wow

[lm8542]

Hop 1: 192.168.42.1 - 1 | 465 | 463 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |

Hop 2: host97726550.direcpc.com - 0 | 472 | 472 | 554 | 609 | *679* | 617 |

Hop 3: host9772453.direcpc.com - *1* | 469 | 468 | 537 | 617 | *686* | 658 |

The first column to the right of the IP / Host is the percentage of packets (or data) lost when being routed through that specific "hop". In this test we are seeing 1% data loss paired with latency spikes up to 686ms over the course of the first three hops. This can be summarized as general connection instability, and this is almost certain to be what is causing the problems in-game as any packet loss will cause fluctuating latency as well as periodic disconnects from the game or application that you are connecting to.

With that in mind, this would be an issue to bring up to your ISP as they may need to troubleshoot that second "hop" and/or reroute your connection so that it avoids this problematic hop. Keep in mind that you can request to speak with a "level 2 or level 3 technician" when contacting the ISP, as the front-line representatives typically only have access to basic diagnostics and troubleshooting tools. In addition, I encourage forwarding the WinMTR data to whomever you speak with when contacting the ISP, because if they're able to interpret the data, this may enable them to diagnose and resolve the issue more quickly.

[lm8542]

The top part of my post was omitted somehow without me being aware of it. Needless to say I have been using Hughesnet since 2011 and have been playing wow (world of warcraft) with the expected latency on both gen 4 and gen 5 after upgrade. The latency was playable and between 400ms-1200ms depending on the time of day. But last year I had to suspend playing this game because I thought it was the game as they released a new update. However, after contacting blizzard tech support and giving them my winMTR results I was told by the tech that it was a hughesnet problem and my first post is part of his reply to my request for help. 

[MarkJFine]

Yeah, so your lag time is bound to be a minimum of 500ms because you're going over satellite to a ground station on the west coast that's then connected to the internet. Click here for details on how to calculate what your minimum would be.

[lighthope1 · Accepted solution]

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@lm8542 wrote:

The top part of my post was omitted somehow without me being aware of it. Needless to say I have been using Hughesnet since 2011 and have been playing wow (world of warcraft) with the expected latency on both gen 4 and gen 5 after upgrade. The latency was playable and between 400ms-1200ms depending on the time of day. But last year I had to suspend playing this game because I thought it was the game as they released a new update. However, after contacting blizzard tech support and giving them my winMTR results I was told by the tech that it was a hughesnet problem and my first post is part of his reply to my request for help. 

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Level3 is a known problem.  It's a serious bottleneck.  Basically, anything owned by Qwest has been having trouble with WoW players.  Lucky for me, almost everything goes through a Quest server on my route, so I experience monsterous latency.  So WoW playing is nearly impossible.

The only solution is for HughesNet to route around the problem servers, though after talking with a very high up person, that is a major undertaking.

Qwest won't help unless you are their customer.

Could you post your original post in full?  (You said some of it was cut off)  That might help.

[lighthope1]

Correction: It may be CenturyLink, not Qwest.  Whoever owns L3.

[lm8542]

Thanks for the quick feedback. Actually, I had typed an introduction to what I was posting to explain why I was posting it instead of just tossing the image out there and that part got cut off. I would have preferred being able to screen shot the post but could not find a way to get the entire text so I had copied and paste it

 I  went back to blizzard tech support and recopied the original support ticket response just in case I omitted any technical info:

 Yunasckah

Hey there Layla, Technical Specialist Yunasckah here. I hope this message finds you doing well! After reviewing your ticket I see that you've been experiencing high latency when playing WoW for quite some time now. I certainly understand how irritating technical issues can be when you just want to enjoy your gaming time. Rest assured that we're going to do everything we can to get you taken care of! To begin, thank you kindly for taking the time to attach your WinMTR test data! After reviewing the data, we have identified an issue beginning just outside of your home network -- at the ISP's first "hop". The issues shown are latency spikes as well as packet loss. I've copied a portion of the WinMTR test below with more information: Hop 1: 192.168.42.1 - 1 | 465 | 463 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | Hop 2: host97726550.direcpc.com - 0 | 472 | 472 | 554 | 609 | *679* | 617 | Hop 3: host9772453.direcpc.com - *1* | 469 | 468 | 537 | 617 | *686* | 658 | The first column to the right of the IP / Host is the percentage of packets (or data) lost when being routed through that specific "hop". In this test we are seeing 1% data loss paired with latency spikes up to 686ms over the course of the first three hops. This can be summarized as general connection instability, and this is almost certain to be what is causing the problems in-game as any packet loss will cause fluctuating latency as well as periodic disconnects from the game or application that you are connecting to. With that in mind, this would be an issue to bring up to your ISP as they may need to troubleshoot that second "hop" and/or reroute your connection so that it avoids this problematic hop. Keep in mind that you can request to speak with a "level 2 or level 3 technician" when contacting the ISP, as the front-line representatives typically only have access to basic diagnostics and troubleshooting tools. In addition, I encourage forwarding the WinMTR data to whomever you speak with when contacting the ISP, because if they're able to interpret the data, this may enable them to diagnose and resolve the issue more quickly. While I do wish that I had an immediate solution, I sincerely hope that this information has provided further insight into the situation and helps get things fixed up so you can get back to playing as normal! Thank you again for your time and for giving me the opportunity to look into this for you, Layla. If there are ever any other questions or concerns that you have for us, please don't hesitate to let us know. In the meantime, I hope the rest of your day goes well, and nothing holds you back from having the absolutely epic experience you deserve!

[lm8542]

Thanks for posting. wikipedia says Level 3 communications officially merged with centurylink in November 2017. Most updated info I could find.

[MarkJFine]

Chances are CentryLink is your gateway's provider. Aside from the latency you would normally see from satellite, they have been known to have 1-minute drop outs where nothing happens. This happens mostly mostly with data coming down to you, but I've seen it happen going up as well.

[lighthope1]

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@lm8542 wrote:

Thanks for posting. wikipedia says Level 3 communications officially merged with centurylink in November 2017. Most updated info I could find.

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Yeah, they are a serious problem child for World of Warcraft players.  You'll see huge hangtimes from them.

If you go to the technical support forums and search for centurylink, you'll see a tsunami of complaints about them.

Centurylink will tell you go pound sand. They don't care.

HughesNet can complain, since they are the the next link in the chain.  They are aware of the problem, but don't know if they have done anything about it. They can reroute around them, but as I said, it's a massive undertaking according to the high-level I talked to.  So don't look for that to happen either.

Honestly, there's not much that can be done by you other than to eat it and continue to play, accepting the impossible latency spike, or stop playing and save the money.

Wish I had better news.

Maybe CenturyLink will eventually fix it.

[lighthope1]

Oh, btw, because of CenturyLink's position in the chain, this is going to affect everything.  So you can't bounce to...say...Final Fantasy XIV or Guild Wars 2.  You'll get the same problem.

You can always ask to switch satellites.  That could help. Problem is, the satellite that will likely solve your latency problem will drag you down with speed problems.

Pick your poison.