Marshall FiberNet is a municipally-owned fiber-optic internet service provider for residents and businesses within City of Marshall. We offer reliable, local service with transparency; there are no contracts, negotiations or added fees. The service comes with no data cap or strings attached. Marshall FiberNet provides a high-speed data connection but does not directly provide phone or TV service. Streaming services and VoIP phone services are suggested for TV or landline phone connections.
For more information on live streaming (TV) or VoIP phone service, please see the FAQ answers below or ask Marshall FiberNet for more information.
We will have multiple residential and commercial service levels to choose from, up to 1Gig. Please visit Service Area & Rates for a complete listing.
There is no monthly router rental fee or installation charge. The only additional charge is a $50.00 router deposit applied on the first bill for residential customers. If the customer cancels service for any reason, and returns the router in good, working condition, the $50.00 deposit will be reimbursed.
FiberNet is a month-to-month service that can be canceled at any time with no penalties. If cancelations occur after a full month’s payment has been made, a subscriber will be reimbursed the prorated amount of the remaining days in the month where the service is no longer used.
You may reach us by email at info.fibernet@cityofmarshall.com or by phone at 269.558.0348. Our office hours are 8am-5pm, and we would be happy to assist you. Please leave us your name, address, and telephone number if leaving a message.
The first step in the process is to run the line from the pole to your house. From there, your technician will work with you to determine the best location for your modem/router based on your usage needs. Then next step is to run a fiber optic line from the outside to that location. Then your technician will work with you to make sure you are able to connect your devices to the internet to check connection and ensure you are satisfied with your service!
Please visit the City of Marshall Payment FAQs for a complete listing of options.
If you wish to pay online, please click here: BSA online payments
Your FiberNet account ID will be the 3-4 digit number specified on your bill.
Automatic payment forms can be found here: ACH payment form
Fill out the form and deliver to to City Hall for processing.
At this time Marshall FiberNet only provides internet service.
Streaming television and VoIP phone services are available through other providers, often times cheaper than traditional bundled packages!
Please check out our guide to streaming services to more information on choosing a streaming device and service! Guide to streaming services
There are a rapidly growing number of streaming services available for people to use to watch live TV or On Demand TV/Movies. i.e. Netflix, Hulu, DirectTVNow. Many network/content providers such as HBO and ESPN as well as several of the major sports networks already offer the ability to subscribe and watch content on demand. In many cases, depending on your viewing preferences this may result in a lower cost per month when you factor in the lower cost of the FiberNet connection compared to other providers. http://www.newtechnologytv.com/best-tv-streaming-services/
The FiberNet team is exploring options as potential video offerings for residents to consider in the future.
Check out our guide to streaming services for more information!
Yes, up to 5 usable Static IPs are available with Tier 2-5 Commercial pricing.
At this time, FiberNet is only providing public-static IP addresses to subscribers on the Tier 2 or higher commercial service package. That package is available to anyone (residential or otherwise), for $150.00 charged monthly for 150 Mbps download and upload. Services that are on the higher commercial tier packages will be given preference in the event of multiple outages incurred over the same time period.
Additional static IP blocks are available for an extra charge.
Exterior wiring will be the responsibility of the FiberNet department and repairs will be at no charge to the subscriber. If an interior fiber cable is broken, a $15.00 charge for the first repair and $50.00 charge for each successive repair. If the subscriber is found to have damaged the router, the subscriber will be responsible to replace the router at the current cost of the device.
FiberNet is a month-to-month service that can be canceled at any time with no penalties. If cancelations occur after a full month’s payment has been made, a subscriber will be reimbursed the prorated amount of the remaining days in the month where the service is no longer used.
Inform FiberNet staff when service would like to be canceled through e-mail, phone or in person. Subscribers are asked to return the FiberNet router to 323 W Michigan Ave (City Hall Finance Department) for a refund of the $50.00 security deposit, and to avoid being charged the full cost of the router. If the router cannot be returned to City Hall, it can also be dropped into the drop box location at the northeast corner of the City Hall, near the visitor’s parking lot area.
Please make sure to carefully slide out the white fiber-optic cable from the metal housing by pressing down on the blue tab of the white cable and slowly backing it out from the housing. Remember to include the black power cable (if applicable) and the metal housing that goes into the router (if applicable), and all ethernet cables (if applicable). Please make sure to affix the current and forwarding address to the router where reimbursements can be sent. If there are any questions in regards to canceling service, please do not hesitate in letting us know through e-mail or phone.
In short, the 2.4GHz band (Your WiFi Network without the “5” at the end) typically offers more coverage, and the 5GHz (Your WiFi Network with the “5” at the end) typically offers a stronger connection.
It is suggested you use the 2.4 GHz network for mobile devices, tablets, and devices furthest away from the router. The 5GHz network is better suited for stationary devices closer to the router. You can switch between networks to see which band is best suited for your device.
The 5GHz frequency band offers wider channel width, is less congested and less prone to wi-fi interference, as less devices are 5GHz compatible and there is a broader spectrum with the potential for greater channel width/frequency range.
However, the 5GHz frequency cannot penetrate solid objects as well as the 2.4GHz frequency, so range is limited to about 1/3 the distance of the 2.4GHz band. Though there are a variety of factors that affect coverage area, the 2.4GHz band is theoretically able to reach up to 150 feet indoors in a best-case scenario. It should also be noted that some devices are not compatible with the 5GHz and can only detect and connect to the 2.4GHz band. This may be the case if the device is somewhat near the router and the 5 GHz wireless network does not come up when scanning for wireless networks.
Some all-in-one router-modem combos may not work with the FiberNet network, but most general routers should. It is not recommended to use a personal router unless there are specific needs or the subscriber has a better performing Wi-Fi router.
It is recommended that if the subscriber utilizes their own Wi-Fi router that it be setup in bridge mode or AP mode (with the NAT and DHCP server functionality turned off) and connected to one of the ports tw0 (2) through five (5) on the FiberNet router. By turning off NAT and DHCP functionality, potential double NAT complications or IP address conflicts will not arise. It is also recommended that if the secondary router or access point is within 25 feet of the router, that the FiberNet MikroTik Wi-Fi be turned off. By turning off the FiberNet Wi-Fi, the subscriber will not experience Wi-Fi interference between the two Wi-Fi routers which would worsen Wi-Fi performance of both.
If a subscriber would like more control over their router, there is an option to forward most ports to a subscriber device, which gives the subscriber the flexibility similar to what putting the FiberNet router into bridge mode would provide to the subscriber. Essentially, most of the traffic would be forwarded to the subscriber device and the subscriber would then have the option of running DHCP on their own router, establish their own firewall rules, and forward any ports to a downstream server, etc. If this is not at all acceptable, a subscriber can upgrade to business-class internet, which would come with a public static-IP address that could be configured on their own personal router/firewall/switch (meaning that the full functionality of the personal router/firewall/switch would be available for use however it is intended).
While the subscriber will have more control over configurations and information on the router, FiberNet may be limited in what it can troubleshoot and diagnose beyond the FiberNet router. If a subscriber is utilizing their own equipment, it is their responsibility to ensure it is working properly. Please contact FiberNet staff if there is interest in setting up secondary routers or access points.