VPN Connection Issue

[princess_sarah]

Hello, I am having a frustrating issue with my PC device's VPN connection.

This happens mostly when I am in my house, where I spend most of my time doing all my typical stuff of writing, studying, etc.

The VPN connection issue occurs mostly:

- When I am downstairs in the basement of my house, during the day. At certain points and periods during the day, the connection would magically disconnect by itself, and I'd receive annoying errors every few seconds saying "VPN is reconnecting" or "trying to disconnect", something like that. And it's frustrating to me because I don't know why this is happening.

The Wi-Fi connection router of my whole house is located upstairs in my bedroom of the house (which at some point when I was little, used to be a general study room area, with printers and stuff back then). So, whenever the Wi-Fi of the whole house is acting up for any other devices (like my PC for one, as well as cell phones, the television screens, etc.), I'd have to go up to my room to turn off the router for a minute or two, then turn it back on, and then all the devices would automatically reconnect. Obviously, this includes my PC too.

But when I'm upstairs in my bedroom for the day (after leaving the basement for the day), the VPN connection is working just fine. Not once does it magically disconnect or anything; it remains stable and steadily connected all through the whole time I'm using it. So, I'd have to wake up earlier at around 4 or something in the morning to be able to use my PC and keep working on my writing, my studies, my personal businesses and affairs. I can also do it in my kitchen and living room,

But when it comes SPECIFICALLY to my presence in the BASEMENT, that's when the connection issues continue. Magically disconnecting itself, then reconnecting with the annoyance of "No internet access" at times, and it's so frustating because I don't understand what the difference is between my physical presence up in my bedroom, as opposed to being down in my basement, and the VPN connection always acting off when I'm in the basement, even though it's the SAME WI-FI ROUTER for the whole house. So, it's like no matter where I am in the house (kitchen, living room, the basement during the day, and my bedroom up in the evening and at night), I feel like the VPN connection should always be stable and steady.

Like now, at this moment, I'm sending this message from up in my bedroom. The connection to the VPN is currently stable and steady. I can imagine if I were in my basement right now at this moment, it'd be shaky and start losing connection for NO APPARENT REASON, other than to completely frustrate me.

The VPN's Connection Settings that I have currently set up:

- Auto Connect: Always

- Split Tunneling (on)

- Exclude software updates (on)

- Exclude apps from VPN (on)

- Show Notifications (when VPN is on/off): This is where I get the annoying message when I'm down in the basement that the VPN is "trying to reconnect" when it just happens to magically disconnect itself.

- Kill Switch (on)

- Reconnect after restarting (Yes, on)

- Access Local Devices with VPN (Yes)

- Enable Multiple Active VPNs (No, off): Could this be the reason why this occurs whenever I am in my basement?

- VPN Protocol Settings: Automatic

- Post-Quantum Encryption (confused by what this means, so this is OFF)

[Kuroi_Kenshi]

Hi @princess_sarah,

Welcome to the HP Support Community!

Thank you for explaining the issue in detail. Since your VPN works normally upstairs but frequently disconnects in the basement, I'd like to clarify two things before suggesting further troubleshooting:

When the VPN disconnects in the basement, does your laptop remain connected to Wi-Fi with normal internet access, or does the internet connection drop as well?

Which VPN application are you using, and does it display any specific error message when attempting to reconnect?

One quick test: The next time this happens, temporarily disconnect the VPN and try accessing a website. This will help establish whether the underlying internet connection is stable or whether the issue is specific to the VPN.

For now, leave your existing VPN settings unchanged, including the Kill Switch. There is no need to enable multiple active VPNs.

Your answers will help us identify the next appropriate troubleshooting steps.

Best regards,
Kuroi_Kenshi

[princess_sarah]

A little bit of both at times, but mostly the Internet connect still remains. I use Norton 360, which is signed in and registered under my father's account because he is the one that uses it to manage all of the house's devices (including cell phones) that are connected to Norton, and it also includes laptops, and even our Desktop computer located in our kitchen. Yes, when the VPN disconnects, the norton message will say that it's reconnecting, and then it's fully connected once it is fully connected again.

[Kuroi_Kenshi]

Hi @princess_sarah,

Thank you for clarifying. Since you're using Norton 360 VPN and your internet connection mostly remains active when the VPN disconnects, one possibility is that the Wi-Fi signal in the basement is weaker or experiencing intermittent interruptions.

Even though you're connected to the same router throughout the house, the signal strength and connection quality can vary depending on your location.

Please try the following:

1. Check Wi-Fi signal strength in the basement.

• While downstairs, click the Wi-Fi icon on your Windows taskbar.
• Check how many signal bars are displayed.
• Compare the signal strength with what you see upstairs.
• If possible, run an internet speed test in both locations and compare the results.

2. Test the connection without the VPN.

• When the issue occurs in the basement, temporarily disconnect Norton VPN.
• Open a few websites and check whether they load normally.
• If the internet also becomes slow or unstable without the VPN, the issue is more likely related to the Wi-Fi connection than Norton itself.

3. Check the Wi-Fi adapter's power settings.

• Right-click Start and open Device Manager.
• Expand network adapters.
• Right-click your wireless adapter and select Properties.
• If a Power Management tab is available, uncheck Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power.
• Restart your computer and test again.

4. Improve the basement Wi-Fi connection
If the signal is noticeably weaker downstairs, try positioning yourself closer to the router. 

If the signal remains weak, a Wi-Fi extender or mesh access point may help improve coverage in the basement.

For now, I recommend keeping Norton VPN's existing settings unchanged. Enabling multiple active VPNs is unlikely to address a weak Wi-Fi signal.

Could you also confirm whether you notice any difference in the Wi-Fi signal bars between your bedroom and the basement?

Best regards,
Kuroi_Kenshi

[princess_sarah]

How would I go about running an Internet speed test?

[Kuroi_Kenshi]

Hi @princess_sarah,

You can easily check your internet speed using the following steps:

Open Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge.

Visit https://www.speedtest.net/

Click the GO button to start the test.

Wait for the test to finish. It will display three results:

• Ping: Measures the response time of your connection.
• Download speed: Measures how quickly your device receives data.
• Upload speed: Measures how quickly your device sends data.

Please run this test twice:

Once while connected to Wi-Fi in your bedroom (upstairs).

Once while connected to Wi-Fi in your basement.

Try to perform both tests with Norton VPN disconnected so we can compare the underlying internet connection.

Share the Ping, Download, and Upload results from both locations. This will help us determine whether the basement Wi-Fi connection is contributing to the VPN disconnections.
 

Best regards,
Kuroi_Kenshi

[princess_sarah]

Okay, thank you.

[princess_sarah]

Hello,

For the speed test, I tried but I think they got my location wrong. 

It was listed as Ashburn, VA, which is very far from where I am based (Little Ferry, NJ), my town and residence. 

[Paul0311]

It does sound like it could be a wifi connection issue as Kurol_Kenshi suggested, especially since the router is located in the upper level of the house. You can get a snapshot of wifi signal strength wih:

Open up a Command Prompt and run:  netsh wlan show interfaces

Look for RSSI (Received Signal Strength Indicator).  It is expressed as a negative number (-50). RSSI equates to dBm (decibel milliwatts) which is the standard unit of measure for signal strength for all sorts of wireless transmission including wifi, broadcast TV signals, cell phone signals, etc. For wifi the published values are:

- 50 dBm to -67 dBm: the desired range

-70 dBm may be ok email, web browsing

-80 dBm: not reliable

Note that -50 is a stronger signal than -70.  These values are a guide. You may find that everything works fine with -70 dBm, but stronger is better.

You can easily see if the wifi drops by looking at the wifi icon in the lower right hand corner -- it would tun into a globe. And then probably reconnect. It's important to separate a wifi connection problem with an application (like a VPN).

[Kuroi_Kenshi]

Hi @princess_sarah,

Thank you for the update!

The location shown by Speedtest.net (Ashburn, VA) is likely the VPN server location rather than your actual location. Since Norton VPN is enabled, your internet traffic is routed through its VPN server, which can make websites identify a different location.

For an accurate comparison of your home Wi-Fi connection, please disconnect Norton VPN before running the speed test.

Also, even though you're using the same Wi-Fi router throughout your house, the signal strength and stability can vary depending on your distance from the router, walls, and other obstructions.

If you regularly need to use your PC in the basement, a Wi-Fi extender or mesh system may help improve coverage in that area.

Please run the speed test with the VPN disconnected in both your bedroom and basement, and share the Ping, Download, and Upload results.

Best regards,
Kuroi_Kenshi