What's new

RT-N66R Sudden download performance decline (wired)

  • SNBForums Code of Conduct

    SNBForums is a community for everyone, no matter what their level of experience.

    Please be tolerant and patient of others, especially newcomers. We are all here to share and learn!

    The rules are simple: Be patient, be nice, be helpful or be gone!

MooseMan

New Around Here
I have a stock RT-N66R. No recent configuration changes (6 months?). In the last week, I've experienced a substantial drop-off in download speeds. My laptop is wired. I decided to test the speed by plugging directly into our modem - and it is "normal".

If I have had no network configuration changes, what should I look at as the cause (and yes, I understand that my "degredated" speed isn't exactly unusable, it's the principle of the matter!).


Speed Routed Through RT-N66R (it used to be closer to 700/750 mbps each way)
uc



Speed Direct to Modem
uc
 
Isn't there a wireless device that managed to get access to your router and consumes bandwidth?
Check the Network Map>Clients section to see who is connected.
Check the CPU load of the router (Network Map>System>Status).

Very generic attention points:
  • Router Firmware version (old firmware is vulnerable for hacking), upgrade to the latest.
  • Try a soft or hard reset (hard reset followed by manual configuration of the router), old firmware with memory leak?
  • Check your computer for malware, maybe the computer is running some hidden background tasks.
 
Thank you for your thoughts.
  • Definitely no new wireless devices. And it is a wireless N router, you'd have to be in the house with me to poach 600mpbs. The traffic monitor is not indicating any traffic of substance other than my machine anyway.
  • On the latest firmware.
  • My computer is the same one that ran the full speed test.
 
Your 228Mbps figure is suspiciously close to the maximum the N66U is capable of when hardware acceleration is turned off.
 
Interesting. But I have the N66R and can't find any reference to hardware acceleration. Secondly, it used to perform at the higher level and I have not made a network change... very odd.
 
Interesting. But I have the N66R and can't find any reference to hardware acceleration. Secondly, it used to perform at the higher level and I have not made a network change... very odd.

It is called NAT acceleration and you can see if the setting is enabled or not in LAN, Switch Control.

To see if it is actually turned on, look in Tools, right below the Network section.

This assumes you're using RMerlin firmware or the forks (john9527 or hggomes) thereof.
 
Thanks. I don't think that will apply - I am using the stock firmware.

Listen to wouterv, in my post I meant the ability to check if it is running or not may not be available in stock. ;)
 
Thanks. I found Nat Acceleration (Cut Through Forwarding) under Switch Control in the LAN settings of the N66R. It was on "Auto". Interestingly I toggled it off and my upload speed plummeted to about the equivalent of my download speed. To a point made in an earlier post, it is almost like the download has NAT acceleration off, and the upload has it on.
 
Thanks guys. So I started walking through the refresh process and decided to download an older firmware to see if I could go back a few steps. It turns out that while the system was reporting that it had the latest firmware (3.0.0.4.378.9313 11/6/15), there were 2 subsequent firmware releases since, the latest being 3.0.0.4.378.9459 12/29/15.

I applied the new firmware and the regularly ridiculous internet speeds are back. Must have been some glitch in the last "upgrade". I appreciate the help!

uc
 
Thanks guys. So I started walking through the refresh process and decided to download an older firmware to see if I could go back a few steps. It turns out that while the system was reporting that it had the latest firmware (3.0.0.4.378.9313 11/6/15), there were 2 subsequent firmware releases since, the latest being 3.0.0.4.378.9459 12/29/15.

I applied the new firmware and the regularly ridiculous internet speeds are back. Must have been some glitch in the last "upgrade". I appreciate the help!

uc

Lesson learned; do not trust the 'auto' 'anything'. With the 'anything' in this case being 'update'. :)
 

Sign Up For SNBForums Daily Digest

Get an update of what's new every day delivered to your mailbox. Sign up here!
Top