Bounty for Pixel 3a/Halium 9 stability

[rocket2nfinity]

@heyspencerb See last weeks UBPorts Blog Q&A. UBPorts is asking for steady contributions to pay for the work regarding VoLTE

[heyspencerb]

@rocket2nfinity Thanks, I just set up a 10 euro per month donation like they asked for.

[esoteric]

Pixel 3a XL here on development channel. Cricket wireless. After mixing and matching multiple apn solutions to get mms working, I figured I'd share my fix. Hopefully it'll save someone the heartache I just went through, haha.

WIFI off

2g/3g/4g connection type

APN stuff. Modify existing two and save

-Cricket Internet-
Used for
Internet
Name
Cricket Internet
APN
Endo (think this was the main fix from default ndo)

-Cricket MMS-
Used for
MMS
Name
Cricket MMS
APN
ndo
MMSC
http://mmsc.aiowireless.net
Proxy
192.168.196.78

I believe changing the Cricket Internet to Endo helped with a conflict of both mms and internet being stock set to ndo? Not sure, but that was the last thing I tried before giving up, and it started working.
Hope that helps

[esoteric]

Update. Everything worked. Everything. Now it appears to be denied access. Sigh.

[esoteric]

Apparently the verizon access point cell booster in the faraday cage-like place I work kicked me. Walked outside and got it back.

So the fix works so far! Just not the darn access point here. Will play more with it.

[esoteric]

Further update. With no changes, the access point now accepts me. I guess I was initially kicked for being a suspicious new device? Idk how those devices work. Stable now, though.

So with further testing, it seems you can swap ndo and Endo interchangeably between Cricket Internet and Cricket MMS, as long as they're one or the other, and not both the same.

Initial testing sees slightly faster speeds with ndo on Internet, but the ip address location isn't accurate. Which is actually kind of a good thing imo

Also, I changed the MMS entry to mirror the cricket website apn settings.

So my current loadout on Release Candidate branch is this

-Cricket Internet-
Used for
Internet
Name
Cricket Internet
APN
ndo

-Cricket MMS-
Used for
MMS
Name
Cricket MMS
APN
Endo
MMSC
http://mmsc.aiowireless.net
Proxy
proxy.aiowireless.net
Proxy port
80

Sorry if this is all total common knowledge, but I couldn't find a straight answer for my particular situation. Here are my findings. Hope they help someone

[mELu9WUv]

Wish I could get MMS to work, but only MMS does atm. Red Pocket GSMA service on GP3a.

[mELu9WUv]

@melu9wuv Meant to write that SMS works, but not MMS.

[esoteric]

@melu9wuv I would definitely look into your apn settings and how they apply in ubuntu touch. Maybe what worked for me would work for you? Loosely adapted principle of my fix, I doubt your apn settings would look the same as mine

[mELu9WUv]

@esoteric I will look at them again and see if I can mimic your process with red pocket...the difficulty I find is whether to use RP or AT&T (base carrier) settings.

[esoteric]

@melu9wuv I would go with red pocket's, but you may have a bit of testing ahead. Post any good fixes you find for others. Very niche problem that specific answers would be nice to find

[dieharddan]

@melu9wuv im getting sms and mms on red pocket (at&t) here's my apn settings

MMS
Name: Red Pocket
APN: PRODATA
MMSC: http://mmsc.mobile.att.net
Proxy: 172.26.39.1
Proxy Port: 80

Internet
Name: Red Pocket
APN: PRODATA

[lsitongia]

I'm trying to get MMS going on a new install. Trying the developer channel. Using Google Fi SIM card. This works well in my Nexus 4, and apparently MMS works there. In my Pixel 3a, though, it automatically sets the carrier as Google Fi but the APN settings have two T-Mobile entries. I have the known problem that I cannot add another APN, however if I edit one of the T-Mobile entries and name it Google it creates a third one! However, when I set that for Internet and MMS, it always changes itself back to Internet only.

Another thing is that I cannot edit /var/lib/ofono files. Permission denied. The directory is user "radio" and rw only for that user, so user phablet cannot cd there.

[Keneda]

@lsitongia said in Bounty for Pixel 3a/Halium 9 stability:

Another thing is that I cannot edit /var/lib/ofono files. Permission denied. The directory is user "radio" and rw only for that user, so user phablet cannot cd there.

System files on Ubuntu Touch are, for security reasons, read only by default.

[lsitongia]

@keneda fredldotme suggested editing those files directly, previously in this thread. Does that explain why we cannot add a new APN, because the files are not writable?

[lsitongia]

@dieharddan, from what people are saying, GSM networks should be working now for MMS. I have Google Fi, which, on the Pixel 3a running UT, connects to T-Mobile, I think I'm on GSM, and it should work. However, when I reboot with wifi off, only sending photos works. Cannot receive them. Gives an error that links to Google Fi help. I've ordered a Red Pocket SIM card to try that.

[Keneda]

@lsitongia
System files are read only for user and confined apps.
System setting app will have read/write on files it needs to edit.
Now you can make system files read write for user, entering the right command line in terminal app, search forum for that.
But what i can tell you is on my phone, apn settings works, i can create new apn, so maybe an issue on your device port.

[lsitongia]

@fredldotme Could you tell me what the steps are to make the changes to the gprs file to "stick"? Rebooting rewrites it with the T-Mobile ones that this phone defaults to when I put my Google Fi SIM in. Popping the SIM out and putting it back in also rewrites it. This same SIM card works great in my Nexus 4: pop it in, automatically gets T-Mobile settings (which are different from when I pop the card into my Pixel 3a), MMS works to and from with WiFi on or off. I'm trying to use the UI or modify the gprs file directly, and it won't stay what I set it to.

[lsitongia]

This post is deleted!

[lsitongia]

Here's what I do: I've prepared a gprs file on my Linux box. First I turn off Cellular data in the UI, then I adb push it to the phone, then adb shell to the phone, then sudo cp the gprs file to /var/lib/ofono/###########/gprs. When I turn Cellular data back on, the gprs file on the phone is immediately overwritten with the original one, that I get when I Reset All APN Settings in the UI. Where are those settings coming from? From the cell provider (Google Fi)? Some other file on the phone? So, I can't use the UI to set the APN I want and I can't hand code it in the gprs file. What's it gonna take?