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Krizom

10 posts

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#279572 24-Oct-2020 01:03
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Hi! This is my first time posting so I apologies in advance if I'm using the forum wrong.
My current situation has been going for months as I tried to receive help from my ISP but this is also the first time they encounter this issue so I am coming to this forum site for help.
I found this issue as I only moved into this house months ago and the previous owners were an old couple so I figured they didn't noticed any issues with their internet usage. extra info: the ONT and modem is located at the kitchen
There may be some things I may have missed out. if I remember the extra information I may have left out, ill see myself update it.

 

Issue:
When I'm connected by either ethernet or WIFI. the internet seems to not connect to servers or services properly. most applications would tell me that its a networking issue such as my bank app or a game that requires a stable network connection, even google related apps and services have trouble loading for me. at this point its unbearable to use the home internet to where I resort to using my personal phone data to access or connect to certain stuff. (note im still connected on the wifi, its just the actual connection between the device/modem to the servers that seems to be the problem.)
I'm currently on the FibreMax plan with Spark (changed from the Fibre100 Plan as it was a potential solution. it was not) and I'm getting around 40 to 600 Mbps DL and around 1-300+ Max Mbps for Upload
-Connection is unstable. most apps, sites are telling me to check my connection or not load at all until a couple refreshes or app relaunches. game wise, its error: check your connection, connection to the server failed, error messages regarding to either networking error or firewall, or it connects but reconnects every few minutes.
-when connected to said site, server, service, etc. it feels fast thanks to the speed. but randomly the connection just feels like its either throttled hard or its fully cut.
-Examples:
-Steam, when downloading, its fairly good. but sometimes download seems to die out to 0 mbps randomly. minutes later it goes back up to its usual speed.
-Youtube (mobile app) also does this by either allowing 1080p videos or not loading the actual app at all.
-Facebook Messenger seems to do this a lot, the app sometimes doesn't send at all. if i send multiple texts at once, it takes a couple seconds to minutes to send and sends all messages in one batch at once when the app decides to connect.
-Twitter wont load anything but videos sometimes.
-Microsoft Teams will reconnect me multiple times during meetings randomly.
-Certain emails takes minutes if not half an hour to send a single email.
-Mobile Games wise, Pokemon Masters Ex is a great way to check if the internet still has the problem or not as it immediately tells me to check my connection. Genshin Impact either says network error or I'm in the game but i reconnect every second or minute.
(Examples above i have tested in other networks and shows no problem loading at all. tested both on pc and mobile.)
-Speedtest shows high speeds. but connection issue still persists despite high mbps.
-Speedtest sometimes show random dips during test such as going to like 100mbps then dipping randomly halfway to 0. not sure if its normal or has anything to do with the issue but that's there.
-TraceRT in CMD shows either steady pings every hop, the *** results, or it just the cmd just doesn't load the first hop.
-All devices, mobile phones and computers shows the same issue when on this network.

 

Things I've Tried:
-Anything Modem related like changing DNS gateway and changing the 2.4gz WIFI channels to 11 or 9 was troubleshooted by both spark's customer service representative and their technicians over the phone and TeamViewer. (vague i know. but if there's a certain thing you think might have not been touched in the ip admin panel from the technicians. let me know and ill doublecheck if I did troubleshoot it or not)
-Tested on the Huawei HG659b(previous modem before house change), 2 Spark's Smart Modems.
the The Huawei performed worse than the smart modems however all 3 still shows the same issues.
-ONT was changed from the Model type 100 or 200 to the Model type 300
-checked if it was any connected devices that was affecting the network and confirmed was not the cause
-changed the cat5e cord(from the smart modem box) connected from the ONT to the modem
-Spark has told me there's no issues from their system
-Chorus has told me there was no issues in their circuitry
-Changed from Fibre100 to FibreMax incase it helps change the profiling in the chorus network.
NOTE: troubleshooting has been down on both hardwired and wireless pc/laptops and my mobile phones.

the other thing I was recommended to try by the technician was to change the location of the modem, however this will take some time as I don't have a long ethernet cat5e or cat6 cable, only short and I recently have no time to troubleshoot as much as I was able to during lockdown. I was also told by the technicians a third party modem could potentially fix it however without a guarantee fix. I'm not willing to purchase one for the sake of troubleshooting due to cost reasons.
Another thing is that my previous house I used to live in wasn't as bad as this. the only issue was the network's mbps speed as the Huawei modem spark gave out was terrible. but it was never as bad what I described right now.

 

If there's certain information on the issue you want me to provide let me know.
its been a solid couple months and Spark and myself has hit a brick wall with trying to troubleshoot this issue. if any of you know or have encountered a similar problem to what I described, I will appreciate all the help and potential solutions.
Thank you.


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toejam316
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  #2591085 24-Oct-2020 06:56
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Do you have the same issues connected directly to the equipment via a network cable, and do you have the same issues standing within 1m of the router on wifi? Also, if you're in the wider Hamilton area, PM me and I might be able to give you a hand with some in person troubleshooting if need be.





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RunningMan
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  #2591089 24-Oct-2020 07:30
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Welcome to GZ. One thing that is a red flag to me is you mentioning the Huawei 659b has always been terrible for speed, even at your previous place. While this router does have it's issues (primarily the number of devices connected at any one time), speed shouldn't be one of them. Assuming you're in a Chorus area, given the ONT type, and they have obviously been involved as well.

 

A few questions:

 

You mentioned traceroute not loading the first hop - can you post a screenshot or similar - is the first hop your router, or external (depends where it was run from). What DNS are you using and is this set at router or device level? Any pattern to the problems - time of day/week/temperature/weather etc? Is there any change to the optical LED on the ONT when you have the problem?


cyril7
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  #2591097 24-Oct-2020 08:12
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Hi what you describe is more like poor wireless, yet you say directly connected to the router via a cable also is poor.

Can you disconnect all wireless devices and have only a single wired pc connected and run ping and traceroute tests.

Cyril



robjg63
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  #2591107 24-Oct-2020 09:22
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Welcome to geekzone.

I am not sure of the details, but I think if you have a laptop or pc with an Ethernet port, you should be able to connect that directly to the port on the ONT.
You have to set all the connection details - authentication details, VLAN settings etc.
I think you can do this on spark - hopefully someone else can clarify.
If you can, then at least you can test directly at the connection and remove routers from the equation.




Nothing is impossible for the man who doesn't have to do it himself - A. H. Weiler


timmmay
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  #2591109 24-Oct-2020 09:28
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Fiber is usually rock solid, but if it hasn't been done properly it could be unreliable. The first step in the trouble shooting is to use a single ethernet connection from your router to your computer to assess reliability, making sure not to use WiFi. If ethernet is unreliable next steps are to replace the router, then have the fiber checked. If ethernet works fine you have a wifi issue which is easier to solve.


sparkz25
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  #2591221 24-Oct-2020 10:47
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Krizom:
I was also told by the technicians a third party modem could potentially fix it however without a guarantee fix.

 

 

I think all the troubleshooting that you have done so far is pointing to the router you are currently using.

 

Replace the router would be the next step in this process, where are you located? someone here might be able to loan you a router to test with.

 

Have you had a read of the router guide Here?  that @michalemurfy wrote up some time ago, if not i would start there.

 

I would suggest trying out a mikrotik.


sbiddle
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  #2591224 24-Oct-2020 10:59
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sparkz25:

 

I would suggest trying out a mikrotik.

 

 

For somebody who doesn't have good networking skills this would be a very bad idea.

 

 




robjg63
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  #2591237 24-Oct-2020 12:02
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Doesn't the OP say they have tried 3 different routers?

Assuming they keep wifi out of the equation while testing, its probably not the router(s) if they have tried 3 with the same result.

While fibre is usually very solid, there are still things in the network that cause problems as well as screw ups in configuration.

Really wish chorus (or someone) had a little black box they could hook up directly to the ONT port to test and log a connection for a prolonged period of time. Would save a lot of people from pulling their hair out in frustration.




Nothing is impossible for the man who doesn't have to do it himself - A. H. Weiler


Krizom

10 posts

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  #2592002 26-Oct-2020 13:17
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RunningMan:

 

Welcome to GZ. One thing that is a red flag to me is you mentioning the Huawei 659b has always been terrible for speed, even at your previous place. While this router does have it's issues (primarily the number of devices connected at any one time), speed shouldn't be one of them. Assuming you're in a Chorus area, given the ONT type, and they have obviously been involved as well.

 

A few questions:

 

You mentioned traceroute not loading the first hop - can you post a screenshot or similar - is the first hop your router, or external (depends where it was run from). What DNS are you using and is this set at router or device level? Any pattern to the problems - time of day/week/temperature/weather etc? Is there any change to the optical LED on the ONT when you have the problem?

 


sorry my bad for the late reply. been busy since the post.
for the tracert problem. again it was either it works, it gets stuck halfway with the *** in place or the pasted result below where it stays like that for a couple of minutes.
 1     1 ms     4 ms    <1 ms

DNS ive either used the standard default it sets when you factory reset the modem or 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4

the pattern is very random at best if not consistent in regards to connection.

the ont i havent really checked but not that i know of.


Krizom

10 posts

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  #2592003 26-Oct-2020 13:19
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toejam316:

 

Do you have the same issues connected directly to the equipment via a network cable, and do you have the same issues standing within 1m of the router on wifi? Also, if you're in the wider Hamilton area, PM me and I might be able to give you a hand with some in person troubleshooting if need be.

 



both via network cable using a standard cat5e cable and wifi. i would love the direct help but unfortunately i live in auckland. 


Krizom

10 posts

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  #2592006 26-Oct-2020 13:23
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cyril7: Hi what you describe is more like poor wireless, yet you say directly connected to the router via a cable also is poor.

Can you disconnect all wireless devices and have only a single wired pc connected and run ping and traceroute tests.

Cyril

Its confusing to say but its more like. connection towards the modem wise its fine wifi and especially cable. but when using the internet itself its just not stable at all.
the disconnection and having the one single wired pc with the ping test an tracert has been done with the technician with spark and unfortunely he couldnt really figure out anything.


Krizom

10 posts

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  #2592007 26-Oct-2020 13:26
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robjg63: Welcome to geekzone.

I am not sure of the details, but I think if you have a laptop or pc with an Ethernet port, you should be able to connect that directly to the port on the ONT.
You have to set all the connection details - authentication details, VLAN settings etc.
I think you can do this on spark - hopefully someone else can clarify.
If you can, then at least you can test directly at the connection and remove routers from the equation.


im not an expert at networking sorry in advance but does the ONT basically act as a modem like how for ADSL and VDSL you would require a modem as a medium and a router on top of that?
also i will try what you described. not sure if spark has any idea though as they told me anything on chorus side is normally out of their knowledge but ill see what the technician says when he gets back to me.


RunningMan
8879 posts

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  #2592008 26-Oct-2020 13:29
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Can you post a copy of a traceroute when things are working, and another when not.


Krizom

10 posts

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  #2592009 26-Oct-2020 13:29
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timmmay:

 

Fiber is usually rock solid, but if it hasn't been done properly it could be unreliable. The first step in the trouble shooting is to use a single ethernet connection from your router to your computer to assess reliability, making sure not to use WiFi. If ethernet is unreliable next steps are to replace the router, then have the fiber checked. If ethernet works fine you have a wifi issue which is easier to solve.

 


the spark technician and i have gone through those steps. for the router part. i cant really afford to buy one at the moment unless its a guaranteed solution.


Krizom

10 posts

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  #2592011 26-Oct-2020 13:34
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robjg63: Doesn't the OP say they have tried 3 different routers?

Assuming they keep wifi out of the equation while testing, its probably not the router(s) if they have tried 3 with the same result.

While fibre is usually very solid, there are still things in the network that cause problems as well as screw ups in configuration.

Really wish chorus (or someone) had a little black box they could hook up directly to the ONT port to test and log a connection for a prolonged period of time. Would save a lot of people from pulling their hair out in frustration.

i mean what i have was spark's usual hand down modem router hybrid they have. the huawei they had years ago and the new smart modem as they call it. as much as its fine to use them, its definitely not as reliable as an asus or tp-link setup. but yeah in my own personal thought i thought that its something in between the modem and the server thats causing issues such as messed up configs or profiling however my knowledge in networking are beginner at best.


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