1 MB/sec average throughput - why so slow?

[ebylinin]

ok... this is my first LAN experience so I am figuring this thing
out as I go... used AnalogiX NetStat to measure throughput and
looks like I am only getting 1 MB / sec between the 2 PCs...
Far cry from the 100 megabits ... Would GREATLY appreciate input
on what could be done to speed this turtle up.

Linksys BEFSR41 with TOSHIBA PCX1100U Cable modem on WAN

1Ghz Athlon desktop Win98SE, 512 Meg dRAM, 7200 rpm 20 Gig HD, DLink 10/100 PCI adapter at 100 Full Duplex, 7' Cat5e

350 Mhz PentiumII notebook Win98SE, 128 Meg sdRAM, 4200 rpm 10 Gig HD, Linksys 10/100 Full Duplex PCMCIA PC Card, 100' Cat5e

[BaLa]

this is not of much help but will help somewhat..


Definition: PCMCIA stands for Personal Computer Memory Card International Association. PCMCIA, also simply called "PC Card", is a standard for expansion slots in laptop computers, PDAs, and other small devices. PCMCIA slots come in three types (appropriately named Type I, Type II and Type III). Type I slots are rarely used, Type II slots are the most common, and Type III slots simply consist of two Type II slots stacked on top of each other, allowing the slots to hold a single Type III device or two Type II devices. For compatibility, make sure your PCMCIA device type matches the slots in your laptop computer. Typical PCMCIA devices include modems, network cards, storage interfaces (e.g., SCSI), and even video cards. Traditional PCMCIA has a bus bandwidth of about 8 megabytes/second.

copy 'n paste from
http://peripherals.about.com/library/glossary/bldefpcmcia.htm?iam=howstuffworks_SKD&terms=pcmcia

(need to give credit where it's due ;) )

[cyberskye]

1 MB (mega byte) = 800 Mb (mega-bits)

With tcp/ip overhead and other resource/traffic factors you are getting pretty good speeds.

Skye

[Bob Carrick]

1 megabyte = 8 megabits, not 800.

[YeOldeStonecat]

While the Linksys switch is far from the most robust out there...you should still be getting past 5....I get over 1.3 on my Netopia's built in 10Base-T hub.

Start playing with adjusting the settings on your NIC's...like chage duplex and speed from auto to a manual setting, and try that. Also make sure latest drivers are installed, and which protocols do you have loading? If any un-necessary ones, like IPX...yank it. I use NetBEUI for file and print sharing, TCP/IP is un-bound from networking, just loading in the background for internet access. Also have all windowsupdates installed....some of them had network protocol updates.

[ebylinin]

I just ran the bit converter calculator at http://www.matisse.net/bitcalc/
and it appears that 1 Megabyte throughput equals
8 Megabits (give or take) NOT 800...
That makes sense since as I remember there are just
about 8 bits in a byte :)

So the question still remains: how can I get up from
1 MB /sec = 8 Mbts /sec to speeds closer (even remotely)
to 100 Megabits advertised?

I understand from reading on this board that the actual
speeds almost never reach the advertised numbers,
but what I am getting here is not even in the double
digits, let alone 100!.......

Please help me out with this one, I ran out of ideas...

New Linksys BEFSR41- 1.37 firmware- (DHCP mode) with TOSHIBA PCX1100U Cable modem on WAN

1Ghz Athlon desktop Win98SE, 512 Meg dRAM, 7200 rpm 20 Gig HD, DLink 10/100 PCI adapter at 100 Full Duplex (newest drivers), 7' Cat5e

350 Mhz PentiumII notebook Win98SE, 128 Meg sdRAM, 4200 rpm 10 Gig HD, Linksys 10/100 Full Duplex PCMCIA PC Card (newest drivers), 100' Cat5e.

Throughput measured on 500Meg file with AnalogX NetStat.

[cyberskye]

Damn - I try to do math on a friday and I get cucified! I must be in weekend mode already ;)

You do have a old version of firmware 1.40.2 is available and I have seen a performance gain. Not to cover your gap necessarily, but some real improvements.


Skye

[cyberskye]

These are the enhancements since your version.


Firmware Date : October 24,2001
Current Firmware : Version 1.40.2
Product PartNo : BEFSR11/BEFSR41/BEFSRU31

Ver #. Date Description
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.40.2 Oct 24,01 1. Fixed DHCP server probem that assign one IP address to 2 PCs
2. Fixed traceroute problem under router mode(traceroute can not
find out the Linksys router)
3. Fixed ip filter problem when start ip is bigger then end ip
4. Fixed Log radio disappear when click Cancel button on Log UI page
5. Fixed some time user can see the UI page without password problem
6. Fixed PCC prompts "This version needds the special router" when installation
7. Change the aging time of AOL application (#5190) connection to 90 minutes.
8. Modify UI pages to fix the banner problem in Netscape 4.7, 6.0


1.40.1 Sept 10,01 1. Support Zone Alarm Pro firewall and PC-cillin anti-virus software

1.39 June 5, 01 1. Support Fragmented packet pass through
2. Speed up throughput rate
3. Support MSN Messenger
4. Support VPN IKE


1.38.5 Apr 12, 01 1. Modify PPPoE and RAS action include Setup and Status help UI
(Keep Alive will always try to keep the line alive)
2. Add SPI (Stateful Packet Inspection) function in Filter page
3. Deny WAN side DNS relay request
4. Fix DNS relay access trap (port 1200, 1400) problem
5. When using PPPoE login, doesn't WAN Gatewayand Subnet Mask in Status page
6. Add MTU(maximum transmission unit) function in "Filter" page
7. Modified Korea DHCP problem: if router does not has host name, send WAN
MAC as hostname to get ip
8. Add "Port Triggering" function in Forwarding page
9. Fix DNS relay under PPPoE problem
10. Fix DNS relay under DMZ setting problem
11. support multi-LAN-host using same port to connect to same server
12. Fix Forwarding LAN PPTP server problem
13. Fix DNS relay under PPPoE dial on demand disconnected problem
14. Change Forwarding LAN server IP range from 0~254 to 0~255
15. Add PPPoE and RAS keep alive redial period setting field in "Setup" page
16. Support space on Web UI input page
17. Support long dhcp lease time in WAN interface
18. Speed up throughput rate
19. Add "multicast pass through" option in Filter UI page
20. Modified Max MTU setting value of PPPoE from 1446 to 1492.
21. Speed up throughput under PPPoE.
22. Support 3com adsl modem.

[ebylinin]

Thank you for you replies, I appreciate your help guys!

So far I loaded all new drivers, including Linksys... NOTHING.
Switched NICs back, forth and around 10, 100, Fduplex and half...
NOTHING. Arghhhhhhhh!!!!!!!>>>>>>:o

Anyway, here's the setup if anyone can suggest something else:

New Linksys BEFSR41- 1.40.2 firmware- (DHCP mode) with TOSHIBA PCX1100U Cable modem on WAN

1Ghz Athlon desktop Win98SE, 512 Meg dRAM, 7200 rpm 20 Gig HD, DLink 10/100 PCI adapter at 100 Full Duplex (newest drivers), 7' Cat5e, Network:
Client for Microsoft Networks
D-Link DFE-530TX+ PCI Adapter
Dial-Up Adapter
TCP/IP->D-Link DFE-530TX = PCI Adapter
TCP/IP-> Dial-Up Adapter
File and printer sharing for Microsoft Networks

350 Mhz PentiumII notebook Win98SE, 128 Meg sdRAM, 4200 rpm 10 Gig HD, Linksys 10/100 Full Duplex PCMCIA PC Card (newest drivers), 100' Cat5e, Network:
Client for Microsoft Networks
Network Everywhere Fast Ethernet 10/100 PC Card (NP100)
Dial-Up Adapter
TCP/IP->Network Everywhere Fast Ethernet 10/100 PC Card (NP100)
TCP/IP-> Dial-Up Adapter
File and printer sharing for Microsoft Networks

Throughput measured on 500Meg file with AnalogX NetStat peaks
at 1.1 MB with 0.96-1 MB average.

PLEASE HELP! ... :cry:

[Renthal]

Check the throughput on that 4200 rpm drive. That will be your maximum attainable, sustained bandwidth. Typically writing data is slower than reading data as well, so take that into account.

[f0kKeR]

i heard it helps if you set the cards to auto negotiate or auto dedect speed instead of setting it to 100tx or 10baseT

[Kip Patterson]

Several points -

The linksys probably does not do anything like 100 mbits. 8 mbits is about what most folks get.

There is no absolute standard for autonegotiation for 100baseT. It is best to forsce the cards to the speed and duplex setting you want.

Try hooking the two machines up with a null modem RJ-45 cable, omitting the Linksys and see what you get.

Kip