On Saturday 10 May 2008, Porkchop wrote: > On 09/05/08 19:31 -0400, Alan Snyder wrote: > > stuff) and it seems every month or so we have to show up on-site and > > reboot the darn thing. even after firmware updates, etc, we still have > > problems with this class of hardware not behaving.
I've been having this problem with one of my two Linksys routers also, which is another reason I want to replace it. And I'm quite sure the problem is not power related. It's likewise running the latest firmware too -- which doesn't mean much, being that Linksys hasn't put out a firmware update for the model I have for several years. > > Can anyone > > recommend a place to get a small box that can run a simple firewall > > (linux preferable but not required) that is reliable and that we > > wouldn't have to reboot every few weeks. I'd even opt for a used > > low-end cisco router if the price was right... we're trying to stay > > around $100-$200. Any thoughts? > > The stuff Chris showed off last week would be something to look at. > You'd want to get your own linux thing working, and if you set it up > right, you could even get them to reboot themselves in the event of a > failure. Yeah I think those features are in the Linux kernel 'watchdog timer' area. In actual use the only time I've had one of my Linux-based firewalls go down is with some kind of real hardware failure. i.e. I find Linux more stable than Linksys routers. Making your own Linux-based firewall isn't for everyone, but it doesn't have to be a painful job. There's a GUI I use, 'Guarddog', to make 95% of the firewall script, and the other 5% [NAT and port forwarding rules, which is most of what the Linksys routers do] can be done with 'Guidedog', although I chose to do that part by hand. Both of these output a firewall _script_, so the GUIs themselves don't have to be installed on the target box to use it. And Guarddog allows you to enter rules for protocols it doesn't know about, too (like Git), as long as you know what ports are required. The resulting rules are generally better than what I'm willing to make manually. Alternatively you could also go the route that Mike mentioned at the meeting and go for a WRT54GL for $60 and replace the firmware with DD-WRT: http://lifehacker.com/software/router/hack-attack-turn-your-60-router-into-a-600-router-178132.php And DD-WRT supports several other devices as well: http://www.dd-wrt.com/wiki/index.php?title=Installation#Supported_Devices Unfortunately I don't know of a cheap commercial router (at least running the standard firmware) that I'd trust in this respect. So far all the ones I've used and seen used require rebooting occasionally. -- Chris -- Chris Knadle [EMAIL PROTECTED]
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