I’m interested in using StarLink for AllstarLink. I’m not clear on how it port forwards, which seems to be automatic in their system since VoIP phones seem to work seamlessly. I’m interested in any insights related to AllstarLink.
Bob, I have not used starlink, but I can’t see how it would differ from any other true ISP.
Port forwarding happens on your intrAnet - Your local router. Where network address translation occurs.
That is to say which pc(by ip or other means) is going to expect to recieve communications on port 4569 from your wide area connection/internet.
I am not aware if they may be blocking any ports to your IP as some services might.
Hope I said that in a way that was helpful and not confusing.
Starlink uses NAT. Port forwarding is not possible with NAT. For incoming connections you must use a VPN or proxy.
Many of us have set up VPN servers on VPS host providers such as Vultr. A few of us have implemented VPN servers using 44-net address blocks from AMPRNet for ham radio. I wonder if Allstarlink could provide a VPN or proxy service for Allstar nodes similar to what IRLP does for their nodes?
No detailed documentation, but the process has normally been as follows.
Chose a VPS provider that will support BGP and publish AMPR 44-net subnet for you. Vultr.com has been my, and several other hams, choice due to free BGP, ease of setup and previous knowledge of AMPR 44-net addressing.
Register with AMPR.org and request a 44-net subnet address space. They have instructions on their web site.
Submit a request with your VPS provider for using BGP with AMPR address space. There will need to be a LOA shared and approved with AMPR and your provider. AMPR may handle some interaction with the service provider agreement, but you have start the process and approvals. Vultr provides BGP instructions at these links. Configuring BGP on Vultr - Vultr.com Log In to your Vultr Account - Vultr.com
After configuring BGP on your VPS host, I suggest installing PIVPN.io. Visit the PIVPN.io web site to see what PIVPN does. It will install on a Debian VPS host as well as RPI despite the name. It installs and manages Openvpn (or WireGuard) VPN server software and makes it easier to manage VPN client files. You will need to make a couple of manual edits to the resulting PIVPN and OpenVPN server configuration to use your 44-net subnet space, since PIVPN install does not ask for your 44-net address space details during setup.
I use the smallest ($5/mo) VPS host on Vultr plus snapshots or automatic backup.
Vultr makes it easy to spin up, test, learn, destroy and finally save and backup a working VPS host.
You may wish to enable and manage a server firewall like ufw. Vultr also provides an optional free firewall feature that runs outside of the VPS host in the Vultr account settings.
If you rollout many VPN clients, watch your network usage on the VPS host. Allstar directory updates and some web admin interfaces (supermon/allmon) can use extra network allocation due to inefficient/chatty network use.
I’m happy to help answer any questions you may have. I’ve helped a couple of hams set up 44-net VPN servers on Vultr. Our ham group provides amateur radio VPN/proxy services for north Texas SKYWARN RoIP nodes including Allstar, IRLP and EchoLink.