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Subnet Circumnavigation? For Smartlink.

Lee, N2LC
Lee, N2LC Member
edited September 2019 in SmartSDR for Windows
Lots of info to sort through, much of it older.   Confused. 

I have an ATT Homebase router/hotspot as my only source of internet.
The recommended way of setting it up is to have it on one subnet, send it over to the router on a different subnet, and yee, it works fine.

The Homebase isn't what I'd call feature-packed in the way of adjustability, (ip reservation for the radio comes to mind here).

So I have the Homebase to the router to a switch to a couple of wired access points.  I have good operability with the 6500 anywhere on my LAN. But if I try to sneak the Homebase onto my own 192.168.1.**** (outside of DHCP assigns, along with the APs), I lose connectivity.

What magic spell can I cast to either get the ports forwarded across (waste of time?) or to get the hotspot to reside peacefully within the single subnet?

Free **** for all help.

Answers

  • Mike-VA3MW
    Mike-VA3MW Administrator, FlexRadio Employee, Community Manager, Super Elmer, Moderator admin
    edited April 2019
    Hi Lee

    Can the ATT Homebase go into a Bridge mode that would then allow the base subnet extend to the Homebase net?  I don't know much about the ATT Homebase, but you might ask them.  

    No need for IP reservation, and in fact keeping it DHCP would be better in the long run.

    Yes, the radio has to be on the same subnet in order for you to use it.

    Mike
  • Mark G Thomas
    Mark G Thomas Member ✭✭
    edited November 2018
    Hi,

    SmartSDR for Windows/Maestro are restricted to only be able to communicate with base radios within the same subnet, performing IP discovery by listening for broadcast beacons sent by the radio base. SmartSDR for Windows/Maestro has no provision for you to manually designate a radio base IP address on a different subnet to communicate with.

    The SmartSDR for IOS client by Marcus (DL8MRE) does not have this frustrating restriction, and works wonderfully and easily across subnet boundaries.

    Mark Thomas KC3DRE

  • Lee, N2LC
    Lee, N2LC Member
    edited November 2018
    Hi Mike,

    No, it's a rather rudimentary sort of hybrid device - hotspot, IP home phone, and router -  and doesn't have some functionality that would be real nice to have.  But it's all I got out here 'cep satellite. 

    It wants a specific address to port-forward to, and if the address gets changed, then, won't the forwarding rule be moot?  Don't I either have to have it static, or have a reservation?   

    I feel like I might be about to learn something. 

  • Lee, N2LC
    Lee, N2LC Member
    edited November 2018
    Hi Mark,

    Does this mean that I should be able to set it up that way - cross subnet - and go somewhere off-site and it should work with the iPad on someone else's wifi?

    I had a vision of an ipad only remote station, a laptop remote station with gadgetry, and a home station.  I'd have to do without the laptop station, and that probably isn't a good long term solution. 

    Lee Coyle
    N2LC

  • K5CG
    K5CG Member ✭✭
    edited November 2018
    I'd build a pfSense firewall out of an HP T620 Plus thin client (~$100). Use a static IP on the Homebase LAN (192.168.0.2) and set that as the DMZ address in the Homebase, and also as the WAN IP of the pfSense firewall. Set the LAN side of pfSense to 192.168.1.0/24. Then 192.168.1.x becomes your new do-it-all LAN. Port forwarding and DHCP reservatins are done in pfSense. Voila!
  • Lee, N2LC
    Lee, N2LC Member
    edited November 2018
    Hmm.  So ports CAN be forwarded across subnets, contrary to a quick search I did out in geekland somewhere.    

    I've spent the last few days tearing my 'network' down and rebuilding it differently; making sure the connectors on the cables were wired properly (they weren't) (I'm the culprit), and other issues. 

    The network seems stable now, and I can power down and up and get it all back!  So now maybe I can move forward with this.

    I just don't seem to be able to grasp why I can't just bring the internet from the hotspot into the router on the same subnet.  Apparently  it's not 'just another address'.

    Time for more reading.

    Thanks Danny.

    Lee
    N2LC

  • Mark G Thomas
    Mark G Thomas Member ✭✭
    edited November 2018
    There are two different situations. If you are on-site using LAN and WiFi behind a single Internet connection, then there is the SmartSDR single-subnet restriction -- your radio and laptop must be on the same subnet. If you are off-site using a remote Internet connection different from your home Internet connection, then FlexRadio offers SmartLink, enabling an easy connection to forwarded ports on the router to the base radio. Depending on your Internet router/firewall, you may be able to take advantage of a UPnP feature to automatically handle the port forwarding, so you do not need to manually configure the port numbers or IP address of the radio.

    https://www.flexradio.com/downloads/smartlink-quick-start-guide-for-smartsdr-pdf/

    Mark
    KC3DRE
  • K5CG
    K5CG Member ✭✭
    edited November 2018
    Yes but in my example, the first subnet set as a DMZ between the Homebase and a 2nd internal router is really a dedicated pipe to get the Internet onto the internal router.

    I'm just clarifying; that just because there are two subnets, you're not really using them as such, with devices connected to both and talking among themselves between networks. The first subnet is dedicated to plumbing only, and no other devices should be connected to it (the DMZ subnet).

    Everything you would touch gets connected behind the 2nd router. WifI APs, Flex Radio, PC's laptops. Port forwarding, UPnP, DNS resolution, openvpn; is all done on the 2nd router.

    You could use any other router as the 2nd internal one, even a Linksys WRT54G would work. I just like pfSense and I'm familiar with it and it provides all those features I mentioned above.

    I assume you can't eject the Homebase device because it provides landline or TV service. If you can, then that is a whole other conversation, and simpler.

    If you would like some help developing a plan or drawing, shoot me an email. I'm listed on qrz.com.

    "Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler."
    :)

  • K8GI
    K8GI Member
    edited November 2018
    Hi Lee.  At home I have also have an AT&T Homebase.  It's one of two WANs that "feed" my router.  (I have this "thing about keeping the internet "up."  ;<)  )  In brief, here's how I configured it ...

    I did not find a way to put the Homebase in bridge mode as Mike suggested (although that's probably the preferred solution and generally real good advice.)  Danny also has exactly the right idea, in my view.  Rather, I forwarded all incoming packets to MY router via a DMZ.  The Homebase "feeds" one of the WAN ports of my Peplink router via ethernet -- not wi-fi.  The Homebase wi-fi is turned off.  While I choose to use load-balancing/fail-over routers, I recognize that's not so common in a home environment.  You could certainly use one of the more common solutions -- e.g., Netgear, TP-Lnk, Linksys, etc.  However, ensure you choose a different subnet for your LAN than that of the Homebase. 

    Once you log-in to the Homebase, here's where you go to do what you need to do:

    Set the LAN address range:  Settings | Advanced | Router; thence,
       IP address:  This is where you set the address of the router on the LAN side.  Choose a non-routable address.  [Mine is 192.168.200.1.]
       Subnet mask:  Use 255.255.255.0 unless you understand why one might do otherwise.
       DHCP Server:  Disable
       UPNP Settings:  Disable
       VPN Passthrough:  Enable  [This is critical if you are going to use a router that can serve as a VPN end-point, as I do.]
    Turn firewall off:  Settings | MAC/IP/Port Filtering | Off
    Forward incoming to DMZ:  Settings | Firewall | DMZ  [Mine is 192.168.200.200, for example]
    Settings | Wi-fi | Basic | Off

    Then, go into your router and set the WAN to be the same address to which you forwarded all traffic via DMZ.  [In my case the WAN is 192.168.200.1.] 

    This approach gives you full control of your network and places your firewall (rather than AT&T's) between your network and the rest of the world.  While I have not been successful at all in making the transition to my Flex 6300 and 6600 from another manufacturer, I do know something about networking and can tell you that my Flex radios are completely happy with the arrangement I've described.  (Well, except for the latency and jitter usually associated with 4G -- e.g., the Homebase.)  The Homebase is a good product and will work for your requirements.

    Send me an e-mail if i can help you further.  I'll be glad to talk with you via phone if necessary.  I can walk you through it step-by-step while we look at similar devices in our browsers.  (I don't visit the forum too often any more.)

    73 -- Rick, 'GI


  • Lee, N2LC
    Lee, N2LC Member ✭✭
    edited September 2019
    Danny:  That's sort of how I had it set up before, except I had many shortcomings in my network and it was only half working.
     
    I've been toying with the idea of a thin client to use with security cams, backups, etc, so maybe this is my excuse to go ahead and get one.

    Mark:  I need to get out and try this from afar.  That will tell me something, I think. 

    Ahh, Rick, my new Homebase buddy!   I'm getting closer.  Around here things just don't pop up and work right the way they should.  It's one of my curses.  Today the reset button in the Homebase took a hike, and since I had it out in my man-cave, there was about 12,985 little no-see-ums that got in there one fall evening for the warmth and died, so when I shook them all out, so went the nano switch somewhere in the driveway.  So I can't reset the unit, nor will it allow me to connect.  It does however still give me internet.  So a soldering iron is next, so I can reset it, so I can continue to follow the trail.  It's a crazy life I lead.

    Everyone: Thank you very much for your help and your offers of assistance.  I know the help desk is there too, but i think i still have things to fix before I ring the bell.

    Thanks again.

    73, Lee, N2LC
  • K5CG
    K5CG Member ✭✭
    edited November 2018
    But I think you were using the WiFi from the Homebase. That's might be the problem. CLose but no cigar. Everything, even your WiFi has to come from an AP connected to the internal network.
  • Lee, N2LC
    Lee, N2LC Member
    edited November 2018
    It was a sort of incestuous hybrid - the Homebase was 192.168.0.1 supplying internet to the router on 192.168.1.1 via ether AND wireless, and my wife's and other clients would use whatever happened to work right then. My old hotspot didn't have an ether port and when I got the Homebase I guess I just left it set on wireless as wifi, where it's been working for a couple of years with two internet pipes from the same address.

    I got the double internet pipe corrected to ether only, and the Homebase wifi shut off, and that's about where the reset button disappeared.  You wondered earlier about maybe getting rid of the Homebase altogether, but that is my only source of internet. 

    Still no cigar, but I'm not quite finished with the changes. 

    Thanks Danny.


  • K8GI
    K8GI Member
    edited November 2018
    Lee:  Suggestions ...
    1.  If you have a router, connect it to the ethernet jack of the Homebase -- not via wi-fi  (Rick's "rule of thumb":  Never connect anything via wi-fi when ethernet is available.)
    2.  If you have a router behind the Homebase turn the Homebase wi-fi OFF.
    3.  Ensure you do not have a subnet conflict between the Homebase LAN and router LAN -- e.g., 192.168.1.0/24.
    4.  Set a static address for the WAN port of the router which is within the LAN subnet of the Homebase.
    5.  To avoid "double NATing" (a prescription for failure), ensure the router is connected to the "DMZ" of the Homebase. 

    There is nothing wrong with the Homebase per se.  Actually, it is very good for what it does and what it costs you, in my view.  What you want to do is essentially treat it as a MODEM rather than a router.  It will work.  I have one in use set up as I described.

    Rick
  • Lee, N2LC
    Lee, N2LC Member ✭✭
    edited November 2018
    I think I’d better email you. I’m taking up too much forumwidth with fundamental networking. I’m close though - I was able to hold still with the ends of a paper clip on the solder pads long enough to get a reset, and got the settings in that you recommended. Still a red light in Smartlink, but everything else good. I’m assuming that I should be able to get a green light from within my home network. Progress is progress. Stand by.
  • K8GI
    K8GI Member
    edited November 2018
    GM Lee.  I can (and will be pleased to) help you with the "networking part" of this, particularly vis-a-vis making the AT&T "box" work for you.  But, as I mentioned previously, my efforts to transition to Flex from another manufacturer have been fraught with frustration (and I'm about to throw in the towel on that one).  So, for that part of the equation I'm sure you'll find the advice of the tons of folks here who have been successful in "breaking the code."  ;<)

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