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Archer VR600 v2 behind an OTN: Low-bandwidth problem!

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Archer VR600 v2 behind an OTN: Low-bandwidth problem!

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Archer VR600 v2 behind an OTN: Low-bandwidth problem!
Archer VR600 v2 behind an OTN: Low-bandwidth problem!
2023-11-20 19:19:41 - last edited 2023-12-21 01:45:48
Model: Archer VR600  
Hardware Version: V2
Firmware Version: 0.2.0 0.9.1 v0074.0 Build 170504 Rel.68210n

Dear all,

 

I recently upgraded my internet connection from ADSL (yes I know) to Fiber optic @ 100 Mbps.

The connection is FTTH which means I got a fiber cable coming all the way inside my house.

 

The ISP provided me with an OTN device (some Nokia model or other) but I do want to keep using the Archer VR600 modem as a (wireless) router in my house network since it is a great device, security rules have been set etc. OTN is convering fiber to copper and then via UTP Cat 5e, I distribute internet traffic via a standard 1 Gbps switch inside the house.

NB: The VR600 is also rated for Gbps use in all of its LAN ports, so in principle all should be fine, bandwidth-wise.

 

So, my initial configuration was:

FTTH ---> OTN ---> switch ---> devices [all wired connections]

and Ookla shows me down: ~95 Mbps and up: ~10 Mbps, which is what the ISP provides.

 

My modification now is:

FTTH ---> OTN --(LAN4/WAN)--> VR600 ---> switch ---> devices [all wired connections]

and now Ookla consistenty shows down: ~ 35 Mbps and up: ~10 Mbps.

 

PROBLEM: This clearly means (?) that the VR600 cannot sustain more than 35 Mbps down speeds.

DISCLAIMERS:

- UTP cable is factory-made CAT 5e, which is rated for 1 Gbps and I have also tested 2 of them for good measure.

- When connecting the VR600 behind the OTN modem, I made sure the OTN's firewall settings etc. are disabled, leaving all security work for the VR600.

- Internet speed (via Ookla) has been measured via wired devices, thus no chance of WiFi packet drops etc. (BTW, same desktop has been used to measure both speeds).

- I have successfully (?) changed the Operation Mode of the VR600 to Wireless Router/Modem and I have created an internet connection based on Dynamic IPs. I have also connected the incoming UTP cable from the OTN to the WAN/LAN4 port of the VR600 and I have sent another UTP cable from another port of the VR600 to the switch.

 

Could you please help me debug this?

To begin with, is or isn't the Archer VR600 v2 rated for Gigabit-ethernet use?

Could it be a mistake with the modem configuration or something else?

 

I am at a loss :-(((

 

Thank you in advance for your time!

chris

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#1
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2 Accepted Solutions
Re:Archer VR600 v2 behind an OTN: Low-bandwidth problem!-Solution
2023-11-20 22:25:26 - last edited 2023-12-21 01:54:50

  @chrisTP 

 

Archer VR600 is a gigabit modem router and it should be capable of 1 gbps on all of its WAN/LAN ports (even in wireless router mode).

Why don't you try to upgrade its FW to the latest release (here) and check if there's any difference.

Here's how to manually upgrade VR600 firmware.

Make sutre that you didn't enable any QoS or bandwidth limiting features on VR600 when testing the speed.

You can check if the VR600 LAN ports negotiated speed is correct here:

 

If this was helpful click once on the arrow pointing upward. If this solves your issue, click once the star to mark it as a "Recommended Solution".
Recommended Solution
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#2
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Re:Archer VR600 v2 behind an OTN: Low-bandwidth problem!-Solution
2023-12-21 01:54:34 - last edited 2023-12-21 01:54:42

  @terziyski Thank you for the excellent advice. It turned out to be a collection of problems but you nailed one of them!

 

1) Some of the 1Gbps rated cables turned out not to be 1Gbps rated at the end!

 

2) OTN modem is somewhat annoying in its operation and needed some coaxing (to this day, I am not sure what I did to make it work).

 

3) QoS settings WERE enabled in the TPLINK menu and they were indeed causing (part of) the speed problem! Thank you!

 

4) An insidious bug within the TPLINK software became a serious annoyance: I was exploring setting the OTN in bridge mode (at least one of its LAN ports) for which I had to then set the same VLAN ID in the OTN and the TPLINK. Although I created a new Internet Connection (a PPPoE one) and then destroyed it, the TPLINK would not allow me to create a simple Router-only Connection later on returning an error about that VLAN ID already existing (although it had been deleted, along with any related interfaces). This led me to factory reset the TPLINK, after which, it worked like a charm.

 

5) One final point: I initially set out to create a OTN (bridge) and TPLINK (router only) combo to evade a 2-NAT solution, fearing it would slow things down and complicate management. NOTHING of the case was true at the end: Speed did not slow down and management remained simple (assuming all devices would be placed under the router device).

 

I hope this thread will help some people in the future.

 

cheers,

chris

Recommended Solution
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#4
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Re:Archer VR600 v2 behind an OTN: Low-bandwidth problem!-Solution
2023-11-20 22:25:26 - last edited 2023-12-21 01:54:50

  @chrisTP 

 

Archer VR600 is a gigabit modem router and it should be capable of 1 gbps on all of its WAN/LAN ports (even in wireless router mode).

Why don't you try to upgrade its FW to the latest release (here) and check if there's any difference.

Here's how to manually upgrade VR600 firmware.

Make sutre that you didn't enable any QoS or bandwidth limiting features on VR600 when testing the speed.

You can check if the VR600 LAN ports negotiated speed is correct here:

 

If this was helpful click once on the arrow pointing upward. If this solves your issue, click once the star to mark it as a "Recommended Solution".
Recommended Solution
  2  
  2  
#2
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Re:Archer VR600 v2 behind an OTN: Low-bandwidth problem!
2023-11-20 22:30:10
thank you for the prompt reply. i am now traveling for work so my reaction will be slow. apologies in advance. two quick comments: 1) firmware update: i will try to do it remotely, but from the looks of it, the latest f/w version is just a security patch. **low hopes** 2) QoS: i don't remember by heart but it should not be the case, as i never set this in the first place. i will check.
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#3
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Re:Archer VR600 v2 behind an OTN: Low-bandwidth problem!-Solution
2023-12-21 01:54:34 - last edited 2023-12-21 01:54:42

  @terziyski Thank you for the excellent advice. It turned out to be a collection of problems but you nailed one of them!

 

1) Some of the 1Gbps rated cables turned out not to be 1Gbps rated at the end!

 

2) OTN modem is somewhat annoying in its operation and needed some coaxing (to this day, I am not sure what I did to make it work).

 

3) QoS settings WERE enabled in the TPLINK menu and they were indeed causing (part of) the speed problem! Thank you!

 

4) An insidious bug within the TPLINK software became a serious annoyance: I was exploring setting the OTN in bridge mode (at least one of its LAN ports) for which I had to then set the same VLAN ID in the OTN and the TPLINK. Although I created a new Internet Connection (a PPPoE one) and then destroyed it, the TPLINK would not allow me to create a simple Router-only Connection later on returning an error about that VLAN ID already existing (although it had been deleted, along with any related interfaces). This led me to factory reset the TPLINK, after which, it worked like a charm.

 

5) One final point: I initially set out to create a OTN (bridge) and TPLINK (router only) combo to evade a 2-NAT solution, fearing it would slow things down and complicate management. NOTHING of the case was true at the end: Speed did not slow down and management remained simple (assuming all devices would be placed under the router device).

 

I hope this thread will help some people in the future.

 

cheers,

chris

Recommended Solution
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  0  
#4
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Re:Archer VR600 v2 behind an OTN: Low-bandwidth problem!
2024-01-02 20:48:39 - last edited 2024-01-02 20:49:00

You said: > Make sutre that you didn't enable any QoS or bandwidth limiting features on VR600 when testing the speed. and indeed enabling QoS throttles internet speed down from 200 Mbps to 30 Mbps.

 

As another internet thread mentions: "Yea I’m hoping for it to only restrict speed I times of high useage. But it seems to limit speed 24/7 even with no other active users."

 

 

Is this a bug with the VR600 firmware? How can I make QoS work properly?

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#5
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Re:Archer VR600 v2 behind an OTN: Low-bandwidth problem!
2024-01-02 23:30:15

  @chrisTP 

 

I wouldn't know if there's a bug in the QoS implementation.

My suggestion was based on the other community members feedback.

That's the reason for Bandwidth Control feature great demand.

Here's the official guide on how QoS should be configured.

If this was helpful click once on the arrow pointing upward. If this solves your issue, click once the star to mark it as a "Recommended Solution".
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#6
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Re:Archer VR600 v2 behind an OTN: Low-bandwidth problem!
2024-01-03 10:13:21

@terziyski thank you. I will take a look.

 

What I read in a different website is that for QoS to work, it has to be activated also on the side of the ISP; i.e. this is a 2-side negotiated technology.

 

However, I am not sure this is really the case.

 

I will look at the above and get back to you.

 

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#7
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