For those of you who aren’t already over-familiar with the CenturyLink brand, let us introduce what they do very briefly.
CenturyLink is an incredibly popular American company that operates in the field of digital services provision.
Though they provide services for small and large business customers alike, they are definitely more widely known for their residential services.
And, if you have found yourself being a CenturyLink customer, the good news is that their reputation is actually pretty solid.
In terms of value for money, their internet is sufficiently high speed enough to justify the financial outlay. Not only that, but their phone and TV options are quite attractive too.
However, today we will be solely focusing on the internet element of their services.
Though CenturyLink has a really good reputation when it comes to providing a stable and reliable internet connection, we have noticed that there is an increasing number of reports regarding connectivity.
Naturally, nothing is more frustrating than when your internet dries up without any seemingly good reason for it to do so.
After all, you are paying for premium quality internet. Therefore that’s what you should be getting.
These days, a solid internet connection can be the backbone of any residence, and going without can almost feel like missing a limb.
We conduct our business deals online, shop online, socialize online, and some of us even work from home full time.
And, that doesn’t even take into account how much we rely on the net for entertainment purposes.
However, though you might be experiencing issues right now, there is some light at the end of the tunnel.
The good news is that, as far as problems with CenturyLink’s services go, this one is a relatively minor issue.
In fact, it is generally easy enough to resolve that anyone can fix it from the comfort of their own home without any expertise whatsoever.
So, if that’s the outcome you are looking for, you have come to the right place.
Bear with us, and we’ll give you a quick run-through of how to get your network back up and running again.
CenturyLink DSL Line Poor Status
Generally, at this point of the article, we tend to explain why the issue is happening in the first place so that you can fix it quicker the next time it happens.
Well, this time is a little different. Due to the fact that this issue has no single factor that causes it, we really can’t get to the root of the problem.
However, rest assured that there are millions before you who have faced the same issue and overcome it.
So, without wasting any more time and effort here, let’s get straight into it. Here’s how to troubleshoot the DSL Line Status Poor issue with CenturyLink:
1. Check Your Line Status
Normally, the best way to fix these kinds of problems is, to begin with, the easiest solutions first and then work your way up to the more difficult ones if they don’t work.
With a bit of luck, this one will work for you, and you won’t have to go any further.
With that in mind, the first thing we would suggest is that you monitor your line status.
Generally, if you are using an ADSL2+ or lower, you aren’t going to get very high internet speeds.
In addition, the stability of the line itself is key to how well it performs. If it isn’t all that stable, it is only natural that frequent disconnections and poor overall connections will become commonplace.
So, what exactly should you do about this?
Without getting too much into the technical jargon, all you will need to do here is check the SNR margin value of your line.
- To access this information, have a look at the back of your router.
- Here, you will find all the details you need to access your router’s page.
- If the SNR value is less than 6, for example, when you have a connection of around 8+ Mbps, this is probably what is causing the error.
2. Reset the Router
If anything, this suggestion is probably the easiest one available for any device that you may have in your home. Yet, it works so often that it is always worth a shot.
In fact, it works so often that people in IT often joke that they would be out of a job if people just did this before calling in for help.
Resetting the router essentially restores all of the settings to what they were before it left the factory. So, though we don’t recommend doing this on a daily basis, there are some benefits to doing it every now and then.
Potentially, it can fix a whole host of issues. So, if you are having trouble with your router being patchy or just straight up glitching out, resetting it is definitely the way to go.
- Resetting a router is pretty easy. In most cases, you will find a reset button on either the back or the underside of your router.
- Pretty often, the reset button can be set inside of the device to stop accidental resets. So, grab a pen or a needle if you need to.
- Apart from that, the only thing to watch out for is that most routers will require you to hold down the button for around ten seconds before they actually reset. Again, this is to prevent people from resetting it by accident.
3. Contact the Customer Support
Unfortunately, the above tips are all that we can recommend as tips that you can do without a level of expertise.
So, when every other option has been exhausted, the only logical step to take is to call in the professionals.
And, as far as customer service goes in this industry, the good news is that we would rate these guys quite highly.
So, all you need to do is call them up, state the error that you are having, and they will probably have you up and running again.
For more severe cases, they are generally quick to send out a technician to fix the issue too.
I wish their tech support was at all helpful. I have had to speak to them three times in the last three weeks I have had their service. The first time was because the modem was not connecting at all. They were going to schedule a tech to come out, but I refused because it would have cost me $95 if it was on “my side”, which is anything from the line running out of the phone interface box to my modem/router so naturally I wanted to exhaust anything we could fix ourselves for free first. We found the problem, the tech who set us up initially wired our jack backwards. Second time, I had questions about a service that they were also useless with. The third time was last night because our internet service had been shutting off about every ten minutes for almost a week. What an experience that was. The tech had me reset the router/modem combo. I did so, he said it didn’t work so he was going to schedule a tech to come out. The soonest a tech could come was literally two weeks away and I would have to be available from 8:30a-5p for them or be charged $95 for not having an adult here to deal with them. Then I explained to this “tech” person that the light on my modem was now orange instead of blinking blue (when the internet is out) or green. He insisted multiple times that this was because the internet was out and had nothing to do with anything we did. I told him that it wasn’t doing that until we did what he told me to do. I did a quick Google search while on chat with this guy. The orange light means the modem needed to be setup again. I told the tech guy this. He seemed a bit confused and talked in circles. I finally just set it up myself without their help. I ended up getting a text from CenturyLink the next day stating that there was some issue that they had discovered and that our service should be better now (I have a strong suspicion it had to do with the lines they left exposed at the top of our very rural road when they were installing mine and another person’s service, our lines are old and neglected out here in the sticks). I can cancel my tech appointment for two weeks from now. Lucky me. So far it does seem to have improved, but my impression of their customer service and tech support has certainly taken a nosedive in the very brief time I have had their service. My line states it is POOR, that’s why I’m on this page, but I am not going to deal with their awful support again. No freaking way.
So frustrating. We have had Centurylink for almost 5 years now. Never a problem until 1-2 months ago. Internet started cutting out. Would work for 2-3 minutes, then cut off for 5-7 minutes. They sent me out a new modem. Worked for about a week or so and then the problem started again. FINALLY got through to customer service today only to find they were closed for Labor Day. Took another 45 minutes or so to get into a chat with a customer service rep only to be told it would be at least a week before a repair guy could show up. I let them know I’d be shopping the competition this week. We have several other options in the area. I’ve had multiple people complain to me about Centurylink but I never had an issue until recently.
Yep, their customer service is no good at all. My DSL line is poor and only one device out of 10 could connect. I found that the modem to router was not wired correctly, and it was bridging. Also I changed out the wire connecting the modem to the wall DSL jack. after calling support they had no answer and of course I need to lease a new modem. While making thos changes, the DSL service dissappeared and my modem rebooted from some remote location. I am assuming after blaming my side of things they found the problem in the actual DSL line, fixed it, then rebooted my modem. Anyway, I can now connect all my devices. WEW! Everytime we have a storm (Florida) I have the same issues with them.