DSL used to work with DI-524, now doesn't work

[mwingeier]

A client of mine is set up with a DSL modem and a DI-524 router, which is cabled to a main system and has two wireless clients. This setup was working for a couple of weeks, and now nothing works. To get any internet at all, the modem has to be directly plugged into the main system. I thought this to be a router problem (after swapping cables with no change), so I got a new router. No change in the behavior. I can see the routers from the system, but they will not see the internet. The DSL provider blames the router manufacturers, and they, in turn, blame the DSL provider. What confuses me is that this setup was running for a couple of weeks, and now everyone seems to tell me that it couldn't have worked, and refuse to do anything other than finger point. Any suggestions? Thank you.

(As a side note, the DSL provider had me change the modem mode to bridge/bridge, and being new to DSL, I don't know anything about that, but it didn't work either.)

 

[edfair]

The router may have lost the setup. They provide the login and password to the modem the same way the computer does when it is connected to the modem. Usual fix it to access the setup page and enter the correct information. Worst case is to reset factory defaults then change to what is needed.


Ed Fair
Give the wrong symptoms, get the wrong solutions.

 

[mwingeier]

The router was the first place I looked, and it was set up identically to when the setup worked. I did a hard reset of it via the reset button, pulling the power, and even ended up buying a new router for comparison. No change in the condition.

 

[edfair]

What kind of action are you getting with regards to IP address with the clients? DHCP should be setting the IP addresses from a range stored in the router.

Ed Fair
Give the wrong symptoms, get the wrong solutions.

 

[mwingeier]

I'm getting an IP from either router just fine. I can set up either router from their respective web pages. The router simply cannot acquire the DSL modem and establish the WAN link.

 

[G0AOZ]

When you had the modem plugged directly into the main system, was this using an ethernet connection or USB?

If the former, what IP Address did your main system get assigned? And is that within the same range as the router is accepting in on its WAN port? If it isn't, then adjust router accordingly.

ROGER - G0AOZ.

 

[mwingeier]

I don't recall the address on the main system when it was directly connected, and it would no doubt change from time to time as Verizon has the client set up as dynamic. I have never had a router programmed to accept a limited range of addresses on the wan port, and actually have never seen that option on a consumer grade router.
The part that is confusing me, though, is that this setup worked fine for several weeks, then all of a sudden, nothing. I know the configuration on our end didn't change, because I am the only one who would know how or what to change. Logically, that leaves somthing changing on the provider end, but nobody is talking.

 

[edfair]

The modems I have dealt with recently have provided DHCP. winipcfg came back with the modem assigned IP, then when the router was thrown into the mix, winipcfg came back with one of the addresses in the router assigned range.


Ed Fair
Give the wrong symptoms, get the wrong solutions.

 

[G0AOZ]

Assuming the DSL modem is a powered device, have you tried disconnecting it from the incoming cable and from your router, and then removing power from it for at least 2 minutes? Is there a reset button on it?

ROGER - G0AOZ.

 

[cdogg]

mwingeier,
You say that you have the router configured properly. Does this mean you have the PPPoE protocol selected and the user's ID and password information entered in the router's setup?

If so, the router should connect just fine afterwards, which you can see under the "Status" section in the router. Verify this first before assuming it's a hardware issue.

~cdogg
"Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." - Albert Einstein
[tab][navy]For general rules and guidelines to get better answers, click here:[/navy] faq219-2884

 

[mwingeier]

As stated earlier, I have removed power from the devices, and I have also used their respective reset switches. My router isn't set up for PPoE as it was not set up like that originally, and according to the Verizon rep, should not be.
Increasingly the problem seems to be pointing to the modem's configuration, and many people have suggested this behavior with this particular modem. It has even been suggested that I disable DHCP on the router and plug the modem into one of the LAN ports and let it provide DHCP services. I'll have to work on these suggestions next time I have access to this client which will be on Tuesday.

 

[cdogg]

mwingeier,

By default, most DSL modems come configured with NAT (Network Address Translation) enabled. NAT creates a network usually in the 192.168.x.x range using DHCP. That way, only the modem is exposed to the outside world and not your home network.

When you insert a router into your configuration, most users will disable the NAT on the modem placing it in bridge mode. Doing so requires you to setup PPPoE on the router with the DSL account username/password. The advantage here is that the router now has control over DHCP assigning addresses and so forth. Plus, there is a "keep alive" setting in the router that will reconnect the DSL session anytime it drops.

I recommend you go this route. Just make sure the modem is truly in bridge mode, and do the rest according to the router's manual.

~cdogg
"Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." - Albert Einstein
[tab][navy]For general rules and guidelines to get better answers, click here:[/navy] faq219-2884

 

[mwingeier]

Thanks for the tips, cdogg, but in my initial posting, I indicated that I had placed the modem into bride/bridge mode, and it had no effect on the problem.

 

[mwingeier]

Just as a note of closure, it turned out that the original D-Link blew its firmware. It appeared to be a particular combination of the DSL modem's settings and the firmware being toast that let me miss the initial diagnosis.