My internet keeps Dropping out

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My internet starts then stops and sometimes starts back by its self but most times I have to select it again and sometimes after it has connected it will drop out. This is getting frustrating as I have searched the web and tried many fixes which did not help. Can you help me. I am running Windows 10 with the latest upgrade on my Dell XPS 8930 computer. I appreciate all the help you can provide.

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Help us help you by giving us some information to go on.

What version of Win10 are you running?
What were the last updates you installed? (KB numbers)
What fixes have you tried? (There is no need to repeat fixes that don’t work).
Have you recently rebooted your modem/router/computer?
If you are running Malwarebytes, have you tried turning it off? Do you have the latest version installed?
Have you updated the drivers for your network card?

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I am running Version 2004 and the latest update was 10/15/2020 KB4579311 and I have rebooted everything connected to my computer and have tried everything suggested on the internet which includes resetting some values with command prompt but I cannot remember all the things I have done. Thanks.

Ralph

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What antivirus program are you using?

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What router are you using, ISP supplied?
Does the router show a connection?
Can you connect to the router from your browser?

cheers, Paul

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My Fing box logs internet dropouts, which helps me to contest charges with the ISP.

Dell E5570 Latitude, Intel Core i5 6440@2.60 GHz, 8.00 GB - Win 10 Pro

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I’d check your (method used) WiFi or Ethernet device drivers for updates via OEM (realtek, intel, atheros, qualcomm etc..)

Windows - commercial by definition and now function...

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[Zaphyrus]

there are alot of factors to consider, for starters if your router is compatible with your network card

Driver updates

Dirty hardware

bad adapter configuration

or in the worst case, your Network driver is starting to die.  thanks to the people here I understood that that happened with my laptop.  So for experience check all of this.

If you are not confident enough to open you laptop and you believe your adapter is dying, I suggest buyig an USB adapter.

Just someone who don't want Windows to mess with its computer.

• This reply was modified 4 years, 6 months ago by Zaphyrus.

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Is it Wifi or Ethernet?  If Wifi, could you beg, borrow or otherwise get hold of an ethernet cable and try it that way?  Have you recently installed a device nearby which could cause interference, such as a cordless phone or a microwave?  Have you moved the router to a different location, or done something which could block the wifi signal?  Can you relate when it started to a particular date or event?

Windows 10 Pro 64 bit 20H2

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I have the same problem when I am in Florida, but not at home with the same computer, same router and same internet supplier.  They have changed the router and checked every connection, replaced every splitter and the problem does not go away.  I have heard of one person dropping the internet when lights outside of his home when on and drew current from the router.  If i continue to have the problem I will try changing my internet supplier.

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I have a similar problem with a Dell Studio XPS desktop running Windows 10 with a wired connection to the BT HomeHub 4.

The strange thing is that wi-fi continues to work normally for other devices using the hub and some major sites – eg Facebook is seemingly unaffected. Similarly streaming services such as Spotify carry on normally and if you are watching a YouTube video it again seems to be fine. Any attempt to open a new site results in an err_connection_lost message or similar. It is the same with any browser and Outlook fails to fetch mail. Waiting does not solve the issue. The only thing that does is  performing cold reboot – usually twice.

I have replaced the hub twice – with a different model too. I suspected it might be the onboard network adaptor so fitted a new PCi network card and renewed the drivers – no change. I have changed the DNS settings, flushed the DNS cache in fact tried every solution suggested on various forums over several months – no change.

I have grown to live with it but it is very frustrating – BT of course were no help and said it must be my desktop (though they could be right) – they did send me a replacement hub.

I have worked in IT for over 30 years – this feels like the first time I am having to admit defeat – I suppose I should be grateful it is me having the issue and not one of customers!

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If you are running MalwareBytes, have you tried updating it to the latest version, or uninstalling it (temporarily)?

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If I had this issue, here are the steps I would follow to try to resolve it:

1. If I was connected via wifi, I would connect with an Ethernet cable. If my computer didn’t have an Ethernet adapter, I would purchase a USB Ethernet adapter. If that got me online, I would do a Windows update, and if it found a driver for the wifi adapter, I would install that one driver only, reboot, and try again with the onboard wifi. (That has always fixed this issue in the past.) Or, I would search the computer vendor’s website for a wifi driver; or the wifi adapter vendor’s website. Either of those drivers could fix it.

2. If the above didn’t fix things, and I was originally connecting via wifi, I would purchase a USB wifi adapter and try connecting that way. If it worked, then I would conclude that the problem was with the onboard wifi adapter.

3. If that didn’t fix things, and if I had a separate modem and router, I would plug my computer directly into the modem, bypassing the router, to see if that got me online. If it did, then the problem is with my router. Either needs to be configured, or a firmware upgrade, or simply replace the router.

4. If none of these fixed things, I would try connecting via my cellphone’s wifi hotspot. If that worked, then the problem is somewhere with my home internet service.

5. If none of that fixed it, I would try connecting with a different device – either another computer, my phone, etc. If I could connect with another device, then the problem is with my computer.

6. If none of that fixed it, I would boot my computer into Linux Live, to see if I could connect that way. If successful, then the problem is with Windows.

If none of that worked, I would leave the problem for a few days, then come back to it with a fresh perspective.

In other words, you eliminate one factor at a time, till you find out which one is the cause of the problem.

Group "L" (Linux Mint)
with Windows 10 running in a remote session on my file server

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WSleolyons wrote:

I have a similar problem with a Dell Studio XPS desktop running Windows 10 with a wired connection

That has to be a local machine issue as those aren’t lack of network errors. The issue occurs on connection initiation and is not software specific – happens in Outlook.

Have you tried turning off the Windows firewall to test?

Does your AV have extra internet security? Disable to test.

cheers, Paul

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All the typical recommendations, all good.  I’ve periodically noticed flaky internet behavior this year, likely due to greatly increased traffic from so many people spending much more time at home online.  Even cable TV shows glitch and freeze momentarily these days.

Networking issues for me have been mainly with wi-fi access, either wi-fi is found but can’t connect or wi-fi disappears completely.  Router reboots usually fix that; using ethernet until wi-fi reappears  can also do it.

Intermittent wi-fi connections, for me, have never been fixed by reboots, network resets, disabling AV, etc., only by changing router wi-fi setting, reinstalling firmware or replacing device adapters.  Be sure you’re not overly optimistic about how fast your wi-fi connection can be and remain stable. Drop it and see what happens, the highest 5GHz wi-fi speeds can be temperamental, more than needed even for 4K video and higher than your provided bandwidth in most cases.

I’ve had wi-fi adapters that just don’t work well no matter what I do.  Not related to price at all.  These days, they’re all cheap, haven’t really changed in a few years, so experiment.  We have 2 or 3 Intel 9260’s that work well and some cheapies from 2015 that work just as well but slower.

We’re all on Win 10 Pro, 1909 or 2004.

If completely disgusted, go to Linux; I’ve never ever had any problem with networking on Linux.  Windows networking seems to be a victim of MS’s layer cake approach to things.

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