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We have a local firm that supplies our community with internet service. They are contracted to supply "at least" 10Mbps. However, during peak usage times I find they do not meet this standard. Using their speedtest server, they are in the 5-11 range.

Every time we complain, they come out and test our service and they get 10Mbps, but they never check in the morning when usage in our community is the greatest.

What I'm looking for is a tool that we connect directly to a modem that monitors and records the speeds to we can prove to the provider that they are not meeting their contract.

I need to use their speedtest server and I need to automatically record the speeds that are measured. Possibly something like once an hour.

Any ideas?

user302477
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    Why can't you just screenshot your speed tests with a time stamp on them? because you're basically asking for a product recommendation here, which is considered off topic in SU. you can also check this out: [Here](http://www.hongkiat.com/blog/monitor-internet-usage/) – Outdated Computer Tech Feb 23 '14 at 01:45
  • I'm just looking for recommendations on how to track the speedtests. Not looking for a product recommendation. Maybe just a recommendations on how to script what you describe. – user302477 Feb 23 '14 at 02:15
  • This question belongs on our site for software recommendations, [softwarerecs.se]. – gparyani Feb 23 '14 at 02:27
  • You may find useful information, including an answer to your specific need by reviewing the material at this question: http://superuser.com/questions/388809/seeking-tool-to-automatically-collect-internet-broadband-speed-metrics-over-ti – yosh m Feb 23 '14 at 18:19

1 Answers1

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It won't work for two reasons:

  1. The issue is not the modem speed, but the speed of the network that carries traffic to the modem.

  2. If you try to measure downstream from the modem, you'll have to add in other traffic sources. For example, if you're downloading at 5Mbps and the speed tests gives 6Mbps, that is the ISP delivering more than 10Mbps, not less. So you cannot automate it. Someone must know what else is going on at the time.

The provider knows whether their pipes are congested and, if so, when and how much. If they're lying to you about the problem, then that's an issue that goes way beyond proving to them that they are lying.

David Schwartz
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  • Dave, It's the speed of the internet to the modem that we're trying to measure. I agree there are other problems in play here, but the provider (1300 homes) is not willing to buy more bandwidth from the telco. They point to the speedtest against a local server as the gold standard for testing the speed vs. the contract. So, I need to find a way to use this tool to prove compromised speed. Is there some scripting tool I can use on a windows box to collect this information? – user302477 Feb 23 '14 at 11:46
  • I strongly urge you not to play this game. They know whether, when, and how much their pipes are loaded. They're making you jump through hoops to make you go away and for each one you jump through, there will just be another one. *They* already have all the information. They don't need anything from you. – David Schwartz Feb 23 '14 at 11:53
  • Can you further elaborate: "They know whether, when, and how much their pipes are loaded. " – user302477 Feb 23 '14 at 13:03
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    @user302477 Precisely that. If the problem is that your speeds are lower when other people are using the Internet a lot, that means it's the pipes that are shared in your region that are the problem. They *always* know how loaded those are and when they are loaded because they have to decide when to upgrade them. (It's not the link to your modem. Why would that be affected by peak usage times?) – David Schwartz Feb 23 '14 at 13:05