[Connectivity] Keep having to power-cycle to get connected

[Connectivity] Keep having to power-cycle to get connected
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benjamin @ 25th Oct 11:19AM:
[Connectivity] Keep having to power-cycle to get connected

Hi All,

I lost connectivity yesterday and the only way to regain access was to let the modem sit a long, long time unplugged, with coax disconnected.

This has happened once before a few months ago but I had to do it 3 times in the past 24 hours. Doing a regular power-cycle doesn't work; I have to leave the modem offline for about 30 minutes (and disconnecting/reconnecting the coax seems to help as well) for the modem to come back online. Otherwise the "online" light (fourth light) just keeps blinking

After this happened again this morning, I called support and they insisted on scheduling a tech visit. As I explained and suspected, I got the connection back after leaving the modem unplugged for a 1/2 hour.

I will cancel the appointment but would like to prevent this in future. Any ideas as to what might be causing this and how to fix?

Thanks in advance!

-Benjamin
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lilhurricane @ 25th Oct 11:29AM:
Re: [Connectivity] Keep having to power-cycle to get connected

What modem are you using, Benjamin?
Helps to have addt'l info :)
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benjamin @ 25th Oct 01:09PM:
Re: [Connectivity] Keep having to power-cycle to get connected

Thanks! Totally forgot to post that crucial info: Motorola Surfboard (same as one provided by RCN).
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lilhurricane @ 25th Oct 01:11PM:
Re: [Connectivity] Keep having to power-cycle to get connected

Can you access your modem logs? Do they show anything?

»192.168.100.1/
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benjamin @ 25th Oct 01:19PM:
Re: [Connectivity] Keep having to power-cycle to get connected

Never even thought to check. Thanks again! Here's the only entry that isn't strangely dated "1970."

2009-10-25 13:49:30 3-Critical R005.0 Started Unicast Maintenance Ranging - No Response received - T3 time-out

Looks like there was a problem connecting alright...
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lilhurricane @ 25th Oct 01:23PM:
Re: [Connectivity] Keep having to power-cycle to get connected

Lol..the SB's always time warp to 1970 when resetting ;)

What are your signal levels (up/down?)

Edit: »RCN Forum FAQ »What should my cable modem signal levels be?
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Maggs @ 25th Oct 02:38PM:
Re: [Connectivity] Keep having to power-cycle to get connected

It would be better for you to go to the speedtest.rcn.net site and get the signal levels there.

»speedtest.rcn.net/

Post them here.
--
Hello, is anyone out there.

benjamin @ 25th Oct 02:42PM:
Re: [Connectivity] Keep having to power-cycle to get connected

I did in fact check that :) and everything seems fine, as indicated above. Thanks for everything. If you (or anyone else) thinks of something that could have been causing this of late (other than network/provisioning issues on RCN's end), do let me know.

benjamin @ 25th Oct 02:47PM:
Re: [Connectivity] Keep having to power-cycle to get connected

Thanks Maggs. Results are almost identical.

Forward Frequency 735000000
Return Frequency 24816000
Forward Modulation qam256(4)
Modem TX Power 45 dBmV
Foward Signal to Noise 36.4 dB
Downstream Ratelimit 5300000
Forward Power Level 1.7 dBmV
Upstream Ratelimit 400000
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lilhurricane @ 25th Oct 02:49PM:
Re: [Connectivity] Keep having to power-cycle to get connected

Thanks for adding that info :)

I'm sure we'll get a view from one of our techs..

Just so you know, my SB5100 logs those T3's all the time without any effect on my connectivity, so perchance there's something else going on in your neck o' the woods - unless there was a firmware push or something else that's hardware/pc related.

Any other NYC folks that can confirm?
--
~Safe Hex~ Team Discovery ~ Project Hope ~ Like A Hurricane~
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Maggs @ 25th Oct 02:56PM:
Re: [Connectivity] Keep having to power-cycle to get connected

I'm on wireless. It works for me. AES Encrypted 128bit.
--
Hello, is anyone out there.
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lilhurricane @ 25th Oct 02:57PM:
Re: [Connectivity] Keep having to power-cycle to get connected

You're in Queens, Sean.. he's not ;)
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Maggs @ 25th Oct 02:58PM:
Re: [Connectivity] Keep having to power-cycle to get connected

He's in NYC, they aggregate traffic over the same links at one point. Are you in an apartment building?
--
Hello, is anyone out there.
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Maggs @ 25th Oct 03:01PM:
Re: [Connectivity] Keep having to power-cycle to get connected

T3s are useless indicators, I have them all the time in my logs and they don't mean a thing. It could also be old coax too.
--
Hello, is anyone out there.
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Maggs @ 25th Oct 03:02PM:
Re: [Connectivity] Keep having to power-cycle to get connected

said by lilhurricane :

Lol..the SB's always time warp to 1970 when resetting ;)

Now do they wear bellbottoms, and spray paint trains!
--
Hello, is anyone out there.
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Maggs @ 25th Oct 03:04PM:
Re: [Connectivity] Keep having to power-cycle to get connected

The modem may have heat issues. Check the coax connection at the back and if it's hot to the touch, the powersupply may be on the way out.
--
Hello, is anyone out there.
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benjamin @ 25th Oct 03:09PM:
Re: [Connectivity] Keep having to power-cycle to get connected

Thanks again, lilhurricane.

As noted, things are back to normal but I was having issues all night and this morning. I just would like to determine whether this was a network issue (which is what I always thought prior to today when this type of thing happened) or whether the problem is somehow on my end (or in the building). Tech support said modems were online for the most part in the area but I assume that was for NY not my specific area, where there might have been an issue.

I do remember seeing that error, from back when I used to check my logs. ;-) Should have known that wasn't indicative of anything.

Anyhow, what I find most odd is that standard power-cycling didn't work in this last set of outages...
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lilhurricane @ 25th Oct 03:13PM:
Re: [Connectivity] Keep having to power-cycle to get connected

said by benjamin :

I just would like to determine whether this was a network issue (which is what I always thought prior to today when this type of thing happened) or whether the problem is somehow on my end (or in the building).

Understandable. T'were me, I'd want to know too. ;)
--
~Safe Hex~ Team Discovery ~ Project Hope ~ Like A Hurricane~
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nycityny @ 25th Oct 03:57PM:
Re: [Connectivity] Keep having to power-cycle to get connected

said by benjamin :

Never even thought to check. Thanks again! Here's the only entry that isn't strangely dated "1970."

2009-10-25 13:49:30 3-Critical R005.0 Started Unicast Maintenance Ranging - No Response received - T3 time-out

Looks like there was a problem connecting alright...

I received a comparable message in my logs today - I'm in NYC on the Upper West Side. My message:

2009-10-25 16:33:58 3-Critical R005.0 Started Unicast Maintenance Ranging - No Response received - T3 time-out

I, on the other hand, have not had a need to reboot my modem at all. My Internet connection is fine.
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benjamin @ 25th Oct 04:03PM:
Re: [Connectivity] Keep having to power-cycle to get connected

Right, apparently these messages are normal. I do remember seeing them in previous logs.

Thanks for noting there were no issues on UWS, which is my location as well. Maybe it was just my building... or just me. Really strange the problem persisted over a 24-hour period, though.

All seems back to normal now. (Fingers crossed.)
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Enjoralas @ 25th Oct 06:26PM:
Re: [Connectivity] Keep having to power-cycle to get connected

It's not a coax issue, once you get the send light solid the modem has locked downstream and upstream and has started to communicate to the CMTS to obtain an IP and possibly config file. If you have a solid recieve, the downstream channel is good. Solid send, the upstream channel is good. Blinking online, the modem is communicating with the CMTS but not online yet.
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benjamin @ 25th Oct 06:32PM:
Re: [Connectivity] Keep having to power-cycle to get connected

said by Enjoralas :

Blinking online, the modem is communicating with the CMTS but not online yet.

Interesting. Thanks. That's exactly what I reached (send/receive solid but blinking online) every time I had this issue.
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