BajaNomad - High-speed VPN services now available

High-speed VPN services now available

novacoresystems - 9-30-2013 at 04:24 PM

Hello Baja Nomad community!

In addition to my computer services that I previously listed on here, I am now offering my San Diego based high speed VPN service for only $15/month.

This service will mask all traffic from your computer(s) and give you a San Diego IP address, which will allow you to access websites and content that you previously could not. This service is fast enough to watch Hulu and Netflix through as long as your ISP down here is fast enough. Other VPN services which are cheaper offer a different type of VPN that only works for web browsing only, and does not offer the speeds which allow media streaming. However, I also have cheaper plans as well for just web browsing masking as well.

If interested, please email info@novacoresystems.com

CortezBlue - 10-1-2013 at 08:25 PM

High Speed and VPN, possible an oxymarooon

If all you want is Netflix, Hulu and Pandora you can save $10 bucks a month and go with Overplay.net Super DNS service.

It has no latency in comparison to VPN. I use it on a DD Wrt modem, http://www.dd-wrt.com/site/index

It has worked flawlessly for my Sonos for Rhapsady and Pandora and works fine with my Amazon Prime account and Netflix.

Check it out.

gnukid - 10-1-2013 at 08:40 PM

Can you tell us more about the experience of sign up and use of Overplay.net ?

CortezBlue - 10-2-2013 at 10:13 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by gnukid
Can you tell us more about the experience of sign up and use of Overplay.net ?

So I am a music junkie and can't leave my Sono's at home. I love Rhapsody and Pandora and Slacker.

So once I decided to pay for internet I wanted to make sure I could use all of my gringo based devices.

There are several "VPN" companies around and VPN is great, however, with VPN you have to go through more "points" if you will, in order to get the service and that tends to slow VPN services down.

FYI overplay.net has a VPN and a Super DNS service.

Super DNS is a bit different in that you can use it from you PC or Ipad directly or you can buy a routher that will allow the DNS to be changed in the router and it will then allow any device connected via the router to have Super DNS support.

You can signup for a free trial period and give it a try. I went with Overplay only because it worked for me. I bought an Buffalo router from Amazon that came standard with DD-WRT firmware installed for about $80.

Overplay has some sections that will show you how to setup the modem.

So, good news, I get Rhapsody, Amazon Prime Pandora and Netflix with no problem. However, Slacker does not work.

Also, I found that I had to setup Netflix and the other services on my Roku in the states. It seemed to work easier. I tried to set it up in Mexico and it acted like it knew it wasn't a USA service. Once I set it up in the USA and brought it to mexico, it never skipped a beat.

One Note:

If you are using HughesNet or any Satellite service, latency can be a BIG issue and it can make services like Pandora not work correctly.

You have been warned!

DNS vs. VPN

novacoresystems - 10-2-2013 at 06:27 PM

Super DNS may fool some services, however it will not with all. To get total and complete access you need to use VPN.

My VPN can handle up to 10Mbps up and down unlike other VPNs, also the VPN servers are based out of San Diego - unlike other companies that the closest point would be located in LA or even San Francisco at the closest.

Also, my VPN service uses OpenVPN technology which uses UDP protocol transmission technology which is faster than the TCP protocol that most other VPNs use. In addition to even that, OpenVPN technology compresses all of the data leaving your computer and traversing through the VPN tunnel, then uncompresses it in San Diego for maximum speed.

There really is not a comparable VPN service to mine for all of those reasons, and that I give each customer their own VPS server/static IP.

Using any kind of DNS service is not going to fool all services reliably.. it just is not comparable. And in some cases, my service can even make your internet go slightly faster.

[Edited on 10-5-2013 by novacoresystems]

CortezBlue - 10-2-2013 at 08:42 PM

Desperate people......................

Hook - 10-3-2013 at 08:09 AM

I've never had ANY issues with my VPN slowing down my connection to a point where it even affects movie files, much less music, Cortez Blue. Yes, VPN slows a connection down a bit but it typically is about 0.1-0.2 mbps where I live in Sonora, Mexico.

I use Witopia and am VERY happy with them. About 60.00US/year allows me to get around any sports blackouts and watch US network TV on line. Amazon Plus content runs great through this. I havent tried Netflix US in over a year but I imagine it's the same.

CortezBlue - 10-3-2013 at 09:51 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Hook
I've never had ANY issues with my VPN slowing down my connection to a point where it even affects movie files, much less music, Cortez Blue. Yes, VPN slows a connection down a bit but it typically is about 0.1-0.2 mbps where I live in Sonora, Mexico.

I use Witopia and am VERY happy with them. About 60.00US/year allows me to get around any sports blackouts and watch US network TV on line. Amazon Plus content runs great through this. I havent tried Netflix US in over a year but I imagine it's the same.

Well a couple things:
1. I use my SuperDNS via my router so I have all devices, including my Sonos and Roku, supported. Witopia does not allow that, unless you sign up for a Pro Account.

2. Speed is Relative. If you have a good DSL/Cable modem service you may not be able to notice a reduction is speed, however, physics is physics and encrypting, sending to the VPN and resending to the original source, returning to the VPN encrypting and sending it back and de-crypting, is lag, no matter how you look at it. In my case, in San Felipe, we are stuck with WiMax, an over the air service. It is better than nothing, but it would be extremely slow with a VPN.

3. In my opinion, this newbie has joined Baja Nomads as a marketing tool and is trying to sell his VPN at $15 a month?

No Way!

pricing

novacoresystems - 10-3-2013 at 11:51 AM

The reason why this VPN is $15/month is it is dedicated. You get your own IP and your own VPS server unlike other services. With this plan, you get an overall faster experience unlike other services that put multiple users on each server. This is why I can handle speeds up to 10Mbps down and up through VPN.

I have reduced priced VPN connections if you want shared VPN for as low as $5/month. It just depends on your use and what you need it for...

[Edited on 10-3-2013 by novacoresystems]

[Edited on 10-3-2013 by novacoresystems]

novacoresystems - 10-3-2013 at 05:15 PM

And btw Cortez... what is wrong with posting an ad in the classified ads for this site? I live down here and want to do business with others who have moved down here. I've found helpful information on this site, and in turn I am providing a helpful service to others who choose to use my services. I don't know why you have such negativity towards me. If you don't want the service, then fine don't use it.

SFandH - 10-3-2013 at 10:52 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by novacoresystems
what is wrong with posting an ad in the classified ads for this site?

I don't see anything wrong. In fact, I'm glad you did. Your post caused me to look into the service you're providing.

CortezBlue - 10-4-2013 at 07:22 AM

The last time I checked, this isn't Craigslist for Ex Pats in Mexico.

Your primary posts are only marketing posts.

I would simply tell anyone that is going to sign up for a VPN to remember it is the same as handing over your financial documents to an organization to shred, you had better have a deep trust in who is filtering through your data.

Do your research on this guy and any other VPN's you are considering before shelling out a dime

Once you do the research you will see that there will be several VPN providers that keep showing up.

I would then do the research on them independently. Check their "who is" status, this will tell you how long they have been in business, who owns them and if they are hosting their own equipment or simply using a go daddy type of server. Check the websites statistics to see their traffic etc.

Some of these so called services are nothing more than you kids that bring a fat pipe into their house, buy a 2 U server and sit around gaming all day. They then sell off chunks of the server using a software to create virtual machines to friends and other folks to help recoup the monthly expense. Not a business model to get involved with, even if it is a family member.

Bottom line, buyer beware, desperate people do desperate things!

Riom - 10-4-2013 at 10:33 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Hook
I use Witopia and am VERY happy with them. About 60.00US/year allows me to get around any sports blackouts and watch US network TV on line.

I agree Witopia are good. I use just the basic VPN service with IPSec (now $50 a year) but this allows me to use any of their locations around the world. So I can use a Vancouver server to watch CBC/CTV programmes while in the US, use one of the many US servers to watch Hulu etc while in Canada/Mexico, or use the UK or Australia servers for things restricted to those countries.

Even though I have servers in the US I could run my own VPN on, Witopia is more flexible (the limit of one device on the VPN at a time works for me).

Rob

novacoresystems - 10-5-2013 at 02:28 AM

IPsec is a great technology. Keep away from PPTP though as it is not a secure technology any longer. My service uses OpenVPN which is a better performing VPN technology than IPsec. I have done a great deal of tweaks to my servers to maximize speed as well beyond the default deployment of the software.

Also as far as my servers, I use VPS servers that are in professional datacenters, not running out of any home. You are right that you have to trust your IT company, but I have a long established client list in the US and references upon request and well over 100 clients that love my IT services.

[Edited on 10-5-2013 by novacoresystems]

novacoresystems - 10-5-2013 at 02:42 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by CortezBlue
The last time I checked, this isn't Craigslist for Ex Pats in Mexico.

Your primary posts are only marketing posts.

Business is a great way to meet people. What else am I going to post about? People seem to find things to post about so I guess I am a minority, but I don't have any issues I need help with and I have a great community here that I socialize with in person.

What should one post about? And how long does one wait before mentioning they provide a (arguably) valuable service? What am I supposed to do... lurk in the shadows for a year or pretend to befriend people before I "sneak in" the fact that I am a service provider? That seems disingenuous.

I am also here to offer my assistance on the forum if I ever come across any technical questions that are asked.

novacoresystems - 10-5-2013 at 01:17 PM

The underlying TCP flows will take care of retries if necessary. If you used TCP at the OpenVPN layer, you end up in a situation where both layers can send duplicate packets in the case of loss. This can cause significant performance problems... and just isn't a good idea

While the OpenVPN packets are UDP, the traffic within the VPN tunnel itself is TCP and will behave accordingly.

CortezBlue - 10-5-2013 at 10:30 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by novacoresystems

Quote:

Originally posted by CortezBlue
The last time I checked, this isn't Craigslist for Ex Pats in Mexico.

Your primary posts are only marketing posts.

turn your halo down, I'm trying to sleep

novacoresystems - 10-6-2013 at 12:10 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by lencho

Quote:

Originally posted by novacoresystems
While the OpenVPN packets are UDP, the traffic within the VPN tunnel itself is TCP and will behave accordingly.

Uhhh... pardon my denseness (I've no experience with VPN): so the tunnel to San Diego is over TCP and you're running a UDP channel within that, or vice-versa?

It's a UDP tunnel to San Diego that has underlying TCP streams within it. Once it hits San diego, it's fully TCP to whatever site you are communicating with.

novacoresystems - 10-6-2013 at 01:45 PM

I did some initial research, but could not find any fiber ran south of ensenada. It may be just easier to do a visual trace route and see what it says. If you know how to do this, you can geographically trace what route your ISP takes to get to certain sites. If you need help with this just let me know.

But it looks like if you go far enough south, that fiber is ran through the cabo area.

novacoresystems - 10-7-2013 at 11:50 AM

Yeah I am sure there is fiber ran, but of course it is poorly documented.. it's nearly impossible to find the information online. I've only been down here for a few months now, so I haven't personally witnessed any construction.

Riom - 10-7-2013 at 02:46 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by novacoresystems
Yeah I am sure there is fiber ran, but of course it is poorly documented.. it's nearly impossible to find the information online.

There's some powerpoint slides from May 2013 that show the fibre network in 2001 (slide 16) running right down the peninsula with a loop at the bottom (unfortunately the legend is too small to read).

Slide 13 shows the 2012 Telmex network. Still runs right down the peninsula (odd there's no loop by Cabo now) and the connection to the mainland is at Santa Rosalia.

Slide 14 shows the 2009 CFE Telecom network. The CFE network follows the electric lines so, like the electric grids, has just a few small isolated pockets in Baja.

This is just the long distance network, lines like the spur to San Felipe are not shown.

Future plans with state-level maps at:
http://www.cft.gob.mx:8080/portal/industria-2/unidad-de-pros...

novacoresystems - 10-7-2013 at 03:24 PM

Thanks that will be helpful to him I'm sure.

novacoresystems - 10-16-2013 at 06:28 PM

Quote:

Nice find! Anyone here with Powerpoint that can pull that graphic of slide 16 out in full resolution?

I opened it up in powerpoint. Unfortunately, it's stuck at the resolution it is. If you enlarge it anymore it gets quite distorted.