Recently, I announced on my Live in the Philippines Web Magazine that I am in Internet Heaven! Why? Because I got a new SmartBro ShareIt Wireless Internet setup. It delivers very fast service compared to what I’ve been able to get in the past. The speed is rated as “up to 2Mbps.” So far, I have seen speeds of between 1.3Mbps and 3.2Mbps. I am very happy with those speeds, I must say.
There are a couple of issues, though, that I am not completely happy with. In the scheme of things, though, they are manageable, and can be worked around. Both of these issues are DNS related.
For those of you who don’t know what DNS is, basically it stands for “Domain Name System” or “Domain Name Server” (there is debate in the Internet community over which is correct). Basically, the way DNS works is that the Internet really works by a series of numbers (IP addresses), although for the common person, we remember Internet addresses by words instead. For example, this site is “MindanaoBob.com” but when you type that name into your browser, the DNS system goes into play and converts that name into a series of numbers.
These numbers are dynamic and change often. For example, if I moved this site to a different server, the IP address of the site would change, but the name that you and I know would remain the same. Thus, the Domain Name Server needs to have a table that coordinates what numbers are tied to what names. Also, if a new site comes online, you won’t be able to access it until the DNS system is updated.
Some systems update many times per day with new DNS information. Some systems update once a day. It’s rare that any Internet Service Provider updates less than once per day though. Unfortunately, SmartBro’s “ShareIt” system seems to be using a different DNS server from the regular SmartBro service. One site that I go to regularly recently moved to a new server, and they have a different IP address. Well, the update happened 4 days ago, but SmartBro’s ShareIt service is still going to the old server. Yes, I’ve clared my cache, I’ve refreshed, etc. But, still, DNS is not updated after 4 days!
Normally, I like to use a service called “OpenDNS” to do my DNS lookup. When you use OpenDNS (or any other non-ISP provided DNS service) then you are basically bypassing the ISP, so SmartBro would be out of the loop completely for the DNS lookup. However, in the WiFi router that you are required to use for the service, you cannot change the DNS addresses!
Wait! There is one other way to do it. I can change each computer individually to use OpenDNS. That is a bit of a pain to do, but I did it. You see, if you can change the router, then every computer using that router for Internet access would automatically be using OpenDNS, but if you can’t change the router, then you can change each computer individually, which I did.
Oops! Another problem. You see, SmartBro has things set up so that many users all use the same IP address, instead of each person logged on to the system having their own IP. I don’t care for that, but that is an entirely different discussion. Anyway, somebody else who uses the same IP address that I use, has already used OpenDNS to set up site filtering for everybody who uses OpenDNS with the same IP! So, a whole bunch of sites that I want to visit have been deemed “inappropriate” by this person who has appointed himself as the “Network Administrator” for the IP address that I use!
So, I have gone to option #3. I found some other highly reliable DNS servers that are also open to the public. I’m not going to say who I am using for DNS service, because I am not 100% certain that they know that they have their DNS service open to the public! However, if you do a Google search for “public DNS server” you can get a lot of lists of DNS servers that are publicly accessible.
So, I’ve worked around the DNS issues with SmartBro ShareIt service. Not perfect, but workable. Let me say, as far as speed goes, though, I am extremely happy with this service. Even with these DNS issues, I would not change providers at this time. I do wish, though, that the modem/router that Smart provides were more robust and allowed more user changeable settings.
Hi Bob,
We are still on a very sloow connection via our cell phone… We looked into SmartBro Share-it here in CDO and found that the fast connection is not available here yet. Maybe nest year… It is available in Gingoog and in Tagaloan, however. We are looking inot Globe, but will probably go with Philcom, like we had before; slower than advertised and prone to service failures. Sigh.
Hi AmericanLola – Sorry, I missed your comment. Somehow it ended up being tossed aside as Spam! I just rescued it, though!
Actually, you might check the regular SmartBro, they have a 512Kbps plan that should be available in CdO. That is what I was using before upgrading, and I must say that it was pretty good.
Hi Bob,
Its funny,i enjoyed reading this article,but i’m still non the wiser LOL.
You are streets ahead of me on IT,i’m still a juvenile amateur,LOL.
I still have plenty to learn.
regards Chas.
Hi chas – Ha ha… no problem, my friend! I’m happy to hear from you one way or the other!
mindanaoBob
sir pwede po ba humingi ng instruction kung panu nyo po nasolve ung prob sa DNS with share it ng smartbro? new subscriber po ako dito ako sa puerto princesa sa palawan.. may time po kc na mabilis ung share it pero most of the time ang bagal talaga. thanks and more power.
wudz – Dili ko kasabot ug Tagalog. Bisaya o English lang.
Hello, I stumbled on your blog looking for answers regarding my smartbro-share-it and with my windows 7.. Almost 4 out of 5 times i logged into my PC together with share-it. I got no connection, I tried to diagnose it but it only says "DNS server isn't responding" or "windows cannot communicate with this device or source (primary DNS server) or "your computer is correctly configured but your dns server isnt responding."
I use openDNS but still the problem exist. There is a work around though, I need to start share-it first, then connect first my XP laptop or Ipod Touch first… once I confirmed I have a connection then its time for me to logged into windows and instantly I got an internet on windows 7.
I dont know if its related to your post but maybe you have a clue, if not, its okay.
Hi Dexter – ShareIt has a lot of problems! After many months, I finally convinced Smart to replace my ShareIt unit with a Canopy system, which works great. I would highly recommend ditching the ShareIt unit.
hello there, actually i was a former canopy user… it was super slow in our area almost everyday, ive been with canopy for 4years already but very slow connection… just this april i switched to shareit coz i noticed it was fast enough when they did a demo here at home… so far in my first week it was good… around april 20 up to end of april, but now its slow… plus im having a problem on my windows 7…. now even my ipod and laptop is having a hardtime whenever turn on off the router… full bars but no connection.. i have to reboot, unplug etc. just to make an internet connection.. life is really hard here in the phils… no stable good internet provider.
Hi Dexter – sorry to hear that you did not have luck with a canopy. I have two canopies at my location and they both work excellent. Unfortunately, I think you are right… no stable good internet providers in the Philippines! At least not reliably.