Problem with in using a new(secindhand) Thomson TG585 router

[#1]

I'm a customer of Plusnet and up until recently was
using a Voyager modem. Which being a light user
was quite satisfactory for my purposes.
Two weeks ago I bought a new Thomson TG585 v8 router
on eBay from another Plusnet customer.
I've had no connection problems with it or anything else.
However I've only just realised that despite never having been used
this router, has been set up by Plusnet with the previous
owners Internet username - specifically to function
as the PPP username. ( I assume this is done to
prevent more than one router being connected to
the one billed phone line)
As a consequence, there have ben no Usage Stats ( by way
of red and blue bar charts ) on my PlusNet  Usage page
since I started using the router..
Which I'm not too worried about on my own account as
my usage is only low and the figures are available direct
from the router in any case.
I'm now wondering if my usage is now showing up on the
sellers Plusnet Usage page.  As this possibility is clearly
unsatisfactory. As I'm only a light user I'm not sure if this
would be immediately obvious to the seller, or whether
contacting them would be of any use but clearly this
can't be allowed to continue,
Going through the Thomson Gateway GUI there seem no
way to change just this particular username.
The only solution appears to be a factory reset.
Except that the factory default which the router will
return to, is given on the Gateway specs page as the
Plusnet factory default.
And so I'm wondering if the Plusnet  default setting
will already include the previous owners username.
As such default settings are only usually meant to cancel
out any changes made by the user following delivery.
In which case a reset would be of no use..
As there are any number of new/secondhand Plusnet Thomson
routers for sale on eBay - with prices ranging from £10-£40
I'm surprised that  this problem has never cropped up
before.
Or at least so Google seems to suggest..
I have already raised this matter with the Plusnet support team
but have also posted it on here as I can't  believe that it's
never arisen before
Thank you for your time.
James

[#2]

Unless the seller had removed their account details then more than likely your usage is getting recorded against their account.
Here are some instructions on how to change your login http://www.gradwell.com/support/kb/article.php?id=49

[#3]

dvorak wrote -

Quote

Unless the seller had removed their account details then more than likely your usage is getting recorded against their account

Thank you for the link. As things stand for the moment I'll wait and see what the Plusnet Support Team have to say
on the matter of the username.  
As there are plenty of new  Plusnet Thomson routers being sold on eBay, all pre-configured with a username the seller
presumably knows nothing about, if it were the case that  they were subsequently  beng billed for the buyer's usage then
I'd imagine this question would have come up before.
The point being that as supplied by Plusnet the router works straight out of the box. I'ts just a case of plugging it in, no
configuration  is necessary at all.
Anyway, as I said thanks again for the link. If I get no joy out of Plusnet Support then that will be my second last
resort, following a reset. On the assumption that a reset to the Plusnet factory default will allow a change of
username
Failing that, the last resort will be ditching the router altogether and going back to the Voyager modem.
Which worked perfectly well but for the fact  it meant leaving the computer switched on all the time.
in order to avoid an IP profile hit

James
...
adie:green fixed quote

[#4]

I can assure you that what dvorak has said is perfectly correct and usage will be being recorded on the seller's account.
The same information is here in another link on where the change your Internet Login http://www.plus.net/support/broadband/hardware/thomson-585-faqs-and-troubleshooting.shtml#logon
I am sure that the issue has arisen before, there is a recent thread on this boards somewhere about it.
I also don't understand why you think you have to leave your computer on when using your Voyager, just leaving the Voyager on should be sufficient.

[#5]

Quote

As there are plenty of new  Plusnet Thomson routers being sold on eBay, all pre-configured with a username the seller presumably knows nothing about, if it were the case that  they were subsequently  beng billed for the buyer's usage then I'd imagine this question would have come up before.

They are not preconfigured with the sellers username. PlusNet use a system called TR-069 which is a remote configuration method. When set to factory defaults the router connects to the PlusNet servers with a special username. From this connection PlsuNet can identify the router ( probably by its serial number ) and determine which PlusNet account it was supplied for, it is then configured remotely with that accounts username/password. This is all done to make initial configuration simple for the user. Note that this configuration will only happen if the router is connected to a PlusNet ADSL line so the chances of a second hand router being used in this way are small, since it would have to be bought by another PlusNet user ( as in your case ).
To configure your router for your username you need to manually enter your username as shown in the link posted by dvorak. Should you ever have cause to set the router back to factory default you will need to manually configure it again.
As an aside you can get a new router supplied by PlusNet ( a TG582n ) for the cost of postage (£4.99), providing you agree to pay for the router should you leave PlusNet within 12 months.

[#6]

One question:
If you advise PN the serial number of your 'new' router, can they 'ressign' the auto login details to your account?
If so then that should solve this problem (including any factory reset).

[#7]

Quote

I am sure that the issue has arisen before, there is a recent thread on this boards somewhere about it.

I'm not sure that we've actually seen this issue before, we've seen the same end rseults of usage being recorded against the wrong account. What we've seen before is where someone has been given/borrowed a PlusNet router with the original username being left configured. People have always been advised to reset the router to factory default before giving it to someone else to avoid this problem.
In this case it would appear that reseting to factory defaults doesn't help, since the TR-069 system will 'helpfully' automatically configure it for the original user.
@walker23, I'm sure a helpfull DCT memebr will be along shortly to do just that if its possible.

[#8]

I know I've read about the helpful TR-069 issues but can't remember the detail. Is it possible to turn it off in the modem/router?

[#9]

Quote from: Anotherone

I can assure you that what dvorak has said is perfectly correct and usage will be being recorded on the seller's account. The same information is here in another link on where the change your Internet Login http://www.plus.net/support/broadband/hardware/thomson-585-faqs-and-troubleshooting.shtml#logon I am sure that the issue has arisen before, there is a recent thread on this boards somewhere about it. I also don't understand why you think you have to leave your computer on when using your Voyager, just leaving the Voyager on should be sufficient.

Thanks.

Unfortunately the Gateway GUI page, to which you left the link doesn't allow the user to change
the Internet username. Only the router username.
The reason it's necessary to leave the PC on all the time when using a Voyager modem
in order to avoid dsiconnection penalties, is  because the Voyager is powered by the USB
connection from the computer.
James
dick:green Quote fixed.

[#10]

Which model Voyager is that if you don't mind me asking?

[#11]

It's a Voyager 105 which was migrated from my previous ISP UKonline.
Being a light user it performed perfectly well for me any has never given any problems.
James
dick:quote

[#12]

Quote

Is it possible to turn it off in the modem/router?

I don't have a TG582n although I was thinking about getting one from PlusNet to make it easier to help with these sort of questions!. I use a 2700HGV (aka BT Business Hub ) at home and that also uses TR-069. That's just configured with a default username of something like 'btclick' and a preset url for the TR-069 server. I suspect the TG582 is similar. If so then the simple way of turning it off is to configure a 'proper' username/password BEFORE connecting the ADSL , that way it won't authenticate with the TR-069 server ( and probably won't even try! ).

[#13]

Ah, don't get confused the OP's is the 585 v8 , but otherwise what you say is most likely true and applies to them as well.
I haven't got a 582n to play with either and at the moment I'm not convinced I would want one for any other purpose 

[#14]

Ah, yes got a bit confused there :). It's probably all these problems with TG582s and VPN's lately. I've got TG582s on the brain.
I'd be surprised if the TR-069 facilities on the TG585 are any different.
I'm surprised there's a distinct lack of a helpful DCT person on this thread though.

Quote

I'm not convinced I would want one for any other purpose

I quite like the idea of trying the 3g backup on the TG582.

[#15]

Hi James,
I've just replied to your post over in uk.telecom.broadband:
[quote author="Bob Pullen"]On 29/05/2012 20:46, James wrote:
> I'm a customer of Plusnet and up until recently was
> using a Voyager modem, which being a light user
> was quite satisfactory for my purposes.
>
>
> Two weeks ago I bought a new Thomson router on eBay
> from another
> Plusnet customer.
Oh dear. Most of our routers rely on TR069 and have their serial number mapped explicitly to a customer's account. This means that even if you factory reset it, chances are it will repopulate itself with the other user's details.
> I've only just realised that despite never having been used
> this router has been set up by Plusnet with the previous
> owners Internet username - specifically to function
> as the PPP username. ( I assume this is done to
> prevent more than one router being connected to
> the one billed phoneline)
It's done solely for ease of setup, and to allow us access to certain information via the TR069 interface should it ever be required.
> As a consequence there are no Usage Stats ( by way
> of bar charts ) on my PlusNet user page. I'm now wondering
> if my usage is now showing up on the sellers Plusnet
> user page.
No, you're just tucking into their usage allowance. If they had a static IP assigned to their account then this would cause data transfer problems for both of you.
> Going through the Thomson Gateway GUI there seem no
> way to change just this username.
> The only solution appears to be a factory reset.
Access the GUI, hit disconnect and then re-enter your username.

> Except that the factory default which the router will
> return to is given on the Gateway specs page as the
> Plusnet factory default. Which will presumably
> already includes the previous owners username.
It will default to tr069@plus.net which will then connect to our ACS server, pull down the previous owner's account credentials and repopulate the PPP connection to use that.
> With the number of new/secondhand Plusnet routers
> for sale on eBay - with prices from £10-£40 I'm
> wondering if this has cropped up before.
Yep, I've seen it happen before. If you can provide me with the serial number of the router (should start 'CP'), then I'lll delete the records from the ACS server which should stop this happening.
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