Hi, I’m a new user to Fedora KDE. The only thing that stops me from making the switch is that all downloads are really slow and trying to download anything through the terminal or Discover takes more than 10 minutes compared to other distributions. I live in Jordan and I thought maybe it was a mirror issue of some sort. I would really appreciate any help on this. Thanks in advance.
Can you provide traceroute or networks stats to show where the slow-down occurs? You state “anything” is slow, and then you mention “mirrors”, so are you referring to ANY download from ANY website, or just software updates through dnf?
Sorry about that, I’m talking specifically about anything from dnf and Discover as well as updates. Basically anything anything that downloads from Fedora itself or Flatpak. What commands do you want me to run?
Atraceroute and a ping to whatever mirror(s) you’re using would seem apposite - for example traceroute mirrors.rpmfusion.org on my system gives me the following showing that nothing drops packets and there are no hopes which are any slower than any other hop.:
┌─🎩 lurcher ~
├─
└─➜ traceroute mirrors.rpmfusion.org 09:28 Tue 09-Dec
traceroute to mirrors.rpmfusion.org (78.47.223.143), 30 hops max, 60 byte packets
1 _gateway (10.32.0.1) 20.455 ms 20.413 ms 20.404 ms
2 172.16.6.54 (172.16.6.54) 20.467 ms 20.472 ms 20.803 ms
3 172.16.6.113 (172.16.6.113) 20.380 ms 172.16.3.97 (172.16.3.97) 20.379 ms 172.16.3.121 (172.16.3.121) 20.348 ms
4 172.16.3.97 (172.16.3.97) 20.355 ms 20.353 ms 172.16.13.79 (172.16.13.79) 20.358 ms
5 static.213-133-124-221.clients.your-server.de (213.133.124.221) 21.293 ms 172.16.13.79 (172.16.13.79) 21.275 ms static.213-133-124-221.clients.your-server.de (213.133.124.221) 21.310 ms
6 static.213-133-124-221.clients.your-server.de (213.133.124.221) 21.309 ms 21.295 ms *
7 core4.fra.hetzner.com (213.239.245.18) 26.032 ms * *
8 core5.fra.hetzner.com (213.239.252.45) 26.021 ms core12.nbg1.hetzner.com (213.239.245.253) 29.226 ms core0.fra.hetzner.com (213.239.245.14) 26.009 ms
9 core11.nbg1.hetzner.com (213.239.224.233) 29.199 ms * *
10 * * *
11 19025.your-cloud.host (168.119.218.51) 29.827 ms * 31.768 ms
12 19025.your-cloud.host (168.119.218.51) 30.117 ms mirrorlist06.hetzner.rpmfusion.net (78.47.223.143) 35.317 ms 35.299 ms
Feel free to try multiple servers if you have several available to you for different repositories. You can get a list from dnf repoinfo
Here is my traceroute
comfy@fedora:~$ traceroute mirrors.rpmfusion.org
traceroute to mirrors.rpmfusion.org (2a01:4f8:c0c:bed0::1), 30 hops max, 80 byte packets
1 fiberbox.home (2a01:9700:354b:700:1247:38ff:fedb:3970) 6.154 ms 6.014 ms 6.459 ms
2 * * *
3 2a00:18d8::1f1 (2a00:18d8::1f1) 17.619 ms 17.555 ms 17.461 ms
4 * * *
5 2a00:18d8::229 (2a00:18d8::229) 17.145 ms 17.092 ms 17.029 ms
6 2a00:18d8::105 (2a00:18d8::105) 16.974 ms 19.108 ms 19.018 ms
7 mno-b3-link.ip.twelve99.net (2001:2035:0:2a26::1) 172.792 ms 172.765 ms 172.738 ms
8 ffm-bb2-v6.ip.twelve99.net (2001:2034:1:6c::1) 172.716 ms 172.683 ms ffm-bb1-v6.ip.twelve99.net (2001:2034:1:6b::1) 172.658 ms
9 hbg-bb3-v6.ip.twelve99.net (2001:2034:1:6f::1) 172.629 ms 172.600 ms *
10 hbg-b2-link.ip.twelve99.net (2001:2035:0:2916::1) 153.702 ms 295.062 ms 294.927 ms
11 hetzner-ic-383976.ip.twelve99-cust.net (2001:2035:0:2916::2) 294.880 ms hetzner-ic-383975.ip.twelve99-cust.net (2001:2035:0:2915::2) 294.839 ms hetzner-ic-383976.ip.twelve99-cust.net (2001:2035:0:2916::2) 294.798 ms
12 core24.fsn1.hetzner.com (2a01:4f8:0:3::7a5) 294.758 ms core23.fsn1.hetzner.com (2a01:4f8:0:3::7a1) 85.414 ms core22.fsn1.hetzner.com (2a01:4f8:0:3::79d) 85.278 ms
13 core11.nbg1.hetzner.com (2a01:4f8:0:3::61a) 85.202 ms core12.nbg1.hetzner.com (2a01:4f8:0:3::c5) 79.252 ms core12.nbg1.hetzner.com (2a01:4f8:0:3::60a) 79.175 ms
14 * * *
15 spine5-rdev1.cloud1.nbg1.hetzner.com (2a01:4f8:cfff:1::f000:f042) 79.453 ms 77.806 ms spine5-rdev2.cloud1.nbg1.hetzner.com (2a01:4f8:cfff:1::f000:f04a) 78.277 ms
16 19025.your-cloud.host (2a01:4f8:0:e0c0::5443) 79.356 ms 79.293 ms 79.002 ms
17 mirrorlist06.hetzner.rpmfusion.net (2a01:4f8:c0c:bed0::1) 80.072 ms 80.010 ms 78.133 ms
comfy@fedora:~$ dnf repoinfo
Updating and loading repositories:
Fedora 43 openh264 (From Cisco) - x86_64 100% | 2.1 KiB/s | 5.8 KiB | 00m03s
Fedora 43 - x86_64 - Updates 100% | 493.8 KiB/s | 6.7 MiB | 00m14s
Fedora 43 - x86_64 100% | 193.6 KiB/s | 35.4 MiB | 03m07s
Repositories loaded.
Repo ID : fedora
Name : Fedora 43 - x86_64
Status : enabled
Priority : 99
Cost : 1000
Type : available
Metadata expire : 604800 seconds (last: 2025-12-09 09:55:10)
Skip if unavailable : false
Config file : /etc/yum.repos.d/fedora.repo
URLs :
Base URL : http://mirror.bahnhof.net/pub/fedora/linux/releases/43/Everything/x86_64/os/ (134 more)
Metalink : https://mirrors.fedoraproject.org/metalink?repo=fedora-43&arch=x86_64
OpenPGP :
Keys : file:///etc/pki/rpm-gpg/RPM-GPG-KEY-fedora-43-x86_64
Verify repodata : false
Verify packages : true
Repodata info :
Available packages : 77664
Total packages : 77664
Size : 117.1 GiB
Revision : 1761190640
Updated : 2025-10-23 03:37:20
Repo ID : fedora-cisco-openh264
Name : Fedora 43 openh264 (From Cisco) - x86_64
Status : enabled
Priority : 99
Cost : 1000
Type : available
Metadata expire : 1209600 seconds (last: 2025-12-09 09:52:06)
Skip if unavailable : true
Config file : /etc/yum.repos.d/fedora-cisco-openh264.repo
URLs :
Base URL : https://codecs.fedoraproject.org/openh264/43/x86_64/ (1 more)
Metalink : https://mirrors.fedoraproject.org/metalink?repo=fedora-cisco-openh264-43&arch=x86_64
OpenPGP :
Keys : file:///etc/pki/rpm-gpg/RPM-GPG-KEY-fedora-43-x86_64
Verify repodata : false
Verify packages : true
Repodata info :
Available packages : 6
Total packages : 6
Size : 3.5 MiB
Revision : 1741171556
Updated : 2025-03-05 10:45:56
Repo ID : updates
Name : Fedora 43 - x86_64 - Updates
Status : enabled
Priority : 99
Cost : 1000
Type : available
Metadata expire : 21600 seconds (last: 2025-12-09 09:52:18)
Skip if unavailable : false
Config file : /etc/yum.repos.d/fedora-updates.repo
URLs :
Base URL : http://mirror.yandex.ru/fedora/linux/updates/43/Everything/x86_64/ (20 more)
Metalink : https://mirrors.fedoraproject.org/metalink?repo=updates-released-f43&arch=x86_64
OpenPGP :
Keys : file:///etc/pki/rpm-gpg/RPM-GPG-KEY-fedora-43-x86_64
Verify repodata : false
Verify packages : true
Repodata info :
Available packages : 12306
Total packages : 12306
Size : 39.4 GiB
Revision : 1765155533
Updated : 2025-12-08 01:34:29
Fedora 43 - x86_64 took pretty long at 3 minutes for just a 35 MiB file. Discover also takes ages to load a search and installing apps takes much longer. I hope this helps.
You’ve given a traceroute for mirrors.rpmfusion.org but you don’t use mirrors.rpmfusion.org.
traceroute to one of the servers, you’re actually using - look at the “Base URL” line in your dnf output above; pick one of those.
Here’s the traceroute for the base URLs
comfy@fedora:~$ traceroute mirror.bahnhof.net
traceroute to mirror.bahnhof.net (2001:9b0:fff5:c::2), 30 hops max, 80 byte packets
1 fiberbox.home (2a01:9700:354b:700:1247:38ff:fedb:3970) 11.238 ms 11.165 ms 7.834 ms
2 * * *
3 2a00:18d8::1f1 (2a00:18d8::1f1) 19.090 ms 19.061 ms 19.032 ms
4 * * *
5 2a00:18d8::229 (2a00:18d8::229) 18.913 ms 18.886 ms 26.016 ms
6 2a00:18d8::105 (2a00:18d8::105) 18.830 ms 4.828 ms 4.738 ms
7 mno-b3-link.ip.twelve99.net (2001:2035:0:2a26::1) 181.412 ms 181.294 ms 181.250 ms
8 ffm-bb1-v6.ip.twelve99.net (2001:2034:1:6b::1) 181.212 ms ffm-bb2-v6.ip.twelve99.net (2001:2034:1:6c::1) 181.180 ms 181.147 ms
9 ffm-b11-link.ip.twelve99.net (2001:2035:0:2af6::1) 181.102 ms 176.430 ms 176.347 ms
10 bahnhof-ic-393193.ip.twelve99-cust.net (2001:2035:0:2af6::2) 176.168 ms 84.229 ms 84.134 ms
11 2001:9b0::220:60 (2001:9b0::220:60) 84.093 ms 84.054 ms 84.014 ms
12 mmo1-p1.se.as8473.net (2001:9b0::220:5) 91.881 ms * *
13 mmo2-p1.se.as8473.net (2001:9b0::220:6) 281.141 ms 281.089 ms 281.044 ms
14 * sto1-p1.se.as8473.net (2001:9b0::220:1) 280.830 ms 280.789 ms
15 * * *
16 * * *
17 2001:9b0:fff5:c::1 (2001:9b0:fff5:c::1) 214.178 ms 206.534 ms 97.632 ms
18 mirror.bahnhof.net (2001:9b0:fff5:c::2) 96.740 ms 95.515 ms 95.343 ms
comfy@fedora:~$ https://codecs.fedoraproject.org/openh264/43/x86_64/
bash: https://codecs.fedoraproject.org/openh264/43/x86_64/: No such file or directory
comfy@fedora:~$ traceroute codecs.fedoraproject.org
traceroute to codecs.fedoraproject.org (2001:4178:2:1269::fed2), 30 hops max, 80 byte packets
1 fiberbox.home (2a01:9700:354b:700:1247:38ff:fedb:3970) 1.896 ms 3.052 ms 2.977 ms
2 * * *
3 2a00:18d8::1f1 (2a00:18d8::1f1) 20.614 ms 20.989 ms 20.932 ms
4 * * *
5 2a00:18d8::229 (2a00:18d8::229) 7.440 ms 7.391 ms 7.339 ms
6 2a00:18d8::105 (2a00:18d8::105) 6.912 ms 3.630 ms 6.303 ms
7 mno-b3-link.ip.twelve99.net (2001:2035:0:2a26::1) 57.906 ms 57.833 ms 57.810 ms
8 ffm-bb2-v6.ip.twelve99.net (2001:2034:1:6c::1) 66.817 ms 66.771 ms 66.318 ms
9 ffm-b11-link.ip.twelve99.net (2001:2035:0:1db2::1) 64.457 ms 65.589 ms 65.143 ms
10 ionos-ic-350360.ip.twelve99-cust.net (2001:2035:0:1db2::2) 65.695 ms 64.619 ms 64.475 ms
11 lo0-0.bb-a.wm.fra.de.net.ionos.com (2001:8d8::a8) 64.385 ms 67.464 ms 67.323 ms
12 lo-0-0.bb-a.ess.muc.de.net.ionos.com (2001:8d8::142) 74.586 ms 73.633 ms 72.770 ms
13 lo-0-0.rc-a.ess.muc.de.net.ionos.com (2001:8d8::118) 73.902 ms 73.385 ms 70.849 ms
14 2001:8d8:0:2::35f (2001:8d8:0:2::35f) 78.905 ms 2001:8d8:0:2::361 (2001:8d8:0:2::361) 78.538 ms 2001:8d8:0:2::35f (2001:8d8:0:2::35f) 79.137 ms
15 2001:4178:1::11a (2001:4178:1::11a) 86.860 ms 84.226 ms 90.127 ms
16 2001:4178:2:1269::fed2 (2001:4178:2:1269::fed2) 77.314 ms !X 76.191 ms !X 77.935 ms !X
comfy@fedora:~$ traceroute mirror.yandex.ru
traceroute to mirror.yandex.ru (2a02:6b8::183), 30 hops max, 80 byte packets
1 fiberbox.home (2a01:9700:354b:700:1247:38ff:fedb:3970) 2.693 ms 2.576 ms 2.531 ms
2 * * *
3 2a00:18d8::1f1 (2a00:18d8::1f1) 6.882 ms 6.842 ms 6.966 ms
4 * * *
5 2a00:18d8::229 (2a00:18d8::229) 6.640 ms 6.764 ms 6.562 ms
6 2a00:18d8::105 (2a00:18d8::105) 6.684 ms 5.609 ms 5.554 ms
7 mno-b3-link.ip.twelve99.net (2001:2035:0:2a26::1) 56.351 ms 56.276 ms 56.377 ms
8 ffm-bb2-v6.ip.twelve99.net (2001:2034:1:6c::1) 65.798 ms 66.514 ms ffm-bb1-v6.ip.twelve99.net (2001:2034:1:6b::1) 66.458 ms
9 ffm-b16-v6.ip.twelve99.net (2001:2034:0:297::1) 66.426 ms 66.396 ms 66.044 ms
10 edgetechplusdoo-ic-389266.ip.twelve99-cust.net (2001:2035:0:1b44::2) 66.477 ms 76.064 ms 75.925 ms
11 * * *
12 * * *
13 * * *
14 * * *
15 * * *
16 * * *
17 * * *
18 * * *
19 * * *
20 * * *
21 * * *
22 * * *
23 * * *
24 * * *
25 * * *
26 * * *
27 * * *
28 * * *
29 * * *
30 * * *
comfy@fedora:~$ traceroute mirrors.fedoraproject.org
traceroute to mirrors.fedoraproject.org (2605:bc80:3010:600:dead:beef:cafe:fed9), 30 hops max, 80 byte packets
1 fiberbox.home (2a01:9700:354b:700:1247:38ff:fedb:3970) 3.428 ms 3.304 ms 3.248 ms
2 * * *
3 2a00:18d8::1f1 (2a00:18d8::1f1) 8.035 ms 7.983 ms 7.933 ms
4 * * *
5 * 2a00:18d8::229 (2a00:18d8::229) 7.558 ms 7.508 ms
6 2a00:18d8::105 (2a00:18d8::105) 7.457 ms 5.294 ms 5.187 ms
7 mno-b3-link.ip.twelve99.net (2001:2035:0:2a26::1) 84.286 ms 84.166 ms 84.125 ms
8 prs-bb2-v6.ip.twelve99.net (2001:2034:1:c1::1) 84.087 ms 84.032 ms 83.988 ms
9 ldn-bb2-v6.ip.twelve99.net (2001:2034:1:ca::1) 83.950 ms 78.778 ms 78.665 ms
10 ewr-bb2-v6.ip.twelve99.net (2001:2034:1:b8::1) 205.962 ms 205.891 ms *
11 chi-bb2-v6.ip.twelve99.net (2001:2034:1:c8::1) 205.818 ms 205.783 ms *
12 2001:2035:0:8a8::1 (2001:2035:0:8a8::1) 222.427 ms 219.285 ms 219.157 ms
13 lightspeed-ic-378661.ip.twelve99-cust.net (2001:2035:0:8a8::2) 220.866 ms den-bb2-v6.ip.twelve99.net (2001:2034:1:a6::1) 200.859 ms lightspeed-ic-378661.ip.twelve99-cust.net (2001:2035:0:8a8::2) 220.406 ms
14 2607:fa40:5::70 (2607:fa40:5::70) 216.967 ms 216.043 ms 216.873 ms
15 2607:fa40:5::71 (2607:fa40:5::71) 217.157 ms 214.887 ms 214.780 ms
16 * * *
17 corv-kerr-pe-01.net.linkoregon.org (2605:bc80:3010:700::1) 217.328 ms 2001:2035:0:8a8::1 (2001:2035:0:8a8::1) 238.240 ms corv-kerr-pe-01.net.linkoregon.org (2605:bc80:3010:700::1) 216.076 ms
18 proxy06.fedoraproject.org (2605:bc80:3010:600:dead:beef:cafe:fed9) 215.956 ms !X 215.911 ms !X 216.084 ms !X
comfy@fedora:~$Looks like you’re getting routed to some relatively slow mirrors (can’t comment on the .ru server as it’s not returning ICMP packets anyway).
twelve99.net, whoever they are, aren’t stellar either so if you can’t avoid them, you’re stuck with routing through them.
You could try the following - it makes no difference on my machine, so I can’t vouch for efficacy.
edit /etc/dnf/dnf.conf and add these lines:
fastestmirror=True
max_parallel_downloads=10
Adjust the amount of parallel downloads to suit your config and kit.
Then run sudo dnf clean all && sudo dnf makecache --refresh
Any better?
Still pretty bad
If anyone wants to help, I’d really appreciate it.
your immediate solution is switching on a good paid vpn for update or program installations; however if you are ready to put some efforts, try this:
The traceroute data reveals the real problem: the connection is being routed through intermediate networks with high latency (170-280ms to reach European mirrors), and the mirror selection is suboptimal. The twelve99.net backbone adds substantial delays, and some mirrors (like Yandex) aren’t responding to ICMP packets at all.
Solution 1: Force a Specific Fast Mirror (Most Effective)
Manually select a faster mirror by editing the repository configuration files. First, check available mirrors at the Fedora Mirror Manager to find one geographically closer or with better routing.
(https://mirrormanager.fedoraproject.org/mirrors)
Edit /etc/yum.repos.d/fedora.repo:
bash
sudo nano /etc/yum.repos.d/fedora.repo
Comment out the metalink line and uncomment the baseurl line, then replace it with a reliable mirror. For example, use a European mirror with good connectivity:
text
#metalink=https://mirrors.fedoraproject.org/metalink?repo=fedora-43&arch=x86_64
baseurl=https://fedora.mirrorservice.org/fedora/linux/releases/43/Everything/x86_64/os/
Repeat this process for /etc/yum.repos.d/fedora-updates.repo and /etc/yum.repos.d/fedora-cisco-openh264.repo.
discussion.fedoraproject
After making changes, clean and refresh the cache:
bash
sudo dnf clean all && sudo dnf makecache --refresh
Solution 2: Use Metalink with Geographic Hints
If you prefer using the automatic mirror selection, specify the country or countries that should be prioritized in the metalink URL. Edit the repository files and modify the metalink line:
text
metalink=https://mirrors.fedoraproject.org/metalink?repo=fedora-43&arch=x86_64&country=ae,sa,jo
Use two-letter ISO country codes (e.g., jo for Jordan, ae for UAE, sa for Saudi Arabia) to prioritize Middle Eastern mirrors if available.
Solution 3: Disable IPv6 (Potential Quick Fix)
The traceroutes show IPv6 routing being used. IPv6 connectivity from Jordan can have suboptimal routing through the twelve99.net backbone. Try disabling IPv6:
Temporarily test:
bash
sudo sysctl -w net.ipv6.conf.all.disable_ipv6=1
sudo sysctl -w net.ipv6.conf.default.disable_ipv6=1
Then test download speeds. If improved, make it permanent by adding to /etc/sysctl.conf:
bash
sudo nano /etc/sysctl.conf
Add these lines:
text
net.ipv6.conf.all.disable_ipv6 = 1
net.ipv6.conf.default.disable_ipv6 = 1
net.ipv6.conf.lo.disable_ipv6 = 1
Save and reboot.
Solution 4: Optimize DNF Configuration
Add these settings to /etc/dnf/dnf.conf for additional improvements:
text
max_parallel_downloads=5
keepcache=True
Do not use fastestmirror=True — it only measures latency, not actual download speed, and has been shown to make performance worse in many cases.
Recommended Approach
Start with Solution 1 (forcing a specific mirror), as it directly addresses the suboptimal mirror selection shown in the diagnostics. The user should:
- Choose a mirror from the official list that appears geographically or network-wise closer
- Test direct download speeds from that mirror manually to verify it’s faster
- Hardcode it in the repository configuration
If the Fedora mirror manager doesn’t list any Middle Eastern mirrors in the metalink response, try mirrors from nearby regions (Turkey, Saudi Arabia, UAE) or use a well-connected European mirror as a fallback.
On Fedora 41 and above, dnf5 is automatically installed, and dnf is just an alias for dnf5.
1 Like
I suspect ipv6 can be the issue.
1 Like
FWIW I also had a slowness problem when I first installed fedora. Setting a timeout solved it for me. Here is what I added to my /etc/dnf/dnf.conf:
fastestmirror=True
max_parallel_downloads=8
timeout=5
minrate=512k
It means that 5 seconds under 512kbps makes it switch to another mirror.
3 Likes