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7. Internet Service

Packetlost or dropped packets can result in highly noticeable performance issues or jitter with streaming technologies, voice over IP, online gaming and videoconferencing, and will affect all other network applications to a degree however it is important to also note that just because their is some packetloss does not always indicate that there is a problem.

There are two different types of packet loss, first there is inbound packet loss, this is incoming traffic that coming from another network to your router / modem. Then there is outbound packet loss, which goes from your router to another source.

Some of the best tools for testing outbound packet loss is via the command prompt, this command would be called pathping.

To initiate this command first click start, run, cmd and when the command prompt opens type pathping rr.com

Pathping is a TCP/IP based utility (command-line tool) that provides useful information about network latency and network loss at intermediate hops between a source address and a destination address. It does this by sending echo requests via ICMP and analyzing the results. ICMP stands for Internet Control Message Protocol. ICMP is an extension to the Internet Protocol (IP - part of the TCP/IP protocol suite) defined by RFC 792. You can use a tool like PathPing to see not only if your packets are making it across the network, but are taking the correct preferred path, or flowing over the alternate link, which would indicate a misconfiguration or a downed node. PathPing will also let you see if you have any bottlenecks on the network and if you have any latency issues.

If the milliseconds rate were at a very high number, such as 500ms, then you might consider having a bandwidth issue. PathPing doesnt only verify connectivity to a destination host, but also, it shows you how your traffic is getting there, and how fast its going, how much resistance its encountering over the wide area network which is a very common choke point.

For more information about PathPing or How to use Pathping Reference: »www.windowsnetworking.co ··· ing.html

RFC 792: »www.faqs.org/rfcs/rfc792.htm


How to test Inbound Packetloss
You can remotely login to another host and test pathping to your router. Or you can use such tools that are provided here on DSLReports, such as the Line Monitoring tool.

by X Digital X2 See Profile edited by dbmaven See Profile
last modified: 2011-12-18 15:09:22


A multimedia terminal adapter (MTA), or Home Phone modem, operates much the same as a cable modem, but an MTA can deliver Home Phone service in addition to High Speed Internet.

MTAs have a backup battery that powers the MTA for several hours in the event of an extended power outage.

by BHNtechXpert See Profile edited by dbmaven See Profile
last modified: 2012-02-12 21:13:14

To reboot a modem or router:

1) Unplug the device's power cord.
2) Plug it back in.

To reboot an MTA:

1) Unplug the MTA's power cord.
2) Remove the battery from the MTA. Refer to the MTA reference guide.
3) Reinsert the battery.
4) Plug the MTA back in.

If power cycling both a router and a modem/MTA:

1) Unplug the router.
2) Complete the power cycling steps for the modem or MTA.
3) Wait until the modem or MTA has fully initialized.
4) Plug the router back in.

by BHNtechXpert See Profile edited by dbmaven See Profile
last modified: 2012-02-12 21:13:49