Can pfSense control other devices
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I have a few DSL/CABLE modems that loss connection every few days when ISPs change something at their end. Is there a way to reset these devices? For example to reset the DSL/cable modem when the gateway goes down for a while.
If pfSense can send some sort of a signal to a port then a simple circuit can power cycle these devices. -
No
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Not out of the box, but you could use a power strip with IP connectivity and an API to set something like that up. It would require you to write the necessary scripts though. If you're interested in posting a bounty, it's something I might be willing to take on, depending on the scope of the project.
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Do your modems have a telnet or ssh interface? I could imagine a script that logged into the modem and issued a reboot. I've never tried that though. ;)
Steve
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If pfSense can send some sort of a signal to a port then a simple circuit can power cycle these devices.
Does your system have a parallel port? If so, it could possibly be used for digital control of external devices. I suspect google could help help you find a parallel port interface with a number of relays that could switch power to external devices. It would probably require custom software.
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Actually, that is what I was thinking of. Few years ago, I did something like that. There was a parallel-port-based ISA card that we were able to access any of its 23 ports directly, turning them ON or OFF at will. I did a simple PCB with switching transistors that reset the modems and hung computers. Working with less than 12V, we didn't have to deal with complicated 120v regulation, certification, etc… May be it was sophisticated but it was a lot cheaper ;)
I am currently serving few small customers who can't afford few hundred dollars just to rest the modems. I'll use a simple timer that power cycle the modem every morning for the one that is having troubles right now.
I do not know how much difficult or simple it is to write a script that uses the router parallel (or serial) port as I do not have much experience programming under BSD.
