4.4 Mobile Modem

Monitor status and configure APN and Protocol on the Mobile interface.

Device Status

After accessing the router admin panel, you can find the "Device" section on the right side of the front page. It includes most of the SIM cards and mobile modem working statuses. Click the "Reacquire" button to update the mobile connection status.

Mobile Modem is the 4G LTE modem model.
IMEI stands for International Mobile Equipment Identity Number. It is the unique serial number of the mobile modem.
SIM Card is the current SIM slot that has been activated.
SIM Status is the working status of the inserted SIM card. If it shows "Connected," we can ignore the APN and protocol settings in the below steps.
Mobile Operator is the provider of wireless communications services. *Usually the same as the SIM card provider.
Global Cell ID is a globally unique identifier of the current cell tower connecting to.
Signal Strength is the general grade of the received signal quality. RSRP: The average power received from a single reference signal. RSRQ: Indicates the quality of the received signal. RSSI: Represents the power received, especially for 2G and 3G networks. SNR: The signal-to-noise ratio of the given signal.

Mobile Interface

Go to "Network > Interfaces" to visit the interface overview page. Locate the Mobile interface in the second row. It shows the information below.

Protocol is the current mobile protocol.
Uptime is the total working time of the currently active mobile internet connection.
RX is the download traffic, and TX is the upload traffic.
SIM shows the current activated SIM card slot.
IPv4 is the mobile internet IP address, usually a private IP address.

You can manually "Stop" or "Restart" the Mobile modem on the interface overview page.

Do not click the "Delete" button to erase any interfaces.

APN Settings

APN, short for Access Point Name, is the mobile network gateway. In general conditions, the outdoor router can use the default APN parameters prebuilt in the cellular modem to set up a connection.

Some mobile carriers use different APN parameters for the various data plans. You can configure the APN settings on the mobile interface to adapt them to mobile carriers' networks.

After accessing the router admin, go to "Network > Interfaces."
Click the "Edit" button on the row of the "Mobile" interface.
Click the tab of "Primary SIM1". If using the SIM2 slot, edit on the "Secondary SIM2" tab. APN: Input the mobile carrier's APN gateway address. PIN: 4-digit code. If you have not changed it before, leave it empty. PAP/CHAP Username: Username of the APN gateway. PAP/CHAP-Password: Password of the APN gateway. Authentication Type: Leave it as "--Please choose--" or choose PAP in most cases. IP Connection Type: Leave it as "--Please choose--" or choose IPv4 in most cases. Forbid Roaming: Leave it unselected unless you need to disable the roaming function.
Click the "Save & Apply" button on the bottom right corner to apply the new settings.
It will jump back to the interface overview page and wait 1-2 minutes until the mobile modem reconnects to the mobile network.
If Mobile can not connect, please reboot the router.

Examples

Below are examples of APN parameters. You can contact the mobile carrier's customer service to acquire the specific APN parameters of your data plan.

Here are the internet APN settings for some UK mobile phone operators.

Carrier

APN Gateway

Username

Password

Authentication

o2.co.uk

o2web

password

PAP

3 Three

three.co.uk

PAP

everywhere

eesecure

secure

PAP

Vodafone

internet (or) wap.vodafone.co.uk

wap

PAP

Mobile Protocols

Some carriers or data plans might not support the default Mobile-Data protocol based on the QMI protocol. For example, in rural areas of the UK, EE and Vodafone can only use the PPP protocol. In this case, please follow the steps below to switch the protocol to 4G-PPP.

Please check the step-by-step tutorial on switching the mobile protocols: https://how.router.works/mobile/protocol

Debug

If you are getting an error on the above steps and have no internet connection, please verify if you have a strong enough signal in your area.

If the same SIM card works well on another modem or phone, please confirm it's unlocked, turn off the power, and re-insert the SIM card.

The chart below provides a basic explanation of various mobile statuses. For more details, please check the mobile modem diagnosis tutorial at https://how.router.works/mobile/dx.

Status	Possible reason and related operation
Disabled	Please verify the LTE signal strength and re-check the SIM card installation.
Connection attempt failed	Turn off the power and re-insert the SIM card. Verify if the data plan supports use on a 4G router.
The network device is not present.	The guardian module is resetting the modem. Wait for 2~3 minutes until the modem boots up.
Connected, but no internet.	Do not set up an "IPv4 gateway" on the LAN interface. It usually happens on locked SIM cards. Verify the PIN code and check with the carrier about the data plan.

Status

Possible reason and related operation

Disabled

Please verify the LTE signal strength and re-check the SIM card installation.

Connection attempt failed

Turn off the power and re-insert the SIM card.

Verify if the data plan supports use on a 4G router.

The network device is not present.

The guardian module is resetting the modem. Wait for 2~3 minutes until the modem boots up.

Connected, but no internet.

Do not set up an "IPv4 gateway" on the LAN interface. It usually happens on locked SIM cards. Verify the PIN code and check with the carrier about the data plan.

Last updated 1 month ago