Question Upload speed is virtually non-existent on my PC ?

[mikeboi7]

Hello all - a real head scratcher here...

I will tell you what I know please help...

My package is Virgin Media Gig1 - router is Hub 5x - I have a wired connection on a Cat8 ethernet cable running to an adapter that splits into the gaming PC and Xbox One...

when I run tests on my xbox it shows good download and upload speed (in the 100s on mbps) yet my gaming PC shows decent download speed but upload speed is virtually non-existent - its like 0 to 0.5mbps.

The adapter says it supports up to 1000mbps and like I say the xbox shows decent download and upload speeds....

Any ideas where to look to next - cannot find anything on the gaming PC settings that could be blocking the upload...but might not be looking correctly.

coluld it be a pc hardware issue and if so what specifically?

Any advice hugely welcome

Mikeboi7

 

[rgd1101]

try switch the port on the adapter? or cable?
cat8 cable?

 

[evermorex76]

What do you mean it goes to an "adapter" to split the cable? A switch? What model?

Cat8 is ridiculous for a home. A quick search shows that if you got cheap cable labeled Cat8, it's probably trash. You won't find real Cat8 at the same price as Cat6. Cat6 is already hard to work with because it's so heavy and thick, and Cat8 is worse, and has a lower length limit (for the 40Gbps maximum). You most likely have a crap cable between the PC and the "adapter". Swap it with the one going to the XBox and see what happens. Swap the ports used for the two cables. (You obviously should be getting nearly 1Gbit transfer rates on something like speedtest.net.) Check the adapter status in Windows and see what the link speed is. Check the Event Viewer for network events. Your network adapter is probably constantly losing and restoring connection.

 

[mikeboi7]

ran a speed test last ngth and below is the result...
moved the pc right next to the router and connected up with a 1 metre cable made no change to the upload speed.
then ran a speed test on 2 different mobile phones connected to the router over wireless and they were returning upload speeds of over 100 mbps
does this mean there is either an issue with the ethernet hardware in the pc or the operational settings in windows do you think?

 

[das_stig]

Thats either a bad configuration file downloaded to the modem, switch off and pull the mains power for 1 minute and then repower on, or the actual cabling to street box is faulty. a NIC although it can happen, have never seen it give such massive differences in upload/download capabilities. As for CAT8, I run this throughout my house, as I use 10Gbe ethernet which is overkill, but we are now seeing 2.5Gbs NIC on motherboards as standard and 10port 2.5Gbe unmanaged switches are dirt cheap.

 

[Ralston18]

@mikeboi7

Update your post to include full system hardware specs and OS information.

Include PSU: make, model, wattage, age, condition (original to build, new, refurbished, used)?

Disk drive(s): make, model, capacity, how full?

List all attached peripherals.

Wired or wireless network?

= = = =

This:

"I have a wired connection on a Cat8 ethernet cable running to an adapter that splits into the gaming PC and Xbox One..." [My underline.]

What adapter? Specs?

I am also wondering about the use of Cat8 cable.

Are you able to test with real Cat 5e cable (UTP, round, pure copper, 24 AWG)? Lots of fake cables being sold.

= = = =

Run "ipconfig /all" (without quotes) via the Command Prompt and post the full results here.

You should be able to copy and paste the results with no need to retype everything.

 

[mikeboi7]

The motherboard is a Gigabyte B650 Eagle AX DDR5 - as far as I know it can support using a cat8 cable and I'm not expecting data center standards - still not sure I understand why the xbox is showing well over 100mbps and the gaming pc is not.
The cable comes out of the router , into an ethernet splitter and then into both the xbox and gaming pc - xbox shows well over 100mbps upload speed , pc shows 1.6 mbps upload speed...

The hub is the latest virgin media 5x version which even though its overkill can support a cat8 cable but may just underperform.

​

 

[Ralston18]

"ethernet splitter" ?

Make, model? Link?

I would expect an unmanaged switch. Simple and inexpensive.

Example (reference only -not a product recommendation or endorsement):

Unmanaged Switch

Router ---- Ethernet cable ------> Switch with one switch port providing an Ethernet cable to the Xbox and another switch port providing an Ethernet cable to the gaming PC.

Or, more simply (perhaps) just ethernet cables directly from two of the router ports. One cable to Xbox and a second cable to the gaming PC.

Network diagram?

 

[evermorex76]

As for CAT8, I run this throughout my house, as I use 10Gbe ethernet which is overkill, but we are now seeing 2.5Gbs NIC on motherboards as standard and 10port 2.5Gbe unmanaged switches are dirt cheap.

Real Cat8 is still a waste of money for that, since Cat6 is perfectly capable of doing 10Gb at most household distances. (Even 5e will technically do it at very short distances.) Again, if you got Cat8 for prices like Cat6, you didn't get real Cat8. I wouldn't call 2.5Gb switches "dirt cheap" either, except the no-name brands. 2.5Gb and is designed to run on Cat5e, as well.

 

[evermorex76]

I don't know what functionality an Xbox has for testing, but if you can open file shares on an arbitrary PC on the network, you could just create a share on the PC and create a very large test file (10GB or more) and copy it to see whether the PC can upload directly to the Xbox at full speed. That will confirm that the issue is local. Then you could try connecting the Xbox and the PC directly with a single cable, without using the "adapter" (switch?) and see if you can transfer at full speed. (They should make a link, and auto-assign their IP addresses, or you may need to manually set the IPs.) And as @Ralston18 suggested, try it with them plugged into the Virgin router directly instead of the "splitter" which would eliminate that as the problem. Or like I said, swap the cables being used for the two devices, and try different ports on the "adapter". It's entirely possible that you have a bad cable or a bad port, either on the "adapter" or the motherboard, such that the transmit speed isn't reliable.

Fiber with Gigabit download with only 100Mb upload is fricking ridiculous, but yeah, that's what Virgin sells. As far as the router "supporting" Cat8, yeah, cabling is backward compatible. The categories can keep going up and as long as they keep the same connector shape the cables can be used with modern devices or a device from 1993 designed for use with Cat4. The devices just won't run any faster than their specs are capable of with better cable.

 

[das_stig]

Using an ethernet splitter is a false economy and leads to issues, you could be having issue with auto negotiate best speed (full duplex is best). £40 for a 8x 2.5G port unmanaged switch is cheap and yes I got my Cat8 very cheap, consider I use it for a living.

 

[evermorex76]

Using an ethernet splitter is a false economy and leads to issues, you could be having issue with auto negotiate best speed (full duplex is best). £40 for a 8x 2.5G port unmanaged switch is cheap and yes I got my Cat8 very cheap, consider I use it for a living.

Sure, if you're buying it commercially in bulk it will be cheaper than retail, but it still would have been more expensive than Cat6a and not given you any benefit, unless you expect to one day upgrade to 40Gbps in your house.

An actual Ethernet splitter set can be perfectly good quality and has its uses (I used them once for an office for IP phones and PCs where passing through the phones wasn't possible, but they didn't need anything more than Fast Ethernet) but is still a terrible choice unless you really don't care about speed, because you would be splitting the cable so only two pairs go to each device, limiting each to 100Mbps. I just can't think what device someone would call an "adapter" rather than a switch in the context of this post.

 

[Ralston18]

When I read "Ethernet splitter" this is what I envision:

Ethernet splitter

Likewise for "adapter".

Either way, not a substitute for when a network switch is required.

The spliter/adapter in use may indeed be only connecting two pairs to each device and (per @evermorex76) thus limiting each device to 100Mbps. Or quite possibly much less speed depending on design, materials, assembly, quality, etc.. The $3.11 price alone gives me doubt.

 

[evermorex76]

The spliter/adapter in use may indeed be only connecting two pairs to each device and (per @evermorex76) thus limiting each device to 100Mbps.

Those splitters (intended to be plugged into a wall jack, and you have to have one at each end of the cable run, plugged into your two devices at one end and two different ports on your switch/router at the other) are cheap and simple. They don't need to be expensive to do the job or be acceptable quality, just like you don't need gold-plated patch cables. You can make your own just by attaching keystone jacks to the pairs on a short cable and having them hanging loose, with a single RJ45 at the other end. Of course, the build quality and quality of the conductors and such could be crap at that price just like buying the cheapest cables or keystone jacks you can find. OP hasn't provided many real details of the cabling situation though and never mentioned having two "adapters" though so I make the assumption that it's not a set of these splitters. Plus, OP is getting gigabit speeds on the download side, which means it's impossible to be using these splitters.

At this point, more information about the cabling and this "adapter" is the only way anybody can provide further troubleshooting, and really there's no point in trying to think of other causes until the basics like swapping cables/ports around is done.

 

[Ralston18]

TBD then pending further information from OP.

 

[JayGau]

That's not complicated. Get regular cat6 cables (this whole cat8 thing is ridiculous) and a proper 1Gb internet switch instead of whatever splitter you are using. I know this thread is in "pending" but I couldn't help it, I had to say it. Sorry.

 

[evermorex76]

I know this thread is in "pending" but I couldn't help it, I had to say it. Sorry.

Yeah but you didn't say anything useful or new. The type of cable is pretty much irrelevant other than ensuring the quality isn't crap and it's not defective, and we don't know what "adapter" refers to and it could possibly mean a switch already.

 

[JayGau]

Yeah but you didn't say anything useful or new. The type of cable is pretty much irrelevant other than ensuring the quality isn't crap and it's not defective, and we don't know what "adapter" refers to and it could possibly mean a switch already.

I basically summarized your 5 long comments into one sentence, so yeah, I think it was kind of useful.