[PLUG] (Semi-OT:) Linksys router messes up my LAN
Anthony Schlemmer
aschlemm at comcast.net
Sat Jul 19 10:53:02 UTC 2003
Do you have to stick to using a wireless router? If a computer works why
not put a Linux or other Unix-like firewall box in place and get an
access point, which doesn't have all of the NAT and firewall stuff in
it, and put that on your hub or switch?
Access points are alot simpiler and the allow wireless clients to use a
network's existing DHCP server etc. I decided long ago I'd never give
up using a Linux or BSD-base firewall box since it offers way more
flexibility. It also gives you more visibility when something isn't
working.
Tony
On Saturday 19 July 2003 10:22 am, David Fleck wrote:
> A few weeks ago, I got a Linksys wireless router. This router acts
> as the gateway/firewall between the internet and our home LAN. It's
> a pretty crude firewall, and not nearly as configurable as what I
> used to have - a Linux box running floppyfw - but that's not the
> problem here.
>
> Everything seemed OK at first, but then I noticed that getting large
> (10MB+) files to download didn't work very well. Transfers would
> progress for about 5 - 10 MB and then hang, indefinitely. The amount
> downloaded varied, but would always crap out at about the same point
> for a given file. Attempting to re-download gets either the same
> result, or an even smaller amount downloaded, or simply no connection
> at all.
>
> At first I thought that FTP wasn't configured right, but then I
> noticed that the problems occurred with large http transfers as well,
> and also with just about any network activity that couldn't be
> completed in 10 seconds or so. So lots of little files (like web
> browsing) works OK, but downloading kernel source invariably fails.
> This behavior was the same on the 3 machines in the LAN - FreeBSD
> 4.6, SuSE 8.2, W2K.
>
> At first I thought it was the cableco.'s fault - but they had me
> connect the W2K machine (UNIX? We don't support no stinkin' UNIX)
> directly to the cable modem, without the router, and downloads worked
> fine.
>
> As a further test, I tried ftp'ing one of the big files I downloaded
> from the W2K box to the FreeBSD box. The transfer hung, just as it
> did across the internet. I took the two machines off the network and
> connected them to each other with a hub, and the transfer worked
> fine.
>
> Linksys tech.support has had me do a firmware upgrade, reset the
> router's MTU to 1492, and reset the MTU on the local machines' NICs
> to 1492. It seems to have helped the W2K machine, but doesn't seem
> to have done much for the other two, which I use and need a lot more.
> I'll call Linksys back soon after I do some more poking around, but
> does anyone have ideas as to what might be causing this?
--
Anthony Schlemmer
aschlemm at comcast.net
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