[F150]

Originally Posted by binand

Generally, there are two reasons why people use a VPN:

1. To bypass access control systems. This could be geofenced content (Netflix, Spotify prior to their Indian launch etc.), or firewalls (corporate Intranet/ERP systems) etc.

2. To keep out vested interests in tracking them. If they are doing illegitimate things this could be the local police. If they are whistleblowing it might be the government intelligence apparatus.

If you don't fit in either of these two then you probably don't need a VPN. Your security is more or less taken care of the common instructions like "lock icon in browser", "end-to-end encryption" etc.

oh, looks like I have been misled by vpn marketing. I don't fit in either of the categories.

[amitk26]

Just explaining to what part in Thad's comment.

There is another more common legit reason to access files /content /servers behind a firewall.

Example if you have a small /medium business and have data or app on server kept in your office/home and want to acess it from another location without keeping it in public domain. Then you need to have a VPN server which connects to your on premise server and clients on your laptop/mobile. Client will connect to this VPN server. Of-course there could be more complicated configurations than this simplistic deployment.

For corporates there is usually IT department to host VPN and do above job.

Originally Posted by binand

Generally, there are two reasons why people use a VPN:

1. To bypass access control systems. This could be geofenced content (Netflix, Spotify prior to their Indian launch etc.), or firewalls (corporate Intranet/ERP systems) etc.

2. To keep out vested interests in tracking them. If they are doing illegitimate things this could be the local police. If they are whistleblowing it might be the government intelligence apparatus.

If you don't fit in either of these two then you probably don't need a VPN. Your security is more or less taken care of the common instructions like "lock icon in browser", "end-to-end encryption" etc.

[binand]

Originally Posted by binand

1. To bypass access control systems. This could be [...] firewalls (corporate Intranet/ERP systems) etc.

Originally Posted by amitk26

Example if you have a small /medium business and have data or app on server kept in your office/home and want to acess it from another location without keeping it in public domain.

The very definition of "intranet" :-)

I run a VPN server in my home, and connect to it from my mobile when I'm out. Serves three purposes: (a) beats all IP-based geolocation attempts, (b) allows me to use my private DNS that blocks all ads/tracking even when I'm away from home, and (c) provides access to equipment in my home from outside (most important: printer).

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by amitk26

For corporates there is usually IT department to host VPN and do above job.

Yes, I was that man!

Or rather, one of the many. Staff in our mainland-Europe offices needed to access data on servers in London. Subject to restriction to the tasks that they needed to do, the experience, for them, was the same (perhaps a little slower) as sitting at a PC in our office.

It's been over twenty years, the details I cannot remember, but the device at our end was a Check Point firewall. It was connected by a One Mb fibre leased line to our ISP. Via their box, of course. Felt damned fast at the time! And cost around 1 lakh rupees at today's rates per month.

[Fillmore]

Is there any utility that I can keep running which will check and detect drops in network connectivity ?
Recently my VPN keeps dropping on and off , and it is a pain when you have Linux sessions as they disconnect.
Have ben following up with Airtel saying their modem cum router might be the issue. They are insisting that nothing of this sort is the problem.

So looking for a utility which keeps pinging a site and generates a report as to how many times there were ping or packet failures.

[binand]

Originally Posted by Fillmore

Is there any utility that I can keep running which will check and detect drops in network connectivity ?.

Here is what I do (I have an always-on Linux headless in my home, you might have to find alternatives if you don't).

1. Configured the WAN router to send syslog messages to my Linux box. The router has a log entry for connection establishments and drops (and a bunch of other stuff).

2. Configured the syslog daemon to accept remote log messages.

3. Wrote a script to parse the log and give me a csv file of down and up timestamps and downtime duration.

4. Used this csv to negotiate with the service provider. They had to ack the problem when it was bad.

You could also use one of the several syslog monitoring tools to get real-time alerts.

If you need the ping setup there are several. Smokeping, MTR, Multiping etc are some names that come to the top of the mind.

Lastly, you can use the screen(1) program on the remote end to not lose ssh sessions even if you lose network connectivity.

[KL01toKA03]

I need some help for fixing a WiFi range issue. I have a situation where 4 people need to access internet at a good speed for work/studies. We have 3 rooms on one floor, and one room on the first floor. We have a 200 Mbps connection. We have placed the router (single-band router which gives around 90 Mbps in the room where the router is placed ) in a room in the ground floor, but we are facing very low speed (2 Mbps) in one of the rooms in the ground floor where horizontal separation (approx. 17 meters) is highest, and the signal has to go through a few walls. The signal is just about okay in the room on the first floor.

I am looking for options to increase the signal range. Is the better option a dual-band router or a repeater? I am trying to increase the speed to a worst-case scenario of 10 Mbps in all rooms. In either case, please provide product recommendations. I am not looking for a very expensive solution, since this is temporary arrangement till offices/schools reopen.

[mayankk]

Originally Posted by KL01toKA03

I need some help for fixing a WiFi range issue. I have a situation where 4 people need to access internet at a good speed for work/studies. We have 3 rooms on one floor, and one room on the first floor. We have a 200 Mbps connection. We have placed the router (single-band router which gives around 90 Mbps in the room where the router is placed ) in a room in the ground floor, but we are facing very low speed (2 Mbps) in one of the rooms in the ground floor where horizontal separation (approx. 17 meters) is highest, and the signal has to go through a few walls. The signal is just about okay in the room on the first floor.

I am looking for options to increase the signal range. Is the better option a dual-band router or a repeater? I am trying to increase the speed to a worst-case scenario of 10 Mbps in all rooms. In either case, please provide product recommendations. I am not looking for a very expensive solution, since this is temporary arrangement till offices/schools reopen.

I picked up an mi 4c router for 1k, and it comes out of the box to setup as a repeater. Unfortunately it's only 2.4 g, but it's giving me about 40 mbps on my 200 mbps connection in the farthest corner of my house which was about 6 walls in between, and is 18 meters from the Airtel router.

[NetfreakBombay]

Originally Posted by KL01toKA03

(single-band router which gives around 90 Mbps in the room where the router is placed ) in a room in the ground floor, but we are facing very low speed (2 Mbps) in one of the rooms in the ground floor where horizontal separation (approx. 17 meters) is highest

1. Get this WiFi extender (TP-Link TL-WA850RE): 1400 @ amazon (Same page list faster and more expensive ones as well, choose per your budget)
2. Place it in some room where you get ~40 mbps
3. This should increase speed for rest of the floor to ~40 mbps as well

[KL01toKA03]

Originally Posted by mayankk

I picked up an mi 4c router for 1k, and it comes out of the box to setup as a repeater. Unfortunately it's only 2.4 g, but it's giving me about 40 mbps on my 200 mbps connection in the farthest corner of my house which was about 6 walls in between, and is 18 meters from the Airtel router.

Originally Posted by NetfreakBombay

Get this WiFi extender

Are there any significant cons to using a repeater? Can anyone using a repeater confirm if there are any major issues. The main concern is a stable connection and not speed.

Thanks for all the responses.

[NetfreakBombay]

Originally Posted by KL01toKA03

Are there any significant cons to using a repeater? .

1. It wont last long. Expect it to go bad in couple of years.
2. Cannot handle more then 5 - 6 devices (expect random reboots and instability with larger load).

There are expensive ones that overcome these shortcomings, but not needed unless you have too many devices.

Adding this for completeness :

1. With a budget of ~10k , "mesh" devices are the best option (for wireless).
2. Getting a LAN cable and having an electrician run it to few rooms is even better and most stable option. This will cost ~2k for extender that can take LAN an input and ~2k for cable + electrician cost for snaking the cable though existing electric cabling.

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by KL01toKA03

Are there any significant cons to using a repeater? Can anyone using a repeater confirm if there are any major issues. The main concern is a stable connection and not speed.

Thanks for all the responses.

Yes it does. A repeater will reduce the throughput by half. So you will definitely not get 40Mbps. Also there will be a delay/lag in data transmission since the repeater has to double up as communication to the main router.

And then the biggest issue with repeater is the Wifi networks even if you keep same SSID don't switch over from main router to Wifi easily. So many times you might end up still connected to the main router with very poor signal but you are standing next to your repeater.

A repeater in today's day is pointless especially if you have 100Mbps+ broadband fiber connections.

The repeater problems mentioned above were solved by Mesh wifi systems like the one below:

https://www.amazon.in/Netgear-Orbi-W...dp/B083SWFJ6L/

The mesh systems has both 2.4GHz and 5Ghz frequency bands and manages all devices on a single wifi network. When you walk from one room to the other it will automatically handoff between satellites like a mobile phone network. The minute you go further away, it will switch you from 5Ghz to 2.4Ghz to get you higher signal strength. There is no user intervention required and the system manages all devices to ensure they are connected with best possible signal strength.

[KL01toKA03]

Originally Posted by Vid6639

A repeater in today's day is pointless especially if you have 100Mbps+ broadband fiber connections.

Originally Posted by NetfreakBombay

Adding this for completeness :
Getting a LAN cable and having an electrician run it to few rooms is even better and most stable option. This will cost ~2k for extender that can take LAN an input and ~2k for cable + electrician cost for snaking the cable though existing electric cabling.[/LIST

Thanks a lot for the responses. I like the option of using another router as an extender. I hope that will not have any major issues.

I'm thinking about buying the TP-Link Archer C6 Gigabit MU-MIMO Wireless Router and connecting it using a 20 meter LAN cable. I hope that works.

[NetfreakBombay]

Originally Posted by KL01toKA03

I'm thinking about buying the TP-Link Archer C6 Gigabit MU-MIMO Wireless Router and connecting it using a 20 meter LAN cable. I hope that works.

This would the best option.

1. Eliminates performance issues of current router
2. No loss of signal from router to Archer C6
3. Archer C6 + exiting router should be able to cover whole floor (Place C6 to increase coverage, probably somewhere in most troublesome spot)

Originally Posted by Vid6639

A repeater in today's day is pointless especially if you have 100Mbps+ broadband fiber connections.

One advantage of repeater is cost mesh costs ~10, repeater costs ~1.5k+ for 300 msbs (100 mbps realistically)

[shreyak_ss]

Looking to get a mesh router system, most probably the TP Link Deco M4 -3 pack. Does anyone have any experience with it?
Netgear Orbi systems are quite expensive and the RBK series doesn't seem to have any better reviews.
My requirement is to cover 2 floors of my house as of now with an option to add more satellites in the future if the need arises. We are currently using a 100mbps Jiofiber connection and the maximum number of devices at one time would include 2 TVs, 4-5 Phones, 2 iPads and a CCTV DVR system.