How to Unlock/Flash Permanently Locked Datacard/Huawei USB Modems Using Customized Mobile Dashboard and Firmware

How to Unlock/Flash Permanently Locked Datacard/Huawei USB Modems

A guy I personally know got a USB modem from the UK and the modem was locked to 3, a UK mobile network. On getting to Nigeria here, he found out the modem wouldn’t work with SIM card. The modem prompted for an unlock code and this dude kept guessing till he entered it incorrectly ten times. He rendered the modem useless and even DC unlocker couldn’t unlock it. I tried all I could but it didn’t work. I decided to try flashing the modem and re-installed the firmware but still, the unlock counter still read 10. Before the modem finally became useable again, I did three things to flash it:
1. Reset the unlock counter
2. Upgrade the firmware
3. Install a different dashboard

1. How to Reset the Unlock Counter

Must Read: How to Unlock Huawei E303 USB Modem
Like I said earlier, upgrading the firmware did not reset the unlock counter which read 10 out of 10. I had to reset the counter with a software first. If you haven’t entered your unlock code 10 times like the guy in question did, you should skip this step. Of course, you can still do it if you want to unlock your modem and anyway.
- Download this software
- Extract the content and run the .exe file inside
- Click on Refresh. Your modem should be automatically detected so far you checked AUTO CONNECTION under connection mode
- Be sure Auto-Calc Code and Auto-Unlock Modem are both marked
- Click READ MDM DATA

- Now click UNLOCK. This should both unlock your modem and reset the counter at the same time
- Lastly, click on Calculate to generate the flash code. You’re gonna be needing it later.

2. Upgrade your Modem Firmware

- First, you must download the right firmware for your modem. You can download it from their official website but I prefer and recommend dc-files.com
- Select Huawei or what model your modem is and click the tiny modem icon

- On the next page, select your model and click the same modem icon again.

- Now, download Firmware Update and Dashboard Update

Now to upgrade the firmware, unzip the firmware update you downloaded and double-click the .exe file.
- Accept the agreement and proceed.

- The program searches for your modem for some seconds

- On the next page, simply hit the Next button

- When the flashing starts, be sure you follow the instruction on-screen. Do not remove your modem and be sure you have enough poer on your laptop or UPS to last for about 30 minutes.

- When you hit the start button, you may be prompted to enter your Flash code. This only happens when the new firmware version is different from the existing one on the device. Remember the Flash code you generated earlier? Enter it here.

- The process starts and normally, this should take less than 10 minutes.

- At this point, you don’t have to do anything. Just wait till you see a message that looks like this:

#3. Download and Upgrade and the modem model Firmware by Flashing

Even after following the above steps, your modem will be showing 10 of 10 used, invalid sim or network selected or something similar to this statement.

You're going to need to down the specific firmware update for your modem or datacard model. This you can easily get and download free from DC Files

When you get to the webpage, select your modem make (hauwei) from the drop down menu and click the icon. The next and third page will be where you will be able to select the model of your datacard and the most recent firmware update respectively

After a successful download of the file which is about 7.41MB, this software size varies, depending on your modem make and model, unzip and install

This your modem firmware update wizard will search for your device for some seconds, and its shows another page displaying the configuration and IMEI number of the modem

The next steps flash your modem and you will see a message "The wizard is ready to update your Data Card" on your comuter screen from the page environment displaying four warnings

Click start to authorize this process and you will be prompted to enter the modem unlock code you got from step 1

After like 3-5 minutes, your modem should have been flashed and a new copy of the firmware installed

Once the process completes, you will see a successful update message as you can see from the image below

Congratulations! You just upgraded you modem firmware successfully!

#4. Download and install a new Customized Dashboard

Even with an upgraded firmware, I was still seeing that same dashboard that came from 3 network. The dashboard wouldn’t let any me use any other SIM though the modem is already unlocked. I had to install a different dashboard to make me use our network provider settings here in Nigeria.
It’s here you’ll be needing the Dashboard Update file you downloaded.
- Unzip the file and run the executable file
- Accept the agreement and continue
- Again, the software should search for your device
-Hit the Next button as before and the procedure is very much similar to the firmware upgrade you did earlier.
Easy, isn’t it? It’s more like installing a software on your computer. Also, this should take less than five minutes to complete and after that, you should have a different modem software that’s not branded with your home network logo and customizations. Now you’ve successfully flashed your modem. I used this method to flash a “permanently locked” modem with 10 wrong unlock attempts and it worked fine.

 This process also take between 3-5 minutes to complete

Effecting the Full changes on Your PC - Shutdown & Reboot your PC

After a successful re-installing and updating of a fresh version of the dashboard on your PC, you can now go ahead  to shut down and  re-boot your PC. Please  I mean switching off not hibernating or logging  off. This is so to effect the newly installed software changes on your PC.

You might also be asked to enter an unlocking code again, at this time your modem counter had been reset to zero (0) of ten (10). You re-use the manual or automatic approach in step one above.

Installing the Newly Download Customized Dashbaord

Please note that you will need to manually install the dashboard partner on your PC even though it had been downloaded into your datacard drive. Also know that you can decide to change between any of the dashboard of your choice either the non-customized or the customized one. Just follow these simple steps below

Click "Start Menu"

Click "Computer"

And double click your modem device drive e.g Drive (F:) and install, after successful installation, you may need to follow these steps to configure it for your preferably chosen network.

You can see from the image below i am now using a different dashboard, different from the one above that I have just fixed.

Benefits/Importance/Advantages of Flashing and Installing a Different Firmware and Dashboard Updates

* Speed

As you could see from the image above in my newly fixed hauwei E156G data, in front of the 3G 62120 there is the word "turbo", this is not just having literary meaning, it simply means speed at which the modem alongside with its firmware and dashboard are working. Before I did this, MTN and AIRTEL was so poor in my location, but after this, they are now rocking with amazing speed

* Stable Connectivity

I was equally experiencing fluctuating server downtime, but after this fixing, update and upgrade, it has been minimized

* Better/Different User Interface

I think, this new Graphic User Interface I am rocking is better than the one I have be on, its simple and intuitive

Recommended Practices While Resetting, Flashing and Installing Firmware and Dashboard Updates

* Ensure it's another network operator simcard that is inserted in your modem tray

* Ensure your PC battery power is sufficient or plugged to a stable power source

* To attain an error-free results, don't shutdown, hibernate or log off your PC while these installations processes are being carried else your Pc could get damaged