3Com router and P2P problems

x-posted to alt.internet.p2p, uk.comp.home-networking

I have just bought a 3Com 3CRWE754G72 router. I have got it set up OK but
the connection keeps dropping. I have read half a dozen forums and I am
awaiting a response from the supplier (www.EBuyer.com) and also 3Com
themselves. Can anyone here share their experiences?

The router is set up to dish out IP addresses via DHCP, and NAT is switched
on. There are two wi-fi connected laptops, and one wired (ethernet) desktop
computer. Each machine can see the internet OK but periodically (every hour
or two) the router drops all connections. The desktop is XP as is one
laptop -the other is Win98.

When this dropout/crash/reboot happens, the wifi IP addresses get
reestablished immediately and the laptops are reconnected smoothly (i.e. the
ADSL modem in the router re-dials OK and DHCP renews thew WiFi addresses
OK).

However, the wired PC ends up with an automatic IPaddress which is out of
the DHCP range. I have to reboot the desktop machine in order to get a new
IP (using commandline ipconfig/release or /renew doesn't work).

It *might* be related to running P2P software - some 3Com knowledgebase
comments suggest limiting thenumber of peers seen, so as to avoid
overloading the firewall. So I have done that AND I have disabled the
firewall - the thing still crashes though, and I still lose wired
connectivity.

I have set the DHCP lease to "forever" and I have set the ADSL idle time to
"Zero", so those two things are not causing the reset.

I have port forwarded the P2P port which in my case is 27698 - but now I
have disabled the firewall, this is irrelevant I think.

When I look in the router log, I just see things like

09/08/2004 00:50:01 **LAND** 212.159.XXX.XXX, 1203->> 212.159.XXX.XXX,
25178 (from ATM Inbound)
09/08/2004 00:49:55 **LAND** 212.159.XXX.XXX, 1203->> 212.159.XXX.XXX,
25178 (from ATM Inbound)
09/08/2004 00:49:52 **LAND** 212.159.XXX.XXX, 1203->> 212.159.XXX.XXX,
25178 (from ATM Inbound)
09/08/2004 00:47:31 **LAND** 212.159.XXX.XXX, 1108->> 212.159.XXX.XXX,
25178 (from ATM Inbound)
09/08/2004 00:47:25 **LAND** 212.159.XXX.XXX, 1108->> 212.159.XXX.XXX,
25178 (from ATM Inbound)

and also

9/08/2004 00:39:25 **UDP Flood to Host** 81.155.120.122, 23020->>
212.159.XXX.XXX, 27698 (from ATM Inbound)
09/08/2004 00:39:25 **UDP Flood to Host** 81.15.189.252, 6346->>
212.159.XXX.XXX, 27698 (from ATM Inbound)
09/08/2004 00:39:25 **UDP Flood to Host** 82.141.52.59, 800->>
212.159.XXX.XXX, 27698 (from ATM Inbound)
09/08/2004 00:39:25 **UDP Flood to Host** 82.224.29.128, 6346->>
212.159.XXX.XXX, 27698 (from ATM Inbound)
09/08/2004 00:39:25 **UDP Flood to Host** 67.66.92.168, 21972->>
212.159.XXX.XXX, 27698 (from ATM Inbound)
09/08/2004 00:39:25 **UDP Flood to Host** 61.62.162.236, 45523->>
212.159.XXX.XXX, 27698 (from ATM Inbound)

Does any of this give any of you n idea if my router is being flooded with
packets, and it crashes for some reason? I don't know enough about how
routers work to be able to say.

I am about to return this router to EBuyer - can anyone recommend an
alternative (Cisco would be good but costs a fortune!)?

Cheers

RMC, England

Why not in the first instance define local IP's and not use DHCP as it's
insecure and un-neccessary.
I use the range 192.168.0.1 - 4 for local PC's where 192.168.0.1 is the
router.
Primarily my reason for this is that if I run p2p on a PC I want to be sure
it always has the same IP as I've port forwarded a few ports on the router
to this specific IP address. If you disable the FW you still need port
forwarding so re-enable the firewall when you have things sorted.

"RMC" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed)...
> x-posted to alt.internet.p2p, uk.comp.home-networking
>
> I have just bought a 3Com 3CRWE754G72 router. I have got it set up OK
but
> the connection keeps dropping. I have read half a dozen forums and I am
> awaiting a response from the supplier (www.EBuyer.com) and also 3Com
> themselves. Can anyone here share their experiences?
>
> The router is set up to dish out IP addresses via DHCP, and NAT is
switched
> on. There are two wi-fi connected laptops, and one wired (ethernet)
desktop
> computer. Each machine can see the internet OK but periodically (every
hour
> or two) the router drops all connections. The desktop is XP as is one
> laptop -the other is Win98.
>
> When this dropout/crash/reboot happens, the wifi IP addresses get
> reestablished immediately and the laptops are reconnected smoothly (i.e.
the
> ADSL modem in the router re-dials OK and DHCP renews thew WiFi addresses
> OK).
>
> However, the wired PC ends up with an automatic IPaddress which is out of
> the DHCP range. I have to reboot the desktop machine in order to get a new
> IP (using commandline ipconfig/release or /renew doesn't work).
>
> It *might* be related to running P2P software - some 3Com knowledgebase
> comments suggest limiting thenumber of peers seen, so as to avoid
> overloading the firewall. So I have done that AND I have disabled the
> firewall - the thing still crashes though, and I still lose wired
> connectivity.
>
> I have set the DHCP lease to "forever" and I have set the ADSL idle time
to
> "Zero", so those two things are not causing the reset.
>
> I have port forwarded the P2P port which in my case is 27698 - but now I
> have disabled the firewall, this is irrelevant I think.
>
> When I look in the router log, I just see things like
>
> 09/08/2004 00:50:01 **LAND** 212.159.XXX.XXX, 1203->> 212.159.XXX.XXX,
> 25178 (from ATM Inbound)
> 09/08/2004 00:49:55 **LAND** 212.159.XXX.XXX, 1203->> 212.159.XXX.XXX,
> 25178 (from ATM Inbound)
> 09/08/2004 00:49:52 **LAND** 212.159.XXX.XXX, 1203->> 212.159.XXX.XXX,
> 25178 (from ATM Inbound)
> 09/08/2004 00:47:31 **LAND** 212.159.XXX.XXX, 1108->> 212.159.XXX.XXX,
> 25178 (from ATM Inbound)
> 09/08/2004 00:47:25 **LAND** 212.159.XXX.XXX, 1108->> 212.159.XXX.XXX,
> 25178 (from ATM Inbound)
>
> and also
>
> 9/08/2004 00:39:25 **UDP Flood to Host** 81.155.120.122, 23020->>
> 212.159.XXX.XXX, 27698 (from ATM Inbound)
> 09/08/2004 00:39:25 **UDP Flood to Host** 81.15.189.252, 6346->>
> 212.159.XXX.XXX, 27698 (from ATM Inbound)
> 09/08/2004 00:39:25 **UDP Flood to Host** 82.141.52.59, 800->>
> 212.159.XXX.XXX, 27698 (from ATM Inbound)
> 09/08/2004 00:39:25 **UDP Flood to Host** 82.224.29.128, 6346->>
> 212.159.XXX.XXX, 27698 (from ATM Inbound)
> 09/08/2004 00:39:25 **UDP Flood to Host** 67.66.92.168, 21972->>
> 212.159.XXX.XXX, 27698 (from ATM Inbound)
> 09/08/2004 00:39:25 **UDP Flood to Host** 61.62.162.236, 45523->>
> 212.159.XXX.XXX, 27698 (from ATM Inbound)
>
> Does any of this give any of you n idea if my router is being flooded with
> packets, and it crashes for some reason? I don't know enough about how
> routers work to be able to say.
>
> I am about to return this router to EBuyer - can anyone recommend an
> alternative (Cisco would be good but costs a fortune!)?
>
> Cheers
>
> RMC, England
>
>

I haven't tried it , mainly because ofmy lack of understanding. I assumed
that NAT required DHCP to be present. I thought that my ISP would require
NAT to exist, so that my three computers would all appear as one IP address
( the static one assigned by my ISP). Can I do without NAT and/or DHCP then?

I'll give your suggestion a try and let you know what happens. thanks for
the guidance.

RMC, England


> Why not in the first instance define local IP's and not use DHCP as it's
> insecure and un-neccessary.


> "RMC" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
> news:(E-Mail Removed)...
>> x-posted to alt.internet.p2p, uk.comp.home-networking
>> The router is set up to dish out IP addresses via DHCP, and NAT is
> switched
>> on.

"RMC" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote...
> I haven't tried it , mainly because ofmy lack of understanding. I assumed
> that NAT required DHCP to be present. I thought that my ISP would require
> NAT to exist, so that my three computers would all appear as one IP
address
> ( the static one assigned by my ISP). Can I do without NAT and/or DHCP
then?

DHCP Dynamic Host Config Protocol basically just allocates an IP from a
range (as defined on the router) on an ad hoc basis to any PC's added to the
LAN network i.e. PC added to LAN and Router allocates an IP address. You can
have fixed/static IP's on your LAN if you want.
Disable DHCP but define an allowed range of IP's on the router for the LAN
(This may be a range or an IP with subnet mask). Then on PC1 select
properties (right click) for My Network Places (on desktop) select LAN
properties then TCP/IP properties and define IP addresses etc An example is
PC1 IP 192.168.0.2 Mask 255.255.255.0 Gateway 192.168.0.1 DNS 192.168.0.1
(Router is of course the first IP in the range and acts as Gateway and DNS)
Reboot and run ipconfig to make sure all went well. Then check internet
browsing if all ok then do the same for your other PC's.
When you have it all set-up then port forward whichever ports are required
to the specific PC running p2p app such as PC1 192.168.0.2 Port 4662 or
whatever.
Next time you power cycle/reboot PC or Router everything will work as
expected as the IP's are static internally.

NAT Network Address Translation translates requests from your local LAN PC's
to and from the outside world i.e. It remembers who requested a connection
and routes these requests back to the originator on the LAN. As you only
have one external WAN IP and several internal LAN computers NAT will always
be required.

> I'll give your suggestion a try and let you know what happens. thanks for
> the guidance.

welcome

>> ( the static one assigned by my ISP). Can I do without NAT and/or DHCP
>> then?

> DHCP Dynamic Host Config Protocol basically just allocates an IP from a
> range

Wow - thanks for that comprehensive reply! I will be following all of that
later tonight and I'll give it a go. I'm determined to crack this problem -
luckily I have found some help from you so I am now in with a good chance.

I'm suffering from a bad headcold at the moment, hence my slow aproach -
hopefully get it cracked later tonight though! (the computer I mean!)

Thanks once again

RMC, England

"RMC" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed)...
>
> >> ( the static one assigned by my ISP). Can I do without NAT and/or DHCP
> >> then?
>
> > DHCP Dynamic Host Config Protocol basically just allocates an IP from a
> > range
>
> Wow - thanks for that comprehensive reply! I will be following all of that
> later tonight and I'll give it a go. I'm determined to crack this
problem -
> luckily I have found some help from you so I am now in with a good chance.
>
> I'm suffering from a bad headcold at the moment, hence my slow aproach -
> hopefully get it cracked later tonight though! (the computer I mean!)

Yeah, get with it! I knew you knew ... you was just testin' me right?
That took me about the time to drink a cold guinness so by all accounts you
owe me a extra cold!

Your router is on its last legs and soon won't work at all. Routers usually
behave like this then stop working altogether. I've never used a router that
lasted more than 6 months but i've never spent more than 500 dollars for a
router. I think nexland was the only brand that worked for 3 years or more.
Should've bought nexland the first time now i've given up on routers as they
just croak.
"RMC" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed)...
> x-posted to alt.internet.p2p, uk.comp.home-networking
>
> I have just bought a 3Com 3CRWE754G72 router. I have got it set up OK
> but the connection keeps dropping. I have read half a dozen forums and I
> am awaiting a response from the supplier (www.EBuyer.com) and also 3Com
> themselves. Can anyone here share their experiences?
>
> The router is set up to dish out IP addresses via DHCP, and NAT is
> switched on. There are two wi-fi connected laptops, and one wired
> (ethernet) desktop computer. Each machine can see the internet OK but
> periodically (every hour or two) the router drops all connections. The
> desktop is XP as is one laptop -the other is Win98.
>
> When this dropout/crash/reboot happens, the wifi IP addresses get
> reestablished immediately and the laptops are reconnected smoothly (i.e.
> the ADSL modem in the router re-dials OK and DHCP renews thew WiFi
> addresses OK).
>
> However, the wired PC ends up with an automatic IPaddress which is out of
> the DHCP range. I have to reboot the desktop machine in order to get a new
> IP (using commandline ipconfig/release or /renew doesn't work).
>
> It *might* be related to running P2P software - some 3Com knowledgebase
> comments suggest limiting thenumber of peers seen, so as to avoid
> overloading the firewall. So I have done that AND I have disabled the
> firewall - the thing still crashes though, and I still lose wired
> connectivity.
>
> I have set the DHCP lease to "forever" and I have set the ADSL idle time
> to "Zero", so those two things are not causing the reset.
>
> I have port forwarded the P2P port which in my case is 27698 - but now I
> have disabled the firewall, this is irrelevant I think.
>
> When I look in the router log, I just see things like
>
> 09/08/2004 00:50:01 **LAND** 212.159.XXX.XXX, 1203->> 212.159.XXX.XXX,
> 25178 (from ATM Inbound)
> 09/08/2004 00:49:55 **LAND** 212.159.XXX.XXX, 1203->> 212.159.XXX.XXX,
> 25178 (from ATM Inbound)
> 09/08/2004 00:49:52 **LAND** 212.159.XXX.XXX, 1203->> 212.159.XXX.XXX,
> 25178 (from ATM Inbound)
> 09/08/2004 00:47:31 **LAND** 212.159.XXX.XXX, 1108->> 212.159.XXX.XXX,
> 25178 (from ATM Inbound)
> 09/08/2004 00:47:25 **LAND** 212.159.XXX.XXX, 1108->> 212.159.XXX.XXX,
> 25178 (from ATM Inbound)
>
> and also
>
> 9/08/2004 00:39:25 **UDP Flood to Host** 81.155.120.122, 23020->>
> 212.159.XXX.XXX, 27698 (from ATM Inbound)
> 09/08/2004 00:39:25 **UDP Flood to Host** 81.15.189.252, 6346->>
> 212.159.XXX.XXX, 27698 (from ATM Inbound)
> 09/08/2004 00:39:25 **UDP Flood to Host** 82.141.52.59, 800->>
> 212.159.XXX.XXX, 27698 (from ATM Inbound)
> 09/08/2004 00:39:25 **UDP Flood to Host** 82.224.29.128, 6346->>
> 212.159.XXX.XXX, 27698 (from ATM Inbound)
> 09/08/2004 00:39:25 **UDP Flood to Host** 67.66.92.168, 21972->>
> 212.159.XXX.XXX, 27698 (from ATM Inbound)
> 09/08/2004 00:39:25 **UDP Flood to Host** 61.62.162.236, 45523->>
> 212.159.XXX.XXX, 27698 (from ATM Inbound)
>
> Does any of this give any of you n idea if my router is being flooded with
> packets, and it crashes for some reason? I don't know enough about how
> routers work to be able to say.
>
> I am about to return this router to EBuyer - can anyone recommend an
> alternative (Cisco would be good but costs a fortune!)?
>
> Cheers
>
> RMC, England
>

> Your router is on its last legs and soon won't work at all. Routers
> usually behave like this then stop working altogether. I've never used a
> router that lasted more than 6 months but i've never spent more than 500
> dollars for a router. I think nexland was the only brand that worked for 3
> years or more. Should've bought nexland the first time now i've given up
> on routers as they just croak.

Well, that's not too much of a problem for me - I only bought it a week ago.
I've a feeling that it will turn out to be a firmware setting issue rather
than a hardware failure, but thanks for your comments , I will bear them in
mind.

Cheers

RMC, England