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Data used when no devices connected to modem

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KenS
Freshman

Data used when no devices connected to modem

Can someone help me understand how my data allotment has gone down.  Here's the story.  On the phone with customer service to upgrade my plan and while connected my data usage was being used when doing absolutely nothing on my desktop.  Yes, I understand background services running and so on, but task manager showed zero usage from 2 running programs, 26 background processes and 74 windows processes.  So..customer rep asked me to disconnect cable from desktop and connect wirelessly with a laptop or phone.  I connected phone to wi-fi and he could see the data being used which he said was going and going and going.  Here again I wasn't using the phone for anything, but just letting it sit on my desk.  Now, I keep it connected to my cellular data so there shouldn't have been that much data that needed to update from Hughes.  In all, just being on the phone with customer service I used over 1GB of data with another 800MB being deducted the next day, this being after all devices were disconnected the previous night.  So, the customer rep wanted to do a data deletion process and have me leave all devices disconnected which I did, for several days in fact.  When I checked my data 5 days later (with no devices connected) I had used another 1.1 GB of data. 

 

I called customer service again and was on the phone with someone who apparently didn't understand what I was trying to accomplish (find out where and what used my data) she talked to advance technical support and told me they wanted to do another data depletion test for only 6 hours this time.  I told her I just wanted to know what device was connected to the modem that had used the additional 1.1 GB of data.  She couldn't give me an answer and I was tired of hearing excuses and told her thank you and I'd call back later.  That has been several days ago and now I have used an additional 115MB of data with no devices connected.  

 

As an added point, the rep told me that no devices had been connected since the date of the first data depletion test.  How does data leakage occur when no devices are connected to the modem.  Any help would be appreciated.  Oh yeah, Ref# 114121587 

 

Sorry for any typos.  lol

65 REPLIES 65
maratsade
Distinguished Professor IV

The Hughesnet reps will not be here till Monday, but I believe it's likely they will ask you to perform the steps outlined in this post:

 

https://community.hughesnet.com/t5/Tech-Support/Where-s-my-bytes-Testing-for-data-leaks/td-p/77194

 

 

 

Let me be clear.  There are absolutely no devices connected to the modem and there has not been any device connected for several days but, my anytime data usage has increased.  I'm not sure running tests to try and detect for data leakage would work in this situation because I do not have anything connected to the modem.  The data usage was confirmed by customer service as well as telling me that no device has used any data or been connected to the modem.  And to add, that is the test I first performed on July 27 without actually connecting a device since that time.  The first rep said they noted the amount of data I had remaining on July 27 and the second rep told me that I had used 1.1GB since that time, but had not been connected to the modem.  Also, it is only my alloted data that gets depleted, not one single MB of bonus data.  Does my computer or phone stop using all of these data leaking programs and apps after 2am.

maratsade
Distinguished Professor IV

Yes, I know, but they require certain procedures in order to diagnose a problem.  It's fine if you don't want to do it; but they might ask you to before they can help you.  You can always wait and see what they say next week. 

 

*I am not a Hughesnet employee or representative. This is a customer-to-customer tech support community, and I am a customer.

I'm sorry but I'm lost.  I did disconnect the LAN cable from the modem as instructed by the customer service representative.  The only thing I didn't do is reconnect in 24 hours.  Isn't the purpose of the test used to determine data leakage?  How can my device leak data when it is not connected to Hughes's network? I'm not trying to be rude but that is my whole issue, service data being used when no device connected. 

GabeU
Distinguished Professor IV

@KenS

 

The "Modem Isolation Test", which is the test used to test for data leaks, will determine where the leak lies, as in on the HughesNet side or the device side.  If, when there are no devices are connected via LAN cable AND the WiFi is disabled in the HT2000W modem, data is still being used, it is on the HughesNet side, and they need to look deeper to find out why.  If the leak is happening when you have devices connected, but not when you don't, the leak is connected to the devices, and we'll have to figure out what and why.  

 

Just out of curiosity, how is it that you were determining that no devices were connected to the HT2000W modem?  I only ask this because people can forget about things that are connected, like gaming consoles, satellite TV receivers, or even tablets.  People often forget about those things being connected, especially if they aren't used on a regular basis.  

 

To see what is connected to your HT2000W modem, look on the following page...  http://192.168.0.1/limited.html#!/general/conn_dev_info

 

Anything that is connnected, or has been connected since the modem was last powered up, will show on that page.  

 

Again, though, if you are asked to run a modem isolation test by the reps, please make sure to first disable the WiFi in the HT2000W modem, then disconnect all devices connected via LAN cable.  This will ensure that nothing can connect to the HT2000W modem.  If you are unaware of how to disable the WiFi in the HT2000W modem, please see the section titled "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 radio individually (so 2.4, then Save Settings, then 2.4 Guest, then Save Settings, then 5, then Save Settings, then 5 Guest, then Save Settings).  Then disconnect your LAN cable connected device that you were using to disable the WiFi, and any other LAN connected devices.  

To answer your curiosity about how I know that I wasn't connect to the modem, there are three reasons.  The first is customer support specifically told me that that I did not have any devices connected at that time (while on the phone with customer support) nor did I have any connected for the previous several days (5 I think).  The second is that I also have DSL and have all ancillary devices connected to a second router utilizing the 2.4Ghz band.  The third is that I have only used 1MB of Bonus data since upgrading my plan (July 27).  If I had any devices connected to the modem then I would assume that I would be using data from 2am-8am also and not just from 8am-2am.  Would it not be correct that if I have background services, programs or data leakage from any device that it would also be using bonus data, or do those issues stop at 2am?

 

Sorry if I sound like I'm being smart but hearing about devices and unknown services using up data gets tiring to hear.  My phone went through 1GB of data in no time, 20 minutes if that (refer to original post) but when connected to my cellular plan I used a max of 11.5GB last month and that is being connected 24/7.  And that is with streaming, youtube, weather, news, FB videos etc..etc  And I'm sure if I was using up that much data Verizon would throttle my speed. 

 

If I may ask, I'm sure everyone has a cellphone and a data plan with some exceptions so how much data does your phone use?   

GabeU
Distinguished Professor IV


@KenS wrote: 

Sorry if I sound like I'm being smart but hearing about devices and unknown services using up data gets tiring to hear. 


Your frustration is understandable.  The reason you keep hearing it is because that's normally the cause of this issue.  I say normally, but not always, of course.   

 

 

If I may ask, I'm sure everyone has a cellphone and a data plan with some exceptions so how much data does your phone use?   


I use my cell phone exceedingly rarely.  

 

 

I do have a question, though.  Do you have the WiFi from both services on at the same time?  If so, do your devices connect to both services using the same WiFi band?    The reason I ask is that WiFi interference can also cause WiFi connected devices to use more data than they normally would.  

That is a negative.  I disabled the 2.4 on the Hughes modem and use that bandwith with the DSL.  I do understand about background data being used but never after 2am it appears.  I use my cellphone throughout the entire day and always have the data connected.  As I said before, the max I've ever used has been 11.5GB in a month, but at the rate it was going when talking to customer service the first time, I would have used that much data in 3 hours. 

MarkJFine
Professor

Until you hear from an admin: Try disconnecting the power from the wall, waiting a minute, and plugging it back in. Sometimes the modem gets stuck in an update loop and continually draws.

 

You can also check the status about 5-10 minutes later by looking at http://192.168.0.1/#!/home/status. If the Software Download Status shows a green check mark the modem has been updated. If not, there might be an issue.

 

It's a longshot, but that might take care of it.


* Disclaimer: I am a HughesNet customer and not a HughesNet employee. All of my comments are my own and do not necessarily represent HughesNet in any way.

I did that today, but I still haven't connected any device to Hughes modem.

Could this be a reason I had data usage of 12.3 G in one day? Modem upgrade stuck ? 

maratsade
Distinguished Professor IV

I suggest you stick around here and run the same tests that were suggested to the other user.  

 

*I am not a Hughesnet employee or representative. This is a customer-to-customer tech support community, and I am a customer.


@r-bkmhn wrote:

Could this be a reason I had data usage of 12.3 G in one day? Modem upgrade stuck ? 


That sounds more like someone downloaded a game or a couple of HD on-demand movies remotely.


* Disclaimer: I am a HughesNet customer and not a HughesNet employee. All of my comments are my own and do not necessarily represent HughesNet in any way.
Liz
Moderator
Moderator

Hi Ken,

 

Welcome to the community! I'm glad to see our seasoned posters have hopped in to assist you. I can understand how you feel trying to figure out what's going on with your data, it's like doing detective work. While we can't tell you what used your data in the past, moving forward, you can use 3rd party tools to track your data. Our long time community members have used and suggested GlassWire. There may be other options available to suit your preferences. Feel free to ask the community for their suggestions and advice on data monitoring.

 

As maratsade initially mentioned, we'd need the screenshots from the steps linked in the post. The purpose is to show proof that the HughesNet modem is the source of the unidentified data usage. If there's proof, I have no problem sending it to engineering for their help.

 

I see your 5Ghz network is the only one enabled right now; as Gabe suggested, disable it before you perform the illustrated troubleshooting steps to eliminate the possibility of anything connecting to wifi.

 

To further assist you, I'll send you a private message shortly with additional information.

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you have a tech or billing question and need help, please start a new thread in the appropriate board. Unsolicited Private Messages may not get replies.

Slow performance? Click me!

Yes, I am frustrated beyond belief.  What you're wanting me to do is download Glasswire to monitor data from devices that are not even connected to the modem, is that correct?  Ok, fine.  If someone can explain this one simple question it would be greatly appreciated.  Can you see how much bonus data I have used in the past 10 days (1 MB)?  Does it not seem odd that I supposedly have devices connected to Hughes (which I don't) that apparently use my service data but magically from 2am-8am it has miraculously used only 1MB while my service plan data has used 2658MB.  BTW, that is an increase of 344MB used with no devices connected.  The previous amount was 2314MB.  Also, how do you determine that the LAN and wireless has been disconnected or turned off?  

GabeU
Distinguished Professor IV


@KenS wrote:

What you're wanting me to do is download Glasswire to monitor data from devices that are not even connected to the modem, is that correct?  


No, but it can help with things like this... "On the phone with customer service to upgrade my plan and while connected my data usage was being used when doing absolutely nothing on my desktop."  It will be able to tell you what data your desktop uses.  

 


@KenS wrote:

Also, how do you determine that the LAN and wireless has been disconnected or turned off?  

When the WiFi is successfully disabled you'll see a State Code at the top of the following page indicating such...  http://192.168.0.1/#!/home/status

 

It will look like this.... 

 

Capture.JPG

 

For the LAN cable, just visually confirm that there is no LAN cable connected to the back of the HT2000W modem.  All four ports should be open.  

 

Edit:  Just so there is no confusion, and I'm not insinuating anything by stating that...

 

1.  Disable the WiFi, and ensure it's disabled by looking on the page shown above.

2.  Take a snapshot of the HughesNet Usage Meter.  I even move the meter to the lower right corner of my desktop to make sure that I also get the clock in the snapshot.  

3.  Immediately after taking the snapshot disconnect the LAN cable from the modem.  Also note the time (especially if it's not in the picture).  

4.  Let the modem sit for several hours.  Overnight is good, and that way it would also include both the Anytime and Bonus time periods.

5.  Note the time, reconnect the LAN cable, then open the Usage Meter and take a snapshot.  Including the clock would again be good.  

6.  Then post the snapshots and any pertinent info, like times of disconnect and reconnect if they aren't in the snapshots. 

 

The reps can reconcile the time of the snapshots with what they see in your modem history, as they'll be able to see when your LAN cable was disconnected, then reconnected.  Because of this, it's best to NOT unplug the modem until after they've had time to review the test results, as unplugging the modem will wipe out the modem logs.    

 

Edit 2:  If you're asking how HughesNet will be able to determine that the WiFi has been disabled and the LAN cable disconnected, it's through the aforementioned modem logs, so again, please don't unplug the modem.  

I appreciate the help and the info so let me say that first.  With that being said, does Glasswire give you a better status of data usage than Windows task manager.  And what app do you use for your phone?  I had closed out all apps and it was still sucking the data. 

 

About the modem history.  Since I don't have anything connected to the modem (except to disable the 5Ghz Wi-fi) I don't have the status meter, but I log into my account and look at the data usage tab.  I also unplugged and plugged the modem in yesterday from advice by maratsade.  My last data used was 2659MB at 2230 last night and that was after connecting and disconnecting the LAN to disable the 5Ghz.  I am still confused though.  If by chance there is something lurking around using up my data, which I assume is the reason to disconnect the wireless and LAN (joke) why has it only used 1MB of bonus data.  Why is there such a disparity between service data and bonus data usage? 

 

 

Usage.PNG

maratsade
Distinguished Professor IV

I think right now the best you can do is what Gabe suggested -- get the screenshots.  Please realise that you will not be able to move forward with your ticket/support request until you perform the required steps. I understand that all of this may mean nothing to you, but you really need to know what's draining your data, and Gabe has told you how to begin troubleshooting that so the reps then can take over and check diagnostics on their side, or involve the engineers.  The screenshots are a required part of the process. 

 

*I am not a Hughesnet employee or representative. This is a customer-to-customer tech support community, and I am a customer.

We need to find out what's draining my data, correct?  According to the screenshot I posted, NOTHING is using my bonus data.  Will the screenshot I posted work or do I need the "official" screenshot?  If so, then that's what I'll do.  It is hilarious that my devices are draining my service data and not my bonus data.  12 days and all of my data sucking devices have only used 1MB.  Yes, that is sarcasm.   

GabeU
Distinguished Professor IV

@KenS

 

The first step in this process is to perform the modem isolation test as instructed and post the screenshots from that test.  The results of the test will determine the next step to take.