Is QOS / Bandwidth control something that you always enable on your main home router?

[g67575]

For my VDSL2 connection, I've found it allows me to use the Internet reliably, even while others are watching videos, downloading or generally using bandwidth. This includes the ability to ping websites and the router itself, without dropping these network packets. I've configured my Asus router, via the QOS settings page, to cap upload and download usage of the total connection bandwidth, at 90%.

The other people using my home connection seem to like it too, as it ensures some bandwidth is always available to use on each device.

In general, browsing the web feels smooth, even when the download bandwidth usage is maxed out.

Are there any reasons why I might consider turning it off ever?

 

[g67575]

It's a shame really, a lot of routers sent from ISPs have a kind of in built crap version of QOS, that can't be configured and it often seems to work quite poorly (dropping a lot of packets for example).

I also had a TP-Link router (with configurable QOS) and the bandwidth control option wasn't very good, and only seemed to work some of the time.

 

[g67575]

I think I might need counselling, the trauma was intense

Tbh, I'm partly asking so that I can pretend to know what I'm talking about if I have to setup someone else's home network...

 

[g67575]

Makes sense. I guess this is less likely to be a problem in the future, as more powerful multicore routers become widespread.

I'm stuck on VDSL2 (40-50mbps depending on modem config) for at least another 3-6 years though, so the CPU usage hasn't been maxed out.

There's also another feature that some routers have, called NAT acceleration, which can improve throughput.

I'm curious though, would it be a good idea to apply similar QOS settings to a FTTP connection, assuming 1gbps download and upload bandwidth?

So, only allow 90-95% of the connection bandwidth to be utilized?