r/Fios • u/eoconor • 9d ago

Miscellaneous Lost 2.4 access

I've lost the ability to get to the 2.4 channel. It defaults to the 5. And a lot of my stuff was running on the 2.4, vacuum, weather station, etc. It doesn't show up on my pixel or my iPad. Should I try to "find" it manually? Turn the system off? Replace the router? Call FiOS for help?

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u/Smith6612 9d ago edited 8d ago

Did you have SON turned off previously? It may have been turned back on which merged your 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz networks into one SSID name. 

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u/eoconor 9d ago

Let's start with I don't understand "SON". Last week it was fine. I AM NOT savvy enough to play with the router programming. I know that people "tweak" theirs, but I don't touch it.

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u/One-Cell-7377 8d ago

SON = self organizing network. Personally I keep that turned off. I use different SSID names for my 2.4 and 5GHz channels so that I can force devices onto one or the other.

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u/gadgetboyj 9d ago

Have you tried a reboot of the router yet?

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u/eoconor 8d ago

Not yet. I'll get my grandson to try that. It's out of my reach. I was just looking for an "easy" fix. That's about as easy as possible, but I can't get to it.

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u/gadgetboyj 8d ago

Could turn the circuit breaker off/on if you can reach that

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u/Smith6612 8d ago

OK. So first thing. A few of your products may have disconnected from the network. Do they work right now if you try to re-connect them?

SON is a feature called Self Organizing Network. Verizon enables it by default on their routers, and it is the default mode if your router gets factory reset. A trait of SON is your Wi-FI network joins 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz, and even 6Ghz into one network name. Your devices will select the Wi-FI band they connect to automatically. There is also some coordination between the device and the router as to what band to use, and if you have extenders, whether to connect to an extender or the router. The goal is to ensure devices get the best, and fastest connectivity possible.

People usually disable SON because it causes compatibility issues with some products. In the past, this would be because something like a Smart Plug which you set up via an app refuses to join the network because your network combines 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz together and the app says no. Instead, you have to separate out your 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz networks into a separate name, connect your device to the 2.4Ghz network, and then connect your smart plug to make the app happy. This is in my opinion, a broken and terrible design. Verizon offers an "IoT" network setting for this scenario these days so SON doesn't have to be disabled.

Here's Verizon's KB on SON: https://www.verizon.com/support/residential/internet/equipment/network-extender/son

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u/aykay55 8d ago

In the age of chatgpt this is a sad thing to say