NR7101 Poor throughput (No 5GNSA ?). Confused with Firmware versions

k1s

Current Firmware Version: V1.15(ACCC.0)C0
Current LTE Module Version: RG502QEAAAR11A03M4G

I tried 2 service providers operators (Three, Vodafone) and both gave very connections / throughputs to line of sight masts <1km distant from my location,

Connected to Three UK, these are the numbers:

Download 57 Mbps Upload 1 Mbps

Data Roaming Disable, Operator 3
Band n78 RSRP -95 RSRQ -11 SINR 6
Access Technology NR-NSA EN-DC
Band LTE_BC1 RSSI -63 RSRP -90 RSRQ -11RSCP TAC 1392 SINR 4 CQI 6 

SCC Information # 1
Band LTE_BC3 RSSI -63 RSRP -81 RSRQ -99 SINR 7

With Vodafone UK these are what the router shows:

Download 60 Mbps Upload 33 Mbps

Band n78 RSRP -77 RSRQ -13 SINR 21
Access Technology NR-NSA EN-DC
Band LTE_BC20 RSSI -51 RSRP -82 RSRQ -14 TAC 12297 SINR 0 CQI 15

SCC Information
Band LTE_BC1 RSSI -67 RSRP -89 RSRQ -10 SINR 3

By way of comparison, using the ZTE MC801A router (which came with my Three SIM card) and standing on the roof, I get -100dB but download speed is ~170-250Mbps.

I suspect something is wrong in the firmware or settings, but when I try to compare the version reported by the device to your webpages, they are not similar.

Current version on the device is V1.15(ACCC.0)C0
Versions on your webpage here https://support.zyxel.eu/hc/en-us/articles/4403365084818-Advanced-Downloads-for-5G-devices
are:

100ABUV4C0
100ABUV3C0
100ABUV2C0

This list is completely meaningless. The version does not apparently correspond to the same file naming convention as the version reported by the software. There are no dates or any details of what is changed, or indications of which hardware they apply to.

How are we supposed to know which is the most current, what are the fixes, etc. ?

Can anybody advise what is causing the poor connection / low speeds and what firmware should be used?

tonygibbs16

Hello @k1s

Welcome to the forum.

In terms of software naming that Zyxel use, the ABUV is used as the stock firmware tree for the NR7101. 
       - ACCC.0 would then represent a reseller specific branch of that stock firmware tree, and the 0th version of that branch.
            - the versions with the higher number after the 4 letters are the newer releases.

The C0 means that it is a full release version.

It looks like both 3UK and Vodafone UK are using 5G Non-Standalone Architecture for the rollout at present in your area, as highlighted by the "Access Technology NR-NSA EN-DC" in the logs.

I will let others jump in. 

Kind regards, Tony.

k1s

tonygibbs16, thanks that's helpful.  It turns the V1.15(ACCC.0)C0 is a version for Nebula-managed devices.  I was able to get it on to Nebula which reported it was up to date. 

However the performance is very, very poor (slow download/upload), with either Three UK or Vodafone UK from nearby (<1km) masts, including direct line of sight. 
The results from another test shows delivered ~60 Mbps down, <1 Mbps up: 
RSSI -43 RFCN 6175 RSRP -66 RSRQ -10 SINR 8 CQI 7 MCS 0 RI 1 PMI 16Cell ID 201991, Physical Cell ID 133 UL Bandwidth (MHz) 5 DL Bandwidth (MHz) 5Band LTE_BC20

I cannot understand why its being out-performed 4-5x by the service provider-supplied indoor 5G router (ZTE-MC801A) with what should be a worse, omni-directional, antenna

How can I diagnose this?

tonygibbs16

you're welcome @k1s

There is some firmware for Nebula NR7101 available at https://www.zyxel.com/uk/en/support/download_library/product/nebula_nr7101_14.shtml?c=uk&l=en&pid=20211221153446&tab=Firmware&pname=Nebula%20NR7101&mtname=Firmware though it seems that you are on the latest.

I don't know how to diagnose it further, but maybe the user guide at https://www.zyxel.com/uk/en/support/download_library/product/nebula_nr7101_25.shtml?c=uk&l=en&pid=20211221153446&tab=User_s_Guide&pname=Nebula%20NR7101&mtname=User%27s%20Guide might help...

Kind regards,
     Tony

k1s

Yes, that's the version it came installed with. 

Sadly ZyXEL support simply referred me to this article which I had already read, and gave no help (everything is set to default/automatic, and yes, I have  connection)

(If that's the level of support we can expect for a £700 GBP unit, then ZyXEL can have it back)

tonygibbs16

Hello @k1s

Yes Zyxel needs to provide more support. I am a fellow customer.

One thought that I have just had is whether the cellular RF signal is too strong, and that the NR7101 is getting RF overloaded...
      - It is just a thought, but I wonder if it might work better if you moved it indoors temporarily...

Just a thought.

Kind regards,
     Tony

n_o

first step i would update modem firmware

find RG502QEAAAR11A03M4G-RG502QEAAAR11A06M4G.zip
    & RG502QEAAAR11A06M4G-RG502QEAAAR11A07M4G.zip
update over ethernet , remove SIM for update & load factory default settings on update.

1.15(ACCC.0)C0 seems to be brand new

k1s

Thanks for your suggestions. 

I'm having trouble connecting via ethernet to update the firmware, but...

I understand that the chip manufacturer (Quectel?) may have a newer version (RG502QEAAAR13A03M4G) than the one @n_o suggested.  The files you suggested looking for seem to be R11 but later versions than the one that came preinstalled. 

Is it necessary to update them in sequence through all the available versions? Or just go from the current to the latest?

When I tried copying the RG502QEAAAR13A02M4G_01.001.01.001.zip to my phone then updating the module firmware with that it failed with "The selected file is an illegal image". (even with the SIM card removed as advised here). 

I get the same error when trying with the RG502QEAAAR11A06M4G-RG502QEAAAR11A07M4G.zip file I found here, and another version here.

SELBERG

Try this link for update 6 to 7.... 

http://79.161.156.252/

n_o

you are currently on R11A03
so you have to update in this order
RG502QEAAAR11A03M4G-RG502QEAAAR11A06M4G.zip     A03 to A06
    & RG502QEAAAR11A06M4G-RG502QEAAAR11A07M4G.zip  A06 to A07

any other version will fail

R13 is not newer in general , R11 is developed parallel

k1s

SELBERG said:

Try this link for update 6 to 7.... 

http://79.161.156.252/

Thanks for these. I tried A03 to A06.  After an 2 hours, the device is still showing the spinning dots.  How long does this normally take?