Re: Nighthawk MR1100 FW NTG9X50C_10.20.05.02 Wont Update

Scottd9000 · ‎2020-11-02

Was just about to throw my nighhawk in the garbage. I use it at my remote cabin and this summer the Arlo server is completed un-realiable and the hotpspot locks up after a few days. Last summer on the older firmware it was much better but rebooted often and wouldn't connect to the tower for a few days - then suddenly work. After we close our place up next week I am going to flash the non-ATT version.

Smickd · ‎2020-11-20

I've come across this thread trying to upgrade a Gen 1 AT&T Nighthawk - still running 12.05.05 firmware. I've downloaded and installed drivers, etc. When I go to telnet into the router with Putty, I am seeing a network error, and after a few seconds, the session closes.

Anyone who was successful have any tips? Thanks.

Bravo701 · ‎2020-11-20

1) Be very careful upgrading a rev 1 unit.

As far as I know, there are no SPK files available for that unit.

TL;DR: At best you are wasting your time - at worst, you'll have a pretty paperweight.

2) The driver files are not important for the Putty session. They only come into to play so the computer can recognize the router when it goes into download mode.

3) Make sure the ONLY connectivity between your computer and the router is USB (ie: turn WiFi "off" on the computer).

4) Putty settings are Raw, the gateway IP address (usually 192.168.1.1), and 5510 for the port.

Smickd · ‎2020-11-20

>>1) Be very careful upgrading a rev 1 unit.

As far as I know, there are no SPK files available for that unit.

TL;DR: At best you are wasting your time - at worst, you'll have a pretty paperweight.<<

With that advice, I'll stop and not go further. We've had issues with the hotspot locking up / quit passing some wifi traffic and originally, I thought an upgrade might help. From what I've read, it may be an at&t transparent proxy problem (which explains why when it happens, I can still ping, etc.)

Mrblazed · ‎2020-11-20

AT&T will block traffic on port 80 if it thinks the service is being used too much/against tos. I have not heard of them causing the unit to lock up. I have upgraded both generations without issue.

Bravo701 · ‎2020-11-20

@Smickd wrote:
still running 12.05.05 firmware.

From my experience, 12.05.05 is themost stable.

I'm not sure what operational updates / fixes are in 12.06.x, but overheating & battery issues took center stage.

@Smickd wrote:
We've had issues with the hotspot locking up / quit passing some wifi traffic and originally, I thought an upgrade might help. From what I've read, it may be an at&t transparent proxy problem (which explains why when it happens, I can still ping, etc.)

I see this all the time.

My experience indicates it is an issue on the towers. I can change bandlocking, then change back to my preferred bandlock, and the issue go away.

It could be as simple as stale routes, or it could be a provisioning issue... I don't know.

I doubt it is AT&T blocking - as I will almost always exceed 100GB on any given weekend.

I average about 600GB/month usage.

If they were going to filter anybody, I figure I would have seen it by now.

Smickd · ‎2020-11-20

It as occured to me that it could be a data issue... but who knows. Often times, the issue is fixed with a hotspot restart. I've gone back and forth between a Nighthawk M1 and a Unite Explore 815S, (in front of an ASUS router) and seen similar symptoms on both of them. Originally, I thought it was a DCHP issue in the hotspots. We're just in the process of trying to narrow it down to one device and a simple fix.

Bravo701 · ‎2020-11-20

@Smickd wrote:
I've gone back and forth between a Nighthawk M1 and a Unite Explore 815S

If you have multiple towers in your area, the MR1100 should be (clearly) superior.

@Smickd wrote:
...(in front of an ASUS router)...

If you have "Passthrough" configured on the MR1100, and have it connected to the router by ethernet, you can telnet into your hotspot via WiFi.

@Smickd wrote:
and [have] seen similar symptoms on both of them.

Sounds very similar to what I refer to as "stale routing" on the tower side.

It may be MAC address table corruption in the MR1100, but that shouldn't go away by changing bandlocking.

Try this:

Next time you have that situation, go to Advanced Settings, Cellular, and change the "Band Region" setting from "Auto" to "LTE All".

Wait 10 seconds, then change it back.

Wait 10 more seconds, then check and see if traffic is back to normal.

Smickd · ‎2020-11-21

Knock on wood... the Unite Explore hasn't required a restart for over 24 hours, so I'm not touching it until it chokes again. Usually i get 4 hours, 8 hours or 12 hours, then the hotspot chokes, or the ASUS router gets the "Your ISP DHCP isn't working correctly" error, and away we go.

I will look at the options you mention. We do live rurally, with only one tower nearby, and I had the band set to LTE only at one point, hoping that would help. We'll see.....

Bravo701 · ‎2020-11-21

@Smickd wrote:
We do live rurally, with only one tower nearby...

I do understand "rurally"... I live so far back we have to pipe in sunshine...

However, I find it difficult to imagine only one cell tower being within range.

I have at least a dozen towers that I can get at some level. But, the closest is still over 5 miles away.

To add insult to injury, that particular tower is very poorly provisioned - I seldom get over 150Kbs from it.

I would suggest exploring bandlocking on the hotspot to use as a tool to audit what towers or bands are actually available.

Or, you could use a tool such as Network Cell Info on your (android) handset if it is compatible with your Hotspot's service

I can no longer use such as my handset is on Verizon, and my Hotspot is on AT&T.

Smickd · ‎2020-11-23

What menu is 'band locking' under?

And yes, you're correct in that there are multiple towers... the nearest one (which I assumed we were using) is about 3 miles away, the other is 7 miles - and behind a big hill... (We live in a valley, with only one side flat - which is where is assumed a signal would be coming from.)

The current setup on the UE has not required a restart this is a first in several weeks... It makes me wonder if AT&T fixed something on their towers, as for the past two months it's done nothing but die daily.