OpenVPN connection drops randomly in all circumstances under all conditions - Security Discussion

I've used the standard OpenVPN for Android app as well as the proprietary clients that come with subscriptions to some VPNs. For every provider I've tried (which has to be at least 8), I've tried every server, every protocol for each server and every configuration tweak available for each server. This exhaustive search has taken nearly a year and has cost me at least $200 USD. Finally my stupid @$$ has realized either there's something wrong with every smartphone I've ever used or there is an inherent problem with my carrier or Android.
Any definitive direction or advice on this matter will be treated as direct gospel from the savior.
At this point thanks at least for reading this far.

Related

BlackBerry Connect OTA enterprise activation backup, passwords etc.

QUESTION 1
I've been flashing and reflashing ROMs for a couple of weeks now and am very impressed with Dutty's latest endeavor. In anticipation of the v4 release, I'm hoping someone in the community can tell me if it is possible to backup an over-the-air (OTA) enterprise activation of BB Connect. Currently I'm calling our technical support guys who, sooner than later I'm sure, will start asking why I have to have to get a new OTA activation password (which they change as soon as you use it) every 5-7 days.
So, in short: moving from one ROM to the next and want to back up OTA BBConnect enterprise activation. Possible? If so, how?
QUESTION 2
Any BES administrators out there willing to tell me if my Tilt/Kaiser shows up on the BES (v4) differently than a BlackBerry (like the POS 7280 I'm given by the company). If so, is there a way to "spoof" that since my company will not allow non-blackberry devices.
QUESTION 3
When using the stock AT&T ROM, my Tilt respects the (highly restrictive, Bluetooth disabling, password-enforcing, ridiculous) IT Policy pushed by the BES administrator. When I flashed to Dutty's DualTouch ROM v3 Final, this no longer happened. Now, it just reads "default" for the IT Policy. Is this a fluke or some wonderful reg entry that we need to identify and protect like diamonds?
Thanks, all.
Cheers,
Your Local Village Idiot
VillageIdiot said:
QUESTION 2
Any BES administrators out there willing to tell me if my Tilt/Kaiser shows up on the BES (v4) differently than a BlackBerry (like the POS 7280 I'm given by the company). If so, is there a way to "spoof" that since my company will not allow non-blackberry devices.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
We run BES here and indeed non-blackberry devices are reported as the phone model when you look up the phones information.
This could probably easily be spoofed to whatever you like. If you hacked the blackberry connect application, or intercepted and modified the data passed over to BES. You could make it say anything you want at that point.
I'd get "in" with your IT guys and that way they can pull a favor for you now and then with the BES server. Other then that, have the company pay for a blackberry phone and carry two phones around, or refuse to carry a company phone and don't use your personal phone for company resources. If they're blocking your productivity by a poorly guided company policy, make it cost them money. Don't inconvenience yourself to keep your productivity as an employee on par.
Really though, it's not feasible to secretly go behind your employers back with your tilt. I think it's ridiculous a company wouldn't let you use your Tilt -- though probably because the corporation is uneducated or ignorant to the fact that the Tilt can be locked down just as well as a blackberry phone. Too bad the employer has a bunch of pointy haired management types running around who don't know what they're doing and out of ignorance banned non-BB devices.
Jon,
Thank you for your prompt reply and clarification on what shows up at the BES. Hacking the BB connect app is beyond my current knowledge set, but I may look into it if I'm unable to find a simpler solution.
Unfortunately, my company has several thousand employees so my productivity concerns are far outweighed by their misinformed security concerns. I've pitched the benefits of BB connect, WM5/6 devices and direct-push Exchange sync, but my pitch falls on deaf ears. They have provided me a BB 7280 and some get newer 8XXX devices, but beyond that we're expected to be happy with what we have. I'm even buying a non-camera Tilt to replace my two week old Tilt because they won't allow personal camera phones (all BB connect issues aside). You'd think I work for MI-6...
Cheers,
T.V.I.
VillageIdiot said:
QUESTION 1
I've been flashing and reflashing ROMs for a couple of weeks now and am very impressed with Dutty's latest endeavor. In anticipation of the v4 release, I'm hoping someone in the community can tell me if it is possible to backup an over-the-air (OTA) enterprise activation of BB Connect. Currently I'm calling our technical support guys who, sooner than later I'm sure, will start asking why I have to have to get a new OTA activation password (which they change as soon as you use it) every 5-7 days.
im soooo it this situation, any ideas?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Here's how you do it
you could use the desktop software instead of OTA. this will activate the phone without requiring you to get a new activation code.
Here's how I back up and restore. This has worked often, and not worked a few times.
Try to follow this exactly for best results.
get task manager v2.7 from fdcsoft
tap the blackberry icon on the taskbar and suspend the service under status
start taskmanager, and go to services. stop the two blackberry services, log and security.
open file explorer, and copy the directory RIM in /application data to your storage card
flash your phone with whatever-
copy the RIM folder back to /application data from your storage card
load blackberry connect (this should be the same version you had, otherwise you may have issues)
tap the blackberry icon in settings-system
instead of installing, you should see a window that says "repairing settings"
your old password should be restored, and the phone will lock and ask you to unlock. use your password you had before the backup.
all of your folders and mail should be back.
This works about 90% of the time.
some issues I've had-
multiple blackberry folders- one with emails, one with nothing.
folders missing, a bunch of email in drafts folder.
older messages no longer sync with desktop
good luck!

seeking software to track phone minutes used per month (believe me, i've searched)

Hi there,
I can't believe how hard this has been...
My phone is a WM6.0 Motorola Q9H Smartphone. (Fido/Rogers standard)
All I'm looking for is software that will tell me how many minutes I've used the phone for this month so that I can stay within my free minutes.
The only feature it needs to have is separate peak and off-peak periods and configurable start-of-month day. Bonus -- the ability to set some free phone numbers.
LCMinutes was the closest I came but the interface doesn't let me actually edit the settings, strangely. (I select Edit, and then can scroll the settings but can not actually get the cursor to edit a text box.)
All the rest of the call minutes tracking software I've found is either for older Smartphone versions or Pocket PC editions. I did find one $6 software but it doesn't have peak/off-peak settings or pretty well any configurability.
<vent>
I'm actually more amazed than frustrated that it's been this hard -- surely there has to be something out there for a Motorola Q9h user (an extremely popular phone), and presumably *hundreds of thousands* of other WM6 smartphone users that are in the same boat. It's not like it's specialty software. This would be one of the most basic software requirements for a smartphone, one would think. The conspiracy theorist in me is beginning to think that the carriers have worked to prevent this kind of software from getting out there, so that they can gouge the consumer on minute fees!
</end vent>
Someone tell me there's something out there!
Thanks XDA'ers,
Shiraz

[Q] Help me pick a phone. Please.

(long post warning...I'm placing the summary first for those who don't care to read the whole thing)
***
In summary, I want a mobile platform that I can tweak until I get it exactly as I like it; that will sync with Windows desktop and server platforms (this is a strong preference, not a "must"; upon which I own things and don't have to worry about them being stolen or broken; that doesn't tell everyone and their mother where I go and what I'm doing; and on which I can listen to Sirius radio; and to which I can transfer data back and forth via USB without any permission based cloud interface. It must also be compatible with Slingplayer software and I have a strong, strong, preference for a slideout QWERTY keyboard, but I'd sacrifice that if I have to for the above functionalities. I'm currently on ATT, but it doesn't have to be that way
***
I am thinking about purchasing a new phone. But the market is a bit more complicated than when I purchased my current phone (HTC Diamond), so I hope that you guys can give me some advice.
I have been a Windows Mobile user since 5.0. What I loved about WM is that I could come here and read about the various hacks, mods, and custom roms and generally find something to address any problems I had, or find a way to modify the phone to meet my preferences.
I love the mobile version of Office and I use it constantly for work purposes. I especially like being able to sync outlook contacts on both phone and device, and that I can make presentations from the phone, and can open and manipulate Word and Excel.
I was also using SiriusXM 6 by tcbush over on Geekstoolbox to listen to satellite radio. Unfortunately, Sirius has taken down their legacy servers that streamed content to third party providers. So it does not appear that I can listen to satellite radio any longer via my mobile device.
It is this turn of events (Sirius radio) that is my main motivator for seeking a new phone. I could listen to Sirius via the web, but that requires a Flash player and I can't find a version of flash for WM 6.1. I have both Opera Mini and IE. So, if any of you know a way for a WM 6.1 device to listen to Sirius, you will have solved my immediate problem and saved me some money. I would really appreciate that.
But on the larger scale, I know that one day I will have to replace my beloved Diamond. Her slideout QWERTY is starting to jiggle, there are a few scratches on her beautiful face even though she hasn't gone a moment without a case and screen protector. Every now and again her D-Pad loses its way, and I have to reboot. Alas, I fear the end is near. *sigh*
So, in looking over the current landscape, I see three options: iphone, Android, and WM7.
Apple products to me are out for personal preference reasons.
That leaves Android and WM7.
Problem 1:
I enjoyed my prior experience of owning a WM phone supported by a network of generous, friendly developers who found ways that we could modify our phones to our hearts' content. I also like the fact that I own my phone and all its content. Once I install or tweak something, then that's it unless I decide to change it.
But the current market seems to be based on a top-down control model. From what I've read, owning a phone with the current tech is like owning a home on leasehold property or in a HOA: You pay full price for ownership but you do not enjoy the rights of control normally associated with that ownership. It seems that the devices are locked, difficult to unlock, find ways to re-lock, and that a Nanny-server may at times uninstall or disable software that it doesn't like.
I just don't get it. Has the culture embraced a model where a user pays a provider only to be told by that provider what he can and cannot do with the property he has purchased?
Of course, my perception of these issues could be incorrect. I recently went back to school and have unplugged from most external things. I haven't been following the "insider info" on xda for nearly two years. If I'm wrong, please tell me.
Problem 2:
User tracking. Sounds Orwellian.
I get it that the cell provider can locate you. I understand the technology reasonably well for regular Joe, and I understand that the network needs to know where you are. But until recently, the cell provider could not release those records without a warrant or some emergency confirmed by law enforcement like a lost person, etc. I actually worked with Sprint in conjunction with the police to attempt to track a stolen phone. However, it now appears that the manufacturers themselves and many app developers are bypassing the law by tracking users without their consent. Am I right on this?
I've read a number of articles on the Apple and Android tracking problems - generic apps tracking you and reporting your movements to Apple, Google, etc. Apps turning on the mic or camera at intervals and tracking your surroundings or conversations. Route these concerns through the awfulness of the Electronic Communications Privacy Act, the Patriot Act, and the fact that both the post-digital presidential administrations (Bush II and Obama) seem intent on eroding what remains of our privacy, and it makes me uncomfortable. To make it worse, Google and Zuckerburg are both in bed with the Obama administration, and stories of their privacy infractions are epidemic.
Yet none of the progs I use on my WM 6.1 device use tracking (that I know of). So, in a very short time, it appears that the culture of mobile communications has gone from an ownership model with Constitutional protections to a free-for-all where you essentially pay big brother to track you.
I have heard many of my younger friends who have grown up in the big-government era use the default: "If you have nothing to hide, then you have nothing to worry about." But that's exactly backward. The law presumes your privacy and allows infractions only after due process. The current culture seems to presume lack of privacy, and treat privacy-seekers as an anomaly. And the tech seems to reflect the culture rather than the law.
Am I crazy? Even if I am crazy, is there a way to block this tracking? And, if so, does Android or WM7 better lend itself to blocking this tracking?
Problem 3:
USB data transfer.
WM7 doesn't support smart cards. But, the devices seem to have adequate on-board storage for my needs. However, from what I've read, I'll need to use Zune (on WM7, don't know about Android) to move data back and forth. Is that correct?
I currently use Windows Mobile Device Center to transfer files back and forth via USB or Bluetooth, and I really want to keep that functionality.
Thank you if you have read this far. And, given those criteria, what are my best options?
Droid X2. Get it.
Droid X2
Droid X2. Get it.
+1
Thanks for the responses. I've done a bit of research on the phone you recommended, and some research in general. I really need to spool back up
It looks like there are apps out there like WhisperMonitor that will help with my privacy concerns. Actually, it looks like there are Android Apps to address most of my concerns.
I'll keep researching that to determine how much functionality I'll have to sacrifice. And I appreciate the responses. Love the dual core structure of this phone. From what I've read, the benchmarks don't differ too much from single core phones, but it looks like the dual core really helps with load distribution and multi-tasking.
It will be hard to leave Windows...been with it since it was Pocket PC 2000. But atm, it appears that Android may work best for me.
I agree Droid X2, although VZW is expensive, its the best network
Off the basis of wanting a slide out QWERTY and Windows Phone 7, I would go with the HTC Arrive for Sprint. You still have Windows Phone, you can get Sling Player from the Marketplace, and it has a slide out QWERTY that when it slides out, angles the screen for better typing the way I look at it.
samsung galaxy s2
or atrix
If you QWERTY I'd wait till my4g slide if it launches with s-off. I don't imagine you'd be keeping the os in tact.
The g2 is also a beautiful phone. Amazing specs for the good hardware.
T-Mobile is also cheapest, I find, of the four carriers.
The epic 4g seemed nice. Hummingbird (Samsung 1ghz processor) is very nice and has a great gpu.
If you're looking to use google talk video chat, avoid nvidia tegra 2 chips.
Google's suite of software is pretty sweet. Google docs works nice, and there's an app for that.
As long as you download from android market you're good from malware. (If you do get it from market, google does pull the app from the store AND your phone, that's the only time I heard them doing this, and that was once instance.)
Besides... Supporting your developers is a great thing.
Did I miss anything?
Sent from my LG-P999 using XDA App
IMO almost any of the android phones would work for what you have in mind. As you pointed out in your follow up post there are apps out there for your privacy concerns. I've had a Moto Droid and now the HTC Thunderbolt. Both have been synced with my works exchange servers with no issues, google apps work great with Office docs, and the available roms and other customizations are almost endless.
Also, don't get hung up on a QWERTY keyboard. I swore I would never have a phone without one, but now that I do I actually don't really miss it.
Edit:
USB data transfer - very simple to do with android. Install a driver for the phone and then connect to your pc with a USB cable. Your pc will recognize the sdcard as removeable storage. Just select it in My Computer and drag and drop anything you want to move like you would for moving any file around in Windows.

[Q] MS Remote Desktop on Note 10.1

I've installed Microsoft's Remote Desktop app, and made some changes on my desktop (actually laptop) to be able to use my Note 10 as a Windows client. On my home WiFi network, using my Note 3 as the router, it worked nicely. However, I'm not really going to use it sitting next to my laptop, but rather when I'm out on town or some other place. I realize that I won't find my laptop through its name on my network, this requires more advanced settings, so I've searched for tutorials on this. However, those I found where rather rudimentary, meaning I actually understood everything and had already implemented it. I'm sure a "true" remote setting requires a more sophisticated setup. Hence, are there any users here who have already implemented this? Do you set up a special account on the desktop/laptop? I understand if it is a daunting task to explain all this to half nitwit like myself, but I am capable of learning, so if you know a good thorough tutorial on the subject I'd happily devote some time for the subject.
If you have your laptop running on your home network and you want to access it through Remote Desktop while somewhere else, it is a significant setup needing some technical knowledge to make the system visible on the internet as you have found out. You need to create an opening through your internet router, set up some sort of dynamic DNS service and so on.
You may be better using a tailor made solution designed to do what you want without all those hassles. Not wishing to advertise anything specific, but TeamViewer is very much intended for this, running as an app on the tablet and a service on the laptop PC. The software hadles the communication between the two through a central 'broker' service.
I'll go ahead and name names. Ive tried several and my favorite so far has been either Pocket Cloud or Jump Desktop. Jump is my daily choice and can be easily set up on your PC using your Google account so you can always find it, even when off of your own network. Jump also seems a little smoother than Pocket Cloud. Both support 1 free connection I believe.
Good luck finding the right one for you.
As for direct RDP without Jump Desktop or similar, you'd need to set up your router with port forwarding and choose a port that you will use in conjunction with your external IP address to enter into your RDP app on your tablet. Problem is that some ISP hardware (like my DSL modem) has built in firewalls that prevent port forwarding from working. Not to mention that your IP address may not be static unless you pay for that option specifically with your ISP. Consequently it may change every time the power cycles on your DSL modem or router.
@Spydervoice
Ahh, very helpful comment, much appreciated. So a dynamic IP, which is what most ISPs provide will in essence spoil the experience unless I set it up specifically for each day. See, this is the kind of erudite reply that makes a person willing to endure spam and LOLcats on the Internet.
I used Splashtop before, with my ASUS Transformer, but the lag essentially made it a bust. What was nice about the Microsoft RDP was the instantaneous response. I actually ran a session of Word on my Note 10.1 and it was neither uncomfortable nor frustrating. Hence, my interest in making a session available over the Internet.
Assuming I could do this whole thing about opening up a port in the router, do I expose myself to hacker attacks?
Sent from my GT-N8010 using Tapatalk 4
Kumabjorn said:
@Spydervoice
Ahh, very helpful comment, much appreciated. So a dynamic IP, which is what most ISPs provide will in essence spoil the experience unless I set it up specifically for each day. See, this is the kind of erudite reply that makes a person willing to endure spam and LOLcats on the Internet.
I used Splashtop before, with my ASUS Transformer, but the lag essentially made it a bust. What was nice about the Microsoft RDP was the instantaneous response. I actually ran a session of Word on my Note 10.1 and it was neither uncomfortable nor frustrating. Hence, my interest in making a session available over the Internet.
Assuming I could do this whole thing about opening up a port in the router, do I expose myself to hacker attacks?
Sent from my GT-N8010 using Tapatalk 4
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I use spalshtop hd every day from different places with no lag at all. Might give it a shot again, if you got decent home rig.
Have you tried TeamViewer? I find it works mostly well, and you don't need to worry about home connections changing addresses and such.
-----
Tips for a pleasant XDA:
Search before asking. Someone has likely already asked.
Spell your words completely, and use punctuation. It confuses people when you use "u" and "ur" and "dat", or when you wrongly use "there/their/they're/your/you're".
Be nice. Don't be rude, just move on to another post without leaving a comment. We are not 7 years old.
And PLEASE, do not ask for the "best" anything. We all have our preferences.
(I feel like a twit for somehow missing an earlier post suggesting TeamViewer)
-----
Tips for a pleasant XDA:
Search before asking. Someone has likely already asked.
Spell your words completely, and use punctuation. It confuses people when you use "u" and "ur" and "dat", or when you wrongly use "there/their/they're/your/you're".
Be nice. Don't be rude, just move on to another post without leaving a comment. We are not 7 years old.
And PLEASE, do not ask for the "best" anything. We all have our preferences.
Happens all the time, no worries.
Sent from my GT-N5110 using Tapatalk 4
DDNS
If you have trouble with Dynamic IP you can always use a dynamic DNS service. Most modern routers include the capability, or you can get client software for your PC or NAS. This will allow you to have your own DNS name which remaps your IP address whenever it changes.
---------- Post added at 09:42 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:31 PM ----------
The other thing to watch out for if you are opening your router the big bad world is make sure you have only the port you need open to the outside world, and don't use the standard port for RDP 3389. Just a word of warning.
The part about opening up a port is what causes apprehension. Even if I use a different port, aren't there something called "port sniffers" available to hackers interested in breaking in?
Sent from my SC-01F using Tapatalk
another great solution if you do not want to mess with port forwarding and dynamic dns (paid though, and not too chip) is logmein. it is the simplest i ever used.
next one mentioned somewhere in this thread that worked for me too is Jump Desktop with google account set up. i think this one is free for one connection or so...
i have never used team viewer do do not have an opinion about that
original win RDP will work only with ports forwarded and dynDns service running on your router.
port forwarding tutorial by ms:
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/...op-connections-from-outside-your-home-network
dyndns confug will vary in different routers.
i was using it for some time with both pocket cloud and jump desktop and both worked great. never had any issues even when working through 3G.
hope it helps...
.

Free your data: running your own server (post under construction :)

So you want to run your own server, eh? Whether you want to free yourself from data mining, commercialising, monetising, greedy be-tied-and-suited media moguls or from the spiritual successors of J. Edgar Hoover and Yuri Andropov does not matter. You want your data to be just that, *your* data. While this might seem extreme to some the idea is actually not far fetched, nor is it impossible to realise. After all, the 'net and the web were conceived as a decentralised network of services. This model, while good in allowing diversity and freedom, is less than ideal from a profitability standpoint so you should not expect those who stand to profit from hoarding your data to lend a helping hand here You're on your own here.
Well, not really on your own of course as there is a metric ton of information on this subject to be found on the 'net. Everything from how to turn that old laptop into a server through using single-board computers as servers through re-purposing whatever you happened to find dumpster-diving. Suffice to say that you need hardware, software and a network connection. A separate router, preferably one under your own control, running known software (OpenWRT, DD-WRT, Tomato, etc) on stable and not to anemic hardware so it can be used to run a VPN to your phone. You'll want your own domain name as well, either one from the free services which are (still) around or something more 'personal'.
Network connection and domain
Here you often don't have that much choice. If possible, choose a wired connection over a wireless one, both for the higher reliability as well as the usually more acceptable use policies and the fact that wireless connections often change IP address. Choose a connection without a traffic cap over one which has one. Choose the connection with the highest upload rate, even if this means settling on a lower download rate - servers send traffic up the net after all.
There are many ways to get a domain name. You can buy one, of course. For a personal server this might be overkill, but the choice is yours. One advantage of having your own domain is that it enables you to keep your mail/jabber/web/whatever addresses no matter what happens (as long as you pay the registrar, of course). You're totally free here as you can simply point your domain elsewhere if you happen to move to another ISP (and/or country...). Cheaper - as in 'free' - is to use one of the many free dynamic DNS services. As long as you have an address to feed your phone and other devices which will make use of your server you're fine.
Router
Best here is to use a router which is fully under your own control. While some ISP routers might be marginally usable, these devices are often at the whim of the ISP as they can be remotely controlled and configured. This is not what you want for your network, so just use the thing in bridge mode if possible, otherwise forward all traffic to your own router. With one of the free and open router firmwares on a reliable device you can do interesting things, ranging from port knocking on the router to VPN tunnels to your mobile devices.
Hardware, storage
Power consumption. heat- and noise production are of more importance than raw power here. There should be enough memory to keep the thing from paging (or 'swapping') on the intended work load on the chosen OS. The same goes for storage: If it fits in the box, fine. If it does not (external drives on laptops, Raspberries, etc) make sure the whole contraption is stable so you don't get any sudden 'disconnects'. For a personal server, power consumption, noise and heat production (which directly relates to reliability) are - again - more important than raw performance.
OS
Any 'unix' of choice is fine here. Linux, *BSD, doesn't matter. Even MacOS would do. Windows, not so much. It is not impossible to use Windows but it is more of a hassle given that a lot of the software is tailored to a unix environment. If you really insist on running Windows, at least make sure it is patched up to the hilt and that all - and that means all - unnecessary services have been switched off.
Software
This is the interesting bit, and the reason why this message is here in the first place. On one of the forum threads here someone was surprised by the fact that I don't run any of the Google apps on my devices, wondering how I got by without Google Play, GMail, contacts and calendar sync etc. Part of the answer to that question involves running your own server, part is covered by using alternatives for the Google-provided apps and services. I would have put this all in a table but it seems this silly forum does not support those...
Commercial service: Alternative (Remarks)
Google Play: F-Droid (The F-Droid store only contains free software. It does not provide a full alternative to the Play Store. If you really want to run the Play Store but still have a notion of privacy on your device, consider enabling Google Services only when required, disabling them afterwards. You can also designate one device as the one which gets to run the Play Store and side-load apps from this device to all others. Theoretically this should be possible using an emulator on your server as well, automating the whole process and creating a 'playstore by proxy'. I have not tried this.)
GMail: IMAP to your own server, eg the Debian standard dovecot daemon. K9 or the standard Android email client on your device.
Contacts: CardDav to your own server (service is provided by ownCloud, amongst others), DAVdroid on your phone or tablet.
Calendar: CalDav to your own server (service is provided by ownCloud, amongst others), DAVdroid on your phone or tablet.
Cloud storage (Dropbox, Google Drive, etc): WebDav to your own server (service is provided by ownCloud, amongst others), one of the many webdav clients on your phone. There is a specific ownCloud app as well.
Photo sharing (Flickr, Smugmug, etc): Trovebox to your own server, Trovebox app on phone
Streaming service (Spotify, Google Music, etc): subsonic on your own server, dSub or Subsonic app on phone (there is a rudimentary streaming service in ownCloud as well, based on Ampache)
More will follow...
If you get in the game on time you might be able to join the Reset the Net initiative!
Reserved #2
This position is reserved for a more thorough list of services
Reserved #3
This position is reserved for a more thorough list of services
YetAnotherForumUser said:
Commercial service: Alternative (Remarks)
Google Play: F-Droid (The F-Droid store only contains free software. It does not provide a full alternative to the Play Store. If you really want to run the Play Store but still have a notion of privacy on your device, consider enabling Google Services only when required, disabling them afterwards. You can also designate one device as the one which gets to run the Play Store and side-load apps from this device to all others. Theoretically this should be possible using an emulator on your server as well, automating the whole process and creating a 'playstore by proxy'. I have not tried this.)
GMail: IMAP to your own server, eg the Debian standard dovecot daemon. K9 or the standard Android email client on your device.
Contacts: CardDav to your own server (service is provided by ownCloud, amongst others), DAVdroid on your phone or tablet.
Calendar: CalDav to your own server (service is provided by ownCloud, amongst others), DAVdroid on your phone or tablet.
Cloud storage (Dropbox, Google Drive, etc): WebDav to your own server (service is provided by ownCloud, amongst others), one of the many webdav clients on your phone. There is a specific ownCloud app as well.
Photo sharing (Flickr, Smugmug, etc): Trovebox to your own server, Trovebox app on phone
Streaming service (Spotify, Google Music, etc): subsonic on your own server, dSub or Subsonic app on phone (there is a rudimentary streaming service in ownCloud as well, based on Ampache)
More will follow...
More later, no time now,
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is an interesting topic mainly because android has the potential to become non dependant of google services and I would be nice to keep personal data really personal.
Also there is a No Gapps project here in xda that is quite interesting.
YetAnotherForumUser said:
Router
Best here is to use a router which is fully under your own control. While some ISP routers might be marginally usable, these devices are often at the whim of the ISP as they can be remotely controlled and configured. This is not what you want for your network, so just use the thing in bridge mode if possible, otherwise forward all traffic to your own router. With one of the free and open router firmwares on a reliable device you can do interesting things, ranging from port knocking on the router to VPN tunnels to your mobile devices.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This reminded me of something that happened in my dad's office recently:
http://arstechnica.com/civis/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=1209257
The ISP guys configured it that way because dad wanted to run a webserver on one system, the one directly connected to the modem on bridged mode. They apparently didn't think it was necessary to also add a router betweenthe modem and the network of computers :/
Lessons:
1. Don't trust anything the ISP guys do
2. Always us a standalone router or firewall
3. Don't use XP. Seriously.
TJKV said:
This reminded me of something that happened in my dad's office recently:
http://arstechnica.com/civis/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=1209257
The ISP guys configured it that way because dad wanted to run a webserver on one system, the one directly connected to the modem on bridged mode. They apparently didn't think it was necessary to also add a router betweenthe modem and the network of computers :/
Lessons:
1. Don't trust anything the ISP guys do
2. Always us a standalone router or firewall
3. Don't use XP. Seriously.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can recommend something like this. They come with web-face, but you need have atleast base knowledge of how network things work.
slph said:
I can recommend something like this. They come with web-face, but you need have atleast base knowledge of how network things work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nah when I realised what the ISP guys had done I bought a D-Link 2750U and set it up properly in NAT mode
Wifi also works now since it isn't bridged to a computer anymore

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