Fios Connection and Interface Issues Specifically with Peloton Bike

[cdb91911]

Hi everyone, my wife and I have recently experienced substantially slower connection on our Peloton Bike and are nearly positive it is being caused by an interfacing issue between our G3100 Verizon Fios router and Peloton's software--with Verizon seeming to cause the issue. Our bike only recently started behaving this way, and operated with no issues before this began occurring approximately 30-45 days ago. We purchased this router in July 2021 and have used it since with no major issues.

Problem description: The bike monitor takes up to 15 minutes to simply load a new page and or to start streaming a workout. This makes the bike effectively not functional. We consistently receive normal-looking upload and download speeds when we run the bike software's native speed test (>100 mbps), suggesting that we shouldn't be having any issues with loading or streaming. Despite the good looking numbers, it takes forever to load anything. All other devices connected to our router work without issues.

Troubleshooting Process:

-Yes, we turned the bike monitor and the router off and back on.

-We originally assumed this was caused strictly by a buggy Peloton software update.

-After calling Peloton, they suggested updating our software, which did not fix the issue (and took an exceptionally long time).

-Peloton then sent us a new monitor to install on the bike. This did not fix the problem either.

-Peloton sent a tech to our house, who immediately recognized this problem as one that he has seen at many houses across the Maryland, DC, and Virginia areas. He noted that he has only seen it occur to users with Verizon internet, and told us there wasn't anything he'd be able to do to fix it.

-The Peloton tech suggested seeing if the problem would resolve itself by using an ethernet cable to directly connect the Peloton to our router. He had been told that some Peloton users had success with this, but that it was not guaranteed. Connecting our router to the Peloton via ethernet did not improve our speed,

-He also urged us to try using our phone hotspots. The bike works properly and at near-normal speeds when connected to a hotspot, suggesting that something is wrong with our Fios router's ability to interface with Peloton and that this is not an issue with the bike software.

-We then called Verizon to see if they had observed similar complaints elsewhere. The technical support representative was unaware of any other instances of this issue. We requested multiple times that this issue be routed to Verizon corporate for further exploration.

-After 45 minutes of troubleshooting (yes, we tried switching off self-organizing network and connecting to only one bandwidth) and repeatedly telling the tech that the problem was neither the bike nor the speed of our 200 mbps plan, the technical support representative suggested directly connecting our Peloton to the Optical Network Terminal via the ethernet cable that extends from it. This yielded perfect performance with no lag whatsoever, isolating the problem to our Fios router and confirming that the problem is being caused by some interfacing issue caused by Verizon.

-The tech then told us that our only options were to purchase a new router for $400 or to rent a new router despite us having already paid in full for our previous router.

Is this really how Verizon is going to handle this issue? It is going to make its loyal customers (we have Verizon cell service too) pay for something that is clearly a technical issue on its end? I purchased our router because I trusted Verizon to build it to work properly and because I expected it to last a reasonably long time.

Is anyone in Verizon headquarters aware of and working on this problem? If not, can someone please investigate this issue with Peloton?

[Cang_Household]

Did you receive IPv6 recently?

Also, please find our what network interface card is used by your device having problem with page loading.

Intel NICs are known to have problems with the recent VZ IPv6 rollout. Other brands' NICs are not affected by the rollout. The solution seems to be replacing all Intel NICs or the motherboards that use the Intel NICs.

[cdb91911]

Thanks for the help! To my understanding we’ve not received IPv6 (we do not have an IPv6 address assigned to our device). Any other thoughts? 

[Cang_Household]

Do you mean you don't have an IPv6 address assigned to the Peloton Bike, or you don't have any devices assigned an IPv6 at home? It seems like you are from a IPv6-enabled region. It could be Peloton Bike monitor does not support IPv6 and hence you don't see an IPv6 address. This is a problem as VZ and the majority of Internet resources will completely move on to IPv6 from IPv4 soon. (Any Internet connected device should support IPv6 by now as it has became a RFC standard for more than 20 years. Designing otherwise is not future proof).

The best way to check this is logging into the VZ router and check the home page status to see if you have an IPv6 WAN address assigned.

[cdb91911]

It seems like you might have identified the issue here. When I log into my router, under the "System Status" Broadband IPv6 column, I see Status: "Connected" and an assigned IPv6 Address, Link-Local Address, and IPv6 Default Gateway, but IPv6 DNS Address 1 and Address 2 are both empty. Does that tell you anything?

[Cang_Household]

IPv6 DNS fields should be empty as VZ has not configured DNSv6 servers. You could use Google's Public DNS servers. This alone is not sufficient to cause the problem you are seeing. It is more likely than not that the Peloton's network interface does not support IPv6 and this may be the root cause of the issue you are seeing.

Right now, VZ is providing both IPv6 and IPv4 in a dual-stack implementation fashion. When IPv6 and IPv4 are both present, network devices virtually always opt for IPv6 first as it is a newer and better Internet protocol. If IPv6 fails, then the devices would fall back to IPv4. There's a delay when performing the fall back.

There is also the Intel NIC problem with Nokia ONT appending data in an IPv6 packet (unverified). Intel NICs are known to drop packets when Nokia ONTs append data in IPv6. The Nokia ONT behavior is not verified by any ISPs, and other brand's NIC does not have this problem with Nokia ONT. This could simply be Intel trying to deflect blame to the ISPs and ONT vendors.

So the OP, please go back to Peloton support and ask whether their product supports IPv6, if so, what Ethernet NIC or PHY is used in the product. If the NIC/PHY is made of Intel, whether the TCP/UDP Checksum offload for IPv6 could be disabled. If they are unable to provide information regarding any of the questions above, or the answer is a no to any of the questions above, then there are only two solutions 1) not use the Peloton bike monitor OR 2) not use the IPv6. Not using IPv6 would be a problem in the future as even US government networks will be converted to IPv6-only (https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/M-21-07.pdf ). You may unable to access websites, including government websites in the future for not using IPv6.

[cdb91911]

Your help has been excellent, thank you! I’ll post back here with any updates. 

[NJrunningDad]

Hello - I am having the same exact issue.

 I'm a Fios customer in NJ. Peloton Tread is connected to wifi with Excellent signal strength. Ran a speed test from the tread. 170 up and 250 down. Called Verizon and they're sending me a new router and Peloton is sending a new screen. But it sounds like neither will resolve the issue. Interestingly, all iOS and wired devices are running fine. But Samsung phone is having a similar lag issue (takes a few minutes to download pictures and video thumbnails in apps like Twitter and Weather).

Please let me know if you solve this.

[NJrunningDad]

Disable IPv6 on your router. I did that and everything worked. Clearly Peloton is not aware of this since they gave you a new display and offered to send me one.

[Cang_Household]

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@NJrunningDad wrote:

Disable IPv6 on your router. I did that and everything worked. Clearly Peloton is not aware of this since they gave you a new display and offered to send me one.

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This is definitely the wrong answer. You should not disable new technology just for the sake of accommodating legacy devices. If Peloton monitor does not support IPv6, it is a legacy device no matter it was designed 10 years ago or tomorrow.

IPv6 was consolidated as a standard since 1999. There should not be any excuse not to implement its support in 2022.

[LingT]

Can someone please share the steps on how to disable IPv6 on the router?

[rbcole123]

We are having the same problem here in NJ, started in late August. Fios router, fast internet. Peloton takes forever to connect if at all. On my Samsung Galaxy S20 phone, some apps won't open properly, others are fine. Hoping Verizon can fix this if it's a Fios problem. 

[Cang_Household]

Wow, not sure what attracts a group of similar people to this thread in days. Probably Google search.

Anyway, the current analysis tosses the support burden back to Peloton. If their devices don't support IPv6, that's a problem. You can kick the can down the road by disabling IPv6. Remember, without IPv6, there is a part of the Internet you cannot access, and this part is growing larger and larger everyday.

[Rubix973]

Disabling IPv6 solved not only my sluggish peloton but also my fire sticks that were basically unusable. One day at a time but for now a sincere thank you for this information. 

[ABS66]

We have the exact same problem as the OP - everything worked fine but the Peloton Bike after switching from Comcast Xfinity (with a router that supported IPV6) to Verizion with a new CR1000A Router in late August 2022.

Before the switch from Comcast everything was fine, after the switch everything still fine except the Peloton Bike which had all the problems as described by the OP.  Calls with Peloton support were not able to resolve the problem.

Switching off IPV6 on the CR1000A per the solution posed fixed the problem.  That said it's not clear to me that this is a Peloton problem as my Xfinity router supported IPV6 and we had no problems there.  As the OP suggested it could be a problem with how Verizon routers implement IPV6.

[ABS66]

Update:  Just spoke with Verizon technical service.  Apparently IPV6 is not active in my area (Chester Co., PA) and should not have been enabled on my router.  They suggested I continue to keep IPV6 deactivated on my router.

[wabsinchesco]

I'm also in Chester County, PA and having the same issues with our Peloton bike.  I've tried every fix Peloton suggested and haven't had any luck.  They told me this morning there's an update that should fix it - apparently other Verizon Fios users having the same issues - but still no improvement.  How did you disable the IPv6 on your router?

[ABS66]

You need to sign into your router and disable it manually under Advanced Settings/Network/IPV6

For the verizon CR1000A router I have her is the link to the support page and manual.

Verizon Router (CR1000A) - Support Overview | Verizon

[Cang_Household]

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@ABS66 wrote:

You need to sign into your router and disable it manually under Advanced Settings/Network/IPV6

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This is absolutely the wrong answer. IPv6 is not the problem as there are devices supporting IPv6 just fine. Now the question goes to the maladaptive device.

[ABS66]

It doesn't take much searching to find out that Verizon's rollout of IPV6 has had some issues and that a number of folks are disabling IPV6 on their routers for the time being.  It appears many devices are seeing problems not just the Peloton.   

IPv6 Issues : Fios (reddit.com)

Be careful with the IPv6 rollout and your home devices : Fios (reddit.com)

With IPV6 enabled on my CR1000A, I fail the online IPV6 test (test-ipv6.com) that Verizon suggests as a test, and my Peloton Bike is effectively useless.  With IPV6 dissabled everything works.   

So right now, disabling IPV6 is the absolutely right answer for me.   If Peloton or Verizon can fix the issue, I will enable IPV6.   Many decisions involve trade-offs - that's life.  Just give people the info and options and let them make their own decisions.

[cdb91911]

Thanks to all who have contributed above--I plan on attempting to somehow take this to Peloton corporate when I have some time in the coming weeks. If anyone gets there before me, please update us! It sounds like disabling IPv6 is currently the band-aid solution, but definitely not a long-term fix.

I have a feeling that we'll need a strong showing if we want to get both companies involved to attempt to resolve this issue, so feel free to share this thread's link with Peloton whenever you have the opportunity!