[SOLVED] Download Speed stayed the same after upgrading.

GlacierHusky

Reputable
Nov 30, 2019
10
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4,510
Hi all,

I was previously on an Internet Plan(Shaw) that offered me ~15Mbps Download Speed & 1.5 Mbps Upload Speed. My average download rate for games, and files was 900KB/s. I decided to upgrade my plan and was offered ~75Mbps Download Speed & 7.5Mbps Upload Speed (Which should be 5x as fast). However, my average download rate is still at 900 KB/s. I have a wired connection through an ethernet cable. My router is a Cisco DPC3825 given by Shaw.

https://www.speedtest.net/result/9232080406.png - Before upgrading

https://www.speedtest.net/result/9234146612.png - After upgrading and resetting my router.

I have tried doing multiple power cycles of my router & modem, unplugging ethernet and nothing seems to be working. Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks!

Christian
 
Solution
It's odd that you would be getting limited to about 10% of your download speed, seeing as SpeedTest appears to have been downloading at the proper speeds both before and after. Even before, 15mbps should have been getting you more like 1.8MB/s, close to double what you are seeing.

Were your downloads always under 1MB/s in the past, or is this something that just started recently? I'm just wondering if your provider could be throttling services it deems "nonessential" due to increased network activity from all the people staying home, and in many cases working from home right now. Maybe their system was intending to throttle those other services to half their usual performance, but didn't get updated to recognize the faster...

Ralston18

Titan
Moderator
Does your computer have both a wired and wireless network adapter?

If both, ensure that only one adapter is enabled.

In your case, the wired (ethernet) adapter should be enabled and any other adapters disabled.

Are you able to try another known working (at speed) ethernet cable?
 
What is your problem just download from a particular site ?

Your speedtest shows your new connection is getting the proper download rates. Speedtest is a form of file download it just does not save the files where you can see them.

You can also download some large file like a windows 10 image from microsoft and watch the rates in the resource monitor network tab.

It very well could be a limitation with the site you are downloading from. Sony I think cut the download rates for their consoles because of the increased usage.

You need to check a couple or make sure there is not some limit you have set. Many download managers have the ability to limit the speed.
 

GlacierHusky

Reputable
Nov 30, 2019
10
0
4,510
Does your computer have both a wired and wireless network adapter?

If both, ensure that only one adapter is enabled.

In your case, the wired (ethernet) adapter should be enabled and any other adapters disabled.

Are you able to try another known working (at speed) ethernet cable?

Hi,

To my knowledge, I only have a wired adapter.

I was thinking it was my ethernet cable at first, because it is very old, and has a few kinks in it. I might go out and purchase a new one, are there any particular cables to get?
 

GlacierHusky

Reputable
Nov 30, 2019
10
0
4,510
What is your problem just download from a particular site ?

Your speedtest shows your new connection is getting the proper download rates. Speedtest is a form of file download it just does not save the files where you can see them.

You can also download some large file like a windows 10 image from microsoft and watch the rates in the resource monitor network tab.

It very well could be a limitation with the site you are downloading from. Sony I think cut the download rates for their consoles because of the increased usage.

You need to check a couple or make sure there is not some limit you have set. Many download managers have the ability to limit the speed.

No, all sites I have tried have given me the same speed that is limited to approximately 900 KB/s.

That was my first thought, I use Steam for downloading games, so I thought it might be limited. However, when I download things such as graphics driver updates, or general software, I still get the same speed.

I tried downloading a 1GB test file, and it takes approximately 20 minutes to download. Is there something in my control panel that might be limiting download speeds entirely?
 
No, all sites I have tried have given me the same speed that is limited to approximately 900 KB/s.

That was my first thought, I use Steam for downloading games, so I thought it might be limited. However, when I download things such as graphics driver updates, or general software, I still get the same speed.

I tried downloading a 1GB test file, and it takes approximately 20 minutes to download. Is there something in my control panel that might be limiting download speeds entirely?
steam can be limited these days as too many gamers are slacking at home (me included :p)
try microsoft site to download something, there shouldnt be any known bottleneck
if u get decent download there, then its not your issue that some sites are limited
 
It's odd that you would be getting limited to about 10% of your download speed, seeing as SpeedTest appears to have been downloading at the proper speeds both before and after. Even before, 15mbps should have been getting you more like 1.8MB/s, close to double what you are seeing.

Were your downloads always under 1MB/s in the past, or is this something that just started recently? I'm just wondering if your provider could be throttling services it deems "nonessential" due to increased network activity from all the people staying home, and in many cases working from home right now. Maybe their system was intending to throttle those other services to half their usual performance, but didn't get updated to recognize the faster connection for your account yet. That's just speculation though.

Do you happen to have another computer or device to try downloading from using the same connection? Perhaps that could indicate whether it might be something on your system throttling it.
 
Solution

GlacierHusky

Reputable
Nov 30, 2019
10
0
4,510
It's odd that you would be getting limited to about 10% of your download speed, seeing as SpeedTest appears to have been downloading at the proper speeds both before and after. Even before, 15mbps should have been getting you more like 1.8MB/s, close to double what you are seeing.

Were your downloads always under 1MB/s in the past, or is this something that just started recently? I'm just wondering if your provider could be throttling services it deems "nonessential" due to increased network activity from all the people staying home, and in many cases working from home right now. Maybe their system was intending to throttle those other services to half their usual performance, but didn't get updated to recognize the faster connection for your account yet. That's just speculation though.

Do you happen to have another computer or device to try downloading from using the same connection? Perhaps that could indicate whether it might be something on your system throttling it.

Hi, thanks for your response. Yes, I've always been getting under 1MB/s for all downloads. Before I had this computer, my old computer would always never go above 1MB/s either. I could never figure it out back then either. The house I live in is very old (1970s), so I just assumed it had something to do with how the wiring was set up with the service provider.
 

GlacierHusky

Reputable
Nov 30, 2019
10
0
4,510
Have you tried leaving out the router, and just connecting an ethernet cable directly from your computer to the modem? Testing that might help determine whether or not it could be something with the router.

I can't believe it, but that did it! After unplugging the connection from the router, I'm now getting around 7.5 MB/s. Thanks for your help! I feel dumb, it seemed like an easy fix, haha.