slight speed decrease

[cosmicdance]

I've been with Idnet for about a year now and always had a steady connection that hovers between 2.8 MB to 3.0 MB on speedtest.net.

This past week or so it's gone down a bit to 2.4 MB, which isn't a huge decrease but I cannot understand why.
My router stats haven't changed at all when I look at them through the router's admin control, attenuation etc the same as before.
Also I've tried at various times of the day, with and without the telephone & filter plugged in but no difference.
I've scanned for viruses, spyware etc and always have these active.
I do appreciate it's half-term and the internet gets busier but upto about 2 weeks ago it was the same as ever - 2.8 MB
Just wondered if anyone else has experienced similar?

Cheers in advance

Andy

[Rik]

Hi Andy

That step in speed sounds a bit like you have dropped a profile step. Have you tried a BT speed test?

[cosmicdance]

Hmmm how odd... After doing a speedtest this morning it's gone up faster than ever to 3.3 MB!
Like I say for the past week it's slowed down a bit and now it's gone faster than it's ever been.
I cannot help thinking that the fantastic Idnet have read the post and sorted it and it's not coincidence.
I know when I've had a problem (only once before) they fix it with helpfulness and efficiency that's second to none.

Maybe it is coincidence that it's gone from one extreme to the other?!

Thanks for the speedtest recommendation Rik.
Sorry If I'm being a bit thick but on the http://speedtester.bt.com/ site it asks you for login details, yet there's nowhere to register on the screen.
Not sure if I'm missing something and need to register on a different BT site?

Thank you

Andy

[Rik]

Hi Andy

I'm still thinking that you've had a low sync event which has dropped your profile, IDNet can't directly intervene with the BT management software.

The login referred to on the BT site is the IDNet login, eg the name@uk.idnet.dsl4, or whatever form yours takes.

[cosmicdance]

Ok here's my results from the BT speedtest -

IP profile for your line is - 3500 kbps
    DSL connection rate: 448 kbps(UP-STREAM)  4224 kbps(DOWN-STREAM)
    Actual IP throughput achieved during the test was - 3232 kbps

Now my first impressions are that Idnet have read the forum and contacted BT who have bumped my profile up.
Not sure of the usual procedure, and obviously not assuming, but just I posted on here in the early hours and it appears to be sorted now!

Andy

[Simon]

Well, I can't speak from experience, but I would be surprised if even IDNet managed to get BT to do anything that quickly!

[Rik]

Hi Andy

It's highly unlikely that there has been an intervention - BT's software makes changes automatically and, unless there is a stuck profile, ISPs can't ask for changes under normal circumstances.

I'm reasonably sure you've had a low sync event which has dropped your profile and it has now recovered automatically. If you notice a speed drop again, run the BT test and see what your profile is. If you do keep getting low sync events, check your internal wiring and, if that appears to be in the clear, contact support and get them to test the line.

Your current profile is correct for your sync speed, your throughput is about right for the profile - you might just benefit a little from tweaking MTU/RWIN.

[cosmicdance]

Well in 1 year it's only the second time I have had to contact Idnet with a slight problem.
As ever, their staff, and forum users like yourself just amaze me in their speed & helpfullness.
So thank you so far Rik, you've been a great help mate.

I contacted Idnet and they did a full line test - no problems.
I'm going to run the speedtest, as requested by them, throughout the day to get a good average result and see how it goes.
I'll post an update on here over the weekend to let you know how it's going.
I know if I read others' posts on here it can often help in solving minor problems straight away so to share and support each other is what this forum, and company, is all about.

Many thanks

Andy

[Rik]

to share and support each other is what this forum, and company, is all about.

I agree completely, Andy.

[cosmicdance]

Just to update yesterday's results.

I tested my connection a few times yesterday and then this morning and got this -

Test1 comprises of Best Effort Test:  -provides background information.
    IP profile for your line is - 3000 kbps
    DSL connection rate: 448 kbps(UP-STREAM)  4480 kbps(DOWN-STREAM)
    Actual IP throughput achieved during the test was - 2808 kbps

It's interesting that the profile for my line was 3500 KBPS yesterday morning but only 3000 KBPS today.
I'm not sure why this is?
I'm now connecting at 2800 KBPS which is what I usually connect at, so this is fine.
Just curious as to why it could go up and I got connected at 3300 KBPS yesterday when it peaked.

CHeers

ANdy

[Rik]

Hi Andy

You've had a low sync event at some point and your profile hasn't recovered yet, this process takes up to five days providing you don't have another low speed sync.

Your fluctuations suggest that your line is susceptible to noise. Have you tried using the test socket (if you have one) and removing the ring wire? Details on how to do this are here.

If the problem persists, you could ask IDNet to have your target noise margin raised to 9db. This will sacrifice a little speed, but give you a more stable line.

[cosmicdance]

My main BT socket is a prehistoric WWII one!
You know the small, almost oblong shaped thing. It's wired up to a normal plug in BT socket after this.
I removed the ring wire as I know they're obselete now.

Things seem fine now at 2800 KBPS.

Thanks again for your help Rik, much appreciated.
I always read through old posts myself as often they are common with your own problem so all this great info will help others aswell as me.

Andy

[Rik]

Let us know how it goes, Andy. It might be possible to get BT to fit a new master socket for you if things don't improve.