[Mike46]

I am running a Netgear Wireless G router and have some questions about a few problems and what the root cause maybe.

My main computer runs the cable modem and wireless network from it I have ran a wired connection to another floor of the house, I also have installed a Netgear Wireless adapter to my laptop. This is a secure network.

Problems

Non Responsive - I idle my laptop into sleep mode, when I wake it sometimes I get the signal back and other times I have to reboot the computer to get the signal back. This has not been a problem when I take the laptop on the road and use a wired connection such as in most Hotels, the computer always wakes and gets a connection, so what is the problem with the USB Adapter being non responsive?

Speed Test - I also noticed that I get different speeds throughout my network, below are the speed test that I have ran on each computer, and my question is why such different speeds when I am using high speed cable.

Main Computer - Runs the modem and router Download Speed = 6553 KBPS - Upload Speed = 449 KBPS

Wired Computer - Download Speed = 3036 KBPS - Upload Speed = 487 KBPS

Lap Top - Download Speed = 1225 KBPS - Upload Speed = 481 KBPS

Seems that the Download speeds are inconsistent but the upload speeds seem to be very close to each other. Any ideas what's up with these problems.

[Wanderer2]

I take it you mean that you have the modem to the main pc and then the wireless router is off the pc? If so this is a nonstandard setup. Should be modem<>router<>all pcs

If this is the case your network is far from secure. Your main pc and its software firewall are your only protection from the internet.

Under these conditions your results look normal. Downloads to laptop/wired pc have to go thru the pc and then the router. You interduced two hops with your network whereas standard config is only one hop. Why your uploads are consistant is a question I can't answer except that its small enough that it hasn't hit the processing threashold it appears downloading is encountering.

Concerning your laptop make sure the usb nic properties are set to not sleep. Usual issue is once the nic goes to sleep it doesn't always wake up.

[Mike46]

I checked and it is set up correct Modem > Router > All Computers. It does show up as a secure network if I use the WiFi on my laptop to check for available networks.

USB Nic Properties - Maybe you can help me here, where do I go to change that setting?

[AMorrison0903]

Wanderer meant that your physical network was unsecured if you set it up to be modem<>PC<>router<>other pcs... I agree with him. Having it setup modem<>router<>all pcs adds an extra layer of protection with the builtin sercurity from the router.

the wireless "sercured" state just means that it is not an open connection, some sort of authentication is taking place in order to gain access.

lastly... in regards to how to configure the usb nic, check to verify that you selected "connect to this device when in range" option,
that can be found in network connections, rightclick on wireless device, go to wireless networks, select your wireless network and select properties... the third tab says connections... its on there.

[Wanderer2]

OK so that means the main pc isn't "running the router and modem"

You do have something weird going on then since both wired pcs [main is wired right?] should get the same relative speeds. It's understandable with wireless to get less since wireless has less bandwidth than wired.

check the wired pcs nic properties. Connecting at 100mb? Drive defragged and plenty of space?

[TerryNet]

The slower speed on the one wired computer could also be a failing cable or NIC, or a software problem. Try switching cables and see if there is a difference. Try Safe Mode with Networking to see if there is a difference.

Wireless interference is one common cause of wireless speeds being apparently less. If you are using "B" to mean bits instead of the more usual Bytes then there is no good reason for your wireless bandwidth to be less than the 6.5 Mbps you get on the one computer. Unless you have a 'b' adapter, which would mean you'd max out at around 4 or 5 Mbps. Try the laptop closer to the router. Try different channels.

[Mike46]

OK, Networking and Wireless Networks are hard for me to understand so please understand I am trying to learn as we go through this. Normally I don't see any slow speed on the #2 wired computer only on the laptop. I have found where to change the NIC Properties so the USB Stick doesn't sleep, the rest of this I still need to learn more about network speeds and how to set them up. I am really surprised at the speed of the second wired computer which is my best and fastest computer overall. So by these specs. it appears that it could be even faster, the speed test says its getting Download Speed = 3036 KBPS - Upload Speed = 487 KBPS that's about half of the main computer, so how do the network specs. say its only pulling 10.0 mbps - Maybe I need to run a system information program on all of them to gather more information.

Main Computer = Connected, Firewalled - SMC EZ Card 10/100 PCI


Lap Top = Wireless Connected, Firewalled - Netgear WG1111V2 @ 54mbps


Wired Computer - Realtrek Ethernet NIC PCI Slot Speed 10.0 mbps

[Mike46]

Well the wireless adapter is a 54 Mbps USB 2.0 Adapter WG111V2 so I don't think it will pull more than 54Mbps since that's all is specked out to give me. I found the NIC Properties on my wired networks but not on this Wireless Adapter the option to not sleep is not there. I still don't understand Wired computer #2 and its slower speed I assumed since it was coming right from the Netgear router that it would be the same speed as Wired Computer #1. Maybe changing to a different channel is something that I can try.

[AMorrison0903]

no worries on trying to learn, we will definitely help.

keep in mind that internet speed & network speed are completely different topics. your network speed will generally be alot faster than your internet speed. mbps is alot faster than kbps... 1mbps = 1024kbps. When your pc first connects to a network and says "connected at 10mbps", that is referring to your LOCAL NETWORK CONNECTION to your router, not internet speed. It may not connect at 100mbps (or gigabit) if it isnt configured correctly or if router/nic doesnt support it.

as far as internet speed goes, i have to agree with terrynet... if you want... take your good computer and swap locations with your main computer and see if that helps speed. if so, it could have been a failing cable OR a failing port on your router. If it doesnt help, it may in fact be your nic card going bad.

changing channels only refers to wireless channels, you do that in case other routers are broadcasting wireless signals on same channel and may cause interference, generally, you would want them 6 channels apart, in terms of for a business anyways...

-Andrew

[TheOutcaste]

Note: Using 1 M = 1000 K just to keep it simple

Originally Posted by Mike46

Main Computer - Runs the modem and router Download Speed = 6553 KBPS - Upload Speed = 449 KBPS

Wired Computer - Download Speed = 3036 KBPS - Upload Speed = 487 KBPS

Lap Top - Download Speed = 1225 KBPS - Upload Speed = 481 KBPS

Looks like your cable service is 8 megabits/sec (8 Mb/s) Note the small b for bits. 8Mb is sometimes shown as 8000 Kbps . If converted to Bytes (Capital B) it would be about 800 KB/s.
6000-7000 is typical for 8Mbps service, so the main PC is looking good. The 2nd PC is slow, and the wireless is really slow.

Originally Posted by Mike46

Main Computer = Connected, Firewalled - SMC EZ Card 10/100 PCI
Lap Top = Wireless Connected, Firewalled - Netgear WG1111V2 @ 54mbps
Wired Computer - Realtrek Ethernet NIC PCI Slot Speed 10.0 mbps

For the wireless, your cable is 8Mbps, the adapter is 54Mb/s maximum, so it is capable of using the full speed. The actual speed of the connection may be much less if the signal is weak or there is interference. It can go as low as 1 or 2 Mbps, which would give speed tests of 1000-2000 Kbps.

I don't know enough wireless to help too much with that, but wondering if the 54Mbps connection you are seeing is the actual connection speed, or just the "possible speed". I'd expect to see 40-50 Mbps or less depending on distance from the router.

It's possible to be too close to the router as well. If you are testing with the laptop sitting next to the router, try it when you are 6-10 feet away and see if it makes a difference.

For the wired PC with the Realtek card, the problem could be the 10.0 mbps speed. You don't show it, but it could be the card is set to half-duplex instead of full duplex, which would cut the speed by half or a little more.

On that PC, right click My Computer, click Manage then Click Device Manager
Expand Network Adapters on the right, then double click the Realtek card.
Not sure of the tab name, but check advanced or link for a Link Speed/Duplex Mode setting. When it's highlighted, check the value. If it's set to 10.0 Mbps/Half-duplex that's the problem. Change it to Auto. Close out back to the desktop. You might have to reboot, do so if needed and test again.

HTH

Jerry

[Mike46]

The Link Speed / Duplex Mode Setting is on Auto Negotiation - Should it be left there or should it be change to the 100 Mbps Full Duplex? Here are all the values available and how they are currently set.

Link Down Power Saving - Disable
Link Speed/Duplex Mode - Auto Negotiation
Network Address - Not Present
Optimal Performance - Disable
Receive Buffer Size - 64K bytes
Wake Up on ARP/PNG - Enable
Wake Up on Link Change - Disable
Wake Up using APM Mode - Disable

Values on Link Speed / Dulex Mode Are
Auto Negotiation
100 Mbps Full Duplex
100 Mbps Half Duplex
10Mbps Full Duplex
10 Mbps Half Duplex

[TheOutcaste]

If it's on Auto it should be connecting at 100 Mbps, not 10 Mbps.
I don't know if there is a tab that shows the current speed/duplex settings for that card, but would be interesting to see if it's also on half duplex (My intel card has a Link tab in Device Manager Properties, and my 3Com cards have diagnostic software that will show current link speed and duplex mode)

If it's connecting at only 10, then something is not working right.
It could be because of a bad/mis-wired cable, or a bad port on the router.
You can try a different router port easy enough; if you have a different cable try that as well. You can try setting the card to 100 Full duplex or 10 Full and see if that makes a difference. If the cable is bad or mis-wired it may not connect at all at 100 though.

You said you ran a cable to another floor -- if you installed jacks in the walls, double check the wiring, it's pretty easy to get the wires mixed up; if you happened to swap the white-green and white-orange wires at each end, it'll connect at 10, but may not work too well, and may not connect at 100 at all. If it's just a long cable with jacks on each end, double check the plug wiring; a common error is to have pins 3-4 on the same wire pair instead of 3-6.
Also make sure the cable was at least CAT-5.

If it's just a cable tacked to the base board, make sure the cable didn't get squeezed by the cable staples and that it doesn't make any sharp bends. Minimum bend radius is 4 times the cable diameter, or 1 inch for 1/4 inch cable.

Good pictures of both plug and jack here: http://www.swhowto.com/CAT5_Ch1.htm

It could also be a bad network card as well. Moving the Wired PC to the same location as the Main PC and using it's cable would confirm it's not the card, which would just leave us with a cable issue.

If the wiring was pulled through the walls-floor, it's possible the cable was pulled too hard, which can damage it. Tension when pulling cables should not exceed 25 LBS.
If it runs alongside power cables, it may be picking up interference.

Only way to check that would be to run another cable. You could try the Main PC at the location the Wired PC is at. If both get slower speeds there, but not when next to the router, definitely suspect the cable.

You might try enabling the Optimal Performance setting to see if that makes a difference.

HTH

Jerry

[Mike46]

I was working on my computer that I hard wired from my router to another work room and I have a Linksys 5 Port Work-group Hub that I use to work on other computers and can have up to 5 on the Internet. I unplugged the cable to it and directly plugged it into my computer and I am now achieving maximum performance just like my main computer. I pulled speeds of 6874 kb/s for download speed but the upload speeds still stayed about the same. The laptop with the wireless USB stick still no luck speeding it up, I had to pull my main computer tonight for an upgrade so the laptop is running straight wired and when tested it was pulling the maximum also.

[jmwills]

The speed differences you see are normal. The 54mbps is the transfer speed within your local LAN. You can never exceed the download speed your ISP has set for you.
Wireless is a convenience and should never be compared to a wired machine as a measure of performance.

[TheOutcaste]

Aha, first mention of the hub.
If it's a 10Mb only hub, instead of 10/100, that might be the problem for that one PC. I'd still expect a 10Mbps hub to be able to sustain 5000-7000 if there is only one device connected to it. But if it's also a half duplex hub instead of a full duplex, it will be slower.
Need to check the specs on the hub, if it is full duplex and/or 10/100, it may not be negotiating the LAN connection properly.
You might try setting the card from Auto Negotiation to 10Mbps Full Duplex, or if it's a 10/100 hub, 100Mbps Full Duplex.

If it is a full duplex hub, there could be a problem with it. Try a different port. If that doesn't work, you may want to replace it with a 10/100 switch.

I wouldn't expect the upload speeds to have changed much. With 8000Mbps down, 512 up is common, and 450-490 would be what to expect.

HTH

Jerry

I wouldn't expect the upload speeds to change much. I'm guessing your cable service is 8000down/512 up