Cable Forum - Traffic management, let me get this straight?

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- - Traffic management, let me get this straight? (https://www.cableforum.uk/board/showthread.php?t=33639487)

mgc_bb

04-10-2008 17:27

Traffic management, let me get this straight?

http://www.virginmedia.com/help/traffic-management.php

Hi everyone,

According to the link above, downloads are listed as uncapped (if you have no 5 hour throttle in place) between 9pm and 10am, does this really work out that way??

What are other users experiences on this?
Is it a just a load of guff?
Or how long before your speed dropped??

Any info would be of interest to everyone.
I know there are similar posts on here but I'm not asking for help, just your views guys ;)

Stabhappy

04-10-2008 18:25

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Traffic management works correctly here, if I need a few gigs of stuff I leave it till 3-4 or 9pm +, never been capped out of hours but if you ever are, and can prove you havn't uploaded/downloaded too much, you can appeal it and get it sorted.

Toto	04-10-2008 18:56

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stabhappy (Post 34647678)

I didn't realise that you could appeal, You sure VM are doing this?

Gary L

04-10-2008 19:13

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Toto (Post 34647692)

I didn't realise that you could appeal, You sure VM are doing this?

I very much doubt there's such a thing as appeal when it comes to STM. as far as the techs are concerned, STM is not wrong, it's not something that can be turned off, and it sure isn't something that will be spread around the internet as it must be faulty because you can appeal.

Fatec

04-10-2008 19:23

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Toto (Post 34647692)

I didn't realise that you could appeal, You sure VM are doing this?

You cannot appeal to being stm'd, you can post your info on the newsgroups if you like, but if their kit says you hit the limit then you hit the limit and that's that.

xspeedyx

04-10-2008 19:31

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

If you keep your own logs and report it to watchdog or OFCOM investigations could be done

Octal

04-10-2008 20:14

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Think you've got problems, this is my daily log at the end of September:

Quote:

[xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]$ vnstat -d

eth0 / daily

day rx | tx | total
------------------------+-------------+----------------------------------------
24.09. 194.46 MB | 9.97 MB | 204.43 MB %%%%%
25.09. 234.90 MB | 13.49 MB | 248.39 MB %%%%%%
26.09. 249.65 MB | 14.79 MB | 264.43 MB %%%%%%
27.09. 220.29 MB | 13.21 MB | 233.50 MB %%%%%

------------------------+-------------+----------------------------------------

And these are my speed tests:

Quote:

Wed, 24 Sep 2008 21:04:21 GMT
1st 128K took 1924 ms = 68125 Bytes/sec = approx 567 kbits/sec
2nd 128K took 1665 ms = 78722 Bytes/sec = approx 655 kbits/sec
3rd 128K took 2540 ms = 51603 Bytes/sec = approx 429 kbits/sec
4th 128K took 2424 ms = 54073 Bytes/sec = approx 450 kbits/sec

Thu, 25 Sep 2008 20:32:24 GMT
1st 128K took 331 ms = 395988 Bytes/sec = approx 3295 kbits/sec
2nd 128K took 406 ms = 322837 Bytes/sec = approx 2686 kbits/sec
3rd 128K took 612 ms = 214170 Bytes/sec = approx 1782 kbits/sec
4th 128K took 572 ms = 229147 Bytes/sec = approx 1907 kbits/sec

Sat, 27 Sep 2008 21:36:16 GMT
Test 1: 1024K took 5113 ms = 200.3 KB/sec, approx 1650 Kbps, 1.61 Mbps
Test 2: 1024K took 2231 ms = 459 KB/sec, approx 3782 Kbps, 3.69 Mbps
Test 3: 1024K took 1730 ms = 591.9 KB/sec, approx 4877 Kbps, 4.76 Mbps
Test 4: 2048K took 3766 ms = 543.8 KB/sec, approx 4481 Kbps, 4.38 Mbps
Overall Average Speed = approx 3698 Kbps, 3.61 Mbps

Sat, 27 Sep 2008 23:03:31 GMT
Test 1: 1024K took 4805 ms = 213.1 KB/sec, approx 1756 Kbps, 1.71 Mbps
Test 2: 1024K took 3949 ms = 259.3 KB/sec, approx 2137 Kbps, 2.09 Mbps
Test 3: 1024K took 3085 ms = 331.9 KB/sec, approx 2735 Kbps, 2.67 Mbps
Test 4: 2048K took 6899 ms = 296.9 KB/sec, approx 2446 Kbps, 2.39 Mbps
Overall Average Speed = approx 2269 Kbps, 2.22 Mbps

As soon as I get back from holiday VM and me are going to have words.I've just got upgraded to 10MB from 4MB and the speeds are slower than I was getting on 4MB. In the mornings the speed is very close to the 10MB so I know there's nothing wrong with the connection.

xxxxxx

04-10-2008 20:20

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Octal (Post 34647732)

Think you've got problems, this is my daily log at the end of September:

And these are my speed tests:

As soon as I get back from holiday VM and me are going to have words.I've just got upgraded to 10MB from 4MB and the speeds are slower than I was getting on 4MB. In the mornings the speed is very close to the 10MB so I know there's nothing wrong with the connection.

The same goes for me. But my speeds are worse than your speeds. I'm only getting 400 to 500 kbps.... and that's all day. I know it's not my modem because the guy on the phone said it wasn't because of my modem. I cannot watch videos because they stop every couple of seconds while loading. If this doesn't change by next Friday I might get another internet server.

Stabhappy

04-10-2008 21:23

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

I've seen people being given reference numbers and even having faulty modems being replaced if they prove on the newsgroups using dumeter or perhaps some custom router firmware which can measure bandwidth that they are not supposed to be tripping the stm. you can't appeal to the specific instance, but you can inform VM so they can stop it happening to you a second or third time.

Ignitionnet

04-10-2008 22:06

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Faulty modems?

Stabhappy

04-10-2008 22:20

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Modems that, apparently, utilise 95-100% upload all of the time, and continually trip the STM.

Edit: oh, I see, I actaully meant given replacement hardware BECAUSE of faulty modems. I'll correct it.

Boabyboy

05-10-2008 01:00

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Faulty modems? What CM modem would cause the upload to be heavily used to trigger STM? I never come across this before?

Stabhappy

05-10-2008 01:28

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

It's only what I've seen on newsgroups :/

xspeedyx

05-10-2008 15:00

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Sun, 05 Oct 2008 12:59:38 GMT

Test 1: 1024K took 2300 ms = 445.2 KB/sec, approx 3668 Kbps, 3.58 Mbps
Test 2: 1024K took 1272 ms = 805 KB/sec, approx 6633 Kbps, 6.48 Mbps
Test 3: 1024K took 1812 ms = 565.1 KB/sec, approx 4656 Kbps, 4.55 Mbps
Test 4: 2048K took 5148 ms = 397.8 KB/sec, approx 3278 Kbps, 3.2 Mbps

Overall Average Speed = approx 4559 Kbps, 4.45 Mbps

Gotta love 20Mb connections

Ignitionnet

05-10-2008 15:28

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stabhappy (Post 34647832)

Modems that, apparently, utilise 95-100% upload all of the time, and continually trip the STM.

Edit: oh, I see, I actaully meant given replacement hardware BECAUSE of faulty modems. I'll correct it.

That's a new one to me, modems generating IP traffic and causing STM to trigger. Do you have any examples of this, I'm interested?

---------- Post added at 14:28 ---------- Previous post was at 14:27 ----------

Quote:

Originally Posted by darthlinux (Post 34648019)

Still congested darth or STM'd?

Stabhappy

05-10-2008 16:43

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

news://news.virginmedia.com:119/Bqazk.24454$Fa6.23568@newsfe25.ams2

xspeedyx

06-10-2008 10:11

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Broadbandings (Post 34648026)

congested but my main man has informed me my area will be upgraded in November so I have only had this problem for over a year, so didnt take them too long to fix it lol, I have stopped been angry about it now, all my faith has gone in VM

jcardiff

06-10-2008 12:32

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Quote:

Originally Posted by mgc_bb (Post 34647659)

According to the link above, downloads are listed as uncapped (if you have no 5 hour throttle in place) between 9pm and 10am, does this really work out that way??

no, I have been stm'd around 7am on a fair few occasions, I only tend to download games on my xbox every now and then and generally overnight, kept being told it was my fault but on two seperate occassions I had it confirmed I was being stm'd around 7am.

I think it all depends on where you live

xspeedyx

06-10-2008 13:32

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

I have seen a few examples of people been STM'd outside of the hours set I think I was stm'd once outside of hours but my speeds are around 5mb in the evening and weekends anyways

Magilla

06-10-2008 13:56

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Quote:

Originally Posted by mgc_bb (Post 34647659)

Not in my experience, My speed is usually pretty crap until someone flicks the magic switch at 12 midnight everday, when my speeds miraculously become what they should be.

However, since the upgrade speeds are so poor I have no chance of ever hitting the STM limit.

ontheball

06-10-2008 17:15

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Yeah tell me about it. 12.00 midnight and suddenly I got my bandwidth as well.

Gary L

06-10-2008 17:27

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Sometimes a con is just a con....

xspeedyx

06-10-2008 17:28

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gary L (Post 34648557)

Sometimes a con is just a con....

I hate to admit this but in a way Gary I have to agree with some of your comments on stm (not all just some)

Stuart

06-10-2008 17:49

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Quote:

Originally Posted by mgc_bb (Post 34647659)

Remember, VM define capping as a physical limit on what you can download. They ignore the speed you can download it. So, they would count a service that either stops your internet connection, or charges you a premium when you go above a certain limit. They do not count their own service which slows your connection, but does not actually stop it, or charge you extra for going over the cap.

I am not saying they are right, just stating how they define "capping".

Gary L

06-10-2008 18:04

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Quote:

Originally Posted by darthlinux (Post 34648558)

I hate to admit this but in a way Gary I have to agree with some of your comments on stm (not all just some)

Me for prime minister then?

---------- Post added at 17:04 ---------- Previous post was at 16:53 ----------

So why don't they sell the product as uncapped as well as their favourite term unlimited? do they think that the word unlimited covers all?
it can't cover all because there's STM. which happens to cancel out the word unlimited, which there isn't a word that they use to describe it when selling their product. unless it comes under the word secret.

xspeedyx

06-10-2008 18:10

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gary L (Post 34648573)

LOL

cook1984

07-10-2008 23:56

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

I get traffic shaped for downloads that happen after 9pm. Until about 9.20 downloads seem to count. Today, for example, I was at 2.8GB until 9pm, started a download at 9.01 and went over the 3GB limit at 9.03 and my connection was throttled to death for five hours (still in effect).

Before someone says it, my clocks are right.

jcardiff

08-10-2008 10:42

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Quote:

Originally Posted by cook1984 (Post 34649778)

Before someone says it, my clocks are right.

that doesn't mean vm's are though does it;)

nefu	25-10-2008 15:40

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

My service was throttled early today and when I called TS they stated that for heavy users STM could apply anytime. When I pointed out the times on the website http://allyours.virginmedia.com/html...t/traffic.html
the chap was adamant that "for users such as you they can be applied anytime", how do I find out the real policy?

Sirius

25-10-2008 15:41

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Quote:

Originally Posted by nefu (Post 34661199)

I find that distasteful that they said this to you.

Quote:

for users such as you

That is disgusting and well below the belt

Even more shocking that they have ADMITTED to having a set of rules that they say they use, and a set of rules that they actually apply and goes against there terms and conditions .

So just to confirm what they say

Quote:

Traffic management

We don't like traffic jams

At Virgin Media, we want all our customers to get the best service possible from their broadband. That means speedy downloads for all users - not just a few.

When someone is downloading and/or uploading a particularly large amount of information over a long period of time, it can slow down the broadband speed for other users who might just be checking their email or browsing online. So to make sure our service is fair for everybody, we sometimes moderate the speeds for the top 5% of customers who are downloading and/or uploading an unusually large amount.

This makes sure that the service doesn't get blocked up with people using more than their fair share - which means a lot fewer traffic jams.

What traffic management policies are you applying to the heaviest users?

That depends on the broadband package you're signed up to. You can check out the detail by taking a look at our 'Updated traffic management policy' table below.

It's important to remember that these traffic management policies only apply when the speeds are likely to be affected by people using more than their fair share.

In fact, the policies only affect the top 5% of users on a daily basis - those whose usage of the service would affect other users if they weren't managed.

What do the updates to the traffic management policy mean?

To make sure all customers get the most from their connection, we automatically reduce the speed of the heaviest users at peak evening times - between 4pm and 9pm. In extreme cases, we'll now also reduce the speed between 10am and 3pm - something that'll have an impact on just 1% of our customers.

In short, our changes mean that fewer customers are expected to have their speeds managed on a daily basis. Take a look at the table below for more details.

Why do you have a traffic management policy?

We believe in making sure all our customers can use Virgin Broadband without being slowed down by high users. So our traffic management policy is there to keep things fair.

We know some companies may have traffic management in place to cut costs. We've never believed in cutting costs for the sake of it. We want to deliver the best possible value to all our customers - and that's exactly what we're doing. That's why we doubled the speed of our top broadband package to a supersonic up to 20Mb, are increasing our broadband L from up to 4Mb to up to 10Mb, and will be launching up to 50Mb broadband in the future.

Will the policy change again?

The way that our customers use their broadband is changing all the time, so it's possible that in the future we may increase or decrease the thresholds or modify other settings. Don't worry though, we'll always let you know on our website if we're going to make any changes, and we don't expect the thresholds to change very often.

Updated traffic management policy

We're making some changes to our traffic management policy. We think the overall impact will be that fewer people will be affected by the traffic management policy – but it'll still make sure that use is fair for all our customers. Here's the detail:

So tell me where it says they can apply a further STM period for those that they are calling heavy users above and beyond there POLICY.

Gary L

25-10-2008 15:47

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Quote:

Originally Posted by nefu (Post 34661199)

Ask in virginmedia.feedback.
Alex Brown is around he'll know if it's true, and if it's not true then he will tell you that he will get the person that told you re-educated.

---------- Post added at 14:47 ---------- Previous post was at 14:45 ----------

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sirius (Post 34661202)

Even more shocking that they have ADMITTED to having a set of rules that they say they use, and a set of rules that they actually apply and goes against there terms and conditions .

One good thing about it is. it backs up my theory that this is what was happening :)

Sirius

25-10-2008 15:51

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gary L (Post 34661205)

I have been saying for a while that i think they are testing overnight stm or some form of throttling :rolleyes:

Fatec

25-10-2008 16:01

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gary L (Post 34661205)

Ask in virginmedia.feedback.
Alex Brown is around he'll know if it's true, and if it's not true then he will tell you that he will get the person that told you re-educated.

Consideirng alex browns track record with the 'truth' i would not expect much help from him.

---------- Post added at 14:47 ---------- Previous post was at 14:45 ----------

One good thing about it is. it backs up my theory that this is what was happening :)[/QUOTE]

xspeedyx

25-10-2008 16:11

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

wooooooooo hoooooooooooo a stm'd connection 24/7 how could this get any better stupid stupid, I am getting sick to my back teeth its just a dam shame that BETHERE can only offer me 2mb, otherwise I will would be saying bye bye Virgin Media keep your sucky crappy service to yourself

Gary L

25-10-2008 16:40

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fatec (Post 34661214)

Consideirng alex browns track record with the 'truth' i would not expect much help from him.

I think I was being sarcastic :)

xspeedyx

25-10-2008 16:42

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gary L (Post 34661232)

I think I was being sarcastic :)

I wondered what that steam was lol

Gary L

25-10-2008 17:28

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Quote:

Originally Posted by darthlinux (Post 34661234)

I wondered what that steam was lol

Should we be worried?

Alex asked if anybody uses Twitter. said it was becoming quite popular amongst VM people, and is interested in following anyone else interesting!

He has asked that you post your username if you want :D

xspeedyx

25-10-2008 17:36

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

WTF u mean?

Gary L

25-10-2008 17:39

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Quote:

Originally Posted by darthlinux (Post 34661254)

WTF u mean?

Alex doesn't normally post outside his job role in the groups. I just wondered whether he was doing some market research or something :)

broadbandbug

26-10-2008 10:10

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Quote:

Originally Posted by darthlinux (Post 34661254)

WTF u mean?

Take a look at www.twitter.com

Sign up and search for Alex Brown.. If you follow him you will get 'snippets' of what he is doing each day.. Meetings, discussions etc.. Obviously if you have an opinion you want to share with him you can message back to him and anyone else that is following his 'tweets';)

Gary L

26-10-2008 11:10

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Quote:

Originally Posted by broadbandbug (Post 34661647)

Did you know that Alex uses Google alerts? where if someone posts something on usenet and they say a keyword/s within the post, Google alerts him to it.
Can't think what keywords he uses. probably Virgin are crap or something :LOL:

Maggy

26-10-2008 13:11

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Please stick to the topic.

Martyn

26-10-2008 13:12

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

i've had my limit reset before.. so it can be done..

xspeedyx

26-10-2008 19:48

Re: Traffic management, let me get this straight?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Martyn (Post 34661741)

i've had my limit reset before.. so it can be done..

How?

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