Any IT experts out there? Home WIFI problems - Germany

I decided to come to my usually reliable source of info for random German issues...

After my fiance are thoroughly frustrated with Vodafone customer service after almost a month, perhaps someone here has some helpful advice. We have three laptops (U.S.). We ordered wifi from Vodafone and received their Easybox 602 router. Connected everything as instructed and laptop #1 was successfully connected....great. However, when laptop #2 is also connected, laptop #1 is 'disconnects.' - So, the goal is having all 'three' laptops connected at the same time.

I have done some Googling and found that it "could" be the wrong router...or that all three laptops are using the same IP address...or to switch a few settings, etc, etc, but nothing seems to work. After about oh, seven attempts at Vodafone's customer service each with a different set of instructions we have gotten nowhere. The last rep said our box was defective and they would send out a new one. - Of course the new one had the exact same problem. Finally, they promised to send someone to the house and after waiting half the day, we finally get a human on the phone only to tell us they never had us scheduled!? UGH!!

So, for all you IT experts out there, any constructive advice to get this problems resolved. I know it's not that difficult of a thing...I'll pay!!

Thanks

(At least getting the rant out helped a bit)

Definitely could be the IP address.

Check that the DHCP server is enabled on the router and that each of the laptops takes its IP address from the server.

Duplicate IP addresses will definately have the effect you described

Please let us know what IP addresses your computers and the router are using. The Difficultbox 602 should run on 192.168.2.1 by default, so your computers should have something like 192.168.2.10 for the first one, 192.168.2.11 for the second one, and 192.168.2.12 for the third one - one IP for each device in your network.

Be sure to set the same subnet mask everywhere (usually 255.255.255.0) and add for the Gateway and DNS server on each notebook the router's IP address (192.168.2.1).

Are the other notebooks able to connect to the router at all, is the WLAN stuff set correctly (usually WPA2 encryption)? You have to enter the encryption key of the router in each notebook.

If a 2nd laptop disconnects the 1st then its not an IP issue (As DHCP is almost always on by default).
It sounds like the OP installed the Vodafone software on all 3 Laptops.

The prob. being is that the software, prob sets-up its own PPPOE tunnel to the ISP, and as a normal standard only 1 PPPOE tunnel is
normally allowed. Thus the 1st Laptops connection drops when the 2nd laptop tries to establish a 2nd PPPOE session.

1. Remove the Vodafone software from all 3 Laptops.
2. Configure the router with your logon details.

The router should be the only device establishing PPPOE sessions. It opens 1 session and shares
it with all connected devices. Basically, what you have is a configuration problem.Try reading
the installation instruction again.

Good catch, Darkknight, that one he ought to check first indeed.

Best advice? Always buy your own router and never use the wankhouse software provided by the ISP.

Also, regardless of how good people may say they are, don't ever buy a bloody "fritzbox", because it is called a fritzbox. Never trust a company that names a product a fritzbox. Yuk yuk yuk yuk yukkity yukkity yuk. I mean seriously, did marketing sit down and actually fucking choose that name? Fritzbox? Really? The mind boggles. Fritzbox. Sounds like the name for an underground cellar room where you imprison your daughter.

So apart from the name of the device, whats ACTUALLY wrong with it? There not #1 in the EU DSL world fro nothing.
If they were so bad then companies like Deutsche Telekom, wouldn't OEM Some of their kit from AVM (The actual company name).

Who the fuck cares. It is called a FRITZBOX. Would you buy a car called a "wankstain"? No. You wouldn't. Would you go into a crowded bar, and order a beer called "gayboy sperm"? No.

Fritzbox.....

*shudder*

Hey don, they're playing your song!

That name clearly has a special meaning to don riina.
To me it say's that.. it is a...er.. BOX! proudly built by Fritz himself! All hail Fritz! ... For he is mighty! WTF.

WTF = What the Fritz?

FYI, according to my Webster's:
"on the fritz" = "not in working order"
"to fritz out" = "to become inoperable"

The above is confirmed by dict.cc
"to be on the fritz" = "kaputt sein, kurz vorm Abklappen sein"
"to go on the fritz" = "kaputtgehen"

This must all mean something or other...

I think your problem is that you have put your username and password (for your internet supplier) into each laptop instead of putting them into the router.

I recommend you pay a professional to come round and fix your network for you...

Save your money. Just hook up a laptop to the router and enter your username and password into it. Then delete them from the laptops and it should work.