Trace Route = Input delay

Spoke to my ISP today regarding the delay I was experiencing on the xbox to see if it was something on my end. I have Time Warner Cable, and am located an hour or so north of Nashville. My internet is running at their 50 down/10 upload speed, and only experience the issue while playing NHL. The tech on the phone had me run a few trace routes to find out the ping to various servers to determine the ping levels. This is what we found...


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Microsoft Windows [Version 10.0.10240]
(c) 2015 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

C:\Users\>tracert easports.ca (< this is the main server that EASHL games run through as final destination. Granted not all are run through this one, but the majority are.)

Tracing route to easports.ca [159.153.20.7]
over a maximum of 30 hops:

1 <1 ms <1 ms <1 ms 192.168.0.1
2 24 ms 25 ms 13 ms cpe-72-133-248-1.mi.res.rr.com [72.133.248.1]
3 31 ms 22 ms 30 ms xe-0-0-6.ooket02h.midwest.rr.com [65.28.202.181] Wichita, KS
4 16 ms 18 ms 17 ms be32.lsvmkyzo01r.midwest.rr.com [65.29.27.168] Wichita, KS
5 29 ms 29 ms 25 ms be24.clmkohpe01r.midwest.rr.com [65.189.140.162] Wichita, KS
6 37 ms 34 ms 37 ms bu-ether15.chctilwc00w-bcr00.tbone.rr.com [66.109.6.68] Wichita, KS
7 34 ms 67 ms 34 ms 0.ae1.pr0.chi30.tbone.rr.com [66.109.1.78] Wichita, KS
8 35 ms 34 ms 33 ms lag-8.ear2.Chicago2.Level3.net [4.68.111.33] Wichita, KS
9 * * 122 ms ae-2-6.ear1.Amsterdam1.Level3.net [4.69.153.190] Wichita, KS (Starts there, but jumps to Amsterdam?!?!?!)
10 124 ms 122 ms 123 ms 213.19.196.186 UNITED KINGDOM<<<< This is the issue
11 121 ms 121 ms 119 ms 159.153.18.122 Redwood, CA
12 124 ms 121 ms 121 ms easportsignite.co.uk [159.153.20.7] Redwood, CA

Trace complete.

C:\Users\>
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Compare that to the current servers @Tris10 has us on... What a difference!?!



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C:\Users\>tracert leaguegaming.com

Tracing route to leaguegaming.com [65.182.196.50]
over a maximum of 30 hops:

1 <1 ms <1 ms <1 ms 192.168.0.1
2 34 ms 16 ms 28 ms cpe-72-133-248-1.mi.res.rr.com [72.133.248.1]
3 30 ms 14 ms 26 ms xe-0-0-6.ooket02h.midwest.rr.com [65.28.202.181]
4 18 ms 18 ms 17 ms be32.lsvmkyzo01r.midwest.rr.com [65.29.27.168]
5 25 ms 26 ms 26 ms be24.clmkohpe01r.midwest.rr.com [65.189.140.162]
6 37 ms 37 ms 37 ms bu-ether35.chctilwc00w-bcr00.tbone.rr.com [107.14.19.60]
7 32 ms 33 ms 32 ms 0.ae1.pr0.chi30.tbone.rr.com [66.109.1.78]
8 * * * Request timed out.
9 45 ms 43 ms 45 ms ae-12-12.car1.Louisville1.Level3.net [4.69.140.213]
10 43 ms 42 ms 43 ms 4.59.184.10
11 45 ms 41 ms 43 ms 65.182.200.89
12 44 ms 42 ms 41 ms 65.182.200.97
13 43 ms 42 ms 44 ms 209.164.62.68.static.sna.hosting.com [209.164.62.68]
14 43 ms 43 ms 45 ms icc.ca [65.182.196.50]

Trace complete.

C:\Users\>
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Even Google, and YouTube




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C:\Users\>tracert google.com

Tracing route to google.com [74.125.225.3]
over a maximum of 30 hops:

1 <1 ms <1 ms <1 ms 192.168.0.1
2 28 ms 24 ms 19 ms cpe-72-133-248-1.mi.res.rr.com [72.133.248.1]
3 19 ms 31 ms 31 ms xe-0-0-6.ooket02h.midwest.rr.com [65.28.202.181]
4 19 ms 17 ms 18 ms be32.lsvmkyzo01r.midwest.rr.com [65.29.27.168]
5 24 ms 25 ms 26 ms be24.clmkohpe01r.midwest.rr.com [65.189.140.162]
6 34 ms 35 ms 37 ms bu-ether45.chctilwc00w-bcr00.tbone.rr.com [107.14.19.36]
7 38 ms 37 ms 38 ms bu-ether11.chcgildt87w-bcr00.tbone.rr.com [66.109.6.20]
8 34 ms 38 ms 36 ms 0.ae0.pr1.chi10.tbone.rr.com [107.14.17.192]
9 35 ms 37 ms 37 ms 216.1.94.65
10 89 ms 91 ms 80 ms 216.1.94.142
11 37 ms 37 ms 36 ms 209.85.254.120
12 36 ms 38 ms 45 ms 72.14.237.109
13 37 ms 34 ms 37 ms ord08s12-in-f3.1e100.net [74.125.225.3]

Trace complete.

C:\Users\>tracert youtube.com

Tracing route to youtube.com [74.125.225.2]
over a maximum of 30 hops:

1 <1 ms <1 ms <1 ms 192.168.0.1
2 30 ms 27 ms 25 ms cpe-72-133-248-1.mi.res.rr.com [72.133.248.1]
3 24 ms 26 ms 20 ms xe-0-0-6.ooket02h.midwest.rr.com [65.28.202.181]
4 19 ms 18 ms 18 ms be32.lsvmkyzo01r.midwest.rr.com [65.29.27.168]
5 26 ms 27 ms 27 ms be24.clmkohpe01r.midwest.rr.com [65.189.140.162]
6 38 ms 39 ms 39 ms bu-ether45.chctilwc00w-bcr00.tbone.rr.com [107.14.19.36]
7 42 ms 37 ms 38 ms bu-ether11.chcgildt87w-bcr00.tbone.rr.com [66.109.6.20]
8 35 ms 36 ms 37 ms 0.ae2.pr1.chi10.tbone.rr.com [107.14.17.196]
9 37 ms 38 ms 39 ms 216.1.94.145
10 82 ms 83 ms 100 ms 216.1.94.142
11 40 ms 36 ms 39 ms 209.85.254.120
12 38 ms 43 ms 38 ms 72.14.237.109
13 38 ms 37 ms 36 ms ord08s12-in-f2.1e100.net [74.125.225.2]

Trace complete.

C:\Users\>
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The tech I spoke to on the phone laughed when he looked at the numbers, and said here is the problem. The server for your game is being jumped to Europe before making its way back to Redwood CA at EA's server. I ran this test on "off-peak" times, so it will be interesting to see what it is sitting at tonight for the games when everyone is pinging off of the European server. I asked him if there was anything on my end wrong/fixable by a change in equipment. He told me there was nothing TWC could do as the server for this game is going to Europe prior to California.

It would be interesting to see other peoples trace routes posted (those with lag, and those without). I almost guarantee that you will see smaller ping numbers on the European servers for those who couldn't notice lag, compared to those who get it all the time. The tech on the phone also suggested that these numbers would increase based on number of players in the game which would explain no lag in VS/HUT compared to EASHL.

Just thought I'd share my conversation with the ISP tech today

@Ozzyng2 @MCDONALD l19l @Tris10


*** Update *** 10/16

I ran multiple tests last night on my connection to the servers (all proposed ea server addresses) multiple times last night. I experienced about a 1-2 second delay on the home team for the LG game at 10 est, and had input lag comparable to jackDOOP in club. From 8 pm est to 11 pm est, my ping increased from the low 120's posted in the initial post to 280+ (played every game as home team last night). Game wasn't playable with the button lag until 11:30 est when it dropped back down to the 160's. The principle of what the tech said matched 1000% to my in game experience.

 

The main thing he said was as long as you are hitting the European servers, you will continue to experience the delay. It runs repeatedly each time you try to access the main server which is thousands of times during an online game. The other assumption would be that the delay becomes amplified when you are the host of the lobby/game.

 

That is the server for the majority of the EA games like Battlefield, Madden, Fifa, etc. NHL operates out of the Redwood CA server which is easports.ca. The tech said as it gets later in the afternoon, and more people hit the NHL server, the 3 ping numbers will go up exponentially.

If it was that server, I would have no problem on NHL just like I have no issues with FIFA, Madden, or any other EA game.


C:\Users\>tracert easo.ea.com

Tracing route to easo.ea.com [159.153.234.54]
over a maximum of 30 hops:

1 <1 ms <1 ms <1 ms 192.168.0.1
2 21 ms 21 ms 17 ms cpe-72-133-248-1.mi.res.rr.com [72.133.248.1]
3 21 ms 20 ms 20 ms xe-0-0-6.ooket02h.midwest.rr.com [65.28.202.181]
4 17 ms 18 ms 17 ms be32.lsvmkyzo01r.midwest.rr.com [65.29.27.168]
5 26 ms 26 ms 25 ms be24.clmkohpe01r.midwest.rr.com [65.189.140.162]
6 34 ms 37 ms 38 ms bu-ether35.chctilwc00w-bcr00.tbone.rr.com [107.14.19.60]
7 33 ms 45 ms 32 ms 0.ae0.pr0.chi30.tbone.rr.com [66.109.1.76]
8 * * * Request timed out.
9 41 ms 43 ms * ae-2-70.edge3.Washington4.Level3.net [4.69.149.82]
10 42 ms * 40 ms ae-2-70.edge3.Washington4.Level3.net [4.69.149.82]
11 42 ms 42 ms 48 ms level3-pni.iad1.us.voxel.net [4.53.116.2]
12 41 ms 41 ms 42 ms unknown.prolexic.com [209.200.144.192]
13 70 ms 43 ms 44 ms unknown.prolexic.com [209.200.144.199]
14 42 ms 42 ms 42 ms unknown.prolexic.com [209.200.168.132]
15 113 ms 43 ms 43 ms 159.153.93.2
16 44 ms 42 ms 44 ms 159.153.225.30
17 40 ms 41 ms 67 ms meav5-pub.pt.iad.ea.com [159.153.226.105]
18 43 ms 42 ms 44 ms easo.ea.com [159.153.234.54]

Trace complete.

C:\Users\>easports.com
'easports.com' is not recognized as an internal or external command,
operable program or batch file.

C:\Users\>tracert easports.com

Tracing route to easports.com [159.153.20.7]
over a maximum of 30 hops:

1 <1 ms <1 ms <1 ms 192.168.0.1
2 32 ms 22 ms 20 ms cpe-72-133-248-1.mi.res.rr.com [72.133.248.1]
3 115 ms 23 ms 26 ms xe-0-0-6.ooket02h.midwest.rr.com [65.28.202.181]
4 17 ms 18 ms 17 ms be32.lsvmkyzo01r.midwest.rr.com [65.29.27.168]
5 24 ms 27 ms 26 ms be24.clmkohpe01r.midwest.rr.com [65.189.140.162]
6 36 ms 34 ms 38 ms bu-ether15.chctilwc00w-bcr00.tbone.rr.com [66.109.6.68]
7 33 ms 35 ms 34 ms 0.ae1.pr0.chi30.tbone.rr.com [66.109.1.78]
8 35 ms 36 ms 34 ms lag-8.ear2.Chicago2.Level3.net [4.68.111.33]
9 * * * Request timed out.
10 121 ms 123 ms 123 ms 213.19.196.186 <<<< Netherland's servers
11 122 ms 122 ms 121 ms 159.153.18.122
12 122 ms 131 ms 121 ms madden-franchise.com [159.153.20.7]

Trace complete.

C:\Users\>

 

I'm sure EA knows about this and its been there for ages. In '15 we started the year out be routed to European servers and even the year before people were randomly being put on the wrong EA server. I don't know much really about this but I've always believed that EA has used this tactic to cycle people around during prime hours on their servers.

However, I really hope this is a lead in the right direction to fix the current problem.

 

That would explain it if everyone was lagging. How would that cause random lag for whomever is hosting the game?

 

I pulled some post from people on EA forums. This was a few pages in and might get overlooked by some. Could it be related or something different?

 

10010010101110101010010100010101 beep boop

 

This is the same issue as last year when half the league was connecting to the european servers. We debated on pushing the season back and then a few people came up with solutions through EA, Xbox and their internet providers. The input delay is not the same thing, this is just what is causing people to lag, same as last year.

The fix last year was to dashboard, go to settings, clear cache, reset xbox. It was a temporary fix that would put you back on the proper server but it could change on your way to the lobby, in the game or after the game. The servers are better late at night or early in the day not during prime hours (7pm-11pm eastern).

The way to check what server you are on is still the same as last year.
1.) EASHL
2.) Club Search
3.) Region (Whatever is in parenthesis as recommended is what server you are on)

 

The way it was explained to me when I was on the phone with the tech was that the person hosting the game is who everyone connects to. If Everyone was connecting to me for example, my latency is going to increase as a result of more users running from my established connection for the game. You already receive minor lag as a result of being the host connection, and that input lag would be amplified by the increase of users to the host connection. If my ping was around 125-150 ms, it may jump to 200 ms latency causing you to notice the increased lag as the home captain/room creator.

Again everything I've put in here is completely based off my conversation with the TWC tech today. I just figured the information may be able to help someone who actually knows what they are doing lol. Putting anything that can fix the issue faster in the right hands is good by me if it makes the game play like it does offline.

 

Club isnt peer to peer, everyone is connecting to a server.

 

So that theory the ISP tech said would still to anyone that plays in lobbies. But when you play club, the Home Captain auto switches to the person with the best connection to that server. If that person has a high ping to the server, it would make sense that it would increase more now that you've been established as the "best" connection on your team right? I honestly don't know, but it makes sense if the same things happens to the creator of the lobby. The same connection rules that apply to the lobby host, should still apply to the EASHL host --- the home team captain

 

Lobbies also connect to a server, nothing about EASHL/OTP is peer to peer.

 

I didn't say dropping i said the lag issue people are receiving is due to this, i never lagged out of games bc i was on Euro servers, just could be laggy or would have other people in the game lagging. It also could of been that the particular player who dropped was on the right server but another person in the game or the host on a different server, everyone needs to be on the same server this is what happened last season. I had it the entire year, i could play in any game but i could not host any games or people who lag or drop and face-offs were nearly impossibly all season. I also said that it can change mid game which i did the fix got right on checked i was on eastern, game started and finished, after the game i would check and i would be back on European Servers it can change mid game, its the worst. The servers will reroute people on the server to make room for new people signing on, instead of having the new people go to those servers. It is an unfortunate and ridiculous incident but only EA can fix it according to everything I've read and ISP provider i talked to last season.

*Also thanks @XxxTHEBENGALxxX for rating my post dumb </3 , assuming you're the one who dropped

 

I played NHL 15 on the XBone the day it came out. There was similar delays going on just like the Captain Button lag, but it was experienced by everyone. Online Team Play was COMPLETELY unplayable at its first drop for almost a month plus after it first came out. They fixed it somewhat, but every now and then it would resurface. They may have fixed the issue completely on the 360, but it was never completely resolved on the XBone for OTP. My guess is that it just continued into this game...

 

I don't remember rating your post but OK, will remove.

 

the lag is servers, the button delay is input delay from coding in the game not internet quality or server connection issues or at least thats what i have read and been told from xbox, ea and my ISP

 

I think you misinterpreted it a bit. There is dropped packets (where it speeds really quick type lag) and then there is REAL lag which is what the OP proved in his traceroute. Think about it for a second, if data takes a second to go from your xbox to the UK and back then that will most certainly make you feel like your buttons aren't responding quick enough.

There is another piece of the puzzle that is overlooked, which is how EA (and most multi player) handles packet sequencing. In the game all parties must be synced, which is why a weak link brings everyone down. That is because you can't just press a button and have your guy react, you press a button and the other gamers xbox confirms it received the message, to do that your action has to travel from you->ea->other player->back again. That roundtrip makes the lag times you see running traceroute even bigger in a game time situation.