Desperate novice needs professional help (maybe very simple question?)

[Guest_imported]

I'm in a bit of trouble.
I have four imacs and one pc connected to an ethernet hub which in turn is connected to a router.
The router shows all the right signs and all the appropriate lights are flashing...

The system has been set up like this for a long time and has not been altered and has worked fine for over a year.
The problem is that when any of the computers try to get online.... they USUALLY cannot... for ten to fifteen minutes each day the computers can acces the internet??? but cannot do it regularly... there is no set time when they can its total luck?

I am not a networking specialist in any sense of the imagination but i sense that there is nothing wrong with the network.... also i know there is nothing wrong at the isp end?

Can anyone advise me what my problem might be and how i might fix it??
I'm really desperate
Thanks
Alex

 

[salserocito]

This Router that you speak of, is it your Internet Gateway? Was it furnished by your ISP?

When the Users attempt to get to the Internet, then can't, what errors are they getting? Have you tried any ping tests from any of the systems out to the Internet? Can each of the systems Ping eachother?

Sorry for so many questions, but there are so many variables.

Please advise.

 

[juggy]

Strange one ISPs are very quick to pass you off at times if you cant furnish them with all the answers.. Your network is very small so you should not have much of a problem diagnosing this one.. Heres where I would start.

Is there a file sharing mechanism in place ie someone puts some files on a pc and you all access it? If so when the internet goes down for 15 mins check that local (all traffic contained to the hub) is working still and that speeds are no different etc. If you know ping then use it go to a dos prompt and just type ping and the IP address after. If this all works fine and the TTL is still roughly the same as when the internet is up then you know that the problem is not local to your network. The next thing to do is to determine ownership of router.. If its yours and you are not a techi then you may have to call someone in who can help. If it belongs to the ISP advise them that the duration of downtime is 15-20 minutes and there is no set time for this. You have tested your local area network and all is fine the next probable step is your router. If you know its IP address try pinging it while the internet is down. If it fails put in a call to get it replaced. If you can ping the router (most likely the address you use for your default gateway as you are a small setup) If you can ping this try pinging a web site ie microsoft.com if this fails then find out your dns address on the pc winipcfg or command line ipconfig /all and ping this. Log what you do. Where you find failures etc. If you can ping your router but nothing else you more than likely have a line problem. Check this out.. Did the ISP arrange it is it ISDN and its on demand dial modem etc? Either way ensure that the line is available. With this amount of information to hand you should be able to beat your way through the help desks and get some real help. If you really are in trouble and are not getting anywhere fast I would suggest a mini project to look at getting a company to provide you with a more supportable option to connect to the internet IE DSL where if its ISDN you could show savings and speed increases to the boss for the initial wack. Im sure that there are lots of companies that would come out and install you a dsl line and help you get started.