SIM Failure message

I have been using the UML290 for the last week and a half... when I first got it and brought it to my home... loaded up the software, plugged in the modem (UML290) and clicked on the "Connect WWAN" button on my laptop... I got a SIM Failure message. I took my laptop back to the Verizon store (Wyomissing, PA) and they played around with it... plugged the modem into their own laptop (it worked) but it wouldn't work in mine.... they said that it is my laptop that's causing the problem. I took it home and later that night I got it to work (not sure what I did to make it work)... after using it for about a week and a half it has been working, but yesterday it wouldn't connect at my home location... the SIM Failure message. Today, I brought the laptop to my office and it is working. So my question.... is it my computer or the Verizon network that is causing the SIM Failure? What does that message mean? Does anybody know?

Some other comments... the reason I went with this new modem is I trashed the old modem I had (3G).... my ac cable was dangling over the modem sticking out of the side of the laptop and I tripped over the cable and snapped the modem off of the connector! So, I had received the promotional mailing from Verizon... this just gave me an excuse to buy the 4G modem! But, in the meantime I have been having this other problem at my home (Bowmansville, PA)... I would be online and the modem (old) would just disconnect from the internet... so I would have to click on the Connect WWAN button again... this was happening fairly freqently for about 3 weeks before I bought the new modem... when I finally got the UML290 to work at home.... it too was disconnecting intermittently! And this... I brought the laptop to my office today (Morgantown, PA) and have had no problem connecting and no SIM Failure at this location. So is this intermittent problem a function of the towers being switched over to 4G, although were I live (about 12 miles south of Reading, PA) the service seems to be 3G! Here at my office it is also 3G, but like I said before the UML290 seems to work here.

Also, when I use my laptop at home, I connect wirelessly to a printer... this connection is done through my computer's built-in wireless capability or Wifi software... Intel PROSET/Wireless 2200BG Network Connection. At times I think that this may be causing a conflict... but I have connected to the internet with this turned on and off.... and the SIM Failure shows up either way.

DaveSp

Accepted answers

EdW_VZW

Plasmatic wrote:
"
Re: SIM Failure message
"03-08-2011 01:12 AM
OK GUYS ,IF YOU HAVE WINDOWS MEDIA CENTER OPEN IT, GO TO SETTINGS, CLICK MESSENGER AND CALLER ID THEN SELECT NONE ,CLICK SAVE ,AND EXIT. YOU WILL NEVER GET THAT MSG AGAIN .
MANY THANKS TO
kneekahliss "

Did that, it worked the first time (while I was still in the store) but after rebotting still getting the SIM failure message (I've got the UM551L modem). Checked the settings in Media Center - They hadn't changed (were still set to none for caller ID). This is the biggest piece of junk verizon has ever offered and no one can figure out the problem. Tried 3 modems & 3 SIM cards. Gonna go back to my old 727 3G card.

Thanks to all the community members for your value suggestions and input.

Plasmatic, I apologize your having the issues with your Sim Card. Are you still receiving the Sim failure error message? For some unknown reason the Sim Card appears to be incorrectly inserted in the UM551L modem as VZAccess Manager is displaying the Sim Card Failure error message. The Sim Card needs to be inserted properly into your device with using great care. Here is a link to instructional video for assistance with the Sim Card. After you confirmed that the Sim Card is properly inserted and you continue having the issue, please send me a private message with your information to be assisted further.

Also, here are a few tips for handling the Sim card with great care:

Avoid touching the gold contacts as much as possible.
Do not bend the Sim card.
The gold contacts must be aligned correctly to the gold contacts on the device. An angled cut-off notch on the Sim card indicates the orientation of the 4G Sim to the 4G device.
Keep the Sim card clean and dry at all times.
Avoid extreme temperatures and magnetic fields.

All comments

DavidSpeace

No one has responded to this post yet.... am I the only one having this "SIM Failure" experience! I thought that I would add one more thing.... I have a second laptop... that works with the 4G modem at home... this is an Avertec laptop. The laptop that doesn't work at my home is a Dell laptop. So I have 2 laptops sitting side by side and one works and the other doesn't!

Neander

I'd like to sympathize with you David but your problem looks like it's pretty unique.

The Verizon tech's occasionaly scan these forums and they may offer some public relations banter. Some solutions to many problems have sprung from smart "civilians" on these forums, like the dreaded WM604 Error. I'd suggest going up the search feature and scan for similar problems. Also there's the Mobile Broadband topic thread back at "Community".

If nothing else, at least you've picked a good place to vent. Good luck

dfl1

What is your laptop make? And secondly, if you are using a 4G Device, keep in mind 4G is very limited, as is 3G coverage areas. When you connect your WWAN, what does your network status say (3G, 1X, 1XEV, 4G)? Check the coverage map, and also check security settings for your device, as sometimes they have to modified to work properly in your area. Unfortunately, I have had the same issues; I have a Fivespot, with a Toshiba laptop; at home I go onto Extended, a distance I am back on 3G. It took some time, but finally had a service rep help me set the security settings to be fully compatable with my laptop (default was WPA, had to switch to WPA-2).

If all else fails, give 4G some time. It's still new, as it was a yr. before 3G was truly setup.

Good luck!

dfl1

Forgive me. It could very well be the security settings for the device that is preventing it from working on the Dell. I have also heard of issues with Avertec, as well as Toshiba.

They are known issues, changing the security of the modem should make it compatible.

njtech

I have also had the sim failure message. Mine just went away on its own,

but I still have other issues 604 error etc.. I don't use VZaccess to connect at

this point and connect using the dial up workaround. They have some bugs to work

out for sure.

DavidSpeace

Thanks, for the replies so far.... I have a Dell Inspiron... I will check the security settings. Also, I am in a 3G area and have a strong consisten signal... 3g and 1xev, etc. I did have the Dell working and then it stopped. The Avertec that I have works fine. My Dell laptop worked with the old 3g modem I had... the one that I broke by tripping over the power cord that was slung over the device sticking out from the computer! I will check the WPA setting and change it to WPA2 and see what that does.

larry7834

I had the same thing happen to me. :manmad: Their tech support could not figure it out after 2 hours of trying. :smileysad: I finally figured out my computer had new updates on it that would not allow the SIM card to work. I reloaded Vista and it works great. :smileyvery-happy: I'm scared to do any window updates now though. Hope this helps.

willzzz99

Again with the above comments it looks like a computer/software problem with Windows and not anything related to VZW. If you could authenticate at least once then yes your SIM works fine. The SIM Failure error message is probably a programming else statement because it couldn't find any other error condition.

mario1233445

I KNOW THE SOLUTION FOR 4G SIM FAILURE

IT IS YOUR PC OR LAPTOP FAULT NOT THE SIM CARD

I TRIED ON MANY PC AND WORKS FINE ON OTHERS, BUT NOT ON MINE.

AFTER MANY HOURS OF TRYING IT WORKS ON MINE TOO.

I TURN ON MY LAPTOP THEN AFTER 5 SECONDS I CLIK THE SHUT DOWN BUTTON,{ BUT ONLY CLICK THE STAND BY OR HIBERNATE BUTTON(NOT SHUT DOWN)}

THEN I LET IT HIBERNATE/STANDBY ABOUT 5 SECONDS THEN TOUCH TURN ON BUTTON THEN OPEN VZ ACCESS MGR AND CLICK DETECT DEVICE BUTTON THEN CLICK CONNECT

DavidSpeace

Thanks, I tried your suggestion... for me it works when I put the laptop into "hibernate" (it did not work in the standby mode)... as you say for 5 seconds and then bring the computer out of hibernation mode...wait 5 seconds, go to vzaccess and then click the connect wwan button and it works... I can connect to the web. However, I would NOT call this a "solution", but only a work-around....! This seems to be a weird step in order to get the modem to work... sans the sim failure message!

mario1233445

h i DAVID I'm happy to hear works for u too after u put the pc in standby or hibenation mode for 5 second // I don't know how to delete my second suggestion about logging off and then on ,cause I realized later that way doesn't work, but it works after putting in stand by or hibernation mode a few seconds then on again then open vz mgr then detect device

jmiller_42

Mario you are a genius! My air card is finally working on my laptop! My only question is, does this fix the problem permanently or will I have to do this from time to time? Also, will this fix problems with the device disconnecting itself at random ( I have this problem when I use it on my pc)?

mario1233445

I DON'T KNOW HOW LONG IT'S GONNA WORK BY SWITCHING TO HIBERNATE AND ON AGAIN, I WAS JUST LUCKY TO FOUND THAT METHOD ; AFTER MANY MANY ATTEMPTS TO CONNECT THE 4G MODEM I GAVE UP AND WENT AWAY FROM THE PC . WHEN I CAME BACK WAS HIBERNATING SO I TURNED IT ON AND REALIZED THAT ,,COONECT BUTTON,, IT'S AVAIL . MINE IT IS DISCONNECTING ABOUT ONCE EVERY HOUR --I DON'T KNOW WHY

kodak235

After reading the entire thread I decided I needed to look further into the issue when I had time.... and when the modem decided to connect my computer to the net. I just happen to see if there were any updates and found there was a waiting update. I started the process and the update ended up replacing the desk top link and took several minutes and some babysitting of the process to finally finish.

When I tried to use the modem I got a message that my computer did not recognize the modem. After several tries and asking the computer to 'recognize' the modem nothing worked. Then I shut the computer down, not restarting, but shutting the computer down and letting it sit for a few minutes. Restarted the my HP Pavilion and clicked the VZ Manager to start the modem and it worked. Didn't solve the connection problem, but the Sim card notation is gone.

I have to agree that some of the network may be spotty in areas and it will take time to 'fill in the gaps'. I'm using the modem in Florida due to a lack of internet access. I do notice that if the weather is heavily cloudy the connection is spotty and of all things when it's windy. Hmm???

For $10 less a month then I was paying for my other satellite modem I will put up with the inconvenience for 3 months. When I get back to Massachusetts I will be visitng the local Verizon store if the issue continues.

Check for updates and maybe your issue will be solved.

Sam

vwereskisr

hey bud i have the same issues, what i do to resolve it is shut down vz acess manager and restart and usually it connects...i also notice cannot play any online games...my old 3g modem works perfectly with the same games but this new service as far as online games or this modem apparently has issues...i have had nothing but problems, high ping rates and packet loss as well as jitter and no one with the exception of 1 service tech apparently cares...they only care that you can connect and brows web to a degree....i have spoke to 8 techs only one cares and states their is a problem....i have tested this on speedtest.com upload and download speed is fast remarkably fast but inconsistant, the ping is terible and jitter and packet loss is even worse...i am going to try to replace the modem as last form of troubleshoooting, if that doesnt work then 4g can go in the trash until they resolve the problem....they advertise online gameing and video streaming for 4g...i cannot do online gaming will not even connect to game host due to high pings and data loss...and yet the new service wich is supposed to be much better and support online gaming doesnt work and my 3g device works without a problem, can play games all day long without i hitch and no one from tech can explain why....sounds like a problem..i have spoke with several people on forums they have all said the same thing....release tech and dontr know how to fix the problems....the response you will get is all we care about is that you can connect and view the web!!! wow so when i buy a car i guess all they care about is the car moves, they dont care if the ac worrks or anything else does to...thats the way its been explained to me time and time again...except for 1 tech..so my suggestion to you is try a new modem, possably new sim card if still doesnt work go back to 3g device because i m not sure 4g is ready for complete service!! but thtas my opinion as of now...

toughbook

Hey Guys, Go into the Services.exe and check what your settings are at under your WLAN, WWAN, etc. I would make them Auto. If youhave them at Manual you will have problems. If you can make a screen shot before you plug in the modem, then after you get VZ running with a connection take another scren shot. Whatever Service is different, make sure it is set to Auto.

Good Luck!

MBlover99

Picked up the new 4G modem (the LG one) in Yuma last week. took it home and would't work. Went back to the store in Yuma AZ and spent 2 1/2 hours while 2 or 3 rep's tried to figure out the "no sim communication" message. They tried (3) different sims to no avail. finally it started to work so i went across the street to a Starbucks and refused to work.

Called VZN and got with a Tech guy that was familiar with them. We spent another hour and 1/2 trying everything; setup the WWAN so it would connect automatically; the only difference is that upon opening the application i don't have to ciick on it. (you go into "options, preferences, set to automatically open". OK that is swell but doesn't have anything to do with the application running. I am on it right now, but it is soooooooooo slow I swear dialup would be faster. The VZN salesman must have been a Kirby vacuum salesman in his previous life cause he touted all the wonderful benefits of 4-G. I told him i had already done my research and that 4g coverage is EXTREMELY spotty at best in big cities (he finally admitted that there is NO 4g in Yuma) and i told him I had read on ZDnet that the coverage is only 4g in major airports (I think the PDX was eliminated off the list?) and some pricey hotels that I don't frequent, etc. Anyway i consistently get the "sim card not recognized" message even tho they tried (3) sims and it still doesn't work.. The Online Tech guy said that it was a problem on their end and he didn't have a solution.I am driving back to Tucson tomorrow to a VZN store and returning it

MBlover99

Now tonight it is running fast enough to watch U~Tube videos without buffering, and that is all i care about as far as speed goes, so i think we will just have to be patient and the bugs will get worked out. Hopefully over the next few months the 4G coverage will improve, just as Verizon's Wireless Service has become the best

vzchuck

I'm glad I found this discussion. My VL600 modem started acting up on my PC with XP Pro, but worked fine on my Sony laptop with Vista. I believe the SIM failure is related to the ARP Cache in XP--does not clear properly. This solved the problem for me. I found the instructions for clearing the ARP Cache on Google:

Use the NetShell (netsh) command to clear, delete or refresh the Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) cache by following the following steps.

Click on Start button.
Click on Run command and type Cmd into the Run text box, and then press Enter. For Windows Vista, type Cmd in Start Search, and then press Ctrl-Shift-Enter keyboard shortcut to force Administrator privileges. Enter Administrator user ID and password and allow any permission request when prompted.
In the Command Prompt window, type the following command then press Enter.
netsh interface ip delete arpcache

The command works in Windows Vista, Windows XP and Windows 2003.

rhondag

I'm having the same issue. I have a Dell XPS M140. Finally got it to work yesterday for about 1.5 hours then after I left it for a while I came back and couldn't get to websites. Disconnected/re-connected and the Sim message was back. Was headed back to Verizon store again this afternoon and decided to try it on my work laptop, HP EliteBook 6930p. Works fine, other than it disconnects without notice every few minutes. I'm going to try some of your suggestions on my Dell. This is ridiculous. I only switched to the 4G because I liive in a rural area and VZ has done something to cause my 3G USB modem to not have ANY EVDO signal. I've got signal now, but the SIM issue keeps me from connecting. :smileysad:

mingo

I am also having a consistent SIM card failure error popping up. I upgraded my two modems to the 4G because they were so incredibly slow. I came home and installed one into a new netbook that I was giving a family member for Christmas and all worked well.

I installed the second one into my Dell Inspirion, running Windows XP. I immediately go the SIM failure message. I called Tech support and they had me uninstall the modem and Access Manager which I did while on the phone with them. After reinstalling and a restart, the error message continued. Tech support suggested I return the modem to the store. My husband did that the next day. The next night we tried all this again and it still ended up with "Sim card failure" error messages.

He again went to the store and they insisted it wasn't the Sim card as they their "good" one in our machine and got the same message. The store insists that it's the computer. So ............. we took the computer to Best Buy's Geek Guys. They checked over the laptop and said it was working fine. They were able to get the modem to work in 1g and 3g somehow.

My IT guy at work looked over my computer and says it is clean and should be running this with no problem. He was able to get intermittent connection in 1g and 3g.

After 3 hours+ on the phone this weekend with Verizon Tech support, it was determined that in swapping out modem#1 for modem#2, the ID for modem #2 was not entered onto my account. That took a mere 1 hour on the phone! The second hour was figuring out that in swapping out modem #1 for modem #2 in the store, they did NOT replace the SIM card and the SIM card number on my account was not the one I physically had in hand!! At the end of hour #2 on the phone, and the very nice tech checking my windows version setting to make sure I was up to speed with that, I was promised a new SIM card and that it would be overnight mailed to me since it was over the weekend and I had no time to run to the store yet again.

The SIM card did not arrive! I called Tech support again on Saturday evening and they said that they'd made some other notation in my account and were able to switch over the SIM card online such that one I turned on my computer that night it should all work perfectly. Guess what?? IT DIDN'T WORK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So, I called them back yet again and was again promised a new SIM card. This time we chose to go to the store on Monday. The tech in the store again said that they put in their 'good' sim card and that since we were still getting a failure message, it had to be our system. I insisted that they give my husband a NEW SIM card and make sure it was documented appropriately on my account.

And of course I am still getting no service!!!!!!!!!!! I'm running out of patience and time with this. The store may be earning lots of commissions on selling these new modems, but they are costing their clients a lot of headache and $$$ if working from home and not able to connect.

Help!!!!!!!!! If anyone can figure this out, please let me know. I am NOT looking forward to another 2 hour conversation with tech support that clearly doesn't have any idea of how to actually get the software to work. One tech did say "there's so much new to learn at Verizon.........." well hell's bells................ don't scam the customers with a product that clearly doesn't work!

mingo

did you ever get the sim card error to go away?

mingo

kneekahliss

hello,

I didnt bother reading the post so hope this helps

sim failure:

1) check the LED, it should be blue, if its orange or yellow, there is a physical problem so reseat the sim card. if your LED is blue then proceed to step 2

2) check your windows version:

Start > run > winver

If you have windows xp media center (it says at the top do the following)

Disabling Caller ID in the operating system -

Windows XP Media Edition 2005
Error: SIM Card Failure
Click Start> MediaCenter.
1. Click Settings.
2. Click Messenger and Caller ID.
3. For Show notification for, click

None.
4. Click Save.

If you are unable to find the program in

Start> Media Center it can be found in Start>

Programs> Accessories> Media Center>

Disabling Caller ID in the operating system -

Windows XP Media Edition 2004
1. Click Start > Media Center.
2. Click Settings.
3. Click General.
4. Click Notifications.
For Telephone notifications, click Disabled.
5. Click Save.

If you are unable to find the program in

Start> Media Center it can be found in Start>

Programs> Accessories> Media Center>

3) if you have windows 7 or Vista (make sure you have all your updates, vista sp2) try cleaning your ARP cache

netsh interface ip delete arpcache

I think someone already said this

4) wall test it.

Steve_A_

Toshiba Satellite, Win-XP (Home Ed.), SP-3, UML290.

Hello,

I just upgraded to the UML290 4G wireless mobile adapter.

My old 3G adapter was working just fine, but, the new one costs me $15 less per month, so I upgraded.

Unfortunately, like so many here, I too am getting the "Sim Failure" message.

Since I have a working, technical background in computers, I pretty much know my way around network adapters and the like.

BTW, none of the above suggestions have solved the problem.

I spent a nearly an hour on the phone this AM, with tech support (both at home and in the store), they are sending me another Sim Card . Somehow, from what I've read so far, it doesn't look like that's going to do anything.

I have reinstalled the software, just in case there was an issue there. Not the problem.

I have examined all the hardware and software settings and can't find where the problem is coming from.

There are two things I have noticed though....:

1) My laptop has 4 USB ports, I normally plug my wireless card into the bottom one, behind the screen, next to the power plug. If I move the UML290 to one of the others, on the side near the CD drive, it works fine, without the Sim error.

2) Alternately, if I Right-Click on "My Computer",

then select "Properties"-> "Hardware"->"Device Manager",

then click on "Modem",

I noticed a yellow exclamation mark in front of "Pantech UML290"

I then double-click on that device and select "Enable" and "Okay".

After doing that, I then open VZAccess manager and the wireless card is located and connects without error.

This, however, is not a permanent fix, as the Sim Failure reappears after I reboot.

This does, however, allow me to get online.

I have not decided if this is a hardware issue or a software problem, because of the two approaches I've stated.

I'll see tomorrow if the new Sim Card works any differently.

Steve

kneekahliss

Right click the yellow ? And do update driver

Don't do auto to browse or select from a list

Click browse, browse to c / program files / lg electronics / lg lte drivers

Click ok, make sure no cd is in your drive, click next, see if it fixes it

Or if a laptop go under usb to the root hubs and uncheck allow computer to mng power / turn off

rhondag

Wow, wish I'd seen this before I wiped my XP MCE 2005 off and reinstalled XP Professional so I could have tested it. XP Professional is working just fine for me now with the Pantech. I'm downloading the Dell drivers to put back on my M140 and was leary that one of them was causing the problem. Thanks to you it's probably not one of them at all :smileywink:

Thanks!

Steve_A_

Well, new Sim arrived and worked right off the bat, as soon as it was activated.

However...,

on further testing, after rebooting the computer, same old problem persists !

New Sim, but, no change.

I can't tell where the problem is coming from.

stacyp

did you ever get your sim card failure message to go away? i have the same problem. my device works on my laptop but not on my desktop. I just got the uml290 two weeks ago and it has only worked twice on the desktop. not sure how that happened. I even got send a new sim card and device. it still happens. I am told it is my desktop. i find that funny because it has worked and the 190 device for the 3g worked with no problem.

stacyp

It is interesting that you mention media center for xp. my media center stopped working once i upgraded to the 4g device.. hmm??

Gorp

i am getting the same problem with 4g USB 551l i had 3 of them with 'SIM Card Fail the verizon store is oredering me a new Modem LG VL600 i will inform all when it arrives and hopfully works