Is the Fritz!Box 3490 capable of 1gb up/down?

I'm getting Hey!Broadband installed on Tuesday, and I'd like to know if I can use my existing Fritx!Box 3490 for their 1gb service.

I had a quick google and it looks like Zen were providing them for FTTP, but that would be the BT version, so presumable 300/30.

Is this router capable of handling the speed?

It's all configured for my home network, so I'm hoping I can get the Hey! people to install an ONT instead of a modem/router, and I can just plug it into LAN1 on the Fritz!Box and setup the internet side, without losing all of my other configuration.

You’ll have to request H!B support to put their TP-Link Archer XR500V (GPON router) into bridge mode. It’s done remotely once connected. You can then connect your router of choice to the TP-Link and it should receive a publicly routable IP address on its WAN port.

As for throughputs of your FritzBox I’m unsure, but you could try and see…

https://en.avm.de/service/knowledge-base/dok/FRITZ-B...

Don't have FTTP but I do have a FritzBox and it will run a gig across my LAN. But it depends on what configuration you want to keep. Using an ONT you'll set the FB in bridge mode and connect it to the LAN1 port. This loses you VPN, port forwarding and the guest WiFi network. (If your router does those, I have a 7490 in bridge at the minute).

AFAIK there's no setup to do on an ONT, its preconfigured.

PS I'm having a bit of a fight getting some info from AVM (aka FritzBox) support. Apart from anything their older routers (like my 7490) are showing their age. Mine is a pile of you know when it comes to VPN throughput and its impossible to use it LAN to LAN with A N Other brand router.

I need a couple of new routers, Fritz is off the list. You may be better with whatever Hey provide.

Oh yeah, this is the thread I should’ve linked to that describes another user getting H!B to put their TP-Link GPON router into bridge mode.

Hopefully it’s not as taxing for you next week

According to their website, they're now providing the ADTRAN 814-v6 Home Gateway Unit. WiFi 6 GPON HGU.

Another Hey! customer requested "bridge mode", and they actually installed an ONT (adtran sdx611).

It all seems a bit random!

In reply to a post by Woolwich:

Don't have FTTP but I do have a FritzBox and it will run a gig across my LAN. But it depends on what configuration you want to keep. Using an ONT you'll set the FB in bridge mode and connect it to the LAN1 port. This loses you VPN, port forwarding and the guest WiFi network. (If your router does those, I have a 7490 in bridge at the minute).

AFAIK there's no setup to do on an ONT, its preconfigured.

Why would the FB be in bridge mode? I'd just establishing the PPPoE connection itself. Nothing else should change....?

In reply to a post by AndyPandy:

Why would the FB be in bridge mode? I'd just establishing the PPPoE connection itself. Nothing else should change....?

You're calling my bluff cos its not an Openreach connection, I don't know enough about how Hey connects.

You're going to need something to connect to the fibre, the FritzBox can't do that. Its just a DSL modem. So you need something to convert the light in the fibre optic to a digital signal. That's going to be the modem and - were it Openreach - there's nothing for you to configure, it makes the connection and passes a digital signal to your router. No PPPoE for you to set.

But someone will tell me Hay is different and I'm wrong - as usual.

It'll be one of either 2 scenarios. They'll either provide a modem/router, and I'll have to ask them to put it into bridge mode, or they'll provide and ONT, which is essentially a bridge.

The will then present an RJ45 connection, with the public IP. So on the FB, I'll tell it to use this connection, and supply the PPPoE credentials.

I just don't know if the FB will run 1Gb up/down. The LAN1/WAN port is 1Gb, as are the other 3 LAN ports, so I don't see why it wouldn't, but would love to hear from anyone that run it like this.

In reply to a post by AndyPandy:

The will then present an RJ45 connection, with the public IP. So on the FB, I'll tell it to use this connection, and supply the PPPoE credentials.

Can you do this? The FB will send the PPPoE over its WAN port, which is the DSL phone connection. I haven't seen anywhere in my FB to use one of the LAN ports for WAN. Unless its in bridge mode and then it can't do PPPoE at all.

But I might not have been looking, or hard enough.

On the 3490, LAN1 can be used as an ethernet WAN port. Then you go into Internet->Account Settings->Internet Connection. In there select the ISP as "Other internet provider", select "Connection to an external modem or router", leave "Establish own connection to the internet" selected, then enter the PPPoE username and password, set the max speeds, and VLAN if required.

So you now have the FB talking to the modem/ONT, and performing all other functions normally.

In reply to a post by AndyPandy:

So you now have the FB talking to the modem/ONT, and performing all other functions normally.

Oh look! You can do that on the 7490 as well!

Learn something new...

I guess you get what they’ve got in the van on the day! Does seem slightly random.

In reply to a post by AndyPandy:

I'm getting Hey!Broadband installed on Tuesday, and I'd like to know if I can use my existing Fritx!Box 3490 for their 1gb service.

Assuming the Fritz has an Ethernet WAN port, the two things to look at are:

* Does Hey!B require PPPoE (or do they use DHCP / IPoA etc) - PPPoE adds to the CPU requirement.

* Can the Fritz CPU keep up with real time IPv4 NAT at the 940 Mbps / 940 Mbps speeds of true gigabit. Many routers fail at around 300 Mbps unless they have hardware support.

Edited by jchamier (Sat 05-Mar-22 17:10:34)

Everything I've read (on here) suggests they use PPPoE, just like BT.

Your second point is what I'm interested in. I know I can set it up, but is it going to run at full speed?

HB is PPPoE. I do what you're trying to do with your FB but with a Draytek 2865 instead. It's the Draytek that controls the PPPoE session, not the HB provided Archer. The WAN IP sits on the Draytek. The 2865 can do gigabit PPPoE with its Firewall active and line speed IPSec (as it offloads both to a hardware accelerator). That a 2021 Router, not sure how old the FB you want to use is.

I think the reason why HB have increased the CPE's they provide is the WiFi from the Archer is a bit pants for anything other than a small property. Non-technical folk associate poor WiFi performance with poor WAN performance. The HB provided Archer doesn't support that as an ISP managed solution so they needed something else that has Mesh capability. Then there's those (like us / me) who wants to run their own kit. I like to self host so I want full control.

I was an early Hey! Broadband customer and I was given what they supported at the time. It's only natural this evolves overtime.

Edit: If I were in the market for a new Router for a gigabit connection, I would pick up a second hand small form factor 2nd PC running an 8th gen or later Intel i3 in it (£130), put a quad-port Intel Nic in it (£25) and run OPNsense / PFsense.

Cheaper, faster and more configurable (source: I've done just this).

Edited by nofappingway (Mon 07-Mar-22 15:44:22)

The FB has been around a while (a quick google showed a review from 2015). I google the Draytek 2865, and it looks like it's priced a lot like that last Draytek I had - very high!

The FB has 1Gb ports, and uses LAN1 as the WAN port, so I guess I'll find out if the processor can handle 1Gb or not. It seems like I'm the first to try.

I did find a Zen article on setting the 3490 up for FTTP, but that would have been for the Openreach service, so slower speeds.

That Adtran that they're supplying looks to have a horrendous GUI, like something from a Chinese WiFi webcam. I can't imagine how locked down it would be, and I don't want to find out!

Either way, I've asked them to provide the service in bridge mode, so If I need a better router, I'll just get one. I'm a huge fan of the FB, so probably a newer model with a dedicated 2.5Gb WAN port.

HB have Spanish roots. They didn't open their service to the UK public until 2020. Their Spanish operation was in service years before.

Looking at AVM's website, the only FB that's advertised as gigabit capable for FTTP is the FRITZBox 5530. I can't find that for sale in the UK.

There isn't much info out there on the throughput of the FB 3490. I suspect that as its a router aimed at the FTTC market, its good for up to 300Mb/s. Definitely a suck it and see what you do get.

Personally I think £200 for what Draytek charge is very reasonable considered the long list of features you get. I would never recommend their WiFi Products though.

That's interesting, all the engineers seem to be from South Africa!

The FB 5530 is a fibre modem/router, which can accept different modules to physically connect the fibre.

I'd probably go for the FB4060, which has a 2.5Gb WAN port, WiFi 6 etc. It's around the £200 mark, but the equivalent Draytek 2865Vac is £320.

Are you planning to use SIP / VoIP gateway services with the FB?

Nope, I'm binning the landline and number.

Well, I've had the HB fibre installed and connected it to the FB, and I'm getting 900Mbps up/down. Quite surprised, but happy!

That’s a result. No new boxes needed!

Enjoy your new service.

Edit- did you get an ONT or a brouter in bridge mode?

Edited by Pheasant (Wed 09-Mar-22 09:17:14)

I got the ONT as requested, it's the little Adtran 611.

Very pleased that the little FB from 2014 is capable of running the connection!

So far however I've had a morning of massive packet loss, followed by not being able to login (PPP error). After calling them it back up and running, although my IP address has changed, when it's supposed to be static.

Hopefully just teething issues.....

Your FB box running at 900Mb is a very welcome surprise. Enjoy your LAN speed internet

Edited by nofappingway (Wed 09-Mar-22 14:59:54)

In reply to a post by AndyPandy:

Very pleased that the little FB from 2014 is capable of running the connection!

Don't run any VPNs by any chance do you? My 7490 is incapable of running a VPN at more than 5 or 6 Mbps. Is the 3490 the same, not sure if its a newer box with a better processor or just the same less the DECT & VoIP.

I just ran a test on PIA for you (Southampton server):

DOWNLOAD Mbps
215.63
UPLOAD Mbps
700.17

Speeds a bit wonky, but fast enough!

EDIT: This is running the client on my PC, not the FB.

Edited by AndyPandy (Thu 10-Mar-22 09:44:05)

In reply to a post by AndyPandy:

EDIT: This is running the client on my PC, not the FB.

Thanks! Nice speeds but as you say that's the PC. I'm running site to site VPN from FB to FB and that's where the processor can't cope.

In reply to a post by Woolwich:

In reply to a post by AndyPandy:

EDIT: This is running the client on my PC, not the FB.

Thanks! Nice speeds but as you say that's the PC. I'm running site to site VPN from FB to FB and that's where the processor can't cope.

Ah OK - Are you seeing the CPU maxing out in System -> Energy Monitor -> Statistics?

You might be better of with something more business focused like a Draytek.

In reply to a post by AndyPandy:

Ah OK - Are you seeing the CPU maxing out in System -> Energy Monitor -> Statistics?

You might be better of with something more business focused like a Draytek.

You know I hadn't thought to look there. However I had moaned to AVM about it and after a firmware upgrade didn't help they basically said the processor isn't up to it.

Yes, looking at DrayTek but its £300 per site! So trying to get EdgeRouters to handle the VPN and hold onto the FBs for WiFi, DECT and VoIP.

In reply to a post by Woolwich:

Don't run any VPNs by any chance do you? My 7490 is incapable of running a VPN at more than 5 or 6 Mbps.

Indeed. Site to site VPN with endpoints on the routers will be very CPU intensive, especially for a ‘general purpose’ router with no acceleration.

I'm sorry to say a Draytek like the 2865 won't give you gigabit throughput unless you're using it to establish an IPSec tunnel in routing mode as that is handled by the hardware accelerator. If your using IPSec NAT-T or any other VPN protocol it supports, it hits a ceiling at 180Mb/s

In reply to a post by nofappingway:

I'm sorry to say a Draytek like the 2865 won't give you gigabit throughput unless you're using it to establish an IPSec tunnel in routing mode as that is handled by the hardware accelerator. If your using IPSec NAT-T or any other VPN protocol it supports, it hits a ceiling at 180Mb/s

Yes, I did a bit of research on that router. My line isn't Gig but I would like to saturate as much as possible my 20 Mbps uplinks. Seeing what can be done with an EdgeRouter...