StarLink Update

Background
I installed a StarLink Gen 2 “DISHY” on the roof more than a year ago with the goal of replacing Windstream as our internet provider.

• Note: Gen 2 with the rectangular dish was the current product at the time.  Gen 3 has recently been introduced.

I made a mount that attaches to the vertical “seams” and does not penetrate the roof.  The roof slope is 2/12 which is roughly 9.5 degrees.  The roof slopes directly north which is ideal for StarLink.

Full Time StarLink
The goal is to eliminate the Windstream DSL service AND the StarLink WiFi Router.

• I don't want to keep paying Windstream for inferior service.
• The StarLink router doesn't allow the use of a VPN.

The dish operates over POE (Power Over Ethernet) but it requires far more power (up to 150 watts) than my existing POE switches can provide.  The power for the dish is normally supplied by the StarLink WiFi Router but a POE Injector can be used instead.

• Note: The dish normally uses about 50 watts but it has an internal, thermostatically controlled heater for melting ice and snow. The dish can consume about 150 watts when the heater is engaged.

Although the StarLink cable is just a weather-resistant CAT6, the Gen 2 dish uses proprietary connectors rather than a CAT (RJ-45) connector.  (they fixed this for Gen 3).  Fortunately, there are now a couple of companies making cable adapters and high-power POE injectors.  I can buy components rather than reverse engineering.

I decided to buy a cable adapter and a 200 Watt POE injector from Yaosheng.  I also need a substantial 48 volt DC power supply (POE requires 48 volts).   Since I plan to mount the power supply inside the kitchen wall, I decided to buy a sealed, weather-resistant unit with a 400 watt rating.

Here are the components. The power supply is a whopper but it won't overheat.

The final configuration looks like this:

I've been experimenting with this for a couple of days and was surprised that the StarLink App still works without the StarLink Router.  Apparently all the intelligence is in the dish and the router is nothing more than a POE power supply and WiFi hotspot.


The new power supply, POE Injector and cable adapter will be located in the kitchen wall where the StarLink cable enters the house.  The new router replaces the Windstream DSL modem in the network hub in the basement.

This morning I replaced the Windstream DSL modem/router with the new router.  I had a few problems with static IP addresses (neoTerra is wired like a small business and my network skills have become a bit rusty) but the house is now running on StarLink!

Results
I have a bunch of "housekeeping" to do (cut a hole in the kitchen wall, mount components, patch and cleanup) but the system is now operational.

The house is surrounded by huge trees so we have a lot of obstructions that diminish the StarLink performance.  That said, we now have download speeds that are 3.5x - 4x faster than Windstream.  YAY!!