Cable internet connection keeps dropping

[dishdude]

I've been having an issue with my internet connection dropping and reconnecting for about a month now. I stay connected to the router, but the modem loses it's connection. I've replaced the modem and router, the cable company has been out and replaced all the connections. On the last trip, the tech found an issue on one of the channels. They said they repaired that Saturday, but it hasn't helped.

Can anyone decipher any of these readings? Are there any tests I can run on the incoming signal to try and pinpoint the issue?

 

[Brybo86]

Does it drop when the modem is connected directly to the computer, eliminating the router?
Is it connected to a power strip?
Can you try a different one?

Also were those readings taken when it dropped? Or when it was working?
If you can monitor the readings and then look at them when it drops.

Has this just started happening more frequently in the last months, or never before?

 

[dparm]

Post the logs from the cable modem. Signal strength looks fine (though it's hard to be certain since I don't know who your ISP is or the specific type of residential setup you have, e.g. highrise, detached, etc).

Honestly I would tell you to reopen your original trouble ticket with the ISP and ask for it to be escalated. Clearly there is still something going on.

 

[BigD1]

Power and SNR looks just like mine. Check your logs, and look and see if the modem is rebooting, or if it is going out of sync.

 

[Colt45ws]

I had the same problem a few months ago. Signals were awesome, like yours almost exactly, but it would lose sync a few times a day. They finally found something was going out on a pole and replaced it. Been good since.

 

[Tech819]

You are probably getting packet loss. Try pingtest.net. it's basic but might help you out and get yourISP to test that remotely.

Also if you have a cordless phone near the modem the put some space between them.
If the last tech said that there was a problem with one of the channels could be a firmware issue or a plant network issue on your ISP's side which they would need to address.

 

[dishdude]

Here's the event log. It has dropped out several times this morning and I don't see anything logged. I get a notice on my work PC that the VPN connection was lost and I check my other PC and I have no internet connection. They are both still connected to the router though. Within about 30 secs they reconnect.

 

[Colt45ws]

Yeah, you are losing sync. I had to keep on my ISP almost every day for a week and a half when it happened for them to figure it out.

 

[BigD1]

Yes losing sync is the problem. Mine was doing that years ago, and after two service calls that did not even come close to fixing it, my sister-in-law was personal friends with a repair man that worked for the cable company, and he found the problem on a line down the road about a 1/8 mile. It's worked good for years now after that fix.

 

[dparm]

As I said above: reopen that trouble ticket and escalate. The ISP can see the log remotely and should be able to handle it.

 

[Nick R]

I agree. You need to have a Tech visit. There is probably an issue with a line in the house, or between you and the tap on the pole/pedestal.

 

[dishdude]

Well service call #5 is scheduled for tomorrow, the last Tech found a problem at the pedestal - he said one of the channels was bouncing around on his meter when it should of been steady. The cable company claims they repaired that but I'm still seeing the signal drop.

The last couple times I called the CSR could see the issue on their end, but today they said everything looked good.

 

[spackard]

You have two nice pictures.
You could try posting the problem and the two pictures to
dslreports.com, Forums, Direct Support, and .

 

[Rolla07]

If they say everything looks good and you are still losing sync, they should be able to see possible problems especially if it is dropping that often. I agree with dparm.

Ask the tech if he can connect a test set and monitor for drops over a 24-48hr time period..they should have something like that to connect at the central office. I am more familiar with dsl but must be similar for cable.

 

[Warstud]

Could be the splitter. If you have Cable TV and Internet with a splitter....try swapping the two lines or do a direct connect with the incoming cable to the internet cable.

 

[dparm]

Originally Posted By: dishdude
Well service call #5 is scheduled for tomorrow, the last Tech found a problem at the pedestal - he said one of the channels was bouncing around on his meter when it should of been steady. The cable company claims they repaired that but I'm still seeing the signal drop.

The last couple times I called the CSR could see the issue on their end, but today they said everything looked good.

If you aren't getting results, escalate or just call back and get someone different.

 

[Rand]

I've seen this before.. fault was about 4 poles over... they didnt see "any problem". But magically it got fixed 2 weeks later.

If its a splitter or house wiring usually the signal would be degraded or the power would be elevated.

In my case someone had illegally tapped a cable bypassing a filter(trap?)at the pole and it was causing some interference.
That was how it was explained anyway.

 

[dishdude]

Tech just left, and I've been losing connection all morning!

He said the drop is bad, another crew is coming in to replace it. Of course the pedestal is across the street, so I am hoping the conduit is still in good shape and they can easily pull a new line.

 

[KitaCam]

Same problem...no solution resulting from multiple service calls (all equipment "passed" multiple tests)....only solution was an upgrade to a higher level connection at cable company's cost, not mine.

 

[Garak]

I am far, far from anything close to an expert on networking or hardware. However, did you ever check your grounding? I had dropped connections for the longest time. There was a grounding block here, from the era of the dawn of cable TV. However, every time I unplugged the cable from the back of the modem and touched it and plugged it back in, I'd have internet again for a decent period of time. Other times, it would return on its own. I told the internet cable provider about this. No, it couldn't be that at all. It has to be something else. Of course, they had no idea what that something else might be, and a modem replacement didn't help. I finally went to The Source (our Radio Shack descendant) and grabbed a new grounding block for a few bucks. I put it in, and never had another intermittent connectivity issue again, and it's been several years.