Cable Modem Self-Test Failure

[scb147]

I had to go away for the weekend and when I came home my cable modem had the TEST light solid. According to the manual for the Toshiba PCX2200, that means a self-test failure. No where does it tell you what it means. So I unplugged the modem, let it sit for a couple minutes and plugged it back in.

The modem synced up with Comcast OK and I figured everything was fine (TEST light was NOT LIT). Later on it disconnected from Comcast again, so I did the whole reset thing again. This time I watched the modem and I saw after a few minutes that all the lights on the modem flashed and it reset itself. It would continuously do this and is still doing it.

I called Comcast support and they told me the modem was bad.

Is this the case? I don't know what the self-test is, but does it have to do with the firmware that Comcast pushes to the modems?

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Slowlearner]

The most common reason for cable modem failure is power spikes coming from the cable (not power) so you need a good surge/spike protector, like Belkin Surgemaster F9H702-06-CL, available for $20 from compusa. In Florida, modems get zapped every year, and RR replaces them without question. I have had like 7 in the past 5 years - Motorola, Ericcson, Toshiba.

So if Comcast says your modem is bad, go replace it and invest in the surge protection.