Orbi purple light – causes, meaning, and how to fix

A local outage or an ongoing server maintenance in your area may be the reason behind the purple light on Orbi, and this can be checked through the Netgear status page. If there’s something going on, there’s nothing you can really do except wait.

If a temporary bug or glitch is the reason behind the purple light on your router or satellite, you need to perform a power cycle. This is different from a regular restart, and it won’t mess with any of your custom settings. 

Here’s how you can power cycle your device.

• Turn off your router and satellites.
• Remove the cable from the devices and power outlets.
• Wait for three minutes and plug everything back in.
• Wait another three minutes and turn on the devices.

If the cables connecting the router to the modem are damaged or not connected properly, you will get a purple light on your Orbi router. In such a case, you need to disconnect every cable from the router and connect it again to make sure they are inserted properly. If that doesn’t fix the issue, try using new cables just to be on the safe side. It will also be wise to clean the inside of the ports, as dust and debris can sometimes prevent the cables from connecting properly. 

If you haven’t updated your Orbi router or satellites in a while, now would be the right time to do so. Running the devices on outdated firmware can prevent them from functioning properly, which leads to different errors. You may be seeing the purple light due to outdated or corrupted firmware, so you need to download and install the latest one.

• Log in to your Orbi account.
• Go to Advanced settings and then expand Administration.
• Click on Firmware Update and download the latest updates from here.

If you’re seeing a purple light on Orbi satellite, it may be because it’s placed too far from the router or other nodes. You need to keep it within the range and away from thick walls as they might interfere with the connection. So, bring the devices closer and see if that makes the purple light disappear.

The purple Orbi light can also appear if your router and satellite are unable to sync properly. This, in most cases, can be fixed quickly by simply resyncing them.  

• Press the sync button on your router, which can be found on the back.
• Now, press the sync button on your satellite within two minutes.

If you see a blinking white light on the satellite, it means it’s in the process of syncing with the router. And if the process is successful, you’ll see a blue light on the devices. But if you see a yellow or orange light, it means the connection is weak. To fix this, try bringing the devices closer to each other.

If you have a pi-hole on your network, you might have only specified the primary DNS while setting up the router in AP mode. To fix it, set up a new DNS server and add both primary and secondary IP addresses.

If none of the above-mentioned methods worked, your last resort is to factory reset your Orbi router. This will take the router back to its default settings.

• Take a small pin inside a pinhole that can be found on the back of the router to press the reset button.
• Hold the button for around 15 seconds, and then let go.

After a few minutes, the device will reset, and the purple light will hopefully be gone now. However, you will have to set up the router again as your custom settings will no longer be there. 

Even if a factory reset has failed to make the purple light on Orbi disappear, then there’s a problem with your device that only technicians can fix. For this, you need to get in touch with Netgear and seek help from them. They will most likely ask you to send your unit to them, after which they will either replace it or ask you to get a new one if the current router is beyond repair.