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Router stalled on switching to fibre

Sandydog
Dabbler
Posts: 15
Registered: ‎01-11-2017

Router stalled on switching to fibre

Today we were supposed to get switched to fibre broadband (originally it should have happened a week ago but the order was delayed without us being notified.) we had an email shortly after midnight last night saying our order was now complete. In the morning we were clearly still on adsl with our normal download speed of about 1.4 Mb. We were out for most of the day and came home to find the router stuck on orange. 

 

Around the same time we received an email saying our upload speed was now raised to 2 Mb. Not a word about download speeds. I tried resetting the router and reconnecting through the hub control panel. Nothing worked. After nearly two hours on the phone to the technical department they decided the router is 'stuck' in adsl mode. They say we need a new router. I don't understand why a factory reset didn't work, or them trying to disconnect us from their end. 

 

But I am wondering whether the lack of an email about download speed is significant ? It seems very odd to get notified about one but not the other. Does anyone know if this is normal ? I am wondering if somehow the change to fibre was incomplete.

27 REPLIES 27
krusty
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Re: Router stalled on switching to fibre

which router have you got ?

Sandydog
Dabbler
Posts: 15
Registered: ‎01-11-2017

Re: Router stalled on switching to fibre

Plusnet Hub One

bobpullen
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Re: Router stalled on switching to fibre

You definitely shouldn't need a new router. Was the status light steady or flashing, and was there a 'b' indicator lit up on the panel below? If so, what colour, and was that flashing or steady?

Bob Pullen
Plusnet Product Team
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Sandydog
Dabbler
Posts: 15
Registered: ‎01-11-2017

Re: Router stalled on switching to fibre

The status light is steady, orange. The 'b' indicator lights up intermittently, also on orange, when it is trying to connect. It does this if I try to reconnect via the control panel on the computer too. The technician at Plusnet said it is clearly a router fault as he could not reset it, and neither could I. He said it has got stuck during the switchover from adsl to fibre. But I don't understand why restoring factory settings won't fix that. And if the fault is the line is tied up somehow I don't see why a new router will fix that either ! He also got me to try reconnecting under a BT login code, with no password, but that failed too. It all took a very long time, with long periods on hold, and a lot of it seemed like guess work. 

bobpullen
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Re: Router stalled on switching to fibre

If the 'b' was flashing red, you'd not be picking up a VDSL signal so the fact it's orange is a good sign. It will go orange when it's authenticated but unable to route traffic. This is typically if the device is connected to the default 'setup' username and password. If you were getting a steady red 'b' then it would suggest an authentication failure.

I've never known a router to get 'stuck' in this situation where a factory reset wouldn't clear things.

If you browse to the router interface, can you check to ensure you're definitely trying to connect with <your-username>@plusdsl.net, and not setup@plusdsl.net?

Bob Pullen
Plusnet Product Team
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Sandydog
Dabbler
Posts: 15
Registered: ‎01-11-2017

Re: Router stalled on switching to fibre

The 'b' is never flashing red. It is sometimes steady orange, and sometimes off. The status bar is always steady orange. I have checked the username and password are correct. When I click 'connect' it says 'PPP connecting' then it fails, and says 'you are not connected to the internet' 

krusty
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Registered: ‎09-08-2017

Re: Router stalled on switching to fibre

@Sandydog can you go to the troubleshooting page in the router webinterface and post the modulation code

 

@bobpullen : If it is stuck can it be remotely flashed like the Thompsons could be?

Sandydog
Dabbler
Posts: 15
Registered: ‎01-11-2017

Re: Router stalled on switching to fibre

The troubleshooting page just says I am not connected to the internet. I tried resetting the router again from that interface. It went through the normal sequence of lights. During the brief period it was blue some emails came in. But it went back to an orange line and intermittent orange 'b' as usual.

 

I have been using my neighbour's internet connection to get online so it is possible that when the router was resetting it briefly connected to that instead, but it was when the blue light came on.

Sandydog
Dabbler
Posts: 15
Registered: ‎01-11-2017

Re: Router stalled on switching to fibre

Does anyone know if we should have received two emails from plusnet, one about the upgrade to upload speeds and one about the upgrade to download speed ? I am still bothered that if that was an automatic message, some part of the switch to fibre was not completed. 

 

I tried to to replicate the emails coming in while the router rebooted. It didn't work, so yesterday the computer must have momentarily got onto the neighbour's router while mine rebooted. 

 

The router status is still steady orange, with the broadband 'b' light coming on orange every twenty seconds. 

RealAleMadrid
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Re: Router stalled on switching to fibre

The e-mails from PlusNet are fairly random and often bear no relation to what has actually happened, I don't recall anyone getting a message about download speed upgrade and when a change to fibre happens it is not done in two parts so the e-mails or lack of them is not relevant. I think your problem is more an authentication issue. Try another factory reset, then check that the username and password are entered correctly. If that doesn't work you'll have to get on to support again, best of luck.Smiley

Sandydog
Dabbler
Posts: 15
Registered: ‎01-11-2017

Re: Router stalled on switching to fibre

Thanks. I have done all that again. There is no change. I also tried the BT_test@startup_domain, bt_test_user@starup_domain and bt_test_user@plusdsl.net all with and without the password 'test' as instructed yesterday. 

 

They all failed, which I was told meant the router had failed. I can't do anything else until the new router arrives.

 

thanks for all the advice. 

bobpullen
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Re: Router stalled on switching to fibre

You connected briefly yesterday afternoon, which I'm guessing is when the email came through:

Session Started	        Session Ended	        Session Duration
13:54 01/Nov/2017	14:13 01/Nov/2017	0:19:20

I can't see any authentication attempts hitting our servers since that attempt, this includes any attempts using the default setup@plusdsl.net username. In fact, going back some days, I can't see any attempt from your router to connect on the setup username at all. I'd expect to see if the device had been factory rest.

Just to clarify, have you factory reset the device by inserting a paperclip or similar into the reset hole at the back of the device whilst it's powered up? You'd need to keep the button depressed for 10 seconds or so until the status light on the front of the unit flashes green.

Bob Pullen
Plusnet Product Team
If I've been helpful then please give thanks ⤵

Sandydog
Dabbler
Posts: 15
Registered: ‎01-11-2017

Re: Router stalled on switching to fibre

There was no-one at home between 11 am and 3 pm yesterday, so I guess that connection was when openreach connected the fibre. When we came home at 3 pm the orange light was on. We left it for half an hour or so in case it was in the process of connecting. Then I restarted the router a few times and tried to logon through the hub manager. I called plusnet around 4:30 pm and was on the phone to them off and on until around 6:30 pm (they had to drop the line when they did some tests). During that period we had many attempts to connect.

 

It was later in the evening I tried the factory reset of the router, using a paperclip until the light went green. I have been through that procedure twice more, including once this morning. Also many more connection attempts using our username, the bt test one and the setup one. I switched the router off for an hour yesterday hoping that might clear something. Then I left it on all night, on orange throughout. 

 

Up until around 11 am yesterday morning we were using the broadband normally on dsl with our usual 1.4 Mb speeds. The email from plusnet saying we had been upgraded on our upload speeds arrived at 15:05 pm yesterday, but we received that on mobile data. One email came through to the computer late last night, but I now think it came through on our neighbour's router connection.

 

Does the fact that you can't see any of my attempts to connect  or reset the router point to the router being the problem ? I was told it had a stuck session and plusnet could not unstick it. Hopefully the new router will arrive tomorrow. I was just concerned that it might not fix the problem, as I can't see the difference between a factory reset router and a new one. 

I was told the only other option is an engineer's visit and that it would cost me £65 despite plusnet saying the fault is clearly with them or their equipment.

 

Thanks for your help.

krusty
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Registered: ‎09-08-2017

Re: Router stalled on switching to fibre

Sandydog, I do think connecting to your neigbours is probably helping to confuse things.

 

Also are you using microfilters or an openreach face plate to filter the line?