3Com OfficeConnect 56k LAN Modem (3C886A-US)

The 3Com LAN Modem with the 7.1 firmware supports dial-in access to a home or office LAN. You say dial-up is dead? Here is why the LAN modem is so useful: - I can remotely and securely monitor a Webcam or other device attached to the LAN modem - At my main home, I shut off cable ($70+/mo) and just call home to access the LAN modem. - No worries about hackers on the Internet fooling with my camera. - Also useful at our vacation home for dial out as well as dial-in, since there is no high-speed Internet there.Too bad 3Com stopped making this. Aside from a slightly kludgey user Interface, it works great. Don't use the setup wizard -- be sure that all settings, particularly IP addresses, are what you want.

I have installed one of these and recommended that someone with less experience than me install one. I also installed a similar ISDN LAN modem. The installation is a breeze. And it works without a hitch.Any of the four computers trying to access the Internet causes the modem to dial in to the ISP. If the modem is already dialed in, the connection is instantaneous for a user accessing the Internet. One of the four computers has a program to manage the LAN and to test the ISP.One has to set up the network in the usual fashion, which is quite easy, if a little laborious.So you can share files among computers on the LAN as well as all computers on the LAN sharing a modem. One can hook a hub in as one computer to increase the number of computers on the LAN, but that would be stretching the modem.Of course, if all four computers are on the Internet at the same time, the access will be slow for each one of them.

I use the 3C886a device for dial in access. It was initially intended to share a network connection via dial out, but with the latest flash code ipu720.exe it allows for dial in use. I connect the 3com device to a separate NIC interface on the Unix Server and setup a static IP on the interface that is relative to the LAN modem's IP. This provides a 56K PPP dial up connection which allows me to connect 'multi-session' to my Unix servers and use ftp to transfer files etc. I also don't have to fumble with getting a 56K modem to work in the many Unix variants I need to support(no drivers needed). I have found this solution to be a great benefit in supporting my Unix customers remotely. I am disappointed in 3Com for discontinuing this product and hope I will be able to find it on the 3rd party market like here.