Marina WiFi

[thecommander]

Slight 1st World problem here...

Our marina uses a system/company called WiFi SPARK to serve internet to it's customers. On the most part the system seems to work well provided we are standing in the cockpit.

The network uses a captive portal to authenticate devices. This means when connecting to the network for the first time you are prompted to enter a username and password via an unsecured webpage before access to the internet is granted. This login/registration process records your devices MAC address, allowing you to connect again without the need of a username and password.

Obviously in a sailing boat, the main cabin/saloon sits low in the water and is blocked by a great big pontoon and by other boats so we struggle to achieve a reliable connection when sat inside the cabin. Not ideal.

To get around this problem I was thinking of buying a portable WiFi router and installing it in cabins highest point. My main concern is how this router will authenticate with the marinas captive portal. Has explained above, captive portals require you to enter a username and password via a webpage, which you obviously cannot do on a router.

The other suggestion I've had is to register my laptops MAC address with the network, then change the routers MAC address to that of my laptop, but I suppose this could be in breach of whatever IT policy the marina have.

The other final option is to buy a great big USB WiFi antenna and set my laptop up as WiFi hotspot.

Not sure if anyhow else has had, or is having similar issues?

 

[Mistroma]

Plenty of past threads on buying boosters and routers. Alfa boosters usually come out well and R36 suggested if you want to create a local hotspot on the boat.

1) USB booster will have a MAC address and marina system will us that. No problem, even if you plug it into another device. However, you only get one device at a time on the Wifi access point but that might be OK

2) Router such as Alfa R36 connects to an Alfa booster and that in turn behaves exactly as above. Marina Wifi system uses the booster's MAC address so all is well. However, the R36 creates it's own local Access Point and anyone in the vicinity can connect to it, so multiple devices connecting to the marina's Wifi.

 

[laika]

You may be over-thinking this. Maybe say a little more about the "wifi router" you're thinking about: Is this a device which connects to a remote access point and provides an internal access point?

If so (i.e. if it's anything like my set up) any communication between the marina access point and your laptop goes via your router so it's the router's mac address the marina system sees, not that of your laptop. The router will associate with the access point and get an IP address just fine but until you're "authenticated" any web traffic will be redirected to the marina login page. The first time you try and browse the web with your laptop you'll get redirected to this, you log in as normal and away you go. It's the router's MAC address that the marina system will see, not that of your laptop, tablet etc. so one login will sort you out for every device you're using. One of the benefits of a set-up like this is circumventing the "one device only" rule that some marina wifi systems have.

 

[KellysEye]

We had the same problem in some marinas what I did was buy a high gain antenna, 12 Db or more, and tie it to the boom with a plastic bag over it in the rain. Obviously you need a long USB extension lead and a hatch to feed it through.

"This means when connecting to the network for the first time you are prompted to enter a username and password via an unsecured webpage before access to the internet is granted".
That is a hackers dream, get them to secure it, this is what they need to do to get a https address http://www.howto-expert.com/how-to-get-https-setting-up-ssl-on-your-website/

 

[RichardS]

"This means when connecting to the network for the first time you are prompted to enter a username and password via an unsecured webpage before access to the internet is granted".
That is a hackers dream, get them to secure it, this is what they need to do to get a https address http://www.howto-expert.com/how-to-get-https-setting-up-ssl-on-your-website/

Surely an unsecured SSID is what all public wifis are like? You access the unsecured web page, type in the username and password and are then taken to the secure connection?

If the landing site was secure it would show up in your wifi networks list with a padlock on it and you've never even try to connect to it.

Richard

 

[sailorman]

Slight 1st World problem here...

Our marina uses a system/company called WiFi SPARK to serve internet to it's customers. On the most part the system seems to work well provided we are standing in the cockpit.

The network uses a captive portal to authenticate devices. This means when connecting to the network for the first time you are prompted to enter a username and password via an unsecured webpage before access to the internet is granted. This login/registration process records your devices MAC address, allowing you to connect again without the need of a username and password.

Obviously in a sailing boat, the main cabin/saloon sits low in the water and is blocked by a great big pontoon and by other boats so we struggle to achieve a reliable connection when sat inside the cabin. Not ideal.

To get around this problem I was thinking of buying a portable WiFi router and installing it in cabins highest point. My main concern is how this router will authenticate with the marinas captive portal. Has explained above, captive portals require you to enter a username and password via a webpage, which you obviously cannot do on a router.

The other suggestion I've had is to register my laptops MAC address with the network, then change the routers MAC address to that of my laptop, but I suppose this could be in breach of whatever IT policy the marina have.

The other final option is to buy a great big USB WiFi antenna and set my laptop up as WiFi hotspot.

Not sure if anyhow else has had, or is having similar issues?

I use my 3 network on tethered as the marina WiFi is next to useless ( even after "The Up-Grade")

 

[laika]

when connecting to the network for the first time you are prompted to enter a username and password via an unsecured webpage before access to the internet is granted.

That is a hackers dream, get them to secure it

Surely an unsecured SSID is what all public wifis are like?

thecommander can confirm but I suspect this may just be a confusion of terminology. Usually with this kind of thing the wifi is open but the authentication portal does use https so your password isn't sent in the clear.

 

[Mistroma]

thecommander can confirm but I suspect this may just be a confusion of terminology. Usually with this kind of thing the wifi is open but the authentication portal does use https so your password isn't sent in the clear.

I also assumed that's what he probably meant. However, I have come across quite a few in med. where password and account aren't encrypted so can be captured. Also possible to collect and then spoof MAC address to match an authenticated device after it's disconnected (or been thrown off). I haven't spotted that in UK yet but then don't spend time looking. Commercial offerings shouldn't be so silly.

 

[horatio_nelson]

I use my 3 network on tethered as the marina WiFi is next to useless ( even after "The Up-Grade")

I do this too mostly. Get 4hrs" free" daily as a Premier berth holder, variable quality.

Anyone - Is WiFi or bluetooth the best way to tether?

 

[Caer Urfa]

Our marina at Royal Quays on the Tyne now uses the same 'Wifi Spark' internet company with the same log in procedure as the last supplier was hopeless in every department, now they have installed new Wi Fi aerials around the marina pontoons and in general the system now operates well.

So why can your marina not add more aerials or reposition your aerials so you 'all get' good reception as at the end of the day YOU and other berth holders are paying for the service !

Mike

 

[PhillM]

Gave up on marina wifi. Have both Vodafone 4g and ee4g. Both work in most places I need wifi in.

 

[BlueChip]

Slight 1st World problem here...

Our marina uses a system/company called WiFi SPARK to serve internet to it's customers. On the most part the system seems to work well provided we are standing in the cockpit.

Sutton Harbour Marina are just ditching WifiSpark after 5 years - http://www.wifispark.com/about/blog/entry/sutton-harbour-marina-upgrades-wifi
For us the service has been dreadful and often I've not been able to make any connection at all and when I can it's almost unusable.
Very soon a new provider comes on line we are waiting with baited breath to see if its any better.

 

[Jamesuk]

Our marina at Royal Quays on the Tyne now uses the same 'Wifi Spark' internet company with the same log in procedure as the last supplier was hopeless in every department, now they have installed new Wi Fi aerials around the marina pontoons and in general the system now operates well.

So why can your marina not add more aerials or reposition your aerials so you 'all get' good reception as at the end of the day YOU and other berth holders are paying for the service !

Mike

Can you run a speedtest.net to find out what download/upload speeds you get.

I have my iphone tethered and I get 20/10mb so have not issues for anything although the multiplayer online yacht simulator does not work brilliantly because by the time I get halfway across the English channel at 3am in the morning much of my data (12.5gb) has been used. So I now only use it for emails/youtube/etc

Back to the OP:

Check out Inventica Marine Wifi Yacht spot PM me if you are interested.

 

[KellysEye]

One other thought about an unsecured network is if you log in as administrator all your files are accessible to a hacker and malware can be loaded, keylogger and blocking access to the machine are the worst. Log in as user and you can' be hacked. It might be worth getting the marina to contact all their users to do that until they get https, it might embarrass them so they do it quicker.

 

[readings]

We are installing something similar to this: http://www.coastalmarinewifi.com

Initial results are very encouraging enabling us to stream iPlayer from clubhouse WiFi. It's based on the Ubiquiti Bullet router with directly attached omnidirectional aerial.

 

[RobbieW]

We are installing something similar to this: http://www.coastalmarinewifi.com

Initial results are very encouraging enabling us to stream iPlayer from clubhouse WiFi. It's based on the Ubiquiti Bullet router with directly attached omnidirectional aerial.

Have you thought about the impact you will have on others attempting to use the club's wifi whilst you're streaming to your iThing ? Unless the club has had the foresight to implement some 'fairness' features in thier system the likely effect is that you'll hog much of the available bandwidth, the more so if you're not the only one doing it. In the UK, IMO, there is little excuse for not having a MiFi, or using your smartphone as a hotspot, on board and paying for the bandwidth you use individually.

 

[KevB]

To the OP
An easy and inexpensive option would be to buy a netgear n300 http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NETGEAR-PR2000-100EUS-Trek-Universal-N300-Wi-Fi-Range-Extender-and-Travel-Router-/161910957238?hash=item25b2a524b6:g:RQkAAOSwxN5WZcIm

You configure the n300 with a SSID (the name of the wireless LAN your devices will connect to, 'my boat' for instance) and a username and password then via your laptop/device you simply log into the n300 via a web brownser and connect it to your marina's wifi using the name and password the marina gave you. The beauty of this device is you can connect all your wireless devices to it and use the marina's hotspot.
Put the n300 in your cockpit where it can get a signal from the marina wifi and it'll transmit your wifi ('my boat') around your boat.

 

[mainsail1]

I do this too mostly. Get 4hrs" free" daily as a Premier berth holder, variable quality.

Anyone - Is WiFi or bluetooth the best way to tether?

Bluetooth uses less battery power.

 

[readings]

To the OP
An easy and inexpensive option would be to buy a netgear n300

Very interesting, I've not seen that before. I wonder how its wifi reception range would compare with the Ubiquiti Bullet router with EnGenius omni directional aerial?

 

[KevB]

Very interesting, I've not seen that before. I wonder how its wifi reception range would compare with the Ubiquiti Bullet router with EnGenius omni directional aerial?

To be honest I don't know as I've just (today) taken delivery of one myself. I'll be trying it out tomorrow but as I'm only about 20 metres away from the wifi mast, It's reception qualities won't be put to much of a test.

It already comes setup with a network name and password if you don't want to configure your own and as soon as you connect to it it goes into a quick setup screen where you select your "marina" wifi/hotspot and enter it's password. So it looks like you can be up and running within a minute or so of turning it on. It can be powered by mains or usb which is useful.

I'll report back when I've tried it.