Anonet revisited..

Well anonet moved client ports, and I was getting some questions about the whole thing. The client port has finally been well… finalized as far as I can tell. I don’t use it all that much but I figured that the ‘bar’ needed lowering for people curious about this anonet thing.

So what I’ve done for windows people is to setup an installable version of DSL linux that is just click and run that is configured for anonet. It’s got the DNS information all ready to go so you can run nirc and join the main irc server (don’t forget to edit the .nirc file if you so wish) and the dillo & firefox web browsers are also setup & working. However firefox is SLOW… But I figure this will allow people to easily see what’s what without installing any device drivers… And it’s more fun in a VM.

Currently I’m just sharing this in a torrent which you can download here:

Naturally you can use things like utorrent (http://utorrent.com/) to download it.

It’s all setup in a nsis script that I’ve been evolving from the BSD4.2 on windows thing.. so it’ll be straightforward to install & uninstall. Vista & Windows 7 users need to remember that the disk image will re-appear in their:

%userprofile%\AppData\Local\VirtualStore\Program Files\anonet-client\

or

%userprofile%\AppData\Local\VirtualStore\Program Files (x86)\anonet-client\

Directories… so remember to remove it.. I don’t know how to do that nicely offhand just yet.

Oh well you can leave me feedback public/private anonymously or whatever.

Anonet

Ok, this isn’t emulation, exactly but it does involve virtual networking…

I’m talking about Anonet! it’s an internet style network that is encapsulated over OpenVPN.

From the site:

In early 2005, a few people fed up with the way the Internet was heading, began in earnest to create a large wide area network that was secure and lived in its own space. On this new network anyone would be free to do as they saw fit – roam about, host services, or just be social without fear of being monitored or even worse censored. The first step to bring this network to fruition was to encrypt the information that normally travels across the Internet. What they ended up with is known as anoNet.This network was inspired by MetaNet, another “dark” network on the Internet, that used similar techniques to reach their goals. A few “core” members of anoNet were once a part of MetaNet but due to their strict nature, peering with MetaNet was lost and they became an “island”. anoNet has already surpassed what MetaNet had in membership, and is on its way to being a viable alternative to the “Internet” you currently know, whether you love it or hate it. If you are feeling adventurous check it out. If you are feeling really adventurous you can help; there is still lots to be done.

http://anonet.org/

So how does it work? Basically each ‘node’ runs OpenVPN connections to other peers, and they redistribute all networks over BGP. It’s very much in the same style as the real internet. I’d recommend checking it out. As for getting on the Anonet, it’s pretty simple. Just follow the instructions here:

http://anonet.org/quickstart/index.html

It will run on any platform that runs OpenVPN. I’m using Windows 2000 Pro in a VirtualPC VM. I hang out on the anonet IRC server from time to time ( 1.0.9.1 #anonet) if you are feeling brave, load up openvpn, retreive the client configuration and drop by!

If you are feeling real brave, try to become a peer onto the network!