ISP Connection + Misc.
For reasons explained later in this post I needed to reinstall Debian from
scratch. This time around I had trouble connecting to my ISP. Although I
finally fixed the problem it appears to be either a (sort of) bug or
something nonstandard with my ISP. Anyway, I thought it was worth mentioning.
What I did:
edited - /etc/ppp.chatscript inserted <phone #> <username> <password>
- /etc/ppp.options_out changed '/dev/modem' to '/dev/ttyS3'
- /etc/ppp/pap-secrets inserted '<username> * <password>' above
' os * password'
- /etc/hosts.allow added 'ALL : LOCAL'
new file - /etc/resolv.conf 'search myISP.org
nameserver xxx.xxx.xx.xx
nameserver xxx.xxx.xx.xx'
The Problem: worked manually: exec pppd connect \
'chat -v -f /etc/ppp.chatscript'
-detach crtscts modem defaultroute \
user <username> \
/dev/ttyS3 38400
with 'pon' wouldn't connect, various error messages:
IPCP timeout sending Config-Requests
LCP terminated at peer's request
serial line is looped back
sometimes locks up and need to reboot
The Solution: edited /etc/ppp.options_out by inserting 'user <username>'
before '/dev/ttyS3'
I'm guessing that the first time I installed Debian I accidentally did
something to ppp.chatscript to make it wait for the ISP to request the
username, but this time the username needed to be in the ppp.options_out
script also since by the time the ISP requested <username> chatscript was
already closed.
This is merely a wild guess. But since nowhere in the instructions does it
say to add your <username> to ppp.options_out I thought it was worth mentioning.
Being a new user of Debian I also have some miscellaneous questions, which
might seem simplistic to others but would be helpful if answered.
1) In the error message above, does "peer" refer to my ISP, not my Debian
machine? It appears that way to me, but I'm not sure.
2) "pon" (and also 'exec pppd') only works when logged on as root. Is it
supposed to be that way? Shouldn't you be able to access the Internet when
logged in as a 'user'? If so, how do I change this?
3) In 'dselect' how do you safely remove packages without destroying all
your previously installed files. I think this is why I had to reinstall
Debian in the first place. I went to 'deselect' and then 'remove packages'
and it started deleting like crazy. What is the proper procedure? (e.g. go
to the 'select' option and put a '+' near only those to delete and '-'
everything else?)
4) Which command starts XFree86, 'xdm' or 'xstart'? When installing XFree86
it asks if you want 'xdm' to start at boot time. Then warns that if the
monitor isn't configured yet this could cause problems. Will answering yes
actually bring up a graphical interface at boot time? The safe answer would
be 'no', but then what initialization file do I change later when I want it
to start at boot time?
5) Last, and this may seem really silly, but what is the correct way to log
off and turn off the machine. I've been just turning off the computer at
the 'login' prompt, but when I reboot I get messages such as '... not
cleanly unmounted' leading me to believe I'm not doing things correctly.
Thanks for any help.
Dennis Dixon
P.O. Box 1896
Fort Bragg, CA 95437
(707) 964-2979
ddixon@mcn.org
http://www.dixonadvise.com
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