Linux Mint suddenly doesn't recognize my Nokia phone

Questions about hardware, drivers and peripherals
Forum rules
Before you post read how to get help. Topics in this forum are automatically closed 6 months after creation.
Locked
neonlike

Linux Mint suddenly doesn't recognize my Nokia phone

Post by neonlike »

Hi!

I have an old Nokia with a microSD card, and it is my actual phone. I don't even remember the version. Linux initially recognized it as an usb mass storage device and everything worked fine, but as of late when I plug the phone in via usb nothing happens. I vaguely remember that some time ago I might've messed up a setting on connecting/disconnecting the device (dialogue box) due to haste and that this might be the root of the problem. Changing the settings on the phone (choosing if it should be recognized as a mass storage, PC suite etc. does nothing). Likewise the Isusb command doesn't help. I've been rummaging across the forum for a while and found nothing helpful so far.

The Nokia is a dumbphone.

Linux is Mint 18.1.

I'm new to Linux so I really need a hand with this.

All other usb devices work fine, and the phone as such. For reference I have a sony e-reader and a memory stick and Mint has no trouble with it. I'm pretty damn certain I messed something up. Please help.
Last edited by LockBot on Wed Dec 28, 2022 7:16 am, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: Topic automatically closed 6 months after creation. New replies are no longer allowed.
ClixTrix

Re: Linux Mint suddenly doesn't recognize my Nokia phone

Post by ClixTrix »

Any chance you changed USB cables between current problem and the last time it worked? I ask because not all USB cables provide data support, i.e they sometimes are only for charging.

In any case, I would try another known working USB cable with the phone for a test.
neonlike

Re: Linux Mint suddenly doesn't recognize my Nokia phone

Post by neonlike »

Nope, I'm using the exact same cable and the same port as before. I use the same cable for all my devices so it doesn't seem to be an issue.
User avatar
trytip
Level 14
Level 14
Posts: 5371
Joined: Tue Jul 05, 2016 1:20 pm

Re: Linux Mint suddenly doesn't recognize my Nokia phone

Post by trytip »

since your phone is basically just a flash drive you should need no special settings in the OS. boot a live session of any linux and try your phone. sometimes the phone plug or cables wear out not making contact. are you able to charge your phone using that cable in a wall socket?
Image
neonlike

Re: Linux Mint suddenly doesn't recognize my Nokia phone

Post by neonlike »

The phone uses a different cable for recharging, it doesn't recharge via usb. Like I mentioned previously I'm somewhat certain that I accidentally changed some setting. When I plug in any of my devices I get those dialogue boxes (asking what to do) except when I plug in my phone. Since initially the phone was recognized and the cable is the same for all devices I'm assuming this is a setting/software issue. Mint ignores the phone because I probably chose some option upon connecting/disconnecting the phone.

Thanks for the help guys. This is as frustrating for me as it is for you.
User avatar
MrEen
Level 23
Level 23
Posts: 18345
Joined: Mon Jun 12, 2017 8:39 pm

Re: Linux Mint suddenly doesn't recognize my Nokia phone

Post by MrEen »

Just a stab in the dark here. Is it possible it's mounting and just not informing you? IOW, have you looked in your file manager after connecting the phone to see if it's listed?
ClixTrix

Re: Linux Mint suddenly doesn't recognize my Nokia phone

Post by ClixTrix »

You previously stated that lsusb doesn't help. Does that mean that running lsusb from Terminal does not show the phone listed? It would be helpful to check with the phone connected and post back the results. There is also an option parm that can help identify the mass storage.

Code: Select all

lsusb -t
It would also be helpful to see details about the system. Please run the following command from Terminal and post back.

Code: Select all

inxi -Fxz
neonlike

Re: Linux Mint suddenly doesn't recognize my Nokia phone

Post by neonlike »

MrEen wrote: Sat May 05, 2018 9:26 pm Just a stab in the dark here. Is it possible it's mounting and just not informing you? IOW, have you looked in your file manager after connecting the phone to see if it's listed?
This doesn't seem to be the case.
ClixTrix wrote: Sun May 06, 2018 7:06 am You previously stated that lsusb doesn't help. Does that mean that running lsusb from Terminal does not show the phone listed? It would be helpful to check with the phone connected and post back the results. There is also an option parm that can help identify the mass storage.

Code: Select all

lsusb -t
It would also be helpful to see details about the system. Please run the following command from Terminal and post back.

Code: Select all

inxi -Fxz
Isusb doesn't show the phone listed.

Using Isusb -t gives me this (the phone is plugged in):

/: Bus 04.Port 1: Dev 1, Class=root_hub, Driver=xhci_hcd/4p, 5000M
/: Bus 03.Port 1: Dev 1, Class=root_hub, Driver=xhci_hcd/4p, 480M
/: Bus 02.Port 1: Dev 1, Class=root_hub, Driver=ehci-pci/2p, 480M
|__ Port 1: Dev 2, If 0, Class=Hub, Driver=hub/6p, 480M
|__ Port 6: Dev 3, If 0, Class=Human Interface Device, Driver=usbhid, 12M
|__ Port 6: Dev 3, If 1, Class=Human Interface Device, Driver=usbhid, 12M
|__ Port 6: Dev 3, If 2, Class=Human Interface Device, Driver=usbhid, 12M
/: Bus 01.Port 1: Dev 1, Class=root_hub, Driver=ehci-pci/2p, 480M
|__ Port 1: Dev 2, If 0, Class=Hub, Driver=hub/6p, 480M
|__ Port 6: Dev 3, If 0, Class=Mass Storage, Driver=usb-storage, 480M

System details:

System: Host: freshmaker Kernel: 4.4.0-53-generic x86_64 (64 bit gcc: 5.4.0)
Desktop: Cinnamon 3.2.7 (Gtk 3.18.9-1ubuntu3.3)
Distro: Linux Mint 18.1 Serena
Machine: Mobo: ASUSTeK model: P8B75-M LX PLUS v: Rev X.0x
Bios: American Megatrends v: 0701 date: 02/05/2013
CPU: Dual core Intel Core i3-3240 (-HT-MCP-) cache: 3072 KB
flags: (lm nx sse sse2 sse3 sse4_1 sse4_2 ssse3 vmx) bmips: 13569
clock speeds: max: 3400 MHz 1: 1679 MHz 2: 1697 MHz 3: 1752 MHz
4: 1704 MHz
Graphics: Card: NVIDIA GK208 [GeForce GT 630 Rev. 2] bus-ID: 01:00.0
Display Server: X.Org 1.18.4 drivers: nouveau (unloaded: fbdev,vesa)
Resolution: 1920x1080@60.00hz
GLX Renderer: Gallium 0.4 on NV108
GLX Version: 3.0 Mesa 11.2.0 Direct Rendering: Yes
Audio: Card-1 Intel 7 Series/C210 Series Family High Definition Audio Controller
driver: snd_hda_intel bus-ID: 00:1b.0
Card-2 NVIDIA GK208 HDMI/DP Audio Controller
driver: snd_hda_intel bus-ID: 01:00.1
Sound: Advanced Linux Sound Architecture v: k4.4.0-53-generic
Network: Card: Realtek RTL8111/8168/8411 PCI Express Gigabit Ethernet Controller
driver: r8169 v: 2.3LK-NAPI port: d000 bus-ID: 03:00.0
IF: enp3s0 state: up speed: 100 Mbps duplex: full mac: <filter>
Drives: HDD Total Size: 1000.2GB (3.6% used)
ID-1: /dev/sda model: WDC_WD10EZEX size: 1000.2GB
Partition: ID-1: / size: 28G used: 7.3G (28%) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/sda1
ID-2: /home size: 66G used: 22G (35%) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/sda6
ID-3: swap-1 size: 5.70GB used: 0.00GB (0%) fs: swap dev: /dev/sda7
RAID: No RAID devices: /proc/mdstat, md_mod kernel module present
Sensors: System Temperatures: cpu: 29.8C mobo: 27.8C
Fan Speeds (in rpm): cpu: 0
Info: Processes: 182 Uptime: 20 min Memory: 989.8/3884.3MB
Init: systemd runlevel: 5 Gcc sys: 5.4.0
Client: Shell (bash 4.3.461) inxi: 2.2.35

I hope this helps you.
ClixTrix

Re: Linux Mint suddenly doesn't recognize my Nokia phone

Post by ClixTrix »

Here is the result of my Samsung android phone with lsusb and same with -t.

danno@Lian-Li ~ $ lsusb
Bus 004 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0003 Linux Foundation 3.0 root hub
Bus 003 Device 003: ID 046d:081b Logitech, Inc. Webcam C310
Bus 003 Device 002: ID 03f0:2b17 Hewlett-Packard LaserJet 1020
Bus 003 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0002 Linux Foundation 2.0 root hub
Bus 002 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0003 Linux Foundation 3.0 root hub

Bus 001 Device 012: ID 04e8:6860 Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd Galaxy (MTP)
Bus 001 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0002 Linux Foundation 2.0 root hub
danno@Lian-Li ~ $ lsusb -t
/: Bus 04.Port 1: Dev 1, Class=root_hub, Driver=xhci_hcd/4p, 5000M
/: Bus 03.Port 1: Dev 1, Class=root_hub, Driver=xhci_hcd/4p, 480M
|__ Port 1: Dev 2, If 0, Class=Printer, Driver=, 480M
|__ Port 3: Dev 3, If 0, Class=Video, Driver=uvcvideo, 480M
|__ Port 3: Dev 3, If 1, Class=Video, Driver=uvcvideo, 480M
|__ Port 3: Dev 3, If 2, Class=Audio, Driver=snd-usb-audio, 480M
|__ Port 3: Dev 3, If 3, Class=Audio, Driver=snd-usb-audio, 480M
/: Bus 02.Port 1: Dev 1, Class=root_hub, Driver=xhci_hcd/4p, 10000M
/: Bus 01.Port 1: Dev 1, Class=root_hub, Driver=xhci_hcd/10p, 480M

|__ Port 10: Dev 12, If 0, Class=Imaging, Driver=usbfs, 480M
danno@Lian-Li ~ $

Note, the phone shows as Device 012 / Dev 12. In your case you show Dev 3, so you should have shown a Device 003 as result of the lsusb (no -t).

I'm not suggesting your's should be identical to mine. Just wanted to have something to compare. In fact you probably should show as Mass Storage, i.e. like a flash drive instead of smart phone.

Let's try a different approach. Let's see what the kernel log shows. Please reboot the system (to get a fresh log), plug in the phone, and then run the following command from Terminal. This will show all lines in the log with "usb" upper/lower case. Please post back the results.

Code: Select all

dmesg | grep -i usb
neonlike

Re: Linux Mint suddenly doesn't recognize my Nokia phone

Post by neonlike »

Here it is, sorry for the late reply (work). I see mention of a mass storage device which could theoretically be the phone. I hope this helps. Here's something maybe relevant - I tried to plug in my ancient mp3 player (a Grundig, no display) in the same port and it does start recharging but the system doesn't recognize it or prompt me for any action. I thought I'd mention this because it may be related. I tried this BEFORE following your instructions. I use the same port for all my devices (which are two - a sony reader and the phone). Upon connecting the reader the system recognizes it immediately. I think I already mentioned this.

Here's the log:

[ 0.128311] ACPI: bus type USB registered
[ 0.128322] usbcore: registered new interface driver usbfs
[ 0.128327] usbcore: registered new interface driver hub
[ 0.128338] usbcore: registered new device driver usb
[ 0.924585] ehci_hcd: USB 2.0 'Enhanced' Host Controller (EHCI) Driver
[ 0.924666] ehci-pci 0000:00:1a.0: new USB bus registered, assigned bus number 1
[ 0.940055] ehci-pci 0000:00:1a.0: USB 2.0 started, EHCI 1.00
[ 0.940084] usb usb1: New USB device found, idVendor=1d6b, idProduct=0002
[ 0.940085] usb usb1: New USB device strings: Mfr=3, Product=2, SerialNumber=1
[ 0.940086] usb usb1: Product: EHCI Host Controller
[ 0.940087] usb usb1: Manufacturer: Linux 4.4.0-53-generic ehci_hcd
[ 0.940088] usb usb1: SerialNumber: 0000:00:1a.0
[ 0.940167] hub 1-0:1.0: USB hub found
[ 0.940314] ehci-pci 0000:00:1d.0: new USB bus registered, assigned bus number 2
[ 0.956055] ehci-pci 0000:00:1d.0: USB 2.0 started, EHCI 1.00
[ 0.956075] usb usb2: New USB device found, idVendor=1d6b, idProduct=0002
[ 0.956076] usb usb2: New USB device strings: Mfr=3, Product=2, SerialNumber=1
[ 0.956077] usb usb2: Product: EHCI Host Controller
[ 0.956078] usb usb2: Manufacturer: Linux 4.4.0-53-generic ehci_hcd
[ 0.956079] usb usb2: SerialNumber: 0000:00:1d.0
[ 0.956151] hub 2-0:1.0: USB hub found
[ 0.956242] ohci_hcd: USB 1.1 'Open' Host Controller (OHCI) Driver
[ 0.956260] uhci_hcd: USB Universal Host Controller Interface driver
[ 0.956334] xhci_hcd 0000:00:14.0: new USB bus registered, assigned bus number 3
[ 0.957473] usb usb3: New USB device found, idVendor=1d6b, idProduct=0002
[ 0.957474] usb usb3: New USB device strings: Mfr=3, Product=2, SerialNumber=1
[ 0.957475] usb usb3: Product: xHCI Host Controller
[ 0.957476] usb usb3: Manufacturer: Linux 4.4.0-53-generic xhci-hcd
[ 0.957477] usb usb3: SerialNumber: 0000:00:14.0
[ 0.957548] hub 3-0:1.0: USB hub found
[ 0.957772] xhci_hcd 0000:00:14.0: new USB bus registered, assigned bus number 4
[ 0.957792] usb usb4: New USB device found, idVendor=1d6b, idProduct=0003
[ 0.957793] usb usb4: New USB device strings: Mfr=3, Product=2, SerialNumber=1
[ 0.957794] usb usb4: Product: xHCI Host Controller
[ 0.957795] usb usb4: Manufacturer: Linux 4.4.0-53-generic xhci-hcd
[ 0.957796] usb usb4: SerialNumber: 0000:00:14.0
[ 0.957867] hub 4-0:1.0: USB hub found
[ 1.252084] usb 1-1: new high-speed USB device number 2 using ehci-pci
[ 1.268086] usb 2-1: new high-speed USB device number 2 using ehci-pci
[ 1.384882] usb 1-1: New USB device found, idVendor=8087, idProduct=0024
[ 1.384884] usb 1-1: New USB device strings: Mfr=0, Product=0, SerialNumber=0
[ 1.385282] hub 1-1:1.0: USB hub found
[ 1.400663] usb 2-1: New USB device found, idVendor=8087, idProduct=0024
[ 1.400668] usb 2-1: New USB device strings: Mfr=0, Product=0, SerialNumber=0
[ 1.400945] hub 2-1:1.0: USB hub found
[ 1.656098] usb 1-1.6: new high-speed USB device number 3 using ehci-pci
[ 1.672101] usb 2-1.6: new full-speed USB device number 3 using ehci-pci
[ 1.751175] usb 1-1.6: New USB device found, idVendor=058f, idProduct=6366
[ 1.751180] usb 1-1.6: New USB device strings: Mfr=1, Product=2, SerialNumber=3
[ 1.751183] usb 1-1.6: Product: Mass Storage Device
[ 1.751185] usb 1-1.6: Manufacturer: Generic
[ 1.751187] usb 1-1.6: SerialNumber: 058F63666471
[ 1.770773] usb 2-1.6: New USB device found, idVendor=04d9, idProduct=a09f
[ 1.770778] usb 2-1.6: New USB device strings: Mfr=1, Product=2, SerialNumber=0
[ 1.770781] usb 2-1.6: Product: USB Gaming Mouse
[ 1.770783] usb 2-1.6: Manufacturer: E-Signal
[ 2.371942] usb-storage 1-1.6:1.0: USB Mass Storage device detected
[ 2.374732] scsi host4: usb-storage 1-1.6:1.0
[ 2.375249] usbcore: registered new interface driver usb-storage
[ 2.380416] usbcore: registered new interface driver uas
[ 2.388828] usbcore: registered new interface driver usbhid
[ 2.388831] usbhid: USB HID core driver
[ 2.417937] input: E-Signal USB Gaming Mouse as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1d.0/usb2/2-1/2-1.6/2-1.6:1.0/0003:04D9:A09F.0001/input/input3
[ 2.418042] hid-generic 0003:04D9:A09F.0001: input,hidraw0: USB HID v1.10 Mouse [E-Signal USB Gaming Mouse] on usb-0000:00:1d.0-1.6/input0
[ 2.419992] input: E-Signal USB Gaming Mouse as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1d.0/usb2/2-1/2-1.6/2-1.6:1.1/0003:04D9:A09F.0002/input/input4
[ 2.472232] hid-generic 0003:04D9:A09F.0002: input,hiddev0,hidraw1: USB HID v1.10 Keyboard [E-Signal USB Gaming Mouse] on usb-0000:00:1d.0-1.6/input1
[ 2.473231] hid-generic 0003:04D9:A09F.0003: hiddev0,hidraw2: USB HID v1.10 Device [E-Signal USB Gaming Mouse] on usb-0000:00:1d.0-1.6/input2
ClixTrix

Re: Linux Mint suddenly doesn't recognize my Nokia phone

Post by ClixTrix »

From the info posted, it looks like the drive is shown as USB Mass Storage. If it's not showing in File Manager / Nemo, it probably is NOT Mounting. That could imply a system problem or something like properties/permissions/file format problem blocking the mount.

If you look at drives in the Disks utility (Menu - Accessories - Disks), does the drive show? If it is there and you click on the drive (left column) are you then able to click on the Mount selection (arrow under pic of layout in right column) and mount the drive? If you get some type of error, make note and post back. If that doesn't mount and doesn't give any error, might need to try mount from Terminal.
neonlike

Re: Linux Mint suddenly doesn't recognize my Nokia phone

Post by neonlike »

No, the drive doesn't show in the disk utility. How do I try a mount via terminal?
ClixTrix

Re: Linux Mint suddenly doesn't recognize my Nokia phone

Post by ClixTrix »

Since the drive doesn't show on disks, that could imply the drive isn't recognized as a device. Generally, I'd expect it to show as /dev/sdx, where x is a drive letter like sda, sdb, sdc, etc. FYI....when you ran the inxi -Fxz command on the prior post, only an sda drive and partitions existed and no USB drives appeared. I was expecting the drive to "exist" and a mount to throw an error or message of some type to help and if not, try mount from Terminal to get a message as to why. However, this is more serious if the drive is not showing.

Run the following command from Terminal without the drive plugged into USB port and then with the drive plugged in. The command shows a list of block/disk devices and any mounted partitions on the devices shows as the mount point for the partition. Need to see if the system shows the phones drive.

Code: Select all

lsblk
If you have a separate USB Flash drive you could do that test as well.....just so you can see how it should work.

Normally, the drive mount point would be something like /media/user/volume-name where user is your user account name. I'm a little suspicious the drive is mounting to something other than user or isn't mounting due to some type of error or permissions problem. With the drive not showing it goes to either broken hardware or broken system.

Auto mount also works with a file /etc/fstab. You can also run the following command from Terminal and post back the result to see if that file has any references to the drive.

Code: Select all

cat /etc/fstab
neonlike

Re: Linux Mint suddenly doesn't recognize my Nokia phone

Post by neonlike »

Thank you for your help. But I feel that I've been wasting your time.

I had the opportunity to test my phone on three different machines with different OS's. The result is simple - it's the phone. The usb port is fubar. This wasn't a Mint issue.

Again, I'm sorry for wasting your time.
ClixTrix

Re: Linux Mint suddenly doesn't recognize my Nokia phone

Post by ClixTrix »

No, not a waste of time. Glad you tried that test. You're welcome and don't hesitate to ask for help.
User avatar
absque fenestris
Level 12
Level 12
Posts: 4124
Joined: Sat Nov 12, 2016 8:42 pm
Location: Confoederatio Helvetica

Re: Linux Mint suddenly doesn't recognize my Nokia phone

Post by absque fenestris »

neonlike wrote: Sun May 13, 2018 8:42 pm Thank you for your help. But I feel that I've been wasting your time.

I had the opportunity to test my phone on three different machines with different OS's. The result is simple - it's the phone. The usb port is fubar. This wasn't a Mint issue.

Again, I'm sorry for wasting your time.
A little hint:
I had the same problems with a Sony Android tablet. At last I thought the mini USB port was broken...
Finally, the cause was the completely discharged lithium battery.
neonlike

Re: Linux Mint suddenly doesn't recognize my Nokia phone

Post by neonlike »

ClixTrix wrote: Mon May 14, 2018 7:08 am No, not a waste of time. Glad you tried that test. You're welcome and don't hesitate to ask for help.
Thank you for understanding. As I mentioned I'm new to Linux and had little to no opportunity to actually go in depth with its features and uses. All I knew was that I was sick and tired of Windows and its godawful plethora of crap. I'm enjoying this Mint quite a lot and i'm glad I took the plunge. For reference I'm in my thirties and have been around for a while regarding computers, but with time I kinda lost interest in tech as a whole so I declined to the status of a mere enduser. Also life, work and so on gets in the way of learning new things.

In any case, thank you a lot.
absque fenestris wrote: Mon May 14, 2018 8:23 am
neonlike wrote: Sun May 13, 2018 8:42 pm Thank you for your help. But I feel that I've been wasting your time.

I had the opportunity to test my phone on three different machines with different OS's. The result is simple - it's the phone. The usb port is fubar. This wasn't a Mint issue.

Again, I'm sorry for wasting your time.
A little hint:
I had the same problems with a Sony Android tablet. At last I thought the mini USB port was broken...
Finally, the cause was the completely discharged lithium battery.
I acquired a card reader and solved my issue in a roundabout way. My Nokia is old but works perfectly sans the now defunct usb port. It's a dumbphone, but adequate for me. A friend also came over and we tried to plug in his smartphone (a Samsung IIRC) and the system recognizes it. In other words my Nokia's usb is at definite fault.

Either way the problem has been solved in a roundabout way.
Locked

Return to “Hardware Support”