Line speed continually dropping

[#1]

Hi Gandalf,

Although the reset hasn't come through yet (I expect it'll probably come through today), as you can see from my latest router stats, last night, the DLM has further reduced my speeds, and pushed up the noise margin. At least we can now be sure there is an unresolved fault somewhere. Probably time to arrange that engineer?

1. Product name:	Plusnet Hub
2. Serial number:	+081441+NQ04412654
3. Firmware version:	Software version 4.7.5.1.83.8.289.1.3 Last updated 06/12/21
4. Board version:	Plusnet Hub One
5. DSL uptime:	0 days, 09:20:21
6. Data rate:	7917 / 31008
7. Maximum data rate:	7920 / 42726
8. Noise margin:	6.2 / 10.4
9. Line attenuation:	31.3 / 21.8
10. Signal attenuation:	30.5 / 20.0
11. Data sent/received:	4.1 GB / 145.3 GB
12. Broadband username:
13. 2.4 GHz Wireless network/SSID:	PLUSNET-95WT
14. 2.4 GHz Wireless connections:	Enabled (802.11 b/g/n (up to 144 Mb/s))
15. 2.4 GHz Wireless security:	WPA2
16. 2.4 GHz Wireless channel:	Automatic (Smart Wireless)
17. 5 GHz Wireless network/SSID:	PLUSNET-95WT
18. 5 GHz Wireless connections:	Enabled (802.11 a/n/ac (up to 1300 Mb/s))
19. 5 GHz Wireless security:	WPA2
20. 5 GHz Wireless channel:	Automatic (Smart Wireless)
21. Firewall:	Default
22. MAC Address:	10:d7:b0:06:02:44
23. Modulation:	G.993.2 Annex B
24. Software variant:	AA
25. Boot loader:	1.0.0

[#2]

Since this all seemed to start with a noisy line, I wonder if the problem is intermittent line noise. I shall now regularly check for noise. I'm as certain as I can be that the issue is external to my property. If it is line noise, it must be pretty infrequent, but obviously frequent enough to cause the sync drop.

[#3]

Hi @AMC1973

I'm sorry to see your speed's dropping. I agree with you, there could potentially be line noise. I'd like to arrange a broadband engineer visit to investigate further. Could you reply to the ticket logged Here with when you'll be available for a visit? 

If you can post back once you've responded, I'll make sure we book the engineer as soon as we can.

[#4]

Hi Gandalf,

Ticket has been responded to.

Cheers

[#5]

Awesome @AMC1973, I have checked the account and I can see our faults team have picked this up, booking the appointment here.

They will get back in touch once the appointment has concluded with the next step, however feel free to nudge me here after the visit and I will get the update for you.

[#6]

That's great news, Sammy. Thanks.

[#7]

HI there,

So the second engineer completed his visit on Monday and found the connection in my house, inside and out to be pretty much perfect, and another GEA test shows my downstream to achieve the heady heights of 'reasonable', so please bear with me while I have another quick moan...

As you can see from the top router stats, my noise margin was 6db, and I was synching at 38, which given the information on the BT Wholesale checker, would seem to be about right, given my line is excellent condition according to two Openreach engineers. And yet the next day the DLM felt it necessary to raise my noise margin back up to 9db, which of course drops my sync speed back down to 34mbps (see bottom router stats). If my line is so great, why is this happening? I was synching regularly at between 36 and 39mbps for several months, and my router clearly shows my max data rate at above 40mbps, so 38 doesn't seem an unreasonable expectation to me. Why now, am I only able to achieve a 34 sync speed? What could have changed? As the GEA test shows, my downstream has dropped from 'good' to 'reasonable', and I'd be really interested to know why my noise margin keeps being moved up to 9 from 6. Is it possible that the DLM has become more sensitive to line errors, and is banding my line at 34, when previously it would have turned a blind eye? I read on the community that Plusnet can move my noise margin, is this true? If so, would a staffer be kind enough to move my noise margin to 6db? If the line becomes unstable, we can go back to 9db.

Very best wishes

AMC

KBD

GEA Test Detail
Circuit ID	NA	Service ID	BBEU21894294

Test Outcome	Pass
Test Outcome Code	GTC_FTTC_SERVICE_0000
Description	GEA service test completed and no fault found .
Main Fault Location	OK
Sync Status	In Sync
Downstream Speed	33.5 Mbps
Upstream Speed	7.9 Mbps
Appointment Required	N
Fault Report Advised	N
NTE Power Status	PowerOn
Voice Line Test Result	Pass
Radio Frequency Ingress	Not Detected
Repetitive Electrical Impulse Noise	Not Detected
Cross Talk	Not Detected
Estimated Line Length In Metres	807.1
Upstream Rate Assessment	Good
Downstream Rate Assessment	Reasonable
Interference Pattern	Not Detected
Service Impact	No Impact Observed
Home Wiring Problem	Not Detected
Downstream Policing Discard Rate	0.0
Customer Traffic Level	Upstream and Downstream traffic detected
Technology	VDSL
Current 15Min Bin Retrains	0
Last 15Min Bin Retrains	0
DP Type	External
Profile Name	0.128M-40M Downstream, Retransmission High - 0.128M-10M Upstream, Error Protection Off
Time Stamp	2022-03-01T03:45:00

Parameters	MIN	MAX	AVG
Down Stream Line Rate	34.9 Mbps	39.9 Mbps	38.5 Mbps
Up Stream Line Rate	7.8 Mbps	7.8 Mbps	7.8 Mbps
Up Time	862.0 Sec	900.0 Sec	899.6 Sec
Retrains	0.0	1.0	0.0

Current and Last 15 Minute Bin Performance
Parameters	Last Traffic Count(Upto 15 mins)	Current Traffic Count(Upto 15 mins)
Start Time Stamp	2022-03-02T11:12:45Z	2022-03-02T11:27:45Z
Ingress Code Violation	2	0
Egress Code Violation	0	1
Errored Seconds	0	1
Severely Errored Seconds	0	0
Unavailable Seconds	0	0

1. Product name:	Plusnet Hub
2. Serial number:	+081441+NQ04412654
3. Firmware version:	Software version 4.7.5.1.83.8.289.1.3 Last updated 06/12/21
4. Board version:	Plusnet Hub One
5. DSL uptime:	1 days, 02:12:11
6. Data rate:	7891 / 38171
7. Maximum data rate:	7890 / 40988
8. Noise margin:	5.9 / 6.3
9. Line attenuation:	31.3 / 21.7
10. Signal attenuation:	30.8 / 19.8
11. Data sent/received:	686.9 MB / 38.3 GB
12. Broadband username:
13. 2.4 GHz Wireless network/SSID:	PLUSNET-95WT
14. 2.4 GHz Wireless connections:	Enabled (802.11 b/g/n (up to 144 Mb/s))
15. 2.4 GHz Wireless security:	WPA2
16. 2.4 GHz Wireless channel:	Automatic (Smart Wireless)
17. 5 GHz Wireless network/SSID:	PLUSNET-95WT
18. 5 GHz Wireless connections:	Enabled (802.11 a/n/ac (up to 1300 Mb/s))
19. 5 GHz Wireless security:	WPA2
20. 5 GHz Wireless channel:	Automatic (Smart Wireless)
21. Firewall:	Default
22. MAC Address:	10:d7:b0:06:02:44
23. Modulation:	G.993.2 Annex B
24. Software variant:	AA

1. Product name:	Plusnet Hub
2. Serial number:	+081441+NQ04412654
3. Firmware version:	Software version 4.7.5.1.83.8.289.1.3 Last updated 06/12/21
4. Board version:	Plusnet Hub One
5. DSL uptime:	0 days, 00:12:24
6. Data rate:	7968 / 34956
7. Maximum data rate:	7968 / 41975
8. Noise margin:	5.9 / 9.0
9. Line attenuation:	31.3 / 22.3
10. Signal attenuation:	30.8 / 20.3
11. Data sent/received:	5.6 MB / 40.4 MB
12. Broadband username:
13. 2.4 GHz Wireless network/SSID:	PLUSNET-95WT
14. 2.4 GHz Wireless connections:	Enabled (802.11 b/g/n (up to 144 Mb/s))
15. 2.4 GHz Wireless security:	WPA2
16. 2.4 GHz Wireless channel:	Automatic (Smart Wireless)
17. 5 GHz Wireless network/SSID:	PLUSNET-95WT
18. 5 GHz Wireless connections:	Enabled (802.11 a/n/ac (up to 1300 Mb/s))
19. 5 GHz Wireless security:	WPA2
20. 5 GHz Wireless channel:	Automatic (Smart Wireless)
21. Firewall:	Default
22. MAC Address:	10:d7:b0:06:02:44
23. Modulation:	G.993.2 Annex B
24. Software variant:	AA
25. Boot loader:	1.0.0

[#8]

@AMC1973 According to those Help Desk reports, either you are having regular DSL drops, or you are turning the Hub off - I suspect the former - which combined with the profile data: 0.128M-40M Downstream, Retransmission High - 0.128M-10M Upstream, Error Protection Off, suggests there is network problem somewhere.

[#9]

Hi John,

You can rest assured the only time I turn my hub off is when it needs a reboot - maybe once every three months. What you can see there is the top stats taken a day after a reset from Plusnet; the bottom stats taken 12 minutes after an 'unscheduled power cut', according to a text I received shortly after. However it's true the DLM rarely goes a week without adjusting my line - usually downwards!

[#10]

@AMC1973 I didn't think you were daft enough to turn the Hub off - sorry if I gave that impression. I know it is a pain, but can you see how things go over a week or so without interference?

As I said above, the 'retransmission - high' on that KBD is a little bit of a worry. Have you ever had an explanation as to why it is so set?

[#11]

@AMC1973  The line is banded at 35Mbps, if you didn't know, when the profile is retransmission high the downstream speed shown in the GEA test is not the actual sync speed but a reduced value, also the profile shown is out of date, it has since changed to 35Mbps as confirmed by the router stats and the minimum downstream line rate in the GEA test.

The way DLM works is to band the line at fixed speeds, this causes the SNRM to be higher than normal, Plusnet have no control of this, so they can't set your SNRM to a particular value, it is all under automated DLM control. Why the line is banded so frequently is difficult to say, the fact that you are on retransmission high which is a more aggressive level of G.Inp error protection suggests that the line is somehow more prone to errors.

@jab1  Retransmission high is not necessarily indicating any problem, many lines have this set if they need a higher level of error protection, the only downside is that it reduces the throughput speed by a few percent.

[#12]

Nothing to apologise for, John, I didn't get that impression. According to the engineer who came round on Monday, it's amazing how many people complain about their speed, but turn off their routers every night!

Interesting what you say about the retransmission though. I've never thought that an issue, because I've seen a lot of KDB's that say that, and they show downstream and upstream as 'very good'. See the example below...

Test Outcome	Pass
Test Outcome Code	GTC_FTTC_SERVICE_0000
Description	GEA service test completed and no fault found .
Main Fault Location	OK
Sync Status	In Sync
Downstream Speed	72.0 Mbps
Upstream Speed	20.0 Mbps
Appointment Required	N
Fault Report Advised	N
NTE Power Status	PowerOn
Voice Line Test Result	Pass
Bridge Tap	Not Detected
Radio Frequency Ingress	Not Detected
Repetitive Electrical Impulse Noise	Not Detected
Cross Talk	Not Detected
Estimated Line Length In Metres	408.8
Upstream Rate Assessment	Very Good
Downstream Rate Assessment	Very Good
Interference Pattern	Regular Interference Observed Daily
Service Impact	No Impact Observed
Interference Duration Longest Occurrence	;00:00to23:45
Interference Location	Customer Premise
Interference Observed In Days	14
Home Wiring Problem	Not Detected
Technology	VDSL
Current 15Min Bin Retrains	0
Last 15Min Bin Retrains	0
DP Type	External
Profile Name	0.128M-80M Downstream 3dB, Retransmission High - 0.128M-20M Upstream, Error Protection Off
Time Stamp	2019-09-28T21:15:00

Parameters	MIN	MAX	AVG
Down Stream Line Rate	75.8 Mbps	75.8 Mbps	75.8 Mbps
Up Stream Line Rate	20.0 Mbps	20.0 Mbps	20.0 Mbps
Up Time	898.0 Sec	900.0 Sec	899.9 Sec
Retrains	0.0	0.0	0.0

Current and Last 15 Minute Bin Performance
Parameters	Last Traffic Count(Upto 15 mins)	Current Traffic Count(Upto 15 mins)
Start Time Stamp	2019-10-11T19:44:57Z	2019-10-11T19:59:57Z
Ingress Code Violation	2	0
Egress Code Violation	0	0
Errored Seconds	0	0
Severely Errored Seconds	0	0
Unavailable Seconds	0	0

[#13]

OK, @AMC1973 , my apologies for letting a red herring loose. However, as you appear to be banded (should you be on 80/20?) there is a network problem somewhere.

[mcv]

Thanks for your input RealAleMadrid,

This is why I thought it possible for Plusnet to move my noise margin...

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 mcv

Dabbler

Posts: 12

Thanks: 2

Registered: ‎05-06-2019

Noise Margin Change Request

‎05-06-2019 3:47 PM

Hi,

I'm trying to get a bit better speed out my line, as I had with a previous supplier.

Could I request my SNR is moved to 6 please.

I've noticed Plusnet can go as low as 3, but not sure if my connection would be stable with that?

Thanks.

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  Jubby

Plusnet Help Team

Posts: 626

Thanks: 115

Fixes: 31

Registered: ‎06-08-2018

‎05-06-2019 4:06 PM

Hi @mcv and welcome to the forums!

The SNR margin target for your line is currently at 6dB but the actual margin is 7.5dB. While we can reset the SNR margin to 6dB as the circuit is currently experiencing some drops, the actual SNR margin will increase to improve stability.

Your connection loop loss is 42.5 which is a measurement of line length, in theory you should be targeted at 9dB. However, if you wish we can decrease the SNR to 6dB if you do not mind the circuit potentially becoming increasingly unstable.

Thank you.

[#15]

Hi,

I'm trying to get a bit better speed out my line, as I had with a previous supplier.

Could I request my SNR is moved to 6 please.

I've noticed Plusnet can go as low as 3, but not sure if my connection would be stable with that?

Thanks.

[#16]

Hi @mcv and welcome to the forums!

The SNR margin target for your line is currently at 6dB but the actual margin is 7.5dB. While we can reset the SNR margin to 6dB as the circuit is currently experiencing some drops, the actual SNR margin will increase to improve stability.

Your connection loop loss is 42.5 which is a measurement of line length, in theory you should be targeted at 9dB. However, if you wish we can decrease the SNR to 6dB if you do not mind the circuit potentially becoming increasingly unstable.

Thank you.

[#17]

No, definitely not on 80/20, would be nice, but no way my line could handle that! I'll try to get a reset, then hopefully no more power cuts, and just see how it goes. I would just love to know why a couple of years ago, I could easily get 37/38, now lucky to get 34!

Many thanks though John, I really appreciate your thoughts, and have a great Weekend.