VLAN connection drops after a few minutes with an Atheros AR8151 NIC

pfSense2User

Hello everyone,

I am on the verge of testing the VLAN connectivity with a small, basic switch that doesn't have VLAN capability and it's hard to find a small 5-port Smart Switch with VLAN capabilities, and I decided to set the VLAN ID on the Atheros AR8151 NIC on my ASUS X54C Laptop running Windows 8.1 Pro Preview, and when I changed the VLAN ID from 0 (meaning no VLAN enabled) to 2:


VLAN 2 = 172.16.0.0/29 network - Main

And the connection is established, and after a few short minutes, the connection to the firewall is immediately dropped (no ping replies, no Internet, no webconfig, and so on).

This only occurs when I try to establish a VLAN connection to the firewall.

Do I need an actual switch, either a smart or managed switch to establish VLAN connectivity?

I'm running pfSense 2.1-RELEASE (AMD64) FreeBSD 8.3-RELEASE-p11


Networks:
WAN - re0 (RealTek RTL8111B Gigabit On-Board Ethernet) - DHCP and DHCPv6* (Internet)
LAN - rl0_vlan2 (RealTek RTL8139 PCI Fast Ethernet) - static v4: 172.16.0.0/29, static v6: 2001::/64 (Main Network)
OPT1 - rl0 (same card, non-VLAN) - static v4: 172.16.0.8/29 (Xbox Network)
OPT2 - fxp0 (Intel Pro/100+ PCI Fast Ethernet) - static v4: 172.16.0.16/28 static v6: 2001:1::/64 (Server/Wireless Network)
OPT3 - rl1 (RealTek RTL8139 PCI Fast Ethernet) - static v4: 172.16.0.32/30 static v6: 2001:2::/126 (FreeNAS)

my Linksys-Cisco WRT320N Wireless Router doesn't support IPv6; I might plan to upgrade the wireless router to a new one that supports IPv6 for full IPv6 support across the network, including my firewall.

doktornotor

Considering you just told use that you have no VLAN-capable equipment on another thread - just what do you think you are you doing there?

pfSense2User

@doktornotor:

Considering you just told use that you have no VLAN-capable equipment on another thread - just what do you think you are you doing there?

I was pretty much tired before I forgot to proofread my post…

doktornotor

This mess does not seem to be exactly a matter of proof-reading.

@pfSense2User:

it's hard to find a small 5-port Smart Switch with VLAN capabilities

You might want to have a look at http://www.dd-wrt.com/wiki/index.php/VLAN_Support#VLAN_Support_Tables

Other than that, I seriously cannot make sense of what you are trying to do there, starting from the VLAN/non-VLAN mix and ending with absolutely horrible IP space design that is an absolute PITA to understand, configure and maintain. On another note, stuff like 2001:2::/126 is not routable. The smallest IPv6 routable thing is /64

Finally, absolutely unclear why's this mess posted in DHCP/DNS section.

pfSense2User

@doktornotor:

This mess does not seem to be exactly a matter of proof-reading.

@pfSense2User:

it's hard to find a small 5-port Smart Switch with VLAN capabilities

You might want to have a look at http://www.dd-wrt.com/wiki/index.php/VLAN_Support#VLAN_Support_Tables

Other than that, I seriously cannot make sense of what you are trying to do there, starting from the VLAN/non-VLAN mix and ending with absolutely horrible IP space design that is an absolute PITA to understand, configure and maintain. On another note, stuff like 2001:2::/126 is not routable. The smallest IPv6 routable thing is /64

Finally, absolutely unclear why's this mess posted in DHCP/DNS section.

I'm planning to buy a router that has DD-WRT on it from eBay to use that as a VLAN device. Thanks for posting the link. I used to have a Linksys WRT54G router until it finally died; I'm planning to get a WRT54GL w/ DD-WRT on it, and set up the router to work with the VLANs

doktornotor

Good. So, meanwhile, I'd suggest to redesign things so that they are actually easy to understand and maintain. Such as

OPT1 - 10.10.1.0/24
OPT2 - 10.10.2.0/24
OPTx - 10.10.x.0/24

for physical interfaces and say

VLAN1 - 10.100.1.0/24
VLAN2 - 10.100.2.0/24
…
VLANx - 10.100.x.0/24

for the VLANs.

Of course, you can stay with the 172.16/12 private space, or use 192.168/16, however you certainly do not want to split one /24 into cryptic subnets such as ones in the OP.

Configure the DD-WRT box as an accesspoint, configure the VLANs there as needed (link above as starting point), set up DHCP server on the pfSense (V)LANs, pretty much ready to go.

kejianshi

Its actually REALLY REALLY difficult to do any testing/confirming before you get your managed switch. What I'd suggest is just do a whole lot of reading about VLANS, VLAN switches, pfsense and VLANS before you attempt to configure it or work it out on the forums. I'd restart into the forums again when you have the switch physically attached to pfsense. I'd also really consider getting an actual VLAN switch to use rather than using DD-WRT for its VLAN capability.

I really like DD-WRT also, but a good small 5 or 8 port cheapy managed switch just can't be beat.

Probably what the forum guys can help you do right now is select the best / cheapest switch for your needs.

pfSense2User

@kejianshi:

Its actually REALLY REALLY difficult to do any testing/confirming before you get your managed switch. What I'd suggest is just do a whole lot of reading about VLANS, VLAN switches, pfsense and VLANS before you attempt to configure it or work it out on the forums. I'd restart into the forums again when you have the switch physically attached to pfsense. I'd also really consider getting an actual VLAN switch to use rather than using DD-WRT for its VLAN capability.

I really like DD-WRT also, but a good small 5 or 8 port cheapy managed switch just can't be beat.

Probably what the forum guys can help you do right now is select the best / cheapest switch for your needs.

Managed switches costs more in my area; it's hard to find one cheap on either Amazon.com or eBay.

I don't even know if the old 3Com 3C16671 switches would work or not; the switches are 10Base-T and I require a 100Base-Tx connection since my Xbox 360 requires 100Base-Tx for better throughput and better transfer rates.

kejianshi

Whats your area?

Whats your max price willing to pay?

pfSense2User

@kejianshi:

Whats your area?

Whats your max price willing to pay?

Michigan and between $50-$60

The old 3Com 3C16670 12 port switch works okay, but I need to buy a null model 25-pin serial (male one side, female on the other side) connector, a 25-pin to 9-pin serial converter and a 6-foot null modem 9-pin serial cable so that I can apply a firmware upgrade to the switch and figure out how to configure the switch with my old computer.

kejianshi

Dpends on how willing you are to hunt a little and if willing to wait a week or so.

You can't have this one ;)
http://www.ebay.com/itm/171089132544?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649

You can have this one if you hurry

http://www.ebay.com/itm/NetGear-GS108E-8-Ports-Switch-/121177951702?pt=US_Network_Switches&hash=item1c36c4cdd6

VLAN support for traffic separation
Quality of Service (QoS) prioritizes traffic
Auto denial-of-service (DoS) prevention
Network monitoring and bandwidth control
Troubleshoot connection issues via cable test

This enhanced switch can only be configured with a PC. The configuration is not MAC compatible (needs windows)