Question about internet bandwidth/download speed

[shiningwizard]

So, I have a 256 kbps connection (THIS is expensive enough here in India, anyway) and my download speed, as you can guess, is supposed to be around 32 KB/sec. Now, recently I upgraded my computer, and I went from having 256 MB RAM to 2 GB. When I got my computer back, with the 2 GB RAM, I noticed that my internet speed had gone up - it was doubled. I was getting download speeds of around 64 KB/sec, and I was glad, but then after a couple of weeks it just randomly went back down to the normal speed.

I assumed, at first, it was a problem with my ISP, but every now and then I notice that some downloads DO go back up to the 60 KB/sec mark, the problem is that the speed just doesn't stay there. Like right now I'm downloading something from CNET, and it's going at 58 KB/sec, then it goes down to 25 KB/sec, then goes back up, then down... it just doesn't remain constant. And most other downloads stay constant at ~30 KB/sec. So I was wondering if maybe I did something wrong, or if maybe something's using up my bandwidth or if it is a problem with my ISP after all.

And, Jesus, this place is so deserted...

[TomS]

It is, isn't it.

Speeds can vary minute by minute as you've found out. It can depend on your system or the ISP or the connections between you and the download source or a combination of any or all of them.

If you have multiple processes running in the background then these will potentially affect speed by using some of the bandwidth or CPU for themselves. The ISP may have a bottleneck where multiple users connect and if one or more of those starts a download or spikes their use even briefly then that node can clog or slow all users down. And, the same could be said for the source and any router between you and them. Also, packets do not necessarily all follow the same route during a download so if the path changes from minute to minute then the speed can follow (or not ).

The best you can do is to make certain your system is clean and not operating too many background tasks. The rest you have no real control over.

[shiningwizard]

Yeah it is... I was astonished to see that the only other thread that existed in this General forum was my own. I was like: woah what happened here?

I, personally, find this to be the #1 go-to forum for computer help - although, obviously and amusingly enough, that is not its main function. Perhaps something even more amusing is the fact that I've never actually needed any file extension help, unlike the other people who always have questions about conversions and whatnot... But anyway, there are several other forums on the web that are mainly related to computer and internet help in general, but they're all so... neglected. And you don't even get any good replies there, tbh: posting on those forums is as helpful as posting your question on Yahoo Answers. This, I think, is mainly because the actual admins/moderators do not post there very much. At least here, you come online every night, I think.

And I have personally found your posts far more helpful than anything I've found on any of those forums, even if my problems were ultimately left unsolved.

Anyway... where were we? Oh yes -

I tried disabling my Avast anti-virus automatic updates but that definitely is not the problem as it was always was on even back when my speed was up.

Also, there are like half a dozen svchost.exe services running in the background here, and although only two are labeled "NETWORK SERVICES," is there any reason to think one of these services might have anything to do with this?

And I'll probably try a full system anti-virus and anti-malware scan tomorrow to see if that helps.

[TomS]

svchost.exe is a commonly run thing. Just about any process that needs to access the Internet to check for updates or whatever will start a new one of these. Nothing much to worry about there. I've got 14 of them running right now.

I doubt you have malware from the symptoms but a check can't hurt anyhow.

Sounds, however, like everything is normal. Changing speeds is just the way things work. Most people don't even bother looking; all they care about is the end result: getting whatever they are getting before they get terribly bored.