Apex SD card swap

Tgould · Jan 11, 2024

Holy crap I’m pulling my hair out! Lol
Apparently an upgrade or something bricked the base unit which, as Ive read, is a well known issue. Changed SD card out and apex seems to have come back online with all the appropriate colors and such but for the life of me I cannot connect this dang thing to my internet. It’s showing the apex setup is giving off its own wi-fi signal but will not connect to fusion no matter what I try. I need fusion to control since I no longer have the display module. Tried to type in the router numbers as instructed by a Neptune agent and get absolutely nowhere with that. Have tried the typing the IP address into browser as instructed. Have tried resetting, logging out of fusion, power downs, resetting router, Wi-Fi connection of apex, hard wired Ethernet of apex, nothing seems to work. I no longer have the display module which I believe I used in original install. Can this be done without the display module?
I have a ticket opened with Neptune but that’s gotten me exactly nowhere. Nothing they are telling me is working other than the SD card swap which seemed to do the trick but is useless if I have no control.
They did however offer to sell me a brand new unit at a slight discount because my A2 is discontinued lol
Anyone have any quick tips when swapping out new SD cards to get this thing linked back to fusion where I have some control?
Thanks

RelaxingWithTheReef · Jan 12, 2024

I went though this nightmare yesterday. I’ve been having what I believe to be an SD card problem with my Apex A2. Before I open up that box and try to fix it, I wanted to have a backup. It was my lucky day, and I found an A2 on Ebay.

When I powered it up, I had the same problem as you did. Appeared to power up normal, and it was even sending out the Setup network on the WiFi. I could connect to the Apex WiFi, but the webpage was not there. Tried http://apex.local, http://apex, and http://172.16.0.1. It simply would not connect. From the PC CMD prompt I did “arp –a” and the Apex was there at 172.16.0.1, but it would not connect.

I then tried to connect with an Ethernet cable. Still would not connect. In this case the router reported the address was 192.168.1.27. Same result, it would not connect.

Since I was only powering up the head with the power adapter, I had the bright idea the head may not like the missing power module. So I powered down my tank, and connected the new head. BIG MISTAKE!!! I still could not connect to the head, but when I reconnected my old head and powered up, all of the modules on my tank were reassigned new addresses. I BROKE ALL OF MY PROGRAMMING. My backups were useless, and there is no known way to change module addresses. Next thing I know, pumps are not working, tank is overheating, etc! No choice but to race and reprogram everything as fast as possible. It took hours!

Back to the new head that was still not communicating… I replaced the SD card, and no change. Finally, I decided to do a factory reset by holding the reset button for 30 seconds. Powered down and up again, and bingo, the device finally connected normally. I then updated the software without any problems.

I have no idea why the web server in the Apex was not working until performing the factory reset. The lights were correct, and it seemed to be running normally. I don’t know if there was an underlying SD card issue that corrupted the system. I just don’t know. But as of this writing, the unit appears to be a healthy Apex.

If you had a display, there may be something on the Network Configuration page that is messed up. I wish I tried that before the reset, but I didn’t know about that option at the time.

I am by no means suggesting you follow my footsteps, because you will loose all of your programming and graph data. You will have to start all over again like it’s a new Apex. This post if for educational purposes only.

As a side note, reefers have reported success in preserving their AquaBus addresses by powering up a new head unit without modules connected, possibly deleting old modules if there are address conflicts, and attaching them one by one in the order of the original system. The goal is to force Apex to build an address table identical to the previous system. If this is done properly, it may be possible to preserve your programming with a program restore from a backup. So always keep a list of the addresses for each of your modules. But caution, this is all really sketchy…

Fundamentally, the head gets linked to a module, AND the module gets linked to the head. If either side gets changed, Apex will assign a new AquaBus address to the pair, breaking the program.

With this said, I cannot believe Neptune would design such an incredibly deficient and unreliable system! I am sure their customer service is completely overwhelmed with people like us that have these types of very complicated and time consuming problems every day. The architecture of this system is very poor, especially for a “life support system.” They have dug themselves a deep hole of their own making. Shame on them!

Tgould · Jan 12, 2024

RelaxingWithTheReef said:
I went though this nightmare yesterday. I’ve been having what I believe to be an SD card problem with my Apex A2. Before I open up that box and try to fix it, I wanted to have a backup. It was my lucky day, and I found an A2 on Ebay.

When I powered it up, I had the same problem as you did. Appeared to power up normal, and it was even sending out the Setup network on the WiFi. I could connect to the Apex WiFi, but the webpage was not there. Tried http://apex.local, http://apex, and http://172.16.0.1. It simply would not connect. From the PC CMD prompt I did “arp –a” and the Apex was there at 172.16.0.1, but it would not connect.

I then tried to connect with an Ethernet cable. Still would not connect. In this case the router reported the address was 192.168.1.27. Same result, it would not connect.

Since I was only powering up the head with the power adapter, I had the bright idea the head may not like the missing power module. So I powered down my tank, and connected the new head. BIG MISTAKE!!! I still could not connect to the head, but when I reconnected my old head and powered up, all of the modules on my tank were reassigned new addresses. I BROKE ALL OF MY PROGRAMMING. My backups were useless, and there is no known way to change module addresses. Next thing I know, pumps are not working, tank is overheating, etc! No choice but to race and reprogram everything as fast as possible. It took hours!

Back to the new head that was still not communicating… I replaced the SD card, and no change. Finally, I decided to do a factory reset by holding the reset button for 30 seconds. Powered down and up again, and bingo, the device finally connected normally. I then updated the software without any problems.

I have no idea why the web server in the Apex was not working until performing the factory reset. The lights were correct, and it seemed to be running normally. I don’t know if there was an underlying SD card issue that corrupted the system. I just don’t know. But as of this writing, the unit appears to be a healthy Apex.

If you had a display, there may be something on the Network Configuration page that is messed up. I wish I tried that before the reset, but I didn’t know about that option at the time.

I am by no means suggesting you follow my footsteps, because you will loose all of your programming and graph data. You will have to start all over again like it’s a new Apex. This post if for educational purposes only.

As a side note, reefers have reported success in preserving their AquaBus addresses by powering up a new head unit without modules connected, possibly deleting old modules if there are address conflicts, and attaching them one by one in the order of the original system. The goal is to force Apex to build an address table identical to the previous system. If this is done properly, it may be possible to preserve your programming with a program restore from a backup. So always keep a list of the addresses for each of your modules. But caution, this is all really sketchy…

Fundamentally, the head gets linked to a module, AND the module gets linked to the head. If either side gets changed, Apex will assign a new AquaBus address to the pair, breaking the program.

With this said, I cannot believe Neptune would design such an incredibly deficient and unreliable system! I am sure their customer service is completely overwhelmed with people like us that have these types of very complicated and time consuming problems every day. The architecture of this system is very poor, especially for a “life support system.” They have dug themselves a deep hole of their own making. Shame on them!

Thanks for the info.
I already have the unit offline and my tank running with manual controls. Don’t even really care if I lose my programming since it’s really only running temp, flow sensors, and the T5 lighting fixture (which is already disconnected anyway). Wouldn’t be hard for me to reprogram I just wish I had that ability lol.
I’ve tried the reset thing many times. Seems to have no effect.
I’m calling Neptune to see if I can talk with an actual person since the email correspondence has come to a stand still two days ago. They were great for the first day then….not so much lol
Thanks again

RelaxingWithTheReef · Jan 12, 2024

Make sure you hold the reset button uninterrupted for at least 30 seconds. The light turned Red for me after about 15 seconds or so. I think it takes that long to perform this hard reset.

It may be helpful to get into your router and look at the address table to see if the router is assigning an IP address to the Apex. Then you can go to your browser and type it in directly. Make sure there is not an extra "/" appended to the end of the IP address.
Something like this - 192.168.1.16
Not This - 192.168.1.6/

Tgould · Jan 12, 2024

RelaxingWithTheReef said:
Make sure you hold the reset button uninterrupted for at least 30 seconds. The light turned Red for me after about 15 seconds or so. I think it takes that long to perform this hard reset.

It may be helpful to get into your router and look at the address table to see if the router is assigning an IP address to the Apex. Then you can go to your browser and type it in directly. Make sure there is not an extra "/" appended to the end of the IP address.
Something like this - 192.168.1.16
Not This - 192.168.1.6/

Gave me hope for a minute there since I’ve never held the reset that long to get the red light lol
Unfortunately it’s the same result.
I believe you’re right about the apex having the wrong IP address since I had to manually change this with display module when it was new (unfortunately don’t have that module anymore)
Problem is every time I try to connect to my routers IP address online it will never let me.
Keeps saying “Hmmm…can’t reach this page‍

Tgould · Jan 12, 2024

Tgould said:
Gave me hope for a minute there since I’ve never held the reset that long to get the red light lol
Unfortunately it’s the same result.
I believe you’re right about the apex having the wrong IP address since I had to manually change this with display module when it was new (unfortunately don’t have that module anymore)
Problem is every time I try to connect to my routers IP address online it will never let me.
Keeps saying “Hmmm…can’t reach this page‍

Been on hold waiting to talk to Neptune for over a half hour now so I’m guessing they aren’t gonna answer lol

RelaxingWithTheReef · Jan 12, 2024

Neptune is a mess... Lol

To access the router try:

https://192.168.1.1/

Normally Apex is set with DHCP enabled. This will cause the Apex to ask for an IP address from the DHCP server that is most likely running in your router. That's why you could go to the router and see what IP addresses were issued on your network. This address would be somewhat dynamic and would be subject to change over time. It's possible you set a fixed IP address and disabled DHCP in the Apex. In that case, the address could be anything in the network group. But I would think a factory reset would also reset the network setting back to default with DHCP enabled.

Try a hardwired connection to network, and access with a PC. You can launch a CMD window, and type “arp –a”. This will list all of the active IP addresses on the network. Do it with the Apex off, and do it again after the Apex has been running for several minutes. See if you can identify the Apex in the list.

After the reset you should also see the ...start... or ...setup... WiFi being broadcasted from the Apex. You can try to connect to it that way. With arp, the address should appear as 172.16.0.1

I'm curious if an SD card issue would prevent the web server from launching in the Apex. I'm going to test that idea tonight since I have my unit apart at the moment. I will post my findings.

Tgould · Jan 12, 2024

RelaxingWithTheReef said:
Neptune is a mess... Lol

To access the router try:

https://192.168.1.1/

Normally Apex is set with DHCP enabled. This will cause the Apex to ask for an IP address from the DHCP server that is most likely running in your router. That's why you could go to the router and see what IP addresses were issued on your network. This address would be somewhat dynamic and would be subject to change over time. It's possible you set a fixed IP address and disabled DHCP in the Apex. In that case, the address could be anything in the network group. But I would think a factory reset would also reset the network setting back to default with DHCP enabled.

Try a hardwired connection to network, and access with a PC. You can launch a CMD window, and type “arp –a”. This will list all of the active IP addresses on the network. Do it with the Apex off, and do it again after the Apex has been running for several minutes. See if you can identify the Apex in the list.

After the reset you should also see the ...start... or ...setup... WiFi being broadcasted from the Apex. You can try to connect to it that way. With arp, the address should appear as 172.16.0.1

I'm curious if an SD card issue would prevent the web server from launching in the Apex. I'm going to test that idea tonight since I have my unit apart at the moment. I will post my findings.

According to what the Neptune rep said, a new sd card is going to basically make the apex seem as “new” kinda like swapping it out in a phone. I believe you’re right on the router IP address issues. I think that’s the whole hangup at this point. I have to wait on a call back from a Neptune IT specialist next week that apparently is going to take control of my home system to see if they can figure it out.
Im going to try some of the ideas you mentioned above when I get back home. I could see in the configuration pages while talking to the rep that the IP address that were shown on the aled inside fusion was not jiving with the one on my router. Im guessing that’s the main issue at this point.

Tgould · Jan 12, 2024

Tgould said:
According to what the Neptune rep said, a new sd card is going to basically make the apex seem as “new” kinda like swapping it out in a phone. I believe you’re right on the router IP address issues. I think that’s the whole hangup at this point. I have to wait on a call back from a Neptune IT specialist next week that apparently is going to take control of my home system to see if they can figure it out.
Im going to try some of the ideas you mentioned above when I get back home. I could see in the configuration pages while talking to the rep that the IP address that were shown on the aled inside fusion was not jiving with the one on my router. Im guessing that’s the main issue at this point.

Of course, there’s always the possibility that swapping the SD card out wasn’t the only problem with the base unit too lol
Everything I’ve read about that specific production years A2’s said they had bad sd cards and tend to brick the unit during upgrades. I’ve also read that swapping a new SD card doesn’t always do the trick. Who knows.
Just irritating that I had the apex classic for years without an issue until it was destroyed in a house fire while this “new and improved” version I paid nearly $900 for a year and a half ago is already useless at this point.

Tgould · Jan 12, 2024

Tgould said:
Of course, there’s always the possibility that swapping the SD card out wasn’t the only problem with the base unit too lol
Everything I’ve read about that specific production years A2’s said they had bad sd cards and tend to brick the unit during upgrades. I’ve also read that swapping a new SD card doesn’t always do the trick. Who knows.
Just irritating that I had the apex classic for years without an issue until it was destroyed in a house fire while this “new and improved” version I paid nearly $900 for a year and a half ago is already useless at this point.

Weird part is the apex is broadcasting an “apex-setup” Wi-Fi signal that all the computers in the house are picking up but when I try to do a new setup through fusion and it scans for available apexes it’s not showing it. Just keeps cycling.
Wierd

Tgould · Jan 12, 2024

Tgould said:
According to what the Neptune rep said, a new sd card is going to basically make the apex seem as “new” kinda like swapping it out in a phone. I believe you’re right on the router IP address issues. I think that’s the whole hangup at this point. I have to wait on a call back from a Neptune IT specialist next week that apparently is going to take control of my home system to see if they can figure it out.
Im going to try some of the ideas you mentioned above when I get back home. I could see in the configuration pages while talking to the rep that the IP address that were shown on the aled inside fusion was not jiving with the one on my router. Im guessing that’s the main issue at this point.

RelaxingWithTheReef said:
Neptune is a mess... Lol

To access the router try:

https://192.168.1.1/

Normally Apex is set with DHCP enabled. This will cause the Apex to ask for an IP address from the DHCP server that is most likely running in your router. That's why you could go to the router and see what IP addresses were issued on your network. This address would be somewhat dynamic and would be subject to change over time. It's possible you set a fixed IP address and disabled DHCP in the Apex. In that case, the address could be anything in the network group. But I would think a factory reset would also reset the network setting back to default with DHCP enabled.

Try a hardwired connection to network, and access with a PC. You can launch a CMD window, and type “arp –a”. This will list all of the active IP addresses on the network. Do it with the Apex off, and do it again after the Apex has been running for several minutes. See if you can identify the Apex in the list.

After the reset you should also see the ...start... or ...setup... WiFi being broadcasted from the Apex. You can try to connect to it that way. With arp, the address should appear as 172.16.0.1

I'm curious if an SD card issue would prevent the web server from launching in the Apex. I'm going to test that idea tonight since I have my unit apart at the moment. I will post my findings.

Well I stumbled onto a little control of it anyway. Apparently the unit is functioning because I was able to somehow get into the admin 1234 page on apex local and put some settings back into it. Still no connection to fusion but it seems to be functioning fine through the local page

RelaxingWithTheReef · Jan 12, 2024

Tgould said:
Well I stumbled onto a little control of it anyway. Apparently the unit is functioning because I was able to somehow get into the admin 1234 page on apex local and put some settings back into it. Still no connection to fusion but it seems to be functioning fine through the local page

This is excellent news, and suggests you now have a healthy Apex head.

I do not use Fusion, and know very little about it. I will say that since you did a factory reset, you will have to reconnect the head to the Fusion server. There is a code or Token that the head generates, and it's used for this process. Sharing the token it with the server allows the server to identify your Apex "phoning home." I think there is a time limit for the process, so I would review the Apex documentation first on how to proceed. Maybe there's a Fusion pro out there with some helpful pointers.

Congratulations! Good work.

RelaxingWithTheReef · Jan 12, 2024

I have an interesting finding regarding the crazy SD card problem that I will post in the coming days to the thread:

Apex no graphs: my SD card fix with preservation of programming

This week my Apex graphs started showing up blank on Fusion. Here’s my solution to at fixed the issue and saved my extensive programming in case it helps others. As usual YMMV and do at your own risk. I knew of the SD card issue but mine is under warranty still. Neptune checked in and...

www.reef2reef.com

Tgould · Jan 12, 2024

RelaxingWithTheReef said:
This is excellent news, and suggests you now have a healthy Apex head.

I do not use Fusion, and know very little about it. I will say that since you did a factory reset, you will have to reconnect the head to the Fusion server. There is a code or Token that the head generates, and it's used for this process. Sharing the token it with the server allows the server to identify your Apex "phoning home." I think there is a time limit for the process, so I would review the Apex documentation first on how to proceed. Maybe there's a Fusion pro out there with some helpful pointers.

Congratulations! Good work.

Tgould · Jan 12, 2024

RelaxingWithTheReef said:
This is excellent news, and suggests you now have a healthy Apex head.

I do not use Fusion, and know very little about it. I will say that since you did a factory reset, you will have to reconnect the head to the Fusion server. There is a code or Token that the head generates, and it's used for this process. Sharing the token it with the server allows the server to identify your Apex "phoning home." I think there is a time limit for the process, so I would review the Apex documentation first on how to proceed. Maybe there's a Fusion pro out there with some helpful pointers.

Congratulations! Good work.

There was a link I believe on the apex local page if I remember correctly but I was too busy putting settings back in to worry about it at this point lol
I’ll check back into it tomorrow
Thank you for all your help
Appreciate the info.

braaap · Jan 13, 2024

So the only way to fix it is to do a full reset. If it won't do a full reset install a new SD card. 4,8, or 16gb. Once you get the red light stop trying to set it up. Connect it wired and go to apex.local on a pc or even your phone. Go in to network and disable DHCP and then assign it a static IP address. Then go to DNS servers and change one to 1.1.1.1 and the other to 8.8.8.8. You can also set your wifi info up to connect it to your wifi. Then you should be able to link fusion from the dashboard and you will be good to go.

RelaxingWithTheReef · Jan 14, 2024

braaap said:
So the only way to fix it is to do a full reset. If it won't do a full reset install a new SD card. 4,8, or 16gb. Once you get the red light stop trying to set it up. Connect it wired and go to apex.local on a pc or even your phone. Go in to network and disable DHCP and then assign it a static IP address. Then go to DNS servers and change one to 1.1.1.1 and the other to 8.8.8.8. You can also set your wifi info up to connect it to your wifi. Then you should be able to link fusion from the dashboard and you will be good to go.

Some users claim that Apex is more stable running a static IP address verses using the DHCP service in the router to obtain the Apex IP address. While this may be true, it is not a requirement to connect to Fusion. But, the static IP may address an issue relating to reestablishing a network connection after a power outage and restoration. For people with this interesting problem, a quick push of the reset button on the Apex appears to do the trick.

If you decide to configure for static IP, there are a couple of concepts you need to understand so the connection is reliable over time, and you don’t accidentally brick your Apex or your network.

The DHCP service runs in your router, and issues IP addresses to the computers on the network including the Apex when they join the network. The address received by the computer from the DHCP service can change at any time, and this is completely normal. This is called a dynamic IP address.

The DHCP service will issue IP addresses from a block of IP addresses specified in the router. For example: Start = 192.168.1.2 End = 192.168.1.254. This can be looked at by logging into the router, and looking under something like Advanced / Setup / LAN Setup / Router DHCP.

It is vitally important that a static IP address specified in Apex CANNOT be inside this block. If it is in the block, there is the possibility the DHCP service will issue the same IP address to another computer on the network. This will cause a conflict, and break the communication to the Apex! The Fusion link will be broken.

Avoiding this conflict is tricky, and there are a couple ways to go about it. One way is you first have to get into the router and see how it’s configured. The total range of available addresses on the network is only 2 to 254 (1 is most likely the router, and 255 is reserved). If for example DHCP Start = 192.168.1.2 End = 192.168.1.127, then you can use static IP addresses starting at the next address 192.168.1.128. My router in the example above grabs ALL of the available IP addresses (2-254), with nothing left for static IP. This creates a problem, and requires a change to the router DHCP settings to correct. Changing the End address to a lower number ex. 192.168.1.199 will free up space to add a static IP at example 192.168.1.200. Caution - It’s important to not take too much away from the current DHCP space, and always take away from the higher END address, not the lower START address where addresses are already in use. You don’t know exactly what IP addresses were already issued, and this can cause a temporary network problem that will require reboots if you take back an address that is currently in use.

Caution - If you are in Apex Network Configuration, and simply disable DHCP, the IP address Apex displays and suggests is the IP address Apex received from the DHCP service. If you don’t change it, it’s almost guaranteed to cause a conflict and crash the communications down the road! If you decide to use static IP, you must be 100% sure there will not be a conflict with the DHCP service. If not, you will soon be posting, “Help - My Fusion is not working!”

Braaap also suggested changing the DNS servers. DNS servers are external servers that convert names like Neptune.com to their IP address 23.227.38.65. The reason this is necessary is the internet works on IP addresses, and not the cute website names. The names must be converted to communicate on the internet. 1.1.1.1 is a popular free lookup service, and 8.8.8.8 is a Google lookup service along with 8.8.4.4.

The DHCP service in my router is configured with the Primary DNS = (my internet service provider), and secondary = 8.8.4.4. (FYI-This information was loaded into the router from the DHCP service my internet service provider runs.)

In my Apex the DNS primary = 192.168.1.1 DNS secondary = 0.0.0.0. Since the router has the IP address of 192.168.1.1, this tells the Apex to use my router for the DNS service.

Braaap’s suggestion tells the Apex to go directly to the external DNS services on the internet instead of going to the router. Both methods work, and this change is not required to connect to Fusion. But with Braaap’s method there is the advantage that Apex will continue to communicate even if there is a problem with the router’s DNS service.

As a final note, please be aware that messing around with IP addresses, DHCP, and DNS opens up the possibility that an incorrect configuration may not only be unstable, but may also brick your Apex or your network! You need to be really sure of yourself before you make these types of changes. Again, these changes may increase the reliability of Apex / Fusion communications, but they are not necessary for Fusion to work in a properly functioning network.

Hopefully this helps to clear up some of the confusion regarding these tricky topics.

braaap · Jan 19, 2024

RelaxingWithTheReef said:
Some users claim that Apex is more stable running a static IP address verses using the DHCP service in the router to obtain the Apex IP address. While this may be true, it is not a requirement to connect to Fusion. But, the static IP may address an issue relating to reestablishing a network connection after a power outage and restoration. For people with this interesting problem, a quick push of the reset button on the Apex appears to do the trick.

If you decide to configure for static IP, there are a couple of concepts you need to understand so the connection is reliable over time, and you don’t accidentally brick your Apex or your network.

The DHCP service runs in your router, and issues IP addresses to the computers on the network including the Apex when they join the network. The address received by the computer from the DHCP service can change at any time, and this is completely normal. This is called a dynamic IP address.

The DHCP service will issue IP addresses from a block of IP addresses specified in the router. For example: Start = 192.168.1.2 End = 192.168.1.254. This can be looked at by logging into the router, and looking under something like Advanced / Setup / LAN Setup / Router DHCP.

It is vitally important that a static IP address specified in Apex CANNOT be inside this block. If it is in the block, there is the possibility the DHCP service will issue the same IP address to another computer on the network. This will cause a conflict, and break the communication to the Apex! The Fusion link will be broken.

Avoiding this conflict is tricky, and there are a couple ways to go about it. One way is you first have to get into the router and see how it’s configured. The total range of available addresses on the network is only 2 to 254 (1 is most likely the router, and 255 is reserved). If for example DHCP Start = 192.168.1.2 End = 192.168.1.127, then you can use static IP addresses starting at the next address 192.168.1.128. My router in the example above grabs ALL of the available IP addresses (2-254), with nothing left for static IP. This creates a problem, and requires a change to the router DHCP settings to correct. Changing the End address to a lower number ex. 192.168.1.199 will free up space to add a static IP at example 192.168.1.200. Caution - It’s important to not take too much away from the current DHCP space, and always take away from the higher END address, not the lower START address where addresses are already in use. You don’t know exactly what IP addresses were already issued, and this can cause a temporary network problem that will require reboots if you take back an address that is currently in use.

Caution - If you are in Apex Network Configuration, and simply disable DHCP, the IP address Apex displays and suggests is the IP address Apex received from the DHCP service. If you don’t change it, it’s almost guaranteed to cause a conflict and crash the communications down the road! If you decide to use static IP, you must be 100% sure there will not be a conflict with the DHCP service. If not, you will soon be posting, “Help - My Fusion is not working!”

Braaap also suggested changing the DNS servers. DNS servers are external servers that convert names like Neptune.com to their IP address 23.227.38.65. The reason this is necessary is the internet works on IP addresses, and not the cute website names. The names must be converted to communicate on the internet. 1.1.1.1 is a popular free lookup service, and 8.8.8.8 is a Google lookup service along with 8.8.4.4.

The DHCP service in my router is configured with the Primary DNS = (my internet service provider), and secondary = 8.8.4.4. (FYI-This information was loaded into the router from the DHCP service my internet service provider runs.)

In my Apex the DNS primary = 192.168.1.1 DNS secondary = 0.0.0.0. Since the router has the IP address of 192.168.1.1, this tells the Apex to use my router for the DNS service.

Braaap’s suggestion tells the Apex to go directly to the external DNS services on the internet instead of going to the router. Both methods work, and this change is not required to connect to Fusion. But with Braaap’s method there is the advantage that Apex will continue to communicate even if there is a problem with the router’s DNS service.

As a final note, please be aware that messing around with IP addresses, DHCP, and DNS opens up the possibility that an incorrect configuration may not only be unstable, but may also brick your Apex or your network! You need to be really sure of yourself before you make these types of changes. Again, these changes may increase the reliability of Apex / Fusion communications, but they are not necessary for Fusion to work in a properly functioning network.

Hopefully this helps to clear up some of the confusion regarding these tricky topics.

Static IP address are 100% more reliable than the DHCP handling of the Apex. That is a VERY common failure point of the system.

Any decent router(anything made in the last 10 years) isn't likely to issue the same IP address twice. It will see a device with DHCP off and will leave that one alone. To avoid that just make it a static IP in your router. Problem solved.

Having a static IP will NOT cause reconnect issues. I've been running them like this since the beginning of the Apex system with no issues. Especially when using them with the wifi dongle on the original Apex units.

Messing with the IP, DNS, and DHCP settings in your apex will NOT brick anything. That simply is not possible. It could have connection issues if done wrong. But that is it. If you are adjusting these settings you likely have connection issues anyways.

I'm tired of the "they are not necessary to work in a properly functioning network" line from Neptune Systems. My network is likely far more advanced than 95% of Apex users here. And I currently have 4 apex systems in my home. Each and every one of them I had to make these changes because I couldn't even get past the wifi setup in their preschool level "app." It all comes down to Neptune's poor hardware choices such as a USB dongle for wifi and no 5ghz support.