US Cable Support > Road Runner > [TWC] Fail to renew TWC DHCP issued WAN IP address (Kansas)

[TWC] Fail to renew TWC DHCP issued WAN IP address (Kansas)

I am having the exact same problem here in North Carolina. I called them two weeks ago and they said they are aware of the issue with the DHCP and are working on it. I've called TWC on Friday had a tech come out, but the problem still has not been fixed... I am in the process of switching providers...not worth the headache.

I'm amazed you got past the 'home router' question with them and actually got some information (TWC also made other interesting comments on the phone with me). I suspected a DHCP issue, but they were stuck to their script and would not give me any info. I am also investigating switching, although my only other choice is AT&T U-verse. Maybe I'll get a better price?

Well... the first person I talked to said it was my router until they looked up my info and saw that I am leasing the router through them, (which i tried to tell them...reading from script I'm sure) that is when I was transferred to someone else and said it was a DHCP issue. At least you get U-verse I only get ATT DSL until february when U-Verse becomes available... keep me posted on your issue..ill do the same.. thanks.

reply to allank
I am having the same problem in Buffalo (Amherst), New York.

reply to allank
I have a thread in the direct section about this. It was supposedly pointed out to someone in the RDU office, but I don't think anyone is a) looking at it, or b) has any f'ing clue what they broke. (translation: they don't care.)

It doesn't respond because the thing claiming to the DHCP server isn't actually the server. It's either a poorly configured relay agent or the wrong interface. The result is a unicast renewal will not work (it's sent to something that doesn't care); only a "rebind", which is a broadcast request, will work. (and it gets answered twice, btw.)

This started following the Level 3 outage. Most likely TWC loaded new software and/or configurations on their gear. And no one had bothered to test any of it -- or pay any attention if they did.

[PS: I didn't bother calling anyone. No one capable of understanding this problem is answering an 800#.]

cramer..thanks. Do you have a link to your post? Not sure what you mean by the "direct section" (forum search is down right now).

I have a new router to configure tonight. Hopefully it does the broadcast Discover when the lease expires, which my 2004 era router does not.

I know what you mean about the 800#. When I called on Sunday and tried to escalate I got told I was already talking to Tier 3. Really? Answering customer calls? And on a Sunday afternoon? I suppose it is remotely possible but I don't think so.

TWC Direct forum, you wouldn't be able to read it anyway.

Who you need to talk to is not "tier" anything. Network engineers don't answer phones In today's "get you off the phone" call centers, they don't even know who to call. (not that they would anyway.)

reply to cramer
I finally got through to Tier 3 about problems over the pass two with DHCP and tracert times outs and had the guy hang up on me even though I thought we were having a cordial conversation.

The last thing he said was the TWC residential supports no more that four devices on the network.

The second to last thing was that I should switch to business class service to receive the support I need (I have nine computers on all the time and three IP printers (LAN only) on all the time).

Sounds like revenue enhancement to me - this is the basic setup I've had ever since I've had Roadrunner.

BTW, my TV service also was completely hosed tonight - that was what prompted me to call, and once that was fixed, to try to get the RR problems fixed.

IMHO, TW is having all sorts of problems and will not admit it. Oddly enough, the TV support person issued a credit.

What ever could you need 9 computers for?

Either way, I used to know a guy who worked for another company, and I"m sure TWC is the same way, they don't really give their highest level customer facing support much information, and even less to the lower levels. Most of the residential troubleshooting is literally "Hook your computer directly to the connection" and that's it because that's really all they're allowed to do.

Honestly, that's all I'd expect from residential. I'm pretty sure most Business Class techs are better certified and trained, and have more ability to assist. Plus they get repairs done faster.

reply to allank
So my temporary very inexpensive solution, until I figure out which provider to switch to and which high end router I will purchase etc, is a new Rosewill RNX-N4PS router. It does a DHCP broadcast rebind before the lease expires if the unicast requests are ignored. For the price it actually has an amazing feature set, including up to 4 SSIDs that can be configured separately with some zone control.

reply to cramer
Actually TWC has two completely separate support centers for Residential and Business class. When I called for a computer shop that had BC with TWC, I called the residental line, and got T3 and they had to transfer me. Talked to the tech when he came in and he said said you had to have some basic Cisco/Net certifications to work there. Supposed to and do are two different stories, but I'm pretty sure BC is a completely different department. Whether they use the same support techniques is a different story altogether.

Well, to be honest, passing CCNA isn't all that difficult. And sadly doesn't prove you actually know anything. I've interviewed many people listing "CCNA" on their resume who, let's just say, did not get called back. They do have to have *some* different training because all BC customers have routers, not modems. (used to be a Cisco UBR905) And the customer doesn't have access to it at all.

reply to Gothmog1065
I made the switch to AT&T DSL. Its been over a week and not one dropped connection or timeout. I am happy.

reply to allank

I was using a Zywall 10 for which the latest firmware was 2004. The issue with the Zywall was it would not do a broadcast refresh when the lease expired.

reply to cramer
Well I'm half heartened that I found this thread. I've been having the same issues but am not particularly network savvy to know the cause. I've been resetting my router manually due to the router losing the internet connection. I only recently determined it was a constant dropped DHCP wan ip. But I wasn't sure of the cause.

Till I found this thread I was under the impression that my router might be malfunctioning and was considering RMAing it. For the record I use a Belkin N1.

I'm guessing the only fix is to get a new router? Is this a really limited issue as only a handful of people have mentioned it?