Global Protect VPN and Next Wifi issue with corporate Macbook

[balajianthia]

I am currently using a Google Home Wifi system with two Wifi Points set up in a mesh network. My router has a public IP, and  it assigns private IP addresses in the range of 192.168.86.x to devices connecting to these points.

I have a corporate MacBook that runs Global Protect VPN version 6.2.3.187. When connected, my Mac receives a private IP from the Google mesh network, and upon connecting to Global Protect, it gets another private IP from my corporate network.While the connection works initially, it frequently drops, requiring me to reconnect repeatedly, which is quite frustrating.

I have already performed a factory reset on the Google Home Wifi device, but this has not resolved the issue.When I connect my MacBook directly to the internet without the router, there are no connection drops. Additionally, I use this laptop at the office without any issues and my iPhone hotspot maintains a stable connection through Global Protect. I have also tried uninstalling and reinstalling the Global Protect VPN, but the problem persists.

I suspect that Global Protect VPN may not be fully compatible with Google Home Wifi.Is there any additional configuration I should consider for the Google Home router? Please see the ping statistics below.

➜  ~ ping 4.2.2.2

PING 4.2.2.2 (4.2.2.2): 56 data bytes

64 bytes from 4.2.2.2: icmp_seq=0 ttl=60 time=118.080 ms

64 bytes from 4.2.2.2: icmp_seq=1 ttl=60 time=240.099 ms

Request timeout for icmp_seq 2

64 bytes from 4.2.2.2: icmp_seq=3 ttl=60 time=126.818 ms

Request timeout for icmp_seq 4

64 bytes from 4.2.2.2: icmp_seq=5 ttl=60 time=141.766 ms

[AndersC]

Hi @balajianthia,

Thank you for posting in the community. I understand you're experiencing issues connecting your MacBook running Global Protect VPN to the internet through your Google Nest Wifi router. I'd be happy to assist you in troubleshooting this.

Let's proceed with the following steps to diagnose the issue: 

1. Check if the affected device is 2.4GHz and 5GHz-capable.
   • Find out if your device can use a 2.4GHz or 5GHz band. For more information, refer to How Nest Wifi and Google Wifi 2.4, 5 GHz, and 6 GHz bands work.
2. Check for any special characters or spaces in the SSID or password:
   • Remove any spaces or special characters from the SSID or password, if there are any. The SSID and password are both case-sensitive, and if there are special characters or spaces, it might cause connection issues. Special characters could be apostrophes, commas, underscores, quotation marks, and UTF-8 (emojis).
3. Check the mesh connection for weak Wi-Fi points. Run a mesh test to check the connection of their points. If they get a "weak" rating, try moving the Wi-Fi point closer to their primary router or point.
4. • Disconnect the modem from its power source.
   • Unplug the Ethernet cable and power cord from the router.
   • Remove the power cord from the points.
   • Leave everything unplugged for 5 minutes.
     • Start a timer to track.
     • Check the make and model of the modem, and make sure there isn't a backup battery. If there’s a backup battery, remove the battery; otherwise, it won't perform a power cycle.
   • Connect the power cable to the modem and allow the modem to fully turn on before proceeding.​ This process can take up to a minute.
     • All light indicators should be solid colors.
     • Connect the Ethernet cable, then the power cable, to the router. Wait until the modem is fully back online.
   • Connect the power cable to the points. 

Please keep me posted. I'll be waiting for your response.

Regards,

Anders