| So many people have emailed me thru DSL Reports asking how I get my download speeds so high (recent speed tests range from 2100 to 2500 to as high as 4900 down and in the 300s to 400s up). Check the Mindspring archive link for some of the test results. I usually test on the east coast servers since I'm based in Georgia. In an effort keep up with various questions, I have set up this page to describe my current setup. Bear with me; this page was set up fairly quickly. Updates have been posted at the bottom of the page...
System One - Gateway
System Two - Home Built
System Three (coming soon)
ISP / Network Info
Systems are networked thru the router into the dsl modem. Speed tests are run with no other network activity going on (file transfers, web browsing, etc). I usually run speed tests to the east coast servers since I'm based in Georgia. If I find my connection is running a bit slow, I may reboot the modem and/or router. Earthlink / Mindspring users can check the status of their DSL service if you absolutely can't connect. Of course, you'll have to use a dialup connection. Visit the Earthlink Network Status page to check any scheduled outages in your area. My experience has been that their outage schedules are pretty close to accurate. Speed Test Pages
My Tweaks I ran DrTcpip021 (available on DSL Reports > Download here) on my Win2k system. I set the TCP Receive Window to 64240 and the Max MTU to 1500. It does not seem to make any changes in WinXP, so I put the tweaks manually with the reg tweak below. This is one I found somewhere on DSL Reports and modified. I have used this reg tweak on Win98, WinME, Win2K, and WinXP. I am not currently using it with WinXP or Win2K; I ran DrTcpip021 for these OS's. REGEDIT4
Other Stuff Other than running DrTcpip021 on both PCs, I have not really done any other tweaks other than trying to maintain "clean" Windows installs. I believe another major element that contributes to a fast connection is the line quality of your DSL. Of course, this is something that is not directly in your control unless you bug your ISP and/or telco to make sure the line is clean. My area is fairly new; construction was generally completed in late 1997. I'm guessing that Bellsouth had DSL service in mind when they installed the lines. One way to find out is to ask your DSL neighbors about their down/up speeds. Of course, you may have to help them with their tweaks as well...
Windows XP Pro notes For whatever reason, WinXP reserves 20% of your bandwidth. So if you could get 1500 down, WinXP may limit you to 1200 down. You can easily disable this "feature". Run Group Policy Editor in WinXP Pro only (gpedit.msc).
Go to Local Computer Policy > Comp configuration > Administrative Templates > Network > QoS Packet Scheduler. Select Limit Reservable Bandwidth. It may be Disabled or Not Configured by default. Select the Enabled button, then enter "0" in the Bandwidth limit (%) field. Click Apply, the OK. Just to be safe, you may need to reboot to make sure the change will be applied.
Some users have said that this setting makes no difference in their download speeds. I didn't compare the differences before changing this tweak. You may want to try running speed tests before you make this change, then after you make the change and reboot. Note that the speed test results will vary depending on the time of day and how busy the server is. But you knew that already... I hope this information helps.
I have made some changes since first posting this site. They are, in no particular order:
I'll try to keep the updates section, well, updated as much as possible. Stay tuned.
Photo Album Couldn't resist posting a screenshot or two of some recent speed test results! They are not Photoshopped or altered in any way except to resize the images.
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