There are three priority levels:

• Real-time applications (highest priority)
• Prioritized applications (intermediate priority)
• Background applications (lowest priority)

Priorities are assigned to the network devices and network applications by means of rules. The higher the priority assigned, the more preferentially a network device or network application is treated when the internet connection is working at full capacity. Priorities always affect the upload direction, since the FRITZ!Box can influence only outgoing network traffic. In the download direction the FRITZ!Box can influence network traffic only indirectly.

Real-time Applications

This priority is suitable for applications with high demands on transmission speed and reaction times (examples: internet telephony, IPTV, video on demand).

Real-time applications are treated preferentially over other applications that access the internet at the same time. When the internet connection is working at full capacity, the network packets of the real-time applications will always be sent first. Then data cannot be transmitted from applications assigned a lower priority or no priority at all.

If there are multiple real-time applications, the applications share the available transmission capacity. If internet telephony is among the multiple real-time applications, then internet telephony is treated preferentially.

Prioritized Applications

This priority is suitable for applications that require a fast reaction time (examples: company access, terminal applications, games).

If no real-time application requires bandwidth, the FRITZ!Box reserves 90% of the upload bandwidth for prioritized applications. The remaining 10% of the upload bandwidth is available for applications with lower priority.

If there are multiple prioritized applications, the applications share the available bandwidth.

Background Applications

This priority is suitable for applications that do not require any high transmission speed and which are not time-critical (examples: peer-to-peer services or automatic updates).

Background applications are always treated with the lowest priority when the internet connection is working at capacity. Whenever an application with higher priority or a non-prioritized application requires the entire bandwidth, all background applications must wait until bandwidth becomes available again.

If no other network applications are active, then the background applications receive the entire bandwidth.