Uverse and ASA 5505 sporadic connectivity.

[brucekfoster]

Please help.

I work for a small nonprofit and have been charged with the IT dept.  I am certainly no expert so please bear with me.

We recently relocated our business office.  Our old location had DSL from AT&T.  Worked almost flawlessly for about 9 years with only three outages that I recall.  Since we moved at the end of Feb2015 we have had had nothing but issues. 

DSL is no longer offered and we were forced to install Uverse.  AT&T has been here about 15 times since 27FEB2015.  Our internet drops regularly.  They have been very accommodating but it doesn't solve my issue.

I need to ensure my 5505 configuration is correct.  I only reconfigured the details regarding the new AT&T service and nothing else.  I can't understand why it worked for so many years and now it is not.

I also need to learn how to monitor the device to know it is not the 5505 that is causing my connectivity issue.  Is that possible?

Can anyone guide a novice? I will answer questions to the best of my ability.

Thank you.

[Vibhor Amrodia]

Hi,

So , as per the description it is the intermittent internet connectivity on the ASA device ? Correct ?

If this is the case , I think the easiest and most important test if to check at the time of outage , is the ISP connectivity is there or not ?

i.e. If the ASA device is able to ping the Next Hop gateway and some internet address:- 4.2.2.1 for ex ?

Also , do you have a dynamic IP configured on the ASA device for ex:- PPPOE or DHCP ?

If yes , I think we might need to check the IP address assignment also in that case.

If you have static IP , try to check the connectivity to the gateway and internet access .

Also , how does the internet come back ? Reload of the ASA ?

Also , give us a basic understanding of your network schematic.

Thanks and Regards,

Vibhor Amrodia

[brucekfoster]

Thank you for the reply.  I will try my best to provide meaningful information.

If this is the case , I think the easiest and most important test if to check at the time of outage , is the ISP connectivity is there or not ?

Internet at the modem doesn't fail.  I connected a laptop to the wireless on the modem and it is able to ping 8.8.8.8 consistently. Also the AT&T tech showed me the results of his monitoring and there are remarkably few errors

i.e. If the ASA device is able to ping the Next Hop gateway and some internet address:- 4.2.2.1 for ex ?

Yes, the next hop is the modem and when my workstation cannot ping 8.8.8.8, I am able to ping the ASA 5505 and the ASA 5505 can ping the modem. I have yet to figure out how to create a route directly from my workstation to the NVG510

Also , do you have a dynamic IP configured on the ASA device for ex:- PPPOE or DHCP ?

No.  Everything has IPs set manually

If you have static IP , try to check the connectivity to the gateway and internet access .

The only way I know how to do that is ping.  I have several running.

Also , how does the internet come back ? Reload of the ASA ?

By itself.  I do nothing and after anywhere from 30 sec to 2 minutes it comes back and works fine for 3, 5, 10, 20 minutes than drops again. And repeats that cycle continuously 

Also, give us a basic understanding of your network schematic

The Uverse enters via the NVG510 modem, which connects to the outside interface on the 5505.  The inside interface  plugs directly into the switches that feed the workstations and a SBS2003 server.  I don't know if that helps.

Full disclosure.  Today AT&T came and replaced the NVG510.  It was the only thing from the CO to my network that wasn't changed.  At this time I can report the connection hasn't dropped.  It has only been 7 hours and 45 minutes but not a single "request timed out".  I don't want to jinx it but it is looking better than it has in weeks.

Thanks again.

[Vibhor Amrodia]

Hi,

Thank you for the detailed explanation of the issue. I think as per your description , it seems unlikely that the issue is on the ISP end.

I would request you to update me with the show tech from the ASA device if the issue might re-occur.

Thanks and Regards,

Vibhor Amrodia