ax86 usb error

[littlepopkaka]

On my AX86U running firmware 388.9.2, approximately every ten to fifteen days, the USB 2.5-inch hard drive experiences an error and becomes unreadable. At the same time, the HTTP management page becomes inaccessible, and SSH is also unavailable. I can only access the management page via HTTPS, and the only solution is to reboot the router. I've checked the USB 2.5-inch external hard drive on my PC, and it shows no errors. Here are the log files.

 

[bennor]

... the USB 2.5-inch hard drive experiences an error and becomes unreadable.

To confirm is the "USB 2.5-inch hard drive" a mechanical HDD or a SSD drive?
What is the specific make/model of the "USB 2.5-inch hard drive"?
To which USB port on the router is the USB device connected?
By "management page" do you mean the router GUI or a specific page within the router GUI?
How is the USB drive being used (be specific)? Are you using the USB drive as a NAS for the local network (media server, lots of read/write, etc.)? Are you running any addon scripts on the USB drive?
Have you tried replacing the USB device's cable?

Note: The general recommendation on this forum is to use an SSD drive if possible and to understand that the router is not an NAS. The router is not designed to be a NAS. If you need an NAS, best to buy or build a dedicated NAS and leave the router to be a router.

Depending on the drive usage one can see their router's RAM quickly expand to 90% or higher usage which in certain cases can cause issues with router performance or even possibly cause the router to lock up requiring a reboot. There are several other discussions that can be found using the forum search that cover how to deal with the router's RAM being maxed out due to Samba read/write when using a USB drive on the router.

 

[degrub]

large file xfers or backups can cause this type of symptom. If you need to do backups mount the drive at your device. If you need shared access to files, get a NAS or use sneakernet.

 

[littlepopkaka]

To confirm is the "USB 2.5-inch hard drive" a mechanical HDD or a SSD drive?
What is the specific make/model of the "USB 2.5-inch hard drive"?
To which USB port on the router is the USB device connected?
By "management page" do you mean the router GUI or a specific page within the router GUI?
How is the USB drive being used (be specific)? Are you using the USB drive as a NAS for the local network (media server, lots of read/write, etc.)? Are you running any addon scripts on the USB drive?
Have you tried replacing the USB device's cable?

Note: The general recommendation on this forum is to use an SSD drive if possible and to understand that the router is not an NAS. The router is not designed to be a NAS. If you need an NAS, best to buy or build a dedicated NAS and leave the router to be a router.

Depending on the drive usage one can see their router's RAM quickly expand to 90% or higher usage which in certain cases can cause issues with router performance or even possibly cause the router to lock up requiring a reboot. There are several other discussions that can be found using the forum search that cover how to deal with the router's RAM being maxed out due to Samba read/write when using a USB drive on the router.

I'm using an HDD for backups and download, and it's configured with SMB protocol and AiCloud, I've been using it like this for 2-3 years without any problems, but since upgrading to 388.9, I've been encountering issues frequently

 

[Tech9]

I'm using an HDD for backups... and AiCloud

Basically what was discussed multiple times NOT to do, especially after recent malware attack targeting AiCloud.

 

[bennor]

I'm using an HDD for backups and download, and it's configured with SMB protocol and AiCloud, I've been using it like this for 2-3 years without any problems, but since upgrading to 388.9, I've been encountering issues frequently

If you were unaware, the router's AiCloud feature has been an attack vector point (again) malware. Even though Asus claims to have patched AiCloud (again) with their latest firmware; because it's been the intrusion point several times now for malware it might be wise from a security standpoint to disable AiCloud entirely and use another method of remote access like the firmware's VPN server feature. Big discussion on the latest malware affecting Asus routers via AiCloud:

Malware damaging ASUS routers?

This malware damaging Asus routers has to be described in a sticky thread with a warning sign! Update: Asus is releasing patched firmware for multiple models. Check for firmware updates! The changelog for most firmware releases contains the following: 1. Strengthened input validation and data...

www.snbforums.com

One should also strongly consider disabling Enable Web Access from WAN access (on the Administration > System page) as well if one has it enabled.

Are you using the router's Download Master feature too?

If the router's RAM is being maxed out (90% or higher) due to attached USB hard drive Samba/SMB usage (drive backup and downloads), you might try clearing the router's cache (using SSH) as a troubleshooting step to see if that helps with your issue.

sync; echo 1 > /proc/sys/vm/drop_caches
or
sync && echo 3 > /proc/sys/vm/drop_caches
or
free && sync && echo 3 > /proc/sys/vm/drop_caches && free

One user setup a CRON job to clear the cache daily. See this link.

As always, if the router is exhibiting strange behaviors or having unresolvable issues it is often wise to perform a hard factory reset followed by a manual configuration. Do not import a saved router.cfg file, and disconnect any attached USB drive before performing a hard factory reset and manual configuration. Only reattach the USB drive to the router after ensuring the router is operating properly for a period of time.

[Wireless Router] ASUS router Hard Factory Reset - Method 2 | Official Support | ASUS Global

 

[littlepopkaka]

If you were unaware, the router's AiCloud feature has been an attack vector point (again) malware. Even though Asus claims to have patched AiCloud (again) with their latest firmware; because it's been the intrusion point several times now for malware it might be wise from a security standpoint to disable AiCloud entirely and use another method of remote access like the firmware's VPN server feature. Big discussion on the latest malware affecting Asus routers via AiCloud:

Malware damaging ASUS routers?

This malware damaging Asus routers has to be described in a sticky thread with a warning sign! Update: Asus is releasing patched firmware for multiple models. Check for firmware updates! The changelog for most firmware releases contains the following: 1. Strengthened input validation and data...

www.snbforums.com

One should also strongly consider disabling Enable Web Access from WAN access (on the Administration > System page) as well if one has it enabled.

Are you using the router's Download Master feature too?

If the router's RAM is being maxed out (90% or higher) due to attached USB hard drive Samba/SMB usage (drive backup and downloads), you might try clearing the router's cache (using SSH) as a troubleshooting step to see if that helps with your issue.

sync; echo 1 > /proc/sys/vm/drop_caches
or
sync && echo 3 > /proc/sys/vm/drop_caches
or
free && sync && echo 3 > /proc/sys/vm/drop_caches && free

One user setup a CRON job to clear the cache daily. See this link.

As always, if the router is exhibiting strange behaviors or having unresolvable issues it is often wise to perform a hard factory reset followed by a manual configuration. Do not import a saved router.cfg file, and disconnect any attached USB drive before performing a hard factory reset and manual configuration. Only reattach the USB drive to the router after ensuring the router is operating properly for a period of time.

[Wireless Router] ASUS router Hard Factory Reset - Method 2 | Official Support | ASUS Global

Even though I don't think it's a caching issue, I'll still try this script.. Also, for aicloud, I'm using Cloudflare's CDN protection. I don't see any issues in the logs. Thanks.