AirPlay, Remote App, Mirroring stops working daily, only works after restarting router

Question

AirPlay, Remote App, Mirroring stops working daily, only works after restarting router

I'm having to restart my wireless router every day to use Apple TV and Remote App control/AirPlay/mirroring/home sharing, even though the wireless internet connection works fine on all devices. What this means is I can watch YouTube, Hulu, etc., just fine on all devices, but Home Sharing, remote control (through app), and mirroring (through iDevices or AirParrot) do not work unless the router is restarted.

My setup: Modem --> iMac and Wi-Fi router (Logitec--not Logitech--in AP mode, DHCP off), Apple TV (x2), iPhone/iPad connected via Wi-Fi

For what it's worth, my uneducated guess is that it has either to do with DHCP handling between the modem and router, or some setting within the router changing as a result from the numerous Wi-Fi signals in range (usually around 10...I live in Japan).

I would be perfectly fine if I could somehow reschedule my router to restart on its own every day, but no function is available...even my router's time is f#cked up because it cannot connect to an NTP server for some reason...Could that also be part of the problem?

Any ideas?

Posted on Jul 31, 2013 7:05 PM

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Answer 1

Aug 1, 2013 3:52 AM in response to David Newport

I see no reason to consider changing your router at this stage, almost all correctly configured routers should work with the Apple TV.

Intermittent problems are often a result of interference. Interference can be caused by other networks in the neighbourhood or from household electrical items.

You can download and install iStumbler (NetStumbler for windows users) to help you see which channels are used by neighbouring networks so that you can avoid them, but iStumbler will not see household items.

Refer to your router manual for instructions on changing your wifi channel or adjusting your multicast rate.

There are other types of problems that can affect networks, but this is by far the most common, hence worth mentioning first. Networks that have inherent issues can be seen to work differently with different versions of the same software. You might also try moving the Apple TV away from other electrical equipment.

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Answer 2

Aug 4, 2013 2:52 PM in response to Winston Churchill

Reverting back to a non-extended network seems to have fixed the problem. Thank you for your help. I really wish Apple would at least warn against using extended networks...might have been helpful. C'est la vie.

Thanks.

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Answer 3

diesel vdub

Level 7

22,184 points

Aug 1, 2013 3:49 AM in response to David Newport

Replace the router. Sounds like the model in use is a steaming pile of crap. 🙂

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Answer 4

Aug 1, 2013 6:05 AM in response to Winston Churchill

I think you may be right...me be confused.

My modem (ISP to my home) is, as far as I can tell, handling IP addresses. I say this because when my router was handling IP address, my wifi network was 192.168.2.X, whereas now everything, including the cable LAN, is 192.168.1.X. This allows me to connect to home sharing without needing to turn on wifi on the iMac. From what I can tell, my router--connected to by the wifi devices only--is not handling IP addresses.

Is this correct? Or is there a better way to set this system up? The wifi router's language can be changed, but the modem is Japanese-only, and I can't change settings there anyway.

I changed my channel to one not being used (3), turned off WMM and Turbo, and thought I would try a long preamble for a bit, but couldnt find any MCS setting. Is this the N Data Rate setting (now Auto)? Any other setting I should consider?

As I had to restart the router to see if this helps, I will have to get back to you if the problem is solved or not.

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Answer 5

Aug 1, 2013 5:59 AM in response to David Newport

You might be confusing the modem side of things with the router side of things.

You should only have one router distributing addresses. I have multiple base stations on my network but only one device acting as a router.

From what you say, it sounds like you are running an extended network. My base stations are set up in bridge mode, my devices can join any base station but they won't automatically switch as I move around as they would do in an extended system, I have to specifically log into them to change the base station I'm connected to, although they will automatically join any of the base stations if they aren't already connected to another (ie when I come home)

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Answer 6

Aug 2, 2013 3:03 AM in response to David Newport

I've seen a couple of reports where the Apple TV appears to get confused with extended networks where it is able to see more than one base station. There is no word from Apple that it shouldn't work and indeed I've also seen reports that it does, but I've taken the view if at all possible avoid it.

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Answer 7

Aug 1, 2013 4:27 AM in response to David Newport

The router is a quality brand and model here in Japan, so I won't be changing it. I will try the multicast rate and will try a set channel again, even though it didn't help last time.

Could it be my modem and an IP address issue?

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Answer 8

Aug 1, 2013 5:40 AM in response to Winston Churchill

Only reason I mention the modem is that I seemed to have better if not less frequent problems when I used wireless only with the router handling IP distribution. I recently tried to put to use a cheapo extra router I had lying around and make my network two routers, one SSID, two access points, as I have a large house. This didn't work as i couldn't turn IP handling off for the cheapo router, but I decided to leave the modem as the IP handler and the iMac hardwired while everything else connects to the better wifi router. Problems have escalated since then, but I would like to keep my current configuration if possible.

Have yet to try adjusting the channel and multicast rate, but thanks for the input so far.

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Answer 9

Aug 1, 2013 2:54 PM in response to Winston Churchill

I remember looking through that when trying to make an extended network with two wifi routers. With that setup, I managed to get all on the same set of IPs and subnets, but for some reason the Apple TV/iPhone pairs would only work when connected to a specific router, which is why I ended up moving my router so that both could connect. My wifi router can distribute addresses, but I have that turned off now.

I wouldn't mind it if I could use the ethernet connection from the wifi router, but because of where it needs to be placed to reach the whole house, there is no way to run a cable from it. Also, my settings changes from last night seem to be holding good still this morning, which is a slight improvement. I will see if they still hold after work..by then they will have stopped working if the changes didn't work.

Thanks again!

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Answer 10

Aug 1, 2013 5:18 AM in response to David Newport

I'd say it's unlikely to be the modem side of your router.

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Answer 11

Aug 1, 2013 6:23 AM in response to David Newport

It sounds as though both devices are modem/routers (ie they can both be used to connect to the internet and both distribute addresses)

The problem with trying to make settings suggestions is that all routers are different, it's often a case of trying and seeing or contacting the provider, who may have specific information to help.

A router should distribute the same addresses over both wifi and ethernet, otherwise they become two networks and things stop working.

Whilst it specifically relates to Apple equipment the following article might give you a better insight into extended networks.

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4145

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Answer 12

Aug 2, 2013 6:14 PM in response to Winston Churchill

Well, as my setting changes did nothing to help, I think I will do away with the extended network and see how that goes. I'll put the router back on router mode, use the wifi for home sharing/airplay/remote, then just leave the ethernet and wifi on at the imac. Question: will I notice any decreased network speeds this way?

Modem 192.168.1.1

iMac ethernet 192.168.1.X

Wifi router 192.168.2.X

Wifi IPs 192.168.2.X (for iMac wifi, apple tvs, iphone/pads)

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