best FIOS-GPON 1Gb/s modem to own

[jeyf]

best FIOS-GPON 1Gb/s modem to own

i am having Century Link (CL) install fiber to the house FIOS March 20th in Denver Colorado.
-i am trying out their 1000 bits / second speed for $85/mo + one time $60 installation.
-if i have NOT purchased an alternative modem they will rent me one at $10/mo likely the Zyxel C3000z

CAN ANYONE SUGGEST AN ALTERNATIVE TO THE Zyxel C3000z that would work on a GPON format FIOS
-seems there might NOT be a standard for modems between CL locations, this install is in Denver CO
-CL is selling the Zyxel C3000z at their local Denver retail store for $150

Centruy Link's modem provisioning page suggests:
GPON comparable modems are:
-Tecnicolor c1000t c2000t c1100t c2100t
//the Tecnicolor c2100t is the most frequently used
-Zyxel C21000z c1100z c3000z
//the Zyxel C3000Z is the newest out there & offered by the CL retail store in Denver

my needs are small as i already own a firmware firewall box, separate router and an old AirPort wifi
-need to run the new GPON modem in "pass through bridge mode".
-need to set the new modem's wifi = OFF

some tech background:
-CL runs fiber cable to your home
-a outside box (ONT) converts the fiber -> Ethernet
-the modem negotiates your CenturyLink ID & PW via PPOE or some simple protocol
-in most cases the modem is a combo box and also does firewall routing wifi (i dont need this part)


appreciate (in advance) your recommendations on a good modem to buy own

 

[Southern_Vet]

best FIOS-GPON 1Gb/s modem to own

i am having Century Link (CL) install fiber to the house FIOS March 20th in Denver Colorado.
-i am trying out their 1000 bits / second speed for $85/mo + one time $60 installation.
-if i have NOT purchased an alternative modem they will rent me one at $10/mo likely the Zyxel C3000z

CAN ANYONE SUGGEST AN ALTERNATIVE TO THE Zyxel C3000z that would work on a GPON format FIOS
-seems there might NOT be a standard for modems between CL locations, this install is in Denver CO
-CL is selling the Zyxel C3000z at their local Denver retail store for $150

Centruy Link's modem provisioning page suggests:
GPON comparable modems are:
-Tecnicolor c1000t c2000t c1100t c2100t
//the Tecnicolor c2100t is the most frequently used
-Zyxel C21000z c1100z c3000z
//the Zyxel C3000Z is the newest out there & offered by the CL retail store in Denver

my needs are small as i already own a firmware firewall box, separate router and an old AirPort wifi
-need to run the new GPON modem in "pass through bridge mode".
-need to set the new modem's wifi = OFF

some tech background:
-CL runs fiber cable to your home
-a outside box (ONT) converts the fiber -> Ethernet
-the modem negotiates your CenturyLink ID & PW via PPOE or some simple protocol
-in most cases the modem is a combo box and also does firewall routing wifi (i dont need this part)


appreciate (in advance) your recommendations on a good modem to buy own

I have CenturyLink gigabit fiber. You do not need a "GPON" modem, just a router that supports PPPoE with vlan tagging.

With this service you simply get an ONT (outside equipment) that converts the fiber to a RJ-45 connection. You then simply plug that into your router. Having what they call a "modem" in bridge mode is pointless.

Before the tech leaves, make sure you get your PPPoE username & password. The tagged vlan is 201.

That being said, I paid the $99 to have their "modem" simply because that's all the tech they send to install knows.
--------

Outside fiber terminates into a small box / GPON ONT. From that comes a RJ-45 cable run to my office (new house so everything is wired in the walls, I have RJ-45 Jacks just like an office). That cable then plugs into my Amplifi mesh router. For the WAN connection, I select PPPoE and set the VLAN ID to 201. That's it.

Note: Very few routers support vlan tagging.

This guy goes into more detail:
https://kmwoley.com/blog/bypassing-needless-centurylink-wireless-router-on-gigabit-fiber/

 

[aristobrat]

Yipes, reading the bottom of that guy's article (and the comments), looks like a lot of routers "work", but don't get the full gigabit speeds.

 

[Southern_Vet]

Yipes, reading the bottom of that guy's article (and the comments), looks like a lot of routers "work", but don't get the full gigabit speeds.

Correct, routed & SPI firewall services at gigabit speeds require a decent amount of processing power. You move to gigabit speeds, you have to play with the big boys.

While in no way perfect, the Amplifi setup I have does a pretty good job. They recently introduced hardware accelerated router functions.

Decent consumer equipment should get you 500 megabit full duplex. Still, for $85 a month, way better than anything comcast offers.

small net builder has a decent amount of information available.

https://www.smallnetbuilder.com/tools/charts/router/bar/180-lan-to-wan-tcp/35

However, finding a router that does PPPoE with the vlan tagging can be difficult! Finding one that supports near line speed is even harder.

First world problems!

 

[jeyf]

i was really looking for a lower cost alternative to the $150 Zyxel c3000z modem comcast is selling. I just cant justify the cost since i am putting the box into pass through Transparent Bridging mode anyways. The Zyxel may come close to full speed tho.


my firewall is a micro itx firmware box having running 2.4.2-p1 pfSense. It is a micro itx box with a 2Ghz quad core Intel Celeron J1900 processor.
Any one know if there is a pfSense add on for a high speed GPON built in interface? The wan side of pfSense may support pppoe / vlan tagging at the needed giga 1000x speed.

the pfSense issue maybe not a proper question because;
I just dont have the time just yet for another home project till the 20177 taxes are out.

 

[Southern_Vet]

my firewall is 2.4.2-p1 pfSense running on a 2Ghz quad core Intel Celeron J1900 processor.
Any one know if there is a pfSense add on for a high speed GPON built in interface? The wan side of pfSense may support pppoe / vlan tagging at needed full speed.

the pfSense issue maybe not a proper question because;
I just dont have the time just yet for another home project till the 20177 taxes are out.

Good luck. Google is your friend.

 

[jeyf]

just looking for hardware to get by for now that costs less than $150
but
working with the pfSense would be a nice summer project tho.

 

[Southern_Vet]

Shouldn't take more than an hour, definitely not all summer. There are guides.

 

[jeyf]

fyi:
CenturyLink GPON support in Salt Lake 800-247-7285; 1, 2, 1, 1, 2, ,


i am not a expert on this so its is a project for me

i thought to get the modem to do pass through but my initial research just now casts doubt on if a transparent bridging situation is even possible in a GPON environment

 

[Southern_Vet]

fyi:
CenturyLink GPON support in Salt Lake 800-247-7285; 1, 2, 1, 1, 2, ,


i am not a expert on this so its is a project for me

i thought to get the modem to do pass through but my initial research just now casts doubt on if a transparent bridging situation is even possible in a GPON environment

Read my first post. As far as you’re concerned you get a rj45 cable from century link. You need a router that can handle PPPoE and tagged vlan. The back end GPON is none of your concern nor your equipment. In fact, you can plug your Mac directly into the port, enter your pppoe credentials and set to vlan 201.

That’s it. You’re overthinking this.

 

[FarmerBob]

I got the Gigabit service March 5 in Littleton. The ONT they gave me and my next door neighbor is a Calix 716GE-I R2 which is an "indoor" unit, see attached, and a Actiontec C3000 modem. The Calix is actually a router in it's own right, but they lock it in Transparent Bridge Mode and hook the C3k up to port 1 (ONLY). I have several Newer Netgear routers that can do PPPoE with Tagged 201 VLAN. My buddy builds his own gear.

It will work with any of the Netgear Nighthawks, but you need one with some power. It shows many in the list referenced on SNB. I have a "newer" unit connected directly and am getting 945/903. I would really like to go with one of the gpon adapters from Ubiquiti and start building out a whole home network for the house, large, and surrounding grounds.

I stumbled on this thread looking to see how to set up a connection using my Hackintosh as a testbed. It's probably too late to inform you on the gear you'll get, but maybe provide info for someone in the future . . .

 

[jeyf]

congratulations:
locating the ONT box inside is a must for a logical installation:
-Kinda dorky having it outside because you have to run a 12VAC wire all the way inside to a supporting wall wort.
-why have (2) boxes? why not have the fiber plug direct into whatever...

just you know:
All this 1Gb stuff is lo speed; you have to divide your speed numbers by 10 to get Bytes / sec

I have the following situation:
FIOS(CenturyLink)->ONT(inside)->Zyxel C2100Z(wifi = off)->pfSense(1.5year old revision)->switch(8port HP1810-8G/j9804A)->LAN->ethernet or airPort wifi
-century link is offering 1Gb fios for $60-70/mo these days, they closed their retail stores here
-neighbor has an external ONT box hanging of the outside of his house with active components and a 12vac wire wrapping around the house . I still have a outside wall box but no active components.
-i bought the Zyxel C2100Z all in one for $35 on craigsList last year. It works well and can handle the 1Gb speed
-I played with it some but never able to get the Zyxel in pass through & the pfSense box to work together.
-reset the Zyxel and Century Link assigns you a new ip address unless you pay ~$10 for a static
-have the Zyxel box disabled as much as i can and get 800Mb from a speed test with a computer directly at its LAN port. For now this is acceptable
-seems the Zyxel box has one level of routing and yessss i know this is bad but it works
-would like to get the PPPoE and VLAN ID 201 thingy to work directly in pfSense. I just don't have that kinda time right now.
-the pfSense box uses ~22watts
-pfSense & Netgear are mostly the same thing
-pfSense setup is cryptic but this free ware can do lots of stuff. The 1.5y old revision is somewhat unstable and 1st step is to find a better revision
-the HP1810 switch is level 2, if that matters. Other wise it a great low cost home box.
-the hp switch uses 12.22 watts
-ebay HP1810 cost was $35.00 but get the switch with a hp approved wall wart. HP has a proprietary 12vdc connector on the box
-its only 8port but lots of my house stuff is wifi. things like my Brother2350 printer are low moderate speed anyways.
-Located the old airPort in the center of the house and it is functional to pull content off a drobo box -> MBP for viewing pleasure w/o dropping frames
-the Zyxel, pfSense and the HP1810 all have built in web control pages which is nice for maintenance

current home network project is to replace the old NAS box, actually HIGH priority so:
-the 2010 drobo NAS box is old as dirt. Looking to update to the 4bay QNAP ts453be 4GB with 6TB Seagate drives7200rpm 256cache 3year warranty cost $200ea
-i saw a 3bay NAS box that does some sort of raid5
-easter sunday i thought i ordered the NAS + drives via newEgg but the order got befuddled and looks like i will get a box of incandescent light bulbs instead
-the 6TB drives meets my price point and size requirements. IS THE 6TB SIZE RELIABLE??? 4TB is too small. 8TB are too expensive.

I would have some interest in someone having a descriptive method to get pfSense to do the PPoE VLAN201 directly and i could totally get rid of the $35.00 C2100Z box
-things have been working reliable with no down time for a year or so