"Disconnect" from Web using DSL

Hi,

I have always used Dial Up, and on Nov 4 my DSL service begins.
I have learned a lot from this NG, and I still have more to learn.

With Dial Up, when I "disconnected", I knew my Win98 computer no longer
had a "gateway" to the Internet.

Note: I will be using Verizon's DSL modem/router, Westell 7500, with
wireless turned off. One Win98se computer (NIC) connected via Ethernet (CAT5)
cable to the DSL modem/router.

There is no "disconnect" action as far as I know. As long as my computer
is powered up, and it usually is all day long every day, will my computer have
an open "gateway" to the Internet?

If so, instead of disconnecting the Ethernet cable, or turning off (power
switch) the DSL modem, is there another way to "disconnect" from the
Internet?

Thank You in Advance, John

wrote in
:

Note: I will be using Verizon's DSL modem/router, Westell 7500,
with
wireless turned off. One Win98se computer (NIC) connected via Ethernet
(CAT5) cable to the DSL modem/router.

There is no "disconnect" action as far as I know. As long as my
computer
is powered up, and it usually is all day long every day, will my
computer have an open "gateway" to the Internet?


Yes. So you're right to consider this, you want the easiest gate you can find
to open and close at will. There are several ways to do it...

The easiest and most secure is a switched box that acts like an adapter to
the CAT5 line, a box fitted with RJ45 connectors and a switch. The main
disadvantage of this is that if you forgot to let it stay switched ON during
boot, the computer won't get DHCP-based IP settings so if you switch on AFTER
booting, you might wish you'd set up static IP values for DNS, gateway,
netmask, as mentioned in some previous posts by me and others (and commonly
found as advice on the web too).

One thing you WILL need, no matter what, is a good firewall that takes few
resources and works to stop programs (processes) from connecting to the web
from your machine, as well as limiting external connection attempts. I
STRONGLY recommend LnS (Look 'n' Stop). It has a silly name, I think, but is
by FAR the best firewall invented in well over ten years, and I tried many,
at length, and studied experts in net security too, this IS an excellent
program, so unless you are totally sure you found a better one, use that one.

Most firewalls may provide not provide a switch to disconnect the net (or
rather, block all packets, regardless of type, incoming or outgoing), but you
can set a rule to do this, and switch it on and off at will, which will save
you buying a hardware switch, AND avoid the DHCP problem as boot caused by a
hardware switch set to OFF.

One important thing that LnS firewall does, other than protecting against
network packets you don't want either coming, or going, is to guard the gate
from access by unknown processes on your machine. USE this. It is BY FAR a
better protection than antivirus, given that these days, there is little
point in viruses that do not attempt to access the net. After all, this is
the ONLY way a remote hacker can use your machine, so don't worry about HOW
they do it. All LnS cares about is that they DO it, and it will warn you,
defaulting to stop the action, so it won't happen without you being in a good
position to stop it.

Once you get used to this way of thinking (It takes time, after being used to
dial-up, I think it took me several months to feel ok about it), you will
find it more comfortable knowing the line IS always connected, and you'll
feel more uneasy if it ever stops, which is one of those things you probably
already know about, if you've ever had to try pinging and tracing to see if
your net connection works right.

If so, instead of disconnecting the Ethernet cable, or turning off
(power
switch) the DSL modem, is there another way to "disconnect" from the
Internet?


See above..

In summary, short term: pull the ACT5 line's RJ45 plug if in doubt, it's
always the fastest, most secure, and easiest move to reverse. Long term, get
used to LnS firewall (unless you are VERY sure that what you choose instead
really IS better in terms of good network analysis, not just personal
preferences) because it will solve your need, and plenty more, without being
obvious about it once you're used to it.

wrote in
:

If so, instead of disconnecting the Ethernet cable, or turning off
(power
switch) the DSL modem, is there another way to "disconnect" from the
Internet?


One way you might like that I didn't mention is to use a browser to
disconnect the modem from the net by accessing its status page(s).

There is a reason I didn't mention it though: you can't be sure that there is
no way the ISP can over-ride this. A power failure will likely set it
connected again after power returns. And it's a fiddly task, and if your
browser fails, things can get very annoying very fast, so if you use a good
firewall it's your best bet because to use it, you'll stay familiar with
enough detail to keep yourself safe with minimal inconvenience. Modems often
have their own firewalls, but I trust LnS far better for this than the
modem's own so I disable the built-in one in mine.

One thing to look at is the grc.com 'shield's up' web page. It's a fast way
to learn and test for basic network security.

wrote:

There is no "disconnect" action as far as I know.

There are settings in some modems to perform a PPPoE login upon demand,
with a corresponding "idle" time (default can be something like 5
minutes). That means given 5 minutes of internet inactivity, the modem
will automatically disconnect.

You may be under the impression that while your dsl modem has an
internet connection, that you can't use your telephone. That is true if
you have a dial-up modem, but it is not true for a DSL modem. You can
have an active DSL internet connection and make/receive phone calls.

I myself make sure that my modem is connected all the time, as there is
really no practical reason why anyone would want to disconnect their
modem from the internet.

As long as my computer is powered up, and it usually is all day
long every day, will my computer have an open "gateway" to the
Internet?

Yes. Why does that bother you?

There is really no practical or technical reason for seeking to limit
this connectivity as you envision.

On Sun, 16 Oct 2011 12:51:58 -0500, Lostgallifreyan
put finger to keyboard and composed:

wrote in
:

If so, instead of disconnecting the Ethernet cable, or turning off
(power
switch) the DSL modem, is there another way to "disconnect" from the
Internet?


One way you might like that I didn't mention is to use a browser to
disconnect the modem from the net by accessing its status page(s).

There is a reason I didn't mention it though: you can't be sure that there is
no way the ISP can over-ride this. A power failure will likely set it
connected again after power returns.

That's exactly how I do it.

I have reconfigured my modem to power up in the disconnected state:
http://www.users.on.net/~fzabkar/DSL...ion_Status.htm

When I launch my browser, I do it from a shortcut that directs it to
the modem's "status" page:
http://www.users.on.net/~fzabkar/DSL...ystem_View.htm

You could also make the status page your browser's home page.

- Franc Zabkar
--
Please remove one 'i' from my address when replying by email.

Franc Zabkar wrote:

I have reconfigured my modem to power up in the disconnected state:

When I launch my browser, I do it from a shortcut that directs it to
the modem's "status" page:

Franc, what are you accomplishing by limiting your computer's internet
connectivity to specific episodes instead of having a 24/7 internet
connection?

Franc Zabkar wrote in
:

On Sun, 16 Oct 2011 12:51:58 -0500, Lostgallifreyan
put finger to keyboard and composed:

wrote in
m:

If so, instead of disconnecting the Ethernet cable, or turning off
(power
switch) the DSL modem, is there another way to "disconnect" from the
Internet?


One way you might like that I didn't mention is to use a browser to
disconnect the modem from the net by accessing its status page(s).

There is a reason I didn't mention it though: you can't be sure that
there is no way the ISP can over-ride this. A power failure will likely
set it connected again after power returns.

That's exactly how I do it.

I have reconfigured my modem to power up in the disconnected state:
http://www.users.on.net/~fzabkar/DSL...ion_Status.htm

When I launch my browser, I do it from a shortcut that directs it to
the modem's "status" page:
http://www.users.on.net/~fzabkar/DSL...ystem_View.htm

You could also make the status page your browser's home page.


Both neat ideas. I never got into this because I use a router and needed to
make my security arrangements local to each machine (and a limited use of a
separate router that I built into one of them). One thing occurs to me, to do
what you did, you'd have to avoid tedious admin logins, no? In which case, is
it possible to access the modem's configs remotely from the internet? That
could be hazardous unless its own firewall helps to allow access without
login safely from the LAN side only.. (I'm assuming that your URL's in this
post are not actual modem configs, but copies hosted to illustrate...




One thing I was going to post earlier and thought better of because I said
plenty, is this (worth adding because it might work for someone) ...

With a firewall like LnS you can not only make a top priority block-all-
packets rule, you can make an easy switch for it similar to Franc's browser
shortcut. It's easier to use once it's set up. LnS firewall lets you set an
application link for a rule, such that the rule is only enabled (active) when
that application is launched and running. It does NOT have to be a network
program either, which is useful. It could be any tiny useless process you
want, so all it does is avoid wasting anything while it runs. It might as
well be doing nothing, but when LnS see it load, it will switch on a pass or
block rule made to operate when that program runs so on/off switching the
entire net connection for any machine on the local net can be done purely by
running or shutting down that tiny program. This can allow either state to be
set automatically at boot, and to be changed at any time more quickly and
conveniently than any other method. It might take some effort to set this up,
but once it's done, it cannot really get any easier. I imagine literally
EVERYONE who has ever used a Windows machine knows how to launch or close a
program in an emergency..

A person might argue that the weakness of the scheme is that if LnS crashes,
you lose security. I have used LnS for many years, and never seen it crash.
Even if the GUI crashed it would still be secure because the VXD that does
the grunt work will hang on even if there is no GUI to give it orders. I just
verified that you can deliberately terminate the program abnormally and
brutally with a task manager, and the VXD stays loaded, doing what ti should,
with whatever config it was last given, and that when you start the main
program it connects to the VXD and allows clean control again as if nothing
was ever wrong! Anyone who ever tried that trick with most of the more famous
firewalls likely knows that the result usually tears down the whole OS. LnS
deserves its reputation as one of the strongest, most reliable and least
obtrusive protections ever built for a Windows machine, and I suspect that
even if it IS outclassed for later OS's I doubt it can be so for a W98
machine. It is likely the only rigorously engineered firewall that is still
deliberately maintained to support W98. There is (I just discovered this...)
a PC Tools firewall that is apparently based on LnS, or is a rebranded
version.
Long-standing tech haunt for people using LnS firewall:
http://www.wilderssecurity.com/forumdisplay.php?f=28 (English)
http://www.wilderssecurity.com/forumdisplay.php?f=29 (French, different
content, not translations).
A very good place to get help with firewall rules and security in general...

Lostgallifreyan wrote in
:

snip

I think every ISP has a "home page" for your principal modem
[not THEIR home page, like www.comcast.com] if you have a
network which goes through one, or if you just have one like an
average home user. There are a bunch of settings there. Call
your ISP or look at the documentation you(may) have gotten from
them to get the address. In my case, "http://home" works,
strangely enough. I also have the IP address though.

Win 98SELite.

And I have a home made 2-outlet power bar with 2
outlets/switches into which my scanner and modem adapters are
plugged into. I turn them on and off with my toe, since it's in
the floor.

I do not believe in staying connected when not using the
internet, I don't care WHAT the stupid ISP's say. "You have to
leave your modem on 24/265 because we are constantly upgrading
our systems and you may experience problems if you turn it off",
etc.

thanatoid wrote in
:

I do not believe in staying connected when not using the
internet, I don't care WHAT the stupid ISP's say. "You have to
leave your modem on 24/265 because we are constantly upgrading
our systems and you may experience problems if you turn it off",
etc.



Nor do I. I mean, what can they do? Sue us for breach of contract if the
electricity supplier lets us down?! ISP staff have been known to say some of
the stupidest things ever uttered to anyone on the net, via the net or
otherwise.

The only reason I don't use this method myself is that a modem can take
several minutes to get back up. Maybe that's what they mean by 'problems'.

With a previous ISP I learned how to disable their ability to upgrade the
modem firmware. I tried to see if they noticed, and I don't think they ever
did.

Also, 'problems' are usually fixed, according to most ISP staff, EXACTLY by
turning off modems for a while. They surely can't have this both ways...

thanatoid wrote in
:

Win 98SELite.

And I have a home made 2-outlet power bar with 2
outlets/switches into which my scanner and modem adapters are
plugged into. I turn them on and off with my toe, since it's in
the floor.


I use the same OS, and I thought it worth adding that I turn off the computer
when unattended, unless some major task is running and needs the time. My W98
install (never mind the ultra-fast X98 I intend to work on again soon) boots
a lot faster than the modem can restart, so I leave the modem running. When I
really want to be sure a machine is offline during a night-time process run I
pull its RJ45, never mind all the other wheezes we can come up with. There is
NEVER any ambiguity or ambivalence about doing that.