How To Guide Carrier/SIM Unlock - Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G SM-G998U & U1 (QualComm SnapDragon) USA/CANADA! - NO ROOT- FREE

[Badman87]

So I read the post in its entirety and come to the same conclusion this does not simunlock/network unlock so I previous assessment still stands this method doesn’t work for network unlocking atleast ..... and it certainly DIDN’T work for changing CSC for me.

 

[iBowToAndroid]

For everyone who continusly says this doesnt work, heres another clear example and guide to it working.
https://www.reddit.com/r/GalaxyS21/comments/pi890d

Uh, NO.

In the OP, you claim that your process SIM unlocks the device, which isn't true.

These instructions are for changing the CSC, not for SIM unlocking (edit: and per previous post, even that doesn't appear to actually work)

 

[kisshell99]

Here's a free How-To on how i successfully Carrier/Sim unlocked my Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G running the NEWEST Android update on bootloader 5 (USQU5BULJ)released in January of 2022 that was carrier locked to Verizon and now fully Unlocked.


DISCLAIMER:
*This does NOT trip Knox or Void your warranty and does NOT require a root or a paid service. **This is the process I took, you may find some of these steps are not needed but for the purpose or recreating my results, I'll be posting my exact process.***This has ONLY BEEN TESTED ON SNAPDRAGON BASED SAMSUNG GALAXY S21 ULTRA 5G SM-G998 U & U1, if you try it on a different model or phone you may (and likely will) receive different results!!!!


You can read more on how this method works to force a carrier update to your device, here, on the Official Android dev site.

Here's what you'll need:
•ANY (activated or not) Sim from the carrier you wish to switch too.(or a way to replicate the carriers cert from one)
•A computer
•Patched Odin
•BOTH the NEWEST U & U1 ROMs/Firmware - theres a full post on these and how to flash them here, Stock Firmware and ODIN Flashing Guide (XDA) or visit SamFW.com, it has both Odin and the ROM/Firmware files you will need.
•(Optional?) Android ADB platform tools (You can find them on the official Android Developers page here or use any ADB software of your choice, fastboot is not required or used in this process. Link: Android Dev Platform Tools (Official)


Step 1:
So let's presume you have a Verizon or T-Mobile carrier locked phone, if you look at your baseband, which you can find in Settings > About > Software Info, you should see this "SM-G998Uxxxxxxx"

NOTE:
It Is CRITICAL that we flash the U1 rom BEFORE putting in the desired carriers SIM, then reboot, let phone fully boot, ONLY THEN should we insert the desired carriers SIM.

Step 1b:
Head over to your preferred site to get stock Samsung Roms (Refer to link above if you don't know where to find) and download the U1 XAA rom and the U rom of the CARRIER YOU WISH TO USE.


IMPORTANT! MAKE SURE YOU DOWNLOAD BOTH THE "U" ROM FOR THE CARRIER YOU WISH TO SWITCH TO AND THE U1 UNLOCKED (XAA) ROM/Firmware.

IF YOU ALREADY HAVE U1 FIRMWARE
I.e "SM-G998U1xxxxxxx" - you can skip to step 2, but I would recommend reading through the next part.


Put you device in download mode (Hold Vol up and Vol down and plug in the USB, which should be connected to your PC and now your phone at this point.)

Flash the U1 XAA Rom, place appropriate files in appropriate places in Odin, when you get to CSC, DO NOT use the "HOME_CSC" use the other.

Leave the rest of Odin settings alone and hit Start, wait for it to finish and reboot.


Step 2:
Once the phone boots, return to Settings>About>Software and confirm the device is now showing the "U1_XAA" in the Service Provider Software Version - it should say something like "SM-G998U1_XAA blah blah blah" - you just want to see the "U1" bit.

Now put in the Sim from the carrier you desire. A pop-up should appear prompting you to restart your device.


! CRITICALLY IMPORTANT STEP !
We will now initiate a reboot, but BEFORE the device fully restarts, we need to force it into RECOVERY MODE, I was able to achieve this by holding the power and Vol Down buttons at the same time, starting to hold them directly after the "Samsung" Logo fades away upon initial restart. If you have trouble getting into recovery, please comment below.


Once in recovery, use the volume keys to navigate to "Clear Cache" select and execute. Now go to Factory Data Reset/Wipe, select and execute. It should be the option directly above "Clear cache".

Once done, go up to "Reboot to Bootloader", Select & Execute.


AGAIN, Very Important step! We MUST interrupt the boot process again and force the phone BACK into download mode this time, so once the phone attempts to reboot, we need to hold the Vol Down and Vol Up buttons at the same time and the USB MUST be already plugged in, essentially it should remain plugged in throughout this process.

We should now be back in download mode and be on "U1" as we have verified in the steps above.


STEP 3:
Now it's time to flash the ROM/Firmware from the carrier you wish to use. Make SURE you have the SIM from the same carrier inserted during this process as mentioned at the beginning. It doesn't need to be a working or activated SIM, just simply one from the carrier you wish to have this S21 work on.


Flash all items from the "U" ROM/Firmware as you did earlier, ensuring to use the "U" ROM/Firmware for your desired carrier as described above. Same deal with CSC here, DO NOT use the "Home_CSC", use the other.
BE SURE that you use the USERDATA file that comes with the "U" ROM/Firmware. Its Critical in order to get the phone working properly on the new carrier.

Start the Odin flashing process & wait.
Phone will Auto-Reboot.....

Done!


You should now be on the carrier you wish to use.
This can be (in theory, test at own risk) replicated for ANY carrier supported by Samsung.


Please comment your experiences/ issues etc below. Don't be afraid to ask for clarity of something.

PoC, results after doing above process pictured in this screenshot.

Good luck.
-k0mrade

Send me Crypto if I helped?

Before process, this message would appear shortly after inserting a new SIM in testing devices:

View attachment 5530867

After preforming above procedures I now find pictured below by running this activity:
com.samsung.ssu.unlock.MainActivity

View attachment 5531069

And verify twice by checking my work in Settings>About>Software Information> Service Provider Software Version & Carrier Configuration Version.

View attachment 5531071

For anyone whos still having trouble, try following the directions on this thread. Maybe they explain it a bit better or their process omits/includes parts ive missed.

Alternative Guide To Carrier Unlocking S21

Good Luck.

Does this work on s22 or the s22ultra for Verizon. I need to sim unlock a Verizon phone.

 

[K0mraid3]

If it no longer works, it was probably Patched, that's all I can say, it worked at the time of writing for me and a few others that tested.

If it doesn't work now, then I guess it just doesn't work. Maybe there's a workaround, maybe not, but I haven't had time to look into it and likely won't. If I find anything working in the future I'll update.

 

[iBowToAndroid]

Does this work on s22 or the s22ultra for Verizon. I need to sim unlock a Verizon phone.

Nope

If it no longer works, it was probably Patched, that's all I can say, it worked at the time of writing for me and a few others that tested.

If it doesn't work now, then I guess it just doesn't work. Maybe there's a workaround, maybe not, but I haven't had time to look into it and likely won't. If I find anything working in the future I'll update.

This is a joke. It never worked, and you never provided any proof that it did.

 

[K0mraid3]

Nope

This is a joke. It never worked, and you never provided any proof that it did.

Whatever you say, idk why I'd waste my time with all this non sense if it didn't work at one point. Sorry my sharing something that indeed DID work at one point, upset you so much.

 

[iBowToAndroid]

upset you so much.

Wasting other member's time with lies is upsetting, yes

 

[K0mraid3]

Wasting other member's time with lies is upsetting, yes

CVE - CVE-2022-22292

k.

 

[leunaqva]

Will this method work if the operator of the sim that I want to use on my phone does not have its own firmware? For example, I am from Cuba, and there is no firmware of the local operator, could another unbranded firmware be installed or something like that?

 

[Luis931019]

Tengo un s22+ de uscellular, voy a probar este método a ver cómo me va. Gracias por compartir.
I have a uscellular s22+, I'm going to try this method to see how it goes. Thanks for sharing

 

[Luis931019]

Uh, NO.

In the OP, you claim that your process SIM unlocks the device, which isn't true.

These instructions are for changing the CSC, not for SIM unlocking (edit: and per previous post, even that doesn't appear to actually work)

I tried this on a locked Samsung Galaxy a22+ from us cell phone and after I put the firmware W. the cell phone asks me for an unlock code before it didn't ask for a code..

 

[iBowToAndroid]

I tried this on a locked Samsung Galaxy a22+ from us cell phone and after I put the firmware W. the cell phone asks me for an unlock code before it didn't ask for a code..

Correct, just as it will also ask for a code if you flash S906U1 firmware.

Flashing firmware will NEVER automatically do a SIM unlock. It has already proven to be false, by many other users in this thread

 

[Luis931019]

Correct, just as it will also ask for a code if you flash S906U1 firmware.

Flashing firmware will NEVER automatically do a SIM unlock. It has already proven to be false, by many other users in this thread

thank you very much, versions A13,A12,A21 etc. that is the method and they work with 16 zeros. I also put some codes on the call screen and it asks me for this code, do you know what it is?

 

[iBowToAndroid]

thank you very much, versions A13,A12,A21 etc. that is the method and they work with 16 zeros. I also put some codes on the call screen and it asks me for this code, do you know what it is?

No, no code exists

 

[RealtorRod]

I can literally find zero related to SM-G998W. Does this work for that device or did I buy some effed up and hard locked device? Evertying I see is for 998U.

 

[iBowToAndroid]

I can literally find zero related to SM-G998W. Does this work for that device or did I buy some effed up and hard locked device? Evertying I see is for 998U.

The process mentioned in the OP doesn't work at all, for any model

 

[banjicom]

I just wanted my time downloading firmwares and flashing my phone.

Maybe this is a dead end for me!

 

[iBowToAndroid]

I just wanted my time downloading firmwares and flashing my phone.

Maybe this is a dead end for me!

A mod really needs to close this thread, to avoid more people from wasting time and effort

 

[Deleted member 11708371]

yeah i agree...close this thread....lol, most of it was copied and pasted anyways ...smh

 

[Mathias1378]

I have a Samsung galaxy S21 Ultra 5g Verizon phone and I need someone to give me a step by step instruction on how to get this unlocked from Verizon (as in what software I need on my PC na where and what versions of SW I need to get this unlocked). I have called Verizon 11 times and they say it is unlocked but it is not. Please, any help would be very appreciated.