[HamWAN PSDR] 44.x.x.x HamWAN network at Paine

[Dean Gibson AE7Q]

I have an idea to provide additional radio network connectivity to the 
Snohomish County DEM at Paine on 23cm, that would require one or two 
fixed 44.x.x.x IP addresses at the DEM, and one at my house (separate 
from my MikroTik radio), that would be accessible via the present 
44.24.240.x connection to Paine (and perhaps any other 44.24.240.0/20 
address).  Both involve the use of two (or more) Icom ID-1 radios in 
D-Star DD mode.

Background:  An Icom ID-1 in DD mode acts just like a piece of Ethernet 
cable (except that it is half-duplex and limited to a raw 128Kbps 
speed).  No IP address is (or can be) assigned to the device. Any 
Ethernet packet reaching the ID-1's Ethernet port (whatever the content) 
is simply encapsulated and transmitted if the radio is in DD-mode.  
Similarly, any received data (properly encapsulated by another ID-1) is 
simply sent out the receiving radio's Ethernet port.  The only radio 
configuration possible is to select a 23cm frequency and set the radio 
into DD-mode.  Most of these actions can either be done by the radio's 
control head, or via a USB port "connected" to a Windows PC running 
Icom's control software for the ID-1.  This prior sentence is important 
in the following discussion.

As an aside, the transmission of an ID-1 can be addressed to and 
received by a D-Star DD-mode "repeater" module, routed via the D-Star 
network over the Internet to another such "repeater" module anywhere in 
the world, and retransmitted over the air to a receiving ID-1 radio.  
This mechanism, while perhaps interesting, is not the subject of this 
eMail.  I only mention it so as to avoid confusion.

In scenario #1 for the ID-1 that already is installed at the Snohomish 
County DEM:

 1. The Ethernet port of the ID-1 is directly connected to a switch at
    the DEM that is on the 44.24.240.x network.  In this mode, any
    packets received over-the-air by the ID-1 are injected into the
    local 44.24.240.x network, and are routed in exactly the same manner
    as from any other device hard-wired to the 44.24.240.x network at
    the DEM.  Further, any Ethernet packets seen by the ID-1 (whether
    intended for radio transmission or not), would be transmitted by the
    ID-1.
 2. Another ID-1, located (say) at my house would be connected to a
    router, which would act as though it were directly connected to the
    44.24.240.x network at the DEM.

I don't view the above scenario as a good idea.  For one thing, the 
indiscriminate transmissions from the DEM of unrelated 44.x.x.x packets 
doesn't seem like a good idea.  For another, there is no security.  So, 
that brings me to scenario #2:

 1. At the Snohomish County DEM, place a router (or bridge) between the
    ID-1 and the 44.24.240.x network.
 2. In this scenario, the ID-1 located at my house would also be
    connected to a router that acts as though it were directly connected
    to the 44.24.240.x (or any other) network at the DEM.

Now, here is the wrinkle (to both scenarios):  The ID-1 at the DEM is 
currently in VERY LOW utilization, being (as so far as we know) only 
able to contact my ID-1 (in either digital  data or voice mode), and the 
two 23cm D-Star K7LWH repeater modules (one voice, and presumably one 
data) in Bellevue.  Also, the ID-1 also supports normal FM voice mode, 
and is easily able to hit with one watt (from both the DEM and my house) 
the KB7CNN 23cm FM repeater on East Tiger Mountain.  So, it would be 
nice to use the DEM's ID-1 radio in different modes, as needed, and 
switch modes or frequencies REMOTELY as desired.  The solution to this 
the use of a Digi "Anywhere/5" (or "/2") Ethernet-to-USB box (I have 
several).  With the installation of Digi drivers on any Windows PC, 
these allow a PC anywhere in the world to connect over the Internet to a 
Digi box and have access to several remote USB devices (including any 
connected USB hubs).  In particular, the USB control port of an ID-1.  
In fact, this is how I control my ID-1 at home:  this allows me to 
control the ID-1 from any Windows PC.

Hence the desire for a fixed 44.24.240.x IP address for the Digi box at 
the DEM, allowing REMOTE control and configuration of the ID-1 when the 
Internet is not available.  While the Digi box can be connected to any 
network at the DEM, it seems most productive to connect it to the 
44.24.240.x network there, allowing remote configuration and control of 
the ID-1 in an Internet outage (this can be disabled by unplugging the 
ID-1's USB port). Unfortunately, the Digi USB boxes are only usable from 
Windows systems (Digi's remote SERIAL (RS-232) port boxes are supported 
not only on Windows from 98 on, but on most variants of Linux ...).

Yes, this provides a much slower connection to the DEM than the MikroTik 
radios, but doesn't have quite the strict line-of-sight issues that 5cm 
does, and thus permits some mobile access.

To Scott Hokaker:

I am willing to provide a Digi "Anywhere/5" box on permanent loan (or 
perhaps donation) to this project.  I also have a couple of 
consumer-grade routers (Linksys BEFSR41, Netgear WGT624v2) that are 
similarly available, if they are suitable.

Comments welcome!

-- Dean

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