Checking Your Traffic

OnALot.com sometimes gets a call from a customer wondering why their computer is running slow or if there's a problem with our system. We'll then look at their signal, and quite often we notice that there's a lot of traffic coming from their computer. The customer usually states that they aren't doing anything, but, the counter is running pretty fast. Why? Well, sometimes programs are running in the background that the customer isn't aware of, such as:

Downloads
Music Sharing
Video Sharing
Spyware
Viruses

A little troubleshooting is then needed to determine the exact cause of the problem. You can do this yourself quite easily.

1 - Click on the Wireless or Local Area Network computer icon down by the clock. Note: if you have an installed wireless card, such as in a laptop or one that OnALot put in, then your Local Area Network icon may have a red X through it, which is OK. That just means you are not using it and it is not connected to anything.

You'll get a page that looks like this:

2 - If you look at the Activity section, notice the Sent and Received packet counters. If yours are increasing by more than 1 - 3 packets a second, then you have something running in the background.

3 - Pay special attention to the Sent packet counter. If it's running fast, and you don't have anything running, then you have a virus or spyware, and should clean your computer. If you don't have an Anti-Spyware program or an Anti-Virus program, click here to get a free one.

4 - If you are running a music or video program, try shutting it off and see what effect that has on the moved packets.

Music and Video Sharing Programs Are BAD!

Click here to find out why

Restart Your Computer

Sometimes simply restarting your computer will fix the problem. If you don't know the cause of the problem, it's best to fully Shut Down (not re-start) your machine, wait a few seconds and then turn it back on. That clears all the memory, stops programs and starts everything fresh.