Internet Sharing disabled by 8.1 (Lumia 925)

[foxbat121]

Most likely, your version of 925 is branded to certain carrier outside of US which has carrier specific block on Internet sharing. You can't unbrand the phone easily.

This has nothing to do with T-Mobile or Nokia. More to do with that 8.1 ROM you flashed on. Remember unlocked doesn't mean unbranded.

 

[Desynthesis]

Most likely, your version of 925 is branded to certain carrier outside of US which has carrier specific block on Internet sharing. You can't unbrand the phone easily.

This has nothing to do with T-Mobile or Nokia. More to do with that 8.1 ROM you flashed on. Remember unlocked doesn't mean unbranded.

It may not be a noteworthy distinction--but I didn't flash anything. Just updating the phone through normal means (outside of the Developer Program update, which is separate) was enough to break Internet Sharing.

And given that a Nokia rep actually told me, after I explained how I used the Recovery Console, that it would be safe to update it (so long as I wrote down the access point data)--it actually does have something to do with them.

(Though I guess I'm the fool for listening to them.)

EDIT: Okay, apparently i-d-i-o-t is censored.

 

[foxbat121]

Each phone model has unique ID to tell how it is branded and Nokia software will use that ID to locate the correct firmware for you to load/flash. So, if your phone is originally branded to some obscure carrier you never heard of, your phone will forever be tied to that carrier's firmware unless you somehow can de-brand it and flash a different firmware manually (not that easy). For carrier branded phones, Nokia make special firmware per that carrier's request. So, if that carrier need to block internet sharing via some mechanism, you have no control over it.

For example, AT&T version of 925 will only load AT&T firmware. T-Mobile version of 925 will only load T-Mobile firmware. If you buy an AT&T 925, unlocked and use on T-Mobile, you are still under AT&T's mercy as to whether or not allow you to tether even though you are using a T-Mobile SIM.

I have seen Nokia slowly combine these different carrier requirements into the common block so that a phone can work in any carrier and still have that carrier's specific mechanism for checking for tether permission. But it may not work well all the time.

I have a Lumia 920 dev phone that is from Nokia directly, not tied to any carrier. It will still block me from tethering if I don't have a capable data plan on AT&T. But there is a known work around: load a foreign keyboard that is not already installed (you will know because the phone will ask to reboot automatically) will magically let you tethering.

 

[Desynthesis]

And apparently that "blocking" mechanism only eixsted in 8.1 for me--and most problematically, Nokia's tech support didn't know that it existed when I explained my phone was RM-892, the international model. This seems to be further supported by the fact that, after explaining the problem again to the tech engineers, they asked for screenshots for the reason of "Sharing with other people in their engineering team," according to them.

I've tried the language keyboard fix--sadly, it doesn't work. I guess if I can get a Lumia 925 directly from Nokia, I might have better luck (or, at least, if it doesn't work I can at least return it to them). How does one buy a phone from Nokia directly? Via the Microsoft Store?

 

[foxbat121]

I'm sure there are many different variants of RM-892 as Nokia caters to different carriers in Europe. There are apps out there to show you what carrier it is branded to. It is not as simple or straight forward as you might think.

EDIT: Check the Extras+Info in settings app. It will show following information in More Info:
Manufacture Name: The device name that combines model # and region as well as carrier
Mobile Operator: the carrier name that this phone is branded to
Configuration ID: the ID used by Nokia to locate the correct firmware design for this specific configuration.

 

[Desynthesis]

Mine was described as an unbranded device--however, that may just mean in the generic sense, that it doesn't have a splash screen, or personalized software, unlike other unlocked devices. I know inherently that it's a Taiwanese handset (I visit my family there every so often).

The extras+info confirms as much. Manufacturer name: RM-892-apac_taiwan_328

Mobile Operator: 000-TW (again, Taiwanese handset)

Configuration ID: 439385

Of course, this doesn't really change anything in regards to my problem (and according to Nokia, there is no way to fix this problem by flashing a ROM, as I've heard some suggest). As much as I like the 925, I'm thinking that maybe I need to wait for a HTC M8 and just grab one of those--I've had much better luck with internet sharing on unlocked HTC handsets in the past.

 

[foxbat121]

Mobile Operator: 000-TW (again, Taiwanese handset)

000 means it is indeed an unbranded version for Taiwan region. Not much you can do there. It is built into the ROM/firmware.

 

[Desynthesis]

000 means it is indeed an unbranded version for Taiwan region. Not much you can do there. It is built into the ROM/firmware.

Well, I guess the description was correct then. Internet sharing did work until I updated it.

I think I may keep clear of Nokia in the future.

 

[vartanarsen]

Hi guys, same bit here?..Before Cyan, i could tether TMO internet on my ATT L925 with the "Foreign SIM hack". I went to update to Cyan, and guess what.."Please go to bla bla website to upgrade"?WTF. I paid outright for my ATT L925, its my phone, I should have all the friggin features. Needless to say, I went through the hack again, and no luck..last step says click on add APN, but Cyan doesn't have that button anymore, just a "SIM" button, where you click it, the TMO APN is already there?.so they have friggin ACTIVELY blocked it!!! On the other hand, my wife's ATT GOPhone SIM is working with tethering on the device!!!!.

 

[Desynthesis]

Hi guys, same bit here…..Before Cyan, i could tether TMO internet on my ATT L925 with the "Foreign SIM hack". I went to update to Cyan, and guess what.."Please go to bla bla website to upgrade"…WTF. I paid outright for my ATT L925, its my phone, I should have all the friggin features. Needless to say, I went through the hack again, and no luck..last step says click on add APN, but Cyan doesn't have that button anymore, just a "SIM" button, where you click it, the TMO APN is already there….so they have friggin ACTIVELY blocked it!!! On the other hand, my wife's ATT GOPhone SIM is working with tethering on the device!!!!.

I don't completely follow, but yes, I think you can only have it for 8.0--and only if you're lucky (?) if that makes any sense. I'm going to try it on a different 925 handset some time next week probably, but I have no idea how that's going to play out.

On the other hand, I can't even do "basic" things like flashing unbranded ROM onto a branded phone, and even if I could, I'd probably be too terrified since even the smallest of changes seems to take away internet sharing.