Detecting Loss of Data Stream in LAN

[Terry]

If this is the incorrect group for this, please advise a better one.

I have a home ethernet LAN with 4 PCs. Works just fine. However, my
ISP is displaying miserable performance, i.e., I lose the web several
times a day for a few seconds to maybe an hour. Not every day, but
enough to be annoying. We've all been there!

What I would like to do is monitor the data stream for presence or
loss and log the loss and restore times.

I'm sure there is software out there--preferably free of course
--that I might use, but I'm not enough of an IT soul to sort it out.
Any suggestions on that approach?

Another approach I'm also interested in is to monitor the data stream
with external hardware and interface the loss/restore times and dates
through a port on a dedicated PC, many of which I have sitting here
now doing nothing.

Re hardware--I could use the activity LED on the modem as an
indication, but that's clunky and the ISP would have a fit. Or I could
take the same approach on the activity LED in my wireless router, but
am hoping there's another approach.

Any thoughts and/or ideas/suggestions? This would make a good winter
project!

TIA--
Terry--WB4FXD
Edenton, NC

 

[Joerg]

If this is the incorrect group for this, please advise a better one.

I have a home ethernet LAN with 4 PCs. Works just fine. However, my
ISP is displaying miserable performance, i.e., I lose the web several
times a day for a few seconds to maybe an hour. Not every day, but
enough to be annoying. We've all been there!

What I would like to do is monitor the data stream for presence or
loss and log the loss and restore times.

I'm sure there is software out there--preferably free of course
--that I might use, but I'm not enough of an IT soul to sort it out.
Any suggestions on that approach?

Another approach I'm also interested in is to monitor the data stream
with external hardware and interface the loss/restore times and dates
through a port on a dedicated PC, many of which I have sitting here
now doing nothing.

Re hardware--I could use the activity LED on the modem as an
indication, but that's clunky and the ISP would have a fit. Or I could
take the same approach on the activity LED in my wireless router, but
am hoping there's another approach.

Any thoughts and/or ideas/suggestions? This would make a good winter
project!

From the message source it seems you are using AT&T like I do. If that
is true or it's another DSL provider check the levels. I don't remember
what they should be but many moons ago I also had unreliable web
connections. Looked it up on the web, measured, scratched my head.
Disconnected the phone line from the office to the house -> Internet
worked great. Turned out one phone in the house had been plugged in
without a DSL filter. Fixed that and if worked happily ever after. Well,
until a kid in a souped up car spun out and took out a big gray box.

 

[Mike Monett]

If this is the incorrect group for this, please advise a better
one.

I have a home ethernet LAN with 4 PCs. Works just fine. However,
my ISP is displaying miserable performance, i.e., I lose the web
several times a day for a few seconds to maybe an hour. Not every
day, but enough to be annoying. We've all been there!

What I would like to do is monitor the data stream for presence or
loss and log the loss and restore times.

I'm sure there is software out there - preferably free of course

TIA
Terry - WB4FXD
Edenton, NC

Terry,

Depending on your modem, you should be able to access it and get the
line stats. Check your manual for more info, or ask your ISP if he
can get them from his end. The stats will give your SNR which tells
how good the line is. Your ISP can explain more.

Next, monitor your TCP/IP speed online with Analogx NetStat (free):

http://www.analogx.com/contents/download/network/nsl.htm

Also check for more useful stuff here:

http://www.analogx.com/contents/download.htm

There are many DSL speed test sites. A lot of them are crap. Here
are two good ones. Both require Flash:

1. Check speed to different cities in USA:

http://www.speakeasy.net/speedtest/

2. Check speed to different cities around the world:

http://www.speedtest.net/

Regards,

Mike Monett

 

[Mike Monett]

[...]

Here's some more info. Your ISP can tell when the modem dropped the
connection. If the SNR is very poor, the modem will lose lock and
have to resync, which can take a long time.

If the problem is SNR, you need to call your telephone repair and
get them to investigate the line. If you live a long way from the
switching point, you may have to find another modem that can cope
better.

You can check some things yourself. Lift the phone off hook and
press a number other than "0". This will stop the connection signal
so you can listen for any noises.

If you hear the slightest scratching or click, you need to find out
why and fix it. It may be very weak, but the slightest noise is
enough to cause problems.

It could be caused by running the telephone line too close to a SCR
dimmer-controlled appliance, such as a fan. Or maybe you have the
cord for a laser printer next to the phone line. The heater
thermostat generates huge spikes that could obliterate the DSL
signal. Maybe the thermostat in your Weller soldering iron is
causing problems.

You could have an intermittent connection somewhere. Here's some
examples:

1. I had a scratchy telephone line that turned out to be the demarck
connection in the basement. Years of accumulated crud and corrosion
made a poor connection. I cleaned it with ordinary Vaseline, which
lifts the crud and oxide coating and allows a true metal-to-metal
contact. This reduces the contact resistance by an order of
magnitude and stabilizes it. You may need to reappy it every six to
nine months. If that doesn't work, buy a new one and replace it.

2. My DSL kept dropping the connection, same as yours. I live less
than 1km from the main office, so the SNR is excellent. It turned
out to be a bad power supply. The voltage was marginal, and if the
line voltage dropped a slight amount, the modem lost lock. A new
power supply helped, but I still had random disconnects.

3. It turned out the neutral connection for the outlet that powered
the modem was never tightened in the main electric panel. The wire
was just resting against the bussbar. Any movement due to vibration
or temperature changes would break the connection. Tightening the
clamp screw solved the problem.

The moral of the story is random disconnects can be difficult to
find, but if you keep an open mind, eventually you can track them
down and fix them.

Best Regards,

Mike Monett