Tool for connecting to symbian S60 filesystems

Question

I am searching for a tool (or maybe there's a workaround to get it accessed via default tools?) which would let me mount S60 (symbian) filesystems. So far I've found P3nfs, although it seems a bit outdated for current ubuntu (problems with some of gcc modules) or am I doing something in a wrong manner? Thank you in advance

Answer 1

The situation with Nokia phones on Linux is a rather tricky one. I know first hand because I've been a loyal Nokia user for some years now. Unfortunately I've never had a Symbian phone myself, though my brother has had two so far.

What I can tell you is first that it is unlikely you will get good results with the 3rd party software that is available. If you can connect to your device via bluetooth or USB, you maybe able to use Wammu for some limited functionality.

sudo apt-get install wammu

I say limited because you probably won't get access to the actual File System. Gnokii may give you a better deal, but it uses the same backend.

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Virtual Machine Method.

There is also the option of using a virtual machine with Ovi Suite. I tried this recently and I can confirm that it works, but you won't be able to update the phone (at least I was not able to). That is because the USB id of the phone changes when you run an update, and it might not reconnect correctly, so to avoid any risk, do not attempt to update the phone using this method!

If you only want to backup contacts and such, then this is your best option.

What you need:

• A virtual machine manager such as Virtual Box.
• A Microsoft Windows install CD/DVD or a virtual disk containing a legal (recommended!) install.
  • Windows XP recommended.
• The Ovi Suite installer (use the latest available, but avoid betas unless you want to try the lastest feature.s).
• A brain (just kidding)

Steps:

• Create a virtual Machine for your Windows install.
  • I will not cover installing Windows here, or the intricate details of setting up a virtual machine in this post.
  • Install Windows and Ovi Suite.
• Add a USB filter to the virtual machine.
  • Add your phone as a USB device.

* I will update this answer with more details later, but you should be able to connect to your phone with Ovi Suite and do most tasks (except updating).