Go530, GPRS & T-Mobile

MrT · Posted: Wed Dec 10, 2008 11:02 am Post subject: Go530, GPRS & T-Mobile

Something odd happened to my wifes setup which is a Go530, Sony T630 and T-Mobile. The Go is setup with several phones on BT-Mobile (Vodaphone network) and T-Mobile.

All were working well and then on Sunday, the Go530 would no longer connect to the TT Servers. I tried many different things and it came down to the fact the the Go530 would no longer log on to T-Mobile. The phone would, I could log on from my iPAQ through the phone but not the Go.

I tried to reset the data connection through the Go and it would pair up through bluetooth but when it came to setting up the data connection it would hang every time at 60% saying T-Mobile Contract Checking Data Connection.

After much frustration and swapping SIMs etc, I finally got it to work by putting a SIM in the phone that the Go did not recognise (BT) and it forced it into a manual setup. By entering the data myself (APN=general.t-mobile.uk, username=USER, password = WAP, dial string = *99# and deleting the AT command string) it worked fine.

It appears to me from looking in the Go files that the Go is by default putting the password web and DNS IP addresses (not needed as DHCP provided) from the TT database and T-mobile no either no longer allows this password or has changed the DNS IP addresses. I cannot yet check whether changing the password from wap to web in the phone stops the GPRS as the phone is out with my wife.

The Go does not need the APN as this can come from the phone (maybe some phones need it) and is sent to the phone in the AT additional command string (which again is not needed in my phone) and it will setup dialling the correct CID (it creates No. 5) but I let it use the default CID-1.

I was fortunate in that the BT GPRS service will take the T-mobile username and password so I was able to set the service up on the Go under manual as it did not recognise BT SIM and let me enter them.

Clearly TomTom need to look at the settings that the Go tries to use for T-mobile or better still allow manual entry by choice of GPRS details.

The data is stored in settings.dat in the root Go directory.

The line below is the data that works from this file

general.t-mobile.uk user wap *99#

The lines below is the data as entered by the Go that does not work

T-Mobile UK (contract).general.t-mobile.uk '149.254.1.15 '149.254.1.14 AT+cgdcont=5,"IP","general.t-mobile.uk"userweb AT+cgdcont=5,"IP","general.t-mobile.uk" *99***5#
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Drivelux

wazzzzupmate · Posted: Wed Dec 10, 2008 4:59 pm Post subject:

I use the 730 with a phone on the T-Mobile network. The GPRS traffic connection is very hit and miss. Sometimes it connects firt time, other times I have to reboot the phone up to 5 times to enable the GPRS connection. Each time the phone starts a data connection but only occasionaly allows access to tomtom traffic or weather. Have you experienced this and if so do you think the settings you now use will help?
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Tomtom Go 400
Tomtom 1.15.1 for Iphone

MrT · Posted: Wed Dec 10, 2008 5:12 pm Post subject:

It's hard to tell yet as the T mobile is the wife's phone and I have have had no problems using her go530 with my (BT) phone. Last night after all the fiddling everything worked fine on hers, but that could have been a one off.

I will update you after trying it again tonight and also testing out the password change on her phone to confirm if that stops her phone working.

I assume your GPRS on the phone works fine on its own outside of TomTom?
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Drivelux

wazzzzupmate · Posted: Wed Dec 10, 2008 5:22 pm Post subject:

Yes the GPRS (WAP etc) works fine for everything else. Messenger, internet etc.
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Tomtom Go 400
Tomtom 1.15.1 for Iphone

MrT · Posted: Wed Dec 10, 2008 6:50 pm Post subject:

I have tried different passwords in the phone and the phone does not seem to care which password is used. So is it the DNS addresses or the AT strings that is throwing it?

It is still working fine on the Go530.
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Drivelux

wazzzzupmate · Posted: Wed Dec 10, 2008 7:20 pm Post subject:

I will experiment tomorrow. I assume I can alter the settings.dat file usinf wordpad
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Tomtom Go 400
Tomtom 1.15.1 for Iphone

MrT · Posted: Wed Dec 10, 2008 9:01 pm Post subject:

Not sure on Wordpad as it is a hex file so you may need a hex editor.

Been out and around tonight and worked perfectly.
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Drivelux

wazzzzupmate · Posted: Thu Dec 11, 2008 12:05 am Post subject:

I have used a hex editor and removed the three lines I had (like you had) and replaced them with the one line as your topic shows. So far so good, the GPRS Traffic and weather and GPSquick fix all work. Time will tell if it is more reliable than the previous settings.
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Tomtom Go 400
Tomtom 1.15.1 for Iphone

MrT · Posted: Thu Dec 11, 2008 9:19 am Post subject:

It is the DNS addresses that are throwing the T-Mobile GPRS. If I enter these 149.254.1.14/5 in my PDA it will connect to the network but cannot find any web pages. Use DCHP (server) assigned DNS addresses and it can look up pages including TomTom's.

Unfortunately in my PDA I cannot see the DNS addresses assigned by the server so I do not know the manual settings.
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Drivelux

wazzzzupmate · Posted: Thu Dec 11, 2008 9:35 am Post subject:

I am confused, how do I check these on my tomtom?
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Tomtom Go 400
Tomtom 1.15.1 for Iphone

MrT · Posted: Thu Dec 11, 2008 10:52 am Post subject:

You cannot tell from the TomTom what DNS addresses are automatically given to you by the T-Mobile server when you log on, but unless there is something seriously wrong with T-Mobile these addresses will be correct.

The Go will look at the DNS address and ask the DNS server at that address "what is the IP address of www.tomtom.com" and it will give that address to the Go which will then communicate with www.tomtom.com.

If you have the wrong DNS Server address, the Go will not be able to ask the IP address of any website and will not be able to communicate.

The Go as it was setup did not ask T-mobile on logon which DNS server to use and was trying to ask a DNS server at IP address 149.254.1.14 (and also an alternative server) "what is the IP address for www.tomtom.com?" However if 149.254.1.14 is not the correct address for the DNS server, it will never get an address for www.tomtom.com so will not know where to connect to.

I can only assume that T-mobile have recenlty changed DNS server addresses and the Go did not know this. If it is set to auto DNS, it will ask T-mobile every time it logs on, the address of the DNS server to use.

149.254.1.14/5 do not respond to pings, which may mean they are out of service (or have ICMP blocked).
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Drivelux

wazzzzupmate · Posted: Thu Dec 11, 2008 12:50 pm Post subject:

Clear as mud then!!
I modified the dat file with the hex editor and the gprs connection seem better but not perfect. I thought switching the phone to GPRS only rather than 3G/GPRS may help but it does not seem to make any difference. It is still intermittent as to whether i get the connection to allow the traffic and weather etc, even thought the phone shows the web connection.
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Tomtom Go 400
Tomtom 1.15.1 for Iphone

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