[f1000]

I've cobbled together some instructions on tethering a PowerPC Macintosh running OS X 10.3 to a Cingular / AT&T Wireless Motorola V551 EDGE phone via Bluetooth®.

1. Add MEdia Net Unlimited to your account for $19.99/month (price as of 6/1/05).
    
2. Download the appropriate 3G modem scripts from Ross Barkman's Home Page and install them into your /Library/Modem Scripts folder. Do not download the GPRS scripts as you will not achieve EDGE speeds with them.
    
3. On the phone go to: Menu->Settings->Connection->Bluetooth->Setup->Bluetooth: On and Menu->Settings->Connection->Bluetooth->Setup->Find Me. This will allow your Mac to find your phone via Bluetooth.
    
4. Go up to the Bluetooth menu and pair the phone with your Mac. Pair the phone to use as a modem for GPRS data. On the next screen in the setup assistant enter the following data in:
   

   Service Provider: Cingular (optional)
   Account Name: WAP@CINGULARGPRS.COM
   Password: CINGULAR1
   Telephone Number: wap.cingular

5. Open up Network in System Preferences.

   Click the TCP/IP tab

   DNS Servers:

   Leave empty!

   Select Using PPP in the "Configure IPv4" drop down menu.
   Select Off in the "Configure IPv6" drop down menu.

   Click the PPP tab

   Click PPP Options...
   Ensure that the following boxes are unchecked:

   • Send PPP echo packets.
   • Use TCP header compression.
   • Connect using a terminal window (command line).

   Click the Bluetooth Modem tab:

   Select the appropriate modem script in the "Modem" drop-down menu.
   Uncheck Enable error correction and compression in modem.
   Uncheck Wait for dial tone before dialing.

6. Add the following startup script using RMAC. Read through the thread for more details.

   #!/bin/sh
   #RMAC Startup Script
   
   SYSCTL="/usr/sbin/sysctl -nw"
   IFCONFIG="/sbin/ifconfig"
   
   . /etc/rc.common
   
   ConsoleMessage "Set Network Param"
   
   $SYSCTL "net.inet.tcp.sendspace=262144"
   $SYSCTL "net.inet.tcp.recvspace=262144"
   $SYSCTL "net.inet.tcp.slowlink_wsize=108040"
   $SYSCTL "kern.ipc.maxsockbuf=2097152"
   $SYSCTL "net.inet.tcp.newreno=1"
   
   sleep 3
   

Sources:

http://www.rtgrimesconsulting.com/pa...ge4/page4.html
HowardForums: Your Mobile Phone Community & Resource
Wireless Forums from AT&T - Wireless Forums from AT&T

Addendum (7/14/06): Cingular is now selling an HSDPA phone, the LG CU500, with a max theoretical download speed of 1.8 Mbps. The phone also has EDGE for use in rural areas without UMTS/HSDPA. EDGE is faster on this phone than on EDGE-only phones; however, the phone only uses Bluetooth 1.2, which means that tethering with a USB cable will be necessary to eke out maximum performance.

MEdia Net Unlimited has been replaced by MEdia Net Max 200 and 1000 (7/27/06).

* Since I first started this thread, several major developments have occurred:

Tiger is now widespread
Intel chips have replaced PowerPC ones
HSDPA phones have been introduced
Cingular is now AT&T Wireless
iPhone was introduced
Leopard is now widespread

PowerBook, iBook, PowerMac, iMac, eMac, gsm, umts

[f1000]

I'll update the above post to keep it current. Suggestions are welcome!

[Krusty]

Thanks, what experience have you had with the service ? My Cingular plan is ending in a couple of months and I'm thinking about upgrading to a snazzy new BT phone that I can use for these purposes.

What sort of speeds do you realistically get?
How reliable is the service?
Are there particular models of phone that seem to work better with the mac modem scripts ??

[f1000]

I'll post some stats here next week. I'm hoping to get data from a variety of locales.

[Krusty]

Great. You could always do a straight speed test from http://www.broadbandreports.com/stest . It'd be a good measure for comparison with landline high-speed. I was out of town on business 2 weeks ago and they issued us laptops with Verizon's service and it clocked about 27k down and 117k up (don't know why it was so much slower down, but it was consistently that way). I'd love to know how Cingular's service compares.

[f1000]

Speed Tests

Phone: Motorola V551 (Class 4 EDGE)
Computer: 12" PowerBook G4 (1 GHz Rev B)
OS X Version: 10.3.9
Tethering Method: Bluetooth® 1.2
Signal Strength: Maximum
Modem Script: Motorola 3G CID1

1. Newark, DE (6/18/05):
   

   Upload: 38 kbps
   Download: 139 kbps

2. Alexandria, VA (6/16/05):
   

   Upload: 38 kbps
   Download: 115 kbps
   

   Download: 145.6 kbps
   

3. Washington, DC, U.S. Capitol Building (6/15/05):
   

   Upload: 38 kbps
   Download: 96 kbps
   

4. Baltimore, MD, Inner Harbor (6/20/05):
   

   Upload: 36 kbps
   Download: 57 kbps
   

Phone: LG CU500 (Class 10 EDGE/UMTS/HSDPA)
Computer: 12" PowerBook G4 (1 GHz Rev B)
OS X Version: 10.3.9
Tethering Method: Bluetooth® 1.2
Signal Strength: Maximum
Modem Script: Generic 3G CID1

1. Austin, TX (8/18/07):
   

   Upload: 340 kbps
   Download: 592 kbps

Phone: LG CU500 (Class 10 EDGE/UMTS/HSDPA)
Computer: 12" PowerBook G4 (1 GHz Rev B)
OS X Version: 10.3.9
Tethering Method: Bluetooth® 1.2
Signal Strength: Maximum
Modem Script: Generic HSDPA CID1

1. Dulles International Airport (9/10/07):
   

   Upload: 231 kbps
   Download: 609 kbps

2. Raleigh-Durham International Airport (9/7/07):
   

   Upload: 235 kbps
   Download: 603 kbps
   

3. Alexandria, VA (10/3/07):
   

   Upload: 271 kbps
   Download: 554 kbps

4. San Diego, CA ():
   

   Upload: 263 kbps
   Download: 548 kbps

[Krusty]

Hey, thanks for the update. I was about 2 days away from bumping this thread.

I have a couple of questions that you may know the answer to.. Are we to assume that the MEdia Net Unlimited package is data-only and includes only pay-per-use instant messaging and multimedia messaging ? If so, what do you do if you want both data access for your computer and a MEdia Net bundle for your phone ... can both packages be bought simultaneously or are they mutually exclusive ? What happens if you bought, say MEdia Net "Works" plus Media Net Unlimited Acesss ... you're already theoretically paying for 5mb of access in the "Works" package ?

Also, Cingular seems to have some other data packages (Data Connect, Laptop connect) that have MUCH higher charges for unlimited use. Is this MEdia Net package using the same data network as those packages (I would assume yes, which is why this is such a good deal but it almost makes no sense for anyone to pay $79/month for unlimited laptop connect if they knew they could use the same network for 1/4 that cost simply by having and EDGE capable phone + bluetooth).

[f1000]

Originally Posted by Krusty

What happens if you bought, say MEdia Net "Works" plus Media Net Unlimited Acesss ... you're already theoretically paying for 5mb of access in the "Works" package?

I've been told by several customer service reps that MEdia Net and MEdia Net packages (i.e. Basic, Works) are mutually exclusive.

Originally Posted by Krusty

Cingular seems to have some other data packages (Data Connect, Laptop connect) that have MUCH higher charges for unlimited use. Is this MEdia Net package using the same data network as those packages (I would assume yes, which is why this is such a good deal but it almost makes no sense for anyone to pay $79/month for unlimited laptop connect if they knew they could use the same network for 1/4 that cost simply by having and EDGE capable phone + bluetooth).

It's my understanding that if you want to tether to a non-PDA phone, you must use the wap.cingular APN. Data Connect offers VPN and some other services, but isn't supposed to be significantly faster in terms of speed.

[f1000]

It took me several days to figure this out, but there's a system setting called net.inet.tcp.slowlink_wsize that controls download speeds for "slow link" connections (i.e., PPP). The default value for this variable is 8192 bytes, but this needs to be significantly increased in order to maximize EDGE download performance.

1. First, use RMAC or some other method to create a startup script in your /Library/StartupItems folder.
   
2. Next, use TextEdit to modify the startup script to make it look like the example script that I listed under item 6 in my first post. Save and restart.
   
3. Figuring out the ideal value for net.inet.tcp.slowlink_wsize involves doing some tweak testing. Initiate an EDGE phone connection and run the tweak test, and then follow the instructions at Broadband Reports.com to calculate the optimum RWIN value.
   
4. Edit the startup script again to set net.inet.tcp.slowlink_wsize to your new optimum RWIN value. In my sample script, I highlighted my own optimum RWIN value in red. You may find that another value works better for you. Save and restart.

From my experimentation, I deduced that,

• net.inet.tcp.slowlink_wsize = RWIN for PPP connections
• net.inet.tcp.recvspace = RWIN for broadband connections

Adding this startup script increased my EDGE download speeds almost three-fold.

[f1000]

Originally Posted by Krusty

What sort of speeds do you realistically get?

As you can see, I'm getting close to maximum theoretical EDGE speeds for a Class 4 device. 119 kbps is FAST! While wading through Howardsforum, I noticed that a lot of Mac users were complaining about slow EDGE download speeds. It's clear to me that none of them realized they had to adjust their system settings. Who can blame them? It took me hours of Googling and experimentation to figure out the solution to the problem. It'd be nice if somebody would post a man page for the each sysctl writable variable.

I tested out a theory of mine by successfully streaming a 96 kbps iTunes broadcast using my EDGE phone. Satellite radio and the iPod are both screwed.

I must admit that I hadn't realized the Motorola V551 wasn't a Class 10 device when I purchased it. I had simply assumed that it was.

Originally Posted by Krusty

How reliable is the service?

Rock solid.

Originally Posted by Krusty

Are there particular models of phone that seem to work better with the mac modem scripts ??

This is the only phone that I've tested. Maybe others can chime in.

EDIT: Maybe I'm not getting close to theoretical EDGE speeds. A Class 4 EDGE device is (3+1). This means that it has 3 download time slots each running at 59.2 kbps. 3 x 59.2 kbps = 177.6 kbps.

[f1000]

Originally Posted by Krusty

I was out of town on business 2 weeks ago and they issued us laptops with Verizon's service and it clocked about 27k down and 117k up (don't know why it was so much slower down, but it was consistently that way).

I've noticed that some of the speed tests return absurd upload rates. I read somewhere that this is because the tests measure time incorrectly for Macs.

Try testing your Verizon service again using http://nyc.speakeasy.net/.

[Krusty]

Cool, that's lots of good info. I think I would be disappointed without the RWIN tweaks you mentioned. How does one tell if a device is class 4, Class 10 etc ? I never see those specs listed on the phones I've looked at.

Also, I have an older SE R520m that has been gathering dust for a while. I actually got it to work a couple of days ago (EXTREMELY SLOW .. like 5k/20k .. but I think it only really handles GPRS even though I forced it to use GSM only). I also only get 2-3 bars in my house, so that may have had something to do with it. But, at least I have "the process" down (thanks to this thread) and feel confident I can get it to work when I get a newer phone.

[f1000]

Originally Posted by Krusty

Cool, that's lots of good info. I think I would be disappointed without the RWIN tweaks you mentioned. How does one tell if a device is class 4, Class 10 etc ? I never see those specs listed on the phones I've looked at.

The tweaks might even help you with your current Verizon phone, especially if you upgrade to a snazzier EVDO model. My startup script isn't Cingular or even GSM specific.

Phone Arena offers a pretty comprehensive filtering engine that can help you to quickly zero in on cell phones with the features that you want. Please note that Class 10 GPRS does not equal Class 10 EDGE. My Motorola V551, for example, is a Class 10 GPRS / Class 4 EDGE.

Originally Posted by Krusty

Also, I have an older SE R520m that has been gathering dust for a while. I actually got it to work a couple of days ago (EXTREMELY SLOW .. like 5k/20k .. but I think it only really handles GPRS even though I forced it to use GSM only). I also only get 2-3 bars in my house, so that may have had something to do with it.

I wish I had saved the benchmarks I had made for my t68i GPRS phone. I vaguely recall that data rates in Columbia, MD and Rahway, NJ were on the order of 30 kbps.

My understanding is that EDGE drops off quickly in speed the further away you are from a tower. I'm getting five bars of signal strength in the location that I'm currently in, but that doesn't mean that EDGE download speeds might not see improvement were I to move closer to a tower. I'll run some more tests in other cities in the upcoming weeks.

Originally Posted by Krusty

But, at least I have "the process" down (thanks to this thread) and feel confident I can get it to work when I get a newer phone.

CNET.com is my bandwidth meter of choice, but I'm glad that you persuaded me to run some tests from DSL Reports. The NSF server, while quirky, provided me with the first clues that low send and receive buffers were limiting my data rates. I'm still surprised that there isn't a single website that mentions the importance of net.inet.tcp.slowlink_wsize in controlling PPP data transfer rates.

I've said it many times before, but now I'm going to say it again. Apple, get rid of the built-in analog modem. I am never going to use a 56K landline modem again when I can get 236.8 kbps wirelessly using a Class 10 EDGE modem. I could sure use an SD Card or a PC Card slot in its place, though.

[joren]

Wow, there is great information here. I've been trying to use my phone as a modem for some time and this is the first time it's actually worked! Benching off cnet (download.com), I'm getting 56kbs right now. And my problem is I couldn't get RMAC to work. I couldn't find the file it created half and other times it would give me a "pearl_file_error". I'm working in Mac OS 10.4.1 (Tiger). So, can someone please walk me through how to use RMAC and how to find the script it creates a little more specifically?
Where is the file written?
Is it an invisible file?
How can I avoid the errors in RMAC?
Is there another way to do this if RMAC isn't working properly for me?

My apologies for my inexperience, but I'm probably not the only person with these problems.
Thanks
Joren

___________
Edit: Okay, I got RMAC to write the script. I'm not sure how. I was fiddling with the permissions for /library and /library/StartupItems . But I'm not sure what I did exactly. I did a speed test from broadbandreports.com and got 88k down and 38k up without the startup script and 91k down and 40k up with the script configured exactly how it is in step 6 of the original post. I guess I have some major tweaking to do as I was expecting a larger jump than that. Well, I'm off to try to understand how this "tweaking" stuff works.
Thanks again for the great info. Any further guidance is appreciated.

[Riot Nrrrd]

f1000:

I'm curious how you got this to work. I'm a former AT&T customer still on AT&T (NBO - I have a FAN and a business account) with an unlocked Cingular branded Sony Ericsson S710a.

I'm able to get it tethered with the Taniwha scripts (I'm using "Sony Ericsson 3G CID1"), but only in (seemingly) GPRS mode - i.e. if I set things up and just use "proxy" for the "Telephone Number" and leave everything else in the Bluetooth setup blank (more or less), it'll connect and set up PPP and it "works" - but my throughput on downloads is horrible, like around 2-4 Kbytes/sec. Clearly I'm not getting EDGE speeds.

I then tried stuff like using "wap.cingular" for the phone number and the various Cingular-specific settings (Account name "WAP@CINGULARGPRS.COM", Password "CINGULAR1", etc.), but once I do that, it stops working - after the PPP CHAP negotation (which succeeds - with "Congratulations!"), the other end says to drop the connection, which it does. No variant on these Account Name/Password/Telephone Number entries seems to work unless I use the non-EDGE "proxy" setting

When it does work (via "proxy"), the log looks like this:

Code:

[...] Wed Jun 15 14:42:28 2005 : Connect: ppp0 <--> /dev/cu.SonyEricssonS710a Wed Jun 15 14:42:29 2005 : sent [LCP ConfReq id=0x1 <asyncmap 0x0> <magic 0x7e3e208c> <pcomp> <accomp>] Wed Jun 15 14:42:29 2005 : rcvd [LCP ConfReq id=0x3 <auth pap> <accomp> <pcomp> <asyncmap 0x0> <magic 0xd997348c>] Wed Jun 15 14:42:29 2005 : lcp_reqci: returning CONFREJ. Wed Jun 15 14:42:29 2005 : sent [LCP ConfRej id=0x3 <auth pap>] Wed Jun 15 14:42:29 2005 : rcvd [LCP ConfAck id=0x1 <asyncmap 0x0> <magic 0x7e3e208c> <pcomp> <accomp>] Wed Jun 15 14:42:29 2005 : rcvd [LCP ConfReq id=0x4 <accomp> <pcomp> <asyncmap 0x0> <magic 0xd997348c>] Wed Jun 15 14:42:29 2005 : lcp_reqci: returning CONFACK. Wed Jun 15 14:42:29 2005 : sent [LCP ConfAck id=0x4 <accomp> <pcomp> <asyncmap 0x0> <magic 0xd997348c>] Wed Jun 15 14:42:29 2005 : sent [IPCP ConfReq id=0x1 <addr 0.0.0.0>] Wed Jun 15 14:42:29 2005 : rcvd [IPCP TermAck id=0x1] Wed Jun 15 14:42:31 2005 : rcvd [IPCP ConfReq id=0x1] Wed Jun 15 14:42:31 2005 : ipcp: returning Configure-NAK Wed Jun 15 14:42:31 2005 : sent [IPCP ConfNak id=0x1 <addr 0.0.0.0>] Wed Jun 15 14:42:31 2005 : rcvd [IPCP ConfReq id=0x2] Wed Jun 15 14:42:31 2005 : ipcp: returning Configure-ACK Wed Jun 15 14:42:31 2005 : sent [IPCP ConfAck id=0x2] Wed Jun 15 14:42:32 2005 : sent [IPCP ConfReq id=0x1 <addr 0.0.0.0>] Wed Jun 15 14:42:32 2005 : rcvd [IPCP ConfNak id=0x1 <addr 10.88.212.242>] Wed Jun 15 14:42:32 2005 : sent [IPCP ConfReq id=0x2 <addr 10.88.212.242>] Wed Jun 15 14:42:32 2005 : rcvd [IPCP ConfAck id=0x2 <addr 10.88.212.242>] Wed Jun 15 14:42:32 2005 : ipcp: up [...]

When I try to use the Cingular logins (as mentioned in your original post), it tries to do PAP and "succeeds", but then the other side immediately tells it to drop the connection:

Code:

[...] [...] Wed Jun 15 14:48:03 2005 : Connect: ppp0 <--> /dev/cu.SonyEricssonS710a Wed Jun 15 14:48:04 2005 : sent [LCP ConfReq id=0x1 <asyncmap 0x0> <magic 0x4fbff23b> <pcomp> <accomp>] Wed Jun 15 14:48:04 2005 : rcvd [LCP ConfReq id=0x3 <auth pap> <accomp> <pcomp> <asyncmap 0x0> <magic 0xde44335b>] Wed Jun 15 14:48:04 2005 : lcp_reqci: returning CONFACK. Wed Jun 15 14:48:04 2005 : sent [LCP ConfAck id=0x3 <auth pap> <accomp> <pcomp> <asyncmap 0x0> <magic 0xde44335b>] Wed Jun 15 14:48:04 2005 : rcvd [LCP ConfAck id=0x1 <asyncmap 0x0> <magic 0x4fbff23b> <pcomp> <accomp>] Wed Jun 15 14:48:05 2005 : sent [PAP AuthReq id=0x1 user="ISPDA@CINGULARGPRS.COM" password=<hidden>] Wed Jun 15 14:48:05 2005 : rcvd [PAP AuthAck id=0x1 "Congratulations!"] Wed Jun 15 14:48:05 2005 : Remote message: Congratulations! Wed Jun 15 14:48:05 2005 : sent [IPCP ConfReq id=0x1 <addr 0.0.0.0>] Wed Jun 15 14:48:06 2005 : rcvd [LCP TermReq id=0x1] Wed Jun 15 14:48:06 2005 : LCP terminated by peer Wed Jun 15 14:48:06 2005 : Hangup (SIGHUP) [...]

No idea why the "WAP.CINGULAR" settings work for your V551 but not for my S710a ...

One thing I'd also like to note - I couldn't get anything to work until I ran Bluetooth Serial Utility and created an Outgoing serial port and connected it to the "Dial-up Networking" Service inside the phone ... dunno if that's why I can only connect via GPRS or not, but that's the only way I could get anything to work. Did you (f1000) also have to create this same Bluetooth serial port?

[f1000]

Originally Posted by joren

Wow, there is great information here. I've been trying to use my phone as a modem for some time and this is the first time it's actually worked!

Hi joren, welcome to MacNN! I'm glad that you found my instructions useful. I regret, though, that I did not properly source all the websites from which I gleaned information. I've been refining my instructions based on real-world testing, and I think that I've pretty much maximized whatever performance I'm going to get out of my particular setup.

Okay, I got RMAC to write the script. I'm not sure how. I was fiddling with the permissions for /library and /library/StartupItems . But I'm not sure what I did exactly. I did a speed test from broadbandreports.com and got 88k down and 38k up without the startup script and 91k down and 40k up with the script configured exactly how it is in step 6 of the original post. I guess I have some major tweaking to do as I was expecting a larger jump than that. Well, I'm off to try to understand how this "tweaking" stuff works.
Thanks again for the great info. Any further guidance is appreciated.

I'm still using Mac OS 10.3, so I don’t know if my instructions apply verbatim to Mac OS 10.4. RMAC may in fact be incompatible with 10.4.

You don't need to use RMAC to create the startup script. There are alternative applications that you can use to create a basic script. Moreover, if you're good at Unixese you can create the script by hand.

The value that I assign to net.inet.tcp.slowlink_wsize in my sample script was based on tweak tests of my own setup. You'll probably have to adjust this value for your particular setup. It's possible that Apple has already adjusted this value in 10.4, in which case further tweaking by you may not improve your performance.

Can you run an experiment for me?

1. Temporarily remove the startup script from the StartupItems folder
2. Reboot
3. Start a Terminal session
4. Type in sysctl –a and press return
5. Post the value that is returned for net.inet.tcp.slowlink_wsize
6. Return the startup script to your StartupItems folder and reboot.

Also, and this is very important, can you post your location, upload/download speeds, and the particular speed test that you used? List speeds in kbps (kilobits per second), and run each test with maximal signal strength. Try to run speed tests from several servers that are close to you, and run each one twice to ensure best results.

[f1000]

Originally Posted by Riot Nrrrd

I'm curious how you got this to work. I'm a former AT&T customer still on AT&T (NBO - I have a FAN and a business account) with an unlocked Cingular branded Sony Ericsson S710a.

I migrated over to Cingular from AT&T. You may have to migrate as well before you can use your Cingular-branded S710a with EDGE, but I'm just speculating.

I'm able to get it tethered with the Taniwha scripts (I'm using "Sony Ericsson 3G CID1"), but only in (seemingly) GPRS mode - i.e. if I set things up and just use "proxy" for the "Telephone Number" and leave everything else in the Bluetooth setup blank (more or less), it'll connect and set up PPP and it "works" - but my throughput on downloads is horrible, like around 2-4 Kbytes/sec. Clearly I'm not getting EDGE speeds.

Do you see an EDGE indicator on your phone? On my phone, it's a little 'E' between the signal meter and the Bluetooth indicator. Also, have you signed up for a Media Net package?

One thing I'd also like to note - I couldn't get anything to work until I ran Bluetooth Serial Utility and created an Outgoing serial port and connected it to the "Dial-up Networking" Service inside the phone ... dunno if that's why I can only connect via GPRS or not, but that's the only way I could get anything to work. Did you (f1000) also have to create this same Bluetooth serial port?

This sounds to be your problem. Delete the serial port and run Set up Bluetooth Device... instead.