ISP Recommendations

[SamuraiFiction]

Sorry if this has been covered in a previous thread. I didn't see anything recently on it.

My in-laws are looking to switch ISPs from BBIQ (we live in Fukuoka) to something else. Does anyone have any advice? Providers they like, hate, etc.

Thanks for the input.

[matsuki]

I got rid of my hikari line (shared with the whole building it seems) in favor of WiMax and haven't looked back. The fact that it's mobile helps and because it requires no contract, you can cancel/switch at any time.

[FG Lurker]

I just moved my office and have gone from the older type of shared hikari to the newer type. The older type has hikari to the building and then a type of DSL (VDSL) to each office/apartment. The newer type runs 200Mbps hikari directly to each office/apartment. The difference is amazing! Before I was getting about 50Mbps down and about 20Mbps up. Now I get 140Mbps down and 60Mbps up. Same provider (Asahi Net) and roughly the same price.

I also changed to Hikari Denwa which resulted in getting a router/ONU combo from NTT instead of just an ONU. This freaked me out at first as I need to use my own firewall. Turns out the NTT router/ONU (PR-S300NE) has an option that makes it function as a bridge instead of a router. Problem solved and all is well.

To the OP, if your inlaws are going to go with NTT FLETS Hikari (or ADSL) then there isn't that much difference from provider to provider. You can go with OCN if you want everything with the same company (OCN is part of NTT), or you can go with Asahi Net if you want cheaper montly costs with English support. I've used Asahi Net for ~10 years and have always been happy with them.

[Mock Cockpit]

I just moved my office and have gone from the older type of shared hikari to the newer type. The older type has hikari to the building and then a type of DSL (VDSL) to each office/apartment. The newer type runs 200Mbps hikari directly to each office/apartment. The difference is amazing! Before I was getting about 50Mbps down and about 20Mbps up. Now I get 140Mbps down and 60Mbps up.

Just out of curiosity is there anything you can do now with that extra speed you couldn't do before?
To the OP, I use Biglobe, no complaints, if it fucks up you'd call NTT anyway. Because of my unique and unparrelled ability to fuck things up that were previously working fine we had to get the NTT bloke to come one time. Rang up at 8.30am and he was at the door by 3.30pm. Was impressed.

[FG Lurker]

Just out of curiosity is there anything you can do now with that extra speed you couldn't do before?

Interestingly for me in particular it is useful for a few reasons:

1) I have a VPN between two locations to keep a couple of file servers in sync.

2) I use CrashPlan to keep offsite backups. Extra speed is always nice with this.

3) I sometimes have to access the office remotely (also via VPN) and the extra performance on the uplink will make that much smoother.

4) I sometimes download large files (ie Linux Distros) and when downloading from Japanese hosts I'll likely be able to max out my downlink.

And hey, FG loads faster now so I can waste time even sooner than before!

[Mock Cockpit]

Interestingly for me in particular it is useful for a few reasons:

1) I have a VPN between two locations to keep a couple of file servers in sync.

2) I use CrashPlan to keep offsite backups. Extra speed is always nice with this.

3) I sometimes have to access the office remotely (also via VPN) and the extra performance on the uplink will make that much smoother.

4) I sometimes download large files (ie Linux Distros) and when downloading from Japanese hosts I'll likely be able to max out my downlink.

And hey, FG loads faster now so I can waste time even sooner than before!

Apart from heated toilet seats I always miss the fast internet when I'm away from Japan. I had a try of a VPN last year just purely to counter geo cock blocking but the speeds were glacial. Got any recommendations? I always found the ridiculously fast upload speeds with fibre as something like a second belly-button, useful as a party piece but not much else. Then again I don't torrent so others may see it differently. Good to see someone getting some use out of it.

[waruta]

4) I sometimes download large files (ie JAV, 8GB ISOs) and when downloading from Japanese hosts I'll likely be able to max out my downlink.

Fixed it for ya!

On a more serious note, I use the Hikari in an apartment, but it seems no one else is using much of the bandwidth (80% of the residents are retirees) and I get excellent speeds, but my buddy out in Isogo reported much better speeds with 50MB DSL speeds than his previous Hikari line that they strung to his house.

Gosh, this all reminds me of the days of 14.4 and then jumping to v56 and ISDN and the difference when a pic loaded...

Hard Hat Mack for DOS still rules.

[FG Lurker]

Fixed it for ya!

You might want to check out rule 9, especially subsection C.

[FG Lurker]

I had a try of a VPN last year just purely to counter geo cock blocking but the speeds were glacial. Got any recommendations?

I am guessing that you mean using a VPN to get an IP in the US or UK for the purpose of viewing content limited to those regions? The only way to get better speeds with that is to spend more money and get a higher level of service. Better still, find a friend/relative who doesn't mind you getting a second high-speed line installed in their house that you can set up your own VPN service on. Keep in mind that the uplink speed (often *far* slower than the downlink speed) will be the limiting factor in the performance you will see for your VPN.

[Longname]

The difference is amazing! Before I was getting about 50Mbps down and about 20Mbps up. Now I get 140Mbps down and 60Mbps up.
.

Hmm - yes indeed that is a difference. To be clear. You say get 140Mbps download. Do you think you could confirm that on http://www.speedtest.net/
140Mbps would put you in the top 1% in the world for speed. I'm very intrested in this result. Thanks.

[waruta]

You might want to check out rule 9, especially subsection C.

Whoops, should have known better, won't happen again.

[cstaylor]

1) I have a VPN between two locations to keep a couple of file servers in sync.

What are you using for VPN software? m0n0wall/pfSense? Racoon?

[FG Lurker]

Hmm - yes indeed that is a difference. To be clear. You say get 140Mbps download. Do you think you could confirm that on http://www.speedtest.net/
140Mbps would put you in the top 1% in the world for speed. I'm very intrested in this result. Thanks.

Meant to reply to this earlier. It was speedtest.net that gave me those results.

Today however things have been all over the map. Uplink has stayed fairly consistent at 60Mbps but I've had trouble even getting a good connection to the Tokyo speedtest.net server. I've seen results varying from 250Kbps (yes, Kbps) to 60Mbps for the downlink. It's weird. I got 140Mbps consistently yesterday though -- I tested it 5 or 6 times.

[FG Lurker]

What are you using for VPN software? m0n0wall/pfSense? Racoon?

I use pfSense and am so far happy with it. It works well with the VPN client in the iPhone and the standard Windows VPN setup.

[Mock Cockpit]

Meant to reply to this earlier. It was speedtest.net that gave me those results.

Today however things have been all over the map. Uplink has stayed fairly consistent at 60Mbps but I've had trouble even getting a good connection to the Tokyo speedtest.net server. I've seen results varying from 250Kbps (yes, Kbps) to 60Mbps for the downlink. It's weird. I got 140Mbps consistently yesterday though -- I tested it 5 or 6 times.

The Tokyo server on speedtest is buggy. Try the server in Okinawa.

[FG Lurker]

The Tokyo server on speedtest is buggy. Try the server in Okinawa.

The link to Okinawa is too slow to allow for proper testing...

I've not had problems with the Tokyo "World's Fastest Indian" server in the past. I suppose the 140Mbps results from yesterday could have been a bug and the max 60Mbps up/down speeds today are all I'll see in actual use from now on. I'm still happy though, the faster uplink is more important to me overall than the extra speed on the downlink.

[Mock Cockpit]

The link to Okinawa is too slow to allow for proper testing...

I've not had problems with the Tokyo "World's Fastest Indian" server in the past. I suppose the 140Mbps results from yesterday could have been a bug and the max 60Mbps up/down speeds today are all I'll see in actual use from now on. I'm still happy though, the faster uplink is more important to me overall than the extra speed on the downlink.

I often get strange readings when I use the World's Fastest Indian server. Since they changed their design Speedtest also thinks I'm somewhere in Russia which I suppose I should be worried about.

[FG Lurker]

Hmm - yes indeed that is a difference. To be clear. You say get 140Mbps download. Do you think you could confirm that on http://www.speedtest.net/
140Mbps would put you in the top 1% in the world for speed. I'm very intrested in this result. Thanks.

It looks like the Tokyo speedtest.net server is running better again, I was finally able to repeat (multiple times) my 140/60 results:

[Taro Toporific]

It looks like the Tokyo speedtest.net server is running better again...

Using the engrish-based service Spinnet of Softbank (connecting via NTT FLET'S HIKARI fiber) I get...

[color="Gray"](Besides engrish service, I also get a 30% discount on Spinnet/Softbank since I am a freelance subcontractor for them.)[/color]

[FG Lurker]

Using the engrish-based service Spinnet of Softbank (connecting via NTT FLET'S HIKARI fiber) I get...

[color="Gray"](Besides engrish service, I also get a 30% discount on Spinnet/Softbank since I am a freelance subcontractor for them.)[/color]

I was an AT&T customer (pre-Spinnet), then on Spinnet for quite some time as well. I changed to Asahi Net as they offer the option of a fixed IP for 800yen/month (free on some plans).

The few times I have called Asahi Net's service I have always called their English line and found them to be very helpful and have excellent English. The woman I spoke to most recently even knew that it was possible to change the NTT ONU/router I have into an ONU/bridge so the fixed IP would pass through it to my firewall. (Was pretty funny, I figured I'd tell her it was possible in case she was later speaking to a different customer about the same thing but not only did she know it was possible but she knew the device settings and how it would affect the status lamps! )

Anyway, two thumbs up for Asahi Net, I'd recommend them to anyone.

[wuchan]

Using the engrish-based service Spinnet of Softbank (connecting via NTT FLET'S HIKARI fiber) I get...

[color="Gray"](Besides engrish service, I also get a 30% discount on Spinnet/Softbank since I am a freelance subcontractor for them.)[/color]

Fletts fiberoptic (phone, net, tv)

[FG Lurker]

Fletts fiberoptic (phone, net, tv)

Nice! 200Mbps is the theoretical max of the FLETS fibre connection I have here but I'll never see that due to overhead. I'm guessing you have a 1Gbps line?

[wuchan]

Nice! 200Mbps is the theoretical max of the FLETS fibre connection I have here but I'll never see that due to overhead. I'm guessing you have a 1Gbps line?

I got lucky, when we built the new house NTT had to run new lines. Apparently all new lines are capable of 1G. I live in a small farming community and I'm probably the only one with a computer so there are very few other users to compete with.

[FG Lurker]

I got lucky, when we built the new house NTT had to run new lines. Apparently all new lines are capable of 1G. I live in a small farming community and I'm probably the only one with a computer so there are very few other users to compete with.

I can get 1Gbps here if I want it but it wouldn't be part of the building's system so I'd pay a lot more per month.

I think my 200Mbps line is about 2000yen/month so I can't really complain...

[Mock Cockpit]

For some reason my speeds have been on turbo boost here in Bumfuk, Shikoku
Have you noticed a boost Lurk?

[FG Lurker]

For some reason my speeds have been on turbo boost here in Bumfuk, Shikoku

Have you noticed a boost Lurk?

I'm still getting roughly the same speeds as before:



If your speeds have gone up considerably it probably means NTT has added more fibre, either from Shikoku to Honshu or just better connecting your area to the main backbone.

[Coligny]

Fffffffffffffuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuccccccccckkkkkkkkk... (you guys)

http://www.speedtest.net/result/1365423472.png

[waruta]

Fffffffffffffuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuccccccccckkkkkkkkk... (you guys)

http://www.speedtest.net/result/1365423472.png

Looks like you're going through the French ISP here in Japan....hehehehe

[Coligny]

Looks like you're going through the French ISP here in Japan....hehehehe

Dialup with a Appledjinn modem...

I might try TCP over avian carrier soon...

(but seriously, I don't feel any slowerness... my pron go down fastur than I can fap to it...)

Still... gearing up to the closest NTT joint to ask aboot FTTH...

[matsuki]

slow slow slowwwwwwwwwwww