How to configure SMITCOMS’ Natternet
to work with CaribServe.NET

Please be advised of the following if you intend to use the Natternet Voice over IP (VoIP) service provided by SMITCOMS on your CaribServe.NET WADSL connection:

• The Natternet Voice over IP (VoIP) service being offered by SMITCOMS will work on your CaribServe.NET connection provided that the guidelines in this advisory are followed carefully.
• The Natternet VoIP device will only work on our new WADSL platform; it will not work on the older Cirronet platform. This means that customers on the older platform will have to upgrade to our new WADSL platform before they can use Natternet.

SYMPTOMS

You are unable to use both your PC and Natternet device on CaribServe.NET at the same time or your Natternet device does not work with CaribServe.NET.

CAUSE

CaribServe.NET uses the PPPOE protocol for authentication, admissions and accounting on our network.  This means that a PC, router or other device must have a PPPOE client built into the device in order to gain access to our network.

While the Natternet device (Mediatrix 2102) from SMITCOMS does include a PPPOE client, in PPPOE mode, the device does not act as router/firewall but instead it takes on the role of what is called a network bridge. The latter simply "bridges" your internal network to our network and the Internet without any firewall functionality.  This is dangerous and alarming in that your network is not segmented or protected from ours (or the Internet) and thus it is possible for persons with malicious intentions and a little bit of hacking intelligence to gain direct access to files on your PCs or to use sniffing tools to intercept data transactions between PCs on your home/office network. In other words, your internal home/office network is directly exposed!

While you can connect the Natternet device directly to our system and have it configured for PPPOE, you will realize in this scenario that you will not be able to utilize your PCs and the Natternet device on our network at the same time. In some instances (immediately after installation), both the Natternet device and the PCs work simultaneously but only for a short period. Thereafter, only the Natternet device works but the PC is unable to access the Internet.

RESOLUTION:

We recommend placing a router as the “edge” device between our WADSL connection and your internal network (PCs / Natternet device).  By doing so and if properly configured, you will be able to use both the Natternet device and your PCs on the

When looking for a router, we strongly suggest purchasing a router that has Quality of Service (QoS) as a configurable parameter. QoS allows you to configure the router in such a way that the Voice over IP traffic from Natternet device will have a higher priority than regular data traffic, such as file transfers, email, etc.  This will ensure that your VoIP connections are clear and not “choppy” or “delayed”. We recommend the Cisco Linksys BEFSR41. (The latter can be purchased from CaribServe.NET).

In order to utilize your Natternet device with a router, you should ask SMITCOMS to ensure that the NETWORK port on the device is set up to obtain an IP address automatically via DHCP.

WORKAROUND

To work around this behavior, please follow these steps:

1. Please configure your router as per the document “PPPOE Configuration Guide for Routers,” which can be found at our online Helpdesk at http://helpdesk.caribserve.net.
2. Please configure your Natternet device (Mediatrix 2102) as per page 11 of the Mediatrix 2102 Quick Start Guide – DHCP installation with router. The Quick Start configuration guide can be downloaded from our online helpdesk by clicking here.
3. Look for the MAC address on the bottom of the Mediatrix 2102 and record it for use in the following section.
4. Log into your Cisco Linksys router as per the instructions in step #1 and click on the Applications & Gaming and the QOS menus.
5. In the QOS menu, click on Enable to enable the QoS functionality of your router
6. In the Device Priority section of the QoS configuration screen, enter NATTERNET under Device Name and set the Priority to High.  In the MAC Address area, please enter the information you recorded in Step #3

7. Click on Apply or Save Settings when finished and reboot the router.
8. Your wiring configuration should look as follows with your CaribServe.NET WADSL service connected to the WAN or Internet port of the router.

Back to Helpdesk

Click here to download this article for offline viewing

© Copyright 2001-2008 - New Technologies Group, N.V. / New Technologies Group SARL.  All Rights Reserved