14 Tips to Fix Slow Internet

4/26/2022

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Slow internet connections scourge anyone attempting to work, study, or entertain themselves at home.

Dropped connections, blockages, lagging multimedia streaming and downloads, and poor speeds are all frequent issues with residential internet services, and they may not be your provider’s fault.

Reasons for Slow Wifi Connection

  • Slow internet
  • Your router is cheap
  • You don’t know your Mbps
  • You don’t have enough horsepower
  • It would help if you had a better plan
  • You’re on an overloaded channel
  • Time for a modem reset
  • Your WiFi is in a wrong spot
  • Other devices are causing interference
  • Background programs are eating up bandwidth
  • Your computer has a virus

How to Fix Slow Internet Connection?

1. Caps on bandwidth and throttling

Your Internet Service Provider (ISP) may have provided you with a low-cost membership to check your email or YouTube videos at home. Suppose you have constant speed problems and require a connection that can manage VPNs and intelligent home devices. One child uses Zoom to attend a virtual class in a remote Microsoft Teams work meeting, and another is gaming. This is the preferable thing you should consider.

Before looking at your hardware, make sure you’re on a plan to handle today’s diverse assortment of devices and their bandwidth demands. A minimum speed of 30Mbps is suggested. While many places are only served by cable, it should result in faster speeds if fiber is available.

If you utilize too much bandwidth, your internet provider may have set a limit on your connection. If that’s the case, you’ll need to contact them to remedy the issue, and you may need to renegotiate your contract or move providers entirely.

2. Know your Internet Speed

If you already have a fiber package and there’s no cause why you’re encountering sluggish internet speeds due to what you’re paying for, visit Speedtest.net or Fast.com for a real-time review of your connection.

If you spend for a service with speeds up to 30Mbps but only get 2 or 3Mbps, it could be trouble with your ISP.

It’s worth checking in with your provider to see if there’s an outage in your area; you may do so by organizing your ISP’s name and “outage” into a search engine or visiting their website. You might also inquire whether any of your neighbors are encountering difficulties.

Flickering lights on your router could signal an issue with cables or junction boxes outside your home.

3. Reset your router

The simplest explanation isn’t always the best. If your internet speed slows down, try unplugging your router, turning it off for about 10 seconds, and then restarting it. Routers, like computers, might benefit from a refresh now and then.

4. Location

A standard router or a mesh network (unless you’re dependent on a mobile device and cellular 3G/4G/5G configuration) are the two kinds of hardware used to connect your home.

Standard routers are a central hub for linking you to your Internet service provider. These routers manage the traffic through a single access point.

If you’re using traditional hardware, such as your ISP’s default router, remember that the farther you are, the more possible you are to experience connection issues, sluggish speeds, and dropouts. Moving your router closer to your home office, or investing in a Wi-Fi extender, is a simple approach to improve signal strength.

Objects can also obstruct communication between your devices and a router. If possible, maintain the area around your router as clutter-free as possible.

On the other hand, larger homes or home offices in the garden or yard may not be served by a single centralized internet hub. If this is the case, simply changing your router will not be enough, and a mesh network may be the better option.

Both types of networks can deliver acceptable speeds, but mesh networks tend to lose some speed in exchange for increased connectivity. If you need direct, high-speed connections for streaming, gaming, or power-hungry business applications, upgrading your regular router is a good idea and will likely outperform a mesh arrangement. The default router given by most ISPs may be unable to keep up with the rising bandwidth demand in today’s households.

Signing up for a high-speed internet subscription is pointless if your aging technology can’t handle it. If you’re having issues with poor speeds, you should also evaluate the age of your router.

5. Check your wiring

The cabling attaching your router to a switch, phone jack, or PC may be neglected but might cause connectivity or speed issues. If your lines are old, you should consider renewing them and replacing older ADSL/Ethernet wires to see if the problem is resolved.

Your Private IP Address: How to Locate it in a Snap!

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If you’re trying to troubleshoot network issues, or simply want to know your computer’s IP address, you can easily find your private IP address through your computer’s settings. A private IP address is a unique identifier assigned to each device connected to a private network. In this article, we’ll show you step-by-step how to find your private IP address in both Windows and Mac operating systems.

6. You’re hacked.

If you’re experiencing poor internet speeds, someone else may be using your internet account. A randomized password is generally set as default on routers and displayed on a sticker on the router. Still, if you alter your password to something weak, use an insecure protocol, or have a Wi-Fi hotspot open, this could signal that others are accessing your network without your permission.

In a browser, go to your router’s setup page to lock your connection or change your password. Check your vendor’s unique router address —usually something along with the 192.168.0.1 — or run a Google search with your router type to find the IP. You must access router settings and boot out any unwanted users.

7. Crowded channels

Wi-Fi channels make data transmission and reception easier. When you have too many connections, your broadband may become slowed by a bottleneck. You may be able to change to less crowded traffic lanes depending on the channels your router utilizes.

Several Android and iOS apps can quickly evaluate your Wi-Fi channels and show you which devices are connected to your network. Sign in to your router’s setup page and choose from the various choices to change channels.

8. Slow VPN

A (VPN) is software that encrypts data transmissions between your device and servers while masking your IP address. Offices may compel you to utilize a VPN to access company resources in the name of security since many of us work from home.

You can pay for a VPN or opt for a free service. Paid solutions are usually speedier, but because you are utilizing a relay for traffic, they can still slow down your internet — and if the VPN service is used during peak periods, there may be congestion.

A fast fix is to switch to a different location option supplied by your VPN; for example, London users connected to a New York server could switch to a UK server. Not all Virtual Private Networks are made equal, and there can be significant disparities in the speeds available.

Free VPNs are generally not suggested because there is always a compromise in exchange for free access, whether insecurity, personal data, or speed. If you’re using a free VPN and the slow performance is driving you crazy, you might want to upgrade to a paid service.

9. Stop Background Programs That Hog Bandwidth

  • Other software applications, such as Windows Update and other software updaters, operate background procedures hidden behind other apps or reduced to the system tray, consuming network resources quietly. These apps are made to accomplish helpful work and should not be deleted from your smartphone.
  • Games and other video-based applications use a lot of bandwidth. When they’re running, they restrict the amount of bandwidth available to other apps. Keep a watch on your PC for background network activities while debugging the slow network.
  • Other network operations could affect overall bandwidth. Smart TVs streaming movies, cameras relaying HD footage all the time, and intelligent speakers playing music can all slow down the network.

Many games have downloaders that automatically patch the game without your interaction or approval. Check whether your favorite game is downloading a few terabytes of patch files if your internet speed has suddenly slowed.

10. Avoid Signal Interference, which might cause your internet speed to slow down.

Signal interference causes Wi-Fi and other wireless networks to perform poorly, requiring computers to constantly repeat information to overcome signal overlap.

Wireless networks and household appliances can cause problems for your computers. For optimal performance, change your Wi-Fi channel number and reposition your router. The closer your gadget is to the router, the better the Wi-Fi connection.

Connect a PC to Wi-Fi to see how well it works and if wireless interference is the source of your bad internet connection. Then connect the same PC to a wired network to observe if any performance changes emerge.

If the cable gives a better connection, the problem could be with the wireless connection. Instead of moving the router, consider a mesh network or a signal repeater.

TIP: Wi-Fi signals are blocked more by large, dense objects like fireplaces than walls. It’s possible that a device that’s close to a router but is blocked by a barrier won’t be able to connect.

11. Check that your router and other network equipment are in good working order.

If routers, modems, or cables fail, network traffic is not fully supported at full speed. Even if connections can still be created, certain technical flaws in network equipment severely impact performance.

Mix and reconfigure your gear while testing different arrangements to diagnose potentially problematic equipment. To pinpoint the sluggish performance of a specific system component, try bypassing the router, swapping cables, and testing with numerous devices. Decide whether it can be enhanced, fixed, or replaced after that.

12. Beware of Worms and Other Malware

An internet worm is a malicious software program distributed over computer networks from device to device. If your computers become contaminated with a computer worm or other malware, they may create network traffic without your permission, slowing down your internet connection.

  • Virus and malware scans should be performed regularly.
  • Keep up-to-date anti-virus software running to prevent worms and malware from infecting your computer.
  • Use a malware-removal program to get rid of it.

13. To Improve Your Connection, Check Your Router Settings

When set up wrong, a broadband router can be the source of bad internet connections because it serves as the network’s center. For example, performance issues can arise if a router’s MTU is set too high or too low.

Ensure that your router’s settings are in line with the manufacturer’s instructions and the recommendations of your internet service provider.

TIP: Make a note of any changes you make to the router’s settings so you can undo them if necessary.

Check Whether Your Network Speed Is Slow

Run speed tests regularly to assess the quality of your internet connection. These tests evaluate whether the outgoing connection on your local computer is functioning correctly. If your computer’s connection is still slow despite a strong throughput on a speed test, the problem could be with your machine (for example, active download sessions or maxing out your device’s RAM, disk, or CPU).

If your computer’s system memory, disk input/output, or CPU cycling utilization is consistently above 80%, it may struggle to maintain optimal performance. Slowdowns in the network occur due to the computer being overworked, not because of a fault with the network.

TIP: In Windows 10, right-click the Start button, select Task Manager, and then Performance to analyze relative resource use to see if another component is hurting network performance. Use the top command on a Linux computer. Open the Activity Monitor on a Mac.

5G: A Complete Guide

The fifth generation of cellular network technology, or 5G, gives customers extra benefits. In some regions, it is gradually replacing 4G networks, which serve smartphone users data access demands. The network helps individuals and developers install apps more quickly. To make the best choice, it is important to understand 5G technology fully.

14. Call Your Internet Service Provider

The service provider ultimately determines the speed of the internet. Your ISP’s network setup may change, or technical difficulties may occur, causing your internet connection to slow down inadvertently. ISPs may also add network filters or controls that reduce network performance.

Don’t hesitate to contact them if your service provider is accused of poor internet connection.

TIP: Different forms of internet connections have different advantages and disadvantages. If you have a DSL connection and encounter slowdowns during peak evening and weekend hours, several connected families in your neighborhood may be using the same access point.

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