How can I make internet access password dependent?

[Relztrah]

I'm setting up a home network using a D-Link wireless router w/ standard cable internet. My wife and I will connect using network cables but my son's comuputer is far enough away that I'm going to put a D-Link wireless PCI card in his machine. I have all the hardware but I haven't actually set up the network yet.

I've done this type of thing enough that I think I can get everything working, but for my son's sake I want his connection to the internet to be password controlled. I want him to be able to use his computer without internet but unable to surf until my wife or I types in a password.

There's nothing in the D-Link literature that shows how or even if I can do this. I don't know of a setting in Windows that will allow it either. My son doesn't really need a printer anything on our home network so if there's a way to allow his machine operate independently of the network and make network access password dependent, that would be fine. Any suggestions?

Thanks,
Relztrah

[Relztrah]

OS is Win XP Pro.

[jlreich]

I'm not sure about a password, but you can setup the router to allow or deny internet access during certain times of the day or night by MAC address.

So if you wanted to, say for instance, block the internet to that MAC address after 9pm, or only allow it between the hours of 4-5PM, or whenever, you can do that.

Once you get the router hooked up look around in the admin page of the router under "MAC filtering" and you should be able to find what I'm talking about.

Hope that helps.

[Relztrah]

Thanks jlreich. My mother is having a guest for several days who is confined to a wheelchair and unable to go downstairs to where Mom keeps the computer. I set Mom up with an old wired router but she only has her machine on the network, no machines upstairs. I am going to take my wireless D-Link router over to her house and install it so that the guest can use a laptop from anywhere in the house.

I'll bring her old wired router to my house and use it here, and extend a 50' ethernet cable to my son's room. I still have the security issue, but now it's not a wireless setup, so I'll post a new thread in the Local Area Networking forum. I believe the MAC filtering idea will work with a wired or wireless router, although I would still prefer to make internet access password dependent.

Thanks,
Relztrah

[bassman]

Relztrah
Check out some of the software apps like These (http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=child+protection+software&btnG=Google+Search). I used Net Nanny for a while and it does work, but I did not care for the level of control it had on the machine overall. Getting rid of it was a nightmare too. Wired or wireless, these will do exactly what you are looking for.

[jlreich]

Yeah those types of programs work, but like Bassman said they take control of the machine. And in my experience they have a very large footprint. I have never liked them. But they do work.

Another alternative is to totally block the MAC address, then unblock it when you want to allow access. It's a couple more steps to do it this way compared to parental controls. Also depending on how tech savvy your wife is she may have a hard time getting used to doing it that way.

The good thing about using MAC filtering is you can access the routers interface from any machine in the house and it is password protected.

[Whyzman]

I'm not sure, but this appears to be a unique approach, bypassing any PC loaded software. The control application is through the router manufacturer... Cost appears to be around $35.00 US per year

http://us.zyxel.com/products/category1.php?indexcate1=1088621451&indexFlagvalue=1088555542

[HomeSA]

This is a subject close to my heart as I will have to deal with this exact situation this summer (i.e., wireless internet access in kid's room). I haven't looked hard or found an optimum solution, but I thought Zonealarm Pro allows some access control functionality, including password-protected total access lockdown. Might be worth looking into.

I would be interested in knowing what solution you find. Please post back.

Thanks ... HomeSA

[Relztrah]

I'm not really interested in buying a new piece of hardware since I already have the wired router that is currently installed at my mother's house. Hopefully my only expense will be a 50' ethernet cable although if I need to buy a piece of software, I'll do so. For the time being I think I'll go ahead and set up the network and just put a logon password on my son's computer which will prevent him from doing anything without the password. Then I'll research how to limit surfing but allow other use of the computer.

[Relztrah]

Since posting this originally I have the infrastructure in place. So I'll throw the question out again and see who can help.

I set up a Network Everywhere Cable/DSL Router model NR041 (wired) with a Netgear ME102 wireless Access Point connected. The only wireless desktop will be my son's computer which will have a Linksys WMP11 wireless PCI card.

I contacted Netgrear Tech Support who informs me that once the WEP key is entered once, there's no need to enter it again, and the computer is automatically connected to the wireless network upon boot-up. I also looked at the configuration settings for the router, and I can filter out the IP address for his computer and then filter it in when I want to allow him to go online. But the drawback for this method is first that I think I would have to give his computer a static IP address--which I can probably do--and second it would require know-how that my wife doesn't possess. Likewise blocking and un-blocking the MAC address is, I'm afraid, beyond her ability.

I have used this same PCI card in another computer and don't remember if there's a way to set this up when you install the PCI card, although it seems like something you set in the access point or router.

I know the simple solution is to get a USB wireless network adapter that I can just plug in or take out, but I'm trying to do this with parts I already have rather than invest in new equipment. He has gleaned some networking and computer skills from the old man, so any simple solution such as simply disconnecting the WAP from the router he can figure out on his own.

Any suggestions?

[jlreich]

I'm afraid, beyond her ability.
Yes I am afraid my wife would get aggravated real quick trying to do it as well.

Since you are trying to this without buying anything, I will make another suggestion to make it simpler for your wife.

You can logon to your router and go to the wireless control page where you can enable/disable the wireless signal, then bookmark it, change the name of the bookmark to something your wife will easily remember and find.

All she will have to do is click the bookmark, enter the user name and password, it will take her directly to the page she needs to be on, then just tick/untick the disable box, or however it is listed in your router, and hit apply. The router will reset and she can close the browser.

Once you have it setup like that it would no more steps than if you were using a parental control program.

User name/password
tick or untick enable/disable box
hit apply

This also has the added security benefit of disabling the wireless signal when it isn't being used. And since your sons machine is the only one connected by wireless it won't effect any other computers in the house.

Well, it may not be the answer that will work for you, but I thought I would trow it out there.

[bassman]

Relztrah, what firewall do you use? I was just reading thru ZoneAlarm and in their "Security Suite" they have a password setting preventing anyone from changing settings. You could disable web browsers when needed, then with the password, enable them. This is not available on the free version.

I will keep thinkin on this ;)

[Whyzman]

Interesting suggestion jlr! ;)

[Relztrah]

You can logon to your router and go to the wireless control page where you can enable/disable the wireless signal, then bookmark it, change the name of the bookmark to something your wife will easily remember and find.


One problem: this is an old wired router without wireless settings. I had already thought of that. I can access the configuration settings for the wireless access point and change the WEP key, but I would have to do that after every time he surfs.

The only firewall I use is the one built in to Win XP. I am not opposed to buying Zone Alarm, but everything I've read about it here and elsewhere is negative--causing conflicts with other software and other general headaches although it might indeed work. I've seen quite a few posts from people complaining about one problem or another with Zone Alarm although I've never personally used it and maybe I should get it or a similar product.

My ISP has a filter that somes with the service called "Safe and Secure" which I downloaded and installed on my mother-in It has parental controls and it's probably no better or worse than all the other web filters. I'll use it for the immediate future and think of a hardware solution as a permanent fix.

Thanks for your help.

Relztrah

[jlreich]

The access point will have an admin page as well, and should be able to be accessed from any wired or wireless machine on the network just as the router is. And I am sure it has a enable/disable feature. I did overlook you are working with an AP, but it should work just the same. And all other settings will remain intact including the WEP key.

[mjc]

I can think of one possible way of doing it...but it would require another machine, running Linux, in between your son's machine and the internet...

You could basically setup/run this (http://www.publicip.net/). You would be creating an 'internet cafe' for your son...

The AP would connect to the Linux machine, which, in turn would connect to the rest of the network/internet.

http://www.publicip.net/zonecd/how.php

Look at some of the features...

Closed Mode

User authentication/registration
Homepage redirection
Bandwidth shaping
Daily time limits
Daily download limits
Zone open and close times
Block by mac address
Configure end-user network permissions(Classes)
Customize firewall rules for each Class
Content Filtering (block porn, downloads, etc.)
Daily Log Mailer program
Block traffic to *wired* network
Customize ZoneCD login pages
Branded "Terms of Use" template or use your own
Usage statistics
Multilingual login pages
(Dutch,French,German,Spanish,English)
End-User reporting


http://www.publicip.net/zonecd/features.php

I've been thinking about setting this up for my kids but I don't have the need to do it right now...I probably will sometime in the future.

[Relztrah]

Interesting...very interesting. I'd like to try it out just for the learning experience. I'm already counting the hours of sleep I'm going to miss configuring this system.

Just a quick glance at the ZoneCD website says nothing about Linux which I am unfamiliar with. (Yes, I agree that I should become familiar with it.) I'll do some more research when I have the time to see if I can use an old Windows box which I already have.

Thanks for the tip.

[mjc]

It is a pre-configured Linux, much like the Knoppix Live CD. You basically put the CD in, boot to it, it will auto-detect the hardware and then auto-configure it...there isn't much 'linux' knowledge needed. Configuring it beyond the basic auto-configure is pretty straightforward. There are wizards to handle it...

I haven't kept it running, but it was pretty easy to set up. It has the option to save the configuration files to permanent media (hard drive/removable storage/pen drive/floppy) and it can auto-load that config. So, rebooting is simple.

[bassman]

OH BOY!! Don't know how we missed this fix :rolleyes:
I was having breakfast with a friend of mine this morning. As we were leaving the restaurant, I noticed a black rubber antenna sticking out of his shirt pocket. I said "That looks like a router antenna" to which he replied "It is." He told me his kid had been getting into online things that he had told him to stay out of, along with being online when he had not completed homework. So he took the antenna off the wireless card on his kids machine! :eek:
Ah yes, it's the simple things that sometimes elude us.

[jlreich]

Haha! Brilliant! :D :cool:

[HomeSA]

Well, I don't know. If I was the kid, I would be buying an identical card and using the antenna when folks were not around. Or, I would just get a long cat5 cable, and hook it up directly to the modem, by-passing the router, again, when folks were not around.

A co-worker of mine has his home network set up such that he gets e-mails at work, when his kids access the Internet after the school. I don't know anything about the set up, but the e-mails have list of all URLs visited and by which computer.

It's probably best to just teach the right and the wrong, as well as safe surfing practices.

[Relztrah]

It's probably best to just teach the right and the wrong, as well as safe surfing practices.

Absolutely! That's of course my first line of defense.

As far as my son using a network cable, well, we tried to do it that way and found that the hole in the ceiling above the router needs to be enlarged before another cable will fit through. I would have perferred a cable, but lost patience trying to thread it through the hole in the ceiling and up a foot and a half through another hole in the floor to my office. (Somebody please invent a tool that I can use to direct a cable through two small holes 18" apart...working in a tight corner...in the dark...in foul mood.)

Also, I learned that the cable company that provides my internet has a free filter for all customers called Save & Secure which contains antivirus, antispyware and parental controls. I downloaded it to my son's machine and it seems to be working well. I'll monitor it and if it's more problem than help, I'll use bassman's brilliant suggestion and just remove the antenna.

Thanks to all of your for your help with this issue.

Relztrah

[HomeSA]

(Somebody please invent a tool that I can use to direct a cable through two small holes 18" apart...working in a tight corner...in the dark...in foul mood.)Relztrah

Been there done that. What has worked for me is using a stiff wire, like a coat hanger with a small hook at the end (home-made widget), and thread the stiff wire through the 2 holes. Tying the end of the wire in question (whatever wire) to the end of the stiff wire (the hook) or using a tape like electrical tape, and pulling it through the two holes. If you have watched electricians work and fish electrical wires through walls, the concept is very similar.

[bassman]

How about THIS (http://cableorganizer.com/greenlee/fish-stix/)?
A bit pricey and I thing HomeSA's idea would work just fine, but they do have tools for this ;)