not possible to connect java-apps via Web/services proxy settings

[helgobender]

Please read that dear technical staff at Nokia!

It is very important to give us the posibility of connecting the Java apps to the internet via default access point, OR via Web/services!

This option can be found in the Nokia 6230 and also in Nokia 7600 (directly in the Applications -menue: connect via: -default , OR: -web/services)
but it is not there anymore in the Nokia 6230i or 6280 e.g. ..

This menue-option gives the java-apps the opportunity to connect via the default access point, OR via WEB (witch is the access for the wap-Browser servicesalso).

PLEASE give us this menue-option back in one of the upcomeing firmware for the Nokia 6230i and newer handsets!
Many thanks and regards from Germany,
H. Bender



P.S. same thoughts come from user quantoid. Thanks a lot quantoid!

The basic question everyone is looking to answer is as follows: "Is it possible to configure a 6230i, 6030, 6280 handset so that HTTP requests made through a Java MIDlet will use an HTTP proxy?"

We have a Java MIDlet that has been created for an operator for use on a range of handsets including 6230, 6230i up to and including the 6280.

The MIDlet is designed to use an APN with a WAP 2.0 as a proxy server. We have to use this proxy server in order to authenticate connections from the carrier (the proxy appends an HTTP header to the request sent from the MIDlet). The MIDlet itself uses an HTTPConnection for communication.

This works for HTTP requests from the 6230 handsets. However, the 6230i fails (and indeed all other new Nokia Series 40 handsets fail).

On these new handsets, Java applications always uses the ‘Preferred access point’ setting (via Settings | Configuration | Preferred access point). Setting this to be the 'internet' APN (or any APN that is not closed via an operator walled garden) allows connection to the server but does not pass through the all important authentication header because the HTTP proxy is bypassed.

On older handsets such as the 6230, Java uses the settings from the Web Browser – if the WEB browser is configured for use with a Proxy. Sadly, the Web settings no longer seem to be used by newer handsets.

Manual configuration on the 6230i handset provides the following options:

1. An APN account can be defined (via Settings | Configuration | Personal configuration settings | Add new | Access Point). However, an APN does not allow the manual configuration of an HTTP proxy.
2. A Web account to be defined (via Settings | Configuration | Personal configuration settings | Add new | Web). In this case, a proxy can be defined by selecting ‘Use preferred access point | No’ and then editing the relevant settings under ‘Access point | Proxy’.

No matter what configuration options are added, the Web settings do not affect Java. The Java system only seems to look at the Preferred APN setting and this has no obvious way to configure a proxy.

[fonTalk]

Would someone at Nokia PLEASE address this issue!? The taking out of this functionality has caused major headaches to many users.

In fact, I know of at least five or six people personally who have bought other manufacturers' phones instead of Nokia ones precisely becuase Nokia stopped making proxy connection definitions for MIDLETs available. This is nothing but a loss of revenue for Nokia. It makes no sense at all that this capability was taken out. Devices should become more capable, not less. What gives Nokia? Both sides lose... Nokia loses customers and customer can't access this simple functionality available on just about every other java-capable phone out there.

[Nokia Ron]

Would someone at Nokia PLEASE address this issue!? The taking out of this functionality has caused major headaches to many users.

In fact, I know of at least five or six people personally who have bought other manufacturers' phones instead of Nokia ones precisely becuase Nokia stopped making proxy connection definitions for MIDLETs available. This is nothing but a loss of revenue for Nokia. It makes no sense at all that this capability was taken out. Devices should become more capable, not less. What gives Nokia? Both sides lose... Nokia loses customers and customer can't access this simple functionality available on just about every other java-capable phone out there.

We will process this as a requirement in our next req mgmt meeting and pass this req to S40 people and let you know the status. Note this may not be a Nokia decision.

Ron

[helgobender]

Thank you Ron!

Please dont overestimate the GPRS-traffic: its small screens, so with a average of 10 MB per day it shouldt not be more then 200-300 MB a month.
(so its not "hundreds" of MB..)

In Germany we have up to 5 GB traffic-limided 3G "flat-fees" now for 30 € a month.

Also we have full-flatts, with unlimited 3G-traffic via internet APN s for 40 - 50 € a month.
(And here you can use a Notebook-PC to surf the web nonstop..) .

With regards from Berlin

[fonTalk]

Thanks Ron!!!

I personally (and several other people I know) will definitely go back to buying Nokia Series 40 phones in the future (if and) when Nokia updates the S40 software to re-insert the "Connect Via" menu option that was dropped when S40 v.2 was introduced... the act which caused the inability to define proxy setting for MIDlets on all S40 v.2+ devices.

[melchizedeck]

Well i have posted a similar topic about one month ago, and i notice while looking in the web for a solution that too many people with nokia 6230i and nokia 3220 have the same problem. if you look at the forums of Opera Mini browser at opera.com, mobile google map, mobile Emsn and other java applications forums, there are too many user reporting that those applications can not connect to internet. I hope it could be solved by Nokia with a new firmware.

[Nokia Ron]

Here is what I've found out. Sadly, the diagnosis by the MIDlet developers is pretty close to 100% accurate. However, there is already a change in the system to provide this capability (again).

This change was requested by FN but some not so good news is that it seems that this change will be scheduled only for late 2007 earliest (products early 2008) which is probably not what the youwant to hear. The text from the requirement clarifies as follows:

"Prior to the introduction of OMA Device Management in S40 phones, MIDlets used the Browser network settings, which allowed MIDlets to use HTTP Proxies when accessing the network. With the introduction of OMA Device Management, MIDlets now by default use the Default Internet Access Point, which does not support HTTP Proxies. This is an issue for some MIDlet developers who want to use HTTP Proxies with their MIDlets, they want to use Proxies to authenticate the MIDlet requests before they are passed on.

MIDlets can use HTTP Proxies if the settings downloaded using OMA Device Management include proxies and the Application Id matches the MIDlet Application Id. But it is not possible to do this using the User Interface of the phone."

Which suggests that there MAY be some possibility to provision settings to the phone which allow this - just not possible via phone UI. I think, our Chief Architect, can confirm if this is in fact true (!) and comment if this is something the average MIDlet developer can realistically do.

So when I hear more I'll let you know. Bottom line, big hope for far term, moderate hope for work around until then.

Ron

[gigi7]

...MIDlets can use HTTP Proxies if the settings downloaded using OMA Device Management include proxies and the Application Id matches the MIDlet Application Id. But it is not possible to do this using the User Interface of the phone.

Which suggests that there MAY be some possibility to provision settings to the phone which allow this - just not possible via phone UI...
Ron

Ok great!
Can't you write an autoconfigurable SMS patch like those used to configure wap profiles?
Bye

[traud]

Sorry for bumping this thread to the top again, however, at the moment I trying similar. Creating a OMA Client Provisioning setting with a proxy for the default access point. Here, someone seems to succeded to use an x-MIDlet application configration. Nevertheless, I want to understand this. I am able to create such a configuration, it is accepted by phone and my access point name is choosen. However, the proxy is ignored. Either I do not understand this technical comment or I am doing something wrong.

Nokia Series 40 Client Provisioning states at the end of chapter 4.10:
Internet access is not supported for Proxies. If an operator would like to grant access anyway, it can be achieved in the following way:
• Use the Access characteristic:
<characteristic type="ACCESS">
• Define a rule that all unknown applications should use a specific proxy:
<parm name="RULE" value="Default Rule"/>
• Define a rule that all applications not pointing to a specific access point or proxy should use a “default proxy”:
<parm name="TO-PROXY" value="10.0.0.172 GPRS"/>
This approach has a major drawback – it does not work across configuration contexts, and that effectively restricts the number of configuration contexts to one. Note: This option is not recommended at all.

Do not understand, how I can create such a setting. Here is one I would need for Vodafone CallYa (Germany) as there is no support for direct internet access for those customers

<?xml version="1.0" encoding='UTF-8' standalone='yes'?>
<!DOCTYPE wap-provisioningdoc PUBLIC
		"-//WAPFORUM//DTD PROV 1.0//EN"
		"http://www.openmobilealliance.org/tech/DTD/prov.dtd"
>
<wap-provisioningdoc>

	<characteristic type="BOOTSTRAP">
		<!-- Nokia Series 40: Name der Konfiguration -->
		<parm name="NAME" value="Vadafone WAP" />
	</characteristic>
	
	<characteristic type="ACCESS">
		<parm name="RULE" />
		<parm name="TO-PROXY" value="Vadafone WAP" />
	</characteristic>
	
	<characteristic type="PXLOGICAL">
		<parm name="PROXY-ID" value="Vadafone WAP" />
		<parm name="NAME" value="Vodafone WAP" />
		<characteristic type="PXPHYSICAL">
			<parm name="PHYSICAL-PROXY-ID" value="1" />
			<parm name="PXADDR" value="139.007.029.001" />
			<parm name="TO-NAPID" value="INTERNET" />
			<characteristic type="PORT">
				<parm name="PORTNBR" value="80" />
			</characteristic>
		</characteristic>
	</characteristic>
	
	<characteristic type="NAPDEF">
		<parm name="NAPID" value="INTERNET" />
		<parm name="BEARER" value="GSM-GPRS" />
		<parm name="NAME" value="Vodafone WAP" />
		<parm name="INTERNET" />
		<parm name="NAP-ADDRESS" value="wap.vodafone.de" />
		<parm name="NAP-ADDRTYPE" value="APN" />
	</characteristic>
	
</wap-provisioningdoc>

Does not work. Proxy ignored. Or is there no way without x-MIDlet?

[kawaiimomo]

Does not work. Proxy ignored. Or is there no way without x-MIDlet?

No way without x-MIDlet? What does that mean? Who has been able to make this x-midlet thing working? Any example?

The specification for OMA provisioning in series 40 DP2 says:

"The implementation supports specific provisioning of a certain MIDlet. This means that a specific MIDlet can be provisioned by specific settings. However, the application ID must be unique. With the Nokia 3320 device, the application ID is created by combining the MIDlet name and vendor:

”x-midlet-” + ”first 20 characters of MIDlet Vendor” + ”first 20 characters of MIDlet Name”"

But that don't work, after saving the APN, the device says something like: Unable to find application matching the APPID.

So any comment on this? What kind of specification is that one talking about a certain model? It wasn't Series 40 DP2 document? Anyone has this thing working?

[helgobender]

Hello Nokia Ron!

We are talking all the time about S40 here (fast OS, smaller devices, longer battery life), but the S60 devices are getting smaller and faster too..

Question (regarding our issue in this thread):
is it possible with the newest S60 v.3, like e.g. the Nokia 6290, to set mannualy a proxy-ip for java-midlets ? (via phone User Interface) .

Thank you, with best regards,

Helgo Bender

[ravidavi]

Here you go. This doesn't use the "x-midlet-" approach, so works with any midlet that needs network access.

Ravi

[vikyjo]

hi I have question Sorry might have addedd to the wrong forum, but I have an issue when i use HTTP connection for my vendors Java midlet ( i have used the provs and created proxy Access point ) it works fine.
Now when i use HTTPS connection over the proxy settings it seems to be failing. Can u tell me what could be possibly wrong?