I know its probably a "no no" to post HOW to SIM unlock this phone but I just want to know if there is a way to unlock it for free without calling t-mobile...i'm NOT asking for a how-to, i'm just asking if this information is out there somewhere...a how-to would be GREAT but totally understandable if it can't be posted...i just don't want to be out there on a wild goose chase trying to unlock this thing without having to pay $38 or calling t-mobile...
i saw an application in another subforum on this site but it says it is for PPC only and this is a smartphone so i don't think that'll work...
There's no free unlocker at the moment. My guess is someone will come up with a way to do it but I wouldn't hold my breath for it. If you are going to be using this phone, I suggest you pony up the cash for it.
You can't call T-Mo if you aren't a subscriber. If you are a subscriber, there's no problem in getting the unlock code, I got it within a week.
monakh, can you please provide more info about getting the unlock code from T-Mo? Did you purchase the phone from T-Mo? It surprises me that they would be willing to do this.
hassan-dash said:
I know its probably a "no no" to post HOW to SIM unlock this phone but I just want to know if there is a way to unlock it for free without calling t-mobile...i'm NOT asking for a how-to, i'm just asking if this information is out there somewhere...a how-to would be GREAT but totally understandable if it can't be posted...i just don't want to be out there on a wild goose chase trying to unlock this thing without having to pay $38 or calling t-mobile...
i saw an application in another subforum on this site but it says it is for PPC only and this is a smartphone so i don't think that'll work...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What is wrong with paying $38 to get the phone SIM unlocked as well as CID unlocked (T-Mobile won't CID unlock the phone for you). The phone is useless unless you do it. I did mine through IMEI-CHECK and it took 2 minutes and I was up and running. It was well worth the $38
Dan, I think for most people not having the phone CID-unlocked is not a huge deal so I disagree with you that the phone is 'useless' without it. Very few people go through with the tinkering the way you and I do. Frankly, so far I have not come up against this limitation and I have tweaked the phone to my satisfaction.
Someone mentioned that there's a way to downgrade the bootloader to install (at least) the new HTC test ROM that's been mentioned lately in this forum. I am not sure how true that is but if it is, then CID unlock is unnecessary at the moment. I do agree though, that $38 is a small price to pay to be able to have the freedom to do as you like with your phone. I keep wondering how IMEI-check does it. I have a feeling they have someone working with them over at HTC to make this work. It's not technical ability, it may be something else. They had an unlocker within a day or two of the Dash release. Corporate espionage or internal collusion or technical expertise, I am not sure what it is but somehow I don't think this has anything to do with the technology. We saw similar behavior with the Universal unlock application earlier this year.
maddog, it's a well known/enforced T-Mo policy that if you have been a customer in good standing with them for 90 days and have not made a similar request in that period (this is my 7th year with them), they will handily supply you with an unlock code upon request. For most people it's not a problem but if you are switching to T-Mo just to get a phone then you will obviously have to wait. I have had several phones unlocked through them since Y2K and have never had a problem.
monakh said:
Dan, I think for most people not having the phone CID-unlocked is not a huge deal so I disagree with you that the phone is 'useless' without it. Very few people go through with the tinkering the way you and I do. Frankly, so far I have not come up against this limitation and I have tweaked the phone to my satisfaction.
Someone mentioned that there's a way to downgrade the bootloader to install (at least) the new HTC test ROM that's been mentioned lately in this forum. I am not sure how true that is but if it is, then CID unlock is unnecessary at the moment. I do agree though, that $38 is a small price to pay to be able to have the freedom to do as you like with your phone. I keep wondering how IMEI-check does it. I have a feeling they have someone working with them over at HTC to make this work. It's not technical ability, it may be something else. They had an unlocker within a day or two of the Dash release. Corporate espionage or internal collusion or technical expertise, I am not sure what it is but somehow I don't think this has anything to do with the technology. We saw similar behavior with the Universal unlock application earlier this year.
maddog, it's a well known/enforced T-Mo policy that if you have been a customer in good standing with them for 90 days and have not made a similar request in that period (this is my 7th year with them), they will handily supply you with an unlock code upon request. For most people it's not a problem but if you are switching to T-Mo just to get a phone then you will obviously have to wait. I have had several phones unlocked through them since Y2K and have never had a problem.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you are on this forum you are probably interested in changing ROMs and modifying your Excalibur. I'm just dumbfounded that people are willing to buy this phone and then have it just sit there and not work because its not SIM unlocked and they don't want to pay an extra $38 to have it unlocked.
You still need to have your Dash CID unlocked to install the test ROM from HTC.
monakh said:
Someone mentioned that there's a way to downgrade the bootloader to install (at least) the new HTC test ROM that's been mentioned lately in this forum. I am not sure how true that is but if it is, then CID unlock is unnecessary at the moment.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's right, if you flash the bootloader (SPL-1.11) published here, you will be able to flash any ROM without CID checking, so you don't need to CID-Unlock your device.
monakh said:
I keep wondering how IMEI-check does it. I have a feeling they have someone working with them over at HTC to make this work. It's not technical ability, it may be something else. They had an unlocker within a day or two of the Dash release. Corporate espionage or internal collusion or technical expertise, I am not sure what it is but somehow I don't think this has anything to do with the technology.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They buy preproduction units to start investigation earlier, disassemble them, take all the flash chips out, read them... and I'm sure they kill several devices before they can release an unlocker.
DanITman said:
You still need to have your Dash CID unlocked to install the test ROM from HTC.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, you just need to flash the RUU_Excalibur_SPL-1.11_UpgradeOnly.exe first, no need to CID-Unlock, really!
Wow, great info, thanks pof.
Dan, I think one year ago you could have said that 'if you are on this forum, you are tinkering with ROMs and the like' but I daresay this is no longer true. Nowadays (thanks to Google and word of mouth), you will see many a newbie coming here looking for free unlockers and hoping for a silver bullet to solve all their problems. Just look at some of the posts in the newer device forums from people who *just* signed up and you will know what I am talking about. I think it would be fair to say that this site is no longer limited to incredibly hard-core geeks the way it was 12-18 months ago which is a lifetime in Internet time. That's probably a good thing and a bad thing. It's good because it drives traffic to this site and keeps them afloat but it's bad in the same a small mom & pop shop grows to the size of a Walmart losing the focus on the individual.
It's just the nature of the beast.
monakh said:
" I keep wondering how IMEI-check does it. I have a feeling they have someone working with them over at HTC to make this work. It's not technical ability, it may be something else. They had an unlocker within a day or two of the Dash release. Corporate espionage or internal collusion or technical expertise, I am not sure what it is but somehow I don't think this has anything to do with the technology. We saw similar behavior with the Universal unlock application earlier this year."
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Almost all of your unlocking software is conducted by using an a pattern matching check sum. If you are a programmer of any sorts and understand how a GUID data type is constructed then the concept of unlocking is similar. A GUID is a data type that is a globally or guaranteed unique identifiable value that can be traced down to the exact machine, date and time the value was created. This is done be cause of an algorithm that uses the date time, machine name and computes a value.
SIM Unlock apps do the same thing, it uses the IMEI number as part of it's alogrithm. There have been documents published on how Motorola does it's sequencing for Locking and Unlocking devices. Once you have that pattern it is just a matter of knowing where in the ROM's flash memory the check sum value is stored, with that the IMEI number and the pattern algorithm you should be able to unlock your phone.
Why do you suppose IMEI-CHECK was able to produce an unlocker only two days after the Excaliburs Release?, and not only for the Excalibur, but simular phones from the same manufacture? like the T-Mobile MDA and SDA?
RazrV3 said:
SIM Unlock apps do the same thing, it uses the IMEI number as part of it's alogrithm. There have been documents published on how Motorola does it's sequencing for Locking and Unlocking devices. Once you have that pattern it is just a matter of knowing where in the ROM's flash memory the check sum value is stored, with that the IMEI number and the pattern algorithm you should be able to unlock your phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That might be true for Motorola, but it's completely different in HTC phones.
HTC phones are NetLocked and SimLocked using vendor specific AT command "[email protected]". The MSL code is a 8 digits string and has nothing to do with the phone's IMEI. If your phone is unlocked you can lock it to any MSL using this [email protected] command through the GSM AT command debugger ('rtask 7' or 'rtask b' bootloader command depending on which HTC device you're using).
imei-check only requests your imei to make sure you don't use their unlocker with other devices, but that's it, it is not used for computing the unlock code nor the radio patch.
Read here if you want understand it more deeply:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=280819&p=1046444
This was a great thread. Thanks pof for re-educating those that need it--not even a "thank you" from them. Especially those in denial of spending or "wasting" $38. I got my FREE unlock code from TMO (took about 5 business days) and have no problems with CID checks for at least the current HTC Excalibur ROM. Hopefully, the same will be case with future ROMs.
pof said:
That's right, if you flash the bootloader (SPL-1.11) published here, you will be able to flash any ROM without CID checking, so you don't need to CID-Unlock your device.
They buy preproduction units to start investigation earlier, disassemble them, take all the flash chips out, read them... and I'm sure they kill several devices before they can release an unlocker.
No, you just need to flash the RUU_Excalibur_SPL-1.11_UpgradeOnly.exe first, no need to CID-Unlock, really!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't think so. My Dopod c720w is the Excalibur, as you all know, but I still can't downgrade my bootloader. It says : Invalid Model ID.
And by the way, my dopod is not SIM Locked. I don't know if it is CID Locked or not.
Any one have ideas?
Related
has the dash been cracked as yet ?
I have a IMEI check website ( apart from T-Mobile) is that the only way ?
Tical if you find it please let me know lol. So far, I've heard of the pay service and imo seems like the right way to go for the outcome...
Are you a t-mobile customer or did you get it from a t-mobile customer? Just call t-mobile and ask them for the unlock code. Worked for me.
jockyw has been designed a way to unlock those phones. But seems like topic has been abandoned
Whats The Fuss, T-Mobile Will Do It For You Free
nolageek said:
Are you a t-mobile customer or did you get it from a t-mobile customer? Just call t-mobile and ask them for the unlock code. Worked for me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have two T-Mobile Dashes, which T-Mobile unlocked free of charge. As far as the CID unlock for my Dashes, I took the safe route and paided the $40.00. I have tried all the ROM'S for my device. Outside of the latest T-Mobile update ROM, if I were going to use another ROM on my device, it would be the latest wm6 ROM Rogers. I know that a lot of people are working on ways to SIM and and CID unlock the Dash/Excalibur, but their methods have not been perfected yet, neither are they users friendly. That's why people in the USA will still go across the pond to the UK to have this work done, not taking anything away from the developers on this website like my main jackw2001. I truly believe jackw2001 is working on a user friendly software for all, because that guy is a perfectest, who will never ever give up, until his project is perfect, just like we did with the first YouTube player..................!
Honestly, the instructions for getting around the CID issue as found at the following thread are so easy a caveman could do it:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=329605
My (even more simplified) instructions are:
1) go to that link and download Excalibur USPL- CID BYPASS.zip and SDA_ApplicationUnlock.zip
2) unzip both into the same directory.
3) follow the directions in the readme.txt inside Excalibur USPL- CID BYPASS.zip.
That's it. Super easy. If it was any easier, you'd have people doing drastic things to their phone without doing any research whatsoever. It's not THAT hard to figure this stuff out.
Which leaves outstanding the issue of the SIM lock. Jockeyw2001 posted he had cracked the sim lock and was going to release something for free. Asked for a volunteer. Then said he might or might not write something. Then disappeared and has not indicated whether he is even writing something. Or when. Or how he cracked.
His unexplained silence makes me wonder whether there ever really was a crack, if so whether it was ever going to be free, etc.
Is anybody else working on a free sim-unlock?
seems like he doesnt want to post it for everyone
look at him personal message
accept $$$ for simlock codes
Jackyw2001 Is Not That Kind of Guy
clueless11 said:
Which leaves outstanding the issue of the SIM lock. Jockeyw2001 posted he had cracked the sim lock and was going to release something for free. Asked for a volunteer. Then said he might or might not write something. Then disappeared and has not indicated whether he is even writing something. Or when. Or how he cracked.
His unexplained silence makes me wonder whether there ever really was a crack, if so whether it was ever going to be free, etc.
Is anybody else working on a free sim-unlock?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don't give on jackyw2001, believe me, he will make a awesome come back, he just wants to make his software perfect and easy for all users.......!
you may be right. you may not be. i don't know. but he was able to post when he was offering a free program and looking for volunteers, and then later posted he might or might not, and then after he got the volunteer stopped responding to posts at all. that invites skepticism, don't you think?
Hi Techie folks!
All right, hopefully everyone would excuse any blunders made by a noob but this is my dilemma.
This is my first, and most assuredly not my last, post on this quite interesting platform.
I had recently purchased a device (Google Samsung Galaxy Nexus I9250 Android Smartphone 16Gb) which was supposedly 'unlocked' from an online store (Expansys USA) out here in the US.
I bought it outright for $409.99
Link: http://www.expansys-usa.com/google-nexus-prime-android-smartphone-unlocked-16gb-224148/
I had received that device without any issues and had been using it for over three weeks.
I have the StraightTalk (USA) GSM SIM on it and like I mentioned, no issues whatsoever was faced during daily day-to-day use.
However, yesterday for the first time, I noticed that the network was not connecting and so I rebooted the phone thinking it was some network error.
Now when I did that I received a message after the boot-up which stated 'SIM Network Unlock Pin' and the options were to enter the PIN or dismiss that.
When I dismissed the message notification, I found out that the network was not available.
But the other features of the phone was not affected, as in navigating through the phone and applications (non-internet based) was without an problems.
Just that the network was not connecting although I observed that I could make emergency calls.
So I tried rebooting it again, by taking out the battery and SIM card as well, the issue still persisted.
So I started to troubleshoot the issue, by inserting in another GSM SIM card into the phone, but found the issue to persisting.
To double-check, I took out my StraightTalk SIM card and put in another phone, the SIM card was working fine! :good:
Just to be on the safe side, I called StraightTalk Customer Support and had asked them for some clarification as to why this SIM Network Unlock PIN was shown.
They suggested that this was the phone issue and needed to be sorted out by the place of purchase/manufacturer.
I even tried entering the SIM card's PUK code but did not reach far in that regard.
On searching the net (which is why I had come here for proper support and answers), I had found quite a lot issues with regard to this problem.
I was under the assumption that this phone was the GSM Unlocked International Version, but after this incident, it so happens that this is not the case.
The solution given online and out here is to root the phone using the Wugfresh method and after rooting, run the device with the application (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1548210) which would take care of this issue.
However, I am not too keen on voiding my warranty on this account, and also the steps are quite complicated with respect to rooting the device.
Yes I am noob! So please don't roll your eyes!
This is the issue, and now to what I would appreciate this forum's assistance.
Being an expensive product, I dont want to buy another one just because of this issue.
I do not know where this phone is purchased from, which means, I have no idea which network provider this is locked to.
I can only provide the IMEI number.
Question 1: Is it possible to find out to which network this phone is locked to?
I have to add that the phone does not have any network branding on it, nor does it show any during the boot-up process.
Question 2: Can the phone be unlocked with online unlocking sites?
Question 3: If so, can someone provide me any good sites that can unlock the device.
Is this site any good? Link: http://www.unlockallcellular.com/samsung-galaxy-nexus-unlock-code-p-196144.html
Like I said, worse case scenario, I would indeed have to root my phone and proceed to install that software which will help me get rid of this issue once and for all.
As you all can see, I'm desperately looking for some solutions/answers and would appreciate it if someone would shed any light to this issue.
PS: I do know that there are threads on this issue, but mine is more or less around finding the invisible network provider that this phone is locked to.
Best Regards,
Reena Johnson
Your device was not factory SIM-unlocked. The vendor probably unlocked it using a code. That said, you should call Expansys and ask them for the code.
Otherwise, you can take a look at the following two threads. The first one is easy, but temporary -- in other words, you will need to do unlock every time you flash a new ROM. The second is permanent, but not as straight-forward to accomplish.
1) http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1548210
2) http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1606982
Further queries now arise ....
efrant said:
Your device was not factory SIM-unlocked. The vendor probably unlocked it using a code. That said, you should call Expansys and ask them for the code.
Otherwise, you can take a look at the following two threads. The first one is easy, but temporary -- in other words, you will need to do unlock every time you flash a new ROM. The second is permanent, but not as straight-forward to accomplish.
1) http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1548210
2) http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1606982
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks a lot for the quick reply.
Wow! You guys are fast!
Much appreciated.
Now I have a query. The option 1 which you have stated, is the one which I have looked at.
Even that requires me to root my phone.
Isn't it so?
Cause the OP in that thread specifically mentions the need to root the phone.
I have asked Expansys USA for that code, and since Saturday/Sunday is off for them, I am hoping to get a reply from them on Monday.
Like I said, my main concern is that I would like this process to be hassle free.
You guys (no-offence intended for the male demographic) are quite capable of rooting the phone.
Unfortunately, I wish not to choose that route, unless no options are left available at my disposal.
Which is why I am bending towards the easy unlocking method.
So my next question really is since its (read: the phone) not a factory SIM-unlockedissue, can I find the original network provider to which this phone was locked to?
As in, is there any where on this device which can tell me that information?
Once again, I sincerely thank you for your support and assistance in my life a lot easier! :victory:
Regards,
Reena J
djjohnson said:
Thanks a lot for the quick reply.
Wow! You guys are fast!
Much appreciated.
Now I have a query. The option 1 which you have stated, is the one which I have looked at.
Even that requires me to root my phone.
Isn't it so?
Cause the OP in that thread specifically mentions the need to root the phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, you are right it does require root. (I didn't realize that it was the link you had looked at and mentioned in your post.)
djjohnson said:
I have asked Expansys USA for that code, and since Saturday/Sunday is off for them, I am hoping to get a reply from them on Monday.
Like I said, my main concern is that I would like this process to be hassle free.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Probably best to wait until Monday then, as that would certainly be the most hassle-free option.
djjohnson said:
You guys (no-offence intended for the male demographic) are quite capable of rooting the phone.
Unfortunately, I wish not to choose that route, unless no options are left available at my disposal.
Which is why I am bending towards the easy unlocking method.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Believe it or not, "rooting" a Nexus device is extremely easy, and should not take more than 5 minutes. The part the takes the most time is to make sure the drivers are set up properly on your PC... Once that is done, no more than a few minutes is all it takes.
djjohnson said:
So my next question really is since its (read: the phone) not a factory SIM-unlockedissue, can I find the original network provider to which this phone was locked to?
As in, is there any where on this device which can tell me that information?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, there is a way, although I believe you need root, although I could be wrong here. You need to post this file from your device: /factory/mps_code.dat and someone will be able to tell you. Or you can look in that file and compare the code in there to this list.
---------- Post added at 11:21 PM ---------- Previous post was at 11:18 PM ----------
djjohnson said:
[snip]
Question 2: Can the phone be unlocked with online unlocking sites?
Question 3: If so, can someone provide me any good sites that can unlock the device.
Is this site any good? Link: http://www.unlockallcellular.com/samsung-galaxy-nexus-unlock-code-p-196144.html
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And yeah, you should be able to get it unlocked by one of those site, even the one you mentioned. But I can't vouch for it, nor can I recommend any site, as I have never used any.
Hey djjohnson
I've got the exact same problem, but bought my phone from a different seller.
Did you manage to get any information (or PIN) from expansys??
Thymine said:
Hey djjohnson
I've got the exact same problem, but bought my phone from a different seller.
Did you manage to get any information (or PIN) from expansys??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It looks like OP disappeared after getting his issue solved. Expansys has great customer service and would have exchanged the phone with no problems. Which retailer did you get it from? There are unlocking sites out there but you have to know which network its locked to. Or root it and try the methods listed in this thread. GL
Cheers mate,
I bought mine from an ebay seller and have already sent them a message asking for either the PIN or the name of the original service provider.
If that falls through, I'll have no other option but to root....or just be the first of my friends to not have a phone number and live exclusively on the internet...
I'll probably root.
A delayed update ...
Techies folks!
This is just to update you guys on this issue and if in future any one else faces such similar issue just do this and get back your peace of mind.
First you need to root your phone as mentioned by Efrant and it is indeed a simple process once you have set up the required drivers.
Once again thanks a lot Efrant for your support and time in helping me out with this.
:good:
First you need to root your phone, period.
I tried all methods before diving into this method.
Rooting isn't complicated and all it takes is patience and the exact details to get this done.
What I am about to suggest is to be taken at the reader's risk and I am not responsible for any damage done to your phone.
That being said, I highly doubt that anything will go wrong unless you arent used to following instructions!
My Nexus was magically locked to an invisible network and you guys can find that out by going into fastboot mode.
What that means is to turn your device off and then press the buttons together (volume Up + volume Down + Power), you will get that info under the "baseband version" and "carrier info".
I could not resort to the online unlocking sites because ALL of them require the original network to unlock the phone.
I suggest that you root the phone and it is quite simple not taking you longer than 10-20 minutes.
1) First you will need to install the drivers onto your phone from your computer which you will need during the rooting process.
You can get that from here
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=20058157&postcount=1
It is called the Universal Naked Driver 0.7.
The download instructions are given in this link http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=29044502&postcount=735
The OP was quite comprehensive in providing the exact details in what needed to be done. So once you have installed the necessary drivers proceed to the next step.
2) Download Wugfresh Toolkit which is the main tool needed to root your phone.
First you will need to unlock your phone and then root it.
The beauty of this software is that everything is on it. Just click on the Unlock button first and then you just have to sit back and wait for the magic to happen.
The instructions on the screen will tell you what its doing.
I would suggest reading through the entire process before going through with this.
http://www.wugfresh.com/dev/nexus-root-toolkit/
Extra material on this http://wugfresh.com/Help/
3) Once you have rooted your phone, the hardest bit is over. Then all you need to do is install this application on your device. And run it.
Simple.
You have yourself an unlocked phone!! :victory:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1548210
There will be questions as to if this will work in CDMA or GSM versions.
I got mine from Expansys and it was supposed to be an unlocked GSM model.
I hope that will help as it did with mine.
Actually I got my bf to do this for me as it is a tad bit complicated and it was a birthday gift from him.
mendezj666 said:
It looks like OP disappeared after getting his issue solved. Expansys has great customer service and would have exchanged the phone with no problems.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow!
I seriously didn't realize that I had a personal assistant or the CIA to track my moves!
I apologize if my bf didnt get back to you guys on this issue. I, on the other hand, have work which consumes 12hrs of my day.
So I really do not have the time to post a reply.
But hey! a simple 'I dont know where SHE is, but here's what I can do to help you out' would have sufficed.
I'm just saying. No offense intended mate.
By the way, I'm a girl, and in my opinion Expansys came highly recommended to me by all my co-workers.
But I had the most horrible customer support ever!
My personal opinion would be to NOT buy from there!
Get from Negri's or some place better.
God knows how many times I had tried calling them. Even tried sending them tons of emails and not even one peek into my issue.
Goes to show how "great" of a customer service they have!
Thymine said:
Hey djjohnson
I've got the exact same problem, but bought my phone from a different seller.
Did you manage to get any information (or PIN) from expansys??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I hope my post will help you also to resolve your issue.
Best way is to root your phone. But like I said earlier, do read everything, and download the drivers and the Wugfresh Toolkit before proceeding.
All the best.
Soon you'll be like me enjoying what can only be said as a beauty of a device.
A big thanks to Efrant for helping a gal out!
Cheers!
Regards,
Reena J
[Q] Same problem, solved, but now how can I network lock it again...
Hi All,
In short, same problem here, I used another unlock code(bought it) and now i want to network lock it again? How can I lock it?
I had very same problem of this thread, I bought phone as factory unlocked but was code unlocked(Vodafone Spain), later after updating to 4.0.4 and then to 4.1.1, it asked for the code again.
I raged with the problem and I rushed to buy a unlock code (8$), a bit shady, but it works fine.
Now I want to confront the shop who sold the phone lying about its lock state, and it would be convincing if i can send them the phone network locked as it was.
How can I network lock the phone again?
I have tryed inputing the code *7465625*638*# or *7465625# and similar combinations with no lock, I don't get a popup asking me for the carrier data to lock it.
I also tryed to downgrade the phone to 4.0.4, with no result and later to 4.1.1 and the same it is not asking for the unlock code...
Just an obvious clarification, I am talking about carrier network locking, not lock/unlock the bootloader.
Thanxs a lot in advance
djjohnson said:
Techies folks!
This is just to update you guys on this issue and if in future any one else faces such similar issue just do this and get back your peace of mind.
First you need to root your phone as mentioned by Efrant and it is indeed a simple process once you have set up the required drivers.
Once again thanks a lot Efrant for your support and time in helping me out with this.
:good:
First you need to root your phone, period.
I tried all methods before diving into this method.
Rooting isn't complicated and all it takes is patience and the exact details to get this done.
What I am about to suggest is to be taken at the reader's risk and I am not responsible for any damage done to your phone.
That being said, I highly doubt that anything will go wrong unless you arent used to following instructions!
My Nexus was magically locked to an invisible network and you guys can find that out by going into fastboot mode.
What that means is to turn your device off and then press the buttons together (volume Up + volume Down + Power), you will get that info under the "baseband version" and "carrier info".
I could not resort to the online unlocking sites because ALL of them require the original network to unlock the phone.
I suggest that you root the phone and it is quite simple not taking you longer than 10-20 minutes.
1) First you will need to install the drivers onto your phone from your computer which you will need during the rooting process.
You can get that from here
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=20058157&postcount=1
It is called the Universal Naked Driver 0.7.
The download instructions are given in this link http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=29044502&postcount=735
The OP was quite comprehensive in providing the exact details in what needed to be done. So once you have installed the necessary drivers proceed to the next step.
2) Download Wugfresh Toolkit which is the main tool needed to root your phone.
First you will need to unlock your phone and then root it.
The beauty of this software is that everything is on it. Just click on the Unlock button first and then you just have to sit back and wait for the magic to happen.
The instructions on the screen will tell you what its doing.
I would suggest reading through the entire process before going through with this.
http://www.wugfresh.com/dev/nexus-root-toolkit/
Extra material on this http://wugfresh.com/Help/
3) Once you have rooted your phone, the hardest bit is over. Then all you need to do is install this application on your device. And run it.
Simple.
You have yourself an unlocked phone!! :victory:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1548210
There will be questions as to if this will work in CDMA or GSM versions.
I got mine from Expansys and it was supposed to be an unlocked GSM model.
I hope that will help as it did with mine.
Actually I got my bf to do this for me as it is a tad bit complicated and it was a birthday gift from him.
Wow!
I seriously didn't realize that I had a personal assistant or the CIA to track my moves!
I apologize if my bf didnt get back to you guys on this issue. I, on the other hand, have work which consumes 12hrs of my day.
So I really do not have the time to post a reply.
But hey! a simple 'I dont know where SHE is, but here's what I can do to help you out' would have sufficed.
I'm just saying. No offense intended mate.
By the way, I'm a girl, and in my opinion Expansys came highly recommended to me by all my co-workers.
But I had the most horrible customer support ever!
My personal opinion would be to NOT buy from there!
Get from Negri's or some place better.
God knows how many times I had tried calling them. Even tried sending them tons of emails and not even one peek into my issue.
Goes to show how "great" of a customer service they have!
I hope my post will help you also to resolve your issue.
Best way is to root your phone. But like I said earlier, do read everything, and download the drivers and the Wugfresh Toolkit before proceeding.
All the best.
Soon you'll be like me enjoying what can only be said as a beauty of a device.
A big thanks to Efrant for helping a gal out!
Cheers!
Regards,
Reena J
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Google is selling these phones for $350 ? Why would you pay more and not get it from the source, just curious. Not trying to be argumentative.
jawmail said:
Google is selling these phones for $350 ? Why would you pay more and not get it from the source, just curious. Not trying to be argumentative.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Maybe they're not in the US or purchased them more than 2-3 months ago.
The point is that google does not sell them worldwide, they don't sell them in my country (Spain), or at least not 3 months ago when I bought mine. And if they would sell them it would be more like 400€ minimum (equivalent to 500$ moreless)
But lets not lose the focus, of the question, any idea of how to network lock the phone again?
jawmail said:
Google is selling these phones for $350 ? Why would you pay more and not get it from the source, just curious. Not trying to be argumentative.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had let my nexus update to 4.1.1 before realising I had a sim unlock problem here, the guide above was spot on, if you are on 4.0.4. I just couldnt get the last bit done on JellyBean, so went back to google image 4.0.4 and it work flawlessly
Phone updated to JB an hour ago, and its still working sweet
Why not pool money for Java cards instead of phones for developers!?
I mean think about it. Its a sure proven method of getting s-off and unlocks. Instead of trying to pay for developers new phones and expecting them to hack their way to unlocking and s-offing our devices. Just pool money for java cards to trusted developers and send our phones to them in the same manner sonic is. I understand the risk of shipping. My idea could be wrong thats why im asking for input. What are some of your thoughts on this idea.
jmotyka said:
Why not pool money for Java cards instead of phones for developers!?
I mean think about it. Its a sure proven method of getting s-off and unlocks. Instead of trying to pay for developers new phones and expecting them to hack their way to unlocking and s-offing our devices. Just pool money for java cards to trusted developers and send our phones to them in the same manner sonic is. I understand the risk of shipping. My idea could be wrong thats why im asking for input. What are some of your thoughts on this idea.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Trust plays a major role, along with time without a phone. The more phones in the hands of developers, the quicker someone will come up with a way to circumvent our problem with bootloader and s-off to be made available to the public.
We'd still need to ship our phones out. I dont have a backup smartphone (I sell all of mine in order to buy the next one) so I can't send mine out, as much as I want too
And I'm pretty sure java cards are more expensive than the phone
Sent from HTC One using xda-developers app
megaorange1 said:
And I'm pretty sure java cards are more expensive than the phone
Sent from HTC One using xda-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
2-3 phones covers one card depending ;P
jmotyka said:
Why not pool money for Java cards instead of phones for developers!?
I mean think about it. Its a sure proven method of getting s-off and unlocks. Instead of trying to pay for developers new phones and expecting them to hack their way to unlocking and s-offing our devices. Just pool money for java cards to trusted developers and send our phones to them in the same manner sonic is. I understand the risk of shipping. My idea could be wrong thats why im asking for input. What are some of your thoughts on this idea.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
this is a great thought.
but the fact would still remain.
it's the same process that sonic is doing..
and for a hell of a great price... (from sonic)
If we were to purchase these cards rather than dev phones. what happens when we get that 4.3 update with a new hboot, ppl will take that OTA and then wonder why they lost root. and that $1300 java card is now essentially worthless (correct me if I am wrong please)
but either way, if we buy these cards, the devs now have no way of finding the exploits for a future software s-off..
also you would still need to send your phone out..
I for one have 100% faith in sonic.
His mother works at the USPS,
and with $600 insurance on the phone going both ways, I am not too worried.
I wrapped my phone up nicely in the box the phone came in then wrapped some bubble wrap around that and am now on my way to the post office to send sonic my phone.
The guy is just trying to make this community more successful and he took the initiative to buy the card, and we owe this man a huge amount of gratitude.
Sonic thank you again for everything you are doing for us,
it's not easy having to do all these phones for everyone,
when a DEV gets s-off their work is done, they sit back let the users mess with it, we are sending our devices to him which takes time to be careful with the phones, and then s-off each phone. and all this was done very professionally IMHO, with the website, and it only works out better with his Mother working at the main Post Office.
thank you again Sonic, can't wait to get my phone back!
andybones said:
this is a great thought.
but the fact would still remain.
it's the same process that sonic is doing..
and for a hell of a great price... (from sonic)
If we were to purchase these cards rather than dev phones. what happens when we get that 4.3 update with a new hboot, ppl will take that OTA and then wonder why they lost root. and that $1300 java card is now essentially worthless (correct me if I am wrong please)
but either way, if we buy these cards, the devs now have no way of finding the exploits for a future software s-off..
also you would still need to send your phone out..
I for one have 100% faith in sonic.
His mother works at the USPS,
and with $600 insurance on the phone going both ways, I am not too worried.
I wrapped my phone up nicely in the box the phone came in then wrapped some bubble wrap around that and am now on my way to the post office to send sonic my phone.
The guy is just trying to make this community more successful and he took the initiative to buy the card, and we owe this man a huge amount of gratitude.
Sonic thank you again for everything you are doing for us,
it's not easy having to do all these phones for everyone,
when a DEV gets s-off their work is done, they sit back let the users mess with it, we are sending our devices to him which takes time to be careful with the phones, and then s-off each phone. and all this was done very professionally IMHO, with the website, and it only works out better with his Mother working at the main Post Office.
thank you again Sonic, can't wait to get my phone back!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
IIRC they can't "patch" JavaCards since its a bootloader function and is used internally by HTC in a lot of phones. However, if they somehow got ahold of mine/someone else's CardID, they could "disable" the card so no phones read it as valid via an OTA or something.
Either way, this wouldn't really help devs unless they cracked the many levels of cryptology on that card and found out how to clone it to a normal SD.
Sonic2756 said:
IIRC they can't "patch" JavaCards since its a bootloader function and is used internally by HTC in a lot of phones. However, if they somehow got ahold of mine/someone else's CardID, they could "disable" the card so no phones read it as valid via an OTA or something.
Either way, this wouldn't really help devs unless they cracked the many levels of cryptology on that card and found out how to clone it to a normal SD.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm on your side 100%!
leaving house now to drop off phone to USPS!
so excited!!
Sonic2756 said:
IIRC they can't "patch" JavaCards since its a bootloader function and is used internally by HTC in a lot of phones. However, if they somehow got ahold of mine/someone else's CardID, they could "disable" the card so no phones read it as valid via an OTA or something.
Either way, this wouldn't really help devs unless they cracked the many levels of cryptology on that card and found out how to clone it to a normal SD.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Which is understandable. But i feel i would rather send my phone to you ( which i did) and have you use the javacard rather than sending it somewhere to get jtaged. The HTC one is one of the most difficult phones to take apart. Almost all tear down videos of the htc mentioned that they had broken at least one or two to finally get it done right.
On the subject of the javacard, what are the possibilities of someone cloning a javacard as appose to cracking the htc ones bootloader? Is one easier than the other?
Has anyone heard if the REVONE developers are working on our phones?
VZW was out of stock when I called to get a replacement because of my camera, so I'm debating on just waiting for the 4.3 to fix my camera or keep calling til they have stock again.
If I read all this correctly, if I send out my phone for S-Off and accepted the OTA for the sake of the camera issue, will I keep S-Off? If I have root when the OTA comes I know I'd lose that, but as long as I could keep S-Off I'd be able to re-root, correct?
PizzaSauce said:
VZW was out of stock when I called to get a replacement because of my camera, so I'm debating on just waiting for the 4.3 to fix my camera or keep calling til they have stock again.
If I read all this correctly, if I send out my phone for S-Off and accepted the OTA for the sake of the camera issue, will I keep S-Off? If I have root when the OTA comes I know I'd lose that, but as long as I could keep S-Off I'd be able to re-root, correct?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is technically possible for them to get rid of S-OFF, but I don't believe that they ever have, nor given any indication that they ever will. And yes, so long as you have S-OFF, you will be able to re-root.
Sent from my HTC One
Hey there, currently I am using Roger's Samsung Galaxy S3, I747M. I was using the stock 4.1.1 for a long time and then I rooted my device. Sometime after, I grew bored of 4.1.1 and upgraded to the new 4.3. I currently have Clockwork Recovery installed, though I don't remember which version (If it's relevant, I will get it). That being said, from what I remember, I got a stock version of 4.3 from SamsMobile or something like that. BUT, when I go to Settings > About > Software Update > Update, I get a message saying "Your device has been modified. Software updates are not available". Whether or not that means I have a proper stock ROM or not, I don't know. I'm fairly new at this.
All that being said, I'm looking to unlock my device so that I can use either a T-Mobile SIM while visiting the USA or a Wind SIM. Both companies have significantly better cellphone plans with USA Roaming.
That being said, Rogers charges $50 for a unlock. I've found numerous website that also unlock the phone for an average of $20 to $35. There's a local Kiosk in the mall near my house which also does it for $30 or $35 (I forget which). After extensive Google and XDA searching, I've also found a few different methods, though I don't know their effectiveness.
The first and most obvious one is the disabling of the SHA256. Referring to this thread:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2176719
From what I understand, I'm not able to do this unless I downgrade my Android from 4.3 to 4.0.1 or 4.1.1 . I really don't want to do this as I really like 4.3 . Also, I'm not sure if I'm able to as I am aware that upgrading to 4.3 might have changed my bootloader type, preventing me from downgrading. How to check that, I don't know.
I've also found a tool that can unlock your device for you, though the original thread has been locked:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s3/general/17-02-2013-samsung-network-sim-unlock-t1731931
That being said, I've found a wordpress that contains the newer version of the unlocker tool, but whether or not it works and is safe, I haven't the slightest. Having tried downloading the tool, you need a login which comes from a text file, which you have to like something on Facebook for, etc. I did that but the password text wouldn't send so I wasn't able to try. Here's the site:
http://samsungnetworksimunlock.wordpress.com/
Myriad of unlock sites; which are good/trustworthy? I have no idea:
http://samsung-updates.com/
http://www.unlockediphone.me/
http://www.unlockyourphone.me/
http://www.unlocksamsungonline.com/
There are tons more that I've seen and been to that I haven't listed. Don't know which to use, if any.
SO, what it comes down to. What should I do to unlock my device? What is the best method? I would like to do it for free if possible obviously but I'm not sure how to go about it. Has anyone tried any of the above methods with success? Baring in mind my 4.3 circumstances and that I live in Canada on Rogers. Thoughts? Suggestions? Questions?
TL;DR - Need to unlock my phone, there's some complications. Unfortunately i can't condense the whole story, what do?
Isuress said:
Hey there, currently I am using Roger's Samsung Galaxy S3, I747M. I was using the stock 4.1.1 for a long time and then I rooted my device. Sometime after, I grew bored of 4.1.1 and upgraded to the new 4.3. I currently have Clockwork Recovery installed, though I don't remember which version (If it's relevant, I will get it). That being said, from what I remember, I got a stock version of 4.3 from SamsMobile or something like that. BUT, when I go to Settings > About > Software Update > Update, I get a message saying "Your device has been modified. Software updates are not available". Whether or not that means I have a proper stock ROM or not, I don't know. I'm fairly new at this.
All that being said, I'm looking to unlock my device so that I can use either a T-Mobile SIM while visiting the USA or a Wind SIM. Both companies have significantly better cellphone plans with USA Roaming.
That being said, Rogers charges $50 for a unlock. I've found numerous website that also unlock the phone for an average of $20 to $35. There's a local Kiosk in the mall near my house which also does it for $30 or $35 (I forget which). After extensive Google and XDA searching, I've also found a few different methods, though I don't know their effectiveness.
The first and most obvious one is the disabling of the SHA256. Referring to this thread:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2176719
From what I understand, I'm not able to do this unless I downgrade my Android from 4.3 to 4.0.1 or 4.1.1 . I really don't want to do this as I really like 4.3 . Also, I'm not sure if I'm able to as I am aware that upgrading to 4.3 might have changed my bootloader type, preventing me from downgrading. How to check that, I don't know.
I've also found a tool that can unlock your device for you, though the original thread has been locked:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s3/general/17-02-2013-samsung-network-sim-unlock-t1731931
That being said, I've found a wordpress that contains the newer version of the unlocker tool, but whether or not it works and is safe, I haven't the slightest. Having tried downloading the tool, you need a login which comes from a text file, which you have to like something on Facebook for, etc. I did that but the password text wouldn't send so I wasn't able to try. Here's the site:
http://samsungnetworksimunlock.wordpress.com/
Myriad of unlock sites; which are good/trustworthy? I have no idea:
http://samsung-updates.com/
http://www.unlockediphone.me/
http://www.unlockyourphone.me/
http://www.unlocksamsungonline.com/
There are tons more that I've seen and been to that I haven't listed. Don't know which to use, if any.
SO, what it comes down to. What should I do to unlock my device? What is the best method? I would like to do it for free if possible obviously but I'm not sure how to go about it. Has anyone tried any of the above methods with success? Baring in mind my 4.3 circumstances and that I live in Canada on Rogers. Thoughts? Suggestions? Questions?
TL;DR - Need to unlock my phone, there's some complications. Unfortunately i can't condense the whole story, what do?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
my 2 cents, the 2 links for unlock tools (not unlock websites in which you gotta pay) are useless... first one is for international, second is fake since it require surveys
and I've never used any unlock sites to buy unlock keys so I can't tell you
though back to my question, if you were on 4.1.1, why didn't you unlock it then before you update to 4.3..
pcshano said:
my 2 cents, the 2 links for unlock tools (not unlock websites in which you gotta pay) are useless... first one is for international, second is fake since it require surveys
and I've never used any unlock sites to buy unlock keys so I can't tell you
though back to my question, if you were on 4.1.1, why didn't you unlock it then before you update to 4.3..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey there! I think the tools might actually work if I don't find some weird survey version. for example, the unlocker on the SamsungUpdat site is actually one of the earlier release versions that did jellybean. I'd need to find testimonials for that though before I decide to drop a 3 euro donation. And to answer your other question, at the time I wasn't aware I was ever going to be interested in unlocking my phone. Let alone spending this much time to figure it out. That being said, say I did know I'd want to unlock in the future, I still wasn't aware that if I updated I would be able to keep the phone unlocked. As in, keeping the unlock through the update. I only just found out that the unlock involved another partition of the phone other than the one the OS takes place on. So, if I do manage to downgrade, if I were to unlock and the update back to 4.3 it would keep the unlock?
Isuress said:
Hey there! I think the tools might actually work if I don't find some weird survey version. for example, the unlocker on the SamsungUpdat site is actually one of the earlier release versions that did jellybean. I'd need to find testimonials for that though before I decide to drop a 3 euro donation. And to answer your other question, at the time I wasn't aware I was ever going to be interested in unlocking my phone. Let alone spending this much time to figure it out. That being said, say I did know I'd want to unlock in the future, I still wasn't aware that if I updated I would be able to keep the phone unlocked. As in, keeping the unlock through the update. I only just found out that the unlock involved another partition of the phone other than the one the OS takes place on. So, if I do manage to downgrade, if I were to unlock and the update back to 4.3 it would keep the unlock?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Once you're unlock, it'll stay unlock but if your bootloader is mjb, as of now, there's no possible downgrade yet
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk
pcshano said:
Once you're unlock, it'll stay unlock but if your bootloader is mjb, as of now, there's no possible downgrade yet
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How do I go about checking what version my bootloader is? Also, if I do end up downgrading, which method is the best for unlocking?
It's in setting->about phone under baseband version
And there's a free unlock method which had been floating around but it required stock 4.1.1 in order to do it
and again if your bootloader is MJB (most likely be the case), I'd advice you not to be foolish and downgrade cuz it'd brick your phone
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk
pcshano said:
It's in setting->about phone under baseband version
And there's a free unlock method which has been floating around but it requires stock 4.1.1 in order to do it
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you're referring to this:
isuress; said:
The first and most obvious one is the disabling of the SHA256. Referring to this thread:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/show....php?t=2176719
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I already mentioned that in the original post. That looks to me like a software related unlocked which I would feel would get reset when I upgrade back to 4.3. Is this not true? That being said, what exactly does disabling SHA256 do? From what I understand, it's actually an encryption algorithm. Is my data no longer encrypted once turning this feature off?
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}
Here's my About. Not sure what I'm looking for.
Isuress said:
If you're referring to this:
I already mentioned that in the original post. That looks to me like a software related unlocked which I would feel would get reset when I upgrade back to 4.3. Is this not true? That being said, what exactly does disabling SHA256 do? From what I understand, it's actually an encryption algorithm. Is my data no longer encrypted once turning this feature off?
Here's my About. Not sure what I'm looking for.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm sorry, I forgot your phone is i747M not i747
but in any case MK4 is the same as MJB
if you want free unlock, you have to wait for someone to find a way to remove KNOX so that you can downgrade to 4.1.1 for free unlock
although if you're looking for a way to downgrade the rom to 4.1.1 there is a way, but the bootloader still stay as 4.3 and with the 4.3 bootloader, you won't be able to do the free unlocking method
and to answer your question, no it's not. and I do not know what disabling SHA256 do as I've never used such software to help me unlock, also the link you posted gave me a 404 error
this might be a good read for you
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2625461
pcshano said:
I'm sorry, I forgot your phone is i747M not i747
but in any case MK4 is the same as MJB
if you want free unlock, you have to wait for someone to find a way to remove KNOX so that you can downgrade to 4.1.1 for free unlock
although if you're looking for a way to downgrade the rom to 4.1.1 there is a way, but the bootloader still stay as 4.3 and with the 4.3 bootloader, you won't be able to do the free unlocking method
and to answer your question, no it's not. and I do not know what disabling SHA256 do as I've never used such software to help me unlock, also the link you posted gave me a 404 error
this might be a good read for you
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2625461
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If we're still taking about the "SHA256[OFF]" method, I'm not sure if I feel comfortable doing that one. I also feel like once I downgrade, disable SHA256 and then go back to 4.3, that those settings will not carry over. Are there really no other methods?
Isuress said:
If we're still taking about the "SHA256[OFF]" method, I'm not sure if I feel comfortable doing that one. I also feel like once I downgrade, disable SHA256 and then go back to 4.3, that those settings will not carry over. Are there really no other methods?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
and no as long as KNOX is present
the only current working unlock is sadly to say, you have to pay for unlock code and the prices are varies
and as for that, I won't be of help because as I mentioned, I've never pay for any unlock code so I have no say in what will work and what not
Sorry.
pcshano said:
and no as long as KNOX is present
the only current working unlock is sadly to say, you have to pay for unlock code and the prices are varies
and as for that, I won't be of help because as I mentioned, I've never pay for any unlock code so I have no say in what will work and what not
Sorry.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm assuming KNOX is that little triangle notification thing that shows up on certain pages that says how many times you've messed with your device? I wasn't aware this little counter was a determent to anything?
Well, thanks anyway I suppose. Hopefully more people will start looking at the thread. Unfortunately it seems like this board moves slowly. I'm afraid of paying for an unlock for the most part. I'd need someone with unlocking experience to give me some feedback before anything.
Isuress said:
I'm assuming KNOX is that little triangle notification thing that shows up on certain pages that says how many times you've messed with your device? I wasn't aware this little counter was a determent to anything?
Well, thanks anyway I suppose. Hopefully more people will start looking at the thread. Unfortunately it seems like this board moves slowly. I'm afraid of paying for an unlock for the most part. I'd need someone with unlocking experience to give me some feedback before anything.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm assuming so myself, I know what knox is but have never actually experience it.. my bootloader is still MJ2 which is the leaked version 4.3 that doesn't come with knox
and with that being said, don't get your hope up, because there hasn't any success in downgrading from 4.3 bootloader without bricking your phone
pcshano said:
I'm assuming so myself, I know what knox is but have never actually experience it.. my bootloader is still MJ2 which is the leaked version 4.3 that doesn't come with knox
and with that being said, don't get your hope up, because there hasn't any success in downgrading from 4.3 bootloader without bricking your phone
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
From what I've read, it's near to impossible to fully brick your Samsung Galaxy S3 phone? I've seen a bunch of threads regarding unbricking it regardless of situation. Here's an example:
http://smartphonerepairsdiy.weebly....r-unbrick-samsung-galaxy-s3-all-versions.html
Isuress said:
From what I've read, it's near to impossible to fully brick your Samsung Galaxy S3 phone? I've seen a bunch of threads regarding unbricking it regardless of situation. Here's an example:
http://smartphonerepairsdiy.weebly....r-unbrick-samsung-galaxy-s3-all-versions.html
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
that might be true, but i'm sure you don't want to risk it, because whether it's soft brick or hard brick, it's still a pain to fix it
pcshano said:
that might be true, but i'm sure you don't want to risk it, because whether it's soft brick or hard brick, it's still a pain to fix it
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Agreed. I just wish the form was more active.
Isuress said:
I'm assuming KNOX is that little triangle notification thing that shows up on certain pages that says how many times you've messed with your device? I wasn't aware this little counter was a determent to anything?
Well, thanks anyway I suppose. Hopefully more people will start looking at the thread. Unfortunately it seems like this board moves slowly. I'm afraid of paying for an unlock for the most part. I'd need someone with unlocking experience to give me some feedback before anything.
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Knox is really a security system designed mostly with enterprise systems in mind. The problems with free unlocking your phone goes beyond Knox and really underscores the ongoing cycle of 'catch-up' games between Ol' Sam and the development community. The unlock exploit was first discovered in Android 4.1.1. Then Sam tried to close the exploit by removing it in JB 4.1.2. No problem. We simply went round by downgrading to 4.1.1, utilizing the exploit then upgraded back to 4.1.2. Now Sam went further by closing the downgrade loophole. It would appear the unlock exploit is really in the 4.1.1 radio. By linking the 4.3JB modem tightly to the bootloader and making the latter so secure as to be non-modifiable, the exploit appears closed - at least, for now. Please don't risk bricking your phone by trying any methods that may not work. The only sure thing for now is to get unlock code from the carrier or purchase one online.
If you are looking for a reliable service, you can try maingsmserver.com. I am not making any endorsements but I have used them several times with success each time.
Larry2999 said:
Knox is really a security system designed mostly with enterprise systems in mind. The problems with free unlocking your phone goes beyond Knox and really underscores the ongoing cycle of 'catch-up' games between Ol' Sam and the development community. The unlock exploit was first discovered in Android 4.1.1. Then Sam tried to close the exploit by removing it in JB 4.1.2. No problem. We simply went round by downgrading to 4.1.1, utilizing the exploit then upgraded back to 4.1.2. Now Sam went further by closing the downgrade loophole. It would appear the unlock exploit is really in the 4.1.1 radio. By linking the 4.3JB modem tightly to the bootloader and making the latter so secure as to be non-modifiable, the exploit appears closed - at least, for now. Please don't risk bricking your phone by trying any methods that may not work. The only sure thing for now is to get unlock code from the carrier or purchase one online.
If you are looking for a reliable service, you can try maingsmserver.com. I am not making any endorsements but I have used them several times with success each time.
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This clears up a lot of my curiosity on how the whole process works. I'm still curious as to what disabling SHA256 does. I'm aware it's a form of encryption but does that mean afterwards, my dad is all transferred and synced unencrypted?
Yeah, at this point, I might just have to go with getting a code somewhere but it really comes down to where. I just want something cheap. Less than $20. I'd part with $15 or something from a website. I'd love to go with my carrier but unfortunately Rogers is charging $50 for that. I was on the phone with a rep for a good hour discussing the possibility of it getting waived and all that business. She was very kind and offered other things but she was unable to waive the fee unfortunately. Even after talking with 3 different departments and her supervisor, lol.
There's a Kiosk in my local mall that does it for $30 but that's $10 more than I want to spend, haha. The site you linked is somewhat confusing and from what I'm seeing, it might be a bit too expensive? Also, I think the prices are in USD, not CAD so they'd be more probably.
Out of curiosity, do you know, or anyone reading this thread, know the process these companies, Kiosks or Carriers go through to obtain the unlock code? Is it a program? Do they call someone? The manufacturer maybe? I'd definitely work around this process if I knew how. I'm very interested in how the whole thing works.
Isuress said:
If we're still taking about the "SHA256[OFF]" method, I'm not sure if I feel comfortable doing that one. I also feel like once I downgrade, disable SHA256 and then go back to 4.3, that those settings will not carry over. Are there really no other methods?
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Once you unlock, it stays unlocked forever. It doesn't matter how you unlock it.
Isuress said:
This clears up a lot of my curiosity on how the whole process works. I'm still curious as to what disabling SHA256 does. I'm aware it's a form of encryption but does that mean afterwards, my dad is all transferred and synced unencrypted?
Yeah, at this point, I might just have to go with getting a code somewhere but it really comes down to where. I just want something cheap. Less than $20. I'd part with $15 or something from a website. I'd love to go with my carrier but unfortunately Rogers is charging $50 for that. I was on the phone with a rep for a good hour discussing the possibility of it getting waived and all that business. She was very kind and offered other things but she was unable to waive the fee unfortunately. Even after talking with 3 different departments and her supervisor, lol.
There's a Kiosk in my local mall that does it for $30 but that's $10 more than I want to spend, haha. The site you linked is somewhat confusing and from what I'm seeing, it might be a bit too expensive? Also, I think the prices are in USD, not CAD so they'd be more probably.
Out of curiosity, do you know, or anyone reading this thread, know the process these companies, Kiosks or Carriers go through to obtain the unlock code? Is it a program? Do they call someone? The manufacturer maybe? I'd definitely work around this process if I knew how. I'm very interested in how the whole thing works.
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I wouldn't worry myself too much about the SHA256 protocol. There's a lot we are still learning about the unlock process. The key thing to understand is that, when the unlock is properly done, it survives all firmware changes and is impossible to reverse. For the commercial online services, it's always one of two options - either they have access to the official database or they've been able to figure out the key algorithm for generating the unlock codes. There is nothing random about how IMEIs are generated and there is always a key relationship between all the different parameters (phone model, carrier, country, unlock code, unfreeze code etc.).
The unlock codes for Samsung Canada on maingsmserver.com costs $28. You could try the Canada networks service which is much less but may not be as sure. From what I've seen around though, you should be wary about anything going for less than $20. Plenty of scams out there.
petenatas said:
Once you unlock, it stays unlocked forever. It doesn't matter how you unlock it.
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Does that mean once you've disabled SHA256, which causes the phone to unlock, when you upgrade back to 4.2 or 4.3 that the unlock is retained AND SHA256 is re-enabled? Or does it just retain the unlock and SHA256 stays disabled? If the first situation is the case, then I might consider going through the hassle of downgrading and then re-upgrading?
Larry2999 said:
I wouldn't worry myself too much about the SHA256 protocol. There's a lot we are still learning about the unlock process. The key thing to understand is that, when the unlock is properly done, it survives all firmware changes and is impossible to reverse. For the commercial online services, it's always one of two options - either they have access to the official database or they've been able to figure out the key algorithm for generating the unlock codes. There is nothing random about how IMEIs are generated and there is always a key relationship between all the different parameters (phone model, carrier, country, unlock code, unfreeze code etc.).
The unlock codes for Samsung Canada on maingsmserver.com costs $28. You could try the Canada networks service which is much less but may not be as sure. From what I've seen around though, you should be wary about anything going for less than $20. Plenty of scams out there.
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Click to collapse
I was under the impression they probably had some sort of Database or something of that caliber. I can't imagine they have some sort of generator because if that was the case, I'm sure something like that would have leaked by now by some employee, no?
For $28, I might as well go to the local Kiosk in my mall and have it done there. If I could find it for $15 or less, then maybe I'd do it online? Though, the SHA256 option is looking more promising. Though, that's assuming SHA256 re-enables itself while retaining unlock once the phones been updated. The idea of having some sort of data encryption disable bothers me for some reason. Unless you can explain how it's really no different than having it on?
Did the firewater method for S-off and it keeps saying " device has been patched by HTC, your out of luck!!!." is there any way to get by this? im new to HTC devices so im a little thrown off
elvisp0129 said:
Did the firewater method for S-off and it keeps saying " device has been patched by HTC, your out of luck!!!." is there any way to get by this? im new to HTC devices so im a little thrown off
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I believe htc patched the last update, so would need to downgrade but not sure how you can downgrade when s-on.
There is a Bounty thread for a fix. Check my signature.
Someone correct me, cause I'm sure I'm wrong, my idea can't be right because it seems too easy/logical...
If HTC is the one who patched out firewater, wouldn't the next stop on the logic train be to assume that they want you to s-off on the HTCdev site so they can note the warranty voided??
I've been s-off since before this device even hit the market locally, so firewater worked fine...I'm just throwing darts to try and help.
Thoughts?
Exactly, it's not that easy. HTCDev will only let you unlock the bootloader, which is enough for many things, but is not the same as S-OFF. HTC doesn't provide any official way to the public for setting the device to S-OFF.
AGKdrOId said:
Someone correct me, cause I'm sure I'm wrong, my idea can't be right because it seems too easy/logical...
If HTC is the one who patched out firewater, wouldn't the next stop on the logic train be to assume that they want you to s-off on the HTCdev site so they can note the warranty voided??
I've been s-off since before this device even hit the market locally, so firewater worked fine...I'm just throwing darts to try and help.
Thoughts?
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It seems that way, but I don't use logic when it comes to large corporations.
Black Antitoon said:
HTC doesn't provide any official way to the public for setting the device to S-OFF.
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They should though... Why deny it just so that people go with "questionable" means to exploit a system in order to do the things they want to do with the device they paid a crap load of money for.
One would think by now that companies would realise that they'll never be "fully" in front when it comes to "battles" like these, whenever they implement a new security measure, there's already someone out there with the skills to exploit it! If they exploited it by "unofficial" means, then logically they would want to cover their tracks as well leading to a form of fraud i.e hiding flags/banners that show that you did S-OFF and Unlocked, it causes problems for other users if they were to buy a device like that(2nd hand for example) or even if you handed it in as such to HTC and they refurb and resell a device that says it's one thing where in fact it's something entirely different.
Why not grant unlocked bootloader, S-OFF AND Root access on all devices and sell it as is? You can put plenty of security warnings up to warn someone about the potential danger and/or damage they can cause if they don't use it properly.
Software related issues and/or bricks can be covered seperately with warranty(perhaps a small increase in price to cover it, if it's software related, HTC can fix it easy), hardware problems on the other hand won't necessarily come about because some wanna be couldn't read a ROM installation thread properly.
It's silly if you ask me. You should be able to buy the device with the ability to have an unlocked bootloader, root access and S-OFF, out of the box! You should then be well aware that IF something happens as a result of your own negligence that you'll have to pay a bit more to get it fixed, period. There should be a warning and agreement, if you agree to those terms then you can't cry to anyone if you mess up.
But that's my opinion though.
End of rant.
BerndM14 said:
It's silly if you ask me. You should be able to buy the device with the ability to have an unlocked bootloader, root access and S-OFF, out of the box! You should then be well aware that IF something happens as a result of your own negligence that you'll have to pay a bit more to get it fixed, period. There should be a warning and agreement, if you agree to those terms then you can't cry to anyone if you mess up.
But that's my opinion though.
End of rant.
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I agree with you - in principle. The problem is that you expect users who click that "I agree" button to actually accept responsibility for their actions if they sc*** up. And often they don't.
I have seen it again and again in the Asus Transformer forums. You can download an apk from Asus to unlock the bootloader but that app also phones home and voids your warranty (which is clearly explained in the agreement). Quite a few users who mostly didn't bother to do enough research blamed Asus for providing a tool to unlock the BL, but then refused to support them if they bricked their device. Some sent it in for warranty repair and some actually succeeded - probably because the tech did not pay attention to the unlocked bootloader - basically making Asus pay for a mistake they made. These things happen and people just tend to try to find someone to blame for their own shortcomings.
So I do understand that they make it difficult - and I do agree: They can't win this game... Someone will find a way
berndblb said:
I agree with you - in principle. The problem is that you expect users who click that "I agree" button to actually accept responsibility for their actions if they sc*** up. And often they don't.
I have seen it again and again in the Asus Transformer forums. You can download an apk from Asus to unlock the bootloader but that app also phones home and voids your warranty (which is clearly explained in the agreement). Quite a few users who mostly didn't bother to do enough research blamed Asus for providing a tool to unlock the BL, but then refused to support them if they bricked their device. Some sent it in for warranty repair and some actually succeeded - probably because the tech did not pay attention to the unlocked bootloader - basically making Asus pay for a mistake they made. These things happen and people just tend to try to find someone to blame for the own shortcomings.
So I do understand that they make it difficult - and I do agree: They can't win this game... Someone will find a way
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Agreed. The main issue is the common person not doing research on these things and even IF they do some reading they don't even read properly. Most of the problems they encounter are self-made problems.
Perhaps giving an option in store for those things would be better then, like I said they could even "increase" the price a bit for the warranty/insurance IF you choose to go with an unlocked, rooted and S-OFF'd device...Oh well, pure speculation though, it's not like it'll ever happen.
Oh and you have an awesome name Bernd :good:
BerndM14 said:
Oh and you have an awesome name Bernd :good:
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I agree! So do you! Also German immigrant? :victory:
berndblb said:
I agree! So do you! Also German immigrant? :victory:
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Yes and no... Parents are Germans and came to South Africa, I was born here.