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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...
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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."
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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.
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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!
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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?
I am laying down a challenge to see if anyone can work out how to root the NEC N-04C MEDIAS...
I haven't found anything about this phone being rooted...apart from some attempts by some Japanese guys, which have so far failed, as far as I can tell...
I don't know much about phones/computers, but know enough to get me by. Have tried to learn how to do it myself for the past few months, but don't have the skills.
So...it is over to whoever reads this and wants to take on the challenge...
I have copies of the following files which I can post online if needed:
These cannonly be downloaded from NEC using the IMEI of your pruchased N-03C MEDIAS phone...
bionic_N-04C.tar
external_N-04C.tar
kernel_N-04C.tar
system_N-04C.tar
vendor_N-04C.tar
I am not sure if you need these files to work out how to root the N-03C, but they may be useful...right/wrong?
Anyway...looking forward to hearing from people about this challenge, and if anyone thinks they can root this phone...or knows of anyone who has rooted it already.
Nobody interested???
Rooting NEC Medias
Koiboyjapan said:
I am laying down a challenge to see if anyone can work out how to root the NEC N-04C MEDIAS...
I haven't found anything about this phone being rooted...apart from some attempts by some Japanese guys, which have so far failed, as far as I can tell...
Anyway...looking forward to hearing from people about this challenge, and if anyone thinks they can root this phone...or knows of anyone who has rooted it already.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Any luck so far? I have also asked a few people about this as I am going to Japan very soon and seriously considering this phone. But I may have to get a Samsung Galaxy (blech!!!) instead just so I can have root privileges.
I have the same problems. Wish someone help.
i know there isnt a root for the evo with 2.3 yet but im just curious why not
If you think you can do it..by all means...it takes a lot of work to find a root. Ways that use to work get fixed by companies...basically it boils down to detective work which cannot have a time table and takes a incredible amount of patience and brainpower..along with luck. Basically it boils down to finding a exploit...a way to somehow get foot in door...then once that is done...exploring the exploit for options to elevate privileges to get temp or permanent root. How they do this takes time..and a lot of tinkering. And once the root method is out...companies fix it and the game starts all over again.
ok cus i was just wondering if htc blocked it for some reason
Companies do block it..but mostly for security reasons..the same exploits used for rooting also can be used for malware and some nasty other type of software...spyware and so on.
ok thanks i was under the assumption that thats the best part of android, to you know mess with it and mold it and hack it .....thats why android is suppose to be better then apple as well as different....oh well we cant have everything
thanks for clearing it up though
as its been said, this stuff takes time, and luck, and sometimes not even that works,,
i believe they have made some progress, monitor the irc channel yourself during nights and you can see some chatter about it, but it looks like its not quite ready and/or stable as of yet, though i hear the hboot problem has already been beaten...
we shall see, just be patient and try to not make the mods work more by asking this questions in a separate thread, you could have very well asked this in one of the other ones talking about this
deanventure said:
ok thanks i was under the assumption that thats the best part of android, to you know mess with it and mold it and hack it .....thats why android is suppose to be better then apple as well as different....oh well we cant have everything
thanks for clearing it up though
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Click to collapse
I wouldn't call it a part of Android since every non-Nexus/dev Android phones required the exploitation of the software for root to be possible.
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using Tapatalk
Actually I think its all non samsung phones. But of course I could be totally wrong.
deanventure said:
ok thanks i was under the assumption that thats the best part of android, to you know mess with it and mold it and hack it .....thats why android is suppose to be better then apple as well as different....oh well we cant have everything
thanks for clearing it up though
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Click to collapse
Android itself is open, but any phone that the carriers and manufacturers have control over generally gets locked down. The Nexus phones are the notable exception, and are intended for use by developers and tinkerers. In particular, the bootloader is locked down to prevent you from tinkering. However, there's been a big push to get manufacturers to release their phones in way where the bootloader can easily be unlocked. Many have stated they will move in this direction, but it's a recent development. I'm also still not fully convinced the carriers won't try and succeed in blocking it, but getting the manufacturers to commit to it is a great start.
Until then, we have to rely on an exploit, which for almost all versions of almost all phones, they've been able to do. But it isn't necessarily easy. You still have FAR more customization and tinkering opportunities on Android even without an unlocked bootloader, but once you have that, yes, you can tinker with Android in ways you couldn't even imagine with Apple.
I don't see how this is legal. We're paying on average $300-$500 for phones, that are mini-computers. I can pay that for a laptop and get a mobile usb stick for it on the same carrier, and I have many options of Operation Systems to put on said laptop, even though it's an HP, or a Dell, or a Chinese Knockoff.
Same with Sony and XboX, such Bullcrap!
If flashtool can flash stock roms with a locked bootloader, why not the custom ones? I was thinking, what if you could fool the phone into thinking the software is stock when it's really not?
Also, regarding fastboot, if it's possible to remotely access a dongle, shouldn't it be possible to write a script that does the same thing as the dongle itself? I'd be willing to donate and start a bounty for any dev up to the task.
Another thing I thought of is this: if a hole in adb allows us to root, can it not be applied to do other things as well? If you can push system files through adb for themes, I see no reason why installing a recovery would be impossible.
Bear in mind that although I'm not a noob, I'm sure as hell not an expert or developer (though eventually in the future I want to develop) so if there are limitations preventing these things please explain what they are instead of calling me a fool.
Also, on a side note, just how difficult is the script work for Android apps? My previous coding experience is with a game server program called eAthena, if anyone is familiar and can use that for comparison.
Sent from the best phone ever
Nice ideas but i'm now about to disapoint you lol
1) The roms we flash with flashtool are signed by sony, if we was to try to flash an u unsigned rom, with a locked bootloader, s1 boot would politely tell us to F-off, flashtool or not ......
2) The dongle you are on about is used in conjunction with setool, afaik the dongle just contains account info but maybe im wrong. Eitherway its setool that does the hard work not the dongle.
3) This is not a new idea, i have had devices beofre where you could use adb/terminal to push a recovery image..... But we have no acess to /boot/ partition while device is booted and thus no way to replace kernel.
Sent from my R800i using Tapatalk
So basically, we need someone to write a program similar to setool, but one that doesn't need credits, in order to unlock fastboot, correct?
Surely someone around here would have the knowledge to do it. Freedom to customize should be available to all, not just people who can buy credits, imo.
Personally, I'm poor and could only get the phone caused I saved money for 2 months and signed a contact. Surely I'm not the only user with a tight wallet.
I say we put up a bounty to encourage the developers around here. I would much rather donate some cash towards the development of a free tool for everyone, as opposed to a single unlock just for myself.
Sent from the best phone ever
captain67 said:
So basically, we need someone to write a program similar to setool, but one that doesn't need credits, in order to unlock fastboot, correct?
Surely someone around here would have the knowledge to do it. Freedom to customize should be available to all, not just people who can buy credits, imo.
Personally, I'm poor and could only get the phone caused I saved money for 2 months and signed a contact. Surely I'm not the only user with a tight wallet.
I say we put up a bounty to encourage the developers around here. I would much rather donate some cash towards the development of a free tool for everyone, as opposed to a single unlock just for myself.
Sent from the best phone ever
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Click to collapse
blagus and the omnius team have to ability to write such a tool, as they already have with omnius, that can also unlock bootloaders, but i doubt they would be intrested as that would take away there business
Yeah I knew about them already.. I meant someone else.. Lol
Also, I don't suppose it'd be possible to spoof a ROM so s1 boot thinks it's signed, is it? (I suspect that would be illegal, and therefore not something done on these forums)
Sent from the best phone ever
captain67 said:
Yeah I knew about them already.. I meant someone else.. Lol
Also, I don't suppose it'd be possible to spoof a ROM so s1 boot thinks it's signed, is it? (I suspect that would be illegal, and therefore not something done on these forums)
Sent from the best phone ever
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I don't think it's illegal to do that, but i do think it's impossible. Otherwise someone would of done it by now.
Sent from my R800i using Tapatalk
AndroHero said:
I don't think it's illegal to do that, but i do think it's impossible. Otherwise someone would of done it by now.
Sent from my R800i using Tapatalk
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Click to collapse
It's not illegal but when a TFT is "Signed" it simply isn't a bit that's turned on or something, it's actually a pretty large encrypted section of code. You'd have to decrypt it which would take freaking forever if at all possible. When I had my Atrix before we got the BL unlocked we tried to decrypt the code (Which was worse than the play probably) and someone figured out how long it would take to manually decrypt it. Something like 120 years running 24/7 on an i7 (I'm not kidding it was mathematically figured to be somewhere around that). If course you could get lucky and get it tomorrow but you'd have better odds winning the lottery and getting struck by lightning on a sunny day at the same time.
If there's one thing I learned from these forums it's saying something is impossible one day,and BAM it's there the next day,no big deal...
So what I'm trying to say is,there is always a workaround,but we need someone to find it...
And by the way,cant the signature just be copied? I mean if hundreds of people downloaded and used the same .ftf file...it doesn't seem unique,or that the phone has something to compare it to...
The stupidity of my posts increase over time
Read up on signing and PKI here: https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Code_signing
This post also has a good explanation on encrypted bootloaders (different device, same theory): http://androidforums.com/droid-x-all-things-root/113171-official-droid-x-encrypted-bootloader-efuse-thread-13.html#post1455071
The short answer is that it's theoretically possible that there could be an exploit, than would allow you to bypass and flash unsigned firmware. However, the fact that you can do it without this (via paid methods) means that it's unlikely anyone would spend so much time investigating.
So, this is a friend's phone...
I know, whenever I hear someone say that I think to myself "sure buddy". But seriously, it's true, this is not my phone but I have taken on the task of repairing it. My personal phone is actually a Pixel 2 XL, which I chose so I would never have to deal with a phone that had a locked bootloader or a strict root policy; forcing me to scour through forums for solutions to problems that are created by the cell phone manufacturers and carriers.
Moving along, my friend's phone is a Tmobile Galaxy S9 (g960usqs6csgb) (SM-G960U)
I believe it has the Snapdragon CPU (qualcomm and qual was littered all over the bootloader logs) but I don't know what Android version it's on. Because I can't get past the initial setup screens... because, you guessed it, the device was factory reset and now it's locked because he doesn't have the previous owner's google account credentials and it won't allow further progress. A message is displayed at the wifi setup screen stating as much, and at this point the unit is entirely useless.
When I first saw him with the phone in hand, wrestling to get it to work, I proclaimed "I can fix it!! Not to worry!! After all, I used to root and ROM and ADB with the best of 'em !! Going back to the early days of android, cracking open the incredible, galaxy nexus, HTC 9, nexus 5, note 5, etc etc. My Pixel 2 XL was the first phone I didn't root, simply because it already had all the features I wanted, right out of the box! But this phone wasn't cooperating like the old devices. Apparently the carriers and manufacturers have incorporated new ways to deter nefarious activities and squeeze out every bit of money from us hapless technology addicts.
I digress. Is there any way to get past this? I've already downloaded Odin 3 and I believe I'm hot on the trail of this model's firmware:
https://www.sammobile.com/samsung/galaxy-s9/firmware/SM-G960U/TMB/download/G960USQS6CSGB/283293/
But is this even possible? Will rooting and flashing a new ROM remove the unauthorized factory reset lockdown? Will the device even let me get that far? I don't know anything about rooting the S9 but it's all here in the forums, I just wanted to know if there's anything I should be aware of in advance. I'm not too concerned with bootlooping/bricking or losing google pay or something similar because it's basically a paperweight already. But if there's a way to do this properly, I certainly don't want to mess it up irreparably by charging headlong into the fire when I might patiently tiptoe and emerge unscathed instead. I appreciate any help you might offer.
Thanks!!
Yikes, not a single reply.
No one's gonna touch this one, a?
At least I got a like. Thank you to the brave individual willing to sit back and watch the trainwreck go its course.
TLDR: Can I get past the Google lockout on a TMobile s9? Is it possible to unlock, root, and flash a ROM on an otherwise locked s9?
If your stuck on FRP lock then maybe this thread may help.
[CLOSED]S21+ (GM-996B) FRP Bypass
Hello everybody, I hope it fits in here. I forgot the pattern on my S21 + after resetting the phone, my phone still wanted the pattern or a Google account. He doesn't take my Google account and after a long back and forth with the Samsung...
forum.xda-developers.com
spawnlives said:
If your stuck on FRP lock then maybe this thread may help.
[CLOSED]S21+ (GM-996B) FRP Bypass
Hello everybody, I hope it fits in here. I forgot the pattern on my S21 + after resetting the phone, my phone still wanted the pattern or a Google account. He doesn't take my Google account and after a long back and forth with the Samsung...
forum.xda-developers.com
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Click to collapse
Thank you very much. Didn't even know what to call it so search wasn't very helpful.