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Author Topic: Internet slow tonight?  (Read 4233 times)

Bald_Eagle1

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Internet slow tonight?
« on: December 08, 2011, 11:54:48 PM »

Hi All,

Have any of you noticed the internet running slowly all night tonight?

The reason I ask is because this evening I swapped the version B HG612 modem I have been using on my FTTC connection for a newer version 2B modem.

I now have the best sync speed of 29077 K that I have seen for a long while, but throughput has been like treacle all night.
I have rebooted the modem & router a couple of times with no improvement.

A couple of BT speed tests also failed earlier on.

Paul.




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« Last Edit: December 08, 2011, 11:58:35 PM by Bald_Eagle1 »
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burakkucat

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Re: Internet slow tonight?
« Reply #1 on: December 09, 2011, 02:24:29 AM »

Have any of you noticed the internet running slowly all night tonight?

No, sorry. I guess that is what comes from your compulsive "fiddling".  :P

Or could PlusNet be having problems?  :-\

I'm impressed with your FTTC downstream throughput.  :no:  It is less than the upper reaches of a good ADSL2+ connection!  ???
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Bald_Eagle1

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Re: Internet slow tonight?
« Reply #2 on: December 09, 2011, 08:56:24 AM »

No, sorry. I guess that is what comes from your compulsive "fiddling".  :P

Or could PlusNet be having problems?  :-\

I'm impressed with your FTTC downstream throughput.  :no:  It is less than the upper reaches of a good ADSL2+ connection!  ???

If my connection had maintained its original excellent throughput levels & stability I would have no need to "fiddle" or mess about with monitoring it/producing graphs would I?  ;)

I was a bit concerned about the high error counts so I asked Alex at Plusnet for his thoughts, epecially bearing in mind that it WAS the high error count that convinced one engineer that the lift & shift was necessary a while ago & also convinced Plusnet that the latest engineer's visit was necessary.

This was the response:-
"Your connection has been stable for 8 days solidly at 27.9Mbps.  As such this line does not warrant any further investigation.  Especially because the line is operating above the speed that BT deem within limits.  Please let me know if there is anything further I can do for you?"

By yesterday the DS CRC error count had reached 500273 in 217 hours.
I compared that against another user's connection with a similar D-side length of 950m.
His DS CRC error count over 470 hours was ZERO.
I thought my error count was worthy of some investigation.

Each of these engineers' visits has produced an improvement in stability, & a slight speed improvement.

As the version B HG612 modems are currently being replaced in some sort of a phased BT replacement plan, that was the only thing I had left to try.
As my version 2B modem was indeed supplied by BT, it seemed wise to actually use it.
I was intending to keep it in its original locked condition, but unlocked it so that I could actually continue to monitor my connection.

I have never really experienced contention issues since I have had a FTTC connection, but last night's throughput was up & down all night. (Speed tests were as low as 5 Mb via various speed testers at one point).

I tested speeds again at around 6:30 this morning, when I considered it reasonable to discount potential contention issues:-

The results were still only around 19 Mb DS.

I tried the BT performance test again - FAIL!

I rebooted the modem & tried the BT performance test again - FAIL! again (see attached screenshot).

I tried to move on to the further BT tests a few times but couldn't achieve a connection direct to BT this time.

This disconnecting from & reconnecting to Plusnet's servers moved me to a different IP address.
DS sync went up, & a little later the modem re-synced "on the fly". DS sync speed is now up again at 29527 K, & speeds appear a little more "reasonable" again:-



So, yes. Maybe Plusnet were having some problems?
They have just increased capacity for their 21CN connections, so maybe it was out of balance on the gateway that I was connected to?
All last night I was unable determine which gateway I was connected to via Plusnet's gateway checker.

Now I can see that I'm connected to "the gateway known as ptn-ag03.

This is located in Telehouse North."

I'll see how I now get on with the error counts over a prolonged period, but I really didn't think that 1/2 million DS CRC errors in a 217 hour period should NOT warrant some investigation.

I'm also inclined to agree with one of Walter's comments that I'll probably only ever see my higher sustained speeds again if BT "accidentally" fix whatever it is that is currently causing them to be restricted. (Unless of course my connection's DS speed has been capped somewhere).
I still can't get a straight answer to that one, but Plusnet's limited report from yesterday states that I am currently on a 15 Mb - 30 Mb profile:-

Code: [Select]
Test Outcome Pass 
Test Outcome Code GTC_FTTC_SERVICE_0000
Description GEA service test completed and no fault found .
Main Fault Location OK
Sync Status In Sync
Downstream Speed 27.9 Mbps
Upstream Speed 5.7 Mbps
Appointment Required N
Fault Report Advised N
Profile Name 15M-30M Downstream, Interleaving Low - 3.6M-7.2M Upstream, Interleaving Off
Time Stamp NA

RADIUS: 8 Days, 17:44:23 (on going)

Summary: NFF

A long time ago it was a 20 Mb - 40 Mb profile!


Paul.

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waltergmw

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Re: Internet slow tonight?
« Reply #3 on: December 09, 2011, 11:35:44 AM »

Hi Paul,

It seems that it is quite impossible to have a true summary of the state of the UK's broadband infrastructure - and I do realise that even if we had a fully co-operating set of companies it would be difficult.

Joe public have no concept of how their services are provided even if they could comprehend how the multiple paths are performing.

In this case perhaps we have to discover how the BT Speedtesters are operating.
Keeping a record of the URLs might help a bit as would clear identification of the equipment involved on the results page.
The two tests below, last night and this morning on the same lousy line in Ewhurst, were both identified as http://217.32.105.42

Kind regards,
Walter



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Bald_Eagle1

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Re: Internet slow tonight?
« Reply #4 on: December 09, 2011, 02:22:53 PM »

Hi Walter,



In this case perhaps we have to discover how the BT Speedtesters are operating.


Do you believe anyone at BT actually knows?

A Zero kbps upload test isn't apparently identified as a problem, & BT suggest that users contact the server administrators.

If it's not BT, who actually administrates the servers that users connect to when they carry out the "further tests" that bypass their usual ISP?


Paul.
« Last Edit: December 09, 2011, 02:25:31 PM by Bald_Eagle1 »
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UncleUB

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Re: Internet slow tonight?
« Reply #5 on: December 09, 2011, 04:30:17 PM »

@ Bald_Eagle1.......I would be over the moon with your upload speed as my download speed  ;D
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Bald_Eagle1

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Re: Internet slow tonight?
« Reply #6 on: December 09, 2011, 05:21:18 PM »

Hi UncleUB,

@ Bald_Eagle1.......I would be over the moon with your upload speed as my download speed  ;D

& so would I, just a few months ago.

As I now work from home quite a bit, the throughput speeds have become very important to me.

Not long ago, with a 1 Mb DS, & occasionally as low as 96 K US, I couldn't really work from home effectively.
A simple 10 Mb spreadsheet or a 50 Mb CAD drawing etc. took ages to open via VPN (which only gives me a % of my connection speed, partly due to traffic management & partly due to the office VPN server).

As for saving them after editing them - Well, I used to go & make a brew/paint a room while I waited for them to be saved back to the office server.

As soon as I had FTTC installed, I was suddenly able to work from home effectively (in peace & quiet to concentrate).
Work-wise, I was able to get through a lot more than when in the office (no disturbances), & personally, life became so much less stressful.

When I was achieving 33 Mb download speeds, I wouldn't say browsing the internet for technical information etc. was 33 times quicker, but it was relatively instant compared to what I had endured for quite a few years.
& although a lot more expensive, it is nowhere near 33 times the cost of ADSL.

I appreciate it may come across as "rubbing salt in the wounds", as it were, at times, but to put it into context, I suppose it would be something like you going back to dialup speeds where it could take up to 20 minutes or so to download a 4 Mb music track.

Currently I can download a 15 Mb file in around 6 seconds. At its best, I could download the same 15 Mb file in around 3 seconds.

I think I might have mentioned it before, but my "issues" have been rather akin to winning the lottery jackpot, getting used to a new life-style, & then having to give a lot of it back & having to adopt a pauper's lifestyle again  :(

I'm not looking for sympathy.
With it being "that time of year", did I just hear "Oh yes you are!" somewhere in the background?

It's not that long ago that I would have almost given my right arm to be able to achieve anything over 2 Mb download speed.

I really do appreciate all the helpful comments & advice, especially from those for who currently the "sub-standard" speeds that I am currently achieving can only be a pipe-dream. (Take Walter's associates in Ewhurst as just an example).

Anyway, on a more festive note, I wish a Merry Christmas & a happy new year to you all  :)


Paul.
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