WD LIVE ACTING STRANGE ON NETWORK.. ADVICE... LOOSES Connection to PC

WD Legacy Products WD TV Live & Live Plus
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SO this is my network. Pretty Straight forward.

The Modem is my DHCP server (assigns all my Ip addresses)
The Entire network is Hardwired (with wifi for tablet access)
The Modem plugs into my 24 port switch.
The Switch has 22 outputs to 2 ports per room in my home.
The Switch also accepts 2 Inputs from my 2 PC’s (both hardwired to the Switch).

The Living room 2 ports - one goes direct to my WD live the other goes to my LINKSYS wifi router.
The Router does not assign IP address. Just accepts connections from wifi devices.
The ip’s come from the Modem, as the router acts as a bridge,nothing more.

The WD live in my bedroom is also hardwired to the wall CAT5 which goes direct to my 24 port switch.

Here is the issue…

The WD live box (both). Sometimes do not show the 2 computers from my Windows Shares.
I found that I need to unplug the WIFI router and plug it back in and then the shares show up?
I do not see how this is an issue. The Wifi Router is directly Routed on it’s own cable to the 24 port switch. SO essentally it is just one of 5 network devices hardwired to the network.

THe 2 WD live box’s, the 2 Desktop PCs and the Wifi router.

The other 19 ports just run to each room which has nothing plugged in at the moment.

Why does my WD live devices see my 2 Desktop PCs and stream content from them with no problem and then out of the blue stop working. I get a message the Network device was removed or changed since last start up.
I go to Network Shares / windows Shares and nothing shows up.
If I go downstairs to the living room and unplug the WIFI router and plug it back in the 2 desktops show back up.
I even plugged the Router into each of the 19 ports in the house and it doesn’t matter where it is plugged in on the wired network, after maybe 24/48 hrs of using both WD LIVE devices and streaming content from the 2 desktops, eventually I get the message that the Networks shares have changed and they do not show up any more and I need to unplug and plug the Wifi Router back in.

Any Ideas?

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I don’t understand why the modem is doing the part of a router and assigning IP addresses. Please explain. It is not how my home network is set up.

I will briefly explain my setup with my wired home and how things work very well and maybe you will get some insights.

Modem feeds router, router 4 out ports feed the 4 ports of CAT5 junction box going to 4 rooms. Each room has one or more gigabit switches for many connected devices. Home entertainment cabinet has two 8 port switches for the gear there. Three rooms with computers have a gigabit switch for number of gadgets needing ethernet; one room includes a WD My Cloud DL2100 NAS.

My router is a gigabit ASUS RT-66U. It assigns the IP addresses, and it is capable of assigning the same unique IP to devices every time it gets turned on and bases the IP selected on an algorithm it created from the MAC address of each device. All IPs act like a static IP in practice. No device ever loses the network.

My drives connected to the WDTVs were set up using the included Discovery program so sharing them around the network was not a problem, even as more devices have been added to network. I recently discovered a problem of having a drive connected to a PC that could not be seen by every device that needed to see it; including the WDTV. Problem was, the drive was connected to a hub that was connected to the PC. I removed drive from hub and connected it directly to PC and all is fine now. All devices see the external shared drive now.

Wireless signals for both bands are great throughout 2 -story house, and range extenders for both bands help get the signal to the far corner of the house.

Hope you get some solutions from reading about my setup.

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Modems are also Routers these days. In fact the latest modems are just as advanced as a stand alone wireless router. My Setup has been like this for years and never a problem. The Modem has assigned IP addresses to every network device and since the modem only has 4 ports I can’t connect the entire house to it without a large switch. So I am using a cisco Pro Switch. It has fed my home for years. The only reason there is a Wireless router is becuase the internal wireless of the modem is too weak to give signal to the tablets throughout the home. SO I bought a AC1900 which covers a 4000SQ ft home with 5GHZ and 2.4GHZ bands with no issues. The Ability for the router to be a DHCP server has been turned off. Basicly the router accepts a wireless signal from any wireless device and uses the internal security to secure each device via a passcode and that is it. Any device that is wirelessly connected gets it’s IP from the MODEM. Since both can assign IPs and act as a DHCP server, the fact that my modem has been doing it on my wired network for the last 10 years is the only reason I keep it that way. Turning off the modems internal wireless (due to it not being strong enough to cover the whole house) and adding a larger more powerful router does not change that fact. It is nothing more than another network device. The WD LIVES have coexisted with my network and the wireless router (in bridge mode - no assigning IPs) for years now. Only recently - the last 6 months have I noticed this issue. The Router needs to be unplugged and then restarted and then the PC’s and the WD lives see each other again under windows shares. the other reason to keep this setup is how the modem and such are set up. The entire homes network (every room) runs to my office. The office has 18 ports on the wall that all get patched into the Switch to keep the whole home connected. Also the Fiber optic only goes to this room hence the modem must remain in here and since I need the entire home to be internet hot, plugging the modem into the switch gives all 24 ports the same internet access as if you just plugged into one of the 4 ports on the modem. But I can not put the wireless router in this room. The wireless router, as strong as it is, will not properly cover the entire home with a strong WIFI signal. Years ago I used to have 3 wirelesss routers placed in strategic areas of the home to give the same wifi strength no matter where you were. Now with the AC1900 being as powerful as it is. I only needed to find a central point in my home where the router will cover all rooms properly that is the living room. SO the Router can not be in the same room with the modem / Switch. The Network itself in theory is set up properly. I just want to know why the router which is at the end of a chain not in the middle is causing other chains - the ones that go from the PC to the WD live to stop seeing each other. Unplugging it and leaving it unplugged or Rebooting the router both yield the same results. The PC and Wd lives see each other with no issue and streaming works fine. My goal is to figure out what the router could be doing that would prevent windows shares from showing up on the WD LIVE. Not change my layout.

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I know that ISPs (e.g. Comcast ) install their leased equipment as combo router/modems these days. So, your modem is not just a modem, it is a combo router/modem. You went to a lot of explanation just to say that. So, your router is not a “router” as such, it is used as a Wireless Access Point (AP) as well as a network switch it appears. Thanks for clarifying.

Since you understand your network so well, I have no other suggestion other than give the WDTV and other devices a static IP and see if that helps. Good luck finding your solution.

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Just seems awful strange that the “LINKSYS ROUTER”, yes acting as a Access point (thank you for clarifying that - I forgot the proper term - hence my long detailed explanation so there was no confusion) would prevent the entire network from talking properly. I just find it strange. Every Net Connected PC/ Laptop/ Tablet / Appliance /ecct all gets IP addresses. They can all see each other. Then things start to not work. DIsconnecting the Linksys fixes this and or plugging it back in, it then works again for awhile. I am wondering what is happening on the level of the linksys (as an access point) that just screws up the network so that nothing works. This is why I am here. Looking for help. Ideas?

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Yes, it does sound strange, if as you say, the output from the first router/modem is plugged into the network switch, and so is the Linksys that is feeding all the other network switches.

Do you know the WDTV is susceptible to (Windows) Master Browser issues? A lot has been written about it in the WDTV forums. Many people had issues with the WDTV losing network shares as well as I had them too, at first. A Windows network needs a Master Browser to act as the overall traffic cop. Master Browsers (MB) can change or disappear at times. Certain devices like PCs usually become the MB, but if that PC goes off line (i.e. turned off) all kinds of problems arise; like WDTV looses track of network shares. A network needs a constant, and permanent MB. Some network devices get screwed up by the lack of one; especially WDTVs.

There is a great article about MB and even a free program to help locate which devise is (or isn’t) the MB in our networks. I will give you the URl after this discussion. Running the program helped me track dow the issue when I lost the MB, but I did not know how to keep a MB permanent. Until . . . I turned on Samba shares in my router one day, and shortly thereafter I began to notice stability with the MB and it was because my router became a permanent MB; perfect, since the router is never off! Some routers even have a setting to make the router THE MB (the discontinued line of WD My Net router have this as a choice to make the router the MB.)

So, I lucked out and got one “accidentally” when I turned on Samba shares of my Asus router.way back a few years ago. So, you need to research both your routers to see if they mention how to make either router the MB. My Asus router has NO mention of this as a “feature” of turning on Samba shares. Who knew!

Here is the URL link about the MB and free MB program…

I really think your problem is caused by a MB conflicts/issue. Good luck.

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SO my Wifi Router (acting as an accesspoint) comes up as master.
I will bet you, you are right and that is why my WD lives loose connecting in windows shares.
Any advice on making something else the MB? I have 3 desktop pc’s that are on 24/7 and never get shut down. I wouldn’t mind making one of them the MB.
The Modem (internet modem) that assigns all the IP’s is the Gateway and does not show up on the list.
The only devices that show up are the 3 PC’s (desktops) and one laptop (wireless)
There are other Devices on the network that are hardwired for internet access such as 3 audio receivers, my WD live box’s, my Nvidia Shield and of couse many game consoles and wireless devices (phones and tablets)

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Agree, we are on to something; there is most likely a MB issue. What I don’t understand is why your first router does not show up here. Everything I see in my lan scan I also see in the PCs Network list in Win File Explorer (on both PCs). Here is a lan scan image of my system I made today:

You will notice something strange – there are two MBs shown, the one from my router and another generated from the WD My Passport Wireless (MPW) drive that is also concurrently connected wirelessly to my network so drive can be accessed anywhere in house (and can have internet access.) When I first noticed this dual MB years ago, I though oh no, TWO MBs; that’s trouble, but it turns out it isn’t a problem. Since the MPW is mostly used for travel, I don’t turn it on at home often, but I did now so you could see it in lan scan image.

So, items shown in order are two Epson ink jet wireless printers, my two hard wired laptops that are on, the MPW, the RT-N66U router, the WD My Cloud NAS and one of my two WDTVs which stays on 24/7 (my second WDTV shows up if it is turned on).

So, I do not see your WDTV in your image (must not be on) and when the MB gets bunged it is possible for the WDTV to become the MB (although it should not be a MB and is why the MB gets bunged). To get the full picture, ALL your network devices that is part of the network shown in File Explorer must also show in lan scan.

So, do this, and next time your WDTV blows its top, check lan scan and see what device became the MB. You also need to figure out why your Linksys is the MB and not the other is (maybe same reason my router is; because I have samba shares turned on in router.) Find out anything you can about MB capabilities for both routers, either in user manuals or online.

For now, to get a particular PC you want to be the is to turn off other PCs and reboot the router, and when you can turn on and access the PC, check with lan scan it is the MB, and if not turned off it could stay the MB (unless it goes to sleep mode). But, since your Linksys is the MB, what advantage is this? You have a lot of exploration to do.