No internet on usual sockets

[#1]

Hi,
I have had no broadband since Saturday morning. The broadband light was green but continually flashing on my Thompson router but the internet light did not come on at all. I did telephone technical support Saturday lunchtime and they said some engineers were going to look at my line. As I hadn't heard anything and still no broadband, I telephone technical support again this morning and was advised to do some tests. One of them involved plugging the router into the test socket. I did this and am able to access broadband as normal hence why I am able to post this message. However the telephone doesn't work when the router is plugged into this socket so is not a viable alternative even for a short time as I live in a mobile phone dead signal area. (Other tests included checking filters etc so have done that too).
Could some kind person please explain why I can access broadband through this test socket but not through my normal telephone points. Is the router or the telephone line/socket the issue?
Many thanks
Lisa

[#2]

Quote

However the telephone doesn't work when the router is plugged into this socket

Something sounds very amiss here!
You should have your regular 'filter' in the test socket, which allows you to plug in your telephone. Do you get a dial tone? - If not - Disconnect (from the routers interface) from the internet and plug JUST the phone into the test socket -- do you get a dial tone? if you do - change the microfilter, and go back to the previous configuration. (I know you've said you've checked the filters, but checked for what? or do you mean swapped for another?)
If it now works hunky dory, throw away the old microfilter, and put your setup back to how you had it previously if you like (keeping the router at the master socket is always the best bet in my opinion )

Quote

but not through my normal telephone points

If you mean through an extension in another room, could be that there is a problem with the phone line and your router is *just about* connecting via the test socket, extension cabling tends to be of poor quality, and as such may make the problem "too bad" for you to get any service. (im guessing the internet is pretty slow, but working?)

Quote

I live in a mobile phone dead signal area.

Dependant on the company, you can get booster-boxes which may help you with this
Regards

[#3]

Quote from: Matt_2k34

Quote However the telephone doesn't work when the router is plugged into this socket Something sounds very amiss here!

Not necessarily.  The telephone may just be plugged into an extension socket!
Most of the time when I visit people with this sort of problem it turns out that they have not fitted a broadband (ADSL) filter on all the phone sockets in use.  It's as simple as that. 

[#4]

Hi unpavemypath,
I have tested your line and found no fault on either the broadband or telephone side.  The next step would be to complete the suggestions above.  Plug a filter in to your test socket with both your telephone and router connected.  If the problem persists then try with an alternative filter.  If the problem still persists it would be an idea to test with an alternative router if possible.
If the above fails I can see your fault ticket is in our faults queue for testing.  Shortly one of my colleagues will progress your fault further but it's a good idea to have completed internal checks to ensure your equipment is not the cause of the fault.

[#5]

Quote from: unpavemypath

Could some kind person please explain why I can access broadband through this test socket but not through my normal telephone points. Is the router or the telephone line/socket the issue?

When you remove the faceplate to access the test socket you disconnect all the internal telephone wiring (provided this is wired correctly).  So all your telephone extensions should now be dead.  The fact that this restored your broadband implies that something else inside your house was interfering with the broadband signal.  So it's not the router or the telephone line or the socket, it is something else inside your house.  I'm sure if you examined this issue statistically the most common reason would be that the person has a phone, or perhaps a fax machine or a Sky box that is connected directly to an extension scoket without one of the broadband (ADSL) filters that must be used.
For an example of how people sometimes get things wrong, I once visited a client who had bought a multi-function printer with fax facility.  This came with a US-style phone cable and a UK adaptor.  The client had ignored the adaptor and plugged the fax machine into the ADSL side of his filter because the cable fitted the socket.  This wrecked the broadband until I corrected the wiring.      

[#6]

Hi,
Many thanks for all your replies.
Apologies for not making myself clearer. The test socket is the bedroom upstairs and if I plug the corded telephone in the filter next to the the router cable it does work (although I can't hear it ringing downstairs). However the telephone plugged in downstairs into its usual socket doesn't work (no dialling tone).
By checking the filters I mean I unplugged all appliances from their telephone sockets (i.e. two telephones, no Sky) and the broadband still didn't work downstairs in its usual socket. I also swapped the router filter and still didn't work - however this setup works fine in the test socket.
The problem could be the telephone line extension but the broadband connection is working perfectly well in the test socket at is maximum speed (just tested it).
Unfortunately the test socket is in the bedroom so would be ok to use as router point if I was just using the the wifi on my laptop but we also have a desktop PC without wifi that needs to be connected with an ethernet cable so sadly in my case, not practical.
Unfortunately don't have another router to test.
If it helps diagnose the problem at all, when I use the telephone with the router plugged in downstairs in its usual point, the telephone is very noisy and buzzy, when I unplug the router the noise and buzzing stops.

[#7]

Quote from: unpavemypath

Hi, Many thanks for all your replies. Apologies for not making myself clearer. The test socket is the bedroom upstairs and if I plug the corded telephone in the filter next to the the router cable it does work (although I can't hear it ringing downstairs). However the telephone plugged in downstairs into its usual socket doesn't work (no dialling tone).

That's exactly as it should be whilst you are using the test socket.

Quote from: unpavemypath

By checking the filters I mean I unplugged all appliances from their telephone sockets (i.e. two telephones, no Sky) and the broadband still didn't work downstairs in its usual socket.

Just to be absolutely clear, did you plug the faceplate back into the test socket before you tried this?

Quote from: unpavemypath

The problem could be the telephone line extension but the broadband connection is working perfectly well in the test socket at is maximum speed (just tested it).

That means the problem almost certainly is the telephone line extension or something connected to one of your extension sockets.

[#8]

Quote from: unpavemypath

If it helps diagnose the problem at all, when I use the telephone with the router plugged in downstairs in its usual point, the telephone is very noisy and buzzy, when I unplug the router the noise and buzzing stops.

Is there any noise and buzzing at the moment with the router and corded phone upstairs in the bedroom?
If not, what happens if you use the other filter?
If not, what happens if you plug in the other phone?

[#9]

Thanks for your time on the phone today Lisa.
As discussed, a test router has been sent to you and should arrive within the next 72 hours.  Please let us know if the problem persists and we will take a second look.

[#10]

Hmm, I wonder what was said?  I cannot find anything in what was reported hitherto that would suggest a router problem.

[#11]

Quote from: ReedRichards

I cannot find anything in what was reported hitherto that would suggest a router problem.

Agreed. Having re-read all the posts, sounds like an internal wiring problem to me.

[#12]

Quote from: unpavemypath

If it helps diagnose the problem at all, when I use the telephone with the router plugged in downstairs in its usual point, the telephone is very noisy and buzzy, when I unplug the router the noise and buzzing stops.

I assume it is to eliminate the router as the cause of that noise.

[#13]

There was no dial tone issue on the extension socket was because the master socket front plate was removed which disconnected the extension socket from the line.  Connecting the router and phone to the test socket connected the broadband but the PSTN side was noisy/buzzing.  Disconnecting the router eliminated the line noise.  Since alternative filtering had been tested we agreed to rule out the router before going forward with an engineer visit to investigate the noisy line issue.

[#14]

Quote from: Alex

Connecting the router and phone to the test socket connected the broadband but the PSTN side was noisy/buzzing.  Disconnecting the router eliminated the line noise.

I see.  I wasn't clear if that problem was confined to the extension sockets or applied also to the test socket (not that it should happen in either case).

[#15]

Hi guys,
Just thought I would let you know that my broadband connection problems are no more  :D.
I received the new router from Alex and plugged it in my usual telephone point downstairs and my broadband was back to how it was before - super duper so thank you all very much for your help and to Alex for sending out the new router and dealing with my problem expediently.