Spark Speedtest server problems

Forums › Spark New Zealand (including Skinny and BigPipe) › Spark Speedtest server problems

davisg

74 posts

Master Geek

#207437 24-Dec-2016 20:18

OK, I am in Hamilton and have been upgraded to FibreMax 2 days ago. It all went well by the way and works fine. However I like to test it to see how fast it really is.

Using the Spark Speedtest page bouncing off the Auckland server I get a speed reading of 150Mbps down and 250Mbps+ up, and the speed graph is up and down all over the place.

Wellington server is about the same, Christchurch reads a lot slower (but I acknowledge the infrastructure in the upper South Island is probably under stress).

BUT when I use the Wellington Vodafone Speedtest server it reports the correct speed of 940+Mbps downstream and about 420Mbps upstream.

Does this simply mean the Spark servers are all overloaded? I suspect it does and therefore wonder what the point is of even having a server if it can't dish up the correct statistics.

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meow
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#1694687 24-Dec-2016 20:23

They're not at all overloaded - this may just be you. There is something a bit strange happening with Speedtest right now though since I noticed that Ping tests take some time to complete now + the upload test is taking even longer but this is my eventual result with the Spark Auckland speedtest:

@Talkiet is one who manages the Spark Speedtest servers so he may have something further to say.

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Aaron2222

216 posts

Master Geek

#1694690 24-Dec-2016 20:34

http://www.geekzone.co.nz/forums.asp?forumid=49&topicid=207333

Talkiet

4792 posts

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#1694691 24-Dec-2016 20:34

Michael is right... they're not overloaded - not even close.

Try this...

http://spark.speedtestcustom.com/

(you have to manually choose the closest Spark server - sometimes it gets it wrong)

My result just now:

or the windows 10 Ookla speedtest app. Read about and get here:

http://www.windowscentral.com/ookla-releases-new-windows-10-speedtestnet-app-pc

My result just now:

There are also random combinations of the current HTML5beta and browser that give the right speeds through the speedtest.net webpage as well, but they vary from user to user. I'm going to speak to Ookla about it.

But the servers are NOT overloaded.

Cheers - N

Please note all comments are from my own brain and don't necessarily represent the position or opinions of my employer, previous employers, colleagues, friends or pets.

davisg

74 posts

Master Geek

#1694702 24-Dec-2016 21:03

So none of the above readily explains why Ookla works correctly off the Vodafone server in Wellington and TrustPower in Tauranga but not on any of the Spark servers or several of the smaller ISP's. 2 Degrees gives a reading of about 50% of the correct speed.

However, you are probably right since further trial and error reveals that the Microsoft Edge browser on Windows 10 DisplayBook Pro gives sensible readings from the Spark Auckland server both on Ookla and the Spark Speedtest as well as the beta one.. so I'll just use it for now.

blakamin

4431 posts

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Inactive user

#1694704 24-Dec-2016 21:09

Speedtests are all well and good, but seriously, what is the point?

Some browsers and even ISPs act differently and optimise when "speedtest" comes up.

Real world is totally different anyway.

#ePeenSizeMattersNot

davisg

74 posts

Master Geek

#1694708 24-Dec-2016 21:16

blakamin:

Speedtests are all well and good, but seriously, what is the point?

Real world is totally different anyway. #JustWondering

You are absolutely right of course. But I find them useful if there is a problem with media streaming or with slow browser etc as a starting point for fault finding.

Perfect example: Poor streaming of Amazon Prime Video (the official NZ one) but good Netflix (NZ) and Lightbox streams and good Speedtest tells me it is not a problem at my end.

Talkiet

4792 posts

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#1694710 24-Dec-2016 21:17

davisg:

So none of the above readily explains why Ookla works correctly off the Vodafone server in Wellington and TrustPower in Tauranga but not on any of the Spark servers or several of the smaller ISP's. 2 Degrees gives a reading of about 50% of the correct speed.

However, you are probably right since further trial and error reveals that the Microsoft Edge browser on Windows 10 DisplayBook Pro gives sensible readings from the Spark Auckland server both on Ookla and the Spark Speedtest as well as the beta one.. so I'll just use it for now.

Glad you found a result you expected... I was also confused (still am to some extent) so I ended up putting a 4GB file on the speedtest server in the same directory as the test files for speedtest.com and used WGET to grab it...

root@neilgprobe:~# wget -O /dev/null http://[redacted]/[redacted].zip
--2016-12-24 21:11:04-- http://[redacted]/[redacted].zip
Resolving [redacted].com ([redacted].com)... 125.xxx.xxx.xxx
Connecting to [redacted].com [redacted].com)|125.xxx.xxx.xxx|:80... connected.
HTTP request sent, awaiting response... 200 OK
Length: 4294967296 (4.0G) [application/zip]
Saving to: ‘/dev/null’

/dev/null 100%[=====================>] 4.00G 111MB/s in 37s

2016-12-24 21:11:41 (110 MB/s) - ‘/dev/null’ saved [4294967296/4294967296]

So there's 4GB downloaded in 37 seconds from the Chch speedtest server to me. As I say, _definitely_ not congested or overloaded. I suspect a change in the speedtest config (version or parameters) that's not interacting nicely with lots of versions of Flash, or perhaps even windows TCP implementations. We didn't make any changes when we began to observe this. I am speaking to Ookla about it.

Did the other 2 methods of using the speedtest servers give you expected results?

Cheers- N

Please note all comments are from my own brain and don't necessarily represent the position or opinions of my employer, previous employers, colleagues, friends or pets.

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davisg

74 posts

Master Geek

#1694714 24-Dec-2016 21:25

Talkiet:

davisg:

So none of the above readily explains why Ookla works correctly off the Vodafone server in Wellington and TrustPower in Tauranga but not on any of the Spark servers or several of the smaller ISP's. 2 Degrees gives a reading of about 50% of the correct speed.

However, you are probably right since further trial and error reveals that the Microsoft Edge browser on Windows 10 DisplayBook Pro gives sensible readings from the Spark Auckland server both on Ookla and the Spark Speedtest as well as the beta one.. so I'll just use it for now.

Glad you found a result you expected... I was also confused (still am to some extent) so I ended up putting a 4GB file on the speedtest server in the same directory as the test files for speedtest.com and used WGET to grab it...

root@neilgprobe:~# wget -O /dev/null http://[redacted]/[redacted].zip
--2016-12-24 21:11:04-- http://[redacted]/[redacted].zip
Resolving [redacted].com ([redacted].com)... 125.xxx.xxx.xxx
Connecting to [redacted].com [redacted].com)|125.xxx.xxx.xxx|:80... connected.
HTTP request sent, awaiting response... 200 OK
Length: 4294967296 (4.0G) [application/zip]
Saving to: ‘/dev/null’

/dev/null 100%[=====================>] 4.00G 111MB/s in 37s

2016-12-24 21:11:41 (110 MB/s) - ‘/dev/null’ saved [4294967296/4294967296]

So there's 4GB downloaded in 37 seconds from the Chch speedtest server to me. As I say, _definitely_ not congested or overloaded. I suspect a change in the speedtest config (version or parameters) that's not interacting nicely with lots of versions of Flash, or perhaps even windows TCP implementations. We didn't make any changes when we began to observe this. I am speaking to Ookla about it.

Did the other 2 methods of using the speedtest servers give you expected results?

Cheers- N

The Windows 10 Ookla App works fine when I choose a nearby server; got 921/410 off a local trustpower server 885/431 off Spark in Auckland so also doing what I need.

I must also mention it took almost no time at all to download the actual app....

Mikek

108 posts

Master Geek

#1695279 26-Dec-2016 21:04

Hi guys

The most likely cause of this problem will be your (browser / adobe flash player) kind of both really, That's why when you use the Beta speed test it works okay due to the fact it does not run Adobe Flash Player.

If you noticed this issues about 2 weeks ago its because your browser will be running Adobe Flash Player Version 24 It has a new mode built into it called

adobe flash player protected mode which pretty much just slows your speed test down / Scans incoming content. Disabling this still does not seem to fully fix the issues. Some versions of internet explorer have not updated with this new mode so try using them to see if the problem is gone.

Or you can just uninstall adobe flash player and download version 23 ( https://helpx.adobe.com/flash-player/kb/archived-flash-player-versions.html ) flashplayer23_0r0_207_win if you are using Firefox.

The above info all depends on what browser you are using along with what operating system. The info I have supplied is relevant to Windows 8.1 64x Fire Fox browser but applies to Chrome as well.

Hope this helps

Mike

gzt

17104 posts

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#1695315 27-Dec-2016 00:20

Speedtest beta all the way:

beta.speedtest.net

It is good, and does not use Flash.

BarTender

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#1695359 27-Dec-2016 11:24

IMHO the spark.speedtestcustom.com is the most reliable site.

The odd thing is it doesn't work on my Android phone but on a well speced machine it consistently works fine.

Talkiet

4792 posts

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#1702824 13-Jan-2017 17:24

FYI, while I still recommend the beta non-Flash version, our custom link, and the Windows 10 app for Speedtest, it seems that there has been a Windows update that has (for me at least) restored behaviour to previous expected levels with the main speedtest.net test...

This seems to be the update that restored the performance "Security Update for Adobe Flash Player for Windows 10 Version 1607 (for x64-based Systems) (KB3214628)"

Cheers - N

Please note all comments are from my own brain and don't necessarily represent the position or opinions of my employer, previous employers, colleagues, friends or pets.

dt

1152 posts

Uber Geek
Inactive user

#1705929 19-Jan-2017 17:20

I oddly get faster speedtest results using Edge over both IE and Chrome.. good browser to use for biggest e-peen results

da5id

550 posts

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#1720613 15-Feb-2017 13:25

gzt: Speedtest beta all the way:

beta.speedtest.net

It is good, and does not use Flash.

Just proves how bad our rural broadband is. 1.05 Mbps....

ps, another testing site is Netflix own www.fast.com

DarkShadow

1647 posts

Uber Geek

#1720622 15-Feb-2017 13:37

da5id:

gzt: Speedtest beta all the way:

beta.speedtest.net

It is good, and does not use Flash.

Just proves how bad our rural broadband is. 1.05 Mbps....

ps, another testing site is Netflix own www.fast.com

Can you get rural wireless 4g?

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