Ubuntu, WvDial, Bluetooth and my GSM phone as GPRS Modem

Here are the links that were of much help:

Archived post by togume in Ubuntu forum
Tom’s attempts to get GPRS working over bluetooth with his laptop
Bayan ni Juan

So now, here are the steps that I did to finally connect to the internet using my Nokia 6151 as my gprs modem over bluetooth.

1. Activate my GPRS setting.

Since I am subscribed to Smart, I sent this keyword to 211, SET N6151. The message prompted me to save the settings which also activated not only the GPRS but also MMS and 3G services.

2. Install Bluetooth utilities.

I am using an Acer Aspire 4720 (thanks to Girl Bawang for the “pamana”) which has a built-in Bluetooth so all I need to do is press the Bluetooth button and I’ll get the Bluetooth applet after making sure that I have the latest of the following:

• • bluez-utils
  • bluez-gnome
  • wvdial

$ sudo apt-get upgrade bluez-utils bluez-gnome wvdial

else,

$ sudo apt-get install bluez-utils bluez-gnome wvdial

or, from the Synaptic Package Manager, search for bluez then mark bluez-utils and bluez-gnome for installation. Same goes for wvdial.

3. The Pairing

I set my laptop as my phone’s paired device. And on my laptop’s Bluetooth menu, set my phone as a trusted device.

4. The Binding

Now, I have to make sure that my phone and laptop can communicate and discuss things like creating connection and sending/receiving packet data. =)

Typing,

$ hcitool scan

showed my MAC or BD address:

Scanning …
00:11:22:33:44:55 Japot

Then, typing

$ sdptool search dun

showed my DUN channel which is 1.

Searching for dun on 00:11:22:33:44:55 …
Service Name: Dial-up networking
Service RecHandle: 0x1005f
Service Class ID List:
“Dialup Networking” (0x1103)
“Generic Networking” (0x1201)
Protocol Descriptor List:
“L2CAP” (0x0100)
“RFCOMM” (0x0003)
Channel: 1
Language Base Attr List:
…..

After knowing what MAC and Channel to use, I typed:

$ rfcomm bind 0 00:11:22:33:44:55 1

To check if my GPRS modem and my phone was ready to meet, I typed:

$ rfcomm

and it showed,

rfcomm0: 00:11:22:33:44:55 channel 1 clean

Seeing clean, I edited  /etc/bluetooth/rfcomm.conf to create the binding:

# RFCOMM configuration file.

rfcomm0 {
bind yes;
device 00:11:22:33:44:55;
channel 1;
comment “Jajabinx’s N6151“;

Then, I edited /etc/wvdial.conf

[Dialer Defaults]
Init1 = ATZ
Init2 = ATQ0 V1 E1 S0=0 &C1 &D2 +FCLASS=0
Init3 = AT+CGDCONT=1,”IP”,”Internet”
Modem = /dev/rfcomm0
Phone = *99#
Username = jajabinx
Password = wordpass
New PPPD = yes
ISDN = no
BAUD = 115200
Stupid Mode = yes
Carrier Check = no

The Init3 line is what I exactly used. If you’re using Globe, better call customer service to know your APN.

5. The Connection

Now, my laptop is ready to communicate with my phone and discuss things like creating connection and sending/receiving packet data. =)

To refresh my bluetooth, I typed

sudo /etc/init.d/bluetooth restart

Then the final command,

$ wvdial

And here’s what my terminal showed..

–> WvDial: Internet dialer version 1.60
–> Initializing modem.
ATZ
OK
ATQ0 V1 E1 S0=0 &C1 &D2 +FCLASS=0
OK
AT+CGDCONT=1,”IP”,”Internet”
OK
ATDT*99#
CONNECT
[… ppd logs]
–> local  IP address 10.157.192.194
–> remote IP address 10.6.6.6
–> primary   DNS address 203.84.191.216
–> secondary DNS address 121.1.3.250

6. The Surfing

Now, everytime I need to use the gprs modem connection, I only need to open my terminal and execute,

$ wvdial

The boxed “G” showing on my phone’s upper left phone display signals that I am connected to the net. The concern I have now is having to monitor how long I’m connected to the net. You see, I can easily get carried away with reading mails, checking forums and reading updates. But P20/hr, I guess is not so bad especially when I’m at home on weekends. The nearest i-cafe from our place is a  taxikel+jeepney ride away. And the PCs there are still using IE. Whew!