About a month ago my wireless router started dropping the signal randomnly for about 5 minutes before reconnecting. I used it wired for a while so no big whoop although it was a pain in the ass.

Finally bought a new wireless router yesterday (Linksys WRT54G) and set it up. Well it also started dropping the signal within a few hours of setting it up. I used Network Stumbler and checked for interference. I am the only signal on channel 3 so I guess interference is out? The wireless card in the laptop shouldnt be the problem because it can continue to detect all the other wireless signals when my router goes down (and connect to the unprotected ones). If I wire up the laptop the connection is perfect.

So did I just get a lemon of a router or is there something wrong that Im missing? Thanks for any help.

2/13/2007 7:19:47 PM

If you have the same problem with two routers, probably not a hardware problem.... did you update the firmware?

2/13/2007 10:45:23 PM

have you tried different channels?

[Edited on February 13, 2007 at 10:59 PM. Reason : .]

2/13/2007 10:55:18 PM

firmware is updated to latest edition. Ive tried channels 6, 9, and 11. still have the same problem on all of them.

2/14/2007 7:33:45 PM

I get the same problem with the same wireless router. It drops out every month, but I just reset it and works for some time... I have two wireless networks at my house, b and g, so if one goes down, I still have a backup. Both were free after rebates.

2/15/2007 11:02:54 AM

i wish mine only dropped every month. It happens almost everyday and sometimes more than once a day. It only lasts a few minutes but its still a pain.

2/15/2007 4:19:53 PM

maybe the thing is overheating

keep it on a smooth, flat surface with some open room. hell, blow a fan on it just to see

2/15/2007 4:27:42 PM

and you are sure its not the actual modem thats losing the signal?

i've had more than my fair share of trouble with modems from TWCable.

2/15/2007 7:46:26 PM

could be a DHCP issue

2/15/2007 7:59:34 PM

my router does it too, though sometimes it is months apart, sometimes it is minutes. i think it has something to do with multiple wireless connections going at once.

2/15/2007 8:02:07 PM

my laptop at home will occasionally go out for just a couple seconds, usually no more

but sometimes at work i cant get any connection and i need to either

- reset the wireless router

and/or

- restart the DHCP Server (that distributes IP addresses)

2/15/2007 8:12:36 PM

The modem is on a glass desk with nothing around it so hopefully it is not overheating. Otherwise I need to take it back. But I will throw a desk fan in front of it to see.

shouldnt be a modem problem because if I wire a connection to my laptop I have a signal, even when the wireless goes down.

I will look into the DHCP settings and see if there is something I can change.

There are about 7 or 8 different wireless signals in the area that I recieve, so maybe that has something to do with it.

Yeah reseting the router always fixes the problem, but its a pain to walk across the room to reset it, especially when im comfortable on the couch doing some work.

Thanks for the help guys. Hopefully I can figure this out before the return period ends.

2/15/2007 8:54:49 PM

ok i think i have found the problem:

"Client Lease Time

The Client Lease Time is the amount of time a network user will be allowed connection to the Router with their current dynamic IP address. Enter the amount of time, in minutes, that the user will be "leased" this dynamic IP address."

Right now it is set to 0 which means one day. The max # i can enter is 9999 which is only 16 hours. Is there any way to extend the IP more than one day?

Or could I change to a static IP with Time Warner Cable?

What would happen if I disabled DHCP?


[Edited on February 16, 2007 at 9:12 AM. Reason : a]

2/16/2007 9:01:24 AM

if that was the cause of your problem, you'd have the same problem whether you were connected via wireless or via ethernet.

2/16/2007 9:12:02 AM

^darn good point.

2/16/2007 9:13:01 AM

are you using Windows Wireless Zero Configuration or the wireless application that came with your wireless card in the laptop?

if you're using the windows built-in solution.. are you also turning off SSID broadcast on the router?

the WZC seems to have problems with staying connected to networks that don't broadcast and switch over to another 'preferred' network or asks you to choose a network when it sees nearby networks.

if this is the case.. you can either stop using the built-in configuration software, or turn SSID broadcast back on (make sure you have other security measures configured)

also look at the connection properties and make sure 802.1x authentication is unchecked.. that can also cause connection problems

[Edited on February 16, 2007 at 9:23 AM. Reason : ]

2/16/2007 9:20:55 AM

i had the problem with no-broadcast networking as well, but that didnt fix my issues.

2/16/2007 12:36:13 PM

im using the dell wireless utility that came with the comp, but I also tried using WZC and it didnt help. I tried broadcasting and not broadcasting the SSID and still nothing. Ive been playing with the router settings and it hasnt dropped the signal yesterday or today (unless its at like 3am) so maybe everything is cool.

[Edited on February 16, 2007 at 9:49 PM. Reason : a]

2/16/2007 9:49:28 PM

Quote :

"if that was the cause of your problem, you'd have the same problem whether you were connected via wireless or via ethernet."

Not necessarily.

2/18/2007 12:13:55 AM