Could I get away with an extra internet line when a VPN on it works just as fine?

VPN
1

Long story short, we have a gaming garage with its own internet line and modem.

Uncle paid for it separately but it’s still all under one internet-address aka our home so it’s not entirely separate. But it has its own line and own spectrum modem, and other branded router.

We went over past the pay bill due date so we had no internet for a couple of days.

During this, I could still use the internet with acceptable but bearable speed provided that I’m under a vpn.

Now that we paid our $750 bill. Everything should be normal, it is-but the garage line will always pop up the spectrum - activation home page in any browser, and once it’s past that, any new tabs or attempt at a website will be met with this “enhanced protection” so no access to any websites on any browser from chrome to Firefox.

We already did call spec customer service, the last receptionist asked if they could send a dispatch to “install” the new line and provide a new modem. We don’t want to, or don’t see the need to pay extra, as enabling them will add an additional $80 just for this line. It’s working just fine before all this.

This also has probably has something to do when my grandma restarted our home’s spectrum plan. Essentially lowering our bill from 300 a month to only 160. When she did this, I think our crazy bundle went to a newly updated promotion and it is to stay like this until 2027 bless her heart. I think through this, they overlooked our second line in the garage.

I’m also more curious as to how this is actually working. We can still use this second line under a VPN with now relatively okay speeds.

If it’s working fine, why do we need to pay extra? We can stomach paying for the modem’s rental fee (which should only be around $8) but if it was working all along even if it’s another internet line, but it was all working and it’s necessarily not it’s unique home address, it’s still under our home, why the need for a installer-dispatcher & pay another $80 just for it???

I’m going to call again and hope I can get a more cooperative support, but the past two have claimed that we’re supposed to be paying another $80 for it and to be having an installers put in an updated modem/helping install the second line when it’s already been working.

2

the way the service works is 1 modem 1 internet charge. the $7/more is for a router. there is no modem lease fee. you need to run an Ethernet line to the 1st modem or pay for the second internet.

3

They got rid of the second line of service. Which is why the bill went down. The modems all have a serial number, so they can be activated and deactivated remotely which is why after the billing change the modem started to “glitch”. It is not longer activated in Spectrum system, which is why you keep getting a verification screen and in and out service. The actual cable on the ground doesn’t matter. It’s the modem itself that needs to be activated. The only way to get it activated is to pay for the second line of service. Rental fee does not matter. If you don’t want to pay for the second line then you need to invest in really long Ethernet cables or a really good WiFi mesh system with satellite and access point.
*Employee btw

4

Restarted the router that really didn’t do anything. Could unplug and replug the modem but that feels like it could make things worse. Both spectrum modem and line was overlooked, wouldn’t mind paying the extra rental for this modem but I don’t think it’s necessary to pay for a second line when everything worked fine.

5

How were they able to give the service with no interruption after the downgrade to the $169 promotion? But after service interruption, the modem now acts bugged and acts as if it’s indeed a second line. We could just use a super long but unnecessary Ethernet cable, but doesn’t this just prove all their extra addons a bit of a scam when we could just pay an extra $8 for that secondary spectrum modem? The second line add on and then a possible WiFi charge is abit absurd to top it all off don’t you think?

6

Any technical reason as to why a VPN instantaneously works during this? And what could possibly be the technical reason for said… glitch?

7

You need to pay for a second line to use the second modem, bottom line, no way around it. Your account probably had 2 lines once and with the downgrade there was an account glitch and the second modem wasn’t being charged. With the services being restored agter the outage, the system also gets a reset, which means account audits to make sure equipment matches services.

You can get a second modem all you want, but your home will only have 1 active internet line. If you want 2 separate lines, 2 internet service lines need to be charged. Spectrum does not lease their modems. They are included in the internet subscription price.

8

VPN technical answer, I don’t have. But the reason why the modem needs to be activated to not “glitch” is the same reason your phone has to be activated to work. It has to be labeled correctly in the system to get service. If you don’t pay your phone bill, they cut it off remotely. It’s the same exact reason why your modem doesn’t work. No one comes to your house to disconnect your services, it’s all done on the server. Your modem has been disconnected as far as spectrum is concerned. No need to cut any wires. It literally happened after your grandmother changed the services and stopped paying (disconnected your internet service [2nd line]). So if you want to have that line the technical answer is that you need to pay for it.

9

Makes more sense.

Yes. The second line still apparently works under VPN. Albeit a bit more faster too. So technically we still have a second line under a spectrum modem which does not show up in the plan. Maybe DNS bypass??? Without the VPN, accessing internet in any browser brings up a spectrum activation page and with already “activated” it now just brings up a 404 spectrum page if not using a VPN.

We might be ok here, the offices are closed but grandmas response was essentially that this downgrade promotional needed to also send in an installer to update or install a “second line”. If this is accurate then we probably have 2 lines into this new plan, however, it doesn’t show this in the spectrum app.

It’s just also a curiosity as to how this second line went under their radar for a year and more. Was it a mistake on their end? Or the operator forgot to turn off the 2nd line…??? It’s literally free internet when everyone and us were paying 150+ per line. Could it have worked indefinitely if we paid the bill on time? And if it was working for a year and more why didn’t they throttle or complain, everything was fine and we’ve been their customers since their monopolization of our suburbs for decades on end?

10

A VPN will bypass any DNS blocks placed on the service. As far as the glitch, they just happen… hence why it is a glitch

11

Now people every now and then get free services that they weren’t supposed to have. But there’s no way to tell or get it to happen. I’ve seen customers having services they weren’t subscribed too. But there’s an audit every now and then that could’ve fixed it

12

Yea apparently that glitch was running for two years until a bill wasn’t paid and that screwed it all up. I think the only solution is to use some sort of moca set up to make that wires line into somehow the same line. A very long Ethernet cable can work but why make it harder when there’s already a line in the our garage?

13

True. And now this may be for another thread. But if this second line is not tied to utility or is not its own address, why couldn’t you guys just treat it as another box set up in another room? Such as another cable box set up in another room. I’d gladly pay for the rental modem. A big point here is that it was still clearly working with or without glitches, it is a second Internet line, but even with this no promotional discounts can be applied to it. I recall my uncle using his account to activate spectrum mobile and Gov assistance program but all just ended up discounting the main line. Which didn’t matter, but it goes to show that if it’s being treated as an actual different line why couldn’t you apply the discounts to his line and why is his line affected if the main line didn’t pay? If you’re further confused, the main house line is essentially splintered to provide a secondary coax. I think we tried getting a diff service for this second line other than spectrum but the utility itself is still under 1 line so it wouldn’t work. Which could give my question make a little sense right? Why pay extra $80-$100 if the line is truly just 1, why act as if this is an entirely different business line if it has no actual address tied to it and it’s been working with it without glitch for years? If it is, then shouldn’t the discounts atleast act separate or be applied to it too?

14

No it worked because it was coded to work. They changed it when your grandma called. It’s no glitch. It’s working how it’s supposed to

15

Where your confusion lies is your thinking the coax cable is what they’re turning on and off/counting. No it’s the boxes themselves. The coax cable is always activated unless it’s unscrewed from the tap. So even if you canceled all of your services rn. They don’t disconnect the coax, they only disable your set top boxes (cable boxes) and modem. You can literally bring any set top box (cable box) to that line, screw it in and it will work as long as Spectrum has the serial number active on an account. Modems don’t have that capability. They can only be activated if the billing system allows it to be activated. And it’s one per Internet subscription. The reason why the modem can’t be just activated and pay the rental is cause the computer WILL NOT allow us to add more than one modem per internet plan.

It sounds like it wasn’t set up correctly when they made the change 2 years ago and somehow it remained active. The only problem is that no one has the ability to recreate that “glitch” (for lack of better terms) for you as the system doesn’t allow us to even submit that type of order.

16

Meant to say after grandma called it still worked for two years. Just curious as to how and why, technical reason for such glitch. Anyhow, 2 internet lines under 1 plan was sweet. But the now defunct coax cable, second line; still somewhat have internet. Offices are closed now but the VPN must just be bypassing the DNS or spectrum activate page. Wonder if a moca setup or change can fix this without having to upgrade or up our bill. Spoke to grandma she did say someone was supposed to come by to install or update the second line all without cost and for the current promotional update. So we might just be in the ok here.

17

But why is it being treated as an entirely separate service or separate internet line when it’s not in fact under a different legal-physical address? Isn’t that what modems are for?? If we’re paying full price for a second internet line under a second internet modem, can’t we also apply unique discounts to it and not have it cut off if the main line doesn’t pay? I understand it’s physically and technically not possible, from both household and spectrum side (household probably needing to do legal paperwork to establish the second line as a second address). But literally the VPN and those two years showed it was possible. I’d gladly pay half of that $80 even if it means getting cut off if the main line doesn’t pay, but I don’t think a complete full price for a secondary internet coax cable-modem (another $80-$100) is warranted when it’s technically not even being treated as a 2nd entity. Or discounts can’t be applied to it.

If this was not technically possible, it showed that it works, I wonder if there’s a custom deal we can do on our end then. What do you think? It’ll both solve us all the hassle if we just afford a long Ethernet cable. But the secondary coax cable was installed by spectrum themselves more than 2 years ago. So I can also say that it can help if there’s a middle ground resolve for this, and not just pay up in full for a second line while treating it as a second line but no not actually pay another $80 for the modem even though we can’t treat it as an actual second line :woman_shrugging:

18

I will say this. Spectrum does not care. They only are worried about money. Not that they fucked up and gave you it for 2 years for free. Us agents can only do what the system allows us to do. We can click buttons but we have no power. Everything is made for us to use with guardrails in place to make sure we can’t do too much. They aren’t treating it as a different address. If they were it would be 2 different account numbers under 2 different bills. I said it once and I’ll say it again, think of it as a phone. They only allow one to be active per plan. If you want 2 internet plans on 2 devices, you have to pay for them. If you want to get WiFi out to another part of your house, like garage, then the cheapest way is to get a good mesh system. Your solution is there already. Mesh system and it’ll work exactly how you want. Two routers, one plan, and no extra internet subscription.