Question Setting up QOS for gaming Edgerouter X

[grumphman]

Hey guys, I've been having very bad bufferbloat as of late. I'm trying to setup QOS to prioritize gaming but so far I've had no real improvements. I'm using an Ubiquiti Edgerouter X and I've tried SQM but it doesn't seem to work.
My speeds are 5/0.5. Can someone guide me through a basic QOS setup?

 

[Ralston18]

Do you have the User Manual?

If not, here is a link that may help:

https://kb.intermedia.net/article/44415

See "Step 3." near the bottom of the webpage.

And also:

https://help.ubnt.com/hc/en-us/articles/115002531728-EdgeRouter-Beginners-Guide-to-EdgeRouter

You will need to have the necessary router admin rights.

 

[grumphman]

Do you have the User Manual?

If not, here is a link that may help:

https://kb.intermedia.net/article/44415

See "Step 3." near the bottom of the webpage.

And also:

https://help.ubnt.com/hc/en-us/articles/115002531728-EdgeRouter-Beginners-Guide-to-EdgeRouter

You will need to have the necessary router admin rights.

I've already followed those guides and was able to setup SQM QoS, but it just doesn't seem to be working. I've tried both eth0 and pppoe0 as the WAN Interface and I've also tried setting anywhere from 95% to 50% of my bandwidth, both up and down. Still experiencing major packet loss.

 

[bill001g]

Maybe your problem is not bufferbloat. Just because that seems to be the popular thing to scream when games lag in your case it could just be a simple overloaded connection. Since you have such a small upload rate and the game is likely using most of it you can't be doing much else. It could be as simple as you have discord open and the combination of voice and game have exceeded your upload.

You may actually have to configure something manually. Maybe the first option is to block all other traffic except the game and see how that works. Then start allowing other traffic until you find the offending traffic. With a connection that small you may have to only allow the game and very little else

QoS is extremely hard to configure on a small connection. It is very hard to set the rates when a single 1500 byte packet can exceed the rate and since the rates are calculated after the data is sent you will exceed the rate. Even though the average rate may be limited the burst rate is not so these burst of traffic can take bandwidth from other more important traffic. On larger connections these burst of data are hidden in the round off errors in the traffic shapers. Even on high end commercial routers where you can actually set the burst rates it is hard to do a small connection. You many times get the reverse issue and over limit traffic.

 

[failboat]

What bufferbloat rating do you get on download? If upload won't shape you can do download only. Just set upload to 2Mbs.
You should test bufferbloat on DSLreports bufferbloat test. If you're buffering on the router you should get an A+.

Are you getting packet loss in gaming? Do you play wired? Is your ISP connection DSL or DOCSIS?

With the ERX there is no real setup. Gaming flows are so small it should be able to keep the latency low.

 

[grumphman]

Maybe your problem is not bufferbloat. Just because that seems to be the popular thing to scream when games lag in your case it could just be a simple overloaded connection. Since you have such a small upload rate and the game is likely using most of it you can't be doing much else. It could be as simple as you have discord open and the combination of voice and game have exceeded your upload.

You may actually have to configure something manually. Maybe the first option is to block all other traffic except the game and see how that works. Then start allowing other traffic until you find the offending traffic. With a connection that small you may have to only allow the game and very little else

QoS is extremely hard to configure on a small connection. It is very hard to set the rates when a single 1500 byte packet can exceed the rate and since the rates are calculated after the data is sent you will exceed the rate. Even though the average rate may be limited the burst rate is not so these burst of traffic can take bandwidth from other more important traffic. On larger connections these burst of data are hidden in the round off errors in the traffic shapers. Even on high end commercial routers where you can actually set the burst rates it is hard to do a small connection. You many times get the reverse issue and over limit traffic.

There seems to be no issues when I'm the only one using bandwidth but as soon as someone in the house loads a YouTube video or even just browses the web I encounter these problems. The connection must be overloaded...

Can you point me in the direction of any guides that would help me figure out how to block traffic? I'm a complete noob when it comes to Edgerouter X configuration.
Also, would it possibly help if I phoned my ISP and had them lower my speeds to 3/0.5? Or would it then be even easier to overload the connection?

I really appreciate the help!

 

[failboat]

There seems to be no issues when I'm the only one using bandwidth but as soon as someone in the house loads a YouTube video or even just browses the web I encounter these problems. The connection must be overloaded...

Can you point me in the direction of any guides that would help me figure out how to block traffic? I'm a complete noob when it comes to Edgerouter X configuration.
Also, would it possibly help if I phoned my ISP and had them lower my speeds to 3/0.5? Or would it then be even easier to overload the connection?

I really appreciate the help!

The ERX has no wifi. Have you put a wireless access point below it? If you use wifi from a device above the ERX it's not going to queue the traffic.

Don't lower your speeds =)

 

[grumphman]

What bufferbloat rating do you get on download? If upload won't shape you can do download only. Just set upload to 2Mbs.
You should test bufferbloat on DSLreports bufferbloat test. If you're buffering on the router you should get an A+.

Are you getting packet loss in gaming? Do you play wired? Is your ISP connection DSL or DOCSIS?

With the ERX there is no real setup. Gaming flows are so small it should be able to keep the latency low.

Well, that's a whole different problem I've been having actually.. For some reason my DSLreport ratings simply won't load. This only started yesterday, but before then my bufferbloat ratings were D without QoS and anywhere from D to B with QoS.

Yes, extreme packetloss while gaming (60%-100%) but I've also been noticing web pages sometimes infinitely load until I reload the page. I use a wired connection and I've replaced my ethernet cable just to make sure that wasn't the problem. I'm on DSL.

 

[grumphman]

The ERX has no wifi. Have you put a wireless access point below it? If you use wifi from a device above the ERX it's not going to queue the traffic.

Don't lower your speeds =)

I'm using an Asus N66U as a wireless access point connected to eth4/PoE OUT on the ERX.

I'd like to keep my 5 speeds but my ISP always suggests lowering it to 3.

 

[failboat]

I'm using an Asus N66U as a wireless access point connected to eth4/PoE OUT on the ERX.

I'd like to keep my 5 speeds but my ISP always suggests lowering it to 3.

They only way it's better when you go down is if your DSL link quality is really low. If you can log into your modem and post the signal info someone might be able to tell you if they oversold you on it. On AT&T it's available on their web admin page.

On a second note. Is this the only wired ISP available? If someone has DOCSIS then it's going to be a lot better. Where I'm at Uverse is the only option and it's 3 or 5 Mbs. It did get better when they upgraded it, but I was disappointed that after they upgraded they still offered slow speeds. I pay like $80 a month for it too.

If your home gets more than 1 phone line they might consider adding a connection or bonding it. They will charge you double for this most likely. They probably won't run a 2nd line for you.

 

[grumphman]

They only way it's better when you go down is if your DSL link quality is really low. If you can log into your modem and post the signal info someone might be able to tell you if they oversold you on it. On AT&T it's available on their web admin page.

On a second note. Is this the only wired ISP available? If someone has DOCSIS then it's going to be a lot better. Where I'm at Uverse is the only option and it's 3 or 5 Mbs. It did get better when they upgraded it, but I was disappointed that after they upgraded they still offered slow speeds. I pay like $80 a month for it too.

If your home gets more than 1 phone line they might consider adding a connection or bonding it. They will charge you double for this most likely. They probably won't run a 2nd line for you.

I'm not sure how exactly to find the signal info, but maybe it's in one of these three screenshots:

https://imgur.com/a/OJN9HOA

View: https://imgur.com/a/OJN9HOA


Sadly this is my only option for a wired ISP. I'm paying about $80/month as well..

 

[Ralston18]

DSL....

Do you have a splitter/filter? That is a small 2" x 3" box with one telephone line coming in and two telephone lines going out. One of those lines goes to the telephone and the other line goes to the modem.

https://www.iprimus.com.au/technical-support/adsl/filtering-phone-lines-for-adsl/

Does the following line diagram represent your connections?

ISP----> splitter (1) ------>Modem ---Ethernet cable --->ERX[LAN] -----PoE-------> Asus N66U ~~~~ wireless ~~~> Gaming PC

and
splitter (2) -----> telephones

Other connected devices?

 

[grumphman]

DSL....

Do you have a splitter/filter? That is a small 2" x 3" box with one telephone line coming in and two telephone lines going out. One of those lines goes to the telephone and the other line goes to the modem.

https://www.iprimus.com.au/technical-support/adsl/filtering-phone-lines-for-adsl/

Does the following line diagram represent your connections?

ISP----> splitter (1) ------>Modem ---Ethernet cable --->ERX[LAN] -----PoE-------> Asus N66U ~~~~ wireless ~~~> Gaming PC

and
splitter (2) -----> telephones

Other connected devices?

I have one box on my wall with only one line coming out. The cable runs from it to my bridged Actiontec gateway, then I have the ERX connected to that and my N66U as an access point connected to the ERX. My gaming PC is on ethernet, not wireless. I do not have any telephone service so I don't think there is any need for a splitter.. correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[Ralston18]

No need for a splitter as I understand it. If there was a splitter in place with an unused port (telephone service) that splitter should be removed as being unnecessary/redundant and a potential source of the problem.

Revised line diagram:

ISP----> box(?) on wall --- Telephone cable ---- >Actiontec ---Ethernet cable --->ERX[eth1] ----- Ethernet-----> Gaming PC and
[eth4]-----PoE-------> Asus N66U ~~~~ wireless ~~~> Wireless devices.

"box(?) on wall" - Likely a RJ11 telephone jack. Any markings on the box?

In any case, there may be a loose connection within the jack or perhaps a problem with the cable run serving the jack or the cable between jack and Actiontec.

Take a look at the incoming wiring, the connections, and jacks. Look for loose connections and signs of damage. Swap in a known working telephone cable between the box in and the Actiontec.

Not disregarding some possible overload or other misconfiguration per se.

Overall idea being to ensure that there are no physical cable or connection issues contributing to the problem.