MikroTik hAP I can't access the settings

RouterOS General
1

Hello!

Device: MikroTik hAP ac³ (RBD53iG-5HacD2HnD)
RouterOS: 7.x

Problem: suddenly lost all access methods (Winbox via IP/MAC, WebFig, SSH). The device seems partially alive.

Testing done exclusively on a clean Ubuntu 24.04 live-USB, using only the native Winbox 4.x for Linux (downloaded from the official MikroTik website, no Wine or older versions).

What was done:

Native Winbox Linux
MAC address sometimes appears in Neighbors (with or without identity)
Connection attempt via MAC starts but drops after 3–5 seconds
Logs:
MACCON,WARN synTimeout iface: 0 resend: 0–9
WINBOXIMPL,ERR: QAbstractSocket::UnknownSocketError "Could not connect, MacConnection syn timeout"
Discovery issues: DISCOVERY,ERR "Unable to send a message" (even with sudo + setcap)
mactelnet
sudo mndp — sometimes sees the MAC, sometimes not
sudo mactelnet — timeout
Netinstall 7.20.6 (and current arm npk)
Cable in ether1 only, direct connection, tried different cables
Static IP on PC interface 192.168.88.x/24
Firewall fully disabled (ufw disable, nft flush, iptables -F/ACCEPT)
Reset held for exactly 5, 10, and 15 seconds (as stated in the official MikroTik manual for Netinstall)
Result: device does NOT appear in Netinstall list
Wireshark: no BOOTP requests from the device
Observations:

LEDs after power-on: sequential blinking → looping or ACT/USR
Link on ether1 is rare and unstable
Power supply checked (original + another 12V 2.5A)
The only question:
What exactly did I do wrong?
The manual says reset for Netinstall is 5–15 seconds — that's exactly what I did.
What's the mistake? and how should it be done correctly in my situation (MAC appears in Neighbors but connection fails with syn timeout

2

I should probably mention that I can see the MikroTik hAP sending packets. Maybe this will help us figure out what's going on with the device.

3

Probably not what you want to hear, but Winbox 4 (for Linux but not only) is not (yet) very good.
It depends on the specific x and y in 7.x.y but also Webfig has (or has had) difficult connection issues.

But SSH should work anyway.

Netinstall can be tricky, no matter how good you are at Linux firewall/settings, you should try using a VM, see:
https://tangentsoft.com/mikrotik/wiki?name=Run%20NetInstall%20in%20a%20VM
and/or trying with a (dumb) switch between your PC and Mikrotik.
The rule of the thumb (for Netinstall) is to keep the button pressed until you see the device appear on the PC runnning it, the 5/10/15 (or any other number of seconds) may be misleading,

BUT IF ether1 is malfunctioning there are not that many alternatives.

Also, did you try, before the netinstall, a plainer "reset" (BOTH using the main and the backup bootloader)?

4

Now I see that I need to do something different from what's written in the documentation. Can you tell me how to reset it correctly?

5

to reset you hold the reset button until the user LED starts to blink, release immediately.

for netinstall you hold the button until you see i in the netinstall app list. make sure you use ether1 to your PC in this case. and recommended to use a hub or switch between router and pc when doing netinstall.

i don’t see the need for netinstall though. simple reset it enough.

1 Like
6

Also, there are TWO bootloaders:

  1. if you insert the power plug and IMMEDIATELY press the reset button (and keep it pressed) the "main" bootloader will be used
  2. if you press (and keep pressed) the reset button and then insert the power plug the "backup" bootloader will be used

Normally the second is used as it is easier to press the button before and keep it pressed than to have a correct timing for the "immediately".

7

I've tried every boot method, even holding reset while plugging it in. The router powers on and MikroTik sees my PC's connection, but I can't get into WebFig or WinBox. The factory reset doesn't seem to work.