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mat

@ mat @linux.community

Posts
5
Comments
170
Joined
2 yr. ago

  • Student dorm does not allow wifi routers

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  • The uni is not at fault here, the dorm is a separate entity that just happens to have a deal to keep some rooms for exchange students like me. The dorm is from iQ Student Accommodation (who told me I could bring a router), and the ISP they use is ASK4 (whose T&C you are seeing).

  • Student dorm does not allow wifi routers

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  • Switches are also explicitly banned as they allow bypassing the device limit.

  • Student dorm does not allow wifi routers

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  • And importantly, the email is from my dorm (whose contract simply said they provided free fast wifi), while these unexpected T&Cs are from the dorm's ISP.

  • Student dorm does not allow wifi routers

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  • While I see where you're coming from, I do need to clarify two things:

    • I use VR mainly for two things: Beat Saber, and sometimes C++ game development (my degree). I can't develop on-headset because of the limitations Facebook imposes, so I am stuck with streaming. I am taking my own path through these studies, for example I rewrote all the assignments and engines to CMake and then Linux which has allowed me to learn a whole lot more than if I simply followed the classes. I wish to mess with networking as another extension to my studies, as it's not covered at all and now is the time I have dedicated 100% to learning (vs later in life).
    • I didn't really choose this university: I chose to do an exchange program for a semester and this was the one option that matched my interests/degree. And the uni seems awesome so far (we haven't started courses though). The dorm is a separate entity from the uni, but they do have a deal to provide rooms for half a year for exchange students. So this dorm was my best option to avoid a yearlong contract.

  • Student dorm does not allow wifi routers

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  • Thanks. I do unfortunately need wifi to do wireless VR streaming... I guess I need to find a way to tune it to interfere the least, but this is a whole alien world to me.

  • Student dorm does not allow wifi routers

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  • Yeah, I get why they do it security-wise (but am mad about the surprise extracting money part, which was not in the dorm contract!). The dorm isn't from uni (it's a third party) but they did seem on my side given they said I could indeed bring a router... the ISP is the problem here. I think I will feign ignorance and set the settings as low as they'll go while still being able to maintain a good connexion to the headset. Maybe hide the SSID too (it has my name on it lol).

  • Student dorm does not allow wifi routers

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  • y e p, I feel your pain (but I know way less about networking than it seems like you do haha, still haven't made the jump to ipv6 myself)

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  • I'm only staying for a semester (via Erasmus, or what remains of it post-Brexit) so while I did consider this I don't think it's very viable.

  • Student dorm does not allow wifi routers

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  • The ethernet connexion still requires a login/account creation/T&C acceptance sadly.

  • Student dorm does not allow wifi routers

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  • Would that work even if the T&Cs are for a third party (the ISP), while the correspondence is with my dorm provider (not legally related to my uni, they just have a partnership)?

  • Student dorm does not allow wifi routers

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  • I'm in the UK, not sure if they have their own british version of the FCC or just follow their rules but it might be different. The router/AP is a tp link Archer C6, which I use as it is performant enough to do VR streaming w/o stutters or high latency.

  • Student dorm does not allow wifi routers

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  • So technically I should get away with connecting the router and making an AP right? I can't do a hotspot from my laptop because the performance is not high enough for streaming (this is why I bought a dedicated router).

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  • That's fair yeah. In my case the dorms are a separate unrelated company from the uni (they just have a partnership) and the ISP is yet another third party that did the install and sells extras to each student. I think it's pretty scummy since I read my whole dorm contract and it never said this would be a condition to the "free fast wifi" access.

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  • Woah, that's really cool. I'll contact my uni to ask about it and I guess for now use a phone data hotspot and skip on VR.

  • Student dorm does not allow wifi routers

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  • I'd be happy to set my device to passthrough mode, but I think the ISP prevents peer-to-peer connections (which my laptop would make to the VR headset) unless you buy one of their plans for Chromecast/smart TVs. Would that prevent it from working? And would I still be able to connect multiplw devices despite their one-device limit?

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  • Yeah, the interference argument is fair, but I think this is also the ISP (totally separate third party) trying to protect the paid plans they sell for connecting more than one device...

  • Student dorm does not allow wifi routers

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  • That's good advice, however this dorm is not part of my uni (just a partner to provide housing) and the internet provider whose T&C I'm expected to accept and sign up for 1y of are a totally separate legal entity, that has a bunch of upsells for stuff like "connect more than 1 device" (which my router/AP would basically be bypassing, and I think that's what these clauses are about). About the interference, is it possible to limit it severely while still having a reliable connection just within my room? I only really want to connect:

    1. Laptop (wired)
    2. Phone
    3. VR for streaming from laptop

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  • Yeah I definitely don't want to hurt the network for other folks staying at this (very large) dorm complex/building. Can I reasonably run it at low power (since I only need it in my room) and not have it bother anyone?

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  • Interesting about hiding SSIDs, I never knew why that option existed. I'm here on Erasmus so I don't want to risk too much by knowingly breaking rules... them triangulating it to my room and starting a legal case or something sounds real scary.