Why the Internet Does Not Work: Causes and Solutions to the Problem

The reasons why the Internet is unstable

The network may be unavailable due to hardware problems on the user's side or technical problems with the provider. A shutdown can be triggered by:

Broken communication line.

The Internet is connected to the house using wires. They can be copper or fiber optic. In the case of copper cables, there is active network equipment with electronic circuits on the line between the subscriber and the provider. It provides signal transmission over the cable, receiving power from the electrical network. If electricity stops flowing, for example, due to an accident at a substation, the signal is not transmitted. Fiber optic wires are more stable. The signal is transmitted through them using light pulses, and not electrical ones, so there is no active equipment on the line that can be de-energized or fail. However, in the case of both copper and fiber-optic wires, breaks of the cables themselves are possible both in the subscriber's apartment and at any site to the provider's servers.

Problems with the subscriber's equipment.

Routers and modems can freeze or crash. In the first case, it is enough to turn off the device for a couple of minutes to reboot and clear the cache. The second case is more complicated. Most often, routers fail after a voltage drop in the electrical network. If you cannot enter the settings of the router, all the indicators on the device have ceased to glow or it does not respond to a factory reset, most likely it will have to be replaced.

The problem is in the settings of the router.

If the Internet does not work via Wi-Fi, although there is a connection via a cable, it is possible that the settings in the router have failed. This could be due to a power surge, software error, or hardware failure. In the first case, you can fix the problem by reconfiguring the router. In other cases, you will have to change the firmware or repair the device.

Computer network card problem.

The network card may freeze or fail. If it freezes, restarting the computer will help. If the board fails, it will have to be replaced.

Computer infection with viruses. 

Sometimes viruses are the cause of slow network access or blocking access to sites. Their presence can be checked using free antivirus. There are also the opposite cases when the page does not load due to a negative content blocker, for example, the AdGuard extension. If you have the extension installed, try opening other sites or programs that work over the Internet. When an extension is a problem, only individual pages fail to load. 

Overloaded radio channel.

When using a Wi-Fi router, sometimes there is a problem of connecting through an overloaded radio channel. This happens when one frequency is used by too many devices in a small radius. Try changing the frequency in your router settings.

Small Wi-Fi coverage area.

If you have a large apartment with inter-wall partitions made of materials that interfere with signal transmission, the Internet may have stopped working due to the remote location of the computer from the router. Try going online near the device.

What to Do if the Internet Stopped Working

Before you go to the router settings or call your carrier, try simple ways to solve the problem:

• Check the reliability of the wired connection at all connection points: router, modem, computer, RJ-45 socket.
• Reboot your modem / Wi-Fi router. Turn off the device and unplug the AC adapter for 10 seconds. Then turn on the device and try to connect to the network.

If these steps do not help, check your connection settings.

Situation 1: the Internet connects directly through a cable, but does not work through a router

If restarting the router does not solve the problem, most likely, the settings on the device are lost. To restore them, in the browser, type 192.168.1.1 or 192.168.0.1 and go to the device configuration page. Some models of routers may have a different address. After going to the settings page, you will need to go through authorization. In most cases, the login and password are an admin. Next, you need to enter a number of mandatory data - the username and password of the subscriber, which the provider issued during registration, register the IP address and DNS. Detailed configurations are indicated in the same registration card with login and password. If you do not have this information, contact the provider's support.

Situation 2: the Internet does not work, connected via cable

Sometimes the internet does not work when the cable is directly connected to the computer. In this case, in the network settings on the computer, you can see the status "Identification" or "Unidentified network".

The most likely reason why the internet doesn't work over a cable is the IP address. Go to the "Network and Control Center" in the "Change adapter settings" tab. Next, right-click on the icon with a local network connection and go to properties. Select "Internet Protocol Version 4" and check the boxes next to automatically obtain IP and DNS.

After completing the steps, unplug the cable from the computer and plug it back in. If this does not help to connect to the network, register the IP, and DNS yourself. The required configurations are indicated in the subscriber registration card issued by the provider. Changing DNS settings is the first thing to do if you have a connection and the Internet is not working. Most often, the problem is in them.

Contact the Provider's Technical Support

In most cases, connection problems can be resolved with the help of a telephone support operator, without a specialist visit. Therefore, when choosing a provider, pay attention to the feedback on the work of its technical support service. Your time depends on the efficiency and clarity of specialist consultation. If you are not satisfied with the support of the current provider or the stability of the network connection, you can choose another operator that serves your home. Just enter your address and choose the appropriate rate.