Recent shaw internet issues, any help?

[3 Justin 3]

So my internet has been complete garbage at my house lately (almost 2 months it seems). I went to speedtest and the first time I got 1.4Mb/s download, 0.4 upload, second time I get 0.53Mb/s download and 0.38 upload, 3rd and final try I get 0.62Mb/s and upload of 0.46Mb/s. Back when shaw said "Now even faster internet" I checked and I was hitting 6.5 up to 7.5 MB/s. Is someone leeching my internet (it is secured), or is something in the system that I need to flush out.

Should I phone and yell at shaw? Suggestions?

I am using some TrendNet router, which has been decent thus far. Could that be the issue?

Note: This is all being run wirelessly off my laptop.

How do I go from 7Mb/s now down to less than one now?


Haha, when I tried to post this, the internet crashed and I had to reset it. It has been that terrible.

[Rathji]

First thing: If you are ever having a problem with your internet the easiest thing to do is power cycle your modem and router. Turn the power off and unplug all wires from each device for 30 seconds, tthen reconnect the modem first and then your router. Shaw will tell you to do this when you call them, so trying it on your own can save you some time on the phone. Also, try bypassing your router, by plugging your computer directly into the modem, to see if the router is your problem.

Now for your specific issue:

Sounds like a packet loss issue. Could be several causes.

1. high network traffic - Caused by out of the ordinary usage, such as someone on your network ( known or unknown to you) downloading/torrenting massive files. Could also be the result of a virus/trojan/malware infecting your machine which is sending out spam etc. You should be able to diagnose and fix this yourself. You could use Wireshark to see if the traffic on your internet is overly high.

2. Signal levels. This could be caused by a change in physical medium between your computer and the Shaw node/pedestal. Wires pinched, faulty connectors, interference on your wireless channel. To combat the wireless interference, you could switch to channels 1, 6 or 11( someone correct me if these are the wrong ones) which are the 3 available channels with the least overlap. It is possible your neighbour just put in a new router and it is on the same channel as yours, so try all 3 to see if one is best. For any other signal issue, call Shaw. They can probably diagnose the problem remotely, and send a tech out to fix if it is more than just power cycling your modem.

[HeartsOfFire]

Nm

[3 Justin 3]

I tried powercycling the modem yesterday and it didn't help. I didn't power cycle the router because I hate setting it up but I'll try when I get home.

I torrent a lot and obviously the internet will slow down during downloading (xbox live is unplayable), but I understand that. It just seems that the internet is as slow as when I am torrenting even when it is completely off.

I just don't get how I can go from a 6.6Mb/s download to being 0.64Mb/s download on a normal connection. I'll try hooking my laptop directly to the router, then modem to see if there is any change. Maybe my router is hooped.

[Raekwon]

Originally Posted by 3 Justin 3

I torrent a lot

Here is the problem right here. I had the same issues in a previous post. What you need to do is clone your mac address and then reset the modem and obtain another IP address.

After I did this my internet was working just fine tried to DL torrents again and the same problem. After I cloned another mac and obtained a new IP address again it worked just fine again. However if I switched back to a prior cloned mac the problem stayed.

What program do you use for bit torrent?

Rathji will be here in a couple mins to offer some thought on bit torrent 3......2.....1

[onetwo_threefour]

Yep, I got an email from shaw about a week ago telling me that I had been given a complimentary upgrade to 15 Mbit/s for a month, so I decided to test things out by DL some episodes of Heroes that I missed through utorrent and it just messed up my internet rudely.

Luckily I don't torrent very mch, and I'll be packing it in again now, but it crazy how it killed my internet. Constant crashes and slowdowns whrenever the program was running.

[3 Justin 3]

So I got home, and I am running the speedtests again but now I am hooked directly to the router and my DL speed was 8.4Mb/s and upload of 432Kb/s at the Shaw.speedtest.com site. I went to speedtest.com and my DL speed was over 16Mb/s and then 12Mb/s my 2nd try, and the same upload as shaw.speedtest.

Could the wireless function in the router somehow be cluttered? Wired internet is super fast, but as soon as I go wireless it drops massively, like from a ~9Mb/s Dl to under 0.7 Mb/s. I know wireless internet you lose some speed, but this seems extremely excessive.

Edit: and I use utorrent. I was using Bitcomet but it was immensely bad for slowdowns, so I switched (utorrent is better and it doesn't totally crash the internet like Bitcomet did).

If I totally power cycle the router, reset it, should it be fine again, or?

[bomber317]

maybe try seeing if there's new firmware for your router.

Although I'm not sure how you were getting those fast speeds initially on wireless, 5-6mb /sec seems insanely fast on wifi.

[yads]

Borrow a friend's router to try out. Sounds like your router might be packing it in. I'm assuming you are close to the router when you try your wireless test. I also assume you've followed a previous suggestion to change router channel?

[3 Justin 3]

I'll go get my dad's (which is a way better router), and see if that is better.

I was getting 9Mb/s with my wire plugged into the computer. I went wireless 15 minutes after I unplugged it and clocked it in at those speeds. I just tested it again now (2 hours after) and I just got a 9.55Mb/s download (wireless, in my normal location).

I don't get how it does extremely well now, but then at night, when you think it'd be even faster because less usage, it dies to 0.67Mb/s. I'll do what Rathji said and change the channel, because maybe my neighbor is on the same as me.

[Jedi Ninja]

The TrendNet router I had previously was garbage. What model is yours?

[sclitheroe]

So if we are reading this right, wired performance is fine, you have subsequently tested wireless, and find the performance is sometimes excellent, sometimes terrible still, correct?

Have you tried another machine? You haven't eliminated your computer (when on wireless) as the problem in the chain yet.

The reason I ask this is that even with potential wifi congestion, the potential for variable performance is far more likely to be with the PC than with the router. I have never seen a situation, even with overlapping/same wifi channels, where you would experience a 10x drop in performance.

Another thing you should test is when performance on wireless drops, immediately plug in via ethernet cable, and see if the performance continues to be bad - the issue could be completely upstream of your cable modem, in which case neither your modem, router, or PC will be the culprit, and you'll need Shaw's assistance (good luck...). Turn off wifi on the PC when you plug in to ensure it starts using the ethernet port rather than continuing to run on wifi.

But at the very least, having another machine handy to diagnose when performance on the wireless is lousy will help determine if the router is really the culprit or not.

[3 Justin 3]

My xbox live crashes constantly, and it was super laggy, so I decided to check the internet speed on my computer and I got the 0.6Mb/s. I'll do what you suggest and the next time it happens I'll test it out.

[bradster57]

Rookie question but: why would my internet slow down after torrenting a file? I've noticed this recently that after I torrent and close down utorrent my connection is slow!

[Rathji]

Originally Posted by bradster57

Rookie question but: why would my internet slow down after torrenting a file? I've noticed this recently that after I torrent and close down utorrent my connection is slow!

I am not totally sure, but it probably has something to do with the huge number of connections that torrents use. Often you can see dozens or more left over after the torrents shut down.

[PsYcNeT]

Originally Posted by 3 Justin 3

Edit: and I use utorrent. I was using Bitcomet but it was immensely bad for slowdowns, so I switched (utorrent is better and it doesn't totally crash the internet like Bitcomet did).

uTorrent is the absolute bane of my existence. It completely destroys any network it's connected to. De-stroys.

If nothing else, throttle your upload limits, as this will help with the laggy internets. Turn your downloads down too. Forwards your router ports, and goddamnit stop using uTorrent.

There is alot of network management that needs to be done if you want to be able to run torrents on a network and not slow everyone down into PL-Hell.

If you leave the torrent program open (even in the background) when done dowloading, it's still having it's way with your U/L pipe, and boy, does it go to town.

[3 Justin 3]

Originally Posted by PsYcNeT

uTorrent is the absolute bane of my existence. It completely destroys any network it's connected to. De-stroys.

If nothing else, throttle your upload limits, as this will help with the laggy internets. Turn your downloads down too. Forwards your router ports, and goddamnit stop using uTorrent.

There is alot of network management that needs to be done if you want to be able to run torrents on a network and not slow everyone down into PL-Hell.

If you leave the torrent program open (even in the background) when done dowloading, it's still having it's way with your U/L pipe, and boy, does it go to town.

Yeah I know, I always yell at my brother because he ALWAYS has it bloody open and the internet is facked because of it.

I'll stop torrenting for a week or two and see if there is any slowdowns.

[Hack&Lube]

Wireless is not nearly as fast as you think it is without some seriously good hardware, what kind of wireless connection do you have? How far are you from the router?

I had a very good G router as well as a very powerful wireless antenna and yet I could not properly stream Youtube HD or Hulu to a computer one floor down. A good N class router and some high gain antennas will help.

If you could get high speed plugged in and not when wireless, the problem is right there. It should have nothing to do with torrents if you already solved that issue by plugging in.

[3 Justin 3]

Well I have been running a 9+MB/s download with wireless the past few days. Xbox live is still a laggy mess though, but I think it was my friend and not me. I'll update in 2 weeks if the problem comes back.