Ask HN: Recommended tools/approaches for continuously monitoring my flaky ISP?

6 points by MrWiffles ↗ HN
Lately my internet connection has been going offline for a few minutes at a time several times a day (like, 3-5, minimum). Most of the time the ISP doesn't acknowledge anything is going on, and by the time I get on a phone call with them and wait on hold for some mindless drone to answer the phone, the connection will be re-established.

If this was only once in a blue moon it wouldn't bother me much, but this has been a daily occurrence now for at least the last 3 weeks and it's driving me nuts.

So before I contact the FCC - because that seems to be the only way to cut through the hordes of mindless, clueless idiots who try to block your ability to talk to anyone who knows what the hell they're doing - I'd like to have some proof. Some log data that shows the connection dropped offline at time X and came back at Y.

Now, I could try to build something like this myself, but before I do that I'd like to ask here: is there already a well-known, widely recognized/respected tool out there that does this? Bonus points if it's something my ISP (Spectrum) is likely to be familiar with. Imagine how they'll react if I tell them I wrote my own code that proves the service has been unreliable: "well, it must be your fault". But if it's something they've heard of, they'll be more likely to take the data seriously.

Thanks for your suggestions.

(Oh, and if this is a "just google it" sorta thing, what do you call this kind of tool? "Network Monitoring" is way, WAY too generalized a term to be useful, and I'm not sure what else this might fall under.)

5 comments

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Is it used to be quality ISP conn.?

Migrate to another Isp company

I can't, Spectrum has a total monopoly here. DSL is the only other option and let's face it, it's not much better than carrier pigeons.

If I had another choice, I wouldn't be bothering with this crap, I'd just switch. Problem is, I don't have any choice here whatsoever. One of the many problems i have with US internet policy/law.

a good smokeping graph would probably get you some respect with the net eng's, but lord knows if you can ever get to them through customer service.
I found some success monitoring my connection with a docket install that plotted results on localhost. I can’t remember which one, but “Internet speed test” has many similar projects: https://github.com/topics/internet-speed

When I was trying to convince my employer to let me work remotely, I was surprised to find there are reasonably priced dual-wan switches with failover.

Combine a dual wan / failover device with two different internet services, and for $120 a month you probably will rarely have timeouts. Around here, cable costs about $65 for 600MBps, and DSL is about $40.

I don’t know about you, but I’ve found my technical abilities rarely accomplish what I want when I’m trying to move a mountain. In this case, one internet user’s lag isn’t worth much trouble.

I’ll counter myself with an anecdote: I had the same connectivity issues as you- sudden dropouts for a minute, then back up.

I tried multiple cable modems, multiple Wi-Fi routers. After calling and asking for help, 2 days later techs arrived. The culprit?

The CATV line coming to my property was incorrectly installed, supposedly letting part of the liquid in the cable deep into the coupler. (Hey, the tech said it- not me!)

And now the internet is up!

Thanks for the comment! Just to clarify, I'm not experiencing lag, but a total disconnect from the internet, evidenced by the physical status light on the ISP-provided modem itself.

I once had a similarly flaky issue about 20 years ago that was exactly like yours: after 3 months of back-and-forth and chewing my way up the chain with a regional ISP, they FINALLY did what they should've done to begin with: check the damn line. And once they did they figured out the problem: copper oxidization. The building's cable lines had been installed something like 30 years prior (which would've been back in the 70's!) and had become badly oxidized over time, even out in the desert where I lived at the time!