Not Working....

[sappel138]

Hello all. My Microcell has been working pretty well for the 7-8 months I've had it. Yes, I have the "call failed" problem occasionally. But overall, considering I had 1 bar where I live, it's been worth it.

However- the other day I looked down at my phone and noticed the "3G Microcell" indicator gone from my phone. I went to check the unit, and found that only the green power light was on. I tried the following:

1) reset button.

2)unplugging and leaving off for 30 minutes.

3) unplugging and leaving off overnight.

None of this has worked. I get the power light, the unit makes some very slight "whirring" sounds, but nothing else happens. I have been searching the Internet for hours, but cannot find anything that might explain this. Anyone have any ideas? I can't return or anything b/c I bought used on EBay (sorry, I was not going to pay the $200 ATT wanted).

[Otto Pylot ACE - Czar]

If the only light you have green is the power light, all others are unlit, then it sounds like the unit has failed. I'd check the obvious first,cables, your ISP, correct setup ( 18" from a window with an unobstructed view of the sky, at least 2' away from any WiFi device), etc. There shouldn't be any "whirring" noise at all. There are no moving parts inside so it sounds like a component failure. The unit can't be opened by the end-user for repair because the unit has built-in tamper clips inside that once they come off as soon as the unit is opened, it renders the unit useless. Buying anything electronic off of Ebay is always a risk.

[wsc222]

My micro cell not working and has been fine for the 6 months I have owned. Did the normal plug unplug reboot etc. but nothing. Top three green lights solid and bottom 5bar green light flashing. Any suggestions would be appreciated

[adc82]

Mine was working on Friday. I went away for the weekend & when I came back this morning it isn't working. I have power cycled the router & Mcell & it is still not working. The bottom light (the green bars) is flashing rapidly. I know that that light flashes when there is a disruption in service but I've never seen it flashing this fast before. My internet connection is good. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[Otto Pylot ACE - Czar]

It sounds like an update that didn't go right. I'd try the powercycle one more time and then hard reset as well (paperclip in the reset hole in the back). If that doesn't work, try priority connection (modem -> MicroCell, no router connection) and see if you get a solid 3G signal. If that doesn't work, you may have to call support and go thru the activation process again. Sometimes these MicroCells are fragile and just can't handle the periodic AT&T, middle-of-the-nigh,t updates. In some cases, the MicroCell can't even reset itself after the update (rapidly blinking red 3G light). Personally I don't think Cisco built a very robust system.

[Daavo]

Robust!?!??

Found out today that my Microcell (2nd machine - first one died in July after 3 mos of use) was not connecting. When I installed the first box in May there was a network/firmware issue where the MicroCell (bottom) light was constantly red but it seemed to be working. Customer Support told me if it was working then "it was working" and I should ignore it. So I did. then when that box quit for other bad quality control reasons and I got a replacement. And lo and behold all lights were green. So I was happy. For two months.

This morning (and I have spent 5 hours today fighting with this)The signal was gone, the lower lights were blinking and fluttering and it was power cycling itself every ten minutes (appartently frustrating even itself). After many hours with Customer Service we decided my box was broken. So I went immediately to the ATT store and swapped it for a new one.

Back home, Activation failed - IT HAD THE SAME PROBLEM. After many more Customer Support minutes, I discovered that the problem was in fact system-wide (they could have saved me a trip). Turns out,  it was caused by a Cisco (box manufacturer) firmware fix to that previously mentioned red light issue. Yep, that's right! It took them SIX months to finally come up with a fix for something that was not apparently causing a problem - and when they implemented it last night in one of those asking-for-trouble nightly update/reboots,  they sabotaged a lot of us who had boxes that were working just fine (they tell me there were so many service calls on this they were no longer accepting examples because it was a clearly a network-wide issue). UN-FRACKING-BELEIVABLE.  Now they tell me my business cell won't be working for two or three days while they fix the "fix". Thanks. It took 6 months to fix the first problem, now they expect me to believe they can fix the new problem they created injust two or three days? Confidence is VERY low.  This is one of the worst third-world, goats-and-chickens system I've ever gotten tangled up in. 

I've been a customer since bag phones. This is torture. I'd switch if the other service that might work here didn't have many other issues of their own.  No good choices here.

In short, you shouldn't expect good function from perpetual Beta-state hardware.  It's not solid tech,  it's torture.

[Otto Pylot ACE - Czar]

Well I don't know about the "system wide" problems cause I haven't seen any updates on my MicroCell for quite some time. Issues seem to vary from service area to service area. FWIW, we've had really good service on our phones (a mix of old Samsung 3Gs and iPhone 3GS and 4s).

[fromcali01]

I called last night and this morning, after my mcell not working...apparently either a system upgrade or system maintenance issue caused things to get messed up.  They have no idea when this is going to be fixed. 

Apparently a lot of people are calling about this...

[Otto Pylot ACE - Czar]

---

fromcali01 wrote:

I called last night and this morning, after my mcell not working...apparently either a system upgrade or system maintenance issue caused things to get messed up.  They have no idea when this is going to be fixed. 

Apparently a lot of people are calling about this...

---

I guess I'll keep an eye out for any updates in our service area then. I haven't seen any problems though because my MicroCell is always "in the green" and ready to go.

[winterfl]

My microcell also has stopped working after being functional for over a year.  No changes on my side, etc.  The first tech insisted it must be my problem, but after escalation, the second tech told me that there is a systemwide problem effecting many users, and they are getting flooded with phone calls complaining about this problem, and they currently have no idea what's causing it.

I attempted to delete the microcell from my account and reactivate it, which produced error "302".  I was told this was an IPSec error, but as I use IPSec for my corporate VPN, it's clearly not my connection blocking IPSec.

Fortunately I have 2-3 bars at home, so the service is not "necessary" for me, but when it does work, the microcell is actually an improvement to regular service for me -- longer battery life, better sound quality, less dropped calls.

Hoping it gets fixed soon.

[shark74]

Same thing here.  It stopped working yesterday.  Top 3 lights solid green, bottom light flashing green.

I have tried several power cycles including modem.  I have tried hard reset.

Based on the comments here, this appears to be a widespread problem caused by an upgrade around the night of the 17th.

I have not tried to re-register because I am concerned about totally losing my connection.

Since customer service by phone is inundated with no apparent solution to offer, my question is for jamileh Community Manager:

Is there anything else we can or should do other than wait for this problem to be resolved by some future "upgrade"?

Is there any way for AT&T to notify users of the status of this problem, since it seems to be so widespread?

Thanks.

[winterfl]

The standard method of notification is the Blinking Light!

Just a guess that this was caused by upgrades ramping up for the iPhone 5, and it will probably be a few more days, at least, as AT&T is totally unaware of what went wrong.

As far as notification for when it's fixed -- the light will stop blinking!

I'm not an AT&T employee, but it's clear from the past that they have no real desire to have any sort of a status notification page available to customers.

[Daavo]

Read my previous post. Cisco was fixing a firmware issue that wasn't causing a problem and they caused a bigger one. ATT shrugs and says two or three days. Don't hold your breath.  makes it hard to depend on them if you use your phone for business, doesn't it.

There's nothing you can do about it. If you have ANY service do change anything. I'll re-post as soon as I can successfully activate (I have them calling me back once a day to try it). That should mean the coast is clear...  until they do something else stupid without testing it first.

[Daavo]

Should have read "don't change anything"

[Daavo]

Well, miracle orf miracles, the box activated successfully and I have cell service.  

If your box is still out you may have to re-activate it - or better yet call Customer Service and let them do it for you - that way if something is still hung they will see an error code. Sometimes if they push the box on their end it works better. 

The home sequence of manual rebooting is  - as I have learned from many hours of customer service  - unplug power from MicroCell box, unplug yellow ethernet cable from MicroCell box, pull power from internet modem/router, wait 10-30 seconds for boxes to drain power, plug modem/router back in, plug yellow ethrnet cable back in to Microcell box, plug power back in to Microcell box, wait for reboot cycle to complete, pray.  

Oh, and make sure you are still < 2 feet from a window or you have a good Microcell plug-in antenna (of course not supported by ATT).

Happy motoring.

[winterfl]

I tried resetting mine, still no luck.

Anyone else's fixed?

I'm in Miami, and I assume this is somewhat regional.

[plane_engineer]

Mine arrived in the mail yesterday.  Hooked it up last night and went to bed with the network light blinking.   Woke up this morning excited to finally have cell service at my house but the network light is no longer flashing......and no service!

[ronyumd]

I am in Houston, TX. Same thing. It went out a couple of days ago and still not working. The bottom network light flashing and not microcell signal. Tried everything and it didn't work. Based on the previous posts, guess will just wait for ATT to fix it.

[jwhalen860]

Same issue here (in Central CT). solid GPS, blinking 3G. Called AT&T 2 days ago, was told it was a widespread issue and would be resolved within 24h. called yesterday and was asked to unplug microcell and AT&T reset the device so that i could power it back up and let it re-activate. 12 hours later and it is still not running. i call this morning and they are now telling me a tech just started on my case this morning 3 hours ago and i'd hear back ... and expected resolution will be 09/24.

this is ridiculous.

[egardiner]

Same here in Central Texas.  I just spoke with an ATT rep who noted that the outage is system wide and is affecting customers whose microcells were updated with new Cisco firmware.  The first occurrence was Monday 9/17, and there is currently no ETA on a fix, though they are "working on it" and "pushing Cisco hard."

Front-line support wasn't able to tell me this (I had to use the enterprise support line), so I hope this is helpful for others.

[sgwgintexas]

I also got confirmation from AT&T about a nationwide outage. I had asked about having to force my iPhone to connect (by toggling airplane mode) every so often. The back line tech said they pushed a firmware update that apparently was corrupted, which is causing the outage. ETA get's pushed out 12 hrs, every 12 hrs. Apparently the firmware would have resolved my intermittent connection issues...go figure

[dustinhayes93]

I just recently bought a microcell off ebay due to being an hour away from an autherized AT&T location that sales these. I got it thursday and went through the process smoothly. Everyone morning since I have had this I wake up to a red flashing light. It is easily fixed by unpluging and putting it by the window and replugging to get a gps fix. Do you guys think this is doe to the recent updates from AT&T? I have another week to return it to the seller. But it seems that the microcell is fine and its probably to cause by the updates. But im not having any outages. Just every morning I wake up to a blinking red light. I woke up at 7 this morning, looked at the microcell and it was green. And at 8:30 it was flashing red. Thanks for your help!

[Otto Pylot ACE - Czar]

Apparently the Cisco update (if in fact that's what it is) hasn't hit our service area yet. Service is solid. I did post the troubleshooting guide (a few posts above) that may help resetting the MicroCell for some. It's not surprising that the update issue coincides with the release of the iPhone 5 so we'll see. Cisco, AT&T, and Apple seem to work independently of each other instead of closely together which is really unfortunate.

[Anthonyhoughton]

its a total waste of time calling At&t about the microcell , after spending thre days of phone calls taliking to muneros agents trying to reboot this or that...nothing worked. After talking to a Manager , she start passing the ball to the Internet dept arguing that the error is the internet connection or the modem as apparently they get a code 302 port # 4500 , which acoording to them is the ports on the modem not connecting to the microcell.

Uhmmmm , according to the Internet dept , there is no issue with the modem as the internet is perfect as well as my Tv signal. Whos to blame ? go figure. In all this I have two phoner ringing with two different agents trying to fix defferent issues , Do they really know whats goignt on ? Again I doubt it.

to end this fustrating stupid waste of time , I get a call from a "manager" named anthony which tell me that there is nothing wrong with the equipment ( microcell &modem ) but the statewide Microcell system its down & all their technical support are working on it to fix it.

My .02 cent ...bunch of lies . At&t does not know what to do with a product that they suggested to thier loyal customers which has FAILED , clearly At&t is on denail as admiting this will cost them A huge amount of $$$$$$ as refunds.

[Otto Pylot ACE - Czar]

Are you port forwarding to the MicroCell? Port 4500 is one of the recommended ports to use if port forwading is what you have to do to maintain a reliable connection. I've posted a link to the troubleshooing guide that may help.

[egardiner]

---

Otto Pylot wrote:

Apparently the Cisco update (if in fact that's what it is) hasn't hit our service area yet. Service is solid. I did post the troubleshooting guide (a few posts above) that may help resetting the MicroCell for some. It's not surprising that the update issue coincides with the release of the iPhone 5 so we'll see. Cisco, AT&T, and Apple seem to work independently of each other instead of closely together which is really unfortunate.

---

I'm guessing you're not affected, and won't be, because AT&T pulled the firmware update before it hit you.  I was affected, but my neighbor across the street was not.

I'm still down, now going on 6 days.  Before I spoke with someone at AT&T who informed me that there was in fact a wide-spread outage due to a bad firmware update, I tried resetting, deactivating/reactivating, tweaking router settings per the troubleshooting guide, etc., multiple times, all failing to change the behavior.

I'm quite confident that this is an issue with buggy firmware, as AT&T said it was.  My microcell was rock solid for two years before this incident, and I changed nothing about my setup.

[xanthome]

just adding one more to the microcell stopped working a couple of days ago. Not sure exactly when it went out. Noticed yesterday when my phone was dead in the morning because it had burned through the battery overnight searching for signal.

Green light is blinking. Has been working for over a year without issues. nothing changed on my side. Based on what I read here, the best thing to do is wait for ATT/Cisco to fix their problem... Thanks for letting us end users be your beta testers!

[twhite101]

I had to call support on Friday 9/21 due to my new iPhone 5 would not use the Microcell but my 4s would. They informed me that it would be resolved in 24-48 hours with a pushed firmware update. Well Saturday morning it was using the Microcell by late Saturday it was no longer using the Microcell and the bottom (5 bar) signal light is blinking and still is while I post this.

I hope this does get resolved soon!

I know some have gotten theirs for free, but I paid for mine.

[fsuarez]

I have had my microcell for about 2 years and it has worked great, but for the last 5 days it has not. I have called att sevaral times and finally today i was told that they have a system outage, but they were not able to give me an estimate of time for repair. I live in Miami Florida and have no service inside my house or in my niegborhood, i have to drive a 1/2 mile from my home to get service, did i mention that I live in Miami Florida a major cell phone city, what is up with that ATT. give me what I am overpaying for!

---

[Otto Pylot ACE - Czar]

---

fsuarez wrote:

I have had my microcell for about 2 years and it has worked great, but for the last 5 days it has not. I have called att sevaral times and finally today i was told that they have a system outage, but they were not able to give me an estimate of time for repair. I live in Miami Florida and have no service inside my house or in my niegborhood, i have to drive a 1/2 mile from my home to get service, did i mention that I live in Miami Florida a major cell phone city, what is up with that ATT. give me what I am overpaying for!

---

---

We too live in a major cell phone city which is in Santa Clara County, the home of Apple Computer, Cisco Systems, etc etc and so far, none of our friends who have the new iPhone 5 have had any difficulty connecting to our MicroCell. So far, so good.