Urgent: EE Router and Desktop Crashing at 11:02 PM Daily - Seeking In-depth Trou

[Haydenmartin]

Hello EE Community and Experts,

I'm facing a perplexing issue that's stumping even seasoned IT professionals, and I'm hoping your collective wisdom can offer some direction. Here's the rundown:

The Symptoms:

1. Network Crash Timing: My network experiences an abrupt crash daily, like clockwork, at 11:02 PM.
2. Affected Devices: During these crashes, both my EE router and my desktop PC go offline simultaneously.

Detailed Background:

1. Network Configuration: I have a multi-device home network centered around an EE router that's been operational for over three years. Both my desktop PC and laptop are connected to it via Ethernet.
2. Prior Issues: Previously, I faced Nvidia-related Blue Screens of Death (BSODs) and power errors. These were resolved by upgrading the electrical circuit to 32A.
3. NAS Integration: The onset of these new issues coincided with the introduction of a NAS setup for basic file sharing and Remote Desktop functionality.
4. Router History: The router has had a history of instability, including frequent PPP and DHCP events. A complete factory reset did not resolve the issue.
5. Software Variables: I'm running NordVPN and have disabled Windows updates for work-related reasons.
6. Network Monitoring: Wireshark logs have shown malformed packets right before each crash.

Probable Contributing Factors:

1. Scheduled NAS Task: Is a task from the NAS triggering at 11:02 PM, overwhelming the router?
2. Router Flaws: Given its history, is the EE router unable to cope with certain types of network traffic or loads, thus causing it to crash?
3. Software Conflicts: Could NordVPN or the disabled Windows updates be indirectly contributing to this instability?
4. Potential Hardware Malfunction: Could the router or the PC's LAN ports be initiating a network storm or power surge?

Immediate Questions:

1. Is the NAS running any automated tasks around 11:02 PM that might explain this behavior?
2. Could the router's long-standing instability be the root cause of these issues?
3. Does disabling NordVPN or re-enabling Windows updates have any impact?
4. Could the router be sending malformed packets or initiating a network storm?

I would be profoundly grateful for any insights, shared experiences, or advanced troubleshooting steps you can offer. My work is being seriously impacted by this issue, and I'm keen to resolve it as soon as possible.

Thank you for taking the time to read through this detailed post. Your expertise and advice are much appreciated.

Best regards,
Hayden

[Haydenmartin]

Yes I noticed this. Very weird. The router is in a totally separate room to me. I don’t touch it at all

[Haydenmartin]

I’ll look into this. I am working from out of town until Sunday, then will test it out. I may have the new router and UPS by this point though - will it still be worth checking?

[Haydenmartin]

unfortunately I don't have a home phone. mobile only.

Locate the hidden test socket that is revealed when you remove the bottom half of the split faceplate (2 screws or press tabs) of your master socket. Only do this if you have a split faceplate. Do you have any extension sockets in the home even if unused? Are there any wires connected to back of faceplate of master socket?

An EE engineer visited and replaced this socket already. would they have checked this? I'm not an electrician nor am I home at the moment as I'm working remote - thi is why the shutdowns wreak so much havoc - I cant switch the PC back on. I'm setting up a Wi-On Lan soon though.

Before 2:30 today, what logs should I try to gather to improve this diagnosis?

[XRaySpeX]

Yes, you would be checking the noise on the line, not the router. In my experience routers don't deteriorate in their performance unless they pack up altogether. I even seen BT phone sockets less reliable than routers.

Do you just not possess a landline handset or did you choose to go with EE's Fibre W/out Landline product?

[Haydenmartin]

I don’t possess a landline headset and as far as I know I never opted for a landline feature. Happy with mobile only

[BarefootJake]

This a major longshot - but do you have an Economy 7 or Economy 10 meter for your electricity?  I had a problem where my router (not EE) would reboot every day just after 11pm.  This was also the time our Economy 7 electricity meter would switch to night rate.  I know that coincidence is not necessarily causation, but to cut a long story short there was a fault on our Economy 7 electricity meter switch which was sending an electrical spike to certain electrical sockets - including the one into which our router was plugged.  Used a different socket and it was fine (eventually got the E7 meter replaced).

Another issue I had with a different (again not EE) router randomly restarting was a faulty Ethernet card on my desktop.

I hope you get things fixed soon, I know how frustrating these things can be.  

[Christopher_G]

Hi @BarefootJake 

Welcome to the community.

Just to confirm, your broadband is with EE, but your router wasn't supplied by us? Is it a mobile broadband router or fixed line?

Chris

[BarefootJake]

Hey this was a few years ago, I wasn't an EE customer then.

[Leanne_T]

I see, thank you for sharing @BarefootJake 

Leanne.