Astound/RCN Internet Not Working — Router Fixes

Applies to: Astound Broadband, formerly RCN

Worth clarifying up front: RCN as a standalone company is no longer active — it was fully absorbed into Astound Broadband, which now also includes former Grande Communications and Wave Broadband customers. If your bill or equipment still says "RCN," that's just the legacy brand name; your account and service are managed through Astound.

1. Check for a local outage first

Log into your MyAstound account or app to check for active service disruptions in your specific area before troubleshooting further — this is the first step Astound's own support recommends, and it's worth ruling out before resetting equipment that likely isn't the actual cause.

2. Power cycle in the correct order

1. Unplug the power cables from both your modem and router.
2. Wait a full 60 seconds.
3. Plug the modem back in first, then the router.
4. Allow 2-3 minutes for the lights to fully stabilize before testing.

3. WiFi specifically weak or dropping

1. Move the router to a central, open location if it's currently tucked in a corner or enclosed space.
2. Reduce the number of actively connected devices, or switch to a less congested WiFi channel if your router allows manual channel selection.
3. A router reset (not just a restart) can help with persistent WiFi-specific issues that a simple power cycle doesn't resolve.

4. Using an eero as your router

Astound commonly bundles eero routers with service, so if your eero device keeps going offline or rebooting itself, start by confirming the modem itself is actually online before assuming the eero is at fault — an eero losing its upstream connection will show the same symptoms as a genuinely failing eero unit. Once the modem is confirmed online, check the eero app for a firmware update, inspect the Ethernet cable between the modem and eero for damage, and restart the eero itself if the modem side checks out fine.

5. Isolate modem vs. router

Connect a device directly to the modem via Ethernet, bypassing your router entirely. If that restores internet access, the issue is with your router's configuration rather than your actual connection.