Downloading problems

takes forever!

[henry0]

I am presently downloading from my server a 6 megs cart to a local file for backup purpose
It takes forever, already 40 min and counting!
Where should I start aiming my ire at?
Comcast cable where I paid for the second tier (the speedier and most expensive proposition
Or my wellknown host where I run a dedicated server.

BTW I use FTP pro
It starts running like crazy then stops, goes again for a little packet, pauses etc….

[Demaestro]

What's the rate of transfer? If you are getting 40-50 kbs per second then you are doing ok. Depending on the size of your file it could take a day to transfer. I had to tranfer 4.3 gig over the internet the other week and it took just under 20 hours.

[Demaestro]

Whoa. Sorry I just realized that you said is was 6 meg.

Yikes!

I would assume that Comcast is working (even though I am sure there are many times when they aren't) and I would start with the host. Maybe you can even do some tests on your own to see if you can pinpoint it and then use your test data against what ever unqualified person you end up talking to who will most likely try to convince you nothing is wrong.

[rocknbil]

Since no one's answered, I will relate my experience in this: (edit: well at the time, no one had. :-) )

I am on a satellite connection, and although that's very different than cable, it is still a shared bandwidth connection.

The first thing you need to check is your local connection. Does it connect to your computer via USB or ethernet? If USB, not likely there's a problem there. If Ethernet, there are a hundred different things that can slow down your connection. If you can verify your local 'net is running at 100baseT, this is most likely not the problem - UNLESS you're using Windows Internet Connection Sharing. I was forced into this at one point and it is a total nightmare and one of the most broken pieces of software offered by MS.

The easiest to figure out is your hosting service. Visit any of the online speed tests out there and run a few tests. Usually this test is run by downloading chunks of temporary data, so what you're doing is downloading from other hosting services. Try to find one that's got a good chunk, 6MB or bigger, and run it. Now try doing the same thing with your site, if the download speeds/time are the same, it's not your hosting service. If the DL tests are better than the site - it's likely it's the hosting service. Try several speed tests before you pick up the phone and start screaming though. :-)

Back to my satellite connection: "unnamed satellite provider" has what's called a "Fair Access Policy." If you use the standard plan and your download in a 12 hour period exceeds the limit of their FAP, you get choked back to mere bits per second. I encountered this when I tried to download the latest version of Acrobat, a single file which exceeded the FAP. After upgrading to their "pro" plan, which supports larger downloads and when you call support you actually get to talk to a TECH instead of someone in India, this problem went away.

So the reason for the long-winded explanation, see if your cable provider has anything like an FAP that may be in effect.

Second suspect would still be the provider - I do believe cable service is still shared bandwidth, and additionally they may have proxy servers in between slowing down your transfers. Does it worsen or get better at different hours of the day? I notice lightspeed differences between peak hours (right after kids get out of school around 4PM up to 11PM) and my normal creative hours of 11PM-3AM. :-) If so, then the bandwidth is crowded and possibly oversold. This is REALLY BAD if you're paying for a premium service, but it does you no good is everyone else is also.

Also although your cable access is through ComCast, most likely they are buying that bandwidth from a larger backbone, such as Qwest. It may be the backbone and nothing they can do about it.

May not be very helpful but gives you a few avenues to explore so you can complain with some authority. :-)

[henry0]

Thank you for the pointers
I will run a few test

my problem actually is now both ways
took 2.5 hours to d-load 6 megs and reload the same 6 megs

rate was at some point down to 2.9K
YES 2.9K

[henry0]

Need to run the tests but re-read your post
Yes I did notice a huge speed dif between mid PM and very early AM (5 to 7) seems we are speaking bottleneck here.

BTW which speed test would you suggest using?

Thank you for sharing your experience

[henry0]

Well, quite interesting, did some searches and did run a speed test

results:
Download: 700 K sec
Upload: 45 K sec

I will very well live with that :)
However my FTP Pro was reading: 2.9 K sec!

So I guess it points toward a host problem (I run a premium dedicated server)

[pageoneresults]

Most likely a host issue.

Download speed: 4717 kilobits per second

lol! I think I'm doing okay too. ;)

[Demaestro]

So I took a peak at the internet traffic report and it looks like there are a few areas in north america where the index is in the red.

Three in fact are not doing well

core-c7fe00.aspware.net in Texas (Dallas) packet loss 100%
core-router.centramedia.net Texas (Pampa) packet loss 75%
gate.netwrx1.com packet loss 68%

If you are routing through any of these backbones this could be why.

Source:
[internettrafficreport.com...]