Persistent Packet Loss Issues with Sky Internet

[Pelly1]

Hello everyone,

I’ve been facing ongoing issues with my Sky internet, and I’m almost certain it’s related to packet loss. While I’m not highly technical, I’ve gathered some information from my experiences and Sky support calls that might help clarify the problem. Any guidance would be greatly appreciated!

Overview of the Issue

Symptoms:

• Frequent packet loss makes online activities (gaming, phone calls, video streaming) nearly unusable.

• Examples include audio cutting out for 2-3 seconds on calls, stuttering/rubber-banding in games, and interruptions while streaming.

• This occurs on both wired (Cat6) and wireless connections, across all devices in the household.

Pattern:

• The issue is noticeable at any time, not just during peak hours.

• It sometimes worsens during high-activity situations (e.g., busy areas in games).

Steps Taken So Far

1. First Call:

• Sky suggested resetting the router via the WPS button and turning off the BT fiber port for 5+ seconds.

• Security was switched from WPA3-T to WPA2.

• Result: Slight improvement initially, but packet loss soon returned to disruptive levels.

2. Second Call:

• Troubleshooting confirmed the router setup was correct.

• A BT engineer was sent to check the line.

• BT engineer found no issues, claimed the problem might lie with Sky’s servers.

3. Third Call:

• The agent didn’t seem familiar with packet loss and focused on speed, which has never been an issue.

• A power cycle of the router was suggested but hasn’t been done yet due to work schedules.

Context and Frustration

Comparison with Previous ISP:

• With BT (on copper), we had lower speeds (50Mbps down/5Mbps up) but zero packet loss. Speeds are at current with sky 500mbps down and 75 mbps up.

Sky Fiber Experience:

• Despite upgrading to fiber for better reliability, the packet loss has made the internet unusable for most of the household.

Technical Observations:

• Packet loss appears to occur between the router and the server, not between devices and the router.

• No improvement with wired connections.

• Pings like below look the same on all devices, i.e. when a connections times on out a wired pc, it will drop simultaneously on a wireless one if testing at the same time. 
 

Pinging googles server:

Pinging the router at same time:

 

Request for Help

Does anyone have experience troubleshooting packet loss with Sky or suggestions on what might resolve this? I’ve already ruled out many basic fixes, and I’m struggling to get meaningful help from Sky support. The issue affects the entire household, and given the cost of fiber, this is incredibly frustrating.

Any insights or advice would be greatly appreciated!

[mae-3]

Packet loss can occur on fiber optic networks due to various faults, including:

* **Fiber optic cables:** These cables can become kinked or damaged, affecting signal transmission.

* **Connectors:** Connectors can become dirty and require cleaning to restore proper functionality.

* **Optic transmitters:** Low signal strength can occur due to faulty optic transmitters.

* **Distance between transmitter and receiver:** Excessive distance can hinder signal propagation.

* **Incompatible cables or ports:** Ethernet connections using faulty cables or ports can result in packet loss.

* **Broken fiber cables:** Damaged fiber cables can disrupt signal transmission. 

[Pelly1]

Hi,

Thanks for the reply!

Are there recommended ways to test whether the issue lies with the fiber optic cables, connectors, or optic transmitters? For example, are there tools or methods I can use to check signal strength or detect kinks/damage in the cable?

[TimmyBGood]

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@Pelly1 wrote:

For example, are there tools or methods I can use to check signal strength or detect kinks/damage in the cable?

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Essentially no, unless you happen to work for Openreach.  Strictly speaking it's not legitimate for civilians to be touching the fibre-optic side of the ONT at all, apart from perhaps unplugging and reseating the green SC APC connector as part of basic troubleshooting.

[Anonymous]

Are your Ethernet connections going direct to the hub or are there any switches in play on the network? A faulty switch can't be ruled out if so.

Are you running CCTV? If so can you try unplugging it temporarily to see if things improve. 
Is there anything running in the background, such as a pc running Steam or a Torrent client?

I appreciate that it appears to have run without issue previously while I no FTTC, but wonder if anything elee may have change recently.

These are obviously things which could cause issue up to the router. Any issues with the fibre itself mostly lies in the Openreach domain and becomes only becomes a Sky  issue when it hits any Sky equipment at the exchange. 
Unfortunately if there are network issues outside the home causing packet loss this could be quite difficult to initially identify and resolve. If you are certain that everything in the home is bullet proof, checking things like I suggested above, it may be worth another call to Sky to see if they can get the network team to look it it.