# Internet keeps cutting out



## Justin54 (Aug 9, 2007)

Ok, well this happens a lot for a few weeks at a time and its making me very very angry. My internet keeps cutting out ever 5 minutes, so every 5 minutes I have to reset my router and modem and its very annoying. Ive tried a power surge but that doesnt work. Ive tried connecting the computer directly tot he modem but ti doesnt work. I also have a laptop and another PC conencted wirelessly to the router, and they cut out also. 

I have an RCA cable modem which is hooked up to a Linksys Wireless G broadband router (4 port switch, model WRT54T). One computer is hooked up to the router WITH an ethernet cable, and the laptop and other PC are wirless.

My ISP is Rogers. 

Im inexperienced with computers, so any help is greatly appreciated. Please help me.

Thanks.


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## dismal (Oct 10, 2007)

if your connection goes out to your wired (LAN) computer, it's most likely your ISP. If the only computers effected are those on running via your wireless network the problem most likely is your router or your router settings. I'm a networking noob as well, but I haven't heard of your ISP, and if the problem is intermittent and happens mostly during peek hours, then i would consider switching ISPs. 

dismal


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## TerryNet (Mar 23, 2005)

"Ive tried connecting the computer directly tot he modem but ti doesnt work."

You have to power cycle (unplug) the modem when switching from the router to a computer. Try it again because it is important to learn whether the disconnects happen when the router is out of the picture.

Upgrade the router to the latest firmware.


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## Justin54 (Aug 9, 2007)

Thanks for the help.

Im pretty sure its not my ISP, because its a huge company where I live. All the computers in my house are affected. If theres anything I can do with my router settings, please enlighten me.


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## dismal (Oct 10, 2007)

you say this happens a lot for a few weeks at a time...

does that mean that at times it isn't a problem if left alone and then becomes a problem again later?

that would lead me to think ISP again.

If this were a router problem, you would be experiencing the 5 minute drops ALL of the time. I suspect what triggers the change is the reassignment of your i.p. by your i.s.p.


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## TerryNet (Mar 23, 2005)

If it's a router problem you do not have to reset your modem to get reconnected. Do you have LEDs on the modem that tell you your Internet or Online connection is maintained or lost?

If it's the router there are three things I can think of to do--upgrade firmware, reset to factory default settings and reconfigure, replace it.

As dismal discussed, I'd isolate the problem to ISP, modem or router before replacing the router.


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## Justin54 (Aug 9, 2007)

The router is fine, its only about a year old, and yes it does have lighst on it that say if the internet is connected. The moden is 5 or 6 years old, Im thinking that might be a reason.

How do I upgrade the firmware?


The problem happens for weeks at a time, then internet will work perfectly for a few weeks, then back to disconnecting every 5-10 minutes.

It happens when im using the internet, and also ill go to open up the internet and it wont work. It just disconnects at random times.

Also, can soemoen remind me hwo to power cycle, and if it helps at all or what it prooves?

Thanks alot again.


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## Alpana MG (Oct 10, 2007)

You are using Rogers broadband services that is DSL . 

How many phone jacks do you have in the house and what do you connect on each of them ?


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## JohnWill (Oct 19, 2002)

Alpana MG said:


> You are using Rogers broadband services that is DSL.


He has an RCA cable modem, and he's using DSL? Exactly how did you come to that conclusion? Rogers is a cable TV company, so I'd imagine their service would also be supplied the same way.


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## TerryNet (Mar 23, 2005)

If you are thinking that the modem may be the cause I again suggest that you check its LEDs to see if it indicates that it loses connection to your ISP. More importantly, check with a computer connected directly to it. OTOH you said the router LEDs indicate that it maintains internet access; this implies to me that the computers are losing connection to the router. You need to find out where the disconnect occurs--between ISP and modem, between modem and router, or between router and computers.

To upgrade the router's firmware you download the upgrade to your (ethernet connected) computer and select the router's 'upgrade firmware' option. More specific instructions tailored to your router can be found in your router's User Manual.

Power cycle means to unplug the device from the electrical supply for a few moments and then plug it back in. Keep it unplugged for at least a minute or two to be sure, but a few seconds is often enough. If you are talking about the modem what it does is force the modem to forget what device is connected to it and be prepared when started again to assist any device to communicate with the ISP. In almost every case when you do not power cycle a modem you can change devices as many times as you like and the original one will still have ISP communication and the other ones will not.

A woman in Florida had a very similar to your problem about 2 years ago. After much effort she tracked the problem down to the 2.4Ghz cordless phone. Her service would be fine for weeks or months and then for a period of time she would get frequent disconnects on two ethernet connected PCs. From her experience and reporting I believe that wireless interference can cause wired computers to disconnect. This is not a majority opinion and certainly not proven. Nonetheless, if you isolate the problem to the router I advise to check for wireless interference. One way to check is to disable the wireless on the router and run with wired computers only for awhile.


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## Justin54 (Aug 9, 2007)

I came home today to check if the internet was disconnected, and it was. I checked the LED lights and it still said it was connected and all the lights were on the way they should be.

For those of you who dont know, like JohnWill said, Rogers is a TV cable company, but they also provide internet and phone services, and thats what we have. 

The next time it disconnects ill try a power cycle, and ill try connected the PC, modem and router differnt ways to try and pinpoint a problem.

Oh, and also something I forgot to mention. I also have xbox live, and when im playing it and my internet cuts out on the computer, it will still work on xbox live. But the thing is, once it cuts out, the xbox live servers wont let me play games, but I can still communicate with people inside game lobbys. Xbox live sometimes still disconnects completely, but ususally I can still talk, not play. Just thought that might help find a problem.

Ill post back here later when it disconnects again, and after ive tried some things. Any more tips or thoughts are greatly appreciated.

Also if anyone wants a screenshot of some router settings or anything, just ask, if it helps.


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## Justin54 (Aug 9, 2007)

I just tried to connect the PC and the modem directly with an ethernet cable, the same one I always use, and it didnt work.


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## JohnWill (Oct 19, 2002)

Did you power cycle the modem when you changed the connected device? That's a MANDATORY step or it won't connect at all.


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## Justin54 (Aug 9, 2007)

Ok, well I just tried directly connecting the PC to the modem and I DID power cycle properly, and it worked, so its been narrowed down a bit, the modem is alright I think, so maybe its some router settings.

Last night I unhooked every cable I could, from my computer, router, modem and everything, and re-plugged them in. It was workign fine all night, and it was still connected when I came home, whichw as awesome. Just a few minutes ago it disconnected, after I though it was fixed, its still messed up.

Also, on my computer, there a little bubble that pops up sometimes in the bottom right corner, and it says ''there is an ip adress conflict with another system in your network.''

Maybe it could be something between my Xbox360 and my PC thats making everything screw up?

Please help, I really need this fixed.


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## TerryNet (Mar 23, 2005)

If you are using a static (manually assigned) IP address on any of your devices it could conflict if it is not outside the Dhcp server's address range.

If you are not using any static IP addresses, unplug the router and shut down all computers and game boxes, etc. Then plug in router and boot the computers and other stuff.

I've already posted things with respect to the disconnects.


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## Justin54 (Aug 9, 2007)

Thanks Terry, ill try that later.

I think it has something to do witht he fact that the computers are on different networks. All the computers get the bubble that says ''there is an ip address conflict with another system on this network'', and also another household memeber said that they saw something on the computer that said it was an insecure/unsecure network.

How do I make it secure? It already has a password so no neighbours can use it. 

How do I get all the computers on the same network? (2 wireless 1 wired.)


Thanks


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## TerryNet (Mar 23, 2005)

"How do I get all the computers on the same network? (2 wireless 1 wired.)"

Connect them to the same router. How come you didn't happen to mention two networks at the beginning of the thread? Describe the networks.


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## Justin54 (Aug 9, 2007)

Someone in my household mentionned it briefly and said maybe it was the problem, I dont know anything about it. All the computers are connected to the same router, but theres Ip adress conflicts.


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## TerryNet (Mar 23, 2005)

IP address conflicts only happen on the SAME network. I responded to your IP address conflicts in post #15.


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## Justin54 (Aug 9, 2007)

Ok im shutting down the computers, the laptop is taking a while because of some updates.

Where can I find firmware upgrades?

Linksys WRT54G Wireless G Broadband Router 2.4GHx 54 Mbps


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## TerryNet (Mar 23, 2005)

For a Linksys router you look for firmware upgrades on the Linksys web site.


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## Justin54 (Aug 9, 2007)

Ok, I upgraded the firmware, and it hasnt disconnected yet, knock on wood. Ill post back later on tonight and let you know if it has disconnected yet.


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