Livebox losing internet connection

[nomoss]

Starting around midday today, my Orange Livebox has been continually losing its Internet access.

The green lights all go off, and after a while it begins its normal startup procedure.

Sometimes it successfully reconnects for a second or two, then the red @ light starts flashing rapidly, and the whole procedure repeats.

I switched it off once, and unplugged and reconnected the (3) connectors between the wall plug and the box before switching it on again. This produced a quick restart, but it dropped out again after a minute or two.

I haven't called Orange yet, as occasional losses of service are usually due to a problem they are aware of, which is quickly remedied, and I think the problem may be due to heavy use by people forced to stay at home.

It's been on for several minutes now, so maybe people are stopping using their computers and settling down to their Netflix etc.

Is anyone else experiencing similar problems?

[Gardian]

Yes - we’re with SFR.

It’s working OK, but quite regularly a ‘blip’ which mucks up an email.

It’s down to the amount of traffic just now, something we have to live with. TBH, I’m surprised that it has stayed as ‘up’ as it has.

[nomoss]

Thanks Gardian.

It works great at night[:D]

[Lehaut]

Have you to checked to see if there is a (phone) app available to give live updates on the state of their network? I have one for Free (who we are with) it gives real time info of where there is a problem. I know that Orange do/did an online update site but not much use if your actual internet is down!

[nomoss]

[quote user="Lehaut"]Have you to checked to see if there is a (phone) app available to give live updates on the state of their network? I have one for Free (who we are with) it gives real time info of where there is a problem. I know that Orange do/did an online update site but not much use if your actual internet is down![/quote]

Thanks, but apps don't work too well on my Nokia 3330.

[NickP]

nomoss, we had the same problem, yesterday, the first time since having orange it dropped out. I unplugged the mains plug switched it back on and it restarted. That occurred around 1.00 pm.

[nomoss]

I was on line at about 0800 today with no problems, but the Livebox became a deadbox, apart from a few flashing lights, at about 0930. It returned fairly quickly, but has been occasionally dropping out for short periods since then.

There is a web site to report problems here: https://downdetector.fr/ , but it doesn't give any useful information I can see.

[nomoss]

Still struggling with a connection which continually drops off between about 2 and 7 pm, usually in the middle of doing something.

My guess is that this is a result of trying to run a modern system on an antiquated infrastructure.

The wires supplying our house seem to be a length of ancient indoor cable, coming up somewhere from a large box in the street, draped along the front of three other houses and buried in several layers of crépi. It must have been there for many years.

It was once the telephone line for the defunct shop next door, which shares our grenier.

I applied for a line when we moved here, and the technician who came found it, and insisted on using it, in spite of my telling him it was not mine.

Using the broadband system available here is analogous to trying to run a TGV on narrow gauge rails.

[suein56]

Nomoss wrote : Still struggling with a connection which continually drops off between about 2 and 7 pm, usually in the middle of doing something.

My guess is that this is a result of trying to run a modern system on an antiquated infrastructure.

Reading the details you give ref the cabling (not even your very own) for your adsl connection it seems hardly surprising that you struggle normally.

And even less surprising today considering what is happening in Orange areas of low delivery of adsl by ancient lines. It seems the length of cable between you and your nearest 'exchange' is probably long; too long fir today's usage.

If it's any consolation (probably not) Orange is struggling with the sheer amount of home usage since the lockdown and it is areas such as yours which are suffering the most.

Once people stop 'homeworking' around 6pm or so then your signal possibly improves a bit.

Our connection is 6 megathistles at best but, at times during the earlyish morning and at random moments during the day, the wifi drops completely. It becomes completely irritating as it always seems to happen just when you really need it to work.

I see you do not have a smartphone .. so does that mean that your mobile signal is also poor ?

Too poor to support 4G ?

[nomoss]

I tried to argue with the no doubt highly qualified (for these parts) technician that the quality of the cable and the distance to the "big box" were inadequate, but I guess that he, like the people ERDF send around, are working on a pretty poor fixed rate for each job.

Regarding the 4G signal, I think this is good, as there is a relay mast almost within sight. I was supplied with a, presumably 4G, "Airbox" to temporarily replace my "Livebox" which worked very well, when the local yokels employed by the consell dug up and destroyed a section of telephone cable when they were doing their regular hole digging exercises.

However, I normally manage very well with the ADSL provided, and have no intention of buying another phone. I normally only switch on the one I have when I go somewhere, or to receive a transaction code from the bank.

I find it hard to believe there is a vast amount of home working going on around here, as the normal rate of work can, at best, be described as leisurely. More likely people are watching more TV and playing more games through their connections.

[suein56]

Nomoss wrote : I find it hard to believe there is a vast amount of home working going on around here, as the normal rate of work can, at best, be described as leisurely. More likely people are watching more TV and playing more games through their connections.

You are most probably right ??

However it is the overall reduction in megathistles to the general populace that is in play here .. a tad like EDF rationing 'their' electricity to the nether regions, ie us in Brittany, during a really hard, cold winter.

OH and I struggled for a couple of years with our electric output until a really knowledgeable guy sorted us out some years ago .. rare as hen's teeth his type as he was working on piece-work sorting out problems for EDF during the beginning of the Linky installations.

If you are happy with what you normally have then fair enough.

If not then ditching the Livebox, and buying for approx 50€ your very own modem, and inputting a sim card will give you access to the internet at whatever speed your 4G delivers in your area. SFR offers 60 GO per month for 12€ a month .. you plug in your home phone to the phone port in the back of the modem and you can make and receive calls in France and to all the 100s of countries available. Calls to French mobiles included too.

But if you are happy with what you have ..

[Lehaut]

Adding to what sue says, our youngest has just got a "free" modern phone with Free - (Oppo A5 2020 model, 2 year contract). He pays 19.99 a month for 100Gb of data. 4G here is 30 down, 5 up. Setting up a WiFi hotspot with it is easy. So the technology is available.

But if you are happy with what you have..

[nomoss]

Thanks, both.

Another factor deciding me to continue with my present Orange contract, and two antiquated mobile phones on €2-monthly Free contracts, is that the mobile contracts are so cheap, we rarely use more than the small free limits on them, and the Orange Livebox contract, which we have had since 2014, gives us free calls to fixed and mobile phones in most parts of the world.

The Orange contract we have is no longer available. They often send us offers to change it, which look cheaper at first sight, but when I compare the costs we are better off with what we have.

This is important, as our son lives in Denmark, our daughter in New Zealand, and we have many relatives and friends around the world, who we can chat with for as long as we wish, without charges.

[suein56]

Nomoss if you buy your own router and use a new SIM card in it .. eg SFR at 12€ a month for 60Gb of data .. this will replace your Livebox.

In addition it frees you from using the decrepit telephone cables you have as it simply plugs into any electric socket and relies for its signal on receiving 4G from SFR.

This signal then gives you access to the Internet up to the data limit of the simcard you have chosen.

Certain routers have a port so you can plug in your home phone and use that to make and receive calls inclusively as you do now with Orange.

You can still call 100 plus countries as with Orange and you can usually ring mobiles inclusively too.

The main downside is you will lose your present Orange Tel number as the number you pass through will be the mobile number of the SIM card.

The other downside is you have to buy your own router .. about 50€ or so.

There was a long thread about this a year or so back .. I'll try and find it.

Edit: depending on your accessability to 4G you could have download speeds of 30 - 70 mbps instead of the low speed you have now.

[suein56]

Martin 963 made the swap from a telephone cable Livebox to a 4G router a couple of years ago .. here is what he said at the time.

Edit : found the link :

http://services.completefrance.com/forums/completefrance-forums/cs/forums/2/3636682/ShowPost.aspx#3636682

Quote : Martin 963

The Huawei mentioned has an RJ11 jack on the back, into which you can plug a conventional phone - eg basic, DECT, whatever, the same sort of phone that you would plug into a landline jack, just it needs an RJ11. That done, you can use the plugged in phone/DECT to make calls via the router that are actually made via the SIM phone/data card, so to the other end it looks as though you're calling from a mobile. In the case of these good-value French offers it means that the calls are almost always free (apart from foreign mobiles) anywhere in Europe.

Sorry if this is obvious, but for those like us (particularly SWMBO) who like the familiarity and ease-of-location of an "ordinary" phone, we now have the best of all worlds. SWMBO is largely unaware that when the phones in the house ring they're using the SIM card, and she can dial out in similar manner. Because the SIM card is in a router rather than in a moving-about-all-over-the-place-mobile, the quality of the calls is superb, no digital artefacts. And for those of us who aren't really used to mobiles anyway, there's no hunting around for the tiny wretched thing, which could be anywhere in the house....

I gather that for old people in homes this is an increasingly used solution. Buy a simple SIM card, a Huawei or similar, and an "old fashioned" phone, and to the old person the net result is the familiar feel of a landline, but one that can be moved (say in the case of a weekend away, change of room, change of home) with absolutely no need for a physical landline.

[nomoss]

I am slightly wary of getting involved with SFR again, after problems I had with them over some years, and the difficulties of cancelling my contract with them. I also found their customer service abominable, whereas with Orange, I can go into their shop in Carcassonne if I can't sort things out by phone.

The SFR 60GB offer https://www.sfr.fr/offre-mobile/forfait-60go-4g-plus is the lowest price offering "appels illimités"  and now costs 20€ per month, but if added to the panier, the offer is seen to actually cost another €12, and to increase to 35€ after 12 months.

It does not list any countries, so "illimité" sounds too good to be true, especially as it doesn't mention foreign mobiles. That is important for us, as our son, in Denmark, only uses mobiles at home and at work. The list of countries probably only appears after getting a contract.

The offer also seems to be tied to buying a phone from them? Information is scarce on their site, and lack of information prior to becoming an SFR customer when they took over my Tele2 contract caused most of our problems with them. Although I probably didn't thoroughly read the pages of conditions, unexpected costs popped up when I began to cancel the agreement.

I have just seen your post showing Martin's experience, which sounds very appealing.

I understand the idea, but I am still wary of SFR's offer, especially as he says:

"calls are almost always free (apart from foreign mobiles) anywhere in Europe"

I just checked our data usage. This shows only 11.42 GB for the last 30 days, so 60 GB could be more than adequate, but I'm not sure if that is typical, as I have been doing little besides using email and looking at forums since the confinement started.

Sorry about the long post.

[suein56]

Sorry to harp on about SFR .. you could use any mobile network you like .. Bouygues, Free whichever has the strongest signal in your area.

This isn't replacing your Orange package with an another Internet/mobile package.

It would be you buying a router which takes a SIM card ..

The idea takes some getting used to .. no connection to a fixed phone line .. all Internet and calls come via the SIM card .. a bit like when you put your Free SIM in your mobile phone .. the SIM card offer gives you access to the Internet (if you have a smart phone) and to calls.

But instead of putting the SIM in a phone you put it in a router .. and access the WiFi of the router via your tablet, your laptop or your computer .. or all of them at once as the signal you receive should be stronger than the signal from Orange ADSL via the phone line.

I'm not good at explaining .. I try and find an easy to understand link.

[Martin963]

On the contrary Sue,  you've explained it very well.  You should get a marketing job with one of the operators!  The only thing I'd say is that I think technically it's a 4G "modem-router",  the modem is the bit that communicates with the telephone network and the router is the bit that communicates with the computer/wifi etc at home.

As we're back in England now I'm not as in touch with things as I was,   but I think the reason the price goes up in the panier is that they charge you a one-off for the SIM card.   I don't think either SFR Red or Sosh (we had both) allow free calls from France to mobiles abroad,  the unlimited calls are only to European landlines,  so I think it rules out the Denmark mobile idea.   Once you are abroad (ie outside France) then you DO get free calls to European mobiles,  because of the way "roaming" works.   But that's no good in your (nomoss's)case.

That said,  for the last couple of years that we had the house in France 4G via SFR Red and/or Sosh revolutionised our internet,   with the benefit of free calls thrown in,  at a fraction of the price that FT/Orange had been charging us for a lousy service on the landline.   If only 4G had appeared years ago....

We brought the modem-routers home with us and they give us (mostly unnecessary) back-up for BT fibre,  one on "Three" and the other on Tesco;  even though we live in a part of Devon that is as rural as where we were in France,  we have our own BT fibre box for the eighteen dwellings in our village,   with speeds of 70 Mbps.   We gather that our "former" village in France still hasn't got even a date for fibre,  still no doubt struggling with the 0.5 Mbps ADSL that we had to put up with until 4G came along.

[nomoss]

Sorry if my post wasn't clear. I did understand the concept of using a router with a 4G SIM, but had reservations about the usefulness of the offer for us.

The reason I wondered if the SIM card is available without also buying a phone is that I didn't see anything on the SFR site to confirm that it is, and I got the impression I had to buy one.

I realise that there is a one-off extra charge added, but I object to prices being added to or changed after starting the purchase process. I usually stop any transaction immediately if this happens, as I take it as an indication of the integrity of the seller. The information about the places to which free calls are available is also, probably deliberately, vague and subject to interpretation of the punctuation.

I mentioned previously that I was supplied with a 4G router when our underground telephone cable was severely damaged. It did not have adequate reception in my office, where my PC is, although my mobile phone works there, so had to be put in the grenier.

The next problem was that it only had wireless connection, which my PC does not have, so I had to use the old laptop which I bought for checking emails and hotel bookings when travelling, but which does not have all the information stored on my PC.

I used USB wireless adapters on two PCs to connect to an SFR box some time ago, which caused endless connection problems, so not keen on that route again.

I suppose more reliable wireless adapters are available, and I could probably install one in my PC, but I'm wary of solutions that add a further layer of complexity to anything.

I'm also not really sure what I should buy, and what would work with my motherboard.

It's about 4 years since I built the present PC, and I wasn't totally au fait with what I was doing then, and I'm getting to where I don't want to learn anything new if I can avoid it.

[suein56]

Martin963 wrote : As we're back in England now I'm not as in touch with things as I was ..

Oh gosh, Martin .. how lovely to hear from you ?

I saw that you hadn't been posting recently but did not realise that you and yours had moved to the UK .. and to delightful Devon .. how splendid ?

Yes here things connectivity-wise continue to move exceedingly slowly .. it is v much like watching paint dry .. only slower.

Delighted to hear that all goes well in the UK .. bravo ?

[Martin963]

Thanks suei56.  I've PM'd you.

[suein56]

Message rec'd .. will reply asap ?