Not an IT Tech

N

Nedeb

New Member
Joined
Mar 24, 2025
Messages
8
Reaction score
5
Hi, why is it that it appears that you need an IT degree in order to be an Afrihost and Vumatel client? I mean they want their clients to run a DNS flush and handle challenging string of commands just so they may look like the problem is with the client. I say, service delivery is bad enough in this country to still want to point a finger back at the client. An uneducated 75 year old just want to be connected to the internet for staying in touch and they have to go through this. find the little button on your keyboard that looks like a flag thingy.
 
Nedeb said:
Hi, why is it that it appears that you need an IT degree in order to be an Afrihost and Vumatel client? I mean they want their clients to run a DNS flush and handle challenging string of commands just so they may look like the problem is with the client. I say, service delivery is bad enough in this country to still want to point a finger back at the client. An uneducated 75 year old just want to be connected to the internet for staying in touch and they have to go through this. find the little button on your keyboard that looks like a flag thingy.
Click to expand...
Hi.
Our apologies for the inconvenience caused during this period; please share your ticket reference.
 
Nedeb said:
Hi, why is it that it appears that you need an IT degree in order to be an Afrihost and Vumatel client? I mean they want their clients to run a DNS flush and handle challenging string of commands just so they may look like the problem is with the client. I say, service delivery is bad enough in this country to still want to point a finger back at the client. An uneducated 75 year old just want to be connected to the internet for staying in touch and they have to go through this. find the little button on your keyboard that looks like a flag thingy.
Click to expand...

Afrihost Support Forum

Afrihost Support Forum Trial
mybroadband.co.za mybroadband.co.za

Go here. They can help you find the flag thingy and flush your toilet DNS
 
Nedeb said:
Hi, why is it that it appears that you need an IT degree in order to be an Afrihost and Vumatel client? I mean they want their clients to run a DNS flush and handle challenging string of commands just so they may look like the problem is with the client. I say, service delivery is bad enough in this country to still want to point a finger back at the client. An uneducated 75 year old just want to be connected to the internet for staying in touch and they have to go through this. find the little button on your keyboard that looks like a flag thingy.
Click to expand...
Most ISP don't have onsite technicians so it becomes the the clients job to run the checks with their guidance of cause before they can log the fault with the Fibre provider or escalate it within their networking guys.
 
Techfluent said:
Most ISP don't have onsite technicians so it becomes the the clients job to run the checks with their guidance of cause before they can log the fault with the Fibre provider or escalate it within their networking guys.
Click to expand...
With the amount of scams being run today with people trying to get into grans bank account. Do they think its really a good idea to create this market for the scammers?
 
rh1 said:
As a non IT person myself, that DNS flush sounds potty.
Click to expand...
Look, maybe I'm blowing this out of proportion or maybe not, all I'm saying is that I leave mom alone at home with possibly having spotty internet whereby she has to short it out due to my absence. I come back and she just so happened to get a callback from the wrong guy about her spotty internet service and all her savings is gone.
 
  • Like
Reactions: rh1
I think the bigger issue here is you need an IT technician to assist with your mother's day to day requirements. It's clear that there is confusion and conflation between IT and ISP Tech support roles here.. An ISP is not there to be IT tech support. You don't call the water utility when you have a leak in your home, you call a plumber. It's important to remember there are distinctions in the roles and services provided.

The need to flush caches on your computer points to a local issue on your computer - Afrihost's tech determined that there was perhaps a DNS cache issue (maybe aged DNS records) and this needed to be cleared. For the the ISP technician to reach this conclusion, it's certain they would have confirmed the line was in working order and that the router was in working order. This is what they check first. So at this point, they are not blaming your equipment, they are trying to assist in determining what could be wrong, and for this, they need, at the very least, your ability to type and run basic troubleshooting on your own equipment.

The ISP's job is to ensure your fibre internet service works well to the handover point, which is the router, everything past that (your devices, TVs and computers are not their problem). In my opinion as someone with experience in both IT and ISP, the technician went above and beyond, determined that the issue was not router/internet related and attempted to assist further with IT related support, instead of just telling you to go seek assistance elsewhere. Now if this doesn't work for you, I suggest you ask an IT technician to look at your PC, and not reach out to your ISP for IT support.

Regarding your comment about the potential for fraud, this exists everywhere and requires diligence and education. I too have an older mother who is always online, and its forced me to take time to teach her these risks. However, in this case, your mother initiated the call to Afrihost and reached out for assistance. The technician likely tried his/her very best to assist, especially out of respect for her, the same way we all do. Once again, to avoid the risk of malicious actors, appointing a trusted IT technician to act as your mother's intermediary for all things tech to will eliminate these risks. However blaming the ISP for a call initiated by your mother is somewhat off field.
 
cantankerous said:
I think the bigger issue here is you need an IT technician to assist with your mother's day to day requirements. It's clear that there is confusion and conflation between IT and ISP Tech support roles here.. An ISP is not there to be IT tech support. You don't call the water utility when you have a leak in your home, you call a plumber. It's important to remember there are distinctions in the roles and services provided.

The need to flush caches on your computer points to a local issue on your computer - Afrihost's tech determined that there was perhaps a DNS cache issue (maybe aged DNS records) and this needed to be cleared. For the the ISP technician to reach this conclusion, it's certain they would have confirmed the line was in working order and that the router was in working order. This is what they check first. So at this point, they are not blaming your equipment, they are trying to assist in determining what could be wrong, and for this, they need, at the very least, your ability to type and run basic troubleshooting on your own equipment.

The ISP's job is to ensure your fibre internet service works well to the handover point, which is the router, everything past that (your devices, TVs and computers are not their problem). In my opinion as someone with experience in both IT and ISP, the technician went above and beyond, determined that the issue was not router/internet related and attempted to assist further with IT related support, instead of just telling you to go seek assistance elsewhere. Now if this doesn't work for you, I suggest you ask an IT technician to look at your PC, and not reach out to your ISP for IT support.

Regarding your comment about the potential for fraud, this exists everywhere and requires diligence and education. I too have an older mother who is always online, and its forced me to take time to teach her these risks. However, in this case, your mother initiated the call to Afrihost and reached out for assistance. The technician likely tried his/her very best to assist, especially out of respect for her, the same way we all do. Once again, to avoid the risk of malicious actors, appointing a trusted IT technician to act as your mother's intermediary for all things tech to will eliminate these risks. However blaming the ISP for a call initiated by your mother is somewhat off field.
Click to expand...
I get what you are saying, but we all know the "support" agents employed by the ISP in question is know to be as useless as a rock.
Yes I agree he might have went out of his way, but I have had issues where the support agent deliberately use tech jargon to confuse the user and get out of the call
 
cantankerous said:
An ISP is not there to be IT tech support
Click to expand...
Agreed.

Reminds me of a Sorbet outlet that wanted cameras.

I assisted a CCTV installer but the internet was kak at the store.

The store owner was furious as he/she could not remote view the cameras.

It would work sometimes when the ADSL link was not congested. Could hardly open Youtube on the same link. Guess Youtube was also to blame.

Thus the entire install was removed cause the owner could not understand his kak internet was the issue.

And dont get me started on work from home issues...

"My Voda cell and company provided SIM can connect to the VPN, but my RAIN SIM fails to connect"

I usually insta close the ticket with : "No issue detected on company infrastructure".

Cause what is the next problem? Log a call with IT as your dog sheeet needs to be picked up and you need to work?
 
People call ISPs for their device issues and then complain about long hold times and poor support for things that are waaaay out of their support scope.

It is all due to peoples entitlement. Had a guy on a free service call and swear at me because they are having issues with a non related issue to their service. When advised that they need to get assistance from their IT person, the customer said "but you are an IT person so you must help me!"

Not to mention people getting upset when ISP staff refuse to set up their wireless printers and other devices.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top
Sign up to the MyBroadband newsletter