Slow DSL Speed: Card or PC? 1

[Remeartificer]

I have the following PCI card installed in my PC:

D-Link DFE-528TX PCI Adapter 10/100 Mbps

My friend has a DSL connection and I used it the other day. I was surprised at how much faster his connection was.

I also brought home a friends laptop to fix and when I plugged it in my DSL I noticed he gets a reported speed of 400Mbps compared to my 100.

Asking around at the shops and they say it has nothing to do with the card installed but may be the computer being overloaded with software.

Have I installed a cheap card or are the shops right?

help please

Fallyhag

PC Info:

Microsoft Windows XP Professional
Version 5.1.2600 Service Pack 1 Build 2600


Fujitsu Siemens
System Model MS-6191
System Type X86-based PC
Processor x86 Family 6 Model 4 Stepping 2 AuthenticAMD ~798 Mhz
BIOS Version/Date Award Software International, Inc. 6.00 PG, 17/04/2000
SMBIOS Version 2.2


Hardware Abstraction Layer Version = "5.1.2600.1106 (xpsp1.020828-1920)"

Total Physical Memory 512.00 MB
Available Physical Memory 108.73 MB
Total Virtual Memory 1.72 GB
Available Virtual Memory 966.87 MB
Page File Space 1.22 GB
HDD: 160GB
DSL Connection: T-online (Germany)

 

[cdogg]

First of all, check your numbers again. 400Mbps (megabits per second) isn't right. The average DSL connection is 768Kbps (kilobits/sec). To check your connection speed, I recommend running a test from this site:

http://www.bandwidthconnection.com/speedtest/

If you still think it's slower than it should be, go to Start -> Run, and type msconfig. After hitting OK, go to the startup tab and uncheck everything (this is only temporary). Reboot and try the speed test again. That will give you a good indication if the problem is software-related. Don't forget to go back into msconfig and re-check all items that you want or had and reboot.

Also, this site may help you clean out some unwanted junk:

http://www.geocities.com/cc210026/spywareinfo.html

~cdogg
[tab]"All paid jobs absorb and degrade the mind";
[tab][tab]- Aristotle
[tab][navy]For general rules and guidelines to get better answers, click here:[/navy] faq219-2884

 

[Remeartificer]

Here are my results:
Are these any good? Thanks for the site tip by the way.

Speed
673.4 kilobits per second

Communications 673.4 kilobits per second
Storage 82.2 kilobytes per second
1MB file download 12.5 seconds
Subjective rating Not bad


Info
Date & time Tuesday, August 31, 4:55PM*
Test type IDT4 Free
Connection type ADSL
Region Europe
Data size 605KB

 

[cdogg]

Yeah, they're right around average. If your friend's laptop gets a similar score on your connection, then there's no need to fret. Plus, you can check with your ISP (Internet Service Provider) with what you're supposed to be getting based on your contract and how far away you are from the nearest CO (Central Office) or repeater.

It still wouldn't be a bad idea to scan and clean your pc of any spyware/adware.


~cdogg
[tab]"All paid jobs absorb and degrade the mind";
[tab][tab]- Aristotle
[tab][navy]For general rules and guidelines to get better answers, click here:[/navy] faq219-2884

 

[Remeartificer]

Went into the MSconfig and did the test again and got the following:

Not great differences I think? Not too sure what to think, maybe my PC is just a donkey compared to my mates ne kit?

Huge thanks for your help anyway

Speed
671.5 kilobits per second

Communications 671.5 kilobits per second
Storage 82 kilobytes per second
1MB file download 12.5 seconds
Subjective rating Not bad

Explain results


Info
Date & time Tuesday, August 31, 5:07PM*
Test type IDT4 Free
Connection type ADSL
Region Europe
Data size 605KB

 

[cdogg]

Just as one last follow-up...

I have several PC's on my network that vary in speed (500MHz P-III, 800MHz P-III, and a newer 2.4GHz P4). All get the same rating on the bandwidth speed test. This just goes to show that the "speed" of the PC isn't that much of a factor for internet connectivity. In fact, a 16x CD-ROM drive in an older Pentium PC can transfer data faster than most DSL connections. So handling a fast internet connection should be no sweat.


Don't forget to check that spywareinfo link I posted...


~cdogg
[tab]"All paid jobs absorb and degrade the mind";
[tab][tab]- Aristotle
[tab][navy]For general rules and guidelines to get better answers, click here:[/navy] faq219-2884

 

[vipergg]

Also if you think it is slower than you think it should be you could mess around with your nic settings , maybe it is not auto negotiating cleanly .