Losing Internet Connection

[Miller]

I've posted about this problem before. But the thread is too old to post on it again. I basically I’m losing my Network connection sporadically. I have an Orange Livebox which I connect two PC's to via a Netgear Home plug (the other plug provides connection to a Blu-Ray player). I've replaced the Livebox and all the associated cables and filters, but still experience connection loss. My BT line has been checked for faults etc. I also disabled the 'putting network adaptor to standby' (or something similar as advised).

However, I'm still experiencing internet connection loss. Over the last few months I've just put up with it and rebooted my Netgear Adaptor and Orange Livebox every time I lose connection.

However I’ve just gone to use my pc and noted the usual yellow error (!) on my 'Network' icon on the toolbar indicating no network connection. So I turned off the power to my Netgear Adaptor and Orange Livebox, to reboot. Unbeknown to me, my son was playing online on his Sony PlayStation wirelessly connected my Orange Livebox. He was connected to the internet, but my pc which is hardwired via the Netgear Adaptor was not?

I've tried removing the Netgear Adaptor before, but still experienced the drop out. Anyone with ideas

 

[limegreenzx]

At the moment you are making too bold a statement.

The loss of connection to the internet is just one symptom of your problem. The first thing you need to do is find out what your IP configuration is and what local connections you have. If you can't connect to your local router you will never connect to the internet.

Go to the "Start" button and type cmd to bring up a cmd prompt - then type in ipconfig. This should give details of your IPv4 IP address and gateway IP.

The report back.

 

[Mark Pile]

i had those home plug things the once, i kept them for all of 2 days before i threw them in the bin, i am now in the process of wirinf everything that is in a fixed location, like ps3's, xbox, media player, bravia tv, all i got wireless now is just mine and the wife's laptops, and i have no issues with anything dropping out

 

[beerhunter]

i had those home plug things the once, i kept them for all of 2 days before i threw them in the bin,

Not sure what you found wrong with them but I have to say that you are in very small minority. I have a pair at home connecting an awkward place. (I have mixture of Wired Ethernet, HomePlugs and 802.11n WiFi.) They were plug and play and have worked well, even streaming video, for about two years now. I do not think that my experience is untypical.

 

[Miller]

At the moment you are making too bold a statement.

The loss of connection to the internet is just one symptom of your problem. The first thing you need to do is find out what your IP configuration is and what local connections you have. If you can't connect to your local router you will never connect to the internet.

Go to the "Start" button and type cmd to bring up a cmd prompt - then type in ipconfig. This should give details of your IPv4 IP address and gateway IP.

The report back.

As asked IPv4 IP address: 192.168.1.84. Default Gateway: 192.168.1.1.

I believe it is an intermittent line fault; my neighbour is having similar problems.

 

[beerhunter]

I believe it is an intermittent line fault; my neighbour is having similar problems.

But you and your neighbour are on different lines (You each have a dedicated pair of wires between your dwellings and the exchange.) so you can't both have the same line fault.

Second as you son was able to continue using the internet when you could not means that the fault is within your PC or its connection to the router. The "'Network' icon on the toolbar indicating no network connection." confirms this is a LOCAL AREA NETWORK problem and not upstream of the router..

Try moving to another port on the router and replacing the Ethernet Cable.

 

[psikey]

Not sure what you found wrong with them but I have to say that you are in very small minority. I have a pair at home connecting an awkward place. (I have mixture of Wired Ethernet, HomePlugs and 802.11n WiFi.) They were plug and play and have worked well, even streaming video, for about two years now. I do not think that my experience is untypical.

Totally agree. I hardwire where practicle but went away from wireless to Devolo AV200 homeplugs and use 5 of them without a problem at all, even streaming upto 3 HD streams simultaneously. Do know house wiring can have a major impact.

 

[psikey]

As asked IPv4 IP address: 192.168.1.84. Default Gateway: 192.168.1.1.

I believe it is an intermittent line fault; my neighbour is having similar problems.

How intermittent are we talking? Once a week or everytime you use it?

Do you loose connection in the middle of doing something? A friend of mine had a similar problem like this and it ended up being a loose connection in the cable between the Homeplug & ethernet port.

 

[Miller]

Thanks guys for all your help in this. It's a real pain. The fault generally manifest itself when you go to use the internet, yesterday however, I wanted to check out a news story on the BBC. I loaded the front page and then clicked on the particular item, but it would not load. After a few minutes I got the 'diagnose internet connection' window, and the 'network' icon on my toolbar displayed the yellow '!' icon. I had to reboot my router/home plug. I have replaced all my cables and routers. I have two home plugs and I have swapped them over as well. The fault is sporadic, and can happen every day, or I can go a week also without loss.

The last time the BT engineer came, he not only checked my line to its first connection, he also checked between that connection and further down the road. He said he found a poor connection there. It does seem a bit suspicious that my immediate neighbour is experiencing the same problem? I'm running Win 7 64 bit on the problem pc.

 

[Miller]

Bump

 

[beerhunter]

It does seem a bit suspicious that my immediate neighbour is experiencing the same problem?

As I said earlier you and your neighbour are on different bits of wire and so you cannot share a wiring fault.

As has also been said earlier you need to find out where the problem lies: your DSL connection (between the router the local exchange) or your Local Area Network connection (between the router and the PC). That "Network Icon" on the tool bar refers to the LAN connection.

Unfortunately, rebooting the router when you get the problem will simply masks any symptoms and so you need to have a good look around at what is failing before you do that next time.

 

[Miller]

At the moment you are making too bold a statement.

The loss of connection to the internet is just one symptom of your problem. The first thing you need to do is find out what your IP configuration is and what local connections you have. If you can't connect to your local router you will never connect to the internet.

Go to the "Start" button and type cmd to bring up a cmd prompt - then type in ipconfig. This should give details of your IPv4 IP address and gateway IP.

The report back.

Sorry for taking so long to reply, but I've not lost my connection since my last post. However, I turned on my pc this morning and had no connection. So here are the results:

Without internet connection
Microsoft Windows [Version 6.1.7601]
Copyright (c) 2009 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
C:\Windows\system32>ping 192.168.1.1
Pinging 192.168.1.1 with 32 bytes of data:
Request timed out.
Reply from 192.168.1.84: Destination host unreachable.
Request timed out.
Reply from 192.168.1.84: Destination host unreachable.
Ping statistics for 192.168.1.1:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 2, Lost = 2 (50% loss),

With internet connection
Microsoft Windows [Version 6.1.7601]
Copyright (c) 2009 Microsoft Corporation. All rights
C:\Users\Gary Miller>ping 192.168.1.1
Pinging 192.168.1.1 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=64

Ping statistics for 192.168.1.1:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 1ms, Maximum = 1ms, Average = 1ms

AND

Microsoft Windows [Version 6.1.7601]
Copyright (c) 2009 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

>ipconfig
Windows IP Configuration
Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::e0d0:bcb9:8645:e363%10
IPv4 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.84
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1

Tunnel adapter isatap.{0CEAFA18-5CE4-4E37-B6B2-B3661337CED5}:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :

Tunnel adapter Teredo Tunneling Pseudo-Interface:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
IPv6 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 2001:0:5ef5:79fb:105e:322d:a06c:4867
Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::105e:322d:a06c:4867%11
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : ::


Any thoughts?

 

[beerhunter]

You are losing the connection between the PC and the router.

Ensure that any HomePlugs have dedicated sockets. That is to say they are NOT connected via an extension socket.

 

[Miller]

You are losing the connection between the PC and the router.

Ensure that any HomePlugs have dedicated sockets. That is to say they are NOT connected via an extension socket.

Both Homeplugs are plugged straight into a wall socket (one upstairs, one down) and I have an Ethernet cable from router into homeplug and from there to two other pc's (the other Homeplug connects my Blu-Ray player). I have previously replaced cable between Homeplug and router and swapped over the two homeplugs. I've read somewhere that phone chargers and the like can cause problems with Homeplugs (the router power supply is plugged into the same twin socket as the Homeplug).

 

[bigriggers]

Sounds like you've pretty much narrowed it down to either the homeplug connection (over your power cables) or the NIC in your PC.
Try a continuous ping to the IP assigned by your router, so in cmd:

ping -t 192.168.1.84

Leave it for a while to see if the response times vary.

 

[Miller]

Sounds like you've pretty much narrowed it down to either the homeplug connection (over your power cables) or the NIC in your PC.
Try a continuous ping to the IP assigned by your router, so in cmd:

ping -t 192.168.1.84

Leave it for a while to see if the response times vary.

Had another disconnection today. Here is the above result.

 

[Miller]

Getting regular drop outs now, 4 or 5 a day. I've installed a Netgear utility, and I've attached a diagnostic report after I've lost connection. Any thoughts?

 

[bigriggers]

Strange one. From your pings I'd still say the homeplug wiring is suspect. Any way you can trail a cat5 cable just to test? Or perhaps trying two different plug socket? Have you got a laptop you could try?

 

[Miller]

Strange one. From your pings I'd still say the homeplug wiring is suspect. Any way you can trail a cat5 cable just to test? Or perhaps trying two different plug socket? Have you got a laptop you could try?

I think I'll remove the Homeplug out of the equation all together; I only use them now to connect my Blu-Ray player to the internet. That will prove or disprove the problem lies with them. I need to buy a cheap hub or whatever it is to do that, to keep my other pc connected. Can anybody recommend one as a temporary measure?

 

[Miller]

Would this be okay?

Ethernet RJ45 3 Way Network Cable Splitter Extender Plug Coupler, RJ45 Splitter Plug

 

[drinkturps]

Getting regular drop outs now, 4 or 5 a day. I've installed a Netgear utility, and I've attached a diagnostic report after I've lost connection. Any thoughts?

I have exactly the same problem but I am wired direct to the router. I've got a Netgear DG834N v2. 4-5 times a day I would lose connection to the router. Especially noticeable when playing online. Mine is on 192.168.0.1 and with a constant ping test it will time out and sporadically say "destination host unreachable". Eventually it would come back after a minute or two. A power reset usually does the trick if it takes longer. If you check the Netgear forums you'll see that this is not uncommon.

Latest firmware, NIC drivers, MTU size changes, I've pretty much checked everything. I've got a very old Orange Livebox which I will substitute and see if the problem remains. It appears to be a Netgear hardware issue. Some people have suggested over heating but I don't believe that to be the issue.

 

[drinkturps]

OK, an update I've now connected my very old and original Orange Livebox (looks more like a shoebox).

I've flashed the firmware to the latest version so I'll give it a road test for a few days and see if I continue to experience the symptoms that you do when using the Netgear router.

Wireless reconfigured and everything is working as expected. I'll post again if I continue to experience any loss to the router itself....

 

[drinkturps]

Well it's been two days and I've spent all today day working over a VPN and I've not had any drops at all. I'm using the same cables it's just plugged into the old router.

You've not mentioned what happens when you a connected direct by a cable into the router. Did you get the same problem even when not connecting via a homeplug?

 

[Miller]

Well it's been two days and I've spent all today day working over a VPN and I've not had any drops at all. I'm using the same cables it's just plugged into the old router.

You've not mentioned what happens when you a connected direct by a cable into the router. Did you get the same problem even when not connecting via a homeplug?

Nope not tried that yet. I'm not too good on internet terms and equipement, is the one into ethernet adaptor (shown above) all I need to use?

 

[bigriggers]

Nope not tried that yet. I'm not too good on internet terms and equipement, is the one into ethernet adaptor (shown above) all I need to use?

I'm pretty sure the device you posted will not do what you want it to (connect two devices to your Orange Livebox?)
To do that you would need a cheap switch. However, as it is just for testing purposes I wouldn't bother, could you not just leave one PC out of the equation for 24 hours?