Part 6 – Internet for a boat
This is part 6 of “Internet for a boat.” In case you missed it and want to follow along in order, be sure to check out part 5 here or start at the beginning.
While nearing the end of this guide for how to get internet for your boat, it seems like the right time to explain that internet access often doesn’t matter! No, I haven’t been trying to be deceitful or disingenuous. The true purpose of this guide, if you haven’t surmised at this point, is to demonstrate something much larger, which is the overall approach and the value it can provide. If the high level architecture and design are understood the intrinsic value can be realized regardless of whether or not an actual internet connection is available. The understanding of the hardware software, devices, applications, services and providers of internet access which can be combined correctly to achieve an extensible, unified and dynamic system is the ultimate goal. For example, if a WiFi booster is not important, it’s good to understand that you can still drop that component out of the architecture and all other components will still function as designed. In this example, the extended range of a WiFi booster would be lost, but the router itself could provide a WiFi as WAN bridge without the boosting component. Alternatively, if no sources of internet are available, one could still stream data across the network to connected devices. In this example, it would be possible to stream music to an app on a phone which is playing music on the boat’s stereo which requires no internet access whatsoever. With that being said, I will review the optimal setup I believe serves as a baseline infrastructure. I believe this approach would work for virtually any size private vessel with the caveat that certain components might need to be larger or more powerful, though the core concepts would be the same.
All in for less than $2500
The recommended setup I have outlined in this guide should cost less than $2500 USD for every component I have outlined. The view of this cost is entirely dependent on budget, individual goals and requirements. As I mentioned above, if certain items are more or less important, the components can be added, removed or swapped as needed. For example cruisers on a budget might opt to forego the NAS. Alternatively, some individuals might have a much larger vessel and opt to digitize even more content while also wanting satellite base internet to be one of their providers. In this case the NAS could be augmented, the satellite joined to the system as a source of internet connecting into a larger piece of hardware (router) and wireless access points (WAPs) could be installed around the vessel to extend the capabilities of the entire system. In either scenario though the number of components changes along with the cost, the fundamental ideas stay the same.
The base build
The first step in the process is determining the sources of internet available for the system. In the base model I recommend a WiFi booster / bridge and Cellular booster. The antenna for each of these boosters should be mounted high up on the outside of the boat with at least an antenna’s length distance between any antenna. It’s also important to note that there are mixed reviews as to whether one should attempt to mount these antennas on the mast of a sailing vessel. The risk is that in most cases the antenna may be mounted too close to the mast which could interfere with the signal gain achieved by mounting it very high above the water. As cellular and WiFi connectivity at the heart rely on radio waves, line of sight (LOS) to signal sources can dramatically improve signal clarity and thus achievable distances. In the case of the cellular booster it is important to use a low loss cable if the length of a signal run is going much more than 10-12 feet. I’m not an electrical engineer, so I don’t have the calculations for signal gain lost over distance (though I have seen them). I looked at the specs for these scenarios and found LMR 400 should cover the distance needed on the vast majority of boats. Once these devices are connected to their antennas, they can be secured out of sight with access only required for maintenance, repair or replacement. An optimal location is a bulkhead behind one of the 12V panels. If mounted here, the controller will likely be out of sight and be quickly integrated with a standard breaker on a DC panel.
Next, the correct hardware / router should be installed. It’s important to find a mobile router with an integrated cellular modem and SIM card slots. The Pepwave mobile routers meet the requirements nicely. Ideally, this device can be converted to run off of DC and also powered at the same junction as the booster systems. It makes sense to have all of these system on a dedicated breaker if one is available as it allows the network to be run virtually continuously even under smaller amp hour systems. The recommended setup in this guide will use between 1-2 amps on a 12V DC setup depending on usage. Positioning this piece of hardware may be a challenge, but ideally it should be somewhere near the center of the boat to allow for a strong reliable signal while also leaving room for other physical devices you may want to interface with it or a separate unmanaged switch, which can extend the number of physical (not wireless) interfaces. The WiFi booster should terminate in the WAN port on the router while the Cellular booster should terminate in an indoor antenna which can be placed as close as possible to the cellular antennas from the mobile router. Once this is accomplished, SIM cards can be installed into the router.
Next, the router itself must be setup. The essential pieces of this process are to setup a LAN and one or more SSIDs. With the network online, the various sources of internet providers should be configured and tested for internet access. After access is confirmed, internet provider rules should be established. These rules should prioritize the most desirable sources of internet with fallback to less desirable sources. The flexibility of these rules should be evaluated and weighed against their intended use. For example it may be desirable to automatically prioritize one source of cellular data (SIM) and seamlessly fallback to anotherSIM if the signal quality drops below an acceptable threshold. Additionally, more advanced setup can include configuring firewall rules, enabling user or user group access and authorization or notifications for thresholds of data consumption.
With this complete, devices such as a NAS, printer, smart TV, AIS etc. should be added to the network. After all physical and wireless connections are made, device connectivity should be confirmed. The devices and their required software or apps should be installed and configured with the new system. This setup is largely dependent on each specific application. However network access and use should be paramount. During the initial setup of the system it is advisable to have a fast, stable and cheap source of internet as many application require internet access to do things like update themselves, confirm identity or ironically even allow offline access.
That’s basically the base architecture for this system briefly outlined. Obviously each prior post describes each area in more detail. If you’re still with me, check out the last (optional, but recommended) post in this series – Internet for a boat – Part 7
