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SBG6580-2: Troubleshooting Intermittent Wired Connections

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Question
How do I troubleshoot Intermittent Internet Connectivity when connected with an Ethernet cable on my SBG6580-2 gateway?
Answer
Intermittent connectivity is when the Internet connection is disconnected at random intervals.  This document provides troubleshooting steps when the wired client is experiencing intermittent connectivity issues.

Power Cycle Devices

The first thing that should be done in any troubleshooting is to power cycle the effected devices.  Unplug the SBG6580-2 from the power, wait 10 seconds, then plug back into power.  Once the SBG6580-2 is full on and the top four LED lights are solid, power cycle all effected client devices.  If this does not resolve the issue, proceed to the section Check the Cable Connection.

Check the Coax Cable Connection

If power cycling devices does not resolve the issue, the next step in troubleshooting intermittent connectivity is to troubleshoot the modem's connection to the Cable service provider.
  1. Check if all devices disconnect at the same time.  If different devices disconnect at different times,  skip to section Troubleshooting the client device's connection to the Gateway. 

    NOTE: If only one device is experiencing issues, and other client devices do not experience connectivity issues, then the problem may lie with the one client device.  In this case, contact the client device manufacturer for support in troubleshooting.
     
  2. Check the LED status of the SBG6580-2 when the Internet connection is dropped.  If the LED light status does not change, skip to the section Troubleshooting the client device's connection to the Gateway. 
    • If Receive/Send LEDs are flashing, check the connection with coax cable and splitters.  Make sure all coax cable connections are secure.  Loose coax cable can cause intermittent connections.  Cable connections should be finger tight.  
       
    • If the Receive/Send are solid and Online LED is off, check the cable signal levels in the web manager.  If the cable signal levels are outside of the specified ranges, then connectivity issues will occur.  If the cable signal levels are close to the actual limits, that can cause intermittent connectivity issues.  The cable signals of the SBG6580-2 can be check in the gateway's web manager by following the instructions in Article# 16798 - SBG6580-2: Cable Signal Levels.  If cable signals are close to, or beyond the limits, contact the cable service provider to send a technician to inspect the cables lines for any damage or decay. 
  3. Factory reset the modem.  Factory reset the gateway by carefully inserting the tip of a pen or an unwound paperclip into the reset switch hole, then pressing and holding the switch for 5-10 seconds.  If the factory reset does not resolve the issue, contact the cable service provider to troubleshoot provisioning or other signal based issues.

    CAUTION: Factory resetting the modem will reset any custom configurations to factory defaults, and should only be performed after all other troubleshooting steps have failed to resolve the issue.

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Troubleshooting the Client Device's Connection to the Gateway

If troubleshooting the coax cable connection does not resolve the issue, or if the issue appears to be the connection of client devices to the SBG6580-2, follow these steps:
  1. Examine if the issue occurs only on wired devices, or if all connected devices experience connectivity issues.  If all connected devices, both Ethernet and Wi-Fi connected, experience issues, proceed to step 3.  If the issue only occurs on wired devices, make sure all Ethernet connections are secure and fully plugged in.  It may be necessary to replace the Ethernet cables with known, good cables.  
     
  2. If the Internet connectivity drops during periods of high bandwidth usage, such as multiple HD video streams, it may be possible that the subscribed bandwidth is insufficient for the demand.  Check with the streaming services for bandwidth requirement.  If the bandwidth requirement exceeds the subscribed Internet speeds, it may be necessary to subscribe to a higher speed package to meet bandwidth requirements. 
     
  3. Check if there is a device causing connectivity issues on the network.  Different devices may use significant amounts of bandwidth, or operate in a way that causes traffic interference with other devices.  To determine if this is the cause of the intermittent issue, disconnect all devices from the Wi-Fi, and have only one device connected by Ethernet.  If the issue is still present, disconnect the one device and connect a different device to rule out the possibility that the first device is causing the issue.  If the issue is resolved, re-connect other devices one at a time until connectivity issues re-appear.  Check the test results.  Once it is determined which device is causing issues, contact the manufacturer of that device for assistance in troubleshooting that device.
     
  4. Adjust the gateway's firewall settings.  The Firewall feature of the SBG6580-2 provides added security by blocking certain types of Internet traffic.  In some cases, legitimate traffic may be blocked, or firewall software on client devices may conflict with the SBG6580-2 firewall, and prevent normal Internet access.  In this case, the firewall may need to be adjusted to a lower security setting, or turned off.  To adjust the firewall settings of the SBG6580-2, please follow the instructions in Article # 16788 - SBG6580-2: Firewall Setup. If lowering the firewall settings resolves the issue, for added security, increase the firewall protection level one step at a time until issue returns, then go back to the last good setting.
     
  5. Factory reset the modem.  Factory reset the gateway by carefully inserting the tip of a pen or an unwound paperclip into the reset switch hole, then pressing and holding the switch for 5-10 seconds.  If the factory reset does not resolve the issue, contact the cable service provider to troubleshoot provisioning or other signal based issues.

    CAUTION: Factory resetting the modem will reset any custom configurations to factory defaults, and should only be performed after all other troubleshooting steps have failed to resolve the issue.

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