How to Fix Amazon Echo ‘7-3-0-0-1 Error’
Some Amazon Echo users are reporting that they end up encountering the 7.3.0.0.1 error code when attempting to connect their Amazon Echo or Amazon Echo Dot device to their home router. This issue is reported to occur among a wide array of operating systems ranging from Windows 10 to the latest version of macOS.
After looking into this issue thoroughly, it turns out that there are several different underlying causes that might be triggering this particular error code. Here’s the complete list of potential culprits:
- Smart Network Switch is Enabled on Android device – Keep in mind that Smart Network Switch is known to be an interfering factor for a lot of Amazon Echo device models that are controlled via an Android device. To fix this issue, you can simply access the Wi-Fi Settings of the Android device where you installed the Alexa app and disable Smart Network Switching.
- Network Congressional issues – According to some affected users, you can also expect to see this error in instances where you’re dealing with badly cached TCP / IP data that is mismanaged by your router. In this case, you can fix the problem in most cases by restarting or resetting your router in order to clear the temp data.
- Wireless Security is set to WPA/WPA2 – Amazon Dot is plagued by an ongoing issue that makes connections harder through routers configured to use both WPA + WPA2 security protocols at the same time. In this case, you can fix the problem by accessing your router settings and forcing the router to use either WPA OR WPA2 (not both).
- The router is using TKIP Encryption – For some reason, Amazon Echo and Amazon Echo dot devices won’t function well on networks encrypted with TKIP. If this scenario is applicable in your case, you should probably be able to fix the problem by accessing your router settings and reconfiguring your router to use AES instead.
- Outdated Bluetooth driver – If you’re encountering this error code while attempting to connect your Amazon Echo device to your computer via Bluetooth, you should start investigating your Bluetooth driver. Some users have reported that they managed to fix this issue by using Device Manager to update their Bluetooth driver version to the latest version available.
- Echo is connected to 5.0 GHz network – DualBand routers are a common cause known to produce this error code. Older Echo models are not capable of maintaining stable connections on 5.0GHz networks and some of them will not connect at all. If you’re using a DualBand router, you can probably fix this issue by connecting your Amazon Echo device to the 2.5 GHz network instead.
- Outdated router firmware – A less popular reason that might spawn this error is a severely outdated router firmware that doesn’t support the security protocols required by Amazon Echo. In this case, the only viable option is to update the firmware of your router to the latest version.
Now that you know every potential culprit that might be causing this issue, here’s a list of methods that other affected users have successfully used to get to the bottom of this issue:
Method 1: Disabling Smart Network Switch (if applicable)
One of the most common instances that will spawn this issue is network congestion facilitated by an android feature called Smart Network Switch.
Smart Network Switch is an Android feature that will allow your mobile device to make the switch from an unstable Wi-Fi Network to Mobile data. This sounds good in theory, but a lot of IoT devices are experiencing issues when this feature is enabled on the Android Device that they use for the Alexa app.
Note: This is even more likely if you have the Aggressive Smart Network Switch version enabled on your device – This enables your device to make the switch to mobile data even when your network is only slightly unstable. This creates a lot of issues with data plans from tier 2 ISPs.
If this scenario is applicable, you can fix the issue by effectively disabling the Smart Network from your Android device. To make matters easier for you, we’ve put together a series of instructions that will walk you through the entire process of disabling Smart Network Switch:
Important: Due to the heavily fragmented nature of Android, the screens you’ll end up seeing might be different than in the examples below. If the instructions below don’t help you disable Smart Network Switch, search online for specific instructions on how to do this according to your custom ROM.
- First things first, pick up the device that contains the Alexa app that serves as your central control.
- Next, from the main menu of your Android device and click on Settings from the list of available options.
Accessing the Settings menu on your Android device - Inside the Settings menu of your Android device, click on the Connections entry from the list of available options.
- Once you’re inside the Connections tab, tap on Wi-Fi, then tap on the Advanced menu from the next screen.
Accessing the Advanced Wi-Fi menu - Once you’re inside the Advanced menu, tap on Smart Network Switch and disable the toggle from the next menu so that the feature is ALWAYS disabled.
Disabling the Smart Network Switch Note: The Advanced menu might be hidden behind an action button with some custom ROMs.
- When you are asked to confirm, do so, then attempt to connect the Alexa Echo device once again and see if the problem is now fixed.
In case you’re still dealing with the same 7.3.0.0.1 error code, move down to the next potential fix below.
Method 2: Restarting or Resetting your Router
According to a lot of affected that were encountering this issue, you can also expect to see the 7.3.0.0.1 error code with Amazon Echo devices in situations where you’re actually dealing with a network congression. In situations like this, you can hope to fix the issue by reducing the strain on your network and forcing the network to refresh.
Note: In more serious circumstances, you might need to reset the network entirely in order to fix the issue.
If you haven’t tried this yet, the ideal place to start is with a simple network reboot – This operation will end up clearing the TCP and IP data that are currently allocated to your devices. This will end up fixing the majority of network inconsistencies that might prevent you from establishing a connection with the Amazon Echo device.
To perform a simple network reboot on your router, press and hold the dedicated power button once to turn it off, then wait for a full minute before turning it back on. While you wait, we recommend physically unplugging the power cable from the device in order to allow the power capacitors enough time to discharge themselves.
Once the operation is finally complete, attempt to connect the Amazon Echo device once again and see if you get to see the same error code.
If the same problem is still occurring, you should move forward with a router reset.
But before you initiate this operation, it’s important to understand that this procedure will end up resetting every custom setting that your router is currently storing – A reset is the equivalent of returning your router settings to the factory defaults. But on top of doing this, it will also clear the TCP and IP temp data that might be responsible for the network congestion.
To perform a router reset, you will likely need a sharp object (small screwdriver, toothpick, or needle) to press and hold on the reset button that’s typically located on the back of the router. This button is typically built-in in order to prevent accidental presses, so don’t expect to be able to press it with just your finger.
After the reset procedure is complete, wait for Internet access to be re-established before attempting to connect with your Amazon Echo device once again.
If the same problem is still occurring, move down to the next potential fix below.
Method 3: Changing router’s Security Type to WPA or WPA 2 Only
According to a lot of users experiencing this issue, you can also expect to see the 7.3.0.0.1 error with Amazon Echo devices in situations where your router is configured to use both WPA + WPA2 as security protocols. This broadens the scope of supported devices but also causes issues with a lot of IoT devices like this one.
Fortunately, you can fix the issue easily by accessing your router settings and modifying the default router security so that it only uses WPA or WPA2, not both.
Note: Also, it’s recommended that the encryption type is set to AES if your route supports it.
If you’re looking for step by step instructions on accessing your router and making this change, follow the instructions below:
- Press Windows key + R to open up a Run dialog box. Next, type ‘cmd‘ inside the text box, then press Ctrl + Shift + Enter to open up an elevated command prompt. When you’re prompted by the UAC (User Account Control) prompt, click Yes to grant admin access.
Accessing an elevated CMD prompt Note: If you already know the address of your router, skip the first 3 steps and move directly to step 4.
- Once you’re inside the elevated command prompt, type the following command and press Enter to get an overview of your current network:
ipconfig
- Once the results are generated, scroll down to the section where it shows the network that you’re currently connected to (wired or wireless) and copy the Default Gateway address to your clipboard.
Accessing the Default Gateway driver - Once you have the address of your router, open your default browser and paste the address directly into the navigation bar, and press Enter to access the login screen.
Accessing the router page - At the login screen, insert the credentials that you previously established or try the defaults that most manufacturers are using as the default values – admin as username and 1234 as password.
Note: If you are not able to sign in with the default credentials and you haven’t established custom equivalents, search online for the generic equivalents according to your router manufacturer. - Once you have successfully signed in to your router settings, look for the Advanced (Expert) settings menu.
Accessing the Advanced menu Note: The exact names, locations, and the screens you’ll see will be different from manufacturer to manufacturer.
- Once you’re inside the Advanced settings menu, access the Wireless tab and look for the Settings menu.
- After you manage to find and access the settings menu, change the default security method from WPA / WPA2 to either WPA or WPA2.
Modifying the security and encryption settings of your wireless settings - Next, before saving the changes that you’ve just operated, ensure that the default Encryption option is set to AES.
- Once the changes have been made, restart your router and see if the problem is now fixed when attempting to set up your Amazon Echo device.
If this issue is still occurring, move down to the next potential fix below.
Method 4: Updating your Bluetooth Driver (if applicable)
If you see the 7.3.0.0.1 error while attempting to connect your Amazon Echo device to a Windows computer via Bluetooth, you should also consider the fact that you might be dealing with an issue induced by your Bluetooth driver.
Several affected users that were dealing with the same issues have confirmed that the problem was finally resolved after they’ve used device Manager to update their Bluetooth driver to the latest version available.
If this scenario looks like it could be applicable and you haven’t tried updating our Bluetooth driver yet, follow the instructions below to learn how to do so:
- Open up a Run dialog box by pressing Windows key + R. Inside the text box, type devmgmt.msc’ and press Enter to open up Device Manager.
Accessing Device Manager - Inside Device Manager, scroll down through the list of device types and expand the drop-down menu associated with Bluetooth.
- Once inside, locate the Bluetooth driver that your computer is using, right-click on it and choose Update driver from the context menu that just appeared.
Updating the Bluetooth driver - Once you get to the next screen, click on Search automatically for updated driver software from the list of available options and wait for the initial scan to complete.
Searching for a new Bluetooth driver version - If a new version is identified, follow the on-screen prompts to complete the installation of the new driver version, then reboot your computer.
- Once the new Bluetooth driver is functional, repeat the connection attempt with Amazon Echo and see if the issue is finally fixed.
If the issue is still not resolved, move down to the next method below and see if it’s applicable.
Method 5: Connect Echo to a 2.4 GHz Network (if applicable)
If you’re encountering this issue while trying to connect your Amazon Echo device to your network via a DualBand router, chances the 7.3.0.0.1 error code occurs due to inconsistency during data exchanges in 5 GHz mode.
This is consistently reported by users that are connecting their Amazon Echo or Amazon Echo Dot device on a 5 GHz network.
In each of the documented instances, the fix is the same – Connecting the Amazon device to the 2.4 GHz network instead of the faster equivalent. This might seem like a big drawback, but it isn’t in most cases.
Amazon Echo doesn’t require that much bandwidth, to begin with. Even more, if you have a lot of connected devices on your 5 GHz network, then arguably the available bandwidth on the 2.4GHz network will be higher.
If this method was not applicable in your particular scenario, move down to the next potential fix below.
Method 6: Updating router firmware
According to some affected users that were also dealing with this issue, you can also expect to deal with this issue if your router firmware is outdated and not fit to work with the newer security protocols imposed by Amazon Echo.
In this case, you should be able to fix your problem by updating your router firmware to the latest version available. But keep in mind that this operation will be different from router to router depending on its manufacturer.
Since the procedure of updating the firmware of your router will be different from manufacturer to manufacturer, consulting the official documentation is a must. Here’s a list of links to the official documentation of the most popular router manufacturers out there:
If your router’s manufacturer is not on this list, search online for the specific steps on updating the firmware of your router’s model.
Once you have successfully managed to update your router’s firmware and re-establish Internet access, attempt to set up Amazon Echo again and see if the problem is now fixed.