Hi All,
Thanks to everyone that took the time to reply, but there are a couple of points I should have mentioned.
It's a Belkin g router (a few years old) and I'm pretty sure that's where the fault lies as my wife is having the same problem with her iPad and iPhone (can't get on Facebook etc,has had to resort to actually talking to me) and more importantly, I'm not computer literate at all so any mildly technical answers are lost on me,I will however, endevour to follow any instructions given. Thanks again.
Hi All,
Thanks to everyone that took the time to reply, but there are a couple of points I should have mentioned.
It's a Belkin g router (a few years old) and I'm pretty sure that's where the fault lies as my wife is having the same problem with her iPad and iPhone (can't get on Facebook etc,has had to resort to actually talking to me) and more importantly, I'm not computer literate at all so any mildly technical answers are lost on me,I will however, endevour to follow any instructions given. Thanks again.
It's not a Belkin N1 Vision is it?
If it is, you need to hit it REALLY hard with a claw hammer until it's in at least 100 bits.
Do this AFTER ordering a replacement Netgear router off eBay.
Must say, my experience with the N1 has put me right off Belkin routers entirely (I've read of quite a few cases where they lock up and need to be manually reset) so whenever anybody experiences a fault with one my advice is always to replace it with a Netgear product.
I was looking for a new router recently and you can pick up a decent Netgear router with "N" class wifi on eBay for less than £40.
*EDIT*
Actually, to be fair, the above is probably more a reflection of my dislike for Belkin products than useful advice.
Since we've established that it IS likely the router that's at fault, it might be worth giving both your ISP and your telephone line provider a phone-call to ask if they've changed anything recently (ISP changed data speed, phone company monkeyed around with the exchange or line gain etc) which might explain why the problem has arisen.
Have you recently started sucking more data through your internet? Signed up for an online movie supplier or started using Sky Go or summat?
Belkin routers have a reputation for freezing up when they're overloaded with data.
It IS possible to minimise the likelihood of this happening but it means twiddling with your internet settings on both your PC and your router which you might not be keen on.
Basically, you have the choice of either typing the model number of your router into google, along with a description of the problem (so, typing into google something like "Belkin 123ABC router freezes") and then trying to follow the advice given or replacing it with a Netgear product which is likely to fix the problem for £40-odd.
FWIW, I'd still suggest you download Inssider first (see my previous post for link), install it on your laptop and see if there's much local wifi traffic.
It could be that your poor, befuddled, router is just struggling because there's a heap of wifi traffic on the same channel which is driving it potty and changing to a different channel (which is pretty easy to do) will solve the problem.
Thanks Si,
I think I'll give my ISP a call and bully them into fixing it or losing my custom. The only thing that changed is I brought a Sonos speaker which plays your music wirelessly through their speakers, but that was several months ago. Typically, I can't open up your link for Inssider but thanks anyway.
Thanks Si,
I think I'll give my ISP a call and bully them into fixing it or losing my custom. The only thing that changed is I brought a Sonos speaker which plays your music wirelessly through their speakers, but that was several months ago. Typically, I can't open up your link for Inssider but thanks anyway.
Belkin does get a lot of negative comments in this forum.
You say it is an old router, it may be worht considering a firmware upgrade. YOu can go to the website and see if there is an upgrade.
Backup the settings for the router and apply the upgrade (if applicable).
Or as Si says, bin the belkin and get a netgear.
I'd also recommend InSSIDer to see which channels are typically in use around you (try this at a peak time). Some routers will select the best channel automatically if set up that way but I suspect they don't rethink their decision when the neighbours switch Eastenders off and log on for a bit of video streaming.
I had major network issues a few years back and a few things helped enorrmously, namely:
I set my wireless channel to 1 as most closer neighbours used 6 with a couple of weaker ones on 11 (stick with one of 1, 6 or 11 for reasons I won't bore you with right now).
I started using Google's DNS servers (8.8.8.8 or 8.8.4.4).
I updated my router and it's firmware (D-Link DSL-2730B). The thing has been steady as a rock since the firmware upgrade and has been on for weeks during holidays without dropping out once.
I got me a D-Link DHP-W307AV wireless homeplug kit for the bedroom as the signal was feeble. A bit fussy sometimes (a couple of times a month) but usually I'm in Excellent Signal Strength heaven. And I can plug it in near the TV downstairs if I want a cracking signal for that or the Wii.
I haven't gone into any level of detail into any of these things as I find it's best to get an idea planted and then do some leisurely online research specific to your router/ISP or whatever.
Computers aren't that scary, really - if you put some reading in, the jargon soon starts to melt away and you get to understand things a lot more which helps with any other PC issue you may have. 30+ years fiddling with the things does make you braver, though!
If you do go for a new router and all your wireless devices support 802.11n, set it up as 802.11n (Wireless N) only as only then will you reap the benefits of 802.11n. One that uses the 5Ghz frequency e.g. a dual band router, as so many wireless devices (baby alarms, DECT phones, video senders etc.) use the crowded 2.4Ghz frequency).
Hell, if your other half can afford two Apple products, a decent router should be no problem!
Comments
So, you don't think Norton is bloatware or crapware then?
What makes me chuckle is that you compare it to Kaspersky.
Most computer experts remove Norton 360 as soon as they see it on a computer, as it causes way too many problems.
Rouge software? I presume you mean rogue
No rogue software, my computer is absolutely crapware free. I use Microsoft Security Essentials and nothing else.
The Microsoft Help Forum is awash with people having problems with IE10.
Thanks to everyone that took the time to reply, but there are a couple of points I should have mentioned.
It's a Belkin g router (a few years old) and I'm pretty sure that's where the fault lies as my wife is having the same problem with her iPad and iPhone (can't get on Facebook etc,has had to resort to actually talking to me) and more importantly, I'm not computer literate at all so any mildly technical answers are lost on me,I will however, endevour to follow any instructions given. Thanks again.
It's not a Belkin N1 Vision is it?
If it is, you need to hit it REALLY hard with a claw hammer until it's in at least 100 bits.
Do this AFTER ordering a replacement Netgear router off eBay.
Must say, my experience with the N1 has put me right off Belkin routers entirely (I've read of quite a few cases where they lock up and need to be manually reset) so whenever anybody experiences a fault with one my advice is always to replace it with a Netgear product.
I was looking for a new router recently and you can pick up a decent Netgear router with "N" class wifi on eBay for less than £40.
*EDIT*
Actually, to be fair, the above is probably more a reflection of my dislike for Belkin products than useful advice.
Since we've established that it IS likely the router that's at fault, it might be worth giving both your ISP and your telephone line provider a phone-call to ask if they've changed anything recently (ISP changed data speed, phone company monkeyed around with the exchange or line gain etc) which might explain why the problem has arisen.
Have you recently started sucking more data through your internet? Signed up for an online movie supplier or started using Sky Go or summat?
Belkin routers have a reputation for freezing up when they're overloaded with data.
It IS possible to minimise the likelihood of this happening but it means twiddling with your internet settings on both your PC and your router which you might not be keen on.
Basically, you have the choice of either typing the model number of your router into google, along with a description of the problem (so, typing into google something like "Belkin 123ABC router freezes") and then trying to follow the advice given or replacing it with a Netgear product which is likely to fix the problem for £40-odd.
FWIW, I'd still suggest you download Inssider first (see my previous post for link), install it on your laptop and see if there's much local wifi traffic.
It could be that your poor, befuddled, router is just struggling because there's a heap of wifi traffic on the same channel which is driving it potty and changing to a different channel (which is pretty easy to do) will solve the problem.
I think I'll give my ISP a call and bully them into fixing it or losing my custom. The only thing that changed is I brought a Sonos speaker which plays your music wirelessly through their speakers, but that was several months ago. Typically, I can't open up your link for Inssider but thanks anyway.
I'll give it another try: http://www.metageek.net/support/downloads/
It's really worth trying because it'll tell you if a heap of other stuff is on the same wifi channel and that might be what's causing your problems.
If that link doesn't work, just try googling "inssider" (2 "S"s) and find it for yourself.
You say it is an old router, it may be worht considering a firmware upgrade. YOu can go to the website and see if there is an upgrade.
Backup the settings for the router and apply the upgrade (if applicable).
Or as Si says, bin the belkin and get a netgear.
I had major network issues a few years back and a few things helped enorrmously, namely:
I set my wireless channel to 1 as most closer neighbours used 6 with a couple of weaker ones on 11 (stick with one of 1, 6 or 11 for reasons I won't bore you with right now).
I started using Google's DNS servers (8.8.8.8 or 8.8.4.4).
I updated my router and it's firmware (D-Link DSL-2730B). The thing has been steady as a rock since the firmware upgrade and has been on for weeks during holidays without dropping out once.
I got me a D-Link DHP-W307AV wireless homeplug kit for the bedroom as the signal was feeble. A bit fussy sometimes (a couple of times a month) but usually I'm in Excellent Signal Strength heaven. And I can plug it in near the TV downstairs if I want a cracking signal for that or the Wii.
I haven't gone into any level of detail into any of these things as I find it's best to get an idea planted and then do some leisurely online research specific to your router/ISP or whatever.
Computers aren't that scary, really - if you put some reading in, the jargon soon starts to melt away and you get to understand things a lot more which helps with any other PC issue you may have. 30+ years fiddling with the things does make you braver, though!
If you do go for a new router and all your wireless devices support 802.11n, set it up as 802.11n (Wireless N) only as only then will you reap the benefits of 802.11n. One that uses the 5Ghz frequency e.g. a dual band router, as so many wireless devices (baby alarms, DECT phones, video senders etc.) use the crowded 2.4Ghz frequency).
Hell, if your other half can afford two Apple products, a decent router should be no problem!
Yes, but still the same problem.