FAQ

Our FAQ's section outlines Frequently Asked Questions you may have about our Service and Installations.

I don't have an Eastserve supplied computer, can I still get access to Eastserve Broadband?

How much faster than a modem is Eastserve Broadband?

What does this speed difference really mean?

What are the benefits of broadband?

What are the disadvantages of broadband?

Do I have to keep my computer turned on?

I've signed up for Eastserve Broadband: What happens next?

Who installs Eastserve Broadband?

Who owns the equipment after it has been installed?

How long does it take the engineers to install Eastserve Broadband?

What do I need to provide access to enable the installation of Eastserve Broadband?

Do I need a clear view of a distribution point to get Eastserve Broadband?

Where are the distribution points located?

Does Eastserve Broadband recommend any other nonessential software?

What tea and biscuits do the installation engineers prefer?

Does Eastserve Support Gaming Services?

What is Broadband?

Broadband describes how fast data can be transferred between computers. A broad road, such as a motorway, can carry more traffic than a narrow country lane. Broadband Internet connections are the motorways of the "information superhighway", modems are more akin to a country lane.

Each access point provides an 11Mbps (million bits per second) connection to the network. This will be shared between a number of users but will still provide a very fast connection to the Internet.

What is Eastserve Broadband?

Eastserve Broadband is part of the government sponsored Eastserve Project. By setting up our own network it means we can keep control of the costs and enables us to provide Internet access to our customer at a very competitive price.

The Network is currently only available to East Manchester residents (Ancoats, Beswick, Clayton, Gorton, Miles Platting, Newton Heath, Openshaw, Abbey Hey and parts of Levenshulme, Longsight, Droylsden, Ardwick) Please contact us for coverage information.

I don't have an Eastserve supplied computer, can I still get access to Eastserve Broadband?

Yes, but your PC will need to be compatible with our equipment and you will need an Ethernet port on the back of your PC.

#NB We can only fit Laptops if you have an Ethernet Port, we do not supply Laptop Network Cards. If you would like advice regarding this, ring the helpdesk (0161 230 6346)

If you use an alternative operating system to Windows our help desk will only be able to provide limited support if you have problems. We will support the hardware we supply but you must be capable of doing any necessary configuration on your PC.

Your PC hardware will need to be running Windows 2000 or above.

How much faster than a modem is Eastserve Broadband?

The useable speed of Eastserve Broadband, and indeed most other broadband services, depends on a number of factors: mainly on how fast the underlying connection is, and what the users connected to the system are doing at any particular time.

Each user will share an 11Mbps (11 million bits per second) access point with a number of other users. Standard dial up modems only connect at 56kbps (56 thousand bits per second - theoretical maximum, more typically 45 thousand bits per second) so you can see that the broadband connection is considerably faster.

On our Gold service, you should be able to consistently download data at between 400 and 500kbps (kilo bits per second) over the network which is about 10 times faster than a dial up connection.

What does this speed difference really mean?

For ordinary web browsing it will mean that the pages load far more quickly - the other meaning of WWW (World Wide Wait) becomes a thing of the past. File downloads will be faster as well. A 1 megabyte file should download in seconds instead of over 3 minutes. It also enables watching movies and listening to Internet radio stations in high quality.

What are the benefits of broadband?

Always on: no waiting for the modems to connect.
Your telephone line will not be tied up when you are using the Internet.
No more choices to be made about who uses the phone and who uses the Internet.
People calling you will be able to get through when you are on the Internet.
Those with only mobile phones, or with no telephone, will now be able to get the Internet.

What are the disadvantages of broadband?

You might spend longer on the Internet than you do currently! As there will be no requirement to release the phone line for incoming or outgoing calls, and because of the improved speed of loading web pages, using the web should be a far more enjoyable experience.

Do I have to keep my computer turned on?

No, but if you want to use the Internet you will have to wait for your computer to boot up and you lose the immediacy of the always on connection.

I've signed up for Eastserve Broadband: What happens next?

Eastserve will be in touch to arrange a site visit. This is to confirm your location and check what will be required to complete the installation. In some cases this may be the only visit required

Who installs Eastserve Broadband?

Broadband installation will be performed by fully trained and qualified local contractors

What hardware is installed?

An antenna roughly A5 size. If you haven’t got an Ethernet Port in the back of your PC, you will need to purchase one and have it fitted.

Who owns the equipment after it has been installed?

The equipment installed to enable broadband access, consisting of the external antenna, connecting cable and PC card, remains the property of Eastserve Broadband . All equipment must be returned upon cancellation of the Broadband service and a cancellation form must be completed at the Eastserve Office.

How long does it take the engineers to install Eastserve Broadband?

An average is around 1 hour. It can be shorter or longer depending mainly on the type and position of the antenna required for your location and the relative positions of the antenna and your computer.

What do I need to provide access to enable the installation of Eastserve Broadband?

To install an external antenna the engineers will need access to the outside of your property. They also need to come into your home to the cable from the antenna to your computer. The engineers will need access to your computer configure the network settings.

Do I need a clear view of a distribution point to get Eastserve Broadband?

Yes, there needs to be a clear line of sight path between the distribution point antenna and some part of your home. The view can change considerably with height so even if you can't see a distribution point from any window of your house your chimney top may be visible from the distribution point.

Where are the distribution points located?

Distribution points are strategically located in and around the East Manchester Area

Does Eastserve Broadband recommend any other non essential software?

At this time we are not recommending any particular software. However, we may give links to a number of software firewalls, anti-virus products and content-monitoring software that may be useful to users

What tea and biscuits do the installation engineers prefer?

It is not essential to provide tea and biscuits but should you feel the desire to do so, feel free to offer.

Does Eastserve Support Gaming Services?

You should be able to access gaming servers from your broadband connection. If you can't please email help@eastserve.com . Please let us know what service you were trying to use and the details of any error messages.

You are not currently able to setup and run your own gaming server.