Remotely accessing the MH Wifi

[lonnie]

After a long search, I couldn't find any other thread on this, so here goes....

Does anyone have any experience of accessing the mobile router in your van remotely?

I've recently bought a Viofo 3 channel dash cam and it has the ability to connect to WiFi. This means you can use rtsp to stream live video (using VLC) or download captured files using a browser.

The plan is to remotely access the cameras should there be any 'issues" when parked or stored.

This works fine in my lab (spare bedroom!) but I've stumbled across a problem when it goes into the moho. The plan was to set up port forwarding on the Huawei router to directly access the ip of the dash cam. However, I've found out today that the wan address of the router (with EE sim) isn't a true wan ip - it's actually shared by other routers. Apparanly EE use something called CGNAT so the standard NAT or DDNS approach won't work.

I have managed an alternative solution but its a bit 'Heath Robinson' and involves a raspberry pi, VPN, vnc and ftp!

I'd love to know if any funsters have successfully connected back in, maybe with a different carrier?

TIA, Martin

 

[Bessy765]

We use a Three prepaid data simm 24 gb lasts for up to 2 year through a Huawei router to monitor our lithium set up. Works fine so may well do what you require?

 

[Cairngorm]

Hi I have a slightly similar set up to you, but I use a Vodafone SIM card and I don’t seem to have problems with it.

 

[Two on Tour]

3 data sim in a Netgear Aircard 810s here, and no problems monitoring all the Victron gear, the fridge and freezer temperature sensors and remotely controlling our Chinese diesel heater.

 

[Coolcats]

I have a ring stick up cam in our MoHo it connects to the home WiFi

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[Martin How]

Firstly a slight disclaimer: I have never tried to do exactly this in a van (yet), but I have a lot of old scars from trying to manage a wide area network over fifteen sites using the best connectivity we could get, ranging from 3G and later 4G, ADSL that went out when the tide came in to commercial gigabit fibre. The aim was to have 24/7 access from either end. Mobile data and security/remote monitoring devices were always a challenge and the combination of the two particularly so.

Port forwarding over CGNAT will always fail. CGNAT is a technique that shares one ‘real’ IP address across multiple devices by somehow munging the Port Addresses. If you can set up all your devices to have an IP6 address port forwarding may work, as IP6 addresses are (in theory) always unique and routable. However, given the ability of ISP and mobile carriers in particular to break things I would not be holding my hopes very high. There are ISPs (Andrews & Arnold) who offer real mobile IP addressing but they are expensive, so probably not an option.

In practice I think you will need either a VPN or Secure Tunnel to make it reliable. I guess that the Huawei device is consumer grade equipment with none of this built in. So the choices are either to roll your own with a Raspberry Pi or similar or upgrade your internet access device to a more fully featured model. I have used Firebrick and Juniper devices in fixed base applications but they are expensive and fiddly to set up. Much as I love Raspberry Pi, Arduino, C++ and Linux maintainability could be a question to consider.

I have installed a Teltonica RUTX11 which has all sorts of goodies (L2TP, IPSec, OpenVPN) built in and has dual SIMs and Wi-Fi hotspot access, oh and a GPS receiver. It’s a commercial grade device intended for vehicle fleet operators needing to keep in touch with their vehicles and vehicle systems. I don’t have a need for the tunnelling features right now, but coupled with a Poynting MIMO antenna its ability to work without dropping out in very low signal areas is impressive and just what we need.

<Broken link removed>

Sorry if this is a long response but it’s a tricky area.

 

[eddie]

I have a couple of Blink camera's connected to the camper WiFi which is easy cheap and works very well

 

[Coolcats]

Teltonika produce some good kit you cant go far wrong with any of their products

 

[lonnie]

We use a Three prepaid data simm 24 gb lasts for up to 2 year through a Huawei router to monitor our lithium set up. Works fine so may well do what you require?

Hi I have a slightly similar set up to you, but I use a Vodafone SIM card and I don’t seem to have problems with it.

3 data sim in a Netgear Aircard 810s here, and no problems monitoring all the Victron gear, the fridge and freezer temperature sensors and remotely controlling our Chinese diesel heater.

Thanks all, I went with EE due to the claimed coverage but perhaps its time to look at the others!!

 

[lonnie]

I have a couple of Blink camera's connected to the camper WiFi which is easy cheap and works very well

Thanks Eddie, how do you access the cameras/ wifi when you're away from 'the beast'?

p.s. great service from the team last month when I was down at VanBitz!

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[lonnie]

I have a ring stick up cam in our MoHo it connects to the home WiFi

This would work for when when parked up at home but it's stored a few miles away.

 

[lonnie]

Firstly a slight disclaimer: I have never tried to do exactly this in a van (yet), but I have a lot of old scars from trying to manage a wide area network over fifteen sites using the best connectivity we could get, ranging from 3G and later 4G, ADSL that went out when the tide came in to commercial gigabit fibre. The aim was to have 24/7 access from either end. Mobile data and security/remote monitoring devices were always a challenge and the combination of the two particularly so.

Port forwarding over CGNAT will always fail. CGNAT is a technique that shares one ‘real’ IP address across multiple devices by somehow munging the Port Addresses. If you can set up all your devices to have an IP6 address port forwarding may work, as IP6 addresses are (in theory) always unique and routable. However, given the ability of ISP and mobile carriers in particular to break things I would not be holding my hopes very high. There are ISPs (Andrews & Arnold) who offer real mobile IP addressing but they are expensive, so probably not an option.

In practice I think you will need either a VPN or Secure Tunnel to make it reliable. I guess that the Huawei device is consumer grade equipment with none of this built in. So the choices are either to roll your own with a Raspberry Pi or similar or upgrade your internet access device to a more fully featured model. I have used Firebrick and Juniper devices in fixed base applications but they are expensive and fiddly to set up. Much as I love Raspberry Pi, Arduino, C++ and Linux maintainability could be a question to consider.

I have installed a Teltonica RUTX11 which has all sorts of goodies (L2TP, IPSec, OpenVPN) built in and has dual SIMs and Wi-Fi hotspot access, oh and a GPS receiver. It’s a commercial grade device intended for vehicle fleet operators needing to keep in touch with their vehicles and vehicle systems. I don’t have a need for the tunnelling features right now, but coupled with a Poynting MIMO antenna its ability to work without dropping out in very low signal areas is impressive and just what we need.

<Broken link removed>

Sorry if this is a long response but it’s a tricky area.

Please don't apologise for the response Martin; it's just what I need!

I looked at the Telonika stuff a while ago before I plumped for the Huawei - and that was only based on me just needing 4g/wifi in the moho. Had I foreseen my 'grand ideas' then with cameras and the Victron stuff I would have gone with Telonika. Probably need to wait for the Head of Finance to release next years' budget before I swap it out

 

[eddie]

Thanks Eddie, how do you access the cameras/ wifi when you're away from 'the beast'?

p.s. great service from the team last month when I was down at VanBitz!

I use mobile broadband in my house, which I take with me when we go away.

So I can access the Blink Camera's in the camper

 

[Lee Rasberry]

Hi Martin,

Your question piqued my interest so I thought I'd ask my tech contacts at Teltonika how you could do it with a RUTX11. They said the easiest way would be to use a VPN such as:

Teltonika RMS: https://wiki.teltonika-networks.com/view/VPN_Hubs
ZeroTier: https://wiki.teltonika-networks.com/view/ZeroTier_Configuration
WireGuard: https://wiki.teltonika-networks.com/view/WireGuard_Configuration_Example

The Youtube video link is particularly useful. Unfortunately I've got no experience with the Huawei routers so not sure if you can use ZeroTier or WireGuard with them.

Lee

 

[Figaro]

I'm sure it would be a whole lot easier to just use a blink / baby monitor camera as already suggested.
It connects to Moho wifi. Download the app that goes with it then you can connect from your home broadband or mobile wifi on your phone.
Simple and effective with no need to change settings

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[Guigsy]

The reason some people have issues and some don't, it depends on the devices, not the network.

Smarter devices like the Blink cameras connect to a remote server. When you want to view your cameras, your app contacts the server, which then forwards on the video. The connection to the outside world is being made by the device.

Other devices are not so smart. They don't broadcast where they are, they just expect you to come to them and contact them directly. If it was on your home WiFi, you'd have an externally visible (although probably dynamic) IP address, so with some port forwarding, you can call from outside in. But with many mobile connections, it's not possible because the mobile operators network designs means this isn't possible. You can't be contacted with just an IP address. The solution is to create a VPN tunnel out from your van. But that requires further hardware like a Raspberry Pi, or a router with the capability built in... it also requires a fair bit more IT smarts.

 

[ceejayt]

I have a couple of Blink camera's connected to the camper WiFi which is easy cheap and works very well

I have the same - easy and works well. Access it from anywhere including my mobile

 

[Orion]

I looked at the Telonika stuff a while ago before I plumped for the Huawei - and that was only based on me just needing 4g/wifi in the moho. Had I foreseen my 'grand ideas' then with cameras and the Victron stuff I would have gone with Telonika. Probably need to wait for the Head of Finance to release next years' budget before I swap it out

The Teltonika routers can be had for very competitive pricing from eBay seller eurodk-uk, based in Latvia but selling as a U.K. supplier. I recently purchased the RUTX12 twin SIM, twin modem router, for a total cost of £317.80 inclusive of VAT and delivery.

 

[lonnie]

I'm sure it would be a whole lot easier to just use a blink / baby monitor camera as already suggested.
It connects to Moho wifi. Download the app that goes with it then you can connect from your home broadband or mobile wifi on your phone.
Simple and effective with no need to change settings

Thanks Figaro, my assumption with the blinks etc is that they 'push' the video out through the moho wifi to be viewed on the app. Which obviously works fine for many.

My challenge has really come about by wanting to stretch the streaming/ wifi station capabilities of the dash cam. I.e., I bought it as a dash cam primarily then remotely accessing it as the 'cherry on the cake'!

 

[lonnie]

Hi Martin,

Your question piqued my interest so I thought I'd ask my tech contacts at Teltonika how you could do it with a RUTX11. They said the easiest way would be to use a VPN such as:

Teltonika RMS: https://wiki.teltonika-networks.com/view/VPN_Hubs
ZeroTier: https://wiki.teltonika-networks.com/view/ZeroTier_Configuration
WireGuard: https://wiki.teltonika-networks.com/view/WireGuard_Configuration_Example

The Youtube video link is particularly useful. Unfortunately I've got no experience with the Huawei routers so not sure if you can use ZeroTier or WireGuard with them.

Lee

Really useful, thanks Lee.

Zerotier figures as the VPN in my 'Heath Robinson' solution and really like the Telonika kit so will have another look when more funds become available

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[lonnie]

The reason some people have issues and some don't, it depends on the devices, not the network.

Smarter devices like the Blink cameras connect to a remote server. When you want to view your cameras, your app contacts the server, which then forwards on the video. The connection to the outside world is being made by the device.

Other devices are not so smart. They don't broadcast where they are, they just expect you to come to them and contact them directly. If it was on your home WiFi, you'd have an externally visible (although probably dynamic) IP address, so with some port forwarding, you can call from outside in. But with many mobile connections, it's not possible because the mobile operators network designs means this isn't possible. You can't be contacted with just an IP address. The solution is to create a VPN tunnel out from your van. But that requires further hardware like a Raspberry Pi, or a router with the capability built in... it also requires a fair bit more IT smarts.

Thanks Guisy, you've summed up my challenge perfectly!

If other operators (Three, Vodo) have a true wan ip as others have suggested then this would solve my problem as a port forward on the Huawei router would give me direct rtsp access to the dash cam.

If not, then I can then use Real VNC via VPN (Zerotier) to a Ras Pi running VLC to access the dashcam - that is the 'Heath Robinson' solution that works really well on my home wifi but yet to be tested out in the real world!!!

 

[lonnie]

The Teltonika routers can be had for very competitive pricing from eBay seller eurodk-uk, based in Latvia but selling as a U.K. supplier. I recently purchased the RUTX12 twin SIM, twin modem router, for a total cost of £317.80 inclusive of VAT and delivery.

I'll keep my eye on them one more funds become available

 

[Figaro]

Thanks Figaro, my assumption with the blinks etc is that they 'push' the video out through the moho wifi to be viewed on the app. Which obviously works fine for many.

My challenge has really come about by wanting to stretch the streaming/ wifi station capabilities of the dash cam. I.e., I bought it as a dash cam primarily then remotely accessing it as the 'cherry on the cake'!

Not knowing a lot about the tech side of wifi, I'm not sure what you mean by `push` the video out ? How will your set up differ ?

 

[lonnie]

Thanks everyone for your responses today - this forum is so much healthier than all these Facebook groups

My plan of attack following your feedback;

1. Try a Three/ Voda sim in the Huawei router to see if I can access its wan IP and port forward to the dash cam
2. If that doesnt work, try my Heath Robinson approach in the wild
3. When funds allow, look at Teltonika kit to see what extra that could bring

Thanks for all the Blink suggestions but as I said above, the main aim was to get a dashcam installed then see how much I could 'sweat it'.

Thanks Everyone and merry Christmas!

 

[eddie]

Thanks everyone for your responses today - this forum is so much healthier than all this Facebook groups

My plan of attack following your feedback;

1. Try a Three/ Voda sim in the Huawei router to see if I can access its wan IP and port forward to the dash cam
2. If that doesnt work, try my Heath Robinson approach in the wild
3. When funds allow, look at Telefonika kit to see what extra that could bring

Thanks for all the Blink suggestions but as I said above, the main aim was to get a dashcam installed then see how much I could 'sweat it'.

Thanks Everyone and merry Chhristmas!

Stick a Blink in the windscreen

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[lonnie]

Stick a Blink in the windscreen

I've bought the bloody thing now!!!

 

[Coastal Cruiser.]

Use Windows to keep an eye on my van.


Either the front bedroom or office window is a good view

Regarding the other, not got a Scooby what if all means

 

[lonnie]

Not knowing a lot about the tech side of wifi, I'm not sure what you mean by `push` the video out ? How will your set up differ ?

In basic terms, and if I understand correctly, the data from your camera is flowing out of your van to a known internet location in the cloud (Blink's server) where you an access it via an app (or browser?).

What I'm trying to do, is access the dash cam from outside the van to see a live stream or recorded files. The problem I have is that the 'address' that EE provides on my router isn't unique so I can't get a clear path to the dash cam. I'm going to try Three/ Voda as others have said this works for them.

Plan A: Laptop > Huawei Router > Dash Cam
Plan B: Laptop > VPN > Raspberry Pi > Dash Cam
Plan C: Throw it all away and buy some Blinks

 

[lonnie]

Use Windows to keep an eye on my van.


Either the front bedroom or office window is a good view

Regarding the other, not got a Scooby what if all means

Haha, you're very lucky, I wish ours was as close!

When not in use, it's stuck on a farm 10 miles away!

 

[Figaro]

if I understand correctly, the data from your camera is flowing out of your van to a known internet location in the cloud (Blink's server) where you an access it via an app (or browser?).

I had never really thought about it to that level. As far as I know it's in standby until accessed remotely, ie not using data continuously.
But then again I could be mistaken, I'll check at next opportunity

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