Using the Dlink 2750u as a true Ethernet WAN router

  • Thread starter Thread starter Manoj Mathew
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I'd actually already posted on how to use the D-Link 2750u as a full fledged Ethernet WAN router, but it was a few pages deep in a Tikona thread and some users were getting the actual method mixed up with workarounds posted earlier in that thread.

The 2750u is actually capable of both adsl and Ethernet WAN routing. However the Indian firmware only enables the adsl WAN. So one needs to use the Middle East (ME) or Russian (NRU) firmware to enable the Ethernet WAN function (with the ME/Russian firmware one can use adsl, ethernet or 3g WAN). Please check the label under your router to identify the specific hardware version and apply the firmware that corresponds to it. Warning: You may brick your router if you apply the wrong firmware. Presently ME firmware is available for C1 and U1 versions. NRU firmware is available for C1. The NRU firmware has the mac cloning feature so you need not ask your provider to reset the mac lock (if mac lock is present). Here are the links

ME C1 v1.3


ME C1 latest


In the latest firmware, I'm having a problem getting my 3g dongle to work, which is why I've posted both versions. Once the firmware has been changed to the ME type, one can easily switch between versions (of the same hw type) using the software update page and one can choose which version works best for them.

ME U1

6.52 MB file on MEGA (Use 7zip/Winrar etc to extract firmware)

NRU C1


Applying the firmware

The firmware may not be accepted in the normal firmware update mode. Then you'll need to update it in the dlink crash recovery mode using a LAN cable (not wirelessly). Assign a static address on the PC for the ethernet interface in the 192.168.1.x series for eg 192.168.1.5

Switch router off, press the reset button ie insert ballpoint pen in reset hole under the router, keep holding the reset button and turn on the router. Keep holding the reset button for about 12 seconds after you power on the router. Now you'll see that the power led has turned red signifying that the router is in crash recovery mode. When you enter the address 192.168.1.1 on your PC browser, you find the upgrade firmware page. Just browse to the downloaded firmware file and flash!

After the new firmware has been flashed, your internet connection will not start working automatically, you will also need to set up the router correctly. Please do not apply any workarounds mentioned in other threads such as interface grouping, disabling DHCP etc

Instructions for setting up the C1 hw version router with ME firmware

Step 1:
Log into your router and under Advanced setup->Layer2 interface->ETH interface create an Ethernet interface with connection mode as default. Then go to Advanced setup->WAN Service and add service for eth0/LAN4.

Step2: If you have an internet connection with pppoe dialing such as pacenet, Honesty etc, in the next page, choose pppoe and put in username, password and service name in the next page. Also choose to enable NAT. In the next page move eth0 from available to selected gateway interface (if it's not already in selected) and remove ppp0 (if present) from selected, in the next page do the same for DNS and finally apply/save. Do thisonly if you have both eth0 and ppp0 appearing in the setup, else let ppp0 remain in selected.

Step2 (alt): If you have a connection such as Tikona, Reliance metro, cable internet (without pppoe dialer) etc, in the next page choose ip over ethernet, in the next page let the setting remain at Obtain an IP address automatically, in the next page check option to enable NAT, in the next page move eth0 from available to selected gateway interface (if it's not already in selected) and remove ppp0 (if present) from selected, in the next page do the same for DNS and finally apply/save. Do this only if you have both eth0 and ppp0 appearing in the setup, else let ppp0 remain in selected.

Step3: Then in advanced setup - 3g connection select primary uplink as ethernet.

Now connect your internet cable to the LAN port 4 of the router and you should be able to connect through any device connected through wifi or any of the other LAN ports. If you have a connection with a browser login such as Reliance metro or Tikona, the login page will show up only on the first device that you connect in each session. After you have logged in on any device, all other devices will have internet connectivity without going through the login page.

Instructions for setting up the U1 hw version router

In Internet setup, set WAN access type to Ethernet and in protocol, choose dynamic ip for connection such as Tikona, Reliance metro, cable broadband (without pppoe dialer) etc and choose pppoe if you have a pppoe dialer based connection such as pacenet, honesty net solutions etc. When setting up the internet connection, vlan id must not be given any value other than 0.

Instructions for setting up the C1 hw version router with NRU firmware (Port 1 is WAN port)

After you flash the interface will appear in Russian. Click on the rightmost dropdown at the top of the page and choose English to change the interface language.

Click on Advanced Settings at the bottom
Click on Interface Grouping in the Advanced section. Right click on the LAN icon on the right and click on setup speed and stream. There's some quirk in the interface and it's a little tricky getting this click right. Set duplex and speed to auto and save. Again hover mouse over LAN graphic and click on Make WAN. With the default option of 'Single service...' click save. Go back to the advanced settings screen. In the Net section click on WAN and add a connection. Choose connection type accordingly and choose LAN as the interface. Change MAC if required (if provider uses mac lock), (mac cloning doesn't seem to work) put in other details as needed (make sure NAT stays enabled) and click save. Internet cable goes into port 1 and not port 4 as in the case of the ME firmware
If your provider uses a mac id lock, plug in the internet cable in port 4 (port 1 for Russian fw) after completing the setup and ask him to register the new mac in his database.
Any users seeking help on this thread, please provide all relevant details (provider, type of connection) and screenshots (info and setup). Also please make absolutely sure that it's not a mac lock issue, as many users are needlessly seeking help on the forum without having got a proper mac reset from their provider.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
gemini said:
Thanks, the new firmware gives me flexibility for using 2750u as true router, but speed is limited to 0.7Mbps
Whereas if I directly connect the cable to my pc I get ~20Mbps

I have checked it multiple times and results are consistent.

I have tried both wireless and lan connection to router.

However if I connect the ISP LAN cable directly to my PC it gives ~20Mbps.

ISP is ACT.

Testcase: speed test using speedtest.net

Can you please let me know if it can be fixed? I used following firmware

ME U1
link-removed.com - DSL-2750U U1 FW ME_1.09 (GAN9.9T113A-B-DL-DSL2750U-R5B0019-Dubai.EN_2T2R).img


Thanks!
I have tried ME firmware from the D-Link webste the "white router one http://www.dlinkmea.com/partner/media/product_item_downloadables/1351-DSL2750U-U1_FW1.11.rar%C2 .
Now I am getting proper speed, LAN4 port is used as WAN port.
Thanks a lot
 
Thanks, have updated first post with v1.11 link
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Hi,
Thanks so much Manoj for your great insights.
I am using D-Link DLS-2750U router with Hardware Version - C1. Mine is a Indian device so firmware version starts with IN. After I read your post, I first thought why not give a direct call to DLink Technical Support and talk to them if they have a official solution to allow using one of the LAN Ports as WAN Port. However they simply denied.
Then I resorted to using your post to get things sorted.
First of all, I am using GTPL and based in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. They use ppp connection (give us username and password to connect).
Also, they have MAC based security enabled, hence I had to ask them to release Mac security on my connection so that I can use any device directly through incoming LAN RJ-45 cable.
The format in which I had to send them email is as on this link:
http://bit.ly/GTPLEmailFormat
The firmware that I used is:
ME C1 latest
http://www11.link-removed.com/v/86244007/file.html
Applied the firmware update as per your guidelines which is as follows:
Applying the firmware
The firmware may not be accepted in the normal firmware update mode. Then you'll need to update it in the dlink crash recovery mode using a LAN cable (not wirelessly). Assign a static address on the PC for the ethernet interface in the 192.168.1.x series for eg 192.168.1.5
Switch router off, press the reset button ie insert ballpoint pen in reset hole under the router, keep holding the reset button and turn on the router. Keep holding the reset button for about 12 seconds after you power on the router. Now you'll see that the power led has turned red signifying that the router is in crash recovery mode. When you enter the address 192.168.1.1 on your PC browser, you find the upgrade firmware page. Just browse to the downloaded firmware file and flash!
After the new firmware has been flashed, your internet connection will not start working automatically, you will also need to set up the router correctly. Please do not apply any workarounds mentioned in other threads such as interface grouping, disabling DHCP etc
The steps that worked for me are as follows:
Instructions for setting up the C1 hw version router with ME firmware
Step 1: Log into your router and under Advanced setup->Layer2 interface->ETH interface create an Ethernet interface with connection mode as default. Then go to Advanced setup->WAN Service and add service for eth0/LAN4.
Step2: If you have an internet connection with pppoe dialing such as pacenet, Honesty etc, in the next page, choose pppoe and put in username, password and service name in the next page. Also choose to enable NAT. In the next page move pppo from available to selected gateway interface. in the next page do the same for DNS and finally apply/save
Now connect your internet cable to the LAN port 4 of the router and you should be able to connect through any device connected through wifi or any of the other LAN ports.
i am now able to access my router through my router IP Address via WiFi as well as via Ethernet Cable connected to any other port except LAN Port 4.
I hope this helps you guys.
Edit: 25 Apr 2014
Router bricked, Internet light (globe like icon) appears red instead of green. Tried resetting routers a few times, didn't work. I thought the issue was MAC address related. So I called up GTPL customer care and asked them to ensure that MAC Security has been released on my connection, they informed that the MAC addresses for my laptop, router and other laptop are allowed, however they cannot release MAC address security.
I asked why so? It was released 2 days ago as per confirmation by their customer care representative, they said, it wasn't, they had simply allowed the IP addresses for my router and laptops. Hence they confessed that they had lied to me in first place.
Anyways, router is still not working, shows Disconnected in Device Info > WAN and red light appears on internet (globe) icon on the router. However internet works fine on other laptops who MAC addresses have been allowed on my connection.
@Manoj, do you have anything to add on this? Any way I can troubleshoot this via some logs or something?
Thanks, awaiting response.
 
A bricked router is something else altogether :peaceful:
They've removed your router mac from the allowed devices, else it would not happen. The red light appears as pppoe authentication is failing for the router. How are your devices connected? Are they all connected through the router or did you connect some devices directly before the problem occurred? Maybe they removed mac lock for some time and then put it back when another device instead of your router was connected.
You can also use the Russian firmware which has mac cloning option, just use the mac of one of your laptops which are allowed to connect. In that firmware port 1 is to be used for the internet cable.
 
Hi Manoj,
Ok, so in order to determine whether or not router MAC has been allowed by my ISP, here's what I did.
After I noticed that the router shows red light on internet indicator, I quickly tried connecting via my laptop that was originally used to configure GTPL connection when the installation guy visited by premises. I noticed that I was able to connect via my laptop.
That quickly lead me to determine that it is not the Internet issue but either the ISP has again blocked the MAC of all devices but my laptop or the DSL 2750u modem router has gone kaput for this purpose.
Now, I called up a friend, and asked him to give me his Laptop for sometime.
Then I sent the email to ask GTPL to allow the MAC addresses as mentioned in my email, and in that email I mentioned the MAC address of my Macbook Pro (my primary laptop) my DSL 2750u router and my friend's laptop.
After sending email, I called up customer care, first I asked them if MAC security was released on my connection, they simply denied saying, they cannot release MAC security on any connections and to prevent misuse, they had again implemented MAC security on my connection.
So I then asked them to check their email and allow the mentioned MAC addresses in order for me to be able to use my internet on the mentioned devices. They immediately allowed the mentioned MAC addresses and asked me to wait for at least 5 to 10 minutes before I could access other devices.
After about 5 mins, I tried connection via my laptop first, I was successfully connected.
I tried connecting via my router, it still showed RED light on Internet icon.
I then tried connecting via my friend's laptop, voila! I was successfully connected.
Now that made me determine that something was wrong with my router, I thought, let me re flash the ME C1 version that I used earlier, I did so, following the same step of step as mentioned in your original post, I was still getting same red light and WAN service showed Disconnected under Device Info > WAN.

About Russian version, the step where you mentioned
Right click on the LAN icon on the right and click on setup speed and stream. There's some quirk in the interface and it's a little tricky getting this click right. Set duplex and speed to auto and save.
I was never able to get through this step.
I right clicked on LAN icon and then as I click on Setup speed and stream, nothing happens. I tried multiple times via different browsers, it didn't work, hence I gave up on that.
My router seems to be running fine, meaning, I am able to access the interface via LAN as well as Wireless, its just that I am unable to figure out how can I get it to use again and more importantly, why all of a sudden it just stopped working.
I wish I could access some logs that go in the backend of router functioning so that I could see where exactly things went wrong and then try and troubleshoot it.
 


You can set the system log as local and level as debugging and you'll see the detailed logs, but what you'll see is authentication failed. Which is the mac that you're providing to the ISP? The mac on the bottom label is not the mac used when ethernet WAN is setup.
You can go ahead with the next step on the Russian firmware if you're not getting the first to work (it will still work in 10mbps mode)
 
I can only see one MAC that appears on the device Info page as I connect to 192.168.1.1
That is the same MAC as mentioned on the bottom label of the device.
If that is not the MAC I am supposed to provide to GTPL, then how do I determine the actual MAC of my D-Link DSL-2750u?
Thanks
Also, I accessed Logs in my router, here is the output of it:
http://pastebin.com/ZrgdSf13
 
That is the LAN mac, WAN mac appears with the ethernet WAN info, don't remember exactly where in the ME software (as I'm presently using the Russian fw), but it does appear somewhere. Either in first page below (maybe only when connected) or on the WAN services info (or ethernet interface info) page.
If you're unable to get it you can try this, set WAN to static ip and provide an ip address like 192.168.1.10 for the etherent WAN interface, put your laptop to something like 192.168.1.20, then connect your laptop to WAN port (port 4) and ping 192.168.1.10. after pinging run command arp -a and check the mac for 192.168.1.10 Also without pinging you could connect another device via wifi or a lan port and login to router and check the first page.
The debug shows that the remote device is not accepting the pppoe (pppoe input output control error) from your device. Find WAN mac and get it registered with your ISP.
 
Hi there,
Thanks for your dedication :) :peaceful: :pleasantry:
I followed your steps to determine the MAC adress, I get the exact same MAC address as shown on the router BOX as well as on the router itself on the backside, and it is the same as provided to the ISP already.
Just out of curiosity, Isn't it that,
if I try to get the MAC address of the actual WAN port of this ADSL modem router, it will be the MAC address of RJ-11 port, but we don't actually need that. What we need is the MAC address of LAN 4 port where we are going to plug in the ethernet cable coming from ISP.
Anyways, here is a screenshot of Device Info page:
https://imgur.com/0ZjynXr
Also, one more thing I observed as I was looking over all sections in router interface, at Wireless > Basic there is something called BSSID and it has the MAC address where the last digit is only changed to as compared to the MAC Address shown on Device Info page (the one that is provided to ISP)
But I think that is the hub MAC address when people connect to this router wirelessly and that is not the one that we need to provide to ISP, is it?
 

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