Why is RN2903 dropping packets?
Why is RN2903 dropping packets? Only around one in eight packets are getting through.
The RN2903 firmware is designed to match the LoRaWAN™ specification. The specification describes a 64(+8) channel plan, making the best use of the available spectrum in the 915 MHz band. However, the reality is that 64(+8) channel gateways are still expensive. Most trials and prototypes are using eight-channel gateways, which are cheaper and widely available.
If you are using the RN2903 with default settings (all channels on) and connecting to an eight-channel gateway, then seven out of eight packets will fall on a channel that the gateway is not listening to. Seven packets will be dropped and only one will pass through. This can be easily corrected by using the mac set ch status in a loop to disable all the unused channels.