RemoteRig over Cellular Network

[w9ac]

I need to vacate DSL and look to a cellular solution at my rural remote site.  Verizon covers my remote location with strong 4G service.  Is there a cellular data transceiver or similar that accepts a SIM card and mimics a smart phone in hotspot mode?  I am looking to use a small outdoor antenna for best reception.  The goal is to connect a RemoteRig on a small LAN to the cellular transceiver.  I am interested in specific model numbers and sellers.  Thanks.

Paul, W9AC

[dj0qn]

Paul,

Your biggest problem is that 4G consumer services do not provide you a public IP number, so they are not
reachable over the internet.

Either you need to first speak to them to see if you can upgrade to a (usually business) service that will give you
a public IP number, or else you will need to use a VPN to reach the radio RRC.

I highly suggest that you clarify this first before going ahead with any further purchase.

73,
Mitch DJ0QN / K7DX

[w9ac]

Thanks, Mitch.  Could my solution really be this easy:

https://www.verizonwireless.com/home-office-solutions/4g-lte-broadband-router-with-voice/

Specs show "4G Public Static IP Capable," multiple Ethernet ports, and SMA RF connector for external, directional antenna. 

This looks product looks good too, but not sure if it 's Public Static IP capable.

https://www.verizonwireless.com/b2c/lte-internet-installed/
 
Paul, W9AC

[dj0qn]

Paul,

I think you misunderstood me....it doesn't make any difference what kind of hardware you use,
since none will do what you want with a consumer service. You need to first speak to them about
how you can get (i.e. pay for) a true external IP number to be able to host the radio RRC. The port
forwards will not work under a consumer service, because you are getting an internal IP number of
that service, so "double NAT" will prevent it from being accessible from the outside. That is why you
need to first clarify that point before buying any hardware. The other alternative would be to setup
a VPN, but that can be a hassle for many people.

73,
Mitch DJ0QN / K7DX

[w9ac]

Looks like a public-accessible static IP can be purchased from Verizon Wireless for a one-time fee of $500.  Ouch.  But better than the alternative.

Paul, W9AC

[K0NM]

Paul,

I have used Verizon for my remote connection at my ranch for four years. you have to get a Fixed IP address from Verizon. I use Cradlepoint modem/router. It has been rock solid even when LTE rolls back to 4G or 3G. I have operated two day contests without any problems with the RRC or the Cradlepoint router.

NIZAR K0NM


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[w9ac]

Mitch & Nizar,

Many thanks for the feedback.  Once a public-accessible static IP is purchased, this looks like a very good alternative to DSL.  It will also be nice to get away from my Dynamic DNS service.  Most of the time, it keeps up with the ISP's IP changes, but sometimes it doesn't. 

Even with a bonded DSL circuit, the present site is limited to 1 Mbps on upload, although the DSL ISP appears to severely throttle-back upload bandwidth.  And that's been the biggest headache when running a real-time SDR-IQ panadapter with an Elecraft K3. With the SDR-IQ's client/server application, my tests show approximately 3 Mbps is needed for smooth, jitter-free performance.  While I can view the panadpater through TeamViewer or Real VNC, it's not the same and also adds to screen clutter.  Further adding to the problem, as upload bandwidth is consumed with the panadapter, CW timing becomes affected.   

I am in the process of moving the remote site one mile down a rural dirt road.  Unfortunately, due to twists and turns, that adds about 3 miles of copper from the ISP's DSLAM and their engineering team believes performance will be noticeably degraded on upload.  Verizon shows the "LTE Internet Installed" service is limited to 2-5 Mbps upload which will be marginal, but way better than 1 Mbps from the current DSL.

Paul, W9AC   

[M0BPQ]

I Hope you are sorted by now Paul,

For the record i have also paid a premium for the mobile phone fixed IP address and it works just fine for me. I also tried VPN tunneling as well to avoid the high costs, but my computer skills weren't up to scratch. i know that some other ops have used a VPN successfully though.

73
Steve, M0BPQ

[LA7NO]

I am using ICE.NET to connect my RRC-Radio to Internet.
I just had to ask ICE for an address in the public range.
No cost involved, and fixed withon 30 mins.
Works very well.

73 de Per-Tore / LA7NO

[dj0qn]

You are lucky to live in a country that has a provider offering that service.

73,
Mitch DJ0QN / K7DX

[LA7NO]

I have just tested connecting the RRC-1258 Radio to a ZTE MF90+ 4G LTE router.

Used a Telenor/TalkMore SIM and was automatically given an IP-address in the public range. No extra cost. Only had to configure port-forwarding and set the APN to 'internet.public'.

Works very well.

73,

Per-Tore
LA7NO

[SM4KYN]

On station side I am using built in DDNS service in Dovado Tiny AC router with 4G-dongel Huawei E3372.
It works 100% all the time.
Various equipment supports Dynamic DNS more or less good. Dovado Tiny AC makes it the best way.

/Anders

[W7RY]

I need to vacate DSL and look to a cellular solution at my rural remote site.  Verizon covers my remote location with strong 4G service.  Is there a cellular data transceiver or similar that accepts a SIM card and mimics a smart phone in hotspot mode?  I am looking to use a small outdoor antenna for best reception.  The goal is to connect a RemoteRig on a small LAN to the cellular transceiver.  I am interested in specific model numbers and sellers.  Thanks.

Paul, W9AC

Paul
I use AT&T on a business account and have a public IP that costs 3.00 per month without a setup fee.

Not happy with the data throughput but it works fairly well for my Remote Rig. (I need to optimize my setup for better operation. In fact that is the reason I visited the forum today).

I use my Verizon phone with FoxFi for my mobile end.
73
Jim W7RY

[w9ac]

Verizon is set for the installation next week.  I need a reality check concerning data usage:  My RemoteRig runs 2 channel stereo, 8 kHz, 12-bits.  The Verizon data service plan is sold in monthly 10, 20, and 30GB increments.  Not that I would do it, but how much continuous data would be consumed for 30 days using the RemoteRig setup I described?  I'll have other overhead like RealVNC and a few remote/host programs like PstRotator but that's all small in comparison to the audio stream.  I also close VNC once a connection is made and let the remote/host programs take over. 

My calculation shows approximately 165 GB for one month of continuous streaming at 16 kHz (2 channels x 8 kHz).  With a 30GB monthly data plan, that's roughly 4.5 hours of streaming per day with no other applications overhead.  Double the amount of time available (9 hours) if 2-channel audio is disabled. 

Now, what I'm still unsure of is how this calculation relates to transceive operation.  Do I need to cut the time in half if I ever run the RemoteRig in full duplex mode?

Paul, W9AC

[dj0qn]

Paul,

There have been a few discussions on this topic on this forum already. I would look at some of them, such as:

http://www.remoterig.com/wp/?page_id=388
http://www.remoterig.com/forum/index.php?topic=641.msg2466#msg2466
http://www.remoterig.com/forum/index.php?topic=1740.msg7430#msg7430

I would never use full duplex mode. That would only be useful for a dual-band VHF/UHF transceiver, but not for HF.
For a second receiver, you would need to double the bandwidth per the link above.

73,
Mitch DJ0QN / K7DX