Thank you for the report. Don’t worry, we can definitely get this sorted out!
The "status":"NotFound" error for both UPnP and NAT-PMP means that your Roon Core (your Mac) is shouting out to your router to automatically open a port, but the Bell modem is completely ignoring the request.
ISP-provided routers, especially the Bell Canada Giga Hubs, are notorious for having very restrictive or broken UPnP implementations. Since the automatic method is being blocked by the modem, we simply need to bypass UPnP and set up a Manual Port Forward.
Here is how we can manually punch a hole for Roon ARC to connect:
1. Find your Mac’s IP Address
Go to your Mac’s System Settings > Network.
Click on your active connection (Ethernet or Wi-Fi) and click Details.
Note down your IP Address (it will look something like 192.168.2.x).
2. Create the Port Forward Rule in the Bell Modem
Open a web browser and log into your Bell modem’s admin interface (usually by typing 192.168.2.1 into the address bar).
Navigate to Advanced Tools and Settings > Port Forwarding (the exact naming might vary slightly depending on your specific modem model).
Create a new rule with the following details:
Protocol: TCP
Internal Port: 55000
External Port: 55000
Destination IP: Enter the Mac’s IP address you found in Step 1.
Save the rule.
3. Configure Roon ARC
Go back to your Mac and open Roon.
Navigate to Settings > Roon ARC.
Type 55000 into the Port field and hit the Return key.
One Last Check: Mac Firewall
Sometimes the built-in Mac firewall blocks incoming connections. Go to your Mac’s System Settings > Network > Firewall. If it is turned ON, click Options and ensure that Roon is set to “Allow incoming connections.”
Thanks, but all that was done years ago. It’s only recently that (with no conscious changes to setup) Arc stopped connecting. (See screenshots showing Port Forwarding set in modem, UPnP set in modem and Firewall set to allow Roon connections.)
Thank you for the screenshot. Looking closely at your diagnostics, the problem is clear: your Mac is currently connected to your network via both Ethernet and Wi-Fi simultaneously.
This is causing a conflict in your Bell modem’s routing table. Your Mac is broadcasting two different local IP addresses (192.168.2.43 and 192.168.2.92) under the same name. Your port forwarding rule is effectively “confused” because it doesn’t know which of the two paths to take to reach Roon.
To fix this and ensure a stable connection, please follow these steps:
1. Simplify the Connection
Turn off Wi-Fi on your Mac. For a Roon Server, a single wired Ethernet connection is always the best practice.
This will force the Mac to use only one IP address, removing the ambiguity for the router.
2. Power Cycle the Modem
After turning off the Wi-Fi on your Mac, unplug your Bell modem from power for 30 seconds, then plug it back in.
This is a crucial step to clear the modem’s stale ARP/routing cache and force it to see only the single Ethernet connection for Sugiths-iMac.
3. Verify the Rule
Once the modem is back online, check the Port Forwarding page again.
Ensure the Roon Arc rule for port 55000 is still pointing to Sugiths-iMac.
Please try these steps and let us know if the ARC status in Roon changes to “Ready.”
I followed the above instructions, turned off wi-fi, power cycled modem and checked port forwarding but ARC status in Roon remains NOT READY. (See screenshots for portfowarding and Roon ARC settings.)
Thank you for confirming those steps. Since the status is still “Not Ready,” it confirms our suspicion: the Bell modem’s internal memory is still “clinging” to an old network path for the name Sugiths-iMac. Even though you turned off Wi-Fi, the router still thinks that name belongs elsewhere.
To fix this, we need to bypass the hostname and use a Direct IP rule.
Now that your Wi-Fi is off, please go to System Settings > Network > Ethernet > Details and double-check your IP address. It should be just one address now (likely 192.168.2.43 or 192.168.2.92).
Delete and Re-create by IP
Log back into your Bell modem.
Go to the Port Forwarding page and delete the current rule for Sugiths-iMac entirely.
When creating the new rule, look for an option to enter the IP Address manually rather than selecting Sugiths-iMac from a list or dropdown menu.
Set it up again: Protocol: TCP, Port: 55000.
Save the changes.
To prevent this from breaking again next week, please look for the DHCP Reservation or Static IP section in your Bell modem settings. Find your Mac’s Ethernet connection and “Reserve” its current IP address. This ensures that even if you reboot everything, your Mac will always stay on this specific address, and the port forward won’t lose its target.
Once you’ve set the rule to the specific IP address, try the ARC connection test again. Does the error message in Roon change?
Turning firewall off, enables Roon ARC to connect. But as posted, giving Roon an exception to allow connections in firewall, and turning firewall on, causes Roon ARC to be NOT READY.
I’m unsure how to resolve the firewall issue since the exception was in firewall settings and Roon ARC did work.
No, deleting and re-creating the rule did not change the error message in Roon. Note, that despite entering IP address manually, it does still appears as Sugiths-Imac. (See screenshot.)
Since turning the firewall OFF immediately changes the status to READY, we have officially ruled out the Bell modem and the port forwarding as the problem. The “bottleneck” is strictly within the macOS security layer.
It is common for macOS firewall exceptions to become “stale” or corrupted after updates, where the UI shows the app is allowed, but the underlying system continues to block the traffic on port 55000.
To force macOS to re-index the security permissions for Roon, please follow these steps:
Remove the current rules:
Go to System Settings > Network > Firewall > Options.
Select Roon and click the minus (-) button to delete it.
Select Roon Server and click the minus (-) button to delete it.
Verify Stealth Mode:
While in the same Options menu, ensure that “Enable stealth mode” is turned OFF. If this is enabled, the Mac may ignore the initial “handshake” required for ARC.
Reboot your Mac: This is a crucial step to clear the system’s security cache.
Re-add the exceptions:
Once the Mac restarts, open Roon. macOS should prompt you: “Do you want the application ‘Roon’ to accept incoming network connections?”
Click Allow.
If the prompt does not appear, manually add Roon and Roon Server back into the Firewall Options using the plus (+) button.
If the status remains “Not Ready” after these steps, the issue lies deep within the macOS network filter stack. Since Roon is confirmed to work perfectly when the firewall is disabled, we recommend contacting Apple Support or visiting an Apple Genius Bar. They can help diagnose why your specific macOS installation is failing to honor application exceptions.
Thank you. That appears to have fixed things. (Though macOS did not prompt me to add Roon network connections. And when I checked Firewall/Options, “Roon appliance” was already added. I could add Roon, but not Roon Server.)
