How to Report Speed Issues in iCarol
If you are experiencing issues with your iCarol system that are difficult to describe, where information may not be populating, saving, or loading as quickly as you expect, it can be helpful to complete these 3 diagnostic tests prior to submitting a case to Support. The results of these tests may help us to eliminate local network issues, and find the root cause of the issue faster.
When you submit the case using the iCarol online Case Management Tool, please include the 3 screen shots, the time/date you completed these tests, and what browser you were using.
Test One: Complete a Speed Test
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1. Login to iCarol, as an affected user and reproduce the slowness issue
2. In a separate browser window/tab, go to www.speedtest.net
3. Click the “Change Server” link and type Toronto in the search text box
4. Click on any of the Toronto, ON servers that appear in the list of search results
5. Click the “GO” button, allow the test to complete and take a screen shot of the results (a full page screen shot is preferred, that will include the browser type and system time.)
Test Two: Complete a Trace Route to iCarol server in Command Prompt
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1. Open the Command Prompt window by clicking the MS Windows Start button, clicking All Programs, clicking Accessories, and then clicking Command Prompt. (A new black background window should open.)
2. Type in exactly, tracert webapp.icarol.com, and press Enter on your keyboard.
3. Allow the Trace to complete, and take a screen shot of the results (do not close the window yet.)
To perform Test Two on Mac Computers
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1. Open Safari and enter http://pingtest.net in the Smart Search field.
2. Click Begin test.
3. An alert appears saying “Do you want to trust the website www.pingtest.net to use the “Java” plug in? Click Trust and then Run in the Do you want to run this application window.
4. You should see your IP and ISP name at the bottom left of the globe. Check if this is correct.
5. Click Being Test.
For more information go to http://www.macworld.co.uk/how-to/mac/how-test-ping-on-your-mac-3524076/
Test Three: Complete a Ping to the iCarol server in Command Prompt
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1. Use the same Command Prompt window as opened in Test 2
2. Type in exactly, ping webapp.icarol.com, and press Enter on your keyboard
3. Allow the Ping to finish, and take a screen shot of the results.
To perform Test Three on Mac Computers
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1. Launch the Network Utility
2. Click Traceroute
3. Enter the domain name (webapp.icarol.com) to perform a traceroute
4. Click Trace
5. The results will display
For more information go to https://www.godaddy.com/help/performing-a-traceroute-in-mac-os-x-3366
In addition to the diagnostic tests above, it is useful to use a timer extension to see exactly where the slowness is occurring. A timer extension will break down the process of loading a page and tell you how long each step is taking. With this detail, you may be able to determine if the slowness is happening on the iCarol side, or if it may be an issue with your computer, internet or network speed.
Most browsers have a timer extension you can download and use. Some browsers may call these “extensions” or “add-ons”. Each browser will have a different name for these extensions or add-ons. For example, Google Chrome’s extension is called “Page load time”. The first step to using a timer extension or add-on is to find and download it. Once this is done, you will usually find the timer extension in the tool bar of your browser.
To use the timer extension to time page loads in iCarol, complete the following steps:
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1. Navigate to the page that is loading slowly
2. Click the timer extension icon in the tool bar of your browser
3. You should see a chart or a list of events or actions, and how long each of those events or actions took
4. In general, it should not take more than 5 seconds to load a page in iCarol.
The exception is when searching resources, especially if the resource database is very large; some resource searches can take up to 10-20 seconds.
5. If the total load time for the page is greater than 5-10 seconds, refer to the timer extension chart or list to see where the most time was spent. Each timer extension will call the events or actions by a slightly different name, but there should be enough similarities to recognize the names of most of the events or actions between browsers.
Use the information below to determine if the issue is on iCarol’s side, or if the issue is with the computer, network, or internet service being used:
- The iCarol servers are responsible for the Request and Response times
- Slow Redirect, DNS or Connect times may indicate an issue with the internet connection or network being used
- Slow DOM or Load Event times may indicate issues with the computer itself
If the issue seems to be with your computer, network, or internet connection, please consult with a member of your IT team or your internet service provider.
If the issue seems to be with iCarol’s servers, please take a screenshot of the timer extension results. Then have a designated Support Contact submit a case with the screenshot as an attachment, and an explanation of the slowness that is occurring.
Tags: iCarol Support
