Zentyal setup to allow multiple ISP accounts switching

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DeathStrike

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Hi guys,

I currently have a dlink 2750u router that has afrihost details in it that provides internet to my home. 2 laptops. 1 smart TV. Chromecast on other TV.

I have multiple ISP accounts mostly free 1gb accounts. Web Africa is going to be my main account next month. Afrihost going to be secondary with 8gb.

My problem is that I need to manually switch accounts in router. I spoke to a coworker about this and he uses pfsense as a router for his home.

I went googling and found zentyal. I prefer Debian based systems as I have more knowledge of those. I have a PC with 2 NICs. I have read that I will need another DSL modem and then can use the dlink as access point.

My question is can zentyal perform this sort of account switch based on schedule and available cap on accounts?

Thanks in advance.
 
I would highly recommend you just use pfSense, you really don't even notice what OS you're using underneath.

I tried them all, pfSense just has much more flexibility and is very easy to use.
 
Just follow the good doctor's prescription. Life without pfSense is inconceivable.

Mine runs in an ESXi VM on a Microserver.
 
Last edited:
Arthur said:
Just follow the good doctor's prescription. Life without pfSense is inconceivable.

Mine runs in an ESXi VM on a Microserver.
Click to expand...

Another vote for PFSense.

I've tried Untangle, Smoothwall, IPCop, IPFire and many more. PFSense wins hands down, it's flexible and you REALLY don't need to know much BSD (if any) to use it. The only time i've ever needed shell was when I wanted to do custom package builds, or do tcpdumps in an easier manner or use tools like iftop.

It really is the one to go for.
 
Thanks guys. Reason why I wanted zentyal is that it loads Ubuntu desktop basically. And then I also wanted to install Plex media server on top of the firewall.

Can you point me to Dr zoidberg's guide to pfsense?
 
DeathStrike said:
Thanks guys. Reason why I wanted zentyal is that it loads Ubuntu desktop basically. And then I also wanted to install Plex media server on top of the firewall.

Can you point me to Dr zoidberg's guide to pfsense?
Click to expand...

Setup ESXI or some other hypervisor and then have 1x firewall VM and 1x whatever else you want VM.

Either way PFSense is the best open source firewall i've ever used - it even beats several commercial solutions that i've used.
 
Is this a good enough modem for the pfsense box? http://takealot.com/og/v1/PLID29331191

I was looking for the cheapest modem I can find as I already have the dlink 2750u which I will convert to bridge mode. Will this pfsense setup work if I have new modem - pfsense - dlink 2750u - computers via WiFi or cable.
 
jsheed_sa said:
Setup ESXI or some other hypervisor and then have 1x firewall VM and 1x whatever else you want VM.

Either way PFSense is the best open source firewall i've ever used - it even beats several commercial solutions that i've used.
Click to expand...
I see you mentioned using exsi. But when I attempt to install it I get network card not found. After reading I see it doesn't support all hardware. I am running an old quad core PC.

Are you using an older version? I tried latest exsi5.
 
DeathStrike said:
I see you mentioned using exsi. But when I attempt to install it I get network card not found. After reading I see it doesn't support all hardware. I am running an old quad core PC.

Are you using an older version? I tried latest exsi5.
Click to expand...

Try seeing if you can slipstream a driver and build a custom ISO.

I did it with one of my builds.
 
DeathStrike said:
I see you mentioned using exsi. But when I attempt to install it I get network card not found. After reading I see it doesn't support all hardware. I am running an old quad core PC.

Are you using an older version? I tried latest exsi5.
Click to expand...

I found it extremely picky with NICs, basically get an Intel NIC if you want to use ESXi.

If you want a great virtualisation manager that isn't so picky then check out Proxmox.
 
Ok. Thanks doc will give that a shot. Unless there is another way I can run media server over my pfsense box?
 
DeathStrike said:
Ok. Thanks doc will give that a shot. Unless there is another way I can run media server over my pfsense box?
Click to expand...

No, I would advise against doing that in the first place. If you really need to run it on the same physical hardware then do it through virtualisation.
 
DrJohnZoidberg said:
I found it extremely picky with NICs, basically get an Intel NIC if you want to use ESXi.

If you want a great virtualisation manager that isn't so picky then check out Proxmox.
Click to expand...

Proxmox is a good choice as well. The only reason I didn't recommend it, is that ESXI has more support for noobs... :P
 
Lol. Thanks. Have downloaded proxmox. I don't mind having to hack my way around as long as it isn't going to cost me more money.
 
I have pfsense installed. Going through the process of adding accounts and stuff. I was just wondering now with load shedding. Is there a ups that would allow me to keep the router going for a bit longer? Perhaps give me time to shut it down or do it automatically? First prize would be to survive for 2 hours but I doubt many would achieve that level.
 
DeathStrike said:
I have pfsense installed. Going through the process of adding accounts and stuff. I was just wondering now with load shedding. Is there a ups that would allow me to keep the router going for a bit longer? Perhaps give me time to shut it down or do it automatically? First prize would be to survive for 2 hours but I doubt many would achieve that level.
Click to expand...

Esquire are having a UPS sale on at the moment. As for usage it would all depend on the amount of power you are drawing, obviously a full desktop hurts, whereas an embedded system uses WAY LESS...
 
When you say an embedded system would you be referring to a raspberry pi perhaps? Or a router that can take custom firmware? What size ups would be best suited for a 350watt PC. 1kva?
 
Ok. I would just like to post here and say thanks to all especially the doc. My pfsense box is up and running and all is well in my world. Love the graphs and playing around with plugins. Have shaper setup to help with bandwidth management. Can't believe I survived all these years without it.
 
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