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Cellular Phone Forum / Providers / Verizon / August 2004Anyone know what *228 really does and why it might fail repeatedly ?
Anyone know what *228 really does [I'm looking for a technical explanation, have read VZW's explanation that in some places says it is to update the phone's software] ? My guess is that its primary purpose is to load a list of SID's [cellular System ID's] into the phone to control the display that tells you when you are in your Home area or Extended Network area or Roaming. I have tried repeatedly with a new Nokia while in my Home area, with full signal strength, and it always errors out after almost a minute saying it failed. Could this be because the phone number is an ATT Wireless number ported over to VZW - everything else has worked fine for weeks ? TIA, QE in NJ > Anyone know what *228 really does > [I'm looking for a technical explanation, have read VZW's explanation > that in some places says it is to update the phone's software] ? It turns your phone into over the air download mode (apparently circuit switched) and (1) downloads and replaces the service programming data (your NAM stuff) (2) downloads and replaces the PRL. In order to touch either one of those, your phone has to have MSL = 000000. Total data about 6KB. >Anyone know what *228 really does >[I'm looking for a technical explanation, have read VZW's explanation [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] >Wireless number ported over to VZW - everything else has worked fine >for weeks ? No, because I have a number ported from ATTWS, and *228 has always worked for me. Probably an issue with your phone. == Jack Hamilton jfh@acm.org == In the end, more than they wanted freedom, they wanted comfort and security. And in the end, they lost it all - freedom, comfort and security. Edward Gibbons Problem was a nut loose on the phone -> ME :-) I was making the update call and following the text on the screen which said the update was in progress,update was in progress,update was in progress, then that it had failed. Never thought of listening to the call since the text messages were reassuring, until the failed msg at the end. Then I listened, and a female recording, about 10 seconds into the update, said to hit the "2" key. That was the charm !! Thanks to the people who posted info. Happy QE ========================= |Anyone know what *228 really does |[I'm looking for a technical explanation, have read VZW's explanation [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] | |TIA, QE in NJ | Problem was a nut loose on the phone -> ME :-) | [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] | Then I listened, and a female recording, about 10 seconds into the | update, said to hit the "2" key. That was the charm !! If you dial *22899, updating of both firmware AND PRL proceed automatically.....no need to select (1) or (2)....... PC >| Problem was a nut loose on the phone -> ME :-) >| [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > >PC By firmware do you mean the phone's specific software which is listed on the phone? I have never heard of this being done over the air. Unless we are not talking about the same thing, firmware upgrades must be done at a Verizon store. Yup - specific software....in any event, it works fine..... PC | >| Problem was a nut loose on the phone -> ME :-) | >| [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] | talking about the same thing, firmware upgrades must be done at a | Verizon store. > If you dial *22899, updating of both firmware AND PRL proceed > automatically.....no need to select (1) or (2)....... You must mean service programming. Firmware cannot be downloaded over the air without expensive equipment. | > If you dial *22899, updating of both firmware AND PRL proceed | > automatically.....no need to select (1) or (2)....... | | You must mean service programming. Firmware cannot be downloaded over the | air without expensive equipment. Indeed - specific software, as already corrected, but I suspect everyone got the idea...nevertheless.....:) PC >> If you dial *22899, updating of both firmware AND PRL proceed >> automatically.....no need to select (1) or (2)....... > >You must mean service programming. Firmware cannot be downloaded over the >air without expensive equipment. Depends on the phone. This feature is not currently supported. Thanks for the fully automatic version PC. Way to go. Anyone have advice about the "rare" [per the VZW AC Brochure] problem that can happen if you do the update while not in your home area ? I forget how it swackled his phone, but a friend from VT was visiting here in NJ and did *288 and it messed up his phone somehow. He went to a local VZW store for a fix and they told him he would have to go back to VT to get it fixed. Sorry, I forget exactly how he was messed up. TIA QE =============================== || Problem was a nut loose on the phone -> ME :-) || [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] | |PC > Thanks for the fully automatic version PC. Way to go. > > Anyone have advice about the "rare" [per the VZW AC Brochure] problem > that can happen if you do the update while not in your home area ? You're supposed to be able to do an OTA update now, anywhere where Verizon has a digital signal - as long as you're on Verizon's network you should be OK. It's been that way for, what, about a year? I think the big issue previous to that was that if you were in another area besides your home area, you might get the wrong settings and/or PRL... > I forget how it swackled his phone, but a friend from VT was visiting > here in NJ and did *288 and it messed up his phone somehow. He went > to a local VZW store for a fix and they told him he would have to go > back to VT to get it fixed. Sorry, I forget exactly how he was messed > up. How long ago?  SignatureJustThe.net Internet & New Media Services, http://JustThe.net/ Steven J. Sobol, Geek In Charge / 888.480.4NET (4638) / sjsobol@JustThe.net PGP Key available from your friendly local key server (0xE3AE35ED) Apple Valley, California Nothing scares me anymore. I have three kids. >> Thanks for the fully automatic version PC. Way to go. >> [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] >I think the big issue previous to that was that if you were in another >area besides your home area, you might get the wrong settings and/or PRL... Should work everywhere... but I'd do it during off-hours when out of home area due to network delay potentialities. PRLs are the same everywhere. Service data will vary with service area but the correct area should be loaded based on getting the proper MDN and ESN. > PRLs are the same everywhere. Service data will vary with service > area but the correct area should be loaded based on getting the proper > MDN and ESN. PRLs weren't always the same everywhere, before everything was integrated. SignatureJustThe.net Internet & New Media Services, http://JustThe.net/ Steven J. Sobol, Geek In Charge / 888.480.4NET (4638) / sjsobol@JustThe.net PGP Key available from your friendly local key server (0xE3AE35ED) Apple Valley, California Nothing scares me anymore. I have three kids. <SNIP> |You're supposed to be able to do an OTA update now, anywhere where Verizon |has a digital signal - as long as you're on Verizon's network you should be [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] | |How long ago? ============== Yup, it was about a year ago. FYI, VZW brochure "AC PROMO 0504" [ May 2004 ? ] says "in some rare instances this may alter your Calling Plan Home Airtime Rate and Coverage Area". How the phone's programming, no matter how screwed up, could alter any rate is beyond me - I am most familiar with ATT Wireless, where the rate and plan in effect when the bill is created operates on the call detail data to produce the bill. BTW, and ATT reps will tell you this, if you change your plan up to the end of your billing cycle the new plan applies bach thru the beginning of that billing month - some folks change to a National Plan for 1 month when they are traveling, and that's OK with ATT, and you can then change back. QE > ============== > Yup, it was about a year ago. FYI, VZW brochure "AC PROMO > 0504" [ May 2004 ? ] says "in some rare instances this may alter your > Calling Plan Home Airtime Rate and Coverage Area". How the phone's > programming, no matter how screwed up, could alter any rate is beyond > me Well, the PRL governs whether your phone displays "Roaming", "Extended Network" or "Verizon Wireless" - but the CDMA phones I've used all have a setting for the home area System ID (SID). This must be set to the SID of your home-area network. It's possible that if your phone is reprogrammed to use a different SID as the home SID, that that could screw up billing, but I don't know how Verizon's billing system works, and don't know if changing the SID would cause such a problem (not for sure, anyhow). SignatureJustThe.net Internet & New Media Services, http://JustThe.net/ Steven J. Sobol, Geek In Charge / 888.480.4NET (4638) / sjsobol@JustThe.net PGP Key available from your friendly local key server (0xE3AE35ED) Apple Valley, California Nothing scares me anymore. I have three kids. The OTA system queries the billing system to find out what the customer's rate plan is. If it gets that info, it knows which PRL to send. If not, it fails. Sometimes, when out of market, the controlling switch cannot communicate to the home switch to get this info. It will rarely load the wrong PRL, or if it does should load the "default" PRL which will work "good enough" instead of nothing at all. >Thanks for the fully automatic version PC. Way to go. > [quoted text clipped - 26 lines] >| >|PC >| Problem was a nut loose on the phone -> ME :-) >| [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] >If you dial *22899, updating of both firmware AND PRL proceed >automatically.....no need to select (1) or (2)....... Won't work everywhere and with all phones. This is a legacy artifact. Don't count on it continuing to work. >If you dial *22899, updating of both firmware AND PRL proceed >automatically.....no need to select (1) or (2)....... I was told to do *22890. Any idea on the difference? SignatureTo reply, remove TheObvious from my e-mail address. | >If you dial *22899, updating of both firmware AND PRL proceed | >automatically.....no need to select (1) or (2)....... | | I was told to do *22890. Any idea on the difference? I'm sure you'll get many answers..... I don't know what *22890 is/does - I know that *22899 works and that's why I reported the information. Dialing *22899 provides automatic update of both phone specific software and PRLs.... PC I remain confused. I've got a 5220 card P8 hardware version which I updated to PRL 50192 via d/l from the audiovox site. I then ran the activation wizard (which verz suggests I run every few weeks) and everything seems to be working fine (using 1xRTT). I am in the So. Calif. Long Beach thru Santa Barbara areas. So, what does 22890 or any of this other stuff have to do with updating the PRL on the 5220 card? This thread began specifically as a discussion of the 5220 cards. If this has migrated to only being relevant about *phone* updates, then someone oughta make that clear. Thanks, Confused >I don't know what *22890 is/does - I know that *22899 works and that's why I >reported the information. Dialing *22899 provides automatic update of both >phone specific software and PRLs.... > >PC > I remain confused. I've got a 5220 card P8 hardware version which I > updated to PRL 50192 via d/l from the audiovox site. I then ran the [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] >> >> PC There is no difference. The card *is* a phone. It just doesn't have a user interface (mic, speaker, keypad...). -Quick >> Thanks, Confused >>> I don't know what *22890 is/does - I know that *22899 works and [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > >-Quick Apparently there is a difference because the card doesn't seem to require dialing *22890 or anything of the sort. >>> Thanks, Confused >>>> I don't know what *22890 is/does - I know that *22899 works and [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > Apparently there is a difference because the card doesn't seem to > require dialing *22890 or anything of the sort. The OP said: > I remain confused. I've got a 5220 card P8 hardware version which I > updated to PRL 50192 via d/l from the audiovox site. I then ran the > activation wizard (which verz suggests I run every few weeks) and > everything seems to be working fine (using 1xRTT). I am in the So. > Calif. Long Beach thru Santa Barbara areas. Uses PRL, requires updating... My phone worked out of the box and didn't require dialing anything either. Admittedly you are probably not going to get 1xRTT when on extended or roaming. -Quick >Apparently there is a difference because the card doesn't seem to >require dialing *22890 or anything of the sort. No phone (or card) REQUIRES dialing *22890. You could never dial *22890 and still use your phone - to a point. Dialing *22890 updates your phones PRL, Preferred Roaming List. What this does is make sure your phone knows where the newest towers are. When traveling, can make the difference between "NO SIGNAL" and a signal. Your card is a phone. It just doesn't have a keypad, mike, speaker, etc. SignatureTo reply, remove TheObvious from my e-mail address. ... >Dialing *22890 (sic) updates your phones PRL, Preferred Roaming List. What >this does is make sure your phone knows where the newest towers are. It has nothing to do with the location of towers. The PRL tells the phone which frequencies to use when it discovers it is 'out of it's home area'... It sees where it is and does a table lookup to find the "preferred" frequency to use in that area. The terminology is a bit archaic in this age of national companies. But the function is still important. Without a PRL the fone uses a certain frequency. Outside of your 'home' area this frequency may not be held by a company with which your company has a roaming agreement. Then you would have to provide credit card info over the air in order to make a call. *228 / Option 2 updates the PRL. Do this before you take trips and several times a year and whenever requested to do so. *228 / Option 1 updates the phone's configuration. After activation, there is almost never any reason to update the phone's configuration (MIN, Home SID, et.al.) I believe Option 1 does not update fone firmware. It does load the current PRL... but the other stuff adds time to the D/L so option 2 is best for PRL updates. > It has nothing to do with the location of towers. It has everything to do with towers and nothing to do with frequencies - the PRL tells the phones which networks to use, based on the carrier's decision of which roaming partners they are going to allow their customers to roam on. > Without a PRL the fone uses a certain frequency A US cellular phone uses 800-850 MHz, 1900 MHz or both. That's it. There is no selection of frequencies, only a decision by the carrier to allow roaming on certain networks of other carriers, and that is implemented by creating or updating a phone's PRL. SignatureJustThe.net Internet & New Media Services, http://JustThe.net/ Steven J. Sobol, Geek In Charge / 888.480.4NET (4638) / sjsobol@JustThe.net PGP Key available from your friendly local key server (0xE3AE35ED) Apple Valley, California Nothing scares me anymore. I have three kids. > On Mon, 16 Aug 2004 22:18:28 -0700, Evan Platt > > *228 / Option 2 updates the PRL. Do this before you take trips Ok, I'm a bit confused (I'm a new cell user). Why do this *before* a trip? Wouldn't it make more sense to do this at my destination,ie when I have arrived so that it uses "local" information of the place I am visiting? >> On Mon, 16 Aug 2004 22:18:28 -0700, Evan Platt >> >> *228 / Option 2 updates the PRL. Do this before you take trips > > Ok, I'm a bit confused (I'm a new cell user). Why do this *before* a trip? Because you might be in an "extended network" area (or even roaming), in which case you probably won't be able to update your PRL. > Wouldn't it make more sense to do this at my destination,ie when > I have arrived so that it uses "local" information of the place > I am visiting? PRLs, by definition, have nothing to do with what is "local." Whatever PRL is in your phone gets applied regardless of where you are, and the PRL won't change just because you've moved to a different area. >>> On Mon, 16 Aug 2004 22:18:28 -0700, Evan Platt >>> [quoted text clipped - 14 lines] > are, and the PRL won't change just because you've moved to a > different area. I believe this is true now... it wasn't that way a few years ago. Now I believe all the PRLs are national (with the exception of regional plans naturally). In any case you always want to update your PRL when in your local area. PRL is Preferred Roaming List. What is roaming for you may not be for someone else. -Quick Thank you Quick, Esmail Thanks Isaiah, that helps. Esmail Does *28899 work the same as *28890? |Does *28899 work the same as *28890? ===================== Here's what I found with Google - cannot vouch for its accuracy. QE ================ From: David L (davidlind@my-deja.com) Subject: Re: What is *28899? View: Complete Thread (6 articles) Original Format Newsgroups: alt.cellular.verizon Date: 2004-03-19 22:51:08 PST > > > I know what *228 is, what is @22899? > > It does *228 1 and *228 2 in one shot with no prompts. It may be market > > specific. > [quoted text clipped - 18 lines] > *2281 for cellular B > (On and on) Using *22802, my phone says "activation" and then connects me with Sprint CS. Sure, it forces to that network but doesn't seem to allow any calls to be made. Outgoing calls revert to Verizon digital network. Maybe if I tried in an area, where there was no Verizon signal, it would stay on Sprint and allow for calls? I can't find any useful purpose for these codes...other than quickly checking what networks may be out there, or a shortcut, to make a quick signal level test using debug mode? --- David > |Does *28899 work the same as *28890? > ===================== [quoted text clipped - 26 lines] >> *22807 for PCS f >> (I think.......) This requires you to know which code to use, and it will definitely differ by market. I'd suggest staying away from anything other than *228, 1 or *228, 2 to be safe. SignatureJustThe.net Internet & New Media Services, http://JustThe.net/ Steven J. Sobol, Geek In Charge / 888.480.4NET (4638) / sjsobol@JustThe.net PGP Key available from your friendly local key server (0xE3AE35ED) Apple Valley, California Nothing scares me anymore. I have three kids. |
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