Anyone Have Any Tips For Improving Internet Speeds On An Ubuntu 10.04 Machine?

[tgp1994 0]

Hi everyone.I'm running an Ubuntu 10.04 (Mint 9) machine, on my computer with a wireless Atheros card (which should be running at G speeds right now), on my Linksys WRT54G router, with DD-WRT installed. The connection is unsecured, running on Channel 10.My question is; is there any possible way to improve the speed between that ubuntu box, and people outside of my network?I'm hosting a gameserver on my network, and I'd like to be able to get the most out of it. It seems like my network card, or ubuntu configuration may be the chocking point here.Wireless reception, by the way, is generally > 90%. The connection only has to travel through a small piece of drywall before it gets to the router.

[zenia 0]

The use of a wired internet connection brings probably the highest speed the internet connection offers.

[tgp1994 0]

The use of a wired internet connection brings probably the highest speed the internet connection offers.

It's funny that you mention that, because all I have to do is purchase an ethernet cord. That's it, then all I have to do is thread it into an empty wall socket. I just haven't pushed myself enough to go out and buy the cord :\

[MrRichard 0]

Other than buying an ethernet board and plugging it in directly into your modem, there's very little you can do. Upgrading your internet connection is the only idea I can think of. By the way, why do you have a need of speeding up your internet connection, for gaming? If so, make sure you NAT is opened up.

[tgp1994 0]

Other than buying an ethernet board and plugging it in directly into your modem, there's very little you can do. Upgrading your internet connection is the only idea I can think of. By the way, why do you have a need of speeding up your internet connection, for gaming? If so, make sure you NAT is opened up.

I suppose I should have been more specific, sorry.

I'm running the actual "game server" (a Garry's Mod server) on a windows computer, which happens to be on the same network. Not much overhead from that.
Then on the other hand, I have my Ubuntu (Mint) server, which is acting as a "Fast Download" server. Essentially, the game directs clients to that server to download various content, I.E. maps, models, materials, etc. All it is is an apache webserver, with a normal directory holding the content. I was just hoping that it was possible for me to up the speed there (and tweaks for Apache2 known?)

I'm not sure about NAT. That seems pretty dangerous, and anyways, that only makes the difference of a closed or open port :\ (So either it would be accessible or not.)

[JohnDoe 0]

I suppose I should have been more specific, sorry.
I'm running the actual "game server" (a Garry's Mod server) on a windows computer, which happens to be on the same network. Not much overhead from that.
Then on the other hand, I have my Ubuntu (Mint) server, which is acting as a "Fast Download" server. Essentially, the game directs clients to that server to download various content, I.E. maps, models, materials, etc. All it is is an apache webserver, with a normal directory holding the content. I was just hoping that it was possible for me to up the speed there (and tweaks for Apache2 known?)

I'm not sure about NAT. That seems pretty dangerous, and anyways, that only makes the difference of a closed or open port :\ (So either it would be accessible or not.)

What ISP are you using (Company/Type/Speed)?

Also, at >90% efficiency on your Wireless G, you're already surpassing the speed of most domestic ISP connections, making the lag between the router and server nearly non-existent. Because of this, you're unlikely to see any noticable gains after adding a cord, unless you have a microwave or a fridge in between the two.


-JD

[wutske 0]

What ISP are you using (Company/Type/Speed)?
Also, at >90% efficiency on your Wireless G, you're already surpassing the speed of most domestic ISP connections, making the lag between the router and server nearly non-existent. Because of this, you're unlikely to see any noticable gains after adding a cord, unless you have a microwave or a fridge in between the two.


-JD

Actually, there will be many improvements when using a wired connection:
First of all, no matter what, wireless connection have worse response times (ping) than wired networks. For gaming, a lower ping is always better because there's nothing as annoying as lagging in an fps.
Second, you're now running an unsecured wireless network, this BAD, seriously ! Everybody now can freely abuse your wireless network. Even tough it's totaly insecure, consider using a WEP encryption, this makes a just a tad more difficult for everyday users to use your internet connection. Additionally, configure the MAC filter on your router.
Tirth, it's funny, but 90% doesn't realy mean 90% of G-speed. In fact, when the signal gets weaker, the card automatically lowers the connection speed, sometimes down to 1Mbps and still show a relatively high signal quality. For example, I had to share my network connection from the second floor using a normal WiFi usb stick and 2 levels lower, my laptop had 3 blocks (signal quality in Windows ) ... but only at 1-2Mbps.

[Qrntz 0]

Even tough it's totaly insecure, consider using a WEP encryption, this makes a just a tad more difficult for everyday users to use your internet connection.

Just a little correction - using WPA is more secure. WEP is really just a protocol declaring open security holes.As for the specific version, WPA2 AES offers the best wireless security all around.

[JohnDoe 0]

Actually, there will be many improvements when using a wired connection:First of all, no matter what, wireless connection have worse response times (ping) than wired networks. For gaming, a lower ping is always better because there's nothing as annoying as lagging in an fps.
Second, you're now running an unsecured wireless network, this BAD, seriously ! Everybody now can freely abuse your wireless network. Even tough it's totaly insecure, consider using a WEP encryption, this makes a just a tad more difficult for everyday users to use your internet connection. Additionally, configure the MAC filter on your router.
Tirth, it's funny, but 90% doesn't realy mean 90% of G-speed. In fact, when the signal gets weaker, the card automatically lowers the connection speed, sometimes down to 1Mbps and still show a relatively high signal quality. For example, I had to share my network connection from the second floor using a normal WiFi usb stick and 2 levels lower, my laptop had 3 blocks (signal quality in Windows ) ... but only at 1-2Mbps.

The point I was getting at was relevant to this specific user's needs, not to some extraneous storyline. If you're punching through nothing but a single wall, with no intervening microwaves, refrigerators or nuclear holocausts, it won't ratchet the speed down at all. That means at 54Mbps with >90% efficiency you're probably getting 1-3ms pings to the router, if not <1ms. Your average ISP will give you anywhere from 768k Up to 18Mbps upload with pings ranging from 20ms to 130ms. Thus that 1ms leads to 1/60th of your lag, which is tiny by any standards and almost can't be beaten by a hard line.

The variance in ISP quality, services, and speed make is a major deciding factor in this particular situation, while the 1ms additional ping for being wireless is most likely not causing a huge issue for him. Also, even though most routers have on-chip encryption cores for WPA2, it does tend to slow things down a minuscule amount. So does MAC Filtering. So if you're all for 'balls-to-the-wall' speed, I'd leave both disabled and stop broadcasting your SSID, as that generates no overhead, considering it's mainly used to initiate the connection.

In regards to the original poster, is your machine multi-core? Is apache running on all cores? That speeds up retrieval a smidgen.

Other than that, I was asking about your ISP because with DSL, since it's dedicated bandwidth, another line will double your upload, and with cable, you would have to pay for a hosting rate, probably a business package or some noise.


-JD