Problems with router. Is it time for a new one? Advice needed.

[jangozo]

Hi,

In the past few months I've been experiencing timeouts from my router. The other day the situation reached its peak just after restart. This is the output when I tried to ping google.com from my laptop while another laptop had no issues at all:

Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=4ms TTL=59
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=4ms TTL=59
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=3ms TTL=59
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=4ms TTL=59
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=3ms TTL=59
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=3ms TTL=59
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
[B]Reply from 192.168.1.101: Destination host unreachable.[/B]
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=804ms TTL=59
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=3ms TTL=59
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=303ms TTL=59
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=3ms TTL=59
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=3ms TTL=59
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=3ms TTL=59
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=203ms TTL=59
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=3ms TTL=59
Request timed out.
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=3ms TTL=59
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=3ms TTL=59
Request timed out.
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=303ms TTL=59
Request timed out.
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=3ms TTL=59
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=5ms TTL=59
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=3ms TTL=59
Request timed out.
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=3ms TTL=59
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=3ms TTL=59
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=3ms TTL=59
Request timed out.
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=3ms TTL=59
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=3ms TTL=59
Request timed out.
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=303ms TTL=59
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=3ms TTL=59
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=207ms TTL=59
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=3ms TTL=59
Request timed out.
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=3ms TTL=59
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=3ms TTL=59
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=303ms TTL=59
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=203ms TTL=59
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=303ms TTL=59
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=203ms TTL=59
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=303ms TTL=59
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=3ms TTL=59
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=3ms TTL=59
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Reply from XX.XX.XXX.XX: bytes=512 time=205ms TTL=59
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
[B]Reply from 192.168.1.101: Destination host unreachable.[/B]
Request timed out.
[B]Reply from 192.168.1.101: Destination host unreachable.[/B]
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.

If the router (192.168.1.101) is not reachable, isn't that a clear sign it is the weak link in the situation? There are other times when computers on the network lose access to the internet for ~1 minute.

My router is a D-link DIR-615 loaded with DD-WRT v24-sp2. I know it's normal to suspect the firmware, but I've been using it long before the problems started to appear.

What's your advice? Do I need a new router?

Thanks!

 

[nadina]

Hi，bro
Are your network cable connection stable?if it not,you really need to buy a new router,I'm using HuaweiE8278，it‘s works well.you can have a try.

 

[thiggins]

Make sure the problem isn't unique to a particular client. Otherwise, sounds like either the router or power supply is bad or going bad

 

[jangozo]

Make sure the problem isn't unique to a particular client. Otherwise, sounds like either the router or power supply is bad or going bad

If it's either the router or the power supply I'll just buy a new router. The problem is seen on all PCs but it's just more severe on mine. I even have it on work PCs which use the SSH tunnel setup on the router.

 

[jangozo]

First, let me correct myself in my initial post. 192.168.1.101 is the IP which I'm pinging google.com from. So basically it's telling me that I'm not able to reach my own IP.

So I bought a new router (Linksys E900). It worked perfectly over the weekend and yesterday around 6PM it showed the same behavior as my old router. The log from the ping command is the same as above but instead of this:

Reply from 192.168.1.101: Destination host unreachable.

I'm getting this:

Reply from 192.168.1.29: Destination host unreachable.

(this is my current IP under the new router)

I should mention that during the time when the ping was timing out, another computer on the network also wirelessly connected was pinging the router successfully.

I connected an ethernet cable to the laptop and didn't get any failing pings, however maybe at this time the issue had gone away by itself like it does all the time.

A normal assumption would be that the channel is getting overcrowded when people are coming back from work but I checked the "Wifi Analyzer" app on my phone and didn't see any different networks appear and the signal to my router was strong (-40dBm).

The laptop from which I'm getting the timeouts is a MacBook Pro with 802.11n Broadcom 43xx.

This is a real mystery for me now. What could it be?

Thanks

 

[theonlyski]

First, let me correct myself in my initial post. 192.168.1.101 is the IP which I'm pinging google.com from. So basically it's telling me that I'm not able to reach my own IP.

So I bought a new router (Linksys E900). It worked perfectly over the weekend and yesterday around 6PM it showed the same behavior as my old router. The log from the ping command is the same as above but instead of this:

Reply from 192.168.1.101: Destination host unreachable.

I'm getting this:

Reply from 192.168.1.29: Destination host unreachable.

(this is my current IP under the new router)

I should mention that during the time when the ping was timing out, another computer on the network also wirelessly connected was pinging the router successfully.

I connected an ethernet cable to the laptop and didn't get any failing pings, however maybe at this time the issue had gone away by itself like it does all the time.

A normal assumption would be that the channel is getting overcrowded when people are coming back from work but I checked the "Wifi Analyzer" app on my phone and didn't see any different networks appear and the signal to my router was strong (-40dBm).

The laptop from which I'm getting the timeouts is a MacBook Pro with 802.11n Broadcom 43xx.

This is a real mystery for me now. What could it be?

Thanks

The error you're getting that says "Reply from 192.168.1.29: Destination host unreachable." isn't your NIC saying it cant reach itself, it's saying your NIC can't reach the distant server. You can ping your own IP address or you could ping the loopback address 127.0.0.1 to confirm your network card is responding.

You plugged in a ethernet cable and the issue went away, therefore I'd point to the wireless, since you say it's much more prevalent on your Mac laptop than any other device, I'd point to your Mac being the issue.

If it's happening at home on that Mac, it's likely going to happen other places, so go find an open hotspot and try it there. If it keeps happening even there, we know it's the Mac.

I'd suggest upgrading drivers or if it's under warranty, scheduling a meeting at the Genius Bar of your local Apple store.

 

[jangozo]

The error you're getting that says "Reply from 192.168.1.29: Destination host unreachable." isn't your NIC saying it cant reach itself, it's saying your NIC can't reach the distant server. You can ping your own IP address or you could ping the loopback address 127.0.0.1 to confirm your network card is responding.

You plugged in a ethernet cable and the issue went away, therefore I'd point to the wireless, since you say it's much more prevalent on your Mac laptop than any other device, I'd point to your Mac being the issue.

If it's happening at home on that Mac, it's likely going to happen other places, so go find an open hotspot and try it there. If it keeps happening even there, we know it's the Mac.

I'd suggest upgrading drivers or if it's under warranty, scheduling a meeting at the Genius Bar of your local Apple store.

So I listened to your advice, checked the Win drivers and it turns out there was a newer one released. I also read from somewhere that IPv6 could be causing it so I disabled it.

I then started two ping sessions ping -t 127.0.0.1 and ping -t 192.168.1.1 (router) and started to stare at the screen.
Half an hour later, while pings to 127.0.0.1 were perfectly fine, the 192.168.1.1 session started to show this:

Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1009ms TTL=6
Request timed out.
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=54ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=66ms TTL=64
Request timed out.
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=48ms TTL=64
Request timed out.
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=4ms TTL=64
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=81ms TTL=64
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=4ms TTL=64
Request timed out.
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=18ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=6ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=25ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=28ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=8ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=28ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=4ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=46ms TTL=64
Request timed out.
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=121ms TTL=64
Request timed out.
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=63ms TTL=64
Request timed out.
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=25ms TTL=64
Request timed out.
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=18ms TTL=64
Request timed out.
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=10ms TTL=64
Request timed out.
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=70ms TTL=64
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=21ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=2ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=14ms TTL=64
Request timed out.
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=16ms TTL=64
Request timed out.
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=54ms TTL=64
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=14ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=181ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=95ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=64
Request timed out.
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=28ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=128ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=30ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=14ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=41ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=33ms TTL=64
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=36ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=68ms TTL=64
Request timed out.
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=8ms TTL=64
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=2ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=5ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=84ms TTL=64

There was a shorter string of timeouts 10-15 minutes earlier and I've been pinging the router all evening so it's not something reoccurring at a set time interval.

EDIT:
Another observation:
I was experiencing the timeouts for about 5-10 minutes and then I quickly rebooted into OS X and did the same pings for 2 minutes and all of them were passing. I switched back to Windows and the timeouts continued. It's a sigh of relief for me that it's not a HW issue as my MBP is out of warranty. Now I can concentrate on the SW side, which in itself isn't a small area.

Under windows, I diagnosed my wireless adapter and I got this:

Your computer appears to be correctly configured, but the device or resource (DNS server) is not responding Detected Detected

Contact your network administrator or Internet service provider (ISP)

Windows can't communicate with the device or resource (DNS server). The computer or service you are trying to reach might be temporarily unavailable.

I reran the diagnose a few times and some of the times I didn't get the error but most of the attempts to diagnose resulted in this error. In any case, the details of the diagnosis showed that the Broadcom driver was still using the old version of the driver:

Description . . . . . . . . . . : Broadcom 802.11n Network Adapter
Manufacturer . . . . . . . . . : Broadcom
Provider . . . . . . . . . . . : Broadcom
Version . . . . . . . . . . . : 6.30.223.215
Inf File Name . . . . . . . . . : C:\Windows\INF\oem12.inf
Inf File Date . . . . . . . . . : 10 January 2014 07:54:39
Section Name . . . . . . . . . : BCM43XNM_NT61
Hardware ID . . . . . . . . . . : pci\ven_14e4&dev_4331
Instance Status Flags . . . . . : 0x180200a
Device Manager Status Code . . : 0
IfType . . . . . . . . . . . . : 71
Physical Media Type . . . . . . : 9

While in the device manager the driver version was 6.30.223.228.

This thread might turn into a driver issue. Any help is still appreciated.



Thanks!

 

[theonlyski]

So this is a Mac that you have dual booting into Windows and the issue only presents itself in the Windows OS?

 

[jangozo]

So this is a Mac that you have dual booting into Windows and the issue only presents itself in the Windows OS?

Yes. Sorry if this was a significant detail which I should have shared but I only just managed to conform it's a windows only issue.

 

[theonlyski]

Yes. Sorry if this was a significant detail which I should have shared but I only just managed to conform it's a windows only issue.

Well, that rules out hardware as well, find the latest drivers from the manufacturer of the chip and install those in the Windows OS.

 

[jangozo]

Well, that rules out hardware as well, find the latest drivers from the manufacturer of the chip and install those in the Windows OS.

So I tried a few drivers and it turns out it the NIC works without timeouts only on the oldest drivers.

Problem solved. Thanks

 

[theonlyski]

Awesome! That's somewhat odd that the NIC works better on older drivers, but when you're working on a dual booted Mac, that's the kind of stuff you gotta look out for.