How to troubleshoot CountyBroadband broadband speed issues

Before you begin troubleshooting the speed of your CountyBroadband internet connection, we recommend that you run a CountyBroadband Internet Speed Test to confirm your current connection speed.

Also confirm the guaranteed minimum download speed that you on your broadband package from CountyBroadband.

You can find this information by checking a CountyBroadband broadband bill, your CountyBroadband contract or by contacting CountyBroadband.

Probable causes of CountyBroadband’s slow internet performance

Is it your CountyBroadband internet connection 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 performance problem could be due to over-utilisation of your system resources e.g RAM/CPU and not an issue with CountyBroadband’s broadband connection.

If you’re on a laptop then you can use the task manager to check your CPU and RAM utilization.

On any other device, you should try rebooting the device which should hopefully shut down all applications that may be using up system resources.

Run the CountyBroadband Speedtest on your personal computer and your mobile to see how the results compare between the 2 devices.

Hopefully this should give you some info to work with in terms of whether the problem lies with your PC/Smartphone or the CountyBroadband internet connection.

• What exactly does the CountyBroadband download and upload speed mean?
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• Five methods to speed up your CountyBroadband Internet speed
• Simple DNS tip to improve internet browsing speed on CountyBroadband

Is your Wi-Fi network the cause of the issue?

The cause of the performance problem could be your wireless and not the CountyBroadband broadband connection.

You could rule out the Wi-Fi network by connecting your PC directly to the CountyBroadband broadband router using an ethernet cable and then run the CountyBroadband Speed checker again.

If the speed checker result improves when you’re connected using a network cable, this proves that the problem could be with your Wi-Fi network.

A few other things to check:

• Are the Wireless channels that you’re using for your Wi-Fi network network (SSID) overlapping with the neighbours?
• Is your wireless signal from the wireless router obstructed?
• Does your performance improve when your are standing right infront of the CountyBroadband internet router?

Exactly who’s connected to my wireless network?

Have you checked that your Wi-Fi network password has not been compromised? Do you have an open Wifi network? How secure is your Wi-Fi network password? It could be time to change it.

Neighbors could be on your wireless network and eating up all the CountyBroadband bandwidth by downloading, uploading or even streaming music or video on your CountyBroadband broadband connection! Worse still, they could be carrying out illegal activities on your CountyBroadband broadband connection.

There are three apps that you can potentially utlise to scan your wireless network to see who is connected:

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

The above software analyse your Wi-Fi network and show you a list of the everything on your wifi.

• How to check who is on your CountyBroadband Wi-Fi network

Should I get a wireless network booster for my CountyBroadband broadband?

If you discover that there are Wifi black holes in your property, a wireless extender aka a wireless Booster may be the best fix to increase your wireless signal to cover any coverage gaps.

• Cheapest Wi-Fi Signal Extenders

The Wifi booster picks up the existing wireless signal just as it is becoming weaker and re-transmits the Wifi signal to extend it’s coverage.

Place the wireless network booster/extender where your wireless network signal from your CountyBroadband broadband router is starting to become weaker.

Place it near where your Wifi network signal is dropping down to less than two signal bars. Walk around your house with a smartphone to find where this location is.

When was the last time you upgraded the CountyBroadband internet router?

The CountyBroadband and broadband infrastructure, in general, are constantly upgraded to support new features and improve performance as technology evolves.  Ensure that the CountyBroadband internet router is running on the most up to date software.

The majority of CountyBroadband broadband routers will allow you to carry out the software upgrade by logging into the CountyBroadband broadband router and simply clicking a button to do the update.

If you can’t do this, contact CountyBroadband and they will be able to perform the upgrade for you or alternatively, guide you through the process.

In addition to updating the software, if you have had the same router for a long time, it is worth talking to CountyBroadband to request for a hardware upgrade.

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

This is probably the most common reason for CountyBroadband broadband performance issues in your property and it’s more common for broadband connections that are delivered via copper phone lines.

If you’re not sure if this is relevant in your case, contact CountyBroadband who should be able to conduct the appropriate line checks to check if there is a fault on the CountyBroadband internet line.

Is the issue due to CountyBroadband Internet congestion?

If you are finding that the CountyBroadband broadband connection speed in your area is slows down during certain periods e.g weekends or evenings, it may be because of congestion during peak hours.

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

You should speak to CountyBroadband to find out your guaranteed speed.

Re-testing your CountyBroadband broadband connection

After the problem has been resolved either by yourself or CountyBroadband, re-test the internet connection using  at least 2 independent Speedtests to ensure the problem is fixed:

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