CONNECTIVITY ISSUES
CONNECTIVITY ISSUES
PC unable to access the Internet?
Can’t print?
Unable to access data from the network?
These issues generally happen at the worst possible time.
Read below to see how to quickly troubleshoot this issue yourself!
BONUS: Understand the logic behind the steps at the bottom of this email.
YOUR PC CAN NOT ACCESS THE INTERNET OR INTERNAL NETWORK
You come in Monday morning, or after a vacation and “nothing works” – your computer turns on, but you are unable to access the internet or the local network – what do you do?
STEP ONE:
Every office has their own configuration, but the first step would be to reboot your computer.
STEP TWO:
If you are still having connectivity issues…
► If you are on a wired network … try to trace the wire from your PC to the wall and make sure both sides are properly plugged in. (We recommend unplugging and re-plugging in the one wire, just to confirm that it is all the way in.)
► If you are on a wireless network … (1) Confirm that you are connected to the correct network. (2) Confirm you have a good/strong WiFi signal to the router. (3) Ask to see if others are able to connect to the WiFi network (to see if the issue is your computer or the router is having an issue)
STEP THREE:
Confirm you are:
► Logged in as the correct user
► No filter, anti-virus, firewall alerts are popping up
STEP FOUR:
Call for assistance.
UNABLE TO PRINT?
You are connected to the Internet, you may even see the printer … but you can’t print! What do you do?
STEP ONE:
Reboot your computer and printer
STEP TWO:
► If your printer is plugged directly into your computer… unplug and re-plug both ends of the USB cable. You should hear a sound when it connects again.
► If the printer is a wired network printer… ask if others are able to connect to the printer. If others have the same issue, it’s a printer/network issue – make sure the printer cables are properly connected. If no one else is having the issue, then it is on your end.
► If the printer is a WiFi printer…ask if others are able to connect to the printer. If others have the same issue, it’s a printer/network issue – try to determine if laptops/cell phones are able to connect to the same WiFi network. If no one else is having the issue, then it is on your end.
STEP THREE:
Call for assistance.
UNABLE TO ACCESS OTHER COMPUTERS/SERVERS LOCALLY?
You are in the office, the computer is working fine, it’s just that you can’t access other drives/computers/servers from your computer – what do you do?
STEP ONE:
Reboot your computer
STEP TWO:
Ask if others are able to connect.
► If others are unable to connect, it’s a server side issue.
(1) Confirm the server is on, and connected to the network
(2) Double click on the network drive on your computer (sometimes the “red X” does not mean anything)
► If others can connect, it’s an issue on your end.
STEP THREE:
Call for assistance.
UNABLE TO ACCESS OTHER COMPUTERS/SERVERS VIA A REMOTE CONNECTION?
When working remotely and you are unable to access data from your office – what do you do?
STEP ONE:
Reboot your computer
STEP TWO:
Attempt to re-establish connection with your office
STEP THREE:
Call your office, to confirm they are able to access the data internally
STEP FOUR:
Confirm/re-enter your credentials to confirm entering it in properly
STEP FIVE:
Call for assistance.
AND FINALLY… THE WHY’S AND SOME VARIABLES…
As mentioned in the onset, each environment is unique. Therefore there is clearly no one answer for all questions. However, below are some explanations as to why we mentioned the solutions listed above.
Reboot your computer
Sometimes something inside your computer may have gotten corrupted. This could happen from something not getting closed properly or a bug in a program. Therefore, by restarting your computer you are cleaning the slate and starting fresh.
This does not fix all problems, but when troubleshooting your own computer, this is the easiest way to do something with causing the least amount of potential damage.
Asking if others have the same issue
This is important in troubleshooting, since we need to know if the issue is an isolated case or across the board issue. Based on this information, the troubleshooting steps will vary.
How you connect
How you are connected to the network – whether it is locally, remotely, wired or wireless all make a major difference in the troubleshooting steps.
Why we didn’t recommend restarting the router?
Restarting the router means all users will loose internet and (if applicable) phone service while the system reboots. This can cause other issues as well, therefore we don’t recommend everyone tries that as a first resort.
What are your thoughts?
Please let us know!
Email us at newsletters@avenuemcomputers.com
Please note:
If you are not comfortable following these instructions, please contact us for assistance.
We take no responsibility for attempting any of the above mentioned steps or instructions.
