Test suite for routers?

[Lumikor]

So, my ISP brought me a new modem/router saying it's much better then my current router (Archer C9) and my older modem. And I want to test this claim. 

I wonder if there's a test suite to benchmark the gear beside running speedtest on both routers (I don't trust it, soz)

 

Thanks,

All Hail Dennis!

[kirashi]

6 minutes ago, Lumikor said:

So, my ISP brought me a new modem/router saying it's much better then my current router (Archer C9) and my older modem. And I want to test this claim. 

I wonder if there's a test suite to benchmark the gear beside running speedtest on both routers (I don't trust it, soz)

 

Thanks,

All Hail Dennis!

You'd need the private signing key to install aftermarket firmware on the modem/router combo unit, along with permission from your ISP if you're renting the unit. Otherwise you're relegated to running authorized firmware only, which I'm willing to bet doesn't have benchmarking functionality... not that I know of ANY modem/router combo units that do, so not sure how you'd compare it against your old one. Just wire in using a known good ethernet cable and run speed tests.

[schizznick]

Most true ethernet testers have 2 parts one on each side of the router and then run industry tests like rfc2544 and y.1564. However these units are often in the 25k USD range. For consumer routers some speed testing and latency tests are your best options.

[KuJoe]

Connect 2 devices directly into the router then run MTR and iperf on each to test latency and performance through the router. It's not exact and won't tell you things like the total bandwidth of the backplane but it'll give you an idea of the router's performance.

[schizznick]

3 minutes ago, KuJoe said:

Connect 2 devices directly into the router then run MTR and iperf on each to test latency and performance through the router. It's not exact and won't tell you things like the total bandwidth of the backplane but it'll give you an idea of the router's performance.

That will test only the switch mechanism of the Router not the actual routing. Most modern routers handle switching in a switch chip which won't truly test the routers CPU and functionality. 

[KuJoe]

5 minutes ago, schizznick said:

That will test only the switch mechanism of the Router not the actual routing. Most modern routers handle switching in a switch chip which won't truly test the routers CPU and functionality. 

I understand that, but testing a consumer grade router is pretty limited and for most users latency and throughput are all that matters because after that it's usually out of their hands. In reality as long as the router can handle the advertised throughput of his ISP they'll be fine and they'd get better results from an old $30 Dell PowerConnect switch if he needs line rate transfer speeds for multiple devices on the LAN.

[schizznick]

1 minute ago, KuJoe said:

I understand that, but testing a consumer grade router is pretty limited and for most users latency and throughput are all that matters because after that it's usually out of their hands. In reality as long as the router can handle the advertised throughput of his ISP they'll be fine and they'd get better results from an old $30 Dell PowerConnect switch if he needs line rate transfer speeds for multiple devices on the LAN.

True it all depends on the OP's usage. If he is concerned with LAN or WAN throughput. 

[Lumikor]

I don't care about the routers CPU usage, I only care about the difference in speeds between the ISP one and the Archer one. I use it for 3 Ethernet + 3 WifI connections at a time. I care about the internal network speed, to the interwebz it's about the same using SpeedTest. 

[KuJoe]

50 minutes ago, Lumikor said:

I don't care about the routers CPU usage, I only care about the difference in speeds between the ISP one and the Archer one. I use it for 3 Ethernet + 3 WifI connections at a time. I care about the internal network speed, to the interwebz it's about the same using SpeedTest. 

CPU usage directly impacts the network performance unless the traffic is off-loaded to hardware. If you want to test internal speeds then use iperf like I mentioned above.

[Lumikor]

Just now, KuJoe said:

CPU usage directly impacts the network performance unless the traffic is off-loaded to hardware. If you want to test internal speeds then use iperf like I mentioned above.

thanks, will do!

[idiocracy]

Look up devices on smallnetbuilder and compare the tests.