There comes a time when you are using your home network that it can become unresponsive. When it gets to that point, one of the best things to do is to just reboot everything to see if that will clear the issue. This will allow all the devices to clear their memory and get new IP addresses.
The best time to do this is if you notice a significant slow down in your Internet connection, or if websites are unresponsive. There is a lot going on behind the scenes in a home network so rebooting everything can help at times.
This will typically be done on the router, modem and all the devices behind the router. Some Internet service providers will package the modem and router into one device. If that is the case, you will only have to reboot it and the computers. Others, however, will provide a modem that connects to the ISP network and a separate router that all the internal devices connect to.
The typical IP allocation works like this. The modem acts as a bridge between your network and the ISP. The router will either dynamically receive an IP address from the ISP or it will be manually entered. If it is manually entered then you will have a static IP address that does not change.
The computers behind the router will be given private IP addresses. These, again, can be entered manually making them static, or handed out dynamically. If the private IPs are handed out dynamically this usually happens from a DHCP service on the router or firewall.
The router is what is able to move the traffic from the local, private network onto the separate network; the Internet in this case.
The Shutdown Process
The first thing to do is to shut down the computers in the home. Use your usual shutdown process depending on the operating system. Do not just push the power button or unplug power cords on the computers if it can be avoided.
The next device to disconnect is the router. This can be done by just removing the power from the device. Again, it may be bundled with the modem. If so, it is find to unplug both of them at the same time. If the modem and router are not bundled, then wait about 10 seconds after unplugging the router to unplug the modem.
Wait a few minutes and then plug the modem back into power. You will want to make sure it has established its connection before going any further. Wait for the connection and activity lights to show the connection has been made.
Next, plug the router back into power and wait for it to make connection with the modem. Again, wait for the connection lights to show that it has made connection.
After the modem and router have made their connections, you can start booting up the computers. If the computers have dynamic IP addresses, give them a minute to obtain an IP address. To verify they have received an IP address, you can enter a command prompt and type ipconfig /all. Most internal private networks have an IP address that begins with 192.168.1.X. But, it could be different with your configuration.
If this process fails to improve your connection, then you may need to contact your ISP for more help. Or, there may be an issue with equipment on your side of the network. Or, the PC itself could be having issues.