[GRLUG] Finding the bandwidth hog

[Michael Mol]

On Tue, Feb 7, 2012 at 3:43 PM, Benjamin Flanders <flanderb at gmail.com> wrote:
> On Tue, Feb 7, 2012 at 2:51 PM, Michael Mol <mikemol at gmail.com> wrote:
>> On Tue, Feb 7, 2012 at 2:08 PM, Benjamin Flanders <flanderb at gmail.com> wrote:
>>> I've been tasked to find out what running on our network that is
>>> taking a good chunk of our internet bandwidth.  Quite simply I don't
>>> know where to start.  I've got all the people that stream music to
>>> stop, and we are still seeing a lot of traffic.  Will wireshark help
>>> out?  What other programs are out there?  I do have a cisco pix
>>> firewall that perhaps I could use, if I knew how.
>>
>> What kind of router are you currently using? If it's a Linux box, I'd
>> suggest trying 'iftop'. Unless your version of iftop has the IPv6
>> patches, though, it'll only show you IPv4 flows.
>>
>
> We have a couple HP Procurves.  I don't believe that they are managed,
> at least I have never gone in there and managed anything.  Do I sound
> like a newbie?  I'm not a young pup, I just don't know anything.

All routers are managed. Also, I've heard very good things about
Procurves, though I've never had my hands on anything fancier than a
Linux box or a consumer-grade home router.

Probably worthwhile reading up on them. You might get some mileage
from tinkering with your home network, too, as far as skill-building
network management. That's what I did. :)

>
> Thank you for your help.  it took a while, but it seems that our
> streaming users plus our reporting tool are causing the spikes.  Once
> we stopped our streaming usage and when a meeting got out(they were
> using the reporting tool)  we dropped down to a manageable trickle.  I
> really hate to have to tell our users that they can't stream.  We have
> some diehard Pandora fans, and I believe that music can help the work
> environment.

It might be time to upgrade your internet connection, or get a second
(ADSL or cable, depends on availability and your needs) connection for
bulk. I don't want to think about what you're paying for a mere
1.33Mb/s down.

-- 
:wq

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