Broadband Bandwidth Usage?

jambutty · 16-02-2006, 16:30

Many people are switching to Broadband and buying one of several bandwidth packages where there is a monthly bandwidth limit.

As far as Freeserve (Wanadoo) and BT Internet are concerned the deal is this. You pay a monthly fee and are able to use the specified bandwidth. Should you go over the top both named ISP’s will contact you to say so and if it continues they will suggest that you buy a package with a higher bandwidth, for more money of course. If you don’t agree then the chances are that next time you go over the top your connection will be disabled until the next month. That’s fair enough as far as it goes.

But you the customer has no idea how much bandwidth you have used at any time during the month. The best that you can hope for is bandwidth information for the current session. You could of course keep a record and add up as you go along but you would be dealing with nine digit numbers and it would be all too easy to make a mistake. If you share your Internet connection with other members of your household it would be next to impossible to keep track of usage.

There is software available to monitor the bandwidth used to date but that is designed for commercial purposes and comes with a hefty fee.

When it comes to electricity, gas and even water in some cases there is a meter that you can read to see how much energy or water you have used to date. Should your usage be higher than anticipated you can either be prepared for a higher bill or reduce your usage. YOU HAVE A CHOICE.

With Broadband bandwidth usage you have to trust the ISP to record how much you use and it seems to be a closely guarded SECRET. If you go over the top by a bit you do not get told by how much and thus you have no idea how much you should cut back your Internet activity if you don’t want to pay for a larger package. Just suppose that you have the 6GB package and go over the top and use 6.5GB month after month. You will eventually be told to increase your bandwidth package, which can be to at least 10GB. (20GB for BT Internet)

Each customer’s bandwidth usage must be monitored otherwise the ISP would not be able to suggest a large package when you do go over the top. The ISP knows precisely how much bandwidth you have used but they won’t tell you.

We have the RIGHT to that information as it happens, much in the same way that we know how much energy we have used at any given time.

Would you trust your energy supplier to supply you with an accurate bill if you didn’t have a meter in your house? Half the time they can’t get the bill right when someone reads the meter and if they make a guesstimate it is usually wrong.

An ISP is not too different in that they supply a commodity - that is the downloading and uploading of data measured in bytes.

When challenged on the point both Wanadoo and BT came back with the same response – Bandwidth usage to date is not available to the customer.

WE HAVE A RIGHT TO KNOW HOW MUCH BANDWIDTH WE HAVE USED AT ANY GIVEN TIME.

KIPAX · 16-02-2006, 17:25

Have you tried to google for free bandwidth monitors prior to your rant ?

Less · 16-02-2006, 17:31

I'm with BT when I started with their Broadband package it was 1G speed with 1G broadband per month, if I came close to my bandwidth they would email me and let me know that it was getting close, they then went on to say that if I did over run then they would let me have another Gig for £5. This was cheaper than upgrading to the next package so I was happy I got a good deal.

Since then however the swines have doubled my speed 2Gig AND doubled my bandwidth 2Gig I didn't ask them to do it they just went ahead and did it!

Do you know how much they charged me for this upgrade I didn't ask for?

Absolutley sweet F.A.

So I'm still a happy bunny.

jambutty · 16-02-2006, 17:32

Yes I have and found many but all at a price and aimed at commercial enterprises. To be fair I have found two that are free for domestic or small business use but I haven’t evaluated them yet.

However the point is that we are being sold a metered commodity without access to the meter that does the measuring.

Imagine if the energy suppliers had a similar scheme. The watchdog would never let them get away with it.

So why should an ISP?

jambutty · 16-02-2006, 17:46

You connection speed and bandwidth were increased free of charge because a 2Gig connection with a 2GB bandwidth was the lowest package that BT does now Less. Wanadoo did the same to me when I was with them some time back.

If memory serves me well the packages at BT are for 2GB, 6GB, 20GB and 40GB bandwidth with a £5 difference between each.

The whole point of my rant, as KIPAX, likes to label it, was to highlight an anomaly. Should someone go slightly over in the 6GB or 20GB package they are obliged to buy a 20GB or 40GB package for an extra fiver and would then be paying for a commodity that they are not using.

If my regular usage was 7GB why should I pay for 13GB that I do not use? I do not get the OPPORTUNITY to restrict my usage because BT refuses to allow me to view the meter that meters my usage.

Neil · 16-02-2006, 18:44

Have a look at this. I have used it in the past and I think it will do what you want.

KIPAX · 16-02-2006, 18:51

Aw come on now.. it was a classic rant

Speed is measured in MB and not GB you will have a 2MB speed. It will be many many years past our lifetimes before they measure home speed in GB ... they will I am sure.. but not for a long time .... Sorry just ponting out

jambutty · 16-02-2006, 19:02

Thanks Neil. I’ll give it a whirl. I tried the other two but couldn’t get them set up. I didn’t have the information they needed and in any case there was every programme and his dog wanting Internet access through my Firewall.

My tired old brain cell can only handle so much. Which explains the error between MB and GB. Or can I plead insanity?

If you consider a rant to be a complaint KIPAX then your durned tooting right it was a rant. It doesn’t make it any less legitimate though.

Neil · 16-02-2006, 20:31

When I was running a file sharing hub my upload speed was about 200kb 24/7. My downloads must have been about 20GB a month or more. Pipex never once complained about it and all for £24.44 a month. Its been the same price for about 4 years so was cheap when I started with them. Always been an excellent service.

KIPAX · 17-02-2006, 00:22

Quote:

Originally Posted by jambutty

If you consider a rant to be a complaint KIPAX then your durned tooting right it was a rant. It doesn’t make it any less legitimate though.

I never at any point suggested it wasn't legitimate... I ahppen to agree that they should follow the same rules as everyone else.

read what I write..not what you think I am writing

Neil · 17-02-2006, 00:34

It's simple, if you don't like the way your ISP is billing you move to another one.

K.S.H · 17-02-2006, 07:29

Better still move to Pipex on a 5gb cap and they dont say anything when you go over it, I know that I downloaded over 15gb of Linux stuff last month and that doesn't count browsing, emails etc and not a thing has been said :-)

Basher · 17-02-2006, 08:18

You could use http://readerror.gmxhome.de/ to monitor your U/L and D/L.

Simple, free and very useful.

entwisi · 17-02-2006, 09:01

What most of these programs wil tell you is individual PC usage, My connection is shared over a wireless router between 2 laptops, 2 PCs and a PDA.

I happen to agree with JamButty on this(although I had never thought about it being on an unlimited use connection) that they should provide a web page where you can view your useage.

jambutty · 17-02-2006, 18:06

I did Neil from Freeserve to BT but they have a similar system. By the way Neil I tried that download you suggested and I could hardly read the details on the window that comes up. So I binned it.

All I want is a simple counter display that shows in numbers how much bandwidth I have used since the first of each month. Is that too much to ask? I guess it seems that it is. I guess that I shall have to keep badgering BT until they either chuck me off for being a pest or they concede the point and do something about it.

I’ve had a quick look at your suggestion Basher and that looks more promising. Once I’ve got through my backlog of things to do I’ll give it a whirl.

First I have to feed my face.