Dropped Connections problem

I recently joined Plus Net on 512k and for the first week was thrilled with
it. This past weekend the connection started dropping when it was idle .....
all settings are correct (as far as I know) and it is set to never
disconnect so I am at a loss to explain this ??

I called plus net and raised a ticket which is still there waiting for a
reply which is odd - they usually reply quickly ..... I did not even get an
email acknowledgement about this one.

I called them and they told me that the disconnections were VOLUNTARY at my
end !!

At first I could reconnect so it wasnt a problem.

Then 2 days ago I couldnt connect at all - phoned them again - they said the
password had become corrupted ?!?!? how I have no idea ?? Reentered it - and
connected ok - this was Sunday still .........while on the phone about this
I asked about the dropped connections and the fellow just said he had no
idea !!! Not exactly helpful !!

Done some research with the help of a friend - and found all sorts of things
that are alarming ..... between faulty lines - to possibly needing to
download a patch for my modem.

I have a Voyager 105 ADSL USB modem ....... but the patch was supposed to be
for 1 mb faster speeds.

Basically it only seems to happen when it is idle ..... I think it might
have gone while I was typing once or twice but more often than not is just
when I am not here but left it online ....

Does anyone else have any experience of this and/or advice of how to sort
this out ??

Many thanks ......

PS ........ I know there was a genuine fault at their end yesterday which
was why I couldnt connect last night - but that just added to my
frustration. Just left Tesco cos they were useless and was hoping for
problem free connection for a while !!

Any comments gratefully received )

"Kit" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in news:(E-Mail Removed):

> Basically it only seems to happen when it is idle

Would that be as in an idle timeout? If you look in the settings for your
connection there should be an option to disable it. That would certainly
explain why it is showing up on the radius as a legitimate disconnection
rather than an error termination.

There are many things that can cause disconnects. Poor line quality, crappy
filter, long extensions, extensions wired directly into the line/master
socker bypassing filters, hard-wired alarm systems dialing out, too many
devices connected to the phone line and so on.

If it hasn't already been done then start a new ticket simply asking for a
whoosh test to be done and the results added to the ticket. That will test
your line quality, and you can put the results here if needs be.

If the line tests fine then you have to unplug everything and put the DSL
modem straight into the master socket. Then work back connecting things one
by one until you find the culprit. If it is an intermittent fault then you
can be at it for a very long time (as I was when the modem in our router
went flaky - it finally died and let me know exactly where the problem
was.)

--
Colin
*Drop DEAD from the email address to reply*

"Kit" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in news:(E-Mail Removed):

> I have a Voyager 105 ADSL USB modem ....... but the patch was supposed
> to be for 1 mb faster speeds.
>
> Basically it only seems to happen when it is idle ..... I think it
> might have gone while I was typing once or twice but more often than
> not is just when I am not here but left it online ....

I had a similar problem years ago with an Alcatel Speedtouch USB modem.
I switched off the power saving on the device and it stopped
disconnecting. I think the USB port was going into power saving. You
have to look in Device Manager to change the setting. Of course, I'm
not affected by this problem now as I use a router.

> PS ........ I know there was a genuine fault at their end yesterday
> which was why I couldnt connect last night - but that just added to my
> frustration. Just left Tesco cos they were useless and was hoping for
> problem free connection for a while !!

I've been with PlusNet for a few months and have had solid connections
and have just upgraded to 1Mbps. There's a load balancing problem at
the moment, but that's at BT's end and I don't seem to be affected at
all.

--
My photos: http://www.weezer.plus.com/
To send me an e-mail, remove TEETH

> Would that be as in an idle timeout? If you look in the settings for your
> connection there should be an option to disable it. That would certainly
> explain why it is showing up on the radius as a legitimate disconnection
> rather than an error termination.

As far as I know how to do it LOL ...... I have my settings set to NEVER
disconnect ....... cant seem to find anything to disable it all.


>
> There are many things that can cause disconnects. Poor line quality,
crappy
> filter, long extensions, extensions wired directly into the line/master
> socker bypassing filters, hard-wired alarm systems dialing out, too many
> devices connected to the phone line and so on.

hmmmmmmmmmmm........ this does worry me - but why did it work perfectly well
for 6 days first ?? That's what's odd ??
We've probably got 3 of those !!


>
> If it hasn't already been done then start a new ticket simply asking for a
> whoosh test to be done and the results added to the ticket. That will test
> your line quality, and you can put the results here if needs be.

Ok - I will do that - thanks.


>
> If the line tests fine then you have to unplug everything and put the DSL
> modem straight into the master socket.

Problem with that is the main BT socket is in the hall ......... the
computer is in the lounge with extension wires. There is currently NO filter
in the main socket as that was how I was advised to set it up. When I first
set it up I had a filter in that one as well and had no connection so was
told to take it out and it works fine !! but I am at a loss to know how it
all works without one in the main master socket !!




Then work back connecting things one
> by one until you find the culprit. If it is an intermittent fault then you
> can be at it for a very long time (as I was when the modem in our router
> went flaky - it finally died and let me know exactly where the problem
> was.)
>

*sigh*

I will try fiddling around with the connections again then ....

thanks for your advice.


Jo

> I had a similar problem years ago with an Alcatel Speedtouch USB modem.
> I switched off the power saving on the device and it stopped
> disconnecting. I think the USB port was going into power saving. You
> have to look in Device Manager to change the setting. Of course, I'm
> not affected by this problem now as I use a router.

Ah ha ......... perhaps I can look into this option then .......... what's
the difference between a router and a modem then ??
Sorry for my ignorance here !!


> I've been with PlusNet for a few months and have had solid connections
> and have just upgraded to 1Mbps. There's a load balancing problem at
> the moment, but that's at BT's end and I don't seem to be affected at
> all.

I just seem to have very bad luck with broadband ....... (

Thanks for your advice

Jo

On 28 Sep 2004 in uk.telecom.broadband, "Kit" wrote:

>the difference between a router and a modem then ??

In general terms, a router is used to 'route' packets from one
network to another, but there are routers, used for LAN to WAN
connections eg for ntl or Telewest (which have no ADSL modem),
and then 'routers' (where we really mean a combined router and
ADSL modem).

USB and PCI card ADSL modems are just that - the modem serving
one PC. A router/ADSL modem combination will be able to serve
many computers on the local network. Some come with a single
ethernet port, others with (usually) 4, but in either case, a
lot of PCs could be connected, simply using a bigger ethernet
hub or switch (I was in an office on Sunday, where a couple
of 16-port hubs access 2x 500 kbps units).

A router/ADSL modem will stay connected (even while a PC is
rebooted, as the router/modem is independent) and often can
act to reject unwanted packets from other internet addresses
(hackers or infected systems). HTH. Peter M.

"poster" <us-(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed)...
> On 28 Sep 2004 in uk.telecom.broadband, "Kit" wrote:
>
> >the difference between a router and a modem then ??
>
> A router/ADSL modem will stay connected...

There are two main types of router/ADSL modem.

a) Those that work with 10base-T (or 100base-T) Ethernet - using CAT 5 cabling
RJ45 plugs etc

b) Those that also work with a home wireless network.

See review on www.adslguide.org.uk

Many routers provide signal strenght information.


Michael Chare

"Kit" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in news:(E-Mail Removed):

> I am at a loss to know how it
> all works without one in the main master socket !!

It is fairly simple. You cannot have it filtered twice.

Single comes in (S) and is composed of voice (V) and Data (D)
The filter splits V & D onto separate sockets.

S-------V
|___D

If you put an extension off the voice socket, then that will not have the
data signal even if you put a filter on the end as there is no D to filter
out.

S-------V---(e)---
|___D

Those diagrams probably went horribly wrong.
If you have one filter at the master socket, then the data must only be
extended off the data socket.

All devices must be filtered so if you have any phones plugged into
extensions that go straight into the master socket then these will cause
disconnects.

Someone will probably be able to give you a link with a fuller explanation.
--
Colin
*Drop DEAD from the email address to reply*

"Kit" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in news:(E-Mail Removed):

> Ah ha ......... perhaps I can look into this option then ..........
> what's the difference between a router and a modem then ??
> Sorry for my ignorance here !!

The router will maintain your connection for you even when your computer
is off. You connect a lead from the router to the computer using an
ethernet cable to the computer's network card (if it has one - most recent
computers have a built in port). Most of the ADSL routers available tend
to have four network ports allowing you to share your connection with
other computers. Some also have a wireless connection so a suitably
equipped PC or laptop can connect to the network and get onto the Internet
wirelessly. If you're going to go down the router path then look for an
ADSL router, not one marked cable/DSL or broadband router as the latter
does not have a built-in ADSL modem.

--
My photos: http://www.weezer.plus.com/
To send me an e-mail, remove TEETH

"cw" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:Xns9572E523CA762cwfidei@212.159.2.87...
> "Kit" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in news:(E-Mail Removed):
>
> > I am at a loss to know how it
> > all works without one in the main master socket !!
>
> It is fairly simple. You cannot have it filtered twice.
>
> Single comes in (S) and is composed of voice (V) and Data (D)
> The filter splits V & D onto separate sockets.

To be a but more precise, the signal is not split.

With a filter, the RJ11 socket gets the full input signal, ADSL and voice
signals. The high frequency ADSL is filtered from the BT socket so that it only
ouputs voice frequencies.

If you connected two filters in series using the BT plugs and had a phone on the
end, the phone ought to work, and it would arguable be filtered twice!


Michael Chare