How to use your own router with O2 Broadband

[Saturday]

Note: The following settings apply to O2's LLU products (Standard, Premium and Pro), not O2 Home Access. For O2 Home Access, see the note at the bottom of this post.

Although O2 supplies a fairly good wireless router some people like to use their own. That is perfectly OK with O2 - it's just they can't offer support on anything other than their own router. If that's fine by you, here are the settings:

• ISP name: O2 Home Broadband
  
• Multiplexing method: LLC-Based
  
• VPI: 0
  
• VCI: 101
  
• Username: leave blank
  
• Password: leave blank
  
• Domain name: leave blank
  
• IP address type: this depends on whether you chose our static IP address option or not:
  
• - If you didn’t choose O2's static IP address option, set this to dynamic IP
  
• - If you did choose O2's static IP address, enter the IP address printed in your welcome letter
  
• DNS servers: choose to get these dynamically from the Internet provider
  
• NAT: enable

Some routers may require you to select additional parameters such as Connectivity mode and Encapsulation. If so then select RFC1483 Bridged and ETHoA, IPoATM or IPoA.

If you router offers the facility to "spoof" its MAC address, then change it to the same as your supplied O2 Box, if you've previously connected with it. That way the initial login/authentication will be faster as the O2 authentication system will see an expected MAC.


Router specific details:

The O2 network utilises ETHoA which will probably not appear as an option in the router settings. Don't worry about this. If possible don't choose an encapsulation type. If that isn't an option then for the following routers try -

Netgear
In Basic Settings select NO to the question "Does Your Internet Connection Require A Login?". The Encapsulation, login and username fields will then disappear.


Belkin
Choose "Dynamic/Fixed IP (1483 Bridge) connection type" and leave the username and password fields blank.



Settings for O2 Home Access

Home Access is a BT product (BT IPstream), rebadged and resold by O2 when they have no LLU presence or insufficient capacity in your exchange.

These are the IP Stream settings you will need to enter into the router:

• Username: Radius Name
• Password: Radius Password

Your radius username and password will have been sent to you when you joined. If you've lost them, email O2 and ask us to re-send them to you, or give them a call if you prefer.

• IP Address: Get automatically from ISP
• DNS (Domain Name Server): Get automatically from ISP
• NAT (Network Address Translation): On
• VPI: 0
• VCI: 38
• MTU Size: 1492
• Multiplexing Method: VC Based
• Encapsulation: PPPoA (PPP over ATM)
• DSL Modulation: G.DMT (Optional)
• Security Type: CHAPS
• Does Internet Connection Require Login: Yes
• QoS: UBR (Optional)

Primary DNS Server: 87.194.0.52
Secondary DNS Server: 87.194.0.53
.

[Mike8]

Regarding using your own router help message. I think you (and the BT site help) should specify that in a router that asks "Do you need to log on to your ISP" should clearly be stated answer the question NO. Otherwise others may opt to select PPPoE and just leave the un and pw blank. Although I did it right in the end with the Netgear router it was the O2 tech help who I asked "as its not PPPoA then is it PPPoE to which the answer from the O2 techie was Yes, which was clearly incorrect. Using LLU and O2 is the first time I have actually come across ETHoA which you normally do not come across. Its obviously an ADSL2+ LLU thing.

[Undecided adrian]

For the Belkin F5D7633 this router will not allow you to leave the username and password fields blank for the standard PPOA connection type and so after asking a very nice tech help at Belkin I set my router to connect via a Dynamic/Fixed IP (1483 Bridge) connection type as it didn'r need a username/password.

[Mike8]

I see you have good coverage regarding obtaining detailed stats for the O2 box. What do you do to get complete stats on the Netgear DG834PN. I have seen somewhere using telnet but how can I do it without messing anything up?

[Saturday]

The easiest way would be to use the DMT tool.

[Mike8]

That looks a good tool, however I downloaded the version DMT ADSLv1/2/2plus Annex A/B which specifies the Netgear range but not specifically DG834PN. On trying to connect it just will not connect but flashes up RED under the label which says Port 23. I put my user ID and pw in it. Any ideas?

Is there any reasons why generic routers do not specify ETHoA as an option. Is it a newly used protocol or is it just not usually used or is it specific to LLU installations.

[Saturday]

Originally Posted by Mike8

On trying to connect it just will not connect but flashes up RED under the label which says Port 23. I put my user ID and pw in it. Any ideas?

Tick special logon.

Originally Posted by Mike8

Is there any reasons why generic routers do not specify ETHoA as an option. Is it a newly used protocol or is it just not usually used or is it specific to LLU installations.

Presumably because they want to limit the amount of options and therefore the complexity of the user interface.

No, it's not new. In the UK there's either BT IPStream or LLU. With LLU the ISP can use what they like.

[Mike8]

Thanks for that. Special log in and firewall disable, so I will have to put it in the firewall.

[squigles]

Never realised that the spoofing of the Mac address would have made any difference

[Saturday]

Well it's not required

As far as I can ascertain, the O2 system allows either 1 or 2 MAC addresses (probably 2) linked to a particular IP address. Presumably this is set on first connection rather than pre-set against the supplied router but I don't know for sure.

If you connect with yet another MAC then the system won't authenticate you immediately - it can take up to 40 minutes to update.

If you spoof the MAC (to what the system is expecting) then authentication is just a second or two.