# How can factory reset on Arris TG862G be disabled?



## Cinnamon Song (Feb 13, 2014)

We are having a problem in our apartment, we have an Arris TG862G router that was bought so we could have internet. Half of us were willing to pay for it and for monthly internet costs and the other half refused. I went into the gateway on day one, changed the passwords, gave them to those who were paying and called it a day. 

Unfortunately due to one bleeding heart who gave into the begging of another roommate for the password, all the others got ahold of it. So I went in and blacklisted the unapproved mac addresses and figured that was that.

Alas, Google is a thing and finally one of them found out that they can take a paper clip and reset the router to factory settings and then just type in the default password on the back of the router.

The last month and a half has basically like going to war: I storm in, log into the gateway, blacklist everyone who isn't paying, then the moment I leave to go to work or anywhere, they are all diving for the paper clip!

I can't take this, getting rid of the internet isn't an option and they know it. I can't move the router into my room because the either net cable is fixed to the wall of the other side of the living room and the router has to stay where it ends.

My last option seems to be to take the router apart and fill in the hole with epoxy or super glue a thin sheet of something strong over the inside of the hole. I really don't want to go through with that for the obvious reasons of breaking it for real.

_But_ I've been reading that some routers actually have a "Disable reset button" command or that there is stuff you can download to bypass the command. If the Arris has that option, I can't find it!

PLEASE if anyone has some real advice other then moving it, I am dying to know!


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## jimscreechy (Jan 7, 2005)

Ah Cinnamon, I feel your pain, but I don't think this router has this facility. At least not from the web interface. Some routers have many more features available at the command line, but alas if they exist, there are not part of your user guide.

I feel even if you covered it with epoxy they would cut/drill/chisel it off... if only to annoy you. You may even find, if you did manage to hide it, your situation would escalate out of control to the point they man cut your cable out of malice.

They guys may have another 'technical' solution, but I think you may have to embrace the role of diplomat here. Urging them to contribute, if only marginally may be a wiser channel. Perhaps this may prove a more effective direction, before embarking down a denial of service route. 

Not exactly technical advice I know.


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## Cinnamon Song (Feb 13, 2014)

Ok so I bit the bullet and in the dead of night, but a tiny square of duct tape over the hole and then put a thick layer of epoxy over it. Lets see if they actually want to take this stupidity to the next level and try to claw it off, that stuff turns as hard as plaster.

Next router I get, I''m going to make sure it comes with a remote disable option, because this is just stupid. Its especially pointless to have parental controls set on a router when all a kid has to do is google and find out about the magic button makes it all go away. :banghead:

Thanks for your help.


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## Wand3r3r (Sep 17, 2010)

"I''m going to make sure it comes with a remote disable option"

Think about that for a second. If there was such a thing how would you re-enable access? 

You can't correct with hardware unless you prevent physical access. Put it in a locked metal box that has vents/possible fan.


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## Cinnamon Song (Feb 13, 2014)

Good idea, much less effort! Probably won't need to get a new one for a long time anyways, so far roomies are just sitting around silently refusing to acknowledge the filled up hole....

....except one who was screaming about it this morning in the kitchen when she thought I was asleep.


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## jimscreechy (Jan 7, 2005)

Never under estimate the determination of roomies


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## Cinnamon Song (Feb 13, 2014)

:angry: So the unbelievable yet believable happened:

Tonight I came home to a confused roommate asking me why I had scraped the epoxy off the router. I look at the damn thing and sure enough, there it is, scraped clean off with what looks like a knife. 

I flipped, mixed up a bigger batch of epoxy and globed it on. As I was doing this one of the younger, non paying roomies came up to me and began to argue, saying that I was out of line and to leave it alone. She denied being the culprit but that I should stop because, "Like, that stuff is probably, like, bad for the electricity inside the thing? And you should just, like, let everyone have internet because this is just going get scrapped off too?"

Cue intense yelling from me about money and how it is used to pay for goods and services here in the adult world and her about my ******* authority and that I am a nazi of internets now. So long story short I took a toolbox I had, carved a hole in the side for cables, put the router in it and locked that **** with a padlock.

So yeah, jimscreechy is right, never doubt the determination of roomies to get out of paying for ****. If I come home to an open box and that lock somehow cut, thats it, time warner will be called and our service cancled.. I can use the internet at my job or the coffee place down the block if need be. Only 3 people out of 8 are paying for this internet, this has to stop.


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## Fjandr (Sep 26, 2012)

Open the router, desolder the reset switch. Or clip one of the wires running from the button to the board.

And yes, there are devices which have the option to disable factory reset. The Cisco Aironet line all have the option to disable hardware reset. On some devices, there is no recovery option if you lose the password though.


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## Wand3r3r (Sep 17, 2010)

vented lock box with a pad lock is the way to go.

how does this person justify stealing internet to you?
what else will she steal? 

Just saying this isn't a room mate you want having access to your stuff.


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## Cinnamon Song (Feb 13, 2014)

Well its not her, the one I argued with, that is doing it. She is too much of a coward, just has a big mouth. Its the work of the guy who first figured out the whole "paper clip + factory reset = FREE INTERNET!" without a doubt.

He and the girl (They are kind of a tag team of stupid hippys) are under the impression that internet is a right, like running water or lights. I agree with them on this, but just like those things, you have to _PAY FOR THEM_ or they get shut off.

Originally he was fine with having no internet since he couldn't be assed to pony up, but now that he's had a taste of it for free, he suddenly acts like he is entitled to it since he was so smart to figure out how to get it. 

Him and the girl are already in deep trouble with our lease holder(Who pays for his far share of course) and she is actually actively looking to move out, but he is on the cusp of getting thrown out, this is not helping him. :facepalm:

I plan on putting some more holes in the box for air(Christ I had to explain to my roomies that a router is not a hamster, it will _not_ suffocate, it just needs to be kept cool!) and will see how this plays out.


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## bassfisher6522 (Jul 22, 2012)

Not sure what part of the world you live in... with a box and padlock to prevent stealing is broken into is tantamount to breaking/entering...which is a criminal offense and prosecutable. I would mention that to your roommates with the implication of a civil lawsuit as well. You could argue civil rights, privacy infringement, data theft and so on.


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## Cinnamon Song (Feb 13, 2014)

Well its complicated, our lease holder is very hands off when it comes to this place and he hates to be bothered by little things like this because he works like 3 jobs and is never there. 

I tried to take charge and take care of the issue without him having to be called all the time, and no one ever openly spoke about the problem but me, you know, the usual passive/unconfrontational roommate crap. 

There is this kind of stupid mentality that once something is brought into the shared living areas it becomes "everyone's" and the same goes for the router, so its hard to present this to the leaseholder as "theft" because it was originally bought with the idea that eventually other people would maybe want to start paying in the future and thus it was "everyone's" router. At least thats how he saw it.

If I had known it was going to devolve into this nightmare I would have done the box thing day one. Thats going to be the policy for all future living situations from now on.


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## Fjandr (Sep 26, 2012)

Glad you have it sorted. Hopefully they're not smart enough to go looking for security holes now that they no longer have physical access. Unfortunately, consumer networking hardware units are typically riddled with them.


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## Wand3r3r (Sep 17, 2010)

In most roommate situations you include the internet charges as part of the rent. So if they are paying $450 a month now you make their rent $475 and have open internet. Everyone pays just like they do for lights, water and garbage. 

Of course then begins the issue of userA using too much bandwidth but that is controlled with a router that supports QoS.


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## Cinnamon Song (Feb 13, 2014)

Well that would have been a good idea if we had the internet set up before anyone moved in, but if we tried that now then everyone would flip out with _WHY ARE YOU RAISING THE REEEENT?!?_

I can bring it up with the lease holder but I doubt he'll be receptive to anything that will cause more angst.


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