I finished the memory install in the current router tonight and updated IOS to the latest version of Advanced Enterprise.  Every release of IOS has 25-30 different versions, each containing a different set of features.  Advanced Enterprise is effectively the Cadillac version of IOS that contains every possible feature, including some really crazy stuff like AppleTalk and SNA.  I haven't seen an AppleTalk or SNA-compatible device in production since we were in middle school!

I also ordered the new router to replace the current one, since it is getting flaky.  It should be here by the end of the week.  Here it is:




The Cisco 3745 is three times the size of my current Cisco 1760 router, but it offers a helluva lot more power.  The 1760 can push about 16,000 packets per second, but the 3745 can move about 225,000.  Also, the 1760 is limited to one 100Mb port and two 10Mb routed ports, whereas the 3745 can support ten 100Mb ports and eleven 10Mb ports.  This will allow me to connect the forum server and e-mail server directly to secured ports on the router, rather than rigging up switch ports to isolate web and e-mail server requests from my internal devices.


-b0b
(...is sure nobody cares.)

Since I'm replacing super-obsolete gear with semi-obsolete gear, I thought it was time to ditch my old Cisco 350 and 1220 access points and replace them with a more recent 1230 access point.  The 350 and 1220 are both 802.11b APs (11Mbps max, blech!) and they both run an operating system called VXworks.  Cisco bought out VXworks years ago, but it took them awhile to get the Cisco-standard IOS operating system working on the AP hardware.

The 1230 runs a relatively recent version of IOS and has a lot more horsepower under the hood.

This is a bit of a convoluted upgrade.  To save a boatload of cash, I bought the standard 1230 access point that runs 802.11b:



However, since 802.11b sucks harder than Wes's Mom at a Hoover convention, I'm replacing the internal 802.11b radio with an 802.11g radio (AIR-MP21G-A-K9) that supports 54Mbps throughput:



I have a handful of 802.11a devices that work really well in areas congested by 2.4GHz traffic (by cordless phones, two-way radios, baby monitors, other APs, etc).  They operate at 54Mbps like 802.11g, but operate on the licensed 5.0GHz spectrum.  Since I like having this functionality available, I'm adding a second radio with a separate integrated antenna (AIR-RM20A-A-K9) that operates at 5.0GHz:



Finally, the wimpy dipole antennas that come with the 1200 APs just don't cut the mustard.  I want a wireless signal half-way across town, dang it!  To accomplish that, I'm buying two of these massive omnidirectional antennas to replace the tiny dipole antennas that are pictured above.  They are about 3x wider and 2.5x taller than the dipole antennas, and have approximately 3x the reception and transmission capability.



The Cisco 350 AP is going in the basement just for redundancy, and the 1220 will go in the garage to provide direct coverage of the garage and back yard.  All of the components for the 1230 should be in shortly.  When I get around the building up the AP, I'll be sure to take step-by-step pictures!


-b0b
(...tried taking step-by-step pictures of the RAM install in the 1760 tonight, but the camera fritzed.)

About time the forum was back.  It is like every time you leave the country you suddenly don't care about the forum!

I've been pretty busy with my home network over the past few weeks.  My new core router, the Cisco 3745, arrived about two weeks ago.  The fans were ridiculously overpowered and really, really loud, so those got replaced right off the bat.  Just to make things really interesting, I also purchased and installed a high-end encryption module that will allow me to establish highly-encrypted VPN sessions (AES 256-bit FTW!) and IPSec tunnels to my home network from wherever I happen to be.  I'll post pictures of those upgrades as soon as I get my crappy digital camera repaired.

In the meantime, here are a couple of teaser pictures of the new router.  I upgraded the machine to it's maximum capacity of 512MB of RAM and 128MB of flash memory right off the bat, and I managed to copy these pictures over before the camera gave up the proverbial ghost.


To get access to the mainboard, the front cover must be removed.  
The cover is deceptively heavy as it contains four of the loudest, most ridiculously overpowered fans you've ever seen in a network device.



Here's a shot of the mostly empty interior of the router.  
This router can support up to four power supplies, but can easily run off of one, like I've got here.  
The mainboard is located on the top of the router, shown here with the vented grill facing forward.



After removing the mainboard, you can see the memory DIMMs and compact flash card on the upper right corner of the board.  
There are two DIMMs stacked on top of each other.



I replaced the two 128MB DIMMs that shipped with the router with two 256MB DIMMs, the largest supported by the 3745.  
The original 32MB compact flash card was replaced with a 128MB flash card, also the largest supported.



After upgrading to 512MB of RAM and 128MB of flash, I was able to install the most feature-filled version of IOS (Cisco's operating system), Advanced Enterprise Services.  Advanced Enterprise Services offers every bell and whistle that you can get from a Cisco router, including IPv6 routing, VPN services, and Voice-over-IP.  This bad boy is now my core router, so every time you click on the forum, you're passing through it!


-b0b
(...thinks the other upgrades were much more interesting!)

Just wait until I show you pictures of the encryption mod.  Then you'll really feel real ultimate power!


-b0b
(...yeah!)

The 3745 router I bought to replace my old core router is one heck of a packet-routing beast, but it was also ridiculously loud.  You guys have heard the Bobulator and you know that I don't mind moderately loud equipment, but this router was easily 3-4x as loud as my PC.  Even with my tolerance for fan whine, this thing was simply way too loud.

Of course, I wasn't going to pass up the opportunity to use this beast for my core router, so I did something about it...



With the flash on, you can vaguely make out the four 92mm Delta fans behind the front cover.  They spin at nearly 3000RPM and produce a combined 216 cubic feet of airflow per minute... through a half cubic foot box.  Overkill?


The front cover is a two-piece assembly that forms a box, wherein the fans lie.


Once the front cover is removed, four screws must be removed to separate the cover into two pieces.


...like so.


Each of the four fans is held in place by four two-piece plastic clips.  The center protrusion on the interior side must be knocked downward to release the pin.



Once the center pin has been knocked down, the entire retention doo-dad can be pulled out from the exterior side.  A small claw hammer works wonders for this.


Once all four pins are removed, the fan can be pulled away from the cover.


These are the fans I purchased to replace the OEM ones.  They are three-speed fans that push 28CFM at a whisper-quiet 21db.  I can amp them up to 38CFM at 28db, but I don't think that's necessary.


The old fans must be removed first.  The fan power pigtails were ridiculously long, so I left enough wire on the fans to allow them to be reattached if need be (or if used for a future project).


I taped up the pigtails for each fan as I cut them off to ensure I didn't cross any wires.


The new fans were installed using the same clips that held in the original fans, although the screws that came with the new fans would have also worked.


The wires from the original pigtails were mated with the wires from the new fans using Scotch wire connectors.  They're a bit pricey, but you can simply insert both wires and clamp down on the connector with a pair of pliers.  This is a big time saver when you've got to crimp a bunch of low-voltage wires.


Here's a final shot before I cleaned up the wiring and put everything back together.


And here's the completed and reassembled fan tray/cover.  After putting the router back together, I can hardly tell it's even running.



Of course, I was careful to ensure the router stayed nice and cool, and I honestly can't tell the difference in terms of temperature.  If I was running all four power supplies (I only have one in mine) and had all of the expansion bays stuffed, I might need more airflow.  However, 84CFM through a box that is a half cubic foot in size is more than enough for what I'm running.  There is no way I could have used the router in my office with the OEM fans, so I'd say this was a fairly successful ghetto-mod!


-b0b
(...ghetto modding for the win!)

for the networking challenged, what is actually being encrypted? all your data on the local network? Does it protect more from unauthorized access?

Also,  it's a good thing it doesn't say made in china on it!

Here are a couple shots of my (mostly) finished racks, along with some hardcore "network security" tools.


Here's the lab rack.  I've got to order a few more cable management thingamabobs, so ignore the cable mess on the floor.


And the production rack.  Cable management is on my "to do" list.



-b0b
(...takes information security very seriously.)

Can you explain why you have 9 antennas on that thing.  Are you transmitting on multiple channels, using multiple protocols (802.11g/b/a/n)?

New toys!  These are crappy eBay pictures, but I'll take a picture of the actual products as soon as I have a moment to fire 'em up.


Cisco 3550 48-port multi-layer switch with the enhanced image.  This bad boy will replace my 2950 and will allow me to route between VLANs right on the switch instead of handing the traffic off to the 3745 router.


Cisco PIX 515 firewall with restricted license.  This is a firewall/VPN endpoint that will allow me to scan traffic entering my network to a deeper degree than my router can do by itself.  This will probably remain a "lab" firewall and I'll buy a beefier model for the production rack.



-b0b
(...is excited.)

How/what are you using to keep all that equipment cool?  Or does your -10 degree room still exist with its sub-Arctic temps?

X

b0b wrote on Oct 18^th, 2010 at 7:35pm:


After placing the PIX firewalls and the intrusion detection system into production on Saturday, the production network cabinet is definitely displacing more heat than it was before.  All three devices draw approximately 65 watts, so I've effectively added another PC worth of heat in a small, tightly-enclosed cabinet.  I'm definitely going to have to look into buying or building a rack-mount cooling solution for this beast.


-b0b
(...more pictures soon!)