[Nexus 5 General] lynnux:
On a couple threads I’ve been asked how I got my N5 to work on a Nougat romon a CDMA network. I’m posting this in the hope that more people try it, and we can figure out a reproducible way to make it work for anyone. I can’t figure out why it’s working for me, or what exactly did it (that’s why this post is so long:o).

Since N5 didn’t get the official update to Nougat, there are supposedly some blobs needed for CDMA networks that never got upgraded. My understanding is that this is the reason it doesn’t work automatically. GSM networks work fine.

I’ve been running LineageOS14.1caf and it’s been stable, always connected to Sprint (via RingPlus, an MVNO). Data and everything else stays connected through reboots and updates. Others have been able to connect N5/CDMA on Nougat, so that’s not a big deal, but they don't seem able to stay connected. It’s lost on reboots, and you have to do things to get it back. Or you can connect, but only have phone and texting, no data.

Most of the time if you flash a custom Nougat rom on N5 and you’re on a CDMA network (like Sprint), you’ll get a message at the startup screen that says ‘no sim card detected’. The data icon on the status bar will be a grayed out icon with a slash through it.

What I’ve tried to get a stable connection is like throwing spaghetti against a wall and hoping some of it sticks. I just kept trying different things until it worked. It’s not automatic. You have to try a lot of different things. On 14.1caf, something I did stuck. On other roms I’ve tried I’ve been able to connect to Sprint, sometimes get data, but it doesn’t stick for long.

At the bottom are links to some zips I’ve used that seem to make a difference.

The first step is to get a connection, but that’s just the beginning. There are a couple ways I’ve gotten this to work on different roms.

When you flash the rom, also flash the second and third zips below if you're on an MVNO. The first one is an aroma installer that lets you choose your MVNO provider and installs an apn that may work, the second supposedly does something to update the prl (I’m not sure if it makes a difference, but spaghetti).

This may get you a connection, either at the startup screen, or once you pop out and reinsert the sim card. The grayed out icon w/slash will become bars, assuming you’re in range of a tower. If this doesn't work, maybe try another rom, or try the other zip.

Alternately, you can flash the other zip (sprint.zip) from the post below, I’d try the other ones first, unless you’re on Sprint directly, not through an MVNO. You may come back to this one later.

When I flashed the sprint.zip first on one rom, I got a connection but it wouldn’t initialize until I flashed the other zip with the aroma installer. However, if you’re on Sprint and not an MVNO that uses Sprint, you may only need this one.

From there, once you have a connection, go through the google setup, and if you still have a connection check to see if it includes data. I have a couple ways to confirm this. 1) Turn off wifi, and you should see 3g or LTE appear next to the bars. 2) Use an app like Internet Connectivity Test to confirm connection. Or open a browser.

If you have data connection, reboot and see if it sticks. If yes, use as is for a while and see if it keeps sticking.

If a reboot loses data, or loses the connection, you can sometimes get it back by removing and reinserting the sim. When this happened to me, I then worked on finding an apn that would keep it stable. When I first was using 14.1caf, it wasn’t stable, I got it stable doing the following.

Flash the sprint.zip. Reboot and go to Settings/Wireless & networks/More/Cellular Networks/Access Point Names. You want to end up with only one apn on the list. If you flashed the sprint.zip, one in the list should just be named ‘Sprint’.

Open the other apn’s one by one, hit the three dot menu, and Delete APN, until only the Sprint one is left. Or, you could create a new apn with all the following settings, just be sure it’s the only apn when you’re finished.

Either create a new apn or open the Sprint apn and use the following settings. You may only to change the two protocol settings.

Name: Sprint

APN: Sprint

Proxy: Not set

Port: Not set

Username: Sprint

Password: *

Server: *

MMSC: http://mms.sprintpcs.com

MMS proxy: 68.28.31.7

MMS port: 80

MCC: 310

MNC: 120

Authentication type: PAP or CHAP

APN type: mms

APN protocol: IPv4/IPv6

APN roaming protocol: IPv4/IPv6

APN enable/disable: (grayed out, or APN enabled)

Bearer: Unspecified

MVNO value: Not set (grayed out)

Hit Save in the three dot menu.

Back out.

Is ‘Sprint’ the only apn in the list? If yes, hit + In APN settings, then back out. This seems strange, but more than once it was like turning on a switch, and I got data connection instantly after hitting + and backing out.

Other things that worked for me at different times early on to restore a lost data connection: Reset Network Settings. Reflash the zips below. Update prl, if it works. Repeat all the above. Spaghetti.

If you’re comfortable saving and restoring backups in TWRP, then you’ll be comfortable trying this out on a few roms to see if you can get Nougat on your CDMA network on N5. If it doesn’t work, you can restore your working rom. It’s been worth it for me, I think Nougat’s an improvement over MM.

14.1 Roms I’ve tried this on: LineageOScaf (success). DarkRom (success, but couldn’t get it to stick. Maybe could with more effort). LineageOS noncaf (success, couldn’t get it to stick). PureNexus (no success).

Yeah, this is a complicated workaround. If a developer would figure out a way to get the right CDMA blobs for N5 on Nougat then it would just work out of the box.

Links to xda posts where zips mentioned above are located.

Sprint.zip: https://xdaforums.com/showpost.php?p=47813564&postcount=1

MVNOBuzbee.zip: https://xdaforums.com/showpost.php?p=65917850&postcount=30

PrlProfileFix.zip: https://xdaforums.com/showpost.php?p=58118888&postcount=46