cFosSpeed is a program to shape Internet/network traffic. It can speed up the Internet connection slightly. What it does actually is install a new network driver. All the network data flows through this driver. Using this technique, it can monitor and change all the network traffic. So, changing the MTU values, the time for ping requests, etc., is easy.
Installation can take some time. All the important registry settings are backed-up during the setup. The network driver installed is not 100% compatible with Windows. So, you can expect a warning from Windows driver security.
The traffic shaping properties window provides us with a huge list of settings. Traffic sharing mode can be ‘fixed’ or ‘variable’ depending on the network you are in and how the Internet is accessed. Ping times are increased with a slightly reduced bandwidth thus speeding up the Internet access. Firewall is available within the program itself to protect from network intrusions by filtering dangerous packets and also using the stealth mode whenever necessary. This is done automatically by the program and cannot be customized. IP-Blocker can block IP addresses. Now, all these settings can be effectively used to monitor, modify, and censor Internet usage by a network admin if the computers access Internet through the system in which the program is installed.
It comes with a list of games, VoIP, and programs where it is possible to set the traffic priority. We may add more to the list. High priority must be given to the program that needs less data.
Settings that are specific to the network adapters (including dialup) can be customized. Now, if you are unsure of any option, just keep them in the default value. Problems can happen when the program settings differ from the router settings. But most of the time, it won’t be problematic with the default values.
The cFosSpeed Window is a small window that shows the network traffic. Real-time monitoring can be done easily through the graph which can differentiate Web, VoIP, Network, Streaming, etc. This is what is accomplished by the network driver. The window has a lot of skins. “Traffic analysis” is the default and easiest to use. Some skins can be so tiny that we cannot read the data values easily. This is not a separate program, but only a separate frame of the program. Customizations can be made by adding more fields or disabling some. Logs for the whole year can be recorded.
I liked the program as it can be used not only to monitor Internet traffic, but also to block certain programs and IP addresses,
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