problem with linsky etherfast cable/dsl router...

cynth:))
Hi again. I went out and bought a router by linsky. its a etherfast with 4 port 10/100 switch
included.
My problem is when i first installed the router and connected my 2 pc there were 3 lights lit up in each row corresponding to the pc (the link/act light, the full/col light, and the 100 light)
But now i notice that only one light is always lit up underthe row corresponnding to the pc1( the main computer), its the link/act light . but for the 2nd pc all the 3 lights are lit up.
Is this normal?
my internet works the file sharing works, i can see both pc on each computer. Should i not worry and just leave it the way it is ? or is something wrong?

any one knows or is using a linksy and can answer this question
#2 question. if the full/col led light is lit up according to the manual it means the connection thru the corresponding port is running in full duplex mode. if the light is flickering the connection is experiencing collisions.
How do i know if the connection is bad if i am able to get on the internet and all?

1. RE: problem with linsky etherfast cable/dsl router...
scvsteve Sep-06-01 02:14 AM
In response to message 0

LAST EDITED ON Sep-06-01 AT 02:19 AM (GMT)
Cynthia I have a Befsr41 linksys router and the 3 lights, green,green,orange, on top of each other are only on when your NIC card is correctly hooked up and working, and the computer is on. That goes for both computers, if both are on. If not you won't see any lights except the two single green one in the far left lower, and one in the far right upper. Those will stay on all of the time. Your book explains what the lights do and when. I believe the orange means you have made a connection throught the corresponding port.If the led is flickering is just is experiencing a collision and is not uncommon. Some are normal.Red means it is going through as self diagnostic during bootup and is normal except if the light continues to stay on then you might have a problem. Hope this helps. Oh and if you think your connection is bad check your bandwidth speed here. http://www.2wire.com/services/bandwidth.asp I run about 800 up on a good day.

4. RE: problem with linsky etherfast cable/dsl router...
cynthia38 Sep-06-01 10:52 PM
In response to message 1

cynth:))
Isnt the nic card correctly hooked up if i can access the internet and all?
Should i remove the nic card and insert it in another slot?
what do u suggest ?

5. RE: problem with linsky etherfast cable/dsl router...
cynthia38 Sep-06-01 11:03 PM
In response to message 4

cynth:))
ok i did the bandwith check at the web site u provided.
result 210.4kbps
is that bad or good. and what should i do to improve?

2. RE: Linksys BEFSR41 4-Port cable/DSL Router LEDs
lbyard Sep-06-01 03:52 PM
In response to message 0

The Link/Act LED should be on solid when data is not being sent and blink when it is.
The Full/Col LED should be on solid most of the time and may blink infrequently. Theoretically, an Ethernet switch with one PC connected to each port should not have collisions, but the Linksys manual says it’s possible.
The 10/100 LED should be orange and on and all of the time unless you are using 10BASET (10 MHz) adapters.
PC1 may have a bad cable or port. To verify look at the LEDs on the network adapters and swap cables/move PCs. Swap ports on the router.
A bad cable may corrupt packets, etc. and cause packet retransmissions, which may appear to be collisions, may operate at 10 MHz and not 100 MHz, and may operate at half vs. full duplex. Larry

3. RE: Linksys BEFSR41 4-Port cable/DSL Router LEDs
cynthia38 Sep-06-01 10:38 PM
In response to message 2

cynth:))
could it be that the wire from the pc to the linsky router is too long?
i tried all of what you all suggested and the pc1 is still only the link/act light thats on!!!!!
puzzled

6. RE: Linksys BEFSR41 4-Port cable/DSL Router LEDs
scvsteve Sep-07-01 00:55 AM
In response to message 3

I would contact linksys in your case. They have excellent tech support. See what they suggest. I have installed a router that was bad out of the box that didn't work at all. Give them a call at800-326-7114

7. RE: Linksys BEFSR41 4-Port cable/DSL Router LEDs
cynthia38 Sep-07-01 01:13 AM
In response to message 6

cynth:))
Well i called linksys help support line;
the technician told me as long as the light is not flickering now to worry about it. he said if the full/col light i snot on its still good its still working corectly!!!
ummmmmm
oh well i am conected to the net

8. RE: Linksys BEFSR41 4-Port cable/DSL Router LEDs
scvsteve Sep-07-01 01:22 AM
In response to message 7

I guess I wouldn't worry about it either as long as you connect at a reasonable speed. I don't watch the lights on mine except to tell if my daughter is on her computer late. That is a handy feature with the lights. Did you check out 2wire.com I connected with the bandwidth tester at 987 kbps. That is a good speed.

9. RE: Linksys BEFSR41 4-Port cable/DSL Router LEDs
lbyard Sep-07-01 05:34 AM
In response to message 8

Shame on that tech you talked to. If the “Full” part of the Full/Col LED is not on something is not working correctly: the router (LED, etc.), cable, or network adapter. It should be working at Full duplex if a single Ethernet adapter connected to the port. The router is an Ethernet switch. The Switch and PC Ethernet ports each have a transmitter and receiver. Each Transmitter is connected to a receiver with a pair of wires… four wires, 2 transmitters, and 2 receivers. Both the switch and PC should be able send and receive data at the same time = Full Duplex. Half Duplex means only one of the ports can send data at a time because the receiver has to listen for a packet (a chunk of data) collision. The system is running Half Duplex because during the Auto Negotiating phase of setting up the connection, the network adapter and switch ports detected a circuit (cable, port, etc.) that could not support the Full Duplex mode; they “decided” the receivers had to be set to listen for packet collisions. That’s fine if one has a hub (instead of a switch) with more then one PC attached. A hub transmits packets from one PC to all of the other PCs attached to the hub. The PCs have to listen for packet collisions in the event more than one PC attempts to transmit at the same time (= garbage). Such is not the case with a switch. A switch sends a packet from one PC to just the PC to which it is addressed; that’s why it’s called a switch (see http://duxcw.com/faq/network/hubsw.htm for details). The NIC is probably OK if you are sending and receiving stuff OK. The Internet speeds look good. The half-duplex mode may slow down data transfers on your local network, but you may not notice it. Something is not correct. Swapping switch ports around should indicate whether it is the router (bad LED/circuit) or cable (probable). Larry