BT Speed Test

This page explains how to run the BT tests of your ADSL line. If you are having problems with the service we may need you to run these tests in order that BT can access the results and see what's going on. Clearly it doesn't work if your service is not BT based.

1) Connection Test

If you are having trouble getting connected to the internet at all, then this quick test may shed some light.

You need to change the login *name* that your router uses to connect to the internet. Before you change it, note down, or ask us to tell you, your regular login name. This will be in the form

user@dsl.wizards.co.uk or user@interdsl.co.uk

NOTE that in the following test you do NOT need to change the password, so, when the test is over, you can put your username back and the password should still be correct.

Change the ADSL login name in your router from the regular login, to, exactly bt_test_user@startup_domain

With this username in place, the router should ALWAYS be able to log in to the internet. However, it has very restricted access. It can't access most of the internet but you should be able to get the following page up on your web browser http://www.bt.net/digitaldemo .

If you can connect, please move on to test 2. If not, please inform us at once! If you have a spare router or modem, please try the connection test with THAT just in case the fault is with your router.

2) Speed test

This test is designed to test and log the speed of your connection in both directions.

Visit the test page at http://www.speedtester.bt.com - to run the test type in your telephone number (ignore the service code) and click Go.

PLEASE try to ensure that nothing else is using the internet connection when you run this test. Note taht any other activity,e.g. someone sending emails, and especially someone sending or receiving large files, video or audio streams, makign Skype calls, etc., will make the test report a slower speed than you are actually able to achieve.

3) Filter swap

The ADSL microfilter that connects your router to the phone socket is, sadly, made very cheaply and these units have been known to fail. That's why when we shipped you your router, we sent you a spare one! Please try swapping the connection over to the spare filter, to see if that makes any difference.

4) Line noise - the "Silent Test"

If there is a regular phone connected to your line, please pick it up and listen. Is it nice and clear? Any gremlins frying eggs? Make a call and see fi you can hear the other person. BT make a special test number available. Dial 17070 - you should hear a voice confirming the number of your line. Then there's a vioce menu - choose option 2 for "Silent test". There will be then about 20 seconds of silence. And that's all you should hear. If you hear any hissing, humming, crackling, or other noises, then there's a problem with the line itself. Call us...

5) Master Socket test

If you have a BT "NTE5" Master Socket, please try connecting your router to the hidden BT socket that you can reach by undoing the two screws either side of the faceplate and removing the lower half of the faceplate. See picture!

Take care - any wires running to extensions elsewhere will be connected to the rear of the removed part so carefully leave this hanging on the wires, don't pull it away so the wires are disconnected!

The reason for this test is that with the faceplate removed, any wiring inside your premises is disconnected from the BT supplied external wiring. If the connection works when connected like this but doesn't work when the face-plate is installed, you have a problem with your extension wiring.

The picture on the right shows what the inside of the unit looks like when the faceplate is removed. You can see a phone cable plugged in to the "hidden" socket, and the orange and blue wires are connected to the back of the faceplate which is hanging just below the patress.

The NTE5 is the BT equivalent of the "board fuse" in your electricity supply. Anything up to and including the master socket, but NOT the faceplate, belongs to BT, you're not allowed to connect or adjust anything to it except the faceplate, and if there is a fault, it's BT's problem. Anything after the master socket, either plugged in to the front or connected to the back of the faceplate, belongs to you, it's part of what BT term "Customer Premesis Equipment" and if there are any faults in the cabling or equipment on the "inside" of this socket, BT won't fix it, you need to find someone else who can.