Netgate Discussion Forum
    • Categories
    • Recent
    • Tags
    • Popular
    • Users
    • Search
    • Register
    • Login

    PPPoE on WAN link for Centurylink gigabit service

    Scheduled Pinned Locked Moved General pfSense Questions
    51 Posts 23 Posters 50.5k Views
    Loading More Posts
    • Oldest to Newest
    • Newest to Oldest
    • Most Votes
    Reply
    • Reply as topic
    Log in to reply
    This topic has been deleted. Only users with topic management privileges can see it.
    • B
      billmcg
      last edited by billmcg

      This post is deleted!
      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
      • B
        billmcg
        last edited by billmcg

        I finally got this setup working with my sg-2440, but there's NO WAY this device supports a gigabit connection as claimed in the literature. Default CL modem sees speeds around 860/775 wheras setup with my sg-2440 I'm getting 450/450.

        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
        • chrismacmahonC
          chrismacmahon
          last edited by

          Have you tried the work around in this Redmine ticket: https://redmine.pfsense.org/issues/4821

          You should be able to get a lot more speed out of the 2440.

          Can you verify your PowerD settings; it should be enabled and either Hiadaptive, or Maximum should be the profile.

          Need help fast? Our support is available 24/7 https://www.netgate.com/support/

          Do Not PM For Help!

          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
          • B
            billmcg
            last edited by

            @chrismacmahon said in PPPoE on WAN link for Centurylink gigabit service:

            https://redmine.pfsense.org/issues/4821

            I have tried the workaround. I'm currently running with the following /boot/loader.conf.local and max out around 530mbps:

            hw.igb.fc_setting=0
            net.isr.dispatch=deferred
            net.inet.tcp.tso=0

            I'm not sure what powerD is. I'll have to look into that now...

            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
            • B
              billmcg
              last edited by billmcg

              Oh wow! Enabling powerD and setting to maximum really helped. I'm seeing 820/820 which is about as good as I think I can do given that my fiber run zigzags across 6 different poles and then I have about a 70ft cat6 run from the ONT. I consider this resolved.

              Thanks for the tips!

              1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
              • chrismacmahonC
                chrismacmahon
                last edited by

                Glad we got you sorted out.

                Need help fast? Our support is available 24/7 https://www.netgate.com/support/

                Do Not PM For Help!

                B 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                • B
                  billmcg @chrismacmahon
                  last edited by billmcg

                  So, here's documentation of the entire process of getting CenturyLink Gigabit GPON service working at full speed with pfSense. This applies only to PPPoE "internet only" service from Century Link. The internet+prism TV service uses IPoE and is configured differently.

                  The hw.igb.fc_setting=0 below disables flow control for the Intel NICs in the Netgate SG-2440. Different hardware will require a different option. Other than this, the instructions below should be hardware agnostic. Assuming your hardware is fast enough, you should see performance comparable, or very near to CL supplied hardware.

                  Diagnostics -> Edit File
                  Path to file: /boot/loader.conf.local
                  Click Load to load the existing file.
                  Add:

                  net.isr.dispatch=deferred
                  net.inet.tcp.tso=0
                  hw.igb.fc_setting=0

                  Save and Reboot

                  In the pfSense GUI:

                  System -> Advanced -> Miscellaneous -> Power Savings
                  Check "Enable PowerD" and set to "Maximum" or Hiadaptive" for all power states.

                  Interfaces -> Assignmnents -VLANs
                  Add a new VLAN interface. In the edit dialog:

                  Parent Interface: <the physical interface of your WAN port>
                  On the SG-2440 this is most likely igb0, so we'll assume that for the rest of this config.

                  VLAN Tag: 201
                  Save

                  Interfaces -> Assignments -> PPPs
                  Add a new PPP
                  Link Type: PPPoE
                  Link Interface: igb0.201
                  Username: CenturyLink Supplied
                  Password: CenturyLink Supplied
                  Service name: <leave blank>
                  Configure NULL service name: checked
                  Save

                  Interfaces -> Assignments -> Interface Assignments
                  WAN: select PPPoE0(igb0.201) - < CL Username > from the drop down
                  Save

                  Interfaces -> WAN
                  verify that IPv4 Configuration Type is PPPoE

                  Under PPPoE Configuration
                  Verify Username and Password are present
                  Save

                  Status -> Interfaces
                  Verify WAN Interface (wan, pppoe0)
                  Status: up
                  PPPoE: up
                  IPv4 Address: <is present>

                  D G 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 3
                  • stephenw10S
                    stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
                    last edited by

                    Nice result!

                    Be aware that setting net.isr.dispatch=deferred will give you better PPPoE speeds but might cause problems with ALTQ if you need shaping.

                    And, yeah, you need to have powerd (speedstep) enabled on those ADI SG series devices to see the full CPU speed.

                    Steve

                    1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                    • D
                      DonaldColeman @billmcg
                      last edited by

                      @billmcg
                      Worked great !!!
                      Thx.

                      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                      • P
                        Plittle
                        last edited by

                        Hi there. Tried to get my protectli modem with pfsense working with centurylink fiber optic(internet only) following the above instructions. I was unable to edit
                        /boot/loader.conf.local
                        as I couldnt find it. there is a file
                        /boot/loader.conf.orig
                        or loader.conf
                        I followed the rest of the instructions, but WAN/VLAN not connecting...
                        Could anyone direct me as to where that file resides or how to figure out what I may be doing wrong?
                        Much appreciated, thank you.

                        P D 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 0
                        • P
                          Plittle @Plittle
                          last edited by

                          Correction-I got the PPoE connection over WAN up...but still cant get internet connection...
                          any ideas what Im doing wrong?
                          Status
                          up
                          PPPoE
                          up

                          Uptime
                          -
                          IPv6 Link Local
                          fe80::2e0:67ff:fe0e:4036%pppoe1
                          DNS servers
                          127.0.0.1
                          MTU
                          1500
                          In/out packets
                          0/22 (0 B/2 KiB)
                          In/out packets (pass)
                          0/22 (0 B/2 KiB)
                          In/out packets (block)
                          0/0 (0 B/0 B)
                          In/out errors
                          0/0
                          Collisions
                          0

                          LAN Interface (lan, bridge0)

                          Status
                          up
                          MAC Address
                          02:dd:73:83:d4:00
                          IPv4 Address
                          192.168.1.1
                          Subnet mask IPv4
                          255.255.255.0
                          IPv6 Link Local
                          fe80::1:1%bridge0
                          Subnet mask IPv6
                          64
                          MTU
                          1500
                          In/out packets
                          18576/18781 (690 KiB/1.84 MiB)
                          In/out packets (pass)
                          18576/18781 (690 KiB/1.84 MiB)
                          In/out packets (block)
                          121/0 (11 KiB/0 B)
                          In/out errors
                          0/0
                          Collisions
                          0

                          OPT1 Interface (opt1, igb2)

                          Status
                          no carrier
                          MAC Address
                          00:e0:67:0e:40:38
                          IPv6 Link Local
                          fe80::2e0:67ff:fe0e:4038%igb2
                          MTU
                          1500
                          Media
                          autoselect
                          In/out packets
                          0/3 (0 B/304 B)
                          In/out packets (pass)
                          0/3 (0 B/304 B)
                          In/out packets (block)
                          0/0 (0 B/0 B)
                          In/out errors
                          0/0
                          Collisions
                          0
                          Bridge (bridge0)
                          learning

                          OPT2 Interface (opt2, igb3)

                          Status
                          up
                          MAC Address
                          00:e0:67:0e:40:39
                          IPv6 Link Local
                          fe80::2e0:67ff:fe0e:4039%igb3
                          MTU
                          1500
                          Media
                          100baseTX <full-duplex>
                          In/out packets
                          48/2 (7 KiB/188 B)
                          In/out packets (pass)
                          48/2 (7 KiB/188 B)
                          In/out packets (block)
                          20/0 (3 KiB/0 B)
                          In/out errors
                          0/0
                          Collisions
                          0
                          Bridge (bridge0)
                          learning

                          OPT3 Interface (opt3, igb1)

                          Status
                          no carrier
                          MAC Address
                          00:e0:67:0e:40:37
                          IPv6 Link Local
                          fe80::2e0:67ff:fe0e:4037%igb1
                          MTU
                          1500
                          Media
                          autoselect
                          In/out packets
                          33/2 (5 KiB/188 B)
                          In/out packets (pass)
                          33/2 (5 KiB/188 B)
                          In/out packets (block)
                          5/0 (550 B/0 B)
                          In/out errors
                          0/0
                          Collisions
                          0
                          Bridge (bridge0)
                          learning

                          D 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                          • stephenw10S
                            stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
                            last edited by

                            You have to create loader.conf.local if it doesn't exist. There are many ways to do that, one is to run:
                            touch /boot/loader.conf.local

                            Check ppp logs to see why it's not coming up.

                            You added the VLAN to use as the parent interface?

                            Steve

                            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                            • D
                              DonaldColeman @Plittle
                              last edited by

                              @plittle
                              Just a FYI, I did not need to edit or to creat that file for my services to work.
                              Also, I am connected to the Centurylink ONT Eth port directly to pfSense WAN.
                              I did enable and set PowerD to HiAdaptive just because, but I didn’t need to change or enable the PowerD because my speeds are only 100MB and I didnt see a difference either way. But I left it enabled on and as another side not I’m running pfSense on a Dell i5 SFF PC w/8GB Mem.

                              I only did the following from the above post:

                              Interfaces -> Assignmnents -VLANs
                              Add a new VLAN interface. In the edit dialog:

                              Parent Interface: <the physical interface of your WAN port>

                              VLAN Tag: 201
                              Save

                              Interfaces -> Assignments -> PPPs
                              Add a new PPP
                              Link Type: PPPoE
                              Link Interface: igb0.201
                              Username: CenturyLink Supplied
                              Password: CenturyLink Supplied
                              Service name: <leave blank>
                              Configure NULL service name: <checked>
                              Save

                              Interfaces -> Assignments -> Interface Assignments
                              WAN: select PPPoE0(igb0.201) - < CL Username > from the drop down
                              Save

                              Interfaces -> WAN
                              verify that IPv4 Configuration Type is PPPoE

                              Under PPPoE Configuration
                              Verify Username and Password are present
                              Save

                              Status -> Interfaces
                              Verify WAN Interface (wan, pppoe0)
                              Status: up
                              PPPoE: up
                              IPv4 Address: <is present>

                              *** FIREWALL LAN RULE OPEN TO ALL ***

                              1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                              • D
                                DonaldColeman @Plittle
                                last edited by

                                @plittle said in PPPoE on WAN link for Centurylink gigabit service:

                                Hi there. Tried to get my protectli modem with pfsense working with centurylink fiber optic(internet only)

                                If I understand your above, I don’t know why you’re going into the Provider Modem, then to your pfSense.
                                Try going directly to the pfSense WAN from the Centurylink (Fiber Box) ONT Eth Port your Modem is currently connected to and remove the Provider Modem all together.

                                If I’m mistaken please disregard :)

                                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                • B
                                  billmcg
                                  last edited by

                                  @Plittle did you create the VLAN interface in igb0 with VLAN tag 201?

                                  1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                  • P
                                    Plittle
                                    last edited by stephenw10

                                    Thanks for all the responses folks...I appreciate the support and patience with me getting through this...I'm still trying to learn the home networking bit, so my questions are probably going to be pretty basic...

                                    To answer the various questions people have asked:
                                    -not trying to route through the centurylink modem-trying to route directly from the CL fiberoptic converter into my pfsense device
                                    -I followed the instructions as laid out by davidcoleman and others above-including adding the VLAN to use as the parent interface
                                    -its listing status as UP, PPoE as UP
                                    -I don't, however see an IPv4 address listed under the status -> interfaces...lists an IPv6 Link Local, but there is no line referencing the IPv4 under WAN Interface

                                    -I went and executed shell command touch /boot/loader.conf.local, then inputed the directed text under Edit File
                                    

                                    -After completing all of that, the WAN status window shows
                                    status down, PPOE down (When I gave up yesterday before posting online I had yet to add the /boot/loader.config.local file, and at that time it said Status UP and PPOE UP, though I still could not access the internet...I tried pressing the connect button, no change....I also went back and made sure all the PPoE account information is still entered under PPP and under the Interfaces-->WAN tab

                                    -I believe the FIREWALL LAN Rule is open to all:
                                    from the Firewall-->Rules page

                                    States
                                    Protocol
                                    Source
                                    Port
                                    Destination
                                    Port
                                    Gateway
                                    Queue
                                    Schedule
                                    Description
                                    Actions
                                    
                                    
                                    1 /3.52 MiB
                                    
                                    *
                                    *
                                    *
                                    LAN Address
                                    443
                                    80
                                    *
                                    *
                                    
                                    Anti-Lockout Rule
                                    
                                    
                                    
                                    21 /3.13 MiB
                                    
                                    IPv4 * 
                                    LAN net 
                                    * 
                                    * 
                                    * 
                                    * 
                                    none 
                                      
                                    Default allow LAN to any rule 
                                    
                                    
                                    
                                    0 /0 B
                                    
                                    IPv6 * 
                                    LAN net 
                                    * 
                                    * 
                                    * 
                                    * 
                                    none 
                                      
                                    Default allow LAN IPv6 to any rule 
                                    

                                    Any ideas what Im getting wrong here? Is there a log I can cut and paste to help figure out whats missing?
                                    Thanks again for all the help folks!

                                    1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                    • P
                                      Plittle
                                      last edited by

                                      Here is the PP Log after completing all of this:
                                      Mar 13 22:39:34 ppp [wan_link0] Link: reconnection attempt 7223
                                      Mar 13 22:39:34 ppp [wan_link0] PPPoE: Connecting to ''
                                      Mar 13 22:39:43 ppp [wan_link0] PPPoE connection timeout after 9 seconds
                                      Mar 13 22:39:43 ppp [wan_link0] Link: DOWN event
                                      Mar 13 22:39:43 ppp [wan_link0] LCP: Down event
                                      Mar 13 22:39:43 ppp [wan_link0] Link: reconnection attempt 7224 in 2 seconds
                                      Mar 13 22:39:45 ppp [wan_link0] Link: reconnection attempt 7224
                                      Mar 13 22:39:45 ppp [wan_link0] PPPoE: Connecting to ''
                                      Mar 13 22:39:55 ppp [wan_link0] PPPoE connection timeout after 9 seconds
                                      Mar 13 22:39:55 ppp [wan_link0] Link: DOWN event
                                      Mar 13 22:39:55 ppp [wan_link0] LCP: Down event

                                      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                      • P
                                        Plittle
                                        last edited by

                                        From the general system log
                                        Mar 13 23:07:11 php-fpm 44860 /status_interfaces.php: Starting rtsold process
                                        Mar 13 23:07:13 rtsold 67962 <ifconfig> failed to get link layer information for pppoe1
                                        Mar 13 23:07:13 rtsold 67962 <main> failed to initialize pppoe1
                                        Mar 13 23:07:13 php-fpm 44860 /status_interfaces.php: The command '/sbin/ifconfig 'pppoe1' -staticarp ' returned exit code '1', the output was 'ifconfig: interface pppoe1 does not exist'
                                        Mar 13 23:07:13 php-fpm 44860 /status_interfaces.php: The command '/usr/sbin/arp -d -i 'pppoe1' -a > /dev/null 2>&1 ' returned exit code '1', the output was ''

                                        P 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                        • P
                                          Plittle @Plittle
                                          last edited by

                                          @plittle
                                          apologies for all the posting...
                                          looks like I found my mistake and it is now working...
                                          thanks again for the assistance folks.

                                          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                          • stephenw10S
                                            stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
                                            last edited by

                                            What was the issue? Might help someone else reading this in the future if you can detail your fix.

                                            Steve

                                            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
                                            • First post
                                              Last post
                                            Copyright 2025 Rubicon Communications LLC (Netgate). All rights reserved.