Is my wifi router going bad or is it something else?

divecoldh2o

Commendable
Jun 7, 2016
6
0
1,510
For the last week my laptop wifi has been disconnecting (shows "Limited" Internet). Sometimes it will reset but most of the time I need to put the laptop into "Airplane mode" and out to reset the internet connection, which immediately drops again. This is only happening on my laptop and I cannot see any other device being affected.

If I am within 10 feet or so of the router, the signal is stays connected but if I move further way it immediately drops. Also, If I go on the other side of a wall (within 10 feet of the router) it drops.

I replaced the wifi card and it does the same thing, with no improvement.

Today I took the laptop to work and it immediately connected to the wifi and has worked flawlessly this morning, with no disconnects!

I am way more than 10 feet from my router and my office router is a low end netgear which was purchased for wired connections, while my router at home is a higher end Netgear gaming router with multiple antenna.

Now I am confused because I was thinking it was the wireless antenna that were bad but with it working at the office but not at home, I have no idea what to think.

Is it a normal think for a faulty wifi router to drop one device repeatedly but not the others or am I missing something?

I appreciate any help.

 
Solution


I was thinking antenna but you said a worse router thats further away works fine, which puts a hole in that. If your office had a way better router I would say the signal strength overtakes the broken antenna's loss.

divecoldh2o

Commendable
Jun 7, 2016
6
0
1,510


We have not gotten any new appliances and it started about a week ago. We went out of town, with the laptop (didn't even turn it on), and when we came home the issue started.

 

Rogue Leader

It's a trap!
Moderator
This is strange, have you re-set your home router? I know that seems counter-intuitive but if you notice your laptop likely has the same IP address every time you connect, I'm wondering if something else is picking up the same address, resetting will clear that.
 

divecoldh2o

Commendable
Jun 7, 2016
6
0
1,510
I have unplugged it and plugged it back in. Does that reset it or is rhere another process?

I have also changed the frequency and updated firmware.

The signal strength in in the -50 to -60 range and we'll above anyone around me.

 

Rogue Leader

It's a trap!
Moderator


Thats good enough I wouldn't waste the time doing a full reset if everything else seems to work ok.

I have to think on this a bit more but I'll call in some outside help as well.
 
You should check out this article. I experienced this problem in the past, I don't recall ever fixing it until I switched over to Linux, but some of this may help possibly: http://www.fixedbyvonnie.com/2013/10/how-to-fix-limited-or-no-connectivity-wi-fi-issues-in-windows-8/
 

divecoldh2o

Commendable
Jun 7, 2016
6
0
1,510
From what I can tell only this device has the problem and it works fine connected via LAN.

I really appreciate the assistance. This has me completely confused. I can't figure out why it works at the office with more walls and distance but at home it wont.
 

Rogue Leader

It's a trap!
Moderator


turkey_scratch's article has some good stuff thats worth a try. It won't hurt anything, but maybe can help.
 

kanewolf

Titan
Moderator


If it is limited to a single WIFI device, then the problem is more likely on the device rather than the router.
 

Rogue Leader

It's a trap!
Moderator


I was thinking antenna but you said a worse router thats further away works fine, which puts a hole in that. If your office had a way better router I would say the signal strength overtakes the broken antenna's loss.
 
Solution

divecoldh2o

Commendable
Jun 7, 2016
6
0
1,510




I will try this tonight when I get home, as well as what TurkeyScratch suggested in the article.

Funny thing: With all this going on my better half volunteered that now is NOT the time for me to look at buying that 17" Alienware Gaming Laptop I have had my eye on. She said that she would rather me run Ethernet cable under the house into every room than have me spend $2K on a new laptop right before our son starts college this August. I didn't even get the chance to "offer" that solution.
 

Rogue Leader

It's a trap!
Moderator


LOL its like she has ESP right?