Even the best wireless routers occasionally have problems, whether they're provided by your ISP like Xfinity or you purchased them. You might notice a blinking orange light on your router one day that wasn't there before. If that's the case, don't panic. This is a common problem and can often be solved with a few simple troubleshooting steps. You should have a copy of your router's manual handy because, while this guide provides general tips, some steps may vary depending on your router's manufacturer.
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Why does an orange light on your router sometimes flash?
This usually indicates a problem with your internet
Whether you use a modem or a router to connect to the Internet, there are usually LED lights on the front of the device that indicate normal operation or potential problems. In most cases, a solid white or green light will indicate a good connection to your Internet service provider (ISP). If there are problems between your router or modem and the ISP, the light on the front will often flash orange to indicate that there are problems connecting to the Internet.
The most common reason for a blinking orange light on your router is a temporary loss of connection to your ISP or a hardware failure of your router. This is easily fixed by a quick power cycle.
Turn your router off and on again
If you also have a modem, turn both off and on again
1. Find the power source for your router and Unplug it either from the router or from the wall socket for a whole minute.
2. Reconnect the router and wait for the lights to stop flashing.
3. If you have a modem and a router, pull the plugboth devices for a minute.
4. Reconnect the modem and wait for the lights to stop flashing. Then reconnect the router.
Check for failures
It may not be your problem
If you've power cycled your router or both devices and the blinking orange light is no longer on, check to see if your internet is working as expected. If not, check your internet service provider's help pages to see if there are any outages in your area.
Here are the most popular ISP outage pages. You can also try searching for your ISP name on Downdetector.
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Check for updates
Firmware may be needy
If your internet is working as expected but you still see an orange light blinking, it could be that your router is trying to install a firmware update. Automatic updates can take up to 15 minutes, so leave your router alone for that time if you think it's updating. You can also trigger a manual update if you think the update is stuck for some reason. If your router has an associated app, install it, look for an option for firmware updates, and start the process again.
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Reset your router to factory settings
Back to original state
Before contacting your ISP or router manufacturer, the last thing you should try is resetting the router to its factory defaults. This will erase any settings you've changed, including any custom login credentials, and return the router to the state you received it in. This can often resolve mismatched settings between firmware changes or other issues that may be preventing you from getting online. Since this will erase your login credentials, you should determine your router's default settings before you begin. These can often be found on the barcode sticker on the router itself, or you can find common router defaults on sites like RouterPasswords.com.
If your router is not listed, consult your manual to learn how to reset it.
It could also show the status of your Ethernet connection
Flashing orange lights on your Ethernet ports usually indicate data activity
It's not just the front of your router that uses lights to tell you its status. Most devices also have LEDs on the back of your router, where the Ethernet ports are, that use solid colors or blinking patterns to give you an instant visual indication of what's going on. If you've noticed blinking orange lights on the back, you may be wondering what they mean.
Ethernet ports usually have two LEDs on the side where the clip on the cable connector goes. The LED on the left indicates activity, and the LED on the right indicates the connection speed. The good news is that a blinking orange LED on the left is nothing to worry about, as it means data is being transferred over the cable. The activity LED will be solid orange to indicate it's properly connected, and a steady blink usually means the connection is in sleep mode, often when your PC is turned off.
The LED on the other side is either orange or green and indicates the connection speed. For 1GbE ports, it's off when connected at 10Mbps, orange when connected at 100Mbps, and green when it's 1Gbps. The only time you need to worry is if you know your connection should be 1Gbps and it shows a different status. This usually means you have a problem with your Ethernet cable. Try unplugging and re-plugging it to test if it was a loose connection, or try a different Ethernet cable if it still doesn't connect at full speed.
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