Check that...

So the other day I was talking with my sister and she was lamenting the difficulties her husband was having dealing with Tech Support, both their Internet Service Provider and the maker of their router.   Apparently they have some serious connectivity stability issues with their internet connection. The ISP tested the lines and claim there are no issues, and that the fault lies in the modem/router (btw the ISP provided modem/router didn't work for their home setup, specifically XBox Live).

So, that lead them to trying to deal with the suport people for the modem/router. Now, as we all know phone support for lots of major hardware manufacturers has been outsourced to, well other countries. So, this in itself lends to difficulty when trying to get anywhere with support, let alone the long wait times etc. So, in all of this I asked a couple of quick questions: What is the make/model of the modem/router? What is the current firmware installed?

The second question was after I had received an answer to the first and had checked the manufacturer web page and saw that there was a recent firmware update available. Noted that the update didn't list a fix for their specific issue, but figured it couldn't hurt. So, after they updated the firmware they had I think two dis-connects the rest of the evening, which I believe is better than before, but still not ideal.

So, my sister asks me: Why didn't any of the other support people suggest the firmware update (I'm paraphrasing there)?  Good question, when it comes down to it.  It's usually one of the first things I check when I start messing with a piece of hardware that has the ability to have firmware updates.  Maybe they all assume that the user has already updated?? I don't know, but add that to the list of things to check when having problems.

Time will tell if it really helps them. In the meantime, I may have them see about having the ISP provided modem/router put into "Bridge Mode" and using a straight up router to do the routing, since the ISP provided modem doesn't have issues staying connected. It's a little "messier" of a solution, but then again, you've got two specific devices meant to do just what they are doing: one a modem, the other a router.  (BTW when I've set up other people, this method is what I prefer to do as it gives a lot more control over what the router is capable of, and gives a plethora of choices in what to use as a router).