DocsICP FilingConsole
Documentation
Home Page Alibaba Cloud Link WAN Getting Started Build and manage networks

Build and manage networks

Updated at:
Copy as MD
Product
My Favorites

Gateways and communication modules are required to build a Link WAN network. This topic describes how to add a network, share a network, and join a network using a credential in Alibaba Cloud Link WAN.

Background information

You can obtain gateways and communication modules in two ways:

If you purchase a device with a pre-installed key, check the label for the following information when you receive the product:

  • Gateway device information: GwEUI, PIN Code

  • Node device information: DevEUI, PIN Code

Note

This information is usually printed on the device label.

Add a gateway

  1. Log on to the Alibaba Cloud Link WAN console and follow the prompts to activate the service.

  2. In the navigation pane, choose Network Management > Gateway Management.

  3. On the Gateway List tab, click Add Gateway.

  4. On the Add Gateway page, configure the parameters and click Confirm to activate the gateway.

    Parameter

    Description

    Basic Information

    Name

    Enter a name for the gateway. The name must be 4 to 30 characters in length and can contain Chinese characters, letters, digits, and underscores (_). A Chinese character counts as two characters.

    GwEUI

    Find this parameter on the gateway label.

    PIN Code

    The PIN Code is a 6-digit number. It is usually on the gateway label.

    Frequency Band

    Select one of the following frequency bands:

    • CN470 Single Frequency

    • CN470 Heterogeneous

    • AS923: Same-Frequency Operation

    This example uses CN470 Heterogeneous.

    Communication Mode

    The communication mode can be Full-duplex or Half-duplex.

    This example uses Half-duplex.

    Gateway Description

    Optional. Enter a description for the gateway. The description cannot exceed 100 characters.

    Location Information

    Region

    Select the region where the gateway is located.

    Location Details

    Enter the specific location of the gateway. You can also click a location on the map to the right.

  5. After you add the gateway, power it on. Make sure the device is connected to the Internet through 4G or Ethernet.

    On the Gateway Management page, view the status of the gateway. A status of Online indicates that the gateway is in service and you can start to manage the network.

Share a network

After you set up a network, you can assign it to yourself or other users. Users who are assigned the network must have the Link WAN service activated. Network access is granted using join credentials. This section describes how to assign a network to yourself. You must first create a credential and then assign it to yourself.

  1. Log on to the Alibaba Cloud Link WAN console.

  2. In the navigation pane, choose Network Management > Join Permission.

  3. On the Onboarding page, click Add Dedicated Credential.

  4. In the Add Dedicated Credential dialog box, configure the parameters. Then, click Confirm to create the credential.

    Parameter

    Description

    Credential Name

    Enter a name for the credential. The name must be 4 to 30 characters in length and can contain Chinese characters, letters, digits, and underscores (_). A Chinese character counts as two characters.

    Frequency Band

    Select one of the following frequency bands:

    • CN470 Same-Frequency Mode

    • Different CN470 Frequencies

    • AS923: Same Frequency

    In this example, CN470 Heterodyne is selected.

    Class

    The following options are available:

    • A

    • B

    • C

    • D2D

    This example uses A for on-demand sending.

    RxDelay

    This parameter is available when you set Class to A.

    It specifies the delay for the receive window after an uplink transmission. Default value: 1s. Valid values: 1s to 15s.

    Data Rate (DR)

    This parameter is available when you set Class to B.

    It specifies the data rate. Default value: 4. Valid values: 0 to 5.
    Note

    The JoinEUI is fixed to d896e0efff000000 and can be used globally.

  5. In the Operation column of the credential, click Grant Credential.

  6. In the Grant Credential dialog box, select Grant to Myself and click Confirm to grant the credential to yourself.

    After the authorization is complete, the new credential appears in the list on the Node Management > Credential Checklist page. If another user grants a credential to you, it also appears in this list after you accept it.

Join a network with a credential

After you configure the gateway and grant a join credential to yourself, you can use the credential to join the network. You can also configure a message queue as the data destination.

  1. Log on to the Alibaba Cloud Link WAN console.

  2. In the navigation pane, choose Node Management > Node Groups.

  3. On the Node Groups page, click Create Group.

  4. In the Create Group dialog box, enter the group information and click Save.

    Parameter

    Description

    Node Group Name

    Enter a name for the node group. The name must be 4 to 30 characters in length and can contain Chinese characters, letters, digits, and underscores (_). A Chinese character counts as two characters.

    Credential Type

    Select Dedicated Credential.

    Select Credential

    When you click this box, the Select Credential panel appears on the right. Select the credential that you want to attach to the node group. This is the credential you just created. In the Operation column for the credential, click Assign.

  5. After you create the node group, click Node in the Operation column of the group to go to the Group Details page.

  6. Click Add Node to Join Network. In the Add Node to Join Network dialog box, configure the parameters and click Save.

    Parameter

    Description

    Add Method

    Select Single Node.

    Node DevEUI

    Enter the DevEUI. You can find it on the gateway device label.

    PIN Code

    Enter the PIN Code. You can find it on the gateway device label.

    If your communication module supports the AT commands recommended by the ICA consortium, you can run the following commands on the local module to send a join request.

    Example of AT commands for a LoRaWAN Over-the-Air Activation (OTAA) join:

    1. Set the join mode to OTAA.

    AT+CJOINMODE=0

    2. Start an automatic join.

    AT+CJOIN=1,1

    After the node joins the network, you can view the uplink data on the Uplink Data tab.

Configure the data destination for the node group

After you complete the configuration, data from the node group is sent to the specified message queue.

  1. Log on to the Alibaba Cloud Link WAN console.

  2. In the navigation pane, choose Node Management > Node Groups.

  3. In the Operation column of the node group that you want to configure, click Data Forwarding.

  4. In the Data Forwarding Settings dialog box, configure the parameters.

    Parameter

    Description

    Data egress

    Select Message Queue (MQ).

    Note

    If you have not activated the cloud product, click Message Queue for Apache RocketMQ to activate it. Then, grant Alibaba Cloud Link WAN permissions to access RocketMQ.

    Region

    Select the region where your Alibaba Cloud Link WAN gateway device is located.

    Uplink Topic

    Optional. If no options are available for Uplink Topic, go to the Message Queue console to configure a topic.

  5. Click Confirm to complete the data forwarding configuration. The data is then sent to the specified topic.

Previous：Getting StartedNext：D2D communication technology