[Click here for printer friendly version]
Init strings should only be used if you are experiencing problems. If no problem exists, then most likely you will only degrade performance by having an init string. A properly installed modem will retrieve the proper init string from the inf file based on the connectoid settings. If required, you can tweak the init string to your environment.
The manufacturer of your modem may provide information about init strings either on their website or in the documentation included with your modem. Many manufacturers use standard chipsets such as Lucent or Rockwell and will respond to standard commands. Since providing information on all modems is beyond the scope of this website, we will instead refer you to these two great sites for more information:
Below you will find instructions on where to enter the modem init string on different versions of Windows. If you accidentally change the modem init string to something invalid then your modem may stop responding. You will have to reboot your computer to undo using an invalid modem init string.
The most bizare case diagnosed by our tech department was someone living on a farm who could not connect to the internet. While on the phone, the technician noticed a ticking on the line and learned this was caused by their electric fence. The problem was solved when they turned off the electric fence. But since they didn't want the cows to wander away, they instead used an init string to limit the connection speed low enough that the electric fence no longer caused problems. They were also advised to have the telephone company look into the problem and have a surge protector put on their telephone line.