DELL randomly drops Internet connection yet still talks to router

Ed_Jogg

Ummm -- this wouldn't explain why my XP Laptop doesn't suffer the same problem.

Also, I would expect to have other problems if there was a loose connection: we have "50MB" broadband plus the cable TV coming down the same 'pipe', and the installation engineer confirmed the speed as exceeding 48.

aliEnRIK

Ed_Jogg wrote: »

Ummm -- this wouldn't explain why my XP Laptop doesn't suffer the same problem.

Maybe it is but instantly reconnects (Some computers will and others wont)

All im trying to suggest is top the disconnections in the 1st place

My other suggestion would be to swop ethernet leads to see if thats at fault (Possibly already been advised, ive just woken up)

preable

Try swapping ethernet leads like ali says

TimothyEBaldwin

aliEnRIK wrote: »

Maybe it is but instantly reconnects (Some computers will and others wont)

But there's no reconnecting for the computer to do, it is only concerned with a connection to the first switch/access point/router, and to the computers it is communicating with.

aliEnRIK

TimothyEBaldwin wrote: »

But there's no reconnecting for the computer to do, it is only concerned with a connection to the first switch/access point/router, and to the computers it is communicating with.

Im not arguing, and nor am I getting techical. But ive dealt with cable routers for quite a few years now and when theres a slight problem with the incoming signal from virgin then my computer drops out alltogether and ONLY works when rebooted (sometimes the problem could be fixed by other means but it was so random I just rebooted)

When it happened it could still 'see' the router so I strongly disagree with your comment

Ed_Jogg

The modem cable has a co-ax connector which feels like it's been tightened with a spanner!

Have swapped Ethernet cables between PC and router -- now using the fairly old one I had for the laptop rather than the brand new one that was supplied with the router.

Windows updates mentioned earlier in thread have NOT cured the problem.


Discovered faster way to reset the network adaptor. (Easy to see when network failed as Skype icon goes grey. Network icon is no help, but that's a different problem!)
From the Start button, open Control Panel-->Network and Sharing Centre and click on the sidebar link: "Diagnose and repair". This skipped all the faffing about by Internet Explorer and almost instantly offered the 'Reset Network Adaptor' popup -- fixed in about 20seconds, maybe, instead of what seemed like an eternity when going via IE.

Continuing problems with Windows Updates, so further experiments still on hold.

TimothyEBaldwin

Check the output following commands: (you can access the command prompt using the start menu)

ipconfig /all
route print
arp -a

Note any differences between when it works, and when it does not work.

Ed_Jogg

OK. Data captured when working. Now need to wait for the next failure...

(Thanks for the suggestions.)

Ed_Jogg

Data captured during a failure too.
(almost) All data was identical.

The ONLY difference was in the time that the Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection 'Lease Expires'. In the one that was taken when NOT working, the 'Expires' data was exactly 7 days after the 'Obtained' date, to the second. On the other hand, the log taken when working was 3 seconds under 7 days...

TimothyEBaldwin

Strange. Is it different before and after repairing the connection?

Do you lights on your router indicate wireless activity when you access the Internet via your PC which is wired to the router?

Does the LAN IP address of your router appear in the output of "route print"?

When it's broken can you access websites by IP address, for example does http://74.125.39.106/ get you to google?

Is your wireless connection secure? (Use WPA with an unguessable passphrase or turn it off)