Why won't my linksys router work?

It’s cool that that forum pointed you to the OpenDNS site. OpenDNS can protect against phishing attacks and provides other features as well.

I have a Linksys WRT-54G and have noted, on occassion, that it will simply stop putting out a wi-fi signal. And worse, my computer won’t even complain about it… other than simply being unable to connect to any site.

So I reboot the router by unplugging it from its power supply and then plugging it back in. Takes all of ten seconds.

If you wanna go real crazy, you might attempt replacing your router’s firmware altogether. But I haven’t tried that personally.

oh yeah, I have to unplug and replug the thing about once every few days. Ive tried that a bunch since yesterday, but it hasn’t helped. I should have mentioned that. Thanks though.

Are you sure the problem is not upstream of your router, in your ISP’s network? That happens all the time with my crummy cable company. Rebooting my cable modem generally helps. I have a Linksys WRT54G router, too, and 99% of the time, it’s not the problem.

Here’s a suggestion: find out what your ROUTER’s IP address is, then ping the base address in that group. E.G., if your router’s IP address is, say, 176.16.1.176, go to your computer and ping 176.16.1.1. If you get a response, there is nothing wrong with the router, and you need to call your cable company or whoever else is providing your Internet service and complain.

I recomend restarting it every couple of days or lower the security level

what do you mean “ping”? I mentioned that I had typed the ip into a web browser, and the one I entered did end in a ”.1.1”

Sorry, I don’t know a ton about networking.

You probably entered http://192.168.1.1 to get to your router’s setup page. That is not what I’m talking about.

Open a command prompt (Start, Run, CMD.EXE) and enter the command

Ping 176.16.1.1

This will send out 4 requests. If they all come back

Request timed out

Then your router may have no connectivity with your ISP. If they come back with

Reply from 176.16.1.1…

Then your router has connectivity to your ISP’s network, but the subnet you’re on might be off line. I say “might” because not all servers accept ping requests.

I’m at work right now, unfortunately, so I don’t have access to my home router’s setup menu. How are you getting your Internet service, anyway?

I’m assuming you have cable or dsl since you have so many devices connected. Tell us what lights are solid and what lights are blinking on your modem (not router). I think that Ichtheosaurus is right on. I would also guess that it’s your upstream to your isp. I’ve had good luck with rebooting the modem when I get this type of problem.

To reboot your modem in a way to where you clear all of the settings, you would unplug it, wait 3 minutes, then plug it back in. Now you should be on the internet.

If you’re having to reboot your router every couple of days anyway, you might consider loading a custom firmware on it like robmandu suggested. I have four routers at the house and two different connections that I utilize. I have successfully flashed the custom firmware ‘tomato’ to all of the routers and I couldn’t be happier. I don’t think I’ve ever had to reboot one of them.

If rebooting your modem doesn’t work, call your ISP.

I’ll try that stuff. I mentioned how I’m getting Internet in my post, but also I’m using my iPhone. I’ll update soon

I know that model has a firmware upgrade available, too. It can hang on large downloads if you haven’t applied it.

http://www.linksys.com/servlet/Satellite?c=L_CASupport_C2&childpagename=US%2FLayout&cid=1166859837401&packedargs=sku%3DWRT54G&pagename=Linksys%2FCommon%2FVisitorWrapper&lid=3740137401B01&displaypage=download

monsoon, I know you’re getting to the net through a borrowed connection; I meant to ask how you normally connect, i.e., when you can get to it through your own home network. Cable and DSL have different issues.

oh right, cable, comcast specifically

Unplug your modem. Plug it back in. Watch the lights. One of them will start blinking slowly, then more rapidly as it syncs up. The other lights will also show some activity. If you have one light that blinks slowly and regularly on and off, your cable is off line as far as the Internet is concerned. If everything seems OK, unplug your router and plug one of your computers directly into the modem. If it gets on the Internet, the problem is in the router.

It’s worth a mention that Comcast has some MAC security in place with their modems. If you do plug a computer directly into the modem and get it to connect to the internet, before you can plug any other device in to the modem, you will have to unplug it from the power and let it reset itself again.

Comcast modems will only accept the original device that is plugged into it when it is powered on. To plug a different device into the modem, it must be completely powered down before it will work with the new device. (and we’re not just talking about 2 seconds here. Sometimes it takes a while for the bonding to get out of the modems memory.)