own wiring like i did it may be possible that one of the rj45's has a bad connection and moving it may have remedied the problem i have had this happen many times. i generally allow up to 20 minutes for my system to stabilize once i connect new equipment.

 

[Guest]

Very interesting thread. I just purchased a Samsung 1600 blueray player. In my network topology I am behind a Cisco ASA firewall. The Cisco device also does DHCP for my home network. I have a Linksys wireless access point (not router) attached to the ASA. Also the Samsung player is attached to the ASA firewall. Once I begin to stream netflix content, my wireless network drops. I can see it advertised but I am unable to connect. If I plug my laptop in to the network with a wire I am good to go. Wireless will not work again until I power cycle all equiptment (Cisco Firewall, Linksys Wireless, and the Samsung player). This is very frustrating! My only assumptioin is to replace the Linksys Access Point. It is older G based wireless equiptment - isn't manufacured anymore - and they havent updated the firmware for this device in a long time. Any one care to comment?