Question for any Fritz!Box 7390 users

[mervl]

Have just set this up successfully on FTTC with good results, but one issue:

I've had problems in the past with IDNet's DNS, but I can't find a way to change from the default to Open DNS which I used on the old IDNet-supplied Netgear. Am I over looking something obvious?

[Steve]

As far as I recall , we had a post on here a while ago re similar I'll see if I can find it . You have I believe got to change this setting via telnet i.e. quick google 

http://blog.marc-seeger.de/2009/07/04/change-dns-servers-to-opendns-on-the-fritzbox-7240/

[.Griff.]

It can be done via Telnet apparently mervl.

http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/1659203 (Second post contains link with details)

Edit - Steve posted at same time 

[Steve]

Just wonder whether it's just easier to place OpenDNS on the local NIC settings (unless your desperate for the parental controls.)

[.Griff.]

Just wonder whether it's just easier to place OpenDNS on the local NIC settings (unless your desperate for the parental controls.)

You could but if there's multiple devices on the network it's easier to do it via the router.

[Steve]

On the majority of routers I would agree.

[mervl]

Thanks .Griff and Steve! Now why didn't I think of that?

No doubt a bit of German conformity instead of our Anglo-Saxon anarchy!

[Ardua]

It can be done via Telnet apparently mervl.

http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/1659203 (Second post contains link with details)

Edit - Steve posted at same time 

Using TelNet will invalidate the 5 year warranty and AVM will decline to offer support. I have the occasional issue with webpages failing to open but the occurrence rate is not frequent enough to make me want to 'hijack' the router settings.

[FritzBox]

Can't understand why they can't let users set their preferred DNS, but hey ho sorted OpenDNS via telnet on mine. From what I remember it was a bit of a struggle, plus you have to use one of their phones to enable it


Using TelNet will invalidate the 5 year warranty and AVM will decline to offer support

Maybe that's why they never reply to my emails regarding the disconnections and the thing randomly Clearing the Connection when it's set not to do so.
If it wasn't for the fact that I've got the VOIP set up I would be going back to a trusty 2700

I'm also sure that the reason I can't seem to set up a DLNA media server such as Mezzmo and get it to see my WDTV Live Hub is something to do with the router

[Ardua]

I have always got a response from AVM to any support issues that I have raised with them: usually, from someone from a UK background. As has been said on other forums, the Fritz!Box is aimed primarily at the German cable market so ADSL and ADSL2 are secondary functions.  I confess that the occasional disconnections are both a source of frustration and interest to me. Yesterday, I had 4208 unrecoverable errors at 9 am and the box remained synchronised: it then re-synched an hour later with an unrecoverable error rate of 42. My line settings are hard right: I suspect that I could go for greater stability by moving them to the left but there seems to be no point in doing so given that my box only re-synchs every 5 to 7 days and the synch rate remains between 17.2 and 17.8Mbps. I see that the 7390 is getting some good feedback from FTTC users as a single box VDSL/router. Hopefully, I will be able to test this for myself in the New Year.

[mervl]

I've gone the whole hog with the Fritz!Box 7390 set up both on my FTTC service in lieu of the OR modem and as the router (using the Fritz!Lan N stick when moving the laptop around the house), and also running both the landline through the paired DECT phones around the house and a sipgate VOIP service to my "office" room. Usefully I can time the DECT phones differently, and direct the landline and VOIP service to phones differently.

I was using IDNet's supplied Netgear router which had speeds going up and down, so the average speed was low, up to 14Mbps. With the Fritz!Box the synch speed has gone up from below 27 Mbps to just below 30Mbps, and seems to be holding there for the last several days; average speeds have risen to around 20Mbps. So I'd say its an improvement. Normally wet autumn and winter weather is the enemy of the heavily-jointed underground lines through my estate back to the cab, and the last couple of days have seen the wettest weather since my install in the late summer, so fingers-crossed. (I resynced several times during the set up, due to my disconnecting to change wires around, and whilst the Fritz!Box started at the same 26Mbps profile as reported by the BTW checker it quickly rose and stayed despite a couple of further syncs to just below 30Mbps).

A couple of disadvantages: the higher speed has come at the cost of a small amount of packet loss now being reported on TBQM compared to the OR modem/Netgear set up; there's a few errored seconds being reported and a few thousand corrected errors and a few non-corrected errors per day, but that's less than 10% of what the rubbish local loop gave on ADSL. I can't compare with the OR modem which didn't give this information. And the wireless DECT phones connected through the router don't give CLI - which I gather AVM know about and aren't doing anything about this. Obviously I'm running the newer v84.05.05 firmware, and the most difficult bit of the install was setting it up to run with the OR modem to flash the new firmware (so I could run it as a modem) where the wizard didn't work properly, so I did a manual configuration in expert mode. I've also left the modem on the highest quality setting.

[FritzBox]

How's the 5ghz band with the N stick? Mine virtually never works

My exchange due for FTTC upgrade in March he says positively

[mervl]

Not sure: it only shows up as 2.4GHz band, but shows a maximum throughput of 108M/bits/s (in a range between 81 and 162 during the hour I had it running under a trial in the garden cabin), compared to the usual 54/65; and which would presumably be comparable with the performance of the Cat6E ethernet cable?

[Ardua]

My IMAC will connect to both 2.4 and 5GHz 'N' channels: I cannot say that I notice any difference. I also have Caller ID on my Fritz!Box and I use two Gigaset DECT handsets and 2 Fritz!Fon Fs.

[mervl]

Having got a bit more experience with the 7390, I agree the wireless signal does jump around a bit, but at best is comparable to a wired connection on actual downloads. I've had potential throughputs reported in the range 108- 216Mb/s, out of the 300 max using both channels.

The non-CLI issue seems to be a problem only where the 7390 is used as a VDSL modem, and as far as I can see, it's OK when used just as a router. Could it be an interference issue?

I'm suspecting that on the maximum quality setting the 7390 pushes the line hard: a 10% upload gain over the OR modem synch but with the cost of a continuous up to 10% packet loss reported by TBBQM. Resyncs seem to be about 1 per day with CEC errors reported at 0.6/sec, FEC x00/sec, at the modem: and respectively 0.5 and a couple at most at the DSLAM. NM steady betweeen 10/11db.

As I mentioned elsewhere it seems to have settled down after the move to 17a profile, with a 20% increase in both attainable and sync on the download, but at a cost of a 40% loss on the upload (just off 10 to just over 6 so not fatal). But download sync exceeds the pre-order estimate of 26Mbps by nearly 10 Mbps. I think it could be justified as an all-in-one but not just for the broadband.

[Ardua]

mervl - have a look at the Whirlpool net au website (fritz!Box overseas thread). Phillipe_d is very knowledgeable about the 7390. I am still on an ADSL2+ line which after 3 months with an attainable speed of 17.5Mbps at a downstream SNR of 3 has just jumped to 18.5Mbps. This increase, and the associated instability, seem to have defeated BT's DLM so after taking advice from Phillipe I have used the Intended SNR slider for the first time. Connection stability has returned at 17.2Mbps throughput with a target SNR of 5.

Having ticked the box in the router set up I am now trying to work out why IPv6 isn't working. The log says that it is connected but the TBB test shows an IPv4 connection. Never a dull moment with this excellent piece of kit.

[Steve]

IPv6 has no NAT so TBB will not see the router but the connected client , check at one the IPv6 test sites - google will find one

[mervl]

Thanks Ardua! I'd heard about the Australian forum and actually tried it last night - I recognised your posts, I think. It's confirmed looking at my graphing that I'm still on the 8c profile (in UK apparently the 7390 reports wrongly), so I'm pretty pleased about the 6Mbps increase in throughput over what the BT speedtester reported with the OR modem. On a big download this morning it was reporting actual downloads consistently within 2-3Mbps of the attainable 35 which I reckon is good for my (historically) dodgy line. Though (strangely?) both the BT speedtester (at times) and the Fritz!Box report throughputs in excess of the IP profile shown by the tester.

It's only been up a week and yep, I've played with setting everything up a lot. I read with interest the discussion on the CLI issue: of course Phillipe_d isn't familiar with the UK analogue phone line set up, but the suggestion that perhaps on some lines the carrier signal is weak might be right. Anyway perhaps I can find out if you get the problem when you transfer to a FTTC service in a couple of months (hopefully!). I have a workaround as CLI still works on the phone connected directly to the extension socket (though I've checked and it makes no difference if that phone, and the Sky box connected to the same socket, are disconnected). I've not yet though had any hissing on calls or phantom rings in the early hours, which some of the posters have reported.

As the router is holding the signal I'm not seeing any cause to adjust the line quality slider, which is at full right. I'll wait and see if the TBBQM reported packet loss will disappear when I get the 17a profile being rolled out over the next month, as it did in .griff's case.

All in all I'm chuffed with the kit which is exceeding my expectations.

[mervl]

Never a dull moment with this excellent piece of kit.

True, after I gained 5Mbps download over the OR modem on the introduction of the 17a profile and associated changes (with a loss of just under 4Mbps on upload, due we suspect to crosstalk interference on the jointed local loop to the cab, so the modem is unable to use tones above 8MHz to replace those lost to upload, as shown on the modem's bandwith graphing); it has this morning gained a further 5Mbps. It now shows a download (oops EDIT) sync of 39992, and its speedo shows downloads running at up to 35Mbps.

Hopefully it's now hit the buffers as the line needed a couple of resyncs to recover; and so do I 

[Glenn]

Just a quick question, for running the router via it's modem (mine is still connected via the BT router) is it just a case of switching it to connect via DSL, tick PPPoE then connect the cable to the DSL port?

[pctech]

Glenn, you should see a DSL and WAN port.

The DSL port will be linked to the inbuilt modem so you should use the WAN port.

[mervl]

Just a quick question, for running the router via it's modem (mine is still connected via the BT router) is it just a case of switching it to connect via DSL, tick PPPoE then connect the cable to the DSL port?

Have you downloaded the manual which helps? Yep my recollection is you need to switch it back to the DSL port (as to connect via the OR modem you are using LAN1 I think?) using the supplied y-cable (even if you don't run the analogue phone through the router which you can do). The important bit is you need to set in Internet/Connection Settings (Expert Mode) VLAN101  as well as input your login settings or you won't be able to log on to Idnet's servers (though you should sync anyway with the DSLAM).

[Glenn]

OK which bit am I doing wrong, attached are the settings I have selected, it connects to the net, but no throughput?

[Steve]

From the post above have you set the VLAN?

[Glenn]

Is it to 101 though?