====== Troubleshooting network packet loss ======
[[:Troubleshooting|Go back to all troubleshooting topics]]
===== Testing for packet loss =====
==== Low level test for network packet loss - Windows ====
From a cmd prompt run:
"C:\Program Files\Silicondust\HDHomeRun\hdhomerun_config" FFFFFFFF set /tuner0/vchannel
"C:\Program Files\Silicondust\HDHomeRun\hdhomerun_config" FFFFFFFF save /tuner0 null
Replace "" with one of your HD channels. For HDHomeRun PRIME, make sure that it is a non-DRM channel.
If you have more than one HDHomeRun unit then replace "FFFFFFFF" with the device ID of the desired unit.
You should see a series of dots. "n" indicates network packet loss. "t" indicates a reception error. "s" is informational.
==== Low level test for network packet loss - Mac/Linux ====
From Terminal (Mac) or a shell on Linux, run:
hdhomerun_config FFFFFFFF set /tuner0/vchannel
hdhomerun_config FFFFFFFF save /tuner0 null
Replace "" with one of your HD channels. For HDHomeRun PRIME, make sure that it is a non-DRM channel.
If you have more than one HDHomeRun unit then replace "FFFFFFFF" with the device ID of the desired unit.
You should see a series of dots. "n" indicates network packet loss. "t" indicates a reception error. "s" is informational.
==== Low level test for network packet loss - Legacy devices ====
1) Run HDHomeRun Setup and go into the channel editor. Choose a physical channel number (for example CH45). This is the number before the - in the Tune column.
2) From a cmd prompt run:
"C:\Program Files\Silicondust\HDHomeRun\hdhomerun_config" FFFFFFFF set /tuner0/channel auto:
"C:\Program Files\Silicondust\HDHomeRun\hdhomerun_config" FFFFFFFF save /tuner0 null
Replace "" with the physical channel number from HDHomeRun Setup (e.g. 45).
If you have more than one HDHomeRun unit then replace "FFFFFFFF" with the device ID of the desired unit.
You should see a series of dots. "n" indicates network packet loss. "t" indicates a reception error. "s" is informational.
===== Common issues and solutions =====
==== Network loss due to wireless ====
We recommend using a wired network for streaming high-definition video.
Troubleshooting for wireless networks:
If security is enabled on the network, WPA2-AES should be used. WEP, WPA, and TKIP are considered broken security-wise, and have worse performance than WPA2-AES on modern hardware.
802.11n/ac routers should be configured in "n only" or "performance" mode for the 2.4GHz network, and "ac only", "n/ac only", or "performance" mode for the 5GHz network. Backwards compatibility with a/b/g networks significantly degrades performance. All wireless devices connected to the network must support 11n or 11ac in order for this to work.
If the router has an option to set channel bandwidth, use the largest setting, typically 40MHz for 2.4GHz networks and 80 or 160MHz for 5GHz networks.
If the router supports operation in both the 2.4Ghz and 5GHz bands, try both. 5GHz is less congested and offers better performance in most circumstances, but does not go through walls and floors as well as 2.4GHz does. Bluetooth devices, many cordless phones, and other unlicensed wireless devices that operate on the 2.4GHz band can interfere with wireless networks, so avoid using them if at all possible. For cordless phones, use models that operate in the 900MHz or 1.9GHz band, not 2.4GHz.
If the router permits limiting the network speed to something below its theoretical max, try utilizing that. For example, eather than the typical 108Mb/s max for 802.11n, try limiting it to 72 or 54Mb/s operation. While in theory this will limit the maximum performance of the network, in practice the network will operate more reliably at the lower speed, minimizing speed fluctuations that can cause packet loss.
==== Network loss due to Windows network throttling ====
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/948066
Windows Vista, 7, 8, and 10 can throttle network performance when using multimedia applications. This can lead to network packet loss.
Disable this option by changing the following registry setting to ffffffff (Hexadecimal):
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Multimedia\SystemProfile\NetworkThrottlingIndex
You will need to reboot after making this change.
==== Network loss due to the PC network card ====
- Open network settings\\
(Win7/8) Go into Control Panel, View network status and tasks, Change adapter settings\\
(Win10) Go into Settings, then Network & Internet, then Change adapter options
- Double click on the Local Area Connection icon to bring up the status page.
- Check that the Speed is reported as 100Mbps or 1Gbps.
- Click Properties. Check the brand/model of the network interface:
- nForce based interface: Click Configure and switch to the Advanced tab. Disable checksum offloading features.
- Intel based interface: Click Configure and switch to the Advanced tab. Test with alternative Interrupt Mitigation settings.
- All interfaces: Click Configure are switch to the Advanced tab. Increase the Receive Buffer size (if this option is present). Test with the Interrupt Mitigation/Moderation setting both On and Off (if this option is present). If the issues persist after adjusting these settings, try disabling all options referencing "offload".
==== Network loss due to a 3rd party software firewall ====
We have seen instances where some 3rd party firewall drivers fail to keep up with streaming HD video over RTP.
As a test, try uninstalling any 3rd party firewall software and rebooting. It is not enough to disable the firewall - it must be uninstalled (disabling typically only affects the rule-set, the firewall driver remains in the data path). In most cases a reboot is required to remove the firewall driver from the network path.
If uninstalling the 3rd party firewall fixes the problem then 1) Try upgrading to the latest version, or 2) contact the firewall vendor, or 3) consider using an alternative firewall such as Windows Firewall.
{{tag>troubleshooting}}