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thebiggfella
regular
Reg'd: Mon
Posts: 1331
Loc: Scotland, UK
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Never had this problem before. The day before yesterday, I was suddenly unable to connect to the internet for any length of time. I usually either get an error 619 ("A connection to the remote computer could not be established so the port used for this connection was closed") or an error 721 ("Remote computer did not respond).
I use a BT Voyager ADSL USB modem and the connection is brief when I try to connect, about 15 or so seconds, then the modem goes into 'training' and the connection drops. It then connects for 15 or so seconds then drops again, and just seems to either carry on like this or just doesn't connect at all. I know this is the case by looking at the two arrows in the system tray changing colour and by the 'link' light on the modem itself being steady then flashing when the connection drops.
I've done tests and it says the broadband connection to the flat is fine, it's just not getting to the computer properly.
We've gone throught the rigmarole (spelling? - I'm at work and no iespell!) with the BT helpline and they seem to think it's a 'port problem' and advised us to have it looked at by a computer engineer.
My wife's pal who's a networking engineer thinks it may be either a faulty ethernet port on the computer (the modem is connected via USB so am I right in thinking that's not the problem?), a network connection which has been disabled in Windows or a problems with the DNS settings on the router (not sure what that means). Unfortunately, she's on a course all week and unable to come round for a look so I was wondering if anyone could offer some advice meantime which may help get me up and running again. I'm thinking that maybe I should get a new router, but that's just a stab in the dark. Thanks. Glynn.
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greysts
regular
Reg'd: Thu
Posts: 17948
Loc: Colchester
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Glynn
USB modems are a pain in the butt, always have been, always will be. USB just wasn't designed for networking, it uses far to much PC resource and it still thinks it's a dial-up connection. If you've got the money I would strongly recommend that you get yourself a proper ADSL modem/router and connect via ethernet.
If you don't want to go down that road, have you tried using the reset button on the modem, uninstall and then re-install the software?
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Do you know that we're all in line for succession to the throne? Really?
Well, if forty-eight million, two hundred thousand, seven hundred and one people died I'd be Queen.
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thebiggfella
regular
Reg'd: Mon
Posts: 1331
Loc: Scotland, UK
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Thanks for the reply. I did think about uninstalling/re-installing the software, but was confused with the CD. There didn't seem to be a seperate one the modem, just for BT BB itself. The modem software is maybe on that but I wasn't sure so didn't want to mess with it until I had to.
I had no idea that USB modems drained the computer's resources. You learn something new every day! The computer is pretty old and fairly low spec. compared to newer ones, so I think I will follow your advice and purchase a modem that connects via ethernet and hope that that solves the problem. Can you recommend a decent one that will do the job? It's just a modem that I'd be after. I notice that I accidently used 'router' at one point in the above post.
I can only get online at work at the moment and am off for a while over Xmas and New Year so will need to get it sorted soon! Thanks again. Glynn.
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greysts
regular
Reg'd: Thu
Posts: 17948
Loc: Colchester
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Glynn
I chose the word 'router' quite deliberately. There is no point in paying the same amount for a standard ADSL modem as that, too, will almost certainly be USB as well. Far better to get a wired router like this which has a built in hardware firewall and the ability to connect up to 4 PCs without any setup whatsoever. When you get it, all you need to do is plug it into the t/p filter, connect via ethernet, use your browser to get into the router setup and type in your ISP's user name and password. You'll need to uninstall the old modem first.
Once you've done that you will have what's known as an 'always on' connection so whenever you switch on your PC it will be connected to the net straight away.
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Do you know that we're all in line for succession to the throne? Really?
Well, if forty-eight million, two hundred thousand, seven hundred and one people died I'd be Queen.
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thebiggfella
regular
Reg'd: Mon
Posts: 1331
Loc: Scotland, UK
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It was me that used 'router' by accident in my original post, not your good self! It makes sense what you say though about getting a modem/router in one. I'll probably get that one you suggest ordered up tomorrow night when I'm back at work and hopefully it'll do the trick. Thanks again for your assistance Spencer. Much appreciated.
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thebiggfella
regular
Reg'd: Mon
Posts: 1331
Loc: Scotland, UK
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Spencer, back again. Unfortunately I've had to 'sneak' into work on my days off to use the computer here. I got the modem/router you suggested above and got it connected but it's not letting me start the set up process. I'm entering '192.168.1.1 in the address field of my browser but nothing happens thereafter. I just get the egg-timer and a blank screen where the webpage should be. I should be presented with a box into which I enter the username and password (both 'Admin') to get me started on the set up process.
All the lights on the router are lit: the power light, the ADSL light (which is steady indicating that a successful ADSL connection is established) and the port 1 light, that being the port on the router connected to my computer.
The old modem was uninstalled first and I followed the set up instructions step by step until I got stuck as above. The computer boots up fine and I can do other stuff on it, I just can't seem to connect to the internet which I'm thinking the problem with the set up of the new router might be related. The ethernet port on my computer has never been used before as the old modem connected via USB.
Have you any suggestions before I take the computer to the shop and ask them to have a look at it. Thanks. Glynn.
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