[lug] Re: wireless router settings (and a network question)

[Davide Del Vento]

Probably nobody was interested, but in case someone will read the
archives (we have them, right?) looking for the solution, it was to:

a) clone the MAC address of a working computer
b) set the Mbs to 10 (100 and "auto" didn't work!)
c) set the MTU to the incredibly low value of 150

Bye,
;Dav

On Mon, Feb 2, 2009 at 13:06, Davide Del Vento
<davide.del.vento at gmail.com> wrote:
> Folks,
> This morning I woke up with the cry of my 6-months daughter (as usual,
> from 6 months ago), I handed the baby to the mom for the breastfeeding
> and went to the kitchen for cooking the breakfast. I turned the laptop
> on and it wasn't able to connect to the wireless, for some unknown
> reason.
> Since I'm an idiot (or maybe I was still sleeping) instead of trying
> to understand what wasn't wrong, I just went in the laundry and pushed
> the f****** reset button on the wireless router. Please note that the
> "internet" led on the router was green, i.e. it was correctly
> connected.
>
> After the reset, of course, I'm not able to have it connect the router
> to the internet (via the modem) anymore. I remember that when I first
> connected it, I had to tweak something to have it working, but of
> course I do not remember what :-(
> And, even worst, I didn't write a note, and I didn't save a
> "configuration file" which today I discovered I could have done.
> Note that if I connect the laptop directly to the modem, I'm perfectly
> online (but I have a short ethernet cable and the modem is in the
> laundry, but this is another story :-)
>
> Now, before you think that I'm an idiot and stop reading, the network
> question: why the wireless router needs all this setting, whereas my
> laptop (ubuntu 8.04) "just works" when I hook them to the ethernet
> port of the cable modem? Can't the wireless router figure out itself
> the DHCP, MTU and the likes? It surely has lot of software inside,
> including a web server... so why?
>
> Now, the help question, has anybody any suggestion for the router
> setting for the hardware I mention below? Maybe even the setting file
> I did not save? If not, is there any way to find the "autodetect
> settings" for the wired network on Ubuntu and use them into the
> wireless Router? I think it is DHCP and ifconfig reports MTU=1500 but
> this does not work (I'm almost sure I had to lower this value when I
> first install the router)
>
> Cable Modem: ARRIS Model TM502G/CT (provided by Comcast)
> Wireless Router D-link 802.11n DIR615
>
> Last, and probably least, I found a "automatic firmware update" option
> in the router (self-hosted web interface). Do you suggest to keep it
> on (default) or to turn it off?
>
> Bottom line: if you haven't already, check in the web interface of
> your router if you can save the configuration, and if so, let you do
> it, burn it on a disk and place it in the router box (or close to the
> router itself). You might wake up one morning and reset your router
> without (almost) any reason...
>
> Thanks,
> ;Davide
>