Unlocked S10e from US not receiving OTA updates in Canada

[Riffamortis]

I purchased an unlocked S10e from Best Buy in Canada and it ended up being a US version of the phone (Samsung support says it's originally from AT&T). It currently has One UI 3.1, Android 11, and the December 1, 2021 patch - all of which appear to be outdated - but attempting a software update on the phone says the software is up to date and Smart Switch also says there's no update.

I've spoken to 8 or 9 Samsung agents but none of them have been able to provide a solution and my local Samsung store said they "won't even touch" my phone because it's from the US. I know people will say to flash the new firmware with Odin, but I'm using a mac and Odin seems to be Windows-only. Is there any way for me to get updates on my phone?

[RedDogRabbit]

I would use Frija as it is much faster than sammobile.com! 

Install it on your computer & run as Administrator 

https://forum.xda-developers.com/t/tool-frija-samsung-firmware-downloader-checker.3910594/

When you put in the device model - Use "W" at the end instead of the US "U/U1"  and in the CSC, you put the abbreviation for your Canadian Carrier, ie: Rogers is "RWC".

This is to download the Canadian Firmware. 

The screen shot is just a sample of what Frija looks like. 

Anyway, I hope that this will solve the problem for you! 

 

[Riffamortis]

"If you need the Patched version of Odin (or the regular version) I can send you a link to my Drive account to download."

Would you be able to send the patched version that I need to install the Canadian firmware? I've done the Frija part of the process and am backing up my phone now.

[RedDogRabbit]

Here is the link to Patched Odin. 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1BFltu1Bsg6ktSNaJEttcqD_7vTL-Xbr2/view?usp=drivesdk

[Riffamortis]

I followed your previous instructions but get an error message in Odin that says "FAIL! SHA256 is invalid!" when trying pressing Start after loading the BL file.

[RedDogRabbit]

You downloaded the Canadian version for your S10 using Frija with the correct model number & CSC for your Canadian Carrier & You are using Patched Odin version 3.14.4  running it as Administrator?

SHA256 normally means that the file is not valid. 

[Riffamortis]

Yes. I entered SM-G970W into Frija with VMC (for Virgin Mobile), left it on auto, and confirmed that the file it was downloading was the same PDA code as listed on Sammobile. I downloaded the version of Odin you provided, opened as it administrator, loaded the BL file, put the phone in download mode, pressed Start and it failed.

[RedDogRabbit]

Did you install Samsung's USB Drivers on your computer? 

You extracted the tar files from the downloaded firmware (how big was the extracted download? - Should have been something like 7+- Gig). 

Seems that you were able to download the firmware pretty quickly - Even with Frija.. 

You waited for the BL to load in the BL slot in Patched Odin?

You see a light blue box in Odin that says something like "id:com"

Then you press on "Start" & then it fails immediately or?

[Riffamortis]

I installed the Samsung drivers before Odin, extracted the file (5.8GB when compressed), waited for BL to load ("Checking MD5 finished Successfully... Leave CS..."), a blue light with "0:[COM3]" inside it turns on above ID:COM, "Added!" message appears, I press start and it fails a second later.

[RedDogRabbit]

Uhm.. 

Try this version of Patched Odin, it's one version older, but it's worth a shot. 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1GaWBeEfweFK0n1wD2tPsnHGOAUlD9FFZ/view?usp=drivesdk

[Riffamortis]

I made it through the BL, CP, and AP steps. The phone then restarted on its own but didn't automatically go back to the download screen after AP. It went to the Samsung logo boot screen and was stuck on "Starting Android..." for about 15 minutes so I put it back into download mode and installed the CSC file and it worked! I've got Canadian bloatware and less outdated software. :)

Thanks so much for your help!