Remember: the overall quality and speed of an Internet connection is largely determined by the capabilities of your Internet Service Provider (ISP). However, there are questions you can ask – and answer! – to help ensure that you're getting the most value from your connection.
1. Am I getting what I’m paying for?
1. Find out what speed you’re "supposed" to be getting – also known as your “advertised speed” or “package speed”
Take a look at your Internet service bill. What download and upload speeds are listed in your package?
Speeds usually range from a few hundred kilobits per second (128kbps-768kbps) to many megabits per second (10-100Mbps). While results will vary between regions and providers, you should verify the exact downstream and upstream you’ve subscribed to and make note if the speeds are in kilobits per second or megabits per second.
2. Make sure you aren’t being left behind!
Providers update their package offerings regularly and, if you signed up for your Internet service more than six months ago, you may want to contact them to make sure you’re getting the best service you possibly can. We know of cases where people have had their download speeds more than doubled just by calling, with no additional fees.
3. Should you upgrade?
Verify that you are subscribed to the best service package for your needs. In many cases, spending just a little more per month on your broadband can dramatically improve your speeds and provide a better experience in all Internet activities, including browsing image or video intensive websites.
4. Test your connection speed on Speedtest.net
Once you have the exact downstream and upstream you’ve subscribed to in front of you, it’s time to test your connection at Speedtest.net. The closest physical testing location will automatically be used when you click the Begin Test button directly above the map. This location will usually provide the most accurate results, but you may want to try testing with other locations near you to compare results. Why is this so complicated? Sometimes you’ll experience a faster result to a server farther away because of less than ideal routing, which means that your ISP has the connection routed through a city further away and traffic sent to and from a physically distant location will actually be faster (learn more about Internet routing issues). Also be aware of potential CPU load, which could be a cause for intermittent slowness.
Your Speedtest.net results should be roughly 80 percent or more of your subscribed throughput. Be sure to compare results using the same unit (kbps vs. Mbps, etc) and allow 10-20 percent for overhead. Also be aware of packages that advertise speeds “up to” but not a guaranteed minimum rate.
6. Test often
Test the speed of your service often, and at various times of the day. Most people test during peak hours of the day, when their service could be affected negatively by network congestion. If you find there to be peak time congestion with your service, consider doing more bandwidth intensive tasks during “off hours,” or queuing up any large file downloads you plan to start as you’re going to bed.
7. Verify your line quality using Pingtest.net
Test the quality of your connection using Pingtest.net. Sometimes, increased latency or packet loss is the real culprit behind slow bandwidth speeds and the substandard performance of connection-intensive services, like YouTube or streaming radio. If you use a wireless connection, consider testing by plugging your computer into your modem or router with a direct Ethernet connection to see if that improves performance.
2. Is My Network the Problem?
It may be hard to detect a service quality problem with your provider’s network, so why not begin your investigation where you can actually control things? This section will review how you can make sure your local area network (LAN) is set up to provide the maximum Internet speed and quality.
If you’ve ever called tech support, you’ve heard it before: Turn off the problematic device (your computer, broadband modem, WiFi router, etc.), leave it off for several seconds, and then turn it back on. You can do this by unplugging the power cable if you can’t find the on/off switch. Then, reseat (unplugging and plugging back in) any other connected cables, such as the Ethernet or USB. Power cycling your device often resolves most connection problems, especially if your service is completely down. It is less effective at resolving bandwidth issues, but it does help a lot of the time.
2. Compare the speed of your network components against your subscribed speeds
If you subscribe to services under 10Mbps, your network components should be able to support your subscribed bandwidth and you can skip this section.
For all other users with subscribed speeds of 10Mbps and above or 100Mbps and above you will need to verify that ALL of your network components are capable of these speeds. 10-Base-T devices won’t support speeds higher than 10Mbps. If you subscribe to speeds upwards of 10Mbps, make sure that you are using 10/100-based hardware and Cat5 level and above Ethernet cables. For networks over 100Mbps, all hardware will need to support gigabit speeds. Also, consider using a switch – not a hub.
3. Troubleshoot Line-Share DSL
If you do not have a DSL Internet connection that shares the same copper wires (or “pair”) as your telephone line you can skip this section. Not sure what type of DSL you have? Line-share DSL connections require the use of DSL filters, so if you have those installed you should read on for helpful advice.
Make sure that your DSL filters are connected securely and properly. Do this by connecting the male end of the filters directly into each and every telephone wall jack, then connecting all telephone devices into the filter (and never the wall jack directly). Don’t forget to filter non-telephones, such as DVRs, satellite receivers, fax machines, and alarm systems. Check with your service provider to verify if your line-share DSL supports sharing your connection with other digital devices such as fax machines and alarm systems, as those usually cause interference.
When testing your service, begin by removing all your telephone devices usually connected to the filtered wall jacks, isolating the DSL modem directly to a single wall jack. If this test results in satisfactory speeds, reintroducing your telephone device to the wall filters, one at a time, and performing the same test as you do so. If while testing, your service suddenly shows degraded speeds, you’ll know which device or jack is causing the interference. Be particularly aware of testing around cordless telephones, DVRs, satellite receivers and other approved digital devices. No more than 5 filtered phone devices are recommended in use while you are connected to a line-share DSL connection.
If you are still experiencing connectivity issues without filtered phone devices connected, and you have isolated your DSL modem by connecting it directly to a single wall jack without other devices plugged into your phone line or DSL modem, contact your service provider for assistance. However, if you are only experiencing moderately slow speeds instead of intermittent or total loss of connectivity, Section 4 of this guide may provide further troubleshooting guidance.
4. Test the path of least resistance
For local area networks (LANs) that use Ethernet cables to connect all or some of the devices in use, we recommend isolating each of these components during testing. Even LANs with wireless access points connect directly to the broadband modem via an Ethernet cable, and should therefore be isolated.
It may be less convenient, but the most optimal network performance it usually only achieved by physically connecting a single computer directly into your broadband modem via Ethernet.
Once you’re connected directly via cabling, test your connection speed atSpeedtest.net again, verifying your results via multiple servers. Also be sure to test your line quality at Pingtest.net to check for packet loss.
If your speed test results are still below 80 percent of your subscribed bandwidth service, and/or your Pingtest.net grade is a C or below you may need to contact your ISP directly for troubleshooting. However, first go ahead and skip to Section 4 to potentially identify an alternate source of the issue.
If you do receive satisfactory bandwidth speeds and line quality ratings, read on for suggestions on maintaining these speeds for both wired and wireless routers and access points.
5. Check for Ethernet wiring and Switch/Router issues
You’ve tested your connection by plugging your computer directly into your modem, now you can take the steps necessary to test your switch, router, or access point. Using a wireless LAN? Read Section 3 for troubleshooting steps custom to your network.
For any networks utilizing hardware to split Ethernet connections from a single broadband modem to multiple devices first, ensure that your hardware is a switch or router and not a hub. Knowing which is in use will help you to decrease traffic collisions between traffic crossing multiple ports, which could be a potential cause of lag and slow performance.
As mentioned in the last section, always use quality Ethernet cables with no severe creases or bends. Begin testing by swapping your cables out, which will eliminate those physical lines as the possible cause of any problems. Reintroduce hardware one piece at a time, ensuring that the port on your router or hub light up as the device is connected. If reintroducing specific hardware, such as a switch or router, to your network causes your connection to slow or behave erratically, that piece of hardware is likely the culprit.
If your speeds are satisfactory after the first piece of hardware is added back to your network, continue to cable Internet devices back to your LAN one at a time, testing your connection after each is connected. Remember: this testing should also include the connection of any Ethernet wired gaming consoles, media PCs, or online movie players.
3. Is WiFi the Problem?
1. Speed vs. convenience
If possible, a wired connection is almost always going to deliver maximum service speed and quality. If you need a fast connection and you are using wireless only for the convenience, you will likely see an immediate increase in performance by switching to Ethernet. However, your network needs may demand untethered connections and WiFi can be maximized to deliver great quality service.
2. Verify that your hardware can support your subscribed speeds.
When troubleshooting a slow wireless connection, you’ll first want to verify that your wireless access device can support the speeds you are subscribed to. This includes devices supplied by your service provider! Check the speed of your equipment – is it an A, B, G or N class router?
To understand more about these different router classes you can read a full article at About.com, but we'll explain some of the basics below.
N is the fastest class currently available, and this ideally the one you are connecting through, though G is the most popular and is still generally fast and reliable. In addition to your subscribed throughput, consider the signal strength and distance between the computer and the wireless router.
A and B Class routers can support speeds up to 11 Mbps at full signal strength, but on average perform at 5 Mbps or lower. G Class routers can support speeds up to 54 Mbps at full signal strength, but on average performs at about 22 Mbps. N Class routers can theoretically support speeds higher than 54 Mbps and use the strongest signal type currently available.
3. What’s your range?
Now you’re ready to test your speed. Make sure that your computer is within a close range of your access point and verify your signal strength is strong. Also make sure ONLY devices that you are actively testing are connected to that wireless device, and nothing else is connected to your broadband modem that could be utilizing your bandwidth.
A good way to do this is to set or change your WPA password prior to testing; this will kick off any unwanted devices from your network. Connect using the fastest mode available. Many devices support multiple modes simultaneously (B and G or B and N, etc). You can also try changing the signal channel to avoid collisions with other nearby networks. Read more about the technical specifics of wireless networking.
If you’re satisfied with your speeds with this single device connected, reintroduce other devices you want to have connected to your wireless networking one at a time, testing in between connecting each device. Also, try gradually increasing the range to the location where you plan on using the connection to make sure it’s working from that distance with ideal signal strength. Don’t forget to test gaming consoles, media PCs, online movie players, smart phones, and other devices that utilize the Internet.
4. Does security matter?
4. Is My Computer the Problem?
1. One computer at a time
If you’ve verified your network (wired or wireless) is performing ideally, or identified a specific device that is not performing to your satisfaction (80 percent or higher of your subscribed speeds through Speedtest.net or a C grade or higher from Pingtest.net), your next steps should be to identify each device or computer using the connection is set up in the most optimal manner.
Connect each device or computer to your network, ensuring that no other wired computers or wireless devices are active, and that it’s connected directly to either a hub or router you’ve already successfully tested, or is directly connected from the wall jack to the broadband modem to your computer.
2. Make sure nothing is hiding
Shut down all applications running on your computer, including any hidden tasks that could be running in the background. Pay close attention to any peering applications that could be actively transferring data, such as torrents or newsgroups.
3. Disable everything else… but only temporarily!
For troubleshooting please also be sure to temporarily disable any software firewall, proxy, anti-virus, or other security software. Why disable these important services? They could potentially be misconfigured and over utilizing your available bandwidth and/or CPU resources. It is very important to re-enable these processes after troubleshooting, otherwise you run the risk of exposing your computer, and possibly your whole network, to harmful viruses and other malware.
4. Verify your CPU usage.
If your CPU usage is low, open up a single web browser window/tab and verify usage does not spike up and remain high. If it does, check for a Java applet running in the background or other browser plug-ins such as themes or extensions. These extensions can be problematic and should be disabled. Then, verify that you are using the latest version of your browser with the most recent Flash and Java applications available.
With these steps completed, test your connection first on Speedtest.net, and then Pingtest.net. If your speeds are still not what you expect, begin monitoring your CPU. If usage is high during the test only, try minimizing the browser window during the test to see if that has an impact on the performance. If minimizing the browser gives you significantly better results, there is likely an issue with how your computer is processing Flash. Try testing with a different browser, reinstalling Flash, and then reinstalling your browser – in that order – if the first step doesn’t resolve the problem.
5. Scan for viruses and other possible infections
Routinely scan your computer for viruses, malware or other harmful software that could be over utilizing your bandwidth or computer CPU with malicious intent. Infected computers will always have a decreased performance and pose risk of infecting other computers on your network and beyond.
5. When should I contact my service provider?
1. Test everything, one device at a time
It may be tempting to take shortcuts, but it’s your responsibility to thoroughly verify the performance of every computer or device on your network. If you’ve followed all the troubleshooting guidelines listed above, verifying that there are no identifiable issues with your browser, applications, CPU, wireless access point, cables, switches, routers or any other components on your LAN (and if you have, we are impressed), contact your service provider for further troubleshooting.
2. What should I tell them?
It’s important that you inform them of all the painstaking steps you took to get to this point – they’ll likely be impressed and thankful for all your effort! Make sure you inform them of any patterns in your testing, such as times of the day, issues during adverse weather, if you’ve seen any utility vans or trucks in your area recently, your broadband modem seems hot or smells funny, these all might prove to be helpful. Remember: the more detail you give them saves time in the final diagnosis.
Conclusion
We hope that this article taught you new troubleshooting tips or revealed new possible techniques to miraculously improve the speeds and quality of your Internet experience.
Visit often for more tips and tools, as Ookla continues the crusade to help you get the most from your broadband.
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