Introduction
The Cisco LoRaWAN Gateway is one of the Cisco Internet of Things (IoT) extension module series. It can be connected to the Cisco 809 and 829 Industrial Integrated Services Routers (IR800 series) for virtual mode or standalone for low-power wide-area (LPWA) access and is positioned as a carrier-grade gateway for outdoor deployment, including harsh environments. It adds a ruggedized remote LoRaWAN radio modem interface to create a gateway between the Cisco Field Network Director and a partner’s LoRa network server.
Note |
Currently, Cisco LoRa IXM only supports Actility’s proprietary “Packet Forwarder”, long range relay (LRR), in production. This release will add support of Common Packet Forwarder (CPF). CPF will enable LoRaWAN gateway as an open platform to operate with the open source LoRa Network Servers. CPF is pre-installed in the latest software image of IXM and can be managed via CLI from IXM. The Basic Station (Station for short), an implementation of the LoRa packet forwarder, has been officially released and supported by Semtech. For more details, refer to https://doc.sm.tc/station/. |
Note |
The Cisco LoRaWAN Gateway was previously named Cisco LoRaWAN Interface Module. |
There are two LoRaWAN gateway modes as below:
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Virtual interface mode – IR800 series including the LoRaWAN module as a virtual interface
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Standalone mode – The LoRaWAN module working alone as an Ethernet backhaul gateway
You can configure the LoRaWAN IXM running on virtual interface mode or standalone mode through CLI or IoT FND. For more information, see the Cisco Wireless Gateway for LoRaWAN Software Configuration Guide.
Note |
The Common Packet Forwarder (CPF) feature is only supported in standalone mode. |
System Requirements
Hardware Supported
Model No. |
Description |
---|---|
IXM-LPWA-800-16-K9 |
Cisco LoRaWAN Gateway, IoT extension module series, radio spectrum from 863–870 MHz, 16 LoRa channels, IP67 |
IXM-LPWA-900-16-K9 |
Cisco LoRaWAN Gateway, IoT extension module series, radio spectrum from 902–928 MHz, 16 LoRa channels, IP67 |
Software Images
Filename |
Description |
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ixm_mdm_i_k9-2.1.0.2.tar.gz |
Cisco LoRaWAN Gateway OS Image Version 2.1.0.2 with Semtech Basic Station Release Version 2.0.5 FPGA Version 61 HAL Version 5.1.0 |
Installation of a New Software Release
For both standalone mode and virtual mode, after you upgrade the LoRaWAN gateway to Release 2.0.30, you can only downgrade to Release 2.0.20. Downgrading to releases earlier than 2.0.20 is not supported. For example, from Release 2.0.30 to Release 2.0.11, or from Release 2.0.30 to Release 2.0.10, is not supported..
To upgrade to Release2.0.x, any older versions must first be upgraded to Release 1.0.20. For example, Release 1.0.4, 1.0.5, or 1.0.6 has to be upgraded to 1.0.20 first and then upgraded to Release 2.0.x. From 2.0.x, the gateway can be upgraded to 2.1.0.2.
Firmware Upgrade From Standalone Mode
Note |
We assume that you have the latest FPGA v61. If you have loaded any recent release on the IXM, use the show inventory command to check the FPGA status. If the FPGA version is not 61, upgrade first with an image that has FPGA v61. Refer to the release support matrix on various FPGA version and LRR version support. |
Follow these steps to install a new software image on the standalone mode LoRaWAN Gateway:
Procedure
Step 1 |
Log into the Cisco LoRaWAN Gateway through the console port, or SSH if configured.
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Step 2 |
Check the current version before upgrade. Example:
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Step 3 |
Download the image file to the Cisco LoRaWAN Gateway from a TFTP server or from a USB device, and install the image.
Use the following command to download and install the firmware.
Example:
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Step 4 |
After the image is installed successfully, verify the status. Example:
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Step 5 |
Check the FPGA status using the following command: Example:
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Virtual Mode Installation
Note |
Before upgrading to Release 2.0.x from Release 1.0.x, make sure you have the FPGA v58 properly installed. The FPGA upgrade will be triggered once the IXM boots up with the image version 1.0.20. After 10 - 15 minutes, you can use the following command to check the FPGA version. Do not install the packet forwarder software or perform radio related configuration while the FPGA is upgrading or downgrading. |
IR829_1#show virtual-lpwa 3 modem info
Name : Virtual-LPWA 3
ModemImageVer : 2.1.0.2
BootloaderVer : 20180130_cisco
ModemAgentVer : 1.02
SerialNumber : FOC23126GDH
PID : IXM-LPWA-800-16-K9
UTCTime : 02:16:14.332 UTC Wed Aug 19 2020
IPv4Address : 192.168.100.2
IPv6Address : none
FPGAVersion : 61
TimeZone : PDT
LocalTime : Tue Aug 18 19:16:14 PDT 2020
ACT2 Authentication : PASS
ModemVersionID : V01
ProtocolVersion : 2
ChipID : LSB = 0x306b0a14 MSB = 0x00f14200
LoRaSerialNumber : FOC22433QLK
LoRaCalc : <135,122,114,106,98,94,90,86,77,69,60,52,43,39,35,31-142,130,122,114,106,102,98,94,85,77,69,60,52,48,44,40>
CalTempCelsius : 40
CalTempCodeAD9361 : 97
RSSIOffset : -202.16,-202.99
AESKey : Unknown
IR829_1#
Follow this procedure to upgrade to Release 2.1.0.2:
Procedure
Step 1 |
Log in to the IR809 or IR829 system with terminal through SSH or Console. |
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Step 2 |
Copy the image file into IR809 or IR829 from your host, and the image will be stored in flash. Example:
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Step 3 |
(Optional) If you are upgrading from an older version to Release 1.0.20, the upgrade will result in updating the FPGA to version 61. After upgrading the image, no action should be taken while the FPGA is upgrading. You must wait until you get the upgrade status of Ready, as the following example shows. Example:
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Step 4 |
Upgrade the firmware to Release 2.1.0.2 using the following factory install CLI:
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Step 5 |
After the image is installed successfully, verify the status. As shown in the following output, ModemImageVer has been updated, but BootloaderVer remains the same. Example:
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Step 6 |
Upgrade the firmware to Release 2.1.0.2 using the same CLI with uboot or uboot-only option:
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Step 7 |
After the image is installed successfully, verify the status. You will find from the output that both ModemImageVer and BootloaderVer have been upgraded. Example:
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Switching Between Standalone Mode and Virtual Mode
When the LoRaWAN gateway is in standalone mode, use the switchover EXEC command to switch to the virtual mode.
#switchover
You can switch the LoRaWAN gateway from virtual mode to standalone mode through IR8x9, using the following command.
IR800#virtual-lpwa 1 modem standalone mode enable
New and Changed Information
This section contains new and changed information for this release.
New Features In This Release
The following new features are introduced in this release:
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Common Packet Forwarder (CPF) on IXM standalone mode.
Note
The CPF feature is intended to operate only when a GPS fix is actively available or has been stored from an earlier fix. The location derived from the GPS fix must be in one of the countries listed in the table below. If not, the radio will not turn on.
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Semtech Basic Station Mode to interoperate with LoRaWAN Network Server (LNS) implementing the corresponding backend side.
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Class B device is supported in CPF on IXM in standalone mode.
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Plug-n-Play (PnP) is supported for IXM provisioning (for example, Cisco PnP cloud).
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GPS check for verification of channel plans is also included in this release. Countries supported by this GPS check include:
Code
Name
Channel plan
AL
Albania
EU868
AD
Andorra
EU868
AM
Armenia
EU868
AR
Argentina
AU915-928
AT
Austria
EU868
AU
Australia
AU915 (default) AS923
AZ
Azerbaijan
EU868
BY
Belarus
EU868
BE
Belgium
EU868
BA
Bosnia
EU868
BN
Brunei
EU868
BG
Bulgaria
EU868
KH
Cambodia
EU868
CA
Canada
US915 (default) AU915
CN
China
AS923
HR
Croatia
EU868
CY
Cyprus
EU868
CZ
Czech Republic
EU868
DK
Denmark
EU868
EE
Estonia
EU868
FI
Finland
EU868
FR
France
EU868
DE
Germany
EU868
GR
Greece
EU868
HK
Hongkong
EU868
HU
Hungary
EU868
IS
Iceland
EU868
IE
Ireland
EU868
IN
India
IN865
IT
Italy
EU868
JP
Japan
AS923
LA
Laos
EU868
LV
Latvia
EU868
LI
Liechtenstein
EU868
LT
Lithuania
EU868
LU
Luxembourg
EU868
MK
Macedonia
EU868
MY
Malaysia
EU868
MX
Mexico
US915
MD
Moldova
EU868
ME
Montenegro
EU868
NL
Netherlands
EU868
NZ
New Zealand
AS923 AU915
NO
Norway
EU868
PL
Poland
EU868
PT
Portugal
EU868
PR
Puerto Rico
US915
RO
Romania
EU868
RS
Serbia
EU868
RU
Russia
RU864
SG
Singapore
EU868
SK
Slovakia
EU868
SI
Slovenia
EU868
ZA
South Africa
EU868
ES
Spain
EU868
SE
Sweden
EU868
CH
Switzerland
EU868
TH
Thailand
EU868
TR
Turkey
EU868
GB
United Kingdom
EU868
UA
Ukraine
EU868
US
United States
US915 (default) AU915
VA
Vatican City
EU868
VN
Vietnam
EU868
Note |
New Commands In This Release
This section contains new commands in this release.
Standalone Mode Commands
The following table provides the standalone mode commands.
Command |
Purpose |
---|---|
clock gpstime enable |
Enables the GPS as the modem clock source. Executed from global configuration prompt. |
pki secure-storage reset |
Resets secure storage infrastructure for certificate download in releases 2.1.0.2 and prior. Run this command on the 2.1.0.2 image and downgrade to the prior images. Executed from the Exec prompt. |
Common-Packet-Forwarder (CPF) Commands
The following table provides the Common-Packet-Forwarder (CPF) Exec commands (executed from # prompt):
Command |
Purpose |
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common-pack-forwarder cert install gw path-to-cert path-to-key |
Install IXM gateway's certification and key (mandatory if auth-mode is client-server): path-to-cert – file path to the gateway’s cert path-to-key – file path to the gateway’s key
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common-pack-forwarder cert install srv path-to-cert |
Install IXM LNS’ CA certificate (mandatory if auth-mode is other than none): path-to-cert – file path to the LNS’ CA cert
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common-pack-forwarder cert erase gw |
Erase IXM LoRa gateway's certification and key. |
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common-pack-forwarder cert erase srv |
Erase LNS server's certification. |
The following table provides the Common-Packet-Forwarder profile configuration commands.
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Type “configure terminal” at the exec prompt.
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Type “common-packet-forwarder profile” at the global configuration prompt.
Command |
Purpose |
---|---|
ipaddr ip-address port port |
Configure network server IP address and port. ip-address – Network server IP address port – Network server port number |
auth-mode mode |
Authentication mode.
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gps enable |
Enable CPF to utilize GPS signal. |
aeskey key |
Configure AES key used for CPF. key – AES key used for CPF |
gatewayid gateway-id |
Configure gateway id used for CPF. gateway-id – Gateway ID used for CPF |
antenna antenna-number type antenna-type gain antenna-gain loss cable-loss |
Configure individual antenna properties. antenna-number – Antenna ID <1,2> antenna-type – Antenna type <omni, sector> antenna-gain – Antenna gain cable-loss – Cable loss |
region-cp lora-region-name |
Configure LoRa region channel plan code: EU868, US915, AU915, AS923, IN865, RU864. lora-region-name – LoRa region code name (optional if default one is used) |
board-bw bandwidth |
bandwidth – Manually setup the board rx bandwidth if you need to change the default. |
board-freq freq |
freq – Manually setup the board rx frequency if you need to change the default. |
tls-sni enable |
enable – Connect to LNS to compare the configured LNS server name with the one embedded in the LNS server's certificate. |
cpf enable |
Start the CPF. If prompted about a Smart License, answer "yes". |
exit |
Exits the CPF profile block and updates the configuration. |
exit |
Exits the global configuration mode. |
Show and Debug Commands
Command |
Purpose |
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show common-packet-forwarder info |
(Optional) Show CPF configuration and information. |
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show common-packet-forwarder status |
(Optional) Show current state of CPF and if registration with NS was successful. |
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show common-packet-forwarder log list |
(Optional) List available log options such as CPF configuration or trace. |
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show common-packet-forwarder log name trace number-of-lines |
(Optional) Display the CPF trace log. number-of-lines – Number of lines in log to display from end of file. |
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show common-packet-forwarder log name config number-of-lines |
(Optional) Display the current CPF configuration. number-of-lines – Number of lines in config to display from end of file. |
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debug cpf |
(Optional) Change CPF trace log level to “DEBUG”.
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IXM#show running-config
!
hostname IXM
!
interface FastEthernet 0/1
ip address dhcp
exit
!
common-packet-forwarder profile
ipaddr 172.27.166.13 port 6090
gps enable
gatewayid 0000000000000001
auth-mode client-server
cpf enable
exit
IXM#
Plug-n-Play (PnP) Commands
The following table provides the Plug-n-Play (PnP) commands.
Command |
Purpose |
---|---|
pnp enable |
Start the PnP agent. |
pnp disable |
Stop the PnP agent. |
show pnp profiles |
(Optional) Show PnP version. |
show pnp status |
(Optional) Show PnP status. |
show pnp log name trace number-of-lines |
(Optional) Display the PnP trace log. number-of-lines – Number of lines in the log to display from end of file. |
Known Issues
This section contains the known issues in this release.
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Problem: Container logging takes about 40 seconds to configure for the first time.
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Problem: Starting the packet forwarder takes about 30 seconds for the first time.
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Problem: On downgrade from 2.1.0.2 to images 2.0.32 and prior, installed certificates disappear, or after downgrade to 2.0.32, certificates do not persist.
Workaround:
-
Certificates will safely remain in secure-storage and will show up again once the device is upgraded to an image later than Release 2.0.32.
-
Standalone mode only—If you want to download new certificates in images 2.0.32 and earlier, run the command pki secure-storage reset (in release 2.1.0.2) to clean secure-storage beforehand. Then, downgrade the image.
Note
Using this procedure deletes all certificates currently stored on the device.
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Problem: For 2.1.0.2 image,when falling back to backup image due to the boot failures (which is very rare), installed certificates disappear.
Workaround:When upgrading from 2.0.32 or prior to 2.1.0.2 with /normal option, you need to upgrade it TWICE, which will synchronize the primary and backup images to the same version. Same method applies to the downgrading from 2.1.0.2 to 2.0.32 or prior as well to keep the primary and backup images in sync.
If upgrading or downgrading with /factory option, you don’t need to do the same. The primary image and backup images are already synchronized.
Caveats
You can use the Bug Search Tool to find information about caveats, including a description of the problems and available workarounds. The Bug Search Tool lists both open and resolved caveats.
To use the Bug Search Tool:
-
Log in with your Cisco.com user ID and password.
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Enter information in the Search For, Product, and Releases field as needed, then press Enter.
For more information about the Bug Search Tool, click Help on the main Bug Search Tool page.
Open Caveats
This section contains open caveats for this release.
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CSCvv45171
Symptom: After the common packet forwarder (CPF) is enabled and the connection to LoRa network server is not ready, the CPF log repeatedly shows “[S2E:ERRO] Failed to send gps event, no buffer space” messages.
Workaround: Fix the connection issue. The messages do not affect the functionalities of CPF.
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CSCvv95216
Symptom: Setting "user" as a username using "username user password xxxx" will cause the following two issues:
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Inability to login to the container.
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If you issue config ntp, the following messages appear in the console: "Starting ntpd: FAIL" and "ntpq: read: Connection refused"
Only "user" causes this issue. Other usernames, for example "user1", "user2", "cisco" are OK to use.
Workaround: Do a factory reset.
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Related Documentation
These documents provide detailed information about the Cisco LoRaWAN Gateway and are available at: www.cisco.com/go/lorawanmodule