Frequently Asked Questions

We offer multi megabit broadband internet service for homes and small businesses.

We can cover people within roughly 7 miles of the center of Champaign-Urbana. For details, please see Coverage section of our website.

There are two ways you might get our service:

1. If the owner of your building can give us access to the internal wiring of your building, we can provide service to you (and other members of your building) at a reduced rate. See the Services section under Multi-User Service, have your landlord contact us, or contact us yourself and we can follow up with your landlord about it.
2. If the building owner won't or can't give us access to in-building wiring, you still have an option: you may be able to get our service if you have a balcony. The FCC protects your right to use your balcony in this way. Give us a call to set up a site survey.

Our service uses cutting-edge radios and other technologies (as appropriate) to link the equipment at your site to our metropolitan-area network. The technology is usually called Fixed Wireless, as opposed to the mobile wireless service associated with cellular phones, because our devices don't move around much (they're attatched to buildings).

Please see our current prices, under Services.

We currently accept Cash, Personal Checks, or Electronic Direct Debit. If you'd like to sign up for our automatic payment program just print out the ACH request form and send it to us.

Whether you need internet access for your home or business, Volo Broadband provides features and perks that have both DSL and Cable beat.

For starters there's our blazing fast speeds, many times faster than the national average for either DSL or cable.

Also, we don't limit your upload speed like Cable and most inexpensive DSL connections, which can cap uploads at as little as 10% of your download speed. Volo's network is designed to give you all the most desirable features in an internet connection: we don't filter ports, we provide you with a static IP address, and we make it easy for you to share your new connection with as many computers as you like. In addition, most of our services come with a firewall to keep you protected from network based attacks.

It doesn't. From extreme heat to extreme cold, from wind and pouring rain to fog and snow, our network has functioned through all these conditions with no noticable effects.

One megabyte is equal to eight megabits, but the terms are used in specific ways: Megabits per second (mbps) are generally used to describe the speed of an Internet connection, whereas megabytes (MB) usually refer to the size of a file or storage space.

In practical terms, one megabit per second is slow but usable broadband Internet. Five to ten web pages, one minute of music, or a half a minute of video is about one megabyte of data.

To access UIUC-only information from the Volo network, you need to install the UIUC VPN Client.

Yes. Both AOL and MSN have special broadband products that compliment our high speed service. Check with your product's website for more information.

No. Our equipment has a built in DHCP server that will automatically configure up to 200 computers connected with just ethernet hubs and switches.

IP Chicken will tell you. If you're trying to set up a server and it lists your IP as 64.198.215.3, please contact us (something might be misconfigured).

Just set the server's IP address to the DMZ address listed on your initial invoice (generally 192.168.0.254 for older customers and 192.168.200.254 for newer ones). Connections to your public IP address will automatically be sent to that computer.

You betcha!

Yes, at this time all connections provided by Volo have a firewall on them (unless the customer explicitly requests it's removal). This firewall and gateway router not only protects your computer(s) from network based attacks, but also allows you to easily share your internet connection between multiple computers. In fact a basic Volo connection will configure up to 200 computers automatically, all you have to do is connect them together with switches or hubs.

No.

Read all about it under Surges.

Of course! We are strong proponents of software freedom, including heavy use of it in our business and making sure to contribute useful changes to the upstream maintainers.

We offer web and email hosting based on Debian Linux, Apache, PHP, MySQL, PostgreSQL, Drupal, Dovecot, qmail, spamassassin, and djbdns. We use OpenOffice, putty, and many other exceptional Free Software products on a daily basis.

You can return hardware you buy from us, with the box and other packaging, in resaleable, like-new condition, within 30 days of purchase, for a full refund.  (Custom computer builds and hardware we installed are not generally returnable for a refund, as their packaging will not be in resaleable, like-new condition.)

We also stand by all the equipment we sell and install for at least 90 days.  If it stops working within that time frame, just bring it to our office and we will repair or replace it. We also reserve the right to refund the original purchase cost for items that stop working, in the event we aren't able to repair or replace it for some reason.

NOTE: Until these steps are completed, Netgear routers will NOT allow you to surf, despite being able to ping out.

1. Power the Netgear on and wait for it to boot. The light second from the left is the WAN status light. For most of the boot process, this light is not lit. Then when it starts the routing, it will turn amber. When it successfully pulls an IP and detects internet, it will turn white. You can start the next step as long as the light is on, despite the color.

2. Connect using the default network name/password. Advise the customer to keep the default network name and password. On the celophone on the top of the router is a white sticker with the name/password. Carefully remove the sticker from the celophane and place it neatly on the top of the router in an area that is easily accessible. The reason to use the default name and password is that if the router were to lose its configuration, or if the customer resets the router, they will not have to reconfigure all their wireless devices; they will just need to go through the steps outlined in this document.

3. Once connected to the wifi, open a browser and go to http://routerlogin.net. 

Depending on the version, it may go immediately to "detecting network connection", but especially with the higher end routers (nighthawk) it may come to the first screen which will ask you if you want it to set itself up automatically or if you want to choose your settings. Choose your settings, then make sure it is set as router (not access point).

It will detect that there is another router on the network (the next hop) and it will ask if you can disable that router's wifi. SELECT NO. (i know this is counterintuitive, but if you select yes, it will force you to choose an SSID and password different than the default; if you select no, it will keep the SSID and password)

4. Now it will start "detecting network connection" and then come to a screen asking you to choose a password for the admin user and to set up two security questions. 99.9% of users will never need or want to log into their router, and asking them to choose a password means that they will write it down, and then they'll assume that this is the password to connect to the wifi. So I just put the password as "password" and select two security questions at random, with the first answer "doesnt" and the second answer "matter". Hit next, and then it will show a summary of the information. Hit next again.

5. On this screen, it will automatically start checking for firmware updates and applying them. This can take awhile, so it is best to hit cancel unless there is still a lot of cleanup to do; if setting up the router is the very last thing for your install, then hit cancel.

6. Lastly, it will prompt you to make a Netgear account. Don't bother with that; you are now online, so go to speedtest.net and wrap it all up.

Note: if this is for a business, or if they will be sharing wifi with others, recommend they configure a separate Guest Network, using that built-in feature.

You connect to our service via the ethernet port inside your residence.  You may either plug your computer in directly or use any standard router to have a wireless network and connect multiple devices at your location. Any standard router will work with your new Volo service but we recommend the following to make the most of your fiber internet connection:

• A wired connection will perform better than any wireless connection.  Strongly consider running a wire (or having us run a wire) to connect any critical, stationary devices in your home (this is most important for desktop computers and other devices used for gaming).

• Get a router rated *at least* AC1750, with higher numbers being better.

• Do not purchase a modem or modem/router combo device! Our service fully bypasses the need for modems and they will not work with our service.

• If your home is larger than about 1,000 sq ft or has multiple floors, we recommend looking into mesh router options.  A single router will cover 1-3 rooms at top speed; no matter how expensive your router, it will not cover more space and maintain good performance!

• Customer needs vary, so if you don’t care too much about performance you may be able to get by with a lower level, lower cost router, while others will need to spend a lot more to ensure they are able to work at or near the top speed of the connection.  You get what you pay for in the world of wireless routers and mesh systems, so set your expectations accordingly

We do not specifically endorse any brand or models and we can help you with the setup of any router.  That said, some specific models that customers have had good luck with include:

• Linksys EA7500-RM2: Entry level AC1900 router capable of decent speeds. Good for smaller, single-story homes.

• Google Nest WiFi: AC2200 mesh router; somewhat slower than the ORBI (below) but works well and comes with the advantage of Google Integration.

• Netgear ORBI RBK753S: AX4200 mesh router system for homes up to 5000 sq ft. Not the absolute top of the line, but one of the fastest options out there.

We recommend that you set up your email software to use IMAP. The server for both incoming (IMAP or POP) and outgoing (SMTP) mail is volomail.net. The port for outgoing mail is 587, but 925, 25525, and 55525 also work.

If you don't know your username for sure, there are two ways to guess it:

• If your address is x@volomail.net, your username is "x".
• If your address is x@my-domain.com, your username is "mydomain_x"

If you are going to be using your email from any non-Volo networks (while travelling, for example), you must enable outgoing (SMTP) authentication. You may also need to use one of the alternate port numbers above. If you don't use a Volo-hosted email address, you won't be able to use our servers from off-network.

You can find specific instructions below for some common email clients.

Outlook:

You can no longer add a Volo email account as the first account in Outlook. If you already have one added, you can follow the directions to add one.

1. In Outlook, navigate to the File menu, click the Info section, click Account Settings, and in that submenu choose Manage Profiles
2. Click the "Email Accounts..." button.
3. Click Add Account....
4. Select Manual setup or additional server types, then click Next
5. Select Pop or IMAP, then click Next
6. Fill in the requested info
   • Your name
   • Your email
   • Account type: IMAP
   • Incoming mail server: volomail.net
   • Outgoing mail server: volomail.net
   • Username
     • If your email address is x@volomail.net, your username is "x"
     • If your email address is x@my-domain.com, your username is "mydomain_x"
   • Your email password
7. Require logon using Secure Password Authentication should be UNCHECKED
8. Click on More Settings
   • Click on Outgoing Server. SMTP Authentication should be CHECKED
   • Click on Advanced. Under server port numbers, the outgoing server should be set to 587
   • Both types of encrypted connection should be set to None
9. Click OK, then click Next. It will run a test. If both steps show a checkmark and their status is completed, you should be good to go! Open Outlook and verify your account comes up (it may take a moment to sync).

Thunderbird:

1. Go to the Tools menu, then select Account Settings
2. Click on Outgoing Server (SMTP)
3. Select the server in the box and click Edit
4. The SMTP server should be volomail.net
5. The port number should be 587
6. The box next to "Use name and password" under "Security and Authentication" should be checked.

iPhone:

1. Tap Settings > Passwords & Accounts
2. Tap Other.
3. In the Name box, enter your name.
4. In the Address box, enter your full e-mail address (for example, test@volo.net)
5. In the Password box, enter your password, and then tap Save
6. Tap IMAP
7. Under Incoming Mail Server, in the Host Name box, enter volomail.net
8. In the User Name box, enter your username. If you don't know it: see above
9. In the Password box, enter your password
10. Under Outgoing Mail Server, in the Host Name box, enter volomail.net
11. In the User Name and Password boxes, enter the same username and password.
12. Go to advanced and turn off SSL
13. Go back, tap save

If you know your current password, you can log into Volo webmail, click the Settings link at the top-right, then click the Password tab near the top. Enter your current password and confirm your new password, and click Save. You may need to log back into webmail after that. If you use a desktop client like Outlook or Thunderbird, it should prompt you to enter your new password the next time it connects.

If you don't know your current password, you'll need to call us at 217-367-8656 and have a technician reset your password.

You can do this through Volo webmail. Once you're logged in, click Settings at the top, then click the Autoreply tab. Here you can turn on and off your auto-reply and customize the message. Please note that your message should include the From: and Subject: lines, for example:

From: foo@example.com
Subject: Re: $SUBJECT (auto-reply)

I'm currently away and will respond when I return.

--
Foo Smith