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My broadband isn't working!
One of the most common complaints about broadband installation is the famous flashing ADSL light. The picture below is typical.
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When the ADSL light is flashing, then the broadband signal is not being received or corrupted. One reason could be the lack of filters, or faulty filters.
First, make sure every telephone line into the house has a filter in it, this includes your Sky TV telephone connection (often overlooked), and any fax machines you may have. Make sure you have a dial tone on your telephone - BT may be experiencing problems and your line is down (unlikely, but possible). If your broadband has been working okay for a while, then the flashing ADSL light problem starts, consider unplugging the modem from the telephone line (remove the RJ11 cable from the back) wait for about 60 seconds, then plug it back in again. |
| Have you got a telephone extension cable somewhere in the system? Broadband can only be transmitted around the house to a maximum of 10m via a cable. Any longer and the signal will either deteriorate, or not work at all. If you have a longer cable, re-route the modem to avoid the extension.
Finally, consider removing the modem software from your computer and re-installing it. Click 'Start' - 'Control Panel' - 'Add/remove programs', locate the modem software, highlight it (single click), then click on 'Remove' You will be prompted with 'Are you sure...', click 'OK' and proceed. Re-start the computer with the modem's USB cable disconnected, then start all over again installing it. If none of the above works, then the problem is more serious and you may have to seek professional help. There is a possibility that the modem itself is faulty, but this is the last port of call for the ISP as they will be reluctant to send you a new one unless it can be proved the modem is positively faulty. |
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Error 691 - Access Denied...
Another favourite connection problem is Error 691 - Access denied because username / password is invalid on the domain. This means that you have not used the correct log-in details when you set up your broadband.
Your e.mail from the ISP will give you the username and password selected for you (or by you) to access the internet. It may not be the same as your usual e.mail address username and password, so check these settings first. The password and username are case sensitive, this means they must be typed in exactly as written.
An example would be for Virgin internet. Your e.mail address may be my.name@virgin.net, with your chosen password. Your broadband login name would be my.name@virgin.net.adsl, then your chosen password. See the difference? Re-read the e.mail or letter the ISP sent you with these details.
Error 678 - The computer you are dialling...
Less likely - and only in Windows XP - is the Error code 678 -The Computer You Are Dialing Into Is Not Answering. Here is how you fix this one. Restart your computer and wait until all applications have completely loaded.
Click on the Start Menu and then select Run. In the box which appears type the word command in order to open the command prompt and then click OK. In the black command prompt window, type netsh interface ip reset log.txt and hit 'Enter' on your keyboard. Then type exit into the command prompt and then hit Enter on your keyboard.
Finally, restart your computer and reconnect to the Internet.
Drivers
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If you re-start your computer, having installed the modem software, Windows may try to find the drivers for your modem, this is perfectly normal, especially with Windows XP. You may see a message on your screen like the one on the right.
Allow windows to search for the drivers on your computer, and install the automatically. There is no need to connect to the internet to do this. Once Windows has installed the drivers, you will not be asked to do this again unless you un-install the modem and re-install it. However, if you are being asked to re-install the drivers every time you switch on the computer, then there has been an installation problem. The drivers (the software that makes a bit of hardware communicate with Windows) are being damaged, corrupted or are missing from your system, and this will have to be looked into. You are unlikely to be able to fix this yourself, and professional help, or the ISP's help line can probably sort it out for you. |
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