Guide
Remote site comms: what to put on every unit.
Most connectivity problems on remote sites come from every unit being set up differently. Pick a standard, monitor it, and build in a backup path.
The options
| Link | Strengths | Watch for | Best role |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starlink (low-earth-orbit satellite) | Works almost anywhere with clear sky. Low latency for satellite. Fast to deploy. | Needs a clear view of the sky. Power draw matters on generator or battery sites. Plan terms change often. | Primary link on most remote units |
| LTE / 5G cellular | Low cost, low power, simple hardware. Good where towers reach. | Coverage is patchy in remote areas. Needs a proper external antenna on rigs and trucks. | Failover, or primary near highways and towns |
| Private APN | Cellular traffic stays off the public internet and lands inside your network. | Carrier setup and management. Only as good as cellular coverage. | Telemetry and SCADA traffic |
| Geostationary satellite | Long-established, wide coverage. | High latency, higher cost per GB. | Legacy sites being phased out |
A standard site kit
- Primary: Starlink, with a fixed or pole mount sized for the unit.
- Failover: LTE through a dual-WAN router with an external antenna.
- Router: rugged, temperature-rated, remotely manageable, with automatic failover.
- Power: battery backup so a generator hiccup doesn't drop the link.
- Segmentation: separate networks for crew Wi-Fi, business devices and telemetry.
- Monitoring: every kit reports in, and dispatch gets an alert when one doesn't.
Questions to ask before you buy
- Who gets alerted when a unit goes offline, and how fast?
- Can we manage every router from one place?
- What does each unit cost per month, all links included?
- Which traffic should never touch the public internet?
- Who owns the carrier and Starlink accounts when a manager leaves?