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Re: [EXT] I need advice on a new ISP

by Keith Wright

I won't apologize for a slow answer. You may soon be asking me to wait and first think a little more. Kevin Paetzold via WLUG <wlug(a)lists.wlug.org> writes: > The issue is Verizon. As soon as I saw that, I started to write a reply that said: "That's provably false. The letter came from GTT. Verizon is not under discussion." While I was editing that to make it more polite, I read on: > We were officially not getting our DSL "service" from Verizon > but it was their copper. Verizon did not even notify our ISP and > just disconnected the line (in Marlboro). We of course found out > when our equipment went offline. Now the question becomes: "How much do we trust Verizon?" That got me thinking. The letter from GTT does not mention Verizon, but why would they? Blaming Verizon might look (to the customer) like a lame excuse; it might look (to Verizon) like a legal cause of action. It doesn't need to be a conspiracy, sometimes quarrelling parties, each for their own reasons, don't feel motivated to explain things to _us_. Now the skills I learned in grad school, reading Kant's "Critique of Pure Reason", begin to suggest more questions. What did they actually tell me, and what have I added myself? The GTT letter is clearly a form letter. It might have been written years ago, to be automatically filled in and sent to anyone they plan to disconnect for any reason anywhere in the world. It says nothing at all about why. I assumed they decided there was not enough money to be made by charging a monthly fee to leave everything the same. On 4/13/23 15:06, Bacon, John via WLUG wrote: > So I suspect that it's not GTT that is really providing DSL but more > likely Verizon. This is true. GTT pays Verizon for local DSL delivery over copper wire. Every time I report a problem to GTT, they send Verizon to my house. > And since VZ is trying to get out of the copper business that is why > your dilemma. However Verizon is working to roll out Fios in the > city so maybe they will get your neighborhood before your > disconnected. If this were true, my plan would be to order FIOS (Fiber Optic) internet connection from Verizon and run it in parallel with DSL for a few months. Then I could get set up with the Fiber while continuing to use DSL for email, downloading software, seaching the web for answers, etc. I am afraid of being totally without internet while trying to get the new connection working. Unfortunately, the Verizon web site says FIOS is not available in my area. But when I tell their chat-bot/human of my fears of a coverage gap, it/he seems suspiciously knowledgeable about my problem and tells me not to worry. Maybe they think I will welcome my new overlords who will arrive just in time (for them). > Im not sure where your web servers are hosted They are hosted on a Debian Linux Intel Pentium in my basement. Linux is about doing it yourself. I don't have a web server host, just Apache running on Linux, not up in the cloud, down in the basement. More details can be read here: http://www.free-comp-shop.com/none/final.html at least for a few more months. -- Keith (thee/thou)

April 18, 2023

Re: [EXT] I need advice on a new ISP

by Kevin Paetzold

I believe John is correct. The issue is Verizon. Non profit which I am involved in went through this a couple years ago. We were officially not getting our DSL "service" from Verizon but it was their copper. Verizon did not even notify our ISP and just disconnected the line (in Marlboro). We of course found out when our equipment went offline. On 4/13/23 15:06, Bacon, John via WLUG wrote: > So I suspect that it's not GTT that is really providing DSL but more likely Verizon. And since VZ is trying to get out of the copper business that is why your dilemma. Since your in Worcester there are not many options. Charter Business or maybe going Cell based Business. However Verizon is working to roll out Fios in the city so maybe they will get your neighborhood before your disconnected. > > Im not sure where your web servers are hosted but you can use some web host company. I use TurnKey Internet (Latham, NY) > > Best of luck > > John Bacon > > WORCESTER POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE > Network Operations > 100 Institute Road > Worcester, MA | 01609-2280 > 508-831-5000 > > -----Original Message----- > From: Keith Wright via WLUG <wlug(a)lists.wlug.org> > Sent: Tuesday, April 11, 2023 12:25 AM > To: Worcester Linux Users' Group General Discussion <wlug(a)lists.wlug.org> > Cc: wlug(a)lists.wlug.org; Keith Wright <kwright(a)keithdiane.us> > Subject: [EXT] [WLUG] I need advice on a new ISP > > Well, the BIG problem that I have feared so long has arrived. > > GTT (my ISP) sent me a letter. The letter does not mention it, but GTT has filed for bankruptcy protection. > > The letter is full of things that I do not fully understand, but the bottom line is: "We no longer want to do business with you. You have a few months to get a new ISP, then we will unplug the wire." > > It seems there is not enough money to be made by charging a monthly fee to leave everything as it is. > > I have had the same IPv4 address for almost exactly 20 years and a lot things depend on that. There are three domain names that point to that address. There is a name server, a mail server, and a web server. > > I don't know how many of those things can be kept working with a new ISP. I will spend a few days asking for advice, and then decide. > > I don't have much hope of keeping the IP address with a new ISP, but I would like to keep my domain names and continue to send and receive mail with addresses in those domains, and to be able to put up web pages in those domains with a minimum of censorship and advertising. I don't need the name server if there is another way of doing this. > > Currently, that is all done via a DSL line to my basement. It seems that the new way is to "spin up" a virtual machine in the "cloud", and run Linux and servers from there. I don't know much about that. > > I live in Worcester, about a mile from WPI. > > More details can be read here: > http://www.free-comp-shop.com/none/lossage.html > at least for a few more months. > > -- Keith > _______________________________________________ > WLUG mailing list -- wlug(a)lists.wlug.org To unsubscribe send an email to wlug-leave(a)lists.wlug.org Create Account: https://wlug.mailman3.com/accounts/signup/ > Change Settings: https://wlug.mailman3.com/postorius/lists/wlug.lists.wlug.org/ > Web Forum/Archive: https://wlug.mailman3.com/hyperkitty/list/wlug@lists.wlug.org/message/EUTXN… > _______________________________________________ > WLUG mailing list -- wlug(a)lists.wlug.org > To unsubscribe send an email to wlug-leave(a)lists.wlug.org > Create Account: https://wlug.mailman3.com/accounts/signup/ > Change Settings: https://wlug.mailman3.com/postorius/lists/wlug.lists.wlug.org/ > Web Forum/Archive: https://wlug.mailman3.com/hyperkitty/list/wlug@lists.wlug.org/message/IMJWZ…

April 15, 2023

Re: [EXT] I need advice on a new ISP

by Keith Wright

"Bacon, John via WLUG" <wlug(a)lists.wlug.org> writes: > So I suspect that it's not GTT that is really providing DSL > but more likely Verizon. Yes. I am not sure what GTT is doing for me. If anything goes wrong they blame Verizon. I think GTT controls the routing of my IP address. They send packets to Verizon and pay them to deliver them to my house. > And since VZ is trying to get out of the copper business I don't have a copper fetish. I have a DSL modem, which is controlled by GTT. I think it's garbage if GTT does not keep making it work. On the front of the modem is an RJ45 socket. I plug one end of a cable into that and the other end into a ethernet card in an old Linux machine. IP packets with my address show up there, I don't really care how. > Im not sure where your web servers are hosted They are hosted on the afore mentioned Linux running Apache. The mailserver is the same machine running Postfix. There is a second ethernet card in that machine, which connects to my home network. http://www.free-comp-shop.com/none/wireless.html#diagram -- Keith

April 13, 2023

Re: [EXT] I need advice on a new ISP

by Bacon, John

So I suspect that it's not GTT that is really providing DSL but more likely Verizon. And since VZ is trying to get out of the copper business that is why your dilemma. Since your in Worcester there are not many options. Charter Business or maybe going Cell based Business. However Verizon is working to roll out Fios in the city so maybe they will get your neighborhood before your disconnected. Im not sure where your web servers are hosted but you can use some web host company. I use TurnKey Internet (Latham, NY) Best of luck John Bacon WORCESTER POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE Network Operations 100 Institute Road Worcester, MA | 01609-2280 508-831-5000 -----Original Message----- From: Keith Wright via WLUG <wlug(a)lists.wlug.org> Sent: Tuesday, April 11, 2023 12:25 AM To: Worcester Linux Users' Group General Discussion <wlug(a)lists.wlug.org> Cc: wlug(a)lists.wlug.org; Keith Wright <kwright(a)keithdiane.us> Subject: [EXT] [WLUG] I need advice on a new ISP Well, the BIG problem that I have feared so long has arrived. GTT (my ISP) sent me a letter. The letter does not mention it, but GTT has filed for bankruptcy protection. The letter is full of things that I do not fully understand, but the bottom line is: "We no longer want to do business with you. You have a few months to get a new ISP, then we will unplug the wire." It seems there is not enough money to be made by charging a monthly fee to leave everything as it is. I have had the same IPv4 address for almost exactly 20 years and a lot things depend on that. There are three domain names that point to that address. There is a name server, a mail server, and a web server. I don't know how many of those things can be kept working with a new ISP. I will spend a few days asking for advice, and then decide. I don't have much hope of keeping the IP address with a new ISP, but I would like to keep my domain names and continue to send and receive mail with addresses in those domains, and to be able to put up web pages in those domains with a minimum of censorship and advertising. I don't need the name server if there is another way of doing this. Currently, that is all done via a DSL line to my basement. It seems that the new way is to "spin up" a virtual machine in the "cloud", and run Linux and servers from there. I don't know much about that. I live in Worcester, about a mile from WPI. More details can be read here: http://www.free-comp-shop.com/none/lossage.html at least for a few more months. -- Keith _______________________________________________ WLUG mailing list -- wlug(a)lists.wlug.org To unsubscribe send an email to wlug-leave(a)lists.wlug.org Create Account: https://wlug.mailman3.com/accounts/signup/ Change Settings: https://wlug.mailman3.com/postorius/lists/wlug.lists.wlug.org/ Web Forum/Archive: https://wlug.mailman3.com/hyperkitty/list/wlug@lists.wlug.org/message/EUTXN…

April 13, 2023

Re: I need advice on a new ISP

by John Stoffel

>>>>> "Chuck" == Chuck Anderson <cra(a)fea.st> writes: > On Wed, Apr 12, 2023 at 05:14:31PM -0400, John Stoffel wrote: >> > If you can hold your nose, Oracle Cloud offers free forever instances. >> > That is where the WLUG website and DNS server is running these days. >> >> > https://www.oracle.com/cloud/free/ >> >> > These are probablhy the most relevant free services you could use to >> > replicate what you have at home now: >> >> And what's the price? > Free forever. With google's history of just dumping products randommly and without notice? No thanks...

April 13, 2023

Re: I need advice on a new ISP

by Althea Shaheen

Oracle cloud has been awesome for me for well over a year now. They provide quite a lot for free and are very good about not letting you enable things that are not free by accident. I just make sure to have good backups of my data there, in case they decide to take it away, but that's good advice with anything really :) On Thu, Apr 13, 2023, at 08:33, Chuck Anderson via WLUG wrote: > I would give a talk on how to set up Oracle Cloud manually--no Ansible > or other automation. > > On Thu, Apr 13, 2023 at 07:59:14AM -0400, Doug Mildram via WLUG wrote: >> Doug/dmildram> The free Oracle cloud >> setup talk sounds awesome. >> >> I'd expect it would take quite some time, >> both for presenter to prepare AND >> maybe even for the meeting timeframe. >> John, I think I may get as well try to >> not learn what Ansible is >> (being less into code control, node >> automation, myself... >> though I've seen an amazing amount >> of interest on them on this group, >> then pondered how we balance the >> various knowledge/skill levels in wlug). >> >> Am I right to assume that for a one-off, >> i.e. one personal/home user wanting >> free cloud storage and maybe email, >> that the Ansible angle should >> be postponed to follow >> a dumber/simpler?? How To talk? >> >> --Background just to expose my mind: >> I was a unix sysadin for decades >> since 1985, but my modern skills got >> out of date around 2000. Fortunately >> for me, I lucked into working with >> Chuck,Frank, many others as a WPI >> network engineer 2010-2019. Thus, >> not a sysadmin any longer but just a >> cubicle wall away from all kinds of >> IT evolution via WPI. Heck, even the >> WPI IT sysadmins leaned a bit?more? >> on the brains in NetOps ! --love, doug >> >> On Wed, Apr 12, 2023, 10:24 PM Chuck Anderson via WLUG <wlug(a)lists.wlug.org> >> wrote: >> >> > On Wed, Apr 12, 2023 at 05:14:31PM -0400, John Stoffel wrote: >> > > > If you can hold your nose, Oracle Cloud offers free forever instances. >> > > > That is where the WLUG website and DNS server is running these days. >> > > >> > > > https://www.oracle.com/cloud/free/ >> > > >> > > > These are probablhy the most relevant free services you could use to >> > > > replicate what you have at home now: >> > > >> > > And what's the price? >> > >> > Free forever. > _______________________________________________ > WLUG mailing list -- wlug(a)lists.wlug.org > To unsubscribe send an email to wlug-leave(a)lists.wlug.org > Create Account: https://wlug.mailman3.com/accounts/signup/ > Change Settings: > https://wlug.mailman3.com/postorius/lists/wlug.lists.wlug.org/ > Web Forum/Archive: > https://wlug.mailman3.com/hyperkitty/list/wlug@lists.wlug.org/message/XTNSW…

April 13, 2023

Re: I need advice on a new ISP

by Chuck Anderson

I would give a talk on how to set up Oracle Cloud manually--no Ansible or other automation. On Thu, Apr 13, 2023 at 07:59:14AM -0400, Doug Mildram via WLUG wrote: > Doug/dmildram> The free Oracle cloud > setup talk sounds awesome. > > I'd expect it would take quite some time, > both for presenter to prepare AND > maybe even for the meeting timeframe. > John, I think I may get as well try to > not learn what Ansible is > (being less into code control, node > automation, myself... > though I've seen an amazing amount > of interest on them on this group, > then pondered how we balance the > various knowledge/skill levels in wlug). > > Am I right to assume that for a one-off, > i.e. one personal/home user wanting > free cloud storage and maybe email, > that the Ansible angle should > be postponed to follow > a dumber/simpler?? How To talk? > > --Background just to expose my mind: > I was a unix sysadin for decades > since 1985, but my modern skills got > out of date around 2000. Fortunately > for me, I lucked into working with > Chuck,Frank, many others as a WPI > network engineer 2010-2019. Thus, > not a sysadmin any longer but just a > cubicle wall away from all kinds of > IT evolution via WPI. Heck, even the > WPI IT sysadmins leaned a bit?more? > on the brains in NetOps ! --love, doug > > On Wed, Apr 12, 2023, 10:24 PM Chuck Anderson via WLUG <wlug(a)lists.wlug.org> > wrote: > > > On Wed, Apr 12, 2023 at 05:14:31PM -0400, John Stoffel wrote: > > > > If you can hold your nose, Oracle Cloud offers free forever instances. > > > > That is where the WLUG website and DNS server is running these days. > > > > > > > https://www.oracle.com/cloud/free/ > > > > > > > These are probablhy the most relevant free services you could use to > > > > replicate what you have at home now: > > > > > > And what's the price? > > > > Free forever.

April 13, 2023

Re: I need advice on a new ISP

by Doug Mildram

Doug/dmildram> The free Oracle cloud setup talk sounds awesome. I'd expect it would take quite some time, both for presenter to prepare AND maybe even for the meeting timeframe. John, I think I may get as well try to not learn what Ansible is (being less into code control, node automation, myself... though I've seen an amazing amount of interest on them on this group, then pondered how we balance the various knowledge/skill levels in wlug). Am I right to assume that for a one-off, i.e. one personal/home user wanting free cloud storage and maybe email, that the Ansible angle should be postponed to follow a dumber/simpler?? How To talk? --Background just to expose my mind: I was a unix sysadin for decades since 1985, but my modern skills got out of date around 2000. Fortunately for me, I lucked into working with Chuck,Frank, many others as a WPI network engineer 2010-2019. Thus, not a sysadmin any longer but just a cubicle wall away from all kinds of IT evolution via WPI. Heck, even the WPI IT sysadmins leaned a bit?more? on the brains in NetOps ! --love, doug On Wed, Apr 12, 2023, 10:24 PM Chuck Anderson via WLUG <wlug(a)lists.wlug.org> wrote: > On Wed, Apr 12, 2023 at 05:14:31PM -0400, John Stoffel wrote: > > > If you can hold your nose, Oracle Cloud offers free forever instances. > > > That is where the WLUG website and DNS server is running these days. > > > > > https://www.oracle.com/cloud/free/ > > > > > These are probablhy the most relevant free services you could use to > > > replicate what you have at home now: > > > > And what's the price? > > Free forever. > _______________________________________________ > WLUG mailing list -- wlug(a)lists.wlug.org > To unsubscribe send an email to wlug-leave(a)lists.wlug.org > Create Account: https://wlug.mailman3.com/accounts/signup/ > Change Settings: > https://wlug.mailman3.com/postorius/lists/wlug.lists.wlug.org/ > Web Forum/Archive: > https://wlug.mailman3.com/hyperkitty/list/wlug@lists.wlug.org/message/MCOR4… >

April 13, 2023

Re: I need advice on a new ISP

by soup

I've no love for oracle but OCI is probably one of the better deals for a 'traditional' cloud provider. The 10TB out finally forced AWS to increase their free-tier and it's still a fraction of that at 100GB, from 1GB. Their ARM works well for my purposes but is slower than graviton, not a concern here certainly. -soup On Wed, Apr 12, 2023 at 10:24 PM Chuck Anderson via WLUG < wlug(a)lists.wlug.org> wrote: > On Wed, Apr 12, 2023 at 05:14:31PM -0400, John Stoffel wrote: > > > If you can hold your nose, Oracle Cloud offers free forever instances. > > > That is where the WLUG website and DNS server is running these days. > > > > > https://www.oracle.com/cloud/free/ > > > > > These are probablhy the most relevant free services you could use to > > > replicate what you have at home now: > > > > And what's the price? > > Free forever. > _______________________________________________ > WLUG mailing list -- wlug(a)lists.wlug.org > To unsubscribe send an email to wlug-leave(a)lists.wlug.org > Create Account: https://wlug.mailman3.com/accounts/signup/ > Change Settings: > https://wlug.mailman3.com/postorius/lists/wlug.lists.wlug.org/ > Web Forum/Archive: > https://wlug.mailman3.com/hyperkitty/list/wlug@lists.wlug.org/message/MCOR4… >

April 13, 2023

Re: I need advice on a new ISP

by Chuck Anderson

On Wed, Apr 12, 2023 at 05:14:31PM -0400, John Stoffel wrote: > > If you can hold your nose, Oracle Cloud offers free forever instances. > > That is where the WLUG website and DNS server is running these days. > > > https://www.oracle.com/cloud/free/ > > > These are probablhy the most relevant free services you could use to > > replicate what you have at home now: > > And what's the price? Free forever.

April 13, 2023