Slow ADSL - very frustrated!

[Neville Bailey]

I have a Business Uncapped ADSL package with Afrihost on a 8 Mbps line, with Afrihost managing my Telkom line.

For months now, my internet speed regularly slows down to unworkable speeds, often below 1 Mbps, and everytime I report the problem to Afrihost, I get a reply that my line is synching fine, and that there is no problem on their side. I don't have big downloads or uploads taking place when I experience these slow speeds.

I have asked by Afrihost to conduct certain tests by switching off the wireless on my router and connect my computer direct to the router with a cable. However, I am unable to do these tests as I have a MacBook which does not have a cable option.

In desperation I switched over to Axxess today and chose their Business Uncapped ADSL package, and I am experiencing the same symptoms, so it appears that the problem is not with the ISP, but somewhere else.

I tried logging a fault online with Telkom, but I get a message that I cannot log a fault online with my number, presumably because the ISP is managing my line?

What can I do now?

 

[etienne7702]

Hi

Axxess and Afrihost share the same network

 

[Neville Bailey]

OK, so the problem may well be with both ISP's!

Any suggestions as to which course of action I should take now?

 

[Geoff.D]

Have you captured any stats that your router generates?
Next have you tried to run Zertops line test ? It should help when reporting the fault to your ISP. They have to take it up with Telkom/Open serve on your behalf.

 

[Neville Bailey]

Have you captured any stats that your router generates?
Next have you tried to run Zertops line test ? It should help when reporting the fault to your ISP. They have to take it up with Telkom/Open serve on your behalf.

Thank you for bringing this option to my attention.

This is the result of the Zertops test:

Zertop's LineTool Results
Date/Time: Sun Jun 11 20:38:57 CAT 2017

Basic Report:

Your packet loss was 3%.
Your average ping was 367ms.
Your maximum ping was 1550ms.

You seem to have some packet loss. This indicates an issue on the line.
Looking at your average ping, there is definitely something wrong with your line! Please post the results (at the end of the program) into the forum for advice!

Detailed Report:

Pinging 155.239.255.250 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=54ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=169ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=55ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=35ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=113ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=60ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=177ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=1541ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=799ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=1284ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=104ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=186ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=377ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=728ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=55ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=101ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=369ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=270ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=700ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=546ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=1550ms TTL=128
Request timed out.
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=241ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=188ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=218ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=195ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=36ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=64ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=77ms TTL=128
Reply from 155.239.255.250: bytes=32 time=371ms TTL=128

Ping statistics for 155.239.255.250:
    Packets: Sent = 30, Received = 29, Lost = 1 (3% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
    Minimum = 35ms, Maximum = 1550ms, Average = 367ms

 

[moedawood]

Definitely line or exchange related.

 

[Neville Bailey]

I sent the results to Afrihost and got the following reply:

"I apologize for the slow speeds,

I have refreshed your entire data connection and recreated the Telkom port.

Kindly restart your modem and let us know if the speeds have not improved."

I have not yet had a chance to reboot the router, but are they missing the point? Surely they should be logging a fault with Telkom?

 

[Geoff.D]

Agree they have done all the unnecessary stuff and have failed to log a fault with telkom

 

[dj2381]

I sent the results to Afrihost and got the following reply:

"I apologize for the slow speeds,

I have refreshed your entire data connection and recreated the Telkom port.

Kindly restart your modem and let us know if the speeds have not improved."

I have not yet had a chance to reboot the router, but are they missing the point? Surely they should be logging a fault with Telkom?

I have exactly the same account and the same problem, mine is not exchange related, I switched over to a small capped account on Crystal web, the difference is night and day, and before anyone comes with the whole "you can't compare capped to uncapped" nonsense, all browsing, downloading p2p, steam, http, etc come to a grinding halt, any webpages, local or international are so slow it reminded me of the days of 56K. Maybe get a small capped account from any other ISP and see. This is not anything new, this has been going on for months already and I don't think they are being very transparent with regard to their network.

 

[Geoff.D]

I sent the results to Afrihost and got the following reply:

"I apologize for the slow speeds,

I have refreshed your entire data connection and recreated the Telkom port.

Kindly restart your modem and let us know if the speeds have not improved."

I have not yet had a chance to reboot the router, but are they missing the point? Surely they should be logging a fault with Telkom?

Do you know which exchange you are connected to?
Also have had a look at the line diagnostic reported on your router?

 

[Neville Bailey]

Eventually Afrihost logged a line fault with Telkom, and this morning a technician came over.

While he was here, I did some speed tests and the speed was good, and he told me that his tests indicated that there was no fault with the line. I could not argue with him because, at the time, the speeds looked good. I then asked him if exchange congestion could be a problem, which would explain why my speed fluctuates from slow to normal (although mostly slow), and he said that it could be the problem, so he said he would reset some port or another.

I went out for a few hours and I have just returned home and the speeds are back to under 1 Mbps.

What do I do now? I am frustrated beyond words!

 

[MrNose]

Uncapped account? [check]
Afrihost/Axxess [check]

Dear OP, try a capped account from another ISP and then see what happens

 

[Neville Bailey]

Uncapped account? [check]
Afrihost/Axxess [check]

Dear OP, try a capped account from another ISP and then see what happens

Who do you suggest I use?

 

[MrNose]

Who do you suggest I use?

Vox Telecom

 

[Neville Bailey]

Vox Telecom

I will give them a try and see what happens.

 

[Marius Flash]

This issue of paying for ( UP TO ) does not sit with me very well !!! You apply for a 4 Meg line or a 8 Meg line and what do you get ???? Who is S***** who here?
Telkom and ISP's should charge for what they provide, not for what they ( UP TO ) can provide ! If you only receive 2 Mb/sec speed, then you pay only for that, then it is a 2 Meg line in my books. Why does everything always have to be so damn complicated ?

 

[Neville Bailey]

It's a bit of a schlep applying for a connection with Vox - no online application.

I had to phone them, then they email me forms to fill in and sign and then I have to return the forms, plus certified copy of ID, proof of residence and Telkom account.

Now I wait in anticipation for their approval and activation, so I can (hopefully) get on with my life.

Hope it's all worthwhile...

 

[Draken]

Ill explain how the ISPs work in SA. They pretty much dont want to spend the correct amount of funds needed to support the clients they have. So what they do, is actively move 'issues' from one user to another. So one day, user x has terrible internet and **** isnt working, this is due to the isp slowing the connection on purpose, in order to now make someones connection who has been bad for a few days, all of a sudden 'fine'.

Its a pretty shaddy practice but there is no way to prove it, and no governmental laws prohibiting it.

Your best bet is getting 2-3 DSL accounts from different ISPS and simply swap when you get ****ed.

 

[Geoff.D]

Eventually Afrihost logged a line fault with Telkom, and this morning a technician came over.

While he was here, I did some speed tests and the speed was good, and he told me that his tests indicated that there was no fault with the line. I could not argue with him because, at the time, the speeds looked good. I then asked him if exchange congestion could be a problem, which would explain why my speed fluctuates from slow to normal (although mostly slow), and he said that it could be the problem, so he said he would reset some port or another.

I went out for a few hours and I have just returned home and the speeds are back to under 1 Mbps.

What do I do now? I am frustrated beyond words!

It is incredibly disappointing to see how customers are fobbed off in situations like this.
Almost certainly there is a capacity issue behind this problem in an exchange. Whether this is due to an Openserve capacity problem or an ISP capacity issue takes quite a bit of work and will not be cleared up if the fault finding does not take place when the problem exists. It useless for this to be done the next day.

Then it could still be a line issue, related to temperature or traffic loading. Again it will not be solved unless the tests and faulting does not take place when it occurs.

 

[Neville Bailey]

The saga continues...

I had absolutely no response from Vox after sending them all the required documentation, so that does not give me a warm feeling about them, I'm afraid.

After another week of sub-1 Mbps speeds, a Telkom technician popped over again this morning and, once again, confirmed that my line is absolutely fine. (By the way, I am directly across the road from the Telkom exchange).

I chatted to him at length and he intimated that many of the data ISP's are dishonest with their smaller clients, by throttling their bandwidth on a regular basis.

I've now decided that, until fibre is available in my area, I will switch to Telkom for a capped ADSL data package, on a month-to-month basis. At least I will now only deal with a single entity, instead of two entities pointing fingers at each other.

It will be very interesting to see what happens after I switch over to them.