BT Home Hub
Encyclopedia
The BT Home Hub is a wireless
residential gateway router
distributed by BT
. It is based on the Wi-Fi
802.11n standard, and is also backwards compatible with 802.11g and 802.11b. All Models of the Home Hub prior to the Home Hub 3.0 support VoIP Internet calls via BT's Broadband Talk service and are compatible with existing DECT handsets. This was significant as it marked BT’s departure away from traditional telecommunication
s services and towards Internet
and media
products.
It works with the existing BT Fusion
service and works with the BT Vision
video on demand
service. The BT Home Hub 1.0, 1.5 & 2.0 devices connect to the Internet using a standard ADSL connection. The New BT Home Hub 3.0 device can accept connections via ADSL and via vDSL. Which is also known as BT's New FTTC/FTTP Network (BT Infinity
). Since the release of the BT Home Hub, there have been several improvements to the firmware
of the device.
The BT Home Hub 2.0 is much smaller in size than its predecessor, and the Home Hub 3.0 is even smaller than the 2.0.
, BT Vision
and BT Broadband Anywhere. It can also be used as a VOIP phone through BT Broadband Talk.
The new BT Home Hub 3.0 incorporates the WPS functionality, seen on other routers, which enables you to connect with "one-touch". And also includes Smart wireless, which automatically chooses the channel to give the strongest possible wireless signal.
that can be bought to work in conjunction with the Home Hub 2.0. It uses Hi-Def sound technology when calls between Hub Phones are made. It calls using the BT Broadband Talk service, and may sit in a dock
in the front of the Home Hub or be used on its own stand. A normal telephone which supports DECT can be used in place of the Hub Phone.
With each Home Hub released up to 2.0, a new phone was made to accompany it:
Home Hub Version 3 does not work with the BT Broadband Talk service.
The phones are only partially compatible with newer or older versions of the hub - able to make and receive calls, but with loss of many features.
The use of a DECT or Hub Phone was removed from the Home Hub 3.0.
As of mid 2008 BT finished rolling out the black, curved Home Hub 2.0 to all new BT total Broadband customers; existing customers can purchase the new Home Hub or get the new Home Hub as a free replacement for their old white one if they sign a new 12 month contract.
There were two different manufacturers of the Version 2 hub; Thomson make the 2A (Type A hub) and Gigaset (now Sagem Communications, Sagem having acquired the Gigaset broadband business in July 9) makes the 2B (Type B hub). Whilst the looks and functionality appear to be identical, the Type 2A has been plagued with problems relating to poorly tested Firmware upgrades which among other problems cause the Hub 2A to restart when uploading files using the wireless connection.
The Home Hub 3.0: DECT phones are no longer supported, and as such, BT Broadband Talk will no longer be provided as part of BT's broadband packages after 29th of January 2011.
and Windows
operating systems, and requires no install if an Ethernet connection to the computer is used.
The hardware contained within the HomeHub v1.0 and v1.5 was manufactured by Inventel
, and is equivalent to other Inventel
produced and third-party branded routers such as the Orange LiveBox and Thomson Speedtouch
7G and the ST790. Consequently the v1.0 can be flashed with some firmware such as that for the 7G, however full functionality cannot be achieved using this method. The v1.5 firmware
whilst not hardware locked as previously claimed does have extra locks in the bootloader which can now be circumvented and full functionality achieved.
At the time of writing there are 2 versions of the BT Home Hub 2.0. The A and the B model
The hardware contained within the HomeHub v2.0A was manufactured by Thomson Speedtouch
, who had bought up Inventel
and all their hardware and software rights. This model is electronically identical to the Thomson Speedtouch
TG797n.
The hardware contained within the HomeHub v2.0B was manufactured by Siemens' Gigaset
division in Germany. The middleware was developed by Jungo a subsidiary of NDS, and is based on their openRGTM product. The product is very similar to the smartBox sold by orange Israel
Until recently, the Type A Hub suffered from a flaw whereby it would reset when the user was performing uploads whilst connected wireless to the Hub. After months of customer complaints BT has now released a software patch for the faulty hubs.
In the standard firmwares Telnet is available in earlier firmware versions (up to 6.2.2.6) on the v1.0 with appropriate user permissions, and is identical to the custom shell used in the Speedtouch
range of routers allowing an almost identical software feature set to them, albeit with a few notable exceptions (e.g. PPP authentication is locked on BT firmware). This of course is not the case in the unlocked versions as full telnet is available.
. In October 2007, Adrian Pastor warned the security and BT Broadband community regarding critical vulnerabilities he discovered in the Home Hub. The details of such research were released later in November 2007 and demonstrated how to fully compromise (get root privileges) on the BT Home Hub by simply tricking a BT Home Hub user to visit a webpage crafted by the attacker.
Such research garnered a significant amount of media attention and even led to Adrian Pastor being invited to BBC Radio 4 where he counter-argued Dave Hughes, director of BT Wireless Broadband. Mr Hughes argued that GNUCITIZEN's vulnerability research only covered a theoretical attack. Mr Pastor, on the other hand, stated that although GNUCITIZEN wasn't aware of such vulnerabilities being exploited in the wild, the attack is fully practical as demonstrated by the exploit code released at www.gnucitizen.org. Furthermore, Mr Pastor argued that the security of the BT Home Hub wasn't sufficient enough to support the newly-introduced Wi-Fi sharing FON service.
The device has also been known to 'kick' users off the internet if too much data is downloaded in a certain timeframe. This problem was identified on BBC Radio 4's You and Yours Show.
kernel, released under the GNU GPL. As a token gesture and, in an attempt to claim adherence to the GPL, BT have released some source code for the device which can be downloaded here. However in violation of the GPL, BT have not published the scripts necessary to compile and install custom firmware to the device.
Wireless network
Wireless network refers to any type of computer network that is not connected by cables of any kind. It is a method by which homes, telecommunications networks and enterprise installations avoid the costly process of introducing cables into a building, or as a connection between various equipment...
residential gateway router
Residential gateway
A residential gateway is a home networking device, used as a gateway to connect devices in the home to the Internet or other WAN.It is an umbrella term, used to cover multi-function networking computer appliances used in homes, which may combine a DSL or cable modem, a firewall, a consumer-grade...
distributed by BT
BT Group
BT Group plc is a global telecommunications services company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is one of the largest telecommunications services companies in the world and has operations in more than 170 countries. Through its BT Global Services division it is a major supplier of...
. It is based on the Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi or Wifi, is a mechanism for wirelessly connecting electronic devices. A device enabled with Wi-Fi, such as a personal computer, video game console, smartphone, or digital audio player, can connect to the Internet via a wireless network access point. An access point has a range of about 20...
802.11n standard, and is also backwards compatible with 802.11g and 802.11b. All Models of the Home Hub prior to the Home Hub 3.0 support VoIP Internet calls via BT's Broadband Talk service and are compatible with existing DECT handsets. This was significant as it marked BT’s departure away from traditional telecommunication
Telecommunication
Telecommunication is the transmission of information over significant distances to communicate. In earlier times, telecommunications involved the use of visual signals, such as beacons, smoke signals, semaphore telegraphs, signal flags, and optical heliographs, or audio messages via coded...
s services and towards Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
and media
Digital media
Digital media is a form of electronic media where data is stored in digital form. It can refer to the technical aspect of storage and transmission Digital media is a form of electronic media where data is stored in digital (as opposed to analog) form. It can refer to the technical aspect of...
products.
It works with the existing BT Fusion
BT Fusion
BT Fusion was a telecommunications product available from BT in the United Kingdom until 1 April 2009 when it was withdrawn. It "fused" together mobile telephony and, from the user's point of view, conventional landline telephony. In fact, the fixed portion of the link was provided by a Voice over...
service and works with the BT Vision
BT Vision
BT Vision is a hybrid IPTV-digital terrestrial television service provided by BT Group in the United Kingdom which was launched in December 2006...
video on demand
Video on demand
Video on Demand or Audio and Video On Demand are systems which allow users to select and watch/listen to video or audio content on demand...
service. The BT Home Hub 1.0, 1.5 & 2.0 devices connect to the Internet using a standard ADSL connection. The New BT Home Hub 3.0 device can accept connections via ADSL and via vDSL. Which is also known as BT's New FTTC/FTTP Network (BT Infinity
BT Infinity
BT Infinity is a broadband service in the United Kingdom provided by BT Retail, the consumer sales arm of the BT Group. The underlying network is fibre-to-the-cabinet , which uses optical fiber for all except the final few hundred metres to the consumer, and delivers download speeds of 'up to...
). Since the release of the BT Home Hub, there have been several improvements to the firmware
Firmware
In electronic systems and computing, firmware is a term often used to denote the fixed, usually rather small, programs and/or data structures that internally control various electronic devices...
of the device.
The BT Home Hub 2.0 is much smaller in size than its predecessor, and the Home Hub 3.0 is even smaller than the 2.0.
Features
The BT Home Hub 2.0 is a wireless router and combined phone. It supports wireless internet access through 802.11b/g or n with the Hub 2.0, with the WPA security protocol. It supports many of BT's services such as BT FusionBT Fusion
BT Fusion was a telecommunications product available from BT in the United Kingdom until 1 April 2009 when it was withdrawn. It "fused" together mobile telephony and, from the user's point of view, conventional landline telephony. In fact, the fixed portion of the link was provided by a Voice over...
, BT Vision
BT Vision
BT Vision is a hybrid IPTV-digital terrestrial television service provided by BT Group in the United Kingdom which was launched in December 2006...
and BT Broadband Anywhere. It can also be used as a VOIP phone through BT Broadband Talk.
The new BT Home Hub 3.0 incorporates the WPS functionality, seen on other routers, which enables you to connect with "one-touch". And also includes Smart wireless, which automatically chooses the channel to give the strongest possible wireless signal.
Hub Phone
The BT Hub Phone is an optional handsetHandset
On a telephone, the handset is a device the user holds to the ear to hear the audio sound. Modern-day handsets usually contain the phone's microphone as well, but in early telephones the microphone was mounted directly on the telephone itself, which often was attached to a wall at a convenient...
that can be bought to work in conjunction with the Home Hub 2.0. It uses Hi-Def sound technology when calls between Hub Phones are made. It calls using the BT Broadband Talk service, and may sit in a dock
Docking station
A Docking station or port replicator or dock provides a simplified way of “plugging-in” an electronic device such as a laptop computer to common peripherals...
in the front of the Home Hub or be used on its own stand. A normal telephone which supports DECT can be used in place of the Hub Phone.
With each Home Hub released up to 2.0, a new phone was made to accompany it:
- Home Hub Version 1.0 - Came with the BT Hub Phone 1010
- Home Hub Version 1.5 - Came with the BT Hub Phone 1020 - the only difference between the 1010 and the 1020 was the lack of the colour screen on the 1020, and lack of colour screen based features.
- Home Hub Version 2.0 - Came with the BT Hub Phone 2.1
Home Hub Version 3 does not work with the BT Broadband Talk service.
The phones are only partially compatible with newer or older versions of the hub - able to make and receive calls, but with loss of many features.
The use of a DECT or Hub Phone was removed from the Home Hub 3.0.
Undocumented features
The Home Hub includes a USB-A port which has no documented function. It has been found that some devices (such as printers and USB mass storage devices) connected to this port can be shared on that Hub's network. Storage devices (hard disks and flash drives) must be formatted to FAT32, and hard disk drives must have an external power supply. It can also be used to charge iPods/phones through a USB cable.Design
There have been five different versions of the BT Home Hub so far:- Version 0.5 — grey (no Hub Phone was available)
- Version 1.0 — white or black (matching Hub Phone was available)
- Version 1.5 — white or black (matching Hub Phone was available)
- Version 2.0 — black (matching black Hub Phone is available)
- Version 3.0 — black (DECT Phones are not compatible) released on 29th January 2011.
As of mid 2008 BT finished rolling out the black, curved Home Hub 2.0 to all new BT total Broadband customers; existing customers can purchase the new Home Hub or get the new Home Hub as a free replacement for their old white one if they sign a new 12 month contract.
There were two different manufacturers of the Version 2 hub; Thomson make the 2A (Type A hub) and Gigaset (now Sagem Communications, Sagem having acquired the Gigaset broadband business in July 9) makes the 2B (Type B hub). Whilst the looks and functionality appear to be identical, the Type 2A has been plagued with problems relating to poorly tested Firmware upgrades which among other problems cause the Hub 2A to restart when uploading files using the wireless connection.
The Home Hub 3.0: DECT phones are no longer supported, and as such, BT Broadband Talk will no longer be provided as part of BT's broadband packages after 29th of January 2011.
History
The BT Home Hub can only be used with the BT Total Broadband package without modification; the 1.0 1.5 and 2.0A versions can be unlocked. The BT Home Hub configuration software is compatible with both MacMacintosh
The Macintosh , or Mac, is a series of several lines of personal computers designed, developed, and marketed by Apple Inc. The first Macintosh was introduced by Apple's then-chairman Steve Jobs on January 24, 1984; it was the first commercially successful personal computer to feature a mouse and a...
and Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
operating systems, and requires no install if an Ethernet connection to the computer is used.
The hardware contained within the HomeHub v1.0 and v1.5 was manufactured by Inventel
Inventel
Inventel is a major French company involved in consumer electronics and communication systems. Founded in 1990 in Paris by Jacques Lewiner and Eric Carreel, cofounder of Withings, the company has been acquired by Thomson SA, today known as Technicolor, in 2005....
, and is equivalent to other Inventel
Inventel
Inventel is a major French company involved in consumer electronics and communication systems. Founded in 1990 in Paris by Jacques Lewiner and Eric Carreel, cofounder of Withings, the company has been acquired by Thomson SA, today known as Technicolor, in 2005....
produced and third-party branded routers such as the Orange LiveBox and Thomson Speedtouch
Speedtouch
SpeedTouch is the brand name of a line of networking equipment produced by Alcatel and Technicolor SA. Before 27 January 2010 Technicolor was known as Thomson SA....
7G and the ST790. Consequently the v1.0 can be flashed with some firmware such as that for the 7G, however full functionality cannot be achieved using this method. The v1.5 firmware
Firmware
In electronic systems and computing, firmware is a term often used to denote the fixed, usually rather small, programs and/or data structures that internally control various electronic devices...
whilst not hardware locked as previously claimed does have extra locks in the bootloader which can now be circumvented and full functionality achieved.
At the time of writing there are 2 versions of the BT Home Hub 2.0. The A and the B model
The hardware contained within the HomeHub v2.0A was manufactured by Thomson Speedtouch
Speedtouch
SpeedTouch is the brand name of a line of networking equipment produced by Alcatel and Technicolor SA. Before 27 January 2010 Technicolor was known as Thomson SA....
, who had bought up Inventel
Inventel
Inventel is a major French company involved in consumer electronics and communication systems. Founded in 1990 in Paris by Jacques Lewiner and Eric Carreel, cofounder of Withings, the company has been acquired by Thomson SA, today known as Technicolor, in 2005....
and all their hardware and software rights. This model is electronically identical to the Thomson Speedtouch
Speedtouch
SpeedTouch is the brand name of a line of networking equipment produced by Alcatel and Technicolor SA. Before 27 January 2010 Technicolor was known as Thomson SA....
TG797n.
The hardware contained within the HomeHub v2.0B was manufactured by Siemens' Gigaset
Gigaset Communications
Gigaset AG, formerly known as Siemens Home and Office Communication Devices is a multinational corporation based in Munich, Germany. Its main business is in home electronics, including corded and cordless phones, voice over ip phones.-History:...
division in Germany. The middleware was developed by Jungo a subsidiary of NDS, and is based on their openRGTM product. The product is very similar to the smartBox sold by orange Israel
Until recently, the Type A Hub suffered from a flaw whereby it would reset when the user was performing uploads whilst connected wireless to the Hub. After months of customer complaints BT has now released a software patch for the faulty hubs.
In the standard firmwares Telnet is available in earlier firmware versions (up to 6.2.2.6) on the v1.0 with appropriate user permissions, and is identical to the custom shell used in the Speedtouch
Speedtouch
SpeedTouch is the brand name of a line of networking equipment produced by Alcatel and Technicolor SA. Before 27 January 2010 Technicolor was known as Thomson SA....
range of routers allowing an almost identical software feature set to them, albeit with a few notable exceptions (e.g. PPP authentication is locked on BT firmware). This of course is not the case in the unlocked versions as full telnet is available.
Technical specifications
The BT Home Hub package includes:- Broadband cable
- EthernetEthernetEthernet is a family of computer networking technologies for local area networks commercially introduced in 1980. Standardized in IEEE 802.3, Ethernet has largely replaced competing wired LAN technologies....
cable (Cat5eCategory 5 cableCategory 5 cable is a twisted pair cable for carrying signals. This type of cable is used in structured cabling for computer networks such as Ethernet. It is also used to carry other signals such as telephony and video. The cable is commonly connected using punch down blocks and modular connectors...
) - Power adapterPower supplyA power supply is a device that supplies electrical energy to one or more electric loads. The term is most commonly applied to devices that convert one form of electrical energy to another, though it may also refer to devices that convert another form of energy to electrical energy...
- 2 Asymmetric Digital Subscriber LineAsymmetric Digital Subscriber LineAsymmetric digital subscriber line is a type of digital subscriber line technology, a data communications technology that enables faster data transmission over copper telephone lines than a conventional voiceband modem can provide. It does this by utilizing frequencies that are not used by a voice...
(ADSL) microfilters - Phone to RJ11 converter
- USBUniversal Serial BusUSB is an industry standard developed in the mid-1990s that defines the cables, connectors and protocols used in a bus for connection, communication and power supply between computers and electronic devices....
lead (Not Included In Latest BT Home Hub 2.0 and 3.0)
| Spec | Hub 1.0/1.5 | Hub 2.0 | Hub 3.0 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Modem Modem A modem is a device that modulates an analog carrier signal to encode digital information, and also demodulates such a carrier signal to decode the transmitted information. The goal is to produce a signal that can be transmitted easily and decoded to reproduce the original digital data... |
ADSL2+ | ADSL2+ | ADSL2+ (can receive VDSL for BT Infinity BT Infinity BT Infinity is a broadband service in the United Kingdom provided by BT Retail, the consumer sales arm of the BT Group. The underlying network is fibre-to-the-cabinet , which uses optical fiber for all except the final few hundred metres to the consumer, and delivers download speeds of 'up to... ) |
| Wi-Fi Wi-Fi Wi-Fi or Wifi, is a mechanism for wirelessly connecting electronic devices. A device enabled with Wi-Fi, such as a personal computer, video game console, smartphone, or digital audio player, can connect to the Internet via a wireless network access point. An access point has a range of about 20... |
802.11 b/g | 802.11 b/g/n | 802.11 b/g/n (now with Smart Wireless, explained above) |
| Wireless Security |
WEP Wired Equivalent Privacy Wired Equivalent Privacy is a weak security algorithm for IEEE 802.11 wireless networks. Introduced as part of the original 802.11 standard ratified in September 1999, its intention was to provide data confidentiality comparable to that of a traditional wired network... and WPA-PSK/WPA2-PSK Wi-Fi Protected Access Wi-Fi Protected Access and Wi-Fi Protected Access II are two security protocols and security certification programs developed by the Wi-Fi Alliance to secure wireless computer networks... /RADIUS RADIUS Remote Authentication Dial In User Service is a networking protocol that provides centralized Authentication, Authorization, and Accounting management for computers to connect and use a network service... |
All previous features but now with WPS Wi-Fi Protected Setup Wi-Fi Protected Setup is a computing standard for easy and secure establishment of a wireless home network.... |
|
| Ports | 2x Ethernet Ethernet Ethernet is a family of computer networking technologies for local area networks commercially introduced in 1980. Standardized in IEEE 802.3, Ethernet has largely replaced competing wired LAN technologies.... 10/100 Mbit/s 1x USB 1.1 Universal Serial Bus USB is an industry standard developed in the mid-1990s that defines the cables, connectors and protocols used in a bus for connection, communication and power supply between computers and electronic devices.... 2x RJ11 (broadband in and phone) |
4 x 10/100 Mbit/s Ethernet sockets (RJ45) 1x USB (Not enabled for use ????) 1x Broadband Broadband The term broadband refers to a telecommunications signal or device of greater bandwidth, in some sense, than another standard or usual signal or device . Different criteria for "broad" have been applied in different contexts and at different times... In (RJ11) 1x telephone socket |
3 x 10/100 Mbit/s Ethernet sockets (RJ45) 1 x 10/100/1000 Mbit/s Ethernet socket (RJ45) 1x USB (Now is enabled for use) 1x Broadband In (RJ11) 1x BT Infinity In |
| Dimensions (w x d x h) |
- | 175 x 88 x 182mm | 18.5cm x 11cm (w x h) |
| Software | 6.2.6.H | 8.1.H.J (Type A), 4.7.5.1.83.3.18 (Type B) | 4.7.5.1.83.8.57.1.3 (Type A) - as at 23 Apr 2011 |
Security
The security of the BT Home Hub has been questioned several times by GNUCITIZENGNUCITIZEN
GNUCITIZEN is a recognized ethical hacker outfit based in London, United Kingdom and Cologne, Germany.-About:GNUCITIZEN is a non-profit organization which is based around a Blog network consisting of several popular information security related sites...
. In October 2007, Adrian Pastor warned the security and BT Broadband community regarding critical vulnerabilities he discovered in the Home Hub. The details of such research were released later in November 2007 and demonstrated how to fully compromise (get root privileges) on the BT Home Hub by simply tricking a BT Home Hub user to visit a webpage crafted by the attacker.
Such research garnered a significant amount of media attention and even led to Adrian Pastor being invited to BBC Radio 4 where he counter-argued Dave Hughes, director of BT Wireless Broadband. Mr Hughes argued that GNUCITIZEN's vulnerability research only covered a theoretical attack. Mr Pastor, on the other hand, stated that although GNUCITIZEN wasn't aware of such vulnerabilities being exploited in the wild, the attack is fully practical as demonstrated by the exploit code released at www.gnucitizen.org. Furthermore, Mr Pastor argued that the security of the BT Home Hub wasn't sufficient enough to support the newly-introduced Wi-Fi sharing FON service.
The device has also been known to 'kick' users off the internet if too much data is downloaded in a certain timeframe. This problem was identified on BBC Radio 4's You and Yours Show.
GPL Violation
The device runs software which uses the LinuxLinux
Linux is a Unix-like computer operating system assembled under the model of free and open source software development and distribution. The defining component of any Linux system is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released October 5, 1991 by Linus Torvalds...
kernel, released under the GNU GPL. As a token gesture and, in an attempt to claim adherence to the GPL, BT have released some source code for the device which can be downloaded here. However in violation of the GPL, BT have not published the scripts necessary to compile and install custom firmware to the device.