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Custom iMac capping ethernet speeds to 100Mbps on 1gigabit network

dawnrazor

dawnrazor

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jan 16, 2008
430
324
Auckland New Zealand
***** I have renamed this thread to reflect the incorrect diagnosis of the potential problem and to reflect the on going issue of the ethernet port randomly capping the ethernet speed to 100Mbps when it should be 5 times as fast…*****

Okay this is a little bit of an odd ball one.

Last October I needed a new desktop urgently and bought a 2020 i9 iMac, it was a custom configuration, pretty much maxed out everything except the RAM which I maxed out on OWC.

It runs great still, but I had one issue with it the ethernet was slower than I expected as I had ordered the 10Gigabit upgrade ethernet. But I didnt really think too much about it as I had also bought a OWC TB4 hub and decided to just use the ethernet port on that and got 10Gigabit connection… so then life gets in the way and I’ve just dug down and tried to work out whats going on, as I need to use the TB4 hub somewhere else..

Well after checking the old order and the sticker on the outside of the box, I 100% ordered the iMac with the 10gigabit upgrade… but it turns out the iMac was shipped with a 1Gigabit ethernet port installed…

Obviously a lot of time has passed, although it’s still under warranty… whats goign to happen if I call Apple and complain… they will want to send it back right and take it apart and fit the correct hardware? Which will take a few weeks no doubt in the meantime I have no computer to do work on…

Is it worth calling Apple about this? Maybe I can ask them to swap it for a Mac Studio haha…
 
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My prediction:
Too late now.
They're not going to exchange it.

You're going to have to "work with what you have".
 
It was only after 4 months I discovered my HDMI port on my new MBP wasn't working, and they had to replace the logic board.
It is worthwhile checking all ports and hardware on your machine work as expected before the warranty expires, even if you don't use them.
 
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If it's still under warranty and if you can show all the appropriate documentation, you might be able to get them to do something about it. It seems to me that a refund of the difference in price would be the absolute least that they could do -- but double-check the rest of the specs of your system as well; often one configuration change is linked to other configuration changes, though with BTO, sometimes that doesn't apply.

That said... if you do end up needing to ship it to a repair center, only you can decide whether or not the effort would be worth the lost productivity. If you had a vacation coming up that just happened to be wtihin the warranty period, maybe it would be an easy decision... but I'd imagine that's not very likely. If you have an Apple Retail Store in your area, you could perhaps try to convince them to provide a loaner. It's a long shot, but it's worth asking.
 
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So have you called Apple? It's quite feasible that one could only later actually have gained access to a 10Gb line to discover this missing option. I agree with others that as a bare minimum you should be refunded the BTO difference, but especially still in warranty period I'd personally be pushing for them to retrofit it. Obviously there's a reason you ordered this add-on at the time.
 
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Apologies… forgot all about this

Well I called Apple… much confusion ensued and much locations and files were checked… they say the Ethernet port is in fact 10gigabit yet the speed through it is being throttled to 100mbps… much accusations of it’s my internet connection its my cable, its my network… to which I demonstrated that by pulling the ethernet cable out of the back of the iMac and plugging it into the OWC TB4 hub and I can achieve 600mbps… which suggests the ethernet port is not behaving correctly… some more checking of things… some terminal commands… some muttering…

The up shot… send us back the computer and we’ll sort it out… no problem…

problem

Well I can’t do that, I have nothing to replace it with and need it for work… can’t be without it… and I have a work around…

In fairness I can’t think or a single period in the last year that I would have been able to free up the machine and send it back for them to look at…
 
dawnrazor said:
... The up shot… send us back the computer and we’ll sort it out… no problem …
Click to expand...

Ha. I'm half tempted to think that you must have meant "rim shot."

I wonder if it would help them to further diagnose your issue, if you told them the specific model of your card as identified in the Ethernet Cards section of the System Information app?
 
What kind of files do you move around over ethernet that requires speeds of 10gb?
(asking for a friend...)
 
dawnrazor said:
Apologies… forgot all about this

Well I called Apple… much confusion ensued and much locations and files were checked… they say the Ethernet port is in fact 10gigabit yet the speed through it is being throttled to 100mbps… much accusations of it’s my internet connection its my cable, its my network… to which I demonstrated that by pulling the ethernet cable out of the back of the iMac and plugging it into the OWC TB4 hub and I can achieve 600mbps… which suggests the ethernet port is not behaving correctly… some more checking of things… some terminal commands… some muttering…

The up shot… send us back the computer and we’ll sort it out… no problem…

problem

Well I can’t do that, I have nothing to replace it with and need it for work… can’t be without it… and I have a work around…

In fairness I can’t think or a single period in the last year that I would have been able to free up the machine and send it back for them to look at…
Click to expand...

Feels like we're not getting the whole story here?

There is a OWC TB4 Hub, but that doesn't have an Ethernet port. There's also a OWC Thunderbolt 3 dock, which does have an Ethernet port, but it's only rated for 1Gbps.

So it sounds like your iMac does indeed have a 10Gbps port, but you don't have a complimentary 10Gbps device on hand to actually confirm/measure such speeds?
 
Do you actually need the 10gb of bandwidth? That's what I'd be asking myself at this point. Sending it back to Apple would be only a desperation move if I truly couldn't live with 1GB for some reason.
 
my laptops don't have ethernet connections, but doesn't System Information -> Ethernet provide you with the info to settle this question?
 
unrigestered said:
my laptops don't have ethernet connections, but doesn't System Information -> Ethernet provide you with the info to settle this question?
Click to expand...
It does indeed.
10Gbps.jpg
 
BeatCrazy said:
Feels like we're not getting the whole story here?

There is a OWC TB4 Hub, but that doesn't have an Ethernet port. There's also a OWC Thunderbolt 3 dock, which does have an Ethernet port, but it's only rated for 1Gbps.

So it sounds like your iMac does indeed have a 10Gbps port, but you don't have a complimentary 10Gbps device on hand to actually confirm/measure such speeds?
Click to expand...
Well part confusion and part ignorance and part assumption on my behalf…

Taking a step back I’ve realised the above is indeed correct…

However the nub of my problem and I appreciate that I have mudded the waters by talking about 10gigabit and 1gigabit…

The ethernet port of the iMac won‘t go above 100Mbps up/down on a 1gigabit ethernet network… If I unhook the cable and plug it into the OWC TB4 hub I get 500Mbps up/down approx… (so 1/10th gig V 1/2 gig).

I have tried resetting my ethernet port via terminal, I’ve tried deleting it and resetting it up, I’ve tried manually adjusting the ethernet settings and on occasion I’ve seen it reach 500Mbps speeds and then immediately throttle back to 100Mbps and stay that way…

Which points the finger at the ethernet port on the iMac being faulty and lands me back at square one… it would be nice to not have to use the TB hub is what it’s about and I’ve come up against a brick wall of how to fix the imacs ethernet from capping the ethernet speed when I know it should be 5 times faster
 
dawnrazor said:
Well part confusion and part ignorance and part assumption on my behalf…

Taking a step back I’ve realised the above is indeed correct…

However the nub of my problem and I appreciate that I have mudded the waters by talking about 10gigabit and 1gigabit…

The ethernet port of the iMac won‘t go above 100Mbps up/down on a 1gigabit ethernet network… If I unhook the cable and plug it into the OWC TB4 hub I get 500Mbps up/down approx… (so 1/10th gig V 1/2 gig).

I have tried resetting my ethernet port via terminal, I’ve tried deleting it and resetting it up, I’ve tried manually adjusting the ethernet settings and on occasion I’ve seen it reach 500Mbps speeds and then immediately throttle back to 100Mbps and stay that way…

Which points the finger at the ethernet port on the iMac being faulty and lands me back at square one… it would be nice to not have to use the TB hub is what it’s about and I’ve come up against a brick wall of how to fix the imacs ethernet from capping the ethernet speed when I know it should be 5 times faster
Click to expand...
I still don't get how you are connecting Ethernet on your iMac to a OWC TB4 hub? There's no Ethernet port on it! :)

And you talk about getting 500Mbps (down to 100Mbps) speeds on the iMac... exactly what are you transferring, and what tool are you using to measure this?
 
BeatCrazy said:
I still don't get how you are connecting Ethernet on your iMac to a OWC TB4 hub? There's no Ethernet port on it! :)

And you talk about getting 500Mbps (down to 100Mbps) speeds on the iMac... exactly what are you transferring, and what tool are you using to measure this?
Click to expand...
using the ethernet port on the TB4 hub connected to the iMac via TB3 port...

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using Ookla speed test to measure up/down speeds...
 
dawnrazor said:
problem

Well I can’t do that, I have nothing to replace it with and need it for work… can’t be without it… and I have a work around…

In fairness I can’t think or a single period in the last year that I would have been able to free up the machine and send it back for them to look at…
Click to expand...
Can you rent a mac from a local place while they fix it?
 
dawnrazor said:
using the ethernet port on the TB4 hub connected to the iMac via TB3 port...

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OWC 11-Port Thunderbolt Dock for Mac & Thunderbolt PCs

Expand your workstation with the OWC 11-Port Thunderbolt 4 Dock. Connect all your peripherals, displays, & devices with ease. Simplify your setup now!
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using Ookla speed test to measure up/down speeds...
Click to expand...
OK real talk here...

You don't have a OWC TB4 Hub. You have a OWC TB3 dock. Just pointing that out because they're waaaay different.

The Ethernet port on your OWC TB3 dock is rated at 1Gbps.

How fast is your internet speed? Even if you had asymmetrical 1Gbps fiber internet, the max you would see via the OWC TB3 dock is ~940Mbps. Then, it has to convert to a TB3 protocol to connect to your iMac. You lose some there, which means maybe it pushes 870Mbps. That's under ideal conditions.

What you should do: Just connect your internet straight to your iMac. That's the maximum bandwidth you're going to get (don't forget to tell us how fast your internet is). If you're seeing wildly different internet speeds, you'll probably want to check your router/switch and/or call your ISP.
 
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