Network Manager no longer supports mobile broadband connections

$ ls -l /dev/ttyACM0
crw-rw---- 1 root dialout 166, 0 2011-01-19 17:52 /dev/ttyACM0

# lsusb -t
...
    |__ Port 3: Dev 5, If 0, Class=comm., Driver=cdc_acm, 480M
    |__ Port 3: Dev 5, If 1, Class=data, Driver=cdc_acm, 480M
...

And from syslog:

Jan 19 17:52:33 localhost kernel: [ 852.680190] usb 1-3: new high speed USB device using ehci_hcd and address 4
Jan 19 17:52:33 localhost udevd-work[4695]: error opening ATTR{/sys/devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1a.7/usb1/1-3/idProduct} for writing: Permission denied
Jan 19 17:52:33 localhost kernel: [ 853.191275] usb 1-3: usbfs: process 4698 (usb_modeswitch) did not claim interface 0 before use
Jan 19 17:52:33 localhost kernel: [ 853.194161] usb 1-3: USB disconnect, address 4
Jan 19 17:52:35 localhost kernel: [ 854.580170] usb 1-3: new high speed USB device using ehci_hcd and address 5
Jan 19 17:52:35 localhost kernel: [ 855.243560] usb 1-3: selecting invalid altsetting 1
Jan 19 17:52:35 localhost kernel: [ 855.243580] usbcore: registered new interface driver uas
Jan 19 17:52:35 localhost udevd-work[4695]: error opening ATTR{/sys/devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1a.7/usb1/1-3/idProduct} for writing: Permission denied
Jan 19 17:52:35 localhost udevd-work[4700]: error opening ATTR{/sys/devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1a.7/usb1/1-3/idProduct} for writing: Permission denied
Jan 19 17:52:35 localhost kernel: [ 855.252717] Initializing USB Mass Storage driver...
Jan 19 17:52:35 localhost kernel: [ 855.252860] scsi5 : usb-storage 1-3:1.5
Jan 19 17:52:35 localhost kernel: [ 855.253599] usbcore: registered new interface driver usb-storage
Jan 19 17:52:35 localhost kernel: [ 855.253602] USB Mass Storage support registered.
Jan 19 17:52:35 localhost kernel: [ 855.279948] cdc_acm 1-3:1.0: ttyACM0: USB ACM device
Jan 19 17:52:35 localhost kernel: [ 855.292394] usbcore: registered new interface driver cdc_acm
Jan 19 17:52:35 localhost kernel: [ 855.292396] cdc_acm: v0.26:USB Abstract Control Model driver for USB modems and ISDN adapters
Jan 19 17:52:35 localhost modem-manager: (ttyACM0) opening serial port...
Jan 19 17:52:35 localhost modem-manager: (ttyACM0): probe requested by plugin 'Generic'
Jan 19 17:52:36 localhost kernel: [ 856.254450] scsi 5:0:0:0: CD-ROM UMW190 CD-ROM 2.31 PQ: 0 ANSI: 2
Jan 19 17:52:36 localhost kernel: [ 856.259527] sr1: scsi3-mmc drive: 24x/24x xa/form2 caddy
Jan 19 17:52:36 localhost kernel: [ 856.260493] sr 5:0:0:0: Attached scsi CD-ROM sr1
Jan 19 17:52:36 localhost kernel: [ 856.262242] sr 5:0:0:0: Attached scsi generic sg2 type 5
Jan 19 17:52:37 localhost modem-manager: (ttyACM0) closing serial port...
Jan 19 17:52:37 localhost modem-manager: (ttyACM0) opening serial port...
Jan 19 17:52:37 localhost modem-manager: (Generic): CDMA modem /sys/devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1a.7/usb1/1-3 claimed port ttyACM0
Jan 19 17:52:37 localhost modem-manager: Added modem /sys/devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1a.7/usb1/1-3
Jan 19 17:52:37 localhost modem-manager: (tty/ttyACM0): outstanding support task prevents export of /sys/devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1a.7/usb1/1-3
Jan 19 17:52:38 localhost modem-manager: (ttyACM0) closing serial port...
Jan 19 17:52:38 localhost modem-manager:...

The menu has:

Mobile Broadband
Y.iiI Not Enabled

Heh, that's probably a side effect of merging the enable/disable wifi and 3g stuff. Could you paste in what is the content of /var/lib/NetworkManager/NetworkManager.state on your system?

I tend to concur, although I personally take a very dim view of that change, which I consider to be the wrong direction. I have more than once enjoyed the fact that those settings were separate, and see no reason for this new "Flight Mode" other than as a "me, too" type of change (and only partially successful because, other than being broken, a real Flight Mode would also disable Bluetooth). If anything, I'd have *added* the new feature as "Enable|Disable All Radios" without removing the existing separate toggles. In my view, the change should be reverted, as it is not an improvement to the code.

The contents of that file are:

[main]
NetworkingEnabled=true
WirelessEnabled=true
WWANEnabled=true

which is the same as on my working 10.10 version (and the same as they were before the recent breakage).

So if WWAN is enabled on your system, what about the killswitch?

Jan 19 17:52:38 localhost NetworkManager[838]: <info> WWAN now disabled by radio killswitch

Seems to tell us that it would be disabled, so you might want to try the usual hotkeys like Fn-F7 or whatever it is on your system, or directly on the modem.

As for the changes themselves, while we're still in alpha I'm still experimenting to find a good design that will look sane, so I might revise and rework this as time goes.

Sounds like you've found the bug, since there IS NO KILL SWITCH for the WWAN. :-) It is a USB plugged in modem. There is a kill switch for my WIFI and Bluetooth, and those are fully on and operational.

Glad to hear that you're still looking at alternatives to the current change.

Not quite found, because it doesn't mean that even if you downgrade nm-applet, you'd be able to use the modem. Could you try that? I haven't changed code paths that would have such an effect, unless the modem was already disabled with wifi enabled, but that would be in the state file.

Also, is there anything indicating an rfkill switch for the modem in "rfkill list" ?

And I repeat: "there IS NO KILL SWITCH for the WWAN"

$ rfkill list
0: hci0: Bluetooth
 Soft blocked: no
 Hard blocked: no
1: tpacpi_bluetooth_sw: Bluetooth
 Soft blocked: no
 Hard blocked: no
2: phy0: Wireless LAN
 Soft blocked: no
 Hard blocked: no

And, yes, that is after attaching the modem:

$ tail /var/log/syslog

Jan 21 08:13:22 localhost kernel: [33697.340151] usb 1-3: new high speed USB device using ehci_hcd and address 4
Jan 21 08:13:23 localhost udevd-work[7355]: error opening ATTR{/sys/devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1a.7/usb1/1-3/idProduct} for writing: Permission denied
Jan 21 08:13:23 localhost kernel: [33697.841611] usb 1-3: usbfs: process 8552 (usb_modeswitch) did not claim interface 0 before use
Jan 21 08:13:23 localhost kernel: [33697.844372] usb 1-3: USB disconnect, address 4
Jan 21 08:13:24 localhost kernel: [33699.230131] usb 1-3: new high speed USB device using ehci_hcd and address 5
Jan 21 08:13:25 localhost kernel: [33699.894916] usb 1-3: selecting invalid altsetting 1
Jan 21 08:13:25 localhost kernel: [33699.895010] usbcore: registered new interface driver uas
Jan 21 08:13:25 localhost udevd-work[7355]: error opening ATTR{/sys/devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1a.7/usb1/1-3/idProduct} for writing: Permission denied
Jan 21 08:13:25 localhost udevd-work[8554]: error opening ATTR{/sys/devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1a.7/usb1/1-3/idProduct} for writing: Permission denied
Jan 21 08:13:25 localhost kernel: [33699.914287] Initializing USB Mass Storage driver...
Jan 21 08:13:25 localhost kernel: [33699.914504] scsi5 : usb-storage 1-3:1.5
Jan 21 08:13:25 localhost kernel: [33699.914902] usbcore: registered new interface driver usb-storage
Jan 21 08:13:25 localhost kernel: [33699.914904] USB Mass Storage support registered.
Jan 21 08:13:25 localhost kernel: [33699.936327] cdc_acm 1-3:1.0: ttyACM0: USB ACM device
Jan 21 08:13:25 localhost kernel: [33699.939295] usbcore: registered new interface driver cdc_acm
Jan 21 08:13:25 localhost kernel: [33699.939297] cdc_acm: v0.26:USB Abstract Control Model driver for USB modems and ISDN adapters
Jan 21 08:13:25 localhost modem-manager: (ttyACM0) opening serial port...
Jan 21 08:13:25 localhost modem-manager: (ttyACM0): probe requested by plugin 'Generic'
Jan 21 08:13:26 localhost kernel: [33700.914785] scsi 5:0:0:0: CD-ROM UMW190 CD-ROM 2.31 PQ: 0 ANSI: 2
Jan 21 08:13:26 localhost kernel: [33700.920753] sr1: scsi3-mmc drive: 24x/24x xa/form2 caddy
Jan 21 08:13:26 localhost kernel: [33700.921127] sr 5:0:0:0: Attached scsi CD-ROM sr1
Jan 21 08:13:26 localhost kernel: [33700.922818] sr 5:0:0:0: Attached scsi generic sg2 type 5
Jan 21 08:13:27 localhost modem-manager: (ttyACM0) closing serial port...
Jan 21 08:13:27 localhost modem-manager: (ttyACM0) opening serial port...
Jan 21 08:13:27 localhost modem-manager: (Generic): CDMA modem /sys/devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1a.7/usb1/1-3 claimed port ttyACM0
Jan 21 08:13:27 localhost modem-manager: Added modem /sys/devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1a.7/usb1/1-3
Jan 21 08:13:27 localhost modem-manager: (tty/ttyACM0): outstanding support task prevents export of /sys/devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1a.7/usb1/1-3
Jan 21 08:13:27 localhost modem-manager: ...

Brian, just so I understand, why did you mark this bug as regression-release instead of regression-potential, when this effects only natty (so far)? Maverick works fine, unless someone makes the mistake of backporting the recent changes.

Noel,

With your 3G device already connected, please install and run the following test package I just built:
http://people.canonical.com/~mtrudel/network-manager-gnome_0.8.3+git.20110114t131931.fd589a7-0ubuntu4~~lp705196~1_amd64.deb

You should be able to just 'killall nm-applet; nm-applet' to restart the applet with the new version.

Then, open the menu and take a screenshot, to attach it here. Thanks.

Here you go. And, for what it is worth, enabling the menu item does nothing, other than turn on the checkmark. And after a little while, the checkmark is turned off automatically.

This bug was fixed in the package network-manager-applet - 0.8.3+git.20110114t131931.fd589a7-0ubuntu4

---------------
network-manager-applet (0.8.3+git.20110114t131931.fd589a7-0ubuntu4) natty; urgency=low

  * debian/patches/nm-applet-use-indicator.patch: Unbreak CDMA modems: the piece
    of code added to workaround mobile disable not working shows CDMA as always
    disabled. (LP: #705196)
 -- Mathieu Trudel-Lapierre <email address hidden> Thu, 27 Jan 2011 12:54:17 -0500

Noel, there was code put in to workaround bug 706500, but it didn't work properly. The above revision reverts it. Please let me know if things work for you that way.

I'm aware of your concerns with Flight Mode vs. having separate checkboxes. I have them noted.

Hello,

Ubuntu 11.04, x86_64
network-manager status:
Maintainer: Ubuntu Core Dev Team <email address hidden>
Architecture: amd64
Version: 0.8.4~git.20110228t143901.5cdded6-0ubuntu1

Still don't see any broadband connections available to connect although just created one in the network manager.
Please check the screenshot.

Mike, please file a separate bug. Note however that you can't just create a new connection for Mobile Broadband connections to work, the modem device to use them also needs to be detected, available, and usable.

Please use 'ubuntu-bug network-manager' to open a new bug and attach the necessary information to it, then report back with the bug report number here. Thanks.

Had the same problem. "Enable mobile broadband" shows up in the menu, but only to immediately dissapear again. I used the natty version that was released on March 30th (I can't be sure if the fix was already applied though).

Hi,

I've just updated to 11.4 and since then I haven't been able to use my broadband modem. It's detected correctly (see it in messages log) and tried other modem too, but nothing is shown in network manager, not the "enable broadband" neither the modem in the "add broadband" wizard.
I really need to use my broadband modem, if I don't get a work arround soon, I'll have to go back to 10.10 somehow.
Regards,