Question

I got a RUTX50 today and am trying to get it locked onto my 5G cell, which is a little distance away.

When I select 5G Only operating mode, it does not work - this is likely because in the UK we only have NSA 5G, which relies on a 4G anchor.

I have historically achieved cell locking using gsmctl, however, when I use the 'gsmctl -I' command to show neighbouring cells, I only see 4G cells.

Additionally, I do know the EARFCN/PCID of my cell from my phone, but using 'gsmctl -A' to lock the cell just returns ERROR.

Is there a new syntax to use with gsmctl when working with 5G masts? Thanks in advance.

Answer 1

Hello,

Thank you for reaching out!

When I select 5G Only operating mode, it does not work - this is likely because in the UK we only have NSA 5G, which relies on a 4G anchor.

That is correct. For now, most of the carriers are using 5G NSA technology, which relies on 4G infrastructure. So setting the router to '5G only' mode will force it to connect to 5G SA cells, which as I understand are non-existent in your area.

Additionally, I do know the EARFCN/PCID of my cell from my phone, but using 'gsmctl -A' to lock the cell just returns ERROR.

For now, there seems to be no way to lock onto a 5G NSA cell, as Quectel has not yet added a command for NSA-mode locking for 5G modems.
The only real way to try to lock onto a cell would be by using the band-lock feature, setting service mode to 4G + 5G, and selecting the band(-s), that are only available on the desired 5G mast.

Let me know if there is anything else I can help with!

Best regards,

DaumantasG