Verizon Five Spot Wireless Router Problems

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taoshum

taoshum

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Joined
May 21, 2009
Posts
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Location
El Prado, NM
We bought a Verizon Five Spot wireless router (has a SIM card).  It worked fine in Taos, Holbrook and several other places.  Once setup, both laptops connected within seconds.

When we got to HT's; the netbook would connect every now and then; the Dell LT won't connect at all; it "sees" the router but will not connect.  I took it to the Vz store about 3 miles away and it works perfectly!!!  I brought it back and checked along the way at each stoplight and it worked perfectly.  Now, back in the MH, it works terribly.  I call VZ tech support, after 30 minutes of waiting...  The VZ tech told me to change the WAN setting to "AUTO Global Connect"; so I did.  The Dell LT still won't connect.  Tech support is supposed to call me back in a few hours...

The netbook happens to be connected right now, which is how I'm sending this message.

Any have experience with the Vz 5 Spot?

thx, Gary.
 
I would suspect interference from other access points on the same channel.  Can you change the channel in the 5 Spot?

Here's a neat program called Inssider that will show all the WiFi access points in range and their channels and signal strength.
 
I wondered about that...  well, I just looked at the router settings... the channel/freq setting is on "auto".  there's a pull down menu which would allow me to pick a channel.  Most of the other networks within range of us have one or at most 2 bars.  The 5 spot has 5 bars and is really strong...  should I pick a channel?
 
Don't rely on the Windows network display for signal strength, and it doesn't tell you the channels in use.  And it won't show access points that aren't broadcasting their SSIDs.  Inssider will give you all that and more, then you can pick a channel that's in minimal conflict.  I've found that auto doesn't always pick the best channel.
 
Ned,

You are incredible!  I owe you for a huge favor!!!

I, arbitrarily, changed the channel to Channel 1, just to run a quick experiment and low&behold, everything started working in a few seconds.  I'll get the software you suggested later and then know for sure which channel to pick but that was clearly the issue, interference... now all the computers are happy and connected to the 5 spot.  I now recall that if I pick a network the Dell wireless diagnostic will tell me which channel is being used and the signal stength...

After the better part of 5 hours, you were able to help me more than the "experts" at VZ.  I cannot thank u enough.  I will remember this episode!!!

Gary.
 
I just realized I may have the same problem with my new Fivespot as Gary had and am checking into that.

I have had a very knowledgeable third level support guy on the phone for two hours and we have not quite gotten to the bottom of the issue.

If this turns out to be Ned's solution, I will nominate him to Verizon for consulting fees.

I am waiting for the tech to call back. The device works fine tethered on the USB but will not work with anything else when it is allowed to stand free.
 
taoshum said:
I wondered about that...  well, I just looked at the router settings... the channel/freq setting is on "auto".  there's a pull down menu which would allow me to pick a channel.  Most of the other networks within range of us have one or at most 2 bars.  The 5 spot has 5 bars and is really strong...  should I pick a channel?
Click to expand...

Gary/Ned,

I am not getting that option on my Fivespot, unless you are connecting to another router OR are using the web tool connected to the 192 address. I am plugged in to the USB port.

Any clarification?

Ned, I could not get that tool to run, could have hiccupped in the install.

Kim
 
skyking4ar2 said:
I just realized I may have the same problem with my new Fivespot as Gary had and am checking into that.

I have had a very knowledgeable third level support guy on the phone for two hours and we have not quite gotten to the bottom of the issue.

If this turns out to be Ned's solution, I will nominate him to Verizon for consulting fees.

I am waiting for the tech to call back. The device works fine tethered on the USB but will not work with anything else when it is allowed to stand free.
Click to expand...

Maybe VZ already mentioned this to you but their first suggestion was to change domestic to global in the WIFI settings.  In order to get access to the router settings, you may have to go to a place where few wireless networks are available... go to http://192.168.0.1 and then log it and browze around until you find what you need.  Or, go to a Verizon store, it works perfectly there, LOL.  Thx, Gary
 
Ned, I could not get that tool to run, could have hiccupped in the install.
Click to expand...

You're referring to Inssider?  Details?  Did it install?  What happens when you run it?
 
Gary,

I got to the admin page, finally, and found where you can reset the channels. The tech did not know that nor did his troubleshooting tree send him down that path.

I am headed up to the park office to check their Tengo installation and see which channels they are running their four towers on.

Ned,

I have installed the program three times and it launched once, but never again. I am still fiddling with it while I check to see if I can get the channel numbers. I tried 1 through 3, just as a shot, but that did not cure the problem. I need to get the hard channel numbers and work out from there.
 
There may be other WiFi access points around you besides the park's.  If you can't establish any wireless connection at all to the 5 Spot, it's probably not interference but either a misconfiguration or bad hardware.  Did it ever work?

Inssider is pretty foolproof.  What do you see when you click on the program in the start list?  Does it show any window at all?
 
Ned said:
I would suspect interference from other access points on the same channel.  Can you change the channel in the 5 Spot?

Here's a neat program called Inssider that will show all the WiFi access points in range and their channels and signal strength.
Click to expand...
Nice to see you nailed the problem.  One thing I'm seriously considering is to run RJ45 Ethernet cable to appropriate locations so I don't need to run WiFi.  Thanks for the utility.  Nice to see an open source alternative to NetStumbler.
 
Question for Ned: Do you know if there's anything like Inssider for the MAC? I don't mind doing some research to find out but I'm not sure what phrasing to use in my research. Any suggestions? Thanks for all the info.

Pam
 
greendragonflyz said:
Question for Ned: Do you know if there's anything like Inssider for the MAC? I don't mind doing some research to find out but I'm not sure what phrasing to use in my research. Any suggestions? Thanks for all the info.
Click to expand...

Not that I know of, but not having any Apple computers, I've never looked before.  Here are a couple I did find with a quick Google search.
 
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