The Internet has long ceased to be some kind of addition to our life, having become an integral part of it. Too many everyday activities and entertainment depend on the World Wide Web. But in order to enter it, you need something more than a plugged cord into an outlet.

Let's look at the main types of Internet connections: features, equipment used and user reviews of one or another type. The options are no different great variety, but nevertheless, everyone can choose something of their own for specific goals and conditions.

Cable connection

This is the most popular type of Internet connection. The provider serving your area runs a cable into your apartment, through which the signal enters the house. In such cases, as a rule, only two connection options are used - via an optical cable and via twisted pair.

twisted pair

As for everything here, everything is simple. A twisted cable (copper) is drawn from the distribution box in the entrance and connected to your system unit or router. Almost everyone connects this way. multi-story houses. Finding out what type of Internet connection (cable) in this case is very simple: if you have thin wires (compared to fiber optics) and average speed up to 100 Mbit/sec., which means twisted pair. If the loop is thicker and the speed is higher, then it is optical fiber.

Optical cable

In another case, “optics” are installed in the apartment, which are connected to a special distribution box directly in the house. This type of Internet connection has one very serious advantage - it is a speed that can reach up to 1 Gbit/s.

Using an optical cable, you can easily access not only the World Wide Web, but also use telephony and television services. That is, instead of three laid cables, you get one.

In its turn, cable type Internet connection has two options for working with network protocols - local and virtual. Let's look at them in more detail.

The local network

The whole point of local protocols is that your telecom provider simply assigns you a separate IP address. The provider includes all computers in one large network, where he can easily control each address. In addition, this type of Internet connection is distinguished by the presence of a dynamic or static IP.

The dynamic option is the simplest, because everything falls on the shoulders of the provider himself, and the user does not need to adjust anything himself. How to find out the type of Internet connection in this case? If you plug a cable into a computer or router and after a couple of seconds gain access to the World Wide Web, it means you have a dynamic IP, otherwise the operating system will ask Extra options to enter.

The static option is more picky in terms of access. Before each session, the system will request data for accessing the Internet, which your provider should have provided to you. They do not change, so it is enough to enter them once, and in the future the operating system itself will gain access to the network.

This option is most convenient for online services that constantly ask you for a static IP address. How to find out what type of Internet connection is in this case? Most modern routers are able to determine the type of connection and inform the owner about it. If you are using outdated or frankly budget equipment, then you can simply call your provider and clarify all the information you are interested in. They will also help you understand the competitive router model and tell you how to find out the type of Internet connection on your device.

Judging by user reviews on numerous specialized forums, providers prefer to “place” subscribers on a static IP. For example, the same Rostelecom (type of Internet connection - cable) completely implements the Internet only on “static” basis, because in this case it is much easier to track each individual user in terms of subscription fees and the provision of some additional services. As for the quality of communication itself, much depends on the cable used (fiber optic/twisted pair) and your equipment (router/network card).

Virtual network

A virtual private network, or otherwise VPN, is an encrypted communication protocol where the exchange of all information between the user’s computer and the provider is encrypted, significantly increasing network security. There are two main types of VPN connections - PPPoE and PPTP (L2TP).

One of the most popular types of virtual networks is PPPoE protocols. To connect to the Internet you only need a login and password. The Windows platform recognizes this type as conditional dialing.

A much less popular type is PPTP (L2TP), because when entering a password with a login, the user must indicate the exact address of the provider’s server. Another one distinguishing feature PPTP connections are an encryption method that is fundamentally different from PPPoE. One of the most famous providers working using this protocol is Beeline (home Internet). The type of connection from other providers may also vary depending on area conditions (proximity of the tower, required speed, etc.).

Reviews about this type of connection vary greatly. Some are quite happy with the frequently changing data flow rate (watching videos, working with text information, etc.), but for others this is a critical moment. The latter are, as a rule, gamers who need low ping (server response delay), that is, good For example, if you have an MTS Internet connection via a VPN connection (flash modem), then in popular games of the MOVA League genre of Legends and DOTA ping will range from 90 to 120 ms. While through a cable connection the response time does not exceed 40-60 ms.

Combined connection

This type includes several types of Internet connections. The virtual network here is the priority connection type, and dynamic or static IP addresses are used as an additional resource. That is, the difference between them lies in manual or automatic entry of data about the provider’s server.

This type is considered one of the most complex and is used extremely rarely. It is often used by municipal services with a multi-level office structure: pension fund, gas services, employment centers, etc.

Phone line

Fiber optic cable seriously dominates telephone lines, but for a number of reasons ( countryside, distant locality etc.) it is impractical to run an expensive Internet cable to the provider. In this case, having a home phone, that is, an ADSL or Dial-Up connection, helps somehow.

An ADSL connection allows you to surf the Internet at low speeds, approximately within ten megabits. For most ordinary tasks this is quite enough. To fully operate on the network, you will need a modem and In order for both devices to function simultaneously and correctly (a computer with a network and a telephone), you need a splitter that branches off cables to both the home telephone and the system unit.

Dial-Up type connection is what is called last century. In this case, if you work on the Internet, then phone line will be busy. In addition, the data transfer speed is limited to 56 Kbps, which, by today's standards, is very, very low. Despite all the disadvantages of the Dial-Up connection, it is sometimes used in difficult-to-reach areas.

Judging by user reviews, this connection method is practically not in demand, because even watching videos on the YouTube channel in low resolution is the most real problem. The only thing you can count on with such a connection is only letters, pictures and music in a low bitrate.

Satellite Internet

One of the most expensive types of connection, but at the same time almost ubiquitous. A satellite dish allows you to access the World Wide Web even in the wilderness, where there are no simple communications. The only condition is good visibility of the orbiting satellite, which is not a problem for the venerable provider.

Surely many are familiar first-hand with satellite television. In the case of the Internet, the principle is the same, with the only difference being that a block with a transmitting head is additionally installed on the plate to transmit data in both directions.

The channel speed is measured in tens of megabits. One of the main disadvantages of this type of connection is sky-high tariffs and expensive equipment.

WiFi

Many people are probably familiar with Wi-Fi protocols. Some people have a router installed at home, while others use free entry points in public places. Wi-Fi usually covers areas that are difficult to reach for cable connections, such as cottage communities and other private sectors. To operate, the operator installs base stations that provide the network to a nearby area within a radius of five to ten kilometers.

To connect, you need a special receiver, and if you are located at a considerable distance from the base station, then a special antenna that amplifies the signal will not hurt.

Market information technologies literally overgrown with companies that provide Internet access services. What technologies are not offered today in wireless and wired connections to maximally cover hard-to-reach areas, increase data transfer speeds, and improve communication quality.

As many people know, first of all, different Internet providers differ in the type of services they provide, namely the type of access to the Internet.

An Internet provider is a company that provides Internet access to customers and provides related services.

There are many different types Internet connection. These include broadband, dial-up and wireless communication lines. All of them are capable of providing access to the Internet, although they work on different principles. Let's look at everything in order.

Ethernet – local network connection

This is broadband access to the Internet via a separate line. The line laid by the provider is based on fiber optic or copper cable and allows you to transfer data at very impressive speeds. A fiber optic cable differs from a copper cable in that the main material in it is glass or plastic, and information is transmitted through it not by an electrical signal, but by a light signal. This allows you to broadcast a signal with minimal attenuation and maximum transmission speed.

Leased line

Copper cable most often means twisted pair. Through it, information is transmitted by an electrical signal. Twisted pair, unlike optical fiber, has a significant signal attenuation rate and is susceptible to electromagnetic interference. To increase the length of the communication channel, cables with interference protection should be used, and to reduce the signal attenuation coefficient, special correctors or signal buffers should be used.

Do Internet providers do this in practice? Typically, fiber optic cable is used to connect the subprovider to the backbone provider and connect various buildings (homes, hotels) to the global network, and then there is twisted pair cable.

GPON (gigabit passive optical network) technology is now actively developing. Its essence is that the provider runs a fiber optic cable directly to your apartment and installs a special distribution box. As a result, you technically have the opportunity to connect to the global network at a speed of 1 Gbit/s, but in other cases the speed will not exceed hundreds of Mbit/s.

Modem connection (ADSL/Dial-Up)

Dial-up Internet access via a regular telephone line using a modem. There is both the old Dial-Up technology and the more advanced ADSL. Connecting to a provider via ADSL, unlike Dial-Up, allows you to surf the Internet and simultaneously make phone calls. This is achieved through an ADSL splitter, which separates the telephone signal into a regular telephone signal and a high-frequency modem signal.

Compared to a dedicated line connection, the advantage of a modem connection is the use of already existing infrastructure - telephone cables. This is where the advantages of this type of connection end. The maximum data transfer rate for Dial-Up is 56 Kbps, and for ADSL technology 24 Mbps. Considering the state of most telephone lines, there may not be such indicators about the stability of the connection. As you understand, a telephone line is inferior to a leased line in all respects, taking into account the stable growth of multimedia and the volume of transmitted data. Just a few years ago this type of connection was considered one of the best, but these days it has practically become obsolete despite its still active use.

Internet connection using DOCSIS technology

Literally, DOCSIS is translated as a standard for data transmission over coaxial (TV) cable. Information transmission according to this standard is carried out to the client at a speed of 42/38 Mbit/s, and from the user at 10/9 Mbit/s. It is worth noting that the band in this technology is divided between all connected participants, who this moment receive or send a stream. Consequently, the available bandwidth at the time of data transmission or reception for each participant can vary widely.

This method is implemented through a special modem. We are talking about a cable modem for DOCSIS technology with a built-in network bridge, which makes it possible to exchange data over a coaxial or optical cable in two-way mode. In the network of such a provider there is a CMTS device - Cable Modem Termination System. In simple terms, this device is a large modem in the backbone network to which subscriber modems are connected.

From an economic point of view, laying a coaxial cable in order to gain access to the Internet is not very reasonable; it is better to install a dedicated line, because such a line has better characteristics, but if you already have a TV cable and the operator provides such a service, then why not? take advantage of. However, if a provider can offer Internet using FTTB, PON or HCNA technologies, then a number technical advantages It's better to choose one of them instead of DOCSIS.

Mobile Internet access (GPRS, EDGE, 3G)

This type of connection is popular because it allows you to access the Internet even where there is no telephone or leased line. You can connect to your Internet provider by USB help 3G modem or using a regular mobile phone that supports the modem function. A USB modem is visually similar to a USB flash drive and has a slot inside for installing a SIM card.

Internet connection via USB modem or mobile phone is performed by contacting the base station of the cellular operator with which the SIM card is registered, and depending on what equipment is installed by the mobile provider, communication is established using GPRS, EDGE, 3G or 4G technology. Thus, after connecting a USB modem or phone to a computer, you will have access to the Internet using one of the mentioned technologies.

Mobile Internet has a rather unstable connection and sometimes not high speed, but as they say, it’s better than nothing. The maximum data transfer speed in the presented technologies is on average 30-60 Kbps in GPRS; 100-256 Kbps in EDGE; 144 Kbps - 3.6 Mbps in 3G and 4G can exceed 100 Mbps, and for landline subscribers it can be 1 Gbps.

The speed may in some cases be higher, but in almost all cases it is lower. Mobile Internet, of course, has its drawbacks, but being able to access the Internet from anywhere in the country where there is a cellular connection captivates many.

Internet via satellite

To connect even to one-way satellite Internet, you will need a set of special equipment. The minimum input package includes a satellite antenna, a converter amplifier, a satellite receiver, an RG-6 cable of the required length and a pair of F-connectors.

For two-way satellite Internet you need a transceiver antenna (about 1.2 - 1.8 meters in diameter), a transmitting BUC converter and a receiving LNB unit and a satellite modem, to which you can connect not one, but several computers and provide them with Internet access .

Satellite Internet

With two-way Internet access, no additional channels are needed, since data is sent and received via satellite. Many satellite Internet operators can offer both unlimited packages and a pay-per-traffic tariff. Two-way satellite Internet for some operators is faster than 3G technology, and the speed in the Ka-band can be 20 Mbit/s.

The disadvantages of satellite Internet include the high cost of equipment, complexity of setup and decent response time. Typically, this type of communication is used in the most remote corners, where there are no other communication options.

Internet connection using WiMax technology

In addition to other types of Internet connections, you should pay attention to the very interesting WiMax technology. Typically, this technology is used where cable Internet of the DOCSIS standard is not available, there is no dedicated network in the home or office, or there is no telephone line for an ADSL connection. Access to the global network via WiMax technology, as well as via satellite connection, is often an excellent choice in such cases.

WiMax technology is theoretically designed for a speed of about 70 Mbit/s, but in reality it is usually several times less. To connect to the Internet via WiMax, you should contact the appropriate provider, who will determine from the network coverage map whether the desired location is supported by the coverage area. If it turns out that the location is not within the coverage area, then specialists will need to determine the distance to the nearest base station to you.

It is desirable that the base station is in direct visibility from the subscriber, and the distance is no more than 10 kilometers. Depending on the results obtained, you will need to select the desired WiMax modem and antenna with the required gain. In addition, you need a cable to connect the antenna to the modem and a USB extension cable to connect the modem to a computer or switch.

23. 05.2017

Blog of Dmitry Vassiyarov.

What are the different ways to connect to the Internet?

Hello.

Are you going to change your provider or get another access point to the World Wide Web? Then you should know what types of Internet there are, or rather, connections to it. Your choice will determine the speed and ease of operation, as well as the amount you will spend on connection and use.

The Internet has become so commonplace for modern man, that few people think about what varieties of it exist and how it was improved to the result that we have now. Interesting to know? Reading the article.

Wired connection

Let's start with the fact that you can connect to the global network using wires or without them. The first option, as a rule, involves higher connection speed and stability. But, as you understand, it is suitable if you are going to use the Internet permanently. This is true? I'll tell you about modern types wired connections and what preceded them.

Dial-UP

One of the most connected to the Internet. Remember the times when users surfed the Internet, and because of this it was impossible for them to call a landline phone? They had a dial-up connection.

Physically, it looked like this: the subscriber had a modem, which, when connected to the Internet, dialed the pool number and connected to a device at the provider’s station.

The speed of such a connection was 56 kbit/s. Moreover, the tariff was determined not by the services provided, but by the time spent on the network.

It could even be half an hour.

xDSL (ADSL, VDSL, SHDSL)

The first broadband Internet. What does it mean? This type of connection is implemented via a fiber optic cable or modem, and is faster than its predecessor. Also, when the subscriber is surfing the Internet, he is also available by phone. This was made possible by separating frequencies for data and calls.

In the name of a family of technologies, the symbol “x” conventionally denotes the first letter of a particular subtype. DSL in English stands for Digital Subscriber Line, which means digital subscriber line. Types of connections differ in information encoding and data transfer speed. The highest performance is considered to be up to 24 Mb/s.

As you understand, this connection no longer meets modern needs, so it is practically not found now.

FTTx

This type of connection is the next stage in the development of a broadband network after xDSL. It works according to this scheme: in apartment building or a switch is installed near private houses, connected to the provider’s station using a fiber optic cable; A twisted pair cable is supplied to the client’s home, which is inserted either directly into the computer or into the router.

The abbreviation FTTx represents a family of types of Internet. It stands for “fiber to the x”, which means optical fiber to point “x”. Instead of last character different letters may be specified:

• N (node) - network node.
• C/ K (curb/kerb) - means: to the block, microdistrict.
• DP (distribution point) - distribution point.
• P (premises) - generalized: before premises. The most common option includes 2 subtypes: B (building) - the cable reaches the boundary of the building (foundation, basement, technical floor), H (home) - directly to the apartment or house.
• D/S (desktop/subscriber) - the optical fiber is pulled into a media converter or terminal located near the subscriber’s desktop.

E/Z (telecom enclosure/zone) - connection from the server room to the workstation.

The FTTx family is popular these days because it offers good quality at an affordable price. Do you want to get high-speed Internet, television and telephone service in one package? Choose this option. If all 8 cores in the cable are used and good equipment, your connection speed will be approximately 1 Gbps.

Please note the alternative. Using optical fiber and twisted pair, a connection is made to the global network and through another technology - Ethernet, which also provides high-speed data transfer at high speed. By the way, subtypes of Ethernet have already been developed with rates of 2.5, 5, 10 Gbit/s and higher.

Another family of broadband connections modern type. Depending on the connection method and Internet speed, other letters are written instead of “x”. The abbreviation contains the phrase “passive optical network”, which translates as “passive optical network”. In reality, it looks like a tree-like fiber cable architecture with passive branches at the nodes.

Simply put, one transceiver module is used for many subscribers. The cable is laid directly to the client’s home and connected to the media converter, terminal or SFP module of the switch. Consequently, all its resources are used by one person. Therefore, Internet failures due to network overload are excluded.

By connecting xPON, you will be able to use gigabit Internet and other Tripple Play services (cable TV and telephony).

Satellite Internet

This type of Internet is also becoming a thing of the past, because it requires high connection costs. Judge for yourself: the subscriber must have at least an expensive satellite dish and receiver, and also pay a lot to the provider for the provision of services. Although in return you get unlimited access in tandem with digital television.

Satellite Internet can be organized in two ways:

• One-sided (asymmetrical). Data is received via satellite and transmitted either via 3G/4G or cable.
• Double-sided (symmetrical). Reception and transmission of information is carried out via a satellite channel.

Nowadays, you can consider the option of connecting via satellite if the Internet is required, for example, in a remote village or a house in the forest. That is, where it is not possible to carry out mobile communications and the reception is poor.

Wireless connection

With the regular release of new products among smartphones and tablets, wireless Internet has gained popularity. Compared to a fiber-optic wired connection, it eliminates being tied to one location, but is usually inferior in speed.

This type of Internet can be divided into two main categories: that which is provided mobile operators and home or public via WiFi router.

Mobile connection

It all started with 2G (GSM) technology, which was developed for telephone conversations. When it was necessary to transfer data, an add-on for this channel appeared - GPRS: information is collected in packets and sent over unoccupied voice channels at a speed of 171 Kbps.

Very slow, right? The developers also understood this, as a result of which they came up with another add-on - EDGE, which allows you to exchange data at a maximum speed of 474 Kbps.

3G

User needs were constantly growing, and because of this, EDGE resources became insufficient. This is how a technology emerged that remains popular today. It provides speeds of up to 3.6 Mbps.

To connect, you need a modem that is inserted into the computer or distributes the Internet via . Many gadgets have a built-in 3G device. Services are provided, as a rule, by the same mobile operators.

This technology combines 5 data transmission standards, but the most widely used is CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access).

4G

An advanced technology that has not yet displaced the previous generation due to insufficient coverage points and high cost. In 4G, the data transfer speed is increased to 100 Mbit/s when moving with a gadget, and up to 1 Gbit/s for stationary subscribers.

This became possible due to the fact that communication is not divided into voice and Internet - only the latter is valid. In this case, there are also several standards: WiMax and LTE.

WiFi

Many people use this term every day, but few know what it actually means. The abbreviation is derived from the English phrase “wireless fidelity,” which translates as “wireless precision.”

But now “Wi-Fi” is used as a separate, independent concept.

Among wireless types Internet Wi-Fi is the highest speed (up to 100 Mbit/s). It is based on radio signals: they are sent by the provider, and you only need to have a receiver. It could be a router, a special module for a desktop computer, a smartphone, a tablet, etc.

That's all.

I wish you pleasant communication and fruitful work on the Internet, no matter which type of connection you choose.

Types of Internet connection. Introduction

The Internet came to the masses only ten years ago, and during this time the ways to access it have proliferated, apparently and invisibly; however, most of network devices were invented even before the popularization World Wide Web and was intended to receive completely different services.

Be that as it may, now with regard to any means of communication the user has one question: how can this thing help me to access the Internet, to access a home or intra-apartment network? We will try to understand the variety of ways to connect to the Internet from home and home office. The purpose of this series of articles is to consider the most well-known technologies from theoretical and practical points of view, but without taking into account their prevalence: the popularity of a particular technology does not mean its availability in your city, region, home. The proposed material should be considered as a small reminder when choosing from several real offers from local providers. Even if a provider of the required type is found, the last word

remains with its technical specialists, who determine the possibility of connection specifically in your case. The articles are divided into chapters, each of which is devoted to separate species

connecting to the Internet with a description of general points, types of this type of connection and the equipment necessary for this. The first publication will be of an introductory nature and will cover basic issues.

Subscriber connections to the Internet are divided into two main classes: individual and collective. With an individual connection, each subscriber uses a channel allocated personally to him to the provider’s point of presence located outside the building (Fig. 1a). An example here would be access to the Internet via a regular or DSL modem, via satellite.

Rice. 1. Classification of connections by mass use of channels

With a collective connection, a shared network is laid in the building, which is used not only for access to the Internet, but also for communication between neighbors without using the Internet (Fig. 1b). This class of connections includes all home networks and access via television cable. Simply put, the division is based on how many wires are connected to the house, and who will suffer if one wire malfunctions - an individual subscriber or an entire team.

Connections are also divided according to the distance of the subscriber from the provider’s point of presence (Fig. 2).

Rice. 2. Classification of connections by distance from the provider

In the case of home networks, the point of presence is located in the same house as the subscriber, or in the neighborhood. For DSL connections, the provider's equipment is usually located at the nearest telephone exchange. Classic access via a modem implies the presence of a provider somewhere within the city. And with satellite communications, a virtual channel is laid into earth orbit.

There are other classification methods based on technical characteristics.

We won't go into details for now. Subsequent chapters will describe each type of connection in detail so that you can come up with the classification that you need.

Transmission speed Perhaps, this question

seems the most confusing, so we will consider it one of the first. The speed of information transfer between two devices is determined, first of all, by the channel speed, that is, the number of “raw” bits transmitted per unit of time over the transport channel. This set of bits is called “raw” because, in addition to useful information, it contains service information. The ratio of useful and service information depends on, and sometimes on the size of the transmitted block. For example, when downloading a file from an FTP server on a local Fast Ethernet network with a channel speed of 100 Mbit/s, the payload will not exceed 96 Mbit/s. This efficiency can be considered almost ideal; in many technologies it is much lower: for example, for Wi-Fi it is less than 50%.

One of the common causes of misunderstanding between providers and their clients is confusion between bits and bytes. In the field of communications, as well as in other areas associated with low-level operations, the basic unit of information is the bit, and the unit of speed, accordingly, is the number of bits per second. The user operating with information on high level , it is more convenient to count in bytes. But the speed expressed in bits/s is numerically higher than in bytes/s, so it is more profitable for the provider to indicate the former. To completely confuse a potential client, the word “bit” is shortened to one letter “b”, which many mistakenly decipher as “byte”. Things get even more confusing when it comes to kilobits and megabits. Computer specialists traditionally consider the prefix “kilo” to correspond to a multiplier of 1024, while communications specialists and many marketers who are far from knowledge of computer science use decimal system

, in which a kilobit is equal to 1000 bits. Taking into account all of the above, the channel speed of 100 Mbit/s declared for Fast Ethernet in practice corresponds to 11.4 MB/s (in ideal conditions), but not 12.5 MB/s, as one might think. And certainly not 100 MB/s!

Electromagnetic interference and signal attenuation have a strong impact on speed. Some technologies, such as Ethernet LAN, operate at only one speed over a limited range of distances between the transmitter and receiver. Other technologies, such as telephone modems, allow you to adaptively adjust the speed depending on the channel condition: the worse it is, the lower the speed. For example, ADSL channel speed varies from 8 Mbit/s on a good line near the telephone exchange to 192 kbit/s at a distance of 5 km.

Whatever the connection of the subscriber - individual or collective - from the provider’s point of presence to transport routes There are general channels on the Internet (Fig. 3).

Rice. 3. Bandwidth of channels between client and server

The bandwidth of these channels is less than what would be required by all clients at the same time, because in the traditional model of Internet use only a small part of users simultaneously transmits and receives information. The skill of the provider lies precisely in having a minimum channel bandwidth, and so that customers hardly feel the speed limit. Unfortunately, each provider understands the word “almost” in its own way, and sometimes it happens that the needs of subscribers significantly exceed the capabilities of the provider. The lightning-fast appearance of new high-speed subscriber connections makes its contribution, followed by global networks

they don't keep up. For the same reason, the model for using the network is changing: if previously downloading movies, music, and games seemed unrealistic, now many users download gigabytes of information around the clock. When working with servers on the Internet, you need to understand that each server has its own provider, whose channels are also not rubber. Highways between cities, countries and continents also have their limitations, serving millions of users. Even if you are entitled to 1 Mbit/s according to the tariff, do not be surprised that the download speed from somewhere in Australia or South America

will be 10 kB/s.

Transmission delay By by and large

, high transfer speed is only important for downloading large files.

For web browsing, online gaming and Internet telephony, transmission latency is much more important. It is the delay that determines the comfort of work. Typically, providers rank tariffs by transmission speed, and therefore many equate speed and latency, but they are not the same thing. Let's compare a satellite channel and a regular modem (Fig. 4). Rice. 4. Time diagram of information exchange during

In the first case, the speed can reach several Mbit/s, but you cannot get more than 56 kbit/s from the modem. But the modem has a delay of only a few milliseconds, and from a satellite it is more than a second. The first user can quickly download a large file, but the web page will not open until a couple of seconds after entering the address.

In action games, this user's shooting at opponents will be unsuccessful, because it will seem to him that he is aiming, but the target has actually run away a long time ago. Conversely, the owner of a modem will need at least ten minutes to download a short song, pictures on web pages will load slowly, but the reaction to the user’s actions can be almost instantaneous.

The delay is determined not only by the time it takes for a signal to propagate through the transmission medium, but also by the time it takes to process signals and data by various network devices, which can be many times longer than the propagation time (Fig. 5).

Rice. 5. Increasing delay with passage of sections between the client and server

The delay is affected by channel congestion: in an overloaded area, data queues will appear, some of which may be lost, which requires additional time to detect losses and retransmit. Therefore, it is not a fact that a modem user will be more successful than a satellite user in games: if the game requires a higher frequency of data exchange than the modem can provide, the channel will simply become clogged with data, and the action in the game will occur in jerks.

Tariffication

To charge in proportion to the volume of service use, providers may take into account the connection time (for session access via a modem or satellite), may take into account the amount of information received or transmitted, may take into account everything at once, or may not take into account anything at all, limiting themselves to only a fixed subscription fee.

Traffic accounting programs are not standard components of user operating systems;

to choose the right program, you need to try many options, and this is not an amateur activity. In addition, the program on your computer only takes into account what came onto your computer while the program was running. And the provider takes into account everything that was intended for you, even if your computer was disconnected from the network at that moment. Particularly greedy providers even take into account traffic within the local network (between their subscribers), while other providers may not take into account traffic from some sites on the Internet or sell it at preferential rates. Caring providers create their own multimedia and game servers so that the user does not have to spend money on working with the same resources on an external network.

Tariff plans taking into account the volume of traffic have a constant component in the form of a subscription fee, which already includes a certain amount of traffic. A clear understanding of his needs allows a prudent subscriber to choose the optimal tariff, because even incomplete use of the traffic included in the subscription fee for a more expensive tariff can be cheaper than paying for overconsumption on a tariff with a lower subscription fee (Fig. 6).

Rice. 6. Selecting the optimal tariff based on the amount of traffic consumed Unlimited tariffs seem more attractive to many users. Of course, you need to understand that nothing happens without restrictions. The provider bases its proposals for unlimited access on the assumption of an average traffic rate per person. If you constantly exceed a certain limit, you will either be offered to pay extra, or your access speed will be reduced, or unilaterally

the contract is terminated. For marketing reasons, this limit is rarely advertised in the contract, but rest assured: the provider will always find a legal justification for its actions. To prevent the user from getting the erroneous feeling of permissiveness, access speeds on unlimited tariffs are usually low: for example, the same provider may offer 2 Mbit/s for tariffs with paid traffic, but no more than 256 kbit/s for unlimited tariffs.

The provider's equipment determines whether to allow access to the client using authentication. The basis for authentication can be a username and password, the network address used, or even the fact of a physical connection over a given cable. A common feature All of these methods are easy to falsify: just connect to your wiring and/or intercept the necessary information.

Even if the provider does not count traffic, it is in the interests of it and legitimate users to make it difficult for unauthorized connections and tampering. Firstly, the traffic of illegal immigrants leads to additional costs for the provider, which are reimbursed by legal users.

Secondly, any traffic loads public channels. Thirdly, pirated connections often have the goal of maliciously affecting subscribers’ computers and compromising them.

The basic level of security is provided by a point-to-point connection (Point-to-Point, PPP) between the subscriber’s computer and the Internet gateway with mandatory password encryption.

The greatest confidentiality is achieved using virtual private network (VPN) technology, but to encrypt all traffic the provider would need powerful equipment, which would not have the most pleasant impact on the cost.

Subscriber network address

To exchange information over the Internet, each computer needs a network address called an IP address (Inter-network Protocol). In order to simplify local networks, some addresses are not part of the Internet address space. Such addresses are called internal, and, unlike external addresses, they are valid only within their local network, and the same internal addresses can be used in different local networks. Rice. 7. Internal and external IP addresses The subscriber’s computer with an internal address (“A2” in Fig. 7) works with the Internet not directly, but through address substitution, which is carried out by the provider’s gateway (“A3”). In this case, all subscribers of the local network from an external point of view look like one user, which is the gateway. An arbitrary computer from the Internet (“A4”) cannot directly access the subscriber’s computer, which, by the way, protects the subscriber from external hacker and virus attacks. This

Some applications require direct access from the Internet. First of all, such applications include increasingly popular file-sharing networks and similar peer-to-peer communities (Peer-to-Peer, p2p), for example, distributed IP telephony. Peer-to-peer means that there is no division of network participants into clients and servers: any computer is both at the same time, and therefore must be accessible from the Internet (“A1” and “A4” in Fig. 7). An external IP address may also be required to work with some FTP servers and client-bank systems.

You can’t do without it when creating your own game or web server. However, having an external address, the computer is accessible not only to the desired target audience, but also to a whole variety of attacks. Therefore, owners of external addresses must take special measures to prevent attacks, paying special attention to installing and configuring firewalls and antiviruses.

Some providers allocate external addresses at no additional cost, while others charge from $1 to $20 monthly for this pleasure. Moreover, on cheap tariffs, blocking of some incoming connections can be introduced to prevent the subscriber from creating any servers.

Regardless of whether the user has an external or internal address, it is technically possible to directly exchange information between subscribers of the same network. But the provider can block such exchange so as not to overload internal channels, or, as mentioned above, such exchange can be charged on the same basis as external traffic.

Connection cost When reviewing each access technology, we will try to provide a rough estimate of connection costs. These costs are made up of three main components: equipment cost

However, the equipment is different: there are simpler models, and there are sophisticated ones that can cost several times more. If a provider offers to purchase equipment from them, such a standard package, as a rule, includes a simple model with a minimum of necessary functions.

It is this option that we will focus on, and advanced users themselves will always be able to choose a model to suit their taste and budget.

Access sharing

There are more and more users who have several computers in their home: desktop, mobile, pocket, refrigerator with automatic ordering of products via the Internet. Of course, they all need Internet access, and it would just be nice to combine them into one intra-apartment network.

Rice. 8. Home router - the center of the intra-apartment network

The optimal solution for most are specialized home routers - Internet Gateway Device, or, in common parlance, Broadband Router. Thanks to the development of electronics, it is now possible to implement many functions in one single chip. Therefore, several devices, previously offered as independent products, are easily combined in a small home router housing (Fig. 8, 9). Rice. 9. Appearance

home routers

The simplest models with a built-in 4-port switch cost about $50. A multifunctional combine, which also combines an ADSL or cable modem, a wireless access point and a print server (or network storage), can be purchased starting from $150. Such a device provides almost Transparent sharing of one connection between several users protects them from attacks and can even scan traffic for viruses. VPN routers allow homeworkers to create a secure connection to their office network; Unlike simple gateways with the ability to pass VPN traffic (almost every modern router can pass-through VPN), real VPN gateways have a powerful encryption processor and take care of all the troubles of creating secure channels. What I would like to warn against is purchasing equipment “for growth.” Modern tendencies such that by the time you finally need those features you overpaid for a couple of years ago, the technology used may have changed so much that it renders your supplies virtually useless. For example, if you don't yet have, but their appearance is planned, buy a router not with a wireless adapter installed, but with a PC Card slot, into which you can then install the most modern adapter. However, you shouldn’t go to the other extreme, limiting yourself to a minimum of functions without taking into account the prospects.

Before starting the router setup process, each user must prepare. Setting up a router's connection type is not difficult, and this only means one thing: it needs to collect all the information that will be required in the process of filling out the parameters.

Among the most important data is the connection type. Depending on it, other data may be required, or this will be all. For example, when dynamically distributing IP addresses, no other data is required. But if the address is static, then the user must enter the value of the name and key specified by the provider to connect to the network.

MAC address

One more important point is the Mac address. If the Internet provider specifies the mac address, then entering the exact data in the router will not start the network. All valid addresses must be provided. It is important to understand that the main purpose of the router is to provide access to the connection to different devices. This can be a cable network or a wireless connection. For this reason, it is important that during setup every single parameter is entered correctly and, most importantly, the connection type (WAN Connection Type) is correctly selected.

What happens if the connection type is incorrectly specified?

The problem of choosing a connection is one of the most common. If this parameter is not specified correctly, but all other data is entered correctly, the network will appear on the computer. But the Internet itself will not be available. A wireless connection between different devices will be available, but they will also not be able to access the Internet. On all devices that are connected to the network, the “no access” icon will light up.

This means that the equipment cannot connect to the provider, which means there are some errors during setup.

How to determine the connection technology used by the provider?

When it comes to technology, providers have a small range of options. First of all, this is the distribution of IP addresses statically or dynamically, then PPPoE, PPTP, L2TP are available. To understand what they are, you should learn more about them.

• Dynamic IP. Occurs most often. The address is provided automatically by the provider. It changes every time you connect. In the router settings, you must select Dynamic IP. After this, no further actions are required. Very user friendly technology.
• Static IP. If the provider has indicated that you have a static address, this means that he clearly states it in the contract, and also indicates the login details and key for connecting to the network. In this case, you indicate the connection type - static, then enter the IP address value and the login/password pair. This method is less popular among Internet service providers, as it requires tracking who has been issued which addresses.
• Technology PPPoE. Widely used in Russia and suitable for connecting via a high-speed channel. For this, you should specify the PPPoE connection type in the parameters. the provider also issues the login and key specified in the contract. This type often requires specifying a static IP address; it will be given in the contract.
• Technologies PPTP And L2TP. These technologies are similar to each other. They require specifying a number of parameters, such as a name and key for authorization, the address of the server with which the connection will be made, and a static IP address.

Before you configure the router parameters, you should find out. What technology does the provider use?

Connection technology: how to find out?

There are several options. You can look it up in the contract. Some providers indicate this information in the contract. The second option is to call the support service and ask all your questions. If a provider has been working in the service market for a long time, then it has a website with a good information base. It will provide instructions for setting up the equipment. different manufacturers. These instructions will indicate the type of connection used.

If you decide to contact support, it is recommended that you also find out about binding by MAC address and the MTU value that is optimal for specifying.

If you find out the type of connection, then you should decide whether it requires other parameters. In the case of a dynamic address, nothing is needed. But if you have any other type, then you need to find out the login and password, static address, possibly the server address. The set of these parameters will depend on your case.

In most cases, it is worth reviewing the contract carefully. All data is written down in it.

How to solve the problem with binding by MAC address?

Most Internet providers prefer to bind by MAC address. This means that any equipment has its own address; for Internet distribution, it is indicated by the provider.

If your case is like this, then even if correct setting the router, the network will not work. This is due to the fact that the provider will indicate the address of the computer, and not the router that you connected.

What to do in such a situation? First of all, you should find out in advance whether the service provider has this binding. If it is not there, then you do not need to worry. Just correctly indicate all the data that you have.

In case of binding, a number of additional steps must be performed. First of all, it follows that the router will have the same address value as the computer.

If you are unable to clone for a number of reasons, then use the second option: find out the mac address of the router. It is indicated on the sticker with parameters that is on the device. After this, contact technical support, explain the situation and dictate a new address.

Reliable Operation Rule

In conclusion, it should be noted that for the router to operate correctly and reliably, it is enough to follow two rules.

• Select exactly the type of connection to use and other parameters.
• Duplicate the Mac address or specify a new value from your Internet provider.

When sufficient attention is paid to these points when entering parameters, then problems will not arise. After this, you can create a wireless connection and enter a username and password for it, which will reliably protect the network from unwanted guests.