ASUS router · Status lights
What the lights on an ASUS router mean
Sources checked · how we check
Two ASUS light states send people looking for answers: a power light that keeps flashing, and a router whose lights are all dark. They mean very different things, and one of them is often not a fault at all.
What this covers
ASUS publishes troubleshooting articles for these lights rather than one table of meanings, and says the buttons and lights differ slightly between models. For the full list of LEDs on your router, ASUS points to its user manual in the ASUS Download Center.
Source: ASUS: troubleshooting — abnormal WAN LED on ASUS router
Power LED
Flashing abnormally
ASUS treats a Power LED that keeps flashing abnormally as a firmware problem, and its fix is to restore the firmware with Rescue mode.
What to do: Download your model's firmware and ASUS's Firmware Restoration utility, then put the router into Rescue mode: unplug it, hold the Reset button while plugging the power back in, and keep holding until the Power LED flashes slowly. Upload the firmware with the utility. A steady Power LED afterwards means the rescue worked.
Source: ASUS: troubleshooting — ASUS router Power LED flashing
Flashing slowly after holding Reset while plugging in
The router is in Rescue mode, which you started on purpose.
What to do: Upload the firmware with ASUS Firmware Restoration. When the Power LED goes steady, the rescue is complete and the router reboots.
Source: ASUS: troubleshooting — ASUS router Power LED flashing
Flashing after holding Reset for 5 to 10 seconds
The router is finishing a standard reset to factory settings.
What to do: Wait for it to finish and restart.
Source: ASUS: troubleshooting — router or adapter has no power, no boot, or the Power LED is not on
Off
Either the router has no power, or its LEDs have been switched off. ASUS lists checking the LED setting as a step of its own, because a working router with its lights off looks the same as a dead one.
What to do: Try a different outlet and check the adapter plug and cable. Check the router's power button is on. Then check the LED button, or the LED setting in the router app or settings page, before assuming a hardware fault.
Source: ASUS: troubleshooting — router or adapter has no power, no boot, or the Power LED is not on
WAN LED
Off or behaving abnormally
ASUS treats an abnormal WAN LED as a problem with the internet connection coming into the router.
What to do: ASUS's steps, in order: update the router's firmware; check the modem is connected to the router's WAN port, not a LAN port; check the network cable is undamaged; and confirm the connection details from your internet provider are correct.
Source: ASUS: troubleshooting — abnormal WAN LED on ASUS router
If none of these match your light
If all your router's lights are dark and the hardware is fine, the LED setting is the usual answer. Some ASUS routers have a hardware LED button, held for 3 seconds; others switch the lights from the router settings page, the ASUS Router app, or a WPS button set to turn the LEDs on and off. ASUS also lets you schedule the lights to turn on and off at set times. For anything else, ASUS points to your model's manual in its Download Center.
Source: ASUS: how to turn the LED light of an ASUS router on or off
Frequently asked questions
Why is my ASUS router's power light flashing?
ASUS treats a Power LED that keeps flashing abnormally as a firmware problem, and its fix is to restore the firmware using Rescue mode and the ASUS Firmware Restoration utility. If you have just held the Reset button for 5 to 10 seconds, the flashing is a factory reset finishing instead.
My ASUS router has no lights at all. Is it dead?
Not necessarily. ASUS routers can have their LEDs turned off, with a hardware button on some models and from the app or settings page on others. Check the power outlet, the adapter and the power button, then the LED setting.
How do I turn the lights back on on an ASUS router?
Hold the LED button for 3 seconds if your router has one. Otherwise turn them on in the ASUS Router app under Device > Management > LED ON/OFF, or on the router settings page.