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How to tell if My Router is Bad? [7 Signs Of A Bad Router]

how to tell if my router is bad

When our internet does not work it gets irritating and frustrating. The internet speed and efficiency affect every work that we are doing. Either we are attending a meeting, playing a very important game, having online classes and different things. You can miss many important events due to the poor internet connection.

While you are playing a game and your internet starts lagging, you can lose your winning game. As the Internet can make a difference. When you are watching a movie and your movie starts buffering, you might start thinking that this problem occurs due to the router becoming old and obsolete. Many people begin to think, do wireless routers wear out?

The answer to the question is Yes, Routers also become obsolete and go bad over time. Routers consist of a working mechanism inbuilt in the device.

This mechanism does not stop working even for a minute, when a machine keeps on working 24×7 then it is very obvious that at some it may begin to work slow and poorly.

But how to tell if my router is bad? We will tell you some common problems that can give a sign that your internet problem might be because of your router.

1. Login Problems

When your router is bad, you might face some login issues. You may start getting a bunch of notifications about the connection. Your connectivity will start being limited. If all this is happening then you may need to change your router.

Before concluding that the router is bad, you must make sure that your router is connected properly as internet problems can also occur due to the Ethernet cable being too loose. So just disconnect the router completely and plug it in again after a few minutes. If this helps then your router is ok but if not then go buy a new one.

2. Slow Connection

When your internet connection is slow and you are having a problem while doing any work online, This might be an indication of your router having a problem while operating. The slow speed can be a cause when your router does not work properly. But you must properly check out your connection properly before replacing your router with a new one.

You can check it by plugging the router into a different device or you can check out if your signal has any disruption or not. If you don’t find any problem with the signal, you need to replace your obsolete router.

3. Reconnecting Continuously

If your router does not have any problem, you won’t have to reconnect your router to the device throughout the day. If your connection is not working properly and gets down again and again then you have a problem with the router.

You can solve this issue by resetting your device. Go to the configuration page of your router and there you will see an option to reset your device. It can resolve your issue but if not you need to replace your router.

4. Interrupted Signals

You can get interrupted signals because of a normal connection error, but you must check it is not the issue with your router. So you must check the main root cause before replacing your router with a new one. Just disconnect your router and then just connect to the modem to see if the signals and connection are affected by the change of device.

If the other device is also having connection issues then you will have to tell your issue to your service provider. You can also check this on the Google DNS server and if it does not support then you can consider it a DNS issue.

5. Slow at Responding 

Every router responds to commands given to them. But if a router has stopped responding when you request it then you can try the disconnect and reconnect method. Just unplug the router and after a few minutes, plug it in again after a few minutes.

If it starts properly and is receiving commands then it is ok because sometimes there might be a queue that clogs up the router. But if the router is still not working properly then this is the time you go and buy a new one.

6. Check the Indicating Lights 

If the lights of your router are not working this also indicates that there might be a problem with your router. These lights should be lit up, if they are then there is nothing to worry about.

If the lights are not working properly, you should know that your router is going to die and the connection issue is due to that router. If the lights are dim, this is also an indication that you might have replaced your router.

7. Check the Functioning of Your Router

When the lights are not working, you should check whether the router is working performing its functions properly. For checking the functionality, Open the command window on the desktop. After opening your command window, Run another command ‘ipconfig’ window for the mechanism of the normal window and ‘ifconfig’ command for the Mac Devices.

Using these commands will let you know your computer’s IP address. If your router is correctly working, the IP address will help you in knowing about it by taking you to your computer.

What Happens Next?

When doing these tests, you may find different outcomes depending on which you might have to take precautionary measures to solve these issues. Let’s see what can be the outcomes and their precautionary measures:

1. When you have a problem with your ISP?

If you have tested and found that the issue is not with the router. If the issue is with the ISP, you should reboot the system and if it does not work after that, call your ISP and ask them to solve your problem.

2. Connectivity issue not related to ISP

If you do not find any issue with either your ISP or your Router. There might be a problem with your cords or Ethernet cables. It might be unplugged or not working properly. It can be damaged as well so make sure you check the cords connected to the device before concluding your Router to be obsolete. You can just replace the cables to resolve this problem.

3. Your Router is Bad

After these tests, if you conclude that your router has become obsolete and is not working properly then you know that it is time to replace your old router and buy a new one.

4. Internal Network Issue

Your router might not be working due to the hogging of the bandwidth by connecting a large number of devices to it. So make sure to keep a check on that too. You must try a tri-band router for better results.

It will show you the activities and the devices connected at the same time which makes the network connection very slow. So make you check that before throwing away your router to buy a new one.

Features of a Modern Router

With these 7 signs, you will get to know about the functioning of your router and if your router is bad or not. If your router has become obsolete you must purchase a modern router. A modern router must possess the following aspects other than the price:

  1. Range: Range indicates the distance throughout which the signal can take the connectivity.
  2. Bands: If you want the biggest bandwidth thenyou must have at least a dual-band router.
  3. Features: You must have a router with a low ping rate if you are active in gaming. This router will let you move along while you are playing the game.
  4. Speeds: The speed of your router depends upon the ISPs but including other factors as well including the speed which your router is able to handle. A faster router is more durable than the other routers with slow speed.
  5. Compatibility: The new router you are purchasing must be compatible with the ISP you are previously connected with. As if the router is not compatible then your connection will not be efficient.

Is My Router Bad? [Conclusion]

In this article, you will find all the things that you need to conclude if your router is working properly or not. If your router is not performing normally and your connection is also slow and disrupted. You may need to check your router’s functionality.

If your router is not following up with the commands, and you are facing a hard time using your WiFi then it’s time you buy a new one for your usage. 

Don’t get frustrated by your router applying all the tactics to use the one you have but if it does not work out then you should buy a new router. Use the signs that we have given above to know if you need a new router or not.

Always consider the features and suggestions while buying a new router for better results. That was all from our side on how to tell if my router is bad.