Drop outs and slower speeds with Deco Mesh

[#1]

I've been using plusnet at our new address seamlessly for a year (following a slightly rocky instalation) and without issue at our previous address, but lately we've had a number of issues.

First, we have the LOS light coming on occasionally on the Openreach box. I understand that it means there is an issue up the line somewhere. This normally resolves itself fairly quickly.

Second, the Hub 2 loses its connection (orange light) for seemingly no reason. Sometimes it can be a few minutes sometimes an hour or more. When trying to troubleshoot, the page pops up to call them...impossible as we have no copper line and the geography of where we live prevents a mobile signal. I could leave the valley to call them, but then I'm away from the equipment...a genuine lose/lose situation.

Finally, I set up a series of TP Link Deco mesh nodes(?). The main one is connected to the Hub 2 by ethernet cable, but when running a speed test (basically standing on top of both the Hub 2 and the main deco) I get massively different speeds according to fast.com (520mbps from the Hub and 200ish from the deco). We have (supposedly) a GB connection, but have never recorded a speed above 520mbps. I just wonder why 5' of ethernet cable seems to rob us of 300mbps.

Any ideas on this lot, happily received.

[#2]

You should be able to remove the Hub completely & connect the main Deco unit directly to the ONT by ethernet, reconfiguring it in router mode if it isn't already. Make sure to check it for firmware updates first.

I've found the Deco app a bit flaky when it comes to reconfiguring, so you may need to factory reset & start again. Deleting units from the app should factory reset them.

Although as you correctly say, the LOS LED on the ONT indicates an external issue that PN should be able to get OR to address. If you haven't already, a power cycle of the ONT might be an idea as well as checking the fibre cable is securely connected to it.

[#3]

Thanks, I'll look into cutting out the Hub altogether.

I'll keep the edgy on the LOS incidences and if they get worse, I'll report it.

We had such hassle getting connected, it took months, roads had to be closed and permits granted...it was a nightmare, I just don't want anything more to go wrong. The chap across the valley was refused a line by Openreach and ended up having to use Starlink (at least he said they refused).

[#4]

@Icoulson81 what model is the Deco ?

I get massively different speeds according to fast.com (520mbps from the Hub and 200ish from the deco). We have (supposedly) a GB connection, but have never recorded a speed above 520mbps. I just wonder why 5' of ethernet cable seems to rob us of 300mbps.

Are those tests using Wifi ? The Hub2 is only Wifi5 and so will max out at around 450Mb.

Have you tried a wired connection directly to the Hub2 ?

[#5]

The main Deco is a P9, we have another 2 P9s, 2 M4Rs and 3 M3Ws. It's a big house, an out building (connected P9 to P9 by ethernet). The walls are a mixture of cob and modern materials, but any test I do is wifi as I don't really have anything I could connect with a cable.

My concern is the drop of 300mbps between a device that is 5 feet away from the Hub 2.

[#6]

@Icoulson81 have a read of this thread  https://community.tp-link.com/en/home/forum/topic/732762

Try disabling QoS on the p9 and see if that makes any difference. QoS, even if set to the correct bandwidth, takes a lot of cpu power at higher speeds. So on a Gb connection its sometimes best to leave it disabled. For instance, I use a Tplink ER605, which with H/W offload enabled and QoS disabled, is perfectly capable of 900Mb on my connection. Enable QoS and it maxes out at around 400Mb!!

If the main p9 is 5 feet from the Hub 2 then I'd be inclined to disable Wifi on the Hub2 as it may well interfere with the p9 wifi. There's an option on the Hub 2 GUI to 'completely disable wifi', either that or configure the p9 WAN for PPPoE with your Plusnet credentials and connect it directly to the ONT thus dispensing with the Hub2 entirely.

If you use the Powerline backhaul of the p9 , dont expect much better than 150Mb!

[#7]

@Icoulson81 

Your unlikely to get anywhere near gigabit WiFi speeds in the real world, & certainly not with those rather elderly units, which are only WiFi 5/11ac. You also have the issue of being unable to split the WiFi bands to ensure you're connected to the faster 5GHz.

I've also found TP-Link's auto channel selection to be absolute pants, & you can't override it. Although if you're rural with ni immediate neighbours, that's less of an issue.

Although having said all that, there is very little use case for individual devices needing those speeds anyway. Even the 200Mb you're reporting is more than adequate for most tasks beyond huge downloads or moving data around the LAN.