Can you prioritize Internet bandwidth usage & how to check if it's in effect

I live with 5 other people, so as you can imagine, my internet connection speed can be pretty poor, particularly if everyone is connected at the same time.

However, I've noticed recently that it appears to be much slower than it was when I first moved in.

I was wondering if anyone knows whether it is possible to prioritise which computers on the network get the most bandwidth, or if there is any way I can check what speed/ bandwidth all of the other computers connected to the network have to see if others in the house have somehow prioritised their computers over mine, or have restricted the amouth of bandwidth I am able to use?

bandwidth

Someone2088

Posted 2012-08-16T14:45:17.363

Reputation:

1I believe this topic would have been better suited for SuperUser instead of StackOverflow, seeing as it is not a specific programming question. – None – 2012-08-16T15:00:25.083

Sorry, I don't know anything about SuperUser- is that another forum? – None – 2012-08-16T15:02:38.130

@Someone2088 Yes, this probably would have been more suitable for SuperUser, that is another site like StackOverflow, just for more general computer usage questions. – hifkanotiks – 2012-08-16T15:05:42.757

Answers

If you can log in to your router, then check if there is any QoS tab that you can see. If not, then it might be a good idea to install things like Tomato or DD-WRT if your router supports it. These allow you to set QoS, allowing you to prioritize some computers over others, for and see which computers are hogging bandwidth.

hifkanotiks

Posted 2012-08-16T14:45:17.363

Reputation: 172

Thanks for your reply. How would I log into my router? – None – 2012-08-16T14:52:50.650

@Someone2088 It would usually be going to http://192.168.0.1 or http://192.168.1.1 in your web browser and then logging in with the correct user. This will probably either be admin/password, or printed on the bottom of your router.

– hifkanotiks – 2012-08-16T14:54:19.737

Ok, I browsed to 192.168.1.1 and logged into the router, but I can't see anything about how many/ which computers are connected or bandwidth allocation... it just says that the CPU usage is 4.14% and memory usage is 57%... would that be for my particular computer, or for the router itself? – None – 2012-08-16T15:01:05.417

@Someone2088 Hmm, do you know the router brand/model? I assume that would be the router CPU and RAM. And what you need to look for is something marked "QoS" or "Quality of Service" – hifkanotiks – 2012-08-16T15:02:19.437

The router is a ZyXEL- model number: P-660HW-T1 v2. I can't see anything on that web page marked Quality of Service... – None – 2012-08-16T15:08:09.263

@Someone2088 It appears This forum thread may have more helpful information in it. Hope it helps :)

– hifkanotiks – 2012-08-16T15:15:11.207

I'm afraid at first glance, it looks a bit too technical for me- would you be able to tell me step by step what I should do to check? – None – 2012-08-16T15:25:15.020

@Someone2088 Sorry, as I don't know this router completely I am unable to help you here. – hifkanotiks – 2012-08-16T15:28:07.347

ok, no worries. Does anyone else know? – None – 2012-08-16T15:38:53.387

It is far more likely that this is just normal behaviour than a house mate prioritising their connection. I do not think this is possible on the model of router you mentioned either. Is your internet connection BT or some cable provider? (Sky, Virgin etc). If it is BT then there are dark areas where you will be limited to poor speeds.

If you live in a rural area or somewhere quite far from the exchange then you are likely to have a slower connection and this connection will slow even further during peak times. Unfortunately there is not a lot that can be done about this.

Have you gone to speedtest.net? Run that and post back the results.

Franky

Posted 2012-08-16T14:45:17.363

Reputation: 1