Using B3 as router in Germany

[saudadegostosa]

Hi, I have posted almost the same question the B3 server forum, but think it might be more appropriate here.

So I have the following general problem:

I am currently using the B3 as server connected to my separate router which works without any problems.

However, I would like to use the B3 as router/firewall and replace my other router by a DSL modem. The problem is that DSL works exclusively using PPP over Ethernet in Germany which means that our routers all offer the possibility to enter the user name and password for establishing the internet connection.

So my question (which is maybe strange) would be: how can I pass the user name/password required for DSL to my DSL modem if I use the B3 as router?

[pcrene]

Hi

Correct me (others) if i am wrong BUT:

DSL is not a network connection, so the B3 cannot be connected directly to a DSL line!!!!!
You always need a modem to do that job. Your router is a combination of router and modem.

Rene

[RandomUsername]

Affirmative.

You need to do something similar to what I've done where my ISP supplied router is only being used as a DSL modem (not strictly a modem but you know what I mean). I.e. all DHCP, DNS, wifi, firewall and routing functions are disabled and handed over to the Bubba server.

How to do this depends on your modem/router. In my case I bridged the DSL socket with one of the ethernet sockets so my Bubba receives my public IP address on the WAN socket. Your router might have a DMZ function or an option called something like "assign public IP address to device".

Alternatively, you can give your Bubba a private (LAN based) IP address on the WAN port but you then need to set up loads of port forwarding rules on the modem/router so you can access the Bubba from the Internet.

If you let us know the model of the router that would be a good start to being able to help you.

Darren.

Also, off to the side a bit; DSL is a networking protocol but it's right down at the bottom of the OSI model (physical layer) with Ethernet, 802.11 etc. so it uses different connectors, cables and topologies. It does fit into the TCP/IP model which is why you can use it for Internet access (which is based on TCP/IP) and what most people think of as "networks" these days.

[saudadegostosa]

Thanks for the answers - of course, I know that I have to use some kind of DSL modem in order to use the B3 as router/firewall. In the user manual, such a scenario is described, and I would simply like to replace my current combination of integrated modem/router by a separate modem and the B3.

As of now, I am using a Speedport W701V to handle this job, and I also know how to switch off the router part in this device (I also own a plain DSL modem called Speedport 200), so this is not the problem.

The problem is rather that we are using PPPoE in Germany for accessing the DSL connection while most other countries are using different technologies such as PPPoA or PPTP.

This means that I have to have a possibility to enter my DSL user name/password somewhere in the router (in fact, I have also been using a combination of the afore mentioned Speedport 200 and a Netgear router before, and I could enter this information into the Netgear router which passed it on to the modem in order to connect to the internet). However, there is no possibility provided for entering this information in the user interface in the B3.

In the other forum, somebody came up with this suggestion http://wiki.debian.org/PPPoE, but given the fact that the B3 user interface is also available in a German version (and that Germany seems to be an important market), perhaps it might be possible that Excito might integrate a PPPoE configuration wizard directly into the user interface (?) I think that would be greatly appreciated here.

[RandomUsername]

I see. But surely you can enter this information in the modem? I used to have a d-link dsl modem and I certainly could. If so, what's the point in being able to enter it in the bubba?

[saudadegostosa]

Hi, thanks, which modem did you use? And is it for PPPoE (as used in Germany and Switzerland)?

I have done a lot of research on that topic in the last days, and my Speedport 200 does not have any possibility to enter or store user credentials nor to initiate a connection by itself - it does have some kind of web based interface, but nothing can be entered there, it is only used for displaying information about the connection speed and quality (the same is true if I deactivate the router part of my Speedport 701).

The modem completely relies either on a computer or a router which hands over the instructions to the modem which is just a "passive device". So I would need to enter this kind of information in to the router which then controls the modem.

[RandomUsername]

I had one of these - http://www.thinkbroadband.com/hardware/ ... l300t.html - and it definitely supported ppoe. However, that was years ago and I don't know if you can still get one (or an equivalent).

The thing is, there doesn't seem much point to me in you replacing your current setup with a modem. You're just switching one box for another.

[saudadegostosa]

That is highly interesting - so far, I have only been using Speedport devices (the ones sold directly by German Telecom), and none of them offers the possibility to store the credentials for the DSL connection. In fact, they all rely on an external device to initiate the connection.

However, I will order the D-Link 321B now, it still has an integrated client for connecting to DSL. That solves my problem

Well, the reason for all this is: I would like to use the B3 as router and firewall instead of the W701, therefore, I have to use a separate DSL modem. This seems also to be the easiest way of reaching the B3 from the internet using the integrated easyfind service.