Router went funny after surge. Assuming the worst.

[pentium]

Well while I was away this summer it appears that our house fell victim to a surge and a power outage.
We lost a printer and more importantly, our WRT54G started acting up.
Pretty much the wired and wireless connections still work (you can see other systems and move still move stuff around the network) but the WAN port that the modem plugs into is acting up. It knows when the modem is connected but aside from one or two blips it will not communicate with the modem so now I am forced to used the cheesy integrated router/hub in the modem but I can't use it forever as Telus loaded it's custom interface into it (and the firmware from Siemens will not work) and aside from configuring the wi-fi, you can't do anything else (not even turn the firewall off or open ports) and that pretty much means goodbye remote login.

Anyways, I am wondering if reflashing the WRT54G with a newer firmware (as we have never updated the firmware in the thing) might cure the problem (assuming that it's because of a corrupt firmware loaded in the thing)
It's either that or go get a WAP54G and hook it up once I manage to get my Baystack gear.

[pentium]

Re: Router went funny after surge. Assuming the worst.

Well I flashed it with the latest firmware but still no dice.

[zandrax]

Re: Router went funny after surge. Assuming the worst.

Open it: I suspect something reated to the WAN connector (caps, coils, fuses) broke due to excessive stress.
Anyway are you sure only a power outrage happened? These damages may be connected to phone surges and spikes (such as a lightning hitting the nearest phone tower) as well.

Zandrax

[pentium]

Re: Router went funny after surge. Assuming the worst.

I opened the thing and saw no visual damage.
Well it happened at the same time my dads printer decided to go tits up and we did get a surge just before that.

[Newbie2]

Re: Router went funny after surge. Assuming the worst.

You'll have to manually test the electronic components inside your router, since many components fail without showing any visual damage.

Also, I would suggest you get a new router. The WRT54G is a pretty shitty router, my cousin has one and it loses its connection with his Internet connection everyday (he says he has to unplug the power and plug it back in).

[gonzo0815]

Re: Router went funny after surge. Assuming the worst.

Well, with the adequate firmware, a wrt54g is fore sure one of the best SOHO router available.
Nothing from Negear or D-link crap can stand it. Sure, the caps can fuck it up, but i think those disconnects are either from a wrong configuration / installation or simply a bad DSL / Cable modem or line.

Regarding the death WAN port, i think it is obviously, that this is a over voltage damage, which is probably hard to fix. I would test / replace the foil capacitors and the DSL transformer and may be the dsl coils if there is one (all at the WAN port AREA before the DSL transformer).
If it gets to the silicon parts, i would not bother to fix it.