Ver confused about data usage - Hughesnet Community

Jlkkdk · ‎10-06-2020

We are new to Hughes net. We just moved from NH to SC and apparently Hughes net is the only internet we can get. We have a something or other data plan. With 2 kids doing school remote they suck it up rather fast. We do not stream anything because well it just does not work. I was told when I got this service that if we go over the data then it will just slow down. We would not get charged for any additional data it will just slow down. I was never explained about tokens or anything like that when I signed up for this. Can someone tell me what happens if we go over our al

maratsade · ‎10-06-2020

If you go over your data allowance, your speed gets throttled, meaning it will be very slow. You can still do basic internet like surfing or checking/sending email, but data intensive things may not work. You can buy tokens ($3 apiece, minimum 3 tokens for $9) and this restores your speed.

During Bonus Bytes time (2 am to 8 am your local time), you have an extra 50GB of data that can only be used during that time. Some people take advantage of this by using this time to do file downloads and such.

Data can be used very quickly when you have several people and devices using the system, as the data is shared among the people and the devices. You have to monitor data and budget it like you would money.

Jlkkdk · ‎10-06-2020

The data we have gets eaten up only by my kids going to school. I think it was gone in less then a week then it slows down where they can not do their schooling. Is it normal to get penalized where we have to spend more just so kids can go to school? This is our first experience with satellite internet and so far it is just not working out for us. I guess we can not -lay play station or even watch anything through streaming. I was not told any of this when I signed up. I was assured we had enough to do everything we needed it for which we are finding just is not the case. I was misled by the salesperson and now we are stuck in a contract. I just do not know what to do when my kids can not do their school because the schools do not care what the situation is they just want it done. For the last week they could use it only 3 hours a day if that all other times it was so slow it did not even work on a chrome book. Anyone have any solutions? Can not do the speed test because it is so slow the page won't even load.

maratsade · ‎10-06-2020

HughesNet sales you a data package; how you use it is not their responsibility. The biggest packages are 50GB per month (not counting Bonus Bytes), and this can go fast with several kids doing schoolwork. The "solution" is to get tokens or to get a bigger data package, which may not be enough and may necessitate more tokens.

If you feel you were misled by the salesperson, you can request a sales review. Just reply to my post and request that they review your sales call, and explain how you think you were misled.

It typically takes 7 business days to do the sales call review, but if the HughesNet reps find you were actually misled, you may have some recourse.

@Jlkkdk wrote:
The data we have gets eaten up only by my kids going to school. I think it was gone in less then a week then it slows down where they can not do their schooling. Is it normal to get penalized where we have to spend more just so kids can go to school? This is our first experience with satellite internet and so far it is just not working out for us. I guess we can not -lay play station or even watch anything through streaming. I was not told any of this when I signed up. I was assured we had enough to do everything we needed it for which we are finding just is not the case. I was misled by the salesperson and now we are stuck in a contract. I just do not know what to do when my kids can not do their school because the schools do not care what the situation is they just want it done. For the last week they could use it only 3 hours a day if that all other times it was so slow it did not even work on a chrome book. Anyone have any solutions? Can not do the speed test because it is so slow the page won't even load.

Jlkkdk · ‎10-06-2020

Wow! I can not believe the rudeness this community gives. I will not have it reviewed because after reading only a few of the rude replies people have been given I have a feeling no matter what the sales people have said it will always go in Hughes net favor. How I manage our data is not the problem it is the fact that you are using the pandemic to extract extra money from people to buy tokens just so their children can go to school. It is an outrage and borders on disgusting actually! I do not care how much they charge me to cancel this pitiful service it will be worth every penny. You should be ashamed doing this to people when they need the internet. Shame on all of you!

maratsade · ‎10-06-2020

I'm sorry you interpreted my reply as rudeness. I was merely pointing out that HughesNet is not responsible for how we use data. They sell us a package and it's up to us to use it. They do offer tokens if we run out.

It's your choice, of course, not to have the sales call reviewed, but it would be to your benefit to do so, especially if you were misled. I've seen many a fellow subscriber benefit greatly from a sales call review.

In any case, best of luck to you, and I hope you can resolve your issues.

SharlaNickell · ‎10-14-2020

We are having the same problem not enough GB for school classroom work. Can't Hughes let carriers like Google classroom thru and not slow them down? There is suppose to be covid relief! My granddaughter has to check in on Zoom twice during the morning and then is at different sites, I am buying tokens but it is so expensive.

maratsade · ‎10-14-2020

Not enough GB is different from "letting carriers through."
The amount of GB you get depends on the package you buy (10, 20, 30, 50), and how much you and your household use per day. Usage is also influenced by many factors outside of HN, all of them explained on the HN website and as part of the subscriber agreement.
HN has optimised the network to improve access to educational resources, but once again, access is also dependent on many factors, explained on the website and subscriber agreement.
If you are using more data than you get, your choices are to use less data (which of course may not be possible), or buy more data (a larger package, or data tokens).

SharlaNickell wrote:
We are having the same problem not enough GB for school classroom work. Can't Hughes let carriers like Google classroom thru and not slow them down? There is suppose to be covid relief! My granddaughter has to check in on Zoom twice during the morning and then is at different sites, I am buying tokens but it is so expensive.

GabeU · ‎10-14-2020

@SharlaNickell wrote:
We are having the same problem not enough GB for school classroom work. Can't Hughes let carriers like Google classroom thru and not slow them down?

Not having a data limit, even on just certain activities, would have the opposite effect of what everyone wishes, as in it would slow the service down even more than what is already occurring. Having high speed data limits forces people to prioritize their activities, which is what keeps the service usable. Without those limits, the system would end up in a digital traffic jam.

maratsade · ‎10-14-2020

I think one issue is that many subscribers don't understand how satellite works and keep comparing it to terrestrial internet. They don't realise how small the data packages are for satellite internet, and how fast data can be used by regular Web activities (even though a simple calculation would show just how little is available to use on a daily basis).

@GabeU wrote:

Not having a data limit, even on just certain activities, would have the opposite effect of what everyone wishes, as in it would slow the service down even more than what is already occurring. Having high speed data limits forces people to prioritize their activities, which is what keeps the service usable. Without those limits, the system would end up in a digital traffic jam.

maratsade · ‎10-07-2020

"The data we have gets eaten up only by my kids going to school. I think it was gone in less then a week then it slows down where they can not do their schooling."

You may want to do the math to see how much data the users in your household can use per day based on your data package.

An example: if a subscriber has the largest data package (50GB) package, the household can use up to 1.6GB total per day (for 31-day months). If, say, 3 people are using the data, each person can use 0.53 GB. That's a little over half a gig a day per person, which is to say, it's not much. Data intensive activities such as downloading and uploading files or going to websites that have a lot of multimedia will use up data very fast, sometimes in a matter of days.

The situation is much worse the smaller the data packages get (30, 20, and 10 GB).

Anything else you have in the house, such as Alexa or smart anything (TV, refrigerator) connected to the internet will also use data. Any software updates for devices connected to the network will also use up data. Since the data packages are limited, the only ways to extend the data are not to use it (which of course is not a good choice), to budget it (which may not be a good choice), or to buy tokens.

For Windows and Android devices, subscribers can install the free Glasswire app, which measures what's using data on the device and how much it's using. Another strategy is to get a router that measures the data being used by the entire network.

Jlkkdk · ‎10-07-2020

Just not fair we have to go broke just so our kids can go to school. We have nothing else connected that would use data. Staying with Hughes net will cost us a small fortune just so my kids can get an education. Not fair to the kids.

GabeU · ‎10-07-2020

@Jlkkdk

If you feel you were misled during your sales call you should take maratsade's advice and request a sales call review, though I would suggest starting a new topic in the "My Account and Billing" section to do so, which you can do by clicking on this link. As he stated, be sure to describe the discrepancy when doing so, as the rep will need to know what it is they're listening for.

This is the only chance you're going to have for any kind of recourse, and it's time sensitive, as the sales calls are only saved for about three or four months, after which a review will be impossible.

GabeU · ‎10-12-2020

@Jlkkdk

Regarding the following claim in this post...

"We have the 20 go plan and in less then 24 hours we have used it all when we have nothing connected to it."

The likely reason is something used your data that you are not, or were not, aware of. You can see your currently connected and currently disconnected devices here. The currently disconnected devices are devices that were connected, but are no longer, since the last time the modem was plugged in. When the modem loses power the logs are erased.

Keep in mind that, just because a device is turned off, that does not mean it can't use data, as when many devices are turned off they actually go into standby, and they can still use data. That much data in a 24 hour period suggests syncing, cloud updates, some other type of updates or a connected satellite TV receiver updating (connecting a satellite TV receiver to HughesNet is NOT recommended).

If you still don't believe it could have been one or more of your devices, the following test will either prove or disprove a data leak. With this said, please understand that, just like with your refusal to request a sales call review, from which you may very well have had recourse, nothing can be done to help you if you refuse to take part. When you refuse the suggested action, the lack of a remedy is on you.

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Please perform the following test outlined in the graphic below, though follow the full instructions written below the graphic. This is known as a Modem Isolation Test, and it will help to determine whether the issue is with HughesNet or your local network..

1: Disable the WiFi in the HT2000W modem.
2: Take a screenshot of the HughesNet Usage Meter, along with the clock on your computer screen. If you don't have the Usage Meter on your Computer (the Usage Meter has been discontinued since these instructions were created), use the System Control Center (www.systemcontrolcenter.com or http://192.168.0.1/#!/usage). You may need to click "Home" on the left side of the page to see the data level donuts. Again, please include the system clock in the snapshot.
3: Disconnect the LAN cable from the modem, noting the date and time of disconnect.
4: Leave the LAN cable disconnected from the modem for several hours. HughesNet recommends doing this overnight, or during the day while at work. DO NOT unplug the modem from the power. The modem must remain powered.
5: Reconnect the LAN cable to the modem, noting the date and time of reconnect.
6: Take a screenshot of the HughesNet Usage Meter (see above if you don't have the Usage Meter), along with the clock displayed on your computer.
7: Post your screenshots to the community.

The screenshots should look similar to the following, being dependent on the operating system, with the system clock included (you can move the Usage Meter window to being near the system clock so that it is included more easily).

Do not unplug, power cycle or internally reboot the modem after the test has been run, as the reps need to be able to reconcile your modem data logs with what is shown in the screenshots. Any of those three things will wipe out those logs, rendering the test results moot. Only after the reps have responded with their findings should any of those three things be done.

Please be aware that, if you downloaded any large files just prior to this test, some usage may appear to have occurred due to the slight delay (lag) in the modem reporting the data usage to the server, but it should be rather negligible.

If you don't know how to disable the WiFi in the HT2000W, please see "How do I manage my built-in WiFi modem?" in this PDF. Please be sure to click "Save Settings" after unchecking "SSID Enable" for each of the four tabs individually (2.4Ghz, then 2.4Ghz Guest, then 5Ghz, then 5Ghz Guest).