eli5: why does turning my router off and turning it back on again make my internet so much faster?
In: 8
Loads of different reasons, if it’s ADSL then one of them could be:
Restarting your router resets the connection. ADSL is made up of loads of channels simultaneously connected (think like loads of dial up modems) running on different frequencies.
As your modem struggles to maintain a solid connection on one frequency that “modem” is shut down. The frequencies coincide with LW and MW radio along with interference from things like water pumps and Christmas lights and just about anything 😋
Over time it will discard the noisy channels to try and get a more stable connection and your speed will decrease.
If you have a good solid connection then the off/on trick won’t make a difference in this scenario.
Bonus: one of the reasons your broadband company asks you to plug into your master socket (at least in the UK) is that it disconnects your internal house wiring which, even if not faulty, often is working as an aerial pulling noise onto your connection.
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