Speed/Connection out of hours help

macladd · Nov 23, 2007, 22:21:29

Hi,

My speeds are awful....have tried all the usual stuff...speed remains the same, I'm right next door to the main exchange and generally enjoy speed 7mbps+ rock solid. Since joining IDnet I have notice some issues with speeds, these are infrequent and generally clear themselves, I put it down to congestion or some other cause. I came home today about 5pm and noticed the problem straight away, have done some speedtests via speedtester.net and also BT speedtest both are showing really slow speeds. For periods of time, I cannot get internet or email despite showing as connected and this has continued all evening. I left a message on the out of hours service but no one has responded. Is there any way I can get a hold of someone out of hours as there is clearly a problem?

Simon · Nov 23, 2007, 22:43:11

IDNet do often respond out of hours - they may pick up an email quicker then a phone message, so there's no harm in leaving both.

In the meantime, hopefully someone here may be able to help you. Can you post the results of your speed tests, particularly the one from BT Speedtester, as this shows the details someone more knowledgeable than me will need.

Can we assume you have checked your machine for spyware, or other programs that may be hogging bandwidth?

john · Nov 23, 2007, 22:45:39

Hi macladd, If there was an afterhours support number I would have thought it would be on the Idnet support page.

I have also noticed a reduction in speed earlier but I'm not sure it is a problem with Idnet as I first noticed it at lunchtime on the company's machine. In fact it was a great deal slower than when I logged in a at home later on and I'd say the speed is back to normal now.

macladd · Nov 23, 2007, 22:54:13

Hi John and Si6776, thanks for your replies. I have indeed checked the machine for spyware etc. I'm pretty well protected by Kaspersky, which is always fully up to date, weekly scans etc. My speeds are usually rock solid so I notice when it's not. Here is a link to a recent speedtest, The BTspeedtest had a simlar result, I have another one to do in a couple of hours and that will be the 3 that IDNet will require. The OOH number is given out on the office is now closed message, since calling it around 7pm I have had no response. The speedtest results show above 512kbs speed but I can assure you that I am in no wy getting those speeds, infact I thought the Idnetters forum was going to time out when it eventually started to load slowly.

here is an indication of the usual speeds I get

john · Nov 23, 2007, 23:13:53

Idnet still seems to be working normally for be macclad. I did three speed tests, this is the latest one (the others were very similar) :

Your last result indicates you should be getting a significantly faster download speed than mine though.

Have you read the FAQ's here : http://www.idnetters.co.uk/forums/index.php?topic=1904.0

Vomityspice · Nov 23, 2007, 23:33:21

Thats still much better than I currently getting!

Hopefully its a short lived issue....................

Simon · Nov 23, 2007, 23:38:05

The BT Speedtester shows your line sync rate and throughput, Mac, so if it's not too much of a pain, it might be useful to post that as well. I have to admit, I have never found the Speedtest.net results to be truly reliable, and my line couldn't possibly produce the speeds it claims, but I'm not making excuses, as you obviously do have a problem. It's sods law that it's happened on a Friday night, but hopefully IDNet will pick up your messages and respond. They have done so for me on much more trivial matters.

Rik will be around soon, and he should be much more help to you.

Simon · Nov 23, 2007, 23:40:42

Quote from: Vomityspice on Nov 23, 2007, 23:33:21
Thats still much better than I currently getting!

Hopefully its a short lived issue....................

Hi there, and

Have your speeds also just dropped this evening? What do you usually get?

Lance · Nov 23, 2007, 23:43:42

Hi and welcome to the forum macladd. Have a welcome karma!

Please can you post the results of the bt speedtest, along with the line stats from your router? I'm wondering if you have had a low sync event which has pushed down your profile.

Two of the speedtest results you have posted above (8439 & 10428) are impossible by the way. The maximum sync on a bt line is 8128 and then you have to allow for overheads which means the highest possible result is in the 69xx somewhere. That highlights the problem of speedtesters and their simulation methods.

Lance · Nov 23, 2007, 23:51:47

Hi Vomityspice, a welcome to you too!

Please could you also post the results from a BT speedtest and your line stats from your router.

Thanks

macladd · Nov 24, 2007, 00:30:26

Quote from: Lance on Nov 23, 2007, 23:51:47
Hi Vomityspice, a welcome to you too!

Please could you also post the results from a BT speedtest and your line stats from your router.

Thanks

How do i retrieve the BT speedtest results?

Lance · Nov 24, 2007, 00:34:23

There is no way to retrieve an earlier result I'm afraid. If you need to refer to it later on, it's probably best to copy/paste it to word or notepad.

macladd · Nov 24, 2007, 00:41:57

ok...I'll be able to restest after 1am, in the meantime, here is my router stats

Port Status TxPkts RxPkts Collisions Tx B/s Rx B/s Up Time
WAN PPPoA 33792 39739 0 425 1515 05:31:21
LAN 10M/100M 759 0 0 8 0 05:32:00
WLAN 11M/54M 40247 36208 0 1588 440 05:31:50

ADSL Link Downstream Upstream
Connection Speed 8128 kbps 448 kbps
Line Attenuation 5 db 0.5 db
Noise Margin 12 db 23 db

Lance · Nov 24, 2007, 00:45:19

Damn they are nice stats! They look fine but your BT speedtest will reveal your profile. I wonder if this has dropped and is what is causing you the slow speed.

macladd · Nov 24, 2007, 00:48:56

Quote from: Lance on Nov 24, 2007, 00:45:19
Damn they are nice stats! They look fine but your BT speedtest will reveal your profile. I wonder if this has dropped and is what is causing you the slow speed.

Whats nice about them? (The main exchange is right next door....maybe thats why they are good?...I'm not even sure what they mean lol)

Lance · Nov 24, 2007, 00:53:59

It is indeed the closeness to the exchange which means they are good. Basically, your downstream attenuation of 5 is really, really low (which is good) and you have a noise margin of 12db which means that you have plently of headroom. The sync speed of 8218kbps is the highest possible on a BT line, and gives a profile of 7150kbps.

macladd · Nov 24, 2007, 00:56:53

Thanks for that, iirc 7150 is the profile listed on the BT Speedtest....I'll post results of the 3rd one which it will let me do just after 1am

macladd · Nov 24, 2007, 01:15:04

looks like things are starting to return to normal.....lol

IP profile for your line is - 7150 kbps
DSL connection rate: 448 kbps(UP-STREAM) 8128 kbps(DOWN-STREAM)
Actual IP throughput achieved during the test was - 6033 kbps

was below 500kbps in previous 2 tests. Despite no call or email back from Idnet, I wonder if they picked up my phone call/email and fixed something?

anz1066 · Nov 24, 2007, 02:04:46

am i doing the right thing joining Idnet? would be nice if they told you that they have done something to rectify the problem, so we all know

Rik · Nov 24, 2007, 08:57:58

IDNet are generally excellent at communicating. However, out of hours support is a skeleton service, so there may be no response, just a fix. That said, many members will tell you that they've had a call back from someone, usually Simon, within a few hours.

Rik · Nov 24, 2007, 09:00:52

Quote from: macladd on Nov 24, 2007, 01:15:04
was below 500kbps in previous 2 tests. Despite no call or email back from Idnet, I wonder if they picked up my phone call/email and fixed something?

The other possibility is that you had a low-sync event which dropped your profile but, because of the new blip logic, it has returned to normal almost immediately. The BT tester is invaluable in these situations, as it's the only way to determine your profile. It's always worth keeping the results (I paste them into a text file) so that you can see any pattern which is developing.

Welcome to the forum.

Vomityspice · Nov 24, 2007, 09:15:42

Here's this mornings numbers.....

My router numbers (from memory as i'm upstairs connected wirelessly!)

Down=4886
Up=488

Usually I have a 4meg connection!

Rik · Nov 24, 2007, 09:23:38

TBH those number mean nothing without also knowing your profile (run a BT speed test to get this), and your noise margin. It would also help to know what the error count is like. Can you not access the router interface?

Vomityspice · Nov 24, 2007, 10:05:05

The BT speed test says.....

Results Image not loaded

Test1 comprises of Best Effort Test: -provides background information.
IP profile for your line is - 135 kbps
DSL connection rate: 448 kbps(UP-STREAM) 4544 kbps(DOWN-STREAM)
Actual IP throughput achieved during the test was - 119 kbps

If you wish to discuss these results please contact your ISP.

If you are experiencing problems with specific applications, servers or websites please contact your ISP for assistance.

Your test has completed please close this window to exit the performance tester.

and my response from IDNET is..

Your current Profile is set to 135kbps. This is probably due to a
low-synchronisation event. Your current connection rate is 4544kbps, if your
router can maintain this connection rate then your Profile will be
automatically adjusted by the BT equipment in the exchange over the next few
days.

Rik · Nov 24, 2007, 10:10:14

I can't add anything to that - you're experiencing the joys of BT.

What you can try and do is to eliminate any local sources of noise (the most likely cause of this happening).

Take a look at this sticky.

Vomityspice · Nov 24, 2007, 10:41:55

I believe I know the source of my problems.......

Our cute puppy chewed through the phone wires ( in the process competely ruining our digital phone system!)

How long might it be before the exchange rectifies the problem?

Lance · Nov 24, 2007, 11:19:41

There is no defined answer I'm afraid. BT's system might recognise it as a blip, and return you quickly to the correct higher profile. However, it may also decide to increase your profile in steps, or ultimately it will take five full days.

Hopefully it will take one of the first two, most likely the stepped increase.

MoHux · Nov 24, 2007, 20:31:20

Quote from: Vomityspice on Nov 24, 2007, 10:41:55
I believe I know the source of my problems.......

Our cute puppy chewed through the phone wires ( in the process competely ruining our digital phone system!)

How long might it be before the exchange rectifies the problem?

As soon as they can catch the puppy!!

Vomityspice · Nov 25, 2007, 21:58:33

Two days in.....

when will the speed return?

Crawling along thanks to BT!

Cheers!

Lance · Nov 25, 2007, 22:22:02

Looks like BT's systems might have decided its the full 5 day, stable connection, wait.

macladd · Nov 26, 2007, 00:03:28

Hey folks,

Thanks to all who responded, IDNet called me on Saturday morning, things seem to be back to normal now.

Rik · Nov 26, 2007, 00:33:21

Great news. Sounds like Simon has been kicking the tyres.

Vomityspice · Nov 29, 2007, 16:24:03

Finally back to normal!

Rik · Nov 29, 2007, 16:29:49

BT moves in mysterious, and ponderous, ways.

Kheldar · Nov 29, 2007, 16:41:28

luckily our puppy has never chewed the phone wires !

its bad enough on its own without her help !

glad its got back to normal for you.

MoHux · Nov 29, 2007, 16:44:11

You sure about that Steve? Thought I just heard Fifi chuckle ........