DV and 3rd Party Router - Brick Wall Response

[ChunkyTheCurmudgeon]

I have BT FTTP and am using an ASUS 3rd party router which works fine. Voice is on the old copper line.  I'm a brownfield site, despite which they pulled fibre only rather than fibre/copper hybrid earlier this year.

I've had the letter saying I'm being moved to digital voice.  Long story short, after an extended conversation with the BT Fibre Implementation team I was told they have no control over it and Openreach will just plough on regardless.  Use the SH2 or have no voice line.  There was an exemption for alarms and pendant wearers but even this is now closed off.

There's no way I'm putting my ASUS and quite exquisitely crafted network downstream of a SH2 and I don't fancy having to beggar about with it to try and get the SH2 to hang off the ASUS just so it can do its voice duties.

So I've submitted a complaint to Ofcom 'cos it breaches their rules about forced use of proprietary hardware.  I'm not holding my breath, but I'll report back in due course.

In the meantime, it wouldn't do any harm if lots of people made the same complaint and I'd encourage others to put pen to paper before Openreach chop your copper.

[licquorice]

Just use a third party VoIP provider instead of Digital Voice.

[guidoliguori]

I wish you luck with that as I agree with the point that you make.  At some point this will no longer be an issue.  Hopefully that point is not that far away.  

[carlito000]

>>There's no way I'm putting my ASUS and quite exquisitely crafted network downstream of a SH2 and I don't fancy having to beggar about with it to try and get the SH2 to hang off the ASUS just so it can do its voice duties.<<

This is the setup I have, switch and access points downstream of SH2. Mind you, I wouldn't describe my network as 'exquisitely crafted' more like 'hastily thrown together with room for expansion. What kind of problems am I likely to encounter?

[Gary_C]

The thing is, the chop is happening.
To me the real issue is that you cant easily split off your BT FTTP from your BT landline number and transfer it to another VOIP provider.
Looks like you have to cancel everything then take out a BT FTTP and a third party VOIP and give up your original landline number, which seems designed to be obstructive.

[manchego]

As I mentioned in my previous posts it's not really an issue to configure an Asus running Merlin firmware to manage the network and the sh2 just providing the digital voice element. If you don't want your number with BT then you could get your own VoIP provider for your number and any number that BT gives you just ignore.

[Gary_C]

But the SH2 isn't just providing DV, its the gateway for all internet traffic ? and also open to BT's updating and rebooting that has characterised previous hubs. Your Asus is just acting as a router isn't it ? or have you managed to have the Asus connected to the ONT and jump the DV through that as the gateway ?

[manchego]

You can't connect the Asus to the ONT directly and still keep digital voice but by changing the config on the SH2 you can effectively bypass it. For example forwarding all traffic, turning off dhcp, turning off wireless, putting the asus in the dmz etc - guide in my previous posts. It is even possible to get ipv6 working if you need to.

I've not had a problem with any BT upgrades to the SH2 or reboots but I have only been with them for about 4 months.

I agree its not ideal but it is effective and secure. It would be much better not to have the SH2 powered on at all but DV requires that as BT will not release the details to run VoIP on the Asus directly.

[ChunkyTheCurmudgeon]

I suspect I'm going over old ground with this, but here goes................

• I don't see why I should be paying BT for a phone line then have to take a separate VoIP contract with someone else. 
• Potentially lose my number in the changeover as well, (because the Openreach record for my address was wrong, hence the reason why they kept me on copper at installation).
• My ASUS works just fine and dandy plugged straight into the ONT.  It, does DHCP, VLANs, subnets, external access for CCTV and heating system, etc. etc. I remain wholly unconvinced that even with fancy forwarding tricks I can get everything I want with the SH2 in the way, and without some hassle at some point.

The solution here is actually dead easy, I mentioned it to the BT techy, he said, "yeah, that would be easy but Openreadh would never do it".   

Openreach originally pulled two core fibre, which I guess the probably do for every fresh install.  Just connect up the second core at both ends, stick a second ONT on the wall and put DV on this second "channel".  I'd be happy to use the SH2 for that part only, providing my broadband and network setup doesn't have to be meddled with.

🤔✔️

p.s.  I'm grateful to manchego and also choppyc for the workarounds, but I don't want to go that route and especially not one that requires flashing my router with third party firmware.   

[manchego]

I wish you luck bud if you think you can change BTs approach. As all I can say is that the Merlin firmware on ASUS Routers is superb and tbh I'm not even sure you do need it, only that I have it so I know the functionality works. It is the ASUS firmware with a few add-ons such as policy based VPNs and bug fixes. It's solid.

I have SH2 --> AC86U --> AC88U all working in harmony with the AC88U connected as a mesh client so no direct configuration on it.

I recently got IPv6 working which was incredibly easy once I worked out what the various IPv6 modes meant. I've detailed this and my experience of the original suggestion to put the AC86U behind the SH2 in previous posts.

From a latency and reliability pov I have no issues. Jitter is <=0.5ms and on a 150MB package I get 144MB. the only bit of my internal ASUS config I changed was to assign the WAN a static IP. This allowed me to maintain my internal 192.168.1. network.