AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort
Links: home · search · speed test · login · more ·

 
Links: Reply New Topic
Forums » AT&T » AT&T Southeast » AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort
page: 1 · 2 · 3
Zinlu @ 20th Jun 04:52AM:
AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

This is my final attempt to find out what is going on with my connection before calling to cancel DSL and get cable internet and phone. My frustration levels are beginning to overshadow my dislike of cable internet.

If you want to get to the hard technical details, and skip the sob story, go to the next double line space.
The Westell 6100 Years
We've been with Fastaccess since we moved in this house in Dec 2004. We started with the 3.0 then 3 or 4 months after we moved in, we upgraded to 6.0. We had the occasional burp, but generally it was great service, good speeds, hardly ever any disconnects, unless the power went out.
We had to discontinue it in October of 2007 (finances), and it was off until Jun 2008, when we signed back up for the 3.0 service(keeping our hardware from when we had the service before).
In July 2008 we had a lightning strike in the yard next door that blew out a power transformer and our (years old) D-link switch and port 1 on our (not quite so many years old) D-link router where the switch was plugged in(we think, because when the power came back on the switch and port were inoperative). After that we would get the occasional PADT error(dropping us from the internet), figured "must be the bad router". The PADTs got more and more frequent, so we found another D-Link router (same model, I am resistant to change) on Ebay. The PADTs continued with the new router, but not any more frequent.
In February of this year we upgraded again to 6.0. I think it was around April that the PADTs started getting more and more frequent. By the time May's end rolled around they had gotten frequent enough for us to think we should get a new modem, as I had already tried 3 different Linksys routers (WRT54Gs v 2.0 w/ DD-WRT and v. 6 with Linksys firmware, and a BEFSR41 I think it is). All this time we have had the Westell 6100 modem from the original install and it has kept soldiering on.
The Uncertain Times
We ordered and recieved a D-Link (yes, I am brand loyal) DSL-2640B Gateway (modem/router all rolled up into one sleek package). Received on June 2, 2009 we hooked it up and I let the auto config wizard do its thing. Pow bang right online no problems! Until a few hours later, when the internet connection started dropping again. Thinking that it may be the autoconfig wizard doing something not quite right(I have an innate distrust of these things), I reconnected the old Westell and Linksys WRt54g v. 2.0 (DD-WRT is now a staple in our networking).
AT&T as a Stress Reducer
By this time the frustrations were beginning to take their toll. We called to see about getting the lines and stuff checked at the house.
June 9th, they sent a tech out, he rebuilt our NID, putting in an ITT Systems splitter, and I ran a new homerun to a dual jack. He also had one of the bucket trucks come out and cut a "dead pair" out of the box on the line at the pole. He also checked something or other up there with his handy dandy handheld thingamajig. The tech and the wireman were very professional, courteous and had no problems answering my dumb questions. Kudos to you two, you know who you are.
They are the only two reasons we didn't call and cancel that day. The tech told us that if what they had done didn't fix the problem, we would probably have to downgrade to get stable service. It didn't fix it, and on June 11 we downgraded back to 3.0. Still didn't fix it.
We decided the next day to call AT&T customer service to order a new Bellsouth-approved modem, figuring that would eliminate any modem-caused issues. Wow what a clusterdoodle they have going on there. After calling late at night (what a mistake!), we decided to wait until morn.
June 13 we called in the morning to order a modem (and try to get a rebate). The nice english-speaking lady in billing fixed us up, overnighting the 2701HG-B (at no charge) so it would have a monday arrival.
Monday the 15th came, and went, and no modem. The wife called and they had shipped the modem to the address that previously had the number we have now. SO they overnighted another (at no charge, again) modem.
The 17th arrived, and in the early morning so did our modem. (finally!) We opened the box and , "WHOA! That's not the gateway, that's a Motorola 2210!"
That poor lady that ended up getting my call, I sure hope she had great customers the rest of the day because I was a complete and utter ass. I hadn't had my morning caffeine or nicotine, and was *extremely* aggravated. Not many people have seen me like that, as I don't often let things get to me that much, but I had, plain and simple, Had Enough. She never broke her stride, asked me all the right questions, said all the right things, and made sure the modem was going to the correct address and that it was the correct modem and sent me shipping labels to send the motorola back.
The new gateway arrived today, I got home from work at 10:30pm, and hooked it up. I like it, BUT not 5 minutes after we set it up, powie, disconnected. Here I sit, 6 hours later, no shower yet, no dinner yet, still with an internet connection that disconnects randomly, irregardless of time of day (or night) or heavy network traffic or no network traffic. I have spent this 6 hours trying different phone lines (even though we have replaced every cable, wire, filter and jack multiple times in the last 3 months). I have also gathere together what stats I could from the inside jack I installed, and from the NID outside. I sincerely hope this is enough information, as I have gone from an angry frustrated mood in the last couple days to one of calm acceptance.
I accept that I may not be able to get a stable 3.0 or faster connection from Bellsouth, AT&T, whatever they are calling it these days. I also Accept that Cable may be be so bad after all, since I have a few friends that have had minimal to no problems with it over the last few years.
The local cable provider here seems to have some pretty good ratings as well, some higher than AT&T. As much as I would like to stay with AT&T (and DSL, as I said, I am brand loyal) I have had enough hassle and shenanigans, that if something doesn't change in the near future, I will be calling the Cable company to setup an appointment for internet and phone service.

And NOW for the Technical Bits!
Inside Data Jack Stats
MTU is 1492

DSL Line (Wire Pair): Line 1 (inner pair)
Protocol: G.DMT Annex A
Downstream Rate: 3552 kbps
Upstream Rate: 384 kbps
Channel: Fast
Current Noise Margin: 31.0 dB (Downstream) 16.0 dB (Upstream)
Current Attenuation: 28.6 dB (Downstream) 20.0 dB (Upstream)
Current Output Power: 19.7 dBm (Downstream) 1.6 dBm (Upstream)
DSLAM Vendor Information: Country: {0x0F} Vendor: {ALCB} Specific: {0x00}
PVC Info: 8/35

Outside Test Jack Stats
MTU is 1492

DSL Line (Wire Pair): Line 1 (inner pair)
Protocol: G.DMT Annex A
Downstream Rate: 3552 kbps
Upstream Rate: 384 kbps
Channel: Fast
Current Noise Margin: 31.0 dB (Downstream) 16.0 dB (Upstream)
Current Attenuation: 28.4 dB (Downstream) 20.0 dB (Upstream)
Current Output Power: 19.7 dBm (Downstream) 1.2 dBm (Upstream)
DSLAM Vendor Information: Country: {0x0F} Vendor: {ALCB} Specific: {0x00}
PVC Info: 8/35

Line stats taken with 2-Wire 2701HG-B Gateway, sorry, I don't feel like changing anything else out and taking line stats. I have had enough of changing equipment and cables and power bricks.

Does NOT lose DSL Sync(light stays steady on every configuration), just internet connection(light blinks, turns red whatever it does with whatever equipment was hooked up at the time). Connection loss seems totally random, any time of day, night, heavy traffic, light/no trafffic. Usually in groupings, disconnect, reconnect disconnect with a minute or so in between, for times ranging from 3 minutes to 45 minutes.

PADT Tag (and disconnects)with Westell 6100 modem, by itself, and running in bridged mode (and DHCP off) with the following routers: D-Link DI-604, various Linksys WRT54G versions, some with DD-WRT and some with Linksys firmware.

PADT Tag (and disconnects) with Motorola 2210, by itself and running in bridged mode (DHCP off) with all of the above routers.

Disconnects (can't find PADT tag notations in any of the logs, can barely make sense of the logs at all) with D-Link 2640B and 2-wire 2701HG-B gateways.

Dumb questions

Why does the noise Down/Up vary to such a degree?

Why so much Output power downstream? Is that my modem putting out that much power or the DSLAM?
I read that 15 is recommended maximum.

Thank you. I sure feel better now to have told it.

Zinlu
Steve
reply
shivetya @ 20th Jun 09:11AM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

Can't help ya, but I am in Dallas Georgia and been having a similar problem with AT&T for the last month. 2+ years of flawless 6.0 service and it now is toast.

I disconnect a lot. Funny thing is, the first time I log into WOW for the day I get immediately punted by the dsl line!

They have replaced cards in the box outside my house, checked the wiring in my house and at the box on my house.

However I first lose the internet light and then I lose the DSL when it tries a few time to get pppoe back up
reply
Zinlu @ 20th Jun 09:22AM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

Glad to hear I am not the only one. Thanks!
I forgot to mention that twice this week there have been "Network outages in the area due to repairs", if the computer on the phone is to be believed. It stays stable for a bit afterwards, (up to 6 hrs) then starts the dropping again.
Since I posted it's dropped twice, once at 07:30 and again at 07:46. That's the ones that I know of, my "disconnect monitor" wouldn't connect back after that and was still disconnected when I got home from work a few minutes ago.
Also, the Tech that came to the house told us it was 6200 feet worth of wire from here to our CO, since the line runs down the other side of the street about a 1/8 mile past us then back up on our side.
reply
twill1989 @ 20th Jun 12:44PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

Same problem here in SC. Been randomly losing DSL sync for the past 3 months. AT&T claim there is no problem.
reply
wayjac @ 20th Jun 02:06PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

Are the PADT's rx or tx
If they are rx its the PPPoE sever ending the session
If they are tx its the PPPoE client ending the session
reply
Zinlu @ 20th Jun 02:31PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

On the D-Link 604's and the Westell modem by itself I believe all the PADT's were RX (recieved), other than those two, I am not sure enough to try to specify.
reply
wayjac @ 20th Jun 03:29PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

If all your problems are caused by bellsouth ending the PPPoE sessions.
Cancel the DSL and get cable you won't have the PPPoE session problems with cable
reply
rovernet @ 20th Jun 04:03PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

Yeah, it's impossible to diagnose your trouble with just a partial logs from the modem.
Look and post the PPPOE Concentrator info and the modem's MAC address or you can stop by ATT Direct and post all the necessary info to look up your line:
»/forum/sbcdirect

I know how tedious talking with a script-reading rep can get but let them walk you through their steps, they could diagnose the trouble and direct it to the appropriate groups to arrive at the fix for your trouble.
reply
Zinlu @ 20th Jun 05:30PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

The current modem's information from the System... Details screen is
Model: 2701HG-B Gateway
Serial Number: 160919072232
Hardware Version: 2700-100594-004
Software Version: 5.29.109.11
Key Code: 525Z-25Z4-6266-22AS-B2DC

From the Broadband Link...Summary Screen
Connection Information:
• Internet Address: 98.67.59.82
• Hardware Address: 00:25:3c:1e:83:f8
• Key Code: 525Z-25Z4-6266-22AS-B2DC

I hope that's the mac address for this modem. If need be I can get you the MAC addresses for 2 of the other modems we have used. We returned the DSL-2640B today for a refund.

As far as concentrator info, I have no idea, I will see if I can find that.

It's not so much the tedium of walking through it, it's the fact that we have done it SO much in the last month and it has done nothing to improve the connection. I don't know if it's AT&T sending padt tags and kicking us off or the modems misinterpreting something and classifying it as a padt tag. I just want a stable connection.
reply
Pashune @ 20th Jun 06:03PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

From the FAQ:

A PADT (PPPoE Active Discovery Terminate) signal is sent to terminate a PPPoE session. It is the proper way to terminate a session but is not the actual cause for the termination. The cause may be a simple timeout, a manual request by either end, or an out of spec line condition.

A PADT every month or so shouldn't be a cause for concern, but as frequently as you're getting them, it makes me think there's a line problem going on somewhere. This makes me think there's an issue with your line pair or DSLAM card. There can also be enough line noise to cause a PADT to occur but not enough noise to make your modem lose sync.

Here's something else you could try. I've had luck with this method in the past.

»Ameritech - SBC FAQ »My DSL loses sync regularly. How can I detect interference with an AM Radio?
--
ISP: CableOne 3 mbit/300 kbit

reply
wayjac @ 20th Jun 06:46PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

This is the mac address of your 2wire
Hardware Address: 00:25:3c:1e:83:f8

This url should get a page that has your access concentrator name
192.168.1.254/xslt?PAGE=J02

If its not there try this url
192.168.1.254/xslt?PAGE=J34
Look for a line like this
lmd: up with service: (default), ac: WPBHFLGA61W-8Y014070500526 on bridge1
reply
Zinlu @ 20th Jun 08:49PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

Ah ha! Thanks Wayjac! I keep forgetting about the MDC pages in this gateway.

Connection Type: PPPoE
User Name: ssgibson1@bellsouth.net
PPPoE Access Concentrator: MACNGAMT62W-8Y224150703135
PPPoE Service: (default)
IP Address Range: 98.80.129.78
Subnet Mask: 255.255.255.255
Gateway: 98.80.129.1
Primary DNS: 205.152.37.23
Secondary DNS: 205.152.144.23

Thank you also, Pashune, I will see if I can dig up my old battery operated radio.

Just in case any of the other details are useful.
reply
wayjac @ 20th Jun 08:57PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

rovernet is a att direct tech I would give any info asked for it may lead to a solution

It may be useful to post the 2wire detailed log the url is in my last post
reply
Zinlu @ 20th Jun 09:07PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

Entire Log Incoming:


reply
upb @ 21st Jun 11:04AM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

Looks very much like a problem I had here until AT&T fixed some equipment upstream of the DSLAM. The DSL signal was always strong but the connection to the PPPoE peer would be periodically lost.

BTW, I wonder why your router's http daemon is listening on port 50,001? That would tend to make me nervous. :)
reply
Airwolf7 @ 22nd Jun 12:12PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

said by upb :

BTW, I wonder why your router's http daemon is listening on port 50,001? That would tend to make me nervous. :)
Is it not common for a 2Wire Gateway to be listening on port 50001? I believe that port is used for remote management by 2Wire or the ISP.
reply
upb @ 22nd Jun 01:47PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

said by Airwolf7 :

Is it not common for a 2Wire Gateway to be listening on port 50001? I believe that port is used for remote management by 2Wire or the ISP.
Maybe it is on that model, but I never encountered it with the 2Wire units I've owned (1000SW, 1800HG). I just read somewhere else that the management port can be disabled via the setup menus, so I guess it's kind of moot after all.
reply
wayjac @ 22nd Jun 02:35PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

All the 2wires listen to ports 50001, 443 and 80
reply
upb @ 23rd Jun 08:47AM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

said by wayjac :

All the 2wires listen to ports 50001, 443 and 80
As far as I know, the WAN tcp port 80 and 443 listening only happened if you had the remote access package installed and activated. Remote nmap and grc.com scans of my own routers never revealed any other ports opened, and I did take the time to scan through all possible tcp ports. These comments of course only apply to the two routers I owned (now both shelved), the 1000SW and the 1800HG.
reply
ljedmondson @ 23rd Jun 02:33PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

I am having the same problems here in brentwood, tn. It appears to have started when ATT rolled out its uverse products.
reply
Zinlu @ 23rd Jun 03:25PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

Sorry to hear that lj. Hopefully we can get it straightened out here, and you can use the information to get yours back stable. The silly thing has been pretty stable since Sunday though. How typical, just like taking your misbehaving car to the mechanic and it acts fine once he is in the car. :hmm:
reply
NetFixer @ 23rd Jun 07:34PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

said by Zinlu :

The silly thing has been pretty stable since Sunday though. How typical, just like taking your misbehaving car to the mechanic and it acts fine once he is in the car. :hmm:
»[Line Problem] Motorola/Netopia modems have ESP :)
--
A well-regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.
»portscan.dcs-net.net
»nature-pics.com

reply
shivetya @ 24th Jun 04:44PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

Amazing... mine was stable Sunday but is back to being naughty Monday
reply
Zinlu @ 29th Jun 05:49AM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

*Update*

Connection has been pretty stable since the 21st. Only drops that I know of have been due to power outages.
Will see how the next month shapes up.
reply
JcT21 @ 4th Jul 12:08PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

ive had rock solid dsl 6.0 service here in pikeville, ky. for over a year now. over the last 2 months ive had nothing but frequent disconnects. several repair techs came out over the last few weeks and replaced just about everything they could. changed out cards at the dslam and even replaced all the phone jacks. im now on my 3rd 2wire modem. line tested perfect as far as noise was concerned but i still keep getting disconnects. yesterday i downgraded to 3.0 service to see if it helps. so far so good. its so frustrating that my 6.0 is now unusable after being rock solid for so long. very strange.
reply
Zinlu @ 6th Jul 11:14PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

Today it goes back to acting wonky. Wife says she first noticed it around 4 this afternoon, and has been dropped 5 or 6 times since. About every hour or so, give or take 15-20 minutes.

It started raining last night and rained most of the night, but we've had rain since the 21st and it made no difference, so I dunno if that's what's going on or not.

My stupid syslog daemon was on the fritz and hadn't recorded any logs until I restarted it an hour ago when I got home from work. If it drops again hopefully I can catch it in the log.

**edit** 7-7-09
And here we go again, starts raining, connection drops. same pattern as before, dropping at 8:19, then again 8:23 then 8:29 then ok for about an hour then multiple drops again. Going to hook the 2701 (yuck) back up so I can get logs. Losing DSL sync this time, not just internet.
reply
Zinlu @ 14th Jul 01:44PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

**UPDATE** 7-14-09

Static on the telephone, so called 611 last week, they said test results were perfect, but I insisted until they agreed to send a tech out.

He just left 5 minutes ago, turned out there was a huge hole in the insulation on the wire from the pole to the house. The wires were broken at that pot as well, and barely touching. Judging from the amount of corrosion on the outside of the insulation it has been that way a while.

David called the bucket truck out and they replaced that line. Will update with results a few more times, but I believe that's been the problem the whole time.
reply
Airwolf7 @ 14th Jul 04:04PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

These DSL statistics are great.

DSL Line (Wire Pair): Line 1 (inner pair)
Protocol: G.DMT Annex A
Downstream Rate: 3552 kbps
Upstream Rate: 384 kbps
Channel: Fast
Current Noise Margin: 31.0 dB (Downstream) 16.0 dB (Upstream)
Current Attenuation: 28.6 dB (Downstream) 20.0 dB (Upstream)
Current Output Power: 19.7 dBm (Downstream) 1.6 dBm (Upstream)
DSLAM Vendor Information: Country: {0x0F} Vendor: {ALCB} Specific: {0x00}
PVC Info: 8/35

The broken and corroded drop was probably causing intermittent troubles resulting in a massive decrease in the SNR margin.

Now that the problem has been found and corrected you should be able to upgrade back to Xtreme 6.0 service without any troubles.

Most likely getting the drop replaced has fixed your problems.
reply
Airwolf7 @ 14th Jul 04:14PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

It's amazing how everyone is always having the same problems as a person that starts the thread. In the real world this is very seldom the case.

I wonder how many of the people with the same problem as you have a drop that is broken with green corrosion growing on it?
reply
NormanS @ 14th Jul 05:15PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

said by Airwolf7 :

It's amazing how everyone is always having the same problems as a person that starts the thread.
Especially when they are a couple of hundred miles apart. I love it when somebody in AT&T West posts a problem, then somebody in AT&T Northeast responds with, "I am having the exact same problem!"

Or an S.F. Bay Area Comcast user posts a problem, then a Chesapeake Bay Area Comcast user responds with, "I am having the exact same problem!"
--
Norman
~Oh Lord, why have you come
~To Konnyu, with the Lion and the Drum

reply
Zinlu @ 14th Jul 05:52PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

Thanks, Airwolf. Like I have said, our service for the first 3 years ( 6.0 ) was rock solid. Can't wait to get back to it, will give it a week or two to make sure.

I just hope I can get the noise profile off without much problem. Asked the tech about it today and he said it would be better to leave it on. We'll see what happens.
reply
wayjac @ 14th Jul 06:02PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

Did your dialog in the att direct forum help resolve the issue?
reply
Airwolf7 @ 14th Jul 06:34PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

said by Zinlu :

Thanks, Airwolf. Like I have said, our service for the first 3 years ( 6.0 ) was rock solid. Can't wait to get back to it, will give it a week or two to make sure.
Waiting awhile to make sure things are OK sounds like a good idea.

said by Zinlu :

I just hope I can get the noise profile off without much problem. Asked the tech about it today and he said it would be better to leave it on. We'll see what happens.
There is an automatic system that puts lines on a Noise Profile when there is trouble and it will also take the line off a Noise Profile when the problem has been corrected. I have fixed many inside wiring issues for people and the Noise Profile will go away after a few days. I can't remember ever having to call in to get the Noise Profile removed.

I guess it is possible that the automatic system might get stuck, but it has always worked fine for me
reply
Zinlu @ 14th Jul 07:14PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

Ah ok glad to hear that, thanks Airwolf.
reply
Tombstone79 @ 16th Jul 04:14PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

I am in North Alabama and have similar problem with connection going out randomly. Only goes out for maybe 1 minute. So do I need to call ATT and ask them to send a tech guy out? I guess they charge me for that? Do i try a new cable modem 1st? I have had my current modem for 5+ years.
Thanks
reply
NetFixer @ 16th Jul 05:35PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

said by Tombstone79 :

I am in North Alabama and have similar problem with connection going out randomly. Only goes out for maybe 1 minute. So do I need to call ATT and ask them to send a tech guy out? I guess they charge me for that? Do i try a new cable modem 1st? I have had my current modem for 5+ years.
Thanks
Do you have internet service with your local cable TV franchise or with AT&T? That would determine who you need to call for service.
--
A well-regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.
»portscan.dcs-net.net
»nature-pics.com

reply
Tombstone79 @ 16th Jul 05:42PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

with ATT
reply
anon @ 16th Jul 07:17PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

I am having this exact same problem, except with the DSL sync light as well going off all the time. I've had DSL from Bellsouth/AT&T now for about 6 or 7 years(3.0 till about a year ago when I upgraded to 6.0) at this same home. Over the past couple of months it's gone from never dropping unless I disconnected manually to dropping every 5 to 10 minutes. Completely random. I'm also reconnecting at a 3.0 profile the majority of the time and have to reset the modem several times to get the 6.0 profile to kick in.

The past 2 days I've had 2 technicians from AT&T DSL come out here and check the wiring inside my home and they both didn't find a problem. I went from an old Westell 2200 modem to the new 2wire they just installed yesterday. The technician from today said that tomorrow an AT&T Line Technician with the Van will be coming to check the outside lines and most likely replace the box.

Is there anything specific that you guys recommend I should tell him to try to get to the root of the problem? Random disconnects are by far the most infuriating thing I have experienced, especially when the service was absolutely spectacular just several months ago.

Any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks
reply
Zinlu @ 16th Jul 08:54PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

said by wayjac :

Did your dialog in the att direct forum help resolve the issue?
Aye, it did, David found some trouble that got taken care of, then we had the 2 weeks of good service until the drops started again with DSL Sync loss this time. All better now though with the new drop.

It's even raining now with no interruption of service.
reply
Zinlu @ 24th Jul 04:10AM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

** 7-24-09 ** Just a final update to confirm resolution of our connection problems. Not a single internet drop since the day the wire to the pole was replaced. Thanks to everyone that helped.
reply
gc444 @ 27th Jul 09:21PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

Well I am glad this has resolved your problem. I will have my second truck roll this Sunday for the identical problem. I have had 15 disconnects since Friday when they came out and changed the port my number was on at the CO and reprovisioned my line. I have DSL 3.0 and it will sync up at speeds as low as 864 when it starts acting up and then magically it will go away for several hours. The tech that came out last time was very nice and was familiar with DSLReports.com so I will reference this thread to see if this helps the process. So far I have tried two modems, a new outdoor filter, and a new homerun before I even called them out the first time. My service has been fantastic for years and now Uverse shows up and this happens. They will not give me the same price I pay for DSL on Uverse so I refuse to switch for now.
reply
Shootist @ 30th Jul 08:46PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

Not sure if it's related but for the last 3 to 5+ months the company I work for has been losing DSL sync multiple times a day. It seems to have started right around the time they install 2 brand new boxes across the street from the business and from what one of techs told me these new boxes are for the UVerse service.
In the last 2 weeks it has become more frequent and we have had multiple techs out to fix it with no success.
New modems, new line from outside the business to the modem location, new card (or so I amd told) and still multiple drops all day long.
--
Shooter Ready--Stand By BEEP ********

reply
anon @ 9th Aug 08:07PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

I've had this issue since I've got service, basically it only drops internet for about 30 seconds at a time but it's enough to boot me out of a game or interrupt a stream, etc.

It also does this all the time, normally in flurries. At least 15-20 times during the course of the day.

I've had 3 service techs here in the past month and none have been able to pinpoint a problem, replaced the modem, did something with the modem jack.

It's also extremely frustrating because another tech when I originally got the service replaced my ATT modem I just bought from Walmart with a 2wire router/modem and somehow without me agreeing signed me to a 2 year contract.
reply
todbnla @ 16th Aug 09:58PM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

I searching DSL reports to find out why my dsl is dropping so yeah, me too, this crap just started like a few weeks ago.
--
Regards,
Todd

reply
anon @ 17th Aug 07:28AM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

I can feel for you. We had bellsouth and had good 6.0 dsl. AT&T took over and the best we can get is 3.0. Changed modems and still didn't help. It either drops or slows way down until I get on the phone and do my thing with the teck people. As I write this my 3M's is down to 2.6 kbs. They have my connection on a 48 hour watch to see if they can find out what is going on. I know AT&T is starting to roll out their new TV service here so that may be a lot of the problem. Carl in Memphis,Tn. 8/17/2009
reply
kcir60 @ 17th Aug 10:21AM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

I started having sync loss problems about a week and a half ago. Started checking from the inside out and the problem turned out to be the splitter in the nid. We have had fierce thunderstorms with lots of lightning this summer. This is probably the third time I have had to replace the splitter. This is just one thing that will cause sync loss. I am down to one spare splitter, hope the one I just installed will last the rest of the summer!
reply
NormanS @ 17th Aug 11:17AM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

said by Cnorcy :

I know AT&T is starting to roll out their new TV service here so that may be a lot of the problem.
Odd, since that doesn't seem to affect DSL service in the old SBC footprint.
--
Norman
~Oh Lord, why have you come
~To Konnyu, with the Lion and the Drum

reply
kcir60 @ 18th Aug 09:16AM:
Re: AT&T Southeast dropping Internet randomly; Last Ditch Effort

You may be absolutely correct. Sync problems returned with a vengance. A tech is supposed to show up between eight and noon today. Probably will be a now show or he will drive by the house and close the trouble to a no access. This is going to be a long drawn out process with the techs finding no problem. Most of the younger techs don't have a clue. Not their fault. They are thrown out in the field with little or no training. If someone shows up, I have printed the logs off the modem showing all the disconnects. I borrowed a sunset test set and all the readings are acceptable. Wrote the results down and will give them to the tech if he or she shows up.

Post Script

Tech that showed up yesterday was a contract employee but he knew what he was doing. After looking at the logs I saved for him and the stats I got from a borrowed sunset we both came to the same conclusion. My old Westell 327 was finally taking a crap. Replaced it with my backup Netopia 3347 and all seems to be well. Sync problems went away and download and upload speeds increased as well. Tech support is downright bizarre. I don't use them unless it is an absolute last resort!!

Back to the drawing board. Problem is not with modem. Loss of sync is back haunting me for the third week. So far I haven't seen a real AT&T employee. I talked to numerous people in the Phillipines etc. They sent the same contract employee back for the second visit (duh). Don't know what you have to do to get it fixed. Now I know how Comcast subscribers feel. Internet has become almost useless. Can't download anything of size without a sync loss. Yesterday it took five attempts to download my email. This is life in the big city at its best!!!!
reply

Thank you for using lo-fi dslreports.com - report bugs
© 99-2009 silver matrix LLC