Gandalf LANline 5242i 10150Z1 ISDN NA U Voice/Data Telecommuter Bridge BNC

Gandalf LANline 5242i 10150Z1 ISDN NA U Voice/Data Telecommuter Bridge BNC

The Gandalf LANline 5242i is an ISDN-based voice and data telecommuter bridge designed to extend LAN connectivity over an ISDN Basic Rate Interface (BRI) NA U line. It integrates simultaneous voice and data capabilities in a compact desktop housing, allowing remote users to connect to a central LAN while retaining telephone functionality over the same ISDN line. The unit carries part number 10150Z1 for the LANline voice/data function and 10150K1 for the ISDN telephone bridge subsystem.

Specifications & What's Included

• Manufacturer: Gandalf Data, Made in Canada
• Model: LANline 5242i
• Primary Part Number: 10150Z1 (LANline 5242i NA U Voice/Data)
• Secondary Part Number: 10150K1 (Tel Bridge/ISDN NA U)
• Hardware Revision: REV E04 (LANline unit); REV A01 (Tel Bridge unit)
• Interface Type: ISDN NA U (North American U-interface BRI)
• LAN Port: BNC connector (10BASE2 / Thin Ethernet)
• COMM Port: DB9 serial (RS-232) — rear panel, labeled COMM
• Power Input: PWR — 5-pin DIN connector; +5VDC @ 3.0A, +12VDC @ 0.5A, -12VDC @ 0.2A (external supply)
• Phone Port: RJ-11 (labeled PHONE / C PHONE) — analog telephone passthrough
• Line Port: RJ-45 (labeled LINE) — ISDN U-interface connection
• Front Panel Indicators: VOICE/DATA, DATA, LINE, LAN, RUN LEDs; CONNECT button
• Form Factor: Desktop
• Unit only included — no power adapter; please verify power supply compatibility before purchasing

Applications

The Gandalf LANline 5242i belongs to a class of ISDN telecommuter bridges that became common in the mid-to-late 1990s as businesses extended LAN access to home offices and remote sites over ISDN lines. Rather than requiring a dedicated leased line, these bridges used ISDN BRI's two 64 Kbps B-channels to carry data — and optionally voice simultaneously — giving remote workers LAN connectivity at speeds far exceeding analog modems. The NA U interface variant was designed specifically for the North American ISDN U-interface standard, which used a single twisted-pair connection to the telephone company's network termination point. The 5242i's BNC LAN port indicates it connected to 10BASE2 (coaxial Thin Ethernet) networks, which were standard in many corporate and campus environments of that era. Equipment of this type was widely used in enterprise remote-access deployments, allowing employees to work from home while staying connected to file servers, print servers, and internal resources as if on the local LAN. Today these units are primarily of interest to legacy network engineers, ISDN researchers, and collectors of 1990s networking equipment.