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Setting up a DSL Connection with Novell Small Business Suite 6

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Posted: 22 Apr 2002 		 

Current version: NSBS 6

Download the pdf version of this implementation guide here.

Wideband Access to the Internet is Essential

Connection to the Internet has become essential to many businesses and is especially important to small businesses. The Internet extends the reach of small businesses to customers and partners wherever they may be. Through online procurement, product and service delivery, and general facilitation of business transactions, the Internet has become an important new channel for conducting business. It is also the foundation of the many Internet-friendly business tools included in Novell? Small Business Suite 6.

To take full advantage of the Novell Small Business Suite 6 and many other Internet tools, wideband access to the Internet is essential. A Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) connection provides an attractive and economical means for small businesses to establish a wideband connection to the Internet. DSL provides an always-on Internet connection that is 143 times faster than a 56Kbps modem; 62 times faster than Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN); and up to 4 times faster than a T1 connection.

As a Novell Small Business Specialist, you are often called upon to implement an Internet connection for your clients. With the Novell Small Business Suite 6 you can implement a wideband DSL Internet connection for your clients. As a result, your clients can take full advantage of all the advanced Internet capabilities of Novell Small Business Suite 6, such as Novell iFolder?, iPrint and browser-based server management.

This guide provides a step-by-step procedure for connecting a Novell Small Business Suite 6 server to DSL service.

NOTE: DSL service is not yet available in all areas. Check with your client's local telephone company or Internet service providers (ISPs) in your client's area to determine whether DSL is offered.

Estimated time to complete
Before you can set up DSL at a customer site, you must first decide on a configuration and get necessary information from the ISP as described in steps 1 and 2 below. Depending on how responsive the ISP is to your queries, these first two preparation steps may take a day or more. After the preparation is finished, however, the estimated time to complete the actual set up at the customer site (steps 3 through 5 below) is less than one hour.

Step 1. Choose a Connection Configuration
As a first step, you must choose the DSL configuration that best suits your client's needs. You have four options:

  • Option 1. PPP mode with server as gateway.
  • Option 2. PPP mode with server off hub.
  • Option 3. Bridging mode with server as gateway.
  • Option 4. Bridging mode with server off hub.

Each option has its advantages and disadvantages. The following sections describe each option individually. Each option section contains the following information:

  • Connection description. A brief description of the connection and a diagram illustrating the connection.
  • Advantages/Disadvantages. A brief discussion of the pros and cons of each configuration. This information should help you select the optimum configuration for your client.
  • Configuration parameters. Lists the configuration parameters that you will need to use later when you configure the DSL connection in the Novell Small Business Suite 6 server.
  • Useful tips. Helpful tips on the installation and configuration process.

Novell recommends Option 1 in most cases because it is easy to install and is the most secure configuration.

NOTE: For a variety of reasons which are pointed out in the following sections on bridging mode (Options 3 and 4), you should select bridging mode over PPP mode only when bridging mode is the only mode supported by the ISP.

Option 1. PPP Mode with Server as Gateway

In this configuration, the server is connected between the hub and the DSL modem, and acts as a gateway to the Internet. The DSL modem is running Network Address Translator (NAT) (see Figure 1). This configuration requires two network boards.

In Figure 1, ?Dynamic Address? indicates which IP addresses are configured through DHCP. ?Static Address? usually indicates that the IP Address is manually assigned. It does NOT indicate routable static IP's purchased from your ISP.

Advantages

This is the most popular configuration. In this configuration, the server acts as a protective barrier between the business and the Internet, so it is more secure than other options. In addition, the network is isolated from the modem, so the modem doesn't have to ?see? every bit of traffic. This results in more efficient performance.

Another plus is that this configuration works best with most ISP's defaults, so it is easier to set up. It's also less costly than the other options, because the client doesn't have to purchase a unique IP address. The client can use an IP address dynamically assigned by the ISP.

Disadvantages

In this configuration, if the server goes down, users will lose access to the Internet (and their e-mail if they are not using GroupWise?). Also, because the configuration utilizes NAT, your client can't take advantage of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs). As a result, if a user needs to access the company's Intranet from a remote location, this configuration is not the right choice.

NOTE: This configuration does permit the use of remote dialup. With remote dialup, a user accesses the network by dialing into a modem on the server. (With VPN, the user dials up to an ISP, then connects to the private network over the Internet through a VPN.)

Configuration parameters.

You will need to note the following parameters for use later in the procedure. (The parameters are pointed out by the circled numbers on Figure 1.):

  1. The IP address for the ISP's DNS name server. (You will need to obtain this information from the ISP.)
  2. The static IP address of the server. (Shown as 10.0.0.2 in Figure 1.)
  3. The name of the network board.
  4. Router IP Address (Shown as 10.0.0.1 in Figure 1.)

Useful tips

  1. You must have two network boards installed for this configuration. One connects the DSL modem to the Novell Small Business Suite 6 server. The other connects the server to the Hub. (See Figure 1.) The network boards must be installed before you run NICE (Step 5.). You can install the network boards before or after you install Novell Small Business Suite 6. You must, however, configure the board in INETCFG before you run NICE.
  2. Make sure that the static address of the DSL modem is different than the static address of your second network board.
  3. You could disable DHCP on the server and have the xDSL modem provide DHCP services, but this is not recommended.

Option 2. PPP mode with server off hub

In this configuration, the server is connected to the hub and the hub is connected to the Internet (see Figure 2). This configuration requires only one network board.

In Figure 2, ?Dynamic Address? indicates which IP addresses are configured through DHCP. ?Static Address? indicates that the IP Address is manually assigned. It does NOT indicate routable static IP's purchased from your ISP.

Advantages

Because the clients connect directly to the hub and are not filtered through the server, they have continuous access to the Internet even if the server goes down. Although this is not as secure a configuration as Option 1, it may be a good choice for some businesses.

Disadvantages

This configuration is not secure. The clients can communicate directly to the Internet through the hub without any security control by the server. Also, because the modem has to see every bit of traffic, extra processing time is required and this could result in decreased performance. As with Option 1, because the configuration utilizes NAT, your client can't run VPNs. If a user needs to access the company's Intranet from a remote location, this configuration is not the right choice.

Configuration parameters

You will need to note the following parameters for use later in the procedure (The parameters are indicated by the circled numbers on Figure 2):

  1. The IP address for the ISP's DNS name server. (You will need to obtain this information from the ISP.)
  2. The static IP address of the server. (Shown as 192.168.0.1 in Figure 1. This is the default IP address of the server.)
  3. The name of the network board. (Use INETCFG to find the name of the indicated network board.)
  4. Router IP Address (Shown as 192.168.0.2 in Figure 1.)

Useful tips

  1. You need only one network board for this configuration.
  2. In this configuration, you must manually change the DHCP configuration on the server. To do so, run the DNS/DHCP Configuration tool provided with Novell Small Business Suite 6. Change the router address to 192.168.0.2.
  3. It's possible to disable DHCP on the server and have the xDSL modem provide DHCP services, but this is not recommended.

Option 3. Bridging mode with server as gateway

In this configuration, the server is connected between the DSL modem and the hub. The DSL modem is running in bridging mode (see Figure 3). This configuration requires two network boards.

In Figure 3, ?Dynamic Address? indicates which IP addresses are configured through DHCP. ?Static Address? indicates that the IP Address is manually assigned. It does NOT indicate routable static IP's purchased from your ISP.

Advantages

In this configuration, the server acts as a protective barrier between the internal network and the Internet, so it is secure. Also, the internal network is isolated from the modem, so the modem doesn't have to ?see? every bit of traffic, resulting in more efficient performance.

With bridging mode, the DSL modem does not perform heavy processing. It merely passes packets from one topology (Ethernet) to another (DSL).

Disadvantages

In this configuration, if the server goes down, users lose access to the Internet (and possibly their e-mail, depending on how their e-mail is configured). In addition, the dynamic nature of this configuration (dynamic addresses are used extensively) can introduce problems during operation. Most ISPs are migrating away from bridging mode. So, if you choose this configuration, you may be forced to change it in the near future.

Configuration parameters

You will need to note the following parameters for use later in the procedure (The parameters are pointed out by the circled numbers on Figure 3):

  1. The IP address for the ISP's DNS name server. (You will need to obtain this information from the ISP.)
  2. The IP address assigned to the server. (This address is assigned dynamically, so any address entered will be overwritten by DHCPCLNT.NLM.)
  3. The name of the network board. (Use INETCFG to find the name of the indicated network board.)
  4. The router IP address (This address is assigned dynamically, so any address entered will be overwritten by DHCPCLNT.NLM.)

Useful tips

  1. In both bridging mode configurations (Options 3 and 4), you must either have your ISP assign a static IP address (recommended), or else use DHCPCLNT.NLM (more complicated).
  2. You must have two network boards for this configuration. One connects the Novell Small Business Suite 6 server to the DSL modem.

The other connects the server to the hub. The network boards must be installed before you run NICE (Step 5.) You can install the second network board before or after the Novell Small Business Suite 6 server has been installed, but you must configure it using INETCFG before you run NICE.

Option 4. Bridging mode with server off hub

In this configuration, the server is connected to the hub and the hub is connected to the Internet (see Figure 4). This configuration requires only one network board.

In Figure 4 ?Dynamic Address? indicates which IP addresses are configured through DHCP. ?Static Address? indicates that the IP Address is manually assigned. It does NOT indicate routable static IP's purchased from your ISP.

Advantages

You should use this option only if it is the only mode supported by the ISP.

Disadvantages

This configuration is very insecure. The clients can communicate directly to the Internet through the hub without any security intervention by the server. Also, because the modem has to see every bit of traffic, extra processing time is required and this could result in decreased performance. Moreover, the dynamic nature of this configuration (dynamic addresses are used extensively) can introduce problems during operation.

Configuration parameters

  1. The IP address for the ISP's DNS name server. (You will need to obtain this information from the ISP.)
  2. The IP address assigned to the server. (This address is assigned dynamically, so any address entered will be overwritten by DHCPCLNT.NLM.)
  3. The name of the network board. (Use INETCFG to find the name of the indicated network board.)
  4. The router IP address. (This address is assigned dynamically, so any address entered will be overwritten by DHCPCLNT.NLM.)

Useful tips

  1. Novell highly recommends that you use a switch with this configuration; otherwise all local network traffic will also go out over your xDSL connection.
  2. Novell also recommends that you do NOT run DHCP or NAT on the server. You must turn off both of these services.

Step 2. Preinstallation

Before proceeding, make sure that the following has been done:

  1. Novell Small Business Suite 6 is installed on the server that you wish to connect to the Internet.

    2. NOTE: Novell strongly recommends that you perform an Express Server Installation whenever you plan to use DSL. Custom Server Installations can cause some problems if the DNS/DHCP objects are not placed in the proper places, or if DNS/DHCP is not installed. (The DHCPCFG5, Novell Easy Administration Tool? (NEAT) and Novell Internet Connection Expert (NICE) utilities all expect the DNS/DHCP objects to be in the same Organization as the Admin user.)

    NOTE: You cannot configure DSL during the installation of Novell Small Business Suite 6. You must configure DSL after the Novell Small Business Suite 6 server is installed.

  2. The DSL modem is installed at your client's site and connected. The installation, including all necessary equipment and connection to the telephone line, is handled by the local telephone company or the ISP providing the Internet access service.
  3. One or two network boards are installed on the server depending on the configuration option you have chosen.

In addition, you must make sure that you have gathered certain information about your client's ISP and DSL device. You will need this information later. The specific information you need depends on the configuration option you have chosen and is listed separately in Step 1 for each configuration option. Shown below is a summary of this information:

ISP Information

  • IP address of the ISP's DNS name server.
  • ISP domain name.

DSL Device Information

  • Name assigned to second network board. (Required only for 2-board configurations.)
  • Router IP address.
  • If using a static IP address, the assigned IP address.

Other Information

  • Client's domain name.

Step 3. Configure the Network Board(s)

Once you've chosen your configuration, you need to configure the network board(s) for a DSL connection using the following procedure:

  1. Restart the server.
  2. At the server console prompt, enter INETCFG.
    • If you are prompted to import the drivers from the AUTOEXEC.NCF file, click Yes.
    • If you are prompted to choose the Fast setup method, select No. (Use the Standard method.)
  3. For a single network board configuration (Option 2 or Option 4), write down the name of the listed board. (For example: E100B.) You'll need it later. Then proceed to sub step 10 below.
  4. For a two-network board configuration, select INS, or, if two boards are listed, get the name of the second board (the one with an IP address of 192.168.0.1).
  5. Select Boards, and then press Insert.
  6. Select the appropriate board/driver. If your network board does not appear on the list, perform the following:
    1. Press Insert.
    2. Insert the driver diskette into drive A: and enter the path to the driver.
  7. In the Board Name field, enter a board name such as DSLDIAL. (Novell recommends using DSL in the name.)
  8. Enter the appropriate board configuration information (I/O Base, Interrupt, Speed Rating, and other required information). If you need to find a slot number, toggle to the console screen and load the board manually. When you manually load a board driver, the program sometimes prompts you to confirm information (such as slot or port number). If it does, you must enter that information into INETCFG or the board will not load.
  9. Press Esc to return to the Configured Boards screen, saving changes as prompted. The board status should now indicate Enabled.
  10. Press Esc to return to the Internetworking Configuration menu.

    NOTE: If you're using a network board that isn't supported by NICE, you must manually install the appropriate drivers and manually configure your Internet access. For a list of boards that are certified for use with Novell Small Business Suite 6 Internet access, go to the Novell Labs Web site at: http://developer.novell.com/nss. In the Solution Category, select LAN adapters.

    NOTE: For NICE to function properly, INETCFG must NOT be open on the server. Make sure that INETCFG is not open before continuing.

Step 4. Configure DHCP

In this step you will configure dynamic host configuration protocol (DHCP). Configuring DHCP with your client's Domain Name and the ISP's name servers requires that you perform two steps.

  • Install the DNS/DHCP Management Console
  • Configure the DHCP server options.

Install the DNS/DHCP Management Console To install the DNS/DHCP Management Console:

  1. Log in to the network as user Admin.
  2. Run NetWare? Administrator one time to register any settings.
  3. Install the DNS/DHCP Management Console by running SYS:PUBLIC\DNSDHCP\SETUP.EXE.
  4. When prompted, check the Copy Snap-In Files check box. The NetWare Administrator files are located in SYS:\PUBLIC\WIN32.
  5. When the installation is complete, restart the computer.
Configure the DCHP Server Options To configure DHCP:
  1. Log in to the network as user Admin.
  2. Double-click the DNS/DHCP icon on your desktop.
  3. When prompted to enter the NDStree name, accept the default.
  4. Click DHCP Service.
  5. Select 192.168.0.0 servername_subnet.
  6. Click Other DHCP Options > Modify.
  7. In the Available DHCP Options, select Domain Name Server (Code 6).
  8. Move the selected option to Selected DHCP Options by clicking Add>>.
  9. In the Selected DHCP Options, select Domain Name Server (Code 6).
  10. Click Add?
  11. Enter the DNS IP address provided by the ISP. Repeat this step until you have entered all addresses provided by the ISP.
  12. Press OK to accept the changes.

Configure DHCP for GroupWise (Optional)

To enable users to send e-mail to an Internet address:

  1. Log in to the network as user Admin.
  2. Double-click the DNSDHCP icon.
  3. When prompted to enter the NDS? tree name, accept the default.
  4. Click DHCP Service
  5. Select 192.168.0.0 servername_subnet
  6. In the Domain Name field, enter the domain name assigned by the ISP.

Initialize the Changes

To make the changes effective in the server:

  1. At the console prompt, enter UNLOAD DHCPSRVR DHCPSRVR
  2. After the changes are completed at the server, notify users to shut down and restart their computers.

Set the Foreign ID for GWIA in GroupWise

To enable GWIA in GroupWise to accept incoming messages from the Internet:

  1. Log in to the server as user Admin.
  2. Run NetWare Administrator.
  3. Adjust the scope of the browser to the root of the NDS tree.
  4. Select GroupWise > treename_DOM > GWIA.
  5. In the Foreign ID field, enter your client's domain name.
  6. Click OK.

Restart the Server

To enable the changes to take effect, shut down and restart the server as follows:

  1. Make sure everyone is logged out of the server.
  2. At the console prompt, enter DOWN
  3. Turn the computer off, wait about ten seconds, then turn it back on again. The computer should restart and load the server software.

Step 5. Run NICE

After you have configured the network board(s), you can run NICE. NICE walks you through the configuration of Internet access for three types of connection devices: modems, ISDN and DSL connections. NICE gathers the required information, inserts it into a script, and then runs that script to make the changes to the server using the INETCFG utility.

To run NICE:

  1. From a workstation, login to the server as admin. Run NICE using one of the following two access points:
    • Start NICE by clicking the Set up Internet Access task on the Quick Setup Task screen in NEAT.



      OR
    • Click Tasks > Run Novell Internet Connection Expert on the tool bar in NEAT.



  2. Choose the server to be configured, then Next.



  3. Select DSL, then Next.



  4. Enter the ISP's DNS Address.
  5. Enter your client's domain name. (If your client doesn't have a domain name, enter a dummy domain name such as Mybiz.net)
  6. Enter the appropriate IP address as indicated by the illustration for the configuration option you have chosen. (If you will use a dynamic Address, you must run DHCPCLNT on the server.)
  7. Select Next.



  8. Enter the name of the network board that is connected to the DSL modem. This is the name of the single network board in a 1- board configuration, or the name you have given the second network board in a 2-board configuration.
  9. Enter the Default Router IP Address as indicated by the configuration illustration for the configuration option you have chosen. (If it the Default Router IP Address is provided dynamically by your ISP, simply enter a dummy value, such as 1.2.3.4.
  10. Select Next.



  11. Verify the information is correct and select Finish.



    NOTE: Make sure that INETCFG is NOT open on the server before selecting Finish. If INETCFG is open, close it before finishing.

  12. Once you have completed the configuration, restart the server.
Congratulations. You have successfully completed the implementation of a wideband DSL connection for your Novell Small Business Suite 6 customer. Now your customer can enjoy the fast performance afforded by a high-speed connection and tap the full power of all Novell Small Business Suite 6 Net services.

?2002 Novell, Inc., All rights reserved. Novell, NetWare, GroupWise, NDS and Novell iFolder are registered trademarks, and Novell Easy Administration Tool is a trademark of Novell in the United States and in other countries.

*All other third-party trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

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