DSL for dummies

An introduction to Digital Subscription Lines (DSL), a fast way to establish Internet access. It examines how to choose a DSL provider, set up the equipment needed to use the service, and make a connection without having to log on and off the provider. It discusses DSL support provided by Microsoft Windows 95/98/NT, connecting DSL through a network, and various applications of this technology, such as video conferencing methods.

Author Notes

David Angell is a principle in angell.com (www.angell.com), a technical communications firm in Boston specializing in telecommunications, TCP/IP, and Microsoft Windows. He has made a career of demystifying computers, telecommunications, and the Internet. David is the author of 20 books, including ISDN For Dummies, 2nd Edition and Microsoft Internet Information Server 4 For Dummies.

Foreword	p. xxiv
Introduction	p. 1
About This Book	p. 1
Foolish Assumptions	p. 2
Conventions Used in This Book	p. 3
How This Book Is Organized	p. 3
Part I Getting Comfortable with DSL	p. 3
Part II Shopping for DSL	p. 4
Part III Connecting Your PC or LAN to DSL	p. 4
Part IV The Part of Tens	p. 4
Part V Appendixes	p. 4
What You're Not to Read	p. 5
Icons in This Book	p. 5
Where to Go from Here	p. 5
Part I Getting Comfortable with DSL	p. 7
Chapter 1 DSL: More than a Pipe Dream	p. 9
A Bad Case of the Bandwidth Blues	p. 9
Modems, POTS, and the PSTN	p. 10
ISDN: Too little, too late, too expensive?	p. 11
T1 and frame relay: High speed, high cost	p. 11
DSL: The Bandwidth Sweet Spot	p. 12
DSL is riding the winds of change	p. 13
The Telecommunications Act and DSL	p. 14
Meet the DSL family	p. 14
The great DSL bypass	p. 16
Availability and price	p. 16
A DSL Connection Changes Everything	p. 19
DSL Reality Check	p. 21
Subject to change without notice	p. 21
Keeping your distance	p. 21
Please stand by, we're experiencing technical problems	p. 22
Fragile competition	p. 22
Waiting for interoperability	p. 23
Bandwidth shell game	p. 23
What's on Cable?	p. 24
Should you check out cable modem service?	p. 25
Cable competition can't hurt	p. 25
Chapter 2 The Telecom Side of DSL	p. 27
Welcome to the Telecommunications Jungle	p. 27
Gatekeepers of the last mile	p. 28
Changing the rules	p. 28
Through the regulatory maze	p. 29
Inside the Telecommunications Network	p. 30
All loops lead to the central office	p. 30
Keeping tethered through local loops	p. 30
Extending the reach of COs through DLCs	p. 31
The big PSTN switch	p. 32
Inside the DSL Network	p. 33
DSLAM: Center of the DSL universe	p. 33
Is your loop qualified?	p. 34
Going the distance	p. 35
End of the Line	p. 35
Customer Premises Equipment (CPE)	p. 36
The great divide	p. 36
Getting wired for DSL	p. 37
Know your connectors	p. 38
CLECs and DSL Service	p. 38
How a data CLEC operates	p. 39
CLECs, ISPs, and DSL service	p. 39
ILECs and DSL Service	p. 40
Chapter 3 The Zen of DSL	p. 41
DSL Data Communications 101	p. 41
The nature of digital communications	p. 41
Frequencies and bandwidth	p. 42
Changing channels	p. 43
Signaling and modulation	p. 43
Asymmetric or symmetric	p. 44
Data swimming upstream or downstream	p. 44
Throughput (bandwidth in the real world)	p. 45
The Many Flavors of DSL	p. 45
ADSL	p. 46
UADSL (G.Lite)	p. 46
SDSL	p. 48
RADSL	p. 49
IDSL	p. 49
HDSL and HDSL-2	p. 49
VDSL	p. 50
MVLDSL	p. 50
DSL Standards and Forums	p. 50
Know your DSL standards organizations	p. 51
The current state of DSL standards	p. 51
Chapter 4 All Nodes Lead to TCP/IP	p. 53
TCP/IP and Your DSL Connection	p. 53
The five layers of TCP/IP	p. 54
The life of packets	p. 55
Gateway to the TCP/IP universe	p. 56
Any port in a storm	p. 57
Creating Identity with IP Addresses	p. 57
IP addresses have class and no class	p. 58
Subnet subdivision	p. 60
Using private IP addresses	p. 60
It's all in the translation	p. 61
Using registered IP addresses	p. 62
Using static and dynamic IP addressing	p. 62
What's In a Name Anyway?	p. 63
Host names, domains, and subdomains	p. 64
Top-level domain names	p. 64
A new crop of top-level domains	p. 65
The domain name game	p. 66
IP Configuration Recipes	p. 68
Using a block of registered IP addresses	p. 68
Using NAT and private IP addresses	p. 69
PPP on DSL	p. 71
PPP over Ethernet	p. 72
PPP over ATM over DSL	p. 72
Chapter 5 DSL CPE Field Guide	p. 75
Types of DSL CPE	p. 75
DSL CPE Interoperability	p. 76
Chipsets, Firmware, and DSL CPE	p. 77
Single-User DSL CPE Options	p. 77
USB: Say goodbye to UART	p. 78
In the PCI modem cards	p. 79
Single-computer bridges	p. 79
Multiuser DSL CPE Options	p. 81
Bridge over DSL waters	p. 81
Going the DSL router route	p. 82
Sharing a DSL Connection	p. 83
Chapter 6 To Serve and Protect: Internet Security	p. 85
Internet Security 101	p. 85
Understanding Firewalls and Proxy Servers	p. 87
Packet filter firewalls	p. 87
Proxy servers	p. 88
Security Solutions for the Rest of Us	p. 90
DSL routers as firewalls	p. 92
Software proxy servers	p. 93
Proxy server in a box	p. 94
Security as an appliance	p. 95
Isolating your protocols	p. 97
Part II Shopping for DSL	p. 99
Chapter 7 Getting Your DSL Connection	p. 101
Creating Your DSL Game Plan	p. 101
The big three pieces of DSL service	p. 101
DSL game plan checklist	p. 102
Checking DSL Availability	p. 104
Tracking down DSL service	p. 105
Have your phone number and address ready	p. 108
Behind the scenes in DSL local loops	p. 109
Figuring Out Your Need for Speed	p. 109
Checking Out Your DSL Service Options	p. 112
Finding a good Web site	p. 112
Getting the quote	p. 113
The devil is in the details	p. 113
Crunching the Numbers	p. 114
Start-up charges	p. 116
Monthly recurring charges	p. 117
Chapter 8 TCP/IP Applications for Your DSL Service	p. 119
Stop, Take a Deep Breath, and Think	p. 119
Harnessing your DSL connection	p. 120
Monitoring Your DSL Performance	p. 121
Using ping and tracert commands	p. 122
Visual Route	p. 122
Net.Medic	p. 123
Running a Web Server	p. 124
Going with a Web hosting service	p. 124
Web server bandwidth requirements	p. 125
Web server software	p. 127
Running an E-Mail Server	p. 129
Microsoft Exchange	p. 129
Deerfield's MDaemon	p. 129
Eudora WorldMail Server	p. 130
Show and Tell through IP Video Conferencing	p. 130
DVC system primer	p. 131
Microsoft NetMeeting	p. 132
CU-SeeMe	p. 133
WebCams and video clips	p. 133
Net Phones, Faxes, and Pagers	p. 134
IP phone home	p. 135
Net faxing	p. 136
Buzz me (IP paging)	p. 136
I Want My VPN	p. 138
Practicing Safe Downloads	p. 139
Working by Remote Control	p. 140
Chapter 9 Checking Out DSL Providers	p. 143
CLECs and DSL Service	p. 143
The CLEC and ISP relationship	p. 144
Checking out CLEC DSL	p. 145
CLECs and CPE options	p. 145
NorthPoint Communications	p. 146
DSL service options	p. 146
DSL service availability	p. 146
CPE options	p. 147
ISP partners	p. 149
Covad Communications	p. 151
DSL service options	p. 151
DSL service availability	p. 152
CPE options	p. 152
ISP partners	p. 153
Rhythms NetConnections	p. 157
CPE options	p. 157
DSL service availability	p. 157
ISP partners	p. 157
ISPs Acting as DSL CLECs	p. 158
ILECs and DSL Service	p. 159
Pacific Bell	p. 159
DSL service options	p. 160
DSL service availability	p. 161
ISP partners	p. 161
US WEST	p. 162
DSL service availability	p. 163
ISP partners	p. 164
Bell Atlantic	p. 164
DSL service options	p. 164
DSL service availability	p. 165
BellSouth	p. 166
Southwestern Bell	p. 167
Ameritech	p. 168
GTE	p. 169
DSL service options	p. 169
DSL service availability	p. 170
ISP partners	p. 171
Chapter 10 Facing the ISP Interface	p. 173
The DSL and ISP Connection	p. 173
Walking through a DSL service installation	p. 174
Navigating your CPE options	p. 176
Bridged DSL service	p. 176
Routed DSL service	p. 177
Putting Your IP Package Together	p. 178
Getting IP addresses	p. 178
Domain Name Service	p. 179
Getting your domain name	p. 179
Transferring your domain name from another ISP	p. 180
Internet E-mail Services	p. 181
Internet e-mail primer	p. 181
Hosting your Internet mailboxes with the ISP	p. 182
Running your own e-mail server	p. 182
Network News Service	p. 183
Web Hosting	p. 183
Part III Connecting Your PC or LAN to DSL	p. 185
Chapter 11 Building Your LAN Foundation	p. 187
The LAN Plan	p. 187
The LAN-to-DSL connection	p. 189
Go fast with Fast Ethernet	p. 190
A star is born	p. 191
A Matter of Networking Style	p. 193
Nice and easy with peer-to-peer networking	p. 193
Power networking through client/server networking	p. 193
NIC Your Computer	p. 194
Taking the PCI magic bus	p. 196
Installing a NIC in a PC	p. 196
Installing a NIC driver in Windows 95 and 98	p. 197
Installing a NIC driver in Windows NT	p. 198
Connecting a notebook using a PC Card NIC	p. 200
Adding multiple NICs on a PC	p. 201
The Media Is the Message	p. 201
Twisted pair isn't a deviant couple	p. 202
Getting wired	p. 202
One-on-one with crossover link	p. 203
Journey to the Center of the LAN	p. 203
What's all the hubbub?	p. 204
Making the switch	p. 206
Chapter 12 Windows 95/98 Meets DSL	p. 211
Windows 95/98 and DSL Connections	p. 211
Setting Up TCP/IP in Windows 95/98	p. 213
Configuring Windows 95/98 TCP/IP Clients	p. 215
Configuring Windows 95/98 clients for DHCP	p. 215
Configuring Windows 95/98 clients for static IP addresses	p. 217
Managing network card properties	p. 219
Managing your protocol bindings	p. 220
Working the DUN Way	p. 221
Installing Dial-Up Networking	p. 222
Setting up a new connection profile	p. 223
Configuring your DUN connection profile	p. 223
Making the DUN connection	p. 225
Bypassing the Connect To dialog box	p. 226
Handy Windows 95/98 TCP/IP Utilities	p. 227
What's your IP status?	p. 227
Reach out and telnet someone	p. 229
Ping, ping, ping	p. 230
Tracing your routes	p. 232
Chapter 13 Windows NT Meets DSL	p. 233
Windows NT and DSL Connections	p. 233
Setting Up TCP/IP in Windows NT	p. 234
Configuring NICs for TCP/IP in Windows NT	p. 237
Configuring Windows NT for dynamic IP addressing	p. 238
Configuring Windows NT for static IP addressing	p. 238
Beyond basic TCP/IP configuration	p. 241
Working the DUN Way	p. 243
Installing and configuring RAS for DUN	p. 243
Creating a Phonebook entry	p. 244
Configuring your Phonebook entry for TCP/IP	p. 245
Keeping up appearances	p. 247
Making the connection	p. 249
Handy Tools of the IP Trade	p. 251
What's your IP status?	p. 251
Reach out and telnet someone	p. 251
Ping, ping, ping	p. 253
Tracing your routes	p. 255
Part IV The Part of Tens	p. 257
Chapter 14 Dave's Top Ten Reasons for Getting DSL Service	p. 259
Cut Your Web Surfing Times	p. 259
Move Big Files Quickly	p. 260
Run Your Own Web Server	p. 260
Add Show and Tell to Internet Communications	p. 261
Telework in the VPN Fast Lane	p. 261
Use Push and Pull Applications	p. 262
Level the Data Communications Playing Field	p. 262
Run Your Own E-mail Server	p. 262
Share Your Internet Connection	p. 263
Tap into Flat Rate Service	p. 263
Chapter 15 Ten DSL Service Shopping Tips	p. 265
Use the Caveat Emptor Defense	p. 265
Shop around to Compare DSL Offerings	p. 266
Know What You Need Before Ordering	p. 267
Don't Be Afraid to Ask Questions	p. 267
Know Your CPE Options and Prices	p. 267
Ask about Promotional Deals	p. 268
Ask for Price Protection Guarantees	p. 268
Get a Written Quote	p. 268
Read the Fine Print	p. 269
Ask about Backbones and QoS	p. 269
Chapter 16 Ten Questions to Ask about DSL Service	p. 271
Is DSL Service Available in Your Area?	p. 271
What's Your Need for Speed?	p. 272
Which Type of CPE Do You Want to Use?	p. 273
What's Your IP Configuration?	p. 274
What's Your TCP/IP Application Strategy?	p. 275
What Will DSL Service Cost?	p. 276
How Helpful Is the ISP?	p. 277
What Are the ISP's Terms and Restrictions?	p. 278
Do You Plan to Connect Multiple Computers?	p. 279
What Other Services Do You Want from an ISP?	p. 279
Part V Appendixes	p. 281
Appendix A DSL Products, Services, and Resources	p. 283
DSL CPE Vendors	p. 283
DSL Proxy Server and Security Products	p. 284
TCP/IP Utilities and Applications	p. 285
TCP/IP utilities	p. 285
Video conferencing	p. 285
Web servers	p. 286
E-mail servers	p. 287
Net phones, net faxing, and IP paging	p. 287
Remote control programs	p. 288
Virtual private networking	p. 288
ILEC and CLEC Web Sites	p. 289
Other DSL Resources	p. 290
Appendix B Glossary	p. 291
Index	p. 307

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Summary

Summary

Author Notes

Table of Contents