ThinkPad 510 and Qualcomm Gobi 2000 3G modem

binro

I am trying to get the above modem going on my T510. I have been following http://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/Qualcomm_Gobi_2000 and installed the gobi loader which is in Portage. I copied over some firmware files from the Windows partition and tried:

NeddySeagoon · Posted: Sat Mar 24, 2012 3:05 pm Post subject:

binro,

Lets start at the very beginning, pust the lsusb ouput that shows your 3G dongle. I have one of these

binro · Posted: Sun Mar 25, 2012 11:03 am Post subject:

The usb info is:

which is the firmware loader device. After loading, apparently this changes to 05c6:9205. The modem is not a dongle but build into the box. I also inserted a sim card justin case that was necesary.
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"Ship me somewheres east of Suez, where the best is like the worst,
Where there ain't no Ten Commandments an' a man can raise a thirst"
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NeddySeagoon · Posted: Sun Mar 25, 2012 6:03 pm Post subject:

binro,

The SIM card is essential, it needs to be a Vodafone SIM too, if the device is locked to Vodafone. Further, it needs to a SIM that permits use for data.
i.e. Random Vodafone SIM from old mobile phone won't do. You may want to check with Vodafone if the SIM you are trying to use will work.
It will be making data calls.

The mechanical attachment to your system doesn't affect the way it works. The PC builders have saved the cost of a pair of USB connectors by building the device onto the motherboard.

You need CONFIG_USB_SERIAL_QUALCOMM in your kernel as a module and the firmware in /lib/firmware.

When your device is discovered, the kernel will load qcserial, which should in turn, load the firmware. Check dmesg. Some devices want their firmware in /lib/firmware/...
Its the firmware that locks your device to a specific carrier. The UMTS firmware looks a good bet if your carrier/country is not listed.

Once you have your /dev/ttyUSBx you can talk to it with minicom and the AT commands and use wvdial to get a PPP session running. That needs PPP support in your kernel.
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binro · Posted: Mon Mar 26, 2012 6:32 am Post subject:

Not convinced about the sim card. I tried this on Windows first with a random sim I had lying around and the firmware loaded and the network manager thing tried to contact the network (which failed , of course).

Other points:
1. qcserial is loaded and /dev/ttyUSB0 exists
2. there is firmware in /lib/firmware/gobi
3. there are udev rules to start the firmware load
4. the load never completes and gets timed-out
5. UMTS firmware causes the loader to complain of a missing file

So I am stuck what to do next.
_________________
"Ship me somewheres east of Suez, where the best is like the worst,
Where there ain't no Ten Commandments an' a man can raise a thirst"
from "Mandalay" by Rudyard Kipling

bbgermany · Posted: Mon Mar 26, 2012 8:09 am Post subject:

binro · Posted: Mon Mar 26, 2012 8:33 am Post subject:

binro · Posted: Mon Mar 26, 2012 3:02 pm Post subject:

The actual message is:

The UMTS directory only contains two files: amss.mbn, apps.mbn.
_________________
"Ship me somewheres east of Suez, where the best is like the worst,
Where there ain't no Ten Commandments an' a man can raise a thirst"
from "Mandalay" by Rudyard Kipling

bbgermany · Posted: Tue Mar 27, 2012 7:33 am Post subject:

You are missing the provider specific firmwarefile UQCN.mbn. You can copy it from your windows installation, if you have one (C:\Program Files (x86)\QUALCOMM\Images\Lenovo\).

depending on your provider, you will have a directory from 0 to 9 with the needed files in there.

bb
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binro · Posted: Tue Mar 27, 2012 8:33 am Post subject:

bbgermany · Posted: Tue Mar 27, 2012 12:35 pm Post subject:

Have you ever used the card in windows. I have an Thinkpad X220 and i know, that the card needs to be activated once. There is a special tool installed in windows called "Mobile Broadband Activation" iirc.

If you have a locked card, you must need a card of the provider or try to unlock the card with 3rd party tools.

bb
_________________
1st: C2D 3GHz, 8GB, 2.25TB, HD4850
2nd: Celeron 2.6GHz, 2GB, 500GB, HD4350
3rd: TP X220, 2,5GHz, 8GB, 320GB, HD3000
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5th: Samung N350, 2GB, 250GB, HD3150
6th: Rasperry Pi, 512MB, 32GB SD

binro · Posted: Tue Mar 27, 2012 1:22 pm Post subject:

I tried it in Windows and it loaded the firmware and then tried to connect, even without a Vodafone sim. But on Linux it won't even let me load the Vodafone firmware, it just hangs.
_________________
"Ship me somewheres east of Suez, where the best is like the worst,
Where there ain't no Ten Commandments an' a man can raise a thirst"
from "Mandalay" by Rudyard Kipling

Voltago · Posted: Tue Mar 27, 2012 11:07 pm Post subject:

Have you tried the generic (i. e. non-telco-specific) firmware? (subfolder '6' in the windows installation directory iirc)
This works for me with the gobi2k.

bbgermany · Posted: Wed Mar 28, 2012 6:39 am Post subject:

binro · Posted: Wed Mar 28, 2012 3:39 pm Post subject:

Hmm! I used the contents of directory 6, a UQCN file, plus the default firmware in the UMTS directory and it worked! Now I have /dev/ttyUSB0-2 created. Thanks for the suggestions. Dialling I got "CONNECT 7200000". Now I just have to get a data package.

_________________
"Ship me somewheres east of Suez, where the best is like the worst,
Where there ain't no Ten Commandments an' a man can raise a thirst"
from "Mandalay" by Rudyard Kipling