How to Diagnose Internet Speed Problems

Is your Internet access moving at a snail's pace? A little detective work might uncover why.

When it comes to Internet speed, life on the information superhighway can be much like driving on a regular highway. On some days, the Internet may seem amazingly fast, while on other days, your downloads and Web surfing can slow to a complete crawl due to Internet "traffic jams" that occur during peak usage periods. If your bandwidth speed is remarkably slower today than it was yesterday, there are ways to find out exactly why. Fortunately, sleuthing out your Internet speed problems is a fairly easy task.

Instructions

Diagnose Your Home Network

1. Check programs running on your computers. Verify that there are no programs running that are using excess bandwidth. For instance, if you have a BitTorrent client running, change its settings to download and upload data at a slower rate, to give other applications more speed. Shut down your computer and start another computer or laptop to see whether your connection is still slow; if not, your first computer is likely the cause of your speed problem.

2. Scan all computers for malware or spyware. Run an antivirus program or a spyware cleaner on all machines to make sure they are not surreptitiously transmitting data without your knowledge or consent. If you get any infection alarms or spyware alerts, this might be responsible for your Internet speed problems.

3. Restart your router or modem. Unplug your router, and DSL modem or cable modem, then plug them back in. If your router or modems are the cause of your bandwidth issues, re-initializing them will result in your bandwidth being restored.

Troubleshoot Your Internet Connection

1. Download files from various different websites. Try downloading a large file, such as the latest copy of Firefox. Log into your favorite email service. Browse an online video site like Hulu. Try all these different websites, and if one performs quickly while another one is slow, then the diagnosis for your Internet speed problem is that your connection is fine and that individual websites are being slowed down by excessive demand.

2. Perform an Internet speed test. Surf to an Internet speed testing website such as Ookla's Speedtest service to test the speed of your connection. Make sure no other applications across your entire network are using the Internet at the time. Choose the speed test server closest to you. This should tell you whether your Internet service provider is overloaded; if so, there is little you can do but wait it out.

3. Call your Internet service provider. If your Internet connectivity is chronically slow during most or all times of the day, it is entirely possible that there may be connection issues affecting your entire neighborhood. Call your Internet service provider and ask whether something is wrong on their end.

References

• Internet Speed Test

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish
• Get Firefox
• Hulu