Question PC disconnects from games but internet connection is still okay ?

[EndeligGnist]

As the title states, I have been disconnecting from games, but only in games. Sometimes I get ping spikes before, but most times, I just disconnect without warning. The funny thing is, everything else seems to work just fine. Maybe it's preloaded, but my YouTube or netflix is still playing in the background, and my Internet still seems to be connected.

This issue came up about a week or two ago, when I just started playing Runescape. The game seemed to run fine for the first few days, then I started to get random disconnects frequently. I thought it was just the game at first, but then I started disconnecting playing Overwatch and Battlefield 1.

I use an ethernet connection and have never had a similar issue for over 3 years now and my upload and download speeds are about 900mbs. Here's what I have tried: flushing my DNS, making registry edits, changing my ethernet cable 3 times, reinstalling my network drivers, resetting my router, but nothing. Hell, I even tried updating my windows from 10 to 11, but the problem still persists.

I know the issue is not with my router because I have another PC plugged into the network and it works fine. The WiFi works fine on other devices too, but interestingly enough, when I connect to WiFi on my PC, the same problem persists. I'm not sure what the problem is, could it be software, a hardware issue or could some settings have been changed? Is there anything I can do to diagnose this problem?

Here's my network configuration:
Router: Asus RT-AX53U
I have an enternet cable from the router connected to an ethernet hub, which is connected to 2 PCs.

Specs:
Mobo: Asus ROG STRIX Z590A
CPU: Intel Core i9-10900KF
GPU: Asus Tuf Gaming RTX 3080 Ti
RAM: Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro (2 x 16GB) 3200mhz CL16
PSU: Superflower Leadex III Gold 850W

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[KingLoki]

Is your problem computer network setting on Public or Private?

 

[Lutfij]

I even tried updating my windows from 10 to 11, but the problem still persists.
If you're yet on Windows 11 after the internal upgrade path, you're advised to recreate your bootable USB installer for Windows 11 and reinstall it after a format, in offline mode. Once you've installed the OS, manually install all drivers relevant to your platform in an elevated command, then connect to the internet to update the OS.

Router: Asus RT-AX53U
Have you checked to see if your router is pending any firmware updates?

Asus ROG STRIX Z590A
What BIOS version are you on for your motherboard?

You forgot to mention the make and model of your PSU and it's age.

 

[EndeligGnist]

Is your problem computer network setting on Public or Private?

I'm using public, but I've also tried private but the problem persists.

 

[EndeligGnist]

I even tried updating my windows from 10 to 11, but the problem still persists.
If you're yet on Windows 11 after the internal upgrade path, you're advised to recreate your bootable USB installer for Windows 11 and reinstall it after a format, in offline mode. Once you've installed the OS, manually install all drivers relevant to your platform in an elevated command, then connect to the internet to update the OS.

Router: Asus RT-AX53U
Have you checked to see if your router is pending any firmware updates?

Asus ROG STRIX Z590A
What BIOS version are you on for your motherboard?

You forgot to mention the make and model of your PSU and it's age.

Thank you for your response.

I'll have to get back to you regarding my bios later since I'm at work now, but it has been over a year since I last updated it. Do you think that can be a potential issue? If so, why has my connection issue just occur a week or two ago?

There are no pending updates for my router, and regarding windows 11, the problem persisted even before I upgraded it.

I'm using a Superflower Leadex III Gold 850W PSU (original thread edited to reflect this).

 

[KingLoki]

youtube and netflix buffers in, so it may appear to be connected for a time but then the buffer runs out. have you tried a different app that is connected live that you can tell if it affects that as well as the games?

 

[EndeligGnist]

youtube and netflix buffers in, so it may appear to be connected for a time but then the buffer runs out. have you tried a different app that is connected live that you can tell if it affects that as well as the games?

I've only tried running a speed test in the background, but I'll try something like Twitch later to see if the connection drops. My guess, however, is that my browser will continue running just fine because the signal drop seems to be so abrupt and momentary that it only boots me out of applications that require a very steady connection, like Overwatch.

Are there any software that you can recommend that can monitor my network stability better than, say, running a live stream in the background?

 

[bill001g]

You need no special tools to monitor the network a simple ping command detects most issues.

Start with the simplest. Open 2 cmd windows and leave a constant ping run to your router IP and to a common IP like 8.8.8.8

Always do your testing on ethernet it is extremely common to get random packet loss when you are on wifi which is why it is never recommended to play online games on wifi.

You should never see loss to the router in almost all cases it will be some strange issue with your pc. Loss to 8.8.8.8 means you have some issue in the internet connection. You would have to do more tests to see where in the path the problem is but the only one you can really fix is the connection coming to your house. Very random packet loss is going to be hard for a ISP to see....well in the short time they are willing to talk to you on the phone.

If you see no loss to 8.8.8.8 then it is a much more complex issue. You could try the game servers if they respond to ping but problems like this mean the issue might be outside your ISP and in another ISP which you are not going to be able to contact.

 

[EndeligGnist]

You need no special tools to monitor the network a simple ping command detects most issues.

Start with the simplest. Open 2 cmd windows and leave a constant ping run to your router IP and to a common IP like 8.8.8.8

Always do your testing on ethernet it is extremely common to get random packet loss when you are on wifi which is why it is never recommended to play online games on wifi.

You should never see loss to the router in almost all cases it will be some strange issue with your pc. Loss to 8.8.8.8 means you have some issue in the internet connection. You would have to do more tests to see where in the path the problem is but the only one you can really fix is the connection coming to your house. Very random packet loss is going to be hard for a ISP to see....well in the short time they are willing to talk to you on the phone.

If you see no loss to 8.8.8.8 then it is a much more complex issue. You could try the game servers if they respond to ping but problems like this mean the issue might be outside your ISP and in another ISP which you are not going to be able to contact.

Can you explain how to run the ping test more?

 

[KingLoki]

1. Open two seperate command windows
2. In the first window Type 'ping -t 8.8.8.8' (without quotes)
3. In the second window Type 'ping -t 192.168.0.1 (**or whatever your modem/router gateway address is**)

It will run continuosly until you press ctrl +C on your keyboard to stop the test.

 

[EndeligGnist]

1. Open two seperate command windows
2. In the first window Type 'ping -t 8.8.8.8' (without quotes)
3. In the second window Type 'ping -t 192.168.0.1 (**or whatever your modem/router gateway address is**)

It will run continuosly until you press ctrl +C on your keyboard to stop the test.

Thank you for your help.

I've since tried the ping test. The average round trip time for Google DNS and my router is about 3ms and 1ms respectively, with the maximum being 15ms for both. I've only seen 1 packet loss (0%) for my router, which didn't coincide with my game disconnecting.

I've been playing multiple games of Overwatch, Battlefield 1, War Thunder, League of Legends, and Insurgency Sandstorm (I gave up on Runescape). So far, the only game that disconnected was BF1. Somehow, Overwatch, which used to disconnect quite frequently has been quite obedient.

I'll keep testing, but this is puzzling.

 

[KingLoki]

Well your ping testing seems ok with those results. Good luck!

 

[bill001g]

Random internet issues are the hardest to find. They never seem to happen when you have tests running for some reason.

In general if ping has no issues when you have issues in game the problem tends to be something other than network. A actual disconnect from the game is very different from performance issue like lag in the game. It is very common for example for a game to claim random latency spikes when ping shows nothing. What this means many times is the game is getting busy say rendering video frames. When it finally gets around to looking for the "ping" packet it is using to measure latency it blames all the delay on the network rather than on it just being too busy to process the ping response that was sitting there all along. This is why you see people claim they fix ping problem by changing video setting even though the video never actually passes through the network.

Key is to get lucky and have tests running when the games have issues. It does not really hurt to have constant ping running in the background all the time.