Ericsson Cradlepoint Routers, Adapters and NetCloud
Ericsson Cradlepoint offers router/firewalls, cellular adapters, vehicle and IoT endpoints, antennas and NetCloud services. The architecture should reflect whether cellular is primary, failover, out-of-band or simply a modem path for an existing firewall.
Treat components, installation and evidence as one system
Choose a supported architecture from application, capacity, environment, pathway, lifecycle and acceptance requirements—not a single part number.
Choose the cellular architecture
Define primary, backup, out-of-band, temporary or mobile use. Decide which platform owns routing, firewall, VPN, SD-WAN, DHCP and monitoring. An adapter can preserve an existing security edge; a router may consolidate functions. Confirm throughput under the required security services.
Reconcile the architecture with the standard the client already runs, naming which platform terminates the tunnel, which one is monitored and what the branch has installed today. Price the whole package rather than the router alone, including antennas, mounts, cabling, patching, management licensing and spares held on the shelf.
- Primary/failover/OOB use
- Router versus adapter ownership
- Security-service throughput
- Site or vehicle environment
Select endpoint, modem and antenna
Match endpoint and modem generation to carrier, bands, SIM strategy, location and lifecycle. Engineer antennas from cable loss, MIMO ports, mounting, separation, grounding and indoor/outdoor environment. Avoid assuming signal bars alone predict stable application performance.
Where the antenna can sit, how much cable it takes to reach it, how far the elements stand apart and whether anyone can service the unit later shape the result as much as the modem choice does. An equivalent-looking antenna or cable can move performance and change what the warranty covers.
- Carrier bands and modem
- SIM/APN/data plan
- MIMO antenna and cable loss
- Mounting and grounding
| Component | Use when | Confirm |
|---|---|---|
| Router/firewall | Cellular edge owns routing/security | Throughput, licenses and LAN |
| Adapter | Existing edge retains control | Handoff and management path |
| Vehicle/IoT | Mobility or rugged use | Power, antenna and environment |
| NetCloud | Central operations and lifecycle | Tenant, subscription and roles |
Integrate LAN, WAN and security
Document handoff, VLAN, addressing, NAT, firewall, DNS, NTP, VPN and health-check behavior. For dual-WAN, define route priority, session impact, inbound dependencies and restoration. Coordinate carrier account, APN, static IP and data-plan ownership before dispatch.
Define a passing failover before the cutover, including which sessions may drop, how quickly the tunnel returns and what throughput and latency the site will accept on cellular. Keep the raw readings with their timestamps, and give any carrier-side problem an owner and a retest date.
- Ethernet/VLAN handoff
- Routing, NAT and VPN
- Health check and failback
- Inbound/public-IP dependencies
Commission NetCloud and failover
Claim the device into the client-owned NetCloud account and assign licenses, groups, roles and configuration. Record RSRP/RSRQ/SINR or model-supported metrics, throughput, latency and loss. Test forced failover and restoration, then deliver SIM, antenna, subscription and support records securely.
Closeout should reconcile the device serials and license assignments in the client’s own NetCloud account against what is physically installed, together with SIM, antenna and subscription records. Point the client at the manufacturer’s support and download resources instead of copying software or account details onto a public page.
- Client-owned NetCloud tenant
- Subscription and roles
- Signal/performance evidence
- Failover and recovery test
How we plan and deliver the work
The final design depends on site conditions, existing systems, client policies and the selected manufacturer or platform.
Define the role
Decide whether cellular serves as primary WAN, failover, out-of-band access or a modem path behind an existing firewall.
Survey signal
Read carrier signal quality at candidate mounting points and choose the antenna and cable route that hold it.
Configure and mount
Build the router or adapter configuration, apply SIM and APN settings, then mount the endpoint and antennas.
Prove failover
Drop the primary circuit, watch the cellular path take over, and record NetCloud status and throughput results.
Information to gather before design
Cellular design turns on carrier coverage at the actual mounting point and on how the site expects traffic to move when the wired circuit drops.
- Role of cellular at each site
- Carrier coverage at the mounting point
- Building materials around the antenna location
- Existing firewall and WAN handoff type
- Data plan and SIM ownership
Frequently asked questions
These are common planning questions. A site-specific answer should be confirmed during discovery and design.
When is an adapter preferable to a router?
When an existing firewall or SD-WAN edge should continue owning routing and security.
Are signal bars enough for acceptance?
No. Record radio metrics and representative performance at the installed antenna location.
Does failover testing require disconnecting the primary WAN?
Use an approved scenario that proves detection, routing and restoration behavior.
Where are software updates obtained?
Through the official NetCloud and Ericsson support workflow.
Manufacturer software, firmware and technical files remain on the manufacturer’s official website. We do not mirror firmware files locally.
Plan Your Cellular Failover or Out-of-Band Rollout
A site list, the role cellular plays at each location, the expected carrier and the existing WAN handoff give us a starting point for endpoint and antenna sizing. Actual signal at each address gets measured in the field rather than assumed from a coverage map.