freenas and waps

mofosachem

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hello thanks for reading.. I just started using freenas... I really like it, did some research on my issue and have come up short. - I have plex running in a jail ( i manually created the jail following a write up)... i didnt use the plug-in because i kept getting disconnected when i wanted to static map the ip. I have the freenas on .200 and the plex server on .201 with the default port.

I have three waps that are static mapped - i live in a concrete block structure in FL. The walls are thick and each room has a wap the model is tplink WA801ND v3, firmware is updated. I never have an issue. When freenas boots up and gets going, after a while i notice the waps vanish from the router listing table and they wont come back on till i reboot the wap hardware. this does not happen when the freenas server is in the off state. if i static map my laptop it will connect to the wap allow me to log in and reboot.


any thoughts on this would be helpful - i am considering getting more advanced waps.

thanks for the time
 

sretalla

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if i static map my laptop it will connect to the wap allow me to log in and reboot.
I don't think static map means what you think it means... What are the IP addresses of your APs?

after a while i notice the waps vanish from the router listing table
What is the consequence of that if you can still connect to them by IP address (if I understood you correctly regarding static map)?

I certainly don't think it's normal to see FreeNAS knock other devices off the network, but VNET does put the NIC into promiscuous mode and it is spoofing additional MAC addresses, so perhaps it's your router not handling that well... What router do you have?
 

mofosachem

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The waps are
.2 .3 .4 ... static meaning on my end they aren't using DHCP to get the address
I have an Asus RT-ACRH17 which is .1
 

mofosachem

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Over a course of time the waps can't reach the network and I can't get to them from the router unless I set my IP in network settings then I can access the Ui web page of the waps I thought IP conflict but nothing is showing that
 

mofosachem

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Also a note the access points are down now but my main router WiFi is working no problem
 

joeschmuck

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I think you are going to need to provide a bit more information:
1. Screen shots of the setup screens for the APs you have.
2. Are you using a DHCP server and if so, what device is it? And what is the DHCP range?
3. What is the signal strength for the APs?
4. Are these in Bridge or Repeater mode?
5. Did you setup anything on FreeNAS for DHCP Service?
6. What are the AP SSID names?

Have you:
1. Placed at least one AP closer to your Router to see if it stops dropping offline?
2. Changed the channel?
3. Use only a single AP (turn the other 2 off for testing)?

This sounds like a simple setup issue with respect to your AP's. Off the top on my head the first thing I'm check is to make sure you only have one DHCP server running. So if you have DHCP turned on in the AP's, turn it off. Your Router should be doing DHCP already (in a normal configuration).
 

mofosachem

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i appreciate the time and community for looking at this.

before i conclude with the screeshots... i am new to freebsd some linux experience and heavy windows experience.

the asus router is dhcp for sure - freenas is not running dhcp although i was thinking of using that instead. dhcp on the aps is off for sure.

the only services on free nas running - smart and smb. I just powered it on with the plex jail down and i will let it sit and see how long it takes to act up 9:26am est i have the freenas ip set .200/24 name server points to router ..dhcp for freenas re0 is off

for plex its .201/24 with the vnet box checked


people are having the issue with the tplink access points in general but for me it only happens when the freenas box is powered on and not right away. i had it off for a month with no problem then turned it on

the aps are hardwired back to my wiring closet into a patch panel then from there into a gb tplink 8port unmanaged switch i have messed with the ap settings a ton..
 

mofosachem

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for got to add the freenas is in the wiring closet directly plugged into the routers port 1
 

mofosachem

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here is one ap details also noting the plex port is 32400 its all in house so i have no open ports on the router.
 

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sretalla

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Are the APs PoE? I wonder if your PoE switch at the cabinet end could be on the same circuit as the FreeNAS box, which may be causing power issues to keep the APs in good health...
 

mofosachem

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I was thinking the same last month and took them out.. the poe socket they give you is a joke - its just an adapter with dc lan and poe pass through .. as of right now i am running just freenas with out the plex jail running and everything is fine could it be the plex jail punching it with the vnet you mentioned?

I am trying to find the tutorial i used to create the jail and plex - i originally wanted to use the plug in but found the updates were hard to implement. I am a plex pass member. i would turn off dhcp on the plugin set my address and it will would work for a second or so then not deliver the webpage properly saying unresponsive.

I will let it run thru tomorrow without booting plex and see how it goes.

i have not updated freenas yet
FreeNAS-11.2-U3
(Build Date: Mar 27, 2019 18:24)
 
Last edited:

joeschmuck

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Well I need to ask a few hard questions and I'm being skeptical here because I think it works towards the greater good.

1. I don't see how FreeNAS (the application) can cause your AP issues.
2. Is your FreeNAS computer in a well RF Insulated metal case? RF energy "can" be the cause of this problem, I'm not saying it is likely the cause but stranger things have happened.
3. Are you saying that when Plex runs (just running in a jail, not actively streaming), you are having issues or is it only during active streaming?
4. You stated that others have been having connectivity problems prior to FreeNAS. Why not fix that problem first? If there are connectivity problems then those need to be fixed otherwise you are chasing a rabbit down a hole.

Now back to some help info for both problems...
1. Update FreeNAS if you can just to take it out of the equation.
2. It could be a vnet issue.
3. What guide did you follow to install Plex?
4. Do you have any other jails/plugins installed (running or not)? Thinking you might have an IP address conflict.
5. Try to disable Short GI.
6. Try to use a higher transmit power level.

Really I think you have two problems to deal with. The AP's not working reliably and then the Plex issue.
 

mofosachem

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No problem here

APs seem fine with this plex jail down - we might have found a culprit.


At first i was under the impression it was dying aps. Last month i did some searching saying these APS are the problem and found the info i included about other people experiencing the same stuff. it was just like my issue, I had these installed already for a couple years and they were cheap to start with. The others in the tp community did not seem interested or wanting to find out what is the cause on their side.

Sorry to confuse the topic at first with freenas - i love it so far very powerful.. i was just connecting the outage with the box running.

Plex Jail running in general seems to bring these aps down over time, i will let it run through tomorrow without the jail up.

1. Update FreeNAS if you can just to take it out of the equation. ( I will get this done)
2. It could be a vnet issue. (not sure how to get this worked out)
3. What guide did you follow to install Plex? (I am trying to find it now and i think i have to dump plex install and start over.)
4. Do you have any other jails/plugins installed (running or not)? Thinking you might have an IP address conflict. (So far only plex)
5. Try to disable Short GI. ( I will turn that off)
6. Try to use a higher transmit power level. (I had turned the power down by default its on hi) thinking that was burning it up and causing it to fail over time. granted i am not trying to reach this ap from the other side of the place if i am in that room i will connect to that access point.

i wish open wrt worked on them but i dont want to burn time opening them up in terms of software.. I was considering that platform.


The freenas hardware setup is in a metal microatx basic case nothing special
Processor:
AMD FX(tm)-8350 Eight-Core Processor (8 cores) Memory:7 GiB really 8gb
board is GIGABYTE GA-78LMT-USB3
 

mofosachem

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Noting that the plex jail was up all the time last month while the aps were going down. its only the aps too all other wired devices off the router work and the router wifi works without an issue.
 

mofosachem

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I am skimming the plex install search on this forum is there a write up for installing plex properly?
 

joeschmuck

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