[LINK] Telstra Dedicated Modem and Optus Cable modem installation

[Robin Whittle]

Dear Linkers,

Since July 1997, I have been very happy with the cost-effective,
super-reliable Telstra Internet Dedicated Modem service.   Now I have
described how I connect my RedHat 7.1 system and LAN to this excellent
service.

I have also just connected my system so that HTTP and FTP browsing is
done via a Squid proxy server running on my main Linux machine, which
accesses external sites via my Optus@Home cable modem service (via the
local Optus@Home caching proxy servers).

The two services complement each other to a large degree.

The Optus service is damn fast, and has no real cost per traffic - since
as I wrote to Link in April, it seems that one can download 570 Megs a
day.  It cannot be used to run servers.  It costs about $75 a month

The Telstra Dedicated Modem service requires a phone line, and uses a
56kbps modem to give me a small subnet of IP addresses.    It costs $550
to set up, and then $0.209 per Megabyte received with a minimum monthly
fee of $22.

Its features include:

*  Extraordinary reliability. 

*  Unlike cable modems, the service does not depend on there being power 
   in the area. 

*  Ability to move house and still keep the service (see notes below on 
   POPs).   

*  The service is available from POPs in capital cities and many 
   regional centres, so it is widely available to people outside
   the big cities.

*  A fixed subnet of IP addresses.  Mine have not changed in 4 years.  
   So it is fine to run a nameserver, web server, mail server etc.
    
*  Web access to Telstra's reverse lookup database so you can give each 
   of your IP addresses whatever name you like when someone does
   a reverse lookup on it. 

*  Free backup mail server.  (Essential for me, since I am running my 
   own mailserver.) 

*  Free primary and secondary nameserver services.  (I run my own 
   primary, and the Telstra nameserver is its backup.) 

*  The bandwidth to Telstra's routers is not subject to any competition 
   with other customers, as it is with the shared HFC cable modem 
   approach. 

*  Ability to run any service, including HTTPS / SSL / TLS encrypted 
   services to your own premises. 

*  No "residential only" nonsense! 

*  Low recurrent cost, depending on traffic volumes. 

*  No marketing rubbish whatsoever. 



I have documented how I did all this, with the Optus@Home connection,
squid setup, routing, and my use of ipchains for packet filtering, at:

   http://www.firstpr.com.au/sys-admin/TI-Optus@Home/


The system works really well.  I get Google results on screen 1.0
seconds after clicking the "Search" button.  (Actually, the last packet
arrives from the Optus cache about 0.87 seconds after squid sent its
first packet out.)

Download speeds vary, but can be half a Megabyte a second.


  - Robin