[sf-lug] tcptraceroute, traceroute, Westell, ... Got router? / Where *is* that ("other") router? (linuxmafia.com)

[Bobbie Sellers]

On 10/25/18 9:20 PM, Rick Moen wrote:
> Quoting Justin Noor (justinnoor.io at gmail.com):
>
>> I meet a lot of people who’ve had issues with AT&T modems. Of course 
>> there
>> are too many variables to name, but could there ever be an open 
>> source DSL
>> modem for AT&T?
> To clarify again, these are usually described as 'ADSL modems', but
> are only vaguely similar to traditional modems. On a network
> level, they are merely network bridges as deployed by me and Michael.
> Which is to say, the two models discussed upthread are capable of
> operating in a non-bridge mode where they have various router
> & related capabilities, but are being used in this context _just_
> in bridged mode, with that other stuff deliberately disabled.
>
> The device modulates high-frequency tones for transmission to a digital
> subscriber line access multiplexer (DSLAM), and receives and demodulates
> them from the DSLAM. (Which is the way in which they're kinda-sorta the
> same as old-school modems.)
>
> IIRC, one of these boxen consists of:
>
> o PSU, connector hardware widgets, chassis, and like that
> o a digital data pump chip
> o an analog chip, and a line driver
> o a bitty little microcontroller
> o a line filter
>
> All of this is doubtless initialised and run by custom firmware.
>
> Could someone write replacement open-source firmware? Sure, could
> happen. Not likely, though. Nobody wrote open-source firmware for your
> modem back in the 1980s and 1990s, either.
>
>
> I'll also mention -- reiterate -- that neither Michael nor I uses AT&T.
> We use Raw Bandwidth Communications, which is a CLEC, a competitive
> local exchange carrier. AT&T's role is an unfortunately unavoidable but
> incidental one, of being the ILEC, the incumbent local exchange carrier
> -- the asshats who own (in my case) the local exchange 'central office'
> (CO) in downtown Menlo Park and the ~2 miles of copper twisted pair
> wiring underneath Menlo Park streets connecting the CO westwards to my
> house in University Heights, unincorporated San Mateo County. The
> ILEC's job, by law, in this connection, is to stay out of way of the
> various CLECs, serve as a neutral connection point for them to connect
> to their customers (sharing the ILEC's copper cable), and avoid shooting
> the CLEC and the CLEC's customers in the foot.
>
> In the latter area, staying out of the way and not shooting a
> competitive carrier in the foot, AT&T screwed up and didn't bother to
> fix its problem (whatever that problem was) for about 2 days and 7
> hours.
>
> Remember, when you decide whom to do business with, that this is a firm
> that behaves that way. I certainly will.

     I only deal with AT&T to keep my twisted pair connection for my 
ADSL connection.
     My experience with AT&T's DSL service earlier in the Decade 
convinced me to find DSLExtreme.com.
Rick's experience also exactly parallels my recent failure and it took 
me longer due to scheduling on my
  part.  But AT&T's techs required extra stimulation from the DSLExtreme 
technicians to attend to their
jobs.

         bliss