[Ubuntu] Updates

[Batman]

On my home network when I run updates or download packages in Ubuntu I find that synaptic seems to steal all the network bandwidth... every last bit! My wife will complain that the internet "doesn't work" and I get disconnected from pidgin etc. How is this happening? If I download an iso or something in firefox it doesn't clog up the whole network so I don't understand how synaptic is managing it. Is there anyway I can cap the download speed for synaptic?

I don't think I get the problem so badly using apt-get, but then I do more updates than fresh package installs.

[Geoff]

Do traffic shaping on your router.

[powdarrmonkey]

Run the updates when nobody else is using the line.

[Batman]

Sadly I don't think my router supports traffic shaping. Wouldn't stop my other internet services cutting out anyway.

Anyone know how to cap bandwidth for a specific app?

[powdarrmonkey]

Well, you could do it with buckets and the iptables firewall on your ubuntu machine, but it's really overkill. I still think it would be easier to just pick a time when there's nobody else using the line, then nobody can complain.

(This is turning into my "don't fix social problems with technical solutions" bugbear again...)