Tag: Network

This site is not allowed on this network, OpenDNS

If you have a home network with more than one computer and you have kids you may want to take a look at OpenDNS. OpenDNS is a service that allow me to control what sort of web sites the computers on my network are allowed to visit.

2008-01-12_0900

OpenDNS protects millions of people a day across hundreds of thousands of schools, businesses and homes as they navigate the Internet. We block phishing sites and give you the power to block adult sites, proxies and individual domains.

There is no software to install. To use OpenDNS I configured the DNS settings in my LinkSys router to use the name servers provided by OpenDNS; ( 208.67.222.222 and 208.67.220.220 ). The web site provided detailed but simple instructions on how to do so. I could also have configured just a single computer or if I were a small business setup my internal name servers to use OpenDNS.

2008-01-12_0907

To use the web filtering features of OpenDNS it was necessary to create an account. Once my account was created I could then specify which types of site I wanted to block, create a white list of sites I wanted to allow, and also add additional sites I wanted to restrict. Filter rules can be applied to an entire network, a single computer in a network, or multiple networks. I setup my brother-in-laws home network under my account but I have applied different filter rules to each network.

OpenDNS has a lot of other cool features but my favourite is the stats page. From here I can see how much traffic flows out from my home network as well as which sites are most popular and which are being blocked. Yikes! Looks like I need to spend some more time offline.

2008-01-12_0919

Wireless Interference and Powerline

How do you tell if other wireless networks are interfering with yours? The clearest signs are stutters and drops: file transfers or streaming downloads halt and restart, or your network connection periodically drops out altogether.

2007-12-22_0942

My wireless G network has become less useful now that almost everyone in my neighborhood is using wireless as well. iStumbler shows over 15 wireless networks ( more than half are secure ). I get my phone and internet connection from the cable company so I have all my network equipment in the basement to avoid the ugly mess of wires and the cost of adding a phone line to the family room (Verizon want way too much money for that).

4 of the computers in the house are wireless (2 laptops, a Mac mini in the family room, and a Dell for the kids ) and so is the Tivo and Nintendo Wii. The two remaining computers ( FreeBSD based NAS and a Red Hat Linux server ) are connected to a Linksys WR54G WAP/Gateway. Wiring the home for Ethernet is not a possibility due to cost ( one connection for the family room and one for the kids plus ).

For me, I think Powerline is the best solution among all the options presented in the MacWorld article. Looking at the equipment on the Netgear web site I see that I can get a Netgear XE103 85 Mbps Powerline Network Addapter and add a Netgear XE104 85 Mbps Powerline Wall-Plugged Ethernet Switch/Bridge to extend the network for Ethernet end points or Netgear WGX102 54 Mbps Powerline Wall-Plugged Wireless Range Extender to extend the wireless side. The initial equipment ( I would need at least one X103 and one X104 and WGX102 ) is pricey but I think this is a lot cheaper than wiring Ethernet.

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Patriot Media Rocks

My broadband internet provider, Patrio Media, provides an excellent service. The connection always appears responsive and never fails. Patriot Media claims 10Mbs download speeds but I have found that on average I obtain about 7-8Mb/s during heavy use times. On occasion the service is even faster than what is listed. Currently they provide two tiers of service: 10 Mb/s for $29.95 and 20Mb/s for $69.95 for customers who also use their cable service. Their is no contract lock in as their is with Verizon DSL, the only other choice in my area. Patriot Media also offers a bundled package called Triple Play that includes broadband, digital cable service, and internet telephone services starting at about $150 monthly. Similar services from Verizon would have cost me more and I would be locked into a 1 year contract.