Your HughesNet not working and you’re looking for a quick solution?
Luckily, you are at the right place. In this post, we are going to reveal the most common causes for slow to no internet when using the satellite HughesNet installation.
Then we will provide you with a detailed solution for each possible cause, where no technical skills are required from your side.
The most common cause for slow or entirely not working HughesNet remains inclement weather.
If, however, the weather is fine, there are many other things that could be impacting the performance of your HughesNet internet.
Regardless of your occasion, we definitely have a solution for you. And if not, at least you will get one step closer to identifying the problem.
Without further ado, let’s first find out why your HughesNet is not working.
Why Is HughesNet Internet Not Working?
Before we can jump right into the steps to troubleshoot HughesNet, first we should take a peek at some frequently reported issues.
On their own, they can provide you with enough information and you might not even need to take any troubleshooting actions.
Here are the most common issues that can impact your HughesNet performance:
- Bad weather.
- Obstacles.
- Router/modem issues.
- Outdated firmware.
- Network overload.
- Hardware issue.
Keep in mind that our resolution steps below cover much more minor issues than the ones listed above so you can confidently move on.
Read Next: How to increase HughesNet speed?
How To Fix HughesNet Not Working?
Now when you have a basic idea of what could be happening to your HughesNet satellite internet, it is time to start troubleshooting.
It is important to apply the steps in the order they are listed below to achieve the best results.
Also, we recommend checking if your internet is working after completing a step to avoid unnecessary troubleshooting.
Step #1 Check For Damage
The first and most important step would be to ensure that all cords and cables are connected rightfully and there are no physical damages.
Follow the path where the cable goes through and make sure that it is not under pressure (especially on the corner of your doors).
Go outside and inspect the satellite dish for any damage caused by weather including the receiver.
If there is anything out of order it could seriously impact the performance of your internet.
If there is nothing wrong, you can move on to the next step.
Step #2 Position Your Satellite Dish
If your HughesNet is not working, it could be because your satellite dish (receiver) is not positioned rightfully.
To clarify, the satellite dish should be pointed towards the nearest broadcast tower, depending on where you live (you can check online).
Also, you need to ensure that there is not an object in front of your satellite dish.
Such an object could be basically anything such as a car, house, or even a tree.
In that regard position your satellite dish towards the nearest broadcast tower, slightly facing the sky, without any obstacle in front of it.
If everything until this point is as it should, with our next step we will take our troubleshooting one step further.
Step #3 Troubleshoot Router/Modem
Asking “how do I reset my HughesNet Internet?” Well, in this step we are going to discuss just that.
More specifically you will learn how to perform a restart of your router and modem.
And if that does not work, we are going to show you have to perform a reset, which is a completely different approach.
Let’s start with a simple restart.
How To Restart Your Router/Modem?
To restart your router follow the steps below:
- Locate the Power button on the back of your router.
- Press the Power button once.
- Plug out the router from the power supply.
- Wait for at least 3 minutes.
- Plug the router back into the power outlet.
- Test.
By performing a restart, you will reboot all services and if the issue is related to it, it will definitely be resolved.
If your HughesNet internet is still not working, let’s check how to perform a reset.
How To Reset Your Router/Modem?
Resetting your router will revert all settings and configurations by default.
That means that your WiFi passwords and any personal configurations will be permanently lost.
Here is how to perform a reset:
- Locate the pinhole on the back of your router.
- Take a sharp object such as a pencil, pen, or needle.
- Reach in the pinhole, press, and hold the button inside, until the lights fade out.
- Plug the router out from the power supply and wait for about a minute.
- Plug it back in, and wait for all services to come back online.
- Test.
If you haven’t configured your WiFi in the first place, we recommend calling your supplier for precise instructions on how to do so.
Once ready you can test your HughesNet internet and identify if it is working or not.
Step #4 Update Router’s Firmware
If your HughesNet is not working, it could be because of outdated router firmware.
To check for available updates, we will need to reach your modem’s control panel.
Here is how to update routers’ firmware:
- Open CMD, with administrator rights.
- Type /ipconfig and press Enter.
- A list of IPs should appear, where you need to copy the IPv4 address.
- Paste the IPv4 address in the search field of the browser you prefer.
- Insert username and password (by default the credentials are admin/admin)
- Go to the update tab and scan for available software updates.
Note:
If there are updates feel free to apply them right away but remember that your modem will restart several times during the process and any devices connected to the WiFi will get disconnected.
Once the update is applied, test if your internet is now working.
Read Next: Is HughesNet good for gaming?
Step #5 Contact Customer Support
Unfortunately, if you have applied all of the previous steps and nothing actually worked the only thing you can do before contacting the support is to try applying them again.
It is recommended to share with the customer service everything you tried so far to save yourself time doing the same steps again.
Hopefully, the issue will be identified and resolved. And if not, at least you will know exactly what the problem is and what should be replaced.
What To Do If HughesNet Is Still Not Working?
As a last resort, we have prepared several things that are proven to speed up your internet connection.
Keep in mind that you might not experience a non-working internet, instead, it could be so slow that it feels like it’s not working.
If this is the case, here is what you can do:
- Lower the number of connections using the WiFi.
- Disable your VPN.
- Change the position of your Router (pick a more central place).
- Check if you are out of data.
Note:
Keep in mind that if the current weather outside is bad (strong wind, ferocious thunder, or heavy rain), your HughesNet internet might be gone, but just temporarily.
If this is what’s happening, we recommend waiting and check once the weather is calm.
Bottom Line
We hope that now you have a better idea of why HughesNet not working and how to troubleshoot the issue efficiently.
If you experience other issues with your satellite internet, we recommend navigating to our blog where you will find similar troubleshooting guides for any issue you might have.
Finn Wheatley holds a Master’s Degree in Computer Science from UCL, London. He helped small data science consultancy firms, helping large corporations to grow their data capabilities, deploy advanced machine learning-based analytics and troubleshoot tech-related issues. Check out more about him here.