Intermittent Internet access on second wireless access point

Hi @jlewis333,

 

I apologize for the issues you are having with trying to get your other devices to work. With your 3rd party devices, are you able to get a solid internet connection with them via Ethernet, or does it have the same problems. 

My best suggestion is to make sure the Linksys and Engenius or both setup in bridge mode. If that is not possible, it may be best to put them on a different subnet, as there may be a subnet conflict with everything being on 192.168.1.x.

 

Hope this helps.

 

-David T

DavidCS,

 

Thank you for your interest and your response.

 

>>  are you able to get a solid internet connection with them via Ethernet,

 

There is never a problem with the wired connections (bullet #6).   The problem is always with the wireless connections through the Linksys or Engenius access points.  Either I can’t establish a good connection, or an established connection goes bad.    When an established connection goes bad, I have verified that the handheld devices still has a legitimate IP address in the 192.168.1.64 – 192.168.1.253 range as defined by the 2Wire’s DHCP settings.  When the connection goes bad, the connection between the handheld device and the access point is retained, but access to the internet is blocked.

 

Also, when I am not able to access the internet from handheld devices through the Linksys and Engenius access points, I am still able to access the access points from a PC that connected to the network via Ethernet. 

 

 

>>  My best suggestion is to make sure the Linksys and Engenius or both

>> setup in bridge mode. If that is not possible, it may be best to put them

>> on a different subnet, as there may be a subnet conflict with everything

>> being on 192.168.1.x.

 

Both the Linksys and Engenius access points are hardwired to the 2Wire via Ethernet.   The Engenius EAP 350 isn’t intended to be a router, and doesn’t even have DHCP capabilities.   When the Linksys is attempted, DHCP is disabled so that devices have an address that was assigned to them by the 2Wire.   I really would like to have all devices on the same subnet so that all devices have network access to each other.   The LAN is used for backups and printing. 

 

 

If it matters my 2Wire 3800HGV-B is currently running firmware version 6.9.1.42-plus.tm.

Hi @jlewis333,

 

Thank you for that information. I apologize as I am not familiar with that equipment, but do those access points have a way to connect via Ethernet? If so, then when the internet is blocked, is it blocked via Ethernet also? If not, then there is definitely a wireless issue, and maybe a conflict some where. 

 

Also, the other thing that confuses me is that you said the devices have an IP address. Usually, a device acting as a switch do not get IPs and they just act as relay points.. Again, I apologize for my confusion.

 

One thing we can try is replacing the router and seeing if that helps out. We have a 3801 model, and I will have my team send you a private message to help with this further.

 

-David T

Hello David,

 

Thank you again for your courteous reply.  I got your private message.

 

The Linksys WRT54G has free LAN Ethernet ports.  I’ll try connecting a laptop to one of those to determine whether it has internet access while wireless is down.   The Engenius only has a single Ethernet port, and that one is used to connect to the 2Wire 3800HGV-B. 

 

>> Also, the other thing that confuses me is that you said the devices have an IP address. Usually, a device acting as a switch do not get IPs and they just act as relay points.

 

Both the Linksys and Engenius access points are configurable via browser.  I type in the IP address in in the browser to login to the configuration interface, exactly like I’d access the configuration interface for the 2Wire 3800HGV-B.  When the handheld wireless devices are working properly, the DHCP assigned Gateway is 192.168.1.254  (same address as the 2Wire RG).

 

I’m still working this thing.  The intermittent nature makes it harder to troubleshoot.  I can often tweak something on the access point, and it may begin working correctly after the reboot.  It would seem that my tweak worked, sometimes for an hour, and sometimes for a day or so.   But the problem eventually returns.   I thought that I had finally figured it out with my last tweak which worked for over 24 hours, but it bombed again 20 minutes ago.

 

I’m still doing a few more tweaks with the idea that the root problem may be due to interference.   I’m trying 802.11 G only. 802.11 N only, trying different channels, and trying the 20/40 MHz options in 802.11 N mode.      There are a few routers that are visible from my neighbors’ houses on my scanner, but they are really low intensity, and I’ve been trying channels that are isolated from theirs.  Still, I’m giving it a shot.  Maybe a neighbor has a rogue cordless phone or some other device nearby.   I’ve tinkered with the channels in the past, but I’m now giving it one last effort.

 

If I’m still not successful, I’ll  take you up on the offer of trying a different router.   I’m trying not to be an annoying customer who blames everything on the vendor supplied router.  I’d hate to replace the router and still have the problem.  

 

If we do decide that replacing the router is reasonable, is the newer Motorola NVG589 router an option?    I understand that the 2Wire 3801 uses the same firmware as the 2Wire 3800.   Maybe a completely different set of hardware and firmware would be more conclusive.

The 589 is still just using 2.4 ghz frequency range...
the better solution is to centralize the RG to middle of home or move your AP towards central of home.

The AP should be positioned at a halfway distance between the RG and desired coverage area.

A request to move RG is billable either as standard service call $99 or dispatch on demand $149 plus $55 for new wiring if needed.

I am an AT&T employee and the postings on this site are my own and don’t necessarily represent AT&T’s position, strategies or opinions.

Mythoughts,

 

Thank you for your input.  

 

The house was prewired when it was built, and the current Engenius access point is ceiling-mounted in the living room, which is the most ideal spot in the house for an wireless access point.   I’ve tested the Linksys access point from both upstairs and downstairs locations, but the results are the same. 

 

Moving the RG isn’t a very good option for my house.  It is currently setup in a second story closet with an 8 port POE switch (for security cameras) and another switch which feeds Ethernet through the rest of the house.    

David,

 

>>  do those access points have a way to connect via Ethernet? If so, then when the internet is blocked, is it blocked via Ethernet also? If not, then there is definitely a wireless issue, and maybe a conflict some where. 

 

I tested this tonight.  During a long outage, I connected a laptop directly to the Linksys via an Ethernet LAN port.  The Linksys is already linked to a 2Wire via Ethernet.  I was able to connect to the internet.  However, when I connected to the Linksys using a wireless connection (instead of Ethernet), I could not connect to the internet.  

 

Also, during this current outage, I took the batteries out of our cordless phones and disconnected the power from the base station. I wanted to rule out the possibility that our cordless phones were a source of interference.  This still didn’t help.  I also made sure that our Playstation 3 was turned off.  

 

I also tried moving the Linksys router around the house.   I placed it near the 2Wire RG, thinking that maybe the RG was in a place that wasn’t affected by interference.  However, this didn’t help.   The Engenius EAP350 access point is mounted to the ceiling, and isn’t very portable, so I didn’t attempt to move it around the house.

 

I think that I’m ready to try your offer for replacing the RG.   I've used a spreadsheet to methodically try various wireless configurations, but I'm still not having lucking in obtaining a consistent internet connection.  No matter what channel I use for the 2Wire RG, it works.  No matter what channel I use for the Engenius or Linksys routers, I my connections are intermittent.  For the Engenius, I've tried 802.11 G only, 802.11 N only, and 20 vs 40 Mhz modes.   I'll contact you again via message.

 

 

Thank you again for your assistance.  I'm doing my best to use due dilligence on my end to avoid unnecessary hardware changes:)

 

The technicians swapped out my 2Wire 3800 for a NGV589 today and everything now seems to be working perfectly.   I was able to get +20 Mbps via wireless throughout much of the house as measured by the Ookla SpeedTest app on my smartphone, tablet, and on the Speedtest website on a laptop.   The technicians also installed a bracket so that the RG could be strategically placed in order to improve reception.  The wireless signal from the RG was still dead in critical parts of the house, so I reattached the Engenius access point.   The NGV589 was on channel 11, and I set the Engenius to channel 6, and I am now getting +20 Mbps from the rest of the house through this second access point.

 

It’s been less than 24 hours, so I’ll continue to monitor.   However, I’m optimistic, because reception from the Engenius access point has be reliably fast.  I'll give a followup posting in a day or two.