How to troubleshoot Freeola broadband speed problems

Before you begin troubleshooting the speed of your Freeola internet connection, we suggest that you perform a Freeola Broadband Speed Test to confirm your current internet speed.

It is also a good idea confirm the minimum download speed that you are paying for from Freeola.

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

Potential causes of Freeola’s slow internet speed

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

You may need to check how many apps are running on your device.

The speed issue may be due to over-utilization of your device’s resources e.g RAM/CPU and not a problem with Freeola’s broadband connection.

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

On other device, you should try restarting the device which hopefully will kill all apps that may be hogging your device resources.

Run the Freeola Speed checker on your personal computer and your phone to see how the speed test results compare between the 2 devices.

Hopefully this should provide you with some info to work with in terms of whether the issue lies with your device or the Freeola broadband connection.

• What does the Freeola download and upload speed mean?
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• 5 tips to speed up your Freeola broadband performance
• Simple DNS hack to speed up internet browsing speed on Freeola

Is your Wifi network the problem?

The root cause of the performance issue could be your wireless and not the Freeola broadband internet connection.

You could rule out the Wifi by simply connecting your PC directly to the Freeola broadband router using a network cable and then run the Freeola Speed checker again.

If the speed is better when you are connected via an ethernet cable, this suggests that the problem could be with your Wi-Fi network.

A number of things to look further into:

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

Who is connected to my Wi-Fi network?

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

Others could be using your Wi-Fi network and eating up all your Freeola bandwidth by downloading, uploading or even streaming music or video on your Freeola internet connection! Worse than that, they could be carrying out illegal activities on your Freeola broadband connection.

Here are three apps that you can potentially utlise to analyze your Wifi network to check who is connected:

• Microsoft users can use Wireless network watcher
• Apple users can use whoFi (who is on my Wifi)
• WiFi troubleshooting tool WiFi Analyzer

The above applications analyse your Wi-Fi network and display a list of the connected devices.

• How to see who is on your Freeola wireless network

Do I need a Wifi network booster for my Freeola broadband?

If you find that you have Wifi black holes at your property, a Wifi extender aka a Wi-Fi Booster is the best fix to boost your wireless signal to cover any coverage gaps.

• Cheapest Wi-Fi Signal Boosters

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

Place the Wifi network booster where your Wi-Fi network signal from your Freeola internet router is becoming weaker.

Place it near where your Wifi signal drops down to 2 bars. Walk around your house with a smartphone to find where this is.

When was the last time you upgraded the Freeola broadband router?

The Freeola and broadband infrastructure, in general, are frequently updated to support new features and improve performance as technology evolves.  Always ensure that the Freeola internet router is running the most up-to-date software.

Most Freeola broadband routers will allow you to perform the software update by logging on the Freeola broadband router and simply clicking a button to start the upgrade.

If you cannot do this, get in touch with Freeola and they will do this for you or guide you through the process.

As well as upgrading the software, if you have had the same hardware for a long period, it’s worth talking to Freeola to request for a hardware upgrade.

Is the issue external to your home (at the exchange)?

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

If you’re unsure if this is relevant in your case, you should contact Freeola who will be able to conduct the relevant line tests to check if there is a fault on the Freeola broadband line.

Is it because of Freeola Internet congestion?

If you’re finding that the Freeola broadband connection speed in your area is slows down during certain times i.e. over weekends and during the evening, then it may be because of congestion during peak times.

• What is Broadband Contention Ratio and does Freeola have contention?

You should contact Freeola to check your minimum speed.

Test your Freeola broadband connection

After the fault has been fixed either by yourself or Freeola, retest the internet connection using  at least two separate Speedtests to ensure the issue is fixed:

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