Learn about your 2Wire 3801

Get details on using your 2Wire 3801 to connect to the internet and troubleshooting common issues.

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2Wire 3801HGV KM1050492-slctrgrp_2w3801hgvb

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The color and state of your lights let you know the status of your 2Wire 3801 HGV-B.

2Wire 3801 Status lights

Power light

Green (solid): Power is on.
Red (flashing): Power-On Self-Test (POST) in progress.
Red (solid): POST failed (not bootable) or gateway has malfunctioned.
Off: Power is off or gateway isn’t getting power.

Local Ethernet, USB – PC, Wireless light

Green (solid): A device is connected by Ethernet to the gateway.
Off: No Ethernet connectivity or gateway is off.

Broadband light

Green (solid): Broadband connection established via DSL or Ethernet.
Green (flashing): Gateway is attempting to make a broadband connection.
Green and red (flashing): Gateway failed to establish a broadband connection for more than three consecutive minutes.
Red (flashing): No broadband signal (Ethernet or DSL) detected.
Off: No physical signal detected.

Service light

Green (solid): Internet Protocol (IP) connected.
Red (flashing): Gateway is attempting IEEE 802.1X authentication or attempting to obtain Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) information.
Red (solid): Gateway has failed to receive an IP address assignment from the network. (After two minutes of solid red, the Service light will go off.)
Off: Gateway isn’t on, is in bridge mode, or the broadband connection isn’t present.

Intelligent Network Device (iNID) Inside Unit

Modem

Power light

Green (solid): Power is on.
Red (solid): Power-On-Self-Test (POST) failed or another malfunction has occurred.

Ethernet light

Green (solid): A device is connected to an Ethernet port on the gateway.
Green (flickering): Traffic between connected device and gateway.

Wireless light

Green (solid): A device is connected wirelessly.
Green (flickering): Data traffic on the network.

Line 1 and Line 2 lights

Green (solid): The associated Voice Over IO (VoIP) line has been registered with a SIP proxy server.
Green (flickering): A telephone is off-hook on the associated VoIP line.

NID light

Green (solid): The link between the 2Wire 3801 HGV-B and i3812V is healthy.

Broadband light (This indicator shows the i3812V VDL status)

Green (solid): Successful broadband connection.
Green (flashing): The 2Wire 3801 HGV-B is attempting to establish a broadband connection.
Green and red (flashing): Gateway failed to establish a broadband connection for more than three consecutive minutes.
Red (solid): No DSL signal detected.

Service light

Green (solid): The i3812V has a WAN IP address from Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) and the broadband connection is up.
Green (flashing): The i3812V is attempting to be authenticated.
Red (solid): The i38HG has failed to receive an IP address assignment from the network.

Intelligent Network Device (iNID) Power Supply Unit

Power supply unit

Power light

Green (solid): Power supply is running on AC power.
Red (flashing): Power is provided by the backup battery or the outside unit is not yet communicating with the iNID power supply.
Off: Power supply is not receiving power from either AC or the battery.

Battery light

Green (solid): Battery is installed and functioning properly.
Red (flashing): Battery needs to be replaced.
Off: No battery installed.

Button functions for iNID Power Supply Unit

Reset is located on the upper left panel, surrounded by a red circle. When pressed for up to 9 seconds, the Reset button reboots the outside unit. If the button is pressed for 10 or more seconds, it resets the outside unit to the factory settings. Don’t press the Reset button unless you’re instructed to do so. Doing so may reset the outside unit to the factory default settings, and you’ll lose your personal settings.
Silence Alarm is located between the power and battery indicators. If AC power is interrupted for any reason, a continuous tone lets you know that the power supply is running on the backup battery. Pressing the Silence Alarm button within 15 seconds turns off the alert tone. When the battery needs to be replaced, a chirp sounds intermittently unless you press the button, which will silence the alert for 12 hours. The chirp resumes after 12 hours if the battery isn’t replaced.

Intelligent Network Device (iNID) Outside Unit

Modem lights

Power light

Turns red when power is first turned on. Then it changes to green within two minutes.

Green (solid): Power is on and initialization has been completed successfully.
Green (flashing): The iNID is booting.
Red (solid): A Power-On-Self-Test (POST) failure (unbootable) or another malfunction (for example, alarm) has occurred during self-initialization.

VDSL 1 and VDSL 2

After the power has been on for 60 seconds, these lights will flash for one to two minutes. The broadband light on the 2Wire 3801 HGV-B mirrors one or both of the VDSL lights, whichever is in the best state.

Green (solid): The broadband connection is trained.
Green (flashing): The broadband connection is being attempted (DSL is attempting to synchronize).
Green (flashing) and red (solid): The broadband connection failed to establish for more than three consecutive minutes. This pattern continues until the broadband connection is successfully established.
Red (flashing): No DSL signal on the line.

Data

Green (solid): A device is connected (such as a 2WIRE 3801 HGV-B).
Green (flickering): There is inbound activity associated with the data port (that is, the green Line 1 connection) - the flickering of the light is synchronized to the actual data traffic.
Red (solid): A device failed to be authenticated or successfully connected.

Coax

Green (solid): A device is connected (such as a Set Top Box).
Green (flickering): There is inbound activity associated with the COAX port (the flickering of the light is synchronized to the actual data traffic).
Red (Solid): A device failed to be authenticated or successfully connected.

Line 1 and Line 2

These two indicators mirror Line 1 and Line 2 indicators on the i38HG.

Green (solid): The associated VoIP line has been registered with the network and ready for use.
Green (flashing): A telephone is in use on the associated VoIP line.

Ethernet

Green (solid): A device (such as a computer) is connected to the Ethernet port.
Green (flickering): Data traffic from devices connected to the Ethernet port (the flickering of the light is synchronized to the actual data traffic).

Battery light

Green (solid): The AC power is connected and healthy.
Red (flashing): The backup battery is used for power.

Find Wi-Fi info

Get your Wi-Fi® name and password to connect devices to your network:

Wi-Fi gateway: Look for a sticker with your Wi-Fi name and password.
Smart Home Manager: Open Smart Home Manager and look for My Wi-Fi.

Change Wi-Fi name

Sign in to Smart Home Manager.
Scroll to the My Wi-Fi card and choose Change next to the name or password.
Select X to clear existing info, then enter a new name or password.
Select Save.

Once you finish making changes, reconnect your devices with the updated network info.

FYI: You can also update your Wi-Fi from your Wi-Fi gateway settings.

Manage Wi-Fi security

Your Wi-Fi gateway comes with the security On and set to WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy) by default. If you have changed the security to Off or just want to switch between WEP and WPA (Wi-Fi Protection Access) security, we can help with that.

Go to your gateway settings.
Select Home Networks.
Choose Wireless in Key Things to do Using Your Gateway.
Scroll to the Security section and select WPA-PSK and WPA2-PSK from the Authentication menu.
Select Use custom Wireless Network Key.
Enter a new Wi-Fi password in the Key field:
- For 64-bit encryption: Enter a 10-digit password made up of numbers and letters a-f or A-F.
- For 128-bit encryption: Enter a 26-digit hexadecimal number made up of numbers and letters a-f or A-F.
Select Save.

Hide Wi-Fi name

You can hide your Wi-Fi® network name or SSID from Available Network searches. This prevents outside users from being able to find and access your network without your knowledge.

Important: Before following these steps, be sure to store your Wi-Fi network name and password in a safe location. You’ll have to manually enter them after your network name is hidden. Then, choose your equipment type to get detailed instructions.

Go to your gateway settings.
Select Wireless from the Top Networking Features area.
Look for Network area and select Disabled from the SSID Broadcast menu.
Select Save.

MAC address filtering

Set up your Wi-Fi gateway so that it only connects to devices by MAC address. This makes your connections more secure. When you turn on MAC address filtering, only devices that you select can connect to your network.

FYI: Make sure you have the MAC address for each device you want to access your Wi-Fi home network. Every device will have its own process to find its MAC address. Check your service documentation or manufacturer’s website for detailed instructions.

Go to your gateway settings.
Select Top Networking features, then Wireless.
Check Enable in the MAC Filtering, Edit Blocked/Allowed Device List.
Enter the MAC address for each device you wish to allow network access and select Add to List.
Select Save.

Set up port forwarding

When you set up port forwarding, you set up rules to tell the gateway to route data sent or received on a port to a specific IP address on your home network.

Important: Use port forwarding with caution. It may allow others to access devices in your home without your knowledge.

To open a port for user-defined applications:

Go to your gateway settings.
Select Settings, then Firewall.
Choose Applications, Pinholes and DMZ. If you get a warning message, restart your Wi-Fi gateway. Then, continue with these steps.
Find Select a Computer and choose the device name or IP address for the device you wish to open a port for. If the IP address or device name isn’t listed, enter it in the Enter IP Address and select Choose.
Look for Edit firewall settings for this computer and select the Allow individual application(s) button.
Select the application from the list and Add to move it to Hosted Applications. If your application isn't in the list:
- Select Add a new user-defined application.
- Enter a name for the application or device in Application Profile Name.
- Select the appropriate Protocol button.
- Enter the port(s) you wish to open for From and To. It's recommended to create a separate user-defined application/device entry for each port as opposed to using a port range. In this case the port number should be the same in the From and To fields.
- Leave Protocol Timeout and Map to Host Port blank unless you want to define manually.
- Choose the Application Type you're setting up for port forwarding. If your device or application isn't listed, leave it set at “-“ default.
- Select Add to List. Repeat as needed.
- Select Back when all applications have been added. Your new applications will display in the Applications list.
Select Done when your selections display in Hosted Applications.

Last updated: September 16, 2025

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