Your Internet is not working, what can you do?

I often get calls from clients that their Internet is not working. Usually it can be solved within a few minutes and this article will show you some steps you can take to get things going again.

The first thing you need to do is work out whether it is your whole Internet connection or just your email provider, a certain website or maybe your actual computer that is having problems. So first check if you can get to a few different websites – if you can it is your email provider or the website that is the issue so contact them. Also check to see if other computers in your home or office are having the same problems – if they aren’t it is your computer that is the issue.

If the Internet is still be problematic turn off the modem / router for 20 minutes, turn it on again, wait a few minutes and see if things work. If not you will need to do an isolation test (this is for an ADSL connection).

1. Start by unplugging anything connected to the phone line your Internet is on – including phones, EFTPOS terminals, dialup modems, Foxtel Digital boxes, fax machines and anything else which uses the same telephone line as your ADSL connection. If you have multiple telephone lines coming into your location, you can leave any equipment on non-broadband lines plugged in.
2. Once everything is unplugged, connect your modem directly into the telephone wall sockets using a short telephone cable no longer than a metre in length. Wait a few minutes and test again.
3. If the Internet is still not working connect a telephone to that socket and make sure that the wall socket you’re using has dial tone. If possible try another telephone socket.

If the Internet returns you can start plugging back in the equipment you previously disconnected one by one. Wait one to two minutes after each device is plugged back in to see if the Internet goes out. If it does the device you just connected is the culprit.

If a piece of equipment is interfering with your Internet, it could be because you don’t have a filter connected or the filter is faulty – install a new ADSL filter if to test this out.

If the Internet doesn’t come back during these tests try another modem if possible. If not give your ISP support a call. Don’t forget to let them know what you’ve already tried as they will probably try to step you through a similar process to the above.