Information on 'Tweaking' your TCP stack
Tweaks : Can you max out your connection speed?Your PC may not be tuned properly to take full advantage your full connection speed. For those with high speed connections (faster cable networks, FiOS, etc), tuning your TCP stack is necessary if you wish to fully utilise the available bandwidth in one single download.
WINDOWS VISTA USERS: Vista TCP tuning (tweaking) is NOT advisable. The Vista TCP stack does a reasonable job of tuning the receive window dynamically, there are no known registry tweaks that would optimize Vista better than its default configuration.
Our tweak tester will monitor a test download and then suggest which settings you should modify, and why.
Tweaking may fixSlow download speeds
Download slower than upload speed
Skipping in TCP streaming video/audio
Connection issues to some sites
| Tweaking will not fixPacket loss
Multiplayer games over UDP
Your ping time
PC freezes
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Java Tweak ToolAttention Satellite Users: DO NOT USE THIS TOOL - instead read the Satellite User FAQ on the subject of TWEAKING, also check out the Direcway Satellite Users Forum
| «« No JAVA APPLET displayed? Please see FAQ entry 309: "the JAVA applets do not work"
«« BUSY? The tester is limited to certain maximum number of simultaneous tests at a time. It is also limited to 5 tests on one IP within a few hours.
«« RESULTS BUTTON DOESN'T DO ANYTHING?
The usual problem is that one or more PC 'security' programs (Zone Alarm PRO, Norton etc) are blocking this tool, and not alerting you. Disabling them should enable the test to function correctly.
«« HANGS DURING TEST?
Please make sure your browser can make requests to port 8085 and 8086. A firewall installed on your PC may block web requests to all ports except 80 and 443 without pop-up notification. This will halt the tweak test.
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Tweaks : Is your PC configured for broadband?Your PC may not be tuned to take full advantage of broadband speeds. Modifying your configuration to maximise performance is known as tweaking. For many users, tweaking is a misnomer as it implies subtle improvements. Fixing huge problems is more accurate!Tweaking may fixSlow download speeds
Download slower than upload speed
Skipping in TCP streaming video/audio
Blank web pages
Connection issues to some sites
| Tweaking will not fixPacket loss
Multiplayer games over UDP
Your ping time
Regular PC freezes
Inherited hair loss
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The unique tweak and line-health-check applet
| «« No JAVA APPLET displayed? Please see FAQ entry 309: "the JAVA applets do not work"
key to messages
Need help? - Read the Tweaks FAQ!
Still stuck? - visit the tweak forum. To copy paste detail into a post, check VERBOSE, run the test, CLICK DRAG to highlight all results text, copy or CONTROL-C, and then PASTE or control-v into the forum posting area. |
Message Key
Too many tests to this IP - 3 maximum tests within one period
Test server busy - We're doing more than 1 test per second. Please try at a less busy time.
We recommend you leave everything as it is - GREAT! you're AOK
Some tests failed - One or more recommendations will follow
Your RWIN XXX is much too low - See tweaks/RWIN
Your RWIN XXX is too low - See tweaks/RWIN
Yes we show a packet-loss problem - Try the line quality tester
You are not pingable - some key tests were skipped. Possibly you have a firewall (Zonealarm, Linksys) that is blocking even ping response from host monitor.dslreports.com
Your MTU is too small - use DrTCP.exe (windows)
Your MTU is a little small - use DrTCP.exe (windows)
Your MTU is more than 1500 - use DrTCP.exe (windows)
(less than your advertised MSS) - fix other problems before worrying about this
Unknown TCP Option XX set - for information purposes only.
Problem, Path MTU Discovery is OFF See this forum thread or use DrTCP.exe
test server is offline at the moment - there is a problem at our end, come back at another time.
Wide variation in ping - your ping time is not very stable from second to second
Unusually high average ping time - your ping time is more than 500ms .. are you living overseas?
TOS flag is XX on data packets What is a TOS flag? reading rooms - protocol
Is tweaking worth it?We believe that we cover the most important speed optimizations (tweaks) you need to worry about. When tweaking, the less you have to do, the better.. avoid 3rd party utilities or registry files that do not have adequate documentation: they could easily make things worse and may not be easily reversed.
Tweaking for "Dummies"a) If it aint broke, dont fix it. We assume you know the speed your line is supposed to be. Do a speed test here. Check the answer. Is it 80% of your rated line speed or better? Yes? good thats as good as it gets! You're done tweaking. Dont screw around with your PC anymore, get on with life. If you must know why you cannot get 100%, read About Speed. If you are determined to reach the theory max of 87%, you better be prepared to read everything you can get your hands on. If you are on a cable modem, you may not even know what the theory max is -- as long as you're getting more than 1mbit, be happy!
b) Do you get poor speed? day and night? ok .. next step .. dont trust our speed test! Test your speed at other speed test sites. Use FTP if you know how, from ftp.netscape.com, or download a game demo from www.download.com. Dont forget when you see "k/sec" transfer rates reported by your browser or FTP, multiply by 10 to compare to the line speed you think you bought. Test at off-peak times.. there is nothing to "tweak" if the server, or the net, or your ISP is congested!
c) Are your results poor no matter where you try? are you on a fast line, perhaps 600kbps or better, but are seeing much less during even long downloads? alright! .. perhaps the DefaultRcvWindow trick will help! go to the windows tweaks page, and scroll down to the table of registry files. Find your OS in the left hand column.. It is probably Windows 98.. (old versions of windows 95 only, use the Windows 95 row).
Use right button over the appropriate file in the Large column, and pick SAVE AS.. save it somewhere on your C drive. Now use windows file manager to find the directory you put this update file in, and DOUBLE-CLICK it. A prompt should appear asking, basically, if its ok to import this into your registry. Say Yes, and reboot.
d) Now go back to step (a). You would have done well to note the speed test results, so you can compare your new "washed" computer. Is it now faster, perhaps even 80% or more of your line speed? great, you're done! get on with life!
e) Still stuck? at this point, there is no simple answer. Perhaps your MTU is wrong.. Perhaps your DSL modem has not been configured properly and is at a lower speed, perhaps your line has noise, and that is causing problems, perhaps your cable modem line has RF interference, perhaps you are on PPPoE and the MTU is too high, perhaps perhaps perhaps .. If you suspect MTU problems, use the Registry 101 topic to see how to search your registry for MTU values, then you will probably have to post a question to the board, giving as much information as you can, and someone will help.
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