Your ISP advertises a 40 megabit per second connection, but that doesn’t look anything like the download speed you see when you’re grabbing a big file. What’s the deal? Are you not getting all the bandwidth you’re paying for?
- Download Speed Slow But Upload Fast
- How To Fix Upload Speed Issues
- My Upload Speed Is Faster Than My Download Speed Test
- Why Is Upload Faster Than Download
Dear How-To Geek,
- Jan 12, 2018 - Find out why your upload speed is lower than your download speed. My broadband upload speed is slow compared to my download speed. Our fibre optic leased lines offer an upload speed as fast as downloads.
- Download: 7.82Mbps. Upload: 11.72Mbps. This is consistent with test conducted in the past; the upload is always faster than the download. Isn't it usually vice-versa? In the past, I received download speeds upwards of 30Mbps, and the upload speed was above 10Mbps; but again, the download speed was always faster than the upload.
- My download speed has been between roughly.5-5 mps and my upload speed has been at least twice that (8-10 mps) but when I check on my wife's computer downoad is roughly 22 mps and upload is roughly 24.
The package deal I have through my local ISP is for a 40Mb connection (that’s the wording they use). When I download files I get around 4.5-5 (and definitely not 40!) Now… this doesn’t seem to be a big deal, because I can download everything I want pretty quickly, YouTube doesn’t stutter or anything, I never have to wait to load my email or web page, etc. But if I’m paying for a 40Mb connection why am I not getting a 40Mb connection?
Sincerely,
Best Answer: It's unlikely that they are throttling your speed. Downloads use much more bandwidth than uploads on most connections. Downloads use much more bandwidth than uploads on most connections. I manage a corporate network with a 12 mbps pipe (8 T-1 bonded connection). Jan 6, 2018 - But that's what I am getting which is less than half of what I should be at. My download speed is decent but my upload speed is faster.
Bandwidth Confused
This is a fun question because it allows us to discuss and clear up a common misconception, and learn a little bit about computer history along the way.
Let’s start by delving back into the history of computer networks. Data transfer over networks has always been measured in bits. A bit is the smallest and most basic unit of measurement in computing and digital communications. Bits are most commonly represented in the binary system, via 0 and 1. Bit, in fact, is a contraction of the the longer phrase “Binary Digit”.
RELATED:How to Find the Fastest ISP in Your Area
The speed of a network is denoted using a bit-per-second notation. Originally, networks were so slow that their speed was measured in just bits, but as network speeds increased, we started measuring internet speed in kilobits per second (remember 56k modems? That meant 56 kilobits per second), and now, megabits per second.
Now, here’s where things get confusing for the average non-geeky-Joe. Computer storage is not measured in bits, it’s measured in bytes. A bit, as we’ve established, is the tiniest unit of measurement in the digital kingdom, that primordial 1 or 0. A byte, however, is a unit of digital information that (in many operating systems, including Windows) is eight bits long. Another term, used by computer scientists to avoid confusion over the different size byte structures out there in the world, is octet. In other words, the byte system that your operating system uses is a bunch of bits strung together in groups of eight.
RELATED:Why You Probably Aren’t Getting the Internet Speeds You’re Paying For (and How to Tell)
This difference is where, on the surface, it all seems to fall apart. You see, you have a broadband connection that is capable of 40 megabits per second (under ideal conditions, 40,000,000 bits come down the line). But your operating system and all the apps on it (web browsers, download helpers, torrent clients, etc.) all measure data in megabytes, not megabits. So when you see that download chugging along at 5MB/s, that means megabytes per second–as opposed to your 40Mb/s, or megabits per second, internet package. (Note the MB vs Mb notation.)
![Download Download](https://i.stack.imgur.com/B5SMh.png)
If we divide the speed of your connection (measured in megabits) by 8, we arrive at something resembling the download speed you’re seeing in your speed tests: 40 megabits divided by 8 becomes 5 megabytes. So yes–if you’re seeing closer to 5 megabytes per second on a 40 megabit plan, you are indeed getting what you pay for (and can even pat yourself on the back because you’re getting downloads speeds consistently at the edge of what your internet package supports).
Keep in mind that not all downloads will max out your connection. Some may be much slower, not because your internet is slow, but because the server you’re downloading the file from is busy or slow.
You can back this up by heading to a site like speedtest.net, which measures your internet speed in megabits, just like your internet provider does. If Speedtest’s results match up with the internet package on your bill, you’re golden. If not, it’s probably time to contact your internet provider and see why you aren’t getting the speeds you pay for.
Have a pressing tech question? Shoot us an email at [email protected] and we’ll do our best to answer it.
FrankPlease run this and upload its complete output to skydrive or some file sharing service
Start>search>cmd>right click and run as admin>IPCONFIG /ALL
You might want to re-install the network drivers as they sometimes become corrupt.
You also might want to re boot the router and all pc-s at the same time
Please provide us with your Event Viewer administrative logs by following these steps:
Click Start Menu
Type eventvwr into Search programs and files (do not hit enter)
Right click eventvwr.exe and click Run as administrator
Expand Custom Views
Click Administrative Events
Right click Administrative Events
Save all Events in Custom View As...
Save them in a folder where you will remember which folder and save as Errors.evtx
Go to where you saved Errors.evtx
Right click Errors.evtx -> send to -> compressed (zipped) folder
Upload the .zip file here (if you can) to skydrive or a file sharing service
Click Start Menu
Type eventvwr into Search programs and files (do not hit enter)
Right click eventvwr.exe and click Run as administrator
Expand Custom Views
Click Administrative Events
Right click Administrative Events
Save all Events in Custom View As...
Save them in a folder where you will remember which folder and save as Errors.evtx
Go to where you saved Errors.evtx
Right click Errors.evtx -> send to -> compressed (zipped) folder
Upload the .zip file here (if you can) to skydrive or a file sharing service
Cat herder
Windows Insider MVP
MVP-Windows and Devices for IT
http://www.zigzag3143.com/
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I loaded them to skydrive and put the files in the 'public' area. I have never used skydrive before but I think I get the hang of it. In the Eventwr, I saw a lot of errors and problems, I never knew existed, I am going to do some research on them.
Please let me know if you see what's causing this as I may look into it but have no clue as to what I'm looking at. This type of a problem is new to me.
Thank you very much for your help.
____________
EDIT: I take it back, The two main problems I saw a lot of are that I have manually disconnected my Ethernet cable and I also tried to get information off of an old hard drive that was damaged, that is where my 'warnings and errors' came from in the event viewer.
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CMD ![Should Should](https://linustechtips.com/main/uploads/monthly_10_2015/post-183860-0-73114500-1446238672_thumb.jpg)
Copyright (c) 2009 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
C:Windowssystem32>IPCONFIG /ALL
Windows IP Configuration
Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : Badass
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Hybrid
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) 82583V Gigabit Network Connectio
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : C8-60-00-C0-C4-2D
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::695f:7a:76f9:7768%10(Preferred)
IPv4 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.0.5(Preferred)
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Wednesday, January 02, 2013 3:55:34 PM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Sunday, February 09, 2149 9:12:04 AM
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.0.1
DHCPv6 Client DUID. . . . . . . . : 00-01-00-01-0F-0D-1E-FA-C8-60-00-C0-C4-2D
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.42.1
Tunnel adapter isatap.{F1FE381B-C5EF-455A-A36F-E4A2344B4B1F}:
Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Microsoft ISATAP Adapter
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
Tunnel adapter Teredo Tunneling Pseudo-Interface:
Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Teredo Tunneling Pseudo-Interface
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
C:Windowssystem32>
_______________________________________
_______________________________________
I can't seem to add eventviewer in this reply as it is not just text, both are still skydrive (I think).
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The Ethernet config appears correct. Have you re-installed the Ethernet driver? What is the date on it?
Cat herder Windows Insider MVP
MVP-Windows and Devices for IT
http://www.zigzag3143.com/
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My Intel(R) 82583V Gigabit Network Connection reads Driver Date: 6/18/2012 which I just re-installed a few minutes before making this post. Even after installing it, my speeds have not changed. However I did notice something which might explain everything.
Download Speed Slow But Upload Fast
I brought my brothers computer which also has windows 7 and his brand new laptop he just bought from HP, both computers have a quad core processor with more than 2.5 ghz, plenty of ram. They both get very slow speeds just like mine, I am beginning to believe that windows 7 does not perform as great as windows xp when it comes to this downloading speed.
Heck, his desktop pc is only 3 months old and his laptop he got his kid for xmas, I checked them both out myself and they seem to be in good working condition, it is just that windows xp is better for fast internet speeds.
If this is the case, is there a way I can run my windows 7 pc is xp mode for faster download speed? If so then how? I have never tried to do that before, I am just confused on where to go from here.
PS: I like your name ZigZag, an old buddy of mine has the nickname Zig, I've always called him Zig Zag. haha
Thanks again!
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How To Fix Upload Speed Issues
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Frank
As far as I know I havent heard of win 7 being slower than XP. It actually should be a bit faster.
Some shots in the dark.
Have you talked to your ISP?
What malware application is in win 7, and on XP?
What router are you using?
Cat herder As far as I know I havent heard of win 7 being slower than XP. It actually should be a bit faster.
Some shots in the dark.
Have you talked to your ISP?
What malware application is in win 7, and on XP?
What router are you using?
Windows Insider MVP
MVP-Windows and Devices for IT
http://www.zigzag3143.com/
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Even when I uninstalled malware bytes, it didn't affect my speed. My isp is full of morons, they have been out here to 'fix' my speed many times but no use (after they tried to fix it I realized my speed is fine on my xp computer). My isp has told me that they use at&t's lines somewhere down the road and that the lines tend to get full slowing everybody's internet speed at times, but that doesn't explain what is going on here.
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My Upload Speed Is Faster Than My Download Speed Test
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http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows_7-networking/windows-7-64bit-very-slow-download-speeds/104e4f47-9968-4095-932b-bc451cdd4800?page=1&tm=1357938822387 The above link is just one of many people who report having this problem. The above link has about 20 people who have added in that they to are experiencing the same problem with fresh computers with fresh copies of win 7 64 bit.
go to google.com and type in 'slow download fast upload win7' you will get pages and pages of websites / forums talking about this problem.
If anyone else at all is reading this and can help, please let me know what else I can do.
I have done some additional steps I read about but none helped, such as the ones people listed in the above link I provided.
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Why Is Upload Faster Than Download
Thanks for your feedback.
Here is one observation that I have discovered recently. I have (or had) the same problem with a slow Win 7 Ult. 64bit download/fast upload. My wife's XP ran at 70Mbps, while mine ran at a painful 3-5Mbps. I tried everything like everybody else to solve it. However, recently her computer died and we disconnected it for fixing/replacement. I suddenly noticed my speeds jumped up to 70Mbps without changing anything.
Is it possible that her XP was slowing the network down and sucking up all the bandwidth (or something to that effect)? I've noticed that most people here have an XP or Vista machine running simultaneously with their Win 7 machine. Maybe it's just me, but I believe there is some conflict between the systems, or am I way off here?
Is it possible that her XP was slowing the network down and sucking up all the bandwidth (or something to that effect)? I've noticed that most people here have an XP or Vista machine running simultaneously with their Win 7 machine. Maybe it's just me, but I believe there is some conflict between the systems, or am I way off here?
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Hey, I've had a similar problem as well but this did work for me, for a while at least.
Control Panel.
System.
right click network adapter.
advanced tab.
Scroll down to 'Speed & Duplex' and change from auto to 1.0 Gbps Full Duplex.
As I said, 'it DID work for me' but although my speed is once again up to a manageable level (19 Mbps my upload speed is at 11 Mbps on speed test.net but 44 Mbps download and 9 Mbps on bt whole sale speed test) there may well still be something wrong.
TAP3 test fixed it aswell but only for a short period of time.
hope this helps,
Roddy
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