Switching ISP - Newbie Questions.

Hi

I've been pointed toward this forum as the best place to answer questions regarding broadband and switching ISP; so I'm hoping you can help me as I have never switched suppliers before.

Hopefully; I've posted in the right section. Apologies if I have not and mods please move to the correct place.

I'm afraid; I'm a total dunce when it comes to the technical side of things; so please forgive me if my questions are rather basic - please keep your answers plain and clear.

My objective is to save some money; move over to unlimited broadband; so I can watch Iplayer and probably Netflix; as well as keeping the same download speed and hopefully quality of service as well as keeping my phone number. All with the minimum of technical adjustments that I would have to do. I would also like to have my broadband and calls via the same company.

Currently I'm with BT for my broadband and line rental. I am spending about £110 a quarter with them for my line rental, 10Gb download limit, plus 1571 and caller display. I also pay £1.60 for 'premium mail'. My calls are placed through Hive Telecom and cost me on average £10 a month. So my total cost is about £145 per quarter or £48 a month for a 10Gb capped service. This seems expensive to me; is it?

This is a link to my my download speed:

http://imageshack.com/a/img401/6374/3xqa.jpg

I'm afraid those numbers mean next to nothing to me.

I find that I can stream from BBC Iplayer HD without any buffering. Is there any reason why I would need faster speeds? Usually; there is only my wife and I surfing the net. So the greatest our demand is likely to be; would be me watching Iplayer HD or Netflix whilst she's browsing the net.

With my current download speed I presume that I don't need fibre?

My existing TP Link router/modem is about two years old and seems to work well. I'd rather not change it unless I have to.

If I choose to switch broadband from my current supplier (BT) to another (possibly Plusnet) whats involved and how do I go about it? Is Plusnet a wise choice?

Presumably as I pay BT for 'premium mail' I can continue to use my @btinternet.com web mail even though I have a different ISP?

Do I have to make any changes to my router (TP Link) after any switch over? I am clueless about any technical things involved. If I have to make any changes; are they relatively simple or do I have to 'get a man in' ?

I presume; that my home network (both wired and wi-fi) will remain unchanged?

I'm assuming that any change of ISP is like changing your energy supplier i.e. you use the same infrastructure? If that's the case; should I expect the same download speeds I currently get with BT? Or do BT 'throttle back' speeds for other ISP's to give themselves an edge over the competition?

Any other pro's & con's I should consider before changing?

Sorry for the long post and many thanks for any help and advice you can give.

Cheers.

Standard pricing for ADSL2+ with 10GB limit is

£13/month PLUS line rental at £15.99 but offers reduce that e.g.

£5/m for 6 month, then next 6 months at £10/m then the standard £13, line rental can be reduced by paying for 12 months in advance i.e. 12 x £11.75 which saves ~£50 over the year.

Suspect it is little bits like premium email (why?) and caller id plus surcharge for making no calls adding up.

http://www.thinkbroadband.com/isp/bt/package/1201.html is the UNLIMITED product and that is just £16/month plus line rental.

So its stay with BT and chase to get the sorts of deals above (and extend contract) or get your MAC and go to another provider e.g.

http://www.thinkbroadband.com/isp/plusnet/package/13... PlusNet
£2.50/m for 12 months plus line rental at £14.50 per month
Broadband is £9.99 after the 12 months

So all you need to do is phone BT ask for your MAC and ignore any sales pitch if you really want to move.

If you pay for premium email then yes you can keep your BT email

What model of TP-Link router do you use? i.e. is it one with a built in modem or a secondary router in addition to an ISP supplied one.

PlusNet use the same wholesale network, but break out to the internet via different routes but should give the same speeds, certainly the ADSL side is the same.

Hi

Thank you for your prompt reply; its very much appreciated.

When you say � ADSL2+� this is 'normal' broadband? Please forgive my ignorance!

Thanks for the link to those packages. I thought that any BT special offers where for new customers only? I believe that I am well out of contract as I have not (knowingly) renewed my contract with BT; but I have just kept using them.

Is there a customer services contact number for BT? In the past when I have tried to call them there seem to have been several numbers to choose from.

I've had premium mail for some time; I was told when I signed up for it that it gave me greater storage (I have many thousands of e-mails stored) and that I could use my @btinternet.com address if I changed ISP's. I would like to keep my current e-mail address if I move.

I hadn't realised I was paying a surcharge for not making calls via BT.

When you say I should get my 'MAC' ; what is that exactly? How do I get it?

My TP link router is wall mounted rather high for me to get to check the model number; but I believe it is this one.

Thanks again for your help.

Yes ADSL2+ is the service you are on now by the looks of things.

Deals are mainly for new customers, but if you phone you can negotiate just be aware of any contract length extensions you agree to.

Phone numbers given on our listing page.

MAC - Migration Authorisation Code - which is the current method for a new ISP to verify that you are going to migrate the service, and stops any old walter mitty migrating your service to muck you about.

Okay in which case if you change the username and password it uses for the WAN authentication it will work with PlusNet.

HINT: Storing emails at the ISP is not a good idea, as there is no comeback if they delete them by mistake. It is worth downloading and storing any crucial ones locally on the PC as well as keeping them at the ISP.

Thank you for the comprehensive reply.

I'm not too sure how to change the username and password within the router - it was installed for me. I will try to research this.

I have no idea what WAN authentication is; but I'm glad to know the router will work with Plusnet.

I'll take onboard your comments regarding storing e-mails with the ISP. I was unaware that you could store e-mails locally and with the ISP. I thought it was either one or the other; not both. I'm not sure how to do this; but I guess that's a little off topic.

Thanks again for your help.

In which case your best option might be to take the PlusNet supplied router and then you can use their support if ever stuck.

Start another thread - maybe in the BT section about emails and someone will take you through what to do.

In reply to a post by MrSaffron:

In which case your best option might be to take the PlusNet supplied router and then you can use their support if ever stuck.

Thanks again.

I have several devices connected to my current router and they will all need to be reconfigured if I change it.

I think I need to choose between the lesser of two evils i.e. figuring out how to change the password in the router or trying reconfigure all the devices connected to my existing router.

I think learning to change my password will be easier. Hmm; decisions!

In reply to a post by MHC:

Start another thread - maybe in the BT section about emails and someone will take you through what to do.

Thanks.

Once I've decided whether to stick with BT or move to Plusnet; I'll post in the appropriate forum regarding the e-mails.

Cheers.

Changing the username and password is usually easy and takes a couple of minutes. Then, if you went to Plusnet, it takes about 15 minutes (the first time) to make the connection.

It is worth seeing if you can negotiate a better deal with BT, as MrSaffron suggested.

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

Once I've decided whether to stick with BT or move to Plusnet; I'll post in the appropriate forum regarding the e-mails.

Wrong. Your question is about handling the BT email system so the people most likely to be able to help will be in the BT forum, not the Plusnet one. The ISP your connection is running through is in most cases irrelevant.

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

My calls are placed through Hive Telecom and cost me on average £10 a month.

The "Anytime calls" option with BT is only £7pm. Are you using Hive because it used to be cheaper than BT?

Edited by RobertoS (Wed 12-Feb-14 12:06:14)

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

Changing the username and password is usually easy and takes a couple of minutes. Then, if you went to Plusnet, it takes about 15 minutes (the first time) to make the connection.

It is worth seeing if you can negotiate a better deal with BT, as MrSaffron suggested.

Thanks for that. I appreciate the reassurance!

Yes; I will get onto BT first before I do anything.

Cheers.

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

Are you using Hive because it used to be cheaper than BT?

Might still be if you make a lotta International, > 1hr, 0844, 0871 ... calls. It will depend on OP's call profile.

As RobertoS says - it is a BT issue.

And if you decide to migrate - make sure you have downloaded all of your emails from the server before you do. There is always that very small, minuscule chance (that could happen with any ISP) a small error causing the mail account to be deleted or locked.

In fact - I would suggest do it NOW.

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

I was unaware that you could store e-mails locally and with the ISP. I thought it was either one or the other; not both. I'm not sure how to do this

To do that you need an eMail client on your PC, like Outlook, Outlook Express, Windows (Live) Mail, Thunderbird. You can then either tell it to download everything or download and leave on server.

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

Once I've decided whether to stick with BT or move to Plusnet; I'll post in the appropriate forum regarding the e-mails.

Wrong. Your question is about handling the BT email system so the people most likely to be able to help will be in the BT forum, not the Plusnet one. The ISP your connection is running through is in most cases irrelevant.

D'oh!

You are right; forgive my ignorance.

I have started Another Thread in the BT forum about downloading my e-mails.
Thanks

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

My calls are placed through Hive Telecom and cost me on average £10 a month.

The "Anytime calls" option with BT is only £7pm. Are you using Hive because it used to be cheaper than BT?

Yes. I'm with them for no other reason than the fact that used to be cheaper.

I was persuaded to switch to them years ago when they were called 'Euphony Telecom' and I have stayed with them ever since.

In reply to a post by XRaySpeX:

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

Are you using Hive because it used to be cheaper than BT?

Might still be if you make a lotta International, > 1hr, 0844, 0871 ... calls. It will depend on OP's call profile.

No; I make very few international calls. At the most two or three a year.

I do phone 0845, 0871 etc numbers; but only when I usually have to query something with a company or organisation that uses such numbers as their point of contact.

In which case it may be worth stopping using Hive, whatever you do about your ISP. Plusnet "Anytime" is £5pm.

Edited by RobertoS (Wed 12-Feb-14 16:52:13)

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

In which case it may be worth stopping using Hive, whatever you do about your ISP. Plusnet "Anytime" is £5pm.

Thanks.

Yes; it looks as if you are right. I've not had a chance to call BT yet; but that looks like the first thing I should do now to see what they can offer me.

Hi

You know you don't need fibre because you can do everything you need already! The speed test confirms this quantitatively - your line can manage over 13Mbps (Megabits per second) download, iplayer hd needs 3.5Mbps to stream, Netflix in HD about 7Mbps.

If you move to Plusnet, it's very easy to change the broadband username and password on your existing router. You can try it now - type in 192.168.1.1 in your web browser where you normally type a web address. Log in to the router's pages typing in admin as the username and password. Click on Quick Setup and there should be an entry for username and password which you can amend and save.

If you wish to use the Plusnet router, you don't have to reconfigure each wireless device, you can simply log into the router (similar process as above in principle) and change its wireless settings to match that of the TP-Link, then every device will connect as though nothing has changed.

ISPs are not the same as gas or electric where there is no real difference in the end product. After the exchange, the bandwidths and routes are different - peak time speeds and reliability can be different, could be better or worse than you have now.

As well as bargaining hard on the phone, remember to tot up online discounts and vouchers. A site called Quidco works with the major ISPs to offer cashback deals. Right now if you switch to Plusnet Unlimited I believe your broadband component works out to be the grand cost of free over an 18 month contract.

Thank you very much for your clear and detailed and encouraging post. It is very much appreciated.

In reply to a post by vimto_girl:

Hi

You know you don't need fibre because you can do everything you need already! The speed test confirms this quantitatively - your line can manage over 13Mbps (Megabits per second) download, iplayer hd needs 3.5Mbps to stream, Netflix in HD about 7Mbps.

Thank you for confirming this. As I said; I don't really understand what the figures in the speedtest mean.

In reply to a post by vimto_girl:

If you move to Plusnet, it's very easy to change the broadband username and password on your existing router. You can try it now - type in 192.168.1.1 in your web browser where you normally type a web address. Log in to the router's pages typing in admin as the username and password. Click on Quick Setup and there should be an entry for username and password which you can amend and save.

Thanks for this; I will try what you suggest later on.

In reply to a post by vimto_girl:

If you wish to use the Plusnet router, you don't have to reconfigure each wireless device, you can simply log into the router (similar process as above in principle) and change its wireless settings to match that of the TP-Link, then every device will connect as though nothing has changed.

OK; I think I see what you are saying. You're suggesting I log into the TP Link and take a note of the wireless setting before I change anything. Then, if I get a Plusnet router, change the settings in that so they are the same as my current TP Link settings?

I don't know if it is relevant (my apologies for not mentioning it before if it is) but upstairs I have a TP LInk 'wireless extender' that is linked to the router and extends the wireless range.

In reply to a post by vimto_girl:

ISPs are not the same as gas or electric where there is no real difference in the end product. After the exchange, the bandwidths and routes are different - peak time speeds and reliability can be different, could be better or worse than you have now.

I see. I wasn't sure about this. I presumed that BT managed the 'traffic' through the exchange and could therefore cut the download speed for non BT customers if they so desired. Are you saying that there are factors at work that could effect my 'non BT' download speed and it is really pot luck as what you get?

Is there anyway of finding out what typical download speeds are for Plusnet customers in my locality?

In reply to a post by vimto_girl:

As well as bargaining hard on the phone, remember to tot up online discounts and vouchers. A site called Quidco works with the major ISPs to offer cashback deals. Right now if you switch to Plusnet Unlimited I believe your broadband component works out to be the grand cost of free over an 18 month contract.

Thanks for that. I hadn't considered using cashback sites.

I still have not had the chance to call BT to see what they can offer me; I must do that soon.

Again; many thanks for your very helpful post.

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

I presumed that BT managed the 'traffic' through the exchange and could therefore cut the download speed for non BT customers if they so desired.

BTW are forbidden by regualation to show preference to any ISP, incl. BTR.

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

Is there anyway of finding out what typical download speeds are for Plusnet customers in my locality?

Put your postcode in BB Maps and enable Speedtest Results.

Edited by XRaySpeX (Thu 13-Feb-14 12:52:29)

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

I presumed that BT managed the 'traffic' through the exchange and could therefore cut the download speed for non BT customers if they so desired.

In reply to a post by XRaySpeX:

BTW are forbidden by regualation to show preference to any ISP, incl. BTR.

Thanks for that; I didn't realise that was the case.

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

Is there anyway of finding out what typical download speeds are for Plusnet customers in my locality?

In reply to a post by XRaySpeX:

Put you phone # in BB Maps and enable Speedtest Results.

Thank you again; that's very interesting. I've had a quick look and I cannot see where to enter my phone number.

The box at the upper left tells me to enter my post code; which I have done. The resulting map shows available speeds in my area which vary quite a bit. Is this an aggregate of all the results done via Thinkbroadbands speed checker?

I ask because the result closest to my location is practically the same as my own speedtest. If that is the case; then presumably the result shows all ISP's? If so; is there any way of filtering the results to show selected ISP's?

Once again; very many thank for your help.

We aggregate results for a postcode, but do split them out to show range and the ISP if multiple tests in a postcode.

Click each flag to show the ISP.

Tests only show for a period of four months, they are then expired, this stops old slow connections showing up.

Sorry, I meant postcode.

Click on any speed bubble & you get the breakdown by ISP.

Bear in mind that a high proportion of the general population will have home wiring issues and lose a lot of speed. They just don't know it should be better.

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

I do phone 0845, 0871 etc numbers; but only when I usually have to query something with a company or organisation that uses such numbers as their point of contact.

You can always try this site to get a geographic number which would be free or cheaper.

In reply to a post by MrSaffron:

We aggregate results for a postcode, but do split them out to show range and the ISP if multiple tests in a postcode.

Click each flag to show the ISP.

Tests only show for a period of four months, they are then expired, this stops old slow connections showing up.

Thanks for that. I didn't realise I had to click on the flag/bubble for the info - sorry!

Well; BT seems to be the majority provider in my area with a few others supplied by Sky, Virgin and Zen. Sadly I can't see any pPlusnet customers.

In reply to a post by XRaySpeX:

Sorry, I meant postcode.

Click on any speed bubble & you get the breakdown by ISP.

Thanks. I got there in the end!

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

Bear in mind that a high proportion of the general population will have home wiring issues and lose a lot of speed. They just don't know it should be better.

Good point.

My sppeed more than doubled by replacing an old router and relocating its position closer to the incoming telephone wiring.

I guess those figures on the map have to be treated with caution.

Thanks.

In reply to a post by reserved:

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

I do phone 0845, 0871 etc numbers; but only when I usually have to query something with a company or organisation that uses such numbers as their point of contact.

You can always try this site to get a geographic number which would be free or cheaper.

Thank you very much. I appreciate that.

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

I do phone 0845, 0871 etc numbers

0845 (& 0870) is usually included in the free inclusive calls of your call plan, but not 0871.

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

Changing the username and password is usually easy and takes a couple of minutes. Then, if you went to Plusnet, it takes about 15 minutes (the first time) to make the connection.

In reply to a post by vimto_girl:

Hi

You know you don't need fibre because you can do everything you need already! The speed test confirms this quantitatively - your line can manage over 13Mbps (Megabits per second) download, iplayer hd needs 3.5Mbps to stream, Netflix in HD about 7Mbps.

If you move to Plusnet, it's very easy to change the broadband username and password on your existing router. You can try it now - type in 192.168.1.1 in your web browser where you normally type a web address. Log in to the router's pages typing in admin as the username and password. Click on Quick Setup and there should be an entry for username and password which you can amend and save.

If you wish to use the Plusnet router, you don't have to reconfigure each wireless device, you can simply log into the router (similar process as above in principle) and change its wireless settings to match that of the TP-Link, then every device will connect as though nothing has changed.

OK

Well I tried to log into my router to see if is within my 'skill level' to change the username and password as suggested.

Well; I admit to being totally lost now!

There are these main menu's:

DEVICE INFO
QUICK SET UP
ADVANCED SET UP
WIRELESS
DIAGNOSATICS
MANAGEMENT

And these are the sub menu's:

DEVICE INFO

SUMMARY
WAN
STATISTICS
ROUTE
ARP
DHCP

QUICK SET UP

WAN CONFIGURATIONS

ADVANCED SET UP

LAYER 2 INTERFACE
WAN SERVICE
LAN
MAC CLONE
NAT
SECURITY
PARENTAL CONTROL
QUALITY OF SERVICE
ROUTING
DNS
DSL
UpnP
INTERFACE GROUPING
LAN PORTS
IPSec

WIRELESS

BASIC
SECURITY
MAC FILTER
WIRELESS BRIDGE
ADVANCED
STATION INFO

DIAGNOSTICS

pvc_quick_setup_Diagnostics

MANAGEMENT

SETTINGS
SYSTEM LOG
SNMP AGENT
TR-069 CLIENT
INTERNET TIME
ACCESS CONTROL
UPDATE SOFTWARE
REBOOT

Even looking at quick set up didn't reveal anything obvious to me.

Here's a screen shot of what I can see:

http://imageshack.com/a/img31/7946/n7u8.jpg

and

http://imageshack.com/a/img812/1191/r71d.jpg

I had to take two screenshots to show the whole page and even then the 'next' button at the bottom of the screen isn't shown.

Sorry folks; but I'm lost already! As I said; I'm a techno dunce.

Am I missing something obvious?

In reply to a post by XRaySpeX:

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

I do phone 0845, 0871 etc numbers

0845 (& 0870) is usually included in the free inclusive calls of your call plan, but not 0871.

Thanks for the info.

I don't suppose there are any cheap or free ways of calling 0871 numbers?

On http://imageshack.com/a/img31/7946/n7u8.jpg

You would enter your new username and password in the PPP Username and PPP password box

In reply to a post by MrSaffron:

On http://imageshack.com/a/img31/7946/n7u8.jpg

You would enter your new username and password in the PPP Username and PPP password box

Thank you very much.

This would be the new Username and Password as supplied to me by a new ISP?

I have no idea what PPP stands for; which rather confused me.

And I do not understand why the details of my current provider (BT) are not already in the box - it is blank.

Was not sure why they did not appear either, maybe a security measure, or just a bug in the page.

PPP - Point to Point Protocol
Used for creating a link between two locations on a network.

In reply to a post by MrSaffron:

Was not sure why they did not appear either, maybe a security measure, or just a bug in the page.

PPP - Point to Point Protocol
Used for creating a link between two locations on a network.

Ok; thank you very much.

That gives me a bit more confidence about my ability to change the passwords if need be. I will contact BT and see what they can offer me. If they cannot give me enough to make me stay; I won't be quite so worried if I switch to Plusnet now.

On a more general point; it would seem that loyalty is not rewarded these days. It would seem that the most loyal customers end up with the worst deals whether we are talking about car insurance, car breakdown cover, gas and electricity suppliers.

Do people here (who I presume are more clued up than the average broadband customer) tend to stick with one ISP or shop around and move once their contract is up?

Cheers.

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

Do people here (who I presume are more clued up than the average broadband customer) tend to stick with one ISP or shop around and move once their contract is up?

People generally don't want to leave a good service. The price-sensitive ring their ISP and threaten to leave when their minimum term is up so they get a retention deal.

In reply to a post by Oliver341:

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

Do people here (who I presume are more clued up than the average broadband customer) tend to stick with one ISP or shop around and move once their contract is up?

People generally don't want to leave a good service. The price-sensitive ring their ISP and threaten to leave when their minimum term is up so they get a retention deal.

Ok; many thanks for that.

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

I don't suppose there are any cheap or free ways of calling 0871 numbers?

http://www.saynoto0870.com as advised. Also for 0844, another common cash-cow.

You'll prob also need to change MTU to 1500 or at least 1492. In fact I'm surprised that it's set to 1400 for BT. Sure that will be slowing you down by unnecessary fragmentation of packets.

Whenever you see a Username/Password combination in a router's set up it will always be those for logging you into your ISP, however they are phrased. It could be that BT doesn't use them and just authenticates you by your phone line no.; any BT user here would know.

Watch out for these hints:
WAN (Wide Area Network) pertains to the outside world & the Internet.
LAN (Local Area Network) pertains your own local network of devices.

Edited by XRaySpeX (Thu 13-Feb-14 17:46:08)

Every BT broadband user has the same username, (well, maybe there are two or three but it doesn't seem to matter which is used), probably only there because the Home Hubs underlying OEM firmware demands one. The password can be anything as well, and I think the HH insists on an entry as well. A space apparently works.

I think you are right, and because his router doesn't insist on entries he hasn't got any.

In reply to a post by XRaySpeX:

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

I don't suppose there are any cheap or free ways of calling 0871 numbers?

http://www.saynoto0870.com as advised. Also for 0844, another common cash-cow.

Thanks again for that. I will check it out as soon as time permits.

In reply to a post by XRaySpeX:

You'll prob also need to change MTU to 1500 or at least 1492. In fact I'm surprised that it's set to 1400 for BT. Sure that will be slowing you down by unnecessary fragmentation of packets.

Whenever you see a Username/Password combination in a router's set up it will always be those for logging you into your ISP, however they are phrased. It could be that BT doesn't use them and just authenticates you by your phone line no.; any BT user here would know.

Watch out for these hints:
WAN (Wide Area Network) pertains to the outside world & the Internet.
LAN (Local Area Network) pertains your own local network of devices.

Thanks.

I have no idea what MTU is or does or what the number means. Is it advisable to change any of the numbers unless told to by the ISP? Could I cause problems by changing things?

I appreciate that information about usernames and passwords. I must admit I was confused by the lack of entries in the username and password boxes.

Thanks also for the clarification regarding WAN and LAN. When explaining anything to me; it is best to assume that I know nothing and be as basic as you can!

By the way; I now seem to have had my Live Mail issues sorted thanks to help in the other thread.

Cheers

Again, I agree with XRaySpeX re the MTU (Maximum Transmission Unit).

Your data is sent to you in packets. Think snail-mail and you'll get the idea. These packets are lumped together into Frames for efficiency of transmission. I think BT FTTC uses 1492-byte frames. The MTU in your router needs to be that size otherwise the system has to sort out the difference by reducing the size of frame sent to you. That introduces a number of inefficiencies with the effect of reducing your data throughput at any given sync. (It doesn't alter the sync).

In reply to a post by XRaySpeX:

You'll prob also need to change MTU to 1500 or at least 1492. In fact I'm surprised that it's set to 1400 for BT. Sure that will be slowing you down by unnecessary fragmentation of packets.

Whenever you see a Username/Password combination in a router's set up it will always be those for logging you into your ISP, however they are phrased. It could be that BT doesn't use them and just authenticates you by your phone line no.; any BT user here would know.

Watch out for these hints:
WAN (Wide Area Network) pertains to the outside world & the Internet.
LAN (Local Area Network) pertains your own local network of devices.

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

Again, I agree with XRaySpeX re the MTU (Maximum Transmission Unit).

Your data is sent to you in packets. Think snail-mail and you'll get the idea. These packets are lumped together into Frames for efficiency of transmission. I think BT FTTC uses 1492-byte frames. The MTU in your router needs to be that size otherwise the system has to sort out the difference by reducing the size of frame sent to you. That introduces a number of inefficiencies with the effect of reducing your data throughput at any given sync. (It doesn't alter the sync).

Apologies for my delayed reply. I have been away for some days and unable to post.

Thank you both for your posts.

If I change the MTU as suggested; is it matter of just changing the value in the router; or will the router itself need to be rebooted?

If I need to restart the router; could that lead to other problems i.e. having to reconnect all my Wi-Fi devices? Some time ago; one of my devices stopped 'talking' to my router. Upon investigation it had turned out that router had (for some reason unknown to me) changed the 'address' which it used to communicate with the device. I'd like to avoid that happening again if at all possible.

Many Thanks.

In reply to a post by XRaySpeX:

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

I don't suppose there are any cheap or free ways of calling 0871 numbers?

http://www.saynoto0870.com as advised. Also for 0844, another common cash-cow.

I am a member of the SayNoTo0870 site.. and I believe Reserved is as well

It's a really useful site, and has some very helpful members.. much like Think Broadband does

Hi

Just a quick update.

I now have Plusnet broadband up and running!

Thank you all (and particularly vimto-girl) for the help and advice offered. I really could not have done it without the great help I have received here. Thank you.

I entered the new username and password into my existing router and rebooted it as advised by Plusnet. A little while later; I was up and running. All my Wi-Fi enabled devices lost connection with the router, which did worry me, but about twenty minutes later they re-established contact.

In reply to a post by XRaySpeX:

You'll prob also need to change MTU to 1500 or at least 1492. In fact I'm surprised that it's set to 1400 for BT. Sure that will be slowing you down by unnecessary fragmentation of packets.

One thing I did not do was to change the MTU value. It is still set at 1400. I wasn't sure if the above advice was with regard to my old BT broadband or my current Plusnet broadband.

If I do change it; what should I change it to? I presume that if I change the MTU figure; I will have reboot my router again? I'm a little worried in case I permanently lose my Wi-Fi.

Thanks again everybody for all your fantastic help and advice.

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

the MTU value. It is still set at 1400.

Terrible idea!

1500 for ADSL2+ or 1492 for fibre. Router should reset itself when you change it.

MTU and all other connection settings will never affect your WiFi. Only Wireless settings will do that.

Edited by XRaySpeX (Tue 04-Mar-14 21:54:27)

In reply to a post by XRaySpeX:

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

the MTU value. It is still set at 1400.

Terrible idea!

1500 for ADSL2+ or 1492 for fibre. Router should reset itself when you change it.

MTU and all other connection settings will never affect your WiFi. Only Wireless settings will do that.

Hi

Thanks for your reply.

Just so I am clear; leaving the MTU figure at 1400 is a terrible idea? Or do mean changing is a terrible idea? I think you mean I should change it to 1500; but I want to be sure before I change anything.

I realise that changing MTU won't affect my Wi-Fi; but it seems as if I have to reboot my router for any changes to take effect. The rebooting seems to lose my Wi-Fi connection and I was just worried that it may not be regained!

Thanks very much for your advice.

The statement of yours that I quoted is a terrible idea!

That's the point of quotes; to highlight that which is being commented on.

It was clear enough to start with w/out me repeating my answers directly to you.

Yes, change it to 1500. Don't panic if a reboot causes the wireless side to take a while to restart.

Thank you for your reply.

In reply to a post by XRaySpeX:

The statement of yours that I quoted is a terrible idea!

OK; thanks.

In reply to a post by XRaySpeX:

That's the point of quotes; to highlight that which is being commented on.

It was clear enough to start with w/out me repeating my answers directly to you.

I do realise what quotes are for; after all I have used them myself. You did however quote part of one sentence of mine in addition the complete one; so I was just seeking clarification.

As you can probably tell from my questions in this thread and the fact that I have described myself as a 'techno-dunce'; that this entire subject is pretty much a foreign language to me. I think you can also tell that I'm pretty nervous about making any mistakes and the consequences thereof. I have stated earlier that I do not understand anything about 'MTU' or it's meaning or significance.

That's why I would like to be 100% sure about something before I effect any changes. That was the point of my question - simple clarification nothing more. After all; if it was clear enough to me (I fully accept that it was clear enough to you ...) I wouldn't have posted the question.

Anyhow; I do appreciate the time and trouble you have taken in replying. Please accept my apologies for my simple request for clarification.

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

Yes, change it to 1500. Don't panic if a reboot causes the wireless side to take a while to restart.

Thank you so much!

Your reply is very much appreciated and understood....

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

Yes, change it to 1500. Don't panic if a reboot causes the wireless side to take a while to restart.

Well I tried to change the MTU figure to 1500. However a window then popped up; which reads "MTU 1500 Is Out of Range [576-1492]"

Should I change the MTU figure to 1492 or leave it at 1400?

By the way; I realise that the current setting of 1400 is not ideal; but everything seems to be working ok.

Thanks

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

As you can probably tell from my questions in this thread and the fact that I have described myself as a 'techno-dunce'; that this entire subject is pretty much a foreign language to me

Please accept my apologies for my simple request for clarification.

Don't worry about it!

Despite the impressions that you may get, it is ALWAYS worth double-checking if you have the slightest uncertainty about what you are doing!

Don't forget, the ONLY daft question is the one that you DON'T ask!

In reply to a post by johnjburness:

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

As you can probably tell from my questions in this thread and the fact that I have described myself as a 'techno-dunce'; that this entire subject is pretty much a foreign language to me

Please accept my apologies for my simple request for clarification.

Don't worry about it!

Despite the impressions that you may get, it is ALWAYS worth double-checking if you have the slightest uncertainty about what you are doing!

Don't forget, the ONLY daft question is the one that you DON'T ask!

Thanks John; I appreciate your comments. It can be very worrying when you are making changes and not fully understanding what you are you doing. That's why I need clear and simple guidance and if I am in any doubt I like to double check.

I appreciate everyone's kind help on this thread.

I'm just not sure what to do now; as my router will not accept a change of MTU to 1500. It would seem the highest number I can input is 1492 and it was said earlier that this was the figure for a fibre connection; which I don't have.

Should I leave the MTU figure as it is (1400) or change it for another value?

Thanks.

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

In reply to a post by johnjburness:

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

As you can probably tell from my questions in this thread and the fact that I have described myself as a 'techno-dunce'; that this entire subject is pretty much a foreign language to me

Please accept my apologies for my simple request for clarification.

Don't worry about it!

Despite the impressions that you may get, it is ALWAYS worth double-checking if you have the slightest uncertainty about what you are doing!

Don't forget, the ONLY daft question is the one that you DON'T ask!

Thanks John; I appreciate your comments. It can be very worrying when you are making changes and not fully understanding what you are you doing. That's why I need clear and simple guidance and if I am in any doubt I like to double check.

I appreciate everyone's kind help on this thread.

I'm just not sure what to do now; as my router will not accept a change of MTU to 1500. It would seem the highest number I can input is 1492 and it was said earlier that this was the figure for a fibre connection; which I don't have.

Should I leave the MTU figure as it is (1400) or change it for another value?

Thanks.

I'm not particularly knowledgeable about the impact of various MTU settings - other than to suggest that nothing disastrous will happen!!

Change it to 1492 & see what happens! The worse that can happen is that you decide to change it back!

To be honest, unless you are really trying to maximise your performance, I suspect that you won't see much difference on day-to-day running/performance!

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

Should I change the MTU figure to 1492

Definitely change MTU to 1492 if router restricts you to that.

You remember early on in this thread I said this?

In reply to a post by XRaySpeX:

You'll prob also need to change MTU to 1500 or at least 1492. In fact I'm surprised that it's set to 1400 for BT. Sure that will be slowing you down by unnecessary fragmentation of packets.

In reply to a post by johnjburness:

Change it to 1492 & see what happens! The worse that can happen is that you decide to change it back!

To be honest, unless you are really trying to maximise your performance, I suspect that you won't see much difference on day-to-day running/performance!

Ok; thanks. I wasn't sure if changing the MTU figure to something it should not be would cause any damage.

In reply to a post by XRaySpeX:

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

Should I change the MTU figure to 1492

Definitely change MTU to 1492 if router restricts you to that.

You remember early on in this thread I said this?

In reply to a post by XRaySpeX:

You'll prob also need to change MTU to 1500 or at least 1492. In fact I'm surprised that it's set to 1400 for BT. Sure that will be slowing you down by unnecessary fragmentation of packets.

Thank you; I appreciate your advice.

I do remember your earlier advice; but as you also said:

In reply to a post by XRaySpeX:

1500 for ADSL2+ or 1492 for fibre.

I was a little uncertain as to what to do; so just wanted to double check. Please forgive my confusion.

Many thanks for the clarification.

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

I do remember your earlier advice; but as you also said:

In reply to a post by XRaySpeX:

1500 for ADSL2+ or 1492 for fibre.

I was a little uncertain as to what to do; so just wanted to double check.

Yes, but if router is restrictive, your hands are tied. Set it as high as you are allowed, but below the true optimum figure.

In reply to a post by XRaySpeX:

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

I do remember your earlier advice; but as you also said:

In reply to a post by XRaySpeX:

1500 for ADSL2+ or 1492 for fibre.

I was a little uncertain as to what to do; so just wanted to double check.

Yes, but if router is restrictive, your hands are tied. Set it as high as you are allowed, but below the true optimum figure.

OK; thank you very much.

As I said before I wasn't sure if there would be any negative consequences of inputting a 'incorrect' figure; hence my hesitation.

Once again; I appreciate your help.

Well; I've changed the MTU figure to 1492 and everything seems ok.

In fact; web pages seem to load a little quicker now. It all seems a little snappier than before; so thank you very much!

It does seem a little odd that my TP Link router (which is only a few years old) is not capable of accepting a MTU of 1500 if that is the optimum figure I should be using.

Anyhow; thank you all again for your advice and patience. It is very much appreciated.

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

As I said before I wasn't sure if there would be any negative consequences of inputting a 'incorrect' figure; hence my hesitation.

The negative consequence of setting an unnecessarily low MTU is a reduction in performance. It is more efficient to send one box of 50 muffins than to send them one by one in 50 jiffy bags (extreme example but you get what I mean).

In reply to a post by Oliver341:

In reply to a post by Jelly_Tussle:

As I said before I wasn't sure if there would be any negative consequences of inputting a 'incorrect' figure; hence my hesitation.

The negative consequence of setting an unnecessarily low MTU is a reduction in performance. It is more efficient to send one box of 50 muffins than to send them one by one in 50 jiffy bags (extreme example but you get what I mean).

Thanks.

I think I appreciate that now. I didn't really understand what MTU was; hence my concern. Things are getting a little clearer now.

I'm very grateful for everyone's contributions.

I have recently looked at my router settings again. As previously mentioned; I changed the MTU figure from 1400 to 1492 after the helpful advice given to me.

The MTU figure seems to have reverted to 1400!

Also; my password and user name details seem to have disappeared!

You may recall earlier in the thread (posts on 13th Feb) I mentioned that my old BT user name and password were not visible. I presume the �disappearance� of my new details is a security measure as Mr Saffron speculated.

I have tried to re-enter 1492 as my new MTU value and reboot the router. However it seems to revert back to 1400

I cannot understand why this should be and whether my router is actually set to 1400 or 1492.

Any ideas?

Thanks.