How to troubleshoot Community Fibre broadband performance issues

Before starting to troubleshoot the performance of your Community Fibre broadband connection, we suggest that you perform a Community Fibre Internet Speedtest to confirm your current internet speed.

It is also a good idea confirm the minimum download speed you on your broadband package from Community Fibre.

You can find this info by checking a Community Fibre broadband bill, your Community Fibre contract or by contacting Community Fibre.

Common causes of Community Fibre’s slow internet performance

Is it the Community Fibre broadband that is running slow or could it be your device (laptop/smartphone/PC)?

You may need to check the number of applications are currently running on your device.

The speed issue may be due to the over-utilization of your device’s resources i.e Memory/CPU Processor and as opposed to an issue with Community Fibre’s internet connection.

If you’re on a computer then you may use the task manager to check your CPU and Memory usage.

On any other device, you should try restarting the device which should hopefully kill all apps that may be using up your systems resources.

Re-run the Community Fibre Speedtest on your personal computer and your mobile phone to check how the speedtest results differ between the 2 devices.

This should hopefully give you some info to help determine if the issue is with your PC/Smartphone or the Community Fibre broadband connection.

• What does the Community Fibre download and upload speed mean?
• Who is the best Internet Service Provider in the UK?
• 5 methods to speed up your Community Fibre Internet performance
• DNS hack to speed up internet browsing speed on Community Fibre

Is the wireless network the cause of the slowness?

The root cause of the performance problem may be your Wifi as opposed to the Community Fibre broadband connection.

You could rule out the Wi-Fi network by simply connecting your computer directly to the Community Fibre broadband router using an ethernet cable and then run the Community Fibre Speed test again.

If the speed improves when you are connected using an ethernet cable, this indicates that the issue may be with the Wifi.

A few other things to investigate:

• Are the Wireless channels that you are using for your wireless network network (SSID) overlapping with the neighbours?
• Is your Wifi signal from the internet router obstructed?
• Does the performance improve when your are standing directly in-front of the Community Fibre broadband router?

Who is connected to my Wifi network?

Have you checked that your wireless network password has not been shared? Do you have an open Wifi network? How secure is your wireless network password? It could be time to update it.

Others could be on your Wi-Fi network and using up all the Community Fibre bandwidth by downloading, uploading or even streaming music or videos over your Community Fibre internet connection! Worse than that, they may be carrying out illegal activities over your Community Fibre broadband connection.

There are three apps that you can utlise to scan your Wifi network to check who is connected:

• Microsoft Windows users can use Wireless network watcher
• IOS users can use whoFi (who is on my Wifi)
• wireless network troubleshooting application WiFi Analyzer

The above apps scan your Wifi network and produce a list of the connected devices.

• How to check who is on your Community Fibre wireless network

Should I get a Wi-Fi network booster for my Community Fibre broadband?

If you discover that you have wireless coverage holes in your home, a Wifi extender also known as a Wifi Booster may be the best fix to strengthen your wireless signal to cover any black spots.

• Cheapest Wireless Signal Extenders

The wireless network extender picks up the existing Wi-Fi network signal just as it is becoming weaker and re-transmits the wireless network signal to increase it’s reach.

Position the Wi-Fi network booster/extender near the position where your Wi-Fi network signal from the Community Fibre internet router is becoming weaker.

Position it approximately where your wireless network signal is dropping down to 2 bars. Walk around your home with a smartphone to determine where this location is.

When did you last upgrade the Community Fibre internet router?

The Community Fibre and broadband infrastructure, in general, are constantly upgraded to provide new features and improve performance as technology evolves.  Ensure that your Community Fibre broadband internet router is running the latest software.

Most Community Fibre broadband routers allow you to carry out the software update by logging on the Community Fibre broadband router and simply clicking a button to start the upgrade.

If you can’t do this, get in touch with Community Fibre and they will do this for you or alternatively, guide you through performing the upgrade yourself.

In addition to updating the software, if you have had the same hardware for a long period, it is worth talking to Community Fibre to request for a hardware upgrade.

Is the cause of the problem outside your property (at the exchange)?

This is probably the most common reason for Community Fibre broadband performance problems in your home and is more common for internet broadband connections that are delivered through copper phone lines.

If you’re not sure if this is applicable to you, you should contact Community Fibre who will be able to carry out the appropriate line checks to check if there is a issue on the Community Fibre internet line.

Is the issue because of Community Fibre Internet congestion?

If you’re finding that the Community Fibre internet connection speed in your area is slow during certain periods i.e. over weekends and during the evening, then it may be due to congestion during peak times.

• What’s Broadband Contention Ratio and does Community Fibre have contention?

You should contact Community Fibre to find out your guaranteed speed.

Re-testing your Community Fibre internet connection

After the fault has been resolved either by yourself or Community Fibre, re-test your internet connection using  at least 2 separate Speedtests to ensure the issue is fixed:

• • How to the ookla internet broadband speed test to test your Community Fibre connection
  • Check your Community Fibre broadband speed using Ookla Offical Speed Test
  • Test your Community Fibre internet connectionspeed using fast.com speed test
  • Check My Broadband Speed Checker Community Fibre internet speed checker
  • • 0845UK Internet Speed Checker and troubleshooting