WiFi Bridge, Router and AP for my personal vehicle

RFI-EMI-GUY · Sep 29, 2018

Looking for some advice on how to do this. I would like to do this on a budget. So surplus stuff from e-bay is my go to. I see product that has been surplused from Public Safety that might fit the bill, but don't want to get into something proprietary and missing the secret sauce (software).

I have Spectrum cable/internet. They have hot spots throughout my town. Not contiguous hot spots, but quite a few. I would like some sort of WiFi Bridge in my car that will promiscuously and automatically connect to those hot spots using my log in and password.

Secondly I would like a Verizon 4G modem that I can use as a back up when the WiFi is out of range. (least cost routing)

Finally, the LAN port of this will be used to provide a WiFi AP so that when I am in vicinity of my car (inside a building lacking WiFi) I can use my tablet or laptop. A secondary use of the LAN port would be to provide a UHF hot spot for ALLSTAR or similar.

The WiFi bridge is the item that concerns me the most. I don't want a PC running in the car or any elaborate programming. So I need a WiFi bridge that can make the connections without intervention.

Any ideas? I am sure this has been done before.

Edit, my use of promiscuous mode is probably incorrect. I simply want the bridge to connect with any of the Spectrum WIFI hot spots automatically and to authenticate without my needing to intervene.

candlercoso · Sep 29, 2018

You may want to look into cradlepoint’s (IBR) mobile series. We have several of these deployed in the field. They will do what you described, as they will pick up on predefined AP’s based on priority. If they do not meet the defined threshold, they switch over to the multi carrier LTE ports (2 sim slots).

mmckenna · Sep 29, 2018

I'd second the CradlePoint units.

We're using them pretty much exactly like this.

RFI-EMI-GUY · Sep 29, 2018

candlercoso said:
You may want to look into cradlepoint’s (IBR) mobile series. We have several of these deployed in the field. They will do what you described, as they will pick up on predefined AP’s based on priority. If they do not meet the defined threshold, they switch over to the multi carrier LTE ports (2 sim slots).

Is this the "WiFi as WAN" feature? Are there any specific older models you can recommend that do this and have 4G as well?

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RFI-EMI-GUY · Sep 29, 2018

Are you using from "public" hotspots like Spectrum or is it a WiFi system you control?

mmckenna said:
I'd second the CradlePoint units.

We're using them pretty much exactly like this.

Are there any things with setting this up that I should know? I haven't tried connecting to these spots with my tablet yet.

I know with some "free hot spots" you must navigate your browser to a webpage and agree to terms and conditions. If Spectrum requires that, is it going to thwart my efforts?

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candlercoso · Sep 29, 2018

Yes I’m referring to the WiFi as wan setting for part of our setup. We do not use public WiFi in our setups, as they are not secure networks for public safety applications. However, I see tons of public WiFi points that pop up on the reports as they drive by them. I haven’t tried to use the public side.

As far as setup, we had to add each of our WiFi fixed connection points one by one and per MAC address for the location dependent points. (Mobile video uplink and surveillance systems). The regular lan connection points were added system wide with the switching setup already in place between them.

Depending on the telecom setup with the public WiFi, you may have a tedious setup. If the switching doesn’t transfer from ap to ap, you may have to add each individual ap in the cradlepoint.

Hope this helps you.

RFI-EMI-GUY · Sep 29, 2018

I guess it would not be too much trouble to manually add the AP points in town, however, I would have no way to get a MAC address as they are in private businesses. Spectrum turns on the "public" hotspots in the modems they furnish to certain businesses.

candlercoso said:
Yes I’m referring to the WiFi as wan setting for part of our setup. We do not use public WiFi in our setups, as they are not secure networks for public safety applications. However, I see tons of public WiFi points that pop up on the reports as they drive by them. I haven’t tried to use the public side.

As far as setup, we had to add each of our WiFi fixed connection points one by one and per MAC address for the location dependent points. (Mobile video uplink and surveillance systems). The regular lan connection points were added system wide with the switching setup already in place between them.

Depending on the telecom setup with the public WiFi, you may have a tedious setup. If the switching doesn’t transfer from ap to ap, you may have to add each individual ap in the cradlepoint.

Hope this helps you.

Sent from my SM-T350 using Tapatalk

Thunderknight · Sep 29, 2018

RFI-EMI-GUY said:
I would have no way to get a MAC address as they are in private businesses. Spectrum turns on the "public" hotspots in the modems they furnish to certain businesses.

You can get this over the air as they broadcast their presence.
If you have an Android device, download Wifi Analyzer and see what I mean.

Edit: I "third" the recommendation for Cradlepoint. I have not used them as you are indicating, but I have used them a lot and they have all sorts of configurable options.

RFI-EMI-GUY · Sep 29, 2018

Thanks

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mmckenna · Sep 29, 2018

RFI-EMI-GUY said:
Are you using from "public" hotspots like Spectrum or is it a WiFi system you control?

WiFi we control.

RFI-EMI-GUY said:
Are there any things with setting this up that I should know? I haven't tried connecting to these spots with my tablet yet.

I don't know. The PD IT person set them up. They use our WiFi network, and when out of range of those, switch over to Verizon (right now) and FirstNet (likely in the near future)

RFI-EMI-GUY said:
I know with some "free hot spots" you must navigate your browser to a webpage and agree to terms and conditions. If Spectrum requires that, is it going to thwart my efforts?

I don't know the answer to that.
Might call Spectrum and see if they have a service where it will automatically authorize based off the MAC address.

sfd119 · Sep 30, 2018

Cradlepoint IBR600s can be found online for pretty cheap. They can do Wifi as WAN and you can configure multiple SSIDs to pick them up.

MTS2000des · Oct 1, 2018

mmckenna said:
I'd second the CradlePoint units.

We're using them pretty much exactly like this.

I'll third this. Use the IBR600s and they are workhorse.

Project25_MASTR · Oct 2, 2018

Check out mikrotik’s routerboards. If you already have a LTE card and it’s supported by router OS, you could build your solution for about $150 new.

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speedway_navigator · Oct 3, 2018

I've been using Mikrotik for almost 20 years, they are widely used in the WISP community.
They are not as plug and play as consumer gear but have tons of features and performance advantages.

PrivatelyJeff · Oct 4, 2018

RFI-EMI-GUY said:
Are you using from "public" hotspots like Spectrum or is it a WiFi system you control?

Are there any things with setting this up that I should know? I haven't tried connecting to these spots with my tablet yet.

I know with some "free hot spots" you must navigate your browser to a webpage and agree to terms and conditions. If Spectrum requires that, is it going to thwart my efforts?

Sent from my SM-T350 using Tapatalk

Likely yes. I use Comcast and from what I understand, they all use a similar setup (you can even login to the Comcast network with other cable companies credentials and vise versa) and its a captive portal system for the initial connection (though automatic afterwards but sometimes you have to redo the setup).

I think what you want is remotely possible but you will probably spend more time fixing it than using it.

PrivatelyJeff · Oct 4, 2018

You’re best option may be (if you feel like getting dirty) is a raspberry pi, a couple of WiFi dongles, a DMR hotspot hat for the pi and a LTE modem with Ethernet port (so you’re not messing with modem drivers in Linux and allows for external antennas.). The pi will handle all the data routing (with some work). They also make single antenna clusters for cars that has every antenna you need, packed into a single hole.

RFI-EMI-GUY · Oct 4, 2018

JeffDS3 said:
You’re best option may be (if you feel like getting dirty) is a raspberry pi, a couple of WiFi dongles, a DMR hotspot hat for the pi and a LTE modem with Ethernet port (so you’re not messing with modem drivers in Linux and allows for external antennas.). The pi will handle all the data routing (with some work). They also make single antenna clusters for cars that has every antenna you need, packed into a single hole.

Thanks. I do want it to be off the shelf as it has to work reliably in a car at 99 F temperatures, and the packaging could be a hassle. Plus the pi sounds like a lot of work learning yet another skill! Good idea on the antennas. There will definately be a bunch of holes required.

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RFI-EMI-GUY · Oct 4, 2018

I am going to do some initial "war driving" to see how well this will work using a laptop.

JeffDS3 said:
Likely yes. I use Comcast and from what I understand, they all use a similar setup (you can even login to the Comcast network with other cable companies credentials and vise versa) and its a captive portal system for the initial connection (though automatic afterwards but sometimes you have to redo the setup).

I think what you want is remotely possible but you will probably spend more time fixing it than using it.

Sent from my SM-T350 using Tapatalk

JSTARS03 · Oct 4, 2018

pfSense

A router running pfSense with WIFI would work
Can get something like this , there are many other similar devices
that are already built.

https://www.amazon.com/Firewall-Mic...srs=14854310011&ie=UTF8&qid=1538654834&sr=8-1

For the active website login, you login first with a device with an internet browser
then you clone the WIFI MAC address onto the routers WIFI.

Project25_MASTR · Oct 4, 2018

Another vote for Mikrotik products.

RFI-EMI-GUY, check out the Mikrotik RB-M33G. Couple that with an AP of your choice, a low cost $20 AC card and LTE card and you'd be set on the hardware minus the enclosure and antenna peripherals. 12V-32V DC input. There are some easy to follow guides for setting up route/interface fail-over (wireless fail, go to LTE type).

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