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I just spent $400 on a new Netgear Nighthawk router
I just spent $400 on a new Netgear Nighthawk router only to find out it has the same problem as the old out of service RAX43 router. If it’s a Windows issue, I don’t think MS is too interested in ...
StephenB wrote:
Please stick with one discussion thread.
Part of the puzzle here is why the connection is dropping. Some PCs (particularly laptops) will power down their network hardware during periods of inactivity. Is the connection dropping when you are actively using the PC? Or is it happening when you step away for a while?
I don’t know what happened to the original thread. But replies for that thread have been turned off. The connection dropping happens very randomly with no definable pattern. Sometimes when I am actively using it and other times when it’s just sitting idle. Sometimes after 20 minutes of use and other times the connection is good for an hour. The connection gets dropped whether I map the drive or delete all drive mapping. After the connection is dropped, trying to connect using the IP Address doesn’t work. I have been able to reconnect by manually changing the IP Address of the disconnected PC and also by switching from a wireless connection to a wired connection. Probably, this begins a new session. I can’t pinpoint exactly when the session dropping began, but it was sometime after the Windows 11 24H2 update. I am now updated to 25H2. My new router is a Nighthawk RS600 updated to the latest firmware. It isn’t just puzzling, it’s frustrating.
After the connection is dropped, trying to connect using the IP Address doesn’t work. I have been able to reconnect by manually changing the IP Address of the disconnected PC and also by switching from a wireless connection to a wired connection.
If it drops again, try running CMD and entering net use * /d /y Then see if you can map the share to a drive letter.
If that also works, you can create a script that executes that command and then remaps the share. Not a fix, but could reduce the frustation.
The connection dropping happens very randomly with no definable pattern. Sometimes when I am actively using it and other times when it’s just sitting idle. Sometimes after 20 minutes of use and other times the connection is good for an hour.
That sounds unlikely to be related to the PC power settings. Still, that is something easy to check.
Open the Windows Device Manager, find your network adapter in the list and right-click it. If there is a Power Management Tab, then go there, and make sure "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power" is NOT checked.
Another test you could run is to connect a thumb drive to the router instead of the T5. That would determine if the problem is drive compatibility. The power spec on your T5 is 800 mA. Per the USB 3.0 spec, the USB port on the router is supposed to be able to deliver 900 mA, so a bit more than the spec'd drive max. Still, there might be some situations where the drive briefly draws more power than the port can deliver. If the drive then briefly goes off-line, the router might drop the connection.
If you see the same symptoms with the thumb drive, then that would rule out the T5 as a possible cause.