The Network light on my Slingbox is blinking. What does this mean?

It's normal for the lights on the front of the Slingbox to blink for a bit while your Slingbox is starting up. During this time, the Slingbox is getting an IP address (a unique network ID number) from your home router.

If the lights continue to blink after this time, then your Slingbox didn't get an IP address from your home router. Below are some troubleshooting steps that will help.

The first thing is to try restarting both your Slingbox and your home router. Just follow these steps:

1. Unplug your Slingbox from the power outlet
2. Unplug your router from the power outlet
3. Wait about 5 seconds
4. Plug the router back in
5. Wait 30 seconds
6. Plug the Slingbox back in

If that doesn't work, move on to step 2.

Make sure that the physical connections from your Slingbox to your router are secure. To do this, disconnect then reconnect both ends of the ethernet cable between your Slingbox and your router.

Once done, restart your Slingbox. To restart your Slingbox, quickly press and release the reset button on the back (don't hold it in).

If your Slingbox is not near your router, and you used a SlingLink or a wireless ethernet bridge to get them connected, the issue may be that this connection is down.

SlingLink

Check that the link light is on (both on the SlingLink connected to your Slingbox and the SlingLink connected to your router). If the link light is not on, the two plugs may be on different circuits in your home (not uncommon when you have done major remodeling) or there may be an issue with the SlingLinks themselves.

Try plugging the SlingLinks into two outlets right near each other and see if this light comes on. If they don't come on, the SlingLinks could be malfunctioning. If the Link light does come on, then the solution is going to be trying different outlets until you find a pair that works for both your Slingbox and your router.

Wireless Bridge

What you want to verify is that the wireless bridge is connected to your home wireless network. The documentation for your wireless bridge should have troubleshooting steps.

If you know that the connections are good and that there are no problems with the network, the next step is to reset the Slingbox. Resetting the Slingbox restores the Slingbox back to its original factory settings. You will lose all of your customization and configuration, but the Slingbox will probably start working again.

To reset your Slingbox, hold down the Reset button on the back of the Slingbox for 5 seconds. When you go to your computer and launch SlingPlayer, you'll be prompted to run the Slingbox Setup Assistant to configure your Slingbox.

If you are still having this issue after you have reset your Slingbox, it is a good idea to double check the physical connection to your router. Not that the Slingbox is reset, we can rule out any configuration problems on the Slingbox. And if it is still blinking the only issues that are left are either a connection problem to the router, a problem with the router itself or a hardware problem on the network interface on your Slingbox.

The best way to narrow down the issue is to (if needed) move your Slingbox temporarily near your router. Take a known good Ethernet cable and connect the Slingbox to your router directly. Once this is done, plug your Slingbox into the power outlet.

If with this simple direct connection the network light is still blinking, then the issue is either the Slingbox or your router.

Refer to your router troubleshooting materials to verify that the router is functioning properly.