iPass service FAQs

What is the iPass service?

The iPass service is a mobile network connectivity service. In other words, the service allows WHOI travelers to connect their own laptop to the Internet from anywhere using a local Internet Service Provider.

Why is WHOI using iPass?

For two major reasons:

1. High quality dialup access to the Internet world-wide. iPass selects ISPs to work with around the world and monitors their performance and rates them to give iPass customers best possible service for an area.
2. Convenience for travelers. WHOI users can connect to the Internet from anywhere using their WHOI account, without having to enter a credit card number and then having to deal with the paperwork involved with being reimbursed once you return to WHOI.

What happens after I get connected through iPass?

Your iPass connection gives you access to the Internet, but does not make you part of the internal WHOI network. As far as WHOI is concerned you are an unknown external Internet user and access to protected information will be restricted from your connection until you enable VPN.

How do I get access equivalent to connecting through WHOI ?

To get to access to Internal websites, computers protected by the firewall, or in general anything that non-WHOI users can't get to, you must establish a VPN (Virtual Private Network) connection after you are connected through iPass. For more information on VPNs at WHOI see WHOI's VPN service.

Other reasons to use VPN over iPass connections are:

• VPN is just a good security practice
• iPass uses a secure method for authentication to WHOI, but data transmission is not secure end-to-end.
• VPN is necessary in order to send mail to addresses outside of WHOI (unless you use Webmail or Authenticated Email)
• VPN is necessary in order to reach internal resources (WHOI internal, FSRs, etc.)
• VPN will prevent snoopers from seeing everything you type on wireless and broadband (these are 'always on' technologies that are quite easily exploited by snoopers and hackers)
• Even if you intend to use ssh to connect to a computer at WHOI, you may be denied access to the machine unless it has been registered for sshd through the firewall. Also, the computer itself may be secured against ssh access except from within WHOInet.

Can I use iPass from my home?

Yes, you can, but as of December 2008 you will want to consider the financial consequences of doing so. If the WHOI RAS number is a local call for you, use it directly without the iPass client.

You may have been using iPass from home because there has never been a charge to your account. If you continue to use iPass for dialing to a local number from your home, your project number will be charged $25 for each month during which you connect (using iPass). We believe that you would do well, in this case, to consider a plan with a local ISP.

How will my laptop know how to connect to a local ISP, in Japan for example?

The iPass service involves installing a client on each laptop. This client maintains a phonebook, which is updated each time you connect to the Internet. The phonebook contains the best phone numbers for each iPass ISP partner around the globe.

How will I know which local number to choose?

In general, choose the first number listed. The iPass company monitors connection reliability and speed offered by its partnered ISPs and lists the phone numbers in order of descending quality.

Can I just always use the 'TOLLFREE' numbers listed by iPass?

No. Use TOLLFREE numbers only as your last choice. There is an 'Excess Use' charge applied to WHOI if over 20% of our usage is to TOLLFREE sites. Your bill will still be $25, however. Please use this guideline when selecting an iPass number:

• Choose the local numbers at the top of the list as presented in the iPass client. The iPass service closely monitors service performance and will order the phone numbers accordingly.
• Some foreign countries have "All cities" numbers, which are less expensive than TOLLFREE connections.
• Finally, if only TOLLFREE numbers are listed, then select one.

How is CIS billing for iPass usage?

CIS will bill the project associated with the 4-digit telephone billing code that you must enter at connection time. We will charge you $25 per month if you have 1 connection or if you have 40 connections. If you have different projects that you want to bill for different months, be sure to enter the appropriate billing code when connecting.

Why not just use the WHOI 800 line for data calls?

If high-quality connections were possible throughout the world using our 800 data line, we would probably suggest that you do just that. However, we could not enable wireless or broadband connections for you throughout the world unless we partnered with an outside, commercial firm.

I've used iPass and it is convenient, but I sometimes have trouble getting a connection.

According to the data that iPass makes available to us about WHOI connections, most failures to connect are due to premature disconnections by the user. The connections may take longer to complete than you would expect. Please be patient and let the process complete. It will probably take longer, for example, than connecting locally to the WHOI RAS without the iPass client. To understand why the process may be longer with iPass, consider what is happening to get your connection to the Internet:

• Dial the local number to the local ISP
• Modem answers and gives an initial (login) connection to you
• You enter your WHOI access information
• The local ISP machine sends the information to WHOI via an iPass hub
• WHOI receives the information and must validate it and send back an OK
• The local ISP gets the OK and gives your computer an Internet address
• Note: you are on-line at this point, but do not have a WHOI address

If you have questions, please contact the CIS Helpdesk at x2439.