Slow network repair . NYC and tri-state

Network crawling? Slow network repair starts at the bottleneck.

Calls stutter, cloud apps time out, video meetings freeze, and downloads drag even though the ISP says you have gigabit. Slow networks hide in six places: the ISP, the firewall, a switch, the Wi-Fi, the cabling or a single misbehaving device. We find yours and fix it.

Call 212-347-5400 Text us a photo Request a quote
WHERE IS IT SLOW? 6 patterns
SLOW NETWORK · SLOW EVERYWHERE
WHERE IT USUALLY BREAKS
ISP Firewall Switch Wi-Fi Cable Device

Every device, every app, everywhere in the building. The ISP, the main firewall or the link from the firewall. Fast tests at the demarc tell us which.

FIRST THING WE CHECK
A speed test at the demarc, then behind the firewall.
All patterns 06
SLOW NETWORK · 01 / SLOW EVERYWHERE

Slow everywhere

Every device, every app, everywhere in the building. The ISP, the main firewall or the link from the firewall. Fast tests at the demarc tell us which.

FIRST THING WE CHECK
A speed test at the demarc, then behind the firewall.
SLOW NETWORK · 02 / CALLS CRACKLE, THE REST IS FINE

Calls crackle, the rest is fine

Call quality is bad, but video meetings, email and browsing are normal. Voice traffic is not prioritized, the upload is saturated, or latency is high. Usually a settings fix.

FIRST THING WE CHECK
Voice priority settings on the firewall and switch.
SLOW NETWORK · 03 / WI-FI SLOW, WIRED FAST

Wi-Fi slow, wired fast

Devices on a jack are fast, but Wi-Fi is slow or uneven. Interference, too many users on one access point, or crowded channels. A site survey finds it.

FIRST THING WE CHECK
Signal and client count on the access points.
SLOW NETWORK · 04 / SOME USERS OR ONE APP SLOW

Some users or one app slow

Some workstations are fast and others slow, or one cloud app crawls while the web is fine. A VLAN problem, a firewall rule favoring the wrong traffic, or one device.

FIRST THING WE CHECK
What the slow users or the slow app have in common.
SLOW NETWORK · 05 / FINE IN THE MORNING, SLOW BY AFTERNOON

Fine in the morning, slow by afternoon

The classic capacity pattern. As more people come online or backups run, the bandwidth gets used up. A bandwidth analysis finds what is eating it.

FIRST THING WE CHECK
The top bandwidth users during the slow hours.
SLOW NETWORK · 06 / SPEED TEST FINE, OFFICE SLOW

Speed test fine, office slow

A laptop at the firewall gets full gigabit, but normal use in the office is slow. The ISP is fine. The slowdown is between the firewall and your people.

FIRST THING WE CHECK
Throughput through the firewall, then the switch ports.
Licensed and insuredNYC low-voltage licensed, fully insured
Any brand servicedIncluding systems we did not install
Same-day when it mattersPriority when it is hurting the business
Before and after numbersMeasured, not guessed
Where networks slow down 06

The six common bottlenecks, in the order we check them.

We measure before we change anything. The numbers tell us where to act.

01

ISP capacity or quality

You pay for 500 Mbps and get 50 at peak hours, or the line has packet loss and jitter even when speed tests look fine. A test at the demarc tells us if the ISP is really the bottleneck.

ISP
02

Firewall too small

A firewall rated for 100 Mbps on a gigabit line throttles everything. Common after an ISP upgrade without a firewall upgrade. A replacement, or hardware acceleration turned on where supported.

Firewall
03

Switch loop or broadcast storm

A stray cable or a misconfigured port creates a loop, the switch floods the network, and everything crawls. One of the easier fixes once we spot it.

SwitchCable
04

Wi-Fi interference or capacity

Too many users on one access point, channels clashing with the neighbors, or interference from other radio sources. A site survey finds it, and a channel retune or another access point fixes it.

Wi-Fi
05

Cable or port fault

A damaged cable or a failing switch port forces devices down to 100M, or causes constant retransmits. A cable test and the port statistics find it.

CableSwitch
06

A device eating bandwidth

A compromised workstation or smart device uploading or scanning nonstop. It shows up as heavy use with no business reason. Firewall logs find the source.

Device
Paying for speed you do not get

Upgraded to gigabit, but nothing got faster?

Very likely the firewall. Many firewalls top out well below gigabit, especially with security inspection turned on, and a 100 Mbps firewall caps a gigabit line. We measure it and show you the numbers before quoting anything.

Run a speed test at the modemThen one at a desk. The gap tells us a lot.
Note when it is slowAll day or by afternoon points to different causes.
List what got slowCalls, one app or everything.
Any brand, even if we did not install it

You do not need the original installer.

Most slow-network calls are on networks set up by consultants who are no longer around. We identify the gear, recover admin access, and find the bottleneck.

The brands we service

Managed network equipment across the common business platforms, plus consumer gear left behind by past IT and running past what it was built for.

UniFiCiscoArubaFortinetMerakiLinksysTP-LinkNetgearConsumer routers

The measurement side

Slow is not fixed by replacing gear until you know what is actually slow. We measure ISP throughput at the demarc, firewall throughput, switch port statistics, Wi-Fi signal and app latency.

Demarc speed testsFirewall throughputPort statisticsWi-Fi surveyTop talkers
Repair or replace

We tune before we replace.

When we tune

Most slow networks improve a lot with tuning: voice priority, a channel retune, a blocked bandwidth hog, a firewall rule cleanup. We do not replace gear until the settings are exhausted.

When we recommend replacing

The firewall is genuinely too small for the ISP speed, the switches are consumer gear in a business space, or the access points are at end of life. We quote the right size, with honest math on the expected improvement.

Explore network installation →
The repair visit 04

How a slow-network call goes.

Four steps, with numbers before and after.

01

Phone triage

All users or some, all apps or some, the time-of-day pattern, and when it started. Five minutes narrows the layer.

02

Measure on site

Speed at the demarc and behind the firewall, port statistics on the main switch, Wi-Fi signal and client count, and the top bandwidth users. The first 30 minutes gives us the picture.

03

Tune, replace or isolate

Settings tuning is same-visit. Common firewall and switch replacements are same-visit. A misbehaving device is isolated right away, and cleanup is coordinated with your IT.

04

Measure again

ISP speed, internal throughput and app latency, measured after the fix. Written summary with before and after numbers.

WHO WE HELP
Business ownersIT directorsProperty managersMedical officesCo-op and condo boardsHomeowners
Frequent questions 05

Slow network FAQ.

A speed test only measures raw bandwidth. Feeling slow usually means latency, jitter or one app struggling. It could be firewall lag, slow DNS, Wi-Fi interference or an app on your end. We measure beyond the speed test to find what is actually slow.
Very likely. Many firewalls top out well below gigabit, especially with deep packet or SSL inspection turned on. A 100 Mbps firewall caps a gigabit line. We measure the throughput and quote a firewall upgrade if that is the cause.
Yes. Voice is sensitive to delay and email is not. The usual fixes are voice priority settings on the firewall and switch, upload bandwidth tuning, and sometimes a setting on the phone system. We work the network side and coordinate with your phone provider if needed.
Yes. Firewall logs and switch port statistics show which device uses the most. We identify it, tell you, and either isolate it if it is compromised or help you decide what to do, such as a backup running at the wrong time or a misconfigured cloud sync.
Same-day across NYC when the schedule allows, with priority when the slowdown is hurting the business. Call 212-347-5400 for the soonest window.
Get your speed back

Network slow? Pick the fastest way to reach us.

FASTEST FOR OUTAGESCall 212-347-5400

Talk to a technician and get an honest arrival window.

 SEND A PHOTOText 646-838-2300

A screenshot of a speed test, or a photo of the firewall, speeds up the fix.

 NOT URGENTRequest a quote

Describe the system and we will come back with a clear plan.
OTHER NETWORK PROBLEMS
Network down→ Wi-Fi dead zones→ All network problems→ Network repair→