372 replies to this topic

[opbyrne]

jackal - i've just unlocked my MPX and smartexplorer works. All the stuff that was on my mates SPV (original one!) is working on my MPX

[alphaflux]

opbyrne: This is a tricky question and could be thought of as "how long is a piece of string" !  :cry:  

The file you should check before installing a new unsigned application is the _setup.xml file, as contained in the installation cabinet itself. In general it is quite hard to actually tell what settings an application will validly need to change during installation, but if you start to see an install script changing system level parameters I would certainly be suspicious and would look into it further before actually installing.

The way that this unlock works is by changing the system level SecurityPolicy settings during the application install. In this case, thats all it does and nothing is actually installed, but consider what system settings a virus could change before its installation and it gets quite scary.

So, the answer is that you would expect to see file copy operations, registry modifications (of application related keys) and related activities. You would not expect to see an application changing the security paramaters or related settings, as this could enable the application to gain kernel mode priviledges, with which it could do what it likes on the phone. i.e. Send all your contacts to someone, use your phones SMS capabilities to mass mail people, etc, etc, etc. All without you ever knowing about it !  :?

I am a little pushed for time this morning. If that doesn't make sense, or explain it well enough, I'll write a more in depth explaination later when I have a little more time ... just let me know.  

Alphaflux.

[stevenwross]

Worked on mine. UK Orange network.

Thanks a lot!

[opbyrne]

No thats cool alphaflux - will be careful :!:  cheers!

[ricethief]

thanks alpha

[Brewdogg18]

I would like to take a minute to thank ATT Wireless for sending out their phones app unlocked! Even though it is a security issue, it makes it soo much easier then having to find the codes!

[pampers]

very handy alphaflux

had installed a couple of unsigned games that wouldnt play ,less than a minute seeing this post all working  

thanx

[diyfiesta]

Hello,

Great fix! but after I installed it I could install unsigned apps ok but it stopped installing normal apps (I tried pocket slide show), it said that the permissions were wrong? I applied to lock script again and it worked... any ideas?

Cheers

[alphaflux]

Thats strange to say the least; the permissions used to implement the unlock should definately not prevent any signed applications from being installed or executed. The certificates are still in place, its just the testing criteria has been lowered. Re-applying the "lock" just raises them back to the carrier supplied defaults.

Extensive testing was run before this was posted, and during that entire time nothing like that showed up. I have also since confirmed this by installing Pocket Slideshow for myself without error. Has anybody else running or installing pocket slideshow seen anything like this ? or indeed with any other applications.

If you can give the exact message it would help. Does it indicate that the cabinet is unsigned (i.e. prevents installation all together) ? or that the application is unsigned post install (i.e. when you try to run the application) ?

[vivek]

alphaflux, i got a silly question for you.

how can i install any app using .cab?

I thought i won't need to unlock. Today i found a freeware game for GO. But this requires unlocking. I don't know the alternative and don't won't to hit head against the Orange people. I'm pleased to find the files provided by you, but i also need help on how to put them into my phone.

[alphaflux]

Take a look at the post at the top of page 3 on this thread; that should provide all the direction you need for the installation of the unlock cabinet. The information there also applies to any other cabinet files you may wish to install. If you need additional help, please let me know. Only too happy to help.  

As regards banging heads against Orange, that shouldn't be an issue. Application unlocking your phone is not illegal and Orange will provide an official facility to unlock the MPx200 over the air (OTA) in the future. Its just something that they have not provided to date, or been forthcoming with information on when it will be available either. Thats what lead to people like myself to take matters into their own hands.   Hope that alleviates any concerns you may have.

[vivek]

Hey dude, i'm in the list of unlocked ones.

Tell me one more thing.
Shall i delete the unlock file from Accessories folder?

[Shuflie]

Should be gone already, unless you set it to read only. .CAB files delete themselves after installation. What you may seeing is the cached icon, it should disappear after a reset.

[ehtik]

You are the MAN....

I'm now officially unlocked (US AT&T MPX200)...

To the previous post... I wasn't aware that AT&T sent their phones out unlocked... I had a problem with some unsigned apps... but after running this all is good...

[hopon]

Quote

Has anybody else running or installing pocket slideshow seen anything like this ? or indeed with any other applications. 

I unlocked my mpx and it allowed me to install unsigned apps, however mobipocket reader failed with a permissions error (can't remember the exact message, but i got the same error on several tries).

I relocked the phone, installed mobipocket,  unlocked the phone again.
Everything now runs with the phone unlocked, including mobipocket, so I'm happy now, and after the tip on making the cab files read only, I can quickly switch between locked and unlocked if I want to install something else.

Thanks.

[alphaflux]

Nice one hopon, I suggest anyone experiencing this problem follows this method. I have still been unable to replicate this issue on my phone, but you are the second person that has reported this problem. I'll take a look into the unlock permissions again and see what could be causing this, but as this only seems to affect a small majority, I am not sure what I'll find. I am guessing there is some small difference with your phones.

If anyone else is experiencing this problem, please let me know with a quick post. It will help testing if I know if there is a general problem, and with which applications. Has anyone else tried to install the applications mentioned (Pocket Slideshow and mobipocket reader) ?

[diyfiesta]

Hello mate,

Thanks for the reply, I know it sounds odd, but I just tried it again and got the following error...

Info

Installation failed. The program or setting cannot be installed because it does not have adequate system permissions. Please contact your service provider for more information.

I'm a bit of a novice so am probably doing something wrong though. I run your CAB (which is cool by the way) then try to install pocket slide show (trail version) using active sync, its at the point when I ok the installation on the actual phone that this happens. Does that help?

Thanks again

er, I just tried to run the lock script to undo this, and I got the same message... huh?

[alphaflux]

diyfiesta: Hmm, to be quite honest I am quite at a loss as to why you should be experiencing this problem.

As I say, I have been completely unable to replicate this issue, and it only appears to be affecting a very small majority (2 to my knowledge). With the fact that this occurs with either the lowered or default security policies, my gut feeling tells me that there may be an issue with the cabinet that you are trying to install. Have you tried downloading it and installing it again from a different source?

Download it again and give that a go, it may help, but if it still doesn't work the only other suggestion I can give is doing a hard reset on the phone; to reset it to factory defaults and then try again. Be warned though, if you do a hard reset, you will have to setup your phone again and re-install any applications you may have already.

So, off the download doesn’t work and you do want to give the hard reset a go (please make sure you really do!) then all you have to do is hold down the blue action key whilst turning the phone on and saying yes to the master reset question.
In the meantime; did anyone who previously had an SPV have this problem? The unlock permissions used are the same for the MPx200 and SPV.

Alphaflux

[alphaflux]

On a different note: I have received a number of private messages which ask why you would want to unlock the phone. I really don't mind receiving private messages and will certainly respond to them, but for those that are unsure on this ... here goes.  

Put quite simply; unlocking your phone enables you to run unsigned applications. That is, ones which have not been signed by the service provider with a special certificate. Unsigned applications include many games and utilities etc which have been developed by individuals or small companies that can not afford to pay the service provider to certify the application (it is not cheap!).

The reasons Orange release their phones in an application locked state are many fold. They are protecting their investment and also protecting the user base from potentially malicious code. However, all the good applications are unsigned! So who can live with a phone that only runs signed applications!

For those in America; you do not need to run this script, as the US AT&T provided MPx200 is not locked. The phone will run unsigned applications by default. In fact, quite controversially, the AT&T provided MPx200 is far less security locked than it would be if you were to run this script!

Alphaflux.

[smokedog]

Posted from my SmartPhone!

Great job on unlocking the phone Alphaflux.

Just posting to let you know that I'm also having problems runnning signed apps on after installing the unlock cab.