Saved a bricked router with a paperclip and a 5 minute wait

Client in Phoenix brought in an old Netgear that wouldn't power on past blinking lights. Tried the usual 30-30-30 reset, nothing. Finally looked up the hidden recovery mode, held the reset while plugging it in, and got the bootloader screen. Flashed fresh firmware via ethernet and it came back like new. Anyone else have a router model that only responds to that trick?

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paulk895d ago

Wait, a paperclip? What exactly did you do with it, short the pins inside the case? I have never heard of that trick for a router and I have been messing with this stuff for years. The 30-30-30 reset is usually my last resort before I tell someone the thing is dead, so the fact that you got a bootloader screen to come up at all is wild to me. I always figured once the lights just blink and nothing else happens, the board is fried and it is going in the trash. Maybe I have been giving up on these too early this whole time.

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