DSL "modems" and routers

[sil0nt]

I need to hear what people think about the end user DSL equipment out there. Im looking for quite a few things..

#1
Something that can standalone from a workstation/server. It needs to be able to plug in to a hub/switch and then give unrestricted internet access to the lan. If it could also do NAT and DHCP, great, but I would like it to route real world ip addresses assigned to it. This is probably expensive, and I can accept that.

#2
Something that is cheap and anyone that has a single machine would want. This doesnt need to do anything fancy, but I would like this to be external interfacing through rj45 or usb. Mac compatibility a must (either that or a separate unit for mac)

#3
Something that is relatively cheap that could suit a home network. Doing NAT is probably best, but if it can route a few real world ips, fantastic. If this needs a host machine for whatever reason, that is ok. Again, Mac compatibility is of concern here.

All of these will be given static ip addresses, so DHCP client isn't an issue. Built in hubs and that sort of thing aren't going to sway me one way or the other, im just looking for good reliable DSL connectivity. The provider will be using PPPoE to create the tunnel, so that will need to be handled in one way or another by all of the above.

Thanks a bunch for any input.

brian

 

[NaughtyusMaximus]

NOt to go too in depth or anything (I'm too tired), but any old DSL modem should do you fine. That coupled with either the netgear, or Linksys router (both of which act as a switch, NAT station, and firewall) will do exactly what you need them to do. The router will hold the real world ip, and an internal ip. All that you need to do is set your gateway to the internal IP of the router. Since TCP/IP is a universal standard, there is no need to worry about compatability; this set-up will work with any machine(s).

 

[Xtremist]

My Cisco 675 will do all that I believe. Read here:

http://www.cisco.com/univercd/cc/td/doc/pcat/675.htm

The DSL provider can tell you if they support it though... Right now I have it configured like your #1 setup. I used to have it as setup #2. And I know if you don't have an ISP that will give you multiple static IP's, you go with setup #3. I believe you can get this router for around $150 or so? Maybe cheaper, maybe more... Hope this helps... Cheers!

 

[Viper GTS]

Personally, I'd grab a Cisco 675. They're around $300 new, & when configured in PPP mode they can provide 'net access to as many computers as you want. They interface via regular cat5 ethernet cabling, & can be plugged either directly into one computer (eg a firewall situation) or plugged directly into a network, in which case all computers on the network would have access. The 675 will support all three scenarios you outlined, but you'd probably be on your own to figure out the specifics. Most ISPs aren't going to provide support for such configurations, although some will support situation #3 (the LAN).

Basically it works like this (one IP, dynamic):

The router gets a valid global IP address. It also grabs an internal address of 10.0.0.1. It then assigns internal addresses to each computer on the network, be it PC, MAC, Linux, or whatever. It assigns addresses starting with 10.0.0.2, 10.0.0.3, etc. You can also hardcode those addresses, & forget about DHCP. The router will run NAT, & will router traffic appropriately. Hardcoding the internal IPs is simple. Just assign an IP of 10.0.0.X, where X is anything between 2 & 255. The default gateway is 10.0.0.1 (the address of the router, of course), & the subnet mask is 255.255.255.0. DNS servers can either be dynamically assigned by the 675, or they can be hard coded per your ISP's instructions.

You could also purchase a static IP block, in which case each of your computers would have a valid global IP. This is the solution to use if you want to play games, use streaming content, or even chat on IRC.

Viper GTS

 

[Venomous]

Viper, how many ports can that Cisco forward and can the firewall be DISABLED, unlike the LinkSYS. The LinkSYS is killing my Online Game hosting on Mplayer. I bought the LinkSYS when it first came out and wasnt aware of this TINY obsticle. Thanks

 

[NaughtyusMaximus]

Venomous,
you've probably thought of this, but you can set your gaming computer to be the DMZ when you want to host games, and that should remove any traces of the firewall.

 

[sil0nt]

Ok, thanks everyone for the information.

Another question: NaughtyusMaximus mentioned that any old DSL modem will suffice. I would prefer an all in one solution.. is this possible for my #2 and #3? I realize it must be possible for #1, otherwise it wouldn't really be very far apart from the other two.

Also, what are some of the limitations? For example, how many IP addresses can this thing handle? What I mean is.. if I get a block of 32 IP addresses from an ISP, can the router handle 32 machines with separate real world addresses?

thanks

brian

 

[Xtremist]

It can handle that many as far as I know, yes. I've only pushed 8 through it, but I don't imagine the router would mind quite a few more.

 

[pdo]

Cisco675 are very solid modem except that it's so hard to program stuff like port forwarding or filtering.

 

[sil0nt]

One more thing...

Could someone point me in the direction of obtaining information on DSL Modems and the PPPoE software that could drive one?

Thanks
brian

 

[Xtremist]

I'd try here first:

http://www.dslreports.com/pppoe

Although I have no experience with that, I would assume that's a good place to start...

 

[FUBAR]

What's so hard about programming the port forwarding? It's a one line command for each port. Something like

add nat entry outside.ip port tcp/udp indide.ip port tcp/udp

Simple! Well, the real syntax is in the book.

I'll give you that the filtering is a bitch.

 

[Venomous]

No luck with DMZ. It still leaves the FIREWALL enabled.