upload speed
upload speed
A method to bill extra for businesses or individuals requiring the upload speed tier. Beyond sharing occasional YouTube clips, most home internet users rarely need significant uploads. However, streamers or tech-savvy users who host public servers or proxies find upload speeds valuable. ISPs can offer premium tiers without alienating the bulk of their customers. Some might claim higher upload usage is more expensive for them because they must maintain extra infrastructure and bandwidth to serve each user individually, rather than relying on shared download capacity that handles many users simultaneously. Remember, during peak times everyone using cable internet in a neighborhood slows down for others. Upload demands make it necessary to dedicate fiber or configure DOCSIS 3.0 cable to allow more bandwidth per local loop, unless coaxial cables reach fiber nodes.
The situation stems from two main reasons: one involving a single pair and the other a full duplex setup. A single pair uses two wires, originally used for T1s and DSL, but now also includes coaxial cable which acts like two lines—inner and outer. Full duplex allows simultaneous sending and receiving, but mediums can only transmit a certain amount of data before interference causes loss. If a line supports 100mbps, it can only deliver that total, sharing the load between download and upload. Initially, symmetric distribution was used (50/50), but as people noticed upload demands far exceed download, asymmetric became the norm, such as 90/10. This approach persisted due to DSL and cable dominating the market, even extending to fiber with GPON technology where the actual speeds differ (2.4/1.2gbps). This limitation isn’t about backbone capacity, but rather the inherent need to balance send and receive over a single connection. There’s a solid technical basis for why uploads slow down and why increasing them costs more. AE fiber removes this issue entirely, but it’s significantly more expensive to install than GPON. This isn’t just about cutting corners—it reflects real constraints in network design.
The central and distribution points in a service provider network feature perfectly balanced connections. Speeds range from 1/1gbps to 10/10gbps, 100/100gbps, etc. When customers upload data, the ISP processes it identically. The access platforms also impose upload limits, causing those upstream links to remain underused. During busy periods, our 30,000 users collectively consume about 50gbps downward, with fluctuations between 500mbps and 1.5gbps upward from all endpoints. Bandwidth concerns should be addressed last.
The reason is the cable system only operates between 5Mhz and 42 MHz for uploads. This was the standard they began with for cable internet. Back then, they likely didn’t anticipate needing higher frequencies. While Docsis 3.1 supports broader upload bands, most providers haven’t adopted those improvements. Additionally, limited upload speeds make it difficult for users to reach servers that handle internet traffic. Sharing high-quality 4K Plex videos becomes challenging when there isn’t enough data to transmit.
The strategy remains the same. On Comcast's end, they typically offer only 3 to 4 streaming channels, mainly because many networks haven't upgraded their upstream connections. The fastest upload speeds I've noticed are around 50 Mbps, found on WOW. I'm unsure about their current offerings for higher upload speeds. WOW isn't ideal for my area either. You'll likely need to wait until they begin implementing the D3.1 improvements. It's unclear when that will occur, and there seems to be no clear motivation for making those changes right now.