Today I decided to talk about one not very popular problem that is sometimes encountered when setting up a Wi-Fi router. The situation is this: we install a Wi-Fi router, configure it, the Internet works on all devices, both by cable and by Wi-Fi. But when we turn off a stationary computer (or even a laptop), which is connected to the router via a network cable, then the Internet connection is lost on all devices. That is, there is a connection to a Wi-Fi network, but the Internet does not work. It turns out that the router distributes the Internet only when the stationary computer is turned on. Turn off the PC, the router stops distributing the Internet.
I must say right away that this should not be so. A router is an independent device, it distributes the Internet without connecting to any device, and does not depend on computers in any way. If you have the problem described above, then the matter is most likely in the wrong configuration of the Wi-Fi router. It is in setting up a connection to an Internet service provider (WAN).
The Internet through a router does not work after turning off the computer
1 Most likely you have an internet connection via PPPoE, or PPTP. This is the whole point. To connect to the Internet, you need to run a high-speed connection on your computer. The connection itself goes through a username and password. And the problem is that after installing the router, you continue to start this connection. And this is not necessary, I will explain now.The connection that was configured on your computer does not need to be started after installing the router. This connection must be configured on the router, this is a very important point! That is, in the settings of the router, you must select the type of connection and set the necessary parameters for connecting to the Internet. When the router itself establishes a connection to the provider, it will distribute the Internet to all your devices, including the computer via cable. You can delete the broadband connection on your computer.
I already wrote about a similar problem in the article When setting up a router, I write "Without access to the Internet."
And again: the main thing is to set the correct parameters for connecting to an Internet provider. If you do not know where to specify these settings on your router, then see the instructions for configuring the router. You can look at our website, on this page https://help-wifi.com/instrukcii-po-nastrojke-routerov/. Basically, these settings need to be set on the "WAN" or "Internet" tab. This is how these settings look on a TP-Link router:
If anything, ask in the comments, I will try to help with advice.
2 There is a problem with the MAC address. This is another reason why the router may stop distributing the Internet after turning off the computer. Here you need to know for sure whether your ISP is binding by MAC address. You can check with the provider's support.If there is a MAC binding, then there are already two options:
- Call the support of your Internet provider and ask to register a new MAC address. Your router's address. It is indicated on the router itself, on a sticker. With some providers, you can do it yourself, through your personal account.
- And the second one is to clone the MAC address on the router from the computer to which the Internet was connected. You can do this yourself in the router settings. But, you must connect the router to the computer whose MAC address you want to clone. I wrote in more detail about this in the article How to clone (change) the MAC address of a router, and how to find out the MAC address?
Conclusions
Perhaps there are some other reasons why the operation of the router may depend on the computer. But, I think that first of all it is a wrong router configuration. That is, when an Internet connection is launched on a computer, then the Internet is, of course, on the router. When the computer is turned off, the Internet on the router disappears, and it does not undress it. It's simple.
If you still have questions on the topic of this article, then ask them in the comments. Good luck!
