Connecting with multiple computers causes slowdown

[Motoledo]

I have multiple computers connecting to my modem/router via WiFi.

When I have only a single computer using the connection, I usually get fast maximum download speeds, like 2MB/s (aka 16 Mbps). However, when one computer is downloading something at a fast speed, other computers on the network get much lower download speeds than usual, say 2-4Mbps.

My connection is supposed to support 50 Mbps download. Why is one computer using WiFi slowing everything down? Maybe it's a modem or router issue?

Thanks for any advice.

 

[grimfox]

Your connection speed is only 50Mbps at the router. The router splits that data rate amoung each of the connected devices. So if one device is using 45Mbps to download a file then you only have 5Mbps to distribute amoung the other computers/devices. You might find a setting in your router or on the PC to throttle the download speeds. Cap it at 25Mbps and you'll have 25Mbps left over for your other computers. Which should be sufficient. Some programs, like torrent software, allow you to throttle your download and upload rate and some even let you schedule that so at night when you are sleeping they use the full 50Mbps but during the day will slow down to 10Mbps so you can still stream movies or whatever.

 

[Roland Of Gilead]

You've answered your own question!

It's because your sharing the line speed between a few devices (how many is unknown - multiple is not very clear). Of course if you have one device downloading a large file, then that will have an impact too. 16mbps is not much shared between multiple devices. You say you have a service that has 'upto 50mbps. You should contact your ISP and confirm why you are not getting the full speed. Mine is 80mbps down. I typically get about 72-ish. You could be a certain distance from the loal exchange, which may limit the down speeds at your property.

Have you tried a wired connection direct to the router with a laptop and a cable? I'd suggest doing that to see what your true speeds are. If you are just using wi-fi you will not get the full rated speed. Also, if you have multiple devices on wi-fi, that won't help either. Wi-fi is not the cleanest way to get good speeds. There can often be drops in connectivity and interference from other devices.

 

[Motoledo]

In this case, I am using exactly 2 computers, both connecting via WiFi. Computer A gets 16 Mbps, but when Computer A is getting those speeds, Computer B is dramatically slowed down, and gets say 2 Mbps. 16+2=18 Mbps is nowhere near 50 Mbps, so I'm not maxing out my ISP's max speed of 50 Mbps. In this situation, should I suspect the modem and/or the router?

I will try a wired connection as well.