Internet Help

ISP is SBC Services. We pay for 6 MB/PS download speed. I set up the modem so it goes to the router first, then then the crappy desktop, and then my laptop. My laptop confirms that the frequency is 802.11n. My dad and I called AT&T and they said they could not help us and that our hardware is the problem. I know for a fact it isnt. My laptop has Gigabit ethernet and the internet goes Modem -> Router -> Laptop -> 10/100 Desktop. Doesn't go from desktop to router to laptop. I can't even watch a YouTube video in 240p without buffering every 20 seconds. Please, anyone have an idea? We are going to replace the network card in the desktop to gigabit but that doesn't explain the speeds my laptop is getting.

ISPs tend to reset things internally without telling you how to reset and refresh the info on your computer itself. What it sounds like you need is a DNS Flush and Winsock reset. What this does is resets all of you're computers configs for the internet connection back to default "Find Connections" status. It should clear this right up for you.

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/libra...S.10).aspx
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/299357

For the short of it. Go to command prompt in you're start menu (right click and run in administrator mode) from there type in:

ipconfig /flushdns
netsh int ip reset resetlog.txt
netsh winsock reset

This will require you to restart your computer, when you do, restart your modem and router.

ISPs tend to reset things internally without telling you how to reset and refresh the info on your computer itself. What it sounds like you need is a DNS Flush and Winsock reset. What this does is resets all of you're computers configs for the internet connection back to default "Find Connections" status. It should clear this right up for you.

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/libra...S.10).aspx
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/299357

For the short of it. Go to command prompt in you're start menu (right click and run in administrator mode) from there type in:

ipconfig /flushdns
netsh int ip reset resetlog.txt
netsh winsock reset

This will require you to restart your computer, when you do, restart your modem and router.

I did this, turned off my computer, turned off router and modem, started computer, started router, started modem, and then I checked my speed again.



Only my speed gets worse... Dx
Does it matter that I only did those commands on the laptop? If the internet goes from the router to the laptop and the router to the desktop, it shouldn't really matter right?

Have you tried connecting the laptop directly to your modem?

Just a suggestion to try narrow down the problem.


- Have anyone messed with the router's settings recently? (As in, before running into the problem)
- Have you ever had problems connecting your laptop to the net using wireless before?
- Have you tinkered with any internet related settings on your laptop recently?

You might also want to try connecting using safe mode as well, to discard any possible programs that might be hindering the connection.

And, while unlikely, you might want to make sure your laptop is on range. Some laptops (IE, mine) haves incredibly crappy wifi range. And sometimes, even while the laptop shows a "strong signal", I tend to get an awfully slow connection that is fixed by getting closer to the router.

Also, computer specs.

PS: Is your laptop a Sony VAIO by any chance?

PSS: I'm assuming you had the connection working on your laptop prior to running into this problem. Am I wrong?

Nope. The internet has always sucked. No matter what computer I used. The laptop is brand new. I just brought it in the house 3 days ago.

I will try connecting directly to the modem. The router is an Airlink101 Wireless N router. Dont remember the exact model number but its the only router they have with 3 antennae.

Specs - Click Here

The laptop is in the same room as the router. The router is just outside the door. Nobody else is using the internet. I havent changed any settings in the router lately but I can change them if any will make it go faster.

My dad installed a new hard drive on the desktop because it died but other than that no internet related changed have been made.

EDIT:

Plugged my laptop into the Modem and Speedtest gave me a 2 megabyte per second rating. Downloading iTunes, 80 Megabytes is taking approximately 1 minute. The speed is escalating right now between 300-900 KB/PS. Faster than before, yes, but still not what we paid for. We should at least get 1... and it was only at 900 for a few seconds. Its primarily sitting between 4-500.

I go back to the router and the speed is 100 kbps. I am sitting on the floor next to the router. I wonder why that is...

~500KBps seems reasonable for a 6Mbit advertised speed, if only a bit low. I generally get 80% of my advertised speed on a normal day.

By your wording in the original post you make it sound like you connect your laptop by a shared connection from the desktop, though from your most recent post I'm assuming you do connect directly to the router.

Speedtest gave me a 2 megabyte per second rating

By default, and what your pictures show, SpeedTest displays transfer speed in Mbps.

There is no problem with your connection. The problem here is with terminology.

Mbps = Megabaud
MBps = Megabytes per second.

There are 8 bits in one byte, so to get megabytes per second divide megabaud by 8.

baud = bits/second
bytes/sec = bits/second * 1 byte/8 bits

so...

6 Megabaud / 8 = 0.75 Megabytes/sec

You usually will never get the actual advertised speed. You should be happy if you get 50 - 80% of it, thus making your actual speed closer to 0.40 to 0.60 megabytes/sec.

6 x 0.8 = 4.8.

Someone tell me what % of 6 megabytes I'm getting... For gods sake I should at LEAST be able to watch a YouTube video...

Internet service providers do stuff in megaBAUD. So what you were advertised was megaBAUD, not megaBYTES. There is nothing wrong with your connection.

Alright thanks... I guess this clears things up...

I've never heard a company refer to it as megabaud. You're more likely to hear megaBIT, which is still the same as what fiel said. It's basically an easy way for companies to inflate their speeds and make them look bigger to uninformed users. Either way your speed is still low. I'm not sure what you're paying or where you live, but you can probably get much better high speed for a decent price. You're getting 8% of the speed you're advertised, which is absolutely horrible. Look around for other companies and see if you can get something better.

As a tip, you can type "6 megabit to megabyte" in google and it will do the conversion for you. Just in case you need to know.

Mb =/= MB

You're getting 8% of the speed you're advertised, which is absolutely horrible.
As a tip, you can type "6 megabit to megabyte" in google and it will do the conversion for you. Just in case you need to know.

All the correct math. The only problem here is your percentage. He's getting roughly 50% of the advertised speed, not 8%.

In his first speed yes, in his second speed it's only 8.3%. Either way it's a little low or very low. Personally speed tests inflate my 14 mbit connection to 25-30mbit, so I don't feel the '50-80% is good' rule always applies.