What exactly is my upload speed? In short, it’s the amount of time it takes for files, documents, audio, video, etc to send from your computer to a server or another computer. It can affect the quality of your calls as the person/people on the other end of the call may not be able to see you well or understand what you’re saying. It can also affect your uploading as some services will timeout if data takes too long to upload.
How can I improve it?
Keep in mind first that you’re unlikely to ever get an amount higher than what you’re paying for. If you’re paying for 50 megabytes a second (mbps), nothing you can do is going to bump it up to 100 without paying for a higher amount. If, however, you’re only getting 10 mbps, there are some things you can do that might help you improve your company’s upload speeds.- Use a wired connection. Wireless is a great help, especially in bigger office buildings where having hundreds of wires running all throughout the building might be a challenge. But the fact remains that a direct, wired connection will always be more stable and therefor lead to a better connection and better speeds.
- Remove junk from your computers. This includes things like temp files, browser history, cookies, etc. There are many programs out there that can help with this and it’ll not only improve your speeds but also improve browsing and computer functionality.
- Use your antivirus frequently. Specifically, make sure that your antivirus is able to find and eliminate malware. Malware is a broad term that includes many different forms of malicious programs that might very well be taking up your computer’s resources. Make sure you’ve got a good antivirus program that can root out malware and destroy it.
- Invest in better computers. The fact is that if you’re using computers from 1999, you’re simply not going to be able to handle the best speeds. That doesn’t mean that you need to go and buy the newest computers out there, but at least try and find something from the last decade!
- Update your drivers. This one is often overlooked but definitely shouldn’t be. Your drivers on your computer are important not just for internet but for the entire security and functionality of your computer. For more help on how to update your drivers (it’s an easy process, really!), simply google ‘how to update drivers’ and include what version of windows or mac you’re on.
- Make sure there isn’t a significant strain on your resources elsewhere. Other employees on your connection might be taking up a lot of your bandwidth, and so you may need to either invest in a bigger package or schedule different times for people to upload.