Problem connecting second laptop to HH5

[MJP]

I have an issue with a Lenovo Legion Laptop with Killer WiFi card. 
I also have a Lenovo Ideapad Laptop with Intel WiFi but not killer. 

if I use  the Ideapad the Legion disconnects from WiFi and will not reconnect. 

if I shutdown the Ideapad the legion still refuses to connect. Running troubleshooter fails to fix the issue but reports a problem with the access point. Rebooting the Legion fails to cure the issue.

Restarting the HH5 is the only way I’ve found of getting the Legion to reconnect. Once reconnected the connection remains stable. 

I’ve checked for updated drivers, removed the killer WiFi from device manager, uninstalled the driver , then scanned for new hardware and reinstalled driver. I’ve even downloaded the latest driver from Intel killer site , which was the driver I had anyway, all with no improvement. 

Ive changed power setting so WiFi doesn’t disconnect to save power.

I also have a similar issue with my iPhone losing connection to the hub which happened before I had the legion. Again restarting   The HH is only remedy ( Googling seems to come up with this being an ongoing issue with Apple) 

Other than having to reboot the HH every so often I don’t know what else to do. I’m loathe to spend £100 on a new Smart hub that may have the same issues. 

[Les-Gibson]

Are you using either static IP addresses or an old router as a wireless access point?

With the ideapad disconnected from the network, make a note of the IP address of the Legion on the device itself (Not On The Hub)

With legion still connected to the network, connect the Ideapad to the network and verify that the Legion no longer works. Make a note of the IP addresses of both machines as seen on the devices themselves. 

Is the IP address of the Ideapad the same as the one you noted from the legion and/or has the IP address on the Legion gone from 192.xxx.xxx.xxx to 169.xxx.xxx.xxx

[MJP]

Thanks for your reply, I'm not using a separate wireless router, I'm just connected via the BT Home Hub 5.

I rebooted the hub yesterday to get my Legion to connect. I haven't set up static ip adressing.

This morning I've tried out the experiment you have suggested but typically the Legion is remaining connected! 

Do you think it would help if I assigned a fixed ip address to both laptops?

[gg30340]

Instead of just restarting the HH5 have you tried a factory reset of the Homehub by pressing a pin into the recess button on the rear for about 20 seconds. This should clear out any stored settings and start with a clean sheet.

Once you have done that make sure you turn off "smart setup" on the Homehub.

See link how to do that.

http://bt.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/44328/~/what-is-smart-setup-on-the-bt-hub%3F-how-can-...

[Les-Gibson]

You probably cleared the fault when you rebooted the hub

[MJP]

I’ve had to reboot the hub a few times over the last few months to get the legion to connect after I’ve used the Ideapad though, so I’m sure the problem will arise again at some point! 

[MJP]

Thanks for the suggestion that is something I’ve considered if I can’t find out a cure for this laptop playing up. 

[Les-Gibson]

Sorry, I missed your earlier question.

There are times when static IP addressing is necessary but in general I would advise sticking with DHCP.

The reason I asked if you had an additional router on the network is because you don't want more than one DHCP server on the network as it could lead to IP contention

[MJP]

I asked about a static IP as I thought the issue could be with the Ideapad wanting to use the same address as the legion and knocking it out …. If that’s even possible. My thinking using a fixed IP for each would mitigate that problem. I’m totally wrong I expect! 

[Les-Gibson]

No, not totally wrong.

If you only have a couple of devices then Static IP is fine but consider this.

Your number of devices grows (for whatever reason) and you want to allocate an IP address for a new device, do you know which addresses you've allocated or have you made a note of those you've used? If not and you duplicate an address already in use then you prevent not one but two devices from working properly.

In short Static IP is fine providing you manage it well but DHCP requires no management on your part