Steve Discher's Blog

My blogs have always been technical in nature. I see challenges faced by our customers and try to solve them using the products and technologies I know through my experience. This one is going to be very different! For several … Continue reading →

Can’t remember a device’s IP Address? Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) requests can be used by Wireshark to get the IP address of an unknown host on your network. ARP is a broadcast request that’s meant to help the client machine … Continue reading →

The switch menu and configuration interface is significantly different on the CRS3xx versus the CRS1xx or CRS2xx series switches and if you are trying to configure VLANs, the process is totally different. Here is a quick HowTo for configuring VLANs … Continue reading →

Yesterday I got tired of the nagging “Update Available” on my Ubiquiti Video NVR so I went through the upgrade process in the web GUI. It failed with Error 400. I tried several times, several browsers, same error. I then … Continue reading →

This has been a dream for a long time, and a DIY project for those industrious individuals willing to cobble it together, but now it is a reality in a production device. First of all why would you want to … Continue reading →

Now available on the Playstore and the iPhone Appstore, the ISP Supplies App! With great features like a powerful search engine and a reorder list, it makes it fast and easy to place orders on the go. Favorite products for quick … Continue reading →

If you never used my web site https://mikrotikconfig.com to build firewalls and QOS, you have been working too hard! I recently (today) updated the database of IP addresses by Country to generate MikroTik IP Address Lists by country. Check it … Continue reading →

Several vulnerabilities and exploits have recently plagued MikroTIk users. Specifically, these vulnerabilities affected the RouterOS webfig configuration interface, if no firewall was put in place to protect it. Granted, you can be critical of MikroTik but after all, running without a … Continue reading →

I added this tech article today. Check it out on our support site: How To Install Baicells HaloB

With so many options of NAT, Router, Bridged, etc., it can be overwhelming to create the correct architecture for your first Baicells LTE deployment the first time. To facilitate this for you, I created a Baicells LTE HowTo Knowledge Base … Continue reading →

As someone that has organized and lead technical training for more than ten years, I can say I have been asked this question many times. The commonality is that most people are self-taught, and use certain products in the daily … Continue reading →

We are excited about the latest product from Baicells, the Nova 436. We received our first shipment late last week and this new LTE Base Station has some really cool features, never before seen from Baicells and not at this … Continue reading →

NOTE: Although I was able to make this work, it not work on all of Verizon’s US network outside large metro areas because the LTE card will not run Band 13. They are also not certified on Verizon so use … Continue reading →

From MikroTik: It has come to our attention that a rogue botnet is currently scanning random public IP addresses to find open Winbox (8291) and WWW (80) ports, to exploit a vulnerability in the RouterOS www server that was patched … Continue reading →

Chances are you have recently heard about Slingshot. A ZDNet article explains “Researchers at Kaspersky Lab have discovered espionage malware that appears to have been developed by a government to spy on targets across Africa and the Middle East for … Continue reading →

This year, 2018 marks my tenth year as a MikroTik trainer and I have been asked this question more times than I can count. Typically, the question is accompanied by the asker’s reasoning for asking the question. Their reasonings are … Continue reading →

HaloB is a feature that Baicells LTE introduced in February of 2018. Any Baicells eNodeB (eNB) can be purchased with or upgraded to HaloB through software feature activation. A HaloB eNB eliminates the transport layer between the Evolved Packet Core (EPC) … Continue reading →

HaloB is a feature that Baicells LTE introduced in February of 2018. Any Baicells eNodeB (eNB) can be purchased with or upgraded to HaloB through software feature activation. A HaloB eNB eliminates the transport layer between the Evolved Packet Core (EPC) … Continue reading →

If you are familiar with the Grandstream UCM VOIP PBX, you know the value of the Zero Configuration service. if not, Zero Configuration service allows you to create profiles that are common to all phones, certain models of phones or … Continue reading →

Has anyone noticed a new behavior for address lists in RouterOS? The release notes for 6.37.3 show “firewall – fixed timeout option on address lists with domain name;” but I don’t see when that feature was actually added. Specifically, if … Continue reading →

To properly select Ubiquiti gear for a point to point or point to multipoint link, this need to do proper planning. Fortunately, Ubiquiti has a great tool that allows you to try different products in a real-world link simulation to select … Continue reading →

Grandstream posted this today… A security vulnerability has recently been discovered in the UCM series IP PBX firmware version 1.0.14.23 or older. We highly recommend that any UCM customer upgrade their firmware version to 1.0.14.24 or 1.0.15.13 as soon as possible in … Continue reading →

Baicells LTE provides an L2 mode to bridge the UE’s. To change LGW mode, navigate to the Network -> LGW page. In LGW L2 mode, the eNB will create a virtual interface for every UE that attaches. Each virtual interface will then … Continue reading →

One word, auto configuration. That’s two words, ok, but if you scrunch it together it is one, autoconfiguration. My spell check keeps complaining about making it one but oh well. In the MikroTik world, enabling the MikroTik IPv6 package is really all … Continue reading →

Ubiquiti posted this recently and I thought it worth repeating. UniFi Access Points have always been built to be powered by PoE – it’s convenient, easy to setup and scalable. When we first started producing UniFi nearly 7 years ago, … Continue reading →

College Station, Texas: ISP Supplies, a leading provider of high-quality networking equipment, recently announced that Violeta Thompson has joined the company’s marketing team as Marketing Director. Violeta will be developing and implementing an overall corporate marketing strategy, directly engaging and … Continue reading →

I am often asked what is the optimal configuration for a point to point with Mikrotik, typically SXT’s. I would stress that the fewer settings you make, the better the link will work so I don’t recommend tweaking, just set … Continue reading →

Simple Queues don’t work properly… I have heard this more than once, my MikroTik RouterOS Simple Queues don’t work properly. In a simple queue, “target” option is the only option that determines the flow direction of a simple queue. Since … Continue reading →

Baicells has created a new “LTE How To” for new WISP operators. As you may already know, Baicells equipment is Plug & Play and by far the easiest LTE devices to set up and add to your current network. Many common startup problems evolve from the … Continue reading →

This application involves delivering internet access to a number of executive office suites. The MDF/IDF was located in one set of suites. My design criteria were as follows: 1. Simplicity, no controller on site for WiFi. Set it and … Continue reading →

I am excited to announce that we at ISP are partnering with Tp-Link to offer a free technical training event for networking professionals Friday, May 12, 2017 from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at The Greer & Lowdermilk Conference Center at 4225 … Continue reading →

There’s a million ways to do this on the wiki and the web but none of them fit my particular application. Let me explain: 1. The weak point in my network was an AirFiber 24 upstream from the tower I … Continue reading →

The number one concern I have heard thus far before we transition a select group of WISPs (Wireless Internet Service Providers) from WiFI or TDMA to LTE is “How can I afford LTE?” and the question is valid. The costs are … Continue reading →

Good question, one I was also asking myself when I set up a large Mikrotik CAPsMAN network. A moving laptop would hang onto a -85 signal when a -70 was available. It did not make sense. So, after some research … Continue reading →

This is a letter from Patrick Leary at Telrad, I thought worth sharing. We all know LTE has first been created for the needs of giant mobile operators first. That means the LTE enhanced packet core (called the EPC in … Continue reading →

Java Home Directory Fail Issue on Ubuntu – RESOLVED For those of you who’re building your Ubuntu from scratch or even if you did like me and install UniFi on an AirVision NVR, , you might or might not get … Continue reading →

This one nearly made me tear my hair out. Option 43 is a vendor specific option that many vendors use to tell their devices the IP address of a server they need to access. Ubiquiti UniFi uses it and so … Continue reading →

Obviously there are more detailed instructions on the Ubiquiti site but I just needed a trunk port and a few access ports on my Ubiquiti EdgeSwitch so this is a much for my own documentation as it is for you my … Continue reading →

I was intrigued by the recently new feature being developed by MikroTik called “CAPsMan”. From the wiki “Controlled Access Point system Manager (CAPsMAN) allows centralization of wireless network management and if necessary, data processing. When using the CAPsMAN feature, the … Continue reading →

In a surprise announcement yesterday at the WISPA Wispalooza in Las Vegas, RF Elements, one of my favorite manufacturers made a game changing announcement about their new product line, the RF Elements Simper. The name is a shortened version of … Continue reading →

I have blogged several times about how nice the Ubiquiti airVision NVR and the airVision cams are for ease of setup and great value but the UniFi Video cameras take it one step farther. Not only do they have night … Continue reading →