Fluctuating internet connection

[jackb22]

Hi,

About a month or two ago my internet connection started going bad, i only really notice it while playing games, but every so often it lags for about 10 seconds, then comes back, and occasionally over the internet connection sign the limited connectivity icon pops up.
I'm using a TP-Link 300mbps USB network adapter.
The problem only occurs on my PC, no other PC's in the house are experiencing this problem.

I just did a ping test, and heres the screenshot:
This was while the connection problem was occuring, pinged to my default gateway.

Any help would be appreciated, thanks

 

[Dwarf]

Hi Jack and welcome to W7 Forums

Are you connecting via wireless on this PC? Do any of your other PCs also connect by wireless? Is there any particular time of day that this problem occurs, or is just random? Have you installed anything on your PC just before the problem started (including updates)?

You could try an alternative socket for your network adapter, alternatively you could try a different adapter. Wireless signals can be finicky at times, have you tried moving this PC to another location, preferably next to another PC where you are not having this PC? Conversely, can you move that PC to the current location of this one?

Another thing to consider is the wireless channel. Try alternatives to see if that improves matters.

 

[jackb22]

Thanks

Yeah. All of the PC's in our house connect by wireless.
Its pretty much random, can happen at any time.
Na nothing that i can think of, it just started occurring occasionally and then became more frequent, we even replaced the router to try and fix it, virgin sent us a new one, but it didn't make a difference.

I've tried with 2 different wireless adapters, alternating between USB ports, but the same problem still occurs.
I had it downstairs at one point next to the wireless router to see if it made a difference and it was the same, my laptop has no connection issues when in the spot that my pc is in, so its likely not to be that.
most of the time i have 3/2 bars of signal on my PC.

The wireless channel setting is set to automatically select the best channel.

Thanks

 

[Dwarf]

Is there any way that you could temporarily connect via Ethernet cable to see if that improves things? I'm thinking that it could be a driver problem, or a settings problem with your firewall and/or AV program.

You could also try resetting Microsoft's Host File by following the instructions below:

The following lines of code have been posted numerous times, but it is a useful batch file to have in your tool kit. It flushes the DNS cache and resets Microsoft's Host File.

@Echo on
pushd\windows\system32\drivers\etc
attrib -h -s -r hosts
echo 127.0.0.1 localhost>HOSTS
attrib +r +h +s hosts
popd
ipconfig /release
ipconfig /renew
ipconfig /flushdns
netsh winsock reset all
netsh int ip reset all
shutdown -r -t 1
del %0

Copy and paste the above in to Notepad and save it as Flush.bat to the desktop. Close all running applications and then right-click on the file and choose to run as an administrator, providing the necessary credentials when prompted. Your computer will automatically restart itself.

 

[jackb22]

The only way i would be able to do that is if i took my PC downstairs and taking the ethernet out of the router, and my dad isnt really happy with me doing that, so, wouldnt be able to check that way.
Not sure if firewalls is the problem, tried turning it off several times but no difference.

I ran the .bat file and it seems to be working fine at the moment
But it might change, i'll post back later to let you know if its stayed that way.

Thanks

 

[Dwarf]

You're welcome, Jack.

If, after a few days, you're not having any more problems, you can mark this thread as solved (or ask one of the Staff to do so for you).

 

[jackb22]

It was fine until about half an hour ago, just suddenly started up again

 

[jackb22]

Randomly becomes limited internect connectivity and on ping test while this is happening i get a mixture of 'Connection timed out' and 'Destination host unreachable'.
Disconnected twice while trying to post this.

 

[jackb22]

When I use windows network diagnostics, it says 'Default Gateway not available: Fixed'. Then I get reconnected.

 

[Dwarf]

Just a thought. I take it that you are using a USB adapter that you have plugged into one of the rear sockets on your PC. If so, then this might be where the problem lies. The rear of your PC is primarily metal, and can have a direct effect on the quality of radio signals in that area. Try plugging the adapter into a USB extension lead and position it above your PC away from any surrounding metal (perhaps use BluTack to temporarily fix the adapter to the wall).

Not guaranteed, but worth a shot.

 

[jackb22]

Tried it but disconnected after i put it up

 

[jackb22]

Actually, i think the problem only starts when other people in the house are using the internet, since noone else was on on sunday morning, and it worked fine then, and worked fine this morning until my dad logged onto his computer for work. But i'm not sure, I dont know how that would cause me to lose connection

 

[Dwarf]

That alone shouldn't cause you to lose connectivity. I can understand getting a slight reduction in network response, since there are more than one user on line (and sharing the incoming internet connection), but not to the extent you are experiencing.

You mentioned that it was OK yesterday, and also this morning until your father logged into his computer. I know that we might have to wait a while, but what happens to your connectivity when your father logs out and shuts down his computer? Does your connectivity improve? What about when other computers (except your father's) are logged on? Do you have problems then, or is it specifically just when your father logs on?

I'm wondering if your father also connects by wireless, and the signal is somehow interfering with yours (although, if this is the case, I would expect that his is being interfered with by yours as well). Is he also suffering from connection problems when you are both online?

 

[jackb22]

Hes gone offline now, and the problem is still occurring, so, no improvement there.
No, just my dads.
Yes he uses wireless. But until recently he used wired, and i was still having problems when he was, so, we can rule that out. He also has no problems with his internet.

 

[Dwarf]

What is the make of the router, and what is the make of the USB adapter you have on your computer? It shouldn't make any difference, but some manufacturers don't get on as well with others as perhaps they should.

 

[jackb22]

The router is a virgin super hub, was supplied by virgin a couple of weeks ago when we thought the router was the problem.
My adapter is a TP-Link TL-WN821N 300mb/s

 

[Dwarf]

See if this helps: Improving your Super Hub's wireless signal

 

[jackb22]

The only thing i could do there was change the wireless channel, since all our adapters are 2.4Hz and i cant move the router. But it didn't really make any difference.