Dynamic IP address

[rhu]

So Comcast has started switching our IP address every day or so. Which is their right, but it makes it difficult for me to ssh into my home Linux box from elsewhere if I need to look something up on a file at home, or update my website (hosted at 1&1) via svn update from my master copy at home. (Maybe this is some sort of attempt at disrupting Conficker, who knows?)

My question is: anyone out there using a static IP vendor that you're happy with and that doesn't charge too much? I'm not looking to run a publicly available server, but I like knowing that I can get into the home network if I need to.

Comments

[introverte.livejournal.com]

Heh heh. You said conficker.

[cellio]

I don't have an answer to the question you asked, but does http://www.dyndns.com/ help you at all?

[530nm330hz.livejournal.com]

Looks like it might. Do they have a good reputation? Thanks!

[cellio]

I've been using their free service to solve a specific problem involving a static IP address for a year or two without problems. Aside from that and the recommendation that led me to them originally, I don't have any data, unfortunately. But you could at least give the free service a spin while continuing to look around.

[(Anonymous)]

I use dnydns to ssh to one of my home machines through Comcast, and that has been working for me ... knock wood.

-pd

[ken_r]

The info at http://www.comcast.com/Customers/FAQ/FaqCategory.ashx?CatId=209 suggests that leases should still last for at least a few days unless something is wrong, or they're doing maintenance, etc. I've looked at their online forums a little, but so far I don't see anything about a systemic change of this sort. On the other hand, I've seen a few postings that indicate that sometimes they just don't bother to let people know about problems or maintenance work.

From my own logs, it looks like they were giving out very short leases on the 25th and 26th, but went back to long lease times (well, sort of, 20-40 hours, not the 3-4 days the web site claims) late on the 26th. But the address hasn't changed at all in weeks, I think.

Dynamic DNS updates are probably the best solution. For something like ssh, where you might have the host key fingerprint available elsewhere, it's just a temporary disruption if the old address is cached at some site; waiting a few minutes and trying again should get you through to the right host. I probably wouldn't use this for a machine receiving email, though.

Another, somewhat hacking approach that I've set up and occasionally made use of is to have the home machine periodically ssh into some off-site machine (at work?) which records where the connection came in from; variants on that might include updating some web-accessible space provided by Comcast or elsewhere, to store the current address, and maybe a timestamp so you can detect if the machine's just completely offline. Not as convenient as having an updated DNS name, but might be easier to set up depending on circumstances, and you're in control of more of the infrastructure.

Another approach I've used, but probably the most difficult to set up :-), is an IP tunnel to elsewhere that has a static IP address, so you can always bounce through that external site to get to your home machine. IPsec may work well for this, and has the side benefit of keeping Comcast's nose out of your business. Getting the tunnel might require application of money at the other end though, unless you've got a friend in a position to help.

[530nm330hz.livejournal.com]

It may have been network maintenance, because we went from a 24.* address to a 75.* address (which at first I assumed was simply that they were reorganizing their address space) and then to a second 75.* address and now we're back on 24.* --- and your observation about lease lengths would support the idea that this was a temporary situation related to maintenance.

I gave up on running an email server from home about a year ago. I'm renting a virtual machine from Spry for that and it's been stable and uneventful. (And I'm considering setting up an ssh tunnel to there as a last resort.)

Thanks for the advice!

[goldsquare.livejournal.com]

Some 3 years ago, I was using Comcast, and started dating a wonderful woman who I later married - and since she often used secure VPNs, her work required a static IP address.

Comcast seemed nearly pathologically incapable of selling us the additional service. It's not that they didn't have that service (they did, and charged for it), but they could never actually manage to accomplish the deed.

She spent over 5 hours on the phone over a series of days, then I took over and spent about 4. Complete failure.

We called the other provider in town: RCN. They had a new account set up for us, with a static IP, faster access and cheaper rates, in 10 minutes. We were an easy sell.


When I called Comcast to end the account, they asked for a disconnect reason. I said "we couldn't get you guys to sell us something we needed, that would have made you more money". She said "I don't have a code for that - would 'poor customer service' do?" I suggested that she leave it blank, and she said she couldn't disconnect my service without a reason.

I have a diet rich in irony.

[drdaly.livejournal.com]

I've been using the free dyndns service for over a year; my linksys router has built-in support to interact with dyndns, so it was very easy to set up.

The only downside is once in a while they threaten to close your free account unless you log in. They don't actually make you *do* anything other than log in, but it's a small price to pay for otherwise free service.

[autotruezone.livejournal.com]

I also use RCN. I haven't purchased a static IP from them, but the only time my IP number ever changed was when I got a new wireless router (which of course, had a different MAC address from the computer that had previously been hooked up to the cable modem).

I haven't had any problems with their service, and the last time I checked the T's & C's, they don't object to running servers on their network (currently, the only thing I'm running is an email domain).