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Frequently Asked Questions

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MarkJFine
Professor

Frequently Asked Questions

I realize we have a lot of 'macros' for answering things, and people tend to want to immediately post when the have a problem vs. search for a solution...

 

but have we thought of taking some of these macros and creating an organized, read-only FAQ section?


* Disclaimer: I am a HughesNet customer and not a HughesNet employee. All of my comments are my own and do not necessarily represent HughesNet in any way.
18 REPLIES 18
maratsade
Distinguished Professor IV

Sounds like a good idea -- then we could direct people to specific answers on the FAQ. 

Plus, it might reduce the amount of posts and redundant responses if they see there's an explicit FAQ area.

 

The real trick is making it short, concise, and to the point, because a lot of people don't want to read a lot - especially if they're not happy.

 

One of the first ones should be a "where/how to post a problem" FAQ.


* Disclaimer: I am a HughesNet customer and not a HughesNet employee. All of my comments are my own and do not necessarily represent HughesNet in any way.
maratsade
Distinguished Professor IV

Agreed.  I think it makes a lot of sense. 

C0RR0SIVE
Associate Professor

I have been meaning to make such a topic, however...  People don't seem to read them...  Most come from a google search to an already open topic it seems, and they just post there.

Easy fix is to load up the FAQ with the right keywords. That way it gains a better SEO score and comes up first.


* Disclaimer: I am a HughesNet customer and not a HughesNet employee. All of my comments are my own and do not necessarily represent HughesNet in any way.

Thise might work, but I don't think they'd go over well. lol


* Disclaimer: I am a HughesNet customer and not a HughesNet employee. All of my comments are my own and do not necessarily represent HughesNet in any way.
maratsade
Distinguished Professor IV

Well, speaking only for myself, the benefit would be I could link to specific FAQ sections. I like this idea better than the macros.

spam-related stuff:
Q: My email was blocked as spam by Company X. What should I do?

Most internet providers with email service use one or more of the over 100 spam and "abuse" registries, of which HughesNet's email server IP(s) might be listed - not your personal IP address.

The only way to get off these lists is for an authorized HughesNet system administrator (or similar) to contact the list owners to find out why they are listed in order to fix the problem and get the email server in question de-listed.

Therefore:
1. Do not personally contact the provider directly as will just cause additional confusion or a frustrating non-response, since they have no means to get HughesNet de-listed.
2. Do not personally attempt to contact the list owners (even if you know which one HughesNet is listed on) since they typically won't deal with end-users, such as yourselves. They have no idea if you're really a spammer which defeats the purpose.
3. DO contact HughesNet, as they are the only ones that can do anything about it.

Just to get an appreciation for the immensity of this problem, a whole ton of people may have surreptitious malware and viruses on their computers and phones that are programmed to remotely send so-called "zombie" spams through an open relay upon command. Anyone using a HughesNet email server either by POP or IMAP client could be infected and not even know it.

Because of this, innocent email servers are getting flagged as spamhauses on these lists, just because one person may have visited a real sketchy website or opened an email they shouldn't have and (completely unbeknown to them) spewed a few of these so-called zombie spams through the system.

So as soon as another one of these rip loose through the email server and is detected by one or more of these lists, the list owners dump the email server IP back on the list again. You can only stop the cycle by a HughesNet sysad getting the offending email headers from the list owner to trace back to the original IP of the person who sent it and delicately "advise" them to scan their computers and/or phones.

Imagine the level of effort to track down the IPs of potentially thousands of these incidents (I suspect there might be even more than that system-wide), and you can quickly see how intense this can get.

As far as the spam problem goes, HughesNet people are aware and have a team working on it constantly. But I'm also pretty sure it takes a real long time to resolve, so some patience is necessary.
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Q: How did they get my email address?

If you've ever:
1. Signed up for a mailing list subscription
2. Entered a sweepstakes
3. Posted your email address on a web site
4. Used your address to sign up for Facebook, Twitter or other social media
Chances are someone's either sold, stolen, or hacked your email address.

Spammers are constantly looking for valid names and email addresses in order to fool antispam software, as much as they're looking for valid open relays to send them through.

Some spammers have gone to great lengths to use malware in user applications in order to steal your address book. This way they can send you fake emails using the address of someone you may know in order to trick you into clicking on something malicious.

In some cases email servers have been known to be hacked and infected with a scheme to intercept email addresses, and return a flood of malicious spam back. Remember that the next time you send an email to someone and you suddenly start seeing a bunch of junk in your inbox within a few days. This is a good indication that their email server was hacked, and your address was compromised.

If you do get spam, make sure that all possible automation in your email client is turned off. This might include activating any external links, automatic downloading of external images, or opening of any attachments. Likewise, if you do get a suspicious email and happen to open it, never click on links, display external images, and never, ever open an attachment.

 

It's also tempting, but never, ever "unsubscribe" from a spam: They won't take you off the list and all you'll be doing is valiating yourself as a spam target.
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Q: How do I block spam?

It is impossible to block 100% of all spam and spammers are constantly changing their techniques to spoof anti-spam software.

The most commonly used, most effective spam detection system is Apache SpamAssassin, used by most internet providers and server hosts. It operates on analyzing the content of emails to look for signatures in the email headers and message body, and generates one or more flags based on these rules. The ranking of these flags is scored to determine if the email was spam or not.

The holistic approach is nice, but for all intents and purposes 99% of all spam will trigger any one or more of 11 flags. But as techniques and strategies are constantly changing, SpamAssassin constantly requires maintenance updates to keep it current otherwise it can become rather ineffective rather quickly.

The same is true for the junk filters in your email client. For example, Outlook is regularly updated almost monthly. By keeping your email client updated, it provides an additional two-phase approach that protects you when the email server accidentally lets one through.

Some clients allow you to block individual email addresses. Do not try to block individual email accounts unless you see the same one over and over. Trying to block someone named "samsclubsurvey@cleanaman.win" is fruitless, because the names and domains are constantly changing. Eventually you'll have overloaded the list of email addresses that your client can block, rendering it completely useless.


* Disclaimer: I am a HughesNet customer and not a HughesNet employee. All of my comments are my own and do not necessarily represent HughesNet in any way.

Apologize in advance for the mini-spam.

Was having a "creative moment".


* Disclaimer: I am a HughesNet customer and not a HughesNet employee. All of my comments are my own and do not necessarily represent HughesNet in any way.

Q: A common web site that I visit suddenly won't load. What should I do?

Q: Everything loads on a common web site I visit except for the images? What should I do?

 

The internet relies heavily on Domain Name Servers (DNS) to operate correctly. DNS is like the internet's telephone directory. It converts something like "http://www.amazon.com" to an IP address (and port) like 54.239.25.208:80.

 

For speed purposes, the DNS of commonly used web pages is cached in various places: in your modem, in your router, even locally in your computer. Sometimes this data gets corrupted and causes your web browser to go to an unintended IP address, making it look like some or all of the web site is broken.

 

The key to fixing the problem is to simply reboot your modem and any external routers. In some severe cases you may have to either reboot your computers and/or other devices. Advanced users may simply flush their computer's  local DNS cache by typing
   ipconfig /flushdns

in a command (Windows) or terminal (Mac) window.


* Disclaimer: I am a HughesNet customer and not a HughesNet employee. All of my comments are my own and do not necessarily represent HughesNet in any way.
C0RR0SIVE
Associate Professor

@MarkJFine

 

I hope you don't mind, but I decided to umm... steal your hard work and put it on my website ❤️

If you want credits, let me know and how you would like the credits to appear. >.>

https://chucksbasix.com/hughesnet-faq/

@C0RR0SIVE

looks good...

No worries on credit. That stuff doesn't matter to me as long as it helps someone.

 

I'm periodically going to update/edit these when and if new situations occur, and until it can be moved to a proper faq section. Thinking the subject of each should be the Q, with the body being the A. Secondary Qs should have a link in the body to the primary Q.

 

Eventually the current macros could all be there, and we can standardize responses to users questions/complaints by linking to the appropriate faqs - each which can be edited/updated over time.


* Disclaimer: I am a HughesNet customer and not a HughesNet employee. All of my comments are my own and do not necessarily represent HughesNet in any way.
maratsade
Distinguished Professor IV

@C0RR0SIVE, is that your voice on the videos?

maratsade
Distinguished Professor IV

@C0RR0SIVE

 

 

There are videos on this page -->  https://chucksbasix.com/video-guides/

This is your site, I think, right? 

Are these your videos?

Guy speaking in the videos = you?

 


@C0RR0SIVE wrote:

...I have no idea what you're talking about >.>


 

maratsade
Distinguished Professor IV

All righty, I guess you don't want to tell me whether those are your videos.  LOL. No problem, but, wow.

 

ETA: I wanted to add, for clarification, that I thought that [1] the videos were well done, and that [2] the person whose voice is in the video has a good voice for the task: clear and pleasant and well-modulated. Kudos.

Q: Why are there a lot of uplink errors in my diagnostics?
Q: Why do I frequently see 12.x.x state code errors?

A: Many things can cause these errors, to include dish alignment and poor cabling, which would require a skilled technician to remedy. However, it’s also possible that a quick inspection of the dish can show where the problem is.

Tree limbs around the dish that appear to be out of the way may actually be reflecting stray signals back onto the dish. These then cause standing waves that the modem interprets as transmission errors.

Generally, the dish should be clear of any foliage within 45 degrees in any direction. Pay particular attention to any branches that may be blowing into that area, which could possibly cause intermittent problems.

In the fall and winter you might also want to inspect the dish to see if there are any fallen leaves or ice stuck to it. These will reduce the reflective nature of the dish, possibly causing additional transmission (and reception) errors.

As well, cables and connections may become brittle or loose with frequent weather changes. So you may also want to see if the connectors are finger-tight and the cabling isn’t cracked or weathered to the point where coax shield wire is showing through.

Some error codes (e.g., 12.1.9) stem from the modem’s sensitivity to power levels. You may want to inspect the routing of the power cable to make sure the DIN plug in the back of the modem is firmly seated, as well as at the wall and at the power brick.

If those are fine, make sure that the modem’s power cord is plugged directly into a wall socket and the wall socket is on a circuit intended for lights. Use on the same circuit as heavy-use items (e.g., air conditioners/heaters, washers/dryers, ovens, etc.) will cause power drops that may contribute to modem errors. Powering the modem though a surge protector may likewise cause power levels to drop and is therefore not recommended, the power brick has built in surge suppression very similar to that of a surge protector.
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Q: I get a Javascript Error when the meter loads
Q: Usage Meter History Display is incorrect.

A: Under some circumstances, the configuration and cached information that the Usage Meter needs to operate gets corrupted.

In the event that this happens:
1. Fully quit the Usage Meter from it’s own menu by clicking on the donut in the menubar and clicking “Quit”.
2. Look for the following directory
    Windows: C:\Users\[your User name]\AppData\Roaming\
    Mac: /Users/[your User name]/Library/Application Support/
3. Carefully delete just the “HughesNet Usage Meter” directory under that and empty the trash.
4. Restart the Usage Meter. This will regenerate all the underlying information as if it were run for the first time, thus correcting the error.

If you are running under Windows, you may need to enable the Hidden items on the View tab in order to see the AppData\Roaming folder and anything inside inside it, as shown below:
Untitled.jpgRemember to uncheck the Hidden items box after you're done with step #3 since the items that are hidden are hidden for a good reason.

Disregard other recommendations that say to uninstall and reinstall the app and/or update Java as those do absolutely nothing to fix the problem. Uninstalling doesn’t delete the directories above. Likewise, the application is written in JavaScript which is completely separate from Java, which of itself is a stand-alone runtime environment.

The only reason you should possibly uninstall something is if you are not running the current version, have inadvertently deleted part of the application, or have the older “HughesNet Status Meter” still installed. Uninstalling the older Status Meter and using the most recent version of Usage Meter is highly recommended.


* Disclaimer: I am a HughesNet customer and not a HughesNet employee. All of my comments are my own and do not necessarily represent HughesNet in any way.