WiFi on London Underground ex-virgin customer (now volt)

[Ruswit]

Hi all,

I ported my number from virgin, I am now with O2 for mobile and virgin for broadband.

I tried getting o2s tube WiFi to work but apparently there are issues if you port your number, and I had no luck.

I thought "no worries" I'll carry on using virgins log in portal with my broadband credentials. They've now shut that down, so I need to go through the O2 WiFi extra network.

Has anyone successfully gotten their ported number working on the tube's (O2) WiFi?

[madasaf1sh]

@Ruswit 

BAI are the ones building out the 4G network in the Tunnels, and I doubt they will be picking up the WiFi network, there is no benefits to anyone doing this.

The problem is you need to get Virgin to deregister the number from the authentication service, and add it to the o2 SSID authentication/ ACL

Nowadays it could be months for VIrgin Media Business, to update the ACL's as they have little interest in maintaining the service.

This used to happen on a regular basis with all networks providing data to Virgin to do the changes, as they manage the service, and just provide SSID's with authentication via an ACL (Sort of ). 

[Ruswit · Accepted solution]

I am not sure any specifics, but Wifi Extra is still working fine but did not connect automatically for me, and would not let me connect if I selected the network. 

These steps DID work, however (found on another forum post, linked) - my phone is an android.

1. Open WiFi settings

2. Click Add network

3. Set network name/SSID: Wifi Extra

4. Set security: WPA/WPA2/WPA3-ENTERPRISE  (on my phone there was wpa/wpa2 enterprise and wpa3- enterprise as different options, but the first worked fine)

5. Choose EAP method: Sim

6. Click Save

My phone now connects automatically - suggesting that new connections are indeed being accepted.

Annoyingly the o2 web page that explains connecting on the underground doesn't make any reference to this, it just says "If you’re device still isn’t connecting to Wifi Extra, it may be incompatible." which isn't particularly helpful!

@madasaf1sh Given that Virgin's log in method would work on devices such as ipod touches using a standard email address + password for authentication, are you sure there is also a registration of your phone number in these cases?

[madasaf1sh]

@Ruswit 

Yes, from what I can gather from talking to someone at VMB i understood there was an ACL with numbers, now this may have been changed to accepted SIM card numbers, and back ground Auth, but if either details dont match then it will fail... 

It is a while since I last discussed the TFL wifi with VMB from a technical level..

Virgins SSID Was setup to enable email and password for authentication, as it backs off to Virgins own iDN solution, and They do something similar with Sky for Sky Sports

[tedbun]

(Response to Message 10 - @Ruswit )

"Virgin Media Wifi" SSID was the generic access point - you didn't need a password to connect to it and you were then asked to click on your provider to continue (or just get free access to things like maps and delays). This presumably dates back to when VM ran the London Underground WiFi. There was also a "Virgin Media" SSID, password protected, for VM customers. Both of these SSIDs disappeared in March 2023. The WiFi is now run by BAI.

O2 customers supposedly should connect automatically to 'WiFi Extra', with your SIM being used for identification. You can't manually connect: https://www.o2wifi.co.uk/o2-wifi/o2-wifi-extra/

[tedbun]

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@MI5 wrote:

@Ruswit 

It's not allowing any new connections as the service is being withdrawn whilst they roll out 4g services.

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What's the basis for this suggestion? I can't see anything that says either that the service is being withdrawn, or that they are not allowing any new connections.

When I switched from EE to O2 in October 2023 I was able to connect through "WiFi Extra" (previously connecting through "EE WiFi-Auto").

[Ruswit]

I'd beg to differ, hence I made a whole post explaining the manual steps that got my phone to connect after many days of it not automatically connecting. It might usually be automatic, but the transfer process from virgin to o2 hasn't been seamless.

I also never said it needed a password or username to connect to the network, "using virgins log in portal with my broadband credentials" was how virgin always wanted me to authenticate as a Virgin customer. This obviously only appeared after you tapped to connect to the network as it is in a portal and not on your phone.

[tedbun]

@Ruswit I meant that you can't manually connect by selecting the WiFi Extra SSID from 'Available networks', as this then prompts you for a username and password. Your workaround of manually adding the network/security details looks like a great alternative option in the auto-connection doesn't happen for whatever reason. It's worth adding that this method is not available for iPhone users, as you don't get an EAP option. All you get is username/password.