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About Modem Interfaces
In Fireware v12.1 and higher, modems are configured as external interfaces with modem failover enabled. If your business operates in areas with weak ISP coverage, or you have non-traditional methods for internet access, a dedicated modem interface can increase your network flexibility.
When you add a modem interface to a supported Firebox or XTM device, it appears in the Interfaces list, and it is available as an interface for these features:
- BOVPN and BOVPN virtual interfaces
- Dynamic DNS
- 1-to-1 NAT
- SNAT
- Dynamic NAT
- Policy-based routing
- Traffic management — Applies to modem interfaces for outgoing traffic only
- Multi-WAN — Not supported on Firebox T10 or T15 devices, or XTM 2 Series without the Pro upgrade
The modem interface also appears in the Aliases list. You can add the modem interface to policies on your Firebox.
To configure a modem interface, see Configure a Modem Interface.
If your Firebox was configured for modem failover, when you upgrade your Firebox to Fireware v12.1, the modem configuration is automatically converted to an external interface with failover enabled. If all other external interfaces become unavailable, traffic automatically fails over to the modem interface.
Supported Firebox and XTM Devices
These Firebox and XTM devices support modem interfaces and modem failover in Fireware v12.1 and higher:
- T10
- T15/T15-W
- T30
- T35/T35-W
- T50
- T55/T55-W
- T70
- M200
- M300
- M370
- M400
- M470
- M500
- M570
- M670
- XTM 2 Series
- XTM 3 Series
- XTM 5 Series
Supported Modems
You can configure these modems on your Firebox:
| Carrier | 3G/4G USB Device | Vendor ID | Product ID | Fireware OS Requirement |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| N/A (UK and NL) | D-Link DWM-221 | 0x2001 | 0x7e19 | v11.10.7 or higher |
| N/A (UK and NL) | D-Link DWM-222 | 0x0BDB | 0x1926 | v12.0 or higher |
| AT&T | Netgear 340U* | 0x1199 | 0x9051 | v11.10.2 or higher |
| AT&T | Sierra 313U | 0x0f3d | 0x68aa | v11.7.4 or higher |
| AT&T | Sierra Elevate 4G | 0x1199 | 0x68a3 | v11.8.3 Update 1 or higher |
| AT&T | Netgear BEAM | 0x1199 | 0x9051 | v11.12.2 or higher |
| AT&T | Velocity MF861 | 0x19d2 | 0x1405 | v12.1 or higher |
| Bell (CA) | Huawei E8372 | 0x12d1 | 0x14db | v11.10.7 or higher |
| Deutsche Telekom | Huawei E3372 | 0x12d1 | 0x1506 | v11.10.7 or higher |
| Deutsche Telekom | Huawei E3372 | 0x12d1 | 0x14dc | v11.12 or higher |
| SFR (FR) | Huawei E3372 | 0x12d1 | 0x14dc | v11.12 or higher |
| Sprint | Franklin U602 | 0x1fac | Unknown | v11.7.3 or higher |
| Sprint | Sierra 250U | N/A | N/A | v11.7.3 or higher |
| Sprint | Franklin U301 | N/A | N/A | v11.9.1 or higher |
| Sprint | Netgear 341U | 0x1199 | 0x9055 | v11.8.3 or higher |
| Sprint | Franklin U772 | 0x1fac | 0x0232 | v11.12.2 or higher |
| Telcel (MX) | Huawei E3372 | 0x12d1 | 0x14dc | v11.12 or higher |
| Telus (CA) | Netgear 340U* | 0x1199 | 0x9051 | v11.10.2 or higher |
| T-Mobile | ZTE MF683 | 0x19d2 | 0x0157 | v11.7.3 or higher |
| T-Mobile | ZTE MF190 | 0x19d2 | 0x0117 | v11.9.3 or higher |
| T-Mobile (NL) | Huawei E3372 | 0x12d1 | 0x1506 | v11.10.7 or higher |
| T-Mobile (NL) | Huawei E3372 | 0x12d1 | 0x14dc | v11.12 or higher |
| Telstra (ANZ) | Huawei E8372 | 0x12d1 | 0x14db | v11.10.7 or higher |
| Telstra (ANZ) | Sierra 320U | 0x0f3d | 0x68aa | v11.8.1 or higher |
| Verizon | Pantech UML295 | 0x10a9 | 0x6064 | v11.10.2 or higher |
| Verizon | Novatel USB551L | 0x1410 | 0xb001 | v11.7.4 or higher |
| Verizon | Novatel U620L | 0x1410 | 0x9022 | v11.10.5 or higher |
| Verizon | Global Modem USB730L | 0x1410 | 0x9032 | v12.1.1 or higher |
* To use the Netgear 340U with your Firebox, you might have to disable the Identity Morphing feature on the modem. For more information, see the Knowledge Base article NETGEAR AC340U modem not working with Firebox.
Modem failover is also supported for these serial modems:
- Zoom FaxModem 56K model 2949
- MultiTech 56K Data/Fax Modem International
- OMRON ME5614D2 Fax/Data Modem
- Hayes 56K V.90 serial fax modem
For XTM 21, 22, and 23 devices, you must use an IOGEAR GUC323A USB to Serial RS-232 adapter to connect a serial modem to the USB port.
Modems and Multi-WAN
You can configure a modem interface to participate in multi-WAN. By default, modem interfaces do not participate in multi-WAN. For information about multi-WAN methods, see About Multi-WAN Methods.
When you configure a modem interface as a multi-WAN participant, link monitor is not enabled for the modem by default to prevent unwanted bandwidth consumption. To configure the modem interface to monitor the default gateway or another source that you specify, you must enable link monitor. For more information about link monitor configuration, see Configure a Link Monitor Host.
You can configure branch office VPN connections to fail over to the modem interface. For more information about VPN modem failover, see Configure VPN Modem Failover.
Multi-WAN is not supported on the Firebox T10 and Firebox T15, and XTM 2 Series devices that do not have the Pro upgrade.