[Hands0n]

Vodafone have issued a PDF document that states their connectivity requirements for the Sure Signal device. This is vital information if you are having problems connecting the device - indicated by a flashing @ sign that indicates the all-essential VPN has not been established. Without this it is impossible for the Sure Signal to connect with the Vodafone servers.

The document (linked to here (http://forum.vodafone.co.uk/index.php?act=attach&type=post&id=1369)) shows it's age by referring to "Vodafone Access Gateway" but rest assured that it is the Sure Signal being sold since February 2010.

You will need to know how to manage your home router firewall configuration. As each are very different that specific information is beyond the scope of the Vodafone document.

So if you are having problems with the flashing @ then the attached is definitely worth a read.

There is an entire section of the Vodafone eForum dedicated to the Sure Signal here --> http://forum.vodafone.co.uk/index.php?showforum=70

[Hands0n]

There is a lengthy chat on the Vodafone eForum relating to problems setting up Sure Signal with some home ADSL routers/firewalls. Worth a read if you are having problems getting yours working - see here --> http://forum.vodafone.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=51469

[Ben]

Nice info!

I was fortunate enough that mine 'just works'. Think the router is some Thompson thing, tbh I haven't paid it a lot of attention since the line speed is a staggering 300k!

[stuartturrell]

i live in a really poor vodafone coverage area.
being out in the middle of the country, my broadband is at best 1.5mb, 512k up.

Will that sure signal work fine over my internet connection? I presume when i make calls over that network, calls are charged at your tariff's rate?

[Hands0n]

@stuartturrell - Hi there. Yes, Vodafone say that the minimum ADSL speed required is 1Mbps, but our Ben on T3G is working with Sure Signal at a far lesser speed, somewhere around 500Kbps (he obviously lives a bit further away from the local BT exchange than you do). So in that respect I cannot see any reason why the Sure Signal would have any problem working for you.

Bear in mind that each voice call is going to require a certain amount of bandwidth - if you are in the middle of a huge download (or upload) it may affect the voice quality at that time. Each voice call is going to take up roughly 64Kbps in each direction, so on the basis you have 512Kbps Uplink you can probably safely handle the four concurrent calls maximum that the Sure Signal allows. A lot depends upon the technology used by your ADSL provider - ADSL, ADSL2 or ADSL2+ being the current crop and each having better downlink/uplink speeds. For example, I'm getting 6.5Mbps D/L and 670Kbps U/L on an ADSL2+ service.

There is a neat article discussing Femtocell network bandwidth usage here --> http://3ginthehome.wordpress.com/2008/04/08/femtocells-bandwidth-efficiency/

You are correct regarding calls being charged to your tariff's rate (or using up your bundled minutes). All that the Sure Signal does is give you a [very] local 3G mast in your own house. So the call is still being handled by Vodafone even though it is using your ADSL to create a VPN between the SS and Vodafone's gateway device in their network.

One thing to be aware of and that is the absolutely essential need for Sure Signal to create a VPN tunnel through your router at home. In the vast majority of cases it will do so automatically using a method called UPnP that you have to do nothing to make work. But if your router either does not support UPnP (a few don't still), or you have already set up a VPN through your home router, you may run into some difficulties setting it up. It can be done, mostly, and if you get stuck then jump back on here and I'll see what advice and assistance can be given. Also worth checking out the Vodafone eForum thread linked to by me earlier in this thread if you find yourself in that place.