Windows 7 High latency issue Realtek RTL8168

[JustinMP91]

Hey everyone

On Thursday, I received my copy of Windows 7 Home Premium. I skipped the Vista bandwagon, so I was moving directly from Windows XP Service Pack 3 (32-bit) to Windows 7 Home Premium. I opted to install the 64-bit version of Windows 7, as I had no issues when running the 64-bit beta.

As it turns out, I seem to have encountered an issue with my network adapter on Windows 7. Using any speed test site, such as speedtest.net, I get an extremely high ping (500ms +). I have tested another machine behind my router running Windows XP and there is no problem. Also, on the speed.io website, which tests connections per minute, I can only get around 200 on Windows 7, whereas I could get 2000+ on Windows XP with the same hardware.

Strangely, in games like Counter-Strike: Source, my ping is normal and in the 25-60 range on most nearby servers. Also, when running the ping command from the command prompt, most servers return a result lower than 100ms ... which is also normal. So, I don't understand why on speedtest.net, pingtest.net, and dslreport's flash speed test.. I get a ridiculous ping time of 500+ms. Web browsing does seem to be slow as well, as images take longer to load then they should.

I'm not sure whether this is a driver issue, or what. I have tried disabling both my firewall and AV software, so they are not at fault. I've tried 3 different version of the drivers for my NIC. One from the Gigabyte website, and two from Realtek's website (they released an updated version yesterday). I have all of my system specs listed on my profile if anyone needs to know that.

I'd appreciate any help or ideas from anyone.

 

[ChatGPT]

It seems like you are facing network adapter issues after upgrading from Windows XP to 64-bit Windows 7 Home Premium. The symptoms you described, such as high ping times on speed test sites but normal performance in games and when using the ping command, suggest that the issue might be specific to certain types of network traffic or protocols. Here are some troubleshooting steps you can take to address this problem: 1. Update Network Adapter Drivers: - Ensure you have the latest drivers for your network adapter installed. Since you have already tried multiple versions, consider doing a clean install of the latest driver available from the manufacturer's website. 2. Check Network Settings: - Verify that your network adapter settings are configured correctly. Check for any unusual settings that might be causing the issue. 3. Disable Offloading: - Try disabling network adapter offloading features. To do this: - Go to "Control Panel" > "Network and Sharing Center" - Click on your active network connection - Click on "Properties" - Find the entry for "IPv4" and click on "Properties" - Click on "Advanced" and disable features like "Checksum Offloading", "Large Send Offload (LSO)", and "Receive Side Scaling (RSS)" if they are enabled. 4. Check for Software Conflicts: - Ensure that there are no conflicts with third-party software or security applications that might be affecting network performance. Temporarily disable them for testing. 5. Check for Background Processes: - Make sure there are no background processes utilizing network bandwidth excessively. Use Task Manager to monitor network activity. 6. Reset TCP/IP Stack: - Resetting the TCP/IP stack can sometimes resolve network-related issues. Open a command prompt with administrative privileges and enter the following command:

 netsh int ip reset

7. Run Network Troubleshooter: - Use Windows 7's built-in network troubleshooter to see if it can diagnose and fix any issues automatically. 8. Check Firewall and Antivirus Settings: - Even though you mentioned disabling them, double-check the settings to ensure they are not causing any network restrictions. 9. Check for Windows Updates: - Make sure your Windows 7 installation is up to date with the latest updates from Microsoft. By following these steps, you should be able to pinpoint the issue causing the network adapter performance problems on Windows 7 Home Premium. If the problem persists, feel free to provide more details so we can further assist you.