GadgeteerZA

I migrated from a Consumer Router to an OPNsense Firewall Appliance Well, this was no mean feat in the end, but lots of preparation did help make it ultimately migrate with only 70 minutes of downtime. Why I did this My home network does include one hosted server, as well as an SDR radio receiver that anyone can log into from the Internet side. Some of the server services I access from the outside, and also share my public bookmarks on one of the services. I also run a Reticulum social network, using I2PD, from behind the firewall. My Asus consumer router hit 10 years old, and it stopped getting security patches and updates in Dec 2024. I did just buy a brand-new Asus router that had VLAN support, but I quickly discovered it could not handle any inter-VLAN traffic rules. So I retuned the Asus router to Amazon SA and bought a Protectli firewall appliance from Amazon US. Why OPNsense? Between the two above paragraphs was a lot of frantic research into what would support VLANs properly. I wanted to do VLANs so that I could separate my IoT devices from my user computers, from my guest devices, from my CCTV system and WiFi cameras, from my Victron solar system, etc. But I needed some devices to still talk one-way to other devices, etc. For this, I needed granular management of the inter-VLAN traffic rules. I saw I could go cheap and quick with one MikroTik Wi-Fi router with proprietary software which has a steep learning curve (so the Reddit consensus says), or I could 4x more expensive and get 3 different devices with open source OPNsense software with a slightly less steep learning curve. I actually spent a whole week learning pfSense which I installed on an Intel NUC. It worked quite well, but when comparing pfSense with OPNsense I decided to go the full open source route instead. Their GUI’s differ a bit, but their underlying principles are the same. So, at the last minute before the Protectli device was delivered, I changed to OPNsense. What did I do wrong? On the device’s front, I did realise that I needed 802.1Q VLAN aware switches. I bought two TP-Link TL-SG108E switches. They do what is needed for the VLANs and have PoE as well. I bought that Asus router that had no inter-VLAN traffic rules. I realised I required a fully manageable switch for my core switch (I could do MAC VLANs with this too, or even DHCP, if I wanted). I bought a TP-Link 8-Port switch for my core switch, but quickly discovered that if I wanted to create a LAGG link (2x Ethernet ports for load balancing, more throughput, and failover) then I would be at least one port short. So, I returned that switch and ordered the 16-Port TL-SG2218 as a replacement. In my haste, I bought a perfectly good switch, but realised it does not have PoE (I’ll let that ride). Just to explain why the LAGG interface: The firewall has 4 2.5 GHz Ethernet ports on it. One is dedicated to the WAN side, and typically one would be for LAN. But that LAN port connects to a switch with 8 or m…

You can turn an old phone into a Stream Deck for your PC: here’s how Macro Deck is an open source software to use your Android smartphone, tablet or almost any touch screen device with an internet browser as a simple macro pad or even as a powerful automation solution for streaming, gaming, content creation and more. This is just the companion app, so will you also need the Macro Deck application on your (Windows) PC. Another option similar to this, though, could be to use BitFocus Companion configured with a virtual Stream Deck. BitFocus has the application that will run on Linux, Windows or macOS, and similarly can be controlled by any remote device on the network with a browser. It may be more flexible than the Macro Deck solution as it is cross-platform. See https://lnkd.in/dEKMSgVa (https://lnkd.in/dEKMSgVa) #opensource #streamdeck #technology

WikiTok is a Web App Is TikTok for Reading Wikipedia “WikiTok, which, as its name alludes to, is a web interface that combines TikTok and Wikipedia. Unlike traditional video-sharing platforms, WikiTok offers users a refreshing respite from the relentless algorithms that dominate our digital landscape. The web app delivers an article at random, with an engaging image filling the display. If something interests you, you can tap “Read More,” and then the full Wikipedia article will pop up in another window. If it doesn’t catch your fancy, you scroll up, and another article will randomly appear.” I was just listening to a podcast today where a mother was talking about how her daughter telling her their school was taking away phones during the school day, and the daughter thought it was a good thing as “the kids addicted to TikTok are anyway unhappy” and this may give them a chance to recalibrate. WikiTok has no algorithm that is tailored to a person’s interests. The articles are random, but at least it is real knowledge of a general nature, and without the addictive pull. It is a similar format in which it is presented, but without the algorithm, it also means that it will present articles of a broader interest. This option is web based, so you need to bookmark the link in the linked article below, or save it to the home screen to open using the browser similarly to an app. See https://lnkd.in/dFJGZmdt (https://lnkd.in/dFJGZmdt) #technology #tiktok #wikipedia #wikitok

Apple hearing aid feature now available in South Africa “South Africa’s hearing aid market might be in for a big shake-up: Apple’s AirPods Pro 2 hearing aid functionality is now available in South Africa. Apple’s AirPods Pro 2 were set apart from other Bluetooth earbuds in the market when US regulators last September approved their use as hearing aids, opening up a potentially lucrative new market for the California-based technology giant.” Yes, with hearing aids costing from R10k to R100k, even Apple AirPods will seem very cheap by comparison. The point of this functionality though is not just about amplifying sound (many ear buds can do that), but it is about assessing hearing loss and compensating properly for it. It is amazing this has taken so long to get to market if I think about own long we’ve had super cheap reading glasses available in discount pharmacy stores. For many, they just want “good enough” to use. See https://lnkd.in/drvrEUnE (https://lnkd.in/drvrEUnE) #airpods #hearing #southafrica #technology

uTag App Brings Galaxy Trackers Non-Samsung Phones “Samsung SmartTags usually only work with Samsung Galaxy devices because the SmartThings app is needed to set up and track SmartTags. This app includes protections that prevent it from being used on non-Samsung devices. Features like SmartThings Find, which shows the location on a map, are only available on Samsung Galaxy phones because they require Samsung’s One UI. uTag overcomes those limitations by working with a tweaked version of the SmartThings app.” I bought Samsung SmartTags because we have so many Samsung phone’s circulating in my country. That was one reason, and the other was that they have separation alerts, which the Google network does not yet support. But there is a problem that my wife does not have a Samsung phone, so typically this sort of app may really help (I won’t have to locate her keys for her anymore). It does require an Android device though, running Android 11 or newer. See https://lnkd.in/dk4UjjS8 (https://lnkd.in/dk4UjjS8) #smarttag #technology #trackers

How To Mount A Drive Permanently In Linux Using Fstab: A Step-by-Step Guide “If you’ve just plugged in an external USB drive to your Linux system and are wondering how to make it accessible, you’re in the right place! Mounting a drive in Linux might sound technical, but it’s actually quite simple once you understand the basics. In this guide, we’ll walk you through the steps to permanently mount an External Drive in Linux using fstab file. We will also cover best practices like using UUIDs, enabling TRIM, and setting a more secure umask value.” This is an excellent and comprehensive guide. It also explains why UUIDs are more reliable to use, how to prevent boot failures from disconnected drives, how to include periodic TRIM for SSD drives, and more. I’m bookmarking this article for future my own reference. See https://lnkd.in/dDGf9KZJ (https://lnkd.in/dDGf9KZJ) #drives #linux #opensource #technology

The New OnePlus Watch 3 Lasts 5 Days In Smart Mode “One of the standout features of the OnePlus Watch 3 is its long battery life, which lasts 16 days in power saver mode and 5 days in smart mode. A quick 10-minute charge gives owners a full day of use, so an hour’s charge will likely reset the 16-day (or 5-day) countdown. The 120-hour battery life in smart mode lets you keep Bluetooth and Wi-Fi running, send messages and make calls, use the screen, and track exercises.” I don’t generally judge a watch by its standby or power save modes, as it often only tells the time and does a few other basics. But 5 days of normal use, and a 10-minute charge giving a day of use, is pretty good (OK my Pebble Watch did last longer). It is good to see they upped the battery capacity a bit too. For me, battery life is more important than a phone or watch being 1 mm thinner. The battery chemistry has also changed, so clearly battery life was a prime consideration for this design. To top it all, this watch actually runs Wear OS. Why I say that, is that the Wear OS watches have mostly had dismal battery life compared to the tweaked OS’s from Huawei and others. This watch will be on my short list to compare when I next need to replace my smartwatch. See https://lnkd.in/dZEGYQQv (https://lnkd.in/dZEGYQQv) #smartwatch #technology

5 networking tools to safeguard your home lab from the inside out “If you’re new to the hobby, securing your home lab is paramount to ensuring the integrity, confidentiality, and availability of your systems and data. It’s easy to inadvertently expose your entire system to online threats, especially when you’re new to running self-hosted systems. Implementing robust networking tools can safeguard your environment from potential threats, both internal and external. Here are five essential networking tools to fortify your home lab from the inside out.” Certainly some good suggestions here in the linked article. There are however also some excellent alternatives to consider too: - pfSense vs OPNsense - VLANs are excellent but note you’ll need VLAN aware switches and wireless access points - OpenVPN vs WireGuard - Pi-hole vs AdGuard Home I’d also add a Watch Your LAN type app to this list. See https://lnkd.in/dydGzhZn (https://lnkd.in/dydGzhZn) #homelab #networking #technology

I Spend More Time Watching Games Than Playing Them (and I’m Not Alone) “A recent study suggests that gamers spend, on average, around 7.5 hours playing compared to 8.5 hours watching games. With so many great games around, why do these gamers spend more time watching than playing? As someone who finds himself watching games more than playing them, I can say there are several reasons.” This is certainly true for me. Although I do play some games, it takes a bit of time to organise the steering wheel etc, to update the game, and then to get back into where I was with it. It is quite fun to watch others playing, see what they do, and you can end the session at any time you want to (and even continue watching tomorrow). On a funnier note, I used to watch one or two specific players many years ago. I went to look them up, and they are still playing the exact same games, except they look quite a bit older now. 😉 It does show there is quite a market for this, and quite a few YouTubers make their living off playing games the whole day (was it not our parents back in the 1980s and 1990s who said you can’t play games the whole day, and better get out and get a job). That didn’t age well! See https://lnkd.in/dHGKngPz (https://lnkd.in/dHGKngPz) #gaming #technology

Say goodbye to parking tickets in South Africa Once you’ve used a parking app at a shopping mall for parking, you’ll never look back. No queues to pay, no carrying cash, it keeps record of what you paid where, it is quicker to enter and exit a mall, no struggling with a machine that does not accept your note or coin, no more losing your ticket and having to pay a penalty. Although the article covers the Admyt app, I’m also using the Parket app for a new mall in Cape Town that has cashless parking only. I think the Admyt app does charge a small charge for the usage, but at one mall where I get a free 90 minutes of parking from PnP, I still use the Admyt app to scan the QR code in store, and my parking is free. When I was visiting the same mall last weekend, I was amazed to still see so many people paying for their parking. There are signs all over the mall advertising the service, and any new user gets R20 free credit. When I went to park at Newlands Forest not too long ago, I saw the parking “guard” has a QR code to accept payments by SnapScan. He says he gets paid more by SnapScan users than he receives as cash, and there is less risk of him having cash stolen from him. The article at https://lnkd.in/dDR5Rc8K (https://lnkd.in/dDR5Rc8K) explains more about Admyt works. #cashless #southafrica #technology