Is DirecTV Down. Or Is It Just You?

Is it a network-wide outage or a home network problem instead?

• California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo

S.E. Slack has 30+ years' experience writing about technology. She has authored 12 books, thousands of articles, and worked for IBM and Microsoft.

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DirecTV isn't perfect and large-scale outages can occur with its TV services, leaving you wondering 'is DirecTV down?' Sometimes, though, the problem isn't with them; it's with your devices or connections. This article explains how to:

• Check for large-scale outages across DirecTV's network.
• Troubleshoot common internet and television problems on your end.

How to Tell if DirecTV is Down

Not sure whether it's DirecTV with the problem or not? Here are a couple of quick ways to check.

1. Check your account for information. AT&T is DirecTV's parent company so it tracks problems for the television provider, too. Sign in and see if there are any reports you should know about. You can also sign up for text alerts here, which can give you up-to-date information for future outages.

Use a third-party "status checker" website like Downdetector, Downhunter, or IsTheServiceDown. These sites offer fast information about outages reported by customers and include coverage maps and other information to show you exactly where problems are occurring.

What to Do When You Can't Get Connected to DirecTV

If no one else seems to be reporting an outage, it's a good bet the problem lies on your side of things. Try these troubleshooting tips to see if you can get things running again.

1. Log in and check your DirecTV account status. Confirm your account is in a paid status and that no services are being blocked.

• Error messages from your TV or another device you're trying to access DirecTV on. There might be a simple adjustment you can make to correct the error.
• Loose connections. Indicator lights can tell you if the cable box is actually plugged in and turned on; if you don't see those, it could be a wiring or cable issue causing the problem.
• Input issues. If you've recently used your TV for gaming or to play a DVD, it could just be that you need to change the Input back to TV.
• A poor HDMI connection.
• Bad Wi-Fi connections.
• Home electrical connections or electrical service interruptions in your area.

• Confirm that other electrical devices aren't interfering with the modem: Is it located too close to computers, monitors, appliances or other electrical devices?
• Try rebooting your modem.

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