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My Galaxy S3 GT-I9305 LTE was running Liquid Smooth 2.37. Recently I lost notification and phone ring sounds and now I have lost baseband and I have no cell signal.
In the phone's 'about' section the baseband field is empty. Android version showing is 4.3.
I'm not quite sure what I did wrong, first to try and get back the sounds and then baseband, I have been playing around with various custom and stock ROMS and kernals to get full functionality back.
I've read tons of help posts but nothing works.
Here's a few of the things I've tried with results in brackets, used CWM recovery to restore working backup (failed 'unsupported file' message),
reflashed kernals (neither Boeffla nor yank555 have worked, wipe/data restore in CWM (it still takes me back to 4.3 with no baseband).
I thought I'd re-flash back to the phone's original stock ROM using Kies, but the weird thing is Kies doesn't restore, it upgrades to the latest 4.3 ROM which fails to restore baseband.
I wanted to send the phone back to the 4.1.2 it came with or was it an earlier ROM? I can't remember as I didn't note it down, I bought the phone second hand, it arrived loaded with a stock ROM for Australia's Optus network. I promptly rooted and flashed the phone to Liquid Smooth and the phone ran fine for months on the 2 Degrees Network in New Zealand.
Anyway, I must have tried reflashing a dozen stock roms I've found online using Odin. Some of them partially work, I get sound back, (it seems only the 4.3 ones work, with the german I9305XXUEMKC reliably loading - it even gives me a NZ english install option) but don't restore the baseband
. All the ones I've found for Optus are rejected, I get the 'unsupported device' or status 7 error in Odin.
So I decided to flash one that works, install cwm, root the phone and try installing different baseband kernals to fix the (probably corrupt) efs.
But I'm going round in circles trying to root the phone. Using CWM, supersu shows as successfully installed, but when I boot into the OS root checker shows my phone is not rooted. Knox seems to obstruct every attempt I make to disable it as well. I keep getting these 'knox stopped etc...from working messages'.
I'm sorry if my description is a bit confusing, I'm happy to clarify anything.
I'm at my wits end. I want to try everything before I have to ship the phone off to a repairer who may charge me hundreds of dollars to fix the phone.
This is I9300 not I9305 Q&A
Use the report button and ask a mod to move to the correct forum .
I can offer no help as i fail to understand the post .
As said before you are in wrong place and are not giving us a clear question to answer. If its a root problem there are fixes for it. Status 7 error is discussed in many threads. Flashing MG4 modem fixes efs problem. Downgrading causes problem. Learn to search before making a thread.
This might help someone having these no service/ no sim card no GPS fix issues with the galaxy SGSIII i9300, that might have to do with efs folder change and IMEI corruption.
Okay so i solved these no service issues and ill share my experience so maybe someone will find it helpful.
So the issue has to do with the famous efs folder conundrum, though tbh im not a developer so i cant say exactly what was the issue or even be a 100% sure it was the efs folder.
So I got me a used malfunctioning i9300 which i then repaired at a lab and proceeded to install a new TW based ROM, my first mistake was not backing up efs folder and creating a nandroid, but i havnt realized that yet. After flashing, I noticed that i have no GPS, but i didnt know if the GPS was working with original firmware because i neglected to check that or back it up, so i decided to put a pin in it for the time being and went on to check out some ROMs.
At first, I flashed couple of JB tw based roms, all was well (except for the gps), then i started to check out some KK roms, those didnt play well with my device, I got no service in every single rom i tried, You name it ive tried it, none fixed the service issue. Moreover i also tried a few JB AOSP based ROMs, among them the 4.3 JB PAC-man ROM, those had the same no service/no sim issues. Meanwhile whenever i un-root and flash with odin back to stock or restore a nandroid i made while on 4.3 foxhound ROM (with service working and a supposedly good copy of the efs folder) service is restored. I would also mention that I had more backups of the efs from the working “foxhound” i made with different tools and when i restored these folders when on a ROM with no service it didnt fix the issue.
Here are the solutions ive encountered and tried that didnt work:
-restoring efs with efs pro, samsung tool, efs backup -restore cmd tool.
-flashing latest firmware and flashing back to KK
-flashing all kinds of modems (those pre efs folder change (XXEMG4) and those after)
-flashing latest TWRP/CWM recovery
-flashing kernels
-trying to edit “nv_data.bin” with hex editor
-some more ways in trying to manipulate the efs folder.
-using samsung service codes on stock, which i found regarding this issue, except from the *#06# code, for imei, pretty much none worked for me.
Its important to mention that when on stock firmware or a JB TW based ROM i would see my baseband version in settings and when I tried the *#06# code for checking my imei it gave me a serial number with many digits that I assumed was indeed my correct IMEI number, and when i was on KK ROMs or non TW JB ROMs i would get the same popup with no numbers and in settings i would see “unknown baseband” .
To add to that, whenever i rooted and installed a KK ROM or a JB non TW ROM and tried to restore efs with efs professional i would get a message the device is not perm rooted (but thats neither here nor there).
This research took me about 5-6 days and the end of which i was ready to give up on having a KK rom or a non TW rom for that matter, NOTHING seemed to fix the problem. I just had some fight in me for one more hopeless attempt. I read somewhere that a flashing of cm 10.1 and then going to settings -> more and there change some network stuff from this to that would help -
(Originally Posted by Goose306 on s3forums.com)
"flash back to another AOSP 4.2 ROM (CM10.1, Liquid, etc.)
Got to Network settings. You need to change Roaming to automatic and CDMA settings to RUIM/SIM (I *think* that is the name of it, I'm actually on TW temporarily as I'm troubleshooting some SDcard issues of my own)
Reboot and you should be back in business. Touchwiz doesn't have a way of changing of those settings which is why ODIN/stock doesn't fix it"
I said what the heck thats simple enough. I flashed CM 10.1.3 for i9300 and went into the settings but the options i read about werent the same as the settings i saw in my case,
so i did move one settings around in the settings-> more section, cant remember what it was and im on a different ROM by now,
it was nothing i knew about anyway (but you should give it a go and have a look, there are few options to choose from so you can eliminate your way to what makes sense).
I then went on to recovery to flash carbon rom 4.4 and to my enormous surprise i had service and connection and to my astonishment i also got back the GPS as a bonus ! yay ! I bet you forgot about that too by now…
This ends on a weird note though, though everything is at working order now and the IMEI number i get is the same as the one i get when on stock rom,
it does not match the number on the back of the phone under the battery. well mehh.. as long is its working.
Hope this helps someone.
You didnt mention that exact step. Changing "something from this to that" doesn't really count as being helpful.
Thanks for the post anyways.
~ RazorMC
RazorMC said:
You didnt mention that exact step. Changing "something from this to that" doesn't really count as being helpful.
Thanks for the post anyways.
~ RazorMC
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Youre right, i couldnt find the thread that had the suggestion to install the 10.1 cm but my point was it didnt even apply to my situation because the options in "Setting -> more" werent compatible with what was suggested in the thread so i had to improvise and I just changed some setting i cant remember in "Settings -> More" but I realise that it would be more helpfull to say what i changed there exactly, but im not on cm 10.1 anymore and cant see what in there now.. the good news is that there werent many options to change there.
But i did went out and looked for the original comment that made me try this an it says -
(Originally Posted by Goose306 on s3forums.com)
"flash back to another AOSP 4.2 ROM (CM10.1, Liquid, etc.)
Got to Network settings. You need to change Roaming to automatic and CDMA settings to RUIM/SIM (I *think* that is the name of it, I'm actually on TW temporarily as I'm troubleshooting some SDcard issues of my own)
Reboot and you should be back in business. Touchwiz doesn't have a way of changing of those settings which is why ODIN/stock doesn't fix it"
so in my case i didnt see these exact same options so i changed what seemed to me the most related to the issue at hand.
I dont think i had to touch the roaming, again i dont have CM 10.1 installed so i dont recall exactly what were my options.
is it a solution mostly for Qualcomm chipset based I9300 ? someone can say ? European providers use different frequencies I guess hence different chipsets and parameters.
Olek94 said:
is it a solution mostly for Qualcomm chipset based I9300 ? someone can say ? European providers use different frequencies I guess hence different chipsets and parameters.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
mine is the international version but as i mentioned it didnt work like described but the end result was the same. I f you have the LTE version Im not sure which option youre going to get in CM 10.1 settings -> more , but if youre having trouble with service and GPS and stuff like that i do suggest you try flashing CM 10.1 (compatible with LTE - not sure how it goes with CM and LTE compatibility) and check if you got the same options to make the changes to, if not, try and improvise based on what makes even a little sense, thats what i did.
It might be that the flashing of CM 10.1 itself is what fixes the problem, so if you change nothing it might help still, anyway this is pretty simple and quick to do so better start here than starting with other messier solutions.
help
hi i was on stock 4.1.2 then i rooted flashed twrp recovery using toolkit and flashed revolutionary 5 4.3 straight away i didn't backup efs i know it was dump thing to do but i was new to galaxy s3 flashing so basically i f***k up. then i flashed official 4.3 firmware using odin.now i have a network reception but can't make or attend calls.i was thinking to go back to 4.1.2 in hope of getting things to work. please help n reply asap!! thanks
5668892 1021
jabirrockzzz said:
hi i was on stock 4.1.2 then i rooted flashed twrp recovery using toolkit and flashed revolutionary 5 4.3 straight away i didn't backup efs i know it was dump thing to do but i was new to galaxy s3 flashing so basically i f***k up. then i flashed official 4.3 firmware using odin.now i have a network reception but can't make or attend calls.i was thinking to go back to 4.1.2 in hope of getting things to work. please help n reply asap!! thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I believe I shared every bit of helpful information i can share with you about this issue and my process of handling it in the main message of the thread, Read the entire thing and the comments followed, then follow my suggestion, if you wish to do so.
samuelaviv said:
mine is the international version but as i mentioned it didnt work like described but the end result was the same. I f you have the LTE version Im not sure which option youre going to get in CM 10.1 settings -> more , but if youre having trouble with service and GPS and stuff like that i do suggest you try flashing CM 10.1 (compatible with LTE - not sure how it goes with CM and LTE compatibility) and check if you got the same options to make the changes to, if not, try and improvise based on what makes even a little sense, thats what i did.
It might be that the flashing of CM 10.1 itself is what fixes the problem, so if you change nothing it might help still, anyway this is pretty simple and quick to do so better start here than starting with other messier solutions.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you, I was suspecting that you have a similar version than me. Well, in desperate cases anything can be tested (But some have told me not to mess with US versions as there is a risk of burning something )
Anyway the last version I could not flash , the CM 10.1 it was ejected with a file error soon despite 3 downlowd.
I will try with another more compatible version with Cyanogen.
Have a nice day
samuelaviv said:
This might help someone having these no service/ no sim card no gps fix issues with the galaxy s3 i9300, that might have to do with efs folder change and IMEI corruption.
Okay so i solved these no service issues and ill share my experience so maybe someone will find it helpful.
So the issue has to do with the famous efs folder conundrum, though tbh im not a developer so i cant say exactly what was the issue or even be a 100% sure it was the efs folder.
So I got me a used malfunctioning i9300 which i then repaired at a lab and proceeded to install a new TW based rom, my first mistake was not backing up efs folder and creating a nandroid, but i havnt realized that yet. After flashing, I noticed that i have no gps, but i didnt know if the gps was working with original firmware because i neglected to check that or back it up, so i decided to put a pin in it for the time being and went on to check out some roms.
At first, I flashed couple of JB tw based roms, all was well (except for the gps), then i started to check out some KK roms, those didnt play well with my device, I got no service in every single rom i tried, You name it ive tried it, none fixed the service issue. Moreover i also tried a few JB AOSP based roms, among them the 4.3 jb pac-man rom, those had the same no service/no sim issues. Meanwhile whenever i un-root and flash with odin back to stock or restore a nandroid i made while on 4.3 foxhound rom (with service working and a supposedly good copy of the efs folder) service is restored. I would also mention that I had more backups of the efs from the working “foxhound” i made with different tools and when i restored these folders when on a rom with no service it didnt fix the issue.
Here are the solutions ive encountered and tried that didnt work:
-restoring efs with efs pro, samsung tool, efs backup -restore cmd tool.
-flashing latest firmware and flashing back to kk
-flashing all kinds of modems (those pre efs folder change (xxemg4) and those after)
-flashing latest twrp/cwm recovery
-flashing kernels
-trying to edit “nv_data.bin” with hex editor
-some more ways in trying to manipulate the efs folder.
-using samsung service codes on stock, which i found regarding this issue, except from the *#06# code, for imei, pretty much none worked for me.
Its important to mention that when on stock firmware or a JB TW based rom i would see my baseband version in settings and when I tried the *#06# code for checking my imei it gave me a serial number with many digits that I assumed was indeed my correct IMEI number, and when i was on kk roms or non tw JB roms i would get the same popup with no numbers and in settings i would see “unknown baseband” .
To add to that, whenever i rooted and installed a kk rom or a jb non tw rom and tried to restore efs with efs professional i would get a message the device is not perm rooted (but thats neither here nor there).
This research took me about 5-6 days and the end of which i was ready to give up on having a KK rom or a non TW rom for that matter, NOTHING seemed to fix the problem. I just had some fight in me for one more hopeless attempt. I read somewhere that a flashing of cm 10.1 and then going to settings -> more and there change some network stuff from this to that would help -
(Originally Posted by Goose306 on s3forums.com)
"flash back to another AOSP 4.2 ROM (CM10.1, Liquid, etc.)
Got to Network settings. You need to change Roaming to automatic and CDMA settings to RUIM/SIM (I *think* that is the name of it, I'm actually on TW temporarily as I'm troubleshooting some SDcard issues of my own)
Reboot and you should be back in business. Touchwiz doesn't have a way of changing of those settings which is why ODIN/stock doesn't fix it"
I said what the heck thats simple enough. I flashed CM 10.1.3 for i9300 and went into the settings but the options i read about werent the same so i did move one settings around in the more section, cant remember what it was but it was nothing i knew about anyway, then went on to recovery to flash carbon rom 4.4 and to my enormous surprise i had service and connection and to my astonishment i also got back the GPS as a bonus ! yay ! I bet you forgot about that too by now…
This ends on a weird note though, though everything is at working order now and the IMEI number i get is the same as the one i get when on stock rom it does not match the number on the back of the phone under the battary.
Hope this helps someone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
:crying: :crying: :crying: :crying: :crying: Dude!!!!! I understand!!!!
I had a similar experience only I also tried flashing CM 10.1 and it did not work. Although I have another imei, I have all my services running on the Stock 4.3. Now the only problem is that if I change to any other rom, does not connect to the wifi network.
I found something like this: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=839367&page=4
But neither worked. Yesterday I tried to repartition the phone and almost killed. I spent two weeks looking for a solution, and tried them all, but did not work, I think I will draw on the last and the only thing I think work ... The box.
The octopus box (or similar).
KK roms are beautiful ... but no matter what, I have no wifi in another rom than the stock 4.3 lol.
Thank you for your contribution! as you say: I hope you serve someone else.
VIOShero said:
:crying: :crying: :crying: :crying: :crying: Dude!!!!! I understand!!!!
I had a similar experience only I also tried flashing CM 10.1 and it did not work. Although I have another imei, I have all my services running on the Stock 4.3. Now the only problem is that if I change to any other rom, does not connect to the wifi network.
I found something like this: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=839367&page=4
But neither worked. Yesterday I tried to repartition the phone and almost killed. I spent two weeks looking for a solution, and tried them all, but did not work, I think I will draw on the last and the only thing I think work ... The box.
The octopus box (or similar).
KK roms are beautiful ... but no matter what, I have no wifi in another rom than the stock 4.3 lol.
Thank you for your contribution! as you say: I hope you serve someone else.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yeah thats some BS those signal and issues on the i9300.. they really did a number on that one.
sorry my thing didnt help, i too tried everything and got nothing.
Maybe try flashing CM 10.1.3 and changing those options in settings-> more, Might be that just flashing CM 10.1 wont do it, I did change something ther but cant remember what it was, i wrote in my post what someone else had ther in the options but i had different ones but I still changed one option there ( what i thought might be connected to the issue ).
anyway dude i feel you its crying shame whole thing, and so many are posting about these issues all the time, im kinda hating on samsung cause they always seem to mess up like that.
Hope you solve this somehow..
Hello,
I've been facing this problem for days now, tried almost everything and still no luck, so I'm sorry if it's been asked before, but I'm truly hopeless.
Right now, my SGS3 works only on stock ROMs. Every time I try to install a custom ROM (JB or KK) I have a problem with the signal - either baseband, IMEI and everything is "unknown", or everything is good (IMEI not "0049...", there are full correct APNs) but it still displays the "error while searching for networks" message.
Fortunately (as I realized on other threads),I can always go back to square one, flash a stock 4.3, with no problems with IMEI or anything, but, you know, stock sucks.
I tried installing every modem I ran into, but nothing helped. Is there a secret step from stock to custom on samsung devices I'm skipping (I'm an ex-nexus user...)?
+1
Same problem, no solution until now
oriwass said:
Hello,
I've been facing this problem for days now, tried almost everything and still no luck, so I'm sorry if it's been asked before, but I'm truly hopeless.
Right now, my SGS3 works only on stock ROMs. Every time I try to install a custom ROM (JB or KK) I have a problem with the signal - either baseband, IMEI and everything is "unknown", or everything is good (IMEI not "0049...", there are full correct APNs) but it still displays the "error while searching for networks" message.
Fortunately (as I realized on other threads),I can always go back to square one, flash a stock 4.3, with no problems with IMEI or anything, but, you know, stock sucks.
I tried installing every modem I ran into, but nothing helped. Is there a secret step from stock to custom on samsung devices I'm skipping (I'm an ex-nexus user...)?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When you install a custom rom, based on samsung 4.3, do you have emergency calls only/no network?
If yes, install Boeffla kernel 5.3/or beta 5.4 because Boeffla is a patched kernel i.e. it can read patched modems, and then install a patched modem .
From the on you will have your network (no emergency calls/no network problem) and signal should be good.
But first backup your EFS and store it on a very safe location, you have ann app for that, k-Tool on Playstore (requires root).
Hi guys, I must have read a hundred posts about this issue to no avail.
I recently rooted an old S3 GT I9300 using CF-Auto-Root and Odin. I was sure I backed up the EFS folder, but it would appear I didnt. Now I am runnning the Paranoid Android 3.0 ROM on the device with absolutley no mobile network/signal and although i have the IMEI written down the S/N seems to have changed to a generic 15 digit number as opposed to the original RCF**** or whatever it should be.
Ive tried Kies and re-installing a stock ROM which is both hard to get hold of and doesnt seem to want to unzip from CWM Recovery even after cl;earing the Caches and doing a factory reset. I've also tried re-writting the bin file using a hex code app and terminal with no luck, and EFS Pro only seems to make me think ive restored the EFS by backing up the already corrupt one and restoring that....
It is possible to rectify my EFS issue (nv_data.bin file I assume) with only a written down IMEI and no serial?? if so please advise... as Im seriously stuck and although ive considered using a friends efs folder im sure this is probably illegal...
HELP, Thankyou
oh..and...
It occurs to me that the guy to talk to is spocky12, yet i have yet to pm him pending your advice.... thankyou for any help i may receive..
Hi im also in the same position ive tried loads of stock roms for the UK as thats where i am... to no avail ive tried the original 4.0.1 rom all the way up to the latest 4.4.2 rom and each time the imei number is 0000999......... ive tried modem patches most of which are from looking through the xda site but nothing seems to work.... i could never back the efs up as when i had the phone it was in a constant loop so never knew which software/modem/firm it actually had on it as i could not get past the samsung logo. but since i have flashed latest android for the phone it will boot in fine just wont connect to a network and imei number is wrong ive been days trying to figure this out :crying::crying: Please Help!
dejay89 said:
Hi im also in the same position ive tried loads of stock roms for the UK as thats where i am... to no avail ive tried the original 4.0.1 rom all the way up to the latest 4.4.2 rom and each time the imei number is 0000999......... ive tried modem patches most of which are from looking through the xda site but nothing seems to work.... i could never back the efs up as when i had the phone it was in a constant loop so never knew which software/modem/firm it actually had on it as i could not get past the samsung logo. but since i have flashed latest android for the phone it will boot in fine just wont connect to a network and imei number is wrong ive been days trying to figure this out :crying::crying: Please Help!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi Dejay, its good to know im not the only one. have you tried using the Kies program to reinstall stock firmware, did that change anything? Also not sure if you tried this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JqLK_2I-SBM method but it didnt work for me, the HEx lines he refers to dont exist in my nv-data.bin.
Coincidentally, thats exactly how i acquired this issue, it stopped booting so i factory reset deviced, then backedup and rooted, then installed custom ROM and somehow lost backed up /efs .Im now showing an 000049 IMEI and tried modem patches, stock roms etc. and no luck. my serials all messed up too and i cant connect to any form of mobile network.
I just changed ROM again as i couldnt get the right Gapps to flash with Paranoid Android Rom 3.0 - now flashing Dirty Unicorns v3.8 from here and all working beautifully except no signal, wrong IMEI and S/N - I am by no means a PRO at all this and so im rather stuck like yourself..
Hopefully we'll be saved?!
I have a I9300 that is not getting any network, the IMEI is 0049... and the serial number is a string of zeros. It was previously running stock 4.1.2 but I wanted to upgrade to at least the latest official ROM - 4.3 and thats how I ended up in this situation.
I've been a Linux user forever and I've owned and flashed a few Android phones in the past but this is my first Samsung Android handset and so the first time I've been bitten by efs. I did lots of reading before attempting the upgrade so I knew to backup the efs partition before doing any flashing. I did this with ktool but restoring my efs backup to various ROMs hasn't restored my network connectivity.
I'm on the 3 network in the UK so when I've been using Odin to restore stock ROMs (I've tried restoring both 4.3 and 4.1.2) I've been using the BTU versions ie
I9300XXUGMK6_I9300OXAGMK6_BTU
I9300XXEMG4_I9300OXAEMG4_BTU
I have now spent four full days reading and trying various solutions suggested in an array of threads on this forum, I've read all the stickies in http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s3/general/samsung-galaxy-s3-sticky-roll-thread-t2344125 plus many more threads and now I've just about given up. I've tried flashing various unofficial ROMs too like CM 10.2, 11 and RevolutionS5 but they all have no network.
My phone is not in factory mode and I've tried zuluman's patched kernel/modem with 4.3 without any luck. I've tried factory resets, deleting /efs, changing the permissions of and editing nv_data.bin with a hex editor amongst other tricks. No go.
So it seems my only remaining option is to take / send my phone to be repaired or fork out for one of these hardware devices that claim to be able to repair IMEI issues. Problem is then I'm back to square one, I've not learned what I wanted to about my phone (how to safely reflash/upgrade it) and I'll be stuck on whatever the repair shop leave me with.
I'd much, much rather fix this myself as then that opens the doors to experimentation, it will prolong the (so far all too brief) life of my phone and be much more satisfying. Until now I thought the SGS3 was (is?) a class phone and I think its much better than the Nexus 4 I had previously, despite inferior specs in many respects.
I'm sure its possible to recover from this without buying dedicated hardware or at least it should be..
I bought my phone 2nd hand less than three months ago but its no longer under any warranty. Another thing that could be an issue is that I was sold it without a box and there is no IMEI printed under or on the battery.
Thanks for your help!
It would seem from my experimentation that reflashing stock ROMs with Odin on the I9300 doesn't affect the efs partition, or at least the stock ROMs I've been flashing don't repair/recreate efs.
I'd be perfectly happy using the Samsung generic IMEI if it will let me connect to my phone network. If anyone knows how might enable that, please speak up!
Same problem encountered before until now...
This are when the problem starts.
My GS3 International had CynagenMod stable build.
1. I've noticed one morning that my GS3 is stuck in a bootloop.
2. Tried reflashing the stable CM ROM, but still stuck n the bootloop.
3. Tried flashing my stock rooted firmware from my TWRP backup.
- after this, I've noticed that only emergency calls and not registered on network always appears.
- my IMEI becomes now generic with 0049...00 but with serial number.
4. Tried sending it for repair in our local cellphone repair shop. Network signal is fixed now but it always ask for permission for the radio. So battery drain is massive.
5. I didn't send it back. Tried to fix it myself. Installed the stock firmware 4.3 using jellybean. To my surprise, the IMEI and serial number comes back. But still no network signal (emergency calls only).
Lastly, still looking for a fix. If anyone had a fix for this one this will be a great help. Also tried restoring/updating through Kies. All the process I took had failed.
Not sure if the problem was the EFS/IMEI or the modem or radio install from the firmware I just installed.
For now, I'm using the stock 4.3 firmware. The only problem now is the network signal. Any suggestions or fix is a great help. TIA!
I have read of people fixing the no network by flashing a known good efs image but I suppose it would have to contain a working generic IMEI. Please PM me if you have such an image for a i9300. I'll have to find such a thread again and get PM'ing.
I've been disappointed by a few things in trying to upgrade my SGS3.
* There is no well documented fix for this EFS/IMEI/no network issue
* This issue seems to be very common for SGS3 owners who have attempted an upgrade to 4.3 or flashing alternate ROMs yet there is no mention of any of this on
http://wiki.cyanogenmod.org/w/Known_Issues_page_for_i9300
and
http://wiki.cyanogenmod.org/w/SGS3FAQ
There needs to be.
* It doesn't seem Heimdall is able to flash a tar.md5 in one hit like Odin can which is a shame for us Linux and OSX users
Great phone but not for hackers and tweakers it seems.
Sounds like the efs was already corrupt before you tried the upgrade, probably a previous botched repair which only worked on 4.1
Take it to a repair centre and pay for them to recode it for you, there is no other fix. Make sure it connects on 4.3 before you pay.
Suggestion: flash a firmware older than MG4 and let it update OTA or by KIES. Generating the efs-v2-data may solve.
the battle rages on...
rp158:
That sounded like a good suggestion to me so I used Odin to install I9300XXELL4_I9300OXAELL4_BTU, which predates MG4. Because the aim was to try an OTA update, I did not root or flash a custom recovery as I know they don't like that.
Like all the ROMs I've tried since my prob, it installed fine but I get no network. After connecting to wifi I first tried OTA via Settings -> About Device -> Software update -> Update but it just says "Failed to update firmware due to network or server problem". I can browse the internet fine so could this be a problem with Three (my telco)? I've heard of some providers blocking OTA.
So next I tried Kies (not Kies 3) under Windows 8. I went to Tools -> Firmware Upgrade and Initialisation but I just get the error 'GT-I9300 does not support initialising'. Fail, fail and fail!
I've yet to run 'Triangle away' and so I have several flash count points listed on the download screen. Could this stop OTA from working? Is there a limit to the number of flashes you can perform before something nasty happens? I presume its just something retailers check before they refund or repair phones.
Something else I noticed while fighting my phone today was that recovery says the CSC code is now KOR. Could that stop OTA working?
Likes me a good idea to run 'Triangle away': I think there is no max. count for flashes, but perhaps counter>0 and status=custom block the update-procedure. So try after unroot both methods again. (CSC-code I down't know.)
Whilst still running I9300XXELL4_I9300OXAELL4_BTU, I rooted it then successfully ran Triangle Away to clear the flash counter before running csc changer to change my CSC to BTU (from KOR). I would've changed it to XEU but that wasn't an option. I checked that worked fine, which it did, and running CSC changer also (conveniently, in my case) un-roots your phone.
After that I tried updating via both Kies and 'About Device' software update but both just gave me the same errors as before so scratch another idea off my very long list then.
Then go to #5
rp158 said:
Then go to #5
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?
Do you mean Odin flash I9300XXEMB5, which I think is the last release before MG4?
pfmdan said:
?
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Sorry, too short. Post 5 = repair by Samsung.
So, if I choose to get my phone fixed, has this proven that I will be unable to flash any alternate ROMs on it without losing my network/IMEI/serial again?
Maybe I should've backed up my EFS with philz recovery or dd insteal of ktool, then I might not have ended up in this situation?
Maybe the US/Qualcomm models of the S3 are safe to flash with alternate ROMS whilst the Exynos-based models aren't?
Can anyone recommend a good repair service in the UK if my local repair shops can't help?
Thanks for your suggestions rp158!
pfmdan said:
So, if I choose to get my phone fixed, has this proven that I will be unable to flash any alternate ROMs on it without losing my network/IMEI/serial again?
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No, that's unnormal. But read before flashing, what users say (some beta's or nightlies are buggy).
Maybe I should've backed up my EFS with philz recovery or dd insteal of ktool, then I might not have ended up in this situation?
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Probably. I suggest Philz, TWRP or by TerminalEmulator.
Can anyone recommend a good repair service in the UK if my local repair shops can't help?
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Official Samsung repair-service.
I thought Philz was the only recovery that gave you the option of backing up EFS? I didn't think TWR supported EFS backup/restore? CWM doesn't.
TWRP can, of course.
A corrupted efs can also effect the stability and use of wifi as mac address etc is also stored there.
Check if there is a backup of your efs. Some roms make a backup of it also - neatrom for example. Try flashing xxemg4 or later baseband to see if it fixes it because after having the later bb you also have efs v2
FIXED
Thanks to everyone who made suggestions in trying to get my phones connection back. Its working again now. My 0049 IMEI has gone, my real IMEI come back and my serial number has returned so I can make and receive calls again!
The thing that was preventing my connection and leaving me to suffer the dreaded 'Emergency Calls Only' and 'Not registered on network' errors was nothing to do with EFS but because I had an incorrect CSC. I had flashed stock BTU roms instead of H3G, which is what I should've used being on Three. As soon as I flashed a rom with the correct CSC, my IMEI and serial numbers both returned and this allowed the zuluman patched modem / kernel combo to work. I'm now happily running 4.3 whereas I was previously on a rooted stock 4.1.2.
There are literally 100's of threads on the S3 forums here with S3 owners ending up with a generic IMEI and no serial after attempting a 4.3 upgrade and the standard response is nearly always 'your EFS is probably corrupt' or 'your EFS in the wrong format'. That will be the case sometimes but I'd bet that more often than not the EFS is fine (if updated) and users have flashed a CSC for the wrong region for their telephone network.
Key tools in getting this prob fixed that hardly get any mention are the csc changer app (downloadable via Play but requires root and also factory resets/unroots when run) and A.S_id's rescue firmware
http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s3/general/odinfirmware-sgsiii-i9300-prerooted-t1825272/
I'd recommend I9300 users flash A.S._id's ROM if they can't find a firmware with the correct CSC for their network and/or csc changer doesn't restore their IMEI and serial.
Lets fix these forums by getting this info into the FAQs in both the general and QA stickies because I know it to be missing hence the endless invalid IMEI / no network postings.
I'll be back shortly wth more details and suggested additions to the S3 FAQs / stickies.
Thanks all!
I've ended up running A.S._id's 4.3 deodexed 'stock' ROM w/ Boeffla 5.3 kernel and zuluman's patched XXUGMK6 modem.
When I used zuluman's patched XXUGMK6 kernel, I would experience small but frequent glitches in 3G streamed audio. I don't have this problem with Boeffla 5.3.
I'd also highly recommend stock TW users turn off smart screen to massively increase your battery life very easily.