modem/gateway vs router

[Nipplemilk909]

hi so im going to be setting up my home network and was reading something that said to avoid using what ever the isp desides to give you since they not as secure as comercial ones, 

im useing time warner, they gave me a ubee ddw36c which is all a router modem and of course has a gateway, should i consider upgrading this? why do venders sell modems routers and gateways separately?

[JefferyD90]

7 minutes ago, Nipplemilk909 said:

hi so im going to be setting up my home network and was reading something that said to avoid using what ever the isp desides to give you since they not as secure as comercial ones, 

im useing time warner, they gave me a ubee ddw36c which is all a router modem and of course has a gateway, should i consider upgrading this? why do venders sell modems routers and gateways separately?

A "Gateway" is a fancy name given to a modem/switch/router/access point.

[PineyCreek]

It's generally cheaper to buy a modem approved by your ISP as it pays for itself since you're not paying the equipment fee.  You can then get a decent router or wireless router to put behind it.  It costs more up front, but you have more control, usually more options, and you save money over time.  Ex, I have Time Warner, I bought my modem a couple years ago for $80, it paid for itself in 8 months as I wasn't paying the $10 per month fee.

[JefferyD90]

16 minutes ago, Nipplemilk909 said:

hi so im going to be setting up my home network and was reading something that said to avoid using what ever the isp desides to give you since they not as secure as comercial ones, 

im useing time warner, they gave me a ubee ddw36c which is all a router modem and of course has a gateway, should i consider upgrading this? why do venders sell modems routers and gateways separately?

I really feel like you, along with many other people, have a poor understanding of what you really want/need with a networking setup.  Your connection needs to look like this:

 

Modem

Router

Switch

Access Point (if desired)

 

A "gateway" is the mythical name given to a fake piece of hardware where ISP's try to convenience you into buying a "all in one" piece of hardware.  The, inherent, problem with these is they're extremely small pieces of hardware that are asked to do a whole lot, in a small budget.  They tend to overheat, have shotty firmware, and often under developed pieces of hardware.

 

You're, typically, much better off in terms of long term cost (as you do rent your unit for a monthly fee from your ISP), performance, and reliability.

[Nipplemilk909]

4 minutes ago, JefferyD90 said:

You're, typically, much better off in terms of long term cost (as you do rent your unit for a monthly fee from your ISP), performance, and reliability.

better off renting what they give me ?

[JefferyD90]

Just now, Nipplemilk909 said:

better off renting what they give me ?

What?  Did you not read the whole paragraph before?  You're betting off getting your own equipment, separately, than getting their solution.

[Nipplemilk909]

what was it that you bought? mind i ask, 

[Nipplemilk909]

2 minutes ago, JefferyD90 said:

What?  Did you not read the whole paragraph before?  You're betting off getting your own equipment, separately, than getting their solution.

ok, but what should i look for, im looking on newegg and theres routers and modem routers, 

im guessing i have to get one that has a modem and a router,  

if i get something thats just a router, its still going to need the modem to connect to the isp right?

[fjdhdhcyfhf]

the reason you dont want to use the ISP provided modem is because they do not provide software/security updates. The one I had from my ISP was very outdated the day i received it.

[Audio Carnage]

4 hours ago, SCHISCHKA said:

the reason you dont want to use the ISP provided modem is because they do not provide software/security updates. The one I had from my ISP was very outdated the day i received it.

Doesn't matter. A modem does only information encoding and decoding.

The firewall sits behind the modem and filters packets from inbound and outbound traffic.

Therefore it's import to use a powerful firewall that also provides routing capabilities for your network. This can be a small computer running GNU/Linux with netfilter and iptables. In addition one can install an intrusion detection system, snort is very popular in this regard.

[fjdhdhcyfhf]

4 minutes ago, Audio Carnage said:

Doesn't matter. A modem does only information encoding and decoding.

The firewall sits behind the modem and filters packets from inbound and outbound traffic.

Therefore it's import to use a powerful firewall that also provides routing capabilities for your network. This can be a small computer running GNU/Linux with netfilter and iptables. In addition one can install an intrusion detection system, snort is very popular in this regard.

Modems run linux and are susceptible to attacks just like your desktop PC. Malware have been targeting modems & routers for years. Your modem and your router are the easiest/weakest part of your home network because there are so many running old versions of software and people are not thinking about their modems & routers.

this was the biggest one in security news last year http://securityaffairs.co/wordpress/53871/iot/deutsche-telekom-hack.html

if all of this telecom's customers were using their own hardware instead of the one given to them this would not have been as big as it was.

[Audio Carnage]

3 minutes ago, SCHISCHKA said:

Modems run linux and are susceptible to attacks just like your desktop PC. Malware have been targeting modems & routers for years. Your modem and your router are the easiest/weakest part of your home network because there are so many running old versions of software and people are not thinking about their modems & routers.

this was the biggest one in security news last year http://securityaffairs.co/wordpress/53871/iot/deutsche-telekom-hack.html

if all of this telecom's customers were using their own hardware instead of the one given to them this would not have been as big as it was.

Yes some run Linux, some run VxWorks and other RT operating systems.

This article mentions "routers" from Deutsche Telekom, which combine modem/FW/router/AP/Ethernet bridge. Most people don't get that, they just call it a modem or router. In reality these devices are all-in-one network appliances. 

 

Again, as I was saying, this is no security issue, as long as you have a separate firewall and router that filters the traffic from your compromised modem.

The worst thing that could happen is that you lose connectivity to your ISP, because someone messed with your modem. But if your firewall is properly configured, attackers can't access the hosts in your LAN.

[fjdhdhcyfhf]

3 minutes ago, Audio Carnage said:

Yes some run Linux, some run VxWorks and other RT operating systems.

This article mentions "routers" from Deutsche Telekom, which combine modem/FW/router/AP/Ethernet bridge. Most people don't get that, they just call it a modem or router. In reality these devices are all-in-one network appliances. 

 

Again, as I was saying, this is no security issue, as long as you have a separate firewall and router that filters the traffic from your compromised modem.

The worst thing that could happen is that you lose connectivity to your ISP, because someone messed with your modem. But if your firewall is properly configured, attackers can't access the hosts in your LAN.

It is worse than just cutting off internet, that was only one incident there are many. They redirect your web traffic and send you to dodgy places, dodgy places that can attack every machine connected to your network. Theres also the risk of having your modem participate in DDoS. Please do not tell people there is no security issue with a compromised modem!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i wish i could post a LMGTFY link in this forum

[JefferyD90]

11 hours ago, Nipplemilk909 said:

ok, but what should i look for, im looking on newegg and theres routers and modem routers, 

im guessing i have to get one that has a modem and a router,  

if i get something thats just a router, its still going to need the modem to connect to the isp right?

 

please go back and read my post. All 4 pieces of equipment are different physical pieces of equipment.

 

if you want me to build you a shopping cart then you need to provide more information as well as ask for it.