emerging pattern?

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tecnam2003

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#65273 1-Aug-2010 15:59

I wonder if a pattern is emerging.....

I have a monthly allowance of 10Gb being on a Total Home plan.

For the third time recently I have received an alert from Telecom, to say that I have used 80% of my monthly allowance and inviting me to upgrade to an alternative plan.

That's fair enough I hear you say...........nice to have an "eyes up"

However, after the 80% alert, I feel everything starts getting slower. Line stoppages (my term) requiring the modem to be turned off and on again to re-establish the connection. Sometimes twice or three times a day. Before the alert I can go for weeks without resorting to cycling the modem power.

Some, more cynical than I, would suggest that it is a carefully programmed and deliberate action by Telecom to encourage users to contemplate alternative plans with higher allowances.

I couldn't possibly comment.....but am I being paranoid or am I not alone?

sbiddle

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#361072 1-Aug-2010 16:21

There is nothing Telecom can do do "lock up" your modem.

Do you download any torrents at all? How many people are using your connection? Too many connections is by far the most common cause of low end modems/routers locking up and requiring a reset.

freitasm

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#361076 1-Aug-2010 16:32

There are certain routers (Belkin and D-Link for example) which will lock or become extremely slow when too many connections are open. Usually this happens when too many new torrents are being downloaded.

If you are downloading any torrent make sure to limit the number of connections in your software. Also make sure none of the PCs in your network are compromised and running any software without your knowledge.

tecnam2003

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#361191 1-Aug-2010 21:03

thanks for the interesting replies............

the answer to the question of torrents and multiple downloads is no..........solo user and any download(s) are singles only..........

whilst the lock up could be explained as a hardware anomaly the percieved slow down of my link after receiving the alert at 80% usage isn't my imagination...........

well if I get into this state again next month and it repeats itself..........then I will have convinced myself that it is no accident.

freitasm

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#361212 1-Aug-2010 21:50

What about heating? Is this unit in a well ventilated area? Is it hot to touch?

NonprayingMantis

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#361379 2-Aug-2010 09:58

could be confirmation bias.

have you tried writing down how many times you reset your modem for a whole month, you might be surprised to find it is no different.

dclegg

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#361414 2-Aug-2010 10:48

freitasm: There are certain routers (Belkin and D-Link for example) which will lock or become extremely slow when too many connections are open. Usually this happens when too many new torrents are being downloaded.

I'm having this as an increasing problem here, so it's interesting to note what may be the cause. While I'm not a big torrent user, I am connected to servers over in the US for the majority of my working day, and we do have quite a few devices being served by our D-Link DSL-G604T router (a combination of wired and wireless).

That being said, this problem is becoming more frequent, with it quite common to require a router reboot a couple of times a day, even though our usage patterns or number of connected devices hasn't increased. As a result, I'm considering buying a replacement ADSL modem/router. Do you have any recommendations for good ones which will perform quite well, and yet not break the bank?

Linuxluver

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#361420 2-Aug-2010 10:53

sbiddle: There is nothing Telecom can do do "lock up" your modem.

Do you download any torrents at all? How many people are using your connection? Too many connections is by far the most common cause of low end modems/routers locking up and requiring a reset.

Can you name a few routers / modems that work well?

I've found that every router I;ve bought recently suffers this problem: DLInk (two of them), Linksys/Cisco and TP-Link. The TP-link was the cheapest and has so far proven to be the best of a bad lot. I've tried a netcomm, but the wifi seems to be flakey with my Android phones - all of them. Every other wifi AP (Dlink, TP-Link - even the Linksys) works 100% all the time....but not the Netcomm.

My elderly DSE modem / router is the only one that stays full-speed for months no matter what I do....but it can't go faster then 4mbps....and my line is now capable of 7mbps. So I've bought several routers that work fine for a day or two....then need to be power-cycled to refresh them.

Very annoying. I thought the Linksys/Cisco 'toilet seat' might be a good one....but it was the worst of the lot - by far - for both routing and for wifi. I gave it away. Didn't feel right asking anyone for money for that rubbish.

What should I be buying?

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kyhwana2

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#361496 2-Aug-2010 12:21

Linuxluver:
sbiddle: There is nothing Telecom can do do "lock up" your modem.

Do you download any torrents at all? How many people are using your connection? Too many connections is by far the most common cause of low end modems/routers locking up and requiring a reset.

Can you name a few routers / modems that work well?

I previously had an AM300 that was rock solid, although there's only me on it (I live alone) I do torrent a bit and usually have quite a few open connections going..

I've since bought a Cisco 877 router and that too has been rock solid. Probably a bit out of your price range though. ;) (I paid $300 for it on trademe)

freitasm

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#361498 2-Aug-2010 12:23

The Linksys WRT54GL with DD-WRT installed is great. Also good is the Cisco SRP series (quite expensive seeing it's a Pro version) with built-in VoIP.

quickymart

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#361631 2-Aug-2010 15:02

I've got a Dynalink RTA-1025W here, no issues in 4 years of use.