Os X & Adsl

[aiBoek]

Hi!
My uncle has a G4 running OS 9 and connects to the net via ADSL. He and his son are rather eager to run OS X, they tried it, but they don't seem to be able to get ADSL working. How should they do this? Of course they haven't had lots of experience using OS X, so they'd prefer not to do it via the CLI, but if that's the only way, they'll manage (I'll help them :)).

Thanks!

aiBoek

[Benad]

What kind of protocol your uncle's ISP is using? DHCP or PPPoE?

- Benad

[zs]

I'm assuming that the ADSL modem is connected to the ethernet port, the service uses PPPoE, and they are running at least OS X 10.1 (this probably works in older versions, but the steps may be different).

Using this, you need to know the account name and password.

1. Go to the Network tab in System Preferences. Go to the "Show:" pulldown and set it to "Built-in Ethernet".
2. In the "TCP/IP" tab, select "Using PPP" in the "Configure:" pulldown.
3. Click the "PPPoE" tab and set the Account Name and Password. Click the checkbox to "Show PPPoE status in menu bar"
4. Close and save.
5. Go up to the <--> looking menu in the menu bar and select "Connect"

Hope that helps:)

[noxioux]

Another thing to find out: There are as many 'flavors' of dsl as there are ice cream, and every one of them can be different. I am a DSL installer/tech, and we have 3 different systems. One of them does DHCP, and the only thing you need to do is set your TCP/IP control panel to do DHCP, and everything should come down from the DSLAM or authentication server. We also have two other systems that require us to use static IP's, and you would definitely need that information from your ISP. Here's a few questions to answer that might help clarify:

1. What kind of DSLAM is your Telco/ISP using?
2. How do they provision their customers?
3. What kind of modem or bridge are you using?

The only requirement for your Mac to be able to utilize DSL of any kind are the TCP/IP protocols. OSX is no different in that aspect from any other operating system. The best people to help you figure out what you need to do to are the ones providing the service. I'd give them a call first thing.

[DrJerph]

Well I'm totally assuming that the ADSL-modem they use is an ethernet enabled one.
What you need under OSX is a program that 'talks' the same communication protocol as ADSL. This protocol is called PPTP (in the Netherlands anyway). There is a GUI application called 'PPTP-GUI' which enables you to use this protocol, downloadable at www.versiontracker.com/macosx (search for 'PPTP-Gui'). (Btw, this program is similar to the OS9 application called 'NTS Tunnelbuilder' your uncle is probally using under OS9)
If you've managed so far, read the 'readme' that came with the download.

Another good resource on ADSL under OSX is available at http://www.xs4all.nl/helpdesk/besturingssysteem/mac/indexx.html

Hope this helps...

[aalegado]

Please excuse the sarcasm but I just had to go-off a little...

noxioux is asking questions that don't need to be answered.

Consider this: The querent already stated that the DSL service works under OS 9. What does this mean...wait for it...it means the DSL service already works. That simple fact means that for the three questions he's saying you have to have answers to...

1. What kind of DSLAM is your Telco/ISP using?
2. How do they provision their customers?
3. What kind of modem or bridge are you using?

...the answer is: Doesn't matter, it already works.

Basic troubleshooting rule: If the hardware doesn't change but the software does, look to the software for the solution.

Two Troubleshooting Sessions:

#1
Problem: The car won't start anymore.
Question: What is the make and model of the car?
Question: Is it a purchase or a lease?
Question: What kind of gas are you using?

#2
Problem: The car won't start anymore.
Question: Does it turn-over?
Question: Do you have gas in the tank?

Which troubleshooting session do you think will get to the answer sooner?

In this case, it's the same computer but a different OS. That means the potential problem (configuring the system for using DSL) and solution is in software. In this case, the software is already there (the Network panel), it's just a matter of configuration.

Thus, Benad asks the right questions: PPPoE or DHCP?

If PPPoE, then zs has the answer for PPPoE.

If DHCP, instead of the PPPoE tab in the Networks panel, select the TCP/IP tab and select "DHCP" from the pop-up menu. Enter the appropriate data from the config sheet the DSL tech left and you're done.

DrJerph is missing something: DSL is not a protocol, it's a transport medium (refer to the OSI model). The DSL line uses ATM in the link-layer to carry an TCP/IP payload. The TCP/IP payload in DrJerph's case, is PPTP packets.

In no way is PPTP the "protocol" of DSL. Nor is PPTP necessary for DSL connectivity. PPTP is an add-on service that provides for secured connections between the PPTP client and the PPTP server. The software he's referring to forms the client end of a secure connection.

Who would use this? Corporate telecommuters whose companies have purchased some form of secure DSL package from the local phone company so that the employee's traffic is secure from other users on the phone company's network. Phone companies won't deliver this type of service cheap nor on a widescale.


Network connectivity ("bridging") is all that a DSL modem delivers. It bridges your LAN (which may just be your computer) to their network. DSL is called "always on" because the bridging function is always working connecting your LAN to theirs. That's not the same as "always logged in" though.

The DSLAM (Digital Subscriber Line Access Mulitplexer -- essentially a device that takes several DSL lines and combines them in a way that the data from each line can be delivered over a single high-capacity line to another device) and any authentication or gateway server behind it determines if a device on your LAN can talk to a device on their network.

The lingua franca is "TCP/IP" which means that the only thing that makes these services different is the mechanism the phone company uses to assign you an IP address (i.e, the login method). Once your device has that address, you're jacked-in and communicating.


The methods:

Static IP
No actual login or authentication. Have the right values, boom, you're connected.

DHCP (dynamic)
No actual login or authentication. Your device queries the DHCP with a DHCP request packet ("Hey! I'm here!), DHCP server answers with a "lease" for a given address. Your lease can last anywhere from hours to forever depending on how the DHCP server is configured. The DHCP server can tell who you are because the DHCP request includes your device's "MAC" address (Media Access Control -- a unique in all the world address -- no two Ethernet devices have the same MAC address).

In some cases, the phone company explicitly requires the MAC address of your Ethernet interface that way the DHCP server knows that the same computer is asking for an address. This is why LinkSys and other home/SOHO routers have a "MAC configuration" feature--it's there to make it look like the router is the same Ethernet card that was configured when the service tech was at your house.

PPPoE (dynamic)
Your device opens a PPP session to the designated PPP server which challenges your device for a username and password. If it gets it, it assigns an IP address from a pool of addresses. The address is yours for as long as there's a session open. If you close/re-open the session you get a new address. This is the same as most dial-up Internet service except the phone number is implicit in the fact that the DSL bridge is working.

Depending on which of these you have, you need some of the following:

Assigned IP (Static)
Gateway address (Static, DHCP, PPPoE)
Netmask (Static)
Username (PPPoE)
Password (PPPoE)

Many times the "gateway" server is the same as the authentication server or the PPP server.

If you have PPTP delivered via DSL then the server behind the DSLAM is probably a PPTP server which is listening for a session request from your PPTP client. If you've entered your user information in your PPTP client, then the login process is transparent to you. When the PPTP server accepts the connection, you're in and communicating.

[cram]

IF you happen to use the Alcatel Speed Touch USB ADSL modem (widely distributed at least in Europe by ISPs), it is heavily recommended to remove the dockling (installed with the driver) from the dock.
This dockling brings a lot of instability to the system (and kernel panics too).

The driver itself can cause kernel panics when you try to "hot-unplug" the device (that is a problem if you use a laptop), but my experience show that removing the dockling seems to be the solution to most of the problems (I have been running like this for nearly 3 weeks without any problem - before there was a KP every 2 or 3 hours).

(this information has been published for the first time on the Mac forum of www.adslguide.org.uk following an answer by the Alcatel support to a customer, and confirmed to me by the people who developped the driver - and are working on a fix)