ADSL dropping in and out consistently at night

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ajkiwi

109 posts

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#165802 21-Feb-2015 09:51

Ok, this is an odd one.

For the last month, our ADSL connection with Vodafone (formerly TCL) is dropping in and out between about 7pm and 7am. We might have a connection - regular speed, regular ping - for a minute, then it starts timing out in a random manner. Pinging will either result in all pings timing out, or one to two packets getting through at regular speed and the rest timing out.

And in day time, the connection seems completely and utterly stable. Completely. At night: internet is basically unusable. Problematic. The chorus tech has just came - in the day time - checking an issue that only happens at night. Surprise! He didn't find anything, either at our house connection (where he re-stripped and reconnected everything), or at the local exchange.

As he couldn't find anything, he suggested we change back to the crappy telstraclear dynalink modem from our TPlink (oh, really? Why isn't it giving us issues in the daytime?), and check our alarm monitoring setup with our alarm company (oh, really? Why isn't it giving us issues in the daytime?) Possibly related: From the dirt on our lawn, and the new plastic dome (with ADSL written on it) over the wires out there it looks like our neighbours recently got a broadband connection.

So, as a thought experiment: what might cause connections to die at certain times of the day and not others? (In case we have issues again tonight.) - Vodafone ADSL 80gb plan

- Type of connection: ADSL2+, main computer accessing it by ethernet. No torrenting or even video streaming!
- Your modem DSL stats (right now, so daytime, when working): sync rate: 8930Kbps down, 921Kbps up, attenuation: 193 db up, 393db down, noise margin: 91db)
- Pakuranga, Auckland.
- Urban
- Not sure if connection is to to an exchange, cabinet or conklin
- Isolation test done at night for everything except the house alarm, which is connected in the alarm box to the phone line and I don't have access. No issues.

TP-link TD-W8960N modem. Will double check that it's running the latest firmware, but unsure why that would only affect things at night.

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#1243465 21-Feb-2015 09:51

Hello... Our robot found some keywords in your post, so here is an automated reply with some important things to note regarding broadband speeds.

If you are posting regarding DSL speeds please check that

- you have reset your modem and router

- your PC (or other PCs in your LAN) is not downloading large files when you are testing

- you are not being throttled by your ISP due to going over the monthly cap

- your tests are always done on an ethernet connection to the router - do not use wireless for testing

- you read this topic and follow the instructions there.

Make sure you provide information for other users to help you. If you have not already done it, please EDIT your post and add this now:

- Your ISP and plan

- Type of connection (ADSL, ADSL2, VDSL)

- Your modem DSL stats (do not worry about posting Speedtest, we need sync rate, attenuation and noise margin)

- Your general location (or street)

- If you are rural or urban

- If you know your connection is to an exchange, cabinet or conklin

- If your connection is to a ULL or wholesale service

- If you have done an isolation test as per the link above

Most of the problems with speed are likely to be related to internal wiring issues. Read this discussion to find out more about this. Your ISP is not intentionally slowing you down today (unless you are on a managed plan). Also if this is the school holidays it's likely you will notice slower than usual speed due to more users online.

A master splitter is required for VDSL2 and in most cases will improve speeds on DSL connections. Regular disconnections can be a monitored alarm or a set top box trying to connect. If there's an alarm connected to your line even if you don't have an alarm contract it may still try to connect so it's worth checking.

I recommend you read these two blog posts:

- Is your premises phone wiring impacting your broadband performance? (very technical)

- Are you receiving a substandard ULL ADSL2+ connection from your ISP?

I am the Geekzone Robot and I am here to help. I am from the Internet. I do not interact. Do not expect other replies from me.

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freitasm

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#1243480 21-Feb-2015 09:52

If you reply to PeterReader's questions people will have more to go with.

Also are you using your connection over WiFi or ethernet?

sbiddle

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#1243503 21-Feb-2015 10:07

With such limited information it's really impossible to offer any advice. First basic step is to establish whether your ADSL or PPP session are dropping. It neither are there are then various other things to look at.

Based on the information you've given so far my first pick would be to look at what you're doing. Are you torrenting and/or saturating your upload?
\

ajkiwi

109 posts

Master Geek

#1243524 21-Feb-2015 10:16

freitasm: If you reply to PeterReader's questions people will have more to go with.

Also are you using your connection over WiFi or ethernet?

Have added details. Ethernet, for the most part. Don't want to make a rookie mistake like that for troubleshooting!

ajkiwi

109 posts

Master Geek

#1243529 21-Feb-2015 10:21

sbiddle: With such limited information it's really impossible to offer any advice. First basic step is to establish whether your ADSL or PPP session are dropping. It neither are there are then various other things to look at.

Based on the information you've given so far my first pick would be to look at what you're doing. Are you torrenting and/or saturating your upload?
\

Haven't been torrenting. Suspect my dodgy neighbours new connection might be FULL of it, though.

Ok, testing the ADSL vs PPP: It's been about 15 years since I've done network diagnostics, how would I go about that on Win 8.1?

Jase2985

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#1243530 21-Feb-2015 10:22

check the lights on the modem :) DSL and Internet lights nromally

hio77

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Lizard Networks

#1243533 21-Feb-2015 10:48

Jase2985: check the lights on the modem :) DSL and Internet lights nromally

this or the log.

Often the modem will also note somewhere the DSL uptime separate to the PPP uptime.

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Spyware

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#1243554 21-Feb-2015 10:59

And given the alarm, please advise whether there is a master splitter filter installed.

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ajkiwi

109 posts

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#1243563 21-Feb-2015 11:21

Spyware: And given the alarm, please advise whether there is a master splitter filter installed.

Just checked alarm company install invoice - yep, installed.

Spyware

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#1243591 21-Feb-2015 11:43

Do the problems coincide with the alarm install or not?? Does the modem have its own dedicated unfiltered outlet???

ajkiwi

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#1243657 21-Feb-2015 13:18

Spyware: Do the problems coincide with the alarm install or not?? Does the modem have its own dedicated unfiltered outlet???

Alarm has been in for years. It's a red herring. Phoned alarm company, nothing in their monitoring setup has changed either. Modem is on a filtered shared plug with phone - we don't have a lot of phone outlets for options there.

Nothing in MY setup or house has changed. It's been a rock stable connection and setup for 2 years+. As of a month ago, with no software, hardware, physical, phone, filter, or modem setup changes at our end, connections have started dropping at night. And ONLY at night, which hints that setup issues in the house are unlikely to be a cause.

coffeebaron

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#1243659 21-Feb-2015 13:26

I wouldn't count on the alarm company installing a master filter. I've seen some alarms installed with a plug in filter only, then most other alarms no filter at all.

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freitasm

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#1243660 21-Feb-2015 13:27

Cables deteriorate. Worked last week may not work this week. Shared filtered doesn't sound like master splitter.

RunningMan

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#1243662 21-Feb-2015 13:31

So you have a master filter and a plug in filter? If so, bin the plug in filter now. If there is a master filter (splitter) then there should only be one outlet in the whole house where the modem will work. Plug it in there and do not plug anything else in to that outlet.

Then, start making a log of your DSL line stats, both during the day when all is good, and at night when it drops.

Also, try to work out what time it drops. Is it at an exact time every day, or more random?

ajkiwi

109 posts

Master Geek

#1243755 21-Feb-2015 16:19

Okay, let's shelve everyone's thoughts about the alarm for the moment. I'm not saying it might not be an issue, but I'd like to go back to my original question. If a connection is rock solid during one period of the day, and timing out randomly in another, what else MIGHT be the cause?

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