I'm posting this because this topic comes up frequently.
So, Rain sent you a Huawei B2338 outdoor LTE router? Cool. Now how do you actually get good speeds with it?
Well, to begin with, once you have connected and powered it up, you should be able to open it's admin page at https://192.168.1.1 and see a login screen like this:
Remember that your PC needs to be in the same IP range as the router in order to access it.
Now, you want to have access to all the extra goodies, so we can be really selective about bands, cells, and so on, so use the admin login:
username: admin
password: TDDLTEcpe
Once logged in, you will see the router main menu. I won't go into detail about configuring other settings, as what we are interested in is the "Engineering" menu on the far right. It looks like this:
Here, you will see that by default the router's LTE Locking Mode is disabled. This means the router operates like any cellular device and will automatically connect to the cell with the best signal. This is what we want to avoid, as the cell with the best signal may not necessarily have the best speed. Note also the band selection checkboxes - Rain only uses bands 3 and 38 so these are the only ones you need to have checked.
What we want to do is to be able to is to connect to a cell, test the speed, and lock to it if it has a good speed. Unless you know the cell details (PCI, etc), the only way to do this is to change the LTE locking mode to "auto", then save and let the router reboot. Now, in conjunction with the Optimiser tool on the rain website, take a look at available towers around you on the map, then aim your router antenna towards a tower (guesstimate the location if you cannot see the the tower). You may need to reboot the router if it remains latched to a previous tower. When it has connected, you should see something like this:
Now, go ahead and do a few speed tests. If you like the results, you have found a good cell, so now lock the router to that cell, by checking the "Lock Current Cell" checkbox. If not, find another tower (or direction), aim your router (and reboot it), making sure it has connected, and repeat the speed tests until you have found the best results. Lock to the cell when done.
Now, all you have to do is fine tune your signal - go back to the main status screen and look at your signal stats, then fine tune your aim until you get the best signal. Compare to the below:
Note that with LTE, both signal and speeds can vary greatly throughout the day, and can even change within minutes. You will need to carefully test, and may need to connect to a few towers several times until you find the one that works best for you.
If Rain sent you the PCIs of particular cells in your area that you can connect to, then you can also use the "Manual" LTE locking mode. You can only use this mode if you know the specific band and PCI that you want to connect to (as well as the tower/direction).
You will need to select the frequency band (for Rain, 3 or 38), enter the DL EARFCN (1877 for band 3, 37900 for band 38) and the PCI (which Rain would have sent you, or you could have seen also when in Auto mode). Once all is entered, save and the router will reboot. If you got these right and are aiming at that particular cell, you should get a connection, Again, speed test and fine tune your aim, checking the signal stats. If you do not get any connection, check the manual cell details and direction of your router antenna, or try different details. You may need to go back to auto mode if this does not work for you.
There is no difference between locking to a cell in auto mode, or manually entering the details and locking. Once locked, the router will remain connected to that cell only, so use whichever method works best for you.
Happy signal scouting!
So, Rain sent you a Huawei B2338 outdoor LTE router? Cool. Now how do you actually get good speeds with it?
Well, to begin with, once you have connected and powered it up, you should be able to open it's admin page at https://192.168.1.1 and see a login screen like this:
Remember that your PC needs to be in the same IP range as the router in order to access it.
Now, you want to have access to all the extra goodies, so we can be really selective about bands, cells, and so on, so use the admin login:
username: admin
password: TDDLTEcpe
Once logged in, you will see the router main menu. I won't go into detail about configuring other settings, as what we are interested in is the "Engineering" menu on the far right. It looks like this:
Here, you will see that by default the router's LTE Locking Mode is disabled. This means the router operates like any cellular device and will automatically connect to the cell with the best signal. This is what we want to avoid, as the cell with the best signal may not necessarily have the best speed. Note also the band selection checkboxes - Rain only uses bands 3 and 38 so these are the only ones you need to have checked.
What we want to do is to be able to is to connect to a cell, test the speed, and lock to it if it has a good speed. Unless you know the cell details (PCI, etc), the only way to do this is to change the LTE locking mode to "auto", then save and let the router reboot. Now, in conjunction with the Optimiser tool on the rain website, take a look at available towers around you on the map, then aim your router antenna towards a tower (guesstimate the location if you cannot see the the tower). You may need to reboot the router if it remains latched to a previous tower. When it has connected, you should see something like this:
Now, go ahead and do a few speed tests. If you like the results, you have found a good cell, so now lock the router to that cell, by checking the "Lock Current Cell" checkbox. If not, find another tower (or direction), aim your router (and reboot it), making sure it has connected, and repeat the speed tests until you have found the best results. Lock to the cell when done.
Now, all you have to do is fine tune your signal - go back to the main status screen and look at your signal stats, then fine tune your aim until you get the best signal. Compare to the below:
Note that with LTE, both signal and speeds can vary greatly throughout the day, and can even change within minutes. You will need to carefully test, and may need to connect to a few towers several times until you find the one that works best for you.
If Rain sent you the PCIs of particular cells in your area that you can connect to, then you can also use the "Manual" LTE locking mode. You can only use this mode if you know the specific band and PCI that you want to connect to (as well as the tower/direction).
You will need to select the frequency band (for Rain, 3 or 38), enter the DL EARFCN (1877 for band 3, 37900 for band 38) and the PCI (which Rain would have sent you, or you could have seen also when in Auto mode). Once all is entered, save and the router will reboot. If you got these right and are aiming at that particular cell, you should get a connection, Again, speed test and fine tune your aim, checking the signal stats. If you do not get any connection, check the manual cell details and direction of your router antenna, or try different details. You may need to go back to auto mode if this does not work for you.
There is no difference between locking to a cell in auto mode, or manually entering the details and locking. Once locked, the router will remain connected to that cell only, so use whichever method works best for you.
Happy signal scouting!
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