Kitz Forum
Broadband Related => Broadband Hardware => Topic started by: tiffy on May 10, 2020, 12:05:15 PM
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Have decided to change my VDSL-2 line to a 2 box, Modem/Router setup the main considerations being:
1/. Provide gigabyte capability throughout my wired LAN system.
2/. Provide the ability to "mess about" with the router without disturbing my VDSL connection & annoying DLM.
3/. Make use of the many additional features available with a modern router.
As per the choice of many of the experienced forum patrons, will utilise my existing ZyXEL VMG1312-B10A as a modem and I have on order an Asus RT-AC68U for router service.
I intend to run Asuswrt-Merlin firmware on the router, again, as per the preference of many users.
Have been looking around for a S/H Asus RT-AC68U for quite some time, appear to hold their price very well and usually sell very quickly not that much cheaper than new units, so for the sake of warranty etc. have ordered new from Amazon.
There are many guides and previous posts available regarding setting up the 2 units in bridge configuration and in particular the ability to achieve a wired LAN connection to the modem in a 1 or 2 ethernet cable mode, will be using these as guidance.
In anticipation of the setup, a few point I would appreciate clarification on:
1/. I monitor my line stat's 24/7 with a RPi3B running DSLStats, I presume this will remain connected to the XyXEL (now modem only) to harvest the DSL stat's ?
(ie. do I provide the IP address of the modem or the router to DSLStats)
2/. Within my LAN will the designated WAN gateway be the routers or the modems IP address ?
(I need to designate the gateway IP address within some scripts I run on RPi's)
3/. Should I disable DHCP on the ZyXEL modem as well as Wi-Fi as the Asus router will now perform these functions ?
Edit: Posted by mistake before completion, edited to correct:
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When the ZyXEL VMG1312-B10A is configured as a bridging modem, looking towards your ISP/CP, it should be configured as three end-points of --
- VDSL2 (ITU-T G.993.2) from/to the cabinet DSLAM.
- Packet transfer mode (PTM) from/to the cabinet DSLAM.
- A virtual LAN (VLAN), tagged as 101, from/to deeper into the access network.
Looking towards your LAN, it should just provide/consume Ethernet frames.
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1/. I monitor my line stat's 24/7 with a RPi3B running DSLStats, I presume this will remain connected to the XyXEL (now modem only) to harvest the DSL stat's ?
(ie. do I provide the IP address of the modem or the router to DSLStats)
It depends how you go about it. The easiest method is to have the modems LAN as a static IP address outside the routers DHCP range and plug one of the LAN ports into a router LAN port.
A more complicated method could use the single cable in the WAN port and some fiddling on the router to allow it to talk to both the WAN and the LAN side of the modem down the single cable, but personally I'm not fond of that as I'm not convinced some LAN traffic can't leak out the WAN side that way, at the very least wasting a bit of bandwidth.
2/. Within my LAN will the designated WAN gateway be the routers or the modems IP address ?
(I need to designate the gateway IP address within some scripts I run on RPi's)
It will be the routers IP address, the modem is invisible to the LAN and in effect the router, as it thinks its talking straight to the ISP network. The only thing the router does is establish a PPPoE connection.
3/. Should I disable DHCP on the ZyXEL modem as well as Wi-Fi as the Asus router will now perform these functions ?
Correct.
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Thanks to both for the very informative replies, much appreciated.
With respect to the RPi (DSLStats) LAN connection:
It depends how you go about it. The easiest method is to have the modems LAN as a static IP address outside the routers DHCP range and plug one of the LAN ports into a router LAN port.
A more complicated method could use the single cable in the WAN port and some fiddling on the router to allow it to talk to both the WAN and the LAN side of the modem down the single cable, but personally I'm not fond of that as I'm not convinced some LAN traffic can't leak out the WAN side that way, at the very least wasting a bit of bandwidth.
Yes,will likely opt (initially anyway) for the 2 cable connection mode, I plan to give the new router the existing ZyXEL modem/router's IP address and allocate a new IP address to the (now) ZyXEL modem.
I always allocate fixed IP addresses by MAC's to all my LAN devices and plan to do the same on the Asus router.
I do the same with my Wi-Fi connections by MAC filtering.
Just to be absolutely clear, DSLStats will still collect it's data from the ZyXEL (now modem) via the Rpi ?
Questions 2 & 3 very clearly and comprehensively answered, thank you.
Still awaiting delivery of my Asus RT-AC68U from Amazon, I resolutely refuse to be forced/tricked into signing up to Prime and I'am periodically "punished" for doing so, this item is one such instance, 10 days proposed delivery on an in stock item.
Can't really blame the current Covid-19 restrictions as my recent Amazon orders (non Prime, free postage) have been remarkably fast.
Anyway, another topic not relevant to this post which has been well aired previously.
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Just to be absolutely clear, DSLStats will still collect it's data from the ZyXEL (now modem) via the Rpi ?
Yes, correct. The VMG1312-B10A will still have an RFC1918 IPv4 address, as it is a device in its own right . . . and it will be via the modem's management/configuration address that R-Pi would harvest the data.
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Just to be absolutely clear, DSLStats will still collect it's data from the ZyXEL (now modem) via the Rpi ?
That is correct.
I have a similar setup, but both the modem and router are different brands from yours.
Edit: Paws obviously type faster than fingers!! :D
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I have adopted the single cable method. I have the bridge Interface Group on a different subnet to the LAN with its own IPv4 address (see attachment) and a corresponding subnet defined on the WAN interface of my router. I can access the modem by coding the interface group address in DSLstats and save the clutter of another cable. :)
<subnet name="VMG1312-1"
ip="192.168.2.2/24"
gateway="192.168.2.1"/>
Edit: Sorry, having issues with the screenshot, iPad not helping. Bear with, as they say.
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Thanks again to all.
Looking forward to the challenge as soon as Amazon decide to release the "non Pime" goods from their grasp.
@vic0239:
Have been reviewing the single cable method, I am unclear as to exactly where and how the necessary code is implemented ?
I believe the Asus router has the capability of running user scripts don't think the Zyxel has ?
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On the ZyXel the interface group is set up as per this guide (https://kitz.co.uk/routers/zyxel_VMG8324-B10A_bridge.htm) and is part of the standard GUI functionality. Whether you can easily set the subnet on your router will depend on the flexibility of its interface configurator. I’m using a Firebrick from Andrews and Arnold which appears to make the process quite straightforward, at least it seems so to my less than expert capability. ;)
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@vic0239:
Thanks for the further information.
Have already "digested" the excellent kitz bridging guide which although is for a ZyXEL VMG8324 appears to have a very similar GUI to my VMG1312-B10A, i'am sure the procedure will be virtually the same.
Hope to have the Asus router on hand later this week when I can have a play with it's capabilities which I believe are quite extensive especially when running the third party Merlin firmware.
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Alas, will have to wait a bit longer for the new toy, Amazon have knocked back delivery to next Monday, that will be just under 2 weeks for an in stock item, they have decided to use Hermes which is unusual in our area, would appear they have ramped up the "non-prime" uptake punishment a level, happened before until I registered a complaint then it suddenly reverted to normal until recently.
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I don’t understand why two cables are required or perhaps I should say ‘chosen’, instead if just one. Recap: I don’t need two cables. My Firebrick router like vic0239 just uses a single cable per modem (four ZyXel VMG1312-B10A units). Each modem’s admin i/f IPv4 address is at 192,168.n.1 (where n=1,2,3,4) and the Firebrick’s address on each Firebrick-to-modem link subnet is at 192.168.n.254; so it happens to look just like Kitz’ article which I had not read. I did not use Andrews and Arnold’s standard configuration to handle the business of obtaining stats from multiple modems, which uses multiple TCP ports to access the various modems. I use kitizen Johnson’s superb custom firmware in the modem and that contains a second http server displaying stats via http://192.168.n.1/8000; IP v4 delivers control and configuration via http and the second port 8000 Johnson stats server shows graphs of chronological stats, stats per bin and raw stats figures in ascii text form. The Firebrick Internally redirects the traffic from the modems’ graphs and stats http 8000 server and control/admin/config http server onto the main LAN, so I don’t need a second cable to convey stats/config/control traffic to the main LAN, one cable carries PPPoEoE traffic to the internet multiplexed with the two lots of IPv4 http traffic for stats/graphs and control/admin. The PPPoEoE traffic does not have IP addresses, it’s L2 traffic, albeit containing payload that is IPv6 over PPP and IPv4 over PPP, so the multiplexing keeps everything apart.
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I don’t understand why two cables are required or perhaps I should say ‘chosen’, instead if just one.
It isn't a choice most of the time.
Using 1 cable can't be done with most consumer routers.
It can't be done with any ISP provided kit with a WAN port that I know of.
Asus routers even require 3rd party firmware to achieve it.
Using a single cable requires modifying iptables which can't be done with lots of consumer kit.
It's cheaper and easier just to connect a 2nd Ethernet cable for accessing stats.
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Thanks J0hn, it’s down to the internal routing/redirection capabilities of some routers then?
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Thanks J0hn, it’s down to the internal routing/redirection capabilities of some routers then?
Indeed, on OpenWRT the process involves creating a new interface with an IP in the same subnet as the modem but sharing the same physical port as the WAN/PPPoE connection then some fudging with iptables to get communication across subnets working.
It sounds like firebricks do much the same thing - you mentioned having physical ports connected to modems gaining 192.168.n.254 ips. How automated this is I have no idea, but I wouldn't be surprised if you have a few lines in the config thats making this happen.
Either way, as john says this is not something most consumer hardware has a way of doing through the GUI.
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Indeed, there’s a lot of fudging in the Firebrick config to forcibly redirect traffic between two subnets and NAT is required to get replies back again from the modem to the machine on the main LAN that initiated the whole conversation
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Indeed, on OpenWRT the process involves creating a new interface with an IP in the same subnet as the modem but sharing the same physical port as the WAN/PPPoE connection then some fudging with iptables to get communication across subnets working.
Not if both the modem and router support VLANs it doesn't.
(https://csdprojects.co.uk/forums/HH5A_OpenWRT_VDSL_Bridge.png)
(https://csdprojects.co.uk/forums/HH5A_OpenWRT_VDSL_Bridge_pfSense.png)
The PPPoEoE traffic does not have IP addresses, it’s L2 traffic, albeit containing payload that is IPv6 over PPP and IPv4 over PPP, so the multiplexing keeps everything apart.
Like I've said before, I do not believe its that simple. The whole point of a bridge is that ALL broadcast traffic will pass both ways, so at the very least I'd expect ARP packets to be going out the WAN, even if they are ignored at the other end. To me, that's just a bad configuration.
I'm not sure how cable modems do it, because I know at least on Virgin they do have the LAN and WAN on the same port when bridged, I assume they have additional rules in place to avoid passing LAN packets out the WAN side.
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@Alex Atkin UK
Sure, but in the context of the thread we are talking about a dumb VMG1312/8x24 and either a general consumer router or something more exotic. You are talking about a HH5A with openWRT as a modem and a pfsense box as a router.
The HH5A is indeed a VLAN aware (smart) switch, I dont think the same can be said for a VMG1312.
Dont get me wrong though, I agree with your sentiment about single cable solutions via various methods. Even though a PPP packet and an IP one *should* never end up in the same place it feels impossible for me to say that with certainty.
Even with a 2 cable solution I still have yet to properly fix DHCP announces being rebroadcast over the modems switch and being received on the routers WAN port and filling my logs with errors about it not having a a way to respond.
Paranoia set in once I noticed the MAC address of a Juniper device (I can only assume testing equipment) in my routing table after sighting of a BT van last year - been using 2 cables since.
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Thanks to all for the further input, very interesting and informative.
Considering the limitations of my proposed system hardware, even with Merlin firmware running on the Asus router, a 2 cable setup will be my best (perhaps only) option, the complexity and required knowledge level to implement a single cable setup is very likely beyond my capabilities.
So, my proposed setup will be:
XyXEL 1312 bridge configured as modem.
Asus RT-AC68U as router.
Cable from ZyXEL port to WAN port on Asus.
Cable from ZyXEL port to LAN port on Asus.
Cable from ZyXEL port to RPi 3B (as per existing setup)
Cable from Asus to Desktop Win 10 PC.
This leaves 2 Gigabyte LAN ports free on the Asus router, I already have a Netgear 8 port gigabyte switch in my existing system for further LAN distribution.
Presume all LAN devices should be configured on the same subnet ?
When exclusively IP address allocated from the Asus router (will configure static addresses) all devices will be accessable on the LAN ?
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Agree with the last sentence. You’ll have to set up an IP address for the modem’s admin/control interface by making it fixed, as you say, in the modem’s web UI or by editing the XML config And uploading it - I did the latter. I don’t think you can get the router to hand out IPv4 addresses to the modem via the router’s normal DHCP function.
And yes all devices have to be on the same subnet. It would be a good thing to reserve some addresses on the router so the router’s DHCP pool does not cover them and then the router’s DHCP will not be in danger of handing those addresses out to anything on the main LAN.
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@Weaver:
Many thanks for the further advice and comments.
I would have thought (hoped) with a 2 cable setup the Asus router would allocate an IP address to the ZyXEL modem as per any other connected LAN device ?
I have always set static IP addresses by MAC on all my network devices and MAC filtered all Wi-Fi devices, will continue to do so with the new Asus router.
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I don’t believe there’s any way that the ZYXEL modem will listed out for IP address assignments handed out by a router by DHCP when the modem is in straight modem-only modem. The Asus router will do its usual thing but the ZyXEL doesn’t ask for a DHCP-supplied IPv4 address for its admin/config interface. I may be wrong but I can’t see anything in the config XML that looks likely to be involved with supporting DHCP client operation. I’ve never tried two cable setup, but I can’t see that that’s relevant. If I could get the ZyXELs to configure themselves by DHCP then that would be really useful to me because currently I have to hand configure four of them individually to distinct static addresses (which I do by running a program that tweaks the modem XML config Before it is uploaded into each modem). If I could just configure them to be all the same and get them auto configured by dhcp by my router when they are plugged in then that would be so great. Perhaps someone else could put me straight regarding this belief?
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My Zyxel is set as 192.168.2.10 in bridge mode with one cable (that runs through the house). Attached are the Asus Wan settings used to get stats and access to the Zyxel from computers attached to the Asus RT-AC1200G+, and also works with my previous Asus DSL-N55U.
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Good to see the site up and running again after the extended outage.
Having finally got my hands on the Asus RT-AC68U router, Hermes exceled and delivered well before Amazon's predicted date in the end.
Now configuring settings, static IP addresses etc. pre change over to 2 box operation.
Also loaded the AsusWRT-Merlin firmware.
Using a direct ethernet cable connection to my laptop with Wi-Fi switched off on router and laptop to avoid any conflict with the still active ZyXEL modem/router.
Note that the Acer goes into what appears to be "sleep mode" with inactivity after a short delay, slowly flashing power LED, can't find a way to "awaken" other than re-booting, is this normal ?
Perhaps when fully integrated into the system and on line this won't occur ?
The is a "wake on LAN" parameter in the interface, should I be utilising this ?
Would like to get a better understanding of this "feature" before putting the Asus router on line.
Edit: Typo correction.
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Everything up and running now with XyXEL modem & Asus router configuration, switch over went very well, no unexpected issues.
Utilised the down time opportunity to reinstate my UPS which had been out of service for battery replacement/load testing.
Did use the 2 cable modem to router configuration with the RPi3B connected to a ZyXEL modem port, no problems accessing the ZyXEL and RPi GUI's on LAN.
I still use a Sam Knows WhiteBox line monitor, useful for unattended long term line monitoring, the unit ports are not Gigabyte speed capable, SK won't change out as currently over subscribed on my package/area.
Their recommended setup is to route everything through the WhiteBox, doing this would loose downstream Gigabyte capability on the LAN and defeat one aspect of the upgrade.
Found that connecting the WhiteBox WAN port to a ZyXEL modem LAN port and connecting the RPi to a WhiteBox LAN port satisified the ctiteria with no noticeable difference in trends to date and maintaining LAN gigabyte capability for the rest of the system.
Found that something must be fed through the WhiteBox to obtain a healthy status, can not just branch off the LAN.
The Asus router going into sleep mode when idle reported earlier does not now occur with the unit in service and the Wi-Fi enabled.
Satisfactory conclusion, many thanks to all for the advice and input.
Still lots to discover regarding the Asus routers capabilities especially when running the enhanced AsusWRT-Merlin firmware.
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After 2 days of running on the 2 box setup, have noted a minor anomaly which was not there before conversion.
My Google Home Hub, which is Wi-Fi connected to the Asus router with a static IP address and in the same room, quite regularly looses connection and takes a while to re-connect again, this may well occur with all my Wi-Fi connected devices but is very visable on the Google Home Hub as it has a display screen and is situated beside by desktop PC..
No changes have been made to the Google Home Hub since original commissioning.
The Asus DHCP lease time is the usual 86400 sec's (24 Hrs.) and I did disabled the DHCP server in my ZyXEL modem at change over.
Even more strange, if I fire up my second browser, Pale Moon, during the Wi-Fi re-connect period it won't connect to WAN, however, if still using my main browser, Firefox, it keeps on working merrily!
Anyone any ideas?
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Looks like the "minor anomaly" may not be so minor after all.
Adopting a more logical approach to diagnosis it's now clear that the Asus router is frequently dropping PPP session, the indication of "no connection" on the Google Home Hub is just a product of PPP session loss.
Loss of PPP session is clearly indicated on the router GUI internet status page.
Modem/DSLAM synch is never lost at any time, the ZyXEL modem is rock solid.
With the previous XyXEL modem/router setup maintained solid ISP connection for months, never any issues.
The WAN (internet) LED indicator remains illuminated at all times even when the GUI internet status shows disconnected !
As I loaded the third party AsusWRT-Merlin FW before commissioning, thought it best to load the latest AsusWRT FW, same results, frequent, apparently random dropping of PPP session, WAN connection status LED indicator as before.
Looks like I may have a faulty router, thankfully purchased brand new from Amazon so should get a replacement.
Am I missing anything here before talking to Amazon tomorrow ?
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This is not reassuring: https://www.snbforums.com/threads/why-asus-cant-get-the-basics-right-like-pppoe.55795/
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That is from 2013 maybe they fixed it now as both my DSL-N55U and RT-AC1200G+ have 40 days PPP connection day.
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@Alex Atkin UK:
Thanks for the "snbforums" link, very informative.
Have actioned a few of the suggestions on the forum and reverted back to AsusWRT-Merlin FW as the Asus "native" FW did not make any difference to the WAN PPP session periodic dropouts.
I was under the impression that the Asus RT-AC68U router, although not being the latest model by any means, was a very well respected unit especially when running AsusWRT-Merlin FW which certainly adds a lot of additional features, somewhat disappointed that I'am experiencing this issue.
Still wondering if the router has a hardware issue and should I try and get a replacement from Amazon, it's still returnable until 30/06/20 as only received on 13/05/20 ?
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That is from 2013 maybe they fixed it now as both my DSL-N55U and RT-AC1200G+ have 40 days PPP connection day.
You're reading their joined date, thread started by primitivo, Mar 28, 2019.
Its also specifically mentioned that for some people its fine, but for others its unreliable.
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I was under the impression that the Asus RT-AC68U router, although not being the latest model by any means, was a very well respected unit especially when running AsusWRT-Merlin FW which certainly adds a lot of additional features, somewhat disappointed that I'am experiencing this issue.
No doubt, it is still a great router
Still wondering if the router has a hardware issue and should I try and get a replacement from Amazon, it's still returnable until 30/06/20 as only received on 13/05/20 ?
Have you tried with direct PPPoE connecton with your laptop ? If you don't experience issues, then you'd better ask Amazon for a replacement.
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Have you tried with direct PPPoE connecton with your laptop ? If you don't experience issues, then you'd better ask Amazon for a replacement.
Would be kinda odd though, for a fault to only impact PPP, but I guess its not impossible.
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Afraid I got very disenchanted with the very frequent and what appeared to be random dropouts this afternoon, packed the router back in it's box and posted back to Amazon for a refund.
Would have accepted a replacement but this was not offered during the process, a like for like unit on Amazon would now cost approx. 1.5 times more that I paid, very likely the reason for no offer of replacement.
To be honest, even though the unit was sold by Amazon as brand new I had suspicions that it could be a return/re-furbished item, bits of the packaging just didn't look "virginal", perhaps the reason it was listed at an attractive price by comparison to the current listings.
So, my romance with Asus now over and returned to my old, bomb proof 1312-B10A in modem/router format.
Many thanks to all who offered support along the way, unfortunate about the result and two frustrating lost days.
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On checking my Sam Knows White Box on line trends today noted that during the period I deployed the Asus RT-AC68U router the latency and packet loss increased, packet loss quite considerably, trends attached.
Exact same setup with the White Box for either permutation, now back on ZyXEL 1312-B10A modem/router setup.
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Afraid I got very disenchanted with the very frequent and what appeared to be random dropouts this afternoon, packed the router back in it's box and posted back to Amazon for a refund.
Would have accepted a replacement but this was not offered during the process, a like for like unit on Amazon would now cost approx. 1.5 times more that I paid, very likely the reason for no offer of replacement.
To be honest, even though the unit was sold by Amazon as brand new I had suspicions that it could be a return/re-furbished item, bits of the packaging just didn't look "virginal", perhaps the reason it was listed at an attractive price by comparison to the current listings.
So, my romance with Asus now over and returned to my old, bomb proof 1312-B10A in modem/router format.
Many thanks to all who offered support along the way, unfortunate about the result and two frustrating lost days.
Tiffy, I am sorry you had issues, you did the right thing dumping the AC68U imho, I am sorry I hadn't seen your earlier posts
I had a RT-AC68U (different device but similar without modem built in) working as a WAP for 3 years, I bought it as my main router and initially tried a few firm-wares (Merlin etc) - always liked the GUI and spec but although my initial impressions were positive subsequently I had a lot of issues.
Whilst I was using it as my main router it would drop the PPoE connections randomly every day, I subsequently found it was a bug/hardware issue that some other users also experienced. I persevered with technical support and different firmwares for about 9 months and then gave up, replacing it with another router (which solved the issue)- I subsequently relegated it to a being a wireless access point.
As a WAP it functioned OK, but had a habit of crashing / freezing and becoming unresponsive requiring a reboot every 2-3 weeks. I bought a Ubiquiti WAP to replace it, it has performed flawlessly ever since.
The RT-68U is an old design, mine is over 4 years old, I still have it in my junk pile but it will never get plugged in again, I am kind of amazed its still on sale tbh
Other Asus devices I have bought have been pretty good so its strange.... nowadays I stick to enterprise / custom built stuff as much as I can - 'home' stuff is all built down to a price and has little or no support after a year or two.... including the fancy gaming stuff
C
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@Chunkers:
Many thanks for the interest and comments.
Yes, disappointed with the Asus (it was a RT-AC68U, router only unit) was well aware that the DSL-AC68U has a terrible reputation as a modem so avoided that model and stuck to my old faithful VMG1312-B10A as modem in bridge mode.
The Asus was dropping PPP session very frequently and randomly, certainly could not live with that.
As you say, this is quite an old model now but surprisingly still very much in demand and do hold their price very well, Amazon could not offer me a replacement at anywhere near the original cost which makes me suspicious that the unit was not brand new as advertised, perhaps a faulty/refurbished return ?
Can't fault Amazon's service, a full refund was in my account within 2 days, as soon as they received the Post Office notification of dispatch and definately before they had received the unit back again for inspection.
Still in the market for a new router but Asus brand is not currently on my wish list.
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I subsequently found it was a bug/hardware issue that some other users also experienced
Could you post a link to this hardware issue?
I've been running an RT-AC68U for a few years flawlessly.
Never had an issue with PPP.
Asus have probably sold millions of these devices.
It has been on sale for coming on 5 years.
If there was a hardware issue I'm sure they would have addressed it with at least a hardware revision years ago.
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There's a link a page back https://forum.kitz.co.uk/index.php/topic,24720.msg416247.html#msg416247
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I used Rt-ac68u for good few years and never had problem with, it was very stable and never drop connection. I don't even bother to install Merlin fw on it as it perform excellent on stock Asus fw.
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I'm not sure everyone would notice if PPP was dropping often, depending on if they are active when it happens or not.
But generally from what I've read the issue seems to be that it doesn't affect some people, yet others have a horrible time. Maybe down to ISP implementation at the other end?
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There's a link a page back https://forum.kitz.co.uk/index.php/topic,24720.msg416247.html#msg416247
That's a single user with a PPP issue with a single ISP.
The poster admits that the device worked perfect with other ISP's.
I've used the Asus with numerous ISP's with differing authentication methods.
A router that has sold so many units is always going to have examples of individual problems posted online.
That doesn't mean the device has a hardware bug.
There would be many thousands, probably tens of thousands, of complaints about PPP dropping if there was a hardware bug.
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Fully accept that the Asus RT-AC68U is a very well respected router by many well informed kitz forum patrons and much further abroad, this was the main reason I decided to purchase this model and go down the separate modem/router path.
Chances are, I was just unlucky and got a bad one from Amazon, to be honest, would likely have accepted a replacement at the same cost had that option been available at the time.
However, have decided to avoid rather costly Asus devices at present and currently investigating other "2 box" options which will suit my rather modest requirements at much less cost.
Quote by Alex Atkin UK:
I'm not sure everyone would notice if PPP was dropping often, depending on if they are active when it happens or not.
Yes indeed, I probably would not have noticed the PPP session drop outs had it not been for my Google Home Hub (Wi-Fi connected) which sits beside my PC VDU repeatedly reporting "no connection" & "re-connection", initially thought it was a Wi-Fi issue but then established on the router GUI that it was PPP session disconnects/re-connects.
@Alex Atkin UK:
Noted from your profile that you are running a BT HH-5A on OpenWRT, I spent Saturday converting my old Plusnet Hub One (re-badged BT HH-5A) to OpenWRT, just for fun !
Have not had a chance to play with the GUI much as yet but looks quite interesting.
How do you find your conversion, any use ?
PS: Will open another post on the subject if this gets involved, was going to post my "conversion experience" anyway.
Cross post acknowledged:
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Noted from your profile that you are running a BT HH-5A on OpenWRT, I spent Saturday converting my old Plusnet Hub One (re-badged BT HH-5A) to OpenWRT, just for fun !
Have not had a chance to play with the GUI much as yet but looks quite interesting.
How do you find your conversion, any use ?
PS: Will open another post on the subject if this gets involved, was going to post my "conversion experience" anyway.
Cross post acknowledged:
Its been a god send, as it allowed me to set 3dB SNRm on my Zen ECI line.
I had to switch back my Plusnet line to a VMG-3925-B10B though as the HH5a didn't like the G.INP trial.
If you look at Zen on this table you can see the difference.
The left two columns are how my line was degrading over time with the VMG-3925-B10B, the next column was the HH5a normal, then with 3dB.
(https://csdprojects.co.uk/forums/BroadbandLines2.png)
You will also notice the HH5a on Plusnet there too, before the G.INP trial where I had to go back to the Zyxel.
With the Zyxel on G.INP I'm currently getting Max Observed Downstream Speed 57.82Mbit, Max Observed Upstream Speed 19.18Mbit.
Its considerably slower than the HH5a was getting, but DLM had decided I was taking the mickey on that line and killed off my 3dB hack anyway, adding interleaving as a present.
Its pretty sad compared to where I were back before Digital Region closed.
(https://csdprojects.co.uk/forums/Digital Region2.png)
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@Alex Atkin UK:
Many thanks for the detailed reply ref. BT HH-5A running OpenWRT, very interesting, will certainly have a more detailed look at my PN Hub One conversion when time permits.
Wonder if you did the conversion yourself, I found it quite challanging and time consuming, case opening, serial connections soldering and FW loading, lots of good information available on the FW but not all in the same place and some of it contradictory, many loading attempts required but got there in the end.
I have ordered a 3.5mm sterio panel mounted socket and miniture push button switch which I hope to just have enough room to mount in the case to give future access to the serial header & reset, tried case mount pins using 4 RPi GPIO header pins but not very successful or neat.
Edit: Mod's., hopefully still roughly on topic ?
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@tiffy: Near enough, as it was a topic you started.
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@Alex Atkin UK:
Many thanks for the detailed reply ref. BT HH-5A running OpenWRT, very interesting, will certainly have a more detailed look at my PN Hub One conversion when time permits.
Wonder if you did the conversion yourself, I found it quite challanging and time consuming, case opening, serial connections soldering and FW loading, lots of good information available on the FW but not all in the same place and some of it contradictory, many loading attempts required but got there in the end.
I have ordered a 3.5mm sterio panel mounted socket and miniture push button switch which I hope to just have enough room to mount in the case to give future access to the serial header & reset, tried case mount pins using 4 RPi GPIO header pins but not very successful or neat.
Edit: Mod's., hopefully still roughly on topic ?
Yes I've done three, 2x HH5a and a Plusnet Hub One. I was surprised how easy it was as I have shaky hands so soldering is not easy, but those probe points seem to accept solder really well. I disconnected the wires after doing them as there shouldn't really be a need to connect to serial again.
I just followed the instructions on the OpenWRT Wiki (https://openwrt.org/toh/bt/homehub_v5a). Understandably the first one was the hardest, but the other two a breeze. Doing an ECI modem was much more awkward.
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I should return it.
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Edit: Mod's., hopefully still roughly on topic ?
As "own" the topic, by creating it, I'll wait for you to say if you think a "split" will be required. ;)
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@ mod's:
Thanks to both for "moderating".
As my converted Plusnet Hub One could possibly be put into service in router mode only as I would retain my trusty 1312-B10A as modem and to preserve line stat's monitoring via RPi, suppose still on topic really.
@ Alex Atkin UK:
Well done on your HH-5A & PN Hub One OpenWRT conversions, as a very much hands on maintenance tech. all my working life dating back to the pre "large scale integration" days when repair to component level was still an option, certainly no stranger to PCB soldering, however, equiped with a temp. controlled Weller soldering station & iron with very small tip, still struggled under the magnifying glass to make the 4 connections required and was very surprised that the serial interface actually worked first time.
Unfortunately, unlike experience, eye sight does not improve with age !
Took much longer to successfully install the FW packages, as they are very much sequential had to return to the start quite a few times after making implementation errors, as you have said, should be much easier the second time around.
Making the serial header & reset connections available without having to open the case again is probably over kill, just didn't wish to de-solder the 4 cables from the PCB again and possibly bridge some pads or damage the tracks.