My modem/router suddenly started makes a clicking sound.

My cable modem or router suddenly started makes a clicking sound. The sound lasts about a minute and then stops. Three times today. On my home workgroup win 8.1 was shout down but win XP was on. The 2-monitor icon for "local area connection" lights up when that happens.

What could be happening?

There is no way, because there are no moving parts inside of it.

I too am having a hard time figuring out what could possibly be making a clicking sound inside a modern modem or router. In the old days there were some tiny mechanical relays but those days are long gone.

I can't deny my own experience. It's true regardless of any theory. It is a loud click click click. At a constant rate of two or three times a second. It's like a mechanical clock but faster. Perhaps there is a something in there that behaves like a speaker. The modem and router are physically next to each other. The next time it happens I will try to determine which of the two devices it is coming from.

Many modern (as in current models) routers and hubs use telecom style relays. That's almost certainly what you can hear. The question is why ? It could be work being done on the line causing the router to reset or it might have been a firmware update (ISP specific).

Mooly said:

Many modern (as in current models) routers and hubs use telecom style relays. That's almost certainly what you can hear. The question is why ? It could be work being done on the line causing the router to reset or it might have been a firmware update (ISP specific).

Click to expand...

Really thought consumer grade routers/modems all used solid-state relays these days. Haven't opened up my router to check though.

Mooly said:

Many modern (as in current models) routers and hubs use telecom style relays. That's almost certainly what you can hear. The question is why ? It could be work being done on the line causing the router to reset or it might have been a firmware update (ISP specific).

Click to expand...

Have not seen that in a very long time. Even with SoHo or Enterprise. Only thing on the last two that would make noise is the fan that may be installed to keep the unit cool.

The OP needs to give us Manufacturer & Model number of the device.

broe23 said:

Mooly said:

Many modern (as in current models) routers and hubs use telecom style relays. That's almost certainly what you can hear. The question is why ? It could be work being done on the line causing the router to reset or it might have been a firmware update (ISP specific).

Click to expand...

Have not seen that in a very long time. Even with SoHo or Enterprise. Only thing on the last two that would make noise is the fan that may be installed to keep the unit cool.

The OP needs to give us Manufacturer & Model number of the device.

Click to expand...

British Telecom HomeHub 2 and some versions of HomeHub3 (which is what I use)

I have Comcast Cable for Internet and TV and Telephone. The clicking happened last evening in at least two series about 2-3 minutes long, about 1/2 hour apart. At the time of the clicking the TV and telephone were working OK. Then at about midnight all three were dead. In the morning I rebooted the modem and router and all were back to normal.

The agent at Comcast technical service looked for a long time but could not find a record of any maintenance or outage.

There is a modem in the basement for the telephone only and a modem & router upstairs at the other end of the cable for the PC and WiFi. The clicking was upstairs.

Modem: ubee D3.0 model U10C035
Router: Netgear Wireless N Router WNR 2000

That would be for the telephone. That is the only thing that uses a relay on those gateways. It should only happen during initial boot. It should not keep going on, unless there is a defective phone plugged in, if you are also getting the Digital phone service. If you also have their Home security system, it can also cause the phone relays to latch & unlatch.

I don't have a security system. The modem that the phone lines go through is the one in the basement. The clicking was up stairs. Whenever I reboot the upstairs modem & router there is no sound.

I'm a little late to the party but I can confirm I too am having these clicking sounds with my U-Verse Gateway. I do not have the TV or Telephone service, strictly Internet service. A month ago the modem would click loud enough for me to hear in another room. For me, it's a one time double click per reboot. The modem then resets, drops the connection and reboots. Wait about 5-10 minutes & the entire click/reboot process starts over again.

I attempted a hard reboot (unplugged 30 seconds) and a reset (red button). Neither had any impact. My internet drops for a few hours then returns. The SSID disappears & the LAN drops as well. Yesterday, it dropped and is still down 26 hours later. U-Verse tech ran remote tests & said they would have to send a technician. What's odd is how until now would always reconnect after a few hours.

I too was surprised that a solid state device could make a mechanical sounding clicking. While it may or may not be a mechanical sound, the sound definitely exists. And having done a few searches, this is not strictly something experienced by the OP or myself.

That is because there is a relay in them for the telephone ports.

broe23 said:

That is because there is a relay in them for the telephone ports.

Click to expand...

Guess he missed your post from three months ago.

This usually means that an electrolytic capacitor is in the process of failing. It is not uncommon and I have experienced this more than once in different devices including an Asus NT-16 router. It can continue to work in this state for a while and then will fail and the router will stop working. In the above router I replaced the failing one. You can open the router and identify the culprit as a capacitor with the top of its aluminum can bulging up. This means it is failing or has failed. Once the device has failed the noise will cease.

People who think that only non-solid-state devices can be responsible for noise are incorrect. There are no relays in routers.