"BC" wrote in message
om...
A friend of mine joined Be's broadband service at the end of April and
everything went smoothly until the 20th June. His Be Box lost connection
and has been the same ever since. Basically when you switch the box on it
goes through the normal start-up sequence and after a minute or so the dsl
and internet lights become stable. After about 5 seconds both lights go out
and the box goes through the same cycle over and over again, flashing
lights, 5 seconds stable and then back to the start.

He reported the problem to Be on the 23rd June and thay have done test
after test. They have confirmed that his line stats are fine and that he
should be achieving download speeds of around 6meg. They have replaced the
"bridge" at the exchange but that made no difference. They told him to try
a different dsl lead which he did, again no difference. They then told him
to try and get an alternative modem / router to see if that will hold onto
the connection; don't know why they won't just send him one out! Last
night they told him to leave his modem connected to the BT linebox as they
were going to run a 24 hour check, this finishes around 7pm this evening.

Anyway, he has managed to get hold of another modem and we are going to
try it this evening after their 24 hour check finishes. My question is:

Will any adsl modem pick up Be's signal and show as connected without
changing any settings, or will we have to connect it to the pc and phone
Be to get their settings first?

As a cable user I have very little knowledge of all things adsl.

I can't tell you what settings to use, but they will be in the configuration
pages of the "BeBox". I'm not sure which ADSL modem/router your
friend has.
There are two ways ADSL can work to try and keep it simple!
One is that the customer sends a user name and password from the
modem/router when it is plugged in. The ISP sees it and allows the
connection. The second way is by using a MAC address which can
look like this - 0E:FFF:AF:EE. The ISP sees that and allows the
connection.
With Be I think it is the MAC code. Go in to the configuration page
for the BeBox by using whatever is written underneath. It will have a
web address like 192.168.1.1 and a user name and password. Your
friend should have changed that password from default.

Once in to the settings page, look for "ADSL" or something relating
to phone line settings. The important thing to look for is VPI and VCI
settings. Make a note of them. Then see if a user name and password
are used for connection to the ISP. If they are write them down.
If it is a MAC code, make a note. It should also be on the router
somewhere - maybe on a label.

Once armed with the VPI/VCI numbers and either the MAC code
or user name/password for the ISP - you're ready to set up a
router/modem using those settings. A normal ADSL modem will
probably be far more complicated, so you're best using a wireless
router. Have a look on the BE site for how to set up a connection
using the make of modem/router you have. Or have a google and
you will probably find step by step instructions.

Be should have been able to connect in to the router from their end
to carry out tests. I think he has a faulty router! When I had trouble
with my ISP they connected in to the router and told me all about
which computers were connected and even changed the wireless
channel! I changed to a Netgear DG834G after that as they can't
snoop.