[GTALUG] USB to Ethernet Dongles WAS: Debian Linux as-a-router Guide

[Alex Kink]

My experience with USB Ethernet NICs is the same as seemingly everyone else's here. I've given them a shot over the past 10 years and I've had the same dismal experience under all 3 major operating systems (Linux, macOS, Windows). Primary problem is regular connection dropouts, secondary problem is not reaching the maximum speed for given connection.

Separate from that, when Apple came out with the first "Retina" MacBook Pro in 2012, I purchased their Thunderbolt 1 to Ethernet adapter, as that laptop did not have built in Ethernet. Ever since that time I've purchased several Thunderbolt NICs and every single one of them has been rock solid and are used by employees around the office to this day.

I'm currently using Sonnet Solo 10G SFP+ unit (https://www.sonnettech.com/product/solo10g-sfp-tb3/overview.html) as I need to access the local network at 10Gbit for certain tasks. 

> On Sep 9, 2023, at 13:06, o1bigtenor via talk <talk at gtalug.org> wrote:
> 
> On Sat, Sep 9, 2023 at 10:20 AM Evan Leibovitch via talk
> <talk at gtalug.org> wrote:
>> 
>> On Sat, Sep 9, 2023 at 9:56 AM D. Hugh Redelmeier via talk <talk at gtalug.org> wrote:
>> 
>>> 
>>> Notebooks are almost supplanting "regular" PCs.
>> 
>> 
>> IMO we're well beyond the "almost" in that statement.
>> COVID led to work-from-home which necessitated laptops for employees in the services sector.
>> Even though the COVID threat has reduced, WFH is never going away.
>> For typical business use there is no compelling reason for a desktop.
> 
> Dunno - - - I would say that I see no compelling reason for a laptop.
> Power headaches, tiny monitor space (I have a seriously multi-monitor
> system (think 8620 x 3000 pixels almost all of it visible))
> unable to use an ergo keyboard - - - - I wonder why anyone would want
> to use a laptop (lol)?
>> 
>> But also, for the purpose of this thread, even "regular" PCs are increasingly coming with wifi as an alternative to wired networking. Ditto printing, where only premium units have Ethernet but most have wifi. This makes sense as most homes are well wired for RJ11 POTS service, but few are wired for RJ45. So the usual solution I have seen lately is to blanket even large houses with mesh wifi like the TP-Link Deco line. This seems good enough for most people as even 4K televisions are fine with wifi.
> 
> If one is into privacy and security - - - wifi - - - not so hot - - -
> sorry! (radio waves are very indiscriminate!)
>> 
>> I was fortunate enough to buy a house from a developer when all that existed at the time of purchase was a sales office and a hectare or two of dirt. So I was able to do custom wiring. Requesting almost every room wired with RJ45 was so unusual it took me almost a full afternoon to explain it to the contractor. Then they brought in a commercial team that tried to sell me massively overpriced Ethernet switches. But I ended up happy with the result, though I have no idea if it will affect the house's resale value.
> 
> Gret for you but did they use cat 5 or 5e wiring. Today you might need
> cat 8 (6 and 7 seems to have been obsoleted - - - dunno).
> I would have dragged in conduit then you would be very future proof -
> - - with just cable runs you will have to redo every 20 odd years.
>> 
>> I have three USB-to-Ethernet devices. One was supplied by Asus with the laptop. Another is a TP-Link UE300C That is used with other laptops. But the one I use the most is a $21 hub I bought on Aliexpress that also includes an HDMI port, an SD card reader, and some additional USB-A ports. All have worked well under both Windows and Linux (KDE Neon), though I haven't exactly stress-tested them. The hub is fussy about the order of plugging things in but it works.
>> 
> 
> I may have found a unicorn. Label says its a Tripp-Lite (model
> U209-006-RJ-45-X) usb to RJ-45 cable made by Eaton.
> FreeBSD also gives that baby passing marks - - - -its the one one
> there that gets that.
> 
> Wasn't cheap though (it was a newegg purchase and shipping was quick).
> 
> Might be worth a look if you need such - - - I did/do because buying
> used commercial computers
> it seems that a second RJ-45 is considered irrelevant although there
> might be 4 or 5 USB 3.x
> ports. Big business doesn't think long term - - - its for use in the
> period of the lease (at most
> 3 years possibly 4) then the systems are replaced. M$ loves this and I
> like getting cheap reasonably
> high speced small form factor systems (they help keep my power costs
> down and space
> considerations lower as well).
> 
> HTH
> ---
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