Talk Talk 01226 Dropping Connection? Help!

holgate79

Hi,

Mum and dad are with Talk Talk for braodband - at busy times they can not get an internet connection - the fault is intermittant- usually a reboot (or 3) fixes the issue but sometimes it can persist for days.

I have checked the exchange on the Talk Talk website but it says no faults and plenty of spare capacity - sunadys seem to be a real problem. the problem has been going on for a good few months.

Talk talk are trying to suggest the LAN card is faulty - why? can some one explain this to me - surely if the LAN card is faulty we wouldn't be able to connect at all?

Can anyone assist? When we ring customer services they either cut us off, fob us off or tie us in knots checking filters etc for the millionth time.

Someone mentioned about cordless phones intefering and that there is a way to check for this - i wouldbe grateful if anyone can point me in the right direction with this.

Finally the Talk Talk TV department (not sure how I ended up there but I have been randomly transferred to lots of departments) said the signal strength was the problem and they had boosted it for me as it was set too low?

If the talk talk rep suggests I log on to the talk talk forum thing - I can't I have tried but it won't let me register - says me email address doesn't match - my account number is invalid etc etc.


ARGH!!!!

penrhyn

Cordless phone base stations can interfere with wireless connections and are best moved away from routers.

Are your folks using a wired or wireless connection?

Use this link to obtain their router line statistics and post them here, preferrably with the router plugged into the BT Master test socket.

http://www.kitz.co.uk/adsl/frogstats.php

kwikbreaks

penrhyn wrote: »

Use this link to obtain their router line statistics and post them here, preferrably with the router plugged into the BT Master test socket.

I'd disagree with that advice. It is far better to take the stats with the router connected how it is normally otherwise problems caused by the internal wiring will be masked. Best of both worlds would be to post up stats with it connected normally and also in the test socket.

penrhyn

kwikbreaks wrote: »

I'd disagree with that advice. It is far better to take the stats with the router connected how it is normally otherwise problems caused by the internal wiring will be masked. Best of both worlds would be to post up stats with it connected normally and also in the test socket.

Good point, I concur.

kwikbreaks

Another thing I've seen suggested (don't remember by whom though) is that speed checking in the test socket should show a higher speed. Well on LLU it may well do if there was an internal wiring problem but with BT it can take several days for an imposed lower IP profile to get reset in line with sync.

holgate79

I will try the advice suggested and post the stats that come back - it will be in a few days time though when I 'm next at my folks


- what would we do without helpful people? ;_)

TalkTalk

Hi holgate79,

If you have TV then I presume you used to be a Tiscali customer who has been re-branded to TalkTalk. If this is the case it will be why you can not register on talktalkmembers.com.

As you have been advised you will need to rule out an internal wiring issue first by testing at the test socket.

When you get the issue are you able to access the router configuration page? If you can then it is not a problem with your network card.

What lights are on your router when you get the problem? You should be able to work out from the lights if your sync or authentication is the cause of the issue.

When you were advised your signal needed increasing they were most likely referring to your SNR levels. If your SNR is to low for your line then peaks in interference can cause your connection to drop. Increasing the SNR should give you more stability but at the cost of speed. The only issue is that if it was dropping because your SNR was to low then your router to automatically reconnect at the lower speed. You should not have to manually reboot the router.

Andrew

Cool_Mint

Do you have the type of modem/router that is a standalone box like this?





Unplug it for a couple of hours and try your connection again. Something I learned only very recently is that many - probably most - modem/routers will overheat if left switched on 24/7 and this causes the connection to slow down and fail completely, especially on a wireless connection.

It's a very stupid design flaw that could easily be fixed with cooling fins and/or a built-in fan.

penrhyn

Cool_Mint wrote: »

Do you have the type of modem/router that is a standalone box like this?





Unplug it for a couple of hours and try your connection again. Something I learned only very recently is that many - probably most - modem/routers will overheat if left switched on 24/7 and this causes the connection to slow down and fail completely, especially on a wireless connection.

It's a very stupid design flaw that could easily be fixed with cooling fins and/or a built-in fan.

They are designed to be run 24/7, however maximum longevity can be improved by mounting them vertically to improve the airflow.

Cool_Mint

hi Penrhyn, mine is almost the same as the one in the photo and I stand it vertically but it still overheats. Netgear's official policy is that their units are not meant to left switched on!

http://www.askbjoernhansen.com/2007/01/16/netgear_equipment_not_made_to_be_on_all_day.html

holgate79

Mum and Dad have been on to TalkTalk Customer services again - more promised call backs and painstaking fault diagnostics ensued....still problem occurs....

In answer to the talk talk rep .... yes we can still access the router page when there is no connection. The internet light disappears (belkin F5D7632-4 Router) - line test comes back invalid at your end of things.

They have had us reboot the router - change the MTU to 1432 - apparently this is the talk talk setting and what we had before was the tiscali setting - anbd do other random things - a favorite is turn it off and on again.....

Penrhyn - thanks for your help - when I go into the router I don't get a prompt box ....all I get is the standard router settings page so I don't know how to get the line stats?

This was a minor annoyance before but the standard of talk talks customer sertvice is becoming a major bug bear.

Thanks

Ruth