Configuration Tips for AirVantage

We've included some configuration tips to help when connecting to AirVantage, if you haven't registered your device yet follow the steps in Register a Target on AirVantage and AirVantage Getting Started.

Check Running Services

The AirVantage Connector (avcService) relies on the data connection services (dataConnectionService) for network connectivity. The data connection service is in turn relies on the modem service (modemService) and the cellnet service (cellNetService). Before you can connect to AirVantage, check that the avcService, dataConnectionService, modemService and cellNetService are running.

Command: app status

Example:

# app status

[running] atAirVantage
[running] atQmiLinker
[running] atService
[running] audioService
[running] avcCompat
[running] avcService
[running] cellNetService
[running] dataConnectionService
[running] fwupdateService
[running] gpioService
[running] modemService
[running] positioningService
[running] powerMgr
[running] secStore
[stopped] smsInboxService
[stopped] spiService
[stopped] tools
[stopped] voiceCallService
[stopped] wifi
[stopped] wifiApTest
[stopped] wifiClientTest
[running] wifiService
[stopped] wifiWebAp

If you are running into errors, check what IPC bindings are needed for the avcService use the sdir tool.

# sdir list         #  list of all the IPC services known by the Service Directory

Check the Data Connection

The dataConnectionService can be used to connect to WiFi or the Cellular network. If all WIFI related services are stopped the dataConnectionService will default to the Cellular Network. To connect to cellular network we need to make sure that the SIM is registered to the network and the signal strength is good.

Command: cm radio

Example:

cm radio

Power: ON
Current Network Operator: BLOGS
RAT: UMTS network (LE_MRC_RAT_UMTS)
Status: Registered, home network (LE_MRC_REG_HOME)
Signal: Strong signal strength (4)
PS: Packet Switched Registered, home network (LE_MRC_REG_HOME)

The SIM is registered and has a strong signal strength on the UMTS network.

To make sure there is an Access Point Name (APN) set up for data connectivity:

Command: cm data

Example:

# cm data

Index: 1
APN: sp.blogs.com
PDP Type: IPV4
Connected: no

AirVantage server only supports IPV4 for PDP. If your PDP connection is not using IPV4 you can change it with the following:

Command: cm data pdp IPV4

Check the IP Address

To establish a data connection, make sure the data connection is established, and an IP address can be obtained.

Command: cm data connect

Example:

# cm data connect

Setting up profile 1
Setting access point name ... ok
Setting packet data protocol ... ok
Setting Authentication ... ok
Connecting ... ok
Checking if device is up ... ok
Routing ... ok
Updating /etc/resolv.conf ... ok
Updating /etc/resolv.conf ... ok
Testing connection ... ok

From the above output the device is currently using profile 1 which is the APN (sp.blogs.com) and that the routing table is ok. Verify the IP address with the following command.

Command: cm data

Example:

# cm data

Index: 1
APN: sp.blogs.com
PDP Type: IPV4
Connected: yes
Interface: rmnet0
Family: inet
IP: 123.345.567.789
Gateway: 123.1.1.1
Dns1: 123.123.123.123
Dns2: 123.123.123.321

Check Network Connections

You should now be able to ping the outside world.

Example:

# ping google.com
PING google.com (216.58.193.78) 56(84) bytes of data.
64 bytes from sea15s07-in-f14.1e100.net (216.58.193.78): icmp_seq=1 ttl=54 time=6.19 ms
64 bytes from sea15s07-in-f14.1e100.net (216.58.193.78): icmp_seq=2 ttl=54 time=9.55 ms
64 bytes from sea15s07-in-f14.1e100.net (216.58.193.78): icmp_seq=3 ttl=54 time=6.07 ms
64 bytes from sea15s07-in-f14.1e100.net (216.58.193.78): icmp_seq=4 ttl=54 time=5.73 ms
64 bytes from sea15s07-in-f14.1e100.net (216.58.193.78): icmp_seq=5 ttl=54 time=19.3 ms
64 bytes from sea15s07-in-f14.1e100.net (216.58.193.78): icmp_seq=6 ttl=54 time=5.80 ms

Ping the AirVantage bootstrap server.

# ping bs.airvantage.net
PING bs.airvantage.net (52.24.215.63): 56 data bytes
64 bytes from 52.24.215.63: seq=0 ttl=234 time=269.007 ms
64 bytes from 52.24.215.63: seq=1 ttl=234 time=258.111 ms
64 bytes from 52.24.215.63: seq=2 ttl=234 time=707.798 ms
64 bytes from 52.24.215.63: seq=3 ttl=234 time=237.510 ms
64 bytes from 52.24.215.63: seq=4 ttl=234 time=246.483 ms

Connect to the AirVantage Server

At this point the target is ready to be connected to the AirVantage Server. Use the api le_avc_StartSession() to start a session or use the at command to connect the device to AirVantage.

Steps to connect to the AirVantage Server with AT commands:

  • ssh to device: ssh 192.168.2.2
  • open an AT connection: microcom -E /dev/ttyAT
  • enable all notification: at+wdsi=4479
  • connect to the AirVantage Server: at+wdss=1,1

Example for WPX5XX/WP76XX/FX30 Customers:

# microcom -E /dev/ttyAT
at+wdsi=4479  # activates all AirVantage Server notifications
OK
at+wdss=1,1   # starts a connection to the AirVantage Server
OK
+WDSI: 4      # displays the current state of authentication notification
+WDSI: 6      # displays that the session has succeeded and has started
+WDSI: 23,1   # displays that the target has successfully connected to the AirVantage Service

For information on AT Commands download the AT Command Reference from your module provider.

AirPrime WPX5XX/WP76XX AT Command Reference

If you check on the AirVantage Web Admin Console you will see that the "Comm. Status" should be green and the Last Seen should indicate very recent.

Configure Frequency of Connections

Within your Polling Timer, Hearbeat and Lifetime are all set the same and indicate how frequently the device connects to the AirVantage server.

The Polling Timer can be enabled by setting it to a non-zero value either with le_avc_SetPollingTimer(), or by using the following AT commands:

Example of setting the polling timer to 1 minute.

# microcom /dev/ttyAT
at+wdsc=3,1           # 3 specifies the polling timer, and 1 sets the number of minutes
OK

Retry timers are built into the AVC API to build resiliency into the system.

Example Scenario: Let's say we set the polling timer to connect to the server every 24 hours. The mobile device may be in an area where there is a network loss that happens everyday and prevents the target from connecting. The device will never be able to establish a connection to the AirVantage Server in this case because it's trying to connect to server only when there is no network. To prevent this Retry timers should be set at a variety of times enabling a greater chance of strong network connections.

Retry Timers can be initiated by using either le_avc_StartSession() or by setting the polling timer. If the session fails, the retry timers can use up to 8 attempts to connect back to the AirVantage server.

The retry timer can be set using le_avc_SetRetryTimers() or by using the following AT commands:

Example of setting the retry timer:

# microcom /dev/ttyAT
at+wdsc=4,15,60,240,480,1440,2880,0,0  # 4 specifies the retry timer
OK

Above command indicates that a retry will be attempted retried after 15 minutes, 1 hour, 4 hours, 8 hours, 1 day and 2 days, the last two retries are disabled.