Linksys = crap?

B

Bop

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Oct 1, 2003
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Alright here is my situation, I have a Linksys BEFSW11S4 v4 router, latest firmware, and an nForce 2 network card on my PC and a Linksys v5.1 10/100 on my Pentium 4 machine.

My problem is every 5-15 minutes all network transmitions will stop. This happens on both computers at the SAME time. Now you will probably say it is my ISP, Road Runner, but my friend who lives 5 houses up the street has no problem. We joined a game while staying on the phone and when I got connection error problems he didn't.

Whenever I get a connection error it will always last until I am kicked from the game. This happens with Planetside, Half-Life, BF1942, Quake 3, UT2k3 and all my other games. When I am making downloads the DL will stop and I have to start over again.

This is officially my last Linksys product, I had a BEFSW11S4 v1 and it died on me for no reason before. If someone knows some kind of fix please tell me.
 
Ive owned just about all the various 'home' routers out there, and right now theirs a linksys in my rack (Did I just say that?). IMO none of them are perfect, but the linksys has never given me any problems and seems to work the best. You will hear stories from people about having good luck with all the brands and bad luck, just depends.

I'm working right now on setting up my Cisco 2514 to replace the linksys.

-Matt :cool:
 
While you may in fact have a bad router, linksys != crap. I have one on my network (at least until I can solve the issues with my Cisco 2514, which i may create a thread on if i get to the point i give up.)

I've also got one of their WAP11's on it too. As well as 2 WAP11's with boosters bridging a single computer in a warehouse to our main building. (One computer wasnt worth spending lotsa money on Cisco or something.)

I've also set so many Linksys WAPs and routers in on friends and family's houses. Linksys makes some decent SOHO equipment. Sure it's not Cisco, but it also doesnt carry Cisco's price tag.

Now has this router ever worked right?? Maybe the latest firmware has some bugs? If u recently upgraded the firmware and then these issues started, try loading and older firmware version. Certain Linksys firmwares in past have had a couple issues on a few of their olde products (the BEFSR41 had a couple "new" firmwares that caused some people some issues, if i remember correctly.)
 
I've had good luck with their "stand alone" products, their workgroup switchs and wifi ap's, but I've never had good luck with their routers. I had an 8 port "switched" router on which i could saturate the backplane with a transfer between two comptuers (ie less than 100mbit), and on older 4 ports the port forwarding was for shit. But da fan man is right, no manufacturer is perfect, especially in soho. And just because cisco owns linksys doesnt mean cisco knowhow is going to linksys, because i doubt it is. Just like bay networks, a teir 1, and the problems ive had with their soho brand, netgear, with older switches and hubs "hiccuping" when streaming files, streaming audio over my network would create a short but horrendously noticible interuption in the music every few seconds.
 
Have you tried dropping the router out of your setup and hooking directly up to your cable modem. Maybe there is another bad link in the chain somewhere else. Also do you get the connection problems when transferring between the two machines ( staying local on the network ). I have a linksys router that i use right now, plus an openBSD router. I must say i haven't had any trouble with my linksys the only complaint that i have is that when you change the ports that are forwarded or the ips that the ports are forwarded to it kills the internet connection for like 8 sec while it saves and puts into effect the new settings, kinda annoying when you would like to make changes on the fly.

Hope you figure out your problem!
 
The freezing issue is pretty normal when someone close by has a 2.4GHz phone that hops frequency channels. Didn't use to get that issue in Southern California, but then I'd bring it up North every so often and it would jam because of the next door girl's 2.4GHz phone. Everytime she'd get a call the damn phone would hop channels, inevitably cross whatever I set the WAP11 to, and jack it up. Then I'd go back South and the thing works fine for months.
 
the same thing happens to me, not every 15 min though, but probably every couple of days. I got the 8-port router (non wireless). It is not the internet, because when it happens, i can't even connect to the router settins page (192.168.1.1).

IMHO, linksys == crap :(
 
Guys I am not using the wireless portion of the router(my 3rd computer does, but its off most the time), I am connected by a 10/100 ethernet connection on my motherboard. I updated my firmware because I was having the problem but it still happens.
 
I had the exact same problem with the exact same router. When I bypassed my router, everything worked fine. I ended up ditching the Linksys and getting a Netgeatr FVS318 to use. Haven't had a problem with it at all.
 
I personaly hate linksys stuff. I had nothing but bad luck with their products I prefer d-link.
 
Occasionally, all brands get funky routers/funky firmware. Hit Google and see if you can find an older version of the firmware and flash that. Try that. I've had numerous issues with Linksys's VPN router and 3 different versions of the firmware before I found a beta version that held the VPN connection steady. It might just be a bad router though.

Like the previous poster, I prefer D-Link and Netgear, too.
 
i have had 2 linksys routers just die on me... then a third that worked "OK" for about a year... but it was really slow

so i just made a box with 2000 and installed WinGate on it

all good
 
Guess what buddy....its not your router that is the problem i have a different router and i get the same problem with road runner. Until i called them up for a technician to come to check out the cables and everything ...he said everything was fine...except he did some wire changes and gave me new cables and since then i haven't had this problem anymore.

I also have a friend that lives near and while we both play for example counter-strike i get connection problem and lag and he doesn't. Which made me think something is wrong with my setup. Road runner guy checked my router settings and saw there was no problem at all with it.

I use to have this problem also where i loose connection completely every 20 minutes or soo...on both computers at the same time. This even happend before i got my router just running direct to cable modem.

Did you also have a problem when you did a full powercycle on the cable modem the online button flashes and never goes solid never connects?

I thought i was the only one having this problem.
 
You sure it's the wires? I've got a whole neighborhood that's been having this problem with BEFSR41/11s since we switched to Comcast from ATT last year. Everyone seems to get the problem, some more than others. Early on I tested the cables and no problems, Comcast says they haven't changed anything, and the cable modems have been cycled numerous times. Linksys doesn't say much other than try a newer firmware, but these are all older models, and those absolutely cannot run anything past 1.44.2z or else they crash after the first large transfer (well documented problem Linksys is sleeping on).
 
The problem is that the connection resets after a split millisecond, but I'll lose the current transmission I'm on. It isn't just service outtage/ packet loss.

For example, a webpage stops loading for no reason then I click refresh right after that and it resumes. I'll DL something and right when I see it stop I'll have the link ready and retry. If a game has a reconnect command I'll type that after the connection error and it will reconnect to the server.

It might be my cable modem, I heard those things begin to crap out after awhile and I've had mine for 2 years.
 
At my work we've RMA'd about 5 Linksys/Cisco BEFSR41/11s due to intermittent connection drops. I don't know if lately their quality assurance went to hell or if there was a design flaw with this model. We've just sent them back to our distributer for credit and replaced them with Netgear routers. Not a scientific survey by an means, but real world experience has led us not to trust that brand/model anymore.
 
I read at the ASUS website about some issue that was exactly like the one I was having on my A7N8X LAN, after 30 mins or so games would lose their connection. It said update to the latest BIOS and change FSB spread spectrum to 50% but I already did that.

Then I remembered both my PCs have the problem at the same problem at the same exact time so it must be external.

I'm going to get to the bottom of this and connect my PC directly to my cable modem and see if it is a problem with the lines in my house or the router.
 
Originally posted by Bop
Alright here is my situation, I have a Linksys BEFSW11S4 v4 router, latest firmware, and an nForce 2 network card on my PC and a Linksys v5.1 10/100 on my Pentium 4 machine.

My problem is every 5-15 minutes all network transmitions will stop. This happens on both computers at the SAME time. Now you will probably say it is my ISP, Road Runner, but my friend who lives 5 houses up the street has no problem. We joined a game while staying on the phone and when I got connection error problems he didn't.

Whenever I get a connection error it will always last until I am kicked from the game. This happens with Planetside, Half-Life, BF1942, Quake 3, UT2k3 and all my other games. When I am making downloads the DL will stop and I have to start over again.

This is officially my last Linksys product, I had a BEFSW11S4 v1 and it died on me for no reason before. If someone knows some kind of fix please tell me.
Click to expand...

I work for a ISP and we recieved a email about these routers. Here is a copy of the email.

Please make everyone aware that users of the following wireless Linksys device need a firmware upgrade to prevent the device from answering ARP requests not destined to itself. A handful of these devices on a CMTS can drive the ARP Input much higher than norm.

Linksys has confirmed that the BEFW11S4v4 has the ARP problem.

The 1.45.x firmware that is available on the Linksys web site resolves the issue. Suggest the 1.50 firmware.
The URL is: http://www.linksys.com/download/firmware.asp?fwid=182

It really sounds like that would be your problem.
 
I've been using 1.50 for awhile.(v1.50 from 1.4 seems to have fixed my DLs just stopping though, but not web sites) Well I just connected my PC directly to my modem and played Diablo 2 Bnet earlier today, and after a few minutes... Connection Interupted. I'm going to join an empty server in another game and check the results.

I know its not my PC alone, it happens to the PC right behind me(my p4 rig). If I get another connection error I will call Road Runner as the problem would either be in or near my house or just a problem with my ISP.
 
Bypass the router. Take one of the systems offline and connect the other directly to the modem and see if your problem continues. If it does, ride Road Runner. If it doesnt, try a different router.
 
It's the damn router! I have the same one because my dad fried my version 2 router with my laptop power pack...grrrr! Went and got the version 4 router at work... SAME problems you are having I was having... I figure it's the router. Take it back and exchange it for the same one. Same damn problems! This router is garbage! I don't know what happend to their quality control but this is absolute crap. I have upgrade the firmware and that does not fix the problem.

I am now searching and bidding on ebay to find a BEFW11S4 version 2 or 3 router... I NEVER had a problem with my version 2 router, it was perfect! And now having this version 4 has made me not want to reccomend this version of the router to people...


-Nigel
 
Originally posted by Bop
Well I just connected my PC directly to my modem and played Diablo 2 Bnet earlier today, and after a few minutes... Connection Interupted.
Click to expand...

I think the last guys didnt read Bop's last thread before they posted. :rolleyes:

If it's happening with the PC directly to the cable modem, see if your friend will let you borrow his cable modem for like 15 mins. Hook it up and join a game.

If it drops, it's your line and call the cable company.

If it doesnt drop, call the cable company and tell them to bring you a new modem (unless you bought your own, in which case get up to Best Buy or Circuit City ASAP).
 
The general consensus is that Linksys is crap. Sure Cisco bought them but that doesn't mean they changed. D-Link All the way ;) Maybe also helps I know one of the D-Link reps as well.
 
Originally posted by Wrench00
The general consensus is that Linksys is crap. Sure Cisco bought them but that doesn't mean they changed. D-Link All the way ;) Maybe also helps I know one of the D-Link reps as well.
Click to expand...

Umm.... I dont quite think that's the consensus. I think the consensus is that some people have had problems with Linksys. But think about it, some people will have problems with EVERY piece of equipment. In fact, a friend has a D-Link that had to be rebooted 10 times a day. Then he got a Cisco and all was well. Go figure.

And I dont think you can draw a concensus like that from a thread where the router is not even the cause of the problem. :rolleyes:
 
Yeah I was DLing something today and it stopped halfway, websites still stop too.

I'm going to call road runner, its a problem with the modem/lines.

My PC is connected directly to the modem right now.
 
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