The Huawei B593 LTE discussion thread

Is the version number on your current '601 the same at least ?

I assume the previous B593's (with the different UI) had completely different versions.
 
Spent ages trawling now in the hope I had a screenshot on here somewhere, which I don't. I'll update later.

Edit: aha, my iPad is a treasure trove.



So exact same version as you.
 
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Interesting blog, Huawei B593 Hacker's ramblings.

This is something I've wanted to do for a long time. Ever since I got my B593. Jevgenij has been hacking his B593 and dropped me a comment that he found command /bin/lteat from his box. Obviously I had to SSH into mine to confirm this:
Code: 
    # ssh [email protected] /bin/sh
    [email protected]'s password:
    -------------------------------
    -----Welcome to ATP Cli------
    -------------------------------
    ATP>shell

    BusyBox vv1.9.1 (2013-07-25 14:10:15 CST) built-in shell (ash)
    Enter 'help' for a list of built-in commands.

    # ls -l /bin/lteat
    -rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           34604 /bin/lteat
... and oh yes! Such a command is there. It is an interactive AT-command shell!

Warning!
Running these AT-commands will mess up with your box. The modem does not like to be messed up and my box didn't connect to internet after doing this. There is a simple fix to just reboot the router.
Click to expand...
Location information

To dig a bit deeper ... Every cell tower has unique code. I found information about that from a discussion forum with topic Huawei USB LTE Modem, E3276 K5150 E398 (Modems). The forum says that:
Code: 
    AT+CREG?
    +CREG: 2,1, YYYY, XXXXX, 2
    OK

    Y = LAC
    X = Cell ID
    Added: Note that both are in hex so need to convert it
Let's try that one out:
Code: 
    AT>AT+CREG=2
    AT+CREG=2
    OK
    AT>AT+CREG?
    AT+CREG?
    +CREG: 2,1, 620C, 123ABC, 2
    OK
Now we have:
LAC = 620C (hex) = 25100 (decimal)
Cell ID = 123ABC (hex) = 1194684 (decimal)
Click to expand...

Edit: More info here: Gaining root shell on Huawei B593 4G LTE router
 
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Azimuth said:
Ugh going through all that just to find the Cell_ID?
Click to expand...
Is there another way?

Now we have:
LAC = 620C (hex) = 25100 (decimal)
Cell ID = 123ABC (hex) = 1194684 (decimal)
Click to expand...
I don't know if LTE Cell IDs work differently to 3G, but I would take the example Cell ID above and split the hexadecimal value further to:
RNC = 0012 (hex) = 18 (decimal)
Cell ID = 3ABC (hex) = 15036 (decimal)
 
Hi ginggs, it seems MDMA will support B593 and similiar soon??? :)
 
That would be awesome. Keep hearing of this MDMA aka "ginggs tool".
 
For B683
telnet 192.168.1.1
Code: 
-------------------------------
-----Welcome to ATP Cli------
-------------------------------

Login: admin
Password:
ATP>shell


BusyBox vv1.9.1 (2012-08-28 18:54:17 CST) built-in shell (ash)
Enter 'help' for a list of built-in commands.

# pwd
/
# ls -l
drwxr-xr-x   21 0        0               0 var
drwxrwxrwx    3 0        0              20 usr
drwxr-xr-x    4 0        0               0 tmp
drwxrwxrwx    2 0        0             128 sbin
dr-xr-xr-x   46 0        0               0 proc
drwxr-xr-x    2 0        0               0 mnt
lrwxrwxrwx    1 0        0              11 linuxrc -> bin/busybox
drwxrwxrwx    4 0        0            1082 lib
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0          252568 init
drwxrwxrwx    4 0        0              38 html
drwxrwxrwx    5 0        0             535 etc
drwxr-xr-x    2 0        0               0 dev
drwxrwxrwx    2 0        0             738 bin
#
# cd bin
# ls -l
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           80020 zebra
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0          261044 wscd
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           73524 wlancmd
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0          178808 web
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           13012 usbmount
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           46500 usbdiagd
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           87812 upnp
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           39692 upg
lrwxrwxrwx    1 0        0               7 umount -> busybox
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           12477 test_at
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0            5844 telnetd
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0            2089 swapdev
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0          478632 strace
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0             464 startbsp
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0          133456 sshd
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           18452 sntp
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           33228 sms
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           64544 smbpasswd
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0         2434744 smbd
lrwxrwxrwx    1 0        0               7 sleep -> busybox
lrwxrwxrwx    1 0        0               7 sh -> busybox
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           33392 scanner
lrwxrwxrwx    1 0        0               7 rm -> busybox
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           85380 ripd
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           58304 qmi
lrwxrwxrwx    1 0        0               7 ps -> busybox
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0          202048 ppps
lrwxrwxrwx    1 0        0               7 ping -> busybox
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           87100 ntfs-3g
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0          999716 nmbd
lrwxrwxrwx    1 0        0               7 netstat -> busybox
lrwxrwxrwx    1 0        0               7 mount -> busybox
lrwxrwxrwx    1 0        0               7 mknod -> busybox
lrwxrwxrwx    1 0        0               7 mkdir -> busybox
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           45692 mini_upnpd
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           25364 mic
lrwxrwxrwx    1 0        0               7 ls -> busybox
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           18576 log
lrwxrwxrwx    1 0        0               7 ln -> busybox
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0            3948 klog
lrwxrwxrwx    1 0        0               7 kill -> busybox
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           22968 iwpriv
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           29100 iwcontrol
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0          150852 iptables
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           29216 ipp
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0          372368 iperf
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           23756 ipcheck
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0          108736 ip
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           43484 igmpproxy
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           12075 ethcmd
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           70376 equipcmd
lrwxrwxrwx    1 0        0               7 echo -> busybox
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           64504 ebtables
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           43300 dns
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           46060 dms
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           54124 dhcps
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           34812 dhcpc
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           45832 ddnsc
lrwxrwxrwx    1 0        0               7 date -> busybox
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0            3444 cpu
lrwxrwxrwx    1 0        0               7 cp -> busybox
lrwxrwxrwx    1 0        0               3 console -> cli
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0          514192 cms
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           55268 cli
lrwxrwxrwx    1 0        0               7 cat -> busybox
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0          259004 busybox
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           32144 brctl
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           76020 bftpd
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0          154316 auth
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0          106520 atserver
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           34964 atcmd
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0            4760 at
lrwxrwxrwx    1 0        0               7 ash -> busybox
#
# ls -l test_at
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           12477 test_at
# ls -l atcmd
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0           34964 atcmd
# ls -l at
-rwxrwxrwx    1 0        0            4760 at
#
File /bin/atcmd contains executable of similiar size. Will post later.
 
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Perhaps the older model B593's are actually worth something.

I still have my B593u-12 (MTN/Vodacom), kinda regret selling my B593u-91 (TM). Obviously pretty valuable for testing purely for the Cell_ID!

Thanks ginggs and sajunky for the alternative way to establish Cell_ID if one really needs it. :cool:
 
Huawei B593s-601 router:

What should the 802.11n bandwidth setting be? This is found on the 192.168.1.1 website under WI-FI, ADVANCED SETTINGS - the drop down box has 20MHz or 20/40MHz -which one should it be?

Thanks
 
Leave it on auto else experiment with each for range/penetration. It hasn't made a real difference in my experience.
 
kurtg said:
Telkom Mobile LTE
Huawai B880-73 router
2 X Poynting LPDA 0092
Location: Greenstone, Gauteng

B880 screen capture.jpg
Click to expand...

Thanks kurtg !

Nice that the B880 gives the Cell_ID - a very important feature that the B593's "simplified" software doesn't have.

One disappointing thing is that the way of reporting RSSI on the B880 is clearly different to that used on the B593. Whilst there's no accepted standard among manufacturers for the units used to present the signal strength indicator (RSSI), it seems like many are tending towards using a "proper" and real unit, ie dBm, deciBels relative to 1mW.
Even though the B880 RSSI purports to be in those units, it clearly isn't : 92dBm would be over 1 megawatt :D. It also can't be -92dBm as that would be the same as the presented RSRP value, which is also nonsensical.

Similarly, although the RSRP and RSRQ aren't presented with units on the B880, they look like "real" units in dBm and dB respectively. A perfect example of how NOT to write software!

Often RSSI is presented on an arbitrary scale like 0-100 or 0-255. It almost looks to me like your B880 may be reporting on the former basis.

But a great post nonetheless - thanks for sharing!
 
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kurtg said:
B880 screen capture.jpg
Click to expand...

jcheek said:
One disappointing thing is that the way of reporting RSSI on the B880 is clearly different to that used on the B593
....
Similarly, although the RSRP and RSRQ aren't presented with units on the B880, they look like "real" units in dBm and dB respectively.
Click to expand...

Just out of interest, what options do you have over on the "Maintenance / Diagnosis" screen on your B880 ? On the B593 that's where the "Wireless Status" option gives you the the RSSI, RSRP and RSRQ:

B593 screen capture.jpg

PS: If it seems like I'm heckling you it's partly because we need to get your post-count up ;)
 
Antenna types : Built-in, Internal, Indoor external, Outdoor external ...

Relating to antenna options for the Huawei B593, I suspect there may be some confusion surrounding the various terms "Built-in antennas", "Internal antennas", "External antennas" etc.

I also suspect some users may not be aware that the B593 has a set of internal antennas - very good ones, in fact - which are completely internal to the plastic enclosure. These are in addition to the flat whip antennas ("paddles" or "ice-cream sticks") supplied with some of the B593 models - the B593s-601 seems to come with these. Neither the "Quick-Start Guide" nor the generic B593 manual give any real guidance about these two options at all.

So, at the risk of stating what might be obvious to some, I'd like to propose the following standard terminology, wrapped up with some usage tips :

1) "Built-in" antennas

These antennas are completely internal to the B593 - possibly built onto the internal circuit board, but certainly contained within the outer plastic enclosure.

To use the built-in antennas, you need to select "Built-in" (or possibly "Auto") under "System / Antenna settings" on the B593's 'Web control panel, and when these are in use, you will probably have the SMA ports on the back of the unit covered by the supplied white plastic cover.

Built-in antenna.jpg

These antennas are actually very, very good - arguably better than the supplied "paddles".

If you have nothing connected to the two SMA ports on the back of the B593, then the chance of it properly selecting "Built-in" when the Antenna Setting is left set to "Auto" is pretty good. However, I'd recommend setting it explicitly to "Built-in" to guarantee this.


2) "Whip antennas"

These are the little flat white "Paddle" or "Ice-cream stick" whip antennas supplied with some of the B593 models (like the B593s-601). These are in fact "external" antennas, in the sense that they are external to the B593.

Flat whip.jpg

These antennas have a specific characteristic (DC resistance of around 1200Ω) that allows the B593 to detect them when they are connected. So if set to "Auto", the B593 should correctly detect these antennas and possibly use them. To guarantee that they are used, preferably select "External" under "System / Antenna settings" on the B593's Web control panel.
And yes, screwing them onto the B593's SMA ports is a royal pain in the ass.

These antennas can be left in place even if you want to use the internal antennas instead : selecting "Built-in" will use the built-in antennas even if the whips (or anything else, for that matter) are connected.


3) "Indoor external antenna"

This is any kind of antenna intended for use inside a dwelling, but external to the case of the B593 and connected to the B593's SMA ports by coaxial cables. This could be an integrated dual-element antenna, like the Poynting XPOL-0010; or it could be two discrete indoor omnidirectional antennas.

XPOL-0010.JPG

To use these, you preferably need to select "External" (or possibly "Auto") under "System / Antenna settings" on the B593's Web control panel. The B593 may or may not detect these correctly if left set to "Auto" - this depends on whether the connected antenna(s) have the required "low DC resistance" (< 1200Ω) characteristic.


4) "Outdoor external antenna"

This is any kind of antenna, or antenna array, intended for use outside a dwelling and connected to the B593's SMA ports by coaxial cables.

This could be an integrated dual-element antenna with two feed cables, like the Poynting XPOL-0001 or XPOL-0006; or it could be two discrete antennas arranged in an array, like the Poynting twin LPDA-0020 kit.

IMG-20140717-00080.jpg

To use these, you preferably need to select "External" (or possibly "Auto") under "System / Antenna settings" on the B593's Web control panel. Once again, the B593 may or may not detect these correctly if left set to "Auto" - this depends on whether the connected antennas have the required "low DC resistance" (< 1200Ω) characteristic. Setting the B593 to "External" rather than "Auto" is the best way to guarantee that the connected external antennas are used.

Note that if you have the B593 set explicitly to use external antennas, and the connected antennas are not of the right type or don't perform (eg wrong frequency band), then your signal reception will obviously suffer.


Confirming antenna settings

Once you've made your antenna selection, connected them, and made the appropriate selection under "System / Antenna settings" on the B593's 'Web control panel, the best way to confirm that things are working correctly is to go and look under "Home", "Overview" on the B593's 'Web control panel. The antenna setting actually in effect is shown at the bottom of the page like this :

B593 antenna settings.jpg

Lastly : if you sometimes change between antenna types, eg between built-in and external antennas for use with different networks, remember to change the setting back and confirm it. This is something that's really easy to forget!
 
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Consider Antenna 1 not equal to Antenna 2. One will work as a main antenna, the other one as secondary (for receive diversity). If you have external antenna with only one feeder, always connect it to the port #1 and use vertical polarisation like for 3G installation. Just guessing that #1 is the main antenna port (Huaweiy doesn't mark ports on the router). Little experiment by changing setup from internal to external is needed to identify main antenna socket.
 
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Great post, jcheek, thanks. I guess we skip the obvious stuff which can overwhelm newcomers to the technology.
 
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