Internet keeps dropping… what’s going on?

General Forum
1

I don’t usually have slow internet, but lately it feels like it’s only bad when I actually need it. Sometimes I get a steady 30+ MB/s download, but most of the time it keeps dropping to 0 over and over. This has been happening for months, and I’m at my wit’s end. I wanted to share screenshots of the issue, but I can’t.

Speed tests show 500+ MB/s down and 50+ MB/s up, but when I try downloading something on Steam, it goes from 16 MB/s one second to 0 MB/s the next, and then back up. The worst part is it’s not just downloads—this also happens when I’m gaming, and the connection drops for a second, kicking me out of matches.

I’ve tried clearing the download cache on Steam and shutting down everything else in the house that uses the internet, but nothing works. Please help! It’s driving me crazy.

2

Steam won’t let you use your full internet speed.

Are your drivers up to date? Are you using a wired or wireless connection?

Sometimes, Windows can turn off your network adapter to save power. I had the same issue—disconnections during games, and then the internet came back. Once I disabled that feature, it stopped happening.

3

@Asher
I’m using ethernet. How do I turn off that power-saving thing in Device Manager? I’ve opened it but don’t want to mess something up.

4

Aven said:
@Asher
I’m using ethernet. How do I turn off that power-saving thing in Device Manager? I’ve opened it but don’t want to mess something up.

If you uninstall something by mistake, just restarting your PC will reinstall it.

Here’s what to do:

  1. Open Device Manager.
  2. Expand Network Adapters.
  3. Right-click your adapter and choose Properties.
  4. Go to the Power Management tab.
  5. Uncheck the option that says ‘Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power.’
5

@Asher
It seems like it’s happening less now. Not sure if it’s a coincidence, but I’ll keep an eye on it. Thanks for the help!

6

Aven said:
@Asher
It seems like it’s happening less now. Not sure if it’s a coincidence, but I’ll keep an eye on it. Thanks for the help!

If it happens again, check if it’s affecting just one device.

You can also run tracert 8.8.8.8 in Command Prompt. That’ll show if there’s an issue leaving your local network.

And make sure your drivers and BIOS are up to date—that usually fixes most problems.

7

@Asher
I ran tracert. What do the * symbols mean? Is that when it’s dropping out?

8

Aven said:
@Asher
I ran tracert. What do the * symbols mean? Is that when it’s dropping out?

Yeah, the * means a timeout. Usually, it takes 2–3 hops to leave your local network (look for IPs starting with 192.168.x.x).

9

@Asher
There were two timeouts in the results. What should I do?

10

Aven said:
@Asher
There were two timeouts in the results. What should I do?

You might want to update your drivers and BIOS. Also, restarting your router or access point could help.