3g Microcell and Charter Cable

All four ports listed in the Guide must be open to properly connect to the AT&T servers. Priority connection doesn't bypass that. It only rules out any router issues. It could be an upstream switch or something like that but Charter will have to address the issue, not AT&T. I'm assuming that the 3G light is flashing green.

Otto-

I switched back to the original setup, modem - router - 3g microcell.  I have read your guide and already tried the troubleshooting steps listed.

My concern is that I can not connect in priority mode.  Doesn't this mean it is stemming from my cable modem?  The modem is a Arris TM822.  It has the ethernet out and telephone out.  It is both a cable modem and for the phone line.  Is there a known issue with these type of modems?

Flashing green 3G light usually means you don't have a connection to the AT&T servers, which you already know. I take it you have a separate router and modem (gateway) and not a "combination". The ports have to be opened and available by Charter. On the router, you can select which ports are to be forwarded to the MicroCell (called port forwarding) to insure that those ports are always available to the MicroCell via the router but it's up to Charter to make those ports available to you on their end. Don't expect Charter to help you with configuring the MicroCell because they won't. They just have to have those four ports open and availble to you all the time. Most ISPs don't block those ports so there must be something amiss on their backend, especially if the MicroCell worked before without any issues.

Sorry, I didn't see your second post. I'm not familiar with the Arris but you might want to have Charter check for open and clear ports. You also might want to have them check your line for any other issues and do the obvious things and check your cable connections, phone line, etc.

Good evening. I am also having problems with Charter internet and the ATT Micrcocell. Mine had been working fine up until about two weeks ago. Don't waste your time trouble shooting it from ATT end as I have already done that to great lengths and still have the same problems. I even had ATT send me a new microcell. Everyone in my neighborhood that has Charter for internet and an ATT Mircocell are all having issues with the 3G light flashing over and over. As I learned from ATT it sounds like Charter has the port or ports blocked that this device needs to function correctly. I have spoken with a supervisor at Charter and like all the employees I talked to they only say that they don't block ports. I am sure it is an issue on Charters end, but they dont seem to care and ATT apparently doesn't think it affects enough of their customers to look into it and try and make some headway for us. Don't get me wrong all the ATT people I talked to were very nice, just not willing or unable to get the problem to anyone that matters. Where are you located in the US? I am in Fort Worth, Texas and just curious if this is an issue with a specific area or all over. Please call Charter and voice your opinion and maybe it was make a difference if more people start calling in. I have about had it being without a microcell and am going to either change internet providers or go to a cell phone company other that ATT that offers an actual signal without having to use a device like the Microcell. If anyone with ATT reads this it would be nice for you guys as a company to reach out to Charter and resolve this for your loyal customers that aren't making any headway with Charter as individuals.

This could be a MicroCell Service Area issue if everyone in your immediate area is having the same issue with their MicroCells. If that's the case, then I would suggest have all of your neighbors who are having the same issue send a PM to CustomerCare, you included, (the link is in my sig), listing your issue, what you have done to try and fix it, what Charter has done, your account info, and, most importantly, your location. The more complaints that AT&T receives, the more they are apt to have an engineer look into the Service Area to see if there is something wrong on AT&T's end. Multiple complaints from the same area is a pattern, but one complaint looks like and isolated incident.

Charter may or may not be blocking one or more of the 4 ports that need to be open. But it could be an issue with an upstream switch that is failing or some other issue that Charter will need to investigate. AT&T may be able to check if ports are blocked but they can't force Charter to correct the issue. This sounds similar to what TWC did to some of their customers in KY when they merged with Insight. Ports were blocked even though TWC said they weren't. Once they admitted that, they blamed the problem on a hardware vendor and got "them" to fix it. However, this wasn't done until lots of affected TWC customers complained loud and long to TWC to fix it. Does Charter offer it's own type of VoIP service? Just curious, because TWC started offering it. So, send your PMs to CustomerCare and start bugging Charter.

I have Charter in Oregon and they are not blocking any ports and my Mcell works.  I would think if Charter was purposely blocking ports that they would do so nationwide.  I suspect a hardware issue in that area if multiple people in that area have lost Mcell connections.

Yes, Charter has their own telephone service so here come the conspiracy theories again!

Network neutrality is dead....we are doomed!

Yep. That's why I suggested the OP get together with his affected neighbors and PM CustomerCare. One complaint is an isolated issue, multiple complaints from the same area is a pattern that should get the attention of the network engineers.

I'm so glad that I have an independent ISP and no pay-tv service. If net neutrality sticks, then cable providers and associated pay-tv providers are going to eventually tier their services and prices will go up and up more than they are now because there is no one to stop them from charging you extra for Yahoo access, Google access, or Netflix streaming at 1080p or even 4k (that extra bandwidth costs doncha' know?).

And how long do you think small independent ISP are going to last before they are bought up by the Charters, Comcasts and Coxs of the world?

There aren't a whole lot of major ISPs that are willing to support Netflix's Open Connect (SuperHD) systems at this time. SuperHD requires a  6 - 12 Mbps connection.  4k will require at least a 15 Mbps connection and more likely for smooth operation and minimal compression, a 50 Mbps connection.

It's gonna get ugly....

I think my ISP (Sonic.net) will probably be able to hold off any "traffic fee increases" from their upstream providers longer than Comcrap, TWC, Charter, etc will. It is going to get ugly but I think Sonic will be one of the last to increase their fees due to net neutrality, if they do at all. Time will tell. It also depends on what Hulu+, Amazon, Netflix, etc are going to to do as well. It's going to be a very sad state of affairs if one has to pay extra to access Amazon or eBay, for example, at speeds higher than 3-6Mbps. But, we're getting a tad bit off-topic. Oregon huh? Did I know you were in Oregon?