# Network Help



## Ric (Apr 26, 2002)

ok - need some help with network. Yes, I have MRV hooked up and I know DECA announcements but have had my network set up for a year now so didnt do anything new for the services.

I am having internet connection issues from a wired and wireless connected computer - it will just drop connection then come right back. I have contacted AT&T and they dont show there are any issues with the line. Here is my setup:

Central area for all Cat 5 cables.

Setup
AT&T DSL via Motorola 2210 Modem connected to single phone line 
Modem connected to Linksys WRT54G wireless router/switch (router has all default settings)
Router connected to Netgear 10/100 Switch
Attached to the 16 port netgear switch is 
2 Desktop computers
Xbox360
Viatalk VoIP
2 HR22s and 1 HR20
Other rooms in the house connected but no equipment currently using the connection

Connected to the Wireless side are 2 iphones, 1 desktop and 1 laptop

So I understand if everyone is using all the connections (which is rare) things will slow down but cant figure out the dropped connections. It happens on both the wired desktop connection (WIN 7) and the wireless laptop connect (WINXp). Is there something better I need to do? this is about the limit of my networking knowledge. I cant say for sure if this started when MRV started as I was using some CE releases earlier but now on Natl Rel. It has dropped three times this AM alone and only the wireless laptop is in use. It usually just comes right back.


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## CJTE (Sep 18, 2007)

Ric said:


> ok - need some help with network. Yes, I have MRV hooked up and I know DECA announcements but have had my network set up for a year now so didnt do anything new for the services.
> 
> I am having internet connection issues from a wired and wireless connected computer - it will just drop connection then come right back. I have contacted AT&T and they dont show there are any issues with the line. Here is my setup:
> 
> ...


What do you do when the signal drops? It could be a lot of things. Bad modem, dying router, dying switch...

Try taking the Netgear switch out of the loop first (Plug the 4 devices you need most into the WRT54G).
See if you still have the problem.

If you still have a problem, try connecting the desktop straight to the router and see if the problem persists. If it does, then you know the modem needs to be replaced (should be free or cost of shipping). If not, replace the router.


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## Stuart Sweet (Jun 19, 2006)

These sorts of drops can be very hard to detect from the carrier side. I had intermittent drops for two years. See if you can get the call escalated on the AT&T side. They can send traffic to the router continuously for a day and see what happens. If it's a router failure they can probably show that. 

Also if you are comfortable with getting into the router see if it's programmed to auto-reboot under any circumstance.


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## Marlin Guy (Apr 8, 2009)

Make sure that both computers (the wired desktop and the wireless laptop) do not have the same name. With both dropping like this, it sounds like an IP issue.
Also make sure that they are getting the correct gateway and that only the Linksys router is handling DHCP.
That modem acts as a DHCP server. That may be something you want to turn off and let the Linksys handle.


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## bleggett29 (Feb 2, 2008)

> What do you do when the signal drops? It could be a lot of things. Bad modem, dying router, dying switch...


Thought I'd add that it could be the telephone line. Not sure about your DSL modem but on my Zoom X6 DSL modem I can check the ADSL status. I notice when the downstream SNR Margin drops below 9.5 dB I start having problems. This only happens when there is a recent significant rain. Do you have static on your landline phone(if you even have one anymore lol). Could be old wire in the house, or old wire coming from the CO.


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## Ric (Apr 26, 2002)

thanks - I will try these things. So it isnt my setup which is good, now to begin eliminating items. Still have one landline - no static or issues with phone and wiring is only 4 yrs old.


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## timmmaaayyy2003 (Jan 27, 2008)

bleggett29 said:


> Thought I'd add that it could be the telephone line. Not sure about your DSL modem but on my Zoom X6 DSL modem I can check the ADSL status. I notice when the downstream SNR Margin drops below 9.5 dB I start having problems. This only happens when there is a recent significant rain. Do you have static on your landline phone(if you even have one anymore lol). Could be old wire in the house, or old wire coming from the CO.


The company I used to work for had similar issues. I had a tech come out and he found a MAJOR mismatch in the length of the wires. The trunk we were connected to had a 5 mile difference between the tip and ring (positive and ground). He changed our line to a different pair and we never lost connection again.

Sometimes this happens when the guys working downline move things around to get a new line working and you'd never know it when it happens.


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## ffemtreed (Jan 30, 2008)

just one quick observation.

you don't have two connections from the DVR's back to the 16 port switch do you? You should only have one network cable into the DVR's. If you have two cables going to the switch, that is your problem. you caused a loopback condition on the switch and it will for sure screw with you.

I have seen someone do this in the past thinking they were doubling their speed to the DVR by using both connections. 

You can hook another device (such as another DVR, or computer) to the second port on the DVR, but I would advise against it. 

Another thing you can try is to use a crossover cable beween the WRT54G and the Netgear switch. I highly highly doubt this would fix anything because both of those switches should autodetect MDX settings. If the 16 port netgear has an uplink port you might want to use that to connect to the WRT54G. 

I have seen some low cost netgear switches that you can setup VLAN and etc on, make sure you don't have anything funky setup on that switch. Again, I doubt that this is your problem but its worth a shot to just check.


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## Ric (Apr 26, 2002)

ffemtreed said:


> just one quick observation.
> 
> you don't have two connections from the DVR's back to the 16 port switch do you? You should only have one network cable into the DVR's. If you have two cables going to the switch, that is your problem. you caused a loopback condition on the switch and it will for sure screw with you.
> 
> ...


 thanks.. just one wire from DVRs and no uplink port or VLAN avail.


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## PokerJoker (Apr 12, 2008)

Ric said:


> . . . router/switch (router has all default settings)


I hope that's not literally true.:eek2:

At the barest minimum you should change the admin password and turn on wireless security, to WPA if possible. Both should have not-guessable passwords.

If that router is installed out-of-the-box with no changes, it will work, but you will be totally wide open to access by anyone.

The router makers ship them with no security so they will always "work" out of the box. This cuts down on returns and tech support calls. It's also a boon to hackers, leeches and miscreants everywhere.

Keith


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## Ric (Apr 26, 2002)

PokerJoker said:


> I hope that's not literally true.:eek2:
> 
> At the barest minimum you should change the admin password and turn on wireless security, to WPA if possible. Both should have not-guessable passwords.
> 
> ...


 yea - didnt mean it that way. yes, security is fully enabled. Just meant that it has all the default tech items.


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## Marlin Guy (Apr 8, 2009)

Did you check for conflicting DHCP servers on the modem and router?
Did you check for conflicting names on the PC's?


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## zx10guy (Nov 16, 2008)

When troubleshooting network problems, start with the basics.

From the affected computer, first check your IP address on your PC if it is running as a DHCP client. From a command prompt, issue the command ipconfig /all. Make sure the IP address information you see in there is correct. You should not see anything like 0.0.0.0 or 169.x.x.x as your IP address. Also make sure things like your subnet mask, default gateway, and DNS are all correct.

If the above checks out, next from the command prompt, issue the command ping [your router's IP]. Do not use the braces. You should get a reply. If you get an error stating a time out, then for what ever reason, you're not able to talk to your router.

If the above checks out, use the ping command again, but this time do a ping www.yahoo.com . This will test to see if you can at least get out onto the internet via your ISP and also checks to see if your DNS is working. If you get a time out error, then try doing....ping 4.2.2.2 .

Do those things and report back.


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