Common Cause of Warpy Game Play

[Chilli]

The best-bang-for-the-buck consumer router, I have found is the MicroTik RB2011 routerboard.

It is not the easiest router to setup, but it is rich with features and seems to work really well.

I am with Vulcan.  I hate QoS.  It is a poor bandaid for solving congestion issues.

I am down with THIS!  To be sure that I am communicating properly my original concerns, I will ask if we are in agreement that something along this line would a) reduce the large ping swing from 47 ms when quiet and then 500 ms when household is streaming and/ or gaming, b) set aside an area of network bandwidth that is optimal for possibly 2 gaming computers and 1 smart TV netflix connections running simultaneously, *c) act as a portal to possibly possibly more than one LAN, and d) important to know if my RF connection from my ISP is even robust enough to do any of what we are describing?

* The in home expert (my daughter) is administrator for home office network.  I am very excited about this if it is a peacemaker (that doesn't require live rounds) 

[Skuzzy]

Each port on that router can be throttled.  Setting it all up will take a clear understanding of networking.  Like I said, it is not the friendliest router to setup and configure, but once you get it all set, it works really well.

You will want to visit their support forums for help.  I have setup four of these routers for various family members so I they would stop pestering me about all the issues they were having with other consumer grade routers.

Before plunking hard earned cash for it, read,...read,...then read some more about it.

[Vulcan]

Like I said, it is not the friendliest router to setup and configure

Those cheap old Sonicwalls seem to be < $100 on ebay, they have a nice GUI and can throttle per IP. Just don't try and license them for security services (unlicensed they act as a stateful only firewall). Most are rated for ~ 200Mbps of stateful throughput (firewall not just routing!). I think some of the low end fortigates would be the same too.

[Chilli]

So, I am caught between Sonicwall and   MicroTik RB2011 routerboard.  Working the guru magic of this forums, if I am able to obtain either for approximately the same $$$ I just want to confirm, what would work better for the type of RF ISP connection that I am limited to.

My connection from SignaWave WiFi (Radio Frequency) ISP

[Skuzzy]

Sonicwall is a no-brainer.  Very mature product and with a great user interface.

[Vulcan]

Either will do the job.

[save]

Do a number of  bandwidth checks on the ISP.
I can't say all of them keep their promises ...

Visualroute lite give you an idea if where your milliseconds go, and if you get packet losses.  Let it run when playing if you have problems.

[Vulcan]

Visualroute lite give you an idea if where your milliseconds go, and if you get packet losses.  Let it run when playing if you have problems.

Hah! I've been looking for a tool that I used to use for Unix style/and UDP pings for the last two weeks and couldn't remember its name! Thank you save!

[MADe]

http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Bufferbloat-A-Big-Problem-With-a-Fairly-Simple-Solution-133536


bufferbloat

ran into this term looking at something else. Thought maybe it could apply here...................

maybe skuzzy could elaborate if this could apply to AH3 play....................

 

[Skuzzy]

We hate routers which try to be smarter than we are.  It is one of the many things wrong with the Ethernet protocols.  There is no "leave this dang packet alone and deliver it the way I am telling you to!" option.

You want to help yourselves?  Disable QoS for starters.

[Vulcan]

http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Bufferbloat-A-Big-Problem-With-a-Fairly-Simple-Solution-133536


bufferbloat

ran into this term looking at something else. Thought maybe it could apply here...................

maybe skuzzy could elaborate if this could apply to AH3 play....................

 

Nope. That looks like a bunch of people involved in custom router firmwares, buffer issues would only arise if you are doing to much stuff for the router cpu - ie running their custom firmware with too many features. It's the same old theme in tech, people trying to do stuff on the cheap.

[Pudgie]

We hate routers which try to be smarter than we are.  It is one of the many things wrong with the Ethernet protocols.  There is no "leave this dang packet alone and deliver it the way I am telling you to!" option.

You want to help yourselves?  Disable QoS for starters.

Ok, Ok.........I give up.........!

 

Have turned QoS off in my Nighthawk modem\router now..........

 

Also got another phone line rerouted yesterday to get the wife's all-in-one printer, copier, scanner and fax off our dedicated ADSL line as she finally confessed in a roundabout way that she was the culprit who had removed the cheap ADSL line filter from this unit some time back when she couldn't get a fax to go thru listening to somebody else instead of telling me about it. Now all will go thru the Centurylink installed industrial-grade ADSL line separator I had them install some 6 yrs ago in our phone service box so the Nighthawk has unfettered ADSL access to it going forward now.

 

[MADe]

We hate routers which try to be smarter than we are.  It is one of the many things wrong with the Ethernet protocols.  There is no "leave this dang packet alone and deliver it the way I am telling you to!" option.

You want to help yourselves?  Disable QoS for starters.

When the KILLER NIC came to market, I was less informed, anyways I learned then that you can do what you want behind your modem but you can do nada to affect the net. That supposed game traffic shaper did no better than anything else.

I am prolly gonna get the Microtik RB2011 as per skuzzy suggestion. ROUTER OS is a software that can be used with it supposedly, as per link. This is why I ask. My home network now has just me and my devices to contend with. For now I only keep 1 machine on at a time, but I have TV's with lan, home sound system and others I would like to integrate into home net and then forget without impinging the game play. Also later when I retire gonna need a roving internet package so..........

I gave up on QoS while ago, such things are for business networks, or systems with multitudes.

[Pudgie]

Ok, so if I'm deciphering all this correctly...................

The best layout is to use a dedicated broadband modem w\ a dedicated Ethernet-connected router that can do port service throttling across it's Ethernet LAN ports then use a WAP(s) off the dedicated Ethernet router to bring in all wireless devices so that service can be properly controlled to give it to the devices needing it the most all the time and not the all-in one's.....or at least not the residential-grade all-in-one's if there's such a critter made for business use.

Will keep this in mind for any future setup changes.