Daily Speed drop off with Sky BB Max

[PaulSky]

Nothing may have changed physically but that does not mean the condition of the line or equipment on the line has not deteriorated and yes the line conditions may also have changed between you and the exchange. Sockets wear, cables get kinked/ damaged, filters breakdown and lines get knocked about out in the streets.

[DaveP]

Hi Guys, I haven't happened by here for a while since I sorted the problem by using my Linksys Router, so hadn't picked up on the developing thread. To be honest, since changing, the connection has been rock steady and has dropped out maybe 2 or three times in the last year, so the Netgear Router is in the box gathering dust. I may try the firmware upgrade for fun but I don't really need it. The wireless coverage with the Linksys is far superior as well. I haven't checked my speed for a while so I'll take a look and see if it is still the same st 11.9.....

PS during my initial investigation, I tried the router in my master socket to no avail...

[Isitme]

I don't know if you have had a look around the forum and saw the many posts concerning DLM. As it concerns the line and not the router you may find you get a sudden catastrophic drop in speed. If you do, you may be well advised to plug in your Netgear until the line stabilizes again. I would imagine during the process Sky will be looking closer at lines and the router plugged into them. May not matter what you are using, but you never know

[DaveP]

Checked my speed tonight and I'm at 12.2 Mbps, so I think the 11.9 was purely coincidental. I'll take my chances with the Linksys - given the trouble I had getting any kind of sensible support from Sky in the first place, I'll cross that bridge when I get to it! Thanks anyway..

PS here are my router stats for interest:

DSL Status: Up
DSL Modulation Mode: ADSL2+
DSL Path Mode: FAST
Downstream Rate: 15323 Kbps
Upstream Rate: 764 Kbps
Downstream Margin: 11 db
Upstream Margin: 18 db
Downstream Line Attenuation: 15
Upstream Line Attenuation: 7
Downstream Transmit Power: 0
Upstream Transmit Power: 0

[IWasNotTheEnemy]

no DLM there, looks fine...

[Isitme]

^^^^^^
So far I understand it will eventually be rolled out to all lines.

[DaveP]

Well 2 1/2+ years after my initial problem, and a steady 12Mbps performance from my faithful Linksys, my internet connection dropped out - permanently. The router is up and working, lan is fine, but I have no 'internet' light and no connectivity.

I swapped back to my old Sky Netgear V1, and it works ok, so I can only assume that either my Linksys has died, which looks unlikely, or Sky have tumbled me and blocked my Linksys (MAC address maybe?)

Anyway, from the source of this thread, way back in 2007, I had determined that the original Netgear router was faulty, and sure enough it dropped out after 24 hours. The firmware then upgraded itself to V1.03.87, but alas the drop outs persist.

I have rung Sky (wherever it is abroad!) and cannot convince them that I have a faulty router, as of course everytime I reset it on their advice it works...for a while. I have emailed Sky Customer Support, but 5 days since and no reply...so it looks like Im back to square one, an intermittent router, ineffective Customer Support, and no way to get a replacement. Here are my 'up' stats for info.....

System Up Time 76:00:58
Port Status TxPkts RxPkts Collisions Tx B/s Rx B/s Up Time
WAN PPPoA 1478169 2745796 0 393 15627 70:54:48
LAN 10M/100M 2778888 2559434 0 11139 5833 76:00:55
WLAN 11M/54M 2280852 1347784 0 12666 687 56:08:50

ADSL Link Downstream Upstream
Connection Speed 17023 kbps 1054 kbps
Line Attenuation 16.5 db 8.9 db
Noise Margin 8.3 db 8.0 db


sigh........

[Smithy99]

Well if your router has been blocked you are the first person every to have that done to them as far as I know.

Can you try it on a friends setup? I doubt that it has been blocked, more likely faulty, can you reset it or update the fimrware?

If you want a new router, unplug the existing one and then ring Sky and thell them after 5 days of complaining it has finally refused to turn on and that you have tested the plugs etc. The should then send one out.

[DaveP]

Yes I thought it unlikely, but I did read somewhere here that you might get blocked if detected - anyway, I'm on the latest firmware, and after a reset, no change, so yeah, maybe the Linksys has just gone TU. TBH, the stats on the Netgear are great when it is up, its just annoying more than catastrophic that it drops out daily, so you cant for instance leave a long download running.

Anyway, I might just try the unplug approach, and see what happens. Its just so frustrating that its always so difficult to get just a little decent customer service - they treat you like a numpty when you call - have you checked for viruses, the master socket, etc, etc, and email is a joke - they just dont reply - ever!

I'll update with any developments.....

Yours despondently,

Dave