The Weak Point In Your Internet Service - The Power

If you have a typical Internet service, you likely (hopefully) have 2 mysterious network devices, connected between your computer and your ISP's service.

• The modem (dialup, cable, or DSL) connects directly to the wire coming out of the wall.
• The router connects between the modem, and your computer.

Both the modem and router have power supplies - also known as "wall warts", because they have big plugs - 3 - 4" cube shaped, that make it hard to find a power outlet with room to plug it in. If you have these, you should know what I mean.

Recently, I thought that my router was slightly faulty. Several times / week, I was losing Internet service, even though the diagnostic lights on my DSL modem, and the router, were normal. Restarting both the modem and router would restore my service, but only until the next time.

I bought a universal power supply at Radio Shack for $15 or so, and swapped it for the power supply for the router for a while, but saw no improvement in the symptom. Service was going out too frequently - first a couple times / week, then daily, and finally multiple times daily. I put the vendor power supply for the router back in service, took the replacement universal power supply, and tried it on the modem, and the problem was solved.

It's summer time here in North America, and I'll bet heat sensitivities are part of the problem. If your Internet service has been acting up on you for a few weeks, and you've been pestering your ISP with no results, check your equipment, and start with the power supplies.

In this situation, the "universal power supply" is a key item. Each different electronic device - modem, router, or what have you, will have differently designed power requirements. Plug size, polarity, and voltage will differ from device to device. In my case, my modem uses 6V DC +, and my router uses 12V DC +. Being able to try the same power supply on both units, by simply changing the switch on the wall wart, made it possible for me to solve my problem.

When you setup the power supply for your modem or router, read the instructions carefully. Plug size (6 choices) is obvious. Polarity and voltage are not obvious, but getting them right is essential. In most cases, the wall warts from the vendor will have clearly labeled requirements, with both polarity and voltage obviously described. Carefully following the instructions with the replacement power supply, you can swap units in a couple minutes.

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Protect Your Hardware - Use A UPS

Summer is coming, in the US anyway, and in some states, it's here. With summer comes the thunderstorms, and the lightning. In some states, summer also brings possibilities of blackouts, as the power companies struggle to keep up with demand during hot spells and air conditioners running constantly.

Those without Uninterruptible Power Sources (or some folks anyway) run around the house, unplugging everything, when storm clouds show up in the sky. People who have experienced lightning know to fear it, when they know that they're not protected.

Those of us with UPSes fear neither power outages nor thunderstorms. We do get irritated when power is out for more than a couple minutes (even with the computer running on battery, if the broadband service is out, you might as well call it a day), but a brief power outage, or a thunderstorm, only means the UPS gets to do its job. And a decent UPS does a very good job.

I was online a couple year ago when my neighborhood was treated to an intense display of lightning. Actual bolts of lightning, not just flashes of light, raced across the skies for several hours. I was downloading files most of the time, and thanks to my UPSes, I noticed not even a hiccup in the downloads. The UPSes kicked in briefly, quite a few times, but the computers, and the network, were unaffected.

I have a pair of passive UPSes, each costing about $100 each. They keep my main system up for about 10 minutes, and my secondary systems 5 minutes each, which is just enough time to close key programs, and enable hibernation. If I'm not home, my main system will hibernate automatically, while my secondary systems shut down. This is not a terribly sophisticated strategy, but it prevents data corruption, and preserves my drives from corruption too.

If the power flickers off then on, or if power spikes briefly (as in lightning strikes), in general, my systems don't notice a thing.

If I buy a decent desktop system for $1000 (OK, you could get a cheap one at Walmart for $500, but I wouldn't), I don't consider $100 for a UPS unreasonable. Considering the peace of mind I get from having one, it's a bargain.

If you can afford a computer, you should be able to afford a UPS. It's seriously cost effective.