WiFi Archive - Pixelfriedhof

Mobile Internet abroad – tiny router accepts any SIM card

megaadmin — Sun, 05 Feb 2023 12:06:55 +0000

In the European countries, mobile Internet is hardly a problem anymore. Thanks to EU roaming, the data flat rate of one’s smartphone can be used everywhere. However, this does not help us on our trips to Albania, Montenegro or Serbia, and we need SIM cards from local network operators.

At the same time, however, we want to remain reachable under our mobile numbers and therefore don’t want to constantly swap the SIM cards of our iPhones. That’s why we use a small router that fits in any pocket and supplies our iPhones with non-EU Internet via WLAN.

We decided at that time for the TP-Link M7200 * , because it is small, handy and equipped with an integrated battery. Nevertheless, we did not find an answer to some of our questions at the time and hope to be able to help others with our experiences here.

TP-Link M7200 mobiler WLAN Router (4G/LTE bis zu 150Mbit/s Download/ 50Mbit/s Upload, Hotspot, 2000mAh Akku, kompatibel mit Allen...*

Arbeitet mit allen gängigen europäischen SIM Karten: Telekom, Vodafone, O2 m Swisscom etc. Wenn Sie es im Ausland verwenden möchten,...
Support des Mobilfunkstandards 4G/LTE mit bis zu 150 Mbs im Download und 50 Mbs Upload Geschwindigkeit. Das WLAN ist 300Mbit/s in...

How to enter the SIM PIN?

For example, when I buy a SIM card in Albania, it comes with a PIN. But how do we enter it into the router? Or can the router only handle PIN-free cards? That would be bad, because then I would always have to insert the foreign card into my cell phone and deactivate the PIN there.

The answer is simple. When I connect my smartphone or tablet to the mobile router, I can access the router controls via web interface. Here I can simply enter the PIN for the inserted SIM card.

Which SIM card sizes (Nano-SIM, Micro-SIM, Standard-SIM) fit into the router ?

An adapter is included with the device. All SIM card formats fit into the router. So you don’t need to worry about the form factor of your SIM card when you’re abroad.

How many devices can I connect simultaneously to the router?

Up to 10 devices can connect to the router at the same time. More than enough for our travels.

How long does the battery really last?

Our router is permanently powered in the Defender because we have it connected to our battery storage. However, when we move away from the car, we can take it with us. Thanks to a built-in 2000mAh battery, that’s no problem. But how long does the battery last under real-life conditions?

If we sit in a café somewhere with two connected devices, edit photos and upload them to the Adobe Cloud, write our blog in parallel and upload photos there as well, the battery lasts about 6 hours. That is OK because the mentioned application areas really already consume a larger amount of data volume.

* All links marked with an asterisk are Amazon affiliate links. We receive a percentage of purchases made through them. Nevertheless, our recommendations are honest and sincere.

Der Beitrag Mobile Internet abroad – tiny router accepts any SIM card erschien zuerst auf Pixelfriedhof.

Solved: DD-WRT upgrade failed

megaadmin — Tue, 19 Jul 2022 07:16:00 +0000

When updating the DD-WRT firmware of your router, the message “upgrade failed” or “update failed” appears. The problem is related to the browser you are using.

In 99% of cases, the problem can be solved by using a different browser. Chrome in particular is often susceptible here. I never thought I would say this, but: “For the first time, Internet Explorer has a raison d’être other than downloading other browsers”.

Der Beitrag Solved: DD-WRT upgrade failed erschien zuerst auf Pixelfriedhof.

THE solution for professional WiFi in the home network

megaadmin — Thu, 14 Apr 2022 08:01:40 +0000

For two years I have been running my home network based on Ubiquiti Unifi products. After many failed attempts with other systems, I can say: “This is the best option for WiFi and network management and the first one that covers all my requirements”. A field report.

Tried many systems with moderate success

As a computer scientist, I have tried out a lot in the last few years to set up my home network professionally: Apple Airports, repeaters, LAN-over-Power, DD-WRT routers and combinations of these. I’ve spent a lot of money on these little experiments, only to find out time and again that something doesn’t work the way I imagined it would.

Yet I didn’t want much: reliable illumination of house and garden and real working roaming between the individual access points. I didn’t want the music playback from my smartphone on the terrace to stop just because I was moving through the garden and switched from the south AP to the north AP, or a download on my notebook to stop when I went down the stairs.

I was looking for a system that would allow me to covere two floors, the basement and the garden with fast WiFi and give me the freedom to connect the individual access points via cable or wireless mesh network.

I was also fed up with an unreliable system that suddenly stopped working properly after firmware updates or wireless repeaters that suddenly stopped working for no apparent reason. I reported on the disadvantages of normal, “stupid” WiFi repeaters in this article. I was looking for a system that simply works – after work I don’t have the time to deal with IT problems in my private life.

Setup with 5 access points and approx. 60 clients has been running stable and performant without ONE (!!!) failure. Reason enough to share this success story here.

What is a Software-Defined-Network (SDN)?

The first advantage of SDN is the ability to configure the home network in a single interface and then pass these settings on to any number of access points with the click of a mouse. In my previous attempts, I had to make time-consuming configuration changes on each individual access point. This not only cost time, but was also more error-prone if a setting was forgotten on one of the integrated devices.

Today, I configure the individual WiFis (productive network, guest network and a special network for parts of the home automation) in the web interface of my SDN controller and can then simply determine by assignment from which access points the radio networks are to be broadcasted.

Unifi SDN management interface in web browser and mobile app

However, the central administration is by far not the only advantage. The SDN controller is an active part of the installation: it knows which routes exist in the network between the individual access points and it intelligently controls the traffic through the network. In a classic (stupid) WiFi setup with WiFi repeaters, this is not always the case. In the classic setup, a client device logs into the strongest access point, sends its requests to it and, in the end, one hopes that the repeater will send these requests to the best next repeater or AP. In the worst case, the data traffic is transmitted via unnecessary intermediate relays and takes detours – which can result in routing errors and failures in the event of temporary connection restrictions.

In the SDN scenario, I use a mesh repeater in one corner of the garden and, thanks to the SDN controller, it knows exactly that it should forward its data traffic to the wired access point on the terrace – and not first to the mesh repeater in the garage and then from there to the AP in the living room.

Wireless mesh works reliably – but I am old-fashioned and prefer wired access points

With the help of an SDN, wireless mesh networks finally become performant and immune to interference. I tried this out in the garden, where I connected a seating area in the summer with the help of a mesh repeater. Nevertheless, it is clear to every experienced IT professional that nothing beats a stable, wired connection. Call me old-fashioned, but I still connect my access points to the home network by cable and leave nothing to chance. Perhaps my attitude to this topic will change over time as I continue to gain positive experience with wireless connections – but I still need some time for that.

Unifi offers more possibilities than just Software-Defined-Network

The Unifi Eco system not only offers SDN. A video surveillance solution and a security gateway solution can also be installed on some of the controllers.

The SDN controller can also be operated as a virtual machine, for example, or installed on a home server. But because I wanted to avoid dependencies on my own systems and hardware, I used dedicated hardware for the SDN controller right from the start. At first I used the Unifi CloudKey Gen2 Plus * for SDN and video surveillance. Later, I also flirted with the Security Gateway as a VPN server and firewall and therefore switched to the Dream Machine Pro, as all three services can be operated simultaneously on it.

Such a setup is much more expensive than a frickle solution with Fritzboxes, repeaters and self-configured DD-WRT routers – no question. But the possibilities are immense and not comparable with consumer products: VLANs, wireless mesh, packet firewall, real prioritisation, fibre optic uplinks, power supply via PoE. In the end, I wished I had bought the more expensive solution from the beginning, because before I had invested more money in the previous setups overall, as if I had once done everything right from the start. Times for hassle, configuration and interferences have to be added on top.

Ubiquiti UniFi Controller Cloud Key G2 Plus*

UbiQuiti
Wireless Controller

Special offer

UbiQuiti UDM-PRO*

UbiQuiti
Gateway

Other infrastructure hardware (access points and switches)

I use the UniFi AP AC * as access points outdoors and the small UniFi AP AC Nano HD * indoors. Both are supplied with power via PoE, which is very convenient for me because I don’t have to worry about power supply outdoors. The uplink LAN cable also supplies the power, so I only have to drill once and lay only one cable.

UbiQuiti UAP-NANOHD*

UbiQuiti
Wireless Access Point

UbiQuiti Unifi Drahtlose Basisstation 802.11a/b/g/n/ac Dualband Gleichstrom*

Drahtlose Basisstation
Formfaktor: Extern - außen, innen

If you want to exploit the full potential of the security gateway, you also need suitable managed switches so that VLANs and prioritisation function ideally. Depending on the setup, it also makes sense to work directly with a PoE switch. A central PoE switch is more efficient in terms of energy consumption than 5 single PoE injectors.

I use the USW-PRO-24-POE UniFi Gen 2 switch * as my central switch, which I have connected to the Dream Machine Pro * via a fibre uplink.

Special offer

Ubiquiti UniFi USW-PRO-24-POE Switch Gestionable 24 Puertos Gigabit Ethernet PoE*

UbiQuiti
Netzwerk Switch

Special offer

UbiQuiti UDM-PRO*

UbiQuiti
Gateway

* All links marked with an asterisk are Amazon affiliate links. We receive a percentage of the purchases made through them. Our recommendations are nevertheless honest and sincere.

Der Beitrag THE solution for professional WiFi in the home network erschien zuerst auf Pixelfriedhof.

Why WiFi repeaters often aren’t a good solution

megaadmin — Tue, 12 Apr 2022 10:47:00 +0000

The WiFi does not reach far enough or is slow in parts of the home? In this case, many people rely on WiFi repeaters. But these systems have the potential to only make things worse.

How WiFi repeaters work

A WiFi repeater picks up an existing WiFi signal and sets up another network at its location. In this way, the area covered by the WiFi signal is increased, for example, in a flat or in the garden. In order for the end devices to be able to switch back and forth between the repeater’s WiFi and the base WiFi without any problems, the repeater copies almost all the settings of the base WiFi: network name (SSID) and network key are copied and also used for the repeater WiFi. From a purely technical point of view, however, the repeater uses a different channel in the background so that the channels of the base WiFi already in use are not overloaded. At least in theory.

However, the following points are not well thought through by many manufacturers in the consumer sector and the networks equipped with repeaters often drive users crazy.

Shit in – Shit out: Passing on bad WiFi via repeaters only makes bad WiFi receivable over a wider area.

The repeater can only transmit the signal that it receives from the base WiFi. If the repeater itself already has a weak, unstable or slow WiFi connection, for example to the Fritzbox router, then it will not be able to pass on a stable or faster connection. The repeater is not a cure-all at this point. It gets really bad when several repeaters are in use and one or more are temporarily unable to establish a connection to the base WiFi.

One or more repeaters without an uplink to the base WiFi: Data chaos begins!

The following scenario: I am sitting in the garden with my MacBook and suddenly no more Internet pages load. My smartphone tells me that there is probably no connection to the Internet. Strange, I have 3 bars of WiFi. Yes, that’s right – but only to my repeater. But it has no connection to the base WiFi of my router.

This scenario is particularly exciting when several repeaters are in use and then connect to each other and don’t even notice that none of them has a connection to the base WiFi. “Oh, another one of my repeater buddies will shurely have an uplink – I’ll pass on the request…”.

All three repeaters have no connection to the Internet router and send packets in circles in confusion – frustration at the end device is pre-programmed.

Poor performance due to unnoticed and unconsidered channel changes

Most repeaters are smart enough to orient themselves on the WiFi channels already in use in the immediate vicinity. If the base WiFi transmits on channel 1, the repeater transmits on – let’s say – channel 10. So far so good. However, there are enough cases where the base WiFi (or another repeater) spontaneously changes channels for whatever reason. There is no guarantee that all repeaters will notice this and if they do, that they will adjust their own channel. I know of installations where all access points (base WiFi and repeater) were hanging around on one and the same channel, although according to the settings they should have avoided this. For the user, this means higher latency and longer waiting times for requests or downloads.

Pro tip: Connect access points via cable and/or use SDN

Most solutions based on radio repeaters or mesh functions are by design susceptible to interference and unstable at some point. There is nothing wrong with multiple access points, but ideally they should be connected by cable to the main router, the WAN gateway. Because the cable connection rarely breaks and is always good in most cases.

With the help of an SDN solution, a software-defined network, the whole thing can be optimised and even radio mesh networks can be operated successfully. In this scenario, there is an SDN controller at one point in the network. This is the smart brain of the entire installation and tells the individual access points or repeaters exactly who is to connect to which other access point and which not. This controller knows the most reliable and fastest way to route my data packet from my MacBook in the garden through all access points to the Fritzbox, without shooting any data packet somewhere into nirvana.

Ubiquiti Unifi SDN und Ubiquiti Accesspoints

I have tried a lot in the last few years: Apple Airports, repeaters, LAN-over-Power, DD-WRT routers and have spent a lot of money on these little experiments only to find out again and again at one point or another that something doesn’t work.

Yet I didn’t want much: reliable coverage of the house and garden and real working roaming between the individual access points. I didn’t want the music playback from my smartphone on the terrace to stop just because I was moving through the garden and switching from the south AP to the north AP.

I found the first real working solution at Ubiquiti. The Cloud Key Gen2 Plus * runs the SDN controller (and integrated video surveillance). I have adapted and configured all the access points here.

Clear web interface of the Unifi Controller in the web browser

I use the UniFi AP AC * as access points outdoors and the small UniFi AP AC Nano HD * indoors, all of which are connected by cable. However, just for fun, I have already played around with the wireless mesh functions without a cable connection for 3 weeks and have not been able to observe any of the typical repeater illnesses described above. The SDN simply does its job in this case as well. The solution has been running for two years with 5 access points and approx. 60 clients without ONE (!!!) failure.

The mobile app for quick configuration, network overview or analysis is also great:

The Ubiquiti Unifi SDN mobile app on the iPhone

Unifi hardware used for my home network

Ubiquiti UniFi Controller Cloud Key G2 Plus*

UbiQuiti
Wireless Controller

UbiQuiti UAP-NANOHD*

UbiQuiti
Wireless Access Point

UbiQuiti Unifi Drahtlose Basisstation 802.11a/b/g/n/ac Dualband Gleichstrom*

Drahtlose Basisstation
Formfaktor: Extern - außen, innen

All links marked with an asterisk are Amazon affiliate links. We receive a percentage of the purchases made through them. Our recommendations are nevertheless honest and sincere.

Der Beitrag Why WiFi repeaters often aren’t a good solution erschien zuerst auf Pixelfriedhof.

Nikon D7500, D850 and D5600 after firmware update 1.10 with fully functional WiFi

megaadmin — Thu, 09 May 2019 18:22:29 +0000

Nikon has released the firmware update of version 1.10 for the cameras D7500, D850 and D5600. Nikon users of D7500, D850 and D5600 now receive the long-awaited open Wi-Fi, with which now also connections to other devices than only the SnapBridge app are possible.

After Nikon recently published Firmware 1.20 for the D500 with fully functional WiFi (you can find my post about that her e), these new functions are now also coming to the above mentioned cameras.

After the camera has been updated to the new firmware, we can find the data of the WiFi network that the D7500, D850 or D5600 is using in the menu under “System” “Wi-Fi” “Establish Wi-Fi connection”. With this data, we can now dial into the camera’s network using a PC, Mac or mobile device and then remotely control it using any software such as “qdslrdashboard” or “ControlMyCamera”.

The new firmware for D7500 1.10 is available at this link: https://downloadcenter.nikonimglib.com/en/products/352/D7500.html

The new firmware for D850 1.10 is available at this link: https://downloadcenter.nikonimglib.com/en/products/359/D850.html

The new firmware for D5600 1.10 is available at this link: https://downloadcenter.nikonimglib.com/en/download/fw/326.html

Neewer 2er Pack 750II TTL Blitz Speedlite Kit mit 2.4G Wireless Trigger und Diffusor, Kompatibel mit Nikon DSLR DSLR D850 D810...*

BLITZMODI: High Guide Nr. 58 (ISO 100, 180mm), Unterstützt TTL, Manuell, Multi, S1-, S2-Modus, Wiederaufladezeit: ca. 3,5s, Drehung um...
KOMPATIBILITÄT: Kompatibel mit Nikon D810 D800 D750 D700 D7500 D7200 D7100 D7000 D610 D600 D500 D5500 D5300 D5200 D5100 D5000 D3300...

See the new Wi-Fi functions in a video:

Ihre Daten werden erst beim Abspielen des Youtube-Videos an den Dienst übermittelt. Your data will only be transmitted to the service when you play the Youtube video.

Further links to software for remote controlling your D7500, D850 or D5600

https://dslrdashboard.info

https://itunes.apple.com/de/app/controlmycamera/id1444319448?mt=8

Beschoi Fotorucksack wasserdicht Kameratasche Kamerarucksack mit Laptopfach für Canon Sony Nikon Olympus SLR/DSLR Kamera,...*

Dieser Kamera Rucksack geeignet für DSLR Kamera mit aufgesetztem Objektiv bis 320mm, 4-6 weitere Objektive, Blitzgerät, Zubehör, 14...
Außenmaße: 44cm*28cm*14cm; Innenmaße: 41cm*27cm*13.5cm. Robust und wasserabweisend, zweifarbiges Nylon-Material

My first choice as a Lightroom alternative

I’m gonna do some advertising. I’ve been dealing with all kinds of image editing software for months, comparing a lot, testing a lot and finally choosing RAW developer and Lightroom alternative Luminar 3.

Have a look and try the free trial version. Just click on the banner:

All the links in this text are Amazon Affiliate Links, and by clicking on an affiliate link I will earn a percentage of your subsequent Amazon purchases. However, this circumstance does not influence the background of my product recommendation. This product recommendation is independent, honest and sincere.

Bei allen genannten Links handelt es sich um Amazon-Affiliate-Links. Durch einen Klick auf einen Affiliate-Link werde ich prozentual an Euren darauf folgenden Amazon-Einkäufen beteiligt. Dieser Umstand beeinflusst aber nicht die Hintergründe meiner Produktempfehlung. Diese Produktempfehlung erfolgt unabhängig, ehrlich und aufrichtig.

Der Beitrag Nikon D7500, D850 and D5600 after firmware update 1.10 with fully functional WiFi erschien zuerst auf Pixelfriedhof.

Nikon D500 after firmware update 1.20 with fully functional WiFi

megaadmin — Mon, 29 Apr 2019 18:22:29 +0000

Nikon has released the firmware update of version 1.20.

After installing the update on my camera, I couldn’t believe my eyes.
Apparently Nikon finally gave the D500 the long-awaited open Wi-Fi, with which now also connections to other devices than only the SnapBridge app are possible.

In the release notes of the 1.20 firmware update, however, there are no references to this change, only support for the SnapBridge app is mentioned here:

But in fact, after the camera has been updated to the new firmware, we can find the data of the WLAN network that the D500 is using in the menu under “System” “Wi-Fi” “Establish Wi-Fi connection”. With this data, we can now dial into the camera’s network using a PC, Mac or mobile device and then remotely control it using any software such as “qdslrdashboard” or “ControlMyCamera”.

The new firmware 1.20 is available at this link: https://downloadcenter.nikonimglib.com/en/download/fw/323.html

Neewer 2er Pack 750II TTL Blitz Speedlite Kit mit 2.4G Wireless Trigger und Diffusor, Kompatibel mit Nikon DSLR DSLR D850 D810...*

BLITZMODI: High Guide Nr. 58 (ISO 100, 180mm), Unterstützt TTL, Manuell, Multi, S1-, S2-Modus, Wiederaufladezeit: ca. 3,5s, Drehung um...
KOMPATIBILITÄT: Kompatibel mit Nikon D810 D800 D750 D700 D7500 D7200 D7100 D7000 D610 D600 D500 D5500 D5300 D5200 D5100 D5000 D3300...

See the new Wi-Fi functions in a video:

Ihre Daten werden erst beim Abspielen des Youtube-Videos an den Dienst übermittelt. Your data will only be transmitted to the service when you play the Youtube video.

Further links to software for remote controlling your D500

https://dslrdashboard.info

https://itunes.apple.com/de/app/controlmycamera/id1444319448?mt=8

Beschoi Fotorucksack wasserdicht Kameratasche Kamerarucksack mit Laptopfach für Canon Sony Nikon Olympus SLR/DSLR Kamera,...*

Dieser Kamera Rucksack geeignet für DSLR Kamera mit aufgesetztem Objektiv bis 320mm, 4-6 weitere Objektive, Blitzgerät, Zubehör, 14...
Außenmaße: 44cm*28cm*14cm; Innenmaße: 41cm*27cm*13.5cm. Robust und wasserabweisend, zweifarbiges Nylon-Material

My first choice as a Lightroom alternative

Have a look and try the free trial version. Just click on the banner:

Der Beitrag Nikon D500 after firmware update 1.20 with fully functional WiFi erschien zuerst auf Pixelfriedhof.