Broadband: Broadband: Is my cable connection becoming saturated?
- 10/2/09 10:18 AM
Cable Broadband Getting Slower.
by Z-Man - 9/19/09 7:05 AM In reply to: Broadband: Is my cable connection becoming saturated? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
I have notived at certin parts of the day my cable broadband speed is slowing down. This is mainly due to traffic and not your ISP. If it really becomes a problem I suggest giving your cable company a call and letting them know. I'm sure they will have several questions for you so they can isolate the problem. But, just remember, it is not uncommon for cable broadband to slow down when traffic is heavy.
RE: Broadband: Is my cable connection becoming saturated?
by estefan202 - 9/19/09 7:17 AM In reply to: Broadband: Is my cable connection becoming saturated? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
not likely. Cable modems even the older motorola surfboard 4100 can still deliver 3,5,10meg services, cable has now able to go much faster, and 12-50meg service may require a new, more modern modem to take advantage of extra bandwith, that cable service can provide, like the surfboard 5120. Some times a hard reset by removing the power coard for a few minuets can solve conection problems, even computers need a break.
What is most likely for excessive blinking pf the connect light, may be explained if you also have a wireless router, or wireless router/modem combo unit. People next door or down the block could be steeling your internet, wich most state statues cover as steeling, and can land someone in jail and a fines.
with laptops, range expanders,and briges, with high gain external antennas one can connect to an open router at a conciderable distance to steal internet. Routers come with setup cd's and instructions on how to password protect your wireless, proventing others from obtaining internet on your cable modem without permission.
cable connection
by Garken - 9/19/09 8:50 AM In reply to: Broadband: Is my cable connection becoming saturated? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
maybe there is an upgrade for your modem available that your cable company hasn't advertised very well. Also your firmware may need updating and just maybe your modem is just showing it's age and needs to be replaced.There is also the possibility that you may need to replace your nic card too.
Neighbors helping your Broadband Saturation?
by ronsfreebies - 9/19/09 8:56 AM In reply to: Broadband: Is my cable connection becoming saturated? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
If you are the only one in your home using the connection but it is showing activity when you're offline one must ask: Is your modem wireless; How close are your neighbors? If you are on a wireless and you have not activated any security features it's likely one or more of your neighbors have accessed your line for their own internet access, thereby depending on "how many" neighbors are helping themselves, possibly significantly reducing your access speed. Especially in these trying economic times some can not afford internet access period. If they can tie into yours(no malicious intent is implied, just desperation)to tend to even the most basic of needs it would show up on your modem activity lights even when your computer is off. If you do not desire to "share" your connection with the underprivledged, and I know there are many reason why you may not want to including security issues, I suggest you lock your modem/routers access and restrict it to solely your own system. If you know who is sharing your connection and trust them, remind them to be responsible, request they limit their access to times you're not online (they can tell)...and then don't.
Old cable
by melislyn - 9/19/09 10:03 AM In reply to: Broadband: Is my cable connection becoming saturated? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Our internet was really slow, along with some modem issues. When the guy came out to fix it, it noticed that the cable we had in the house was "old" - didn't have the correct number of wires in it. Apparently the "new" cables have the ability to carry more information at a faster rate. Once we replaced (some) of the cables, the connection sped up. We have been told that, once the weather cooled (from July), the cables leading up to the house need to be changed also.
It had never occurred to us that "old" cable would be a problem, but apparently so. I'm guessing that the cable installed in this house is probably 15-20 years old, so maybe that is one of your problems.
Another possibility, if you use wireless that is not secured properly, is that you are providing access for someone not in your house!
Possibly overactive computer
by Dusty Trigger - 9/19/09 12:11 PM In reply to: Broadband: Is my cable connection becoming saturated? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
It sounds like your computer maybe extremely active (if you're not sharing files, some voluntary massive collaborative number crunching, some service constantly updating, etc.) to the point that it's compromised and is doing another's bidding [malware infection (adware, spyware Trojan, etc.), a zombie on a botnet or such].
If you're running a Windows version:
Check the Windows Task Manager (press "ctrl" & "alt" keys together and then also "delete" to access) "Applications", "Processes" and "Performance" tabs to look for high activity CPU usage in %.
Note what applications are running, any processes using high % of CPU and the level of CPU usage (normally low unless something with high bandwidth is running).
Note that "System Idle Process" having a high % means low CPU usage. Caution: Ending some processes can crash your computer.
Also using Internet Explorer (Firefox can be used if the IETAB add-on is installed) go to Microsoft's Windows Live OneCare Safety Scanner (English-United States):
http://onecare.live.com/site/en-us/default.htm
Preferably after backing up, run a "Protection" or "Full Service Scan". This may take a while and might not be able to fix some infections in which case a Windows reinstallation is needed.
Note that some System Restore points maybe infected and restore infections.
Malware or Malneighbor
by disco-legend-zeke - 9/19/09 12:23 PM In reply to: Broadband: Is my cable connection becoming saturated? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
the two things that pop into my mind.
1. some kind of malware is sending out spam from your computer.
2. If you have WI-FI router... someone else is sharing your connection.
Look at the ethernet cable connection, usually they have lights to show activity. If the ethernet light on your computer is as busy as the activity light on the cable modem, it's something your computer is doing.
Many computer programs are constantly downloadinf updates, so it could also be a normal thing.
Modem
by Jrwolf - 9/19/09 6:08 PM In reply to: Broadband: Is my cable connection becoming saturated? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
I have tried Modem Boosters and it just did not seem to help but what I have done with success is replace the modem about every 3 to 4 yrs and found a great difference to the better with my cable connection. Now I have not got the newest computer but my speed with a newer, updated modem has helped me. Just because the modem is working does not mean it's running up to speed.
Broadband Internet Connection Saturation
by wippernm - 9/19/09 9:19 PM In reply to: Broadband: Is my cable connection becoming saturated? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Every new subscriber on the same bandwith with you will slow the speed of your connection down. This is common with Cable, DSL, and other forms of broadband. The cost of updating the infrastructure to handle the massive increase in popularity. So as the neigborhood becomes more populated, the bandwith decrease and your share of that bandwith disappears.
There is no real means of correcting this from the user's end. This is an infrastructure problem that the market expense dictates advancement.
Is your network secure?
by seafm - 9/20/09 4:03 AM In reply to: Broadband: Is my cable connection becoming saturated? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
If a wireless network is not properly secured your adsl internet is accessible to anyone within range of your router. There are a couple of ways to make it secure and it is even better to use all of them together.
Firstly access your router setup page and select wireless network setup.There will be a list of 3 or 4 different options to pick from. For this example we will use the method I have on my router. Select WPA-PSK, this is a very secure method requiring requiring a password to gain access but do not just use any old password. Use a series of letters, numbers and symbols to create it. Network hackers use programs loaded with a dictionary of names and words to crack the network access. A simple example of using a secure password is the name "India" but spelt like this "1ndi@". This is a pretty foolproof way of creating a password as it would not exist in any dictionary and is pretty easy to remember.
The best and most secure method of protecting your wireless network is to create an access list using MAC address. Every networking device whether it be wireless or a 10/100 ethernet port has a MAC address. To find the MAC address on your laptop or PC (this is how it is done on XP, I don't know about Vista)click start, run and type cmd. When the command prompt screen type ipconfig/all, this will display all the netoworking devices attached to that particular computer.The MAC address will be a series of letters and numbers similar to 00-41-c6-74-f0-5f and are unique to every networking device, much like a fingerprint. Find the access list setup within your router and add those numbers to the list along with a name to identify it. Apply the settings using both of these examples together and your wireless network should be 100% secure.
Hope this helps.
My response to broadband becoming satured
by ezbesthost1 - 9/20/09 7:26 AM In reply to: Broadband: Is my cable connection becoming saturated? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
It is possible that you have a virus or worm hiding in your system. That may have happened because your son may have used peer-to-peer or visited links on social networking sites. If you have an anti-malware software installed on this PC you could go to one of several online virus scanner sites such as http://housecall.trendmicro.com/ . What is also likely is that you should power-down and power back up both your broadband modem and router as they do hold a cache.
Broadband, Is my cable connection becoming saturated?
by graywolf50 - 9/20/09 8:27 AM In reply to: Broadband: Is my cable connection becoming saturated? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Believe it or not, I was told by a support person at my cable supplier that I had to periodically shut down my cable modem and reboot it. It seems it has a cache and must be cleared or it lags. I thought he was kidding but I do it on a monthly basis and have not had that lag problem since.
Cable vs Fiberoptic
by Paul W. Lewis - 9/20/09 8:45 AM In reply to: Broadband: Is my cable connection becoming saturated? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Being a former subcontractor for Bright House and user of VIOS I can tell you the difference between cable and fiberoptic. Unfortantly your problem is not uncommon, the more people that croud onto the internet in your neigborhood the worse it will get. Here how it works: cable uses copper "cable" to send and recieve signal, with the more people on a line the slower the response time will get. Most cable companies have a set ups like this: the main line (cable) comes into a feeder terminal where it is split up into several areas of your neighborhood and then further into (and up to) four homes (or apartments) for a single part of the street. All this splitting is of course amplified by the fact that more and more people are using that same cable. Unless your usage is not during the heavy traffic part of the day you will have slow downs in speed (no matter how many megabits you are payng for)! On the other hand if you are in an area that offers VIOS (viberoptic) then try to switch to this... here's the difference: Fiber, as it is referred to, does not use any copper cabling at all; the "wire" is actually fiberoptic cable that is connected directly to the outside of you home and comes directly from the supplier and not running through several splitting points like "cable" does. Of course this gives you better speed as well as you do not share the same "cable" as your neighbors!
I hope this helps and if you can switch to viber, then it is a far better choice!
Is Cable connection becoming saturated? - Probably not...but
by xmundt - 9/20/09 10:06 AM In reply to: Broadband: Is my cable connection becoming saturated? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Greetings and Salutations.
If you are seeing constant traffic (flashing data lights on the Cable Modem), it is likely that one of two things has happened.
1) It is possible that your system has gotten infected with a Windows Virus of some sort. I would update your Windows Virus Checker programs, then, reboot into safe mode, and run a complete scan of the system.
2) it is possible that you are simply the focus of a continuing attempt to break into your system by OTHER Windows Virus infected systems. You can guard about this by either making sure that the Windows Firewall is set properly, or, by downloading and installing any of a number of third party firewalls. These alternative programs are often easier to use and somewhat more resistant to being broken by external attacks.
If you are not fairly technically oriented, you probably should track down someone who has experience in running various of the network scanners and analysis programs to see what the traffic on the Network is, and to figure out where it is going, etc.
One small thing you can do to help is to go into the Network connections icon in the Control panel. On that control is a check box that will show you connection traffic as well as whether or not you are connected. Make sure that all the boxes are checked, then, shut down the control panel. You may have to reboot the computer. However, when this is done correctly, you should see a small icon down on the task bar (right end), that looks like two computer monitors. As network traffic moves in and out of your computer, the screens on the two monitors will flicker. Why is this useful, I am sure you are asking. Well, in theory, you should see almost no flickers unless you are actively surfing the Net. You will see a few because you probably have a number of programs running in the background that will phone home to see if there are any updates to be installed. Windows, RealPlayer, Flash, etc, all do this. If you are seeing a lot of traffic when you are just sitting at the desktop, this is a good hint that something is doing WAY too much talking on the Net...and might well be a Windows Virus or other Windows Malware.
By the by...It may bring screams of outrage here, but, the best person to track down these issues MAY not be your 10 year old nephew...and possibly not the Geek Squad. I would suggest finding a smallish computer store, or ask around to see if there are some consultants that can help you. Network issues can be tricky, and, even today, good analysis takes a combination of knowledge, experience and time...
Regards
Dave Mundt
Broadband: Is my cable connection becoming saturated?
by muffinhoney - 9/20/09 3:50 PM In reply to: Broadband: Is my cable connection becoming saturated? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
You have answered your own question Lee. Cable broadband internet is evenly shared between users at that time. The more users there are, the slower your connection will be.
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