Why are My iTunes Downloads so Slow?

yeah, nice try.

As someone who has over 10 years in dealing with DNS, networking, internet servers, I know what I'm talking about. The reality is that DNS does not slow anything down, and, in the case of anycast/RR dns, the closest server is found based on YOUR IP .

The reality is that the server you're being routed to is running low on bandwidth, nothing more. You're routed to that server based on YOUR IP ADDRESS, nothing more.DNS simply tells something where to go, it doesn't actually do anything more.

Based on your assumption that "this person is right" because you found something working AFTER removing Google/OpenDNS, anyone (such as myself) who has tried this ridiculous theory, and found it NOT working is proof that they are NOT right...

The reality is that this has NOTHING to do with DNS, and EVERYTHING to do with Apple's pathetic infrastructure. Even WITHOUT Google/OpenDNS, I'm STILL barely pulling a meg a second. Improvement? NOT EVEN. Don't try to blame Google/OpenDNS for a pathetically poor infrastructure, that's just uneducated, misinformed and ignorant

yeah, nice try.

So, what? I'm lying now? Or what do you mean by "nice try"? You seem to be implying I am trying to pull one over on you, or something.

I did an experiment and reported the results.

In fact, I can repeat them. I'll post a video of the entire process if that would convince you of this fact...

If I use my ISP's DNS servers, I get downloads at 116 Mb/s.

If I use Google DNS, my downloads change to 6 Mb/s.

Fact.

Doesn't this fact make you the least bit curious?

10 years experience doesn't mean that there might still be things you are not aware of. This is, clearly, one of them.

There is absolutely no doubt whatsoever that it really is down to Apple's ****-poor infrastructure! They are a joke of a company...pay top whack for average kit and get the slowest and most unreliable service behind it.

But...twhiting9275...you really get off on being so rude to people?

Poor infrastructure it may be. I'm not speaking to that.

What I am speaking to is the fact that, for whatever reason, DNS settings do affect iTunes download speeds.

Why? I do not know. All I know is that it does.

Since our diplomatic and gracious friend twhiting9275 was essentially implying that I was lying or somehow attempting to deceive everyone here, I thought it might be best to provide a quick video recording of this effect.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rhahyNvnlWY&feature=youtube_gdata_player

"DNS settings do affect iTunes download speeds."

This is misinformation.

"Why? I do not know. All I know is that it does."

So, we're supposed to just believe you that "it does". No, it does not.

I understand you want to go on and on and on and on claiming they do, but DNS settings DO NOT affect downloads at all. What affects downloads are improper network settings, improper infrastructure, etc.

Just because something (temporarily) works faster after you adjust DNS doesn't mean that the problem is resolved by doing so. When you're addressing something like this, you have to take into account the fact that your network is typically restarted after updating DNS settings (in your router), you lose whatever connection you had, others stop their own downloads, others start them, etc... To claim (incorrectly) that DNS settings fix this problem is just insane and shows nothing but misinformation.

Did you even watch the video? I know my network and I know my infrastructure.

I have an SNMP interface monitor installed directly to the machine upon which I was testing. There was no other significant network traffic, period. Look at the readout from the interface monitor in the video.

You're telling me that my speeds went from 15mb to 115mb becuase of a network restart....

Would you like me to repeat the experiment in reverse? I have. Video linked, below.

I'll show you over and over again how setting my DNS to Google or OpenDNS results in lower speeds, while setting it to default to my ISP's DNS results in higher speeds every time. In any order you want.

All that I have simply demonstrated here is that I am capable of downloading iTunes media at over 100mb/sec ONLY when using my ISP's default DNS servers, and NEVER when using Google or OpenDNS.

And since this is the information that the people in this forum post are seeking, I think it is only reasonable of me, rather than inane, as you claim, to post this data.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVrzIYTYxiY&feature=youtube_gdata_player

For you to claim (incorrectly) that my DNS settings are having no effect on download speeds, after watching this whole video, shows that you, sir, are the inane one, who is misinformed.

All this egotistical projecting reminds me of why boycotts, revolutions, etc., of any kind almost always fail, because little people have short attention spans, little resolve, and cannot let go of their egos for long enough to aim at any targets, but each other.

1) Do either of you work for Apple's iTunes engineering department and have the authority to dismiss customer complaints?

2) Is, "use a different DNS provider" an adequate solution to a technical problem with a consumer product?

If you answered, "no" to either of those questions, perhaps you should keep your sights on Apple, instead of each other.

Manjello...who are you aiming your post at? This is all getting very muddy and confusing now.

Anyone engaged in argumentum ad naseum, namely, not you.

APPLE TAKE NOTICE!

I tried to rent a movie FAIL (3 day to download 1.5 gig)

I tried to update iPhone app FAIL

I tried to update OSX FAIL

I try to update client computers FAIL

Whatever you guys did undo it cause it *****

Apple Servers have become unusable

I own imac iphone ipad mac pro and macbook pro

They are all performing the same UNACCEPTABLY

By the way my download speeds are 30 mbps

Im having problems at home and work with these speeds

Steve would of never allowed this

Between the ios map catastrophe and downloads I think corporate is taking precedent over quality.

HELP SOMEONE AT APPLE

GET RID OF MY APP STUCK IN MY UPDAT QUE

So, like a number of people I can reproduce the "slow downloads" when using third party DNS servers (opendns, google, dyn etc...). In theory DNS settings should not be an issue..... but appartently ANYCAST DNS is an issue with certain CDN's(content delivery networks such as akamai - which Apple uses I believe). These networks serve up content based on geolocation of the DNS server and not the end client... These Anycast based DNS services are load balanced so you don't always use the same ones even though you use the same ip (8.8.8.8 for example) It helps keep there service fast and for the most part works very well....except in cases like this. For example I make a request though opendns and the particular opendns server that responds is not close to me, but not busy but is half a continent away. The CDN gets the request, thinks I am actaully on the other side of the continent and serves up data from a datacentre close to that location...nows it is many hops from me and much slower. Also it could be that opendns is sending many requests to that CDN and now that CDN is really busy. Here is a rather in-depth explanation of the issue. http://www.cdnplanet.com/blog/which-cdns-support-edns-client-subnet/

This is why when you use your local ISP dns server, your downloads are much faster. Tthe CDN will use your actual location and you will download from a much closer datacentre... Also since Anycast load balances your requests, there are ocasions when the server is closer to you and you will see fast download speeds...therefore accounting for the random nature of download speeds.

If you want consistent download speeds from itunes or even microsoft I suggest you use your ISP's dns until this issue is solved between dns providers using Anycast and CDNs....

This is my interpretation of the issue and it is very high level and I am by no means an expert (so it may be a bit simplistic)... I just wanted to say that it does look to be a "known" issue and the results Endurion are seeing can definitely be explained by the way DNS is being used in these cases (Anycast DNS that is).

twhiting9275 is not wrong either.... DNS in its simplist form is pretty straigforward and should not cause issues, but AnyCast is adding an extra layer.

My two cents...

Also another good article on this... As you will see the main issue is how the CDN's are adding "tricks" to DNS that DNS was never intended to do.

http://jet-stream.com/blog/cdn-performance-heavily-disrupted-by-dns-services/

also

http://queue.acm.org/detail.cfm?id=1647302

I, too, don't quite understand why DNS would make a difference, but can absolutely confirm that switching from Google DNS back to Comcast's has made my iTunes downloads over 20 TIMES faster!

The extremely slow downloads had been bugging me for months, across multiple reboots of my hard-wired computer, router, and cable modem. Changing the DNS yielded an IMMEDIATE resolution to the problem.

My iOS 6 upgrade was half an hour into a 4-hour download when I found this thread. I aborted the download, changed my DNS, and tried again. iOS downloaded in under 10 minutes.

Thank You! I would never have guessed this was the issue, as "faster" DNS performance was why I switched to Google DNS in the first place. I know a fair bit about networking, managing multiple networks. But this is new to me. I'll read up on those articles you cite.

Yeh you're right. It makes no sense. I actually just switched from my ISP's standard DNS to the free google one and it sped up immediately to the usual full speed.Nice to finally sort out this problem, though.

Ya it is a bit frustrating as I prefer to use the third party DNS solutions like opendns or dyn. Its unfortunate that in a situation like this either Apple or the third party DNS provider gets blamed for the slow download issue. From what I can see reading about this (and there is a ton of material out there on it) is that the CDNs (Content Delivery Network) providers such as Akamai need to change how they interact with DNS requests (especially the ones like opendns and google using anycast). Once they can geolocate the end client and not the DNS server, this will be a non issue.

For now though I will use my ISP's DNS.