WiFi stopped working randomly on custom PC

[dannyjerome0]

Problem started a few weeks ago. Not sure exactly if anything changed on my PC in terms of software. I know there have been no hardware changes. I am having horrible WiFi capabilities on my PC. Every other device in my household works perfectly fine. My PC is custom-built, running Windows 7 64-bit Home Premium. The BIOS and drivers are all updated. I was using a TP-Link USB WiFi adapter, which seemingly out of nowhere started running slowly. Then, the Internet would disconnect randomly and intermittently, or slow to almost a crawl. Since then, I ordered 2 more WiFi adapters (Panda and Linksys). All 3 adapters seem to work just fine on my laptop. All of them do the same thing on my PC. Oddly, the Linksys adapter worked beautifully for a couple minutes right after the installation. However, it eventually went back to horribly slow download speeds and/or intermittent connection. Nevertheless, I know the problem is not with the adapters, since they work fine on other machines. I have tried swapping out my keyboard, mouse, etc. with all of the available USB ports to no avail. The keyboard and mouse work fine in all of the USB ports, but the adapters don't work no matter what ports I use. Recently, I ran CCleaner, cleaned up the system and registry, did a fresh install of the WiFi adapter, and still it sucks (again, though, the adapter worked GREAT for a minute or two, then the connection pooped out). HELP??? Never seen this problem in all my years of building PC's.

 

[doctore]

#1 - How is your antivirus situation?

+ Would you post a screenshot of the Wireless Network Connection Status (double click on your network adapter)?

 

[dannyjerome0]

#1 - How is your antivirus situation?

+ Would you post a screenshot of the Wireless Network Connection Status (double click on your network adapter)?

I'm using Avast Free Antivirus 2015. I have run a full system scan and everything is good.

 

[dannyjerome0]

I just did a fresh install of Windows 7, and the same problem exists. I'm wondering if it's a power supply issue. I checked my voltages in BIOS and they are all perfect, so I don't think that's it. Motherboard issue?

 

[doctore]

Would you post a screenshot of the Wireless Network Connection Status (double click on your network adapter)?

 

[dannyjerome0]

Imgur

 

[doctore]

Well, your speed is 65Mbps, which is about right for a wireless connection.

Download a trial of Kaspersky Total Security or Eset and run another antivirus scan.

 

[dannyjerome0]

Well, your speed is 65Mbps, which is about right for a wireless connection.

Download a trial of Kaspersky Total Security or Eset and run another antivirus scan.

I just did a brand new install of Windows with a formatted hard drive. First thing I did was install the network adapter and still no connection. Also, I have installed Malwarebytes and Avira just in case and both are clean scans.

 

[dannyjerome0]

I'm wondering if there's a definitive way to test the USB controller and/or power supply. I know the voltages in BIOS are perfect, and my USB keyboard and mouse work fine.

 

[doctore]

Well, your speed is 65Mbps, which is about right for a wireless connection.

Download a trial of Kaspersky Total Security or Eset and run another antivirus scan.

I just did a brand new install of Windows with a formatted hard drive. First thing I did was install the network adapter and still no connection. Also, I have installed Malwarebytes and Avira just in case and both are clean scans.

You don't have connection to the Internet or to the network?
Can you run ipconfig /all at the Command Prompt and post the results?

P.S. Your USB and power supply are not the issue here.

 

[dannyjerome0]

Well, your speed is 65Mbps, which is about right for a wireless connection.

Download a trial of Kaspersky Total Security or Eset and run another antivirus scan.

I just did a brand new install of Windows with a formatted hard drive. First thing I did was install the network adapter and still no connection. Also, I have installed Malwarebytes and Avira just in case and both are clean scans.

You don't have connection to the Internet or to the network?
Can you run ipconfig /all at the Command Prompt and post the results?

P.S. Your USB and power supply are not the issue here.

It shows that I have a connection to the Internet, with excellent signal quality. However, the connection repeatedly comes and goes, and it's VERY slow ( ~0.01mbps down via Speedtest). I have a laptop in the same room that runs ~20mbps via WiFi. I'll post the ipconfig results later when I'm at home.

 

[dannyjerome0]

Here are the results:

Windows IP Configuration

Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : Danny-PC
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Hybrid
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
DNS Suffix Search List. . . . . . : hsd1.mi.comcast.net.

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Realtek PCIe GBE Family Controller
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : FC-AA-14-09-8C-E2
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

Wireless LAN adapter Wireless Network Connection:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : hsd1.mi.comcast.net.
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Linksys WUSB6300
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : C8-D7-19-BF-1F-80
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IPv6 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 2601:4:a80:6818:f17e:8e88:eb05:53dc(Prefe
rred)
Temporary IPv6 Address. . . . . . : 2601:4:a80:6818:91af:5856:958b:6577(Prefe
rred)
Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::f17e:8e88:eb05:53dc%11(Preferred)
IPv4 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 10.0.0.14(Preferred)
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Thursday, March 12, 2015 4:42:21 PM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Thursday, March 19, 2015 4:42:25 PM
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : fe80::21d:d4ff:feea:b681%11
10.0.0.1
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 10.0.0.1
DHCPv6 IAID . . . . . . . . . . . : 248043289
DHCPv6 Client DUID. . . . . . . . : 00-01-00-01-1C-92-B4-49-C8-D7-19-BF-1F-80

DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 2001:558:feed::1
2001:558:feed::2
75.75.76.76
75.75.75.75
NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Enabled

Tunnel adapter isatap.hsd1.mi.comcast.net.:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : hsd1.mi.comcast.net.
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Microsoft ISATAP Adapter
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

Tunnel adapter Teredo Tunneling Pseudo-Interface:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Teredo Tunneling Pseudo-Interface
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IPv6 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 2001:0:9d38:90d7:3c3b:3020:f5ff:fff1(Pref
erred)
Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::3c3b:3020:f5ff:fff1%12(Preferred)
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . :
NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Disabled

 

[doctore]

Not a fan of the IP settings.
10.0.0.14 is a class A IP, but your netmask is 255.255.255.0, making it a subnet. Can you post the same output from your working laptop?

And did you set your IP yourself or is it set to automatically obtain from DHCP server?

 

[dannyjerome0]

Absolutely:

Microsoft Windows [Version 6.3.9600]
(c) 2013 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

C:\Users\Daniel>ipconfig /all

Windows IP Configuration

Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : Lenovo-PC
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Hybrid
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
DNS Suffix Search List. . . . . . : hsd1.mi.comcast.net.

Wireless LAN adapter Local Area Connection* 4:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Microsoft Hosted Network Virtual Adapter
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 4E-93-A2-E5-AC-77
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

Ethernet adapter Bluetooth Network Connection:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Bluetooth Device (Personal Area Network)
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 5C-93-A2-E5-AC-78
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

Wireless LAN adapter Local Area Connection* 3:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Microsoft Wi-Fi Direct Virtual Adapter
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 1E-93-A2-E5-AC-77
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

Wireless LAN adapter Wi-Fi:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : hsd1.mi.comcast.net.
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Qualcomm Atheros AR956x Wireless Network
Adapter
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 5C-93-A2-E5-AC-77
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IPv6 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 2601:4:a80:6818:6194:ef3:d8de:1364(Prefer
red)
Temporary IPv6 Address. . . . . . : 2601:4:a80:6818:a8f3:6bad:1b9d:9678(Prefe
rred)
Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::6194:ef3:d8de:1364%6(Preferred)
IPv4 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 10.0.0.15(Preferred)
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Thursday, March 12, 2015 4:48:23 PM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Thursday, March 19, 2015 6:38:51 PM
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : fe80::21d:d4ff:feea:b681%6
10.0.0.1
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 10.0.0.1
DHCPv6 IAID . . . . . . . . . . . : 106730402
DHCPv6 Client DUID. . . . . . . . : 00-01-00-01-1B-E9-98-E5-54-EE-75-35-68-35

DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 2001:558:feed::1
2001:558:feed::2
75.75.76.76
75.75.75.75
NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Enabled

Ethernet adapter Ethernet:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : hsd1.mi.comcast.net.
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Realtek PCIe GBE Family Controller
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 54-EE-75-35-68-35
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

Tunnel adapter isatap.hsd1.mi.comcast.net.:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : hsd1.mi.comcast.net.
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Microsoft ISATAP Adapter
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

Tunnel adapter Teredo Tunneling Pseudo-Interface:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Teredo Tunneling Pseudo-Interface
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IPv6 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 2001:0:9d38:6ab8:3c49:25c2:b385:7a68(Pref
erred)
Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::3c49:25c2:b385:7a68%11(Preferred)
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . :
DHCPv6 IAID . . . . . . . . . . . : 452984832
DHCPv6 Client DUID. . . . . . . . : 00-01-00-01-1B-E9-98-E5-54-EE-75-35-68-35

NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Disabled

C:\Users\Daniel>


I did not set up the IP myself. And again, this is a brand new Windows install with the same persistent problem. The WiFi WAS working perfectly fine up until about a month or so ago (~15mbps).

 

[doctore]

This is weird... I have never seen a router auto-assign 255.255.255.0 on a Class A IP.

What kind of router are you using?

 

[dannyjerome0]

This is weird... I have never seen a router auto-assign 255.255.255.0 on a Class A IP.

What kind of router are you using?

It's an Arris/Comcast TG862G

 

[doctore]

Did you try resetting the modem with the button?

 

[dannyjerome0]

Did you try resetting the modem with the button?

I just did that now. Upon restart, I reconnected to the network, and ran Speedtest several times in a row, approximately getting (download):

12mbps
10mbps
3mbps
0.01mbps

Again, it worked fine for a couple of minutes, then pooped out after a while. Oddly, my upload speeds were greater than or equal to my download speeds.

 

[doctore]

I recommend we first change the DHCP settings to something more appropriate, it could well be the issue.

Log in to your Modem/router and post a screenshot of the DHCP settings and we can take it from there.

 

[dannyjerome0]

Where would I find this? Under Xfinity Network there's just DHCP enabled and lease times.