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I have a small home network. - 1 unit of cable modem router (provided from ISP) cable modem router connected to home router by LAN cable - 1 unit of home dd-wrt router - a PC connected to home router by LAN - a NAS connected to home router by LAN - laptop wifi connected

I have been using this same setup for almost a year, and recently my internet connection is dropped almost every morning. At night I never turn off all my router, however I always turned off my PC.

To help with some clues, when the internet connection is not working: - PC to NAS by LAN, PC to both router by LAN connection is fine. - home router's wifi not emitting any internet, however cable modem router's wifi is emitting internet normally. - When I unplugged my PC lan cable from the back of home router, plug it into the back of cable modem router's plug, internet at my PC instantly became normal.

Therefore, I am sure that the problem is not at the cable modem router or ISP.

Usually, to get internet back to normal at my PC without directly connecting PC LAN cable to cable modem router, I had to move my 'lan cable from home router' from cable modem router plug1 into cable modem plug2, and then restart my home router. Then internet is back to normal.

How do I know what is the real problem in this situation?

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    It seems you already narrowed down the problem to your other router. If the problem persists in spite of successive reboots all is left to try is reset to defaults and reconfigure again if needed. If it doesn't solve the issue, replace that router.
    – user772515
    Mar 23, 2018 at 9:34
  • I have tried to reset to defaults in my home router. The problem persists. Also, I did not have sufficient networking knowledge to reconfigure my home router. Care to explain? Also, I wanted to know why did you ask me to replace my router despite my router functioning correctly (LAN is totally fine)? Can a router be deemed damaged if it's LAN capability is totally fine meanwhile internet connection is dropped intermittenly?
    – Sbrunei
    Mar 24, 2018 at 2:32
  • That's a whole lot of additional questions. Too much for a comment. I'll post a tentative answer later.
    – user772515
    Mar 24, 2018 at 2:50

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
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The troubleshooting results, as described, suggest the ISP's router has been consistently working as expected whereas yours has been disconnecting the WiFi for no apparent reason:

home router's wifi not emitting any internet, however cable modem router's wifi is emitting internet normally

Then, from comments:

I have tried to reset to defaults in my home router. The problem persists.

Hardware failures in home routers are arguably rare but something working as intended for almost a year suddenly disconnecting and the problem recurring after reboots makes it more likely, at the very least, to have a problem with the WiFi radio. A "part" can fail without affecting others. WiFi and WAN can fail and the LAN hub be OK, or the other way around, or any other combination. Overheating and/or bulging capacitors can cause all sorts of intermittent problems.

Additional troubleshooting recommended for DD-WRT:

If the problem persists after this with the same settings that worked for you before, consider replacing that router.

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  • I think you missed some important points from my question.
    – Sbrunei
    Mar 24, 2018 at 7:41
  • My home router is not disconnecting wifi, rather, my home router is repeatedly losing 'internet connectivity'. And so, it is not able to transmit internet from it's LAN port and/or it's wireless signals. My home router still emits wifi signals perfectly (with no internet), and it still gives LAN connections to my devices perfectly (with no internet). So the Lan hub, I'd confidently say is OK. And I'd confidently say it's WiFi is not failing. I have read somewhere, are there any possibilities this have to do with double DHCP server? Should I disable my DHCP server in my home router?
    – Sbrunei
    Mar 24, 2018 at 7:46
  • How should I configure (home router) settings -> advanced routing ? there are choices such as: Gateway, BGP, RIP2 Router, OSPF Router, OLSR Router, vtysh Router, Router.
    – Sbrunei
    Mar 24, 2018 at 7:52
  • "WiFi not emitting" means "radio off" in my dictionary. Next time try a better, unequivocal, description of the problem. Anyway, the troubleshooting is the same. Also you said it worked for almost a year so, use the same settings?!? All you're asking additionally could be in another question where you describe the specific hardware, intended usage and the purpose of the second router.
    – user772515
    Mar 24, 2018 at 9:43
  • Forgive me if you misunderstood what I tried to explain, english is not my mother tongue, and networking is not my forte. Can you elaborate "the troubleshooting is the same?" ? Do you mean I still have to buy a new router eventhough my router has no problem with LAN hub, Wifi signals, and simply unplug&replug my router connection to cable modem router's another plug would temporarily solve the problem?
    – Sbrunei
    Mar 25, 2018 at 6:53

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