Find answers to commonly asked questions about WiFi connectivity, network issues, and how to improve download speeds.
My Internet isn't working — is there an outage in my area?
An outage can cause a disruption in your internet services. Outages can be a result of scheduled maintenance or unexpected events such as faulty equipment, unscheduled maintenance, power outages, or network connectivity issues.
To view current service outages for your account, log in to http://my.shaw.ca or through the My Shaw App. Download the My Shaw app today. (You will see a banner if there is currently an outage impacting your area).
You can also visit Service Outages & Updates to see if there’s an outage in your area.
If there is an outage in your area, it is temporary, and your service will be restored as soon as possible. To receive updates about outages in your area visit how to subscribe to service update notifications for your region.
You can find more answers in our Shaw Service Updates & Outages FAQs.
How do I check if my internet modem is online and functioning properly?
You can easily confirm if your Internet modem is online by checking its light(s).
To learn more about the light indicators on your Internet modem, visit Equipment Info: Internet modems.
How do I restart my internet modem?
Many internet issues can be quickly solved by rebooting your modem. You can try restarting your modem with the tap of a button using My Shaw. To learn more, read How To: Restart your modem with My Shaw.
If you have the Rogers Xfinity Gateway, we recommend you restart it using the Rogers Xfinity app. Learn how by reading the article Troubleshooting: Fix home WiFi network issues with Rogers Xfinity, or follow the steps below to reboot the modem manually.
Note: Reconnecting the coax cable may help improve the signal levels, especially if the root cause of an issue is related to signal loss on the cable line. It's not recommended to perform this more than once if the issue is reoccurring.
Note: Sometimes there could be a faulty splitter in home connections that might be causing signal loss on the coaxial cable. Try bypassing any splitter and repeat the steps above.
How can I tell if my connectivity and/or speed issues are caused by WiFi, wired connection issues, or device limitation?
It's important to understand if you are experiencing problems on WiFi, a wired connection, or both. We recommend starting by checking the connectivity on your device with a wired connection.
If your device supports WiFi connection only, visit the article Troubleshooting: WiFi connection issues to troubleshoot your WiFi issues.
If you have an ethernet port on your device, follow the steps below:
I’m having problems sending and receiving my Shaw email — how can I fix this?
There are a variety of reasons an email client may stop sending or receiving emails. These include connection problems, folder corruption, and server setting issues. We recommend testing your Shaw email account, by visiting webmail.shaw.ca and signing into your Shaw email address to see if you're able to send or receive any emails. If your email account works properly on webmail.shaw.ca page, then the issue might be related to an email client (application/program) that you're using. For solutions, read the article Troubleshooting: Fix issues with sending and receiving email.
What is WiFi?
WiFi is what allows devices to connect to the Internet by sending and receiving data between your devices and Internet modem via wireless radio frequency. This is commonly used on mobile devices like laptops, phones, tablets, and other equipment such as printers and smart home devices.
What’s the best location for my Internet modem and Pods?
Your modem should be placed in a central location, this works especially well if your house has an open floor plan. For better WiFi coverage, it's important to find the optimal location for your Internet modem in your house. There are a variety of factors to consider when placing your Internet modem and pods, to learn more, see the article About: Modem placement and range.
How do I make my WiFi better?
WiFi signals are heavily impeded by the range you use your devices, the wireless interference from other devices, building materials, and the house type and size. To learn more and get helpful tips read the article, How To: Optimize your WiFi experience.
It seems like I have issues with my WiFi mostly - What is WiFi interference and how does it impact my experience?
The wireless signal coming from your Internet modem could be disrupted or weakened by WiFi Interference, caused by multiple factors such as: WiFi range, physical obstructions, and 2.4Ghz radio interference. For more information, read the article About: WiFi interference.
What is the difference between 2.4GHz vs 5GHz Frequency?
5 GHz frequency can carry more data and provides faster speeds, but it has less coverage and subsequently could be affected by obstacles more frequently.
2.4 GHz frequency has a wider range but lower speed which tends to be affected by any radio interference easily compared to 5 GHz frequency.
Why doesn't my device show the 5G network?
There are a few possible reasons. If you have a Rogers Xfinity Gateway, you will only see one network as your devices are automatically routed to the most optimal frequency using a feature called “band steering”, which seamlessly alternates WiFi frequency of your devices at any given time between 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz band based on your device requirements, signal strength and WiFi congestion thresholds.
Another possible reason is that your internet modem or wireless router broadcasting your home WiFi signal may not be capable of 5GHz and only has the 2.4GHz frequency. You can read about your modem in the Internet Modems - Equipment Guide.
Older personal devices may not have the ability to use 5GHz frequency, you should always visit the manufacturer's website to confirm this.
How do I turn band steering off so I can see both of my WiFi network names?
Note: Band Steering is a feature that is necessary if you have Rogers Xfinity WiFi Boost Pods (Gen 2) (formerly known as Ignite WiFi Pods)
While we don’t recommend disabling this feature unless you have more than 30 devices connected on each band, you can try splitting SSIDs to balance devices between the 2.4GHz and 5GHz frequencies. Follow the below steps on Rogers Xfinity App or website:
Within a few moments you will see your WiFi name in your device's WiFi or Network Setting screen, and on compatible devices that are within range, you will see the secondary WiFi network with the '-5G' added to the end of the name.
How do I change my WiFi network password?
To change your WiFi password, read the article How To: Change a home WiFi network password.
What’s the difference between speed and bandwidth?
Bandwidth is a measurement of the amount of data that can be passed through an internet connection in a given time. It can be considered a measurement of either speed or usage. The speed result that comes from a speed test represents the bandwidth being used by that device. The speed of your internet plan represents the total available bandwidth to all devices in the home. Learn more about bandwidth and data usage on devices by reading the article, About: Internet Bandwidth.
Why is my internet so slow?
The maximum bandwidth on your internet plan is shared by all the devices connected to your home network. It's normal to experience slower speeds if you have many devices connected at once, or if one device is consistently uploading or downloading substantial amounts of data. This is more noticeable on slower speed packages.
Several other factors like device capability and whether you're connected by wired or WiFi connection can also affect your internet speed.
Where can I check my internet speed?
If you have the Rogers Xfinity Gateway, we recommend you test your internet speed using the Rogers Xfinity app.
For older modems, you can visit speedtest.shaw.ca to test your internet speeds using a device connected to your home network. Learn more about testing your internet speeds by reading the article Shaw Speed Test FAQ. If you have an older modem and plan at or above one gigabit of download speed, visit Performing a total bandwidth test.
If you think your internet is slower than it should be on all of the devices on your home network, read Troubleshooting: Slow Internet speeds.
I have slow speed issues on a specific device, why is that happening?
Your experience can change drastically depending on your device. Depending on when your device was manufactured, it may not be able to reach the top speeds offered by your Internet plan regardless of whether it's wired directly to the modem, or in an ideal WiFi environment. Many devices made prior to 2015 are incapable of reaching speeds over 100 Mbps.
If you're unsure of your device's speed capabilities, we recommend that you check its technical specifications or contact the device's manufacturer for potential upgrades or software updates that may improve device performance.
Does Shaw have internet usage restrictions?
To brush up on Shaw's usage terms, read the Acceptable Use Policy for Internet, and our Terms of Use. If you're concerned about data limits, read the article How To: View my Internet data usage.
I'm considering upgrading my internet package - where can I see my options?
Visit our latest internet offerings and Shaw bundle information.
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