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Still having Speed Profile issues...

VictoriaIceni
Grafter
Posts: 60
Thanks: 6
Registered: ‎29-01-2011

Still having Speed Profile issues...

After a fault was discovered, which was not related to my internal wiring or router, and then rectified I had a much lower upload speed profile of around 446, when it was normally 1,200-ish. I asked about it on this forum and it was uncapped on Weds 4 May. All was good and up to speed on both download and upload. (1,200 Up/ 21,000 Down)

THEN Sunday (8 May) I had two drop outs on connection around 3.02pm and again at 3.23pm. I wasn't aware of the dropouts (as I wasn't at my laptop at that time) until I checked my router page. Anyway, since then my profile has been knocked down again. 448 Up/16,458 Down. I've had no other dropouts since Sunday. I was tempted to restart my router to see if that would kick my profile back to normal, but I didn't want to do that if the line was having issues and being tested at the exchange and I know that can give false indications of a fault..so I've left it on. We've had no power cuts or storm issues here either.

So has the fault come back or is there something really odd going on that is not letting my profile be reset and stay to the new settings? Or is that the setting that the supplier/exchange can only use to guarantee a stable connection for me?

I can work OK with the download speed and it's good enough for watching TV etc, but the upload speed is a little annoying when uploading good resolution photos etc for the family.

 

My current router DSL info is:

Uptime: 2 days, 0:46:51
DSL Type: ITU-T G.992.5
Bandwidth (Up/Down) [kbps/kbps]: 448 / 16,458
Data Transferred (Sent/Received) [GB/GB]: 1.66 / 24.37
Output Power (Up/Down) [dBm]: 12.6 / 0.0
Line Attenuation (Up/Down) [dB]: 9.7 / 16.0
SN Margin (Up/Down) [dB]: 12.7 / 13.4
System Vendor ID (Local/Remote): TMMB / ----
Chipset Vendor ID (Local/Remote): BDCM / IFTN
Loss of Framing (Local/Remote): 27 / 0
Loss of Signal (Local/Remote): 3 / 0
Loss of Power (Local/Remote): 0 / 0
Loss of Link (Remote): -
Error Seconds (Local/Remote): 1,373 / 0
FEC Errors (Up/Down): 69 / 2,278,093
CRC Errors (Up/Down): 0 / 30,396
HEC Errors (Up/Down): 0 / 1,364,253
22 REPLIES 22
Pettitto
Plusnet Alumni (retired)
Plusnet Alumni (retired)
Posts: 6,346
Fixes: 5
Registered: ‎26-11-2011

Re: Still having Speed Profile issues...

Hey,

Just taken a look at this for you. It looks as though the drops you mentioned have triggered the automated line management tool to apply a medium level of Interleaving on your upstream and low level Interleaving on your downstream - this is the reason your upload speeds have dropped down.

Interleaving is there to try and help handle errors that may be occurring on your line, and essentially reprocess the traffic that errored, this can cause very slight delays when gaming (you might hear people ask for Interleaving to be removed as it can have a very small effect/impact on response times).

I've placed an order to remove Interleaving off your line (left it uncapped of course too), I'm expecting that this order should complete either tomorrow or the latest of Monday. So I'd leave your line and wait for your upload speeds to increase again and monitor your connection for any further drops. If your connection does drop again following this, Interleaving might be applied again. If this does happen, we can look at potentially sacrificing a small amount of your downstream speeds to try keep your upload speeds stable - by increasing your SNR Target (I can explain what this is, if you would like more information).

I hope this helps and fingers crossed it resolves the issue for you.

VictoriaIceni
Grafter
Posts: 60
Thanks: 6
Registered: ‎29-01-2011

Re: Still having Speed Profile issues...

Thanks for getting back to me, Chris.

Since I had the first fault a couple of weeks back I've made sure to leave the router on and check my router page and events a couple of times a day. So I'll continue with that.

I didn't used to know what all of the technical stuff meant, but I've been learning quite a bit, thanks to the Plusnet staff. I'm not much of a gamer so although my ping results have gone from 15 to 35ms, it's not made too much difference.

The main concern was the fluctuating line speeds and that odd drop out or two on Sunday again, wondering if the fault had come back.

Anyway, I'll continue to monitor my router pages over the next few days and see what happens. 

 

Pettitto
Plusnet Alumni (retired)
Plusnet Alumni (retired)
Posts: 6,346
Fixes: 5
Registered: ‎26-11-2011

Re: Still having Speed Profile issues...

That's great. Well, we at least have options, if we need them, so I'm pretty confident we can get your line stable and where you'd like it Smiley

VictoriaIceni
Grafter
Posts: 60
Thanks: 6
Registered: ‎29-01-2011

Re: Still having Speed Profile issues...

Thanks. Smiley

It's actually nice to know that so far it doesn't appear to be anything wrong with my internal wiring or router. That would be much more hassle for me if it was in need of an engineer etc. 

Pettitto
Plusnet Alumni (retired)
Plusnet Alumni (retired)
Posts: 6,346
Fixes: 5
Registered: ‎26-11-2011

Re: Still having Speed Profile issues...

Yeah, to be honest, from what I saw on your line, it looked really healthy. If anything, there's perhaps a little bit of interference, but not enough to cause you any major problems.

If we need to increase your SNR in order to keep your line stable/keep those upload speeds up, it's a good trade-off I think. Fingers crossed your line will be fine now though!

VictoriaIceni
Grafter
Posts: 60
Thanks: 6
Registered: ‎29-01-2011

Re: Still having Speed Profile issues...

I just checked my events log and I apparently had a couple of drop outs in the past hour and one of those in the last couple of minutes, but I'm guessing that could be caused from your end maybe?

 

I've been with plusnet for nearly 6 years and this is the first time I've had any real issue with line speed that originally needed a ticket to flag the fault, so normally it;s a good and stable connection. 

Pettitto
Plusnet Alumni (retired)
Plusnet Alumni (retired)
Posts: 6,346
Fixes: 5
Registered: ‎26-11-2011

Re: Still having Speed Profile issues...

I haven't touched your line since my original post, which I think was about an hour ago. There is a possibility that things are happening in relation to the order I placed though (that can cause a few drop outs whilst it's configuring new settings for your line).

You've got a good line, just seems that it needs a bit of tinkering with. Phone Lines / Broadband can be a bit strange. Phone service is generally fine, but the ever so slightest change in conditions (weather, condition of the physical line or even equipment) and broadband gets affected so easily and quickly, it's more fragile than you think Smiley

VictoriaIceni
Grafter
Posts: 60
Thanks: 6
Registered: ‎29-01-2011

Re: Still having Speed Profile issues...

It looks like it was just the PPP link internet that was down as it's not flagged as down in the DSL part.

So far our phones on the line have always given a good quiet result when testing, even on the ones via extensions.

Anyway, I'm patient and will keep an eye on things over the next few days, and make a note of any drop outs or other activity.

Must get to bed now.

I really appreciate your time on this issue, especially as it's after midnight now!. Thanks. Thumbs_Up  

Pettitto
Plusnet Alumni (retired)
Plusnet Alumni (retired)
Posts: 6,346
Fixes: 5
Registered: ‎26-11-2011

Re: Still having Speed Profile issues...

You're very welcome! Cheesy

Townman
Superuser
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Registered: ‎22-08-2007

Re: Still having Speed Profile issues...

@Pettitto - Hi Chris, it is really good to see you back here adding your immense experience to this space.  I've looked over the history of the OP's posts; do you have any concerns / observations over the high SNRM values for US & DS?

Is not the 448 DS a strange coincidence with the speed for a capped US rather than being related to interleaving?

@VictoriaIceni - you have made reference  to your internal wiring.  Whilst you might well have had issues with the external line, internal wiring can make a massive impact on the performance of broadband.  Those stats (to me) look a little iffy.  If the router attenuation figure is reliable, the line is quite short (1.2km) and ought to be delivering over 20Mbps.  The SNRM is somewhat higher than normal.  This rather points to an opportunity for improvement.

Is the router plugged into the master socket?

How many extensions are there (sockets and trailing leads)?

How are they wired - one to another (daisy-chained) or one to many (star wired)?

Are you able to remove the socket face plates and see how many wires are attached to the faceplates?  There only needs to be two wires (terminals 2 & 5) but older installations might have more which can degrade broadband performance.  What colour are the wires?  Colour/White+Colour-tracer pairs indicate twisted-pair modern wiring; a number of solid colour wires indicates older un-twisted-pair cabling which is not ideal for good broadband.

Superusers are not staff, but they do have a direct line of communication into the business in order to raise issues, concerns and feedback from the community.

VictoriaIceni
Grafter
Posts: 60
Thanks: 6
Registered: ‎29-01-2011

Re: Still having Speed Profile issues...

Thanks for your input. @Townman

Before my initial issue back in April my line was getting around 19Mbps Download from a profile of 22,000. It's only some of the recent teething problems with finding stability on my line that has caused the lower speeds, and two attempts at uncapping upload has reverted back again. A long phone call I received from one of the plusnet engineers after the ticket was raised in April, mentioned that they wanted to raise the SNR(I think), hoping it would make things more stable. So maybe that's why the numbers are higher?

I haven't changed anything in my set-up since I started using Plusnet nearly 6 years ago, except a new router 2-3 years ago.

I don't really understand half of what you're asking or why Smiley but:

My router is plugged into the master socket. No trailing leads and only one 'daisy' chain extension for two phones upstairs, so no actual wiring from extensions into the master socket, and plugged in via the original phone into the micro filter, and has never caused any issue with my broadband before. Quiet line test has always been clear, even when tested from one of the extension phones.

I don't think I've ever touched the faceplate....I assume you mean the frontplate over the master socket? If so, then I've never removed it and certainly haven't fiddled around with it. I have MS and I'm unable to physically deal with things like that and my OAP parents are not technical with things either. As far as I know it's just the usual BT wiring into the house from outside to the master socket. It is a very short distance from outside our front door to the master socket just inside the front door on the hall wall. 

Besides which, for nearly 6 years, this is the first time I've noticed any long-standing issue with my broadband. Before April I was getting a profile of 1,200Up/22,000 Down and getting close to those figures when actually using it. My line has been reasonably stable the past week, but is just lower on both profile figures, hence I raised the issue again on here.

There was a fault found on my line from the original ticket back in April and the guy that phoned me assured me it wasn't equipment or residential wiring issues. I trust this to be the case, because a couple of years ago I had issues and there was no fault found and a new router solved the problem. So whatever my problem is it's appears to be something beyond my control and isn't something I am or aren't doing with my home set-up. I haven't seen my line monitoring, and wouldn't understand it even if I did, but I trust that plusnet are seeing what they tell me they've been seeing.

 I haven't had any change to my line yet to raise my profile back to my normal range, but Chris said it could be Monday before the order is put through. For the moment I'm happy to wait and see what happens and if things aren't right then I'll keep on badgering plusnet to put it right. Smiley Other than that, I'm not technical enough to fiddle around with things myself, and either make things worse or not even understand what the heck I'm supposed to be seeing even if I could fiddle. Smiley 

Townman
Superuser
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Posts: 22,923
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Re: Still having Speed Profile issues...

Thank you - that rules out most of the usual culprits!

Will wait to see what @Pettitto suggests!

Superusers are not staff, but they do have a direct line of communication into the business in order to raise issues, concerns and feedback from the community.

VictoriaIceni
Grafter
Posts: 60
Thanks: 6
Registered: ‎29-01-2011

Re: Still having Speed Profile issues...

Thanks @Townman

It sounds like you might have expected lots of extensions and wiring, then? So that's nice to know that what I've said seems mostly OK.

Thankfully everything with our phones is very simple and no line-splitting and extending extensions is involved. There's really not a lot in the house that could interfere...as far as I know. We don't have cordless phones and there's nothing near the master socket like a microwave or a Skybox etc. We don't have central heating so no radiators are nearby either.

Fingers crossed that plusnet find a solution. I'm patient....in this world one needs to be these days! Grin 

Townman
Superuser
Superuser
Posts: 22,923
Thanks: 9,542
Fixes: 159
Registered: ‎22-08-2007

Re: Still having Speed Profile issues...

Hi,

What concerns me here is that modifying interleaving is not going to address the bigger impact of the elevated SNRM value.  For stats taken late afternoon that 13.x dB figure suggests the presence of interference, either at the time of the last resynch or at the time the stats were taken.

Target SNRM figures are determined by the DLM in 3dB increments, so the target on your line must be 12dB or 15dB - either figure is unusually high for such a short line and is the cause of the much reduced download speed.  There will though be a reason for the aggressive action of the DLM - to get your speeds back to what they used to be, we need to find the cause of the disconnections.  Interleaving and elevation of the SNRM are addressing the symptoms of the problem, not the cause.

Have you noticed if the Internet drops when the phone is used, to either make or receive calls?

Superusers are not staff, but they do have a direct line of communication into the business in order to raise issues, concerns and feedback from the community.