Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with dsl and wireless

DSL in two locations with one line.

CliffDiving44 — Wed, 13 May 2009 11:22:29 -0800

Questions about dual modem/router connections on one dsl line. Some friends and I are trying to get wireless and wired internet in an office away from the house, where the modem and router currently are. This office has phone jacks, and has been previously used with a modem and router to hook up to the internet. My question is, with the dsl connection that my friend has, would it be viable to hook up the phone jack in here to a separate modem, and that to a separate router, and have internet in both the house and the office? Or would I we have to purchase another phone line for a separate dsl connection for the office? Of course, another option is running an ethernet cable out here to the office, but that would be a lot of work and not the first option we would like to choose. Thank you for the answers!

Lousy connectivity on my new DSL

soviet sleepover — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 11:13:50 -0800

Diagnose my wifi difficulties, please! New DSL installation with intermittent, slow connectivity and occasional weird pings/notifications. I'm somewhat computer savvy, but I'm definitely missing something basic, so assume I'm a beginner with all this!

I just got DSL (with SBC Global) and an inherited modem and linksys router. I followed the instructions on the SBC Global installation cd, installed the phone filters, etc. Connectivity is intermittent (and extremely slow), even though the signal always appears strong, and roommates also have the same problems. I'm usually able to connect to the router (though not reliably). Pings return occasionally weird results (posted below), and every once in a while this error will pop up:
"192.168.1.64 in use by 00:90:4b:b4:ef:dc, DHCP Server 192.168.1.254"

The intermittent connection also seems to happen when I'm connected directly to the modem via an ethernet cable, but I don't think it's a problem with the physical lines: I've already checked the phone box outdoors, and there's no corrosion (plus, I'm pretty sure the previous tenants have had wireless here without complaint).

Here's the last minute-or-so of a ping:

64 bytes from 69.13.72.249: icmp_seq=8227 ttl=55 time=64.149 ms
64 bytes from 69.13.72.249: icmp_seq=8228 ttl=55 time=72.922 ms
64 bytes from 69.13.72.249: icmp_seq=8230 ttl=55 time=72.530 ms
64 bytes from 69.13.72.249: icmp_seq=8233 ttl=55 time=62.075 ms
60 bytes from se5-l0.pltnca.sbcglobal.net (151.164.186.133): Communication prohibited by filter
Vr HL TOS Len ID Flg off TTL Pro cks Src Dst
4 5 00 0054 2cc6 0 0000 3e 01 fff4 192.168.1.64 69.13.72.249

64 bytes from 69.13.72.249: icmp_seq=8612 ttl=55 time=81.776 ms
64 bytes from 69.13.72.249: icmp_seq=8613 ttl=55 time=61.918 ms
64 bytes from 69.13.72.249: icmp_seq=8614 ttl=55 time=61.946 ms

I don't think I've left anything important out, but I'm not sure what to do and ordinary fiddling hasn't seemed to fix anything. Help, metafilter! You're my only hope!

Can I use my DSL modem/router to act only as a wireless router?

ocha-no-mizu — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 16:04:33 -0800

Can I use my DSL modem/router to act only as a wireless router? I'm replacing my DSL service with cable internet. Instead of paying for the cable company's wireless router, I'd rather use my existing DSL modem/router if I can. Is it as simple as plugging the cable modem into the DSL modem/router?

For what it's worth, my DSL modem/router is a 2wire 2700HG-B.

An unusual intermittant wireless connection

Dr.Enormous — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 09:17:39 -0800

Our laptop loses wireless connection, and only changing a wireless setting on the router fixes it (any setting). What could be going on? My wife has a laptop running XP Home SP2 and a Linksys wireless card, connecting to our Verizon DSL via the Westell model 327W router they gave us. The router is currently not set to distribute IP addresses, for purposes of port forwarding, has 128-bit WEP on, and we get good signal with nobody else using the same channel nearby.

Every so often (ranging from once an hour to one a week), the connection gets lost. Restarting the computer, unplugging the router, trying to fix the computer settings...nothing works. Sometimes, if I re-enter the key in ASCII instead of Hexadecimal, I can connect to the router but not the internet. But if I enter the router admin and change any wireless setting at all (or even change one and change it back), the connection is immediately restored. Obviously there's some sort of "computer talking to router" problem here that gets reset, but I'll be darned if I know where to even start looking.

Home internet networks over large distances?

zaebiz — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 18:48:45 -0800

I have a wireless router in my house. 150 metres away I have a shed where I want to be able to use the internet on my laptop. There are electricity outlets in the house and in the shed but not in between. How do I get the signal from the house to my shed? For example are there battery-powered boosters that I could lay between the two places and recharge them at night? Can I buy a more powerful router? Can I buy some sort of signal magnifier to attach to the router? Or .... is it crazy to run a telephone cable all the way from the ADSL port in my house to the router in my shed? Any other ideas?

Inconsitent wireless DSL connectivity

Scottk — Sun, 14 Jan 2007 12:30:11 -0800

Join me in trying to solve a wireless DSL modem mystery. As usual, there is I am using this Intellinet wireless DSL modem / router. I am able to maintain a strong signal to the router via my wireless XP laptop, but the DSL connection itself is very inconsistent. It seems to happen most often when I am playing online poker, if that is any help.

Also, hardwiring my laptop to the router with a CAT 5 cable seems to remedy the issue. I'd like to know why the wireless function is having such a hard time maintaining the DSL connection.

As always, any responses are greatly appreciated.

Make Dell laptop work with Verizon DSL

NorthCoastCafe — Sat, 16 Dec 2006 16:34:06 -0800

Any ideas why my Dell laptop's wireless gets 'limited or no connectivity' to a new Verizon DSL wireless modem? Verizon says its a problem with the Dell computer and I need to get Dell to sort out the fault. Dell wants me to pay for the information. I figure Dell and Verizon must have encountered this problem before and hope there's some folks here who know where to get the information to change settings or otherwise set up a configuration to make it work. Suggestions?

iSad

youcancallmeal — Fri, 29 Sep 2006 17:03:26 -0800

I have a new iMac, a g4 iBook, a new Airport and a Westell router delivering Verizon DSL. They're not playing nicely. When I first got the iMac earlier this week, I spent hours trying to connect to the Westell to no avail. I went to the store and bought the Airport, plugged it in and everything worked until now.

Now, my iBook can connect to the Westell fine, but neither computer can locate the Airport on the network (it just doesn't show up) and the iMac still won't connect to the Westell. (Which I understand is due to weird incompatability errors.)

Help!

Wireless help: Do we have a crappy router or bad DSL?

kechi — Tue, 29 Aug 2006 23:21:27 -0800

Flaky wireless: Can we not connect to the wireless network because of a bad router or a bad DSL connection? So, we (my housemates and I) all have problems connecting to to the wireless network. We can fix the problem by turning the router on and off but we need to do this two or three times per day. Sometimes my roommate (who's computer I'm using right now because mine won't connect and I'm too lazy to walk downstairs and reset it) can connect but I can't. Sometimes we can't connect unless we turn off the modem as well as the router. We've already tried downloading new software for the router and that didn't change anything. A friend of ours who has exactly the same router as us uses cable and doesn't have this problem so he thinks it's our connection. I think that is bullshit and that we have a crappy router. So what should we do? New router or switch to cable? (It's a netgear router wgr614 v4)

Broadbandfilter: How can I get internet setup without a current phone number (in SF)?

gramcracker — Tue, 18 Jul 2006 06:05:11 -0800

Gah! Broadbandfilter! Moving to a new apartment next week (in SF). What broadband provider, and how do I search for it without a current phone number? (Cable vs. DSL vs. FIOS vs. Wireless?) Cable is Comcast obviously; DSL looks like it can be from any number of providers, but I need a phone line first to verify. And then there's Verizon FIOS and Sprint or Verizon Wireless available as well. Need service earlier than Google rolls out its free product in SF.

Any experience with FIOS or Wireless? Good, bad?
I used a nearby restaurant's phone number to checkout availability of DSL in the area, and it looks like I'm close enough to a CO to get it. Anyone know the cheapest phone line I can get--or "naked DSL" without a phoneline--or a cheap DSL + phone line package? (Have Cingular wireless, could I do their "triple package" thing?)

Any advice, especially SF-specific, would be greatly appreciated. We're students, so we'd like to stick to the ~$40 per month range. Thanks!

Wireless-less

Packy_1962 — Fri, 26 May 2006 13:57:04 -0800

Can I connect to my wireless internet? I live in an apartment with wireless DSL already set up and used by a mac, but I started trying to use my Windows machine with it, and it's not working. It's a wanadoo thingy with the service provided through France telecom. The signal is perfect, but everytime I try to connect I get the limited/no connectivity message. A physical address, IP address, subnet mask value are all assigned, but it gets held up at the default gateway. I don't know what a default gateway is. Our mac laptop is at the shop so I can't tell if the wireless network is working period. I don't know anything about networking, and all the manuals are in a foreign language. Please help!

3 floors, 2 computers, 1 problem

googly — Sun, 22 Jan 2006 07:32:04 -0800

I need help with a home dsl/wireless/networking problem. I’m comfortable with general tech stuff, but a n00b when it comes to networking. I need your help.

Hardware: Three story house. New PC desktop (mine) on third floor, running Windows XP Pro. PC laptop (hers), mostly used on first floor, running Windows XP. Two speedstream modems. One D-Link DI-624 wireless router. SBC DSL service on the one phone line that runs through our house.

Current setup: On third floor, phone line -> Modem -> D-link -> PC desktop.

Problem: Wireless signal does not make it down to the first floor, which is where my partner uses her laptop most frequently. (We have tried installing the wireless router on the second floor, and this does reach to the first floor, but it does not reach from the third to the first floor).

Goal: Have a setup in which I can plug directly into DSL on 3rd floor, but also run a wireless network that works throughout the house.

Solution?

- Ideal solution would be to have two modems plugged into one DSL line, so that I can connect directly on the third floor, and we can also have the wireless router plugged in on the second. My googling indicates that it is impossible to connect two modems to one DSL line, but I’m happy to be disabused of this notion if it is possible.

- Amplify the wireless signal from the third floor so that it reaches to the first. I’ve googled and looked at a few of the askme threads on this, but it doesn’t seem likely.

- We could of course just set up the wireless router on the second floor and I could purchase a wireless adapter for my desktop. If this is the only viable solution then I’ll do it. But I’m a cheapskate, I like the direct connection, and am wondering if there is another option I haven’t thought of.

Thanks.

Wireless Woes and DSL Dilemmas

mystyk — Tue, 21 Jun 2005 15:04:41 -0800

Help me solve what the phone company (my DSL supplier) couldn't: getting my full wireless network running with a new modem. Ok, I just got a new modem from the phone company, because the one I had since 2000 finally burned out. It's a nifty new SpeedStream modem, and I'm using Sprint. I also have a LinkSys 802.11b/g router serving the house.

Previously, the modem could not store username/pass information, so I had the router set on PPPoE so it would log in automagically for all network users. The new one stores the info by default, so I had the company walk me through the specifics of bridging the modem, allowing me to keep the router set the same. This worked fine, for about an hour.

After that it dropped off entirely, and wouldn't reconnect until I reset the modem and re-bridged, then cutting off again after another hour. I tried borrowing an identical router from a friend and setting it the same way, with the same result. I also tried using a different brand of router, no help. The actual DSL light on the new modem goes out, which further clears the router-being-the-problem angle.

Ok, so I thought I'd leave the modem set to its non-bridged form, and simply re-program the router. Auto DHCP wouldn't work with the new modem, so I was forced to use fixed IP. Presto! Or so I thought. Now if I have the router connected I get it cutting out after about an hour, but it works again if I unplug the ethernet cable between the router and the modem for, say, 30 secs then replug. That only buys me another hour. If, however, I plug it directly into the computer that resides at the same location as the router&modem, bypassing the router entirely, I get continuous connectivity. Unfortunately, this means the rest of the house is offline.

Also, the default settings for the modem include the internal address of the modem as 192.168.1.1 with its connected entity as 192.168.1.2, both standard internal network addys. The router was forcibly set to 192.168.2.1 so as not to conflict (really so I could troubleshoot without disconnecting the router). I have a theory that the failure is somehow related to the DNS, which the router has also set as .1.1, but I don't know what else to set it to and for that hour it does work fully at that address.

I couldn't think of anything more to include, so ask if you need some more data. Don't bother asking for my username or password, as I will give you a dirty look and god will kill a kitten.

wireless between buildings

striker — Tue, 08 Mar 2005 08:50:57 -0800

Have dsl in building 1 with linksys gateway providing a wireless connection. Need to use dsl is building 2. What is the best/cheapest way to accomplish this? Without going into details, would like to remain completely wireless. Building 2 is a metal building 15 feet from building 1. At the point in building 1 nearest building 2 (still inside), there is a 30% signal, but none inside building 2. Currently using a linksys BEFW11S4. Do I want a larger antenna, another AP, repeater, absolutely must find some way to run cat5, or what is recommended?

Why does my wireless signal speed vary?

gottabefunky — Fri, 13 Aug 2004 09:44:47 -0800

Home wireless setup: why does my signal speed vary? [mi] On our home wireless network (Verizon DSL, Actiontec gateway, Netgear MR814v2 router, Win XP all around), we had two laptops working fine. Signal strength varies, but signal speed is always 11 mpbs.

Now with my new desktop and its Linksys USB54G adapter, not only does my signal strength vary like crazy, but the signal speed goes from 2 to 5 to 11 mbps, sometimes within seconds, with no apparent pattern. As I type it's 2 mpbs, strength low, but two minutes later it'll be 11 mpbs, strength high.

I can't seem to get a straight answer on why. Dell says it's "normal" for a desktop setup to do this. Linksys says no, but since all the firmware and drivers are updated, it's gotta be a problem with the adapter. Netgear can't help either. Verizon and I are not on speaking terms.

Any advice? Could it be an IP address thing? Some sort of interference? All the computers are within 25' of the router, and we live in an old adobe with thick walls, if that makes any difference.

Secure WiFi from 1 miles away?

BrodieShadeTree — Thu, 24 Jun 2004 14:02:53 -0800

Wifi networking question. My brother lives 1 mile away, nearly direct line of sight as I am up on a hill. I can get DSL, but his house cannot. Is there a cheap-ish way to get hi-speed into my house and create a secure wifi network to span to his house as well? (MI)

Wireless Networking

seanyboy — Thu, 22 Apr 2004 02:11:43 -0800

Wireless Networking Question. I want to use wireless networking to connect a DSL router to both my PVR & playstation 2. How do I do it? [M.I.] The PVR and PS2 have ethernet ports and are next to each other. I could easily connect these with a router, but then that router would need wireless access to the wireless router upstairs.

I've seen adverts for Wireless Bridges, but these all seem to have only one port. Can I just plug this into a router's uplink port? Are there any good Wireless Bridges out there with more than one port? Although price is an issue, I'm looking for a fairly good looking solution.

Sharing DSL

daver — Wed, 07 Apr 2004 09:17:21 -0800

How do I share a MSN DSL connection between multiple computers? The DSL Modem is a NetDSL 800, and I'd like to be able to connect each PC to the DSL independently (Not with 'internet sharing'). PC's are XP, and I already have a router to use (and plenty of experience routing on DSL with static IPs).