Story of a Forgotten password and a flashed Nokia E51. Need help!

speedzak · 10th March 2009, 20:08

Huh! In what world am I stuck in? Whatever one may call it, it's not a good condition to be in.

I fire up my laptop. Pops in the card into it. Hmmm.. Hmmm.. Format memory?
My god! NEVER!!
No matter how many times I tried, there was nothing else on screen.
Next in line is the eeePc! It runs Linux Ubuntu. No response! It doesn't recognise the card it seems.

Then comes a revelation!
"Bozo! You're in NIGERIA!!"
If this country can fake up credit cards, bank accounts, vehicles, oil and what not, hacking into an SD card password should be child's play here. With some regained energy, I jump out of my bed. Call some friends and spots out a phone repairing guy who has done something similar. Within some time, I'm there in front of him.
He plugs in the card to his pc. Format warning pops up. With that in the background, he tries to run some programs to access the card. But it doesn't work. He returns it saying he has to wait for his chief who is the real expert and he'll be back only by tomorrow. I'll be in another part of the world by then. :(

And I am.
Now sitting in front me this beautiful park in Casablanca, waiting for a friend. Continuously typing in all possible combos I may have used as a password. Some friends have helped with forwarding their phone numbers via email. But I see very hard times ahead.
Yes, world is round and very tight and clueless!
I sincerely pray that nobody ends up in this condition. That too when stuck in a planet far away from home.

Guys!
So here I am. Any way to access my sd card? Some tip, some trial, some hack, some thingy?
I will breath deep and wait...

... ... ...

@links posted here.
I've completely used up my free time to write the above 3 posts. Will check up the links posted and revert soon. Thanks.

ECM · 10th March 2009, 20:13

This happened with me in past and perhaps I used 00000 or 11111 or 12345 as my vocabulary at that time,sorry I forgot which exactly I used that time,This happens after flash and it locks mmc in some phones.

Quote:

I put in some of the best vocabulary I've ever learnt in my life

Edit:-If you are still in soup,try badcopy pro software while attaching your mmc with your p.c.Good luck in advance!

deepug · 10th March 2009, 21:08

Zak

Check this out. Not sure whether it will work though.
Download SanDisk sD Memory Card Data Recovery, SanDisk sD Memory Card Data Recovery 3.0.1.5 Download

Best regards
Deepu

deepug · 10th March 2009, 21:38

Zak

You might have already tried this. Search for "mmc unlocker" in google. Some of the links that are returned looks promising .

Unlock MMC Password - eSnips, share anything

Best regards
Deepu

BaCkSeAtDrIVeR · 10th March 2009, 21:39

This is a wild, wild, guess.

Is there a possibility that the phone stores the password on it, while encrypting the data on the card using the password? Now that the password on the phone is gone (when you flashed it), the phone cannot compare the two passwords.

If the above is true, try this method - get another SD card. "encrypt" (or whatever) it using the same password you used for the valuable card. This should create the password file on the phone. Now take out the new card, and put back the valuable card in.

Nokia Support Discussions - PC cannot read my E51 2Gb Sandisk microSD memory card?? - Eseries Devices and Communicators - Nokia Support Discussions

saurabh159 · 10th March 2009, 23:33

Hi,
Do you remember of copying the encrypted files to your PC when your phone was up ?
If yes, you have a chance to recover, even if your PC is not working, you can recover that data from hard disk, it would be easy to recover from hard disk rather than from SD card.
Read last 2 FAQ, though written for Windows Mobile, but I think encryption logic will prevail for any device.

Read here

speedzak · 11th March 2009, 00:32

Hmmm.. ...
Thanks for the replies. It's nice to know that some friends are now on job to help me. Believe me! It's a big assistance I've got by reading your posts.

Some things have left space for confusion in this thread it seems.

My phone was backed up to my PC about 5 months ago. After that I haven't got a chance to go home yet. Was travelling in the most unimaginable corners of the world. What matters most to me now is the data I have accumulated in the last 4 months. And there is a good share of it in my phone's (Nokia E51) micro SD card.

That card is locked with a password which I cannot recollect.

The password lock is not exclusive to this phone, but the card.

Most of the unlocking solutions I have found online till now also destroys the data in it. ie.. It is just like formatting it. I cannot opt for it.

If I had remembered the password, I wouldn't have ended up here. So, the 2nd card trick explained by backseatdriver may not help, I assume.

The solutions provided in Deepug's first post and ECM's post sounds to be promising as I just read about those programs online. I will sit with those programs when I get time tomorrow. Right now, the laptop isn't connecting to the wifi in my hotel.

Once again, thanks for all those great replies. You guys do live up the spirit of our forum!

Thad E Ginathom · 11th March 2009, 01:29

I just found this thread after Sam's German prison escapade.

Speedzak, your tale is just as gripping, especially for being live and happening right now. I have no help to offer, only a thanks for reminding me to do a backup of my phone contents and copy the file to the pc!

Errr...

I lost a HDD last week. Some of it was backed up. It came back to life long enough for to copy the rest off!

Hoping you find a solution, and looking forward to hearing it.

speedzak · 11th March 2009, 04:43

I went thru some of the links posted here and did download few hacks and tools which may help me out from this scary dilemma.
While I was busy with it, I found out some issues!

MMCunlockers found on many sites work only on old Symbian 60 Nokia phones (1st and 2nd edition).
I tried some chinese phones in which the latest authorised security measures are normally chewed down and spat out easily. To my great disappointment, those couldn't even show up/recognise the card.
Proves that there's nothing much we can do on the phone. It's the card which has to be cracked into.

One fellow was eager to help me today after evesdropping in to our conversation at dinner. He said he can access anything from any memory card.
My heart almost slips down the cliff. I'm overwhelmed with joy. I almost kissed him. But he is a moroccan! 2nd thoughts and I decide to see what he does.
He popped out my card (hey, not cherry! LoL!) and pushed it into his device. I mean, phone. It asked for the password. "What's your password?" he asks. "I don't know" I reply without a blink! "Oh man! How will it work without the password?" he says and hurriedly removes the card from his phone and hands it over to me.
Lol lol lol!!
Me and my friend laugh and laugh and laugh all the way home.

For me, the world is still spinning.. I'm left in middle of the merry go round!

srijit · 11th March 2009, 11:05

Zak, got this info from somewhere.

Quote:

N9210i disregard the secure feature of an MMC so with or without password, it will be able to format the MMC without any hassle. you can also try using palm devices, PDA's, and digital cameras to format password-protected MMC's.

Obviously they are talking about format, but give it a try.

Again some links for your reading pleasure

Nokia Support Discussions - e51 memory card locked after 220.34.37 firmware update - Software Updates - Nokia Support Discussions
Nokia Support Discussions - Re: MMC Password Problem for E71 and Possible Solution - Hardware, Codes, and Operator Issues - Nokia Support Discussions

iceman91 · 11th March 2009, 11:13

Join the club Zak, on 28-02-09 I lost my E71 to some disease, the thing went off and dint switch on at all. Phone sent ot nokia factory as the service center cannot repair it.
All data lost too!! even memory card data!!

There is a friend of mine who can do this let me give him a call no promises.

abhinav.gupta88 · 11th March 2009, 11:22

Thats really sad zak. Hope it gets sorted out. Will try to search for something related to it.
All the best

srijit · 11th March 2009, 13:50

Zak, as a temporary measure, why dont you get a duplicate card and use that for now. Come back to India and we can see if the card data can be recovered

hydrashok · 11th March 2009, 15:10

Did you try the card with the card-reader on your lappie? What did the comp say? If it is asking for the password again, maybe we should try looking for utils that will recover the password or break into the card without the password, though your computer.

Quote:

Originally Posted by srijit

Zak, as a temporary measure, why dont you get a duplicate card and use that for now. Come back to India and we can see if the card data can be recovered

For the time being, I think this is the best option. This will keep the data in the locked card safe, until you can have it looked at.

speedzak · 11th March 2009, 16:00

Yes guys!
I'm using the stock 512mb card which came with the phone.

The computer prompts to format the card and nothing else!

Iceman,
Man! This is something surely irritating. Ain't it?
I think it's time Nokia and sd card makers think about backing up the encryption key/prevent a forgotten password like in Windows. I've submitted this suggestion in Nokia developers' forum.

Funny, they don't have a solution yet for such a common problem. :(

10th March 2009, 20:08	#16
speedzak BANNED Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: India Posts: 4,346 Thanked: 29 Times	A revelation, then agony! Continued.... Huh! In what world am I stuck in? Whatever one may call it, it's not a good condition to be in. I fire up my laptop. Pops in the card into it. Hmmm.. Hmmm.. Format memory? My god! NEVER!! No matter how many times I tried, there was nothing else on screen. Next in line is the eeePc! It runs Linux Ubuntu. No response! It doesn't recognise the card it seems. Then comes a revelation! "Bozo! You're in NIGERIA!!" If this country can fake up credit cards, bank accounts, vehicles, oil and what not, hacking into an SD card password should be child's play here. With some regained energy, I jump out of my bed. Call some friends and spots out a phone repairing guy who has done something similar. Within some time, I'm there in front of him. He plugs in the card to his pc. Format warning pops up. With that in the background, he tries to run some programs to access the card. But it doesn't work. He returns it saying he has to wait for his chief who is the real expert and he'll be back only by tomorrow. I'll be in another part of the world by then. :( And I am. Now sitting in front me this beautiful park in Casablanca, waiting for a friend. Continuously typing in all possible combos I may have used as a password. Some friends have helped with forwarding their phone numbers via email. But I see very hard times ahead. Yes, world is round and very tight and clueless! I sincerely pray that nobody ends up in this condition. That too when stuck in a planet far away from home. Guys! So here I am. Any way to access my sd card? Some tip, some trial, some hack, some thingy? I will breath deep and wait... ... ... ... @links posted here. I've completely used up my free time to write the above 3 posts. Will check up the links posted and revert soon. Thanks.
	() Thanks

10th March 2009, 21:08	#18
deepug BHPian Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Bangalore Posts: 91 Thanked: 27 Times	Try This Zak Check this out. Not sure whether it will work though. Download SanDisk sD Memory Card Data Recovery, SanDisk sD Memory Card Data Recovery 3.0.1.5 Download Best regards Deepu
	() Thanks

10th March 2009, 21:38	#19
deepug BHPian Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Bangalore Posts: 91 Thanked: 27 Times	Zak You might have already tried this. Search for "mmc unlocker" in google. Some of the links that are returned looks promising . Unlock MMC Password - eSnips, share anything Best regards Deepu
	() Thanks

10th March 2009, 21:39	#20
BaCkSeAtDrIVeR Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Kochi Posts: 2,540 Thanked: 758 Times	This is a wild, wild, guess. Is there a possibility that the phone stores the password on it, while encrypting the data on the card using the password? Now that the password on the phone is gone (when you flashed it), the phone cannot compare the two passwords. If the above is true, try this method - get another SD card. "encrypt" (or whatever) it using the same password you used for the valuable card. This should create the password file on the phone. Now take out the new card, and put back the valuable card in. Nokia Support Discussions - PC cannot read my E51 2Gb Sandisk microSD memory card?? - Eseries Devices and Communicators - Nokia Support Discussions
	() Thanks

10th March 2009, 23:33	#21
saurabh159 BHPian Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Mumbai Posts: 106 Thanked: 26 Times	Hi, Do you remember of copying the encrypted files to your PC when your phone was up ? If yes, you have a chance to recover, even if your PC is not working, you can recover that data from hard disk, it would be easy to recover from hard disk rather than from SD card. Read last 2 FAQ, though written for Windows Mobile, but I think encryption logic will prevail for any device. Read here
	() Thanks

11th March 2009, 00:32	#22
speedzak BANNED Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: India Posts: 4,346 Thanked: 29 Times	Hmmm.. ... Thanks for the replies. It's nice to know that some friends are now on job to help me. Believe me! It's a big assistance I've got by reading your posts. Some things have left space for confusion in this thread it seems. My phone was backed up to my PC about 5 months ago. After that I haven't got a chance to go home yet. Was travelling in the most unimaginable corners of the world. What matters most to me now is the data I have accumulated in the last 4 months. And there is a good share of it in my phone's (Nokia E51) micro SD card. That card is locked with a password which I cannot recollect. The password lock is not exclusive to this phone, but the card. Most of the unlocking solutions I have found online till now also destroys the data in it. ie.. It is just like formatting it. I cannot opt for it. If I had remembered the password, I wouldn't have ended up here. So, the 2nd card trick explained by backseatdriver may not help, I assume. The solutions provided in Deepug's first post and ECM's post sounds to be promising as I just read about those programs online. I will sit with those programs when I get time tomorrow. Right now, the laptop isn't connecting to the wifi in my hotel. Once again, thanks for all those great replies. You guys do live up the spirit of our forum!
	() Thanks

11th March 2009, 01:29	#23
Thad E Ginathom Distinguished - BHPian Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Chennai Posts: 11,469 Thanked: 30,152 Times	I just found this thread after Sam's German prison escapade. Speedzak, your tale is just as gripping, especially for being live and happening right now. I have no help to offer, only a thanks for reminding me to do a backup of my phone contents and copy the file to the pc! Errr... I lost a HDD last week. Some of it was backed up. It came back to life long enough for to copy the rest off! Hoping you find a solution, and looking forward to hearing it.
	() Thanks

11th March 2009, 04:43	#24
speedzak BANNED Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: India Posts: 4,346 Thanked: 29 Times	I went thru some of the links posted here and did download few hacks and tools which may help me out from this scary dilemma. While I was busy with it, I found out some issues! MMCunlockers found on many sites work only on old Symbian 60 Nokia phones (1st and 2nd edition). I tried some chinese phones in which the latest authorised security measures are normally chewed down and spat out easily. To my great disappointment, those couldn't even show up/recognise the card. Proves that there's nothing much we can do on the phone. It's the card which has to be cracked into. One fellow was eager to help me today after evesdropping in to our conversation at dinner. He said he can access anything from any memory card. My heart almost slips down the cliff. I'm overwhelmed with joy. I almost kissed him. But he is a moroccan! 2nd thoughts and I decide to see what he does. He popped out my card (hey, not cherry! LoL!) and pushed it into his device. I mean, phone. It asked for the password. "What's your password?" he asks. "I don't know" I reply without a blink! "Oh man! How will it work without the password?" he says and hurriedly removes the card from his phone and hands it over to me. Lol lol lol!! Me and my friend laugh and laugh and laugh all the way home. For me, the world is still spinning.. I'm left in middle of the merry go round!
	() Thanks

11th March 2009, 11:13	#26
iceman91 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: melbourne/banga Posts: 1,961 Thanked: 36 Times View My Garage	Join the club Zak, on 28-02-09 I lost my E71 to some disease, the thing went off and dint switch on at all. Phone sent ot nokia factory as the service center cannot repair it. All data lost too!! even memory card data!! There is a friend of mine who can do this let me give him a call no promises.
	() Thanks

11th March 2009, 11:22	#27
abhinav.gupta88 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Delhi , India Posts: 4,090 Thanked: 341 Times View My Garage	Thats really sad zak. Hope it gets sorted out. Will try to search for something related to it. All the best
	() Thanks

11th March 2009, 13:50	#28
srijit BHPian Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Trivandrum Posts: 598 Thanked: 8 Times	Zak, as a temporary measure, why dont you get a duplicate card and use that for now. Come back to India and we can see if the card data can be recovered
	() Thanks

11th March 2009, 16:00	#30
speedzak BANNED Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: India Posts: 4,346 Thanked: 29 Times	Yes guys! I'm using the stock 512mb card which came with the phone. The computer prompts to format the card and nothing else! Iceman, Man! This is something surely irritating. Ain't it? I think it's time Nokia and sd card makers think about backing up the encryption key/prevent a forgotten password like in Windows. I've submitted this suggestion in Nokia developers' forum. Funny, they don't have a solution yet for such a common problem. :(
	() Thanks