incoming calls dropped within a minute; outgoing no problem

[rcdoshi]

Hi

I have tried MagicJack customer support chat thrice, but no solution yet. All incoming calls are dropped in about 40 seconds. Then, when I call back the same phone numbers, there is no problem of dropping calls. I have XP on desktop and Vista on laptop - same problem on both. My broadband connection is 256kbps unlimited use. Any idea why?

The live chat had me do a number of changes like DNS numbers, priority on background programs, etc. No luck.

Thanks.

[az2008]

What router do you use? There was an episode a couple months ago where a few people all experienced disconnection after 30 seconds. (But, I don't think anyone reported that calling back caused it to work.). It seemed to be related to a particular router. Some flashed to the free Tomato firmware and reported the problem stopped.

You should try to connect directly to your modem and see if you have the same problem. (Realize that bypassing your router may expose you to external threats.).

I also recommend that you undo the change chat support told you to do, to give priority to all background processes. That's a bad suggestion. If you need to give priority to MJ, just go into Task Manager, right click on the magicjack.exe process, and set the priority to High.

Mark

[rcdoshi]

Thanks, Mark.

I am using Linksys-G wireless router. I have just disconnected it. If that does not solve the proble, I will increse magicjack priority in task manager(already undid priority on background processes per your sugestion).

Thanks again for such a speedy response.
Ramesh

[az2008]

Thanks, Mark.

I am using Linksys-G wireless router. I have just disconnected it. If that does not solve the proble, I will increse magicjack priority in task manager(already undid priority on background processes per your sugestion).

I don't think priority is the problem (just saying chat support's scripted instructions to tell people to do it is a bad idea because it gives priority to other things which could be bogging down the computer, like anti-virus).

Which Linksys router? It seemed like the spat of 30-second disconnects a couple months ago involved the WRT54GL. I have that router, and never had any problems. But, I flashed it to Tomato before that spat of reports. So, I couldn't say I was unaffected.

The way the reports stopped, it gave me the impression there was a batch of routers with buggy firmware. Or, something strange with whatever MJ proxy they were all using, and the strangeness went away.

Mark

[rcdoshi]

Thanks, Mark, the problem is solved just by removing the Linksys WRH54G router.

Your help was tremendous - I was living with this problem for months! Thanks a million.

Any idea which wireless router works well with MagicJack?
Ramesh

[isleblue65]

rcdoshi,
try upgrading to Tomato firmware (v 1.23). I have the same router you do and it works fine with MJ. Edit: I see you have the WRH54G- but I would think you would benefit from Tomato regardless.

The Tomato firmware allows you to set Quality of service (QOS), which priritizes how bandwidth is managed so that your Magic Jack receives high priority. Therefore, MJ would not lose or have a deteriorated signal because you or someone else on the network start a big down or upload.

Plus with Tomato you can boost the transmit power of the wireless portion of your WRT54G. I always had medium to low signal strength on my laptop, which connects wirelessly through the router when using the Linksys router firmware. And that was with the laptop just a room or two away from the router. Once I switched to Tomato and boosted the power from 28mhz (standard Linksys) to 90mhz, I can use the laptop anywhere on my 1/2 acre property with full signal strength!

Craig

[az2008]

Any idea which wireless router works well with MagicJack?

Like Craig said, you can flash it to Tomato if it's the wrt54g v1 through 4. See http://www.polarcloud.com/tomatofaq for information about supported routers, how to find your version, etc.

If you had to get a new router, I suggest the GL just because that's what I use. It's all I'm familiar with. But, a poll conducted on the Tomato support forum (www.linksysinfo.org) showed the GL having almost twice the use as any other router among Tomato users.

You could also use DD-WRT. It has a lot more features. But, there's more of a learning curve. Tomato is a quick win.

I still don't understand what causes MJ to not work with some routers. It's like there's some connection it's waiting on, not coming through the firewall, and it times out in 30 seconds. I've never seen MJ require external ports to be opened. The softphone always does the opening to the MJ servers. So, I don't understand it. And, it's strange that flashing to a different firmware fixed it for people (when the other firmware is just as restrictive).

Mark

[rcdoshi]

Thanks, Mark & Craig.

I am not familiar with the Tomato firmwre - I will go to the site, read and do the upgrade. MagicJack has made our life easy in keeping in touch with family and friends in USA (we moved to India to take care of aging parents).

I will post the results soon. Many thanks for your timely help.

Regards,
Ramesh

[az2008]

I am not familiar with the Tomato firmwre - I will go to the site, read and do the upgrade.

After you flash to Tomato, you can enable QoS using this document:

http://www.dslreports.com/forum/r215819 ... oppy-voice

Mark

[rcdoshi]

Mark/Craig,

The following router models are supported by Tomato per their site:

"What will this run on?[toc, link]
Linksys WRT54G v1-v4, WRT54GS v1-v4, WRT54GL v1.x, WRTSL54GS (no USB support)
Buffalo WHR-G54S, WHR-HP-G54, WZR-G54, WBR2-G54
Asus WL500G Premium (no USB support)
Untested but apparently works without changes: SparkLAN WX-6615GT
Note: Most WRT54G and WRT54GS (not WRT54GL) sold in stores right now are the v5.0+ variety and will not work with Tomato."

Mine is WRH54G. I am willing to try Tomato, but if it does not work can I reverse the changes? I am also trying to exchange the router for GL model.

Thanks.
Ramesh

[isleblue65]

Ramesh,

Yes you can reverse the changes by re-flashing your router's firmware from the Linksys website, or try the DD-WRT firmware.

DD-WRT is set up to look and be configured like Linksys. For me this was appealing because I actually found it easier initially to use and understand than Tomato. Apparently that is just me though, because most of the remarks on this forum about Tomato refer to it being easier to use than DD-WRT. Now that I've had a month to play with Tomato, I'm becoming more comfortable with it and appreciate what it offers.

Tomato has some nice features to monitor bandwidth using graphs that show real-time useage, and you can see exactly which priority levels your applications are being assigned to. DD-WRT does not go into this level of detail.

Craig

[az2008]

Mine is WRH54G. I am willing to try Tomato, but if it does not work can I reverse the changes?

Notice that the text you quoted mentioned version 1 through 4. You'd have to make sure your router is one of those versions.

For Tomato help, you should go to the forum at www.linksysinfo.org. And, see http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Tomato_Firmware.

Yes, you can switch back to Linksys's original firmware. However, there is always some risk that a flash procedure will "brick" a router. That seems to be more of a problem flashing back and forth between different types. Or, the procedure being interrupted. For example, DD-WRT says IE should always be used for flashing.

I think some of the trouble is that configuration data is left in NVRAM. A different firmware may reference that spot of memory for different purposes and not expect the value it finds there. So, I am a bit OCD about this. I use the firmware's UI feature to reset to factory defaults. Then I do the 30-second power-on reset (power off, press the reset button on the back, keep it pressed, power on, and release the button after 30 seconds). I then power of and on again. I do that 2-3 times. And then, after loading Tomato, I use it's UI feature to clear NVRAM. And I do the power-on reset too.

There are ways to unbrick a router. The primary (and easiest) procedure is described here if you want to at least familiarize yourself with it: http://blog.rim3y.net/zero/?p=942


Mark

[az2008]

DD-WRT is set up to look and be configured like Linksys. For me this was appealing because I actually found it easier initially to use and understand than Tomato.

DD-WRT was less intuitive to me. It seemed more complicated, having to flash the "mini" version first, then the "standard" (because the "standard" is too large to flash in one round?). But, I give it credit for having a lot more features.

I've heard people say they felt DD-WRT was slow. I just saw this benchmark which seems to support that.

http://www.linksysinfo.org/forums/showt ... hp?t=60335

However, using a router is about half as fast as just connecting two machines directly together (100mbs). I don't know how much WAN bandwidth a person would need to have before they noticed even the slowest router firmware slowing down their connection. At the 1.5mbps to 6mbps range of most broadband services, it doesn't seem like anyone would notice a difference.

Mark

[rcdoshi]

Hi Mark and Craig,

After reading on the sites, It is clear that the Tomato flash will not work for my router.

Can you suggest a router that works well with MagicJack. Alternatively, I can use Cat5 wired outlets, but I will need powered hub that works with MagicJack - any suggestions there?

Thanks.
Ramesh

[az2008]

Can you suggest a router that works well with MagicJack. Alternatively, I can use Cat5 wired outlets, but I will need powered hub that works with MagicJack - any suggestions there?

Like I said before, the only thing I can recommend is the WRT54GL, because that's all I've used. If you want to use Tomato, it has the largest number of users (who responded to a poll, anyway).[1]

However, you could try resetting your router to factory defaults using any option in the firmware admin UI. Also the 30-second reboot, where you power it off, depress the button on the back, power up, and release the button after 30 seconds.

You could also try flashing your using whatever is the latest firmware on the Linksys product page for your router. Even if it's the same version your router professes to be running. I would do the above-mentioned reset before and after flashing. Maybe go back to an older version of the firmware if those are available on the Linksys site.

You could also use Wireshark to try to understand the traffic causing the router to prevent MJ from working. But, personally I wouldn't waste my time on it unless you really want to get to the bottom of it. It seems to be a bug in the Linksys firmware.

You could also try DD-WRT. I felt like there was a larger learning curve involved with it. And a greater chance of bricking the router. It's more powerful. A bit overkill if all you want to do is fix what seems like a bug with Linksys.

I didn't understand your remark about a USB hub. That shouldn't have anything to do with your router.

[1] http://www.linksysinfo.org/forums/showt ... hp?t=50990 I don't know if it will display the results if you haven't taken the poll. There should be a link to show results there.

Mark

[rcdoshi]

Hi Mark,

I am trying to find GL ver 1-4, but it may not be available here.

In the mean time reassessing my wireless needs, I can really get by without wireless router as long as I connect a hub (not USB) to connect cat5 cables for all rooms that were connected with 4 ports of my linksys wireless router. I am assuming the hub does not interfere with magicjack like the router did - I think it should not.

ramesh