What is happening with 3G?
GoBecky's profile

Contributor

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3 Messages

Sunday, June 3rd, 2012 1:22 AM

Can't activate new MicroCell

I got a MicroCell on Wednesday and have thus far not been able to activate it. I've registered it and hooked it up, but on the activation page, it won't move past "Power Up." (Actually, it won't even complete that step; the page looks exactly the same after 3 days as it did when I first saw it.)

 

I'm using a Ubee cable modem (from Brighthouse) and an Asus RT-N56U router. Bandwidth is not an issue (I subscribe to a plan that offers "up to" 40Mbps/ds and 5/us; just to be sure, I used AT&T's speed test using a wireless connection on the opposite end of the house and got 27 & 1.6 -- so bandwidth is safely covered!). I've tried connecting the MicroCell to the router, the modem, and even between the modem & router, to no avail. The power, LAN, & GPS lights are strong, the device is about 8 feet from any other electronics, right by a window, etc. I've turned off the firewall, enabled all NAT passthrough, etc. I feel like I've tried everything, but it's simply not connecting to AT&T!

 

Am going to call support tomorrow or Monday. In the meantime, any tips?

Accepted Solution

Official Solution

Professor

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2.4K Messages

12 years ago

Open port 4500 just to make sure

Contributor

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3 Messages

12 years ago

Seems to be working! Power-up completed; Software Updat in progress! Thanks so much!

Contributor

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3 Messages

12 years ago

Less than 30 minutes, and for the first time in 3 years I have full bars on my iPhone! (Not AT&T's fault -- I live in hurricane country, and my father is a general contractor, so I have a nearly inpenetrable house!)

 

Anyway, thanks so much for the port-forwarding tip. The MicroCell will be saving my home-based business hundreds of dollars a year. And not having to deal with customer service on a Sunday morning has already saved me a headache. My hat is off to you!

Tutor

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3 Messages

12 years ago

I was having trouble activating the microcell. It just never got out of the starting blocks.  I had an internet connection.  I had the satelite link.  The 3G light was flashing for two days. The ATT activate site never changed status.   What I ended up doing was telling my gateway (modem+router) to let the microcell device bypass the gateway firewall.  The microcell then took off and activated in 30 minutes or so and the 3G light was steady green.  I cannot figure out how to turn ports on or off and all the "unofficial" stuff from the suggested links.  Just for grins, I turned the firewall on back again and the 3G light went off.  The only way that I can get the microcell to work as intended is to allow the mac address for the microcell to bypass the firewall.  Does anyone see any danger in this setup.  The rest of my computing devices go thru the gateway firewall.

Tutor

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1 Message

12 years ago

I struggled for weeks to get my microcell working.  Although not near a window, I had solid green lights for GPS, ethernet/broadband, and power.  But 3G was blinking green like crazy.  AT&T sent me an SMS telling me my microcell was activated, but it didn't work.

 

I know many people have this problem.  I'll save you time- here's the solution:

1) make sure your broadband internet provider is not blocking fragmented packets or any ports the microcell needs.  you can easily check this by either configuring your router to not block such packets, and look at your user manual to see what ports need to be open.  In my case,  I was using a Time Warner cable modem/router/wireless device, and TW never told me they were blocking fragmented packets.  AT&T's customer support helped me unblock this better than TW could.

 

2) you need a GPS lock to get activated properly.  If you are not near a window, your GPS light will go solid green by going into GPS bypass mode.  So, it's not really working.  Deactivate the microcell.  And re-activate near a window.

 

3) If you're like me, this "near a window" thing is not easy.  I live in an apartment that doesn't have a good view of the sky.  So, it's not easy for me to leave the microcell near the small window in my apartment.  Here's the good news: once you activate, the microcell will keep working if you move it within your apartment provided that you keep the same IP address.  AT&T says that you need to have continuous GPS visibility near a window to maintain the lock, but, i think what they mean is that if you move to a new location with a different broadband connection and IP address, then the device will not work and will search for a new GPS lock.  Once the lock is there since you activated near a window, keep the microcell in your apartment, but move it to wherever you need it to be, so long as it's still onto he same IP network in your home.  It's OK to power it down and power it back up since it will still likely communicate externally using the same IP address.

 

Had someone explained all this to me right away, I would have saved many hours.  I hope this advice is helpful to others.

 

Good luck.  The microcell works REALLY WELL once it's set up, but it's hard to set up because there are so many variables.  AT&T has a few very smart techs who can help, but not all of them are knowledgeable so it took me several tries.

 

ACE - Expert

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23.9K Messages

12 years ago

There is a document around here that explains how to setup certain modems and which ports need to be open for port forwarding etc. I set my port forwarding up so that the MicroCell always has the same static ip address based on its MAC address. That way, if there is a power interruption, the router will send to the same address at reboot and forward the ports accordingly.

 

Some people have had very good success using an external GPS antenna which plugs into the antenna hole on the back of the MicroCell. You can get the antanna cables up to 50' I think which gives you more flexibility is where you place the MicroCell.

Contributor

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1 Message

10 years ago

How do you get the router to stop blocking the fragmented packets. I am tech challenged with computers

ACE - Expert

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23.9K Messages

10 years ago

There should be a user configurable setting to disable Block Fragmented Packets. Some of the newer routers have that set as a default but you'll have to contact the router mfr to find out for sure or how to configure the router. Customer support is not responsible for telling users how to configure their routers. There are just too many routers and user requirments for them to keep up with. If you let us know which router you have there may be a user here who can help you if you can't get help from the router mfr, or, if it is an ISP supplied router, help from them.

Contributor

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2 Messages

10 years ago

AT&T have NO techs ive found that can fix this issue! Ive been on with dozens of them in the past 3 months to fix my Samsung S4 not connecting issue. They all act like its a "new" thing when you know there are 1000s of us out there suffering the same issue. 

ACE - Expert

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23.9K Messages

10 years ago

Can you be a little more specific as to what your issue is, how you have the MicroCell setup, etc. As to there being "1000s of you with the same issue"..... I don't know.

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