DSL Signal Dropouts

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tonyhughes

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#11424 22-Jan-2007 21:58

Those who frequent the Telecom forum here (esp. ADSL stuff) probably know my association with Telecom/Gen-i, and my raves about how good my internet usually is, even on Go Large... so heres some bad with the good...

Last couple of weeks, my DSL has been pretty shocking, with me getting national speeds under 600kbps most times day and night. I also get frequent disconnections altogether of not just my internet connection, but the actual DSL signal on the line.

After thinking it was my DLINK router, which got even more dodgy when my g/f fried it (50 odd volts onto the ethernet port), I replaced modem - same problem.

Phoned Xtra cust care tonight - spoke to some lady who took ALL my details including the problem, THEN said "I put you through to technical" (I had already pushed the stupid button for technical support!!!). Then my call was answered, but she didnt pass any details on to the guy, not even my name. Ugh.

He tested my line, it came up fine, and he reset the port (or something) - a restart of the connection from remote anyway. That didnt help, and he could see the frequent disconnections happening. He has given me a case number, and escalated the problem to the "Advanced broadband team" or something. He was really nice and knowledgeable, and said that several things may be tried, with the last option being a tech coming out to physically check/reset/change things.

Good service in the end, after a long hold time. Lets see how long it takes to get resolved. My DSL signal is dropping sometimes as often as 2 minutes apart, sometimes not for 12 hours.

Note that this is a total drop in the ADSL signal reaching the modem (the DSL light goes out for minutes at a time), not just a blip in the internet connection with the ISP itself.

Im attached to the Hastings exchange, in the Mahora/Mayfair area.

Anyone else had trouble?

galron

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#58555 23-Jan-2007 10:03

There's a long history on this sort of thing. You can read about it and a possible fix here:

http://samadhisoft.com/2006/12/09/061210-sunday-telecom-go-large-problems/

Make sure you read all four or five posts.

There's also a thread here on Greekzone at:

http://www.geekzone.co.nz/forums.asp?forumid=49&topicid=10800&page_no=1

Cheers,

chiefie

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#58557 23-Jan-2007 10:07

galron: ... There's also a thread here on Greekzone at:...

YIKES! I better learn how to speak Greek SOON!

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galron

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#58563 23-Jan-2007 10:23

Mmmm. Guess I should type slower and read it before I fire the post it button, eh?

Cheers,

tonyhughes

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#58568 23-Jan-2007 11:06

Its worth noting that my problems dont just happen on Go Large. I experienced the same issue (in fact it started when) I was on the 2 or 3 GB FS/FS plan.

This is not an ISP issue - I am confident it would be happening if I was with Orcon, iHug or Slingshot, its the actual DSL connection dropping.

I get a notification from my server every time the ip address changes.

I got the notifications this morning at the following times...

1.51am
3.29am
3.40am
3.46am
4.28am
4.33am
4.34am
4.44am
4.56am
5.14am
5.43am

I have experienced the same issue with 3 different modems, and on all my telephone jackpoints :-(

grant_k

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#58569 23-Jan-2007 11:24

Tony, This is a suggestion from outside the square if you like...

There is a company called AIRNET who provide Wireless Broadband in the Hawkes Bay according to the following coverage map:

http://www.airnet.net.nz/hawkes_bay.aspx

I don't know what the prices are, but if you are in the coverage area, it might be worth giving them a call. I use a wireless service because we are in the country, and the reliability has been exemplary. The low latency of wireless is also beneficial to VoIP services which I know you are keen on.

This idea would allow you to get away from dependency on those old 20th century copper wires in the ground with all their inherent unreliability.

Just my 2c worth...

tonyhughes

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#58575 23-Jan-2007 12:03

Our broadband comes at zero cost, and therefore paying another provider is simply out of the question for us, as it does not make financial sense.

My problems should all but disappear soon hopefully anyway, we are building a new house this year, so hopefully there is decent service into the subdivision that we choose to go into.

But for now, its an impossibility to sit at home using VPN or Citrix over WiFi, instead resorting to the Aircard, which although it works well, doesnt perform as well as the wired connection through ADSL.

sat

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#58763 24-Jan-2007 20:17

sounds like contention

Perhaps there is not a great deal of capacity on the exchange

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grant_k

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#58775 24-Jan-2007 21:22

satellitesam: sounds like contention

Perhaps there is not a great deal of capacity on the exchange

I can't see how contention or lack of capacity would explain the connection dropouts Tony is experiencing many times per night.

It sounds like either a line fault or a port fault at the exchange.

Very annoying for sure

tonyhughes

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#58870 25-Jan-2007 23:14

A technician visited the exchange today, and found a fault specifically affecting my connection (though my non-geek partner cant remember what he said... )

From the tidbits i got out of her, i think they have physically disconnected then reconnected me on another port.

They phoned (my partner) to say what they had done, and also said they would keep an eye on it, and call us if they saw more disconnections.

My speed has improved somewhat too (about 80 - 150% improvement on last few days)

grant_k

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#58905 26-Jan-2007 12:33

Great news Tony, here's hoping this is the end of your troubles.

Keep us posted.