IS IT LEGAL?

[b1gshow]

well I had most of the equipment already. But if you had to buy everthing new: two mikrotik routers for the link, one with 2 wireless interfaces. two grid antennas, a sector antenna, and then a cpe unit for each client, or a nanostation/bullet. then all the small stuff like poe's, cabling, power supplies etc.

 

[Wimhotep]

I've had dealings with ICASA , they wouldn't know what X-files was if it came up and bit them in the ass. The inspectors we've dealt with , totally useless. :wtf:

agree with posts above .... make sure its secure, sharing a wireless connection indoors is no different to sharing it to your neighbours.
Strictly speaking it is illegal.

couple of options
1. community user groups ... free of charge , share data , gaming ... each member purchases their own equipment etc.
2. inside of a complex .. sharing of costs , data , gaming etc.
3. neighbours / family ... all share 1 line + wifi access point
4. neighbour hood watch , security , CCTV etc

 

[dadiggle]

if you pay for it you can share it with who ever the hell you want. Its your bandwidth. They dont give a dime. Your paying for it

 

[Tweak]

thanks guys. I am running on the 5ghz spectrum, with a sector on a hill top and the users connecting to it with grids. There will be no profit gains, we just want to share the cost of one uncapped line, and want to play games, share resources etc. So icasa or the police or who ever won't come knocking on my door in a month??

Not at all
The only thing to note:

1. It is not illegal to put up close or long range mikrotik / ubiquiti links. Just use the free unlicensed spectrums.
2. It is not illegal to share an internet connection over a network.
3. It can only backfire if you start asking money and it gets around that you're a WISP, then someone has the right to come investigating. Otherwise there will be no proof, and so no warrant will be given to inspect your premises

So just tell your friends to keep quiet about the internet.

1 thing to note about sharing an internet connection

Uncapped:
Uncapped connections are a lot slower than capped connections. Uncapped is usually prepared against downloaders by applying content shaping. Your games will be a LOT faster if you used a capped unshaped sollution such as from Afrihost (R15 per gig)

Gaming:
If you all want to play games online, it might become slightly problematic.
You are all sharing one pipe for your data, so whenever one transmits, the other will have to wait.
This will effect your ping in games. If one of the users decides to start ripping a download etc during a gaming session you will really start to feel it

Im going to do the same as you, within a couple of weeks time ^^
My intent is also to have multiple people share one 4mbit line.

 

[Piesang]

Is it also illegal for me to have a few extra computers and charge people a access fee to use it such as a "internet cafe"?

Seeing that I don't need to use my full 10GB every month I might just as well let other people use it on my premises and pay me for the service. I'll sell it this way: I charge them for using my computers but the data is free. lol

 

[dadiggle]

Not at all
The only thing to note:

1. It is not illegal to put up close or long range mikrotik / ubiquiti links. Just use the free unlicensed spectrums.
2. It is not illegal to share an internet connection over a network.
3. It can only backfire if you start asking money and it gets around that you're a WISP, then someone has the right to come investigating. Otherwise there will be no proof, and so no warrant will be given to inspect your premises

So just tell your friends to keep quiet about the internet.

1 thing to note about sharing an internet connection

Uncapped:
Uncapped connections are a lot slower than capped connections. Uncapped is usually prepared against downloaders by applying content shaping. Your games will be a LOT faster if you used a capped unshaped sollution such as from Afrihost (R15 per gig)

Gaming:
If you all want to play games online, it might become slightly problematic.
You are all sharing one pipe for your data, so whenever one transmits, the other will have to wait.
This will effect your ping in games. If one of the users decides to start ripping a download etc during a gaming session you will really start to feel it

Im going to do the same as you, within a couple of weeks time ^^
My intent is also to have multiple people share one 4mbit line.

this
and torrents

 

[nerf]

Not at all
The only thing to note:

1. It is not illegal to put up close or long range mikrotik / ubiquiti links. Just use the free unlicensed spectrums.
2. It is not illegal to share an internet connection over a network.
3. It can only backfire if you start asking money and it gets around that you're a WISP, then someone has the right to come investigating. Otherwise there will be no proof, and so no warrant will be given to inspect your premises

So just tell your friends to keep quiet about the internet.

1 thing to note about sharing an internet connection

Uncapped:
Uncapped connections are a lot slower than capped connections. Uncapped is usually prepared against downloaders by applying content shaping. Your games will be a LOT faster if you used a capped unshaped sollution such as from Afrihost (R15 per gig)

Gaming:
If you all want to play games online, it might become slightly problematic.
You are all sharing one pipe for your data, so whenever one transmits, the other will have to wait.
This will effect your ping in games. If one of the users decides to start ripping a download etc during a gaming session you will really start to feel it

Im going to do the same as you, within a couple of weeks time ^^
My intent is also to have multiple people share one 4mbit line.

with the mikrotiks you can use mangle and run a few simple QoS rules , then if the connections reaches its max throughput it can shape the data so that there is enough bandwidth for the games or what ever you wish to give higher priority to

 

[dadiggle]

but dont traffic shaping works better when most applications is given a low priority

 

[moklet]

thanks guys. I am using mikrotik systems so yes, everything is NATed. We are not in the same complex. And we are crossing public roads? So in short you all are saying we should just do it? It is not just for an internet connection, we want to start a WUG where we stay. It is going to be an 4mb uncapped line.

Just do it

 

[DanH]

Is it also illegal for me to have a few extra computers and charge people a access fee to use it such as a "internet cafe"?

Seeing that I don't need to use my full 10GB every month I might just as well let other people use it on my premises and pay me for the service. I'll sell it this way: I charge them for using my computers but the data is free. lol

I've contacted mweb about this as my mom runs a B&B, they said we can't sell internet to guests unless we get a resellers account which is just over R2k pm for an uncapped 512k line. We can however share our normal uncapped account with them with out charging. This all in the same property.

Over a wug, just share it but you have to have "fight club rules."

 

[DanH]

Some ideas, maybe set "gaming time" 8pm till 1am where downloading is throttled dramatically. Or route gaming traffic though a separate unshaped capped account with priority over the uncapped account.

 

[nightjar]

I've had dealings with ICASA , they wouldn't know what X-files was if it came up and bit them in the ass. The inspectors we've dealt with , totally useless. :wtf:
c

Agree 100%.
ICASA don't even know what these letters stand for.

Follow the earlier advice and JUST DO IT.

If questions are asked follow the lead of the ANCYL and blame apartheid, Broederbond, colonialism, bloody agents, media, DA and the Rupert family to name only a few.

 

[koeksGHT]

Just use encryption and a password protected network and ICASA wont know or be able to see anything

 

[intel8080]

Agree 100%.
ICASA don't even know what these letters stand for.

Follow the earlier advice and JUST DO IT.

If questions are asked follow the lead of the ANCYL and blame apartheid, Broederbond, colonialism, bloody agents, media, DA and the Rupert family to name only a few.

+1

 

[henkk78]

A couple of incorrect assertions...

Hi guys,

A few things:

1. I can't believe that there are STILL people out there talking about "Public Boundaries". This concept does NOT EXIST in our new communications act. Everytime you see anyone telling anyone else that "they're not allowed" to cross public boundaries, call them out for being an idiot. Moral of the story: Don't take legal advice from people who haven't even read the Act.

2. Do NOT underestimate ability of laws being enforced. ICASA deals with licenced operators, NOT with unlicenced operators. If you are breaking the law, then you'll get a visit from the SAPS, not ICASA.

3. What you describe may well be licence exempt, classified as a "Small ECNS", but you may still need to apply for an exemption (I'd ask the WUG guys on the forums about this)

4. However, your network being licence exempt does NOT mean you can do whatever you feel like. If your gear is running at more than the legal EIRPs you can get into serious deep water. And besides for that, you could be causing interference with companies that provide paid services to paying clients, pay licence fees to ICASA, spend money on training and legal fees to make sure they're compliant.

In other words, go ahead, build a network, but don't be a gunslinger about it. Educate yourself so that you cause upliftment, rather than damage. Interference is too often used by the likes of Telkom/MTN to lobby government for spectrum policies that benefit only the biggest players, while they watch everyone else fighting for scraps of spectrum.

Let's make sure the wireless industry doesn't turn out to look like Cape Town's building industry...

Henk