Here we go again...ADSLMax problems!

[AvengerUK]

Well, at around 3Pm my internet started running like treacle. It started just after a resync, which is always a tell tale sign of ADSLMax starting to go wrong! Sync speed dropped rather alot also, by around 400kbs.

My download speed, for the last 4 hours or so has been 100kbs - unusable really, even loading this forum takes a while! Ive had my router off for two 30min periods, which made no difference. Although my sync speed did go back up by 400kbs or so, its still remained at a crawl.

Does anyone have anything i could try? Its extremely fustrating lol - But i suppose thats ADSLMax for you!

Note: No, havent done a speedtest BT thing to check profile, dont bother as it never works! (and it doesent do anything at all unless i take my firewall off...something which is unwise!)

EDIT:

  4    67 ms   286 ms   447 ms  redbus-gw.idnet.net [212.69.63.1]
  5   859 ms  1010 ms   362 ms  www.idnet.net [212.69.36.10]

Now thats what i call high!

[maxping]

Have you tried the speedtest@speedtest trick ?

[AvengerUK]

and whats that? (Basically no!  )

[maxping]

Thats strange i was sure i made a edited version here in this forum but its gone, heres the same again - http://www.idnetters.co.uk/forums/index.php/topic,1236.0.html

[AvengerUK]

Thanks max.

The pings went down by their own about 10minutes after my first post - however speeds are still extremely bad!

I'll try it now

EDIT: Pings didnt go down for long it seems (Havent used my net since last post...i got fed up!) - See l8nc graph in sig!

[maxping]

Give it a try it might help.

[maxping]

Just had to do it here as i was getting pings over 120ms , i tried the BT log in and now my results are.

Pinging idnet.net [212.69.36.10] with 32 bytes of data:

Reply from 212.69.36.10: bytes=32 time=60ms TTL=60
Reply from 212.69.36.10: bytes=32 time=33ms TTL=60
Reply from 212.69.36.10: bytes=32 time=27ms TTL=60
Reply from 212.69.36.10: bytes=32 time=58ms TTL=60

[ou7shined]

Yup my connection has been erratic since yesterday too, but I was keeping quiet. At various points today web pages (including this one) have been taking up to a couple of minutes to open. Pings aren't awful but they ain't consistent either. Haven't bothered with speedtests. I know they're down (I can practically taste the treacle) and I've been getting random disconnects after a few hundred hours of great stability and my sync speed has dropped again. I'll try the BT trick (keep forgetting about it) right now.

[maxping]

I have made it a sticky in the "Help" forum so it will stay at the top. 

[ou7shined]

 
Pinging idnet.com [212.69.36.10] with 32 bytes of data:


Reply from 212.69.36.10: bytes=32 time=28ms TTL=60
Reply from 212.69.36.10: bytes=32 time=28ms TTL=60
Reply from 212.69.36.10: bytes=32 time=28ms TTL=60
Reply from 212.69.36.10: bytes=32 time=27ms TTL=60

Ping statistics for 212.69.36.10:
   Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
   Minimum = 27ms, Maximum = 28ms, Average = 27ms

Thanks once again Max

[maxping]

 ou7shined it doesn't always work first time but it does usually work,i recently had to log in and out 3 times before the pings dropped, a pain in the butt but worth it if you are a gamer.

[Rik]

Well, at around 3Pm my internet started running like treacle. It started just after a resync, which is always a tell tale sign of ADSLMax starting to go wrong! Sync speed dropped rather alot also, by around 400kbs.

What are your line stats? I just wonder whether you would benefit from having a higher target noise margin. Although that will produce a lower sync speed, it might not affect throughput (depends where in the range you sync), and it would help stability.

[AvengerUK]

Didnt work max

Pings went down on their own, yet speeds are still stuck at 100kbs! - going to email support now with all sync details etc and see what they can do!

128.1 Kbps
which is around 16.01 KB/s  **sigh** - thats prob the best ive got for a while aswell!

[Rik]

Curious, I had a re-sync this afternoon, which just crept me into a 3000kbps profile. My throughput lifted within the hour, so it suggests you've had a bad sync event which has really depressed your profile. Have you checked your router logs to see if there's a number of re-syncs during the night?

[maxping]

Didnt work max

Did you give it a few tries?

[AvengerUK]

I did :/

Message from CS was basically to wait for it to stablise (as i suspected!) - sigh, isnt max a pain in the a*se?

With 2 or so days left, (or more) at 14kb/s - im seriously considering giving Max the boot!

Note: see l8nc graph - at this rate my profile may never recover *looks at resyncs, pings and loss*

I used to get a better sync with this router - and that was with fast path on! Now, with interleaving on - i get a worse sync than i used to with fast path!

Somethings not right...

[maxping]

I did :/

sigh, isnt max a pain in the a*se?

Hey     

[AvengerUK]

Er. ah, yes 

...not you 

[maxping]

 

[MoHux]

I did :/

Message from CS was basically to wait for it to stablise (as i suspected!) - sigh, isnt max a pain in the a*se?

With 2 or so days left, (or more) at 14kb/s - im seriously considering giving Max the boot!

Note: see l8nc graph - at this rate my profile may never recover *looks at resyncs, pings and loss*

I used to get a better sync with this router - and that was with fast path on! Now, with interleaving on - i get a worse sync than i used to with fast path!

Somethings not right...

Could it be something to do with the re-balancing of users?? 

[AvengerUK]

Nah, its all day every day - even at the really quiet times!

Must be a Max problem

[Rik]

Many Max problems can be solved by a little DIY work. Have you done the basic check of connecting via the test socket to see if your figures improve?

[AvengerUK]

 Ive done that once but not recently.

Ill try it when i get home - ive also picked up a freinds router to try, as my routers been a bit iffy recently!

[Rik]

I've found that, since Max, there's no longer a 'best' router, different brands perform very differently according to the line characteristics and DSLAM. The best performance seems to come with matching the router chipset to the DSLAM. Prior to Max, I was using a Draytek 2600+, but this didn't handle the line very well once I moved to Max. Nowadays, I'm running the much cheaper Netgear DG834G, but it gives me superior results. If you can borrow different makes/models at all, it's well worth the experiment.

[AvengerUK]

Im using a Zyxcel P660H which has - in the past been very stable for my line. Then again, so has this safecom im borrowing!

[Rik]

OK, you need to find a couple of friends running Netgears and Thomsons.

[RJM]

Well, I use the cheap ZyXEL Prestige 630 plugged into the USB and get good speeds most of the time.

I have noticed over the past 14 days though, that there has been a few more disconnects during the evening or in the middle of the night.

It really doesn't bother me, but , I would imagine if you are a "gamer" it is bad news.

[Rik]

I prefer not to connect via USB for a couple of reasons. Most modems draw the full 500mA, and modems use quite a large chunk of CPU time. In addition, routers are generally more stable, though not always. I average about one re-sync in 10 days at the moment. The figure was better with my previous ISP, but then I migrated into IDNet at the start of the worst months for Max.

[RJM]

Rik,

I think I have mentioned this before: my speeds are quicker by using the USB connection rather than the ethernet connection on the router.

[Nerval]

That's not unusual Robin.

Weigh the speed of one against the security/power draw  of the other.

[Rik]

It is unusual, though, in that the bandwidth of either interface is far greater than that of the ADSL signal, so suggests a design or hardware issue either with the router or the computer...

[RJM]

Nerval,

Please explain a little more - I am running a firewall & NOD32. (The router does not have an "in-built firewall") and never seem to get problems.

[Nerval]

I don't think you mean "unusual" in that I've seen it quite a lot so it must be common.
Difficult to fathom, perhaps?

[Rik]

Difficult to fathom, perhaps?

That'll do me.

[Rik]

Nerval,
Please explain a little more - I am running a firewall & NOD32. (The router does not have an "in-built firewall") and never seem to get problems.

Hi Robin

A software firewall can do a pretty good job but, imo, a hardware firewall beats it every time. The combination of NAT and SPI make you pretty safe from outside attack. What a software firewall offers over and above the hardware version is the ability to check on anything trying to access the web 'from within'. However, I feel this is not generally necessary providing you have good AV software, which you do, and that you carry out regular malware sweeps.

You say you never seem to get problems, how would you expect them to manifest?

[RJM]

Rik,

Scans are automatically carried out every 24hrs for Malaware & Virus.

I don't seem to get problems as I rely on the software to do its job.

[Nerval]

I said that without moving my lips.

The hardware firewall just sits there in your router and does its job without taking up any of your PC resources.  It can make it appear to the many idiots scanning the net looking for victims that your computer does not exist.

I just use my router firewall and NOD32.  Used to use a number of software firewalls, but they all eventually gave me trouble.  I don't even bother scanning for stuff that often either.
Never had a problem .
And you can leave your router on when your PC is off to keep your good sync speed.

[Rik]

Scans are automatically carried out every 24hrs for Malaware & Virus.

What do you use for scanning, though?

One of the issues here is that 'good' malware can live on your system and you won't know it's there. I recommend using at least two different malware scanners as I've never found one that catches 100% of the problems. Ideally, one should be able to check for rootkits. NOD, otoh, has never let anything past that I'm aware of, and I do run an online scan from one of the other AV companies from time to time as a check.

Of course, what you do online alters the risk of infection.

[RJM]

I use NOD32, Lavasoft & Windows Defender.

But, it sounds like a need a router with an "inbuilt-firewall".

[Inactive]

Of course, what you do online alters the risk of infection.

....and offline in some cases.. 

[Rik]

But, it sounds like a need a router with an "inbuilt-firewall".

The benefits are huge, Robin, I would certainly recommend one. Check out DSL Depot for some good value B grade routers.

[Rik]

....and offline in some cases.. 

ROFL.

A firewall won't help there, though!   

[RJM]

Right Rik,

I have ordered the Speedtouch 536 as it has the USB option from DSL - thanks for that.

Is it safe to remove the Firewall software once the new router is installed?

[Rik]

I ran my software firewall for six months after moving to a NAT/SPI router. When I was satisfied that nothing was going awry, I removed it. In fact, it didn't have to do a thing during the period I ran them simultaneously.

So, I'd suggest giving it a while, for your own peace of mind then, if all is well, drop the software firewall, but keep the malware sweeps.

[Nerval]

I have ordered the Speedtouch 536 as it has the USB option

You're better connecting via the ethernet link.  Doesn't your computer have one?

[RJM]

Answer, yes.

I will try both - with the ZyXEL, my speeds dropped dramatically connecting via the ethernet cable.

So, I will see how I get on with the Speedtouch.

[Nerval]

OK Sorry to nag. 

[RJM]

Thanks everybody for all the help.

Much appreciated.

[Rik]

Hi Robin

Just a thought, is your NIC limited to a 10Mbps speed by any chance?

[RJM]

I am afraid to admit, I haven't a clue what you are talking about.

What is NIC?

[Rik]

Sorry, Network Interface Card or network adaptor. Check in device manager to see what it says about it.

[RJM]

It was PCi network card Rik, I have removed it at the moment.

When the new "router" arrives I will have a play.

[Rik]

We'll be waiting. When you put the NIC back in, though, do take a look in device manager to check it's working OK.

[AvengerUK]

Back on topic...

My profile seems to of increased today to 1000kbs..but...

Sync 1: 1952 kbps / 448 kbps

Speedtest.net:    781 kb/s   378 kb/s
giganews: 950kb/s


Re-test using test socket: 1952 kbps / 448 kbps

Basically the same elsewhere.

re-test with straight forward connect with NOTHING else plugged in: (bypass surge protector etc): 2080 kbps / 448 kbps

Different Router time...!

Same "re-test" as before (router only thing plugged in).

Us Rate (Kbps)           448
Ds Rate (Kbps)         1856
US Margin         19
DS Margin         12


Notice DS Margin...looks like BT has capped me at 12 dammit!!! - (which would explain lower sync)- can i get this removed???

Note: sorry about the layout, most of this post is C&P'd from my notepad notes while i was testing stuff!

[Rik]

It does look line your target noise margin has been increased to stabilise your line. It also looks like your surge protector is not helping. Personally, I don't think they are worth having on phone lines, but I do use power-conditioning UPSs on the mains side.

Call CS and talk to them about the noise margin, they are the only people who can get it moved back down.

[AvengerUK]

Ill give them a bell / email later - If they do manage to get it back down, taking the surge protector off helped with the stats etc - i guess it could make me more stable with a lower SNR anyway!

[Rik]

That would be my guess, but there's only one way to find out for sure...