Question TP-Link Router Dropping Frequently; Support Sent Me This

[Carbo]

TP-Link, Archer A10. 14 months old. It was running perfectly fine until about one month ago when it randomly started dropping my connection, both ethernet and wifi. Problem continued and became worse to where it's been dropping 5-6 times a day. Got in touch with support and we arranged a remote hook up to see what's happening. It didn't go well. He insisted I do a factory reset. I didn't want to but I went along. He then "upgraded" to some beta version firmware to replace the latest one that was already installed. 2.5 hour call with Tech Li in China and he concluded:
"This issue seems to be related to the IP renew for A10 from the ISP. As you know, A10 has WAN IP to access internet, and has time for this IP, and need to apply for another period time for this IP."
What does this mean and is it legit? Do I run this by my ISP, (Xfinity), for a solution?
Thank you.

 

[VirtualLarry]

It seems that he was talking about the DHCP lease time. The router asks for a public IP using DHCP protocol when it boots up. This has a time limit associated with it. It has to "renew" the IP address allocation within that timeframe. Normally, routers attempt to renew HALFWAY through that period, as a precaution.

However, with IPv4 address space being so tight, sometimes, ISP DHCP servers fail to renew IP addresses, for whatever reason. In which case, you're left with an expired / invalid public IP address, and no connection to the outside world. This isn't necessarily the router's fault.

 

[Carbo]

I kind of understand, Larry. So is there a fix? A setting? A Comcast issue that can be addressed?

 

[ch33zw1z]

Assuming it wasn't just redacted, it's an ISP issues (aka Comcast). But before you do that, remove the router from the config. Unplug the modem coax and power, get a laptop or desktop (powered off) and an ethernet cable. Plug in the modem coax, then modem power, wait for the lights to come up and look good, plug in the ethernet from modem to desktop/laptop and turn it on. You should get an IP directly from the ISP and see if you can recreate the problem.

*assuming Windows in the next steps
Use the command prompt to get the IP info:
- command: ipconfig /all
- Make note of the information, copy and paste it to a notepad or write it down. You'll want to compare it later to see if it's changed

Open another command Prompt to run a constant ping to a site like www.google.com, and wait for it to drop. If it doesn't, then it's probably a problem with the router.
- command: ping www.google.com -t

Just basic troubleshooting.

If it turns out to be the router, it could be resolved with a new power adapter for it, if you can even find one.


Profanity isn't allowed in tech areas.

AT Mod Usandthem

 

[Carbo]

Assuming it wasn't just redacted, it's an ISP issues (aka Comcast). But before you do that, remove the router from the config. Unplug the modem coax and power, get a laptop or desktop (powered off) and an ethernet cable. Plug in the modem coax, then modem power, wait for the lights to come up and look good, plug in the ethernet from modem to desktop/laptop and turn it on. You should get an IP directly from the ISP and see if you can recreate the problem.

In the process you described, does the router remain powered up and connected to the modem during the whole test?

 

[ch33zw1z]

In the process you described, does the router remain powered up and connected to the modem during the whole test?

Won't matter, just remove it from the mix to test the ISP connection directly.

When you add the router (or a new one) back in, you will power it off while power cycling the modem, and power it up after the modem is powered on and lights look good

 

[Carbo]

Spent about an hour on the phone today with Comcast. The polite woman on the phone assured me she was a tech expert, and started out with the usual: rebooting the modem, the router, the laptop. Had me fuss around with the CMD prompt, flushed the IP, etc. She said all the numbers on her end were in the proper range and that the problem is my equipment. I asked her "What about the log files peppered with T3 and T4 timeouts?" She said she saw that but didn't think it was the issue. Her advice: I need a new modem. I asked her to send out a tech so he can see first hand. She said she can't because my internet is up and running. I explained it isn't constant. It drops 4-6 times a day and then reconnects on her own. Comcast policy is if the internet connect is up and running during the call, no tech will visit. And that's how we left it.

 

[ch33zw1z]

Spent about an hour on the phone today with Comcast. The polite woman on the phone assured me she was a tech expert, and started out with the usual: rebooting the modem, the router, the laptop. Had me fuss around with the CMD prompt, flushed the IP, etc. She said all the numbers on her end were in the proper range and that the problem is my equipment. I asked her "What about the log files peppered with T3 and T4 timeouts?" She said she saw that but didn't think it was the issue. Her advice: I need a new modem. I asked her to send out a tech so he can see first hand. She said she can't because my internet is up and running. I explained it isn't constant. It drops 4-6 times a day and then reconnects on her own. Comcast policy is if the internet connect is up and running during the call, no tech will visit. And that's how we left it.

Ok, part of the problem with using your own modem is just what you're experiencing. Sometimes, you gotta get another to see if it clears things up

If you having any coax splitters, maybe swap those 1 at a time first, quite a bit less money.

I almost had to buy another modem back in July, was having intermittent problems, turned out to be them, bit I was price checking new modems lol

 

[killster1]

not sure but i purchased a modem from amazon for 25$ so i didnt need to rent one for 6$ a month. works great. forget which brand i went with but amazon has great return policies so just get one to test it all out and save your self loads of time. im all for playing around testing things but my favorite technique is just to switch parts and see what happens with a new one. YOu will need to call them to add your modems mac addy after you set it up but that call should be 5 or 6 mins.

 

[Captante]

not sure but i purchased a modem from amazon for 25$ so i didnt need to rent one for 6$ a month. works great. forget which brand i went with but amazon has great return policies so just get one to test it all out and save your self loads of time. im all for playing around testing things but my favorite technique is just to switch parts and see what happens with a new one. YOu will need to call them to add your modems mac addy after you set it up but that call should be 5 or 6 mins.

Just did a modem-upgrade like a week ago (embarrassingly was renting) ... snagged a Motorola MB7621 24x8 modem and Linksys AC1200 mesh-router.

Took about 40 minutes to get fully connected (due to complex wiring) and no phonecall required.