If your connection is fast but the game or conversation crashes when the backup starts, examine the latency under load. The issue may not just be the amount of bandwidth.
Basic approach
Long queues on network devices can increase the waiting time for packets when the link is saturated. Active queue management offers approaches to control this delay. However, a single test result does not definitively determine which device is causing the delay.
Application steps
- Take idle latency samples and then measure again during controlled upload.
- Isolate the Wi-Fi effect by performing the same test on a wired connection.
- Evaluate the router's queue management features according to its manufacturer's documentation; Repeat the same measurement after the change.
Practical example
The delay, which is 15 ms in idle, increases to 400 ms during upload, suggesting a queuing problem. If suitable queue management and an upload limit reduce this latency to 40 ms, the change may be beneficial; In turn, the total throughput must also be measured.
Interpret the result correctly
Not all high latency is bufferbloat. Wireless retransmissions may also affect the remote server and VPN. Save the setting change with the previous values; Do not blindly apply a router's recipe to other hardware.
Source and follow-up reading
Protocol or command details: RFC 7567. The steps and example scenario are IPScans editorial narrative.