Useful 3G modem 'mode switching' script

jamesc

That doesnt sound too painful, the script would need to be called at startup before pfSense did its ppp dial.

My modem is a ZTE 636, i also have a Huawei E220 and vodafone K3565 for further testing. Im away til Sunday so dont have access to my test environment but im still checking the forum via my iPhone :-)

stephenw10

Ok, to confirm we really need the VID and PID but according to the device_reference.txt:

ZTE MF622 (aka "Onda MDC502HS")

ZTE MF626

ZTE MF628+ (tested version from Telia / Sweden)

ZTE MF633

ZTE MF636 (aka "Telstra / BigPond 7.2 Mobile Card")

ZTE MF637

and probably others not listed here

Contributor: Joakim Wennergren and others

DefaultVendor= 0x19d2
DefaultProduct= 0x2000

TargetVendor= 0x19d2
TargetProduct= 0x0031

MessageContent="5553424312345678000000000000061e000000000000000000000000000000"
MessageContent2="5553424312345679000000000000061b000000020000000000000000000000"

NeedResponse=1

It says to not use the reference file directly, perhaps because it's quite large, so create a new file with the above lines in. Hope! ;)

Steve

jamesc

Cheers Steve, it kinda makes sense now! Were you able to find more documentation on the port, i.e you mentioned that a manual approach is required for FreeBSD, did you read this somewhere or is this from your own knowledge?

I'll do some testing on Sunday and report back here :-)

stephenw10

I just looked at what files are installed from the port and it's very few. Only the usb_modeswitch binary and a conf file for disabling it entirely.
Unless I'm missing something.

I too have a Huawei K3565. It's not listed but I bet someone has the data for it. Anyway here's an example of how to find the VIP and PID:


[2.0.1-RELEASE][root@pfsense.fire.box]/dev(21): usbconfig 
ugen0.1: <uhci root="" hub="" intel="">at usbus0, cfg=0 md=HOST spd=FULL (12Mbps) pwr=ON
ugen1.1: <uhci root="" hub="" intel="">at usbus1, cfg=0 md=HOST spd=FULL (12Mbps) pwr=ON
ugen2.1: <ehci root="" hub="" intel="">at usbus2, cfg=0 md=HOST spd=HIGH (480Mbps) pwr=ON
ugen2.2: <huawei mobile="" huawei="" technology="">at usbus2, cfg=0 md=HOST spd=HIGH (480Mbps) pwr=ON
[2.0.1-RELEASE][root@pfsense.fire.box]/dev(22): usbconfig -d 2.2 dump_device_desc
ugen2.2: <huawei mobile="" huawei="" technology="">at usbus2, cfg=0 md=HOST spd=HIGH (480Mbps) pwr=ON

  bLength = 0x0012 
  bDescriptorType = 0x0001 
  bcdUSB = 0x0200 
  bDeviceClass = 0x0000 
  bDeviceSubClass = 0x0000 
  bDeviceProtocol = 0x0000 
  bMaxPacketSize0 = 0x0040 
  idVendor = 0x12d1 
  idProduct = 0x1001 
  bcdDevice = 0x0000 
  iManufacturer = 0x0002   <huawei technology="">iProduct = 0x0001   <huawei mobile="">iSerialNumber = 0x0000   <no string="">bNumConfigurations = 0x0001</no></huawei></huawei></huawei></huawei></ehci></uhci></uhci>

Steve

Edit: It is listed just as the E169.

jamesc

Yes, i think K3565 is just the Vodafone model number, its actually an E169 underneath. Have you managed to get it to switch?

stephenw10

Nope! ::)


[2.0.1-RELEASE][root@pfsense.fire.box]/dev(24): usb_modeswitch -c /tmp/e169.txt

Looking for target devices ...
 No devices in target mode or class found
Looking for default devices ...
   found matching product ID
 No devices in default mode found. Nothing to do. Bye.

[2.0.1-RELEASE][root@pfsense.fire.box]/dev(25): cat /tmp/e169.txt
# Huawei E169 and others
#
# Contributor: Dale Lane

DefaultVendor=  0x12d1
DefaultProduct= 0x1001

TargetClass=    0xff

# choose one of these:
HuaweiMode=1

Steve

Edit: Seems to be because it's already in the target class (0xff):


Looking for target devices ...
 No devices in target mode or class found
Looking for default devices ...
  searching devices, found USB ID 12d1:1001
   found matching vendor ID
   found matching product ID
   target class ff matching
   not adding device
  searching devices, found USB ID 0000:0000
  searching devices, found USB ID 0000:0000
  searching devices, found USB ID 0000:0000
 No devices in default mode found. Nothing to do. Bye.

Possibly already switched? :-\

Doh! looks like E169 is already a supported modem. ::)

jamesc

Looks that way, your console output when you plug the device in doesnt say that its a SCSI device so its already switched!

stephenw10

Yep, already works fine.


[2.0.1-RELEASE][root@pfsense.fire.box]/root(1): cu -l cuaU0.0 -s 115200
Connected
at
OK
at I0
Manufacturer: huawei
Model: K3565
Revision: 11.608.10.51.00
IMEI: 359574032708530
+GCAP: +CGSM,+DS,+ES

OK

Steve

jamesc

I'll give the ZTE a try on Sunday, ive tried this modem previously with pfSense and failed because it is definately seen as a storage device. Will report back with my results.

stephenw10

You might think that but here is the system log from when I plugged it in:


Feb 17 18:16:17 pfsense kernel: ugen2.2: <huawei technology="">at usbus2
Feb 17 18:16:17 pfsense kernel: ugen2.2: <huawei technology="">at usbus2 (disconnected)
Feb 17 18:16:24 pfsense kernel: ugen2.2: <huawei technology="">at usbus2
Feb 17 18:16:24 pfsense kernel: u3g0: <huawei 0="" 2="" technology="" huawei="" mobile,="" class="" 0,="" rev="" 2.00="" 0.00,="" addr="">on usbus2
Feb 17 18:16:24 pfsense kernel: u3g0: Found 3 ports.
Feb 17 18:16:24 pfsense kernel: umass0: <huawei 0="" 2="" technology="" huawei="" mobile,="" class="" 0,="" rev="" 2.00="" 0.00,="" addr="">on usbus2
Feb 17 18:16:26 pfsense kernel: umass1: <huawei 0="" 2="" technology="" huawei="" mobile,="" class="" 0,="" rev="" 2.00="" 0.00,="" addr="">on usbus2
Feb 17 18:16:26 pfsense kernel: (probe0:umass-sim0:0:0:0): TEST UNIT READY. CDB: 0 0 0 0 0 0
Feb 17 18:16:26 pfsense kernel: (probe0:umass-sim0:0:0:0): CAM status: SCSI Status Error
Feb 17 18:16:26 pfsense kernel: (probe0:umass-sim0:0:0:0): SCSI status: Check Condition
Feb 17 18:16:26 pfsense kernel: (probe0:umass-sim0:0:0:0): SCSI sense: NOT READY asc:3a,0 (Medium not present)
Feb 17 18:16:26 pfsense kernel: cd0 at umass-sim0 bus 0 scbus0 target 0 lun 0
Feb 17 18:16:26 pfsense kernel: cd0: <huawei mass="" storage="" 2.31="">Removable CD-ROM SCSI-2 device
Feb 17 18:16:26 pfsense kernel: cd0: 40.000MB/s transfers
Feb 17 18:16:26 pfsense kernel: cd0: Attempt to query device size failed: NOT READY, Medium not present
Feb 17 18:16:27 pfsense kernel: (probe0:umass-sim1:1:0:0): TEST UNIT READY. CDB: 0 0 0 0 0 0
Feb 17 18:16:27 pfsense kernel: (probe0:umass-sim1:1:0:0): CAM status: SCSI Status Error
Feb 17 18:16:27 pfsense kernel: (probe0:umass-sim1:1:0:0): SCSI status: Check Condition
Feb 17 18:16:27 pfsense kernel: (probe0:umass-sim1:1:0:0): SCSI sense: NOT READY asc:3a,0 (Medium not present)
Feb 17 18:16:27 pfsense kernel: da0 at umass-sim1 bus 1 scbus1 target 0 lun 0
Feb 17 18:16:27 pfsense kernel: da0: <huawei mmc="" storage="" 2.31="">Removable Direct Access SCSI-2 device
Feb 17 18:16:27 pfsense kernel: da0: 40.000MB/s transfers
Feb 17 18:16:27 pfsense kernel: da0: Attempt to query device size failed: NOT READY, Medium not present</huawei></huawei></huawei></huawei></huawei></huawei></huawei></huawei>

It clearly comes up as a CD-ROM drive (cd0) and the micro SD reader (da0).
But u3g also shows 'found 3 ports' and looking in /dev there are cuaU0.0 1.1 and 2.2.
I haven't actually tried using this as a modem though, I'm not sure I have a simcard that can do it.

Steve

jamesc

We have some progress….

Fresh install of 2.0.1 full on an old Celeron box to avoid mapping USB devices through to a VMWare VM.
Modem is a ZTE MF112

Here's what happens initially when plugging the modem in (not using modeswitch)

Feb 19 15:55:56 pfSense kernel: umass0: <zte,incorporated 0="" 2="" zte="" wcdma="" technologies="" msm,="" class="" 0,="" rev="" 2.00="" 0.00,="" addr="">on usbus3
Feb 19 15:55:56 pfSense kernel: umass0:  SCSI over Bulk-Only; quirks = 0x0000
Feb 19 15:55:57 pfSense kernel: umass0:0:0:-1: Attached to scbus0
Feb 19 15:55:57 pfSense kernel: (probe0:umass-sim0:0:0:0): TEST UNIT READY. CDB: 0 0 0 0 0 0
Feb 19 15:55:57 pfSense kernel: (probe0:umass-sim0:0:0:0): CAM status: SCSI Status Error
Feb 19 15:55:57 pfSense kernel: (probe0:umass-sim0:0:0:0): SCSI status: Check Condition
Feb 19 15:55:57 pfSense kernel: (probe0:umass-sim0:0:0:0): SCSI sense: NOT READY asc:3a,0 (Medium not present)
Feb 19 15:55:57 pfSense kernel: cd0 at umass-sim0 bus 0 scbus0 target 0 lun 0
Feb 19 15:55:57 pfSense kernel: cd0: <hspa usb="" scsi="" cd-rom="" 2.31="">Removable CD-ROM SCSI-2 device
Feb 19 15:55:57 pfSense kernel: cd0: 40.000MB/s transfers
Feb 19 15:55:57 pfSense kernel: cd0: Attempt to query device size failed: NOT READY, Medium not present</hspa></zte,incorporated>

No interfaces are available to assign under PPP.

I then install the port and create a config file for the MF112 and run modeswitch

Looking for target devices ...
 No devices in target mode or class found
Looking for default devices ...
   found matching product ID
   adding device
 Found device in default mode, class or configuration (1)
Accessing device 005 on bus 000 ...
Getting the current device configuration ...
 OK, got current device configuration (1)
Using first interface: 0x00
Using endpoints 0x01 (out) and 0x81 (in)
Inquiring device details; driver will be detached ...
 Cant't do driver detection and detaching on this platform.

SCSI inquiry data (for identification)
-------------------------
  Vendor String: HSPA
   Model String: USB SCSI CD-ROM
Revision String: 2.31
-------------------------

USB description data (for identification)
-------------------------
Manufacturer: ZTE,Incorporated
     Product: ZTE WCDMA Technologies MSM
  Serial No.: P673A3H3GD010000
-------------------------
Setting up communication with interface 0
Using endpoint 0x01 for message sending ...
Trying to send message 1 to endpoint 0x01 ...
 OK, message successfully sent
Reading the response to message 1 (CSW) ...
 OK, response successfully read (13 bytes).
Trying to send message 2 to endpoint 0x01 ...
 OK, message successfully sent
Reading the response to message 2 (CSW) ...
 Response reading got error -6
 Device is gone, skipping any further commands
-> Run lsusb to note any changes. Bye.

I then have two new PPP interfaces /dev/cuaU0.1 and /dev/cuaU0.2

Unfortunately, I have no simcard to test any further :(

stephenw10

Ah, looks promising. :)
You can try talking to the modem with cu or tip like I did. If it responds to AT commands I would expect it to work.

Steve

jamesc

The next thing to try is adding the below line to the firewall config to test whether pfSense will switch the modem before it does the PPP dial:

<shellcmd>usb_modeswitch -c /usr/local/etc/modem.txt</shellcmd>

stephenw10

If not then try <earlyshellcmd>instead.

Steve</earlyshellcmd>

jamesc

It does respond to AT commands on cuaU0.2 :)

My question is, what is cuaU0.1 which is also available to assign under PPP

Also, when I assign the PPP to an interface, I also see cuaU0.0 and cuau0 in the 'Modem Port' dropdown list so i'm a little confused ???

stephenw10

Probably due to the way pfSense finds the serial ports to display:

$serialports = pfSense_get_modem_devices();

I can't find that function but if it relies on, for example, sysctl dev.u3g then they won't appear there.

The reason that the modem provides several serial ports is not obvious to me but it seems it's possible to get stats from the modem on one interface whilst connected via another, signal strength, baud rate etc.

Steve

jamesc

Thanks Steve.

I found a simcard, there's no credit on it but it still connects and gets an IP address.

I've tried both the shellcmd and earlyshellcmd options but sometimes there is a delay until the actual switch occurs. The boot sequence continues regardless, the PPP interface is brought up but the modem is not yet ready so a WAN connection isn't established. If I go into the GUI and manually hit connect, PPP is dialled and the WAN comes online.

Any idea of how we can delay bringing up PPP until we know the modem has successfully switched?

stephenw10

What happens when it tries to dial out before the interface is switched?
I'm surprised that it doesn't just keep trying.
Maybe using dial-on demand or idle time out.

You could write a script that ran usb_modeswitch, waited and then called the appropriate interface connect function.

Steve

jamesc

It doesnt do anything, the box continues its boot process as if no modem was plugged in. I see the modem details flash up on the console towards the end of the boot process but PPP has already initialised at this point (without seeing the modem) so i suspect it wont keep on attempting a dial out because as far it's concerned, no modem was detected at the time of initialisation, I hope that makes sense!

stephenw10

Yes I see exactly what you mean.
Would probably be best to use an rc script then.
This is just a guess but perhaps:


#!/bin/sh
/usr/local/sbin/usb_modeswitch -c yourmodem.txt
sleep 5
/etc/rc.reload_interfaces

Try issuing a /etc/rc.reload_interfaces and see if it finds the modem and connects.

Steve