Routers and Internet
June 4, 2017 12:01 PM Subscribe
My Samsung Tablet (Tab 3) does not connect to my home wifi router only. I have tried all solutions on the internet, but to no avail
I have a Samsung Tab 3 (2014 model with Model # SM-T310) running Android 4.4.2. This device does not even "see" my home internet connection (ADSL router on a local ISP). All other devices, including ones belonging to guests can see and connect to this network.
I am using WPA or WPA 2 mode with TKIP or AES encryption. There is no MAC/IP filtering as well.
Rarely, when I reboot my router, the tablet will connect but soon disconnect once I recycle either the tab or the router (power, charge etc). Then it will not even detect the SSID of my home network. Adding it manually also does not help (Network status shows "Not in range" even though I am standing next to the router).
I have been searching for solutions for weeks on end - not sure if its the tab or the router.
I have a Samsung Tab 3 (2014 model with Model # SM-T310) running Android 4.4.2. This device does not even "see" my home internet connection (ADSL router on a local ISP). All other devices, including ones belonging to guests can see and connect to this network.
I am using WPA or WPA 2 mode with TKIP or AES encryption. There is no MAC/IP filtering as well.
Rarely, when I reboot my router, the tablet will connect but soon disconnect once I recycle either the tab or the router (power, charge etc). Then it will not even detect the SSID of my home network. Adding it manually also does not help (Network status shows "Not in range" even though I am standing next to the router).
I have been searching for solutions for weeks on end - not sure if its the tab or the router.
Just to be clear can your tablet connect to wifi other than your home network?
posted by srboisvert at 6:49 PM on June 4, 2017
posted by srboisvert at 6:49 PM on June 4, 2017
Response by poster: @Devonian: I think factory reset is the route I may have to take, since none of the other solutions are working.
It connects to networks where I have done a "Forget network" and then do a rescan to find it and then re-connect. It also connects to my mobile hotspot as well.
@srboisvert: Yes, it connects to other networks except my home router.
Very weird situation - my tablet connects to all other networks except the home wifi, while all other devices connect to my wifi except this one.
Is there a hidden block of the Mac or device by the router that I am not seeing?
posted by theobserver at 9:28 PM on June 4, 2017
It connects to networks where I have done a "Forget network" and then do a rescan to find it and then re-connect. It also connects to my mobile hotspot as well.
@srboisvert: Yes, it connects to other networks except my home router.
Very weird situation - my tablet connects to all other networks except the home wifi, while all other devices connect to my wifi except this one.
Is there a hidden block of the Mac or device by the router that I am not seeing?
posted by theobserver at 9:28 PM on June 4, 2017
Is there any chance your router is set to 802.11n only, and your tablet can't do n? I had this problem with a couple of older devices lately when I switched my router to 802.11n only.
posted by praemunire at 11:03 PM on June 4, 2017
posted by praemunire at 11:03 PM on June 4, 2017
Response by poster: @praemunire: As per the specs in the manual, the tablet supports 802.11 a/b/g/n, so not sure if thats the problem.
posted by theobserver at 2:49 AM on June 5, 2017
posted by theobserver at 2:49 AM on June 5, 2017
I am using WPA or WPA 2 mode with TKIP or AES encryption.
Just to nail things down a bit and get rid of some variability as well as improve security, you should restrict that router to WPA2 and AES. You're unlikely to find any current Wifi-capable device that won't handle WPA2/AES; if you do, it should have been upgraded about a decade ago.
I have seen a lot of squirrelly Wifi issues with Android machines. Most of them went away after a full power down and startup cycle but some didn't. Of those, I've seen one get fixed with a factory reset, one get fixed with an Android upgrade, and one get fixed by having the hardware replaced under warranty.
If your Wifi router has a feature called "band steering" you might want to try setting up a SSID that has that feature turned off (or turn it off globally if you can't create multiple SSIDs). I've seen Android machines get in a big snit and refuse to play nice after an access point has attempted to kick them off a 2.4GHz channel in favour of a 5GHz one. My own home WAP runs three SSIDs (myhouse with band steering turned on, myhouse-24 on 2.4GHz only and myhouse-5 on 5GHz only) for that reason.
posted by flabdablet at 6:55 AM on June 5, 2017
Just to nail things down a bit and get rid of some variability as well as improve security, you should restrict that router to WPA2 and AES. You're unlikely to find any current Wifi-capable device that won't handle WPA2/AES; if you do, it should have been upgraded about a decade ago.
I have seen a lot of squirrelly Wifi issues with Android machines. Most of them went away after a full power down and startup cycle but some didn't. Of those, I've seen one get fixed with a factory reset, one get fixed with an Android upgrade, and one get fixed by having the hardware replaced under warranty.
If your Wifi router has a feature called "band steering" you might want to try setting up a SSID that has that feature turned off (or turn it off globally if you can't create multiple SSIDs). I've seen Android machines get in a big snit and refuse to play nice after an access point has attempted to kick them off a 2.4GHz channel in favour of a 5GHz one. My own home WAP runs three SSIDs (myhouse with band steering turned on, myhouse-24 on 2.4GHz only and myhouse-5 on 5GHz only) for that reason.
posted by flabdablet at 6:55 AM on June 5, 2017
Response by poster: @fladablet - Good points. Let me try them and report back.
posted by theobserver at 11:04 AM on June 5, 2017
posted by theobserver at 11:04 AM on June 5, 2017
Oh well, if your tablet connects to other networks it's clearly not hardware.
At this point, I'd just factory-reset the router itself and reconfigure it from scratch with the suggested settings above, but I'd be more suspicious that the tablet's own wifi stack is broken and it's factory-reset time there. I've seen Android phones display that sort of capricious behaviour towards a particular router before, and gone mad trying to find out why.
(Had to completely re-install on my main phone the other week due to its mobile hotspot just Not Working, despite looking like it was on the phone - there just aren't any diagnostic tools or processes for digging around at any sort of depth; on my desktop, there are lots of ways to uninstall or reconfigure or even get diagnostics from drivers and other low-level systems: on Android, unless you are an active developer with well-instrumented dev tools, there ain't, and I don't like it one bit.)
posted by Devonian at 2:13 PM on June 5, 2017
At this point, I'd just factory-reset the router itself and reconfigure it from scratch with the suggested settings above, but I'd be more suspicious that the tablet's own wifi stack is broken and it's factory-reset time there. I've seen Android phones display that sort of capricious behaviour towards a particular router before, and gone mad trying to find out why.
(Had to completely re-install on my main phone the other week due to its mobile hotspot just Not Working, despite looking like it was on the phone - there just aren't any diagnostic tools or processes for digging around at any sort of depth; on my desktop, there are lots of ways to uninstall or reconfigure or even get diagnostics from drivers and other low-level systems: on Android, unless you are an active developer with well-instrumented dev tools, there ain't, and I don't like it one bit.)
posted by Devonian at 2:13 PM on June 5, 2017
Response by poster: @fladablet and Devonian: I did a factory reset of the tablet and... it still doesn't recognize my home router!
I think its the router now - the tablet is not even able to detect the SSID of my router!
Not sure if factory-rest of the router is the last option now.
posted by theobserver at 8:46 PM on June 5, 2017
I think its the router now - the tablet is not even able to detect the SSID of my router!
Not sure if factory-rest of the router is the last option now.
posted by theobserver at 8:46 PM on June 5, 2017
Can you view the logs on your router and see if is logging anything when you log on and then quickly lose the connection?
posted by srboisvert at 9:34 AM on June 6, 2017
posted by srboisvert at 9:34 AM on June 6, 2017
Response by poster: Just in case someone comes to this thread:
I found the issue: it was caused by Network AP isolation. From a theoretical perspective, each device on the network can use the internet but not communicate with other. However, in this case, the device was not even seeing/connecting to the router.
A quick link to the AP Isolation feature description - https://www.howtogeek.com/179089/lock-down-your-wi-fi-network-with-your-routers-wireless-isolation-option/
posted by theobserver at 7:17 PM on August 31, 2017 [1 favorite]
I found the issue: it was caused by Network AP isolation. From a theoretical perspective, each device on the network can use the internet but not communicate with other. However, in this case, the device was not even seeing/connecting to the router.
A quick link to the AP Isolation feature description - https://www.howtogeek.com/179089/lock-down-your-wi-fi-network-with-your-routers-wireless-isolation-option/
posted by theobserver at 7:17 PM on August 31, 2017 [1 favorite]
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I don't know the Tab 3's internals are like, but it's not unknown for wifi to go very deaf on mobile devices fora number of reasons, including a fracture in the connection to the antenna at some point. That can lead to situations where something just about works for a bit, but when the unit warms up or is flexed, everything stops. This is usually easy to repair for someone who's done it before.
On the other hand, running Android 4.4.2 may not be a good idea, so perhaps the wireless gods are hinting that it's a good time to consider a more modern device. (I say this, and I run Android 4 on a couple of devices here, but not with any sensitive credentials or access privs on them - one old phone isn't even on wi-fi and has an expired SIM, I use it as a music player.)
posted by Devonian at 12:43 PM on June 4, 2017