plug-in for chrome / firefox / opera to allow bypass
instead of doing OS specific bypass programs (applications), why not do browser specific add-ons (extensions) instead for Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox or even Opera? that way multiple OS's and devices can be covered / handled in one swoop. that way we're not messing with a routers IP or PC's IP configs (settings). you wouldn't be able to install it or use it unless you were logged into your OpenDNS account.
since these mentioned browsers keep settings separate on a per user basis, it would give me greater control over my home network and whom gets to view the internet in its entirety.
it would help a lot of us users whom have made the switch from Windows to Linux (with more headed this way). the only reason i keep my windows machine around anymore is to bypass OpenDNS through the EXE when necessary.
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Fine, then a Netgear router with LPC enabled is for you. Are you talking about this? Also fine, you got the wrong place. You have to request the browser plugin with Netgear. The Netgear software and scheduled content filtering is not from OpenDNS, but from Netgear alone, pure router functions. Only the LPC part in the cloud has to do with OpenDNS.
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I assume you are talking about the free service for residential customers. It is an all or nothing service in that every domain or category you have blocked will be blocked for the entire network. The only way to change that is to change the settings, and then if desired, change it back at a later time.
That is for the free service, and that is exactly how it is designed to work. There are several levels of paid OpenDNS service that go beyond that. Depending on the service and how things are configured that could take the form of being able to use a bypass code to allow a domain in a specific computer in a specific browser for a specific browsing session without changing settings or allowing anything else for anyone else. Other services have the possibility of controlling things by the user or the computer, though some of those do require a client to be installed on the computer.
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Yes, you're right.
Whenever I setup OpenDNS I do it with the router or whatever is delivering DHCP provding the appropriate DNS addresses, and manually setting them on devices with static addresses. Plus I was also thinking of network in terms of how networks and defined and use on the OpenDNS dashboard.
So basically I oversimplified a bit, and didn't mention the assumptions that result from how I set things up.
So mash together what both of us said and you've got the whole picture. :)
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Problem is, OpenDNS is geared towards Windows users (on a home network) and doesn't really help those of us using Linux. I could probably use IP Tables to allow certain accounts to bypass OpenDNS (when appropriate) or the at least the browsers extensions would allow me to group appropriate filtering categories by age group.
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How is OpenDNS geared towards Windows users and not help Linux users?
At it's heart OpenDNS is a recursive DNS service, and for all intents and purposes DNS is DNS, it doesn't matter what the underlying OS of the client machine is because it's just doing client lookups.
If you're using the free service all of the management is done in the browser, and won't make a difference across OS. Depending on how things are configured OpenDNS could be used by all devices on your LAN (generally configured via router or local DNS server), or it could be used only by specific devices that are manually configured to use OpenDNS for DNS lookups. No browser plugin is required since the management is already being done in the browser.
If you're using OpenDNS Enterprise or one of the other pays services (either purchased through OpenDNS or a partner) that allows a bypass code the bypass code is entered in the browser itself, it doesn't matter which OS or browser you are using either. Again, no browser plugin is required since the management is already being done in the browser.
The other pay services work in different ways and provide different options, some of which require an agent to be installed locally. I'm not certain which OSes that agent is available for and which it's not available for, but also here no browser plugin would be required as most or all of the management is already being done directly in the browser.
The problem is, you haven't told us which OpenDNS service you are talking about, and both rotblitz and I have asked. So we can't even begin to guess if something is already providing the functionality you are asking for.Aside from that, after reading your initial post I'm not even sure what this means " the only reason i keep my windows machine around anymore is to bypass OpenDNS through the EXE when necessary." What EXE are you referring to? Running either the free or Enterprise versions I've never had to install an exe on any computers to use or manage OpenDNS. The only time I've needed to do install something is if I'm dealing with a dynamic IP address from the ISP and I'm not able to use the router to provide those updates. In that case I install the updater on one computer, and though I've only used the Windows versions I'm pretty certain there are Mac and Linux versions, and there may be others.
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