Getting your V1 and V2 router passwords - the safe way

[James67]

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Before deciding whether to use James' utility Please read this first.
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You should also read this thread... Used another router sky cut me off :/

Just click HERE!

This will enable people to obtain their ADSL username and password without having to run the risk of damaging their router. There is a disclaimer which should be read first and agreed to before using the site. Please note that the site will only allow three attempts to use it from a single IP address during any 24-hour period, so please take care to enter the correct information.

So, feel free to make use of this service, but, please, please do not abuse it.

[Saturday]

That's a very impressive piece of investigation and analysis to get to this point James. Speaking personally, I feel that the approach you have taken by providing this utility is to be applauded in that members do not have to make any changes to their Sky V2 router to get their connection username and password.

I hope you don't mind but I've added a link above your post to ensure that members understand that there may be consequences to using this information - getting it isn't a problem and could well be sensible "insurance".

My personal recommendation is that members ensure that they have exhausted every opportunity to exclude other problems before they assume that the Sky router is at fault and only use an alternative router as a last resort. In that case they must accept that they will be breaking the Terms and Conditions for the Sky BB service and that there may well be penalties for that action.

[James67]

I've no problem with that at all. And I wholeheartedly agree with what you're saying. I suspect that many of the people who want to use their own router do so for, frankly, rather spurious reasons. But there are also many others whose reasons that seem entirely legitimate.

What I'd like to see coming out of this is for Sky to reconsider their position on router credentials. The gamers managed to persuade Sky to accept requests to reduce max delay settings, and it would be good if they could be persuaded to accept requests for ADSL passwords.

For example, imagine a situation where your Sky router fails. You've phoned up Sky and they've agreed to send out a replacement router. It must be absolutely maddening to have the equipment that you need to tide you over until you get the replacement (i.e., the router you used before you changed to Sky), but not be able to use it, for the want of a 10 or 15 character password.

There's so many good reasons to use Sky Broadband. It's astonishingly good value. It's fantastic to have a service that doesn't crawl to a standstill in the evening. But it's let down by a few silly little niggles, like the absolute refusal to consider any request to provide ADSL username and password under any circumstances, irrespective of how legitimate the request may be.

[Christof]

Truely well done on a piece of technical magic... I'd have to agree that Sky would do very well to ask for your input as either a consultant or employee... you tread an excellent line between support of Sky (their needs to maintain structure and order on the network) and legitimate needs of Sky users...
Some of the Sky support staff could really do with a lesson in your tact, diplomacy and sheer persistence in wanting to resolve legitimate user issues.

I do have one question now I am able to retrieve my Sagem credentials with your very simple site.... since the Sky routers seem abundantly available on ebay (for some reason) is there any way of pushing the retrieved credentials back into such an ebay purchased Sky router? I ask purely for backup reasons to have a spare router immediately available for a cheap price and that technically would then not be in breach of the Sky Ts & Cs...

[Rebel]

I just want to say thankyou for providing this facility, I have a sagem router and its working well, as much as I would like to use my own router (its a netgear rangemax and has better connection at the far end of my home) as long as the Sagem is working I will stay with that.

IF however the Sagem ever stopped working, simply being able to use an alternative router and retain internet access whilst I wait for a replacement is now possible thanks to your utility.

[James67]

Originally Posted by Christof

I do have one question now I am able to retrieve my Sagem credentials with your very simple site.... since the Sky routers seem abundantly available on ebay (for some reason) is there any way of pushing the retrieved credentials back into such an ebay purchased Sky router? I ask purely for backup reasons to have a spare router immediately available for a cheap price and that technically would then not be in breach of the Sky Ts & Cs...

Unfortunately, it don't think that it would be possible (at least not easily) to put your own username and password into a Sky V2 router. The problem is that the V2 routers calculate the password "on-the-fly" as they are connecting to Sky, and the data that the password is calculated from aren't easy to modify. For example, the Sagem V2 router makes use of data stored in the router's backup configuration (where all the default configuration values are stored). The only way to get access to that is to reflash to 1.1sky, save the configuration, reflash again, this time to the Sagem F@ST 2404 firmware to enable telnet access, then reflash a third time, this time back to 1.1sky and restore a suitably modified configuration file. A lot of fiddling around, and you end up with a router with the wrong firmware anyway.

In any case, the Sky Broadband Conditions require you to use the router that Sky supplied to you. Using a Sky router that was originally supplied to someone else, even if you found a way to put your username and password into it, would still be a breach of the terms and conditions. (It's all down to the use of Capital Letters in the T&C's. They don't say "your wireless router", they say, "your Wireless Router", which in legalese is taken as a referring to specific router, rather than just any old wireless router you happen to own).

If you're looking for an emergency backup router, why not get an Sky Sagem off eBay (I got one for £11 including P+P!) and flash the standard Sagem firmware on it. It's a pretty good BCM6348 router. Whatever you do, you're going to be in breach of the terms and conditions if you use an "emergency backup" router like this, regardless of whether it has a Sky label on it or not. But with Sky taking as much as a week (or even more!) to deliver a replacement, I think you can claim the "moral high ground" in such a situation.

[Rebel]

Dumb question time (sorry) on the router status page when I log into the router it gives a MAC address xx-xx-xx-xx-xx-8D however the label on the base of the router is xx-xx-xx-xx-xx-8B

The WPA-PSK network key is the sam both on the label on the base of the router and the Broadband setup page on the router itself.

My question is which MAC address should I use the one showing on the base of the router ending 8B or the one n the router status page ending 8D

Thanks in advance