Hacker News Reader

Comment by eqvinox | Hacker News Reader

[flagged]

Aside from the fact that "a CPE" is grammatically incorrect, you are also semantically wrong. A router is any device connected to multiple networks that can forward packets between them; and consumer-premises equipment includes everything that's directly connected or consumes a service from a telecom provider. Landline phones, set-top boxes and satellite decoders are also examples of CPE.

It's like me stating "you're not a man, you're a human!" and then expecting you to be in awe of my profound wisdom.

Technically it's an IPv4 router once you enable net.ipv4.ip_forward in step 1, the rest is enabling a whole lot of supplementary services and operations not intrinsic to the definition of a router.

I didn't see in TFA --although I may have missed it-- where it said it was replacing the ISP's router/CPE. Anything routing traffic is a router.

At home I've got both a CPE given by my ISP and my own router that routes and bridges traffic between two LANs of mine (192. and 10.).

Moreover the lack of IPv6 inside our own LANs is, for many of us, a feature. It doesn't mean we don't have an IPv6 address: it just means we have the choice and did choose to have our own LANs on IPv4 only. And, no, I don't care that it makes some programmers at some megacorp' lives more difficult to "reach" inside my networks.

I'm the boss at my home and my router is IPv4 only.

And I've got that in addition to my ISP's CPE.

I wouldn’t call it a cpe unless it translates the connection from the clec/co into IP.

IMO, it’s a plain old router/switch/bridge.

Thank you for informing me that a novel definition of the term "router" has come along since the last time I turned a Linux box into a router. The world changes in strange ways sometimes!

No need for "a" in "a CPE" (Customer Premise Equipment - its singular and plural inclusive already) - you wasted a character there 8)

IPv6 support is not required for a router. You'll note they also fail to offer IPX/SPX or ATM and many more.

What is "CPE" in this context? It's probably not "Common Platform Enumeration" (my top results for "cpe linux") or "Customer-Premises Equipment." ("cpe networking")

Googling "cpe vs router" shows websites comparing "Customer Premises Equipment" with routers. I don't think it fits though.

Customer premises equipment.

People who use this term are in telco.

I think it's your second one (used to be called the "modem" in the modem→router→ pc setups of yore).

> CPE generally refers to devices such as telephones, routers, network switches, residential gateways (RG), set-top boxes, fixed mobile convergence products, home networking adapters and Internet access gateways that enable consumers to access providers' communication services and distribute them in a residence or enterprise with a local area network (LAN).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Customer-premises_equipment

Given that the Wikipedia definition of CPE includes routers, I don't see how calling it CPE precludes it being a router, as the poster claimed:

> That's not a router, that's a CPE, and one without IPv6 support

I think a CPE could (be/include) a router, but usually it refers to the demarc between the provider's network and the customer's (no matter who owns/manages it).

For a Linux box to be a true CPE you'd likely need somewhat of a specialized card, one that can communicate directly to the next device up the line (e.g, take commercial fiber or cable in, ISDN modem, etc).

If it just shoots out ethernet into some other box next to it, it's likely not a CPE.

Plenty of isps that provide internet over regular ethernet. But it's a ye olde telecom provider term that referred to the phone, that you also didnt own yourself. Doesn't always apply cleanly these days.

Usually it's "something else" that turns into RJ45 (as ethernet has a maximum length) - now if you're in a datacenter you likely can get raw RJ45 Internet).

Fiber uses ethernet as well. Though ethernet fiber to the building and rj45 inside is common too.

Yes, but then you'd need a "somewhat specialized card" to turn a Linux computer into a "CPE" - a fiber transceiver.

And what if you just have rj45? Is a ethernet card also special? Transceivers aren't particularly special or hard to get either. Point is that's not what makes it a CPE, ownership does.

It's an old term used by telecom to refer to the phone they owned that's in the customers home. It has been used after by internet providers if they put a device in your home. If it's your own device it's not a CPE as seen from the isp perspective.

Really? They have buried Cat5/6 cable speaking Ethernet coming onto your property?

I've never heard of that before. How does that work? Your ISP would always have to have some infrastructure within 100 meters of your router then.

In my case I have AT&T Fiber that IIUC carries ethernet frames encoded optically.

But then you'd need the "somewhat specialized card" to turn a Linux box into a "CPE" - a fiber transceiver.

No. But fiber to the building and rj45 inside is common here. Or fiber to each apartment. All regular ethernet.

I mean the wikipedia literally states:

From my understanding any type of device that is used to extend or facilitate provider services is a CPE. So a router just acting as an extender would still be a cpe, as would a modem, as would anything that is on the customer side and facilitates provider services. Only situation a router wouldn't be a cpe is if it was just for a local lan network.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com