[binand]

Originally Posted by R2D2

Was wondering if there was a suggested VPN service. I have tried Hotspot Shield and PureVPN.

I use an EC2 instance (the cheapest one - t1.micro) with LibreSWAN on CentOS and my home "edge router's" in-built IPSec support to create a poor man's such service. I keep the instance down at nights etc.

Have tried OpenVPN too; for the times when I'm on the road. Works equally well.

Originally Posted by R2D2

On the topic of security - anybody using a Yubikey for OTPs?

Always thought of getting one (my chosen password manager - Password Safe - supports it); but at the moment I make do with Google Authenticator wherever it is supported. Non-availability in India was the issue.

[R2D2]

Originally Posted by binand

I use an EC2 instance (the cheapest one - t1.micro) with LibreSWAN on CentOS and my home "edge router's" in-built IPSec support to create a poor man's such service. I keep the instance down at nights etc.

What does the EC2 instance cost per month? I am a dormant AWS subscriber. Would this work with my pfSense applicance? I'd certainly prefer a less expensive and reliable (i.e. VFM) solution when possible.

Have tried OpenVPN too; for the times when I'm on the road. Works equally well.

I am mainly considering OpenVPN for my home use.

Always thought of getting one (my chosen password manager - Password Safe - supports it); but at the moment I make do with Google Authenticator wherever it is supported. Non-availability in India was the issue.

This little doodad is now available in India at Amazon. Here you go:

http://www.amazon.in/gp/product/B018...hps_bw_c_x_1_w

It's on my wish list right now. May go in for it later in 1-2 months.

[binand]

Originally Posted by R2D2

What does the EC2 instance cost per month? I am a dormant AWS subscriber. Would this work with my pfSense applicance?

The pricing is usage-based, and depends on which EC2 region you want it to be in. Check out:

https://aws.amazon.com/ec2/pricing/on-demand/

The instance pricing is for the computing power; you need to pay for data in and out, and a routable IP address (all info in the above page).

The smallest instance now available is t2.micro which costs about $52 a year ($4.30 a month) at the cheapest region if you run it 24x365; which you can cut by at least 40% if you go for a reserved instance.

These instances are standard Linux installations (or any OS of your choice, if you have the right kind of know-how).

Originally Posted by R2D2

This little doodad is now available in India at Amazon. Here you go:

http://www.amazon.in/gp/product/B018...hps_bw_c_x_1_w

Thanks for this. I might order it sooner than that.

[R2D2]

Originally Posted by binand

These instances are standard Linux installations (or any OS of your choice, if you have the right kind of know-how).

Thanks. Did some research on the 'net to get further information. May opt for this solution if it works for all my home use cases.

[Neel]

How effective are wi-fi repeaters? any reviews or suggestions on current models in the market?
How does it compare with a single long range wifi router for coverage upto 2 floors?

[binand]

Originally Posted by Neel

How effective are wi-fi repeaters? any reviews or suggestions on current models in the market?
How does it compare with a single long range wifi router for coverage upto 2 floors?

Repeaters are a less effective solution for range issues, not the optimal one. If you can do it, I suggest getting wiring done appropriately so that you have full-fledged Wifi routers covering your entire floor area rather than install repeaters.

There isn't a one-solution-fits-all in Wifi provisioning. Can't say whether a single router with long range is better or multiple, well-positioned ones. If you want an opinion, I prefer multiple routers operating on channels 1, 6 & 11 with adjacent routers not overlapping.

[itwasntme]

Any feedback on the Mi 3C wi-fi router?

http://www.amazon.in/Mi-3C-Wi-Fi-Rou...2Aentries%2A=0

Specs look appealing but real-life feedback?

[Fillmore]

Originally Posted by itwasntme

Any feedback on the Mi 3C wi-fi router?

http://www.amazon.in/Mi-3C-Wi-Fi-Rou...2Aentries%2A=0

Specs look appealing but real-life feedback?

I think there are better ones out there offering more features for a little higher price.

Eg : This TP Link one

It is a dual band router
4 ethernet ports vs 2 (useful for some)
USB slot , lets you connect a disk and have a networked drive (missing on the prev model)

[2500cc]

Originally Posted by itwasntme

Any feedback on the Mi 3C wi-fi router?

http://www.amazon.in/Mi-3C-Wi-Fi-Rou...2Aentries%2A=0

Specs look appealing but real-life feedback?

I would always stay away from Chinese products as I feel my data and privacy are at stake with them. I would rather spend some more money to buy D-link, Asus or Netgear and buy a device that supports other open source firmware apart from native.

[Su-47]

Guys,

I'm getting fed up with additional intrusive advertising being inserted by my ISP (BSNL), and want to know if there are routers that can block such content automatically. In other words, a router that auto-updates a "block list" from some trusted server and blocks it.

If you are interested in knowing more about this intrusive ad insertion by BSNL, please continue reading. Symptoms:
- While browsing on mobile devices (therefore, no Adblock plus on Chrome), once in while, if you touch anywhere on the page, a pop-up would open.
- This would happen irrespective of where one touches the page, and happens only on non-HTTPs pages
- The problem would go away if the page was reloaded

So, I started digging deeper (using wireshark etc.) and tried loading the same page via BSNL and then using my mobile-hotspot. Do remember, I'm a newbie in this area, so could be wrong:
- When accessing through BSNL, I see that an additional javascript was being sent to the browser and the IP of server sending this js seems to be from BSNL.
- This Javascript asks for ads from someplace and also gets more code that traps events like scrolling or clicks. Basically, you click/touch anywhere and the pop-up/under is bound to happen.
- I see that the ad-seeking script sends out my IP address, and I hypothesize that the ad-serving server is smart enough to insert this super intrusive stuff only once a day or so.
- If you go to the same page again, no annoying ads, so not easily reproducible. Restart your modem, get a new IP-address and voila, you'd be treated with a super-intrusive ad the moment you go to non-HTTPS site.

Lesson learnt: Anything outside of your network has to be treated as "hostile". But, is it legal on ISPs part to do non-sensical stuff like this?

Thanks,
Su-47

[binand]

Originally Posted by 2500cc

I would always stay away from Chinese products as I feel my data and privacy are at stake with them. I would rather spend some more money to buy D-link, Asus or Netgear and buy a device that supports other open source firmware apart from native.

Well... both D-Link and Asus are Chinese (Taiwanese) companies. :-)

Originally Posted by Su-47

I'm getting fed up with additional intrusive advertising being inserted by my ISP (BSNL), and want to know if there are routers that can block such content automatically. In other words, a router that auto-updates a "block list" from some trusted server and blocks it.

Lesson learnt: Anything outside of your network has to be treated as "hostile". But, is it legal on ISPs part to do non-sensical stuff like this?

I did a Google search; came across this:

http://www.medianama.com/2016/05/223...ads-broadband/

Quite despicable. And since India lacks privacy laws, I suppose this falls in a grey area.

Anyway, you need to find out the URL from which the ad script is being served; and see if that URL can be blocked at your router (several has some basic DPI capability).

Alternately, vote with your feet. Your location is set to Bangalore, where there are ISPs of all shapes and sizes - why stick to these folks?

On my mobile, I universally turn off javascript in Chrome and selectively turn it on where I need it.

[Su-47]

Originally Posted by binand

Alternately, vote with your feet. Your location is set to Bangalore, where there are ISPs of all shapes and sizes - why stick to these folks?

Well they have been pretty dependable with almost no downtime. Had tried Hathway a few years back, but the dependability factor was almost no-existent. But, you are right, there are more options now, and I should step out and smell the roses :-)

[alto99]

Originally Posted by Su-47

Guys,

I'm getting fed up with additional intrusive advertising being inserted by my ISP (BSNL), and want to know if there are routers that can block such content automatically.

If there is no explicit blocking of ip address possible on your existing router (which was in my case too), you can add static routes for the ip addresses of those bsnl sites and point them to a non-existing gateway as they are dumb enough not to change their ip addresses frequently!. I have done the same and there is no BSNL injected ad that I see after that.

[2500cc]

Originally Posted by binand

Well... both D-Link and Asus are Chinese (Taiwanese) companies. :-)

Well not mainland China and even if they are, I can still use open source firmware on these routers.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by alto99

If there is no explicit blocking of ip address possible on your existing router (which was in my case too), you can add static routes for the ip addresses of those bsnl sites and point them to a non-existing gateway as they are dumb enough not to change their ip addresses frequently!. I have done the same and there is no BSNL injected ad that I see after that.

Depending on how many machines you want to protect, you can add the advertising IP addresses to the host file with address 127.0.0.1. That address always means "this machine" so stuff addressed to it doesn't go anywhere.

Experts: if one uses the routing table on the router, would it be a good idea to use 127.0.0.1 there too?