General Discussion

I am having a problem with my DSL modem.  My internet cuts out when I am either downloading or playing an online game like WoW (especially if I turn in a quest), this is all I have noticed so far that makes it stop working.  A few days ago there was a huge storm here and the internet went out.  I called the next day and the I-am-from-India "tech-support" reset the router, which of course screwed up my wireless router (but my desktop is connected directly to the DSL modem).

After the India support reset the router it worked fine for a day or two and then this morning it was doing this on/off thing.  Each time it stops working I reset the modem and it works again as long as I am just browsing internet, but as soon as I download or log into WoW and turn in a quest, poof, its gone.

Anybody have any tips?  The online chat support agent basically told me nothing and insisted I need to purchase a new modem and totally ignored any questions I had.  This might be the case but I want to do everything possible to fix this rather than give them $50 for a new damn modem I might not need.  Thank you AT&T you bastards.

I really don't know much about DSL myself (having just switched over to it in my new house). But you could try:

1) Unplug the phone/DSL cable from the wall for a minute or so, then plug it back in (this forces a modem handshake reset somehow), and

2.) Replace the fuse/bridge (or something like that) in the drop box on the outside of your house. When I first signed up for DSL I was having constant disconnects and long periods of no service. I was cursing my provider left and right figuring that their end was always going down on me. But when I finally insisted on having a tech come out to my house he found that this little $1 part was corroded. He replaced it, and I've been good ever since. (Note - Before replacement I had a lot of static during phone calls on the line. That might be one clue as to this particular problem.)

I'm sure there are lots of other possible problems/fixes, but anyway there's two. GL.

Thanks for the reply.  There was a recent rainstorm and I was wondering if there could have been some moisture damage.  Do you think/know if those little fuses can be replaced by anybody such as myself or does a tech from my provider have to come out?  I have been on 2 phone calls and 3 online chats with "tech support" agents and all have been no help, so it seems like getting a technician to come out might be pretty hard.

First open the main drop box door. Then if you open the two inside covers (you'll probably see a warning that the left side is only to be opened by a phone company tech, but it shouldn't be locked) you'll see two groups of connectors. The left side connectors should be 'in' (coming from the street), and the right side 'out' (into your house).

In between those two sets of connectors is simple little plug in (replaceable) bridge/fuse assembly of some sort. It comes out with only one or two screws. But sorry, I can't remember that parts actual name. I'm sure you could buy a replacement and put it in yourself if you're determined enough. But you'd have to do your research first (go to the manufacturers website and look for schematics/parts#/name etc., and then buy it - or a generic substitute).

That's about all I remember.

If you really think you are having a line problem it's a phone company tech who should come out to your house. Not (necessarily) your DSL service provider. I'm pretty sure the phone company will also check for line noise beyond the drop box for you too for free. They have a really neat tool for doing that. But if there's a problem on your side you will have to pay to have it fixed.

Note - my house was only 4 years old when I bought it and then had this problem. So that fuse can corrode quickly. But on the other hand I live in the Pacific Northwest U.S. (very, very damp climate).

I don't hear any noise on my phone line but I do have the same provider for both phone and internet, AT&T.  Hopefully I can try and INSIST on them sending a technician out to check out our outside connection.  I only started to have problems after a pretty large rainstorm this past weekend.  I also found a forum dedicated to broadband problems and it seems other people in the Mid/Northern California area are having a problems.  Maybe it is a local problem that will be fixed or these people also had moisture damage.

Originally posted by Lanmoragon

Just an update.  It appears that this actually might be a WoW issue, or at least part of the explanation.  There are about 30 pages divided between 2 threads on the WoW tech support forums of people complaining about the exact same issue I have after this last patch.  It seems that whenever large packets of data are being sent to the modem, it causes it to lose connection. I would say a majority of the people with this problem also have the same AT&T DSL that I have and a good number have similar or same model modems, though there are a lot of people with cable internet.

 

Question is, is there something I can do on my end to fix this? I ask this because it not only happens in WoW but when I use say UTorrent which requires a lot of connections or even Call of Duty 4, which with the latest patch after a few refreshes of the server menu it terminates my internet connection (this is also documented on their forums). Is there a way to allow my modem to receive more connections without causing it to lose connection?