EzDevInfo.com

Will an ADSL2+ modem work with a VDSL input connection?

I have BT Infinity broadband (UK) which is Fibre to the Cabinet (FTTC) and then VDSL from the cabinet to the property.

BT supply a BT Openreach branded modem to work with the VDSL connection.

My question is: Will any standard ADSL2+ modem be able to handle a VDSL input if the settings are correctly adjusted?

My suspicions point me to the conclusion that the Openreach branded modem is just a basic ADSL modem (the VDSL acronym does not appear on the hardware at all, only an LED marked "DSL"), and I read that VDSL was the same technology as ADSL but with higher frequency downstream and upstream rates. Is this true?

How can I connect directly to a peer using a DSL modem?

I was wondering if it's possible to connect to a friend using a DSL modem. I know that with voice-band modems, you can dial numbers and have a peer's computer answer the call and communicate with yours to send files etc, but this is slow. Is it possible to communicate with a peer's computer, WITHOUT using any ISPs using the DSL interface?

Thanks

Is a DSL splitter required, if only a Modem is attached to the line?

Annex B is the current standard for digital subscriber line (DSL) in Germany. A DSL-splitter is an analog L-C-filter to separate the POTS (plain old telephone service, like voice and ISDN, FAX) signals from the DSL signal.

Is the DSL-splitter required, if no devices but a DSL-Modem is connected to the line?

If yes, one could test if a splitter is faulty by connecting the Modem direct to the line. The bandwidth should be similar in both situations.

T1 vs multiple DSL lines

I do web development from home. I'm moving to a house on a road with not very many people. The only options for wired high speed internet are DSL or T1. The DSL tests out at 1Mb/s down, 512kb/s up. The T1 would be 1.544Mb/s both ways. I've been quoted $30/month per DSL line or $220/month per T1. We don't have 4G in the area yet.

I'm trying to decide between multiple DSL lines and a single T1. If I went with DSL I would likely get 4 lines and then use a Ciso RV016 router to load-balance them. I'm not sure of what my true throughput would be, and if it would be a hassle to configure it properly for different sites.

Any info would be GREATLY appreciated. Thanks.

Are modems, made for a more recent DSL standard, downwards compatible with older DSL technology?

I understand that older DSL modems aren't compatible with newer technology, but is the case same the other way around? I.e.:

• Is VDSL2 modem compatible with a VDSL connection? What about with ADSL or ADSL2 line?
• Is VDSL modem compatible with an ADSL/2 connection?
• Is ADSL2 modem compatible with an ADSL connection?
• Or could it be so that *2 modems are downwards compatible only with *2 connections (this is just guessing...)

Or is there other logic? Or are they all just incompatible?

Using multiple wifi connections simultaneously on Windows

My office PC has a one wireless network card and there are three available wifi connections: primary, backup and backup of a backup (grin).

Is it possible for me to use all three simultaneously. If this results in an increase in bandwidth that's well and good, but primary reason is every now and then one of the network fails and i have to switch back and forth between the available networks by disconnecting, viewing available networks and connecting to next one hoping its running. Do i need more than one network card or a software e.g. a proxy.

Why do I hear the ADSL carrier "noise" in my phone, even though the phone is connected on a microfilter?

OK I'm starting to lose my mind over this, so apologies for the big wall of text.

I recently got a 2-play subscription (phone + ADSL internet) on a phone line that I had previously used only as a phone. On the RJ wall socket, I have connected a simple phone line splitter that splits the signal into two output jacks (no filter, just a simple Y splitter). On one output I connect an ADSL microfilter and on that filter, my phone device. The other output goes straight to a Thomson TG585 v7 modem that I had lying around, so I did not buy their recommended modem, which is equally crappy as the one I have.

The Internet is working properly, I'm browsing pages just fine. The speed is only around 2Mbits, not 24Mbits which is the theoretical maximum. I think this is because the wiring in my house is very old (over 50 years old) and probably very noisy, but I don't mind about the slow speed at the moment. The phone is also working correctly.

The problem that I would like to solve is this: When the modem is connected, I can hear the carrier noise in the phone. It's very loud and distracting, you can barely have a conversation. If I listen into the phone as I turn on the modem, I can hear (besides the dialtone) first silence, then something that is definitely a handshake, and then something like white noise which I assume is the DSL data. If I completely disconnect the modem, the sound over the phone is crystal clear, I can't hear the slightest bit of noise, but then I have no Internet.

I have called my ISP's technical support four different times, speaking to four different people, and they have not been very helpful, they just checked that I hadn't done anything silly like connecting the modem to the filter, and they suggested that I swap things around, try with different cables and filters and see if that solves it. Problem is, I had already tried all of this. They have nothing more to suggest.

I have tried replacing the Y splitter with another one, I have tried with many different phone cables, and even three different ADSL microfilters. Same problem every time. The only suggestion the tech support gave me that I haven't tried yet, is that I replace the Y splitter and filter with a single filter+splitter, essentially a single piece that has one filtered and one unfiltered output, all in one. I don't have one of those at the moment and I don't see how this would be any different. When I visited their closest shop they didn't have one either.

This is all very puzzling for me, because the way I see it, no matter what goes on between the wall socket and the modem/router, the noise should be filtered on the phone, since the phone device is directly connected to the filter.

So my question is: why all of the above?

My current theory is that, since the phone lines are old, the modem has to maybe connect at a lower frequency than normal, and maybe it gets into the analog range. Is this even possible? Or is the frequency band that ADSL modems use a standard that can never overlap with the analog band? The same provider also serves VDSL, although I have paid for ADSL. Could this have something to do with it? Are there different types of DSL filters with different cut-off frequencies?

I guess at some point I should just upgrade the wiring in the building, but this is a big chore that I would like to postpone at the moment if possible. Also, if I am going to do this, I would like to know beforehand that it is going to solve my problem.

I would very much appreciate it if someone more knowledgeable on the topic could give me a hint as to what might be going on here. My expertise is software development, not hardware, so I'm at a loss.

Thanks very much for reading.

Two Routers are fighting each other on LAN

My apartment is quite large and most rooms have several walls, meaning Wifi signals drop easily.

To combat this I found a spare DSL Router I had previously and placed that in the Kitchen and connected it with an ethernet cable to my ADSL Router which is the Gateway in my LAN.

See diagram

The internet has been great and Wifi coverage has improved now with the two Wifi hotspots.

The only problem is now my PC which connects to the main router is getting an unreliable ethernet connection. To even confuse matters more, if I try and connect to the router using the default IP of

192.168.0.1

One moment I will get the ADSL router, then if I refresh I will get the old DSL router.

It is like they are fighting for the specific IP address and cannot allocate it. I am guessing I need to have some sort of Slave / Master (if I can use that term) to enforce authority on the network.

Any ideas whats happening? How I can go about fixing this?

Should uploading a file on DSL kill the download speed?

I have the 20,127/893 Kbps service through CenturyLink DSL. I've ran speed test and it typically reports speeds close to that.

Except whenever I upload something substantial. Like a video file to YouTube. The upload takes forever, which I understand because of the 893 Kbps upload speed, but the entire time it is uploading the download speed grinds to a halt. It is so bad I cannot even connect to SpeedTest.net to do a speed test. The networking between other computers in the house is fine. But as long as one computer is uploading, all the computers might as well be kicked off the internet. For example, pinging Google takes 5 seconds to resolve the DNS and then the requests time out.

I called CenturyLink's support and talked to them for an hour and they said everything is fine. They had me reboot my computer and modem a few times, which of course didn't help. Finally they sent me a new (refurbished) modem to get me off the phone. It behaves the same.

So my question is if this behavior is typical of CenturyLink DSL or if something is really screwed up. Perhaps there is something I can do it fix it without spending another hour rebooting my modem while I am talking to an inept support person.

Why is my DSL connection so slow, when my neighbor's is much faster?

I've just moved into a new house (new for me; the house was built in 2006). I've purchased DSL service through AT&T, paying for speeds "up to" 768 Kbps downstream / 384 Kbps upstream. My issue is, the connection speed on the DSL is very slow -- the DSL modem connects at 224 Kbps downstream / 128 Kbps upstream, as reported by the modem's own built-in control panel applet (accessible at the internal IP http://192.168.0.1/).

However, my brother-in-law, living 9 doors down on the same street (and further from the local CO -- if the CO map at dslreports.com is to be believed), connects at a much more comfortable 1.5 Mbps downstream / 384 Kbps upstream. He has the same service from AT&T (although he's paying extra for the 1.5 Mbps service).

I'm not sure whether it matters, but I have a "dry" DSL connection -- DSL service only, no phone service.

I've tried the following:

• Switching modems. I actually tried borrowing my brother-in-law's modem, that connects at 1.5 Mbps from his house; replacing that modem with the one at my house, it also connects at 224 Kbps. Both modems are the same model (Siemens SpeedStream 4100).

• Connecting the modem directly to the phone jack on the outside of the house (to rule out the possibility of bad wiring inside the house). No change, the modem still connects at 224 Kbps.

• Switching phone cables. No change.

I'm not sure what else to try. I did contact A&T; they informed me that they consider a connection speed of 224 Kbps to be "acceptable" for a customer paying for 768 Kbps service. Interestingly, AT&T did inform me that 1.5 Mbps service isn't even available at my location, based on an on-site test they performed recently (presumably of signal strength / quality).

So, my question has two parts:

(1) Why is my DSL connection speed so much slower (more than 6x slower!) than the service my brother-in-law is getting, when we're located in almost the same location (9 doors down on the same street)? (If the reason is that my DSL signal is weaker and/or poorer quality, then why might that be the case?)

(2) Is there anything I can do to improve the situation, short of dropping the DSL service (and paying significantly more money for cable)? The 224 Kbps connection speed is okay for email and surfing the web, but it's poor-to-unusable for large downloads, gaming, and YouTube.

Thanks!

Should fax machines use a DSL filter?

I have heard DSL prevents some items that use phone lines from functioning properly, such as home alarms.

First of all, is it possible to use a fax machine on the same line as a DSL modem and connection? And if so, should the fax machine sit behind a DSL filter or not?

I have both cable and DSL at home. How do I put that to good use?

There was an offer I could not resist and now I have ended up with both cable and DSL on my home network. I am using the cable network exclusively because it is a lot faster.

My general idea was to use the DSL as a backup for the cable which sometimes fails. I work from home and need the security of always having a fast Internet connection. And I don't feel like paying for Business products with fast response times.

Now, seeing my DSL modem on all the time with nothing to do I wonder if you can come up with any ideas for putting it to good use?

• Is there any way I could configure my WLAN router to have both cable and DSL plugged in? The backup would be automatic --> If one connection fails, the other one would take over immediately.
• My main PC has two Ethernet ports. I have tried plugging both cable and DSL routers at the same time, but it disturbs my Internet connection. Is there any way of using DSL as an automatic backup?

I am unwilling to switch the DSL modem off because I used to have bad experiences after returning from vacation and finding that my DSL did not work anymore after switching it on again.

What is the right gauge wire for the incoming DSL phone line to my router?

Last year I built my house and I have lots of conduit and wiring throughout. Everything works great except for one nagging issue.

My DSL router's connection seems to degrade over time. It gets to the point (after several months) where it can't even keep a connection to the PPP server. At that point if I cut off the phone cable ends and put new ones on it works fine again for another few months.

I have CAT 5 wire running to the phone box on the side of my house. I use two of the CAT 5 wires which run through the whole length of my house to the model. I have a RJ-11 coming off those two wires which plug into my router/modem.

We don't have phone service, just DSL so there are no filters.

Should I rerun the line from the phone box to my modem with higher gauge wire?

Any other ideas?

Does uploading reduce download speed in torrent?

I was searching to know: "Does uploading and downloading at the same time reduce download speed?" and I found this:

Should uploading a file on DSL kill the download speed?

but it is related to TCP connections, not UDP.

I know torrent uses UDP connection. Then does allowing torrent upload reduce torrent download speed?

Bridged DSL connection works for a bit, then fails bizarrely

I've got a BellSouth FastAccess DSL subscription that has run on an ISP-provided 2wire HomePortal 1700HW combination modem/router for a few years now with no significant issues. I recently acquired a brand new Western Digital My Net N600 router in order to boost range and provide access for network storage (the 2wire has no USB ports).

I've tried setting up the new network exactly like so:

• factory reset both devices to wipe out any lingering config issues
• plug in the 2wire to power and a filtered phone jack and boot
• log into its Wifi using the serial on the bottom
• under the management and diagnostic console (192.168.1.254/mdc), set the 2wire to bridge mode, to disable its routing capabilities
• run an Ethernet cable from one of the 2wire's LAN ports to the N600's WAN
• plug the N600 into power and boot
• log into its Wifi using default information ("admin"/"password")
• attempt to connect to the internet, which fails
• when prompted, enter ISP's PPPoE login information
• connection success!
• set up network security, SSIDs, network storage, etc.

And it all works fine. But within 3-6 hours, the connection drops, with a variety of strange side effects:

• WinXP laptop used to set up network can browse the web, and can ping the router, but can't load the router settings page, not even through a direct wired connection to the router LAN ports.
• Win7 laptop appear connected in the status bar, and can ping the router, but can't browse the web or load the router settings. If disconnected from the network, it cannot reconnect. Attempting a wired LAN connection returns a junk 169.xxx.xxx.xxx IP address.
• a visiting Chromebook appears connected, but cannot load any websites... except for the webmail interface at mail.aol.com, which receives new messages just fine. Aol.com won't load, nor Gmail, nor Live mail, etc. This is purely over Wifi, no cell connection.
• iDevices cannot connect to the network.

Power cycling the N600 fixes everything... until the next failure a few hours later.

I've tried a few methods to solve:

• when setting up the 2wire, connect via PPPoE and establish a working connection before switching back to the default Direct Connect
• set VPI/VCI to 8/35 and disable PVC Search, as recommended by a few online setup guides
• when setting up the N600, clone the MAC address of the XP laptop used to set up the 2wire
• changing the N600's IP to 192.168.1.10 and the allowed range from .11-.250, to avoid any possible IP conflicts
• used Google's DNS (8.8.8.8, 8.8.4.4) as well as the automatic ISP option

Everything leads to the same result: a few hours of working network, followed by this mysterious semi-dropped connection. I'm baffled at why one machine would be able to browse but not connect to the network, or why another would be able to load realtime webmail from one site only.

Does this sound like a problem with the N600, the 2wire, the ISP, the network configuration? I'd hate to spring for a new modem or an Airport Extreme if it's not actually going to fix the problem. I'd love to hear some extremely basic step-by-step methods for getting a network like this established properly, in case I'm missing a simple step somewhere. Here's documentation on the devices for reference:

2wire HomePortal: http://support.2wire.com/view/768/1000_series_Gateway_Install_Guide.pdf

Western Digital N600: http://www.wdc.com/wdproducts/library/UM/ENG/4779-705072.pdf

Caveat: Resetting the router fixes the issue for a few hours, so I won't be able to test the effects of anything that requires restarting it in real time. This has made it frustrating to test myself, but hopefully there will be some good ideas here that won't require it.