UPC Broadband ping/jitter.

marshbaboon · 22-02-2012 7:33pm #1

Howdy lads,

I've been having a problem with my 50mb UPC broadband since Friday. It's really strange, the ping/jitter/speeds are varying wildly.

When I run a series of ping tests in a row some will be perfect, some will have terrible ping & jitter. I notice it mainly in gaming, some games I can't connect to any servers & in others (like killing floor) I'm not lagging apart from intermittent quantum leaps across the map.

Their tech support checked the line over the phone and told me there was a problem with the signal, when their engineer called out he checked it and said it was perfect. (I ran a ping test just after he checked the line and could see the problem straight away again).

What's the possibility of it being a faulty router vs an intermittent line fault (it's the thompson model). Also I'm using a wireless connection BUT I have connected to the router via RJ45 and have the same results in tests.

I also know it's not the pc as the phone (also from UPC) has intermittent sound cut outs.

Router log is full of error & critical messages but I can't see via google if they show a fault or not:

- Map Reject - Not Authorized for Requested Downstream Traffic
-DHCP WARNING - Non-critical field invalid in response ;CM-MAC
-SYNC Timing Synchronization failure - Failed to acquire FEC f
-SYNC Timing Synchronization failure - Failed to acquire QAM/Q
-ToD request sent- No Response received;CM-MAC=80:c6:ab:d2:c
-Started Unicast Maintenance Ranging - No Response received

Steps I've tried so far:

-Disabling router firewall (no change).
-Factory reset on router (no change).

He said they're going to check the cables along the line for a fault but I'm not sure if I believe that based on one complaint. Is my best bet to make them change the router?

EDIT: here's the full event log:

Wed Feb 22 18:40:23 2012 Critical (3) Started Unicast Maintenance Ranging - No Response received - ...
Wed Feb 22 18:22:20 2012 Warning (5) Map Reject - Not Authorized for Requested Downstream Traffic ...
Wed Feb 22 17:59:26 2012 Notice (6) TLV-11 - unrecognized OID;CM-MAC=80:c6:ab:d2:c6:18;CMTS-MAC=0...
Wed Feb 22 17:59:25 2012 Warning (5) DHCP WARNING - Non-critical field invalid in response ;CM-MAC...
Wed Feb 22 17:59:18 2012 Critical (3) No Ranging Response received - T3 time-out;CM-MAC=80:c6:ab:d2...
Wed Feb 22 17:58:58 2012 Critical (3) SYNC Timing Synchronization failure - Failed to acquire QAM/Q...
Wed Feb 22 17:58:49 2012 Critical (3) SYNC Timing Synchronization failure - Failed to acquire FEC f...
Wed Feb 22 17:58:49 2012 Critical (3) SYNC Timing Synchronization failure - Failed to acquire QAM/Q...
Wed Feb 22 17:58:43 2012 Critical (3) SYNC Timing Synchronization failure - Failed to acquire FEC f...
Wed Feb 22 17:56:51 2012 Warning (5) MDD message timeout;CM-MAC=80:c6:ab:d2:c6:18;CMTS-MAC=00:17:1...
Wed Feb 22 17:56:51 2012 Warning (5) Lost MDD Timeout;CM-MAC=80:c6:ab:d2:c6:18;CMTS-MAC=00:17:10:0...
Wed Feb 22 17:56:51 2012 Critical (3) Received Response to Broadcast Maintenance Request, But no Un...
Wed Feb 22 17:56:51 2012 Critical (3) SYNC Timing Synchronization failure - Failed to acquire FEC f...
Wed Feb 22 17:56:45 2012 Warning (5) MDD message timeout;CM-MAC=80:c6:ab:d2:c6:18;CMTS-MAC=00:17:1...
Wed Feb 22 17:56:45 2012 Warning (5) Lost MDD Timeout;CM-MAC=80:c6:ab:d2:c6:18;CMTS-MAC=00:17:10:0...
Wed Feb 22 17:56:45 2012 Critical (3) SYNC Timing Synchronization failure - Failed to acquire FEC f...
Wed Feb 22 17:56:38 2012 Warning (5) MDD message timeout;CM-MAC=80:c6:ab:d2:c6:18;CMTS-MAC=00:17:1...
Wed Feb 22 17:56:38 2012 Warning (5) Lost MDD Timeout;CM-MAC=80:c6:ab:d2:c6:18;CMTS-MAC=00:17:10:0...
Wed Feb 22 17:56:38 2012 Critical (3) SYNC Timing Synchronization failure - Failed to acquire FEC f...
Wed Feb 22 17:56:32 2012 Warning (5) MDD message timeout;CM-MAC=80:c6:ab:d2:c6:18;CMTS-MAC=00:17:1...
Wed Feb 22 17:56:32 2012 Warning (5) Lost MDD Timeout;CM-MAC=80:c6:ab:d2:c6:18;CMTS-MAC=00:17:10:0...
Wed Feb 22 17:56:32 2012 Critical (3) SYNC Timing Synchronization failure - Failed to acquire FEC f...
Wed Feb 22 17:56:29 2012 Critical (3) SYNC Timing Synchronization failure - Failed to receive MAC S...
Wed Feb 22 17:47:56 2012 Warning (5) Map Reject - Not Authorized for Requested Downstream Traffic ...
Wed Feb 22 17:30:30 2012 Critical (3) Started Unicast Maintenance Ranging - No Response received - ...
Wed Feb 22 16:54:49 2012 Error (4) ToD request sent- No Response received;CM-MAC=80:c6:ab:d2:c6:...
Wed Feb 22 14:16:44 2012 Warning (5) Map Reject - Not Authorized for Requested Downstream Traffic ...
Wed Feb 22 12:34:03 2012 Critical (3) Started Unicast Maintenance Ranging - No Response received - ...
Wed Feb 22 12:19:15 2012 Warning (5) Map Reject - Not Authorized for Requested Downstream Traffic ...
Wed Feb 22 11:34:20 2012 Critical (3) Started Unicast Maintenance Ranging - No Response received - ...
Wed Feb 22 10:47:01 2012 Warning (5) Map Reject - Not Authorized for Requested Downstream Traffic ...
Wed Feb 22 10:28:25 2012 Critical (3) Started Unicast Maintenance Ranging - No Response received - ...

ben101 · 29-02-2012 9:52pm

I'd say it's the router,i recently upgraded to 50 mb and replaced an excellent dlink 855 extreme router with the crappy thomson.Now i am lucky if i get 20 mb on wieless.Constantly onto UPC who keep on telling me to unplug it for a minute and plug it in,doesn't work.If i reset it from the pinhole in the back i get nearly 50 mbs on wireless,success:)......FOR ABOUT AN HOUR!?!?!?
Then it goes back to around 10-20,infuriating:mad::mad::mad::mad::mad:

marshbaboon · 03-03-2012 3:10am

They're going to replace it no bother. They seemed to very quickly realise I knew more about what I was talking about than they did. If the replacement thompson doesn't work they're going to have to supply a workaround using a different model of router.

Had the cisco they use before I upgraded and it was always perfect, full speed on the line, no problems (even over wireless). I know it can be purely subjective but I've always had good experiences using cisco gear to network.

Kensington · 03-03-2012 7:23pm

Ranging indicates loss of sync with the cable network so if your line is definitely good, then it's probably a dodgy router. I guess you'll find out shortly!

BTW You should not post your CM-MAC in public for security reasons

marshbaboon · 03-03-2012 9:20pm

Didn't even think of that and now I can't edit it, ha. Ah well the router will be replaced within a day or so anyway.

Wagga321 · 09-03-2012 2:25pm

Im near swords and have had the same problem last three weeks.i have horrible download speeds,YouTube is constantly buffering,Netflix pauses every few minutes to buffer and online gaming on ps3 is unplayable with lag/rubber banding.i too have had UPC out numerous times,telling me everything is fine.i persisted though and they changed the cables and the router and everything is still running slow.So now they're monitoring my router for 7 days and if it comes back normal they say they can do no more and so I'll be switching to Eircom.Hopefully 8mb with Eircom will work as its pointless having 50mb with UPC that runs like dial-up! Glad I'm not the only one having these issues cause I feel UPC aren't taking me too seriously!

brensplit · 09-03-2012 4:07pm

Wagga321 wrote: »

Im near swords and have had the same problem last three weeks.i have horrible download speeds,YouTube is constantly buffering,Netflix pauses every few minutes to buffer and online gaming on ps3 is unplayable with lag/rubber banding.i too have had UPC out numerous times,telling me everything is fine.i persisted though and they changed the cables and the router and everything is still running slow.So now they're monitoring my router for 7 days and if it comes back normal they say they can do no more and so I'll be switching to Eircom.Hopefully 8mb with Eircom will work as its pointless having 50mb with UPC that runs like dial-up! Glad I'm not the only one having these issues cause I feel UPC aren't taking me too seriously!

I have the same problem and I am in swords. Its an issue with one of the local servers. Do the following in CMD:

tracert www.google.com

run that a few times and you will see the IPs that are dropping packets or have mental high Pings. I am going to show the technician this tomorrow and also this thread. what you need to do is get them to re route the connection through different servers.

They obviously have not copped that one of the servers they are routing through is on the blink, the more that contact UPC the quicker they will realise its an issue. you should emai them with a textfile copy of the ping results and also a traceroute.

marshbaboon · 09-03-2012 4:50pm

brensplit wrote: »

I have the same problem and I am in swords. Its an issue with one of the local servers. Do the following in CMD:

tracert www.google.com

run that a few times and you will see the IPs that are dropping packets or have mental high Pings. I am going to show the technician this tomorrow and also this thread. what you need to do is get them to re route the connection through different servers.

They obviously have not copped that one of the servers they are routing through is on the blink, the more that contact UPC the quicker they will realise its an issue. you should emai them with a textfile copy of the ping results and also a traceroute.

I can see what you're talking about straight away. Getting 300ms or packet loss on 2-3 IPs. Going to forward all this on to them and see if I can speak directly to someone who doesn't need to ask for permission to fix this.

brensplit · 09-03-2012 5:54pm

marshbaboon wrote: »

I can see what you're talking about straight away. Getting 300ms or packet loss on 2-3 IPs. Going to forward all this on to them and see if I can speak directly to someone who doesn't need to ask for permission to fix this.

You can mention this thread also, there was another thread with more people in swords having the same issue... its breaking my heart, cant play battlefield the last 2 weeks!

Bren

Wagga321 · 09-03-2012 9:59pm

brensplit wrote: »

I have the same problem and I am in swords. Its an issue with one of the local servers. Do the following in CMD:

tracert www.google.com

run that a few times and you will see the IPs that are dropping packets or have mental high Pings. I am going to show the technician this tomorrow and also this thread. what you need to do is get them to re route the connection through different servers.

They obviously have not copped that one of the servers they are routing through is on the blink, the more that contact UPC the quicker they will realise its an issue. you should emai them with a textfile copy of the ping results and also a traceroute.

Thanks for that! Ran it a few times and getting average ping of 115ms and occasionally 20% packet loss! Spoke to them again today and they promise me the monitor they're running on my modem will detect any line issues and that'll be completed on Tuesday! I'll let you know what they say!

brensplit · 09-03-2012 10:19pm

Wagga321 wrote: »

brensplit wrote: »

I have the same problem and I am in swords. Its an issue with one of the local servers. Do the following in CMD:

tracert www.google.com

run that a few times and you will see the IPs that are dropping packets or have mental high Pings. I am going to show the technician this tomorrow and also this thread. what you need to do is get them to re route the connection through different servers.

They obviously have not copped that one of the servers they are routing through is on the blink, the more that contact UPC the quicker they will realise its an issue. you should emai them with a textfile copy of the ping results and also a traceroute.

Thanks for that! Ran it a few times and getting average ping of 115ms and occasionally 20% packet loss! Spoke to them again today and they promise me the monitor they're running on my modem will detect any line issues and that'll be completed on Tuesday! I'll let you know what they say!

its not an issue with the line though its with
their server...the monitoring is irrelevant. they should be able to reroute your connection based on the trace route. If i get no joy tomorrow Im cancelling

TheDoc · 10-03-2012 2:17am

brensplit wrote: »

I have the same problem and I am in swords. Its an issue with one of the local servers. Do the following in CMD:

tracert www.google.com

run that a few times and you will see the IPs that are dropping packets or have mental high Pings. I am going to show the technician this tomorrow and also this thread. what you need to do is get them to re route the connection through different servers.

They obviously have not copped that one of the servers they are routing through is on the blink, the more that contact UPC the quicker they will realise its an issue. you should emai them with a textfile copy of the ping results and also a traceroute.

In Swords and same issue

Epic buffering on youtube and my games have this little lag every few seconds.

Can see packet loss alright, very annoying

Will ring them tomorrow

Wagga321 · 10-03-2012 8:37am

Found another good link that may be of use checking your connection.You can test your line for a selected length of time and then it emails you a full report.I did it over four hours and I had an average ping of 135ms and regular packet loss.It says my line is unsuitable for smooth Internet use! Here's the link anyway;
http://www.hostmycalls.com/tools/

brensplit · 10-03-2012 6:12pm

Right so the technician has been out and replaced the modem and still the same issue.

So it appears its a network issue and they are looking into rerouting the connection for me. From the looks of the tracert looks like its some server ion Germany thats the issue. Will keep you posted with updates.

Bren

TheDoc · 10-03-2012 7:46pm

Just on the phone with them now

Want to get this sorted, last night was unplayable : /

And we are talking between 1-3am, touch ridiculous.

TheDoc · 10-03-2012 7:59pm

I always find UPC so helpful.

Before I mentioned the issue the guy wanted to point out there ws a flag on my account that indicates technicians are working i nthe Swords area to resolve an issue with noise and jitter. The technicians have yet to resolve the issue.

He has offered to get me an update from a technical lead tomorrow and ring me back as he said he understands its frustrating that there is no timeframe.

He did clarify it was affecting a number of customers in the Swords area and was being worked on ASAP.

Well that puts my mind at ease to be honest. He even called back the IP of the server that is causing the problem ,as I'd noticed on my traceroutes.

Hapy enough to let them at it, I'd just kinda wished I'd got an email to avoid the frustration

Hope it informs others

brensplit · 12-03-2012 10:01am

TheDoc wrote: »

I always find UPC so helpful.

Before I mentioned the issue the guy wanted to point out there ws a flag on my account that indicates technicians are working i nthe Swords area to resolve an issue with noise and jitter. The technicians have yet to resolve the issue.

He has offered to get me an update from a technical lead tomorrow and ring me back as he said he understands its frustrating that there is no timeframe.

He did clarify it was affecting a number of customers in the Swords area and was being worked on ASAP.

Well that puts my mind at ease to be honest. He even called back the IP of the server that is causing the problem ,as I'd noticed on my traceroutes.

Hapy enough to let them at it, I'd just kinda wished I'd got an email to avoid the frustration

Hope it informs others

Ive been 2 weeks flagging it and they finally realised there is an issue, I wouldnt be singing their praises totally, it took them a bit to realise there was actually a problem.

Hopefully it will be sorted in the next few days!

Wagga321 · 12-03-2012 1:16pm

brensplit wrote: »

Ive been 2 weeks flagging it and they finally realised there is an issue, I wouldnt be singing their praises totally, it took them a bit to realise there was actually a problem.

Hopefully it will be sorted in the next few days!

It's going on nearly a month for me,and despite what people have said in this forum they will not admit that anyone else is having issues in the area and have no interest in the tracert results! I'm giving them till tomorrow before I close my account and bad mouth them forever! Lol

Wagga321 · 12-03-2012 1:24pm

TheDoc wrote: »

I always find UPC so helpful.

Before I mentioned the issue the guy wanted to point out there ws a flag on my account that indicates technicians are working i nthe Swords area to resolve an issue with noise and jitter. The technicians have yet to resolve the issue.

He has offered to get me an update from a technical lead tomorrow and ring me back as he said he understands its frustrating that there is no timeframe.

He did clarify it was affecting a number of customers in the Swords area and was being worked on ASAP.

Well that puts my mind at ease to be honest. He even called back the IP of the server that is causing the problem ,as I'd noticed on my traceroutes.

Hapy enough to let them at it, I'd just kinda wished I'd got an email to avoid the frustration

Hope it informs others

Can you pass on the IP address of the server they say is causing the issues,cause I just spoke to them again and they again say I'm the only one in the area with this issue and claim no knowledge of a server problem! I'm getting pissed off!

brensplit · 12-03-2012 3:28pm

Wagga321 wrote: »

Can you pass on the IP address of the server they say is causing the issues,cause I just spoke to them again and they again say I'm the only one in the area with this issue and claim no knowledge of a server problem! I'm getting pissed off!

Having worked in customer service for a decade I think that you are probably just getting on to a muppet who is not doing his research.. make sure they pass you to technical support and not take the word of customer service. Also tell them you want to be passed to RMC and tell them you need your connection re-routed. dont take that answer as its bull****.... they are away its an issue, ask for a supervisor if he still wont admit it.

I cant get the info from work but its a server in germany. The technician guy that was out with me was going to another house with the same problem that day...

Have you had a technician out? they can confirm and then you can go to the next stage of tourbleshooting (network issue)

Wagga321 · 12-03-2012 5:34pm

I've had four technicians out checking everything from the cable outside,the cable in the house and the router and they all tell me everything's fine.There was one contractor that came out at first and he said he could see strange variations in the signal so he was sure it was a network issue and he raised this with UPC but they dismissed this and keep saying everything looks to be perfect! I've had to push and push and the last thing they're doing is a monitor on my router for seven days which is finished tomorrow.But even after 6 days of monitoring they refuse to say if anything has been revealed yet! They're customer service is appalling!

brensplit · 12-03-2012 5:40pm

I had an email about an hour ago saying they had worked on my connection and to test it and see if it was resolved. I called home and got my GF to powercycle the router and then do a ping test.... and no.. its not resolved... I am going to do some more tests when I go home and then call.. I want to know if they actually rerouted the connection as asked... and yes... depending on who you talk to there you can get 5 different answers.... there is some plebs in there on the phones.

Wagga321 · 12-03-2012 8:30pm

brensplit wrote: »

I had an email about an hour ago saying they had worked on my connection and to test it and see if it was resolved. I called home and got my GF to powercycle the router and then do a ping test.... and no.. its not resolved... I am going to do some more tests when I go home and then call.. I want to know if they actually rerouted the connection as asked... and yes... depending on who you talk to there you can get 5 different answers.... there is some plebs in there on the phones.

Agree with you about their tech support! Some seem unbelievably unhelpful and clueless yet one guy spent 2 hours on the phone trying different things with the router! All to no avail sadly.
Anyway,26 days from when I first called them,they've finally admitted there is an issue and the engineers are coming out to the area tomorrow.this will be there fifth and final visit cause if it's not sorted tomorrow I'm switching provider! Gonna ask to speak to someone high up to see if they feel 26 days is acceptable to fix a problem!

brensplit · 13-03-2012 10:59am

Wagga321 wrote: »

Agree with you about their tech support! Some seem unbelievably unhelpful and clueless yet one guy spent 2 hours on the phone trying different things with the router! All to no avail sadly.
Anyway,26 days from when I first called them,they've finally admitted there is an issue and the engineers are coming out to the area tomorrow.this will be there fifth and final visit cause if it's not sorted tomorrow I'm switching provider! Gonna ask to speak to someone high up to see if they feel 26 days is acceptable to fix a problem!

Yeah man I am about at the end of my tether now.. its apparently being escalated to the RMC departement (which I asked for already but did not appear to be done just got some peon email me asking was it resolved to try and close of his SR within SLA) So if it's not done this time I am gonna cancel and just go with magnet.

Bren

brensplit · 13-03-2012 5:54pm

Any update Wagga?

Wagga321 · 14-03-2012 3:13am

Yeah,and it's not good! Was told yesterday the monitor had revealed an issue and I would be phoned in the morning as the technicians were calling out.Surprise surprise I got no call! So at twelve o'clock I phoned them and asked what was happening.She tells me they're waiting for the results of the monitor! I lost it! I asked how I was told yesterday that they'd found the issue and today theyre saying the results aren't in? She cant explain it but tells me a network team were to call out today.I voiced my opinion on their customer care and asked is it acceptable to take a month to discover nothing! She couldn't answer and said she would connect me to a supervisor.Despite my obvious annoyance a supervisor could not take my call but I was assured one would contact me today to explain everything.Guess what,they never called! As i left for work i saw the network guys working on the street,i stopped to ask had they found the problem and they said no but theyre working on it.Then they wanted to know could they get into the house later but i said no as no one would be home.He said they needed access but as ive reached the end of my rope,i told them that maybe if theyd bothered to call and show up this morning as i was told they would,then they could have accessed the house.Anyway,home now and its not fixed,and the neighbour told my wife they have UPC and theyre having problems aswell! **** these assholes,they don't deserve our money!

brensplit · 14-03-2012 10:02am

Where in Swords are you? I still think this whole thing is an issue with a server further afield. I was due a callback yesterday.. Im calling later and if I dont get a satisfactory answer im cancelling

marshbaboon · 14-03-2012 10:39am

I'm in rivervalley. Seems to be very intermittent on my end. Half the tests I run on the line are perfect, half show high ping/jitter/packet loss. Doesn't seem as bad as it was but it's still there.

Hopefully they sort this out soon. It's such a shame as I've found them pretty good up until now.

brensplit · 14-03-2012 10:45am

marshbaboon wrote: »

I'm in rivervalley. Seems to be very intermittent on my end. Half the tests I run on the line are perfect, half show high ping/jitter/packet loss. Doesn't seem as bad as it was but it's still there.

Hopefully they sort this out soon. It's such a shame as I've found them pretty good up until now.

Have you called in? if not please do as the more that report it the better.. and yes, half the tests may show nothing if its a short one.

run one where you ping it 100 times and see how you get on.

marshbaboon · 14-03-2012 1:13pm

brensplit wrote: »

Have you called in? if not please do as the more that report it the better.. and yes, half the tests may show nothing if its a short one.

run one where you ping it 100 times and see how you get on.

Been on to them 3 times, had an engineer callout and the router replaced on separate occasions. They seem to be absolutely oblivious to what's going on and unable to troubleshoot it in any way. Going to get onto their management the next time I call to make sure this is all logged properly. If their tech support is like any other call centre they only record faults on an individual account basis.

brensplit · 14-03-2012 1:19pm

marshbaboon wrote: »

Been on to them 3 times, had an engineer callout and the router replaced on separate occasions. They seem to be absolutely oblivious to what's going on and unable to troubleshoot it in any way. Going to get onto their management the next time I call to make sure this is all logged properly. If their tech support is like any other call centre they only record faults on an individual account basis.

Called just there and im still due a callback when RMC reroute the connection.. if this works ill post later on... if not im cancelling and ill update you guys also...

They should be flagging similar issues in similar areas. I have done more by looking on boards to see a potential issue than they have and its their job... emerging issues usually need a fair percentage of teh calls IF they are flagged tight or if the agents boher to code it right or twig this may be an issue

UPC Broadband ping/jitter.

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