Virgin Media Community

[ArisX]

Hello,My connection has been patchy, at best, since summer 2020. Network drops, speeds no better than PSTN, some devices working fine while others cannot access the network at all for hours a day. There is no clear pattern either in terms of devices or speeds - some days my laptop work just fine but my flatmate's doesnt, some days it is the reverse. Only thing I have noticed is that it happens mostly around peak hours so I assume it is a capacity issue.

-No, I have restarted my router and called multiple times before. Hasnt worked, and I cant get through to tech support

-Yes, I even upgraded to a higher speed, hasnt helped one bit and it is only a waste of my money (£64!)

-Yes, my work relies on this connection so it is quite urgent to finally solve this

So my question is, how can this be solved? Is VM doing anything to solve this and justify all this money I pay them every month for a service that has been worse than mobile broadband for months?

[jbrennand]

Lets have a look at the connection details - especially do the BQM.
_________________________________

Post up your Hub/network connection details and someone will check to see if there is a problem there.  In your browser’s URL box type in http://192.168.0.1  (or http://192.168.100.1 - if in modem mode) and hit return. On the first page up [there should be no need to login if you have done so before unless you have the New Hub4 when you do] click on the “router status” icon/text at bottom-middle of first page up and then copy/paste as “Formatted Text” (not images) 3 FULL sets of data onto here – 2 pages from the Downstream, 2 from the Upstream, & the Network Logs page. Don't worry too much about the formatting it can be easily read & DON’T include personal data or MAC addresses - blank them out - if you copy/paste the data, the board software will do this for you (you may need to click the "submit" button again.

Also, in the meantime... if you haven’t already, set up a free and secure “Broadband Quality Monitor” to continually monitor the state of your connection and record any true network dropouts , latency issues, packet drops, etc - it will thus allow you to differentiate between those and simple wifi dropouts. It does it 24/7/365 and it keeps a visual record of any/all of your network disconnections, useful data to have to match to the Network logs (in your Hub settings) and also in discussions with VM - note it will take a few hours to start seeing a sensible picture - post up the “link” to the “share live graph” (as per instructions on the TB website) when it starts to develop.

https://www.thinkbroadband.com/broadband/monitoring/quality

[gary_dexter]

Setup a BQM and post the live share url back here 

[ArisX]

Many thanks for the quick reply!

Made an account with thinkbroadband but as you say it will take a couple of days for it to update. Link to the live graph attached

As for the VM Hub details (hope I correctly blanked the MACs):

Downstream

Downstream bonded channels

Channel Frequency (Hz) Power (dBmV) SNR (dB) Modulation Channel ID

1	259000000	5.6	38	256 qam	16
2	139000000	8.5	38	256 qam	1
3	147000000	7.1	38	256 qam	2
4	155000000	7.4	38	256 qam	3
5	163000000	7.3	38	256 qam	4
6	171000000	7.6	38	256 qam	5
7	179000000	8.1	38	256 qam	6
8	187000000	7.5	40	256 qam	7
9	195000000	7.1	40	256 qam	8
10	203000000	7	38	256 qam	9
11	211000000	7.6	38	256 qam	10
12	219000000	7.5	34	256 qam	11
13	227000000	7.1	35	256 qam	12
14	235000000	7	38	256 qam	13
15	243000000	6.9	38	256 qam	14
16	251000000	6.5	38	256 qam	15
17	267000000	6.4	38	256 qam	17
18	275000000	6.6	38	256 qam	18
19	283000000	5.9	38	256 qam	19
20	291000000	4.6	38	256 qam	20
21	299000000	5.5	38	256 qam	21
22	307000000	4.9	38	256 qam	22
23	315000000	3.2	38	256 qam	23
24	323000000	4.4	38	256 qam	24

Downstream bonded channels

Channel Locked Status RxMER (dB) Pre RS Errors Post RS Errors

1	Locked	38.9	1699	41
2	Locked	38.9	25772	698
3	Locked	38.9	36185	3694
4	Locked	38.6	29557	2990
5	Locked	38.9	28148	4063
6	Locked	38.6	17948	30600
7	Locked	38.9	20932	2260
8	Locked	40.3	20034	1449
9	Locked	40.3	20995	2321
10	Locked	38.9	10583	1265
11	Locked	38.9	2001	295
12	Locked	34.4	74916	980
13	Locked	35	47864	374
14	Locked	38.9	17900	106
15	Locked	38.9	455	2
16	Locked	38.6	564	0
17	Locked	38.9	1348	0
18	Locked	38.9	2144	362
19	Locked	38.6	1365	0
20	Locked	38.9	2242	336
21	Locked	38.9	1962	221
22	Locked	38.6	2299	205
23	Locked	38.9	1683	7
24	Locked	38.6	1175	53

Upstream:

Upstream bonded channels

Channel Frequency (Hz) Power (dBmV) Symbol Rate (ksps) Modulation Channel ID

1	25799918	49.5	5120	16 qam	6
2	39399883	47	5120	64 qam	4
3	46200000	46.8	5120	64 qam	3
4	32600101	48	5120	64 qam	5

Upstream bonded channels

Channel Channel Type T1 Timeouts T2 Timeouts T3 Timeouts T4 Timeouts

1	ATDMA	0	0	4	0
2	ATDMA	0	0	0	0
3	ATDMA	0	0	2	0
4	ATDMA	0	0	1	0

[ArisX]

And the network log

Network log:

Time Priority Description

21/01/2021 15:18:10	Warning!	LAN login FAILED : Incorrect Username / Password / ConnectionType;CM-MAC=xyz1;CMTS-MAC=xyz2;CM-QOS=1.1;CM-VER=3.0;
21/01/2021 10:16:44	Warning!	RCS Partial Service;CM-MAC=xyz1;CMTS-MAC=xyz2;CM-QOS=1.1;CM-VER=3.0;
20/01/2021 22:08:22	Error	DHCP RENEW WARNING - Field invalid in response v4 option;CM-MAC=xyz1;CMTS-MAC=xyz2;CM-QOS=1.1;CM-VER=3.0;
20/01/2021 14:36:12	Warning!	RCS Partial Service;CM-MAC=xyz1;CMTS-MAC=xyz2:cf;CM-QOS=1.1;CM-VER=3.0;
20/01/2021 12:05:19	critical	No Ranging Response received - T3 time-out;CM-MAC=xyz1;CMTS-MAC=xyz2;CM-QOS=1.1;CM-VER=3.0;
20/01/2021 10:06:7	Warning!	RCS Partial Service;CM-MAC=xyz1;CMTS-MAC=xyz2;CM-QOS=1.1;CM-VER=3.0;
19/01/2021 17:39:22	critical	No Ranging Response received - T3 time-out;CM-MAC=xyz1;CMTS-MAC=xyz2;CM-QOS=1.1;CM-VER=3.0;
19/01/2021 10:23:4	Warning!	RCS Partial Service;CM-MAC=xyz1;CMTS-MAC=xyz2;CM-QOS=1.1;CM-VER=3.0;
19/01/2021 05:37:39	critical	No Ranging Response received - T3 time-out;CM-MAC=xyz1;CMTS-MAC=xyz2;CM-QOS=1.1;CM-VER=3.0;
18/01/2021 10:08:0	Warning!	RCS Partial Service;CM-MAC=xyz1;CMTS-MAC=xyz2;CM-QOS=1.1;CM-VER=3.0;
17/01/2021 21:29:2	critical	No Ranging Response received - T3 time-out;CM-MAC=xyz1;CMTS-MAC=xyz2;CM-QOS=1.1;CM-VER=3.0;
17/01/2021 19:12:3	Error	DHCP RENEW WARNING - Field invalid in response v4 option;CM-MAC=xyz1;CMTS-MAC=xyz2;CM-QOS=1.1;CM-VER=3.0;
16/01/2021 20:01:6	critical	No Ranging Response received - T3 time-out;CM-MAC=xyz1;CMTS-MAC=xyz2;CM-QOS=1.1;CM-VER=3.0;
15/01/2021 10:12:16	Warning!	RCS Partial Service;CM-MAC=xyz1;CMTS-MAC=xyz2;CM-QOS=1.1;CM-VER=3.0;
15/01/2021 06:37:15	critical	No Ranging Response received - T3 time-out;CM-MAC=xyz1;CMTS-MAC=xyz2;CM-QOS=1.1;CM-VER=3.0;
15/01/2021 02:17:15	notice	SW download Successful - Via NMS
15/01/2021 02:15:15	notice	SW Download INIT - Via NMS
13/01/2021 14:00:38	critical	No Ranging Response received - T3 time-out;CM-MAC=xyz1;CMTS-MAC=xyz2;CM-QOS=1.1;CM-VER=3.0;
13/01/2021 12:04:48	Error	DHCP RENEW WARNING - Field invalid in response v4 option;CM-MAC=xyz1;CMTS-MAC=xyz2;CM-QOS=1.1;CM-VER=3.0;
10/01/2021 20:10:28	Warning!	RCS Partial Service;CM-MAC=xyz1;CMTS-MAC=xyz2f;CM-QOS=1.1;CM-VER=3.0;

[jbrennand]

OK - the BQM will be useful post up the link to the share live graph - we can watch it develop.

One up channel has dropped to 16qam and ther are some T3's - which is never good - if in a short timeframe. Also the RS errors are a concern but may be historical build up. May be worth doing this now.
_________________-

First switch the Hub off for a few minutes AND unplug it from the mains. Whilst it's off, do a quick check that all of your coax cable connections are in nice and "finger" tight - at the Hub and wall box and also at any connectors etc. Ensure there are no “unterminated cable loose ends. Disconnect all the connections and reconnect to be sure. Also check that the internal wiring is ok with no dog chews, kinking or chaffing, quick check that all looks good with the outside cabling and wall box. Then switch it on again and leave a few minutes

When done, check back in the Hub settings and ensure that the RS error counts have all reset to 0. Then check every hour or two for the next day or so to see if they start reappearing - they shouldn't. If they do (particularly the postRS ones) you have a problem (noise) that only a Tech visit will sort.

[ArisX]

Many thanks for the help so far. Restarted my router as recommended. 0 RS errors on the counter after that, but here are the results less than 12 hours in. Also resharing the thinkbroadband link https://www.thinkbroadband.com/broadband/monitoring/quality/share/a7473f0ba0b93de9f3938dcc9b8be4396b...

Downstream

Channel Frequency (Hz) Power (dBmV) SNR (dB) Modulation Channel ID

1	259000000	5.6	38	256 qam	16
2	139000000	8.5	38	256 qam	1
3	147000000	7	38	256 qam	2
4	155000000	7.4	38	256 qam	3
5	163000000	7.1	38	256 qam	4
6	171000000	7.6	38	256 qam	5
7	179000000	8.3	38	256 qam	6
8	187000000	7.5	40	256 qam	7
9	195000000	7.3	40	256 qam	8
10	203000000	7	38	256 qam	9
11	211000000	7.6	40	256 qam	10
12	219000000	7.5	34	256 qam	11
13	227000000	7.1	35	256 qam	12
14	235000000	7	40	256 qam	13
15	243000000	7	38	256 qam	14
16	251000000	6.5	38	256 qam	15
17	267000000	6.4	38	256 qam	17
18	275000000	6.5	38	256 qam	18
19	283000000	5.9	38	256 qam	19
20	291000000	4.6	38	256 qam	20
21	299000000	5.6	38	256 qam	21
22	307000000	5	38	256 qam	22
23	315000000	3.5	38	256 qam	23
24	323000000	4.4	38	256 qam	24

Channel Locked Status RxMER (dB) Pre RS Errors Post RS Errors

1	Locked	38.9	168	12
2	Locked	38.9	1409	22
3	Locked	38.9	3716	372
4	Locked	38.9	2898	322
5	Locked	38.9	2782	382
6	Locked	38.9	2398	328
7	Locked	38.9	1759	308
8	Locked	40.3	1227	256
9	Locked	40.3	1810	278
10	Locked	38.9	1396	183
11	Locked	40.3	261	50
12	Locked	34.4	40910	121
13	Locked	35	19841	28
14	Locked	40.3	1026	32
15	Locked	38.9	95	2
16	Locked	38.9	89	0
17	Locked	38.6	206	0
18	Locked	38.9	208	87
19	Locked	38.9	102	0
20	Locked	38.9	311	67
21	Locked	38.9	274	11
22	Locked	38.6	254	18
23	Locked	38.6	195	13
24	Locked	38.6	153	0

Upstream

Upstream bonded channels

Channel Frequency (Hz) Power (dBmV) Symbol Rate (ksps) Modulation Channel ID

1	25800098	49.3	5120	32 qam	6
2	39400095	47	5120	64 qam	4
3	46200131	46.8	5120	64 qam	3
4	32600088	48	5120	64 qam	5

Upstream bonded channels

Channel Channel Type T1 Timeouts T2 Timeouts T3 Timeouts T4 Timeouts

1	ATDMA	0	0	2	0
2	ATDMA	0	0	0	0
3	ATDMA	0	0	0	0
4	ATDMA	0	0	0	0

Plus a new critical error since yesterday

etwork Log

Time Priority Description

22/01/2021 04:44:16

critical

No Ranging Response received - T3 time-out;CM-MAC=xyz;CMTS-MAC=xyz;CM-QOS=1.1;CM-VER=3.0;

[jbrennand]

Well thats the strangest BQM I have ever seen 🙂 Are there any pointers on the TB web site to help interpret why it looks like that.

In any case you deffo have a connection issue. I will flag for VM to come here and take a look - but in the meantime try calling in to report it as a fault (08.00 is the best time). May be noise getting in hence the PostRS errors, upstream dropping qam and having T3 timeouts - point that out.

[ArisX]

Found this to interpret the graphs https://www.thinkbroadband.com/faq/broadband-quality-monitor, but my case is not shown really. Could it be that it has not collected much data yet? Also, today the connection has been quite good actually so might update this when it starts acting weird again.

I have tried contacting VM before about getting technical help, but since the pandemic I havent been able to connect to a call centre - only automated messages. Are you suggesting if I call early that wont be the case?

[tehwolf]

---

@jbrennand wrote:

Well thats the strangest BQM I have ever seen 🙂 Are there any pointers on the TB web site to help interpret why it looks like that.

---

It's about as good as it gets!

sub 5ms latency without any variation.

if you ignore the two small bits of packet loss last night at around 10 it looks like pretty much the perfect BQM.. almost as though it's on the same LAN segment as TBB's ping device 😄