Globe Tattoo on Slackware Linux

Recently, I got a Globe Tatto Prepaid kit. It immediately connects to the internet on my Windows XP box. However, I need to connect via Slackware Linux since most of my files are in Linux. After several searching and trial and error, I have successfully connected to the internet using Slackware Linux 13.

UPDATE: As of Slackware 13.1 onwards, specifically the current branch, it does not connect to the internet and needs additional steps. I have added that extra steps below.

Overview

My Linux is Slackware Linux 13.0 upgraded to slackware-current branch as of Jan 31, 2010. I need to connect to the internet via Linux since most of my project files are optimized for Linux and of course I’m a Linux user. Thanks to the very helpful people of the Slackware forum, I have come up with simple solution and here it goes.

My Globe Tattoo Thread: Slackware 13 -Current Huawei E1552 HSDPA USB Wireless Broadband.

Installation

Using the guides I’ve found on LinuxQuestions.org and from my own post, I have come up with the following solutions.

Get wvstreams and wvdial from SlackBuilds.org and install them (only if you are using Slackware 13, not the slackware-current branch). I am using slackware-current branch so I used the source code from the developer site instead of using the SlackBuild. I install from source.

I used the following:

Wvstreams: wvstreams-4.6.1.tar.gz
Wvdial: wvdial-1.61.tar.gz

First, we need to install wvstreams. Extract the source and execute the following commands inside the directory (as root).

./configure
make
make install

wvstream libraries are required by wvdial. Now let’s install wvdial. Extract the source codes and execute the same commands inside the directory (as root once again).

./configure
make
make install

Now let’s create a configurations file and save it to /etc/wvdial.conf. I used the sample config shared to me by the friendly fellow in the forum. Here is it, original source is at: Pastebin.

[Dialer Defaults] 
Phone = *99***1# 
Username = globe 
Password = globe 
Stupid Mode = 1 
Dial Command = ATDT 
Carrier Check = Yes 
 
[Dialer hsdpa] 
Modem = /dev/ttyUSB0 
Baud = 460800 
Init2 = ATZ 
Init3 = ATQ0 V1 E1 S0=0 &C1 &D2 +FCLASS=0 
#Init4 = AT+CGDCONT=1,"IP","tre.it" 
Init4 = AT+CGDCONT=1,"IP","http.globe.com.ph" 
ISDN = 0 
Modem Type = Analog Modem 

Please note that my modem is at /dev/ttyUSB2, your’s maybe different depending on where you plug the device. Just use trial and error anyway. Now that we have configured our dialer, we are ready to connect.

Globe Tattoo Not Detected as Modem

However, our Globe Tattoo USB stick is not detected as modem in Linux. It is detected as CD-ROM Storage device instead. To switch it into modem mode, simple follow these steps:

1. Remove / unplug the modem
2. As root, issue the command: modprobe option
3. Plug in the USB modem
4. Wait for a few seconds (initiating device)
5. If you want to know if the modem is detected, issue: lsusb and if you see a modem on the output, then it is ready, if not wait for more seconds
6. If it is ready, let’s dial
7. Issue the command: wvdial
8. It will display a lot of stuff, but take a look on IP addresses it displays. If it stops from dumping text to the screen, then you are now connected
9. Just minimize the terminal window and start browsing the net
10. To disconnect, show the terminal screen and press CTRL + C to gracefully disconnect from your provider
11. Close the terminal window

That’s it, hope you enjoy Globe Tattoo on Slackware Linux 13.0 and onwards. By the way, you should not expect a fast connection. It’s damn slow but usable of course.

UPDATE: As of Slackware 13.1 + current, the above steps does not connect to the internet as expected on my old post. So here are the additional steps required.

PPP Setup

I forgot to mention that I have configured pppd before doing the steps above. Therefore, we also need to configure ppp first. To configure it, run pppsetup as root and follow the instructions provided.

• When asked for the modem, just select default selected option
• When asked for the number to dial, enter *99***1#
• When asked for the init string, enter ATZ followed by the number to dial. This is a bit complicated but and I’m not really sure what I entered next to ATZ but you can study the examples provided by the wizard. Just a trial and error setup
• Try dialing via wvdial and check if it dials through the correct modem you set in /etc/wvdial.conf. If it is not the one you set, take a look at the ppp configuration files and set the modem to use.

Having the ppp, wvdial and model properly configured, run wvdial as root. Wait for few seconds until it displays the dynamically set local and remote ip address and the DNS servers. When it displays the DNS servers, you are now connected and your 5 pesos per 15 minutes now started.

Before you get mad that you are still not connected, execute this final step. Set your default gateway by executing the command below as root:

route add default gw xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx

Where xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx is the local ip address assigned to you by Globe Tattoo. You can see the ip address on the wvdial output dump.

Enjoy surfing!