Testing with Your Own URL

You can also enter your own URL to test download performance from another server or from a server that is closer to you (the server is located in Germany).

Choosing an URL:

You can use pretty much any URL you want, you just have to remember to choose a download file, not a HTML page which would only take a couple of seconds to access! A large shareware software package would be ideal.

To find a suitable file just access a website offering download files with your browser (for example a software company that publishes trial downloads of their products) and find a package to download. To get meaningful results you should choose a file that will take at least three to five minutes to download with your Internet connection. Choose a smaller file if you have a slower modem, a larger file if you have a high-speed or broadband connection.

Then note the address of the file as shown in the Address field of your browser. It should look something like this:

   http://www.companyname.com/downloads/software.zip or

   http://www.companyname.com/downloads/trialpackage.exe

You get the general idea. The actual URL will look different of course - it will contain the necessary information for accessing the website you have chosen.

Test Procedure:

1.	If your computer is not online go online now.

2.	Enter the URL in the Own URL for test file: field.

3.	Click on Download to start the test.

4.	Allow the test to complete and note the results.

5.	Go offline if you want.

Trying out different settings:

If you want to try different settings you should do this now, so that you can carry out your next test as quickly as possible, before network conditions change too much. Remember to start Windows before you go online again after changing your optimization settings!