OT BT Broadband 8MB

Even when you get your '8mb Broadband' the network is struggling to cope with the voulume of traffic, so you'll be lucky to see 4mb on a busy day.

We signed up for it but it took 2 weeks for 'line testing' even though we can almost see the exchange from our house!

The current system seems to make the line dead until it sees a request for traffic, then it take 20 seconds to 'wake up' before anything happens. It is worse now on 8mb than when we signed up for 2mb.

Peter

-- Peter & Rita Forbes Email: snipped-for-privacy@easynet.co.uk Web:

Does your ADSL modem/router support the 8Mbps service?

8 milli bits, 4 milli bits? I don't see any network congestion, I get an IP throughput of about 4.5Mbps which is what I would expect from my line synced at around 5Mbps. Occasionally sites are slow but normall it's always the same site and others a quick at the same time so it's not a BT network problem but an internet one somewhere.

This is normal and is to set things that define what BT will consider a fault in the future. Right PITA if you have a thunder storm during the training period as that pushes the fault settings right down. B-(

That isn't right. I suspect you have a configuration problem with your equipment somewhere that is dropping the connection after a timeout. My ADSL is permenantly connected.

It's a brand new BT Business Hub 2700HGV.

8Mb, I am sure you knew that :-))

I don't see any network congestion, I get an

I'm using BT's own Speedtester and the Don Elwell test programme.

You must be a BT Engineer! they said exactly the same thing, it's NEVER BT, always the consumer end, even when we sent them their own Speedtester results, they still didn't believe them.

We now how a direct-dial number through to their fault desk with a PIN number to access them without going through their usual half an hour "push button 1 for ...."

The results are not bad once it's running, but from hitting return on a url to actually getting something coming down the line can be up to a minute. It has only been this bad since we signed for the 8Mb service.

Peter

-- Peter & Rita Forbes Email: snipped-for-privacy@easynet.co.uk Web:

You *must* have "dial on demand" enabled on your router rather than 'keep alive' or '0 timeout' and its disconnecting after a period of no activity...

Tim..

No I'm not, though if hadn't gone into broadcasting I could well have been, either that or gone to university and then to electrical power engineering as in grid or distribution.

Is that connected to your PC via the USB or the ethernet port? If USB, switch to ethernet, USB is not really reliable. I'm not a windoze user but I'd also go through all the neworky related settings (remember they are not all in the same place) and make sure that windoze thinks the connection is always there and there is no "dial-up" stuff enabled anywhere.

If you try an look at the web interface of the router does that come back instantly or with the delay? When looking at the interface is there a page that gives line status?

The one at work is showing:

Incoming: 7616 kbps Outgoing: 448 kbps

I'll check the home one later. Peter

-- Peter A Forbes Prepair Ltd, Luton, UK snipped-for-privacy@easynet.co.uk

It is already on ethernet.

We have a broadband router in between with a parallel port printer server, that gives all our machines access to the laser printer. That is possibly causing some delays, but that has been part of the system since we went onto the net a couple of years ago and hasn't shown this problem before.

Peter

-- Peter A Forbes Prepair Ltd, Luton, UK snipped-for-privacy@easynet.co.uk

Good, ethernet works if it doesn't it's normally down to a physical problem, like not plugged in or cable mangled...

How about delays when trying to talk to the router? If that is instant then look in the config of the router to make sure it stays connected all the time. Check that the "internet" light is on green all the time, never off or flashing. I think that is the right name for the light but BT have nothing useful online about the lights on their kit so I'm working from a

3rd party manual I found online.

I don't follow what you are trying to say here. I think you mean that you have your PC plugged into one of the routers 4 port switch sockets and a ethernet print server in another.

Shouldn't do.

Gents... What effects your download speed is the line attenuation you need to be less than 45dB to recive 2mB and over, I am less than a mile form the exchange but my attenuation is 43dB so i get a max of around 5Mb which seems to be the average. The key is the "noise margin" which is the differance bewteen the line noise and the signal by the time it reaches you, this should be above 5-6dB to get a good connection,

Martin are you using a router can you check the above statistics ? what your connection speed ?

Rgds bob

Ouch, I'm more like 2 miles and have 43dB attenuation, SNR varies from 12 to 14dB during the day down to 0dB at night. I get sync rates around

5Mbps. There are an awful lot of variables when trying to squeeze the last drop of speed out of ADSL but that isn't the issue here.

I'm still on the old 2mb I have not had any correspondence or router sent by BT as they keep denying that I have even requested a connection by mail or email or web.

Martin P

No, we have a US Robotics 8000 series broadband router, sold before broadband came to the UK :-))

It is just that, a router with WAN input and 4 X Ethernet ports, but it also has a parallel port which with the software supplied sets up a new port for the printers, so any PC on the network out of the router can print to our laser printer,

It's very useful and a sadly lacking facility on most modern routers.

We have bought an HP JerDirect ethernet print server which may replace the US Robotics device and join the other machines on the BT router output, thus eleminating the RSR 8000 unit.

Peter

-- Peter & Rita Forbes Email: snipped-for-privacy@easynet.co.uk Web:

Maybe they don't think your telephone number is one of theirs, try not paying your bill, if you get one...

Direct debit

Martin.. How long have you been with them? can you vote with your feet I have used Nildram for my internet for 5 years now and had no problems plus i get 500 mins free to land lines a month by switching my voice calls to them, phone bill dropped about ten quid a month !! :-)

is a good site for comparing ISP`s the you can compare one against the other Bt never seems to do that well :-(.

Regards bob

I've been with them since day one of internet use, not the cheapest but have never had problems until now, loathe to change as whoever I go to has to use BT line, if I cant get it sorted then how will another ISP fair as it is still the same line and equipment.

I bless the day they dug up the Close & installed cable. Telewest & now Virgin & it just works. From mouse click to URL is less than five seconds & the Virgin screen with bells & whistles another four or so.

Is it me or is it really the case that everytime I hear someone complain about Broadband it is on BT?

Regards,

Kim Siddorn

Kim,

I've never had a problem until now and to be honest I cant fault my current setup. As for cable that will not come to my humble village as it has been deemed to expensive to come from any major town with the cable. In any direction I live at least five miles from civilisation. Bliss :-))

Martin P

On line banking? Cancel it.

As an aside it is wise to do that for any service that you stop taking and pay for by DD. It's not unknown for the money to still leave your account even after the service has been ceased. With an oragnisation that bad getting your money back can be quite a struggle, the "DD Guarantee" doesn't cover you. Best not to let them have the money in the first place.