When multiple people connect to a shared Cubit Estimating database over a VPN (Virtual Private Network), your internet connection becomes critical. Unlike working in the office, a VPN depends on your home or remote internet, which can add delays and relies heavily on upload speed (the speed at which data leaves your computer).
This guide explains what a VPN is, how it affects Cubit, how to test your network, and how to understand your results.
What is a VPN?
A VPN (Virtual Private Network) is like a secure tunnel between your computer and your office network. Instead of connecting directly, all of your Cubit traffic travels through this tunnel before it reaches the Cubit server.
Good side: VPN keeps your connection private and secure.
Trade-off: Every action you take in Cubit (opening a job, saving data, running reports) now has to travel through this tunnel. This adds latency (delay) and relies on your internet speed, especially your upload speed.
Think of it like this:
Working in the office = taking a short, direct road to the server.
Working over VPN = taking a longer highway with toll booths. Secure, but slower.
Key Terms Explained
VPN: A secure tunnel connecting your computer to the office network.
Upload speed: How fast data leaves your computer. Crucial for Cubit.
Download speed: How fast data arrives at your computer. Important, but not the main issue for Cubit.
Latency: The “delay” or round-trip time for data to travel to the server and back. Measured in milliseconds (ms).
Throughput: The actual data transfer speed Cubit can use. Measured in MB/s.
Why VPN is Slower for Cubit
Cubit’s database constantly reads and writes information. This makes it much more sensitive to latency and upload speed compared to things like browsing the web or email.
Upload bottleneck: Home internet often has fast download speeds (e.g. 100 Mbps down) but much slower uploads (e.g. 10 Mbps up). Cubit needs strong uploads.
Latency adds up: Each Cubit action involves many small requests. Even a 50 ms delay per request can make it feel sluggish.
VPN encryption overhead: Data gets encrypted/decrypted as it moves through the VPN. This adds processing time on top of your internet speed.
Testing Your Throughput (Speed)
This measures how fast Cubit-style read and write actions happen between your computer and the server.
Open PowerShell (search for it in the Start menu).
Copy and paste the script below (replace
\\ServerName\Datawith your server folder).
# Test file write and read speed to the server
$testFile = "\\ServerName\Data\throughput-test.tmp"
$sw = [System.Diagnostics.Stopwatch]::StartNew()
Set-Content -Path $testFile -Value ("X" * 10MB)
$sw.Stop()
Write-Output "Write speed: $([math]::Round(10 / $sw.Elapsed.TotalSeconds, 2)) MB/s"
$sw.Restart()
Get-Content -Path $testFile | Out-Null
$sw.Stop()
Write-Output "Read speed: $([math]::Round(10 / $sw.Elapsed.TotalSeconds, 2)) MB/s"
Remove-Item $testFileThis creates a test file, times how long it takes to write and read, then deletes it. Look at the MB/s reported, that’s your throughput.
Testing Your Latency (Delay)
Open Command Prompt.
Run:
ping ServerNameLook for the Average in ms.
Under 10 ms = smooth.
10–50 ms = usable, but slower.
50–80 ms = noticeable lag.
80 ms+ = unstable, Cubit may drop out.
How to Read the Results
-
Upload/throughput:
Aim for 100 Mbps minimum.
200 Mbps+ gives smoother performance.
-
Latency:
Under 10 ms = excellent.
50 ms+ = slowness.
80 ms+ = likely dropouts.
Alternatives if VPN is Struggling
If results show poor upload or high latency, VPN may not be practical for multi-user Cubit. Options include:
Upgrade your internet service (focus on upload speeds).
Cubit Cloud, a hosted solution where Cubit and the database live in the cloud. This removes VPN bottlenecks completely.
Summary
VPN adds overhead, so Cubit will always be slower than working in the office.
Run throughput tests (PowerShell or copy command) and latency tests (ping) to check your setup.
Aim for 100 Mbps+ upload and under 10 ms latency.
If performance is poor, consider alternatives like Cubit Cloud.
Support
Need help reviewing your results?
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