FAQ’s

Fastcom’s phone and broadband service is delivered wirelessly. A small antenna is installed on the customer’s premises that connect back to Fastcom’s nearest base station. Depending on the option chosen either a wired or wireless router is provided at the time of installation.

Installation typically takes 1 – 2 hours.

Please check our coverage maps.

There is no limit on any of Fastcom’s products.

The wireless broadband service requires a clear line of sight between the antenna on your building and our base station antenna. Any obstacle such as trees and buildings will block the signal. If you order the service and we cannot complete the installation due to some obstacle or other problem, we will return your deposit.

Yes – We are continually expanding this service into areas where genuine demonstrated demand exists and would welcome hearing from you. Also, we can establish dedicated point-to-point links which reach outside the coverage area and which may be justified for some medium-large businesses (extra equipment and costs are involved).

No – we require that the equipment be installed by one of our qualified technicians or approved installers.

No – the stated installation costs cover an approved installer visiting your location and completing a standard installation of our equipment at your premises. The installation charge includes the cost of cabling, mounting poles, connectors, and brackets. The integrated radio and antenna unit remains the property of Fastcom Broadband Ltd and will be removed should you cancel the service.

Yes – using a suitable device you can share the connection with up to 3 computers in your house for the residential service, and can connect the business services to your office network. You may not share the service with other houses, apartments, other businesses, or with any other third party. If you require additional support configuring network services, we can recommend an approved local installer who will configure your network. For network installations you may need to purchase additional equipment such as a router.

The antenna is small and unobtrusive, approximately a 12” by 12” flat plastic box. It must be mounted with a clear line of sight to one of our base station antenna, so this usually means it will be mounted similar to a TV aerial from your chimney or upper floors of your building. Our installers will strive to locate the antenna as unobtrusively as possible.

Please note that if you do not own the building, permission from the owner of the property is required.

Depending on the email you use at present you may be able to continue using it without any disruption. A few common examples are:

Hotmail: No problem
Company domain based email: Usually no problem
Free Eircom account: Will receive mail OK, but you will need to set the outgoing mail server to: mail.airspeed.ie

Open Internet Explorer and click Tools along the top menu.
Now click Internet Options.
Select the Connection tab.

Ensure Never dial a connection is Selected
Now click on the LAN Settings button on the bottom right.

*Note: If you connect your computer to a work or college network, some of these options may be filled. Make a note of the current settings as you may need to re-enter them each time you connect to that network.
All of the little boxes should be empty, if they are not, click on the ticks to clear them.
Click OK.
Click OK to save these settings. You may need to close and re-open Internet Explorer for the settings to take effect.

Open Outlook Express and click Tools from the top menu
Click on Accounts.
Select the Mail tab along the top

Select your e-mail account (in this case webmail.eircom.net), and click the Properties button on the right hand side.
Click the Servers tab along the top.

The Outgoing Mail (SMTP) should be set to mail.airspeed.ie
Click the Connection tab along the top.

Ensure that Always connect to this account using and Local Area Network is selected.
Click OK.
Click Close to save these settings. You may need to close and re-open Outlook Express for the settings to take effect.

To register for DHCP, launch System Preferences. Click on Network, and then follow these steps:
Set to Built-in Ethernet
Click on the TCP/IP tab
Set to Using DHCP
Click on the Apply Now button

This section gives advice to those customers who can receive but not Send Email.
1. Mail Server Settings
If you get an error where you can send but not receive email, it is possible that you have your email account configured to use incorrect mail server settings.
For Outlook Express 6 / Outlook Express 5.5 / Outlook 2000 / Outlook 2003 /Outlook 2010 the same solution applies
- Click Tools –> Accounts

Click Mail tab, then click Properties

Click into the Servers tab toward the top of the window
Ensure that the outgoing mail server is set to mail.airspeed.ie.

- Click OK
- Click Close
In Outlook 2002 the solution is as follows:
- Click Tools –> Email Accounts

Select View or change existing email accounts , and click Next
Highlight the email account name, and click Change
Ensure that both the outgoing mail server is set to mail.airspeed.ie.

Click Next
Click Finish

The best way to see if emails are actually being sent from your email account is to look in your Sent Items folder. Any email message in the Sent Items folder is a message that has actually left Outlook Express and made its way out on the internet to its intended destination. If your email appears in your Outbox immediately after sending, your email program may not be configured to send mails automatically. One of the most common causes of email account configuration corruption in Outlook Express is when mails stay in the Outbox for too long. The result is that the email account stops working and needs to be removed and recreated.

To set Outlook Express 5.5 / Outlook Express 6 to send mails immediately
- Click Tools – Options
- Click Send tab
- Ensure Send messages immediately option is selected

- Click OK
To set Outlook 2000 / 2002 to send mails immediately
- Click Tools – Options
- Click the Mail Setup tab
- Ensure Send messages immediately when connected is selected

- Click OK

There is no limit on any of Fastcom’s products.

For security purposes, Fastcom have blocked traffic on the following ports:

• TCP/UDP 135
• TCP/UDP 137, 138 and 139
• TCP/UDP 445
• TCP 593
• UDP 1434
• TCP 1433
• TCP lpd

These ports are known to be used by a various viruses. E.g. port 1433 is used by the Slammer virus.

No matter how fast your connection to the Internet, speeds on the Internet itself can affect download performance. Other factors that govern an Internet download speed include:

• The performance of the server hosting the requested website
• The bandwidth of the connection between the website’s server and the
• Internet traffic patterns
• Router latency
• Backbone usage
• Type of file transfer (FTP file transfers download at higher speeds than HTML web pages.)
• Time of day (Certain times of day tend to have higher Internet traffic than others.)
• Your PC (Some components may impose speed limitations.)

The service offered is effectively shared between a number of users, so the quoted speeds are the maximum speeds achievable. This is consistent with other broadband internet service providers. Our residential service uses a variable contention ratio of up to 24:1, and the business service uses a variable contention ratio of up to 8:1. You will find that your Fastcom Broadband service is typically somewhere between 40 to 55 times faster than your dialup connection depending on the service you have selected.

There are no unusual restrictions imposed apart from the normal terms and conditions associated with any internet connection. Please review the subscriber agreement for full details. Fastcom Broadband do reserve the right to treat certain types of traffic with lower priority on the network to ensure the majority of users enjoy the best available speeds as far as possible. Such lower priority traffic may include file-sharing applications such as Kazaa, Morpheus, and similar for example.

Certain settings and features of many security packages may prevent connection with the mail servers.

If the above fixes have not solved your mail problems, you may have to disable your firewall or reconfigure your antivirus program to perform less security checking on your incoming mail.

The necessary procedure will vary depending on your specific antivirus software, and correct settings may be obtained from your software vendor.

Install firewall and anti-virus software

It is recommended that all computers connected to the internet have a firewall and up-to-date anti-virus software installed. This is particularly important with Broadband as you are permanently connected to the Internet. Free firewalls can be downloaded from many different sources.

Keep your operating system up-to-date

It is important to keep up to date with the latest security updates for your operating system

Windows Update

This is a website run by Microsoft that provides updates for Windows operating system and application software and. Updates address known issues and help protect against known security threats.

Tip: If you turn on Automatic Updates, Windows Update can deliver high priority updates to your computer as they become available. You can decide when and how updates are installed.

How to turn Automatic Updates on (Windows XP, 2000 only)

You must be logged on as a computer administrator to complete this procedure.
From the Control Panel, double-click on the Automatic Updates icon.
Select Automatic (recommended).
Under “Automatically download recommended updates for my computer and install them”, select the day and time you want Windows to install updates.

How does it work?

When you visit the Web site, Windows Update scans your computer and tells you which updates apply to your software and hardware. You choose the updates that you want to install and how to install them.
If you use a PC running Windows, visit Microsoft.com for more information.
If you’re an Apple Mac user, visit Apple’s website.

Avoid potentially unsafe downloads

It is very important never open an e-mail attachment if you don’t recognise the name of the person who sent it. Even if you do recognise the name of the sender, think twice about opening any files that are attached to an email, unless you are aware that the sender is likely to forward an attachment

Remember the internet is not the only source of viruses. Viruses can come from floppy disks and CDs as well as in emails, so think twice about using free disks and CDs that you get from friends as well as in magazines and from shops.

Protect against Spyware

Spyware is a term given to programs that, when installed on your computer, change settings, display advertising, and/or track Internet behaviour and report information back to a central database. Spyware is sometimes installed unintentionally by users along with other wanted software, and can be very hard to remove. Spyware is also known as malware.

Spyware can affect the speed of your internet connection. There are many tools available free on the internet for the sole purpose of removing spyware and Adware from systems. Two of these are Adaware and SpyBot.

The possibility of Virus and Spyware infections will be drastically reduced if you have installed a firewall, kept your anti-virus software up to date, and downloaded the latest security patches for your Operating System For further details on keeping your PC/Network secure, please visit www.makeITsecure.ie

What is a firewall?

An Internet firewall is a piece of software or hardware that helps screen out hackers, viruses, and worms that try to reach your computer over the Internet. If you are a home user or small-business user, installing a firewall is the most effective and important first step you can take to help protect your computer. It is important to have a firewall and antivirus software turned on before you connect to the Internet.

Why do I need a firewall?

If your computer is not protected when you connect to the Internet, hackers can gain access to personal information on your computer. They can install code on your computer that destroys files or causes malfunctions. They can also use your computer to cause problems on other home and business computers connected to the Internet. A firewall helps to screen out many kinds of malicious Internet traffic before it reaches your system.

Some firewalls can also help to prevent others from using your computer to attack other computers without your knowledge. Using a firewall is important no matter how you connect to the Internet — dial-up modem, cable modem, or digital subscriber line (DSL or ADSL).

How can I tell if my computer already has a firewall?

If you have Microsoft Windows® XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) running on your computer, you can check to see if your firewall is turned on through the Windows Security Center :

Click Start, and then click Control Panel.
Click Security Center , and then click Windows Firewall.

If you have Windows XP, but you don’t have Service Pack 2 running on your computer, you can download it by visiting the Microsoft Update Web site. You can also check to make sure the firewall is enabled with the following steps:

1. Click Start, and then click Control Panel.
2. Click Network and Internet Connections, and then click Network Connections.
Tip: If the Network and Internet Connections category is not visible, click Switch to Category View on the upper left of the window.
3. Under the Dial-Up or LAN or High Speed Internet category, click the icon to select the connection that you want to help protect.
4. In the task pane on the left, under Network Tasks, click Change settings of this connection (or right-click the connection you want to help protect, and then click Properties).
5. On the Advanced tab, under Internet Connection Firewall, make sure the box is checked next to Protect my computer and network by limiting or preventing access to this computer from the Internet. If a check mark is in the box, the firewall is on. If the box is clear, the firewall is off and your computer is potentially vulnerable on the Internet.

If you have a different version of Windows, such as Windows 2000, Windows Millennium Edition, or Windows 98, you should obtain a hardware or software firewall from another company and install it. There are a number of free firewalls available to download, e.g. ZoneAlarm®, which can be downloaded from www.zonelabs.com. You can also check the manuals of your home networking devices, such as wireless access points or broadband routers, to determine if they include built-in hardware firewalls. If you are uncertain whether a software firewall has been installed on your computer, you can check in the All Programs folder. Click Start, and then click All Programs. Look for a firewall program that is installed. Some common brand names for software firewalls for home users include ZoneAlarm, McAfee, Symantec, and Tiny Personal Firewall.

I have a version of Windows that does not have a built-in firewall. What should I do?

Versions of Windows before Windows XP did not come with a built-in firewall. If you have a computer with an earlier version of Windows, such as Windows 2000, Windows Millennium Edition (Me), or Windows 98, you should get a firewall and install it. You can use a hardware firewall or a software firewall. The following resources provide more information about your firewall options.

Hardware Firewalls

Many wireless access points and broadband routers for home networking have built-in hardware firewalls, which provide good protection for most home networks. The Microsoft Broadband Networking Wireless Base Station is one example of a wireless access point with a built-in hardware firewall and other integrated home networking features.

Software Firewalls

Software firewalls are a good choice for single computers, and they work well with Windows 98, Windows ME, and Windows 2000. (Windows XP has a built-in firewall, so an additional firewall is not necessary.)

A number of measures are taken to ensure that the data traveling between your computer and our base station is at least as secure as your data traveling across the internet itself. As this is an “always-on broadband connection to the internet, we strongly recommend that you take additional precautions to secure your system by installing a firewall and antivirus software.

No – However, we can recommend a local company to provide these services.

To use Fastcom’s phone service a phone adapter is required. This adapter connects into your broadband connection and allows you to make and receive calls.

A broadband phone can replace an existing ‘landline’ by using a broadband connection to both make and receive telephone calls. In this way customers can potentially avoid paying line rental charges, while retaining their existing telephone number, and benefit from extremely low call charges.

There are many advantages to using a broadband phone instead of a traditional analogue service. A broadband Phone service offers you:

1. Huge savings on your phone bill (and we mean huge).
2. No line rental. With a wireless or cable broadband connection there is no requirement for an analogue telephone line and its associated line rental. The same, and in fact much better, services can be provided using a broadband Internet connection instead of an analogue line. Of course if the analogue telephone line is needed for the broadband connection, as in the case of DSL, this advantage does not exist.
3. Cheaper international phone call rates.
4. Real-time online account management.
5. Free calls to other Fastcom phone customers.
6. No charges for extra services like call blocking, caller ID and voice mail.
7. Get your voicemail sent to your email account.
8. Add an extra number [or more] without paying any extra line rental.

Bandwidth is the amount of information/data that can be sent over a network connection in a given period of time. Bandwidth is usually stated in bits per second (bps), kilobits per second (kbps), or megabits per second (Mbps). The Fastcom Voice telephone service requires 85 kbps up and down to make a quality phone call.

No Fastcom will only work over a broadband connection. Dial-up Internet access is a slow form of Internet access. The speed at which information travels between your computer and the Internet is measured in kbps (kilobits per second), dial-up modems typically have a maximum speed of 56 kbps. The Fastcom Voice telephone service requires 85 kbps to make a quality phone call.

Any of Fastcom Broadband packages are suitable for Fastcom phone service. A Fastcom broadband package is required to use Fastcom’s phone service.

Customers can transfer their existing phone number to Fastcom. This process is called “porting”.

While Fastcom’s phone service will support both Sky Digital & alarm systems it is not certified to work with either.

A Fair Use Policy applies to all Fastcom phone products. This Policy is based on the service:

• being used for normal residential use, for private use and not for purposes of trade, business or profession and
• customers not exceeding 500 minutes of calls per month in their call package

Normal residential landline use is, on average, approximately 350 minutes per month, therefore the Fair Use Policy allows for use over and above average normal residential use.

Firstly a Fastcom broadband connection is required. To this you connect an analogue terminal adaptor (ATA). This device acts as a bridge between your existing phone and your broadband connection, allowing you to make calls as you would on a normal phone line.

ATA stands for Analogue Terminal Adaptor and is a small device that enables your standard telephone to make and receive calls over your broadband Internet connection. It’s simple to use and plugs directly in to your broadband router and your normal analogue phone. ATAs are often sold combined with routers as a sole device.

Firstly a Fastcom broadband connection is required. To this you connect an analogue terminal adaptor (ATA). This device acts as a bridge between your existing phone and your broadband connection, allowing you to make calls as you would on a normal phone line.

ATA stands for Analogue Terminal Adaptor and is a small device that enables your standard telephone to make and receive calls over your broadband Internet connection. It’s simple to use and plugs directly in to your broadband router and your normal analogue phone. ATAs are often sold combined with routers as a sole device.

A router is an electronic device that directs (routes) data from one network connection to another. It basically sorts and groups’ information into small bundles called packets. Then the router tells the packets their destination and which route to take. Remote sites such as the Internet can be connected through this device as well as other computers.

Fastcom has an online account management system that gives you the most precise and up to date information available on your account. All calls are billed monthly in arrears.

Subscription to a Fastcom phone service is based on direct debit. All calls are billed monthly in arrears.

Call Waiting

Don’t miss any calls even if you’re already talking on the phone.

Call waiting puts your first call on hold while you answer the second. While you are on the phone a beep tone alerts you to another incoming call. You can then put your first call on hold and take the second call. Any calls that you do not choose to take will go to your voice mail.

Call Transfer

Need more flexibility?

With Fastcom you can transfer calls to other lines on your account, we also let you transfer calls to traditional phones as well as international numbers. The caller will get forwarded to the new destination number without giving you the opportunity to talk to the person at the new destination. More advanced phones will allow you to transfer with consultation.

Your account will be billed for the duration and cost of the transferred portion of the call as it were an outgoing call from your account.

Call Divert

Never miss an important call again.

Fastcom’s new control panel will allow you to set up your own divert and forwarding preferences to give you complete control over your phone calls. You can also choose where to divert your calls when your number is busy not only to Fastcom numbers but to traditional landlines, mobiles and international numbers.
Diverted calls will be billed to your account according to the terms of the plan you are on and billed to your subscription pay as you go balance as per the rates on this website.

Fastcom voicemail allows you to retrieve your messages by any phone and even email.

Access your voicemail anywhere

You can check your voicemail by dialling 171. You will receive a Password number when you sign up to any of our calling plans which you’ll need to retrieve your messages.

Can’t get to a phone?

Now you can check your voicemails without a phone. With Fastcom you will receive an instant email notification and a WAV file so you can listen to your message on your computer.

PBX Control Panel

Fastcom’s new Control Panel gives you complete control over your voicemail options. Once you login to your account you can change all your voicemail settings online.

Voicemail Options:

dial 2 Select Folders
0 New
1 Old
2 Work
3 Family
4 Friends
# Close Voicemail

dial 3 Advanced (Only available when a Voice Message Is present and selected)

dial 0 Mailbox
1 Record Unavailable Message
2 Record Busy Message
3 Record your Name
4 Record Temporary Greeting
5 Change Password
* Main Menu

dial * Help

dial # Close Voicemail

As your ATA requires power, it may not function during power outages. For this reason Fastcom cannot guarantee emergency calls.