Sometimes a slow internet connection is the world’s way of telling you it’s time for you to do something else, maybe go out with friends, whereas in other situations, it can’t come at a worse time.
Here are 10 ways that you can speed up your internet connection, in the event that things are not working as fast as they once were.
Troubleshoot Hardware
Before you get angry and start throwing things across the room, why don’t you do a quick reset on your router. Check other systems in your house, to see whether or not the internet is slow for them, if you find that you’re the only one battling with a slow internet connection then you know the problem is isolated to your computer and not the router.
Position Your Router in a Good Spot
The best place to position your router is in the centre of the house, on a shelf or table, rather than the floor. Having your router positioned out in the open, away from any obstructions is most ideal, as does positioning the antennae straight up. Past research has shown that it’s best to limit the number of corners and walls the signal has to go through, thus, placing it in the middle of the home is your best option.
Optimise For Slow Connection
Figuring out what is causing your slow connection can take some time; while in the meantime, you still need to use your connection. Maybe you find yourself at an airport or café, and there’s very little you can do to enhance your internet speeds. In cases like that, you’ll want to optimising your web browser for a slower connection by using a more trimmed down version of the browser; disabling flash and images etc.
Keep It Away From Electronic Devices
The vast majority of computer users prefer to position their routers near their phone or television, but doing this can adversely affect its signal. It’s always best to position the router out there on its own, away from your speakers, monitors, TVs and power cords.
Use a Password
Using a password to protect your home network, can help maintain optimal performance, while enhancing its security level; make sure you check which devices are connected to it, more devices typically means slower overall speeds.
Call Your ISP
If you’ve gone through a number of troubleshooting steps, and you’re still unable to speed up your internet connection, then maybe it’s time you gave your internet service provider a phone call. Remember, you should never assume that you’re in the wrong, because the support team will try to fob you off, if they can.
Configure Your Router to Reboot
Rebooting your router tends to be one of the fastest and simplest ways of speeding your internet connection up. Rather than manually resetting your router every time things start to run slowly, why don’t you set the router to automatically restart one a week or month?
Use Your Time Wisely
If you do everything right, then you should be able to get your internet running fast, very quickly, and with little stress. But if not, then you may have to make do with a slow connection, for however long. One thing to consider is that a slower connection doesn’t necessarily mean less productivity.
Try a New DNS Server
A slower internet connection can be caused by the DNS server. The DNS server’s job is to convert website addresses into IP addresses which the computer can read. So one viable method that you can use, is to change your DNS server, and then restart your router. You can find a number of free DNS servers that you can use (Google have their own ones), so consider looking into that.
Scan Your System for Viruses
Probably one of the more obvious things, but also effective, is to scan your system for malicious files. The reason why your internet isn’t running as fast as it once was may be due to a virus file, having infected specific programs and/or files that are integral to your operating system.
Assuming you already have an internet security tool, you’ll need to run a thorough scan and then repair and/or quarantine any infected files that it finds.
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