EG4 Community Forum

EG4 WIFI Dongle Dro...
 
Notifications
Clear all

Breaking EG4 WIFI Dongle Dropping Connection

5 Posts
3 Users
1 Reactions
86 Views
Posts: 3
Topic starter
(@lunarlander)
Active Member
Joined: 3 weeks ago

I just got this dongle (v2.6 or 7) with a brand new GridBOSS it just got installed. I followed the steps in the dongle guide, and was able to connect it to my home WIFI and it had all 3 lights good to go. Checked the online monitoring and it seemed to be working. I then went ahead and upgraded the dongle firmware to (I think) v3, and that's where it started giving problems. It said it was successful but that it would reboot later.

When it finally rebooted, it then started asking for a password. The default password worked to connect to it locally, but then I get a pop-up saying that the default password must be changed or all other settings are disabled. Fine, go into the param page, but I notice that every time I go into it, it drops the WIFI connection and it reconnects, probably dropping the session between the app and phone when that happens.

As I go into the param option, it doesn't let me change anything in, it gives a "command not sent" error, or similar. It does let me see the default password, but not change it or disable encryption, or restart the device. I tried resetting it to factory default, but the firmware seems to be persistent, because this new pop-up shows up, and then it disables all settings, except the param option, which won't let me change anything. At this point, I got a resetted dongle, with a default password that cannot be changed, and because of that, it cannot be reconnected to the cloud because all other options are greyed out except the param option.

Any thoughts?

Topic Tags
4 Replies
EG4 Eric
Posts: 615
(@eg4eric)
Honorable Member
Joined: 11 months ago

Can you share a video or screenshots of what you are seeing on the EG4 app?

Are all 3 lights on the dongle currently on?

Reply
1 Reply
(@lunarlander)
Joined: 3 weeks ago

Active Member
Posts: 3

@eg4eric No, only the first light is blinking steadily. I did verify that the dongle did upgrade to V3, or at least it's reporting it was successful when I go in the Local Connect option. 

I'm sending you a recording of the looping that's happening. When I go into the Params option, the wireless connection drops, and I have to reconnect it. The Params page doesn't populate, or let me change anything, only check the default password.

I did notice when the connection drops, the second (cloud) light on the dongle blinks twice before going back to only having the first light blinking.

Reply
fkitzmann
Posts: 19
(@fkitzmann)
Eminent Member
Joined: 8 months ago

I had a somewhat similar problem with my GridBoss and it's dongle. most of the time it would work but sometimes would drop the WIFI signal. Determined that because of the position of my GridBoss, it was somewhat shielding the dongles WIFI signal to my router which made it un-reliable. Tried to extend the dongle by putting a HDMI cable in between the GridBoss and the dongle, but that did not work. Seamed to power the dongle properly but did not appear to pass the data to/from the dongle. In the end, I just removed the WIFI dongle and installed a Ethernet dongle. This fixed the communications issue. One other note. Depending on your WIFI router, you may be able to monitor the signal strength of the GridBoss WIFI signal, but because the IP address is not typically what shows up in your router, you may not be able to see the dongles IP address. Note that you can also do a local connect using Bluetooth, but that will only be for a few feet distance. It will give you access though.

One additional suggestion to EG4. Please develop an extension cable for the dongle. This will help to be able to re-position the dongle out of a WIFI shadow and allow for better coverage.

Reply
1 Reply
(@lunarlander)
Joined: 3 weeks ago

Active Member
Posts: 3

@fkitzmann Agree on that last suggestion. Also I'm looking into getting an Ethernet dongle as backup, I just can't find one in stock ATM. The WIFI signal that is being dropped at this moment is the one created by the dongle itself, and the constant reset points met to think it's something related to power or antenna but without opening, I won't know for sure.

To detect and troubleshoot WIFI spectrum, I can recommend WiFiman from Ubiquiti on Google Play.

Reply
Share: