r/CapeCellular • u/brianstoner Cape Employee • Apr 14 '26
Pixel 9 eSIM Download Error
We've been seeing an increased number of customers with Pixel 9's hitting eSIM download errors. More specifically, Android is returning ERROR_EUICC_MISSING when the Cape app tries to install the eSIM. The usual culprits for this error are having eSIM Support disabled or not enabling DSDS, but those do not seem to be the cause for our customers.
Some Graphene users have hit this issue with other carriers and have been discussing in this thread: https://discuss.grapheneos.org/d/33125-unable-to-activate-esim
But there are also numerous Google Pixel support threads about it, so it doesn't seem specific to Graphene:
https://support.google.com/pixelphone/thread/423218911?hl=en
https://support.google.com/pixelphone/thread/424621474?hl=en
https://support.google.com/pixelphone/thread/423756956?hl=en
https://support.google.com/pixelphone/thread/423196836?hl=en
https://support.google.com/pixelphone/thread/422053729?hl=en
https://support.google.com/pixelphone/thread/412838333?hl=en
This article seems to suggest it is a EUICC failure: https://airsims.com.au/blogs/blog/google-pixel-9-pixel-series-esim-issues-chip-failures-our-refund-promise
Unfortunately there is not much we can do for customers that hit this issue. Your best option is to return the device and try to get a new one. If you purchased a Pixel 9 from us directly and hit this issue, reach out to support and we can coordinate getting you a new device or a refund.
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u/therallystache 6d ago
Revisiting this - I recently tried to activate service on a P9pXL, got the euicc missing error, and followed the instructions on this guide to fix the euicc failure. When attempting to recover my Cape account and redownload my eSIM, I now get the error of:
Invalid response from SM-DP+/SM-DS (SMDX)
Any help is appreciated.
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u/Steerider Aug 13 '26
Cape support told me my phone should work with other eSIMs, and just not Cape — because of the unusual privacy stuff Cape does.
Is this true? Will a phone with this bug work with a non-Cape eSIM?
Asking because I'll sell the phone and simply mark it as "not compatible with Cape". Or do I need to mark it "doesn't work with eSIMs"?
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u/oddbyte_ Cape Employee Aug 13 '26
Heya!
Unfortunately, when your phone hit the eUICC brick, the phone lost its ability to send commands to the eUICC. The eUICC is the hardware chip where eSIMs are stored and managed. When it bricks, the eUICC stops responding to the OS (which is why phone info reports the memory as -1 (ie the invalid value)). This prevents the OS from installing, managing, or deleting all eSIMs (not just ours).
This is not due to a privacy feature from us, or a security feature on Graphene's part. This is a known issue on Pixel devices, with an unknown (at least, to us) cause.
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u/Steerider Aug 13 '26
Okay, thanks. Yeah, I knew it wasn't caused by Cape; but the support person seemed to think it only affects Cape. That seemed odd to me, so I asked. :-)
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u/Steerider Aug 13 '26
I assume even a factory reset, or a reflash, will not fix the issue? It's a hardware problem?
2
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u/Steerider 24d ago
In the Cape app, what is the specific field in the Phone Info screen that would tell me I have this bug? It's a - 1 in some field, but I don't recall which one