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Level 2

210 points

What Causes The Internet To Slow Down Over Time Using Time Capsule?

I have a Time Capsule connected to the Internet via a cable modem. I have 10 Mbps service through my cable company. What I've noticed is that after several days of use, my Internet connection will start to feel sluggish. Pages will load slowly and downloads will take increasingly long. If I connect to one of the speed test sites, I'll notice that I'm getting about 1,000 - 2,000 kbps on my download speed and about 800 kbps upload. If I restart my cable modem, I notice no change. But if I restart my Time Capsule, speeds immediately shoot up to 10,000 to 11,000 kbps down and 1,500 kbps upload.

I'm not running Time Machine and these tests were done at the same time of day with no other traffic on my network. It's clear that over time, something causes the Time Capsule to slow down but I don't have a clue what it could be. What could be happening inside the Time Capsule that would cause this slowdown? I would think that it either has a connection or it doesn't but apparently there are other factors at play. I don't think standard operating procedure should be having to restart my time capsule on a routine basis just to clear out some kind of problem.

Any feedback would be appreciated.

1 Ghz G4 PowerBook 17", iMac 3.06 GHz 24", iPhone 3g, Mac OS X (10.5.4), 2 Gigs RAM

Posted on Sep 8, 2008 11:26 AM

20 replies

T_Bro54

Level 1

15 points

Jan 28, 2009 10:26 PM in response to Eric D.

I've had much grief with my TC the last few weeks. With internet slowing down, becoming sluggish, and stopping completely. The problem corrects itself with a TC reboot, which I have to do on a daily basis.

I did isolate the problem to the TC by running by cable modem directly to by PC for a day. Without the TC connected, I have a very fast and reliable connection.

I also have a major issue with the TM back up to the TC. Whenever TM accesses the TC for a back up it crashes the whole TC and I have to reboot.

It seems this problem started when I upgraded my ISP speed a few months ago. Perhaps the new higher speed bandwidths are too much for the TC to handle? If this is the case, Apple has a big problem here.

Jan 29, 2009 4:45 AM in response to Chris935

Chris935 wrote:
Well that ***** - I have to go out and spend $180 on an AEBS just to do what my TC is supposed to do in the first place? Why can't Apple just fix the TC to work the way it is intended - there have been enough posts about this issue to indicate that there is a problem with the TC.

You're correct, it does suck. Fortunately I still had my AE and that's working perfectly but the whole idea was to have one device as a router and backup device. Now I'm going to see if Time Machine will see the TC if it's not used as a router but I'm not clear as to how to do this. I'll be keeping an eye on this thread and any updates to see if this gets corrected at some point.
John

Jan 29, 2009 2:05 PM in response to Eric D.

I have similar issue with TC, thought not daily.

When mine is worst, I have to reboot both cable modem and TC. At other times, just TC.

There's one recurring point made in this thread that I don't understand...

The comparison of direct connect speed with TC speed...

I would expect that the throughput would be full speed when directly connected to the DSL or Cable modem and would expect it to be slower when connected to the TC. The wireless speed IS slower than the direct connect speed. So, this comparison doesn't mean anything.

The comparison between TC and APE would be valid.

Jan 30, 2009 5:02 AM in response to Eric D.

When using my AE base station my internet speeds are just what they are supposed to be and are consistent. Using TC they were almost always slower and very erratic. I have now set up the TC to join my wireless network through the AE and everything is working properly. Time Machine backs up properly to TC and my internet connection is fast and consistent through the AE.

It's still disappointing that I'm having to use two devices to do what I bought the TC to do on its own.
John

Feb 2, 2009 12:21 PM in response to krausdoug

I suggest going to store.apple.com and posting a review of the TC that describes the problem. I did. I gave it one star. Maybe Apple will pay attention if nobody buys the product due to negative reviews.

What Causes The Internet To Slow Down Over Time Using Time Capsule?