Did Zen indicate they would replace the router (or ONT) if the sessions kept randomly disconnecting, after the resets?

They would first sent a new router and if that didn't fix the issue then they would contact Openreach. It still seems odd to me that they can't put a request in to Openreach for ONT data/logs. Surely Openreach must have some form of diagnostics of their fibre network?

We've been up 7 days now though so it looks like it was one of the removed Ethernet components....

I've been trying to find someone with a proper tester but no luck so far. I've also been looking for an open source home build version (not just a continuity checker), does anyone know of one?

In reply to a post by jchamier:

Surely in 2026 you connect ethernet to the router which is giving exactly the same protection as WiFi. This isn't 1999 when I had cable modem with ethernet into Win98 PC and no router, no firewall, and Steve Gibson was telling everyone to install ZoneAlarm. (some people had the USB ADSL modem that caused problems).

Or you connect Ethernet from computer to computer (mac->mac, PC->PC, mac->PC etc) and configure private IP addressing and then you can transfer files at 1Gbps.

Taras is saying about connecting the computer directly to the ONT to test that it is not a router problem. That is connecting directly to the net like we used to do many years agao before we had routers. Even in those days it could be iffy, these days it would be worse, unless the Windows firewall protect you.

I had a ADSL usb modem, the Stingray thing or frog as some people called it, in the loft I think somewhere.
I remember ZoneAlarm.

i would never connect my computer directly to the net these days.

In reply to a post by RichG63:

They would first sent a new router and if that didn't fix the issue then they would contact Openreach. It still seems odd to me that they can't put a request in to Openreach for ONT data/logs. Surely Openreach must have some form of diagnostics of their fibre network?

We've been up 7 days now though so it looks like it was one of the removed Ethernet components....

I've been trying to find someone with a proper tester but no luck so far. I've also been looking for an open source home build version (not just a continuity checker), does anyone know of one?

That is good news,
A tester to test the cable? May as well just buy a new cable.

In reply to a post by RichG63:

They would first sent a new router and if that didn't fix the issue then they would contact Openreach. It still seems odd to me that they can't put a request in to Openreach for ONT data/logs. Surely Openreach must have some form of diagnostics of their fibre network?

We've been up 7 days now though so it looks like it was one of the removed Ethernet components....

I've been trying to find someone with a proper tester but no luck so far. I've also been looking for an open source home build version (not just a continuity checker), does anyone know of one?

Glad you seem to have nailed it.

p.s. Do I win anything for having suggested the solution as the 1st reply ?

https://forums.thinkbroadband.com/fibre/t/4790368-re...

I’ve never seen anything resembling a DIY / home brew ‘proper’ cabling tester - that is one that will test all the parameters including length, attenuation, near and far-end cross talk, ACR, powersum ACR and then certify to either an EIA/TIA or ISO based cabling standard. All calibrated and up to date.

The proper ones are specialist hybrid between a 4-channel time domain reflectometer, a digital scope and a PC that has a built-in database of standards and cable specs.

We’ve just sent our Fluke DSX8000 test set in for calibration and the service alone is well over a grand. They are north of 12 grand to buy new, so that gives you some idea of the complexity of the beasts.

It’s not going to be worth it to get someone out to test it / nor to rent a test set. It would be cheaper to get them to run new fixed cabling in and test that. But that’s neither practical or proportionate in the circumstances.

For a single link / cable I’d just live with it.

A short run length, keeping twists up in the pairs all the way to the back of the jack (don’t over twist either to compensate) and a simple 4-pair continuity test / conductor order will be sufficient and a clean connection onto the IDC block is good enough.

In reply to a post by zyborg47:

In reply to a post by RichG63:

They would first sent a new router and if that didn't fix the issue then they would contact Openreach. It still seems odd to me that they can't put a request in to Openreach for ONT data/logs. Surely Openreach must have some form of diagnostics of their fibre network?

We've been up 7 days now though so it looks like it was one of the removed Ethernet components....

I've been trying to find someone with a proper tester but no luck so far. I've also been looking for an open source home build version (not just a continuity checker), does anyone know of one?

That is good news,
A tester to test the cable? May as well just buy a new cable.

It’s not a long patch lead, out of a packet - chucked in under the floorboard.

As I understand it, he’s installed solid core cabling onto jacks / into keystones / faceplates and then patch leads either end…

So probs a bit more work than just opening a packet from Amazon.

Only if the ISP doesn’t use an encapsulation like PPPoE. Each ISP is different, yours might be DHCP.

The Windows Firewall or macOS firewall IS sufficient for this, otherwise people with laptops who take them to coffee shops, or airports, or hotels, would be getting hacked on a daily basis. We know that is not the case.

In reply to a post by Pheasant:

In reply to a post by zyborg47:

That is good news,
A tester to test the cable? May as well just buy a new cable.

It’s not a long patch lead, out of a packet - chucked in under the floorboard.

As I understand it, he’s installed solid core cabling onto jacks / into keystones / faceplates and then patch leads either end…

So probs a bit more work than just opening a packet from Amazon.

That's correct, I thought I had done a decent job which is why I'd like to know which bit has failed...

In my experience it’s almost always the ends: that is the terminations.

It’s preferable to match the manufacturer of the cable to the connectors for a start (a single manufacturer system), but I realise that this is a domestic install rather than commercial - so mix and match is pretty normal and still works - but that is the first thing behind a good installation.

Then it’s down to good workmanship - score the sheath, don’t cut it all the way though so you don’t damage the individual pairs/conductors, their insulation is super thin. A gentle bend once scored and the sheath should come away. Peal back the pairs so they’re radiating outwards. Trim any centre strength / pair separator out of the way. Leave the twists as they are. Feed the pairs in through the jack (each manufacturer has their own way). Open the twists just enough to feed the conductors onto the respective IDC position. Use a 110 punch down tool / blade facing out to seat and trim. Move to the next conductor in the pair. Rinse and repeat. Put any retaining caps on. Job done.

Very rarely do you get a fault mid way along a cable - and it’s usually a broken conductor if that’s the case, so quite easy to spot on a test.

Cable performance (as in does it meet the EIA/TIA category or ISO class) in a permanent link is invariably down to how well the ends have been terminated.