DSL Frequently Asked Questions

Here are some of the most commonly asked questions (and the answers) about SpeedGate DSL accounts:

Information/How-To

How many (computers / IP addresses) can I use?

Most SpeedGate Business DSL accounts use Network Address Translation, or NAT, which assigns a single world-visible IP address to your router. Your own network is then up on a private IP subnet, usually 192.168.254.x. When you send a request to the Internet, the router remembers where it came from and sends the response back to you. You can place up to 253 computers on this network.

If you need servers to be accessible from the Internet, we also offer static IP addressing in blocks of 8. Since the first and last IP of each block are reserved, and the first usable IP is assigned to your router, a block of 8 will allow you to connect 5 computers, a block of 16 will allow you to connect 13, a block of 32 will allow you to connect 29, etc.

Residential DSL accounts connect directly to a single computer. You can, however, with a little extra work and equipment, hook up several other computers to share the connection. See "How do I connect two computers to my home DSL connection?" below.

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I'm a home user. Do I still need to worry about security and firewalls?

Take Back the Net.
Secure Your Computer and
Sport the Grey Ribbon

Yes! Aside from the obvious risks such as viruses and spyware, you might think only corporate systems are targets for malicious hackers (no, that's not redundant!). Home computers with DSL and cable modems are extremely popular. Attacks may be deliberate, random, or automatic, and can come through e-mail, web pages, peer-to-peer or other network services.

Attackers like home DSL connections for several reasons. The "always-on" feature makes them easy to find. Since the average home user doesn't know about the risks, many don't know how to protect their computers. And because there are so many, attackers create a virtual army of "zombie" computers they can control remotely. They can use these "zombies" to send massive amounts of spam, host temporary websites for identity theft, "seed" viruses into the email system, or just launch the next wave of attacks.

If you're not convinced you need to be worried, read CERT/CC's page on Home Network Security. Check it out if you are convinced, too, since it has much more information and makes more suggestions than we provide here.

1. Turn It Off

The simplest thing you can do is turn off your computer or modem when you're not using it. This limits the time in which your system is vulnerable -- if your computer's turned off, no one can mess with it! However, you still need to protect your system when you are online.

2. Keep Current

It's a good idea to keep your operating system and any Internet software current, as security vulnerabilities are discovered and patched all the time. That doesn't mean if you have Windows XP you should go out and buy Windows Vista, it just means you should make sure you install all the security updates for Windows XP.

  • Windows users can use Microsoft Update or turn on Automatic Updates through Control Panel to keep up with security fixes for most Microsoft software.
  • Macintosh OS X users can use Software Update, part of System Preferences.
  • Linux distributions usually provide either an update tool (such as Debian's APT or Red Hat's Up2date) or a page where you can view and download software updates. See your distribution's documentation or website for more information.

You should keep all your Internet software as current as possible. This includes anything that either connects to the Internet or opens files from the Internet. Windows Media Player, WinAMP, RealPlayer, Adobe Reader, Outlook Express, Eudora, Netscape, Firefox, Flash Player, Internet Explorer -- these are just a few of the popular programs which have, at one time or another, had to release fixes when a security hole was discovered. Current versions of Firefox and Adobe Reader can update themselves if you let them. Apple provides an updater for the Windows versions of iTunes, Safari, QuickTime, etc.

3. Install a Personal Firewall

If you're going to leave your computer connected to the Internet all the time, it's a good idea to install some sort of firewall package. A firewall sits between your computer and your network and filters out anything it perceives as suspicious or an attack. Some examples of firewall programs for Windows are ZoneAlarm and Norton Personal Firewall. (There are many others -- shop around for one that suits your needs.) Mac OS X has a built-in firewall controlled through System Preferences. Linux systems have built-in firewall capabilities using Netfilter/IP Tables. Most distributions include at least a basic firewall-building utility, or you can grab a more flexible one like Firestarter.

4. Add Virus Protection

If people send you files by e-mail or if you download software from the Internet, you should be very careful what you run. It's a good idea to install some sort of anti-virus software such as McAfee VirusScan or Norton Anti-Virus... and keep your virus definitions current! This may require subscribing to a service, but since new viruses are discovered all the time, an anti-virus program with old virus definitions won't help you much.

5. Use an Alternative Browser

Researchers (and miscreants) are constantly finding holes in Internet Explorer (that blue 'e'). Part of it is the browser's popularity -- it's a big target -- but part of it is the design. Unfortunately it's far too easy for malicious websites to trick your computer into installing spyware or worse when you use IE. Windows XP Service Pack 2 helps somewhat, and IE 7 should improve matters further when it's released, but the spyware keeps finding ways in.

Browse Happy One alternative browser that's made a big splash is Firefox, from the Mozilla Foundation. More secure by design, the Mozilla folks also have a better track record at fixing holes when they're found... and it's packed with time-saving features like built-in pop-up blocking and tabbed browsing. (A growing number of us here at SpeedGate have switched to Firefox ourselves!) Other alternative browsers include Opera and (for Mac OS X users) Safari. To learn more about these alternatives -- and some reasons you might consider switching -- take a look at Browse Happy and the Alternative Browser Alliance.

More Information & Suggestions

CERT/CC has put together a page that provides a good introduction to security for home computers with permanent Internet connections. We definitely recommend that you read it!

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How do I make a server on my network visible outside my DSL connection?

Sometimes you may want to set up a database, or a mail server, or some other service on your network and make it available to people on the Internet. If you have a block of routable IP addresses, you are probably done already and haven't needed to read this question.

If your DSL connection is running NAT and the only IP address visible to the Internet is your router's, you will need to map the necessary ports on your router to the relevant server(s) inside your network. You can only map each port to a single computer inside the network, but you can map different ports to different servers. For instance, you can have an Exchange server on one system, a SQL server on another, and make them both visible to the Internet, but you cannot make two Exchange servers visible without changing one to use a nonstandard port.

If you need ports opened on your router, contact us and let us know the port(s) you need forwarded and the local IP addresses of each computer (i.e. "Please forward port 80 to 192.168.254.3 and ports 25 & 110 to 192.168.254.10"). We know the port numbers for some common Internet services (HTTP*, FTP, incoming/outgoing email, etc.), but for anything unusual, be sure to provide the port number.

If you prefer to configure your router yourself, please refer to the documentation provided or placed online by your router's manufacturer. SpeedDSL connections usually use Efficient Networks routers (older models may have the FlowPoint brand name).

*Note that if you plan to host an Internet-visible server, its capacity will be limited by the speed of your DSL connection. Thus while it might make sense to run a company mail server or intranet site, if you expect a significant amount of traffic you may want to look into our web hosting packages. Not only do we have much higher bandwidth available, but we include a number of scripting languages, statistics reports, and can provide database hosting and credit card processing for complete e-commerce websites.

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How do I connect two computers to my home DSL connection?

Since dial-up accounts and residential DSL accounts provide a connection directly to a single computer, you cannot connect a home network directly to the account. There are ways you can share your connection, however.

The simplest way is to buy a Cable/DSL gateway router from your local computer store. These cost anywhere from $50 to $250 and sit between your home network and your DSL modem. Some are pure routers, and others add additional network ports, print servers, or even wireless access points. Be sure you get one that supports PPP over Ethernet (PPPoE).

If you'd rather not buy extra hardware, and you have a bit of time on your hands, you can set up one computer on the network to connect to the Internet and share the connection. These directions assume you already have a home network, and do not go into the details of configuring the connection sharing software.

We are providing this information as a starting point only!

First you need to decide which computer will connect to the Internet. This is the only one that will need special software, depending on the type of system:

Operating System Package
Windows 2000 and later Internet Connection Sharing (built-in)
Windows 98 or older Third-party software required
MacOS X 10.2 and later System Preferences: Sharing (built-in)
Macintosh (older) Third-party software required
Linux IP Masquerading

This computer will need two network cards (unless you are using the USB model DSL modem), one for the home network and one for the DSL connection. Set up your DSL connection using only the network card hooked up to the modem. (Note: If you use Enternet, be sure to enter the Advanced settings and set it to use DHCP!) Then configure the card connected to your home network to use one of your home IPs, say 192.168.1.1. Install and configure the appropriate connection sharing software (see above).

All you have to do on the other computers is make one change to their network TCP/IP settings: set the default gateway to the local IP address (in this example, 192.168.1.1) of the computer that is sharing the connection.

Note: We have had reports of problems when using the the Enternet PPPoE Client with Windows Me's Internet Connection Sharing, such as certain websites only being accessible from the host computer. If you have a computer running another operating system, you may want to consider using that one to share the connection instead.

Remember, SpeedGate does not provide support for setting up this type of connection! Please refer to the documentation and tech support for the software you are using.

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Do I need any extra software?

Business DSL connections do not need any additional software to connect (aside from your network drivers and applications, of course). Residential connections use PPP over Ethernet, or PPPoE, which will require extra software for some computers.

Windows XP and Macintosh OS X have built-in support and do not require additional software. We will provide an installation CD for Windows systems. For Linux, BSD and other Unix variants we recommend Roaring Penguin's PPPoE Client software.

Note that if you are using a consumer DSL router (see the entry on connection sharing), that router will handle PPPoE, and you will not need to install the software on your computer.

Operating System PPPoE Software
Windows XP Built-in (no additional software needed)
Windows (older versions) Installation CD provided
Macintosh (OS X) Built-in (no additional software needed)
Macintosh (OS 9 and older) Sorry, no information at this time
Linux Included in some distributions;
otherwise download from Roaring Penguin

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Problems

Why does my home ADSL line lose its connection whenever I pick up the phone?

First of all, make sure you have placed the filters you were provided in the self-install kit or by the installation tech on every phone, fax, or modem connection on the same line as your DSL connection (except, of course, the DSL modem itself). The simplest thing to do is just plug a filter straight into each wall jack except the one to which your DSL modem is connected. (And if you need to connect a phone or other device to that jack, plug it in to the splitter on the phone side)

If you have all the filters installed, there is another possible issue. You may find that whenever you pick up or put down the phone, the DSL modem loses its connection for a few seconds and has to re-sync (you can see this in interrupted downloads or media streams, as well as by watching the lights on the modem; if it starts blinking amber instead of green, it has lost its connection and is trying to recover it).

This can be caused if there is a Maintenance Test Unit (MTU) on your line. An MTU is a small circuit the phone company can use for remote line testing. They are being phased out because they have been found to interfere with data transmission, but if you experience this sort of problem, you can call the telephone repair hotline at 611 to find out if you have an MTU on your line and to have them remove it.

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My connection has gotten really slow!

There are two possible causes of this that you can clear up instantly. The first possibility is that your DSL router or modem has dropped down to a lower speed to correct for some temporary line error and just hasn't jumped back up yet. You can usually clear this up by turning your DSL router off, waiting about 10 seconds, and turning it back on. Once it syncs up, it should be back at the correct speed.

If you're only getting a trickle of data, but the lights on your router or modem are blinking like crazy, chances are it's actually running at full speed -- and being used at full speed. It could be as simple as someone watching streaming media or downloading many large files simultaneously, or it could be a program that automatically downloads updates... or it could be a virus, trojan horse, or spyware. Unfortunately, there are a lot of programs out there that will install themselves on your computer and take over your internet connection, launching hacking attempts, sending spam, or worse (see the entry on security).

If turning your router off and back on doesn't clear it up, and if no systems on your network are hogging your bandwidth, contact us and we'll start troubleshooting the problem.

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