LTE/5G

LTE/5G

The LTE/5G interface in RouterOS provides comprehensive cellular connectivity for MikroTik devices. This guide covers configuration, monitoring, and troubleshooting for LTE/4G/5G modems integrated into MikroTik hardware or connected via USB.

Quick Setup Example

A basic LTE/5G setup requires minimal configuration for most carriers:

# Create APN profile
/interface lte apn add apn=internet name=my-apn

# Create LTE interface
/interface lte add lte-name=lte1 apn-profiles=my-apn

# Verify connection
/interface lte monitor [find]

Expected output:

     pin-status: ok
   registration-state: registered
         operator: 310410
     lac: c000
       ci: 00001037
    ip: 10.100.13.145
    ip6: 2001:db8::2
      gateway: 10.100.13.146
      pdp-context: active
           rssi: -75
          rsrp: -92
          rsrq: -10
           sinr: 12

Interface Configuration

Sub-menu: /interface lte

The LTE interface is the primary configuration point for cellular connections. View available interfaces:

/interface lte print

Properties

Property	Description
name	Interface name (system-assigned by default)
lte-name	Custom LTE interface name
apn-profiles	APN profile to use
network-mode	Allowed network types
band	Allowed LTE bands
allow-roaming	Enable/disable roaming
pin-insert	PIN code for SIM
disabled	Enable/disable interface
mtu	Maximum Transmission Unit

Network Modes

Configure which network types the modem should use:

/interface lte set [find] network-mode=4g+3g+2g

Available modes:

• 3g - UMTS/HSPA only
• 4g - LTE only
• 3g+4g - Automatic 3G/4G selection
• 4g+3g+2g - Full automatic mode
• 5g - 5G NR (supported hardware only)
• 5g+4g+3g+2g - Full automatic with 5G

Caution

5G requires RouterOS v7 and compatible hardware. Not all LTE modems support 5G even if the option appears.

APN Profiles

Sub-menu: /interface lte apn

APN (Access Point Name) profiles define the connection parameters for your cellular carrier.

Creating APN Profiles

/interface lte apn add name=internet apn=internet

For carriers requiring authentication:

/interface lte apn add name=authenticated-apn \
    apn=internet \
    authentication=chap \
    username=user \
    password=pass

APN Properties

Property	Description	Default
name	Profile name
apn	Access Point Name
authentication	Auth type (none, pap, chap)	none
username	Authentication username
password	Authentication password
ip-type	Requested PDN type (ipv4, ipv6, ipv4-ipv6)
add-default-route	Whether to add a default route via this interface

Signal Monitoring

Monitoring Commands

View real-time signal information:

/interface lte monitor [find]

Continuous monitoring with interval:

/interface lte monitor [find] interval=5s

Signal Metrics

Metric	Description	Optimal Range
rssi	Received Signal Strength Indicator	Better than -85 dBm
rsrp	Reference Signal Received Power	Better than -95 dBm
rsrq	Reference Signal Received Quality	Better than -10 dB
sinr	Signal to Interference + Noise Ratio	Better than 10 dB
cqi	Channel Quality Indicator	10-15

Viewing Interface Info

/interface lte info [find] once

This displays detailed information including:

• Modem manufacturer and model
• Firmware version
• IMEI number
• SIM status
• Network registration state

Band Configuration

Viewing Available Bands

Scan for available networks and bands:

/interface lte scan [find]

Locking Bands

Lock the modem to specific bands for carrier compliance or performance optimization. The band property accepts a comma-separated list of integer band numbers:

/interface lte set [find] band=2,4,66

Common LTE bands:

• 2 - 1900 MHz (Americas)
• 4 - 1700 MHz (AWS)
• 5 - 850 MHz
• 7 - 2600 MHz
• 12 - 700 MHz
• 13 - 700 MHz (Verizon)
• 25 - 1900+ MHz
• 26 - 850+1900 MHz
• 41 - 2500 MHz (T-Mobile)
• 66 - 1700+2100 MHz

To clear band locking and allow all bands:

/interface lte set [find] band=""

Carrier Aggregation

Carrier aggregation (CA) combines multiple LTE bands for higher throughput. When supported by the modem hardware and the network, CA is enabled automatically — no explicit RouterOS configuration is required.

The primary-band and secondary CA bands are visible in the LTE monitor output when CA is active:

/interface lte monitor lte1

Output will show:

  primary-band: B3@20Mhz earfcn: 1300 phy-cellid: 480
ca-band: B7@20Mhz earfcn: 2850 phy-cellid: 480

LTE eSIM

RouterOS v7 supports eSIM management on compatible modems.

Sub-menu: /interface lte esim

View eSIM status:

/interface lte esim print

eSIM Activation

/interface lte esim activate profile-id=1 activation-code=<activation-code>

Modem eSIM Support Table

Modem	eSIM Support
RG502Q-GL	Yes
EM05-CN	Yes
EM05-E	Yes
EM05-A	Yes

Scanner

The scanner command lists available networks in the area:

/interface lte scanner [find]

Output includes:

• Network name (operator)
• MCC/MNC
• Available bands
• Network type (2G/3G/4G/5G)

User Info Command

View detailed user subscription information:

/interface lte info [find] user-info

Modem Firmware Upgrade

Keep modem firmware updated for stability and new features.

Check Firmware

/interface lte firmware-info [find]

Upgrade Firmware

/interface lte firmware-upgrade [find]

Modems with Firmware Update Support

Modem	Update Support
LTE Category 4 modems	Full
LTE Category 6 modems	Full
5G NR modems	Limited

AT Chat Command

Send AT commands directly to the modem for advanced configuration:

/interface lte at-chat lte1 input="AT+CSQ"

Common AT commands:

Command	Description
AT+CSQ	Signal quality
AT+CREG?	Network registration
AT+COPS?	Current operator
AT+CPSI?	System information
AT+QCFG="usbnet"	USB mode

LTE Passthrough

LTE passthrough allows a downstream device to receive the LTE public IP address directly from the modem. The router forwards the IP configuration from the modem to a host on the local network.

Configuration

Passthrough is configured in the APN profile. Create or modify the APN entry in /interface lte apn to enable passthrough, specifying the interface that will receive the passthrough IP:

/interface lte apn set [find name=default] ip-type=ipv4

On the downstream host, configure a DHCP client on the interface connected to the MikroTik device.

Note

Passthrough is not supported by all modem chipsets. Only one downstream host can use the passthrough IP at a time.

Roaming Configuration

Enable Roaming

/interface lte set [find] allow-roaming=yes

Monitor Roaming Status

/interface lte info [find] once

Look for roaming field in output.

Dual SIM

For devices with dual SIM slots, configure SIM selection. Valid slot names depend on the device model (up/down for LtAP mini, a/b for SXT R):

/interface lte settings set sim-slot=up

Switch between slots:

/interface lte settings set sim-slot=down

Note

The modem restarts when switching SIM slots. This takes approximately 30 seconds.

Troubleshooting

No Network Registration

# Check if modem is detected
/interface lte print

# Reset LTE interface
/interface lte reset

# Check SIM status
/interface lte info [find] sim-status

Poor Signal Quality

# Monitor current signal
/interface lte monitor [find]

# Scan for better networks
/interface lte scan [find]

If signal remains poor:

• Reposition the antenna
• Use an external antenna
• Check for interference sources
• Verify you’re using the correct frequency bands for your area

Connection Drops

# Check for PIN issues
/interface lte info [find] pin-status

# Disable PIN if not needed
/interface lte set [find] pin-insert=no

# Reset USB port power
/system routerboard usb power-reset

IP Connectivity Issues

# Verify IP assignment
/interface lte monitor [find]

# Check IP address
/ip address print where interface~"lte"

# Test connectivity
/ping 8.8.8.8 interface=lte1

# Check routes
/ip route print where gateway~"lte"

Check Logs

/log print where message~"lte"

Common log messages:

• lte: initializing... - Modem startup
• lte: connected - Successful connection
• lte: connection lost - Connection dropped
• lte: SIM not ready - SIM card issue

Firmware Issues

If experiencing instability, check firmware version:

/interface lte firmware-info [find]

Compare with latest available firmware from your modem manufacturer.

Performance Optimization

MTU Optimization

For cellular connections, optimal MTU is often lower than default:

/interface lte set [find] mtu=1500

Queue Configuration

Implement traffic shaping to prioritize critical traffic:

/queue simple add name=lte-qos target=interface=lte1 max-limit=50M/100M

Disable Unnecessary Features

Disable features not in use to improve performance:

/interface lte set [find] sms-trigger=""

Related Topics

• Mobile Networking Overview - General mobile networking guide
• Dual SIM Application - Automatic SIM switching
• Hardware - Ports - USB port configuration
• Firewall and Quality of Service - Traffic filtering
• Diagnostics and Monitoring - Troubleshooting tools