Database Users

Complete Wipe How

Just also help me to understand about wipe.. once you are on wipe menu you get 4 to 5 option. How do I do complete wipe. Should the first option to be selected only or all options to be selected one by one. By now I have been selecting only the first option. Is it safe to wipe the SD card with this.

Wipe factory/data settings. Wipe dalvik-cache. You've now completely wiped your handset.

what exactly is in the dalvik-cache? are there times you wouldn't want to wipe the dalvik?

polo79 said:
what exactly is in the dalvik-cache? are there times you wouldn't want to wipe the dalvik?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
http://dbhcreative.com/blog/?tag=dalvik-cache
my understanding is that it is used by the java virtual machine for temp data by running programs... not sure if this is correct.
in any event, there doesn't seem to be a reason not to wipe it - and i've seen many posts about a performance gain if you phone starts to get laggy by clearing it.

jkhouw1 said:
http://dbhcreative.com/blog/?tag=dalvik-cache
my understanding is that it is used by the java virtual machine for temp data by running programs... not sure if this is correct.
in any event, there doesn't seem to be a reason not to wipe it - and i've seen many posts about a performance gain if you phone starts to get laggy by clearing it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thanks a lot!

Clockwork clears dalvik-cache just fine

There has been some confusion over whether ClockworkMod Recovery actually wipes the dalvik-cache correctly. I decided to test it myself. I booted into CW recovery, fired up ADB, and mounted /data. Looking inside /data/dalvik-cache I saw a list of .dex files (the cache, of course). So I unmounted, then used the CW menu to wipe the dalvik-cache. Note, this is NOT just the "wipe cache" option on the main menu. This is a separate option under "advanced." Then I re-mounted /data and looked again . . . and the dalvik-cache directory was completely gone. Rebooting into Android and looking again, it was back (rebuilt) after a long-ish boot time (rebuilding phase), so I'm sure that at least my install of CW v2.5.0.1 is wiping the dalvik-cache just fine.
If you're still not sure, you could use ADB to wipe the cache yourself:
Code:
adb shell
mount /data
rm -rf /data/dalvik-cache/*
Then you can use the Clockwork menu to wipe everything else and flash your ROM. These three commands actually just delete everything inside the dalvik-cache directory, whereas Clockwork appears to remove the directory entirely. Doesn't really matter either way, the system will replace the directory if it gets deleted.
Feel free to replicate my results. That's how science works.
UPDATE: Just did a similar test with the "wipe data/factory reset" menu option. This actually wipes the entire /data directory, which includes the dalvik-cache, so doing a dalvik wipe would be redundant if you're doing a full data wipe anyway. Correct me if I'm wrong.

Thanks I've never had any problems with clockwork, but it seems like there has been a pox on its name since my arrival to the android/evo community.
In particular, I always wondering if I was just being overly redundant going into the advanced menu and wiping dalvik cache ON TOP of a data/cache wipe when flashing a new rom. I'm gonna trust your experiment and stop doing it!

vladthedog said:
Thanks I've never had any problems with clockwork, but it seems like there has been a pox on its name since my arrival to the android/evo community.
In particular, I always wondering if I was just being overly redundant going into the advanced menu and wiping dalvik cache ON TOP of a data/cache wipe when flashing a new rom. I'm gonna trust your experiment and stop doing it!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can't argue with empty directories. The only possible catch would be if there is a dalvik-cache log or something elsewhere outside of /data, but I'm 99.7% sure just doing a "data wipe / factory reset" will wipe dalvik no problem. Still do the other "wipe cache" option as well, though.

Oh I will..I'm just lazy and if I don't have to go ALL the way into the advanced menu too wipe my dalvik I will feel a whole lot better about the world
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App

redundancy never hurt anybody

when you clear the dalvik are you supposed to get some sort of confirmation. whenever i clear it ask me i want to and when i reply yes, it just goes back to the menu. idk if anything actually is happening. (is this what you guys are referring to?)

Yes, that's what we're talking about. Mine is the same way, but it appears to be fine. For one thing, if you do a data wipe first, the dalvik cache goes with it so there would be no real delay even if you then tried to clear it separately. It's already gone. But there should be some sort of confirmation added to the next update, IMO.

crakerjaks said:
redundancy never hurt anybody
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I always wipe at least twice, it's cleaner. No one likes leaving any bits behind after wiping only once.

firemedic1343 said:
I always wipe at least twice, it's cleaner. No one likes leaving any bits behind after wiping only once.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah, aha, yes. Very good.

crakerjaks said:
redundancy never hurt anybody
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
redundancy never hurt anybody

TheBundo said:
redundancy never hurt anybody
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I thought it killed the cat?
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App

How to PROPERLY Flash a ROM

Since I have seen alot of individuals within ROM threads stating things such as, "Your ROM bricked my phone." or "I can't get your new ROM to install." decided to make this guide. Hopefully it will solve this issue and help educate people.
What not flasing correctly can do:
1. Cause your phone not to boot
2. Cause Force closes and issues
3. POSSIBLY Brick your phone (though I have not seen an Eris Brick yet)
We must also remember that:
1. The devs of these ROMs are NOT responsible for any damage to your phone
2. The devs spend alot of time with testing to make sure the ROM works.
3. A ROM will NOT always flash over a previous ROM
OK.. So onto the main topic..
assuming you are rooted and using AMON's Recovery. I suggest AMON's because Clockwork has had recent issues. Big thanks to AMON for this!
How to install a ROM properly:
1. Boot into recovery ( with either reboot to recovery option or powerdown and then holding volume up and power )
2. Goto Backup/Restore and do a NAND Back-Up
3. Do a data/factory wipe ( NOTE: if the dev says you can flash over an old version you dont NEED to do this, but if you don't do this and the ROM is not booting then I suggest you restart this process [minus the back-up] and do a data/factory wipe)
4. Do a Dalvik Wipe... 3 times (ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS do this)
5. Flash ROM
6. Reboot and Wait ( after a Dalvik wipe and flashing ROMs first boot can take 3+ minutes to load... BE PATIENT )
More to Come...

If you could, please explain what a Dalvik flash does. Thanks in adavnce, and thanks for this thread. I've never had any issues flashing, but it's nice to see someone explain the basics....

MOS95B said:
If you could, please explain what a Dalvik flash does. Thanks in adavnce, and thanks for this thread. I've never had any issues flashing, but it's nice to see someone explain the basics....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
"Dalvik cache is a program cache area for the program Dalvik. Dalvik is a java based virtual machine that is the bases for running your programs (the ones that have the .apk extension). In order to make access times faster (because there's not JIT (just in time) compiler installed by default), the Dalvik-cache is the result of Dalvik doing a optimization of the running program." - Taken From Android forums
Basically it analyzes the phone before it boots. Then it sees what apps you have and will use and assigns cache to them. This way they will load quickly and properly.
When you flash a new ROM apps can change, or if you do a data/factory reset those apps are gone. SO wiping the Dalvik allows it to rebuild itself for what YOU are using.
This is also good to do after cleaning out or removing many unused apps from the phone. I usually do it once a week AT LEAST.

With the exception of a 2.1 ROM running apps2sd on an ext partition, is there really any point to wipe Dalvik if you have just done a wipe data/factory reset (which also wipes Dalvik cache)? And what exactly is the point of wiping Dalvik three times - why is once not enough? Is there something wrong with Amon Recovery which prevents a full Dalvik wipe unless you do it more than once?
It certainly doesn't hurt to wipe Dalvik after a wipe data/factory reset, but it should be already wiped.

I'm still fairly new, but I've flashed quite a bit. I didn't know to wipe dalvik x3. that's an interesting bit of info. Any reason why? Thanks

lp4261 said:
I'm still fairly new, but I've flashed quite a bit. I didn't know to wipe dalvik x3. that's an interesting bit of info. Any reason why? Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Safety reasons... personally I do factory then dalvik 3x then factory again and dalvik 3x again.
Sent from my ERIS using XDA App

I tried this and now I have a paper weight lol j/k

tazzpatriot said:
I tried this and now I have a paper weight lol j/k
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My plan worked
Sent from my ERIS using XDA App

I believe the reason is that sometimes even after a wipe people have reported residual data in the cache, I personally don't do it three times but I do a wipe, dalvik, dalvik, wipe.
Its not going to hurt anything and it gives me piece of mind.

Delvaris said:
I believe the reason is that sometimes even after a wipe people have reported residual data in the cache, I personally don't do it three times but I do a wipe, dalvik, dalvik, wipe.
Its not going to hurt anything and it gives me piece of mind.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
cool. Thanks for the good info.

x3? I do once before and once after. Frankly once before has been enough for me... though I suppose being safe has never hurt.

If the dalvik cache still won't clear after 3 times you can piss on your phone. That seems to really help.

in most cases once is enough but like I said, it's not likely to hurt anything to give it a couple of wipes to make sure all the junk data is cleared.

Let me put it this way...
I wont use a public toilet just by seeing it is clean... ill clean it like twice ...
This is why I dalvik 3 times lol
Sent from my ERIS using XDA App

icbeer said:
If the dalvik cache still won't clear after 3 times you can piss on your phone. That seems to really help.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried that today.. now my phone wont turn on... any fix?...
Jk
Sent from my ERIS using XDA App

It would be interesting for someone like Amon to comment on the need to wipe data or recovery more than one time. In my opinion, once is enough. I'm 100% confident than wipes #2, #3, and so on are wiping blank space...

hallstevenson said:
It would be interesting for someone like Amon to comment on the need to wipe data or recovery more than one time. In my opinion, once is enough. I'm 100% confident than wipes #2, #3, and so on are wiping blank space...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I personally and others have experienced residual data... so is three too much... maybe... but its safe... two might be a better choice... this guide was made to make sure you have no issues... therefore I said three times for safety... if you want to just do it once... be my guest
Sent from my ERIS using XDA App

At the risk sounding like an idiot, I must ask this:
You mention wiping the Dalvik once a week. When you do this wipe, do you replace it (flash) something over it? Or can you simply wipe then reboot.
Sent from my FroyoEris using XDA App

J&M said:
At the risk sounding like an idiot, I must ask this:
You mention wiping the Dalvik once a week. When you do this wipe, do you replace it (flash) something over it? Or can you simply wipe then reboot.
Sent from my FroyoEris using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep, just wipe and boot. After wiping dalvik, it will redo your app tree or configuration if you will, just clears all the current info and rebuilds it fresh.
Great thread, people still need it I guess

workshed said:
Yep, just wipe and boot. After wiping dalvik, it will redo your app tree or configuration if you will, just clears all the current info and rebuilds it fresh.
Great thread, people still need it I guess
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lol thanks buddy!
Sent from my ERIS using XDA App

wiping clean and rom changing

Wondering something here...when i wiped my device, i went thru rom manager and did the wipe device thing to wipe all user data to clear out CM7.0.
after that i installed virtuous to try it out, and i noticed in root explorer in the system>app folder, there were CM apk's in there. does virtuous use CM stuff in their roms?
if not, why would they show up even after a full wipe?
Also, has anyone here ever had issues changing from a non sense rom to a sense and back to non sense in a matter of 2 hours?

well, if they are any of the CM specific apps like:
CMparts or CMstats or CMwallpapers (I think there are a few more, can't remember off the top of my head), then it sounds like a case of a "format" that didn't actually format. you wouldn't be the first person to deal with this problem with rom mgr and CWM recovery.. it is known to be finnicky when it comes to formatting partitions (among other things ).
thankfully, we have a tool now that will give you a true, clean format of /system /data and /cache partitions without having to manually run the commands every time (like I know some of us have been doing).
if you are the kind of guy, like myself, who likes to perform a clean wipe between roms, I'd highly recommend downloading that and using it instead of the rom manager/CWM recovery options.

tackleberry said:
Also, has anyone here ever had issues changing from a non sense rom to a sense and back to non sense in a matter of 2 hours?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can't answer your first question, but on my old Hero, I swapped from an AOSP ROM to a Sense ROM once almost every hour for a day because I couldn't make up my mind. Nothing bad happened to it and my father is using it now with no ill effects.

pmcqueen said:
well, if they are any of the CM specific apps like:
CMparts or CMstats or CMwallpapers (I think there are a few more, can't remember off the top of my head), then it sounds like a case of a "format" that didn't actually format. you wouldn't be the first person to deal with this problem with rom mgr and CWM recovery.. it is known to be finnicky when it comes to formatting partitions (among other things ).
thankfully, we have a tool now that will give you a true, clean format of /system /data and /cache partitions without having to manually run the commands every time (like I know some of us have been doing).
if you are the kind of guy, like myself, who likes to perform a clean wipe between roms, I'd highly recommend downloading that and using it instead of the rom manager/CWM recovery options.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yes i saw that program pop up when i was tying in the topic for this post! sounds like a great program wish it was posted a couple of days earlier lol. ill try when i get my device back.
wondering tho if these half ass wipes that CWM does caused my problems. i usually wipe when changing a type of rom, even with CM7 (nightly to RC for example). if i flash a nightly, i usually do a wipe every 2 nightlies.

Not sure what you mean by half ass wipes,lol, but I've never trusted the system wipe to do the job. I always do cache and dalvik along with it.
Sent from my HTC Vision using XDA App

enserio said:
Not sure what you mean by half ass wipes,lol, but I've never trusted the system wipe to do the job. I always do cache and dalvik along with it.
Sent from my HTC Vision using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i do too. half ass saying there is stuff not wiped lol

tackleberry said:
i do too. half ass saying there is stuff not wiped lol
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah... as amazing as CWM recovery is, the wipe process can be a bit.... lacking sometimes. If you don't use amazinglarry's superg2wipe script, then I would at least manually wipe through recovery before switching roms - this way you can be at least get most of the artifacts and "ghosts" left over from your last rom.

Sorry for bumping this old thread, I came across it while googling.
I've always used "wipe data/factory reset" in CWM. But that only wipes your /data and /cache partition.
Now, i only recently found out "wipe /system" under "mounts" in CWM. Meaning, I had never wiped my /system partition before, while swapping between 50 roms (be it AOSP or Sense). And I never had any problems. But the best way to fully wipe your system, is to do every partition manually + dalvik and battery stats.

[Q] Phone Constantly Locks - Which Service is Responsible?

I used Titanium Backup to uninstall certain packages (not before backing them up, of course) and it seems that I uninstalled too much... Whenever I start certain applications, the phone immediately blanks - and locks.
I have to press the power button 1-2 times before the screen unlock allows me to seep my finger. And it doesn't always succeed in retaining the screen: too often, it will immediately blank and lock again.
Example of applications that make the phone lock: Titanium Backup.
Example of applications that don't blank the phone: Dialer.
I started restoring some of the packages I uninstalled yesterday with the hope that this will fix the problem. So far I tried restoring:
- hiddenmenus
- sns
- Dialer 2.2.2
-setup wizard
- syncMLsvc
But without much success yet.
Any idea which service or package are responsible for correct behavior of the phone?
UPDATE 2: I gave up and decided to flash the EC07-Nuckin-1 ROM. I repeated the entire procedure detailed here and the phone boots fine, but the problem persists - in addition to the fact that the soft menu buttons now disappeared (replaced by faint color dots - LED-like).
How could this happen? Is it possible that my phone contracted an Android virus? (it appears that the problem started immediately after installing Stay Awake from the Android Market.

OK, this is becoming insane: I did a factory reset, re-installed ec07-clean, and not only the problem persists, the settings, home, back and search buttons no longer work!
Not to mention that my account details (and everything else) are still there, even after the factory reset...
And Market won't even start.
How is this possible?
What do I do to simply start from scratch, wiping out everything and all history (except for the SD card)?

verizonless said:
OK, this is becoming insane: I did a factory reset, re-installed ec07-clean, and not only the problem persists, the settings, home, back and search buttons no longer work!
Not to mention that my account details (and everything else) are still there, even after the factory reset...
How is this possible?
What do I do to simply start from scratch, wiping out everything and all history (except for the SD card)?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
those softkey mod (led dots) are in the rom, look at what ur downloading/flashing first.
did u clear caches/dalvik??? clear them before u flash ec07clean and after and see buddy.

ciscogee said:
did u clear caches/dalvik??? clear them before u flash ec07clean
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Of course I did.
ciscogee said:
and after
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
After, too? I didn't know that.
ciscogee said:
and see buddy.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Who is buddy?
ciscogee said:
those softkey mod (led dots) are in the rom, look at what ur downloading/flashing first.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OK, but they don't respond. Even with your ec07-clean.
Is there a way to do a real factory reset? Start all over again? This problem is driving me nuts.
Thank you ciscogee, you life saver.

Ur buddy lol.
I'm out and about right now. In joshkoss rom thread there is a dl17 stock rom. If u flollow that second post I believe u will achieve 2. 1 stock as in out the box and flash up from there
Sent from my SCH-I400 using xda premium

ciscogee said:
I'm out and about right now. In joshkoss rom thread there is a dl17 stock rom. If u flollow that second post I believe u will achieve 2. 1 stock as in out the box and flash up from there
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not really interested in 2.1. I just don't understand why a total re-install of ec07clean.zip + ec07.tar + update.zip won't restore everything to "brand new condition". Surely there is a way to tell the phone to "forget all history". But what is it?
In the meanwhile, I managed to make the Settings (leftmost) button work, by manually restoring SDM from Titanium Backup.
Android Market now starts. But the SCREEN OFF problem persists. I am now beginning to believe that Stay Awake actually caused a permanent damage.

verizonless said:
I'm not really interested in 2.1. I just don't understand why a total re-install of ec07clean.zip + ec07.tar + update.zip won't restore everything to "brand new condition". Surely there is a way to tell the phone to "forget all history". But what is it?
In the meanwhile, I managed to make the Settings (leftmost) button work, by manually restoring SDM from Titanium Backup.
Android Market now starts. But the SCREEN OFF problem persists. I am now beginning to believe that Stay Awake actually caused a permanent damage.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i understand, but see dl17 is the latest official samsung/verizon release, so what ever you erased will be brought back. the roms that are released here are leaks/hacked so they wouldnt be 100% until tweaked

ciscogee said:
i understand, but see dl17 is the latest official samsung/verizon release, so what ever you erased will be brought back. the roms that are released here are leaks/hacked so they wouldnt be 100% until tweaked
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I understand that they aren't 100% and I am OK with that. All I want is bring the phone to that pristine state it was right after I upgraded it from DL17 to ec07clean.zip.
Is this possible at all?
I even tried the built in stock recovery 2e to do "factory restore". Didn't help.
Why doesn't it even delete my account information? This is weird.

Wipe all your data. Cache. Dalvik etc.
Sent from my SCH-I400 using xda premium

ciscogee said:
Wipe all your data. Cache. Dalvik etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried this at least 4 times. It doesn't get rid of anything. That's really puzzling.
In the meanwhile, I managed to restore my phone to a usable state (i.e. get rid of the original screen-off problem). Here is how I did it:
Settings > Display Settings > Power saving mode: UNCHECK (was checked)
Settings > Display Settings > Screen timeout: 1 minute (non was selected!)
I bet this was some remanent of that Stay Awake app.
Now, I lost quite a few productivity hours due to this. But at least now I know that this phone will always be mine, because in this particular phone, "Factory data reset" simply doesn't work.

Have you thought about using a different version of clockwork for flashing and wiping? That usually helps or perhaps stock recovery even
Sent from my DROIDX using xda premium

verizonless said:
I tried this at least 4 times. It doesn't get rid of anything. That's really puzzling.
...
But at least now I know that this phone will always be mine, because in this particular phone, "Factory data reset" simply doesn't work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Mystery solved!
It turns out that it is the cyan wipe that doesn't work. The red wipe works.
Here is what I did:
Settings > Privacy > Factory data reset (Erases all data on phone) > Reset phone > Erase everything attempt:
Progressed as expected, then rebooted -- right into Android System recover <2e> (blue!):
Code:
Samsung Recovery Utils
- for BML -
reboot system now
apply sdcard:update.zip
wipe data/factory reset
wipe cache partition
___________________________________________
-- Wiping data...
Formatting FOTA:...
FOTA wipe failed.
Formatting DATA:...
Data wipe failed.
Formatting CACHE:...
Cache wipe failed.
Formatting DBDATA:...
Db data wipe failed.
E: Can't mount /dev/block/mmcblk0p3
(No such file or directy)
E: install_application_for_customer:Can't mount HIDDENSDCARD:
your storage not prepared yet. please use UI menu for format and reboot actions.
copy application failed.
As you can see, there were clear error messages, so now I selected "apply sdcard:update.zip" ==> which brought me you into CwM Voodo Lagfix Recovery v2.5.1.x:
Code:
wipe data/factory reset
-- Wiping data...
Formatting DATA:...
Formatting DATADATA:...
Formatting CACHE:...
Formatting SDEXT:...
Formatting SDCARD:/:.android_secure...
Data wipe complete.
wipe cache partition
-- Wiping cache...
Formatting CACHE:...
Cache wipe complete.
Advanced > Wipe Dalvik Cache
Dalvik Cache wiped
Reboot system now
Phone looks now brand new.
Oh wait! I just examined the SD card and it contains all the old stuff. Nothing wiped, nothing formatted. And the Home button doesn't work. And the ticker-feed button reboots the phone... What's going on???

Edit: Looking into what you said