Computer stops noticing Ethernet connection within 10 minutes to a couple of hours of use

[Ethann115]

I've been experiencing issues with my Ethernet connection for a few weeks now. Randomly, whilst using my computer everything will freeze for a moment and then my internet will disconnect and my PC won't recognize that an ethernet is connected.

 

When I look in Device Manager all of the devices under Network have a yellow exclamation mark. It appears that whatever happens causes my network drivers to fail.

 

The way I solve this is by resetting all network settings and restarting PC.

 

When this happened again today, when I rebooted the PC I got an error stating that there was some sort of overcurrent error (can't remember the specific wording).

 

For context, I had a similar issue last month where my USB 3.0 ports would all fail and provide the overcurrent error also. I unplugged the front case USB ports and that solved that issue for now. But I assume I could be having a similar problem with the ethernet?

 

For my Ethernet I am wired into a BT Mesh plugged in near my PC.
 

Things attempted:

Updated all drivers
Updated BIOS
Used different ethernet cable
Dusted and checked all ports for damage and debris
 

Current next steps:

I have a USB to Ethernet adapter coming today to test if its the Ethernet port.
I also have a wifi dongle coming to see if wireless works and has the same issue.

I keep being tempted to upgrade my motherboard and case, but I'd like to get to the bottom of this issue in case it persists after these upgrades.
 

PC Specs:

PSU: Corsair RM650e (2025)
CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 3600
Motherboard: PRIME B450M-A II
RAM: 24GB DDR4
GPU: GeForce RTX 4060 Ti

 

BIOS: American Megatrends Inc. Version 4631
OS: Microsoft Windows 11 Home x64 - 10.0.26100 Build 26100


 

[Lurick]

I'm very suspicious of a short between the case and the motherboard or just a motherboard issue in general causing this since it seems to be intermittent but getting worse.

 

Edit:

I would say before anything if you can move the build outside the case and test on a cardboard box or something for a day or two and see if the issue continues that should help narrow things down.

[Apemanonline]

have you swapped the cable cat 5e or what ever?

[Millios]

Have you tried contacting your internet provider?
Sometimes the problem is on their end not yours, at least this has been the case for me on a number of occasions where etherner and wifi stops function

[Ethann115]

56 minutes ago, Lurick said:

I'm very suspicious of a short between the case and the motherboard or just a motherboard issue in general causing this since it seems to be intermittent but getting worse.

 

Edit:

I would say before anything if you can move the build outside the case and test on a cardboard box or something for a day or two and see if the issue continues that should help narrow things down.

 this seems like a great idea, I hadn't thought about trying this yet. I'll get this sorted this afternoon and see what happens

[GMUDuckman]

1 hour ago, Ethann115 said:

For my Ethernet I am wired into a BT Mesh plugged in near my PC.

This part feels sus to me - have you tried other devices. I had a very similar problem a little while back, but it ended up being the cat6 cable. Swapped cables and it hasn't been a problem since. It looks like you've swapped out the cable, I would see if another device can maintain connection to the BT Mesh.

[Ethann115]

9 minutes ago, GMUDuckman said:

This part feels sus to me - have you tried other devices. I had a very similar problem a little while back, but it ended up being the cat6 cable. Swapped cables and it hasn't been a problem since. It looks like you've swapped out the cable, I would see if another device can maintain connection to the BT Mesh.

Yeah I added that line as I realised that since this isn't conventional, I know there's a chance something there is the culprit.

Good idea on checking another device, I'll plug a laptop in later and give it a try. 

I'm tempted to try another cable (the one I've switched out for is another old one we had sitting around, so maybe a brand-new cable would be a better idea to test with).

[Skipple]

The fact that your PC is freezing and then recovering, but without network drivers screams to me that this is a driver crash and your PC is recovering, however it's a matter of discovering what's causing that driver crash. I'm personally less inclined to image a short would cause this, but it's possible. 

 

3 hours ago, Ethann115 said:

When this happened again today, when I rebooted the PC I got an error stating that there was some sort of overcurrent error (can't remember the specific wording).

 

For context, I had a similar issue last month where my USB 3.0 ports would all fail and provide the overcurrent error also.

The overcurrent thing is worrying me. Do you have an overclock? 

 

3 hours ago, Ethann115 said:

Updated BIOS

I know you have updated your BIOS, and good on your for doing that, but have we tried resetting BIOS to default settings? 

[jmwhite33]

2 hours ago, Ethann115 said:

Yeah I added that line as I realised that since this isn't conventional, I know there's a chance something there is the culprit.

Good idea on checking another device, I'll plug a laptop in later and give it a try. 

I'm tempted to try another cable (the one I've switched out for is another old one we had sitting around, so maybe a brand-new cable would be a better idea to test with).

Troubleshooting questions:

What has changed recently, new software, windows update?

Can you reproduce it via following the same steps/using the same software or is it truly occurring randomly?

Does it tend to happen after certain amount of time or after a certain amount of specific online activity?

 

trouble shooting steps:

1) remove all peripherals except keyboard, mouse, video and Ethernet. replace cable 

2) disable all processes/apps that may be running in the background and connecting to the internet.

3) reenable apps and stuff 1 at a time and see if something specific is the culprit.

 

Instinct tells me it is probably physical damage/defect in the board or NIC chipset/connector that fails as things heat up.

Something like a broken solder joint that is fine until it heats and expands breaking the circuit could be the cause.

The joints on some motherboard connectors leave a bit to be desired and the RJ-45 jack does get manipulated and moved in the coarse of normal usage.

Have literally seen it before, connection was fine unless you moved the cable OR after it had been used for an hour or so and heated up, then it would suddenly disconnect as if the cable were unplugged.

In your case something similar could be causing the chipset to appear disabled. You shut down/reboot, re-enable drivers, etc. all this time the effected component cools. It then works fine until it doesn't again.

 

 

or I could be totally wrong.