/[karcyeh]{6}/ musings

This is my Internet-enabled notepad.

How to USB-Tether Android phones with Windows XP, using

tetherxp.inf

Labels

hacking

hacks

batch
networking
security
admin

Update (23/09/2013):
As Samson has kindly pointed out in the comments, Microsoft has now released a patch for this
issue. To download it and for further information, click
here: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/959765
If you prefer not to use Microsoft's hotfix, please read the comments if you are still experiencing
issues because a lot of people have posted helpful tips. Thanks everyone.

administration
batch
script
reg
reg.exe
registry remote access
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Greetings fellow Android users! I just got a Samsung Galaxy S2, and had some trouble tethering via USB using
the "tetherxp.inf" file. I kept getting the error message: "Cannot install this hardware". So after a bit of
poking around, on the Intarwebz, I devised a workaround, and for those of you experiencing the same
problem, here's my solution:

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1. Plug in your phone, enable USB tethering on your phone, and cancel any hardware wizards

routing

sam

scanne r

script

that pop up on your computer.

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Captain's log
2013 (1)
2012 (3)
October (1)
August (1)
May (1)

2. On your computer, open up your device manager (Start->run->devmgmt.msc)

Find your phone in "Other devices", for me it was called "SAMSUNG_Android".

How to USBTether
Android
phones
with
Windows
XP, ...
2011 (5)

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3. Once you've found it, double click it and switch to the details tab.
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4a.

If you have a Samsung Galaxy S3 or S4 (and possibly S5), please note what Urlaubr
mentioned in the comments.

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4b. Now this is where some of you will get lost, you need to open up the tetherxp.inf file with your
favorite code editor (Start->Run->Wordpad)

will work, but Notepad will not. I'll use PSPad.

And create a new line below "[AndroidDevices.NT.5.1]" containing your Device
Instance Id.

5. Alrighty! Now you are ready to test your handiwork! Save the

modified tetherxp.inf somewhere, I'm using "C:\temp\tetherxp.inf" as you can see

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modified tetherxp.inf somewhere, I'm using "C:\temp\tetherxp.inf" as you can see

in step 4, then switch to the "General" tab of the device properties, and click
"Reinstall Driver...". Select "Install from a list or specific location (Advanced)", and
click next.

6. Click "Search for the best driver in these locations.", and select the folder in which you saved your
modified "
"tetherxp.inf" file.

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7. Now, if all goes smoothly, you should be greeted with this happy screen! You have successfully hacked
the inf configuration to enable tethering in your device. You should see a new Local Area Network
connection appear in your network connections, and it'll give you Internet access! That is, assuming your
phone has Internet access.
If you have a Samsung Galaxy SII, you can download my modified tetherxp.inf file
here: http://pastebin.com/zHtCiAzx
+15 Recommend this on Google

Labels: Android, hacks, networking, tethering, tetherxp, usb, xp

88 comments:
chpwn June 3, 2012 at 9:25 PM
OH YEAH!!! Thanks!
Reply

mike June 19, 2012 at 3:25 PM

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This comment has been removed by the author.

Reply

mike June 19, 2012 at 3:31 PM

mike said...
Works well on a samsung galaxy note. Had a couple of false starts with the device ids that come up
after you plug in but before you enable tethering :-). The error message was "device will not start" or
some such.
If I unplug the phone the windows networking breaks down and won't restart when I plug back in.
Reboot required
Reply

darien bill August 19, 2012 at 3:20 AM

I STILL CAN'T USE THE USB TETHERING EVEN AFTER I INSTALL THE DRIVER THAT WAY.
Reply
Replies
Danilo Borges October 28, 2013 at 11:40 AM
Me too. Using Xperia E dual. Even adding my device to the list the driver did not install itself.
Reply

Vittorio October 16, 2012 at 1:05 PM

Thanks a LOT !!!!!!!
Reply

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ismail salleh November 26, 2012 at 10:08 AM

I still cannot use tether even I done everything like your step above. receive code 1. one thing that I
confuse.. when I tick to chek tether it show connnect just a second, then it disconnect.. so I install it
with tether disconnect. is that right?? help me pls buddyz...;(
Reply

December 13, 2012 at 4:34 PM

It's not working for XP with SP2. After i've upgraded my XP to SP3, everything is working smoothly!
thanks a lot!
Reply

Deny Mlover January 1, 2013 at 7:38 AM

TNX
it the only way it works for me.
Happy holidays
Reply

nabeel karbari January 5, 2013 at 9:21 AM

Thanx a ton ...u r a savior
Reply

Hezekia January 10, 2013 at 7:03 PM

I just installed the HTC SyncManger and Bingo, it worked.
Reply

Paresh mahapatra January 12, 2013 at 5:11 AM

Hey, after upgrading to WIN-SP3, this trick is working like a magic..Thanks buddy for this awesome

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post....
Reply

Shane O'Reilly February 7, 2013 at 6:58 AM

Thanks so much, works well :-)
Reply

Aleksas Bazulinas February 9, 2013 at 3:06 AM

Not working showing "Cannot install driver"
Help!
Reply

Rahul Khandagre February 14, 2013 at 7:41 AM

thanks so much
Reply

Chawy February 27, 2013 at 10:00 PM

THanks,it works well with chinese smartphone model A8
thanks
Reply

Hawkeye March 29, 2013 at 8:28 PM

USB techering is grayed out in Tethering & Mobule Hotspot section of the settings menu of my Razr M.
I can not select it! ?????
Reply
Replies

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Claudiu Cirmaci April 10, 2014 at 9:18 AM

Dude if you cannot select it disconnect ur usb and reconnect it again to pc when you are on
that page ;)
Reply

Tips Tricks Ideas April 1, 2013 at 4:55 AM

Gonna use this all the way until I change to my new phone! No, not to iPhone 5! Will update you all
again once I gotten my new phone! Oh! I think if you all want to buy the iPhone stickers right, I think
cine is the best place to buy as I gotten this from there
Download android apps free
Reply

Ajmal Muhammed April 3, 2013 at 7:45 AM

can you please explain the 4th step]
Reply

scruge April 4, 2013 at 3:03 PM

you da man.. worked like a charm on my Galaxy s2 and winxp sp3.
Why doesn't someone provide a link to the modified tetherxp.inf ?
Reply

Sandeep Banerjee April 13, 2013 at 4:26 AM

Worked perfectly with my Micromax A89. Thanks!
Reply

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Nagarajan SA April 16, 2013 at 9:43 AM

Working well to my micromax A89.
Thanks a lot
Reply

Tailwagger April 25, 2013 at 6:57 AM

Fantastic - works for my Sammy G SIII.
Thanks.
Reply

Anurag Garg April 25, 2013 at 8:57 PM

i have the usb tethering connection active....but i am not able to access internet on my HTC....reason
might be internet security in LAN of the computer....can anybody help here?
Reply

Prester Asis April 28, 2013 at 7:24 PM

i am using service pack 2 and i can't find that tetherxp.inf.
Reply

Harsh Sheth May 8, 2013 at 7:59 AM

thank you very much!!
Reply

Pandu Dryad May 11, 2013 at 3:57 AM

Android always make our life easier :)
Thanks :D
Reply

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Ant Elife May 14, 2013 at 11:04 PM

thank you for sharing,This is very important for me. my lenovo p770 also would like to try
Reply

eragon4u May 17, 2013 at 2:21 AM

Where can i find tetherxp.inf file ? i m new to this i searched for it. could not found which file to edit
Reply
Replies
Saibottomus

May 17, 2013 at 2:29 AM

http://www.android.com/drivers/tetherxp.inf
Reply

David Stevens May 18, 2013 at 5:27 AM

Excellent post..... Thanks for sharing your view with all of us. It is really informative post.
Used Phones
Reply

Sanket Savla May 26, 2013 at 7:21 AM

Thanks Dear,
Your
article
was
helpful
but
www.android.com/drivers/tetherxp.inf

needed

to

download

'tetherxp.inf'

file

from

Also, the post was not clear that in Step 4, you need to add line nos. 48 & 49 & not modify existing
lines in the file.

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Regards,
Sanket Savla
Reply

Antoine Doinel June 20, 2013 at 8:18 AM

oh yes!!! it work perfect! thankZ from Italy
Reply

Sam Barnum July 1, 2013 at 12:41 PM

Hey thanks!
A little tricky bit was that or the Nexus 4 there was an extra set of numbers and characters in the
device ID.
Rathish like this:
copy paste the first two lines listed under AndroidDevices.NT.5.1
you will now have two identical lines.
change the top line from "Nexus one" to "whatever your phone type is"
change the device id from USB/VID_18D1&PID_4E13 to whatever YOUR device ID is. For Nexus 4 it
happens to be USB/VID_18D1&PID_4EE3&MI_00 (a few more characters than most). If you go to the
"Hardware ID" option instead of the "Device ID" dropdown option you will have exactly what you need
to input.
Cheers!
Reply

Ketim July 4, 2013 at 1:06 AM

This one seems to be the solution, but it will not work with Windows XP Service Pack 2, I followed the
instructions and I even downloaded de phone USB drivers for Windows from the official phone page and
it did not work. Since I need to upgrade the Windows version, I guess I'm choosing VIsta or Seven. So
basically if you have Windows XP SP2 don't waste your time, it will not work.
Reply

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Replies
Pakhi Katiyar July 5, 2013 at 10:00 PM
i also hav xp u sure dis is not gonna work..???
Reply

Pakhi Katiyar July 5, 2013 at 9:54 PM

This comment has been removed by the author.
Reply

Pakhi Katiyar July 5, 2013 at 9:59 PM

i ve got canvas A72......2.3 ginger bread......while downloading tether.inf my pc displays a warnong
that dis type of file can harm my comp. after finishing all d above mentiond steps my pc displays that
only CD-ROM files can b installed 4 dis hardware m new to anroid pls. help!!!! (ive got windows xp)
Reply

Yoyok R July 20, 2013 at 10:24 PM

THANKS BRO!! I've been searching this for almost 3 month! and finally you make me made it, I have
had kiss you if you're here.
My android device is TREQ 3G Turbo Plus os Android 4.1 with Win XP SP2
Reply

Lachupakabra kg July 24, 2013 at 1:49 AM

U R Best!!!
Reply

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herupacitan July 28, 2013 at 8:53 AM

thanks, it is work for my Cross A7#. i have make modification.
Reply

17A July 31, 2013 at 12:31 AM

iocean X7 Elite is a newest quad core phone. many people love it and buy it. if you want, please go to
17amall.com.
Reply

Vern Doddridge August 8, 2013 at 9:47 PM

Works an absolute treat....your're worth your weight in gold...a BIG thank you.
Reply

khudabaksh Nilgar August 14, 2013 at 10:11 PM

I can not install driver in Micromax A-45 please help 9887287567
Reply

Sunjay Varma August 19, 2013 at 9:09 PM

I love you. Thank you so much. I was having so much trouble with this.
Reply

Roughgames August 20, 2013 at 7:03 AM

Works great on Samsung Galaxy Note 2.
Had to install this efter installing the tetherxp.inf: Samsung NDIS server
After that it worked immerdiatelly.

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Thanks!
Reply

fahad aziz August 25, 2013 at 9:42 AM

awesome post thanks a lot
Reply

Mukunda August 29, 2013 at 2:26 PM

Hi.. My phone is Samsung GT7562 (ie S Duos) and I have XP SP2. I am unable to install tetherxp.inf: in
this process.. plz help me.
Reply

Amit Ajneriya August 30, 2013 at 11:17 PM

Its not working on my pc Windows Xp SP2
Reply
Replies
Chandrashekara N September 13, 2013 at 5:16 AM
it won't work on SP2. To get it work on sp2 go to droidforums.net or google for this link.
http://www.droidforums.net/forum/android-tech-support/66688-solution-windows-xp-sp2lower-problem-usb-tethering-print.html
Reply

Wanach W September 5, 2013 at 1:18 PM

Thanks for your sharing, guy!

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Reply

Urlaubr September 10, 2013 at 5:05 AM

After some tweaking, I figured out, it looks a little different for the Galaxy S4 on WinXP, you also need
the third part of the device-ID (the string "&MI_00")
so it's:
[AndroidDevices.NT.5.1]
; my S4
%AndroidDevice% = RNDIS.NT.5.1, USB\VID_04E8&PID_6863&MI_00
Reply
Replies
gopi vs April 12, 2014 at 4:44 AM
This really helped for my Samsung Galaxy S3 , Karceh if you could update this info in the post
it will be helpful for others
Reply

September 22, 2013 at 12:35 PM

This article did help me install the 'Karbonn A3+' - 'Spreadtrum phone' hardware. It went under
'Network Adapters' in Device manager, but still had an yellow exclamatory mark. Learned that it is
because i am using SP2.
Hence
Downloaded
and
installed
'Microsoft
Hotfix
KB959765'
as
guided
http://www.droidforums.net/forum/android-tech-support/66688-solution-windows-xp-sp2-lowerproblem-usb-tethering-print.html

by

Now it works. Thanks from Chennai, India.

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Unknown October 5, 2013 at 1:44 AM

Worked like a charm. Wonderful ! :) Thanks
Reply

Pran Protim October 5, 2013 at 6:27 PM

At first it did not worked,But after I installed Windows XP service pack 3 It worked like magic.
Thanks Man..Thanks a lot.
Reply

Prem Kumar October 21, 2013 at 12:11 PM

can u pls suggest for xolo a500s
i m not able to connect my xolo a500s as modem
i use your steps but it showing error not find the correct file
pls check with xolo a500s
Reply

chirag jain October 24, 2013 at 11:04 AM

i cant use my pc internet on my cell give sugesstions please
Reply

gynta dunz October 25, 2013 at 1:36 PM

well done
it works!
thx
Reply

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NEOTHEPHOENIX November 2, 2013 at 9:06 AM

Hi,
Simply installed the lenovo usb driver and lenovo ideatool and eabled the personal hotspot in my P770.
works like charm.
Thanks a lot... Hope to hear more from you.
Reply

jmperezrua November 5, 2013 at 5:13 PM

Gracias. Ourense -Espaa
Reply

Grace lissa November 11, 2013 at 10:10 PM

I am very glad to be here. I hardly Interested to read your content. I think you will be continue your
job. Thanks.
Don't miss the chance Online price comparison on shopping
Reply

Lijo Kurian November 18, 2013 at 1:19 PM

No special skills needed.
You can work from anywhere.
Click here to start..
Reply

aneeee November 21, 2013 at 9:21 PM

it not working on celkon a59
Reply

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Moazzam Azeemi November 28, 2013 at 10:05 AM

It worked for me........ Great.........
using sky vega a770k (Jellybam android 4.1.2)
Reply

M.D. Koffin November 29, 2013 at 9:46 PM

Worked on XP sp3 for Samsung Galaxy Note 3. Thanks.
Reply

Aeschylus2010 December 15, 2013 at 9:27 AM

Worked on my KATA i2.
Great post. Thank you!
Reply

amaranthus oiohio December 17, 2013 at 7:41 PM

This comment has been removed by the author.
Reply

Muzammil Fakih January 17, 2014 at 8:56 PM

Tnks budy.... Worked for me awsome!! Tnx a million!!
Reply

TexasUberAlles January 19, 2014 at 3:36 AM

Instructions-- and modifications in comment section-- do not work on Galaxy S3 SP3; the wizard
returns the same "cannot find" nastygram.

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I am never buying another Samsung phone again.

Reply

Giuseppe Leone January 25, 2014 at 6:31 PM

FUNZIONAAAAAAAAAAAAA...... GREATTTTT & THANK'S ;)
Reply

Faizan Khalid February 6, 2014 at 6:10 AM

It doesn't work
How can I tether 3g EVO tab with pc?
Reply

Giovanni Tabb February 20, 2014 at 5:55 AM

Thank you very much. I installed an Haier W860 on a old netbook
Reply

Madumal Ekanayake February 27, 2014 at 10:33 PM

Finally some light :)) Gracias bro..!! works fine for vodafone smart II..
Reply

Lacy Brown March 1, 2014 at 1:19 AM

Hello, thanks for posting this information, I was trying to find information on this topic this was very
helpful.
Asus Technical Support
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Joy Deep March 1, 2014 at 2:55 AM

Thank you. Your blog was very helpful and efficient..
24x7 Email Support Services
Reply

Thiyagarajan March 2, 2014 at 7:22 AM

Excellent, this is fantastic working well for Lava iris 3G 402 I was searching PC suite and downloaded
useless software's. Simple few steps resolved my 2 days efforts. This is awesome.
Reply

Avinash Jothe March 7, 2014 at 1:34 AM

Is it also work with window 7 ?
Reply

Simone Papa April 2, 2014 at 5:06 AM

Thank You!!! Perfect
Reply

Liza Jenifer April 25, 2014 at 9:47 PM

Well! This article really helpful for my Samsung Galaxy S3, You have done good job. People like your
blog if you updates all information related it. Keep it up.
Doogee Mobile Phone
Reply

Inder Dialani April 28, 2014 at 10:13 PM

Thank you very very much
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simon belmont May 2, 2014 at 5:01 PM

Ohh yeahh!!!!! Fuckin' perfect!!! I love youuu
Reply

Maulia Githa May 5, 2014 at 11:57 PM

Love this post brother, it work. Great job. Thanks.
Reply

Chin Tan May 9, 2014 at 5:33 AM

It almost installed but something popped up. "Continuing your installation of this software may impair or
destabilize the correct operation of your system either immediately or in the future. Microsoft strongly
recommends that you stop this installation now and contact the hardware vendor for software that
has passed Windows Logo Testing."
Then it has two buttons. "Continue anyway" and " STOP Installation". The stop one is the
recommended one to click, with, you know, has the bluish something on the button.
It made me nervous.
What do I do? HELP
Reply

hugodanielw May 12, 2014 at 5:20 PM

Exelent! You are the best. Thank a lot. Work perfect with xp sp3 and Sony xperia!!
Reply

PEHTV May 14, 2014 at 6:52 AM

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PeonTV.com
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NetphoneTv.com
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MrXaxaz88 May 21, 2014 at 10:14 AM

im using alcatel one touch glory 2s pro.. it not working...
Reply

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