[Storyboy]

Hey,

I have been using a DSL 1.5M/8?? connection for a few weeks and, though my download speed is a respectable 1300+kbps, this afternoon it took me over 20 minutes to email a 1.0M attachment. This is a problem I first noticed last week.

Every so often, when sending email, I am told that a connection with the server was not possible on Port 25. I'll keep trying and, sometimes on just the second try I will be able to send, but, again, the outgoing mail is very slow.

My ISP (Worldshare.net with DSL though PowerDSL/Qwest) put me thtough the paces, stopping the Firewall, trying other email clients, etc., but all to no avail.

Now I will see if I can get a hold of an iBook to see if the problem resides in my machine or in the modem.

Has anyone experienced a situation like this?

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks.

[ghporter]

Odds are it's not you, your computer, your modem, or anything else at your end. Typically, this is caused by traffic congestion at your ISP. Of course they're not going to say "Sorry, we're having some congestion right now because we don't have the capacity to handle huge surges of traffic." That would sound bad, wouldn't it? If they didn't tell you tu turn off your modem for a few minutes (and that means 120 seconds or more, not just "a little while"), then do so. DSL and cable modems are microcomputers themselves, and they can get borked just like any other computer. Turning it off and letting it sit will help it do a proper reset.

Anyway DO get someone to help you confirm that you get the same results with another computer, and if you have a friend on the same ISP, have them bring their modem over and try that out, too. I think you'll see no difference between using your equipment and your friend's equipment.

Oh, and make sure you restart your firewall; don't sit around unprotected. ISPs are notorious for having you expose your equipment to the world when "helping" you with an issue.

[John Strung]

If your ISP is using PPPoE, then you should try setting your MTU to 1492 instead of the default 1500. If you are using OS X 10.3 or up, I think you will find the MTU setting buried in your network ethernet preferences. If you are using a router, you can probably set the MTU in the router instead.

If you are using OS 10.2.x, then follow the instructions here:

http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=107474

(Changing the MTU will work ONLY if your DSL service is PPPoE. If it is DHCP, then leave the MTU at 1500.)

[Storyboy]

Thanks for the input.

I was advised to do a power-cycle, but on for about 30 seconds. However, until last weekend, my modem had been unplugged from the wall for about 10 days. Plenty of time for a reset, I would think.

I was also asked to send the same 1.0K email from Worldshare's webmail site and there was no delay; the tech received in a matter of seconds. Shouldn't I expect a similar delay if it was merely an issue of congestion? Or does the snarl occur closer to my end of the trip?

The end suggestion, aside from the troubleshooting mentioned above, was to use the Webmail to send any "larger" email attachments. That's lame.

Thanks, again.

[ghporter]

Webmail within their network may not go through any actual POP3-type mail server. It all depends on whether they have it configured to always go through a mail gateway or not, and in a lot of cases, they choose to "simplify" things for their users. Mostly that's a good thing, but here, it was used to check a POP3 mail problem and may not have done anything with any POP system. A better test would have been to use a Yahoo! or Hotmail account, or some other account that is web-based but OUTSIDE their network. That would guarantee that the mail would go through their POP3 server.

[werps]

Long shot, but make sure your mail server info is right. I had something like this happen and it ended up that I had entered mail@ instead of mail(dot) for the incoming and outgoing mail.

[Storyboy]

I took the tip from ghporter, I unplugged the modem, took a nap, and tried again, to find that all is well!

Could have been the IP address.

Thanks again.

[ghporter]

Yep, the specific connection you make with the ISP can have a great effect on the quality and utility of your broadband. With DSL, you might get a connection that works wonderfully for weeks at a time, but because of an IP lease renewal, you could wind up on the ISP's least capable (or most broken) hardware. This chance is small, and typically the ISP has everything running very well, so when you do get a bum connection, it's pretty exceptional.

It's always a good idea on any broadband connection to mess with the modem (and your router if you have one) BEFORE even thinking about something wrong with your computer. ALWAYS power cycle both router and modem, and do it a couple of times if the problem persists after the first time. The second step should always be to turn it all off for several minutes and just let it sit (let the stray charges, old memory and evil spirits drain off...) before trying again.

That down time is time well spent if it restores your connection, and it's not lost if it doesn't-you'd otherwise spend at least that much time bouncing around wondering what to do and messing with the wrong stuff.