Optimize Your Internet Network For Remote Work.

A few months ago, we were thinking that working from home was temporary. We know now that some of the solutions adopted to resolve issues in the short term are here to stay, bringing new challenges to your home dynamic and work life. Most certainly, you found yourself stuck at home with your family and everyone trying to work or study. The first thing you may have noticed is issues with your internet connectivity. The home network that was used mostly to stream movies, watch some YouTube, and check emails is now under much pressure. In this article, we’ll give you ideas to maximize your internet performance.

It’s clear that the demands on the internet connection have grown exponentially. Yet many businesses and employees have seen the benefits of working from home during the pandemic. However, as remote work becomes a long-term solution, people can’t continue making do with subpar internet connectivity. What can be done?

Improving internet connectivity

Internet connections vary widely depending on where you are. You could enjoy blazing fast internet that allows you to upload large files in minutes even while someone else blasts zombies in a multi-player video game. Yet a few streets away, a user lacks the bandwidth to participate in a conference call without connectivity issues.

Understanding what your Internet Service Provider (ISP) is selling you

Home office internet connectivity depends on several factors, one of which is your internet service provider (ISP). Some ISPs simply aren’t as good. They may be cheaper, but they could be overselling their capabilities, which results in slowdowns at night.

While your ISP may sell you a certain amount of bandwidth, they may not be able to deliver it. The Comcast website calls this out explicitly. It says, "Actual speeds vary and are not guaranteed."

Higher-priced ISPs are less likely to have this problem. You may gain speed by simply switching to a different provider.

• Performance tip: Find out if you are on a shared connection (usually cable modem) or a dedicated fiber connection. Generally speaking, dedicated fiber will provide you with more reliable service than cable modem.

Understanding your internet plan, bandwidth and network

Another factor may be the plan you’re on. The ISP may have a 100+ Mbps plan, and you’re only on the 12 Mbps. That was enough before, but you may want to upgrade now that so many devices are connecting to the internet at the same time.

The data we transmit on the internet determines what kind of bandwidth we need. Some things, like a simple email text message, require very little bandwidth because there's not much data. But a 4K video stream requires a lot of bandwidth because the data files are so large.

Find out also if your plan is subject to a data cap. Some ISPs set up a data threshold limiting the amount of data you can use in a month or at particular times of the day.

The kind of network connectivity available is also a consideration. Perhaps your network provider’s signal is carried over copper wiring. If that’s the case, the internet signal degrades with distance. Those physically further away from the exchange will have slower internet than someone closer in. Unless you want to move houses, there’s not a lot you can do about this one.

Still, fiber-optic cables are increasingly available in different areas. The ISPs charge more for these connections, but reliability benefits. Fiber loses only 3% of its signal over distances greater than 100 meters, whereas copper can lose up to 94%! At the same time, fiber is more durable and lacks the conductivity issues of copper, which can be vulnerable to power lines, lightning, and signal-scrambling.

Understand your download capacity

Let's talk about upload and download bandwidth. Until recently, home internet providers have rarely spent time discussing the upload bandwidth they allocate to their customers. Working from home, getting that upload bandwidth has been problematic. And this is because only few people have ever asked about upload bandwidth. Therefore. ISP's never offered much capacity.

Surfing the web, watching YouTube or Netflix, or playing games required little upload capacity. Now, everybody's on Zoom all the time increasing the demand for broadband capacity to send video upstream.

• Performance tip: Turn off the default setting to having all 4K video streams. Most of your streaming services will allow you to disable 4K and doing so is an easy way to regain bandwidth and reduce data usage. You will probably never notice the difference in quality.

Invest in cloud computing

Cloud computing makes file management a lot simpler than a physical hard drive. Even if it’s just you, saving your information to a cloud could save you a lot of time and money and help avoid losing important documents. The “cloud” is everywhere; you can usually access it from any computer depending on what software you use. Some options are even free, such as using Google Drive instead of Microsoft Office.

Getting expert insight into your internet

You might also benefit from upgrading your home internet connections. An IT expert can come in and take a look at the hardware you’re using to get online. There could be some quick connectivity gains with an upgraded router or moving your wireless access points. We can also determine whether a Wi-Fi booster or mesh solution would help. In your area, you may have a 4G or 5G wireless option. It’s more expensive but can be another way to get the speed you need.

Point-to-point Wi-Fi might also be an option. If you’re within range of a location providing business-grade internet, it may work to set up a dish on your roof. Of course, geography matters in this case, as you need a line-of-sight connection to the signal source.

Now that work from home is stretching long term, consider how you can upgrade your internet connection at home. Support remote work, student online learning, and other ways you use your bandwidth by getting the best you can. Give us a call at 305 400 0992 to learn more!