11-13-2012, 04:27 PM | #1 |
Nameless Being
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Dazed and confused.
I recently replaced the motherboard on my Kindle 2 only to find that it wouldn't register. (I either get a "can't connect at this time" message or no message and it stays unregistered. The Kindle techs weren't very helpful, although they did register the serial number for me. It didn't "take" however. After talking to the people who sold me the new motherboard I was told that my old motherboard was the "international" version, and that the old 3G module I had wasn't compatible, so they sent me a new one. However, I got the same results with the new one. The 3G will work to connect to the Amazon storefront, but I can't register it.
One thing I don't understand about all of this is that apparently the international version serial numbers begin with B0003. Well, both of my boards have serial number that begin with B0003. Or, at least, the old one did and the serial number reported in Settings with the new board starts as B0003. I was told on one of the other forums that I can actually write a new serial number to the firmware provided I know the old serial number and mac address. I still have the old board, but it's not connected and though I could connect it, it would be a bit of a pain. I have the old serial number, but not the mac address. Is it, perhaps, located somewhere else, like on the board itself or on the case somewhere? Were are the instructions on how to change the serial number and/or mac address for this new board? Which of these 3G modules should I use? Is this board actually the US version and I only gen the B0003 serial number because it's referencing my old id chip? I've done some programming including in machine language, although it has been some time ago, but I do have a bit of technical knowhow. --Scott |
11-13-2012, 04:30 PM | #2 |
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Didn't the old K2's have the serial # on the back of the metal plate? Now I have to go look at mine...
EDIT: Oh wait, you're looking for the MAC address.... Nevermind... :doh: |
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11-13-2012, 04:58 PM | #3 |
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Actually, I'm trying to recall where I saw the mac address because it's not in settings anywhere. Is it on the SIM card? If the mac address is associated with the SIM card then all I'd need to do is change the serial number of the board to the old one, right?
I know I saw that mac address *somewhere*. |
11-13-2012, 05:10 PM | #4 |
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I should say that my old board works well enough to connect to the internet via 3G and browse the story, and I could probably re-register it. I might have seen the mac address on the K2's registration page.
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11-13-2012, 05:12 PM | #5 |
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It's indeed in the Settings' device info popup, it's also in a bunch of logs (and in the output of one of the *11 commands), and available through the idme tool.
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11-13-2012, 06:07 PM | #6 |
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11-13-2012, 06:21 PM | #7 | |
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Quote:
Anyway, where are the instructions for changing it? In the mean time I can reinstall the old board and see if I can register it. I'm pretty sure the mac address shows up as part of the registration. |
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11-13-2012, 06:24 PM | #8 | |
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Code:
idme ? |
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11-13-2012, 06:46 PM | #9 | |
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The 3G modem/radio has its own, internal MAC address. Which you can not access. What you want to do when you change out the motherboard but keep the 3G card, also keep the SIM card. (The modem/radio on the card is "paired" with the SIM card.) |
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11-13-2012, 06:52 PM | #10 | |
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There has to be something that ids the motherboard, though, because I've tried using the original SIM and modem. |
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11-13-2012, 07:07 PM | #11 | |
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It is the only mini-PCIe shaped card in the device. The Subscriber Information Card (SIM) also holds identifying information **of the M2M (Machine-to-Machine)** 3G account. There is also indemnifying information in the Kindle's flash memory (that identifies the Kindle and the Wifi M2M account). One of those things is the MAC address used by the Wifi connection. When you see "Kindle MAC address" phrase in this forum, it refers to the one associated with the Kindle and its Wifi (the one stored in the Kindle's flash). The system image of the 3G modem/radio is a locked, signed image. There is no changing what is in that, only what is on the SIM card. |
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11-13-2012, 07:24 PM | #12 | |
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Again, what do I need to change to get this to work? What do I have to change to get this to work? |
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11-13-2012, 07:29 PM | #13 | |
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In fact, I don't know if 3G on the K2 was on the motherboard or was a plug-in card. What you might do is check if either of the machines (new or old) was uploading a firmware image to the 3G module (in whatever form it is implemented in on a K2). If the Kindle 2 is anything like the Kindle DX (or DXG - case color does not matter), then the machine specific information is in the mtdblock device not the mmcblk device. I don't have the information about the K2. Last edited by knc1; 11-13-2012 at 07:32 PM. |
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11-13-2012, 07:42 PM | #14 |
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3G was a plugin card IIRC.
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11-13-2012, 07:46 PM | #15 | |
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Quote:
Searching the forum I found the following reference to a method of changing the mac address and serial number, but it's not clear if it will work on the Kindle 2 since it appears to be for the Kindle 3. If this method also works with the Kindle 2 then all I need to get is the mac address associated with the original board. Kindle 3 Diagnostics Update 1: Works on the Kindle 2 as well. You can set the serial number and the ID for the eInk screen and something called the "PCBA ID" but there isn't a mac address that can be set. Furthermore the PCBA ID is blank. Not sure what that means. What I can try is to replace the original 3G module and set the Serial Number to the old one. Any reason that wouldn't work? Update 2: BTW, it only works if you save the text file without an extension: "ENABLE_DIAGS" no ".txt" Last edited by freewheeling; 11-13-2012 at 08:24 PM. |
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