Wireless Router Woes
Ironically, two tech jocks have had similar router issues in the last few weeks, so we share your pain. In my case, I was happily working when my Internet connection appeared to go out. Thinking it was just one of those things - a cable outage - I gave it until the next day before I started troubleshooting in earnest. My detective work led me to believe that the router had gone bad. Three phone calls later (cable company, Linksys, and Vonage) confirmed my suspicions and Vonage sent me a replace router via UPS. Life is good again.
Troubleshooting Sudden Router Failures
In your case, you did some moving around of equipment, so it could be related to the new configuration. Let’s turn everything off, including the computer and the cable/DSL modem and router. Keep them powered off for at least ten minutes to completely clear the “memory” of the modem and router.
Physical Connections
While powered down, double check all cables. I know you’ve probably done so already, but let’s just make sure that everything is hooked up as it should be. Is the cable from the cable company connected into the modem? Is there a cable going from the modem into the router? Is it going into the proper port? Is your wireless adapter on your computer in the “on” position? My son loves to slide this switch to “off” for some reason, so you never know if you have little ones.
Once all connections and wireless adapter settings have been confirmed and the equipment has been off for at least ten minutes, turn on the modem. Let it fully turn on. Once all lights are on, turn on the router. Let it fully power up before finally turning on the PC. Any luck?
Router Settings
Still no go? Time to pull out the router’s user manual and double check the settings. Usually, you’ll enter the IP address into a Web browser followed by a user name and password. The default information should be in your user’s manual. If you changed these settings originally, hopefully you remember them or wrote them down in the manual. Click on the Wireless option (this will vary depending on the router) and write down the settings such as the SSID and mode, etc.
Now, look in the System Tray and look for the “wireless networks are available” notification. Click on that. Is your wireless network listed? If so, can you connect?
Diagnose and Repair
If you have Windows Vista, click on Start >Network. Now, click on Network and Sharing Center. Click on Diagnose and Repair. Let Windows check out your network and possibly make corrections.
Contact Router Manufacturer
Finally, you may need tech support. If your router is still under warranty, they’ll help walk you through a variety of troubleshooting steps. If you have a combo router, such as Vonage/Linksys as I did, you may have to call both companies. In my case, Linksys wanted to charge me for tech support, so I called Vonage who handled it for free - and replaced the router for free.
Celeste Stewart | November 15th, 2008
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