Netgate Discussion Forum
    • Categories
    • Recent
    • Tags
    • Popular
    • Users
    • Search
    • Register
    • Login

    LTE modem for full speed

    Scheduled Pinned Locked Moved Hardware
    4 Posts 2 Posters 737 Views
    Loading More Posts
    • Oldest to Newest
    • Newest to Oldest
    • Most Votes
    Reply
    • Reply as topic
    Log in to reply
    This topic has been deleted. Only users with topic management privileges can see it.
    • L
      LeetDonkey
      last edited by

      Hello

      I'm currently using a Huawei E398 USB LTE modem with pfsense, this works pretty good.
      The only issue I'm facing is that it seems to be limited to around 20 Mbit.
      If I insert the USB modem in a windows based PC at the same location I'll get around 50 Mbit.
      Searching around in the forums seems to indicate that the issue is the PPP connection that pfsense uses.

      I was wondering if there are other USB modems that do not have this limitation?

      If all else fails I'll probably try the Netgear LB1110

      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
      • G
        gsmornot
        last edited by

        @LeetDonkey:

        Hello

        I'm currently using a Huawei E398 USB LTE modem with pfsense, this works pretty good.
        The only issue I'm facing is that it seems to be limited to around 20 Mbit.
        If I insert the USB modem in a windows based PC at the same location I'll get around 50 Mbit.
        Searching around in the forums seems to indicate that the issue is the PPP connection that pfsense uses.

        I was wondering if there are other USB modems that do not have this limitation?

        If all else fails I'll probably try the Netgear LB1110

        The limitation will be the same due to PPP no matter the brand. I’m not sure where you’re located (US or not) but the LB1110 is a basic choice. It will work to make LTE into an Ethernet port but it’s basic with just a few bands and no carrier aggregation. Look at the Nighthawk M1, it will do 4 band CA and a theoretical 1G. If budget is a concern go with the LB1110, it’s half the price but not even close in performance.

        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
        • L
          LeetDonkey
          last edited by

          @gsmornot:

          The limitation will be the same due to PPP no matter the brand. I’m not sure where you’re located (US or not) but the LB1110 is a basic choice. It will work to make LTE into an Ethernet port but it’s basic with just a few bands and no carrier aggregation. Look at the Nighthawk M1, it will do 4 band CA and a theoretical 1G. If budget is a concern go with the LB1110, it’s half the price but not even close in performance.

          Thanks, I wasn't even aware that the M1 existed, it seems to be a very good choice.
          It's a bit more expensive than I originally had intended, but I'll probably end up buying it.
          Would be nice with a cost reduced version without the battery and wifi.

          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
          • L
            LeetDonkey
            last edited by

            I ended up using a Huawei E3372h in hilink mode - it only cost me 10$ so it was worth a shot.

            I only need the bandwidth so the double nat issue is of no concern to me at the moment.

            To mitigate this slightly I decided to flash a modded WebUI that allows me to enable DMZ for my pfsense router.

            I used the partial solution here:
            https://forum.pfsense.org/index.php?topic=99705.0

            This provides me with around 40Mbit without an external antenna - the reception seems to be a bit lower than my E398.

            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
            • First post
              Last post
            Copyright 2025 Rubicon Communications LLC (Netgate). All rights reserved.