On Tue, 05 Oct 2004 12:08:10 GMT, Mike <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:
>I think a while back this might have been addressed but I couldn't find
>anything that hadn't expired. Anyway, I am running a Linksys WRT54G as
>a WAP. Recently, I have noticed that during the day I will loose my
>internet connection and have to reboot my computer to get back online,
>sometimes the router too. I can't recall when exactly this started,
>what event might have prompted it but I have installed the WinXP SP2
>which is what I suspect might be the problem. I have good signal
>strength but when I attempt to repair the connection, it will sit and
>attempt to renew IP address (forever) or state a problem with the ARP
>cache. I am using DHCP mode and most of the settings are in auto (IP
>address, DNS, etc.).
>
>Without changing anything, I double checked all my computer settings and
>my router settings. I can't find anything that would be causing the
>problem. Admittingly, I'm not proficient with WiFi and I'm still
>learning as I go (I have to read the "more.." tutorials in the router
>settings before I adjust anything). However, when I initially got it up
>and running, it worked as advertised. Now, I reboot each machine a
>couple times a day to stay online. The Windows SP2 is the last major
>upgrade I've done to the machines so I strongly suspect it may be the
>problem. I'm running XP Pro on two machines, XP Home on one. The XP
>Pro machines are using D-Link DWL-G510 cards. The XP Home isn't on all
>day so I don't know if I'm having the same problems.
>
>I have all the latest drivers for all the hardware. Probably something
>simple, one setting, but I'm clueless. Anyone know of any fixes?
Major muddle. There's no way to identify the exact cause from your
description. There are just too many components of the puzzle that
might be causing the problem. It could be the ISP disconnecting your
connection when it's idle. It could be your router going comatose.
It could be DHCP server with too short an lease time. It could be
your Windoze XP box is sick. It could be rotten CAT5 cables or
connectors. Methinks it's time to divide and conquer.
Start with your unspecified DSL, cable, WISP, or satellite modem. I
don't like the idea of connecting directly to the modem, but methinks
with the XP SP2 firewall enabled, you're fairly safe. Unplug the
router, and connect one machine to the modem. Sit on it all day and
see if you have disconnects. If you can't sit there all day, then
setup a monitor program that builds a graph of connectivity status. I
suggest MRTG and pingprobe, Whatsup, BigBrother (
http://www.bb4.org/),
or other monitoring program. Have it ping the gateway IP address or
your ISP DNS servers (something that isn't going to change IP address
thanks to some kind of load balancer). Turn off power save on your
PC. If you get disconnects, it's either your ISP, your hardware, or
anything in between.
If the modem alone stays up, then it's time to add the router to the
puzzle. At this point, we can assume that the ISP, modem, and
computah are fine, and that if it fails, it will because of something
in the router. Do NOT connect via wireless. Use a direct LAN
connection to take the wireless part of the puzzle out of the picture.
Same ritual. Fire up a connectivity monitor and let it run all day.
Leave the other machines off to avoid potential conflicts (worms,
viruses, spyware, probes, updates, etc) causing traffic problems.
If everything works with one wired LAN connected computah, add the
other machines to the router and see if it stays up. If it
disconnects, look for viruses, worms, spyware, etc. Also check for
address conflicts (creative MAC addresses, duplicated IP addresses,
wrong gateway IP). Same ritual with the monitoring software.
If everything works with all the computahs connected via wired
connections, it's time to finally try the wireless part of the puzzle.
This comes in two flavours. The first test is to check connectivity
with the ISP as before using the monitoring software. The 2nd is to
just check connectivity with the router from one of the PC's. The
trick is to identify whether the disconnects are coming from the WAN
(ISP end) or from the LAN (router end).
By the time you get to this point, you'll have a good idea of exactly
where the disconnects are occurring. This may take a few days to
complete but should be fairly straight forward once you get monitoring
software in place. Good luck.
--
# Jeff Liebermann 150 Felker St #D Santa Cruz CA 95060
# 831.336.2558 voice
http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
#
(E-Mail Removed)
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(E-Mail Removed) AE6KS
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