Troubleshooting UKFSN broadband speed issues

Before starting to troubleshoot the performance of your UKFSN broadband connection, we suggest that you perform a UKFSN Broadband Speedtest to measure your current internet speed.

Also confirm the minimum download speed you on your broadband package from UKFSN.

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

Likely causes of UKFSN’s slow internet speed

Is it the UKFSN internet connection that is running slow or is it your device (laptop/smartphone/PC)?

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

The speed problem may be due to over-utilisation of your system resources e.g RAM/memory/CPU and not an issue with UKFSN’s internet connection.

If you are on a computer then you can use the task manager to see your Processor and RAM utilisation.

On other device, you could try rebooting the device which hopefully should shut down all programs that may be hogging system resources.

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

Hopefully this should provide you with more information to help determine whether the issue lies with your device or the UKFSN broadband connection.

• What exactly does the UKFSN download and upload speed mean?
• Who’s the best Broadband Service Provider in the UK?
• 5 ways to improve your UKFSN Internet performance
• DNS tip to improve internet browsing speed on UKFSN

Is the wireless the reason for the issues?

The cause of the performance problem could be your Wi-Fi network and not the UKFSN broadband connection.

You could rule out the Wi-Fi network by connecting your computer directly into the UKFSN broadband router with a network cable and run the UKFSN Speedtest again.

If the speed test result improves when you are connected using a network cable, this shows that the issue may be with your Wifi.

A number of things to investigate:

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

Exactly who’s connected to my wireless network?

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

Others could be on your wireless network and eating up all your UKFSN bandwidth by downloading, uploading or even streaming music or video over your UKFSN internet connection! Worse than that, they may be carrying out illegal activities over your UKFSN broadband connection.

Here are three applications to use to analyze your wireless network to see who is connected:

• Microsoft Windows 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 Wifi network and show you a list of the connected devices.

• How to check who’s on your UKFSN wireless network

Do I need a wireless booster for my UKFSN broadband?

If you find that you have Wifi coverage holes at your property, a Wifi network extender also known as a wireless Booster is the best fix to strengthen your wireless signal to cover any coverage gaps.

• Cheapest Wifi Signal Boosters

The Wi-Fi network extender picks up the existing Wifi network signal as it is starting to become weaker and re-transmits the wireless signal to extend it’s reach.

Position the Wifi extender near the position where your wireless signal from your UKFSN broadband router is becoming weaker.

Position it approximately where your wireless network signal drops down to less than 2 bars. Walk around your home with a mobile phone to find where this location is.

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

The UKFSN and broadband infrastructure, in general, are frequently upgraded to provide new features and improve performance as technology evolves.  Ensure that your UKFSN broadband router is running on the most up-to-date software.

The majority of UKFSN internet routers will allow you to perform the software update by simply logging on the UKFSN broadband router and simply clicking a button to perform the update.

If you can’t do this, contact UKFSN and they will do this for you or talk you through the process.

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

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

This is probably the most likely cause for UKFSN broadband performance problems in your home and it’s more common for internet broadband connections that are delivered using phone lines.

If you’re unsure if this is relevant in your case, you should contact UKFSN who will be able to carry out the appropriate line checks to check if there is a issue on the UKFSN internet line.

Is the performance issue because of UKFSN Internet congestion?

If you are finding that the UKFSN broadband connection speed in your area is slows down during certain periods i.e. weekends and during the evening, then it may be because of congestion during peak hours.

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

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

Test your UKFSN broadband connection

After the fault has been fixed either by yourself or UKFSN, re-test your broadband connection using  at least two independent Speedtests to ensure the problem is resolved:

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