Forum Discussion

menotti's avatar
menotti
New Contributor
5 years ago

Packet loss, T3 timeouts, etc

Hi there,

Ever since a service outage in my area (92024) last Friday, I've been experiencing 8-20% packet loss. After a lot of home troubleshooting, I determined this was definitely related to something that was done in the area. Long story short, my modem would show a combo of T3 timeouts, dynamic window range violations, etc. All levels are within spec after I removed an amp that was pushing the downstream to over +15dBmV after the service.

A senior tech came out and found a few things:

  1. My old amp, now removed, was out of spec for a recent split they did in the neighborhood + some new frequencies. He removed and replaced it.
  2. However, he kept my cable modem OFF of the amp and only used the amp for the TVs. He said the direct line to the modem was all green.
  3. Upon leaving, he said he saw no T3 timeouts from his tests, etc.
  4. He also said I need to get used to 5-10% packet loss in the area while they deal with usage, splitting, etc.

Well, I went back to my modem and see T3 timeouts again, DRW again, and packet loss continues at 4-8% - which is outside of a usable range for real time services.

What should my next steps be? Am I just living with this while COVID lockdowns clear up?

  • Dave9's avatar
    Dave9
    Contributor III
    5 years ago

    If you're seeing packet loss without T3 errors, it could be node saturation. However if you're seeing packet loss with T3 errors, the problem is more likely noise ingress on the upstream band. You'll need to have another tech come out and check for packet loss at the tap. Even better if they have the proper tools to scan for noise on the line but it seems like most techs don't have that tool. You might see others posting similar problems on the forum, but unless they live on the same block as you it's not the same problem. It's just one of hundreds of problems all over the network.

    • menotti's avatar
      menotti
      New Contributor
      5 years ago

      Thanks Dave. The tech left so fast and said his test did not see T3 errors, but he only looked for a moment. He also was insistent that the packet loss was "normal". But the modem keeps showing T3 errors. So it sounds like this is unacceptable, even if there's high usage in the area.

  • Pauldv's avatar
    Pauldv
    New Contributor III
    5 years ago

    newbie here.  How do you check for the packet loss?

    • menotti's avatar
      menotti
      New Contributor
      5 years ago

      Easiest way is open a command line / terminal and run a long ping to a known good server like 8.8.8.8

      Are you familiar with this or should I go into a bit more detail?