Moto E815 and MacBook DUN issues

cc_mac · EVDO Newbie Joined: 02 Sep 2008 Posts: 2

I've spent many hours trolling through the forums and Googling and have yet to find a solution that works to allow tethering to the Alltel EVDO network. I am very fond of my E815 and have no issues with Alltel and very much want to tether to my MacBook for mobile Internet accesses. After spending 20 hours over the last few days on this I've still not been able to get it to work. I've tried to clearly note my efforts below in the hopes that someone will be able to spot the issue and advise me on how to get this working. Please read below and advise.

Equipment and software

Service Provider - Alltel
Phone - Motorola E815 (CDMA)
Laptop - Apple MacBook 2 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
Operating System - OS 10.5.4

What is working

Successfully paired phone and laptop via Bluetooth
OBEX working correctly
Established a dial-up networking (DUN) connection to my ISP at 14.4 Kbps using Apple Generic Dial Up modem script
I can also use the phone (not tethered) to access Alltel's Mobile Web Service

Here's the info for how the serial port is setup
Name - Motorola Phone-Dial Up Ne-1
Protocol Modem
Service - DIal-Up Networking Gateway

Require Pairing for security checked
Show in network preferences checked.

_________________________________________

How I've set up to connect to Alltel's EVDO network

(E815 showing several bars and EV)
Selected from Apple modem scripts - Vendor Sprint / Model PCS VIsion
Select Motorola Phone-Dial Up Ne-1 from the in service pane In Network Preference. Airport is turned off.

Telephone Number - #777
Account Name - myphonenumber@alltel.net (my phone number is being entered as a 10 digit number without any dashes)
Password - Alltel

When I hit connect there is a beep from the phone (indicates Bluetooth connecting) and the backlight comes on. There is nothing happening on the cell phone display though. After 10 or 15 seconds I get an error message on the MacBook

A modem error occurred. Please verify your setting and try again.

Here's what the Console states
Mon Sep 1 10:50:24 2008 : setting the port speed to 230K
Mon Sep 1 10:50:24 2008 : Dialing without tone
Mon Sep 1 10:50:24 2008 : Dialing #777
Mon Sep 1 10:51:34 2008 : CCLExit: -6019 (Modem error, modem not responding.)
Mon Sep 1 10:51:34 2008 : Connect script failed

I also tried to connect after choosing and applying the Generic Dial Up Modem which behaved differently. When I hit connect the phone beeped and then beeped again a second later

No carrier detected. Please check phone connection and try again.

Console info
Mon Sep 1 11:03:08 2008 : No carrier.
Mon Sep 1 11:03:08 2008 : CCLExit: -6021 (No carrier.)
Mon Sep 1 11:03:08 2008 : Connect script failed

I downloaded and installed (put in Modem Scripts folder in Library ) 3 other scripts that reportedly should work but didn't. All three scripts show up under "Other " in my modem choices as three different models. I selected and applied each separately with unsuccessful results. Please see the details for each as they differ from one another.

PC Intel EV-DO 1.0
When I hit connect there is a beep from the phone (indicates Bluetooth connecting) and the backlight comes on. There is nothing happening on the cell phone display though. After 10 or 15 seconds I get an error message on the MacBook

A modem error occurred. Please verify your setting and try again.
From the console
Mon Sep 1 11:06:09 2008 : setting the port speed to 921K
Mon Sep 1 11:06:09 2008 : Dialing without tone
Mon Sep 1 11:06:09 2008 : Dialing #777
Mon Sep 1 11:07:19 2008 : CCLExit: -6019 (Modem error, modem not responding.)
Mon Sep 1 11:07:19 2008 : Connect script failed

SprintPCS
When I hit connect the phone beeped and then beeped again a second later
From the console
Mon Sep 1 11:09:15 2008 : Dialing without tone
Mon Sep 1 11:09:15 2008 : Dialing #777
Mon Sep 1 11:09:15 2008 : CCLExit: -6021 (No carrier.)
Mon Sep 1 11:09:15 2008 : Connect script failed

Verizon Support (PC5220)
When I hit connect the phone beeped and then beeped again a second later
From the console
Mon Sep 1 11:11:19 2008 : Starting Apple Verizon Support CCL
Mon Sep 1 11:11:19 2008 : Connecting to Network
Mon Sep 1 11:11:19 2008 : CCLExit: -6021 (No carrier.)
Mon Sep 1 11:11:19 2008 : Connect script failed

I've also tried using the correct Motorola USB cable and had basically the same results.

I'd be glad to see any discussion and take advice on how to get my MacBook and E815 successfully tethered to Access the Alltel EVDO network.

Thanks,
Chris

cc_mac · EVDO Newbie Joined: 02 Sep 2008 Posts: 2

I posted to several forums but didn't receive any replies that led to an immediate answer. I decided to try the data cable method of tethering with a Dell laptop running XP SP2. Immediately the phone showed up. I installed the Alltel provided drivers and set up the connection. I ran into the same issues as with the OS 10.5.4 on the Intel Duo Macbook. I tried another XP machine with not luck. I decided to try my wife's old Moto V26x and it worked at 1X speeds on the Dell. I then tethered the V26x to the Macbook thusly

Once phone was connected via the cable
-check hardware profile to make sure it's recognized
-open network preferences
-click the + (plus sign) at the bottom of the network preference pane
-a popup will open and click the drop-down and select the phone that now appears at the bottom of the list and add it.
-setup up as such

telephone number - #777
account - name xxxxxxxxx@alltel.net (xs = 10 digit phone number for your cell phone
password - alltel

click the advanced button
select "generic " from modem list and "dial-up" device from model (Sprint PCS also works as may others)
dial mode is - ignore dial tone when dialing

select PPP tab and switch to configuration and uncheck echo packets (seems to go much faster this way)
click OK to go back to net prefs and select apply
make sure AIrport or any other connection is inactive

hit connect and the phone will flash and read "packet data' and the connection is made

Speeds were slow on the Moto V26x but it did work - around 100k

I concluded that my 2.5 year old E815 had some sort of hardware issue - most likely the data port so is I went out locally and bought a refurbed Motorola V3m did the setup as above and it worked immediately. Speeds have varied depending on location. Very close to a tower I was getting ( I still can't believe this)1200 kbps. At home, I get about 500 kpbs. Other parts of town between 100 and 250 kbps.

Overall I am very pleased with the set up using the V3m.
-the phone charges via USB cable while connected
-I've got the Alltel $25 unlimited data plan so I am not worried about usage.
-In the places that I know I"ll be using, connection speeds are acceptable for my needs.

Alex · Posted: Sat Sep 06, 2008 10:33 am Post subject:

FYI, the V3M also works with cradlepoint routers:

http://www.EVDOinfo.com/cradlepoint

http://3Gstore.com/cradlepoint
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