COX CONNECTION ISSUES
BEGINNING JULY 17, 2018
***Note - For more recent information about
this ongoing connection issue please visit this
link: http://www.w1aex.com/cox/
Following a severe lightning storm on 7-17-2018 the connection
has exhibited unstable behavior with random periods where the
upstream power level rises to 51dB and periods of severe packet
loss are seen. During these periods the Cisco 6 Tuner HDTV STB
may become unstable and lock up and the internet connection
stalls completely or has very diminished capabilities. Since
7-17-2018 there have been several brief periods where our Cox
telephone line has reported "No Connection" but I have not
confirmed whether this was happening when the high packet loss
issue was present.
The images below are representative of what is
seen here when the issue is present. Note that there are
extended periods of time where the connection behaves fine but
there are random periods of time almost daily where the the
internet and the HDTV STB are unusable.
July 17 2018: Immediately
following a complete loss of service during a severe lightning
storm the connection exhibited high packet loss to the first hop
beyond the CMTS.
July 23 2018: The Cisco 9865 STB
locks up and the internet connection is poor during this period
of high packet loss.
July 26 2018: The Cisco 9865 STB locks up and the
internet connection is unusable at this time. The image shows
packet loss as it pings to the first hop beyond the CMTS.
July 28 2018: The Cisco 9865 STB
locks up and the internet connection behaves poorly at this
time. The image shows the connection as the local CMTS is
pinged.
July 28 2018: Cox speed test performed at
the time the screenshot above was taken.
July 29 2018: Cox speed test performed the
next day during a period where no packet loss issues were
present.
August 4 2018: Since the July 17th
storm the upstream power level will rise from the mid 40 levels
to 51.0 dBmV which appears to be the maximum the CM-1000 can
deliver.
August 6 2018: I contacted Cox today and spoke with a Cox
representative about the ongoing connection issues. She checked
the connection history and noted numerous T3 timeouts and the
high upstream power level that was present. She indicated that
before going further it was part of her duties to reboot the
modem remotely to see if the connection improved. After
rebooting she noted no difference in the upstream power level so
a Cox technician visit was arranged for later in the week.
August 7 2018: The connection is struggling with HDTV
issues and internet connection issues. The image shows packet
loss as the first hop beyond the CMTS is pinged.
August 9 2018: After hanging at 48
to 49 dBmV throughout the day the upstream power hit 51 dBmV on
all 4 channels just before 11PM.
August 10 2018: Service Interrupted when the
status page was checked at 1:30PM.
August 10 2018: The Cox technician arrived shortly
after 5PM. At the time he was here the connection was within
spec and behaving normally. I reviewed all of the information
displayed above on this page and he made measurements in the
house and out at the pole. He inspected all connections from the
drop outside right up to the modem. He also looked at my recent
connection history and noted the random high upstream power
level excursions that were occurring. He determined that this
was a street issue that would require a truck roll.
August 12 2018: No internet service and no
TV service during this packet loss session. Note the upstream
power level is at 51.0 dBmV which is the highest the CM1000
seems to report.
August 13 2018: I contacted Cox
today to request credit for partial service from August 10
through August 12. The credit was approved with a reduction of
-$40.30 in the current month's bill. The service representative
I spoke with indicated that the technician who made the house
visit on August 10th did indicate an upstream issue on the
street and had called for a truck roll to find the cause for
intermittent level problems affecting multiple customers. The
ticket he assigned to this issue was:
ESR000002754700
August 13 2018: A bucket truck arrived at
12:50PM and appeared to check signal levels for a few minutes.
It then drove away and left the area. Signal levels and services
were satisfactory at the time the truck was sitting out front.
August 14 2018: The bucket truck returned this
morning at 9:00AM to check signal levels again. I spoke with the
line technician who understood that the issue was intermittent
and random. He gave me his Cox phone number and asked me to call
him when the issue was present. He would be able to access
signal levels of other modems in the area to trace backwards
from my location to help find the origin of the problem. He was
available to call from Monday - Friday 7:30AM to 4:00PM.
August 14 2018: I contacted the line technician at
10:52AM when the upstream suddenly shot up to 51dBmV as heavy
rain began to fall. He indicated that he was bringing up my area
on his laptop as we spoke. I kept the call short to allow him to
track signal levels. The screenshot below shows periods of
packet loss and connection issues from 10:56AM to 11:01AM. The
high upstream modem levels continued beyond that time frame to
11:51AM when all four upstream power levels abruptly returned to
acceptable levels in the 46 - 47dBmV range. The high upstream
power level and packet loss issues were present at other times
throughout the day rendering the connection completely useless
for much of the time.
August 14 2018: I contacted Cox and discussed the
connection issue with the associate who answered my call. I
asked for any updates regarding the repair ticket
ESR000002754700 attached to my account. She indicated that the
repair ticket had been closed and marked "Resolved". I asked her
to re-open the ticket, which she said that she would do, and
then requested credit for the internet portion of my bill for
the day. She granted a 6 dollar credit for the 14th and service
interruptions on the previous day.
August 17 2018: I contacted Cox and asked for an
update on the repair ticket ESR000002754700 that was attached to
my account. I was informed that the ticket was again closed and
that the problem was marked "Resolved". This was a surprise to
me as there was no change in the random excursions of the
upstream power level and the periods of high packet loss. I
explained that the arrangement with the line crew was that I
could call them when issues occurred between Mon - Fri from
7:30AM to 4PM, however, the issues from the 15th through the
16th had taken place outside of those hours. The Cox associate
indicated that he could not re-open the ticket again and
suggested that I speak with a Tier Two representative. I said
that would be fine and reviewed the issue with the Tier Two
representative. He indicated that he also could not re-open the
ticket but said that he would arrange a phone call from the Cox
technician who had made the home visit. I said that would be
fine and was told that I could expect the call early next week.
August 18 2018: A torrential rain storm
arrived at around 3:30PM and the upstream power level shot up
from 49 dBmV to 51 dBmV on all four upstream channels. The
internet connection became unresponsive and exhibited high
packet loss. It seems that moisture is one of the triggers that
causes this issue but there have been problems on dry sunny days
as well. This is not the usual upward creep on hot days that is
typical with a cable connection. This is a jump from 45 or 46
dBmV to the maximum 51 dBmV that I have seen the Netgear CM-1000
display. The technician who made the home visit on August 10
indicated that he observed in the history of several modems in
the neighborhood that there were very high out-of-spec upstream
excursions going on. I attempted to run the Cox Speed Test but
could not log into my account. When I finally was able to log in
successfully and able to complete the test it reported a much
diminished 40/4 download/upload connection.
August 18 2018: The evening hours were plagued
with packet loss and my Account Overview accurately reported the
service interruption when I was able to connect to it at 9:30PM.
August 19 2018: I contacted Cox today to request a
credit for the lack of internet service from 3:00PM through the
end of the day. The associate granted a $3.00 credit for the
day.
August 20 2018: Heavy packet loss through prime
time hours on Monday night affecting internet and TV services.
August 23 2018: Heavy packet loss during prime time
on Thursday evening.
For more recent information about this ongoing issue please
visit this link: http://www.w1aex.com/cox/