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Forum Discussion
Router basically shuts down when internet fails
Recently there was an internet outage in my neighborhood. Logic dictates when this happens getting online is impossible. The local network, however, should remain unaffected. This is not the case. Mapped network drives become invisible. They can't even be access locally via FTP or any other way. What's more, if you open the browser and type 192.168.1.1 on the address bar, nothing comes up. To make matters worse, when the internet finally came back, I had to power cycle the router to make the network drives visible again.
There's got to be something wrong in the settings or elsewhere. I find it hard to believe that the simple fact that no internet is detected would cause the router to disable other functions and virtually shut down completely.
How do we fix this so I can be ready if and when my ISP acts up again?
10 Replies
Not really telling us what router you have?
Any ISP problems seen on the ISP service or modem will need to be taken up with the ISP first. Need to make sure there services and hardward are to spec and working well.
Yikes, I forgot the model number of the router. It an RAXE500 with the latest firmware.
This is not an ISP issue. My point is that if there's an outage, the router should continue to function normally, just without internet access. This isn't happening. It virtually shuts down.
A simple example. When the internet is down, watching a movie on Netflix is impossible. However, there are movies on a portable drive connected to the router's USB port. If I'm at home on the internal network, I see no reason why I shouldn't be able to view these movies. The fact that internet access isn't currently available is beside the point. That's the issue right there. What's more, even if you bring up 192.168.1.1, you get nothing.
Clearly this shouldn't be happening. How do we fix it before another outage comes along?
Would still need to know what brand and model# ISP modem/ONT you have.
What FW version is loaded currently?
What is the CAT# LAN cable being used between the modem and router? CAT6 UTP is recommended. If your modem is supporting of 2.5Gb or higher connection rates on it's WAN port, then CAT6A STP would be recommended.
What all devices do you have connected to the router?
Is Armor, Smart Parental or Traffic Meter controls enabled on the router?
Has a factory reset and setup from scratch been performed since last FW update?
I decided to come back here because the other day someone cut the ISP's cable and I was out of internet for several hours.
I don't think I made myself clear last time. I have 2 drives hooked up to both of the router's USB ports. Both are mapped with drive letters on Windows 11 and are accessible via FTP (locally using 192.168.1.1). Phones and other compatible devices can also be accessed locally using basically the same method. None of this works when the internet is down. Why not? All this is LOCAL. It shouldn't make any difference. It's as if the router just shuts down completely when no internet is detected.
Why does this happen and how can it be fixed? I've been reading something about putting the router in the AP mode until the internet returns. Will that solve the problem?
sudo-visudo wrote:I decided to come back here because the other day someone cut the ISP's cable and I was out of internet for several hours.
I don't think I made myself clear last time. I have 2 drives hooked up to both of the router's USB ports. Both are mapped with drive letters on Windows 11 and are accessible via FTP (locally using 192.168.1.1). Phones and other compatible devices can also be accessed locally using basically the same method. None of this works when the internet is down. Why not? All this is LOCAL. It shouldn't make any difference. It's as if the router just shuts down completely when no internet is detected.
Why does this happen and how can it be fixed? I've been reading something about putting the router in the AP mode until the internet returns. Will that solve the problem?
The router function of pulling data through the USB ports could very well be dependent on internet access. I have cameras, network assigned storage (through a local IP address), and other computers connected through my Netgear router. When my internet service goes down or I intentionally disconnect it, I have full access to/from all devices on my local network. This access is via either Ethernet or via Wi-Fi. My modem and Wi-Fi router are powered via an UPS.
My recommendation would be to ditch the drives connected via the router USB ports. Replace them with a network storage device connected to your network via Ethernet.
Thanks for all your help.
I ran a test by doing what you guys suggested. I now believe I was looking for the problem in the wrong place.
With my computers and phones still connected to the RAXE500, I unplugged the ISP's modem. Sure enough, I could access the USB drives and phones locally with no issues. It then occurred to me to reboot the computer and phone. Local connection was lost. In fact, on the top of the phone it said 5G and the Wifi handheld fan was nowhere in sight. It appears that when the devices boot up, it is they who shut the connection down when they don't detect internet and not the other way around. However, if you don't reboot them, they don't know the internet is down and continue acting as if nothing had happened.
Maybe one of you guys might want to try rebooting a phone or a Windows computer to see if you get the same results. If so, we know for sure this is the problem.
sudo-visudo wrote:Thanks for all your help.
I ran a test by doing what you guys suggested. I now believe I was looking for the problem in the wrong place.
With my computers and phones still connected to the RAXE500, I unplugged the ISP's modem. Sure enough, I could access the USB drives and phones locally with no issues. It then occurred to me to reboot the computer and phone. Local connection was lost. In fact, on the top of the phone it said 5G and the Wifi handheld fan was nowhere in sight. It appears that when the devices boot up, it is they who shut the connection down when they don't detect internet and not the other way around. However, if you don't reboot them, they don't know the internet is down and continue acting as if nothing had happened.
Maybe one of you guys might want to try rebooting a phone or a Windows computer to see if you get the same results. If so, we know for sure this is the problem.
With devices (Win 10 or 11 computers and Android mobile) connected to the LAN via Ethernet or Wi-Fi, have full access to LAN devices and router UI.
Disconnected the Ethernet cable at the back of the modem. Internet access indicator on the router went dark.
Confirmed access to LAN devices from Windows 10 computers (Ethernet and Wi-Fi connection) and Android mobile.
Restarted the Windows 10 computers and the Android devices. No change in access to the LAN devices. No problem establishing a connection to the Wi-Fi.
After restart, the Windows 11 computer had no issues with Ethernet connection to the LAN devices.
However, after restart, the Windows 11 computer would not establish a connection to the Wi-Fi when the router had no internet access. A surprise to me. There may be a setting buried somewhere in Windows 11 that controls this result.
Good question!
