Database Users

[Q] how to unlock galaxy s4 from straighttalk SM-S975L

So I looked everywhere and no one seems to know how to unlock a straighttalk s4
since this site the best with cellphones problem solving I'm askin for some help :/
its a SM-S975L

when i ran the network unlock tool it was already unlocked the boot loader wasn't locked either the only thing we need now is rom development to include our devices. I have twrp and used towel root to root the device.

meya_20 said:
So I looked everywhere and no one seems to know how to unlock a straighttalk s4
since this site the best with cellphones problem solving I'm askin for some help :/
its a SM-S975L
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm dealing with this same issue right now. Bought an SM-S975L for straight talk last night and I want to use it on Metro PCS. Metro says all is well on their end and I just have to wait, but all I see is "Invalid Sim" on the status bar. How did you unlock the SM-S975L? There's very limited information around the internet about this model. I'm tearing my hair out and the wifey is driving around without a phone. Figured you (or anybody else) could point me in the right direction.

meya_20 said:
So I looked everywhere and no one seems to know how to unlock a straighttalk s4
since this site the best with cellphones problem solving I'm askin for some help :/
its a SM-S975L
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

BoominSVX said:
I'm dealing with this same issue right now. Bought an SM-S975L for straight talk last night and I want to use it on Metro PCS. Metro says all is well on their end and I just have to wait, but all I see is "Invalid Sim" on the status bar. How did you unlock the SM-S975L? There's very limited information around the internet about this model. I'm tearing my hair out and the wifey is driving around without a phone. Figured you (or anybody else) could point me in the right direction.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
LOL, the $249 deal was hard to pass up. I got a couple of them, one for me and one for the misses. She'll be fine with the 4.3 that is on the phone out of the box, but I wanted to convert mine to be like the I9505G (GPE). I was thinking it would be simple as I've heard all of the LTE models were like the I9505 and they seem fairly broken into. But I think this is more like the SGH-I337 and maybe boot loader locked, but looking into ways to test that. I did root it already using towelroot. Installed SuperSU and Titanium Backup and root is working, now so see if I can get CMW and a GPE rom on it. If I find a way I'll be sure it is mentioned here as a working method for the SM-S975L. I'm not using it yet as I have my GT-I9500 that I'm using, but seeing better support for the qualcomm for custom roms I decided to get it. The I9500 should get Android 5.0 official rom first though.

For what it's worth, I just picked up this phone from the Black Friday sale, and I would *really* like to put a custom ROM on it. I won't even pretend to be proficient in this. How difficult would it be to convert the custom ROMs on other models of Galaxy S4's to this one?

I am unsure my self the closest variant is the att s4. Both the att one and this one is bootloader locked. Since we have 4.3 version of Android safestrap would be likely what to use. I am afraid of this my self so I have not attempted it
Sent from my SM-S975L using XDA Free mobile app

Whoa whoa whoa. What am I looking at? It looks like that's the model of the T-mobile variant, but the baseband is the same as the S975L!?

aromerblz said:
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Even a custom kernel flashed! What.
Sent from my SM-T310

It is the SM-S975L with a T-Mobile ROM and the custom kernel. The SGH-I337 ROM does not work, it erases the system partition every flash.

Awesome work aromerblz. Anything special you had to do to load the ROM with the S975 baseband...or any issues you're experiencing? Will be testing this out later in the week when I get some free time.
-JC

That is cool, at the very least its Kit Kat. I still would like to find a method to convert completely to GT-I9505G. Just no time. I'm hoping with jtag access it can be completely reconfigured, then just make sure the IMEI is set to that the device should be. Ideally the only way to see it was a SM-S975L would be to look under the battery. I don't really care about removing the SIM lock though, I plan to stick with my ST SIM. I did get a new BYOD SIM and it is showing 4G now (Not sure if it should indicate LTE like old ATT S3 does) as my old BYOD SIM would not and ST support said that I could not move the included SIM to any other device as it would be bound to the S975L.

I would love to get off the Tracfone ROM. I'm going to assume that Samsung/Tracfone will never upgrade this phone beyond Android 4.3. The last native update was in February of this year, and it was just a minor patch. I'm not too concerned about unlocking, but being able to use a different ROM seems to be a step in the right direction. If anyone could post a tutorial or what ROMs they used, that would be extremely helpful. I've looked everywhere and this info is not available anywhere.
For what it's worth, someone over on GSM Forums has claimed to have flashed the AT&T ROM too. They also were unable to unlock it, however. Unfortunately, I can't post the direct link until I have hit 10 posts That poster has been inactive for two months, and before that, he was inactive for three years. It may be hard to get in touch with him..

carlyman said:
Awesome work aromerblz. Anything special you had to do to load the ROM with the S975 baseband...or any issues you're experiencing? Will be testing this out later in the week when I get some free time.
-JC
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Click to collapse
I first flashed a T-Mobile TWRP recovery v27.1, but the latest v28 works fine. After that i downloaded the TMB firmware NB4 from sammobile.com created a custom rom with the android kitchen. After that the usual flashing of the rom via TWRP. Without a custom kernel the phone does not boot up. So i used the ktoonsez kernel. Once booted i rooted with towelroot and pjone has been working fine. Only things to know is that when booting up it says "Kernel is not SeAndroid"
"Set Warranty Bit: Kernel"
As that specifies it trips the knox flag. Which i dont care if it does as am not in the USA.

You used the TWRP for jfltetmo, correct? Did you use Odin to flash it?
Also, this might seem obvious, but even if I do this, it'll still work/remain locked to ST/AT&T, correct?

lilmul123 said:
You used the TWRP for jfltetmo, correct? Did you use Odin to flash it?
Also, this might seem obvious, but even if I do this, it'll still work/remain locked to ST/AT&T, correct?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah TWRP for jfltetmo. The jflteatt does not seem to work at all on this model. I flashed with odin, no need to use safestrap on this phone as i think the bootloader is not locked like the one found on the SGH-I337, although its the identical variant.
Yes the phone remains locked to ST/AT&T. A friend of mines was able to get the unlock cod for this phone but even with the unlock code its not a permanent lock. Reason is because you can unlock and be able to use all the features available to the phone but once restarted it asks for the code again. Not sure why it does that, I believe the radio has to be the culprit for that here. Not sure how TracFone will handle the unlocks for this phone after 01/01/15. does the same even on full stock TF firmware.

lilmul123 said:
I would love to get off the Tracfone ROM. I'm going to assume that Samsung/Tracfone will never upgrade this phone beyond Android 4.3. The last native update was in February of this year, and it was just a minor patch. I'm not too concerned about unlocking, but being able to use a different ROM seems to be a step in the right direction. If anyone could post a tutorial or what ROMs they used, that would be extremely helpful. I've looked everywhere and this info is not available anywhere.
For what it's worth, someone over on GSM Forums has claimed to have flashed the AT&T ROM too. They also were unable to unlock it, however. Unfortunately, I can't post the direct link until I have hit 10 posts That poster has been inactive for two months, and before that, he was inactive for three years. It may be hard to get in touch with him..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you PM me that GSM forums link you are talking about. I want to take a look.

Np, just a sec. (building up my post count)

GSM Forum stating AT&T-based ROM...not much detail I could glean from it tho. http://forum.gsmhosting.com/vbb/f286/unlock-samsung-sm-s975l-tracfone-straighttalk-1866981

Rooting problems PLEASE help.

I tried rooting onw of my new sprint s7s and it took the root at first but had no voice or data service. I cleared cache did a factory reset an still no signal.
Now i just rebooted and its stuck on the lte splash screen.
I think i need to reflash the stock firmware bit i cant find a decent link.
I have a sprint usa 930p
My build version is g20pvpu2aph7
Any help is VERY VERY appreaciated!!!!!!
My girl is about to kill me for killin her brand new phone

Socalnugz said:
I tried rooting onw of my new sprint s7s and it took the root at first but had no voice or data service. I cleared cache did a factory reset an still no signal.
Now i just rebooted and its stuck on the lte splash screen.
I think i need to reflash the stock firmware bit i cant find a decent link.
I have a sprint usa 930p
My build version is g20pvpu2aph7
Any help is VERY VERY appreaciated!!!!!!
My girl is about to kill me for killin her brand new phone
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think the newest update kills all services when u root.

Yea ive figured that one out the hard way unfortunately...lol
Can someone please post a decent link to the pg1 sprint firmware???

Socalnugz said:
Yea ive figured that one out the hard way unfortunately...lol
Can someone please post a decent link to the pg1 sprint firmware???
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Look it up on Sam Mobile. Google search it..

Socalnugz said:
Yea ive figured that one out the hard way unfortunately...lol
Can someone please post a decent link to the pg1 sprint firmware???
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can't downgrade from aph1 the latest update updated the bootloader. But you can still have data, messaging,etc with the aph1 update just takes a bit of tinkering.

Fischer1234 said:
Look it up on Sam Mobile. Google search it..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
vegoja said:
You can't downgrade from aph1 the latest update updated the bootloader. But you can still have data, messaging,etc with the aph1 update just takes a bit of tinkering.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm currently running the 930u firmware and love it I have my Hotspot an all. It's a completely different phone now. First few days of my s7 I HATED it. My s5 was faster no joke, I don't know what sprint did with their bloat but it's a different phone without it.

Socalnugz said:
I'm currently running the 930u firmware and love it I have my Hotspot an all. It's a completely different phone now. First few days of my s7 I HATED it. My s5 was faster no joke, I don't know what sprint did with their bloat but it's a different phone without it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's what I came from was 930u latest firmware it is pretty amazing compared to 930p. I just really missed adaway and a few other things. I had a s5 with unlocked bootloader before my s7 and yes my s5 was way faster than my s7 fresh out the box.

vegoja said:
That's what I came from was 930u latest firmware it is pretty amazing compared to 930p. I just really missed adaway and a few other things. I had a s5 with unlocked bootloader before my s7 and yes my s5 was way faster than my s7 fresh out the box.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
LOL I didn't notice how much Adaware did until I didn't have it.
There are a few things more im missing but 930u is a huge step in the right direction. I need to do more research I guess been years since I've had to root a device I almost took this thing back an went back to my s5 after the first day.
I know about Sam Mobile but it's links are super slow unless you pay, I was trying to find a decent free link.
I don't even need a custom rom I'm stoked on this one as is, I'd be happy with this an xsposed modules.

Socalnugz said:
LOL I didn't notice how much Adaware did until I didn't have it.
There are a few things more im missing but 930u is a huge step in the right direction. I need to do more research I guess been years since I've had to root a device I almost took this thing back an went back to my s5 after the first day.
I know about Sam Mobile but it's links are super slow unless you pay, I was trying to find a decent free link.
I don't even need a custom rom I'm stoked on this one as is, I'd be happy with this an xsposed modules.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well I had a hard time getting the LTE and messaging to work with root. 930u when I rooted I could not change my apns I couldn't add new ones either. I tried using ##data# to go in and fix my apns that way but I needed my msl which sprint refused to give me. On sprint firmware tho all u have to do is go to build prop and change ro.cdma.default_alpha it says chameleon after the root process change it to Sprint and ro.cdma.default_numeric from 310000 to 310120 and restart ur phone.

Rooted with new binary, can I install U firmware?

I recently acquired a G935P to repair my old phone that had a bad sim card reader. I used the motherboard from the Sprint phone because i'm not skilled in the ways of micro=soldering items. Come to find out Sprint is particularly difficult because they are the only carrier that has upgraded their S7E's to binary 5. Now I have after various attempts, successfully rooted the phone with no issues, seems to run fine albeit some lag (due to the engboot) but I was inquiring that since I have root can I install the U firmware and how would I go about doing that. Thanks in advance!

kani!bal said:
I recently acquired a G935P to repair my old phone that had a bad sim card reader. I used the motherboard from the Sprint phone because i'm not skilled in the ways of micro=soldering items. Come to find out Sprint is particularly difficult because they are the only carrier that has upgraded their S7E's to binary 5. Now I have after various attempts, successfully rooted the phone with no issues, seems to run fine albeit some lag (due to the engboot) but I was inquiring that since I have root can I install the U firmware and how would I go about doing that. Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As long as the U firmware is binary 5, if it is not, you will get an error in odin.

Fear_The_Fluff said:
As long as the U firmware is binary 5, if it is not, you will get an error in odin.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah found that out, lol....I been trying different variations of firmware/pit/backups/combination firmware to maybe and try to get pass this so I can use this phone with my verizon plan with no success, the closest i've come is to have it rooted accessing the hidden menus and changing different settings any ideas?

kani!bal said:
Yeah found that out, lol....I been trying different variations of firmware/pit/backups/combination firmware to maybe and try to get pass this so I can use this phone with my verizon plan with no success, the closest i've come is to have it rooted accessing the hidden menus and changing different settings any ideas?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is the phone sim unlocked? You may have to call sprint to get it unlocked first. Until Verizon (or the g935u) gets binary 5, you will be unable to change your firmware, with the exception of the sprint binary 5 firmware.

Fear_The_Fluff said:
Is the phone sim unlocked? You may have to call sprint to get it unlocked first. Until Verizon (or the g935u) gets binary 5, you will be unable to change your firmware, with the exception of the sprint binary 5 firmware.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It was recently unlocked but it consistantly showed the device receiving the signal as roaming, i believe because it was only internationally unlocked? and it did not pick up the 4G bands, only reaching normal 3G speeds and in my attempts to flash the U firmware I somehow managed to undo the procedure :/ I have the MSL code and am contuining with trying different settings to see if I can at least get the phone to accept the SIM card again.

kani!bal said:
It was recently unlocked but it consistantly showed the device receiving the signal as roaming, i believe because it was only internationally unlocked? and it did not pick up the 4G bands, only reaching normal 3G speeds and in my attempts to flash the U firmware I somehow managed to undo the procedure :/ I have the MSL code and am contuining with trying different settings to see if I can at least get the phone to accept the SIM card again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have you tried to manually add the carrier info? Sometimes when using different roms you have to change where you are connecting to because the rom defaults to another carrier.

Fear_The_Fluff said:
Have you tried to manually add the carrier info? Sometimes when using different roms you have to change where you are connecting to because the rom defaults to another carrier.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes sir, I have to access the hidden menu to get into the data profiles but even when i get there, it won't show the APN's set for the device because 'user is not authorized' and when i add the verizon apn information and hit save, it doesn't go through.

mikeb143777 said:
hi guys, i wanted to make sure i understood what i was reading. I have in fact rooted with the the sm-g935p with 5 binary, (the recent root on Godpowers post for root, you guys probably already know that, sorry if Im wasting your time)anyways, so if im reading correctly, I still cannot crossover to the "U" firmware? And if I may ask, what was the advantage to the U firmware, and am i able to run xposed with binary 5 BRA1? Any details you guys could shoot my way would be great. Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Has anyone tried the z3x Samsung tools? It worked on other galaxy phones with the same issue

mikeb143777 said:
hi guys, i wanted to make sure i understood what i was reading. I have in fact rooted with the the sm-g935p with 5 binary, (the recent root on Godpowers post for root, you guys probably already know that, sorry if Im wasting your time)anyways, so if im reading correctly, I still cannot crossover to the "U" firmware? And if I may ask, what was the advantage to the U firmware, and am i able to run xposed with binary 5 BRA1? Any details you guys could shoot my way would be great. Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I believe once you achieve root you should be able to run xposed, i'm not entirely sure on that but from what I understand it's possible. The U firmware is just devoid of any carrier bloat and allows you to run a more pure version of the samsung firmware, someone correct me if I'm wrong.

lvpre said:
Has anyone tried the z3x Samsung tools? It worked on other galaxy phones with the same issue
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Which issue are you referencing exactly?

kani!bal said:
Which issue are you referencing exactly?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
On older Samsung phones, when the bootloader was upgraded, you could 'odin' the previous firmware. It did this by not flashing certain components of the tar file. For example, you could go from a binary 5 nougat to a binary 4 marshmallow firmware, but the bootloader would still remain on binary 5... however, you just installed the binary 4 firmware.
Not sure if this would let you go to the u firmware, but may let you rollback to a binary 4 firmware. Haven't tried it on my s7 since I'm stuck with sprint until October... so no point at this time.

Is the new Oreo firmware from various cell companies binary 5?

kukumaka said:
Is the new Oreo firmware from various cell companies binary 5?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
???? Hasn't been released yet and international variants use a different precessor and have unlocked bootloader

lvpre said:
On older Samsung phones, when the bootloader was upgraded, you could 'odin' the previous firmware. It did this by not flashing certain components of the tar file. For example, you could go from a binary 5 nougat to a binary 4 marshmallow firmware, but the bootloader would still remain on binary 5... however, you just installed the binary 4 firmware.
Not sure if this would let you go to the u firmware, but may let you rollback to a binary 4 firmware. Haven't tried it on my s7 since I'm stuck with sprint until October... so no point at this time.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Anyway you would be willing to share your process with me? I have been researching and testings out many methods and have failed and from what you described so far it is definitely one I haven't tried yet lol.

kani!bal said:
Anyway you would be willing to share your process with me? I have been researching and testings out many methods and have failed and from what you described so far it is definitely one I haven't tried yet lol.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Haven't done it in a while since it was on an older phone, but you use a program called z3x Samsung tool pro. It will allow you to only flash certain aspects of the file. You may or may not be able to cross over from p firmware to u firmware with it.

kani!bal said:
I recently acquired a G935P to repair my old phone that had a bad sim card reader. I used the motherboard from the Sprint phone because i'm not skilled in the ways of micro=soldering items. Come to find out Sprint is particularly difficult because they are the only carrier that has upgraded their S7E's to binary 5. Now I have after various attempts, successfully rooted the phone with no issues, seems to run fine albeit some lag (due to the engboot) but I was inquiring that since I have root can I install the U firmware and how would I go about doing that. Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Please how did you manage to Root Binary 5 of S7 Edge ?? Am having issues rooting ... Mine is Binary 6.
thanks

Flashing to fix

I'm hoping flashing my phone will fix an issue I'm having. Currently VoLTE isn't working on my phone. I've chased the rabbit hole with Verizon. They ended up locking my account, and I had to go to a store to even make phone calls.
My phone model is SM-G975U1
Purchased from Samsung, unlocked.
Carrier is Verizon.
I've never used Odin. I'm used to TWRP. But I don't want to use TWRP (if it's even possible yet). Odin seems safer anyhow.
Questions are:
1. Where can I find firmware compatible with my model. Most websites look sketchy AF. Would it be better to flash Verizon's build?
1.a. does it matter if I flash for my specific model?
2. Will I be able to pull OTA/security updates once I flash?
I realize there are plenty of threads covering Odin. I will be using those as an Odin guide. Hopefully I haven't duplicated an existing thread. I'm terrified to mess up my $1200 phone.
Thank you for any help in advance!
Apollo

@ApolloisGod
1. Where can I find firmware compatible with my model. Most websites look sketchy AF. Would it be better to flash Verizon's build?
Use this:
https://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s9/how-to/tool-frija-samsung-firmware-downloader-t3910584
I've also attached a screenshot on what your setup should look like.
1.a. Does it matter if I flash for my specific model?
SM-G975U and SM-G975U1 are ALMOST the same; the '1' denotes that the device has been shipped unlocked.
I say ALMOST.
Note: It's the SIM, in conjunction with the CSC folder, that determines which applications and system configuration that should be loaded. With a factory unlocked device straight from Samsung, you usually see very little bloat but some carrier specific features may not work or may be missing entirely (e.g., VoLTE/WiFi Calling etc). Take care because you might end up installing U software with a Verizon SIM and see MORE bloat than you originally had.
Seeing as you are looking for better compatibility, I would use SM-G975U.
2. Will I be able to pull OTA/security updates once I flash?
Absolutely. U models have, in the past at least, received faster updates than U1. With Google's more stringent update policies, this could always change.

Thanks a lot for the info, sorry for the late reply. I read it when I woke up last week, and completely forgot... I'm going to work on this today!

@ApolloisGod
Good luck. There's of resources within the community that should get you to the finish line. If you get lost or stuck, respond here and myself or another member can right you.

AHE_XDA said:
@ApolloisGod
Good luck. There's of resources within the community that should get you to the finish line. If you get lost or stuck, respond here and myself or another member can right you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That`s the right attitude :good:

I'm looking to do the same thing but with at&t. Thanks for the instructions

ApolloisGod said:
Thanks a lot for the info, sorry for the late reply. I read it when I woke up last week, and completely forgot... I'm going to work on this today!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How did you make out? Any progress?

My ODIN wont work, and I don't know if my phone can be rooted.

Hello! I have lately been using a Samsung galaxy S5 on Verizon, and it has served me well. But, I recently had just gotten a new Samsung Galaxy S7 flat (Sm-G9300V). I have actually used the edge before, but wasn't a fan of it, so I used the S5. I had heard that this phone is now able to be rooted on the Verizon version of the phones. So, I have followed many guides, and have searched my build number for root, and a bunch of other things. I will post some screenshots of my phones information if you can help. Another issue I've been having is when I try to flash the ENGBOOT from multiple different XDA forums, my ODIN keeps failing, even though I've turned on USB debugging and OEM unlock in the developer settings. If anyone could tell me if i'm doing something wrong, and maybe point me in the right direction if you can, this would be much appreciated. If you are willing to help, I would be more than happy to give more information. (Also, flashing a stock firmware wont even work, and It is the Verizon firmware) The pictures are an attachment, sorry I don't know how to put pictures on a thread.:good:

Save your time. There currently is no root for your software version. Your software is bootloader "B" (G930VVRSBCTC1) of which there is no ENG root file as of yet.

Oh. Thank you, though!

Bumping this. Anyone know anything if something new came out of this bootloader?

TheVideoEffect said:
Bumping this. Anyone know anything if something new came out of this bootloader?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Root and custom roms are only available for exynos versions. For the snapdragon version nothing has been made available.

Dark Stranger said:
Root and custom roms are only available for exynos versions. For the snapdragon version nothing has been made available.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Dang it thanks though