Forum Discussion

TP4's avatar
TP4
Tuning in
11 months ago
Solved

Blink Sync 2 Module not connecting

Hi everyone,

Newby here.

I've just had a new cable installation with M125 and Hub3 router and I've been steadily getting all of my devices and Smart/IoTs connected (about 25 in total). The only one remaining is the Blink Sync 2 module for my security cameras, but it's tested my patience - I've probably spent the best part of 3 evenings working on it!

I've read the community post of the topic and have tried everything previously suggested (I think)... Disabling 5GHz, switching off the firewall, enabling the guest wifi, adding the MAC address manually, and every combination of these in between. But, every time the Sync module LED light goes red and the Blink app says I've entered the wifi password incorrectly (which I haven't). 

Any other suggestions before I lose the plot?  🙂 

Thanks,

Tony

ps I've changed providers a few times in the last couple of years and apart from the usual teething issues, have never experienced this issue before.

  • Is the Blink capable of connecting on the 5GHz band as well as the 2.4 GHz one?

    In any case you could try this

    _________________________

    If you haven't done this already - try it first - it helps sort some Hub3/4/5 wifi issues for some devices.
    Go into the Hub’s settings. Type in  http://192.168.0.1  into your web browser’s url box and login with settings password on the Hub's base sticker (or your own if you changed it). Then in Advanced>wireless signal >smart wifi - tick the disable “channel optimisation” box or the“Smart Wifi” box and save settings.  May be different pathways and wording on the 3 Hub types This (message 2) is for a Hub3… https://community.virginmedia.com/t5/Networking-and-WiFi/Hub-3-Wi-Fi-constantly-dropping/td-p/5391375

    Then, go to advanced>wireless signal>security, rename the 2.4 & 5 GHz network ssid's.  Just type over to change 'em to whatever you like and something that will differentiate them (e.g - TP4_2 & TP4_5) Try to avoid spaces and periods in the SSID names as they can cause issues with certain devices. Use the same password for simplicity,  Then, apply settings and restart the Hub.  Your 2 wifi networks will now be clearly separated - and you can then select the network you want each device to connect to… individually from the "available networks" list on each of your devices. 

    Note all your wifi devices will need re-connecting to the new SSID's and passwords.
    All things being equal, 5 GHz is always better/faster and subject to less congestion/interference (and is better for iDevice speeds than the 2.4 one - although the 2.4 one has the better "range" and will be needed when the 5 GHz drops out of range and some older/cheaper/dumber or “specialised” devices can only use this one. 

    You should also use a wifi analyser App (or Airport Utility on iOS) to check which 2.4 channels are being heavily used around you and move yours to one of numbers 1,6,11 that is least so, but it wont help if there is other interference.
    See if these changes help - you will lose any “seamless roaming” benefits but it may not matter and you can always change the settings back by doing a " pinhole factory reset " if you prefer the way it was - or it doesn’t help.

    _________________________________

  • jbrennand's avatar
    jbrennand
    Very Insightful Person

    Is the Blink capable of connecting on the 5GHz band as well as the 2.4 GHz one?

    In any case you could try this

    _________________________

    If you haven't done this already - try it first - it helps sort some Hub3/4/5 wifi issues for some devices.
    Go into the Hub’s settings. Type in  http://192.168.0.1  into your web browser’s url box and login with settings password on the Hub's base sticker (or your own if you changed it). Then in Advanced>wireless signal >smart wifi - tick the disable “channel optimisation” box or the“Smart Wifi” box and save settings.  May be different pathways and wording on the 3 Hub types This (message 2) is for a Hub3… https://community.virginmedia.com/t5/Networking-and-WiFi/Hub-3-Wi-Fi-constantly-dropping/td-p/5391375

    Then, go to advanced>wireless signal>security, rename the 2.4 & 5 GHz network ssid's.  Just type over to change 'em to whatever you like and something that will differentiate them (e.g - TP4_2 & TP4_5) Try to avoid spaces and periods in the SSID names as they can cause issues with certain devices. Use the same password for simplicity,  Then, apply settings and restart the Hub.  Your 2 wifi networks will now be clearly separated - and you can then select the network you want each device to connect to… individually from the "available networks" list on each of your devices. 

    Note all your wifi devices will need re-connecting to the new SSID's and passwords.
    All things being equal, 5 GHz is always better/faster and subject to less congestion/interference (and is better for iDevice speeds than the 2.4 one - although the 2.4 one has the better "range" and will be needed when the 5 GHz drops out of range and some older/cheaper/dumber or “specialised” devices can only use this one. 

    You should also use a wifi analyser App (or Airport Utility on iOS) to check which 2.4 channels are being heavily used around you and move yours to one of numbers 1,6,11 that is least so, but it wont help if there is other interference.
    See if these changes help - you will lose any “seamless roaming” benefits but it may not matter and you can always change the settings back by doing a " pinhole factory reset " if you prefer the way it was - or it doesn’t help.

    _________________________________

    • TP4's avatar
      TP4
      Tuning in

      Hi John,

      Thank you for replying, I've tried both of your suggestions -  separately and together (disabling “channel optimisation” and renaming 2.4 and 5 individually). Alas, it didn't work.

      I believe the Sync2 module is only 2.4GHz because once I separated the frequencies (by changing the names) only the 2.4 was seen by the module. 

      I've also got issues with my laptop periodically saying it's not connected to the internet despite it being connected to the router. I've had to reboot the router a few times today, so all in all, not a great experience so far.

      The Virgin Connect app also recorded a hub latency of 11183ms as well!

      Thanks again for your suggestions,

      Tony

      • jbrennand's avatar
        jbrennand
        Very Insightful Person

        Is there a good strong 2.4 signal at the location of the Blink?  If not then imroving that will help.

        And,

        Post up your Hub/network connection details and someone will check to see if there is a problem there.  In your browser’s URL box type in http://192.168.0.1 (or http://192.168.100.1 - if in modem mode) (DONT click these links) - and hit return. No need to log in - just click on the â€śRouter Status” icon/text at bottom-middle (Hub3/4/5) or top/right (SH’s) - of the Login page.
        Then… Navigate to these “data pages” and just copy/paste the normal “Formatted Text” (not images) 3 FULL sets of data onto here – 2 tables from the Downstream, 2 from the Upstream, & the Network Logs pages. Don't worry too much about the formatting it can be easily read & DON’T include personal data or MAC addresses - blank them out - if you copy/paste the data, the board software will do this for you (you may need to click the "submit" button again). If character limits are “exceeded” - just do two posts

        Also, If you haven’t already, set up a free, secure and “offlsite” - “Broadband Quality Monitor” to continually monitor the state of your connection and record any true network dropouts , latency issues, packet drops, etc - it will thus allow you to differentiate between those and simple wifi dropouts. It does it 24/7/365 and it keeps a visual record of any/all of your network disconnections, useful data to have to match to the Network logs (in your Hub settings) and also in discussions with VM - note it will take a few hours to start seeing a sensible picture - post up the “link” to the “share live graph”. Click the lower link (Share Live Graph) then, click generate. Copy the text in the Direct Link box, beware, there may be more text than you can see. On here click the Link icon (2 links chain to the left of the camera icon) In the URL box paste the link you copied and then click OK
        https://www.thinkbroadband.com/broadband/monitoring/quality

  • Client62's avatar
    Client62
    Alessandro Volta

    If your laptop has a problem with staying connected to the internet,
    suspect the laptop needs a Shutdown >> Restart.

    Our Hub 3 has very stable and compatible Wi-Fi
    provided we have the Security set to : WPA2-PSK  ( only )
    and use the following Wireless settings ...





  • jpeg1's avatar
    jpeg1
    Alessandro Volta

    The screenshot you posted has not been accepted by the moderator. That may be because it has personal data.

    Follow the instructions to get a live link that you can post here. 

  • Client62's avatar
    Client62
    Alessandro Volta

    Did you suffer a total outage of the VM service from 9am to 9:30pm as the BQM suggests ?

    • TP4's avatar
      TP4
      Tuning in

      Hi there, I was in the office yesterday, so imagine it was because my laptop was not connected to the wifi.

  • Client62's avatar
    Client62
    Alessandro Volta

    Your laptop should not be involved in the BQM process.

    It is important to configure the BQM to point to the Public IP of your VM Connection.

    • jpeg1's avatar
      jpeg1
      Alessandro Volta

      There's nothing to suggest a broadband reason for the Blink problem. It has to be on your side of the Hub. 

      I'd suggest you remove the Blink app and reinstall, then default the Connect device and start again. 

      • TP4's avatar
        TP4
        Tuning in

        Thanks for the reply. Apart from some reliability issues (when the family moan about Fortnite glitching and emails not downloading, etc.), I tend to agree. However, I've never had any issues connected the Sync module to previous routers, it's just been this VM Hub 3

    • TP4's avatar
      TP4
      Tuning in

      I see you're right. I was back at home the day after and the BQM still showed a complete outage (100% package loss) continuously. However, I had internet connection. If you have a look at the live link above then you'll see that it did it again for a significant amount of time over the weekend, but again I had good connection. Are these BQM graphs generally reliable?

  • I had a problem connecting my Blink 1 sync module to my new VM router. I solved it by **temporarily** disabling 5 GHz WiFi on the router, connecting the sync module, then later re-enabling 5 GHz. The sync module was able to reconnect after a power cycle without a problem.

  • Hey All.

    Having just switched to Virgin, it seems I'm yet another peron having issues with connecting up my Sync module and Blink system.  I think I have tried everything, but I'm hoping someone can spot something I am missing.  Its the Hub 5 and it was installed yesterday.  Connecting to every other device is fine over the wi-fi. 

    Anyway... So far I have tried..

    Making the 2.4ghz and 5ghz and visible on the router. I am trying to connect the the 2.4 as I know the sync modules won't connect to 5ghz.

    I have checked my password and confirmed that it is correct - I can log into any other device with the same one.
    I have changed the 2.4ghz password to remove any special characters.

    Reset and power cycled the router.

    Disabled the 5ghz altogether so it is just broadcasting on the 2.4.

    Power cycled and reset the sync module.

    The sync module is only a few inches from the router.

    Deleted the Blink System - I am now stuck trying to create a new one but I cannot add the module so I'm stuck without a working system.

    There is no vpn running on the router.

    Added the MAC address to the Fire Wall rules.

    The blue and green lights all flash normally on the sync module until it tries to connect to the network and then after a few seconds it turns to solid red.  I'm guessing this is when the connection accepts defeat.

    • TP4's avatar
      TP4
      Tuning in

      Hi jamiesmith78,

      I did get my Sync Module working in the end!

      Having tried numerous combinations of all the advice given by everyone on this forum and others, I contacted Blink and after a few days of going back and forth with them telling me to do the same things I'd already done, I got to the point where they advised a firmware reset - this (I think) winds the firmware back to an old version, but it will allow you to reconnect to your WiFi. Anyway, it worked for me! Their instructions below:

      1. First, unplug the SM and wait 30 seconds.
      2. While your SM is unplugged, press and hold down the reset button at the back of the device that looks like a matchstick, then plug it back into power without releasing the reset button.
      3. Continue holding that reset button until you see a flashing red light on the SM.
      4. Once you've seen the flashing red light, you can release the reset button.
      5. After resetting the SM, wait patiently (about a minute at the most) for the solid blue light to change back into a solid green blinking blue light pattern. This pattern means the firmware has been reset on the SM, and it is ready to reconnect to the Wi-Fi network.
      ​

      Good luck,

      Tony

      • Akua_A's avatar
        Akua_A
        Forum Team

        Hi TP4 

        Welcome to our community forums and thank you for your first post.

        Sorry to hear you were having issues with your Blink system. We are however glad that the issue was resolved in the end. We also appreciate the advise given incase anyone else may be having a similar issue. Please do not hesitate to contact us and we will do our best to help from here.

        Thanks,