Wireless Drops Across Adapters/OS/Routers?

Darren

Moderator
Staff member
I've used various USB wireless adapters over the past few years to get internet on my desktop here at home/parents. For the most part they work fine but I've pretty consistently had problems with my desktop over the past 2 years. I've been in and out of the house between here and college. Before I moved out I didn't have problems really and had a Netgear N150 adapter I'd been using with success for a year or so. Whenever I came back I started noticing it just flat dropping and it is still doing it.

My adapter worked fine on my laptop and the rest of the network was fine but my desktop would just randomly kick me to "no internet connection" and no visible connections. This would sometimes be several times in a day or even a month or more in between. I even tried an older Belkin adapter that I had and it acted identically (which it didn't do in the past). I bought a newer Linksys AE1200 last summer and it seemed okay for a while, dropped rarely. After I upgraded to Windows 10 at launch the Linksys adapter stopped working at first and is officially unsupported on 10. Since then it's using the Windows provided driver and not long after started dropping like the Netgear and Belkin did. Both the Netgear and Belkin are Windows 10 supported with an official driver I installed but no change. These drops range widely in frequency over all 3 adapters. I had a period where the Netgear was near constant dropping and then a few months later used it for at least a month or two with no problem. These adapters also work fine on my desktop on other networks.

I've done all the usual reset everything, reboot, reinstall drivers, etc and both adapter works fine in my laptop and other machines as far as I can tell. I did a clean install of Windows 10 and even had tried a clean 7 install before when I was on that. I've also had different motherboards even. Earlier this year our crappy Uverse router was upgraded to a much better one that gives stronger and more consistent signal but the dropping problem remains across the Netgear and Linksys adapters.

What is the strangest part is whenever it happens I can almost always just rip the USB adapter out, immediately replug it, and it connects instantly. I've even swapped the Netgear and Linksys back to back instantly and it still worked. Sometimes a replug doesn't work but it usually will. My brothers desktop doesn't have this problem (even has the same Netgear adapter).

TL;DR
My desktop for whatever reason across 3 adapters, 2+ OS installs, and 2 routers kicks me at random intervals.

I think I need to just buy a good integrated wireless card. Or just drill down a floor. :D For some brilliant reason ATT put the router in a storage room in the basement.

My brother, who's been living here for the past year said he's had no real problems with the new router since February but when I moved back it's started locking up the whole network at times in addition to the usual random kicks for me at times.
 

Darren

Moderator
Staff member
Are you sure your usb adapter is not overheating?
....That... actually is a really really good point. Didn't remotely consider that. The Netgear one I know got noticeably warm and even came with a USB cradle to get it up and away from the computer... That I stopped using.... probably around the time I started getting issues. Using the Linksys now and it's warm to the touch too.

I bet you're right. I have USB plugs on the top of my computer facing up and both the plastic of the case and adapter are warm. When I had it in the back it was warm back there too from being jammed in with all my other USB cables. I feel really stupid for not thinking of this. Also totally correlated with me being home in the summer.
 

Intel_man

VIP Member
I had overheating issues with a wireless n usb adapter a while back when I totally forgot that I relocated my pc and the dongle was in direct sunlight exposure. Took about 30 minutes before my internet cut off and I just let it cool off and put it in a different slot which wasn't in direct sunlight exposure. It also doesn't help you're running an AMD heater. :p


PCI-E wireless adapters are the way to go though.
 

Darren

Moderator
Staff member
It also doesn't help you're running an AMD heater. :p
PCI-E wireless adapters are the way to go though.

I was waiting for that. I almost said it myself. :D You're not wrong though, small bedroom with an overclocked 8320 and 390, and with 3 monitors. It gets hot as hell in here when I'm playing games.

This actually makes perfect sense in every way. I'd have times when it would just repeatedly disconnect and handling it so much only kept it warm. I remember having very few problems over winter break. Switching them worked because the other one wasn't hot, and my brother even has a similar issue, but not nearly as much. He has the same Netgear adapter and doesn't use the cradle either. Amazingly I just found mine, so I'll be using that now. If I have more problems I'll probably spring for a PCI-E card but honestly when the USB adapater work they work just as well as a wired connection would for me. Only get 12-14mbps down anyway.
 

Intel_man

VIP Member
Hehe... I hear ya.

I have a NAS... so a wired connection would be best for me. But... the router's far away from me. I use powerline right now, but am considering switching to a tri-band AC router to keep myself in the less used channels and let the rest of my family get on the regular band.
 

Darren

Moderator
Staff member
I don't even think our new UVerse router even has dual band. I couldn't find it anywhere in the settings so I doubt it. Our first Uverse router was garbage for as long as we had it and only got worse as my family got more and more devices. The new one from my experience with it so far is actually pretty good. I get good to full signal throughout the house on my phone and pickup a bar or two in the street out front. Speed wise we get 14-15mbps pretty consistenly, which sucks but our package is 12mbps so meh I guess.

Hopefully this sorts the issues I've been having. Thanks for the idea.
 

Intel_man

VIP Member
Damn... 12 mbps down. That's... savage. Here I am... with 30mbps down and I'm complaining and wanting to move up to the next offering which is in the 60mbps down range.

#Firstworldproblems
 

Darren

Moderator
Staff member
We were at 6mbps when we first got Uverse 3-4 years ago. And that was an upgrade from our 3mbps DSL prior. The 12mbps package is I think $50 a month or so. Our internet options in this city are disgusting.
 

beers

Moderator
Staff member
Our internet options in this city are disgusting
No doubt, you aren't too near any major backbone so most options are going to suck. With att repping gigabit in the KC area you might see some small upgrades bleed out towards you though.

Prior to Google fiber KC doesn't have the best WAN connectivity (and still doesn't really) a huge amount of the bandwidth goes along the south side through la <> Dallas <> Atlanta.

When I had time Warner, in order to get to Canada all of the traffic had to go down to Dallas first and back out lol
 

Intel_man

VIP Member
We were at 6mbps when we first got Uverse 3-4 years ago. And that was an upgrade from our 3mbps DSL prior. The 12mbps package is I think $50 a month or so. Our internet options in this city are disgusting.
Ouch... I'm paying around $70 CAD for my plan right now. 30 down 5 up. The 60 down 6 up plan is around $90 CAD a month.
 
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