[Freedombox-discuss] Lessons from a FreedomBox alternative - Tonido

[bob@sluggish.homelinux.net (Bob Mottram)]

On Mon, 27 Jun 2011 14:38:07 +1000, John Walsh wrote:
> Still, I think the FreedomBox would have to work behind and in front 
> of a
> router (both use cases). My parents have a modem+router+wi-fi combo 
> box
> because they have the piece of *consumer* mind that everything will 
> work
> together. The most basic device in the shops here is an modem+router 
> combo -
> you cannot buy a modem on its own anymore here. You are effectively 
> forced
> to put your FreedomBox behind a router here :(


For an initial release trying to replace routers may not be the best 
option.  In my experience routers are often supplied pre-configured by 
the ISP, and replacing that with a freedombox could result in many 
problems, because there are a wide diversity of routers and ISP 
configurations.  If anything goes wrong the ISP is unlikely to be able 
(or willing) to tell you how to configure the freedombox.  Using a 
freedombox as a router replacement is likely to be an option which only 
the more technically confident users will attempt.

The easiest installation for most users is going to be something behind 
an existing router, then opening the relevant ports.