very slow downloads on cable

[Apokalipse]

well we've got cable internet but for some reason in the last few days it has never got much more than 3 kbps

it started being slow about when the MSBLASTER came out but we have had measures to prevent it, and Symantec's worm remover tool said we don't have it

 

[chalk]

You probably already are knowledgeable about this, but here is my old cable ineternet connection story which might help ya - about another topic, but the 'fix' is in there. The problems I was having sound similar to yours....in that only getting like 3k etc...

SOL maybe? I was told at the broadband forums that they/can have 'deprioritized' routing some UDP, since it is a protclo used mostly by games...in favor of TCP during peak hours(or all the time?). I tried a bunch of stuff and it finally worked out...although I almost gave up thinking it was just teh cable company. Whether or not this is the case depends on provider, oversold b-width, etc etc et nasuem..as I found out from reading way more than I wanted online. I finally got dramatic increases, which for me means playing HL counter strike on-line, downloading several large 740k files concurrently, messenger running, auto-update enabled on several apps, with no apparent impact on gameplay for a 1800+ - before I had to turn everything off off off and get 3k/sec on counterstike, barely letting me connect to games once in a while.

longwinded network post link

--disclaimer

...like I warn in my post, everyone is going to have diffenent network settings depending on machine etc... blah blah Basically, its allowing a third party app to set your RWin, black hole detection, TTL, packet size, blah blah etc etc including some other stuff...packet and network parameters. I used Xteq, but there are tons of tweaking stuff out there (like TeakXP), etc. Xteq is one of many that worked out for me... Okay I'm rambling now... Anyway, its in the link then at the bottom of the post.

chalk

 

[Apokalipse]

well i'm with Optus, and it's software is called @home and we are on a 3 GB limit; they tell you they restrict your speed to 28.8 dialup speed if you download over your limit, but i don't think 3k is even anywhere near dialup speed

the Modem i use is a "motorolla Surfboard SB4100" and is connected to an "SMC EZ card 1211 series" (10/100 PCI) network card.

I'm not sure what protocols we have - it is on automatic but stays the same once you've installed it - I've tried changing it to our original IP but it didn't connect to the internet when i did

i've tried disconnecting the modem from power for a minute then plugging it back up but the problem would not go away

where do i find the settings for "deprioritised" routing to change them to and what do you think we should change them to

just a few days before it started happening i had downloaded DirectX 9 SDK (over 200 MB) at over 1 mbps, probbably one of the biggest files i've downloaded

 

[chalk]

hrm...

hey apokalipse

I believe the udp deprioritization is done by their routers/switches (if that is the case for the provider) - so you can't really get at that....but I have heard tons about the surfboard being 'hackable' from the limits initially set in it--how much so depends on the brand etc, which you provided...I'll see if I can't find some of the places where I saw mention of this and let you know later...

any of you other broadband folks know?

 

[Ecniv]

well i'm with Optus, and it's software is called @home and we are on a 3 GB limit; they tell you they restrict your speed to 28.8 dialup speed if you download over your limit, but i don't think 3k is even anywhere near dialup speed

Dont be surprised if thats it, because 3kbps is about right for a 28.8 connection speed, because the 28.8 is in Kilo"bits" per second and what your downloading at is kilo"bytes" per second.

 

[devlish96]

yup,..i agree with ecniv. my mom's dialup peaks at 48 and she gets around 4kbps download speed.

 

[Apokalipse]

and i've also heard that XP steals some of your bandwith, it's not like i'm doing anything illegal but is there a way round it?

i know you said that it could be in kilobits not kilobytes, when i last went over the 3 gig it did download a lot faster than 3 kbps, it's average was 26.5 kbps, so if i did why would it be so much slower than last time?

i don't have a router or anything, just one network card and can handle 10/100 mbps - currently at 100 mbps.

my dad has got a Dell laptop, when i tried networking i only got it networking once, then when i unplugged to connect this to the internet then plugged back to the laptop it stopped working. i know it is the laptop that didn't connect because this computer still can.

just for the info the internet can be used with USB - but we've got USB 1.0 how fast would that be? and do you think it would make the connection faster, and so i can free up the network card at the same time?

 

[chalk]

Well,

I personally think the whole reserved bandwidth optimization is a whole lotta hokey, -- but here it is just the same:

Start - Run -
gpedit.msc <enter>

Expand the following: Computer Configuration, Administrative Template, Network, and then QoS packet scheduler - if it isn't on, turn it on and set it to 0% bandwidth.

Close gpedit.msc
I want a 64 bit processor *cry*! 64-bit Linux: Ready for prime time?

For your laptop woes. Looks like your TCP/IP stack isn't correctly getting an update from winblowz os, so if you are getting a ip from each server via DHCP and this is happening - do a:

To get the DHCP working for either connection for the laptop - check to see what your Gateway is suppose to be, and you may want to change it under your IP protocol properties (Start - Network connection - properties of your connection.

[For W98 do a Start - Run - winipcfg, and for XP its the below. There is a graphical ipcfg for XP, but I don't know where to get it off hand - but had one at one time.]

Start - Run -
cmd <enter>

ipconfig /release *Con*
ipconfig /renew all

exit <enter>

This should get the proper DNS, and IP from whatever one you are connected to. If you feel the need, you can also clean out your DNS cache - ipconfig /flushdns.

So basically your machine needs three important things (and other that support them) its identification (IP addy), the Gateway IP, and how to look for Internet addresses (DNS). The DNS servers will translate/resolve addresses to the number (ie 127.0.0.1) identification. If your machine doesn't know these three things - you're SOL.

I recommend that you only have ONE thing checked for protocols...Just your IP Protocol. Under your connection properties you'll see:

Client for Windows
File and Printer Sharing
QoS packet Scheduler
IP Protocol TCP/IP

Since it only needs those very important three things in IP Protocol TCP/IP (in the case of DHCP connects) - why bother with the other crap i say. My cable ISP gave me an install CDROM - can you believe it - and entire CDROM installation - when you only need these three things! (I only need the Gateway, which gives me the DNS server(s) IP and my IP automagically) If you go through a login process, PPP, or some other type like VPN then there will be more or a different process.

If your ISP is intentionally limiting or its just oversold/used during peak hours, there is probably not much you can do - but if you feel it something else - I'd recommend looking into your packet settings - You can get Dr. TCP (manually enter parameters - which I don't recommend)or another 3rd party app (xteq is free, or tweakXP etc) to figure out our optimal packet size, length, width, height, favorite colour, and you get the picture. This is where I got significant gains. It doesn't help to fill a bucket of sand with a teaspoon (packet size) when I can set my sand spoon to be bigger per trip...or wonder for 2 mins where one of my spoons went...

The other thing I mentioned was the surboard hacking - do some searches on broadband forums for your model number and see if people have been successful... Now, mucking with the ware on a rented/leased cable modem will probably get you into trouble, so just a warning - and I don't know how they deal with people changing their bandwidth caps on their equipment - I would think if it is your equipment it wouldn't be an issue. But anyway, just a warning.

The USB 1.0 thing, I wouldn't recommend it - but have no proof or experience with how good USB 1.0 is for networking - I've read some stuff on people having problems connecting usb to cable modems but don't know anything specifically. To do two network devices in a laptop, you might have to use hardware pofiles to work things out...

chalk

 

[Apokalipse]

i don't have gpedit.msc, that's only for XP pro

 

[Apokalipse]

just look at this, this is how slow it is!