Why When I Unplug and Plug in My Wifi Again It Goes Faster

The internet is down, but you know what to do: unplug your router or modem, await ten seconds, and so plug it back in. It'due south 2d nature at this point, but why does it actually work? And is there some magic to the ten second number?

And the even bigger question: is there some fashion you tin can cease doing this?

Routers can feel mysterious, merely they're not. And if yous know what's going wrong, you can ordinarily solve the trouble.

Your Router Is a Computer

You might non think of information technology this way, but your router is a calculator. Inside that plastic box is a CPU, retention, and local storage, all running an operating system. And similar a computer, things tin get wrong from fourth dimension to time. Mayhap a problems is causing a retentiveness leak, perchance the CPU is overheating, or mayhap a full blown kernel panic has taken down the entire organisation.

What'southward the simplest gear up for these sorts of reckoner problems? Turning information technology on and off once more.

RELATED: Why Does Rebooting a Calculator Fix Then Many Problems?

Your router is the aforementioned: every reason rebooting a calculator can solve issues applies. Simply like on your reckoner, you're not actually solving whatever is causing the router to crash, but you are allowing information technology to run properly over again.

Sure, this doesn't set up systematic problems, but it generally solves things in the short term.

Practice You Really Need to Wait x Seconds?

That answers why unplugging helps, just why do yous need to unplug for 10 or 30 seconds? Well, have you e'er unplugged a gadget but to run into the power indicator low-cal stay on for a few seconds? In that location'southward a reason that happens, and it's connected to our answer here.

Almost electronics make liberal use of capacitors, which are basically tiny batteries. You've seen these before if you've always taken apart a figurer or gadget.

They don't store a lot of energy, merely can at times have but plenty to keep a memory chip running for a few seconds. Waiting x seconds ensures that every capacitor is fully drained, and thus every bit of memory is cleared. This ensures that all the settings on your router are actually reset, including anything that might accept acquired the crash in the first place.

Equally we've established, at that place are multiple reasons your router might need to be reset. Not all of these issues volition require a 10 second discharge, which is why some problems tin be solved without the await. If you're troubleshooting a new trouble, nevertheless, the ten 2d expect might be the departure between working and not working.

What Causes Routers to Crash?

As with whatever piece of hardware, there are all sorts of potential reasons your router might crash and require a restart. Here are a few potential reasons:

• Run-of-the-mill crashes. As a reckoner, your router tin crash because of bugs in the firmware eating upwards too much retentivity or causing a kernel panic.
• IP Address conflicts. Your router manages both individual and public IP address, and sometimes it messes up. If ii devices on your network have the aforementioned IP address, or if your router doesn't have an up-to-date public IP address, your connection might intermission. Restarting the router resets these IP assignments so things tin can outset working again.
• Overheating. Like any estimator, your router can overheat—especially if you proceed it in an enclosed space to hibernate it from view—causing it to crash.

There are more than potential reasons, just these are the most mutual. And there are a few relatively unproblematic solutions for them.

1 Solution: Update Your Firmware

When your computer has persistent bugs, a software solution is frequently the fix. The same goes for your router: information technology needs updates too.

RELATED: How to Ensure Your Home Router Has the Latest Security Updates

We've outlined how to update your router in the past, so nosotros won't re-hash that here. But the process isn't every bit hard equally you think: you lot typically just demand to open your web browser, type your router'southward IP accost, and find the Update button.

If at that place's a documented reason your router keeps crashing, a firmware update should hopefully gear up it. Give it a shot.

Some other Solution: Check for Overheating

Computers crash when they overheat, and your router is the same way. If it feels hot when yous unplug, consider trying to solve for estrus.

Your router likely has vents; ensure that they aren't covered upwardly, simply like you do for your computer. If your router is total of dust, consider cleaning it out with some compressed air.

RELATED: The Easiest Way to Fix Wi-Fi Issues: Move Your Router (Seriously)

It'southward likewise a good idea to sure your router is out in the open up, non in a small cabinet surrounded by other electronics. I know, routers are ugly, but they actually need to be out in the open—information technology'll help with estrus management and give you better indicate range, then it'south really win-win.

A Temporary Solution: Automatically Reboot Your Router

In the meantime, while you lot're trying to troubleshoot the problem, you lot can solve some of your rebooting woes by rebooting your router on a schedule—that way, hopefully, you'll need to do it manually less frequently.

RELATED: How to Automatically Reboot Your Router On a Schedule, the Like shooting fish in a barrel Way

You have a few options here. You could stick your router on a run-of-the-mill outlet timer, which volition cut the ability at a time you lot specify, and let the power menstruum again at a fourth dimension you lot specify. That fashion, you can ready the router to reboot once or twice a day to keep things moving.

If you're a flake more of an intrepid geek, you tin set a script to run on your router that reboots information technology occasionally, accomplishing the same thing.

Again, this isn't a true solution, but it is a nice hack-y workaround that'll continue you from having to reboot it manually all the time…at least until you lot discover a real solution.

If All Else Fails, Go a New Router

RELATED: Why Yous Should Upgrade Your Router (Even If Y'all Have Older Gadgets)

If none of this helps, it may be time to seize with teeth the bullet and upgrade to a new router. Simply similar a computer that wont' end having problems, sometimes it'southward simply time to move on. You'll remove a piece of hardware that is constantly breaking from your life, and you'll go access to all kinds of new features. Seriously: wireless technology has come a long mode in the by few years, so if you're using something a bit older, yous'll definitely get your money's worth past upgrading to something more modern anyway.

And you won't need to exercise the unplug-wait-replug ritual anymore.

Photo credit: Casezy idea/Shutterstock.com,  Danny Iacob/Shutterstock.com

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Source: https://www.howtogeek.com/165110/do-i-really-have-to-unplug-my-cable-modem-for-at-least-10-seconds/

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