ASUS DSL-AC68U requires frequent reboots

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CitizenErased

207 posts

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#207601 4-Jan-2017 17:12

About three months ago I bought a second hand ASUS DSL-AC68U modem/router. I'm using it with Flip's ADSL service. The problem I'm experiencing is the throughput on the ADSL connection slowly degrades and the only fix is to reboot it every few days (fortunately this can be scheduled in the router's admin interface). The clue is when I go to stream a movie and it sits there buffering forever.

Here's a couple of results from Speedtest.net:

Result 1 (before rebooting the router):

Download: 4.63 Mbps
Upload: 0.62 Mbps

Result 2 (after rebooting the router):

Download: 14.27 Mbps
Upload: 0.66 Mbps

I didn't have this issue with my old DrayTek router (same ISP). Also, I was getting closer to 1 Mbps upload speed on the DrayTek.

The ASUS router has the latest firmware update installed.

Could there be a hardware fault with the router, or is it more likely to just be a compatibility issue between this particular router and my ISP? The seller offered a six month warranty.

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Mad Scientist
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#1698493 4-Jan-2017 17:43

Do you know how much use the router's had? Could be part its use by?

2tapry

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#1698498 4-Jan-2017 18:01

Some suggestions (I've had this router for a couple of years now).

Just checking - the latest firmware should be 3.0.0.4.380_4162.

Probably worthwhile doing a factory reset - [Administration] / [Restore/Save/Upload Setting] / [Factory Default] and then reconfigure for your ISP.

Check your DSL Log - [System Log] / [DSL Log] for CRC errors and anything else that might look out of place.

Check your Traffic Manager Spectrum - [Adaptive QoS] / [Spectrum] / [Rescan] - the two graphs give good indication of your line SNR and stability - probably worth checking this at intervals to see if they are changing.

CitizenErased

207 posts

Master Geek

#1698523 4-Jan-2017 18:20

joker97: Do you know how much use the router's had? Could be part its use by?

Don't know. Possibly.

CitizenErased

207 posts

Master Geek

#1698535 4-Jan-2017 18:29

2tapry:

Some suggestions (I've had this router for a couple of years now).

Just checking - the latest firmware should be 3.0.0.4.380_4162.

Probably worthwhile doing a factory reset - [Administration] / [Restore/Save/Upload Setting] / [Factory Default] and then reconfigure for your ISP.

Check your DSL Log - [System Log] / [DSL Log] for CRC errors and anything else that might look out of place.

Check your Traffic Manager Spectrum - [Adaptive QoS] / [Spectrum] / [Rescan] - the two graphs give good indication of your line SNR and stability - probably worth checking this at intervals to see if they are changing.

Yes, that's the firmware version I have.

I did a factory reset when I bought the router in October.

No CRC errors in the DSL log.

Some other stats:

SNR = 12.0 dB downstream and 12.7 dB upstream
Line Attenuation = 11.1 dB downstream and 13.5 dB upstream

I don't know if those are good or bad.

I'm not sure what I'm looking at with the Traffic Manager Spectrum. Here's a screenshot:

djtOtago

1153 posts

Uber Geek

#1698538 4-Jan-2017 18:43

RE: Slower upload speed.
See if there is an option to select G.992.5 or Annex M as your ADSL mode.
Possibly found in the ADSL connection setup screen or somewhere in advanced settings.

Batman

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#1698573 4-Jan-2017 20:01

Question: are you doing the speedtest in Ethernet or Wi-Fi?

CitizenErased

207 posts

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#1698739 5-Jan-2017 09:44

joker97: Question: are you doing the speedtest in Ethernet or Wi-Fi?

Speed tests are always done on Ethernet.

Yesterday the router rebooted at 5am as I've scheduled it to do every day. At about 8 PM I started streaming a movie on my Apple TV and it stopped three minutes into the film, so I went to my PC and ran another speed test. The result was 0.89 Mbps download and 0.64 Mbps upload. I rebooted the router again, the download speed went back up over 14 Mbps and then I streamed the entire film with no buffering.

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CitizenErased

207 posts

Master Geek

#1698740 5-Jan-2017 09:52

djtOtago:

RE: Slower upload speed.
See if there is an option to select G.992.5 or Annex M as your ADSL mode.
Possibly found in the ADSL connection setup screen or somewhere in advanced settings.

ANNEX Mode is currently set to ANNEX A/I/J/L/M (this setting was auto-detected during router setup).

The available options are:

ANNEX A
ANNEX I
ANNEX A/L
ANNEX M
ANNEX A/I/J/L/M
ANNEX B
ANNEX B/J

I can try changing it to ANNEX M only if you think that would be beneficial.

2tapry

26 posts

Geek

#1698747 5-Jan-2017 10:14

It would be useful to capture the DSL Log screen and those graphs when the connection is "good" and when it is "bad" for comparison.

Does the [System Log] / [General Log] have anything listed?

It sounds like one of the adaptive settings might be winding down the connection for some reason. Try disabling them to see if it makes a difference: [Administration] / [DSL Settings]

Dynamic Line Adjustment (DLA)
SRA (Seamless Rate Adaptation)

and the ADSL or VDSL settings depending on your connection.

Painful, but it's best to try each seperately...and note any change.

This router has a lot of adaptive features - things like impulse noise can make it reduce the speed for stability - so perhaps consider your environment for electrical noise etc.

Jase2985

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#1698755 5-Jan-2017 10:39

when it slows down check the connection stats? do they mirror the speeds you are seeing? what about uptime? does it resync when the speed drops?

djtOtago

1153 posts

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#1698836 5-Jan-2017 13:31

CitizenErased:

djtOtago:

RE: Slower upload speed.
See if there is an option to select G.992.5 or Annex M as your ADSL mode.
Possibly found in the ADSL connection setup screen or somewhere in advanced settings.

ANNEX Mode is currently set to ANNEX A/I/J/L/M (this setting was auto-detected during router setup).

The available options are:

ANNEX A
ANNEX I
ANNEX A/L
ANNEX M
ANNEX A/I/J/L/M
ANNEX B
ANNEX B/J

I can try changing it to ANNEX M only if you think that would be beneficial.

I have often found modems don't auto negotiate as well as they should.

Try setting to Annex M, then reboot modem, It may take a few minutes to reconnect. If it doesn't just set it back what ever it is set to now. It will depend on what the gear in the exchange is.

If the gear at the exchange you are connecting to supports Annex M your upload speed should increase to around the 1Mbps mark. I have no idea if it will make any difference to your current slow down problem though.

To the best of my knowledge Annex M and Annex A are the only methods used in this country. But I'm willing to be corrected.

sbiddle

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#1698841 5-Jan-2017 13:37

Do Flip offer Annex M though? It's not available on Chorus wholesale, and while it's available on Vocus UCLL gear I'm not sure if Flip offer it.

djtOtago

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#1698850 5-Jan-2017 13:46

sbiddle:

Do Flip offer Annex M though? It's not available on Chorus wholesale, and while it's available on Vocus UCLL gear I'm not sure if Flip offer it.

In the OP they mention they got 1Mbps upload when using a DrayTek modem. So I'm just making an assumption that Annex M is available.. Wont hurt to try.

robjg63

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#1698864 5-Jan-2017 14:07

That sounds pretty annoying - obviously you dont want to be rebooting every day (or more often).

My thought is that its just crapping out - routers dont seem to often last more than 3 years or so (from my experience). They also tend to be quite poorly ventilated for some reason and especially in an already warm room in the summer they start to cook themselves. I had a TP-Link router that got really hot on top - I found some suggestions on the web about opening the case and making some extra holes (thank you mr drill), It seemed to run a lot better after that.

I also had a D-Link router about 10 years ago (all the ISPs used to give this particular model away) also used to run quite hot - after around 3 years it started doing the sort of thing you describe - slower and slower then disconnects around 5am in the morning. I was initaially convinced it must be my line or the ISP. After logging calls with the ISP and a lot of time wasting I just bought a new router and everything was solved.

My first guess - if its more than a couple of years old, its just faulty.

That said - I did find this link http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-2876563/asus-ac68u-reboot-schedule-problems.html Similar sounding problem to you.

That thread suggest trying the 'ASUS merlin' firmware - its an alternate firmware - not official but I have heard it mentioned before and it seems well supported. Link here https://github.com/RMerl/asuswrt-merlin

I guess you could brick your router - but it seems well regarded and actually pretty cool!

Nothing is impossible for the man who doesn't have to do it himself - A. H. Weiler

robjg63

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#1698982 5-Jan-2017 19:12

For what is worth @tent PM'd me with this:

whot a load of rot
re tomshardware.com

you cant use Asus Merlin on a dsl modem it dose not work merlin only makes it for routers only he is using dsl

craig

A public reply would be more useful - and yes - it appears it doesnt support DSL.

Nothing is impossible for the man who doesn't have to do it himself - A. H. Weiler

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