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How can I debug a problem where my wifi is REALLY slow(it takes a minute for this page to load...even my router's admin page - 192.168.0.1)?

I've tried upgrading my hardware firmware(using a DIR-600 Dlink router). And it still sometimes happens. LAN connection is decent, but using WIFI is really deadly. And I don't think it is signal because I have 100% as I am beside my router.

What gives? What's wrong with my wifi? Is this hardware? software? where do i satrt debugging(short of using a new router)

here are some benchmarks i made using a simple ping to google.com:

WIRELESS:

ping google.com
PING google.com (******): 56 data bytes
Request timeout for icmp_seq 0
Request timeout for icmp_seq 1
64 bytes from ******: icmp_seq=0 ttl=54 time=2151.072 ms
64 bytes from ******: icmp_seq=1 ttl=54 time=1985.512 ms
64 bytes from ******: icmp_seq=2 ttl=54 time=1260.442 ms
64 bytes from ******: icmp_seq=3 ttl=54 time=689.094 ms
64 bytes from ******: icmp_seq=4 ttl=54 time=282.469 ms
64 bytes from ******: icmp_seq=5 ttl=54 time=196.629 ms
64 bytes from ******: icmp_seq=6 ttl=54 time=124.606 ms

--- google.com ping statistics ---
7 packets transmitted, 7 packets received, 0.0% packet loss
round-trip min/avg/max/stddev = 124.606/955.689/2151.072/790.436 ms

LAN

ping google.com
PING google.com (******): 56 data bytes
64 bytes from ******: icmp_seq=0 ttl=54 time=52.667 ms
64 bytes from ******: icmp_seq=1 ttl=54 time=55.384 ms
64 bytes from ******: icmp_seq=2 ttl=54 time=54.553 ms
64 bytes from ******: icmp_seq=3 ttl=54 time=54.734 ms
64 bytes from ******: icmp_seq=4 ttl=54 time=52.043 ms
64 bytes from ******: icmp_seq=5 ttl=54 time=52.813 ms
64 bytes from ******: icmp_seq=6 ttl=54 time=54.003 ms

--- google.com ping statistics ---
7 packets transmitted, 7 packets received, 0.0% packet loss
round-trip min/avg/max/stddev = 52.043/53.742/55.384/1.153 ms

You can see the HUGE difference

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  • what happens when you ping your router 192.168.0.1? and when you ping an IP instead of a host name (8.8.8.8 for example)?
    – laurent
    Mar 19, 2011 at 16:49
  • And another thing - you mention "and it still sometimes happens". Do you mean normally it's OK or are you getting wireless problems most of the time? Mar 19, 2011 at 17:01
  • i meant that its okay usually but there are times when the wifi slows down to a crawl...i upgraded the firmware and i thought it was fixed for a while but now it has returned(slow wifi, fast lan)
    – corroded
    Mar 19, 2011 at 17:05
  • 3
    I would try to turn icmp on and ping the router to see if the problem is on the wifi side (interferences, channel number or your computer wifi adaptor/driver) or on the router itself. Maybe you can try also to ping another wifi connected machine on the same LAN if there is one.
    – laurent
    Mar 19, 2011 at 19:00
  • 2
    Signal strength means nothing, and testing to google is particularly useless. If you are testing only your wireless, you need to be pinging to your router. Look up signal to noise ratio in relation to wifi, you'll get a better understanding of what can cause interference for wi-fi signals. Test with a different wireless card and test on another wireless network. Update your wireless card drivers as well.
    – MaQleod
    Mar 19, 2011 at 21:48

3 Answers 3

5

First thing is to try different settings on your wireless.

  • Try a different channel - you may be getting interference from another source nearby.

  • Try different encryption settings.

  • Try moving your router to a different location.

3
  • finally happened again and i tried setting my channel(which was on auto change). it is now fast again. thanks! just a clarification..if there are a lot of wifi routers on the same channel they get interference and slow down?
    – corroded
    Apr 27, 2011 at 15:37
  • That is correct.
    – Majenko
    Apr 27, 2011 at 15:51
  • It's worse when there are routers on channels that are too close to each other but not exactly equal. For example, if you're on channel 1 and a system near you is on channel 2, 3, 4, or 5, you're going to have a bad time. Also, if anyone has set their wireless router to use a 40MHz width, same problem. Mar 18, 2016 at 16:07
0
  • Does this happen on other WiFi networks? This would rule out your laptop as the error source
  • Change the channel of the router, it may have interference.

// edit: What Matt Jenkins said.

0

First off, I would try checking your wireless connection. You say signal is not a problem, but it looks exactly this way, like you had some unstable wireless connection.

To be sure, try pinging your router directly. This way your tests won't get polluted by accidental congestion on your Internet side. If you still see a significant difference (you can also check the admin panel accessed through LAN/Wi-Fi), then wireless is indeed to blame, and you can debug further. Most probable options are either poor signal quality or settings conflict, but you would have to give a more detailed overview of your setup.

EDIT:

Ah, I haven't seen laurent-rpnet's comment as of writing.

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  • 1
    Just to add to your comment on the signal strength, I work in a room full of electronics, when contractors work here they can't understand why they get excellent signal strength and rubbish throughput. The electronic noise from my equipment fools wifi apps into thinking the signal strenght is good when, in fact, it's almost completely drowned out by interference.
    – Tog
    Mar 20, 2011 at 11:27

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