Troubleshooting a Slow or Intermittent Connection (Wired Devices)

[RogersAndy]

We know troubleshooting isn’t everyone’s idea of a great time, but we’ve compiled a few steps here that should help put some of the control back in your hands as the customer.

When should I complete these steps?

If you’re experiencing consistent disconnects or slower than anticipated speeds with a wired connection on multiple devices.

Step 1: Checking your Modem

Has there been any change to the light pattern on your modem? If so, make a note of this as it’s an important piece of information for technical support.

Is the coaxial cable (black or crème cable) at the back of the modem connected securely? Careful as sometimes these can be quite tight already and may be warmer than you might anticipate.

Step 2: Disconnect 3^rd Party Equipment

We would recommend at this time to disconnect any router, mesh network or switch you may have connected to the modem. This step is highly effective in ruling out those as a source of the experienced issue as well as reducing the visibility of false positives in your troubleshooting.

Step 3: Avoid Rebooting if You Have Time to Troubleshoot

At this point most would anticipate having to unplug their modem and plug it back in to see their connection return, if it’s worked before and you need it back now, by all means! If you have time to troubleshoot however we would recommend not doing so as this resets the internal timer on the modem showing its connection to the Rogers server. We’ll need that to help diagnose the source of the problem. If you must reboot now, feel free to return to these steps whenever you’re available.

Step 4: Log in To Your Modem!

This step is a lot simpler than it might seem and once you know what to expect and know what you’re looking for, you’ll be prepared to identify issues if they become visible!

• Open up your preferred browser (Chrome is recommended) and navigate to this url: http://10.0.0.1  
• Ignite WiFi Gateway Modem
  Username: Admin
  Password: This will be your WiFi password

Once logged in navigate to the DOCSIS WAN page, this will typically be under the "Connection" and "Status" tab. Once there you’ll see something that resembles this!

Downstream Overview

Port ID	Frequency (MHz)	Modulation	Signal strength (dBmV)	Channel ID	Signal noise ratio (dB)
1	597000000	256QAM	1.400	8	38.983
2	849000000	256QAM	0.400	2	38.983
3	855000000	256QAM	0.800	3	38.983
4	861000000	256QAM	0.300	4	38.983
5	579000000	256QAM	1.100	5	38.983
6	585000000	256QAM	2.000	6	40.946
7	591000000	256QAM	1.700	7	40.366
8	303000000	256QAM	1.100	1	38.983
9	603000000	256QAM	1.400	9	38.983
10	609000000	256QAM	1.000	10	40.366
11	615000000	256QAM	0.900	11	38.983
12	621000000	256QAM	0.700	12	38.605
13	633000000	256QAM	0.500	13	38.983
14	639000000	256QAM	0.300	14	38.983
15	645000000	256QAM	0.200	15	38.605
16	651000000	256QAM	0.200	16	38.983
17	657000000	256QAM	-0.100	17	38.983
18	663000000	256QAM	-0.100	18	38.983
19	669000000	256QAM	-0.200	19	38.605
20	675000000	256QAM	-0.300	20	38.983
21	681000000	256QAM	-0.200	21	38.983
22	687000000	256QAM	-0.300	22	38.605
23	693000000	256QAM	-0.300	23	38.605
24	699000000	256QAM	-0.400	24	38.605
25	705000000	256QAM	-0.800	25	38.983
26	711000000	256QAM	-1.200	26	38.605
27	717000000	256QAM	-1.700	27	38.605
28	723000000	256QAM	-2.200	28	37.636
29	825000000	256QAM	-0.800	29	38.983
30	831000000	256QAM	-0.400	30	38.605
31	837000000	256QAM	0.000	31	38.983
32	843000000	256QAM	0.300	32	38.983

OFDM Downstream Overview

Receiver	FFT type	Subcarr 0 Frequency(MHz)	PLC locked	NCP locked	MDC1 locked	PLC power(dBmv)
0	NA	NA	NO	NO	NO	NA
1	4K	290600000	YES	YES	YES	3.000000

Upstream Overview

Port ID	Frequency (MHz)	Modulation	Signal strength (dBmV)	Channel ID	Bandwidth
1	23700000	ATDMA - 64QAM	30.500	2	6400000
2	38596000	ATDMA - 64QAM	34.250	3	3200000
3	30596000	ATDMA - 64QAM	37.750	1	6400000

OFDM/OFDMA Overview

Channel Index	State	lin Digital Att	Digital Att	BW (sc's*fft)	Report Power	Report Power1_6	FFT Size
0	DISABLED	0.5000	0.0000	0.0000	-inf	-1.0000	4K
1	DISABLED	0.5000	0.0000	0.0000	-inf	-1.0000	4K

So, let’s break down what’s important here and what we should expect to see.

• Downstream Overview: A total of 32 channels should be here with an expected Signal Strength (dBmV) between -13.5 and 12 and an SNR above 38dBmv.
• If you are DOCSIS 3.1 ENABLED (Viewable under OFDM Downstream Overview) this should be between -13 and 11dBmV.
• Upstream Overview: A minimum of 3 and a maximum of 4 channels should be visible here. Not all areas will have 4 channels available/enabled. This range should be between 35dBmV (As low as 32 is acceptable during warmer seasons) and 52dBmV. Upstream SNR is only visible by Rogers technical employees.
• If you’re not seeing all channels or a channel is outside of this range, then you may have located an issue. Feel free to provide a copy of these results within the Forums.
  
  

Step 5: Speed Testing!

A slower than anticipated connection to your home network can be incredibly troublesome to live with but identifying it needn’t be so troublesome. There are a couple of acceptable websites to run your speed test from

Steps to test your internet speed and WiFi connections using the Ignite HomeConnect app

1. Sign in to the Ignite HomeConnect app using your MyRogers username and password.
2. Select the WiFi tab, then the Troubleshoot shortcut button.
3. Select Test your whole home network.
4. The Troubleshoot tool will begin testing the current total speed to your home gateway for all your connected devices.
• A green checkmark will display if the result is 90% or higher than the top download speed for your internet plan, to indicate that the gateway connection is strong and unlikely to be the cause of a potential connection issue.
• If the result is less than 90%, we’ll give you some troubleshooting options.
• The result may be more than 100% in some cases, as Ignite Internet plans can support higher speeds when there is additional network bandwidth available.
• The reported speed may be higher than results from traditional speed tests because it reflects the total speed to the home instead of the speed to a single device, which can be impacted by the device or by WiFi conditions in the home.
• This feature may not appear or may present an error message depending on your home connection technology or if your gateway is in bridge mode.
5. Next, the tool will test the connection strength to each of the devices on your home network. You’ll get colour-coordinated results that show your connection’s current performance:
• Green: strong connection
• Yellow: fair connection
• Red: weak connection
• Grey: device is offline or asleep
6. Select a device to view whether the WiFi connection is strong enough for different typical online activities. Your results will differ depending on the type of device you’re using (e.g., results for a smartphone will include HD video streaming as an activity, but a smart thermostat would not).

Select Still having issues for helpful tips to make sure your WiFi is performing at its best.

• How do speed tests work? – When running a speed test, a consistent stream of small pieces of information, known as packets, are sent and downloaded from the closest server obtainable by the site. The device you’re using will attempt to draw as much throughput as is available from the network at that time and for the duration of the test. At the end you’ll be provided with the result of the test.
• What Device(s) to use? – A wired computer with a Gigabit network adapter/card as the primary is necessary. Connect this with an ethernet cable from your device to your Rogers modem.
• Running your test – We recommend running the speed test with 2 separate devices at the same time. Either both wired with each having a Gigabit network card or, if unable, the second device can be a cell phone or tablet connected to WiFi using your 5Ghz frequency. Let us know if that’s the case and what the device / model is.
• Why two devices? – Each device running will attempt to pull the maximum throughput it can based on what’s available. If the speed available combined exceeds that which can be seen on one device, this confirms for us the network availability vs what your device is seeing.

Step 6: Reach Out to us here on the Community Forums:

If you are experiencing poor performance on any modem and/or observe the following on your internet modem:

1. Missing one or more channels on the downstream side or a signal level outside of the accepted range listed coupled with observed intermittency with a wired connection, slow wired speeds, or missing cable TV channels.
2. Missing one or more channels on the upstream side or a signal level outside of the accepted range listed coupled with observed intermittency with a wired connection, slow wired speeds, or missing cable TV channels.
3. Speed test with two devices at the same time (2 wired or 1 wired and 1 WiFi on 5G) with a combined speed lower than your plan.

If you have any doubt concerning your internet performance please post a question in the Rogers Community Forums along with your downstream tables, upstream tables and the results from a Rogers Speedcheck with an ethernet connected PC or laptop.  Any problems with wireless devices should first be approached from the ethernet connected point of view to ensure that the modem is operating normally.  Please post in any additional information such as whether or not you have services which include Rogers Cable TV and/or Rogers Home Phone, and if you are observing any problems with those services as well.  As well, indicate whether your home is an apartment, single family house, or other, as this may change the approach required to solve an internet problem.