Do you see APN Settings not available or greyed out and importantly you can't edit? Here is the workaround for APN settings greyed out or disabled or locked.
You might know that different carriers and MVNOs have their own Settings for Access Point Networks (APN). So carriers lock APN Settings on their mobile phones so that you can't modify them. According to some carriers' statements, they hear a lot of complaints regarding the network not being available or unable to use data. The most possible reason for that is the wrong APN Settings. Novice users mostly modify these settings, and they enter the wrong values. Even an extra character space or uppercase also can lead to wrong APN settings. These cases of modifying APNs when the network is not available to have increased and as such, cell phone carriers are coming out with phones with APN Settings greyed out or locked so that users don't modify them without any expert help.
Here, in such cases, cell phone carriers are justified because users don't have to reach customer care or expert for help.
Interestingly, Mark Artherton, one of our users at our BLU Cell Phones support forum on Facebook asked whether we can modify APN Settings when greyed out or locked. He asked why is APN settings locked? Is there any workaround?
APN Settings Greyed Out
Our answer: There are only a few limited options when your carrier has disabled APN settings.
Here are the 4 things that you can do -
- Airplane Mode
- Re-Insert SIM Card
- Reset Phone
- Locked APN Settings
- Unlock APN Settings
- Verizon
- Hack
- Access Point Names are not available for this user
- AT&T
- Why APN Settings Disabled
- Bonus Tip
Toggle Airplane Mode Option:
Most of the time issues on your phone are resolved by toggling Airplane mode (flight mode on a few phones). This is the first thing you can do when you see APN Settings are locked by the carrier.
Re-Insert SIM card & Check:
If the phone doesn't work even after performing the above tricks, you can try to remove the SIM card and then insert it again. This will make sure that your carrier pushes again for new APN settings to your device.
Save & Install them!
It should fix this issue and proceed to the next step if it doesn't.
Reset to Default Mode:
Earlier available on Apple iPhones, it was borrowed from the Android operating system a few years back. You can reset APN Settings to Default. This will delete any customizations to APN and revert back to the original values provided by the manufacturer/carrier.
Strict No No to Unlimited Data Hacks/Tricks:
One of the reasons why APN is locked on your mobile is because of the reason that many people have tried following guides from the web that mentions free unlimited data on mobile lifelong. Let me tell you that these guides are harmful & don't fall prey to such hacks. That's why APN settings are locked on most carrier phones.
How to Edit Locked APN Settings:
If you are an advanced user, then there are a few workarounds by which you can edit locked APN settings. You will have to root your device in order to perform that, but let me tell you that if you are thinking of rooting your phone, then your device warranty will get void. So proceed at your own risk here, and also recommended for novice users.
Now, this guide works on Samsung, Motorola, LG, Huawei, Xiaomi & all other Android smartphones if and only if your phone carriers like Verizon Wireless, Cricket Wireless, T-Mobile & AT&T allow that.
Unlock APN Settings:
If you discover that APN settings are not available for editing, means that these settings are locked, and you can't edit them. You can follow the above-mentioned guide to remove this lock and modify the APN settings as per your needs and if you can't do any of the above-mentioned steps then unlocking APN settings on your phone will not be easy. I am sorry, but I have to say this as less information is available regarding this concept on the web.
Verizon APN Settings Locked/Disabled:
If you are unable to edit Verizon APN Settings, then it might be disabled for safety reasons. Just follow the above-mentioned guide for a workaround.
AT&T APN Settings Disabled/Locked:
Just like Verizon, APN settings on AT&T carrier-locked phones might not be available on some smartphones.
You can follow the above-mentioned tips and tricks for a workaround or just leave it as the best settings are applied for you.
Why do Carriers Disable APN Settings?
Often carrier-locked phones come with no settings for APN to edit or they are locked or disabled. In such a case, your phone connects to your network with the best settings pre-applied and there is no need to modify it.
Also Read:
⇒ Sprint MVNO List
⇒ Assurance Wireless Compatible Phones
Access Point Names are not available for this User:
Whether you are using any new TCL phone or Samsung phone or any other mobile, this error of APN not available for users means you can't edit the APN and it's locked.
In this case, the best settings are applied to your phone and there is no need to do any editing. Since Android is an open-source operating system, network providers edit the source code to lock the APN field area so it's not available. You can read above why network providers do it so.
When this error occurs, you will have to enter your phone in the development mode and these settings are available for the device administrator.
I would recommend not doing anything in such cases and leaving it as it is!
Bonus Tip:
If you have the software updated available on your mobile phone, then we recommend you download and install it as early as possible. This might fix the issue of APN settings not working perfectly for you.
My Opinion:
I Yogesh Khetani have been in the field of mobile communication technology for 15 years now. As an expert in my view, there is no need to do any workaround when you can't "unlock APN settings". So that's the possible workaround when APN settings are greyed out. And that is how to unlock APN settings. That's it for this post.
This post was published on April 9, 2023 8:55 PM