Why your Wi-Fi Connection Stops Working

We have all been there: working on a important project, writing a term paper, watching a YouTube video and, suddenly, the WiFi stops working. You spend a few minutes reconnecting and then it magically fixes itself and you continue on. But, why does this happen? This list offers a short explainer of  common causes of intermittent connectivity problems and what you can do to ameliorate them.

Dynamic IP addresses

IP addresses are unique addresses for your computer, analogous to street addresses for your home. The data you ask for needs to reach your computer and not some random computer in Mongolia, hence the unique IP address.

Many ISPs offer dynamic IP addresses, which - for security reasons - are changed after a certain period of time. If your router is overworked, it might miss the fact that ISP assigned it a new IP address as the old one expires. When this happens, the router does not latch on to the new IP address and continues to use the old one. Imagine ordering a pizza online and not updating your address after you move. The pizza is ordered and delivered, but to the wrong address while you are left wondering what happened. The router is not receiving data because the IP address has changed.

This is where the tried and true mechanism of unplugging the power cord from the router to reset it come in. The reset forces the router to latch onto the new IP address and your internet connection will work as it is supposed to.

ISP traffic

Ever wonder how YouTube videos are free to consume? Part of the reason for this is that YouTube does not serve you the videos you watch, they simply host them on your servers. When you watch those adorable cat videos your Internet Service Provider (ISP) is providing you with the videos from YouTube servers. Advanced algorithms exist to serve you the video as quickly as possible but bottlenecks exist and can slow down.

Largely dependent on the infrastructure in your area and the type of connection you have, bottlenecks in upload and download speeds occur. Like a street with terrible traffic just outside your home, your entire neighborhood is served by a large connection with finite amounts of bandwidth. Despite the fact that you know that you just need to get home to binge watch your favorite show, the street does not care, nor do the hundreds of other people just wanting to get home at the same time. If everyone is home and watching Netflix or YouTube videos at the same time then it is likely that you will experience slow connections or lose connection entirely as more bandwidth is being consumed than is available, like a rolling blackout in a power-grid.

Businesses pay top dollar for special internet connections with much higher bandwidths than homes to avoid this issue, with switches capable of serving dedicated gigabit connections to dozens of individuals.

Unfortunately, the only solution here is wait for lower volumes of traffic.

Overheating routers

At home, it is common to shove the router in a out of the way corner because everyone hates those randomly blinking lights. However, this is often a bad idea because your router generates a lot of heat, it is a small purpose built computer after all. If there is not proper air flow circulating into the router to cool it, the device will overheat and heat is very bad for electronics.

If the ventilation holes for your router are blocked by cables, dust, or a wall, the heat will cause the device to malfunction, resulting in dropped packets and lost connections. Make sure you position your router in a place that allows for adequate ventilation.

Upgrade firmware

The software that runs the hardware, firmware, is updated like you OS on your computer. Buggy software can cause intermittent connectivity problems. The fix for this is to check online if your router has a firmware update. Install the update to receive better security, and improved performance.

Avoid 2.4 Ghz band

The laws of physics dictate the electromagnetic spectrum, and the lower the frequency the longer the wavelength. In simple terms, lower numbers (frequency) means the signal can pass through and around more stuff. 2.4 Ghz is the most common, and most congested internet band. All internet traffic there is sent over 11 channels and if your neighbors use the same channel as you then the router has a difficult time interpreting which packets are meant for you versus your neighbor, resulting in dropped packets and broken connections.

The 5 Ghz band delivers data faster and offers more channels. The tradeoff is that 5 Ghz, being a larger number than 2.4, has less ability to penetrate walls. If your router supports the 5 Ghz band, switch to it and enjoy a less congested band with more channels and faster speeds. Just make sure you are relatively close to the router to get the benefits.

We at PC TEC RESCUERS want to keep you informed about the trends of the tech world and we want to make you smarter by offering handy guides on how to fix common issues. For the other hassles, contact us. Our friendly and professional techs are available 24/7 to assist you with any issue you may have with your computer, smartphone, or printer!