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How to find if a phone was previously network locked?

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daveinmanc

Newbie
Hello folks,
I have purchased an 'unlocked' phone and want to know if it has been unlocked by the previous owner, or if it was originally sold as an unlocked device - is this possible? Is there somewhere deep in engineer mode/ service info that will reveal any previous network the phone may have been locked to ?

In the SIM lock info in service info, the sim card IMSI info reads all 0's but I don't know if I'm looking in the right place or even IF this can be found out?

I'd be grateful for any info, cheers.
 
I'm not sure if it's possible. Once unlocked, it's permanently unlocked. Is there a reason this makes a difference? Just curious.
 
Bootloader unlocking and network lock are utterly different and unrelated.

Of course if it was a model sold through a carrier who block bootloader unlocks (as some do) that's a different matter. In that case then given the phone model and software version a Web search may tell you, but usually there will be some carrier apps pre-installed on those (and if the phone has never been rooted they will still be there).
 
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FYI locked carrier versions of Samsung Galaxy devices can have a specific model number codes, like if it ends in "V" it might be a Verizon device. The name of a phone is sometimes a give away, e.g. Moto Droid, that's again a Verizon only device and very likely locked.
 
It's a sony xperiax, I am gathering that IF it was originally network locked then the bootloader may not be able to be unlocked, but apparently as part of sony's open devices program, the phones that are FACTORY network unlocked ALSO have an unlocked bootloader.
I am wanting to flash another OS to it, and if I can't get the bootloader unlocked I'm screwed.
 
daveinmanc said:
It's a sony xperiax, I am gathering that IF it was originally network locked then the bootloader may not be able to be unlocked, but apparently as part of sony's open devices program, the phones that are FACTORY network unlocked ALSO have an unlocked bootloader.
I am wanting to flash another OS to it, and if I can't get the bootloader unlocked I'm screwed.
Click to expand...

Do you know if suitable custom ROMs even exist for the whatever it is model Sony Xperia you're looking at.
 
Well that killed it. . . . . .
Ok I'll try another angle: Is there no one with any in depth Sony knowledge that can tell me if a XperiaX bootloader can be ulocked at all ? (if it originally was factory locked to a network) Is it the equivalent of flashing the BIOS? Looking into this seems to be suggesting bootloader locks are baked into ROM thereby making it more of a PITA.
 
Bootloader unlocking should be separate from the ROM because the bootloader is entirely separate from the ROM. As noted previously, the ROM or the software version information may contain clues as to whether this phone was originally sold by and modified by a carrier: if it has carrier-specific apps that cannot be uninstalled, or carrier logos on the splash screen when it boots up, that would confirm it was a carrier model.

I don't know Sonys, but even for a non-carrier model I would expect it to comes with an unlockable bootloader rather than an unlocked one (the phone wouldn't be locked to a network, but that's entirely different from the bootloader lock). So there will be a procedure for unlocking it, probably involving the fastboot command "fastboot oem unlock" though some manufacturers add other steps, and you should be able to find that procedure on the web. If so, why not simply try it? If it works you've unlocked the bootloader, if it doesn't you've learned something.

Note that as a security feature bootloader unlocking generally resets the phone, so back up any important data before trying.
 
The XperiaX is part of Sony's open devices program, amongst many, and as such are flashable, the only stipulation made by Jolla was that you buy a network unlocked phone, probably for all the reasons you pertained to. When I connect mine to my Mint Laptop with USB/volume up, I am green lighted, and it should be blue, so I can't progress, that's when I found it was bootloader locked. I'm encouraged by your answer, it makes sense to me and the phone shows sofware versions/ customisation versions/ etc but I wouldn't know where to start to find out what any of that means. Thanks for your reply, I might well try what you suggested but I also signed onto a sony developers forum so I'll await replies there too before I do anything, last thing I need right now is to brick the damn thing lol : /
Cheers.
 
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