Hi All, I am interested to know what people are using for OOB management access to remote sites. We have a mix of routers from TPLink to Mikrotik with 3G/4G or DSL lines into them which we then jump through to get to gear on a site, we are currently reviewing our options with a view to standardising on one brand/model if possible. Mikrotik Routerboard is a good option, but for DSL connections it needs a modem, and if using 3G/4G the modems for PCIe are a bit pricey still, just wondering what others are doing and what the most cost effective approach would be for such a little utilised component but one that is really important for remote sites. Regards Paul
Have a look here on the list from a few weeks ago on the success I had using a Telstra 4G USB dongle with Mikrotik. They are only about $60 for the 4G units. On 21 April 2015 at 15:26, Paul Julian <paul@oxygennetworks.com.au> wrote:
Hi All, I am interested to know what people are using for OOB management access to remote sites.
We have a mix of routers from TPLink to Mikrotik with 3G/4G or DSL lines into them which we then jump through to get to gear on a site, we are currently reviewing our options with a view to standardising on one brand/model if possible.
Mikrotik Routerboard is a good option, but for DSL connections it needs a modem, and if using 3G/4G the modems for PCIe are a bit pricey still, just wondering what others are doing and what the most cost effective approach would be for such a little utilised component but one that is really important for remote sites.
Regards Paul _______________________________________________ Public mailing list Public@talk.mikrotik.com.au http://talk.mikrotik.com.au/mailman/listinfo/public_talk.mikrotik.com.au
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I'm with Jason on this one and here is some of his handy work, :-) The Telstra prepaid ZTE MF823 (~$50) does indeed work on my 751G and 2011 box using firmware 6.27. Some things to note to have it work in a straightforward mode: * The Mikrotik knows how to set up the right USB IDS's to get the ethernet USB interface going. * It also knows to tell the modem to connect to the network. * Use a DHCP client on the LTE1 interface with default route and Peer DNS set. * The DHCP client gives you an address of 192.168.0.182/24 and the modem is 192.168.0.1. * I used used SRC NAT to the 192.168.0/24 subnet. The modem runs Linux on ARM internally so you can log into it with telnet and change the default subnet on the modem apparently. Telstra have disabled or hidden these settings in the web menu on 192.168.0.1. * Be wary of the triple NAT in effect and any consequences: Internet <| 10/8 Telstra <| Modem 192.168.0/24 <| Your network * As per the Mikrotik Wiki cold power the 2011 when plugging in the modem otherwise LTE1 doesn't come up properly. This wasn't an issue on the 751G. * Disabling then reenabling the LTE1 interface brings it up briefly then it disables itself again. Only a plugging cycle fixes this. * Make sure the main router power supply can drive your router and the full 2.5W to the USB port. * This message is coming to you via the LTE1 interface on my 2011. Regards, Alen -----Original Message----- From: Public [mailto:public-bounces@talk.mikrotik.com.au] On Behalf Of Jason Hecker (Up & Running Tech) Sent: Tuesday, 21 April 2015 3:45 PM To: MikroTik Australia Public List Subject: Re: [MT-AU Public] Out of Band access options Have a look here on the list from a few weeks ago on the success I had using a Telstra 4G USB dongle with Mikrotik. They are only about $60 for the 4G units. On 21 April 2015 at 15:26, Paul Julian <paul@oxygennetworks.com.au> wrote:
Hi All, I am interested to know what people are using for OOB management access to remote sites.
We have a mix of routers from TPLink to Mikrotik with 3G/4G or DSL lines into them which we then jump through to get to gear on a site, we are currently reviewing our options with a view to standardising on one brand/model if possible.
Mikrotik Routerboard is a good option, but for DSL connections it needs a modem, and if using 3G/4G the modems for PCIe are a bit pricey still, just wondering what others are doing and what the most cost effective approach would be for such a little utilised component but one that is really important for remote sites.
Regards Paul _______________________________________________ Public mailing list Public@talk.mikrotik.com.au http://talk.mikrotik.com.au/mailman/listinfo/public_talk.mikrotik.com.au
-- _______________________________________________ Public mailing list Public@talk.mikrotik.com.au http://talk.mikrotik.com.au/mailman/listinfo/public_talk.mikrotik.com.au
For remote OOBM we use the Sierra USB 308 (branded Telstra Elite) with whatever RB that's appropriate. This presents as a ppp interface just like the pcie cards and allows fun things like Telstra.extranet apn's and all the good things that come with a public ip on an interface without worry about all the nat shortfalls. This combined with the serial port proxy makes OOBM super easy for most console operations across all vendors. As they are an older model they are a little harder to find in the marketplace but you can still get them. I managed to pick up 30 units for about $10 each off ebay (like this listing: http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Sierra-wireless-USB-308-elite-Mobile-Broadband-Telstra-NextG-USB-Modem-Dongle-/291433581392?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_15&hash=item43dacb8b50 ) have been using them for about 2 years and haven't had an issue at all. RJ -----Original Message----- From: Public [mailto:public-bounces@talk.mikrotik.com.au] On Behalf Of Alen Orsolic Sent: Tuesday, 21 April 2015 2:51 PM To: jason@upandrunningtech.com.au; 'MikroTik Australia Public List' Subject: Re: [MT-AU Public] Out of Band access options I'm with Jason on this one and here is some of his handy work, :-) The Telstra prepaid ZTE MF823 (~$50) does indeed work on my 751G and 2011 box using firmware 6.27. Some things to note to have it work in a straightforward mode: * The Mikrotik knows how to set up the right USB IDS's to get the ethernet USB interface going. * It also knows to tell the modem to connect to the network. * Use a DHCP client on the LTE1 interface with default route and Peer DNS set. * The DHCP client gives you an address of 192.168.0.182/24 and the modem is 192.168.0.1. * I used used SRC NAT to the 192.168.0/24 subnet. The modem runs Linux on ARM internally so you can log into it with telnet and change the default subnet on the modem apparently. Telstra have disabled or hidden these settings in the web menu on 192.168.0.1. * Be wary of the triple NAT in effect and any consequences: Internet <| 10/8 Telstra <| Modem 192.168.0/24 <| Your network * As per the Mikrotik Wiki cold power the 2011 when plugging in the modem otherwise LTE1 doesn't come up properly. This wasn't an issue on the 751G. * Disabling then reenabling the LTE1 interface brings it up briefly then it disables itself again. Only a plugging cycle fixes this. * Make sure the main router power supply can drive your router and the full 2.5W to the USB port. * This message is coming to you via the LTE1 interface on my 2011. Regards, Alen -----Original Message----- From: Public [mailto:public-bounces@talk.mikrotik.com.au] On Behalf Of Jason Hecker (Up & Running Tech) Sent: Tuesday, 21 April 2015 3:45 PM To: MikroTik Australia Public List Subject: Re: [MT-AU Public] Out of Band access options Have a look here on the list from a few weeks ago on the success I had using a Telstra 4G USB dongle with Mikrotik. They are only about $60 for the 4G units. On 21 April 2015 at 15:26, Paul Julian <paul@oxygennetworks.com.au> wrote:
Hi All, I am interested to know what people are using for OOB management access to remote sites.
We have a mix of routers from TPLink to Mikrotik with 3G/4G or DSL lines into them which we then jump through to get to gear on a site, we are currently reviewing our options with a view to standardising on one brand/model if possible.
Mikrotik Routerboard is a good option, but for DSL connections it needs a modem, and if using 3G/4G the modems for PCIe are a bit pricey still, just wondering what others are doing and what the most cost effective approach would be for such a little utilised component but one that is really important for remote sites.
Regards Paul _______________________________________________ Public mailing list Public@talk.mikrotik.com.au http://talk.mikrotik.com.au/mailman/listinfo/public_talk.mikrotik.com. au
-- _______________________________________________ Public mailing list Public@talk.mikrotik.com.au http://talk.mikrotik.com.au/mailman/listinfo/public_talk.mikrotik.com.au _______________________________________________ Public mailing list Public@talk.mikrotik.com.au http://talk.mikrotik.com.au/mailman/listinfo/public_talk.mikrotik.com.au
We're currently using the Sierra Wireless USB modems on various Mikrotik routers (including for some OOB) - and find them absolutely horrible. We've had no end of stability problems (USB power reset gets a lot of use from me!), sometimes they will run for weeks at a time without a problem, other times they will fail 5 times in one day for no apparent reason. Mike and I had a look at it a while ago, and couldn't find any obvious causes (checked power, swapped routerboards and USB modems, different ROS and Sierra Wireless firmware revisions etc). What is the stability of the ZTE USB dongles like? Also, is there any way to bring the IP allocated from Telstra through to the Mikrotik (we use the Telstra.Extranet APN to get a publically routable IP address into our OOB units). The other option that we're considering is the Sierra Wireless PCI-e cards, but ROS currently only supports the old serial PPP method of speaking to them currently, meaning that we can't get the full 4G speeds. Any other options would be welcomed :) -----Original Message----- From: Public [mailto:public-bounces@talk.mikrotik.com.au] On Behalf Of Alen Orsolic Sent: Tuesday, 21 April 2015 4:51 PM To: jason@upandrunningtech.com.au; 'MikroTik Australia Public List' Subject: Re: [MT-AU Public] Out of Band access options I'm with Jason on this one and here is some of his handy work, :-) The Telstra prepaid ZTE MF823 (~$50) does indeed work on my 751G and 2011 box using firmware 6.27. Some things to note to have it work in a straightforward mode: * The Mikrotik knows how to set up the right USB IDS's to get the ethernet USB interface going. * It also knows to tell the modem to connect to the network. * Use a DHCP client on the LTE1 interface with default route and Peer DNS set. * The DHCP client gives you an address of 192.168.0.182/24 and the modem is 192.168.0.1. * I used used SRC NAT to the 192.168.0/24 subnet. The modem runs Linux on ARM internally so you can log into it with telnet and change the default subnet on the modem apparently. Telstra have disabled or hidden these settings in the web menu on 192.168.0.1. * Be wary of the triple NAT in effect and any consequences: Internet <| 10/8 Telstra <| Modem 192.168.0/24 <| Your network * As per the Mikrotik Wiki cold power the 2011 when plugging in the modem otherwise LTE1 doesn't come up properly. This wasn't an issue on the 751G. * Disabling then reenabling the LTE1 interface brings it up briefly then it disables itself again. Only a plugging cycle fixes this. * Make sure the main router power supply can drive your router and the full 2.5W to the USB port. * This message is coming to you via the LTE1 interface on my 2011. Regards, Alen
The ZTE MF823 seems to be hardwired to do NAT on 192.168.0.1 to keep things as simple as possible for the punters. There are URLs that discuss hacking the MF823 as it runs Linux and you can change various configurations manually. You can change the APN though if you want via the web interface on 192.168.0.1. To get at the machines on the inside you can run Logmein or Teamviewer on them and let those systems link you up or have the Mikrotik connect from the inside out to a VPN server that has a public IP. I have no idea at this stage how stable a MF823 is over a period longer than a few hours. It handles all the PPP stuff for you and hopefully it's robust. They don't seem to recover from an interface enable/disable cycle but it could be a Mikrotik bug. I haven't tested them using a USB power cycle. I have used Telit modules in the past with microcontollers, serial ports and and AT commands for PPP sessions and I had to build a big state machine to ensure the connection was robust. This included power cycling as a last resort as the 2G GPRS network could present all sorts of connection challenges that didn't seem to be caused by the modem itself - they seemed very robust. Newer Telit modules are 2G/3G with USB and might be an option. Glyn in Sydney sell them. If you want industrial performance you have to pay industrial prices. http://www.glynstore.com/gt-he910-eud-tri-band-umts-hspa-modem-terminal-data... is one. On 21 April 2015 at 17:24, Thomas Jackson <thomas@thomax.com.au> wrote:
We're currently using the Sierra Wireless USB modems on various Mikrotik routers (including for some OOB) - and find them absolutely horrible. We've had no end of stability problems (USB power reset gets a lot of use from me!), sometimes they will run for weeks at a time without a problem, other times they will fail 5 times in one day for no apparent reason. Mike and I had a look at it a while ago, and couldn't find any obvious causes (checked power, swapped routerboards and USB modems, different ROS and Sierra Wireless firmware revisions etc).
What is the stability of the ZTE USB dongles like? Also, is there any way to bring the IP allocated from Telstra through to the Mikrotik (we use the Telstra.Extranet APN to get a publically routable IP address into our OOB units).
The other option that we're considering is the Sierra Wireless PCI-e cards, but ROS currently only supports the old serial PPP method of speaking to them currently, meaning that we can't get the full 4G speeds.
Any other options would be welcomed :)
-----Original Message----- From: Public [mailto:public-bounces@talk.mikrotik.com.au] On Behalf Of Alen Orsolic Sent: Tuesday, 21 April 2015 4:51 PM To: jason@upandrunningtech.com.au; 'MikroTik Australia Public List' Subject: Re: [MT-AU Public] Out of Band access options
I'm with Jason on this one and here is some of his handy work, :-)
The Telstra prepaid ZTE MF823 (~$50) does indeed work on my 751G and 2011 box using firmware 6.27.
Some things to note to have it work in a straightforward mode:
* The Mikrotik knows how to set up the right USB IDS's to get the ethernet USB interface going. * It also knows to tell the modem to connect to the network. * Use a DHCP client on the LTE1 interface with default route and Peer DNS set. * The DHCP client gives you an address of 192.168.0.182/24 and the modem is 192.168.0.1. * I used used SRC NAT to the 192.168.0/24 subnet. The modem runs Linux on ARM internally so you can log into it with telnet and change the default subnet on the modem apparently. Telstra have disabled or hidden these settings in the web menu on 192.168.0.1. * Be wary of the triple NAT in effect and any consequences: Internet <| 10/8 Telstra <| Modem 192.168.0/24 <| Your network * As per the Mikrotik Wiki cold power the 2011 when plugging in the modem otherwise LTE1 doesn't come up properly. This wasn't an issue on the 751G. * Disabling then reenabling the LTE1 interface brings it up briefly then it disables itself again. Only a plugging cycle fixes this. * Make sure the main router power supply can drive your router and the full 2.5W to the USB port. * This message is coming to you via the LTE1 interface on my 2011.
Regards,
Alen
_______________________________________________ Public mailing list Public@talk.mikrotik.com.au http://talk.mikrotik.com.au/mailman/listinfo/public_talk.mikrotik.com.au
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participants (5)
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Alen Orsolic -
Jason Hecker (Up & Running Tech) -
Paul Julian -
RJ Plummer -
Thomas Jackson