cancel
Showing results for 
Search instead for 
Did you mean: 

High usage when I'm not using it much

SiMania
Grafter
Posts: 142
Registered: ‎24-09-2007

High usage when I'm not using it much

I mentioned this in another post but it got buried away unread.
I'm seeing huge amounts of usage at the moment, off peak (4pm midnight) has been around 1.5Gb the last 2 nights.
The problem is that I'm hardly using my internet connection, nothing that warrants 1.5Gb data.  I downloaded a couple of programs (avg, a thunderbird update), did a bit of surfing, Mrs SiMania did a bit of surfing and facebooking, twitter.
No P2P, no streaming yet it's hitting 300MB+ data transfer per hour according to networx (which I've got configured to monitor my wan port, I know it's not 100% accurate, but it's pretty indicative) .
Devices connected are a couple of iphones, imac, macbook, 2 windows PCs and Apple TV, only one or 2 are used simultaneously .
Traffic is being shown as mainly web or P2P or other. I've no P2P running, other may be VPN traffic as I was working til 6pm.
Router is a 3COM 3CRWDR101A-75.
Any idea what could be causing so much usage?
Are there any other programs that can use the SNMP service on the router to find out where the traffic is coming from on my network?
I'm running monitoring tools on all my devices that are attached to network at the moment and can't see any excess usage (2-3MB on all devices combined in last 15 minutes), yet networx tells me every minute or so a few more MBs are being downloaded, then I'll see a spike of usage. The received Bytes on my router stats page back this up.
A theory I'd like to throw out there is that there is malicious or otherwise unwanted traffic hitting my WAN interface, but getting blocked by my router firewall and not making it to any device on my LAN, hence me not seeing the usage on any of my devices, but seeing the usage on the WAN interface.  Does that sound plausible?
42 REPLIES 42
SiMania
Grafter
Posts: 142
Registered: ‎24-09-2007

Re: High usage when I'm not using it much

I *think* I know what's caused this, and I *think* I've fixed it Smiley
w23
Pro
Posts: 6,347
Thanks: 96
Fixes: 4
Registered: ‎08-01-2008

Re: High usage when I'm not using it much

A clue?
Call me 'w23'
At any given moment in the universe many things happen. Coincidence is a matter of how close these events are in space, time and relationship.
Opinions expressed in forum posts are those of the poster, others may have different views.
tstaddon
Rising Star
Posts: 182
Thanks: 27
Registered: ‎01-08-2007

Re: High usage when I'm not using it much

Clue me in too.
By my reckoning our pro-rata daily usage has magically doubled since we moved to this house on 2nd May - and that's despite only a third of the network that was in the old house being taken out of the packing crates.
In our last house we had six computers, and my work laptop hooked up to a completely unlimited non-Plusnet non-ADSL system where I had full visibility of the traffic - and we rarely used more than 20GB in a 28 day period.
And yet we've managed to receive a warning from PlusNet that we are approaching our utilisation AFTER JUST NINE DAYS. Which is quite remarkable considering that by my reckoning, there's only one laptop out of the entire home network, actually powered on for most of the time.
ReedRichards
Seasoned Pro
Posts: 4,927
Thanks: 145
Fixes: 25
Registered: ‎14-07-2009

Re: High usage when I'm not using it much

Quote from: SiMania
Devices connected are a couple of iphones, imac, macbook, 2 windows PCs and Apple TV, only one or 2 are used simultaneously .

Surely the clue is in there, somewhere?
SiMania
Grafter
Posts: 142
Registered: ‎24-09-2007

Re: High usage when I'm not using it much

Nope ReedRichards, the usage from that many devices isn't actually that high.  the iPhones are just playing games, texting etc, iMac and windows PC are in the spare room and rarely used apart from email, Apple TV uses only LAN traffic just now and the linux box is never on. the Macbook is used by Mrs S for facebook and forums.  We could do without half of them but I'm a hoarder and have throwing out bits of technology.
It was down to having the DHT option selected in a bittorrent client I use on the iMac called transmission. I disabled it and changed the port it used, traffic stopped pretty soon after that.  Usage for today was less than 10% of what it was yesterday.
So moral of the story is, if you use transmission or a.n.other bittorent client, don't use DHT.
Gus
Aspiring Pro
Posts: 3,236
Thanks: 26
Fixes: 3
Registered: ‎31-07-2007

Re: High usage when I'm not using it much

P2P is a torrent client, if you use a torrent client then everyone that tries to leech from you will send requests after you have closed the torrent client.  Some clients will store your IP adress  for a while so more than average background noise because of that.
FTTP 500 regrade from Tues 28th November
SiMania
Grafter
Posts: 142
Registered: ‎24-09-2007

Re: High usage when I'm not using it much

Yup, exactly that! DHT makes it worse.
w23
Pro
Posts: 6,347
Thanks: 96
Fixes: 4
Registered: ‎08-01-2008

Re: High usage when I'm not using it much

Thanks for enlightening us.
I never liked torrents in general for this very reason.
Call me 'w23'
At any given moment in the universe many things happen. Coincidence is a matter of how close these events are in space, time and relationship.
Opinions expressed in forum posts are those of the poster, others may have different views.
jelv
Seasoned Hero
Posts: 26,785
Thanks: 971
Fixes: 10
Registered: ‎10-04-2007

Re: High usage when I'm not using it much

Your initial post was wrong then!
Quote from: SiMania
No P2P
jelv (a.k.a Spoon Whittler)
   Why I have left Plusnet (warning: long post!)   
Broadband: Andrews & Arnold Home::1 (FTTC 80/20)
Line rental: Pulse 8 Home Line Rental (£14.40/month)
Mobile: iD mobile (£4/month)
SiMania
Grafter
Posts: 142
Registered: ‎24-09-2007

Re: High usage when I'm not using it much

There were no torrent clients running, that was my point, when programs were stopped, there is still traffic attempting to reach the application.
jelv
Seasoned Hero
Posts: 26,785
Thanks: 971
Fixes: 10
Registered: ‎10-04-2007

Re: High usage when I'm not using it much

Ah! Unfortunately I and I suspect others thought you meant you didn't use P2P. If you'd said that the P2P client you use was shut down we'd have suggested that people were still trying to connect to you.
jelv (a.k.a Spoon Whittler)
   Why I have left Plusnet (warning: long post!)   
Broadband: Andrews & Arnold Home::1 (FTTC 80/20)
Line rental: Pulse 8 Home Line Rental (£14.40/month)
Mobile: iD mobile (£4/month)
SiMania
Grafter
Posts: 142
Registered: ‎24-09-2007

Re: High usage when I'm not using it much

It might have saved me working it out on my own! No P2P now, it's a pain in the backside.
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: High usage when I'm not using it much

You don't have SKY Anytime+ connected to your router do you ?
With someone setting up downloads ?
Mine did 10gb the other day (scheduled)
SiMania
Grafter
Posts: 142
Registered: ‎24-09-2007

Re: High usage when I'm not using it much

I read about that, I don't have my Sky box connected to the network though.  10 Gig, wow!