Help WiFi Issues

[donal_f]

I'm having a really annoying problem with my phone. I leave WiFi on all the time so that when I return home (or go to a friends etc..) it picks up the WiFi and saves my data charges. A lot of my heavy apps are set to only sync on WiFi also. This has been working well until recently.

However, my phone is now constantly picking up and connecting to BTOpenzone WiFi signals. For those outside the UK this is a commercial WiFi provider. BT have now started to enable home WiFi hotspots as BTOpenzone hotspots. So walking down the street there's often several of them, as well as in shops and cafe's etc.

I've gone into WiFi settings each time and have selected Forget Network and have also gone through the remembered networks and selected Forget Network for all the BTOpenzone variants (there's BTOpenzone, BTOpenzone-H, BTOpenzone-Starbucks etc..). However, it still keeps connecting and they keep reappearing in the remembered networks!

The reason this is so annoying is that you need to authenticate through the browser to connect to these hotspots. So, although I have a WiFi connection to BTOpenzone, I have no actual internet connectivity. Thus, many of my apps won't work. So, the only option I have is to turn off WiFi entirely.

Can anyone suggest any ideas on how I could fix this?

[I have a Galaxy S2 unlocked running on Vodafone in the UK. I'm on 2.3.4 and kernel 2.6.35.7.].

 

[Slug]

If connections have been 'forgotten' then they shouldn't reconnect without you manually authenticating i.e. entering a password. They will be visible but definitely shouldn't be able to connect.

Does your own wireless router use a BTOpenzone SSID (its 'name')?

 

[donal_f]

All the BTOpenzone hotspots are open from a WiFi perspective. You authenticate through a web-page once you've connected to the WiFi.

My home hotspot is not BTOpenzone and I am not manually connecting to these networks. But my phone is mysteriously connecting back to them.

Yesterday I went through all the remembered networks and selected 'Forget Network' for all BTOpenzone variants. But this morning my phone was happily reconnecting on the walk to work!

In addition, if I'm sitting in a coffee shop with a BTOpenzone hotspot and my phone is connected, when I select 'Forget Network' - within about 30 sec or 1 min, it has reconnected to that same network!

Its quite frustrating!!

 

[donal_f]

Not sure if anyone has any further ideas?

 

[Unforgiven]

If connections have been 'forgotten' then they shouldn't reconnect without you manually authenticating i.e. entering a password. They will be visible but definitely shouldn't be able to connect.

Does your own wireless router use a BTOpenzone SSID (its 'name')?

Didn't there used to be a setting regarding automatically connecting to open WIFI networks. I can't find it on my GNex and my D2 is at home. On my phone, open networks show up but I don't connect automatically which I think would work for the OP.

 

[donal_f]

I know - its really weird. It only happens with BT-Openzone networks. It doesn't "automatically" connect to any other unknown open networks.

 

[Unforgiven]

I know - its really weird. It only happens with BT-Openzone networks. It doesn't "automatically" connect to any other unknown open networks.

I found this over in another thread, maybe this will help.

Seems that I found the way to sort this out..

There is an app "My Vodafone" where you can check your balance, etc..

There is a setting "Enable BT Openzone" and "Auto Connect - Even when Wi-Fi is turned off"

I haven't thought that some stupid app settings can override my phone settings..


But anyway if someone has this issue, here is the answer.

edit: I probably should have mentioned that my assumption is you are able to disable that feature within their app.

 

[donal_f]

Ah. Brilliant. I installed that app a couple of weeks ago - which co-incides with this issue starting on my S2.

I've just disabled that option - sounds like it should fix the issue.

Thanks - really appreciate this - never occurred to me that something like that would be the cause of the issue!

 

[donal_f]

(I installed the app, but never actually used it - so had no idea it even had a WiFi finder and the other functionality to autoconnect!)

 

[Slug]

Thanks - really appreciate this

Yup, very nice catch pupkact. Especially as I've recently installed something from Orange which sounds identical, so I'll know what to watch for when I get round to trying it out.

 

[donal_f]

I've just travelled home - which involves passing many BTOpenzone hotspots and I can confirm that I had no issues and for the first time in a few weeks I can look through my remembered networks and there is no sign of BTOpenzone! Thanks again!

 

[Unforgiven]

Yup, very nice catch pupkact. Especially as I've recently installed something from Orange which sounds identical, so I'll know what to watch for when I get round to trying it out.

You may want to give the dude that actually provided the answer a thanks too, I just re-posted it. Here is the original thread where I found it(http://androidforums.com/htc-evo-3d/423211-uk-vodaphone-prevent-btopenzone-connecting-auto-connect-home-wifi-problem.html#post3287181).

BTW, Slug, this is the first time I got thanked by a mod for actually helping them, so I'm feeling pretty pumped right now. Thanks

 

[donal_f]

Done. Thanks again.

 

[telbij]

Wow thanks for finding that, it would have been a real pain to figure that out on my own. I am so fed up with mobile carriers crapware. I thought T-Mobile in the states was back with their "helpful hints" that send you unsolicited notifications to restart your phone "for improved performance".

Yes Vodafone, I want to see my payg balance. No Vodafone, I don't want the rest of your user hostile spammy garbage. Stop pretending you are a software company ffs.