Identify Cause of Wi-Fi Network Dropouts

coffeeinmyveins on 28/04/2023 - 10:02
Last edited 28/04/2023 - 10:52 by 2 other users

For the last few months we've had repeated network dropouts on our home wifi network across multiple devices (laptop, phone).

When it happens we'll get the "connected but no internet" message on the device.

We have a Wi-Fi router connected to the NBN box and a wired connection from the wifi router to another room to use a Wi-Fi extender that creates a new Wi-Fi network to join (the device is WavLink AC1200).

Some of the symptoms:

• Device can connect to Wi-Fi but not EXTENDER
• Device A can connect to both networks while Device B cannot connect to either network
• Device can connect to EXTENDER but not Wi-Fi

Typically to resolve it we need to turn off all devices (Wi-Fi, extender) and restart them although sometimes this doesn't always fix it and several attempts are required.

It seems that these frequent dropouts (almost daily) have only really occurred since we got this Wi-Fi extender, so I suspect something is going awry here but I'm not sure how to pinpoint exactly what is happening?

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  scrimshaw on 28/04/2023 - 10:08

  +3

  When it comes to troubleshooting network faults we do what's called an isolation test (essentially you bypass everything on your network and plug your PC straight into the modem or Network termination device), but I'm going to take a guess it's your crappy Wavlink hardware. You should probably take the wifi extender offline first and redo the speed / pingtest.

  Wifi extenders are bad for your network as they add a lot of noise to your Wifi and can sometimes cause more problems than they solve

  If your Wavlink extender can be configured to run in Access Point mode using ethernet as a backhaul, then that's probably a better option than using it in repeater mode. Mesh routers are also pretty inexpensive nowadays (look into TP-Link Deco or similar) and are extremely easy to setup for beginners.

  • 

    coffeeinmyveins on 28/04/2023 - 13:58

    If your Wavlink extender can be configured to run in Access Point mode using ethernet as a backhaul, then that's probably a better option than using it in repeater mode

    I should have made it clearer that this is what we are currently doing. We have an ethernet cable going from the router to the other room which connects to the wifi extender, it's not picking up on the wifi from the router to create a new network.

    The speed on the extender is perfectly fine because of this, I regularly get the max that my internet plan will allow, it's just the dropouts.

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  Twix on 28/04/2023 - 10:21

  Turn off the Wavlink Wi-Fi extender. Do the dropouts stop? What router are you using?

  • 

    coffeeinmyveins on 28/04/2023 - 13:58

    Alas this is what we need to test but today for example we've had NO issues with this extenders network or the normal network

    • 

      [Deactivated] on 28/04/2023 - 17:09

      Does the Router stay connected when you have devices connected to it such as a Laptop using Ethernet ? Rather then a Wifi device?
      If the Wifi extender has reasonable signal from the modem just use the Wifi connection between the two devices but connect everything through the Extender which should give you a stronger signal.
      Though if you have a reasonable area to cover a Mesh system might actually work better anyway sometimes the Wifi extenders can be hit and miss depending on brands and how good the connectivity from your router is.
      What type of area are you looking at covering with this setup, is it two stories?

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  sumyungguy on 28/04/2023 - 10:34

  My change of NBN provider coincided with wifi dropouts occurring throughout the day. After weeks of stuffing around with NBN Co and my provider, I swapped out the gateway (Netcomm) and have had zero problems since.

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  FoxJump on 28/04/2023 - 10:43

  what brand is your router? is it a tplink deco?

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  7ekn00 on 28/04/2023 - 11:15

  +1

  Cheap devices are cheap devices :/

  My minimum now days is ASUS routers in MESH setup if needed (and that is after trying numerous brands and configs over the last decade)!

  The fact turning routers on/off, etc fixes it, suggests it is just the way those devices behave :(

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  AustriaBargain on 28/04/2023 - 11:47

  +5

  Extenders are a huge waste of time. You should be using a modern mesh network.

  • 

    [Deactivated] on 28/04/2023 - 17:16

    -1

    Extenders can work OK it just depends on the type of area your wanting to cover and how many other people are wanting to use the network.
    Oh and also not putting it in stupid spots like in a closed cupboard or behind a couch.

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  Malik Nasser on 28/04/2023 - 15:17

  IP address conflict?
  As others have said, go with a mesh network. Much more convenient, and less likely to have issues.