Buffering issues with local files via ethernet

[stanleyb4]

Hello everyone,

I have a Windows 7 Pro box hosting my media connected to my U-Verse router via HPNA coax. I have several MKVs ranging from about 20-35 Mbits/sec. Every MKV low 20s and above buffers very badly (proportional to bitrate) while connected to the network. The most Mbit/sec my host machine reports is around 15. When playing the same files locally from a USB drives there is no issue whatsoever. When playing the file from the exact same ethernet connection via laptop there is no buffer, and DU Meter shows I'm running between 50-58 Mbits/sec.

I've tried every network optimization I can find on these forums (Windows 7 reg hack etc) and was wondering if anyone has had a similar experience that they have resolved or could offer any suggestions. I love the Boxee Box, but I only wanted it to play networked media, and at this rate (pun intended) it may find it's way back to Fry's...

Thanks in advance for any suggestions

[haveringcottage]

let me get this straight....

USB > boxee = no problems (so it's not boxee struggling to render it)

Laptop > boxee (over ethernet) = no problems (so it's not a network bandwidth problem)

Win7 box > boxee (over ethernet) = Buffer problems

So the problem is definitely to do with your windows 7 box, not your ethernet or boxee.

get simple stuff out of the way first.

1) Is your computer connecting to the network at 100mbs (not 10!)?

2) Is the cable duff?

3) have you tried streaming from Win7 machine to laptop to see if it works OK?

4) have you a spare router to try?

5) have you tried it over wireless?

6) we need more details of the spec of the windows 7 machine

[stanleyb4]

let me get this straight....

USB > boxee = no problems (so it's not boxee struggling to render it)

Right. Boxee plays all the files like a charm on local USB

Laptop > boxee (over ethernet) = no problems (so it's not a network bandwidth problem)

Right. Ethernet bandwidth is apparently not an issue outside of the BB

Win7 box > boxee (over ethernet) = Buffer problems

No bandwidth / playback problems with the laptop

So the problem is definitely to do with your windows 7 box, not your ethernet or boxee.

get simple stuff out of the way first.

1) Is your computer connecting to the network at 100mbs (not 10!)?

My NIC settings are 100 Mbps Full Duplex, flow control is Rx & Tx enabled. I'm able to serve at 50 Mbps at least to my laptop

2) Is the cable duff?

I used the same cable with the laptop to make sure it wasn't the problem

3) have you tried streaming from Win7 machine to laptop to see if it works OK?

Win 7 media host to Win 7 laptop has no problem

4) have you a spare router to try?

Unfortunately no.

5) have you tried it over wireless?

I've connected to the internet with the BB but not the network. Had a problem getting it to see my networked files wirelessly

6) we need more details of the spec of the windows 7 machine

Core 2 Duo E6750 2.66hz, 2GB RAM, 32bit OS

Thanks for the reply I hope these answers help you help me

[haveringcottage]

hmmmm,

hopefully some bright spark on here is a windows 7 networking specialist who can help you.....

I've not had a problem like this with windows 7 so i am pretty thin on the ground for ideas.

Unfortunately, as this isn't a boxee-specific fault (as it seems its your windows pc that's the issue) I'm lacking in experience!

Sorry Stanley.

[stanleyb4]

Thanks anyway for your time. It appears that this isn't an isolated issue, but it doesn't seem to have been raised for a while. Hopefully someone has an idea At this point I'm considering going with a NAS locally connected via USB and writing to it over the network.

[bryan]

My NIC settings are 100 Mbps Full Duplex, flow control is Rx & Tx enabled. I'm able to serve at 50 Mbps at least to my laptop

Change to Autonegotiation to see if that makes a difference

[stanleyb4]

No luck there =/ thanks though

[bryan]

-try to use the lap top cable on your desktop and vice versa to see if anything changes
-uninstall your desktop nic, reboot, and let it re-install itself (I had issues seeing my USB drive on the network share that was fixed this way)
-put your USB drive on the BB and look at the transfer speeds to it from your desktop and laptop. this won't do much but confirm you are having speed issues

[stanleyb4]

How can I access the USB drive (while connected to BB) or look at speeds from my Win 7 box?

[bryan]

Do you have an external USB drive you can hook up to the BB? Or maybe a decent size USB stick? If so, hook it up and set it up as a share. Then use your desktop to send a file to it and check the speed. Do the same for the laptop