Not all codes given below are supported by all service providers, so there is no harm in trying a code — you’ll know which ones work and which ones don’t by a confirmation or rejection message.
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SMS Message Delivery Confirmation Some GSM handsets have a built-in feature to let you know when your SMS message has been delivered, which may be a nice feature to have. If your handset doesn’t support this or you wish to manually use this feature then prefix your outgoing message with either 111 or *noti#, such as: The recipient of the message won’t receive the “111” or “*noti#” at the beginning of the message, but you will receive a confirmation that it has been delivered to their handset. Note that not all GSM networks support this feature (e.g., Fido in Canada supports 111, T-Mobile supports *noti#) GSM Code Scheme and Passwords Most of the codes given below follow this pattern. With enough use, you will learn to know what each means:
Some service providers will also let you change your passwords as follows:
If you have never set a PIN before, try the usual default of ‘0000’, ‘1111’, or the last 4 digits of your phone number. If none of these work then contact your service provider. Note that the PIN is not the same as the Call Barring [code] given in the Call Barring section below. Call Forwarding GSM supports four different types of Call Forwarding or Call Diversion. These are:
The table below gives the call forwarding codes. Hit [SEND] after any command. Some of these commands may be accessible on your handset’s menu, but this varies between handsets and service providers. |
Feature | All Calls | Voice Calls | Data Calls | Fax Calls | Line 2 Calls |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Forward all Activate: Cancel&Retain: Reestablish: Cancel&Forget: Status: |
*21*[dest]# #21# *21# ##21# *#21# |
*21*[dest]*11# #21*11# *21*11# ##21*11# *#21*11# |
*21*[dest]*25# #21*25# *21*25# ##21*25# *#21*25# |
*21*[dest]*13# #21*13# *21*13# ##21*13# *#21*13# |
*21*[dest]*89# #21*89# *21*89# ##21*89# *#21*89# |
If busy Activate: Cancel&Retain: Reestablish: Cancel&Forget: Status: |
*67*[dest]# #67# *67# ##67# *#67# |
*67*[dest]*11# #67*11# *67*11# ##67*11# *#67*11# |
*67*[dest]*25# #67*25# *67*25# ##67*25# *#67*25# |
*67*[dest]*13# #67*13# *67*13# ##67*13# *#67*13# |
*67*[dest]*89# #67*89# *67*89# ##67*89# *#67*89# |
If no answer Activate: Cancel&Retain: Reestablish: Cancel&Forget: Status: |
*61*[dest]*[sec]# #61# *61# ##61# *#61# |
*61*[dest]*11*[sec]# #61*11# *61*11# ##61*11# *#61*11# |
*61*[dest]*25*[sec]# #61*25# *61*25# ##61*25# *#61*25# |
*61*[dest]*13*[sec]# #61*13# *61*13# ##61*13# *#61*13# |
*61*[dest]*89*[sec]# #61*89# *61*89# ##61*89# *#61*89# |
If unreachable Activate: Cancel&Retain: Reestablish: Cancel&Forget: Status: |
*62*[dest]# #62# *62# ##62# *#62# |
*62*[dest]*11# #62*11# *62*11# ##62*11# *#62*11# |
*62*[dest]*25# #62*25# *62*25# ##62*25# *#62*25# |
*62*[dest]*13# #62*13# *62*13# ##62*13# *#62*13# |
*62*[dest]*89# #62*89# *62*89# ##62*89# *#62*89# |
All 4 Activate: Cancel&Retain: Reestablish: Cancel&Forget: Status: |
*002*[dest]# #002# *002# ##002# *#002# |
*002*[dest]*11# #002*11# *002*11# ##002*11# *#002*11# |
*002*[dest]*25# #002*25# *002*25# ##002*25# *#002*25# |
*002*[dest]*13# #002*13# *002*13# ##002*13# *#002*13# |
*002*[dest]*89# #002*89# *002*89# ##002*89# *#002*89# |
All conditionals Activate: Cancel&Retain: Reestablish: Cancel&Forget: Status: |
*004*[dest]# #004# *004# ##004# *#004# |
*004*[dest]*11# #004*11# *004*11# ##004*11# *#004*11# |
*004*[dest]*25# #004*25# *004*25# ##004*25# *#004*25# |
*004*[dest]*13# #004*13# *004*13# ##004*13# *#004*13# |
*004*[dest]*89# #004*89# *004*89# ##004*89# *#004*89# |
Most people will arrange to forward their voice calls to a voice mailbox number. For Canadian Fido customers, you can enter the number “3436” (this spells FIDO) into the [dest] field and this will set the local voice mailbox access number automatically for you. If you are unsure what your local voice mailbox number is then contact your service provider.
GSM also supports call forwarding if you hit the end key on an incoming call. This is particularly handy if your phone rings and you either can’t or don’t want to answer it. Hitting the [END] key will automatically forward the caller to whatever number you have set up to forward to under the “forward if no answer” or “forward all”. If you haven’t set up call forwarding and hit the [END] key during an incoming call then your caller will hear an initial ringing tone followed by a busy or engaged tone.
Call Waiting
Activate: *43#
Cancel: #43#
Status: *#43#
To answer an incoming call waiting just hit the [SEND] key and your first caller will be put on hold and you can talk to the second caller. Alternatively you can hit [2][SEND].
To join both callers in a conference call, select the “join” or “conference” setting on your phone (not supported on all handsets).
If you wish to take the second call and are finished talking to the first caller then hit the [END] key and your phone will start ringing with the second caller and then hit [SEND] to answer the call. Alternatively you can hit [1][SEND].
If you do not wish to talk to the second caller and want to continue to talk to the first caller you can either choose to ignore the call waiting tone or hit [0][SEND].
Caller ID / Call Display
If you wish to either show or hide your phone number on outgoing calls then you may either set this on your phone’s menu or manually enter the code before dialing. These codes will override whatever menu setting you have on a per-call basis.
Do not display: #31#[phone number]
Display: *31#[phone number]
Status: *#31#
North American GSM service providers also support the landline codes for this feature (these also work on CDMA, TDMA, and iDEN phones):
Do not display: *67[phone number]
Display: *82[phone number]
There are also codes to show or prevent incoming numbers from being shown on your handset if you subscribe to this feature. I’m not too sure why you’d want to do this, but just in case you do:
Do not display: #30#
Display: *30#
Status: *#30#
Call Barring
If you wish to restrict calls that can be made or received by your handset then this is referred to as “Call Barring”. All Call Barring codes are specific to your network, so you’ll have to ask your service provider what [code] to enter below:
Feature | All | Outgoing | Incoming | Outgoing International |
Outgoing Intl except home country |
Incoming outside home country |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Activate: Cancel: Status: |
**330*[code]# ##330*[code]# *#330# |
**333*[code]# ##333*[code]# *#333# |
**35*[code]# ##35*[code]# *#35# |
**331*[code]# ##331*[code]# *#331# |
**332*[code]# ##332*[code]# *#332# |
**351*[code]# ##351*[code]# *#351# |
Do Not Disturb
This particular feature is available from some North American GSM, CDMA, TDMA, and iDEN providers:
Do not disturb: *78
Cancel: *79
Other Miscellaneous Codes
These have been collected from various sources and may be specific to certain networks only. Use at your own risk!
Minutes Used: #646# (646 spells ‘MIN’)
Own Number: *#100#
HLR number: *#101#
Switch number: *#102#
Network Time: *#103#
Voice mailbox number: *#104#
Switch number: *#105#
Last Caller: *#147#
Vodafone Prepaid balance: *#1345# or *174#