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Fix UDP broadcasts on HTC phones running stock firmware

Unfortunately, HTC seems to have broken the /system/bin/wpa_supplicant binary in their stock 2.1 and 2.2 firmware.

Phones running this firmware will not be able to receive UDP broadcasts (sending works fine).

The issue is described on http://code.google.com/p/android/issues/detail?id=8407

That makes apps that rely on UDP broadcasts, like SqueezeConfig, not working.

Fortunately, if you have root access to your phone, there is a solution!

As jimmychingala mentioned in the issue above, you only need to replace the wpa_supplicant binary with a working version.

I’ve now created a small app that will accomplish this task.

I’ve tested it with my HTC Hero running stock 2.1-update1 firmware and it’s working fine.

If you have another HTC phone running 2.1/2.2 and encounter the UDP issue, feel free to also try the app.
Please add a comment and tell me if it works for you.

The app will create a backup of wpa_supplicant on your sdcard first (/sdcard/wpa_supplicant.bak).
If anything goes wrong, you should be able to revert to your original version.

Anyway, a nandroid backup of your phone before using this app is strongly recommended.

You can download it from the Android Market (direct Market link or use the QR code) or from my server:
HtcUdpBroadcastFix.apk

You can also download the source code if you like:
HtcUdpBroadcastFix.src.tgz

After patching the wpa_supplicant binary, you can safely remove the app to save some space.

The app is licensed GPL:

(c) Christian Erpelding aka flattermann, http://www.flattermann.net

This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
(at your option) any later version.

This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
GNU General Public License for more details.

http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl.html

If you like my work, buy me a beer. (Suggested: 3€ for a beer, or more for more beer ;-) )

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, September 28th, 2010 at 14:47 and is filed under Android, SqueezeCommander. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

15 Responses to “Fix UDP broadcasts on HTC phones running stock firmware”

  1. Roger says:
    27. October 2010 at 18:09

    I tried the update on an ARIA which has a Broadcast problem, when i do the patch, i get “Unable to create backup” Firmware 2.1-update from the HTC Web Site.

  2. flattermann says:
    29. October 2010 at 23:33

    Hi Roger,

    You have a SD card in your phone, haven’t you?

    Is there anything useful in the logfile?
    You can send it to me for further evalutation if you like.
    See also
    http://www.squeezecommander.com/trac/wiki/Logfile

    Christian

  3. Vinicius says:
    3. November 2010 at 01:02

    Hi, I have same problem as Roger.

  4. joshua says:
    23. November 2010 at 04:17

    I got the same problem. HTC aria with updates to current.

  5. Magnus says:
    8. December 2010 at 20:07

    +1

  6. Ken says:
    26. December 2010 at 09:29

    The app doesn’t actually ask for root, and thus does nothing. HTC Incredible SkyRaider 3.5.

  7. Josh says:
    6. February 2011 at 04:09

    Same issue as Ken. app does not ask for root, no backup is made and refuses to patch.

    Droid Incredible Skyraider 3.5

  8. flattermann says:
    7. February 2011 at 18:24

    Josh,

    please drop me a line and I’ll send you a special debug build with improved logging.

    Thanks,
    Christian

  9. Josh says:
    9. February 2011 at 04:34

    Christian, Email sent.

  10. Josh says:
    10. February 2011 at 05:31

    Christian? Got anything for me? ;)

  11. Sonia says:
    11. February 2011 at 13:13

    Same problem as Josh. Is there any fix available?

  12. Jay says:
    31. March 2011 at 20:53

    Same problem as Josh and Sonia, on my Droid Eris. It’s rooted, but app doesn’t ask for superuser access and it just says “Unable to create backup”.

  13. Radovan says:
    7. April 2011 at 17:34

    Same problem as Josh, Sonia and Jay, HTC Hero 2.1 rooted, the app doesnt ask for superuser access and cant create backup

  14. flattermann says:
    7. April 2011 at 17:49

    Radovan,

    Please try the updated version (1.1) from the Market.

    Christian

  15. Radovan says:
    7. April 2011 at 17:58

    Great, works like a charm, thank you so much :)

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