How to determine broadband speeds?

GunJack

googler wrote: »

The Advanced tab tells me;

Bandwidth (Up/Down) [kbps/kbps]: 994 / 7,751
Data Transferred (Sent/Received) [MB/MB]: 71.54 / 187.97
Output Power (Up/Down) [dBm]: 12.5 / 20.5
Line Attenuation (Up/Down) [dB]: 19.5 / 40.0
SN Margin (Up/Down) [dB]: 5.0 / 3.5
Vendor ID (Local/Remote): TMMB / TSTC
Loss of Framing (Local/Remote): 0 / 0
Loss of Signal (Local/Remote): 0 / 0
Loss of Power (Local/Remote): 0 / 0
Loss of Link (Remote): 0
Error Seconds (Local/Remote): 189 / 0
FEC Errors (Up/Down): 10,844,306 / 122,506,536
CRC Errors (Up/Down): 65,656 / 16,563
HEC Errors (Up/Down): 86,651 / 14,987
Line Profile: Fast

Interpretation hints, please?

some points....

1. your on an adsl2+ connection - upstream is higher than even the 832kb/s "business" adsl1 profile...this is good.

2. Fast/interleaved - you may well find you are interleaved downstream but fastpath upstream, but because of reporting bugs within the router firmware it's reporting fastpath - common on many routers once the service moved over to adsl2+

3. error count - look high, how long has it been connected since last reboot?

4. DS attenuation of 40dB on adsl2+ should mean you could sync at around 10meg, so your line is either capped at 8 meg (but then I would expect it to sync at 7616kb/s with interleaving) or there are other line quality issues...try plugging router into the test socket (remove front plate from Master socket to find the test socket) and seeing if you sync better, and/or following the guides here:-

http://www.kitz.co.uk/adsl/socket.htm

5. DS snrm - may be low, but it depends on what your line can handle...when I reboot I tweak mine down to 3-ish dB (daytime) and it's fine even with the nighttime drop, but my line can handle it no probs:)

googler

kwikbreaks wrote: »

Assuming this is plain ADSL (upto 8Mbps) then the 7,751 downstream sync is about par for the course with your 40dB attenuation.

It's supplied by BT. Their broadband package. Does this make it 'plain ADSL'?

The current noise margin is running a bit low at 3.5dB (around 6dB is usually the default). The margin will vary anyway though and so long as the connection doesn't drop it's nothing to worry about.

Low is bad, then? The line DOES drop, and quite often too. The last time I spoke with Rahul in Mumbai (BT's local help desk) I left it unconnected for half an hour while they 'tested the line'

Did you ask for a FAST rather than INTERLEAVED profile?

I didn't ask for either, just took what BT gave me


FAST gives lower pings so is favoured by gamers but usually delivers lower overall throughput as there is far less error correction so more packets have to be retransmitted. That said you are also showing FEC errors which I thought only occurred with interleave so it may be that the router is reporting FAST when it isn't.

The bandwidth used suggests only a short time since reboot yet the error counts suggest ages. This is probably some idiosyncracy with the router once again.

So I have a high error rate, then? Yes, it is a short time since my last reboot of the router, because of the drops mentioned above.

googler

penrhyn wrote: »

Googler, did you take those stats from your test socket?
If not give it a try.

I logged in to the router, and took the figures from a section within the 'advanced' tab. I have no idea if this my 'test socket'

How would I 'give it a try'? Method, please.

EDIT: OK, I see from later post that I should tinker with the master socket, and plug the router in there. Not possible. Master socket is one floor down, and I'm not ready for taking the PC and router downstairs anytime soon. The router is not currently plugged into the BT master socket.

penrhyn

I think you have identified your problem, that is running your router via an extension.
The performance of an extension can be improved by removing the bell wire.

http://www.kitz.co.uk/adsl/socket.htm