internet disconnecting every 20 mins

Hi.
Its probably gonna be hard for people to help me because I dont know much about pc's and stuff - and so might not be able to answer you questions, but my parents are away and its driving me nuts.

We have 3 pc's connected to a router (zoom). 2 pc's in one room (my dads and my mums) and mine in another room. Mine has a wirelesss connection.

Everything has worked OK for the last few months - the problem has come out of thin air -reason I hate computers lol

The internet cuts off for all of the computers every 20 minutes or so. Each 'cut out' last for about 5 minutes.

I went into the 'event viewer' on both mine and my dads conputer and both machines get the following error:

"Your computer was not able to renew its address from the network (from the DHCP Server) for the Network Card with network address 001D194A1309. The following error occurred:
The operation was canceled by the user. . Your computer will continue to try and obtain an address on its own from the network address (DHCP) server"

Only my dad's gets the following error tho:
"The server could not bind to the transport \Device\NetbiosSmb because another computer on the network has the same name"

Im sure the disconnections are more frequent when one of us is running lots of applications on the computer....Could this be the cause?? Maybe need a more powerful router?

thanks

 

The simplest 'fix' is for you to disconnect both your parents' computers from the router if all you need to do is use the internet.

 

take a look at the computer names. find the two computers that have the same name and try changing one of the names. netbios sees two computers with the same names as stated in the error message. its trying to resolve name to IP, but if there are two computers with the same names on the network it could interfere with that. not sure if thats valid but it sounds right.


disconnecting the other computers isnt a fix as his parents will be back and they might like to use the internet again...

 

hi kingsteve.
Im pretty sure that none of the computers have the same name.
Just to make 100% certain, how exactly do I check the name on each pc?
(me and my mum have 'windows xp' and my dad uses window2000)
also, if this is the problem, why has it been fine for the last 6 months?

Some people have suggested downloading various things like "winsock" - i dont intend to do that yet, but if i were to download stuff to try to help, do i do it on all of the pc's??

 

oh, and another error on my event viewer:

"The system detected that network adapter \DEVICE\TCPIP_{8321832F-4C1D-47A9-8E18-75550CAD4A72} was disconnected from the network, and the adapter's network configuration has been released. If the network adapter was not disconnected, this may indicate that it has malfunctioned. Please contact your vendor for updated drivers"

 

That's why I used 'fix'. Not so difficult to reconnect 1 PC at a time back onto the network to help pinpoint the problem.


@flatron, looks like that error message might have pinpointed a problem with your wireless adapter. Can you connect your computer via ethernet cable ('borrow' a connecting cable from one of the other PC's) to download and install the latest driver and then retest it back on wireless only?

 

you mean install the lastest driver for my wirless network adapter?
it is a 'Philips Wireless USB Adapter - SNU5600'

How/ where do i go to make sure i download the latest one? I only got it about 6 months ago...
thanks

 

Ok, It was released in 2006 in the UK, latest drivers on their site are from mid 2007 - maybe the same ones you have now but a reload is not likely to make things worse
http://www.p4c.philips.com/cgi-bin/dcbint/cpindex.pl?scy=GB&slg=ENG&cat=PC_NETWORKING_CA&sct=WIRELESS_ADAPTERS_SU&session=20090630170420_88.105.39.210&grp=PC_PRODUCTS_GR&ctn=SNU5600/00&mid=Link_Software&hlt=Link_Software

Drivers are also listed on the Modem Help UK site http://download.modem-help.co.uk/mfcs-P/Philips/Modems/SNU5600-00/Drivers/ but again, they could the the same as those supplied or earlier.

EDIT, use Internet Explorer on the Philips site, it played havoc with Firefox 3.5 for me

 

thanks satrow.
I will probably give it a go tomorrow.

What I dont understand tho is how one know what 'error' is the problem.
like, for example, you are saying that the follwong message might be the problem and that reinstalling the driver may fix it:

"The system detected that network adapter \DEVICE\TCPIP_{8321832F-4C1D-47A9-8E18-75550CAD4A72} was disconnected from the network......."


But my dad pc's event log mainly shows the errors:
"The server could not bind to the transport \Device\NetbiosSmb because another computer on the network has the same name"
AND
"Your computer was unable to automatically configure the IP parameters for the Network Card with the network address..."

my mums has this error:
"Your computer was unable to renew its address from the network (from the DHCP Server) for the network card.The following error occured: The following error occured: the operation was cancelled by the user.your computer will try to obtain a address on its own from the network address (DHCP) server."

So everytime the internet cuts off ever 20 minutes, all the pc's get different errors.
How does one know which one is the actual problem?
Everytime I try somthing to fix it, do i do it too ALL of the pc's?

I dont feel confident because from googling around alot of people have had similar issues and couldn't seem ti get the answers...

cheers.

 

It may just be with all the 'chatter' between the 3 computers on the inside of the router because of whatever errors there may be, that the router is becoming too stressed (some are much better than others), maybe overheating and resetting the 'net connection.

I'd prefer you to just use 1 computer connected to the router to begin with, take it one step at a time.

 

going to bed now. Eyes are becomming square from reading stuff i dont understand trying to solve the problem.

Just read this as an awnser to someone else having similar issues. Dont know if it applies to my situation, but im going to put it in this post to so that i dont forget to look into it tomorrow:

"...However if you know the IP address your router normally assigns your PC, then you can configure your network card to use that as a static address and dispense with DHCP altogether"

 

Is having 2 of the 3 computers 'turned off' the same as having just one computer connected to the router? because if it is, I have tried JUST using my dads one with the pther 2 turned off and the problem remains....

 

You may wish to step back a moment and catch your breath. Disconnect all the computers and recycle the router (power-off, power-on). Connect only one computer and determine if it has a problem or not. If it has a problem start troubleshooting that one machine. If it has no problem connect another computer and validate that you are working or not. If you are working connect the last computer and validate once more. If the last machine causes the problems then the last machine IS the problem and do not worry about the previous machines connected. You'll be running around like a chicken without a head unless you wittle down the problem to a more manageable size.

 

Sorry, I did not see satrow's post.

Power off all machines but one and recycle the router.

 

thankyou.
I am indeed going a bit crazy!
I took my mum and dad's leads out of the router - turned the router off for a while and then on again - and am now only using MY pc (which has the wireless thingy)
i'll See how long it lasts until it disconnects...

 

Very good

 

Is unplugging the 2 pc's wires into the router the same as just turning the computers off out of interest?

Since I took the other 2 cable out and just using my wireless connection as per your suggestion, i am approaching a new uninterrupted internet record of 1 hr.
However, yesterday I turned off (not actually diusconnect the wire to the router) mine and my mums computer and just used my dads and I was also able to hit the magiv 1hr mark until it disconneced...

Im expecting it to disconnect any second

 

Powering off the computers should be the same as disconnecting them from the router.

 

thanks

Hmmm....STILL connected. No disruption yet!? Approaching 2 hours which will SHATTER the previous record.
How much longer should I wait until taking the next step (whatever that is)??

 

internet disconnected a minute ago, but it only lasted about 20 seconds (much faster than usual...) - doesn't seem to have registered in the 'event viewer' though...?.

Either way, that's about 2 hours of connection - best in days.

 

How are you determining a disconnect from the Internet?

IF, and this is a big if, you feel a two hour connect with a drop that lasts 20 seconds is acceptable....then that is your baseline to move ahead and connect another machine. It appears that a disonnect without the error messages means you don't have the problem. Time to connect another machine and see if you get the error or a disconnect in 20 minutes.

 

Well - I have a program running on my computer that streams prices of stocks and stuff - and the numbers stopped updating and then a got a message from the software saying 'no internet'
I quickly tried to open a google page and couldn't
That is how i determined the disconnect.

OK - So I will plug another cable into the router. Either my mums or my dads.
My mum uses XP and my dad uses win2000 (only told you that in case there is a preference as to which one to test first....)

 

Nope....connect away!

 

cool - plugged in the cable going from my DADS pc!....

 

It would be informative to go to each machine and in the command prompt window type "ipconfig /all" and write down the response from each machine.

 

hmmm...approaching 2 hours again!
Shold i plug my mums one in soon...?

 

no disconnects still!
I gonna put my mums lead back in the router in a minute. I assume that's the right thing to do...?....

So its been much better so far first with just mine, and now with both mine and my dads.

Lets see if putting my mums one in gets it to start disconnecting
(im assuming it will...otherwise its got better all by itself (albeit temporarily...dont wanna tempt fate)...mid you, it seemed to wrong in the first place all by itself, too!

I'll put my mums lead in now and report back when the errors/disconnects begin....

time of putting mum lead in - 8.45pm (uk)

 

OK......lets see what happens

 

Connection just went down.
so its only lasted about 35 minutes since my mums pc has joined the network.
Probably a coincidence but the connection went as the phone rang. Coincidence surelym as the connection has dissapeared hundreds of times in the lasst week without the phone ringing!

this is the message in MY'system viewer' from this recent disconnect:

The system detected that network adapter \DEVICE\TCPIP_{8321832F-4C1D-47A9-8E18-75550CAD4A72} was disconnected from the network, and the adapter's network configuration has been released. If the network adapter was not disconnected, this may indicate that it has malfunctioned. Please contact your vendor for updated drivers.

My Dads reads:

"The server could not bind to the transport \Device\NetbiosSmb because another computer on the network has the same name"
AND
"Your computer was unable to automatically configure the IP parameters for the Network Card with the network address..."


Mums reads:
"Your computer was not able to renew its address from the network (from
the DHCP Server) for the Network Card with network address 0010DC2090D6
The following error occurred:
The operation was canceled by the user.. Your computer will continue to
try and obtain an address on its own from the network address (DHCP)
server."

ok!!!
Does all of this help me at all?? Am i any closer to an answer after all this? lol
thx

 

connection just went again for a few minutes.
So is my mums pc the problem?
Is it maybe getting worse again now because its a 'time' specific thing? (like is worse at night time?)
Its like an impossible task because there are endless variables!
what do i do now?
ta

 

Ok, looks like you've made good progress

At this point, it's looking like Mum's PC is the one causing the problems.

Time to set your mothers machine to use a fixed IP address, I think. That should calm much of the broadcasting over the network.

Can you find the IP address of your router (probably called called Default Gateway) and your own IP address from the properties of your network connection in Windows please? Control Panel > Network connections > Local area (or Wireless) connection > double-click it > Support tab ?

You will probably have to do this with your Mum's PC disconnected from the router.

 

OK.
Dont forget that im just a kid who doesn't know about computers!
I think i know the default gateway/router IP.
Is it quite safe writing it in a forum?

As for 'my own' IP address. Do you mean the adress on MY wireless connection (which is very similar to the default gateway...as are my mums and dads ip adresses)?

 

im gonna risk it:

router ip / default gateway - 10.0.0.2
My IP on the wirless thing - 10.0.0.5

 

Hmmm...I disconnected my mums router lead when you suggested it in your last post and haven't put it back in, and my connection went a minute ago with just mine and my dads plugged in!!

Am i back at square 1? ! :cry

 

It's pretty safe, your router has a different IP to the outside world ^^

Ok, if you set your Mum's PC to 10.0.0.25 with the 10.0.0.2 set for Gateway and DNS server (Control Panel > Network connections > Local area (or Wireless) connection > double-click it > General Tab > Properties > highlight TCP/IP and click Properties > check use the following address (10.0.0.25, Subnet mask should autofill 255.255.255.0, Gateway 10.0.0.2) > Advanced > WINS tab > check use NetBIOS over TCP/IP > hit Apply and Ok your way back out, after a reboot that should be set and working.

 

Not necessarily if you are on ADSL MAX, after a reset of your router, MAX often retrains the line (takes 10 days to stabilise ) - you need to look at your routers log page to check if the connection loss is from outside your network or not.

 

ok.
getting late here. Bed time i think.
I've made the changes you suggested to my mums pc anyway....
Not sure that ill get to the bottom of it, but im grateful for your help.
more updates tomorrow at a guess!!

 

Ok, sleep well

 

Guess i'll leave it for now, but there's been quite a few disconnects throughout the night, and one already since i've woken up...

 

anything else I can try, or is that it for now?

It's Pretty much as it was before now - going off every 30 mins or so
Maybe It just happened to have a 'good spell' yesterday when i thought i was getting somewhere - and it would have had the 2hours uninteruppted connection whether my mums cable was in or not...???.....

 

possibly worse than ever at the moment.
Lots and lots of disconnections so far.
In my 12 minutes of internet time i get each wave, I am searching formus like this one for other people with the same issues. There seems to be lots of them, but NEVER with a solution that works
Thinking ill have to save up my money and get another router maybe?

I Bet it wil be a bit better this evening like it was yesterday though....

So, any other suggestions?

thanks

 

Ok, disconnect all but 1 PC and look at your router logs, type 10.0.0.2 into your browser address bar, login and look at your connection status - what router is it? I'll try to find the correct page.

 

router is called zoom x6

 

Are the ethernet ports on the router yellow or not?

EDIT, forget that, looks like both types of x6 have basically the same status pages.

Can you post a screenshot of the ADSL Status from the router please? Also the Ethernet Status report? Put 10.0.0.2 into your web browser to access the router then look for links to those pages.

 

http://img219.imageshack.us/img219/1637/adslpic.th.png

http://img196.imageshack.us/img196/1703/otherrouter.th.png

lol...that was such hard work
First the internet kept cutting out, thenh i couldn't save the pics in the cortect format, then 'majorgeeks' said they were too big - and so I had to find a site "imageshack" to do it this way!!

 

Ok, you did fine if you save as *.jpg, filesize will be a lot smaller, probably allowing you to upload and attach them here.

Can you now delete the ADSL status pic from the Imageshack site? It shows your external IP address not a great problem, your IP probably changes with each reset.

Ok, looking at that ADSL status page, it shows that the ADSL link has only ben up for 15 minutes. So we have a problem there . We need to check the router settings against those supplied by your ISP. If I were you, I'd 'phone your ISPs helpline and get them to run through their troubleshooting procedures because it's looking like you have a problem with your router or your line. I would just keep your Dad's PC connected while you do that.

There's still the internal network 'chatter' and errors to deal with but first get a solid ADSL connection (or at least get the ISP ball rolling).

Ok, you get in touch with them and keep us posted.

 

Well....I appear to have fixed it!"!"...??

I was reading around and decided to try something:

I downloaded the latest 'firmware' (had never heard that word before) and then had to follow instuctions which involved things like holding the reset button on the router down for 6seconds a few times and waiting for certain lights to blink - and then added the downloaded 'firware' file to the page on my routers network homepage (the 10.0.0.2 page) and other things.

Fingers crossed, but its now gone 12 hours without a disconnect

Hope im not speaking too soon, and that the connection remains
Thanks for you help anyway Satron

 

Hey that's great

Have you had all 3 machines connected together again? Checked the logs for errors?

 

Yep, all 3 machines are running.
I have had none of the sort of errors I was getting before in my 'event viewer'.

 

I think you can give yourself a big pat on the back for getting that sorted out, pretty cool for "a kid who doesn't know about computers" with such a bizarre array of problems :cool