Setting up Orange Decouverte with own router

[Martin963]

Having mastered (with some help here - thank you!) the joys of Skype we're now in a position to end our contract with Alice (which includes often very poor quality VOIP calls) and move to Orange Decouverte,   which (unlike last year) is now showing up as an option on our line,  so we can (it is to be hoped) set everything up via the internet.    We will ask Alice to end our contract at the end of the month (lettre recommandée avec avis de reception going off shortly) and Orange tell me they need 15 days to set it all up - so we'll book our subscription up with them on April 15th.

Having waffled about the background,   my question concerns the details required to set up our own ADSL modem and router - a Netgear DC834PN is ready and waiting for action.   I realise that passwords and logins will be sent privately,  and in the past I've had no trouble getting Netgear stuff to work,   but any pointers (specifically where on the Orange website the relevant general details may be found,  and any set up procedures for owner-used modems) would be very helpful.

I suspect Danny is thinking this all sounds quite familiar!

Many thanks.

Incidentally,   we simply cannot believe how well Skype works - even on our 480 kbps line.    We aren't trying to use video (well who on earth in their right minds would want to see me scratching myself as I talk?!) so the bandwidth requirement is less,   but Skype is managing near-hi-fi quality and it's quite uncanny having people more or less in the room with us (using decent speakers on the computer).   Wish I'd tried it long ago!

[Sunday Driver]

Once you've subscribed to your Orange package, you'll receive logins and passwords for both your internet access and messagerie.  Load them into your Netgear and you're good to go.

When I first signed up for my internet (it was Wanadoo in those days), I did it in the local FT shop.  The guy there mentioned the 15 day set up delay but said 'try it in the morning'.  Next day, I fired it up and bingo....[:)]

 

[Danny]

Martin, I haven't used the Netgear modem but I have read that you may have to adjust the settings for wifi if you need to use it or re-install the Netgear modem on the computer(s) in France if it has already been used in the UK. There are different settings for different countries apparently.

see here further down on this thread

http://www.totalfrance.com/france/forum/viewtopic.php?t=102451

good luck

Danny

[Martin963]

Thanks you two.    It's just a little daunting to be doing both change of FAI and new router at the same time.

In fact the Netgear is new-out-of-the-box from a couple of years ago when I'd planned to do something but then funked it.

[Martin963]

Well we sent off the resiliation to Alice,   and then - as advised - applied for Orange Decouuverte 15 days before the end date for Alice,  ie 15th April.

Within 24 hours we've been cut off completely.   Alice say that it's FT/Orange disconnecting them from us and there's nothing they can do (in spite of the fact they "win" two weeks abonnement from us) ,   but I have no access code or password from Orange,   (not surprising,   they probably send it by post).  I can't use the internet to seek assistance,  so I'm really enmerdé.

PLEASE could someone with Orange ADSL post a technical assistance phone number here so that I can ring them and find out what is going on.

Yesterday one of our neighbours died,   and with no cheap phone/Skype  access now I'm really fed up with the situation.

Thanks

[Quillan]

Everything you need to contact them in English is here.

http://www.completefrance.com/cs/forums/1801254/ShowPost.aspx

 

[Danny]

[quote user="Martin963"]Well we sent off the resiliation to Alice,   and then - as advised - applied for Orange Decouuverte 15 days before the end date for Alice,  ie 15th April.

Within 24 hours we've been cut off completely.   Alice say that it's FT/Orange disconnecting them from us and there's nothing they can do (in spite of the fact they "win" two weeks abonnement from us) ,   but I have no access code or password from Orange,   (not surprising,   they probably send it by post).  I can't use the internet to seek assistance,  so I'm really enmerdé.

PLEASE could someone with Orange ADSL post a technical assistance phone number here so that I can ring them and find out what is going on.

Yesterday one of our neighbours died,   and with no cheap phone/Skype  access now I'm really fed up with the situation.

Thanks

[/quote]

Martin, thhis happened exactly the same to me. I was cut off from Alice the day after ordering the Orange. I had not yet recieved my livebox so I was annoyed too.

Anyway, you have your own router so all you need are the codes which they can give you over the phone even though you will receive them in a letter soon. At least it also means your Orange line is activated....

Call  3900 from within France they are open all weekend unlike the English speaking service.

You may have to choose the department vocally or wait a bit and enter the number for the service commercial.

You only need two codes to set up your access.

One indentifiant ADSL which starts fti/********

the other is a ADSL password of about 8 letters or numbers.

They gave me these over the phone so just insist.

Danny

PS you don't need the technical help, the commercial people will give you the necessary info.

[Martin963]

Thanks Q & D.

I'll try the number and stand my ground.

Will report back in due course,  depending on how it goes!

Thanks again.

[Martin963]

Bingo.

3900 worked,  the service commerciale was shut,  but assistance technique were still at home and they have been able to me depanner.

Very efficient in fact,  the only hiatus being when I realised it wasn't sync'ing up because I still had the Alice box plugged into the line,  not the new Netgear!

Dohhhhhhhhh!

Annoying to lose two weeks abonnement to Alice,  but can't be helped.

Thanks again.

[Martin963]

I forgot to ask - can anyone very kind please tell me what the outgoing smtp or pop or whatever setting for Orange might be...?

Thanks.

[Quillan]

pop.orange.fr

smtp.orange.fr

[Martin963]

Thanks Quillan.  smtp worked.

Very grateful,   it's surprising just how dependent one is on the wretched internet nowadays.

[AnOther]

Getting cut off virtually instantly seems par for the course if changing to FT/Orange, they grab the line virtually as soon as you apply regardless of assurances from the sales staff that they won't or of any time you may have remaining with your previous ISP.

The 15 days quote seems scripted and standard too but like SD mine was on and synched up within about 48 hours if I recall although it took nearly 2 weeks more to actually get online as the letter with my ID & PW never arrived and they finally gave it to me over the phone.

Good luck.

PS: If you don't need the Orange email then I'd steer clear of it.

 

[BJSLIV]

if I recall although it took nearly 2 weeks more to actually get online as the letter with my ID & PW never arrived and they finally gave it to me over the phone.

The same happened to me. The complication was that the French helpline said it was impossible to give the ID & PW over the phone.

After waiting 10 days I rang the English speaking helpline in desperation and they gave me both straight away.......

[Martin963]

Seems I was fortunate then.   I was in fact somewhat caught out as when I asked whether I could have the necessary details the chap immediately said "Have you got the router page open?" to which I had to reply that the wretched thing wasn't even plugged into the mains,  let alone on!   He was extremely patient as I fannied around amongst the entrails of wiring under the desk.

As always the Netgear was a lamb to set up.

And - d'ya know - with Orange our ADSL is running marginally faster.    On Internetfrog (pace Ernie,  I know you don't trust that one) it's much the same,  but on Speedtest I'm getting little peaks as high as 650 kbps.    And things are loading - subjectively at any rate - slightly faster.

The other technical thing that amazes me - as a recent convert to Skype (but audio only,   well I only worked in radio so why change the habit of a lifetime) - is how robust the Skype voice coding must be.  With Club Internet and then Alice VOIPs one really couldn't do any browsing simultaneously as the voice was minced into a thousand little pieces,   but Skype resists pretty well even on downloads.    For those of us with slower lines this is a real boon.