What's new

AX80 Aruba VPN/VOIP won't connect

  • SNBForums Code of Conduct

    SNBForums is a community for everyone, no matter what their level of experience.

    Please be tolerant and patient of others, especially newcomers. We are all here to share and learn!

    The rules are simple: Be patient, be nice, be helpful or be gone!

jsmiddleton4

Very Senior Member
I've had a R7800 for some time. I work from home and use an Aruba VPN/VOIP client. Its not like a VPN server. I go through it to connect to my company's server. It has always been wired directly to my R7800.

It will not connect when wired directly to the AX80. I've tried everything I can think of.

But it WILL connect if I connect it to a switch and then to the AX80. Its like huh? WHY would that matter.

But it does. Checked a bazillion times. Changed cables just to make sure I didn't have a bad patch cable.

Connect to the AX80 directly, no go.

Connect switch to AX80 and then they Aruba VPN/VOIP device to the switch, works like a charm.

Again works perfectly with the R7800.

Ready to send the AX80 back but thinking this maybe a simple setting. Any ideas?
 
Just to make sure I wasn't losing my mind just went back to the R7800, connected directly to the Arbua device, boom, synched right up.

The AX80 doesn't even know its there. The port light flickers and then nothing.
 
It is going back. Maybe its just me and having unrealistic expectations but this is a THREE HUNDRED dollar router. It doesn't do what my R7800 already does? Something is being blocked internally of course. Why when connected to a switch it works? Whatever it is getting stripped out? Who knows. Back to the drawing board. Really wanted to like this thing, quad core CPU, etc.
 
So, out of curiosity, you connected it to the R7800 via any of it's LAN ports on IP 192.168.1.x with DHCP on Auto.

Then, with the AX80 on the same DHCP subnet trying all the LAN ports of the AX80 it doesn't get recognized?

But, using the AX80 with the same DHCP subnet, connecting an unmanaged switch to any of the AX80 ports, and then connecting Aruba to the switch, it works?
 
Yep. Makes no sense. I know the Aruba device uses IPSEC, etc. With the R7800 its not got any of the fancy VPN stuff built in. Seems to me the AX80 has these protocols messed up. I tried everything, DMZ, etc.

Why with a switch it works? Completely mind boggling.

In the past with RMerlin FW on an ASUS router those protocols can be individually enabled. I remember changing them and dropping the Aruba connection. I just don’t remember which nor the complete listing.

Just for kicks I’m going to try an Asus 86U tomorrow.

Not working at all I’d get. Working by going through a switch????
 
Yep. Makes no sense. I know the Aruba device uses IPSEC, etc. With the R7800 its not got any of the fancy VPN stuff built in. Seems to me the AX80 has these protocols messed up. I tried everything, DMZ, etc.

Why with a switch it works? Completely mind boggling.

In the past with RMerlin FW on an ASUS router those protocols can be individually enabled. I remember changing them and dropping the Aruba connection. I just don’t remember which nor the complete listing.

Just for kicks I’m going to try an Asus 86U tomorrow.

Not working at all I’d get. Working by going through a switch????

Did you do a reset to factory defaults at all?
 
Good morning. Yep. Setup, reset tried setup again, etc. New patch cables, all sorts of things. When plugged directly into the AX80 the port light on the router flickers and then nothing. The Aruba device is being blocked, something. Every setting matches my R7800, I double and triple checked. The AX80 is adding VPN stuff for setting up a VPN that is not in the R7800. Something in that "new" stuff is blocking my Aruba that is VPN like but not a VPN. I'm not technical enough to sort that out but I'll bet there's some commands that can be entered via telnet or ssh to address it. But I'm not going to tackle that learning curve for a brand new 300 dollar router. Is the issue one of those protocols? Some ports not open?

I also noticed things like fields for naming stuff, like attached clients, some of those fields name length is more limited than the R7800.

Not a big deal. But a symptom of a not ready for prime time firmware? Me thinks so.

Devices such as this Aruba work from home VPN/VOIP mini-router not uncommon. Netgear apparently didn't test them to see if they are blocking a critical part of the way they work.

My wife works from home too. Has the same kind of device for her work at home virtual office although its not the same make. Works but its also connected to a switch to have enough LAN ports in her office.

I can reasonably guess why the Netgear isn't working. I can not come close to understanding the impact of a switch.

Edit: Will be trying the Asus router later today with RMerlin's software. As I recall I can play with the settings on those protocols. I can at least identify which ones if turned off block the Aruba. I gave away my Asus 1900 otherwise I'd already have seen those options to be more specific. Will later today.
 
Last edited:
Its these settings in RMerlin's. Can't find a screen shot of them. These be them though. Could be some firewall setting in the AX80 I suppose.


  1. Go to Advanced settings -> WAN -> NAT Passthrough and configure as below:
    • PPTP Passthrough = Enable
    • L2TP Passthrough = Enable
    • IPSec Passthrough = Enable
    • RTSP Passthrough = Disable (Unless needed)
    • H.323 Passthrough = Disable
    • SIP Passthrough = Disable (SIP ALG)
    • Enable PPPoE Relay = Disable (Unless needed)
 
I know this isn't ASUS thread but works with the Asus RT86U out of the box. With RMerlin's I have to enable PPTP, IPSec and RTSP for the Aruba device to connect to my company's VPN server. L2TP/H.323/SIP Passthrough and PPoE relay can be disabled. Don't have to but wanted to play with the options to experiment. I have no idea of course if the R7800 doesn't mess with any of those options so it just works cause nothing is addressed and the AX80 does in doing so breaks something. But there you go. Works with Asus/RMerlin. Works with Netgear/Voxel R7800. Does not with AX80.
 
Check the ethernet link status indicators - if you hook up the Aruba to a switch and it works, and then hook it up direct to the AX and it doesn't get link, that's the problem.

What is the model of Aruba - I used to have one, and it was 100BaseT, not gigabit ethernet.
 

Latest threads

Sign Up For SNBForums Daily Digest

Get an update of what's new every day delivered to your mailbox. Sign up here!
Top