I think I know which server is causing so much pain for Euro players

[JayyDestroyer]

I've been following the IP address(s) of the server(s) that have been giving me lag and disconnects. In almost all cases, this server seems to be:

206.127.14x.xxx

Where "X" is any number.

Does this server cause problems for anyone else in Europe? If so, perhaps the technical team could check it out and see if this is the problem.

[Beta Sprite]

It's not a server that's causing the problem. It's a router between players and the server, which is not own by NCSoft or ANet.

Also, since you don't have an exact set of numbers, you are talking about multiple IPs, which usually means separate servers. If the Xs are different numbers, it's a different address, and it points somewhere else.

[JayyDestroyer]

Well, if over half of the numbers are the same, then it generally means the servers are in the same place.

[Ora]

I've been following the IP address(s) of the server(s) that have been giving me lag and disconnects. In almost all cases, this server seems to be:

206.127.14x.xxx

Where "X" is any number.

Does this server cause problems for anyone else in Europe? If so, perhaps the technical team could check it out and see if this is the problem.

That's the ncsoft servers. As you can see when you move your mouse over the conection speed dot...or do a "whois"

Using server whois.arin.net.
Query string: "206.127.147.146"


OrgName: NC INTERACTIVE, INC.
OrgID: NCINT
Address: 6801 North Capital of Texas Hwy 5b. Org Address:Building
Address: 1
City: Austin
StateProv: TX
PostalCode: 78731
Country: US

NetRange: 206.127.144.0 - 206.127.159.255
CIDR: 206.127.144.0/20
NetName: NCINT
NetHandle: NET-206-127-144-0-1
Parent: NET-206-0-0-0-0
NetType: Direct Assignment
NameServer: NCDNS01.NCAUSTIN.COM
NameServer: NCDNS02.NCAUSTIN.COM
Comment:
RegDate: 2004-10-01
Updated: 2004-10-25

[JayyDestroyer]

Ah, right.

So it's not any of Anet's servers, but the server that links to the main one in the US that is the problem?

[nubnub]

Do a tracert on that IP address, and you'll see where the problem lies.

Start menu >> Run

Type in "CMD" without quotes

tracert 206.127.147.146

Here are my results from the US. There is nothing ArenaNet or NCSoft can do about this.

C:\Documents and Settings\Nathan>tracert 206.127.147.146

Tracing route to 206-127-147-146.plaync.com [206.127.147.146]
over a maximum of 30 hops:

  1    <1 ms    <1 ms    <1 ms  buffalo.setup [192.168.11.1]
  2     *        *        *     Request timed out.
  3     *       15 ms    17 ms  ge-1-43-ur02.flint.mi.michigan.comcast.net [68.87.187.157]
  4     9 ms     9 ms     7 ms  te-9-2-ur03.flint.mi.michigan.comcast.net [68.87.190.82]
  5    10 ms    10 ms     9 ms  te-7-3-ar02.pontiac.mi.michigan.comcast.net [68.87.190.86]
  6    13 ms    14 ms    14 ms  po-20-ar02.taylor.mi.michigan.comcast.net [68.87.190.5]
  7    13 ms    11 ms     *     68.85.235.193
  8    23 ms    40 ms    24 ms  68.86.90.109
  9    31 ms    20 ms    21 ms  68.86.85.38
 10    27 ms    27 ms     *     68.86.85.45
 11    26 ms    27 ms    27 ms  ge-5-1-125.ipcolo1.Washington1.Level3.net [63.210.62.157]
 12    34 ms    37 ms    34 ms  vlan99.csw4.Washington1.Level3.net [4.68.17.254]

 13    37 ms    36 ms    35 ms  ae-92-92.ebr2.Washington1.Level3.net [4.69.134.157]
 14   118 ms   108 ms   108 ms  ae-5.ebr2.Paris1.Level3.net [4.69.132.114]
 15   136 ms   126 ms   126 ms  ae-2.ebr1.Frankfurt1.Level3.net [4.69.132.142]
 16   122 ms   126 ms   122 ms  ae-11-55.car1.Frankfurt1.Level3.net [4.68.118.143]
 17     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 18     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 19     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 20     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 21     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 22     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 23     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 24     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 25     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 26     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 27     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 28     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 29     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 30     *        *        *     Request timed out.

Trace complete.

[Ora]

Here are my results from the US. There is nothing ArenaNet or NCSoft can do about this.

.[/code]

Not really. Has it occured to you, that while they blamed a DTAG (T-Com) hub to the backbone for the probs in the past, you are stuck at a lvl3 one ?

(Frankfurt has several big hubs to the net: T-Com, lvl3, Tiscali)

The NCsoft servers here in Frankfurt have connections to all 3 (which should guarantee traffic, even if there are probs on one of the hubs) the only thing in common to those in relation with the lags is the connection to the ncsoft servers.

One should realize, that ncsoft most likely doesn't own their servers. They hire them from a host. Thus if ncsoft/anet say, the problem is not in their hands, that doesn't mean it is the hub. It might just as well be the host they have hired

This is also, why we heared about several maintenances on the servers. If it would be a backbone issue, maintenance on an anet server would not fix it...

[aspboy]

Heres a tracert i did earlier in the evening:

C:\Windows\system32>tracert 206.127.146.45

Tracing route to 206-127-146-45.plaync.com [206.127.146.45]
over a maximum of 30 hops:

  1    <1 ms    <1 ms    <1 ms  routerip
  2     9 ms    11 ms     7 ms  modemip
  3     8 ms    10 ms     9 ms  realip
  4    32 ms     9 ms     9 ms  uddi-t3core-1b-ge-010-0.inet.ntl.com [80.3.16.12
9]
  5    10 ms    11 ms    10 ms  ren-bb-b-so-500-0.inet.ntl.com [213.105.175.193]

  6    14 ms    16 ms    14 ms  man-bb-a-so-010-0.inet.ntl.com [62.253.185.170]

  7   109 ms   199 ms   202 ms  212.187.136.125
  8   101 ms    93 ms   104 ms  ae-4-4.ebr1.London1.Level3.net [4.69.133.102]
  9    91 ms    94 ms   103 ms  ae-1-100.ebr2.London1.Level3.net [4.69.132.118]

 10   101 ms   106 ms   108 ms  ae-2.ebr2.Amsterdam1.Level3.net [4.69.132.134]
 11   119 ms   106 ms   108 ms  ae-1-100.ebr1.Amsterdam1.Level3.net [4.69.133.85
]
 12   107 ms   107 ms   107 ms  ae-2.ebr2.Dusseldorf1.Level3.net [4.69.133.90]
 13   116 ms   106 ms   109 ms  ae-1-100.ebr1.Dusseldorf1.Level3.net [4.69.132.1
29]
 14   108 ms   106 ms   106 ms  ae-2.ebr2.Frankfurt1.Level3.net [4.69.132.138]
 15   112 ms   112 ms   110 ms  ae-21-56.car1.Frankfurt1.Level3.net [4.68.118.17
5]
 16     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 17     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 18     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 19     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 20     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 21     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 22     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 23     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 24     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 25     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 26     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 27     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 28     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 29     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 30     *        *        *     Request timed out.

Trace complete.

From the looks of it, the slowdown occurs at the Level3 section. They provide the network backbone.

[nubnub]

Not really. Has it occured to you, that while they blamed a DTAG (T-Com) hub to the backbone for the probs in the past, you are stuck at a lvl3 one ?

No, I'm not stuck at a level3 hub. The level3 hubs are responding fine. It's whatever comes after level3 that's the problem.

One should realize, that ncsoft most likely doesn't own their servers. They hire them from a host. Thus if ncsoft/anet say, the problem is not in their hands, that doesn't mean it is the hub. It might just as well be the host they have hired

Do you honestly think that Guild Wars is hosted on a rented server at a hosting company? Like GoDaddy, but for custom terabyte databases and their custom server apps? Sorry, this outpost has been disabled for excessive bandwidth usage, please contact your GM. Come on, now.

[Ora]

No, I'm not stuck at a level3 hub. The level3 hubs are responding fine. It's whatever comes after level3 that's the problem.

there you go. Anet servers have direct peerings to lvl3, DTAG, Tiscali...
Thus what comes after lvl 3 is the connection to the anet server

Do you honestly think that Guild Wars is hosted on a rented server at a hosting company? Like GoDaddy, but for custom terabyte databases and their custom server apps? Sorry, this outpost has been disabled for excessive bandwidth usage, please contact your GM. Come on, now.

The one anet uses in Frankfurt is known. It's one of the 2 RedBus data centers in Frankfurt

http://www.telecityredbus.com/home
http://www.redbus.de/wo_sie_uns_finden/frankfurt.html

You obviously overestimate the actual amount of traffic a game like GW creates and underestimate the services large datacenters offer.