I have a new Netgear DG834(wired)from which I run my main PC & my daughters laptop & desktop PC's, one of the upstairs PC's suddenly cannot connect to the internet , the connection status icon in the toolbar says 'cable unplugged' - Its not unplugged & the problem persist even if I swap over ethernet cables so its not a cable fault. Could a fault in the router cause this or is it more likely that her NIC card has given-up?

Is the router hard wired to PC?? If not connect it with an ethernet cable.

The simplest way to add more ethernet ports is to use a network hub and connect it to the Netgear DG834 instead of the Netgear WNDR3700. This does not require any configuration.

Verify that it is indeed a wifi signal problem by moving the laptop upstairs temporarily.

If this fixes the problem, you're getting poor wifi signal downstairs. Not much you can do with the elements at hand. So try adding another element: install a wifi signal repeater (around US$ 25) somewhere in the middle. Or you can run a cable (or use Powerline Ethernet - around US$ 100) to downstairs, and there install a wifi access point (US$ 30-60). Or directly connect the laptop to the newly installed network wire.

If the problem isn't fixed, you have some other problem on the laptop: most likely a faulty network configuration. Verify against whatever PC you have upstairs; they should have identical configurations except their IP address (if fixed instead of DHCP).

Just to be on the safe side verify the laptop is properly operating and immune from virus and malware. Not all slowdowns are the system's fault.

Happy navigation!

Enter 'admin' for user name and 'password' for password, these are the default login details.

Hi mtaylor9,

Routers are great but they do have issues with distance, or certain walls that can interupt the connections. My suggestion is to have your daughter when she is connected to walk away from the router step by step, and continue this until it drops. This will give you the distance it will work for you. Then either move the router closer to her destination, or you can get another router than can act as a passthrough. The last option is to run ethernet wire everywhere which really defeats the purpose of wireless.

Good Luck

Mark

rourke, you shouldn't be entering the same settings on both router and desktop. I should only be on the router. It seems like something with DHCP is misconfigured on your router. Make sure it (DHCP) is enabled.

Hello....sudden loss of wireless on two computers, in the same home, may indicate that a powerful source of wireless interference has just arrived (since your wireless router light is still on).

1) Does the signal improve if you move the router, or move the laptop closer to the router?
2) Have you had any success with changing the channel on your router? (Login to router > select Wireless Settings > Channel)

If you have not moved furniture yourself, or installed a device which could interfere with the signal (eg a DECT phone), it's possible a neighbour's new router may be the culprit.

Please come back to Fixya if this does not help.

I'd try a hard reset by unplugging the router, holding in the reset button for 30 seconds, while you plug the router in and see if you can get it going again. If not its time for a new one.

hi wild11967

re homplugs let me infor you first that Homeplugs do have a minor advantage if they share the same leg but there is usually sufficient cross-coupling.Larger commercial buildings often have 3 phase where each phase has its own transformer. Homeplugs need to be on the same transformer.

Also Long extension leads will degrade the signal so it is best practice to plug the HomePlug directly into a wall socket As with the figures youve given above you dont NEED to purchase a new equipment such as a router as youd have the same issue with it.

Best thing to to check your circuitry as - limitations are as follows - the rings or circuits (such as upstairs and downstairs) mains must be on the same fuse box / consumer box.

If you have further questions let Fixya answer it for you .

Best wishes .

I experienced a similar problem with a Vista laptop a few weeks ago. There were no apparent problems, so I uninstalled the wireless network adapter from the Windows "device manager" and then let it automatically reinstall the wireless adapter when it rebooted. The local wireless network appeared about 5 minutes after the reboot and has been working ever since. Hope this idea helps!