D-Link wireless router question

Posted:
in Current Mac Hardware edited January 2014
I bought one a few months ago, and now at least once a day it stops transmitting and I have to go upstairs and unplug it for 1-5 minutes to get it to start sending a signal again. Is this a "less than great" brand, or did I just get a lemon? It's getting extremely aggravating. Today, it quit right in the middle of a surfing session...the "dlink" network just disappeared. I'm about ready to smash the damn thing, but thought I'd ask here first.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 14
    I've been experiencing the same problems with my D-Link (DI-514) wireless router. Normally a simple unplugging/replugging of the router would do the trick but recently my aiport extreme card isn't finding my home network. I read reports of D-Link routers not agreeing with a mac setup but my system worked flawlessly for a year. The only bit of troubleshooting advice I could give would be to test out another wireless machine on your network (a friend's laptop) to see whether the issue stems from your wireless router OR your airport card.



    Cheers
  • Reply 2 of 14
    Thanks for the response, and glad to hear I'm not losing my mind. It's not the mac, since we have two iMacs runnning on the network, one upstairs and one downstairs. They both "go out" at the same time. Just today, every time I left the house the network was gone by the time I got back, and I had to leave the ****ing thing unplugged for several minutes before the transmit light on the router came on. I wonder if it's getting hot?
  • Reply 3 of 14
    Either of you guys got a wireless video sender or anything thats transmitting at 2.4 GHz?
  • Reply 4 of 14
    slugheadslughead Posts: 1,169member
    I had a similar problem with d-link. Otherwise, I've had very good luck with them.



    Maybe a firmware update will fix the problem?
  • Reply 5 of 14
    voxappsvoxapps Posts: 236member
    Consumer routers have been cost-reduced to the point of absurdity, the result being inconsistent performance and poor reliability.



    Before you sack your D-Link, try changing its default channel. You might be experiencing interference either from inside your residence or from a nearby neighbor. A 2.4 GHz wireless phone or microwave oven is all it takes to knock a weak router off the air.



    Channels 1, 6, or 11 are the usual default channels for routers. Many cordless phones default to channel 1, so try a higher channel. My neighborhood is full of networks on those channels, so I've had good luck on channel 3.



    You might also try setting the router to transmit on 802.11"b" only. Even though "b" is slower than "g", it is often more reliable and you'll probably only notice the difference if you transfer large files between your wireless Macs.
  • Reply 6 of 14
    jpenningtonjpennington Posts: 476member
    Several years ago d-link was the low end, but so was netgear. Now netgear surpasses linksys products in many wants.



    Cisco is the industry standard for business, their consumer brand is linksys. Stick with them.
  • Reply 7 of 14
    a_greera_greer Posts: 4,594member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by cuello del pollo

    I've been experiencing the same problems with my D-Link (DI-514) wireless router. Normally a simple unplugging/replugging of the router would do the trick but recently my aiport extreme card isn't finding my home network. I read reports of D-Link routers not agreeing with a mac setup but my system worked flawlessly for a year. The only bit of troubleshooting advice I could give would be to test out another wireless machine on your network (a friend's laptop) to see whether the issue stems from your wireless router OR your airport card.



    Cheers




    Same here...I replaced it with a Linksys WRT54G and it all works like a champ



    EDIT: I also had the same problems with the Dlink card that they recomended for that router...
  • Reply 8 of 14
    a_greera_greer Posts: 4,594member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by jpennington

    Several years ago d-link was the low end, but so was netgear. Now netgear surpasses linksys products in many wants.



    Cisco is the industry standard for business, their consumer brand is linksys. Stick with them.




    Great hardware on both Linksys and Cisco...but face it, the ONLY reasom folks buy Cisco is IOS...it is the best routing/switching platform out there but you do not get IOS on a Linksys...I recomend the linux firmware on a linksys if you want to really have fun (like getting all of the features in a $500 IOS image for a Cisco desktop router), but the Linksys firmware out of the box isnt bad
  • Reply 9 of 14
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Voxapps

    [B]



    Before you sack your D-Link, try changing its default channel. You might be experiencing interference either from inside your residence or from a nearby neighbor. A 2.4 GHz wireless phone or microwave oven is all it takes to knock a weak router off the air.



    How do you go about doing this? My router claims to be transmitting now, but the "dlink network" signal it's supposed to be putting out is nowhere to be found. I'm only able to post at the moment because I'm picking up my next door neighbor's network. \
  • Reply 10 of 14
    voxappsvoxapps Posts: 236member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Chris Fitzgerald

    How do you go about doing this? My router claims to be transmitting now, but the "dlink network" signal it's supposed to be putting out is nowhere to be found. I'm only able to post at the moment because I'm picking up my next door neighbor's network. \



    I've never used a D-Link router. However, it should have -in its Web interface- some settings for its wireless configuration. Somewhere in those settings should be one for "wireless channel", with a range of channels from 1 to 11 (in the USA). Often it's in a drop-down menu that's easy to change. It might require restarting the router for a change to become effective.
  • Reply 11 of 14
    halo1982halo1982 Posts: 42member
    Same problem with my DI-624 Rev. C, but I have it less frequently now that I'm just using it as a G-only access point....I'm using a 2Wire .11b/g wireless router/dsl modem for a router and then have the POS D-Link plugged into that, and then a gigabit switch plugged into the D-Link router...argh never buy a D-Link router, next purchase I make will be Linksys all the way!
  • Reply 12 of 14
    What about the Apple Airport base station? It that worth it? I'm going to try to change the channel, but if that doesn't work, I'll pitch it if they won't take it back and just not buy from them again. In that case, I'll be shopping soon...
  • Reply 13 of 14
    Quote:

    Originally posted by jpennington

    Several years ago d-link was the low end, but so was netgear. Now netgear surpasses linksys products in many wants.



    Cisco is the industry standard for business, their consumer brand is linksys. Stick with them.




    my linksys router goes out the same way as described. it hasn't done it too much since i took my macbook off the network, but i'd like to add it back to the network without the loss in connectivity.



    Just like Chris I would like to know about the Aiport extreme base station. Some things I'd like to know, can it share internet connection with wired pc/mac? It only has a wan link and one other link to connect to. Is this link/port for management purposes only? Can you connect to the internet through this port? If so, would it be possible to add a switch to that port to connect wired pc/macs?
  • Reply 14 of 14
    As per suggestion, I contacted D-link and a gentleman with a very thick accent informed me that all i needed to do when it stops transmitting is unplug it for 30 seconds, then plug it back in again. This seems to work like a charm...every ****ing day, sometimes two or three times a day. I have to say that this unit is one of the worst pieces of crap gear I've ever owned of any kind. I look forward to smashing it with a bat as soon as I replace it.



    Any recommendations for a better unit now that more time has gone by?
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