VERY slow speed from my server - client

greenfish · 2009-07-08 18:47:10

Hi! I've noticed for some time now everytime my laptop is trying to do anything on my server it's always very slow, slow ssh access, slow access time to the gateway/newsgroup/p2p and downloading something from my server to my client is almost impossible (very slow transfers roughly < 120kB/s)

Since i'm a networking noob there's bound to be some issues with how exactly i installed my server from get a go. My server is running samba/NFS/ftp and they are all VERY slow if I try to use em on my laptop (client WAN/wireless) but pretty fast on my htpc (wired, winxp, smb).

Also watching HD 1080p streaming from my server to my client, works PERFECT, htpc is accessing my server through samba.

Here's an example, if i'm on my laptop downloading a small file to my server, let's say roughly around 10mb, the server goes almost nuts! Meaning.. if I try to access the server while it's downloading the tiny file, well let's just say it takes ages to get a response, pinging the server also results in a very laggy response that is until the tiny file is downloaded.

Did I screw up somehow with my NFS share? I mean even on wireless getting around 1-120kB/s, trying to download a large file from my server to my client, isn't that a terrible result?

Some info you guys might need! Since i'm a not an expert when it comes to networking, please ask me for me additional debug and i'm game! Right now i've bought a few books regarding networking in general+linux networks admin guide just to understand some of the basics but I sure could use a few experts if you have the time, thank you

Client: (my laptop using wireless)

wlan0     Link encap:Ethernet  HWaddr 00:21:5D:85:88:6E
          inet addr:192.168.1.100  Bcast:192.168.1.255  Mask:255.255.255.0
          inet6 addr: fe80::221:5dff:fe85:886e/64 Scope:Link
          UP BROADCAST RUNNING MULTICAST  MTU:1500  Metric:1
          RX packets:267303 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 frame:0
          TX packets:236149 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 carrier:0
          collisions:0 txqueuelen:1000
          RX bytes:326966649 (311.8 Mb)  TX bytes:51727914 (49.3 Mb)

Server: (archSKYNET)

ifconfig
eth0      Link encap:Ethernet  HWaddr 00:1B:FC:87:E3:FA
          inet addr:192.168.1.104 Bcast:192.168.1.255  Mask:255.255.255.0
          inet6 addr: fe80::21b:fcff:fe87:e3fa/64 Scope:Link
          UP BROADCAST RUNNING MULTICAST  MTU:1500  Metric:1
          RX packets:589979578 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 frame:0
          TX packets:513168952 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 carrier:0
          collisions:0 txqueuelen:1000
          RX bytes:661690410560 (631037.1 Mb)  TX bytes:358236871731 (341641.3 Mb)
          Interrupt:25

dmesg from my server

UDP: short packet: From 203.218.19.3:51196 21468/114 to 192.168.1.104:49152
UDP: short packet: From 195.54.122.204:5852 53124/70 to 192.168.1.104:61633
UDP: short packet: From 95.133.129.2:16001 0/109 to 192.168.1.104:49152
UDP: short packet: From 89.132.181.6:30933 77/73 to 192.168.1.104:49152
UDP: short packet: From 85.228.223.188:24640 767/109 to 192.168.1.104:51712
UDP: short packet: From 119.108.112.210:14116 26654/106 to 192.168.1.104:49152
UDP: short packet: From 70.249.194.252:16718 0/109 to 192.168.1.104:49152
UDP: short packet: From 212.85.94.115:16001 0/109 to 192.168.1.104:49152
UDP: short packet: From 255.255.255.255:9127 8749/106 to 65.97.44.128:49152

File: Ghostbusters (bluray)
Size: roughly 54GB
Speed: 112kB/s
Protocol: FTP
Server - Client

Client side: (trying to ping my server)

ping 192.168.1.104 (my server also known as archSKYNET)

64 bytes from archlinux.bredbandsbolaget.se (192.168.1.104): icmp_seq=38 ttl=64 time=1.88 ms
64 bytes from archlinux.bredbandsbolaget.se (192.168.1.104): icmp_seq=39 ttl=64 time=1.77 ms
64 bytes from archlinux.bredbandsbolaget.se (192.168.1.104): icmp_seq=40 ttl=64 time=1.96 ms
64 bytes from archlinux.bredbandsbolaget.se (192.168.1.104): icmp_seq=41 ttl=64 time=1.57 ms
64 bytes from archlinux.bredbandsbolaget.se (192.168.1.104): icmp_seq=42 ttl=64 time=1.72 ms
64 bytes from archlinux.bredbandsbolaget.se (192.168.1.104): icmp_seq=43 ttl=64 time=209 ms
64 bytes from archlinux.bredbandsbolaget.se (192.168.1.104): icmp_seq=44 ttl=64 time=1.77 ms
64 bytes from archlinux.bredbandsbolaget.se (192.168.1.104): icmp_seq=45 ttl=64 time=1.77 ms
64 bytes from archlinux.bredbandsbolaget.se (192.168.1.104): icmp_seq=46 ttl=64 time=1.66 ms
64 bytes from archlinux.bredbandsbolaget.se (192.168.1.104): icmp_seq=47 ttl=64 time=2.17 ms
64 bytes from archlinux.bredbandsbolaget.se (192.168.1.104): icmp_seq=48 ttl=64 time=1.80 ms
^C
--- archlinux.bredbandsbolaget.se ping statistics ---
48 packets transmitted, 48 received, 0% packet loss, time 47072ms
rtt min/avg/max/mdev = 1.361/6.618/209.211/29.600 ms

traceroute archSKYNET
traceroute to archlinux.bredbandsbolaget.se (192.168.1.104), 30 hops max, 52 byte packets
 1  archlinux.bredbandsbolaget.se (192.168.1.104)  2.088 ms  2.053 ms  2.082 ms

/etc/fstab                                                                                                                                                     
#                                                                                                                                                                                
# /etc/fstab: static file system information                                                                                                                                     
#
# <file system>        <dir>         <type>    <options>          <dump> <pass>
none                   /dev/pts      devpts    defaults            0      0
none                   /dev/shm      tmpfs     defaults            0      0

#/dev/cdrom             /media/cd   auto    ro,user,noauto,unhide   0      0
#/dev/dvd               /media/dvd  auto    ro,user,noauto,unhide   0      0
#/dev/fd0               /media/fl   auto    user,noauto             0      0


UUID=f7ba8135-6265-4d2d-b758-eeecb3a0f407 /home ext3 rw,noatime,async,user 0 1
UUID=3586e867-7fd9-4de1-8f0d-6355d8252713 /usr ext3 noatime 0 1
UUID=4fbc5bca-2a82-4431-9de2-86bc68b7686d /var ext3 noatime 0 1
UUID=80dd69db-36bf-4d38-a4db-3ad271933367 swap swap defaults 0 0
UUID=8e90edc8-af50-4f1d-af31-03d5eeee4a9a /boot ext3 noatime 0 1
UUID=c2a17379-3ed5-4ba2-8a4e-96b515adbf8c / ext3 noatime 0 1
UUID=ee1f01b9-b0d7-4b6c-a3e5-a4bd0ae81cf8 /tmp ext3 noatime 0 1
LABEL=WD500IDE /media/DOWNLOAD ext4 noatime,users,rw,async 0 1
LABEL=WD1TBSATA /media/DOWNLOAD2 ext4 noatime,users,rw,async 0 1
//192.168.1.104 /media/DOWNLOAD cifs password=123456,rw,user,noauto 0 0
//192.168.1.104 /media/DOWNLOAD2 cifs password=123456,rw,user,noauto 0 0

Last edited by greenfish (2009-07-08 19:16:03)

firecat53 · 2009-07-08 18:57:21

I had a similar problem and fixed it by adding the opendns routers as nameservers in /etc/resolv.conf instead of my router addreess. I'm not sure if it was hardware problem or a software update that caused the problem, but it worked. I also disabled ipV6 as well (on my laptop -- my server's been running for quite awhile, so I don't remember the status of ipV6 on the server).

Good luck!
Scott

greenfish · 2009-07-09 19:37:25

firecat53 wrote:

I had a similar problem and fixed it by adding the opendns routers as nameservers in /etc/resolv.conf instead of my router addreess. I'm not sure if it was hardware problem or a software update that caused the problem, but it worked. I also disabled ipV6 as well (on my laptop -- my server's been running for quite awhile, so I don't remember the status of ipV6 on the server).
Good luck!
Scott

Thanks for your suggestions but i'm still having issues.

Here's an example:

Transferring 500mb from the server (samba) to my htpc (wired ethernet) (winxp) less than 3 minutes

Transferring 500mb from the server (NFS) to my laptop (wireless ethernet) (archlinux) roughly around 40 minutes.

Thats a BIG difference, 3 minutes is something I can accept but 40 minutes for 500mb?!?!?

I'm not sure if it's NFS or server related.

Thanks for your response though bro, I appreciate it.

firecat53 · 2009-07-10 00:25:02

Sorry I couldn't help more Good luck! If you use samba on your laptop, is it still slow, or is it only nfs?

Scott

Zeist · 2009-07-10 05:44:18

greenfish wrote:

Transferring 500mb from the server (samba) to my htpc (wired ethernet) (winxp) less than 3 minutes
Transferring 500mb from the server (NFS) to my laptop (wireless ethernet) (archlinux) roughly around 40 minutes.

To me that sounds like your wireless is slow.

brazzmonkey · 2009-07-10 07:35:21

So you're comparing samba+ethernet vs nfs+wireless?
In my opinion, you're comparing apples and oranges...
I guess your issue mainly comes from wireless capabilities, as Zeist stated.

Now, from my own experience, the fastest file transfer protocol is FTP. So if you want to get maximum download speed on you LAN, just use FTP. That's what I do. Plus you can resume downloads.

mikesd · 2009-07-10 07:37:03

Use iperf to compare the transfer speed of your wireless and wired networks. Check the man page for usage. I used it when I was trying to get jumbo frames working on my network. It's a useful tool.

greenfish · 2009-07-10 10:26:37

@firecat53

Sorry I couldn't help more sad Good luck! If you use samba on your laptop, is it still slow, or is it only nfs?

Haven't tried using samba on my laptop yet, but I will try it, thanks

@Zeist

To me that sounds like your wireless is slow.

Well i'm getting 3mB/s on my wireless from my ISP so i'm not sure it's my wireless

@brazzmonkey

So you're comparing samba+ethernet vs nfs+wireless?
In my opinion, you're comparing apples and oranges...

Actually I was merely asking if there was a difference

I guess your issue mainly comes from wireless capabilities, as Zeist stated.

Getting roughly around 3mB/s using wireless from my ISP around 100kB/s from within my internal network (server)

Now, from my own experience, the fastest file transfer protocol is FTP. So if you want to get maximum download speed on you LAN, just use FTP. That's what I do. Plus you can resume downloads.

I did a test on my first post, see the results below, kinda odd eh?

File: Ghostbusters (bluray)
Size: roughly 54GB
Speed: 112kB/s
Protocol: FTP
Server - Client

So I take it there's no diff between samba/nfs, then it's my internal network that's the culprit of the terrible transfer speed?

Thanks for your ideas/replies guys, much appreciated!

Cheers

Last edited by greenfish (2009-07-10 10:28:20)

mikesd · 2009-07-10 10:59:20

greenfish wrote:

Getting roughly around 3mB/s using wireless from my ISP around 100kB/s from within my internal network (server)

greenfish wrote:

No I take it there's no diff between samba/nfs, then it's my internal network that's the culprit of the terrible transfer speed?

If you are getting 3mB/s from your ISP that rules out a problem with your network, ie the cables, switches, wireless hardware, etc. It sounds like the problem is with your server. I would start there. What is the OS?, kernel version? any jobs running that are chewing up cpu or bandwidth?

zenlord · 2009-07-10 13:02:40

NFS should be faster than samba, otherwise everyone would be using samba over NFS. There are AFAIK only two problems with NFS:
1. Windows clients do not have acces to the NFS exports
2. It can be a pain to set up (if not, you probably are not using NFS securely: http://www.freesoftwaremagazine.com/col … uring_nfs)

My guess is that your nfsd is not correctly set up... But at the same time I don't know enough to help you out with that

Zl.

greenfish · 2009-07-13 18:12:31

@mikesd

Use iperf to compare the transfer speed of your wireless and wired networks. Check the man page for usage. I used it when I was trying to get jumbo frames working on my network. It's a useful tool.

First of all i'm sorry I didn't see your reply the first time around. I'm gonna try iperf as you suggested.

If you are getting 3mB/s from your ISP that rules out a problem with your network, ie the cables, switches, wireless hardware, etc. It sounds like the problem is with your server. I would start there. What is the OS?, kernel version? any jobs running that are chewing up cpu or bandwidth?

You asked for more details:

uname -a

Linux archSKYNET 2.6.29-ARCH #1 SMP PREEMPT Sat May 9 14:09:36 CEST 2009 x86_64 AMD Athlon(tm) 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 4400+ AuthenticAMD GNU/Linux

free -m
             total       used       free     shared    buffers     cached
Mem:          1882       1867         14          0          3       1237
-/+ buffers/cache:        626       1255
Swap:         3812        123       3689

output from top (htop) http://www.imagebam.com/image/80afb741932163

Thanks man!

@zenlord

NFS should be faster than samba, otherwise everyone would be using samba over NFS. There are AFAIK only two problems with NFS:
1. Windows clients do not have acces to the NFS exports
2. It can be a pain to set up (if not, you probably are not using NFS securely: http://www.freesoftwaremagazine.com/col … curing_nfs)
My guess is that your nfsd is not correctly set up... But at the same time I don't know enough to help you out with that sad
Zl.

Hmm I guess, and yeah it's hell trying to setup NFS in windows xp (can vouch for that personally). My nfs setup might be wrong, i'm gonna paste my fstab is that enough or do you require additional info Zenlord? Thank You!

client (192.168.1.100)

#
# /etc/fstab: static file system information
#
# <file system>        <dir>         <type>    <options>          <dump> <pass>
none                   /dev/pts      devpts    defaults            0      0
none                   /dev/shm      tmpfs     defaults            0      0

#/dev/cdrom             /media/cd   auto    ro,user,noauto,unhide   0      0
#/dev/dvd               /media/dvd  auto    ro,user,noauto,unhide   0      0
#/dev/fd0               /media/fl   auto    user,noauto             0      0

UUID=0ec3d37d-aae9-4a3a-acfa-e41e0ec50824 /home ext4 rw,noatime,async 0 1
UUID=3197927c-ac3c-4af1-85d3-0e60c672e3ce /var ext4 noatime 0 1
UUID=44c27cde-fc09-458b-a71f-59183e639d27 swap swap defaults 0 0
UUID=521acac3-b63c-49fd-b690-09aad8a0eb07 / ext2 noatime 0 1
UUID=62a6ad48-8649-4d05-82e2-52afece2e396 /tmp ext4 noatime 0 1
UUID=e9713f04-4e08-4341-a1bd-75fddebf98f2 /usr ext4 noatime 0 1
UUID=f8aed80a-8a5e-4f1c-8f8b-16e528c8f2f3 /boot ext4 noatime 0 1
192.168.1.104:/media/DOWNLOAD /media/archSKYNET nfs rw,sync 0 0
192.168.1.104:/media/DOWNLOAD2 /media/archSKYNET2 nfs rw,sync 0 0

# /etc/exports
#
# See exports(5) for a description.

# use exportfs -arv to reread
#/export    192.168.1.10(rw,no_root_squash)

server (192.168.1.104)

#
# /etc/fstab: static file system information
#
# <file system>        <dir>         <type>    <options>          <dump> <pass>
none                   /dev/pts      devpts    defaults            0      0
none                   /dev/shm      tmpfs     defaults            0      0

#/dev/cdrom             /media/cd   auto    ro,user,noauto,unhide   0      0
#/dev/dvd               /media/dvd  auto    ro,user,noauto,unhide   0      0
#/dev/fd0               /media/fl   auto    user,noauto             0      0


UUID=f7ba8135-6265-4d2d-b758-eeecb3a0f407 /home ext3 rw,noatime,async,user 0 1
UUID=3586e867-7fd9-4de1-8f0d-6355d8252713 /usr ext3 noatime 0 1
UUID=4fbc5bca-2a82-4431-9de2-86bc68b7686d /var ext3 noatime 0 1
UUID=80dd69db-36bf-4d38-a4db-3ad271933367 swap swap defaults 0 0
UUID=8e90edc8-af50-4f1d-af31-03d5eeee4a9a /boot ext3 noatime 0 1
UUID=c2a17379-3ed5-4ba2-8a4e-96b515adbf8c / ext3 noatime 0 1
UUID=ee1f01b9-b0d7-4b6c-a3e5-a4bd0ae81cf8 /tmp ext3 noatime 0 1
LABEL=WD500IDE /media/DOWNLOAD ext4 noatime,users,rw,async 0 1
LABEL=WD1TBSATA /media/DOWNLOAD2 ext4 noatime,users,rw,async 0 1
//192.168.1.104 /media/DOWNLOAD cifs password=123456,rw,user,noauto 0 0
//192.168.1.104 /media/DOWNLOAD2 cifs password=123456,rw,user,noauto 0 0

# /etc/exports
#
# See exports(5) for a description.

# use exportfs -arv to reread
#/export    192.168.1.10(rw,no_root_squash)

/media/DOWNLOAD 192.168.1.100(rw,sync,no_subtree_check,no_root_squash)
/media/DOWNLOAD2 192.168.1.100(rw,sync,no_subtree_check,no_root_squash)

Arch Linux

#1 2009-07-08 18:47:10

VERY slow speed from my server - client

#2 2009-07-08 18:57:21

Re: VERY slow speed from my server - client

#3 2009-07-09 19:37:25

Re: VERY slow speed from my server - client

#4 2009-07-10 00:25:02

Re: VERY slow speed from my server - client

#5 2009-07-10 05:44:18

Re: VERY slow speed from my server - client

#6 2009-07-10 07:35:21

Re: VERY slow speed from my server - client

#7 2009-07-10 07:37:03

Re: VERY slow speed from my server - client

#8 2009-07-10 10:26:37

Re: VERY slow speed from my server - client

#9 2009-07-10 10:59:20

Re: VERY slow speed from my server - client

#10 2009-07-10 13:02:40

Re: VERY slow speed from my server - client

#11 2009-07-13 18:12:31

Re: VERY slow speed from my server - client

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