 |
 |
|
|
|
The first area is Windows itself. There are a few Registry tweaks that, depending on a variety of factors, may boost your performance. The pertinent settings are discussed in an article on Microsoft's Web site, and involve various TCP/IP and NBT-related keys that may, or may not, impart a speed boost when downloading files. The primary objective of such tuning involves minimization of packet fragmentation in the TCP/IP stack, and usually means setting the MTU (maximum transmission unit) to different values. Other settings, such as RWIN and TTL, may be involved. Different settings are used in various Windows releases, so be sure to modify values appropriately if you decide to edit Registry values manually. Applications are available that can change the appropriate settings automatically; examples include TweakMASTER and MaxMTU as well as a number of other utilities offered by various vendors. Again, be sure to obtain the correct version for your OS. The next major area involves bits of hardware that can affect network speeds. Let's say you're using a DSL connection and have multiple machines connected via a small home router; this means your PC's network card, the router, the cabling, and the DSL connection itself all play a role in determining your overall speed. If you own an older removable Ethernet card, an upgrade might help overall performance since newer cards are generally better optimized and often contain larger memory buffers. Similarly, newer drivers could also include performance improvements. It's worth checking your vendor's site for drivers that are newer than the originals (be sure to use only drivers designed for your card!). The router can play a major role in your network experience as well. Recently I ran some tests comparing a home-grade Linksys router/switch/wireless hub against a commercial grade Cisco 4-port unit. The Cisco offered a nearly 20% performance improvement over the Linksys box, so this is an area worth exploring, though the cost may be significantly higher. And again, it's a good idea to check with your router vendor for newer firmware releases; they might contain performance boosting features as well as important security fixes. Last but not least, buy good cables and route them properly. You might save a few pennies with cheap, consumer grade Ethernet and other wiring but it's not worth the potential performance hit. Buy good cables whenever possible, and be sure not to pinch, twist, or nick them. Ethernet cables use unshielded twisted pair, or UTP, wiring; kinking or compressing these cables can cause performance degradation for a number of reasons too detailed to discuss here. And be sure to route them away from direct contact with power cables, since the electrical field around 110V wiring (as well as power transformers) can have a negative performance impact. A final word: when tuning, take notes and make only one change at a time. Test, change, test again, repeat as needed. You never know when a change will cause problems requiring a rollback; a shotgun tuning strategy may leave you much worse off than when you started. |
|
Performance
