Member Avatar for stranoblaze

i have a linksys wireless router connected to my computer. my roommate is using a wireless card to get on the internet. for 2 weeks, her computer was fine. but the past 3 weeks, she said she can't get on to the internet. she tries going on yahoo and it kicks her off. she deleted her cookies and that didn't help. she is recognized on our network, has excellent signal strength, yet her connection is very slow.

any suggestions?

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by crunchie

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A short, practical addendum that complements the replies above (notably and ). The classic symptom here — "device is on the SSID with excellent signal but pages are slow or sessions drop" — points less to weak radio and more to a protocol/driver/handshake, addressing, or interference problem. Turning off encryption (as reported by ) can hide a handshake mismatch but leaves the network insecure; a safer route is to isolate the cause and then fix the mismatch or hardware.

Suggested isolation checklist (quick, ordered tests):

  1. Test wired first: plug the roommate's machine into the router by ethernet. If the wired link is stable, the WAN/router and ISP are likely OK and the fault is the wireless side.
  2. Confirm IP/DNS and reachability: run ipconfig /all (Windows) or ifconfig/ip addr (Linux/macOS), then ipconfig /release and ipconfig /renew. Ping the router IP, then a public IP (ping 8.8.8.8) and then a hostname (ping google.com) to see whether the problem is local, routing, or DNS.
  3. Driver / software checks: update or reinstall the wireless adapter driver from the laptop/vendor or chipset maker (Intel/Broadcom/Atheros). Temporarily disable third-party firewalls/antivirus to rule out blocking. Turn off the adapter power-saving option in the OS Device Manager.
  4. Security and mode: avoid disabling encryption. Ensure both router and client use the same mode (WPA2‑PSK + AES is preferred). If the client only supports WEP or TKIP, consider upgrading the client adapter. Mixed 802.11b/g modes can force low speeds; setting the AP to g-only (if all clients support it) often restores throughput.
  5. Radio issues: pick a fixed 2.4 GHz channel (1, 6, or 11) instead of Auto, and keep the channel width at 20 MHz. Move the AP away from cordless phones, microwaves, and thick metal/brick; small changes to placement often help more than toggling settings.
  6. Hardware and load: check for excessive simultaneous connections (P2P) or an overloaded NAT table on an older router. If the router is several years old, intermittent slowdowns can be hardware-related — test quickly by swapping in another AP/router before spending time chasing settings.

If these steps still fail, capture the router's status/log page and the laptop's adapter settings (IP, encryption type, driver version) before factory resets or replacements. This information makes troubleshooting productive and avoids the "turn it off and on again" loop that only masks root causes.

Recommended Answers

All 7 Replies

Member Avatar for forumposters

I used to have problems like this and I took off the encryption and now it works. It's insecure, but it works.

Member Avatar for stranoblaze

I used to have problems like this and I took off the encryption and now it works. It's insecure, but it works.

i dont want to take off any encryption. any other ideas?

Member Avatar for forumposters

I spent hours trying to get it figured out, but it just seemed to happen randomly. I'd restart the computer and it would work again. Or, i'd click on "repair" in my wireless config tool and it would work again.

Member Avatar for nancoke

I am having a similar problem. I set up a wireless router 2 years ago and just in the last 2 months I have had problems. We frequently have to disconnect and then reconnect. I can't figure it out.

Member Avatar for stranoblaze

I am having a similar problem. I set up a wireless router 2 years ago and just in the last 2 months I have had problems. We frequently have to disconnect and then reconnect. I can't figure it out.

we took off the password protection from the router and it worked. not our preference, but that's the only way we knew how to get hers to work

Member Avatar for RepairMaster25

i have a linksys wireless router connected to my computer. my roommate is using a wireless card to get on the internet. for 2 weeks, her computer was fine. but the past 3 weeks, she said she can't get on to the internet. she tries going on yahoo and it kicks her off. she deleted her cookies and that didn't help. she is recognized on our network, has excellent signal strength, yet her connection is very slow.

any suggestions?

Your roommate will need to download new updates ask her if her automatic updates are on if not turn them on and let the computer fix the problem. if that doesn't work go to the microsoft download page at microsoft.com/downloads and find the update needed for your wireless router if that still doesn't work make sure her laptop is not near a radio or a tv cause sometimes the signals coming off of these devices can really screw up the wireless internet signal from the router. If she is not near any appliances than try moving the router the router can get screwed up if it is near an outlet with alot of cords like near a powerbar or an exposed wall outlet that is not covered with a plastic cover. if that still doesn't work try updating the firmware for the router from the linksys website. Thats all you can really do aside from taking the computer to a repair shop.

Signed,
RepairMaster25

Member Avatar for crunchie

Your roommate will need to download new updates ask her if her automatic updates are on if not turn them on and let the computer fix the problem. if that doesn't work go to the microsoft download page at microsoft.com/downloads and find the update needed for your wireless router if that still doesn't work make sure her laptop is not near a radio or a tv cause sometimes the signals coming off of these devices can really screw up the wireless internet signal from the router. If she is not near any appliances than try moving the router the router can get screwed up if it is near an outlet with alot of cords like near a powerbar or an exposed wall outlet that is not covered with a plastic cover. if that still doesn't work try updating the firmware for the router from the linksys website. Thats all you can really do aside from taking the computer to a repair shop.

Signed,
RepairMaster25

Please read the post dates before replying. I am quite certain that after 3 1/2 years, stranoblaze has it sorted.

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