Which BSNL FTTH Modem to purchase?

[varkey]

@dhogaivannan BSNL does MAC address binding, so it will only work from the registered WAN side MAC address of the Netlink. Unfortunately you cannot clone the Netlink MAC to your TP-Link device as that stops the whole thing from working. You need to get the MAC binding reset from BSNL's side so that you can get it to work in bridge mode.

As far as configuring it in bridge mode is concerned, you just need to configure as below (use the appropriate VLAN ID and bind it to a port, I use VLAN based binding hence its not checked on this page)

You can read more about my experience in getting the MAC binding reset here -- Need some review of new BSNL Bharat Fiber FTTH Broadband Plans 777 / 1277 | Bharat Fiber Broadband (BSNL FTTH)
I hope you have a better experience!

 

[dhogaivannan]

@varkey What reason did you provide for getting that MAC binding reset? So, was it like removing MAC binding totally or you just binded that to your new modem? I've seen that my TP-Link has the MAC Clone for internet. Is there anyway to use that?

 

[varkey]

Reason? That I wanted to change to bridge mode and hence needed the MAC binding reset. It wasn't removed, they just reset it on their end to the new MAC address, please go through the linked post above for more specific details.

As I mentioned, cloning didn't work for me, as when the Netlink sees that the MAC address of your router WAN interface is same as that of the Netlink interface, it just shuts down. I had done extensive testing, but couldn't get it to work. You could try too, maybe you'd have better luck.

 

[dhogaivannan]

@varkey Okay then, so you set it to PPPoE and i took bsnl password from the backup file i did on my net-link and use those to do the rest?

 

[varkey]

It would depend on how your BSNL contact person would do it, anyway for me I had to configure my router (not the ONT in bridge mode) with test credentials shared by BSNL liaison/contact. This was for them to get my correct WAN side MAC address. After that they made the required changes on their end and I configured the router with my actual credentials and it worked.

 

[partymonger]

So this has mac id binding? Thats always going to be a hassle if the modem conks off. You couldnt change the mac id of your router?

 

[varkey]

You could use it in bridge mode so the MAC of the ONT wouldn't matter, and can be replaced. If you want to change your router you could always clone the MAC.

Either way in some deployments they check the ONT serial number also, and only whitelisted devices will be able to connect to the OLT. (Not the case with my LCO though)

 

[eriek_halenx]

Hello,

I have a local LCO supplied Netlink n2801sg. It looks like a el-cheapo ONT with a Single E port, no wifi, not even a power switch . Was charged 2k for this and fiber install. One advantage of this is you yourself can then get / upgrade to a good quality dualband / mesh etc router as per your requirement. I'm currently using my old TP-Link adsl modem as a router.

Local LCO was pushing for me to take a wifi enabled ont costing 2k. He even sarcastically remarked about no one else except me bothering for all the extra power and ethernet connections.

@varkey Is there any particular advantage of setting ONT to bridge mode?

 

[varkey]

@eriek_halenx The advantage is that, you can use the ONT as a dumb modem which doesn't do any routing, NAT etc and you can use a proper updated and maintained device as your main router. You never know the vulnerabilities etc which would exist on these cheap ONT devices. You'd also get full control over port-forwards and all other configurations through your main router and not the ONT.

Also, this avoids one more layer of NAT as compared to connecting the ONT to the WAN port of your other router. Other way would be to connect the ONT to the LAN port of the router.

 

[eriek_halenx]

Yes, the security purpose makes sense. The ont device is accessible from outside using its IP. And I found out after a few days only the LCO had not changed the default password.

Reg the WAN or LAN port option, which is a better option say for speed, security etc? I tried both, and could not find any NAT issues. Even with creating a WAN, torrents were working.