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I have a Motorola SBG6580 router.

A few days ago, I noticed my wireless connection stopped working and the internal IP address I had for one of my devices stopped working, even though I had reserved an IP address for it. I later found it at a different IP address (went from 192.168.0.9 to 192.168.0.3 suggesting the router gave it the lowest available IP address).

My router's homepage (http://192.168.0.1/ for me) now has an Arris logo, but this didn't worry me too much after I learned that Arris and Motorola are the same company.

When I visit http://192.168.0.1/About.asp it tells me the firmware version and some other quasi-useful information:

 
The firmware Version is SBG6580-8.6.2.0-GA-00-131-NOSH 
The SBG6580 has been running for 5 days 04h:07m:18s 
The cable modem is Operational 
The cable modem receive signal is 657.0 MHz, 12.0 dBmV & 41.8 dB CNR (primary). 
The DDNS service is disabled. 
IP Filtering is configured for 0 IP addresses. 
Port Filtering is disabled. 
Port Forwarding is disabled. 
The DMZ Host is 192.168.0.0. 
The wireless radio is enabled and set to 5Ghz. 
The Wireless - Primary Network 5Ghz SSID is SBG65809F and encryption type is WPA2-PSK . 
The number of wireless client(s) connected 0. 
The wireless access control list for 5Ghz is disabled and has 0 entries. 
Wireless QoS (WMM) is enabled. 
The firewall level is low. 
Parental Control content filtering table is not Used. 

I have read other messages in this (and other forums), and the problem universally appears to be that Comcast force-pushed an upgrade to people's routers, so I contacted Comcast. They told me:

After looking at your account I see that you use your own modem made by Motorola. I also did not see that we had pushed any firmware updates to your account since your modem is self-owned. I can confirm that Arris is the same manufacturer as Motorola so I would recommend contacting the manufacturer of your modem to inquire about having them change your IP address.

While it's not clear that Comcast understands the problem (the rest of the message implies Comcast is talking about my public IP address), Comcast has denied pushing an update.

Before I contact Motorola directly, is there anything I can do to either downgrade and/or upgrade to a firmware version that doesn't break my wireless and IP assignment?

I've considered the possibility that Comcast's reply to me is simply inaccurate, but most of the online complaints about this problem date back to 2013, so I'm not sure why they would suddenly decide to push an upgrade. I've had Comcast service for months, so this isn't a question of them auto-upgrading when I started service.

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  • Some routers have a firmware roll back feature. Poke around in there.
    – Moab
    Jan 12, 2016 at 19:40
  • I actually went through quite a few of the menus, and couldn't even find a 'reboot modem' setting, much less an upgrade/downgrade firmware button.
    – user59328
    Jan 12, 2016 at 19:44
  • Try a factory reset...arris.force.com/consumers/articles/General_FAQs/…
    – Moab
    Jan 12, 2016 at 19:48
  • This will erase any password you set and return it to default, so be sure you have that, should be on a sticker on the modem.
    – Moab
    Jan 12, 2016 at 19:49
  • loathe though I am to admit it, Comcast (aka the terrors that the dark night is full of) is probably not at fault here. Also, note that cablemodems do have a limited life span. I've burned through one about every year and a half since I first got broadband back in the nineties. Jan 12, 2016 at 19:50

1 Answer 1

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I work for Arris. I'm teir 1 tech support.

Per docsis standards your service provider is the only entity that can push firmware to your modem.

What exactly is the problem? Is the problem that your modem is assigning a new IP to your device? If you want it to stay the same you can reserve the IP in the modem, this way the device will always have the same IP.

Comcast just recently did put out a big update to all sbg6580s that brought them up to the newest gui. I have heard a few issues with the modem changing itself over to 5ghz after a factory reset but I have not run into any IP issues since they did the update.

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  • Wow, thanks! Actually, after I did a reset (not just a power cycle, but an actual reset), things seem to be fine. The IP reservation is working as is the wireless. But thanks for replying!
    – user59328
    Jan 28, 2016 at 0:44
  • Unfortunately, if you care at all about security and sanity, you have to quarantine your modem/router and put a separate router between it and your network. Your provider controls your modem/router, whether you own it or not. May 2, 2017 at 22:02

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