Many of you have commented that your internet is slower since upgrading to Windows 10. Fortunately, there are simple tweaks that you can perform to speed up your internet. I’ll show you step by step starting out with the easier tips and ending with those for advanced users.
Before making any changes you’ll want to check the current status of your internet there are many websites for testing your internet speed.
One of the most popular is speed test you can go to their website which is speedtest.net to run a test. The ping measured in milliseconds will let you know how fast you get a response after you send out a request. The lower the number the better a fast ping. Means a more responsive connection it will also test your download speed which is how fast you can pull data from the server to your computer.
And your upload speed is how fast your data is sent from your computer to others.
Whether you use a speed test or another internet speed testing site or app. It’s always a good idea to check it periodically to make sure that you’re getting the advertised speeds from your internet service provider.
1. Modify DNS Servers
First, we’ll modify the DNS servers DNS stands for domain name system. Quite simply it’s a process that translates domain names into IP addresses.
Using DNS servers not assigned by your ISP can make your internet faster. To change your DNS server.
- Go to the search box and type control panel.
- Click on it find Network and Sharing Center
- On the left side of this window click on change adapter settings.
- Right click on the internet you’re using and select properties.
- Go down to Internet Protocol version 4 select it to highlight
- Make sure that’s checked and select properties in the bottom half of this new window.
- Click on use the following DNS server addresses.
In this example, we’ll use Google’s own public DNS for preferred DNS server enter 8 8 8 8.
And for alternate DNS server enter 8 8 4 4 when you’re done click on ok. that’s all there is to it if you want to try out other DNS servers.
2. Turn Off Background Apps
This next one is overlooked by most people but can have an impact on your internet speed.
Turn off any apps or services that can run in the background. Even if you’re not using them.
- Left click on the Start menu and select settings.
- Click on privacy in the left pane scroll down and find background apps.
- Select it now just go through the apps listed and turn off the ones that you don’t want running in the background.
3. Disable P2P Updates
While we’re in the settings menu let’s turn off peer-to-peer updates.
* Click on the home in the upper left select update and security.
* Now click on Advanced Options then click on delivery optimization.
Down here where it says allow downloads from other PC’s toggle to switch off.
With this turned off you don’t need to worry about others in your household or strangers using your valuable Internet resources. When I upgraded to Windows 10 a couple of years back this was turned on by default shame on you Microsoft.
4. Disable Windows Updates
Turning off the automatic updates for Windows is not a long-term fix. But can be useful for those times you need your internet speeds to be at their peak.
- Go to the search bar and type services.
- Click on it scroll all the way down and double-click on Windows Update.
If the service status says running click on stop. And then change the startup type from automatic to disable then hit apply or ok to save your changes.
Just remember to turn it back on you wouldn’t want to miss all the great new updates. That might delete your files or could possibly give you the blue screen of death. Some of you know what I’m talking about.
5. Change Wi-Fi Channel
If your only means of connecting to the Internet is via Wi-Fi. It may benefit you to change the wireless channel on your router. If you have multiple users on the same Wi-Fi channel that can slow down the internet for everyone on that channel.
This is common in apartment buildings or tightly packed neighborhoods. To find out which channels have the least congestion.
- Go to the Windows Store and install Wi-Fi analyzer.
- Open it up and select the analyze tab.
This graph shows the Wi-Fi strength in your area. You just need to find the option to change the channel and switch it to the recommended Channel.
If you are previously on a congested Channel after making the switch you should notice an improvement to your internet speed.
6. Disable LSO
LSO which stands for Large Send Off Load is a technique of improving network performance. While at the same time reducing CPU overhead.
In theory, it sounds great in practice it has been known to cause performance and slowdown issues.
To disable it in the search bar type device manager.
- Go down to network adapters.
- And click the arrow to expand it.
In the list double click on your network card if you connect via ethernet. Select Ethernet controller you can connect via Wi-Fi select wireless adapter.
I’ll select Ethernet controller to go to the advanced tab in the list select large send offload Version to ipv4. And set the value to disabled if you have large send offload Version to ipv6.
Set that value to disabled as well when you’re done click OK. If you experience any issues you can re-enable it at any time.
7. Adjust Internet Bandwidth
Windows 10 by default keeps away 20% of your internet bandwidth for its operating system. And other related tasks which mean you only have 80 percent of your bandwidth that you can actually use.
Here are the steps to get that 20% back for you to use. You will need to access the group policy editor for this one.
Which is only available by default for the pro edition of Windows 10. If you’re using the Home Edition your first step is to enable the group policy editor. But the steps needed to enable it.
* Open the run window by selecting the Windows key + R on your keyboard.
* In the search box type gpedit.msc hit enter on your keyboard.
Be careful in this window this is how IT administrators keep you locked out of programs. And keep you from making certain changes.
In the left pane click on computer configuration double click on administrative templates.
Double click Network then doubles click QoS packet scheduler where it says limit reservable bandwidth.
Double click on it to open a new window choose enabled then change the bandwidth limit to 0.
When you’re done making the changes click on apply then ok to exit.
Other than changing your DNS server this tip I just showed you. In my experience is the most useful for increasing the overall speed of your internet.