Random drops on ethernet and wifi Mint 18 on HP Pavilion laptop

johnbbruce · 11-13-2016, 09:40 AM

I plug in the computer to the ethernet cable after turning off the wifi.

Sometimes it works and sometimes doesn't.

It shows I'm connected but does not go to my home page. Says server not found.

I restart and then try wifi. We have three channels.

All of them connect but the ones with the strongest signals usually say server not found.

More often than not it is the weakest wifi channel that works.

Any ideas what might be going on?

What can I do to make this trouble go away?

ferrari · 11-14-2016, 02:22 AM

Welcome to LXQ johnbruce.

Quote:

I plug in the computer to the ethernet cable after turning off the wifi.

Sometimes it works and sometimes doesn't.

This description is a bit vague. What you need to do once connected is check that you have an IP address assigned to the ethernet address, a default route (pointing at your router), and a valid domain name server assigned for host resolution. These commands are relevant here

Code:

ip addr

Code:

ip route

Code:

grep "nameserver" /etc/resolv.conf

Can you reach an internet-connected host by IP address (eg google DNS)?

Code:

ping 8.8.8.8

or by domain name?

Code:

ping google.com

Your browser may need to be restarted if changing networks. Sometimes, stale cookies and/or cache can be at play.

ferrari · 11-14-2016, 02:28 AM

Quote:

I restart and then try wifi. We have three channels.

All of them connect but the ones with the strongest signals usually say server not found.

More often than not it is the weakest wifi channel that works.

If you're in a wifi-congested environment, interference may be the culprit. Stronger signals don't necessarily translate to good quality of service if noise (from unwanted signals) is present. A wireless scan will show what else you may be contending with. Sometimes it is necessary to change router AP frequency. Do other wifi-connected devices suffer from the same issue?

sundialsvcs · 11-15-2016, 08:15 AM

Also, definitely look at logfiles e.g. in /var/log for clues.