Using USB to ethernet adaptor to provide internet

A rather prolonged internet outage today got me thinking about ways to usemy mobile phone to provide internet access for the whole home. We have manyWi-Fi connected devices and it?s not practical to switch them to my phone?shot spot so a way of using my 4G mobile connection with my existing router(a standard Zen one) or mesh system would tick a lot of boxes.My Pixel 6 phone has a setting for Ethernet tethering so I think it shouldwork with a usb c to Ethernet adaptors plugged into my router. Example here. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ethernet-Adapter-WALNEW-Converter-Thunderbolt/dp/B08YCYW623/ref=sr_1_2_sspa?crid=2XIOWFAGUG6DZ&keywords=usb+c+ethernet+adapter&qid=1699813624&sprefix=usb+c+ethernet+adapter%2Caps%2C543&sr=8-2-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&psc=1Anyone used one of these? Any pitfalls to be aware of?Tim-- Please don't feed the trolls

I should have added that I need an adapter that is truely
bi-directional. Maybe they all are? Not my field of
knowledge.
--

Andy Burns

2023-11-12 18:40:05 UTC

Post by tim+
I should have added that I need an adapter that is truely
bi-directional. Maybe they all are?

Err yes, a transmit-only or receive-only ethernet adapter would hardly
be any use ...

David Wade

2023-11-12 18:58:28 UTC

Post by Tim+
A rather prolonged internet outage today got me thinking about ways to use
my mobile phone to provide internet access for the whole home. We have many
Wi-Fi connected devices and it’s not practical to switch them to my phone’s
hot spot so a way of using my 4G mobile connection with my existing router
(a standard Zen one) or mesh system would tick a lot of boxes.
My Pixel 6 phone has a setting for Ethernet tethering so I think it should
work with a usb c to Ethernet adaptors plugged into my router.
Example here.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ethernet-Adapter-WALNEW-Converter-Thunderbolt/dp/B08YCYW623/ref=sr_1_2_sspa?crid=2XIOWFAGUG6DZ&keywords=usb+c+ethernet+adapter&qid=1699813624&sprefix=usb+c+ethernet+adapter%2Caps%2C543&sr=8-2-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&psc=1
Anyone used one of these? Any pitfalls to be aware of?
Tim

If you have a standerd Zen router its likely a Fritz!Box 7530 or 7530 AX
If it is and has the latest firmware you can just plug the phone's USB
charger cable into the Fritz!Box and you can use it as your internet
connection.

https://en.avm.de/service/knowledge-base/dok/FRITZ-Box-7530/1205_Configuring-FRITZ-Box-for-internet-access-via-an-Android-smartphone-USB-tethering/

or

https://tinyurl.com/2hns2sfk

other Fritz!Box routers have the same facilities...

Dave

Tim+

2023-11-12 20:52:10 UTC

Ah, had to download the specs to find the USB socket! Not in an obvious
place. ;-)

Post by David Wade
https://en.avm.de/service/knowledge-base/dok/FRITZ-Box-7530/1205_Configuring-FRITZ-Box-for-internet-access-via-an-Android-smartphone-USB-tethering/
or
https://tinyurl.com/2hns2sfk
other Fritz!Box routers have the same facilities...
Dave

Thanks for that info. Got my hopes up but USB tethering and Ethernet
tethering options on my phone remain greyed out, even when plugged into the
router. :-(

Tim

--
Please don't feed the trolls

David Wade

2023-11-12 21:11:37 UTC

Ah, had to download the specs to find the USB socket! Not in an obvious
place. ;-)

Thanks for that info. Got my hopes up but USB tethering and Ethernet
tethering options on my phone remain greyed out, even when plugged into the
router. :-(

Thats a bit of a pain. My Samsung S10+ offers me options to use the
connection for charging or internet when I plug it into the router....

Post by Tim+
Tim

Dave

Malcolm Loades

2023-11-13 07:35:46 UTC

Ah, had to download the specs to find the USB socket! Not in an obvious
place. ;-)

Thanks for that info. Got my hopes up but USB tethering and Ethernet
tethering options on my phone remain greyed out, even when plugged into the
router. :-(

I've just plugged my Pixel 6 into my FritzBox! and it works!

Initially, both USB tethering and Ethernet tethering were greyed out.
Once the charger cable was plugged into both the 'phone and FritzBox!
USB tethering was no longer greyed out and could be switched on,
Ethernet tethering remained greyed but that doesn't matter.

Googling Fritzbox and ethernet tethering didn't return much in English,
only one German language link. This seemed to suggest that it needed a
special cable but that's academic since USB tethering works.

Malcolm

Tim+

2023-11-13 08:32:41 UTC

Post by Malcolm Loades

Ah, had to download the specs to find the USB socket! Not in an obvious
place. ;-)

Thanks for that info. Got my hopes up but USB tethering and Ethernet
tethering options on my phone remain greyed out, even when plugged into the
router. :-(

I've just plugged my Pixel 6 into my FritzBox! and it works!
Initially, both USB tethering and Ethernet tethering were greyed out.
Once the charger cable was plugged into both the 'phone and FritzBox!
USB tethering was no longer greyed out and could be switched on,
Ethernet tethering remained greyed but that doesn't matter.
Googling Fritzbox and ethernet tethering didn't return much in English,
only one German language link. This seemed to suggest that it needed a
special cable but that's academic since USB tethering works.
Malcolm

With only a single USB C socket on the phone, how did you plug in the phone
charger or did you just mean that you just used your standard charging
cable to connect your phone and router?

I wonder if there are any router settings that need to be enabled?

Tim

--
Please don't feed the trolls

Andy Burns

2023-11-13 08:48:23 UTC

With only a single USB C socket on the phone, how did you plug in the phone
charger or did you just mean that you just used your standard charging
cable to connect your phone and router?
I wonder if there are any router settings that need to be enabled?

If you use a type-C USB dock (more typical for a laptop) they provide
power in and power out as well as various peripherals such as ethernet
(and VGA/HDMI/SDHC)

e.g
<https://uk.ugreen.com/collections/dock-hub/products/ugreen-7-in-1-4k-hdmi-usb-c-hub>

Tim+

2023-11-13 09:00:24 UTC

Tried another cable and it worked! Well at least I could turn USB tethering
on. Sadly no internet access via the router though. :-(

Tim

--
Please don't feed the trolls

Malcolm Loades

2023-11-13 09:22:34 UTC

Tried another cable and it worked! Well at least I could turn USB tethering
on. Sadly no internet access via the router though. :-(

Have you changed the FritzBox! settings to use mobile internet?

Malcolm

Tim+

2023-11-13 11:07:15 UTC

Post by Malcolm Loades

Tried another cable and it worked! Well at least I could turn USB tethering
on. Sadly no internet access via the router though. :-(

Have you changed the FritzBox! settings to use mobile internet?

I have now! Thank you.

Tim

--
Please don't feed the trolls

Peter Johnson

2023-11-13 17:07:18 UTC

Tried another cable and it worked! Well at least I could turn USB tethering
on. Sadly no internet access via the router though. :-(

Just tried this with my Asus router/Samsung Galaxy phone.
The router recognised the phone so I pulled the plug on the fibre
connection and it said it was connected to the internet but I couldn't
connect to anything in the browser or download email.
I suspect that a reboot is called for. I'll try it again another time.
I had to reboot the router before normal service was resumed.

Tim+

2023-11-13 11:06:32 UTC

Post by Malcolm Loades
I've just plugged my Pixel 6 into my FritzBox! and it works!
Initially, both USB tethering and Ethernet tethering were greyed out.
Once the charger cable was plugged into both the 'phone and FritzBox!
USB tethering was no longer greyed out and could be switched on,
Ethernet tethering remained greyed but that doesn't matter.
Googling Fritzbox and ethernet tethering didn't return much in English,
only one German language link. This seemed to suggest that it needed a
special cable but that's academic since USB tethering works.
Malcolm

Got there in the end. Woohoo!

First issue was that I was using a cheap charger cable rather than a full
USB C cable. After that I had to go into the router settings to allow it
to use mobile USB data as a fallback. Then I had to make sure that Wi-Fi
was turned off in my phone.

Having done all that it’s all working. Meanwhile OpenReach man has just
arrived to change a card in my local street cabinet so I’ll probably have
proper internet access back within the hour.

Good to know how to use a phone as a backup though.

Thanks to all those for the pointers regarding router settings etc.

Tim

--
Please don't feed the trolls

Peter

2023-11-15 10:32:31 UTC

Post by David Wade
If you have a standerd Zen router its likely a Fritz!Box 7530 or 7530 AX
If it is and has the latest firmware you can just plug the phone's USB
charger cable into the Fritz!Box and you can use it as your internet
connection.

That's clever. I didn't know a modern phone emulates a 4G USB radio
modem. The old Nokias did that (ATDT*99# and off it goes).

I have for many years used Draytek routers (currently a 2960) which
have a USB port and you just plug a standard 4G USB radio modem
(Huawei do loads) into that. Only a specific list of USB modems will
work with a given router - not just any.

The advantage of using this is that you don't need power to it, and
with a USB extension cable you can hang the USB modem up in a tree or
some such if you have poor signal.

It needs a SIM card and you can get contract SIMs for that job for 3
quid a month.

The IP will not be your existing fixed IP obviously.

Andrews & Arnold offer this kind of backup and while it works, if you
have more than one IP, only the first IP gets routed to this 4G
connection, so you get "outgoing internet" but any "server" you have
running in the office will not be accessible from the outside. It
actually used to work (for one IP and a subnet of 5) but then A&A
broke something and despite me having ~100 emails with them they never
found out how to fix it. I even sent them a router for testing...
Anyway we no longer run a server (the online shop is virtually hosted)
so it is fine.

Graham J

2023-11-15 11:23:01 UTC

Post by Peter

[snip]

The maximum length for a USB cable is sometimes claimed to be 25 metres,
but in reality is probably no more than 3 metres. It depends on the
cable quality.

The missing product is a 4G radio modem using Ethernet and PoE. If
combined with a router providing PoE on its Ethernet WAN port then the
modem could be placed up to 100 metres away, using Ethernet cable that
is specified for that distance, and outdoor use. If the device is in a
waterproof housing it would be suitable for outdoor use - at the top of
a tall pole, for example.

I'm aware that there are routers containing a 4G radio modem - sometimes
in waterproof housings - but that's not very useful if you need the
features of a fully fledged router (LAN-LAN VPN endpoint, monitoring,
management, etc.) such as a Draytek. Sadly this is only necessary
because 3G/4G/5G signals are only available in towns, not in properly
rural areas.

--
Graham J

Andy Burns

2023-11-15 12:18:39 UTC

Post by Graham J
The missing product is a 4G radio modem using Ethernet and PoE.

They're few and far between but they do exist, e.g. Netgear LB11xx
devices feature PoE with bridge mode, not weatherproof by itself though.

notya...@gmail.com

2023-11-16 11:58:53 UTC

SNIP

Post by Graham J

Post by Peter
The advantage of using this is that you don't need power to it, and
with a USB extension cable you can hang the USB modem up in a tree or
some such if you have poor signal.

Outside a window in a plastic bag.

Post by Graham J
[snip]
The maximum length for a USB cable is sometimes claimed to be 25 metres,
but in reality is probably no more than 3 metres. It depends on the
cable quality.

for USB2 10m theoretically, 5m recommended. Topped out at about 7-8m from my net-book.

Post by Graham J
The missing product is a 4G radio modem using Ethernet and PoE. If
combined with a router providing PoE on its Ethernet WAN port then the
modem could be placed up to 100 metres away, using Ethernet cable that
is specified for that distance, and outdoor use. If the device is in a
waterproof housing it would be suitable for outdoor use - at the top of
a tall pole, for example.

Teltonika 4G modem has ethernet connection, not sure if it is PoE. We used this in a difficult location (railway arch) in 2018/19, with the modem near the entrance and an aerial just outside.

Post by Graham J
I'm aware that there are routers containing a 4G radio modem - sometimes
in waterproof housings - but that's not very useful if you need the
features of a fully fledged router (LAN-LAN VPN endpoint, monitoring,
management, etc.) such as a Draytek. Sadly this is only necessary
because 3G/4G/5G signals are only available in towns, not in properly
rural areas.

Many Draytek routers going back over a decade support having a 3/4/5G USB modem connection to the net - usually as a back-up.

Post by Graham J
--
Graham J

Graham J

2023-11-16 12:08:12 UTC

***@gmail.com wrote:

[snip]

Post by ***@gmail.com
Teltonika 4G modem has ethernet connection, not sure if it is PoE. We used this in a difficult location (railway arch) in 2018/19, with the modem near the entrance and an aerial just outside.

[snip]

Yes, I've used one. Problem is that the modem contains the SIM card,
and if this needs to be changed it's on a 10 metre pole atop a 30 metre
high barn roof, so needs a cherry picker and operator to gain access.

--
Graham J

notya...@gmail.com

2023-11-17 17:06:02 UTC

Post by Graham J
[snip]

Teltonika 4G modem has ethernet connection, not sure if it is PoE. We used this in a difficult location (railway arch) in 2018/19, with the modem near the entrance and an aerial just outside.

[snip]
Yes, I've used one. Problem is that the modem contains the SIM card,
and if this needs to be changed it's on a 10 metre pole atop a 30 metre
high barn roof, so needs a cherry picker and operator to gain access.

Ah this one is / was high up so as to be near the outside aerial, but can be reached with step ladders.

Wot no pole dismount mechanism?

Post by Graham J
--
Graham J

Marco Moock

2023-11-13 11:24:04 UTC

Post by Tim+
My Pixel 6 phone has a setting for Ethernet tethering so I think it
should work with a usb c to Ethernet adaptors plugged into my
router.

Tethering means your phone is the NIC and is connected via USB to your
computer.

You can't connect that adapter to it.

You can't also just bridge it because your router still announces
routes to your wired ISP and your computers will then have multiple
routes.

Tim+

2023-11-13 11:34:14 UTC

Post by Marco Moock

Post by Tim+
My Pixel 6 phone has a setting for Ethernet tethering so I think it
should work with a usb c to Ethernet adaptors plugged into my
router.

Tethering means your phone is the NIC and is connected via USB to your
computer.
You can't connect that adapter to it.

Well I’ll tell you when he adaptor arrives later today.

Don’t have any need for it now having discovered that my router allows me
to use my phone as a USB tethered modem.

Tim

--
Please don't feed the trolls

Tim+

2023-11-13 17:19:56 UTC