Offline more than Online

[Kashchei]

I've just moved to where I will spend the summer, and the internet connection here is driving me nuts within 24 hours. There is a Motorola cable modem and a wireless router. The problem is either with the modem or the ISP. I can get a connection, but it will last for at most a few hours, at the least a few minutes. If I unplug the cable modem from its power supply, this is never enough to restart service. I must both unplug and unscrew the coaxial cable. Even then, if I do this too quickly, the service will not be restored (not all the lights on the cable modem light up, with the last never turning on, and the second to last blinking rather than solid).

If any of you boffins who work in the industry read this, I'd love to know what to say to the ISP here to get them to truly fix the problem. I am spending as much time trying to keep the connection active as I am getting any work done.

P.S. While I was writing this message, my wife came to tell me that we had lost our connection again. This is madness!!!!

 

[hafr]

First of all, have you tried excluding the router from the equation? You might feel it's unnecessary, but just try it - because this will be the first thing on your ISP's support list, together with rebooting the modem.

When you call them, just tell them your internet connection is dropping out, and the only way to get it back (without having to wait for renewal from the ISP, which should be up to 24 hours) is to unplug the modem and the cable and wait for a number of minutes. That you have tried connecting your computers direct to the modem to exclude the wireless router as the culprit and that you have rebooted your computer.

You will go through their checklist rather fast (including them resetting the service and so on), then you'll be told they'll send you a new modem. When that arrives, if the problem persists, they'll send a technician that will most likely tell you there's corrosion on the cables in the box (not the modem, but the box in the basement, outdoors or where ever your line is connected to the "main line") meaning the connection will be less than trustworthy. He'll cut them off and reconnect them and this will fix everything.

Or, tell them straight away that you want a technician there as soon as possible, bringing a new modem and wait to see if he needs to do someting. With my ISP, I would have to pay if it turned out to be just the modem but it would be free if he actually had to do something.