I searched and found no answer. My Vibrant is just rooted to turn off the boot up and turn off sounds. Nothing else has done, is the OTA safe for my phone?
parahelium said:
I searched and found no answer. My Vibrant is just rooted to turn off the boot up and turn off sounds. Nothing else has done, is the OTA safe for my phone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are reports that it works with RyanZA's lag fix and root in some instances.
There are reports that the OTA update bricks even virgin stock phones, so it is a shot in a dark.
Personally I think I'm gonna wait till some one uploads the update and does some testing to see what is making the phone soft brick .
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
parahelium said:
I searched and found no answer. My Vibrant is just rooted to turn off the boot up and turn off sounds. Nothing else has done, is the OTA safe for my phone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Root is ok but you will have to undo any lagfixes if you applied them.
It will most likely unroot your device but you can use the same method to root again.
dublued said:
Root is ok but you will have to undo any lagfixes if you applied them.
It will most likely unroot your device but you can use the same method to root again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not to be a downer but not necessarily. I was rooted with no lag fix (currently or prior) at all and it soft bricked my phone. I had the Samsung AP installed but that is about it, didn't remove bloatware or change the startup/shutdown sounds.
Got the phone running again with ODIN so I am back to stock now, without the update
gancho said:
Not to be a downer but not necessarily. I was rooted with no lag fix (currently or prior) at all and it soft bricked my phone. I had the Samsung AP installed but that is about it, didn't remove bloatware or change the startup/shutdown sounds.
Got the phone running again with ODIN so I am back to stock now, without the update
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What a bummer...I'm rooted w/ Ryans LagFix....hope to hear some good news in a few on a solution...
lqaddict said:
There are reports that it works with RyanZA's lag fix and root in some instances.
There are reports that the OTA update bricks even virgin stock phones, so it is a shot in a dark.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
does the virgin stock phones mean that it is unrooted or nothing is changed in the out of the box phone?
No Success Here
My Rooted Vibrant that also went through OCLF failed to boot and hung on the Vibrant splash screen. Had to use Odin and the stock build to get it back and running. Thankful I had made backups prior to trying the OTA.
I've since renamed /etc/system/otacerts.zip to stop the OTA update but I would love to get rid of the OTA update icon. Anyone have any ideas?
mine was rooted with just the ji6 modem flashed from odin.. and some other mods like mobile ap and metamorph..
so i got the update.. and it failed on install... ahhh.... flashed back pure stock on odin.. waaaaiiitning.. praying it comes back again!
Stock phone, rooted with no lagfix ever applied.
Phone is toast. I'm at work so waiting for Odin to download slowly so I can reflash the phone to stock.
Might just say skip it and apply one of the custom roms. It seems neither TMO or Samsung can get their **** together. I waited patiently for the OTA and got screwed.
Updated ok with root
My phone had the OCLF v 2.1 plus root installed. Yesterday I removed the lag fix since most folks recommended this prior to updating. Crossed my fingers and hoped my update would arrive soon.
Today my update arrived. It installed with no issues, after which my phone is still rooted. It did pause for several minutes at the Galaxy S screen, I was wondering if I had bricked it but I waited and it came through ok.
I'm not planning to reinstall the lag fix anytime soon as I don't notice that much of a change - except in the Quadant scores ;-)
d01100100 said:
Stock phone, rooted with no lagfix ever applied.
Phone is toast. I'm at work so waiting for Odin to download slowly so I can reflash the phone to stock.
Might just say skip it and apply one of the custom roms. It seems neither TMO or Samsung can get their **** together. I waited patiently for the OTA and got screwed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's what I ended up doing. I didn't want to potentially wait until the end of October so I just went ahead and flashed Bionix. I don't think I'm going back to stock ever.
atatistcheff said:
My phone had the OCLF v 2.1 plus root installed. Yesterday I removed the lag fix since most folks recommended this prior to updating. Crossed my fingers and hoped my update would arrive soon.
Today my update arrived. It installed with no issues, after which my phone is still rooted. It did pause for several minutes at the Galaxy S screen, I was wondering if I had bricked it but I waited and it came through ok.
I'm not planning to reinstall the lag fix anytime soon as I don't notice that much of a change - except in the Quadant scores ;-)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How many "minutes" did you wait? The notice before the update said it would take 10 minutes. I'm willing to wait, but not all night
The update portion with a status bar went my pretty quickly. My phone's been sitting on "Vibrant" for about 5 minutes and I'm starting to sweat.
I had been rooted and had OCLF but reversed both before applying the update. I also had the mobile AP, customized swype skin and custom battery meter but everything else was stock.
gancho said:
Not to be a downer but not necessarily. I was rooted with no lag fix (currently or prior) at all and it soft bricked my phone. I had the Samsung AP installed but that is about it, didn't remove bloatware or change the startup/shutdown sounds.
Got the phone running again with ODIN so I am back to stock now, without the update
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i want to remove mobile AP just incase that is what is causing the soft bricks. ive noticed many people have problems have flashed the mobile ap. is there a way to remove with like uninstalling an application?
--without odin or flashing back to stock
I was rooted and removed some of the Samsung bloatware apps such as MediaHub etc...saw the update was available this morning and started it, phone was stuck on the Samsung Vibrant screen ever since. I put in for a replacement, could probably fix it with ODIN but new phone should be here tomorrow. I was actually having issues before that, so it could have been the phone itself...no way to be 100% sure.
For the people who had issues with their OTA, did you have a file named update.zip previously on the /sdcard directory? It's the only thing I can think of that might interfere with the OTA download, causing it to truncate. Phone is recovered and re-rooted, but the Update Firmware shows no update available. I'm going to Odin flash the 9-28 JI6 image.
That is what I am thinking as well. I have removed the update.zip from the internal storage now. The OTA is here and I postponed for a day just to be safe. I really need the GPS fix.
d01100100 said:
For the people who had issues with their OTA, did you have a file named update.zip previously on the /sdcard directory? It's the only thing I can think of that might interfere with the OTA download, causing it to truncate. Phone is recovered and re-rooted, but the Update Firmware shows no update available. I'm going to Odin flash the 9-28 JI6 image.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
fine over here
My phone is rooted with RyanZA's one click lag fix and the update worked fine for me. I've never removed bloatware or anything though. Total I think it took about 8 minutes from start to finish.
I received the update this morning but my battery was below 10% and said I need more juice in order to install. I recharged and it kept saying the same thing after postponing a couple times. I restarted my phone and all works good now.
I'm noticing very good improvements in signal strength and flawless gps now. Maybe a speed increase also? I'm not sure about the speed thing just yet. Seems a bit snappier to me.
Lost Root
I updated to JI6 using odin based on the info in android development section, and I most definitely lost root.
Trying one click root/unroot to see if I can get root back
Nightfall983 said:
I updated to JI6 using odin based on the info in android development section, and I most definitely lost root.
Trying one click root/unroot to see if I can get root back
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Using the recovery mode / update.zip (the classic root method) worked for me after Odin flashing JI6.
Newbie here.
I just rooted my phone and install Skyraider 3.5.
I love it so far.
My question is, if Verizon sends out an OTA, will that cause any issue to my Incredible?
I have already made a backup for that reason and would I be able to restore it or I will have to start all over again?
Thanks
No.
Sent from my girlfriend according to my current girlfriend
meazz1 said:
Newbie here.
I just rooted my phone and install Skyraider 3.5.
I love it so far.
My question is, if Verizon sends out an OTA, will that cause any issue to my Incredible?
I have already made a backup for that reason and would I be able to restore it or I will have to start all over again?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You won't even get a notification for an OTA if you're on any other ROM besides the stock Verizon one. Don't worry about it
You can block future ota if u want. Using root explorer go to /system/etc/security and change otacert.zip to otacert.zip.bak
Inc SR 3.5, 40GB, 1800mah
www.TOOLBAND.com
good to know.
thnx
WELL, some ROMs will still get OTA updates, but not notifications about it. Also your on XDA, youll get the OTA from here before its even out.
this morning, I saw notification for update and got scared.
The updates were of ROM Manager and Wirefly Backup apps.
Everything is looking good.
I have a rooted DINC with the stock ROM. I rooted prior to Verizon pushing out the latest OTA update, which I believe just included a bunch of bloatware. I'd like to go ahead and receive that update anyway so I can have the latest stock ROM and to stop those pesky update messages from popping up. Currently, I guess since my phone is rooted, I cannot update. So here are the options I can think of:
1. Unroot, receive update, reroot (not my favorite option, would like to avoid!)
2. Get the latest stock ROM with update mentioned and flash my phone via ROM manager with that ROM (where can I get this ROM?)
3. Go ahead and try turning off the updates as mentioned in this thread to atleast get rid of the pesky update messages constantly popping up on my phone.
Any ideas?
blackstallion said:
I have a rooted DINC with the stock ROM. I rooted prior to Verizon pushing out the latest OTA update, which I believe just included a bunch of bloatware. I'd like to go ahead and receive that update anyway so I can have the latest stock ROM and to stop those pesky update messages from popping up. Currently, I guess since my phone is rooted, I cannot update. So here are the options I can think of:
1. Unroot, receive update, reroot (not my favorite option, would like to avoid!)
2. Get the latest stock ROM with update mentioned and flash my phone via ROM manager with that ROM (where can I get this ROM?)
3. Go ahead and try turning off the updates as mentioned in this thread to atleast get rid of the pesky update messages constantly popping up on my phone.
Any ideas?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My suggestion? Since you're comfortable flashing a ROM, just flash Virtuous 3.2 and be done with it. It's the stock ROM + everything good about being able to root, in one complete package. Flash a nice kernel (ziggy, lou, incredikernel) while you're at it and enjoy some comparatively awesome battery life!
Thanks for the suggestion, that definitely looks like option 2 which was my preferred option.
Can someone please help me out. I've tried to get the OTA for DL09 all day, and every time it errors out. I'm rooted but I'm running completely stock with the exception of launcher pro plus. I can't just flash the files through odin because I don't have a PC, just a mac.
can I just remove the SU file from the xbin folder using root explorer? I'm assuming that I can't update because of the root and CWM?
Don't you have a friend with a pc? You may need a pc if you unroot to root the second time.. I had to use adb when I rooted the second time
Rocking dj05 and jt's voodoo 5
Make sure u aren't using wifi to pull the update. 3G ONLY. Being rooted shouldn't cause error problems with the download??? U are rooted....I would follow the instructions for the leak DL09 since u will have to reroot anyway.
-Blackhole 3.0
I rooted through terminal on my mac the first time, is there a way to unroot by opening a shell through terminal again?.
my fiance has a pc, but she took it with her for her overnight shift at work..
40kalkillah said:
Make sure u aren't using wifi to pull the update. 3G ONLY. Being rooted shouldn't cause error problems with the download??? U are rooted....I would follow the instructions for the leak DL09 since u will have to reroot anyway.
-Blackhole 3.0
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yeah, i'm on 3g I made sure of that. the download happens fine, it just errors out when it tries to install the update.
Follow the Mac instructions in this thread:
http://androidmixer.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=446
In terms of getting the OTA, I read that CWM is what is stopping you from updating.
so I unrooted my phone last night and reverted it back to stock as much as i could, but CWM was still installed (it worked when I selected "update.zip" from the stock recovery) I have no idea how to get rid of it if that's the actual cause of my problems. the OTA still won't work when it goes to install the download.
My only thought as what may also be wrong is after I rooted I had installed adblocker and thought it may have been messing up my phone, so i uninstalled the app.. problem was, that i still don't see any ads in any of my apps. Could the adblocker have done something to my system enough to screw up the OTA?
thanks to those who have responded so far, does anyone have any other thoughts on why this is happening or how I can fix it? please?
If you have CWM you have to get rid of it. You do this by flashing the stock recovery and kernel from fallingup's "return to stock"thread I the development forum
Get Odin, download the official DL09 from this site and do it that way. Odin wipes CWM, and the official DL09 has the kernel, fs, recovery and modem in one.
okay, i'll have to commandere the fiance's laptop when i get home and download odin. Thank you for the help guys! hopefully after i get it back to stock, the OTA will work.. if not, I'm going to replace the phone at VZW.
b_beau_09 said:
okay, i'll have to commandere the fiance's laptop when i get home and download odin. Thank you for the help guys! hopefully after i get it back to stock, the OTA will work.. if not, I'm going to replace the phone at VZW.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you haven't moved any of the bloat (or have already moved it back) then all you need to do is flash the kernel and recovery found here. The links in the OP seem to be down, so just follow those and you should be good. Had to do it to my wife's Fascinate yesterday for the OTA to take
just an update, used odin to flash back to stock DI01 and was able to download the OTA for DL09. Now i"m running DL09, and have already re-rooted using adb on my mac, and installed CWM. now to move on to some of these better non-voodoo kernel's! FINALLY!
Thanks for all your help guys! very much appreciated!
Hello everyone-
New user for the Samsung Galaxy S4 here. I used to own both the iPhone 3GS and 4S prior. My general background was writing VB in version 3.0 for AOL back in the late 90s for all you old school people, progs/punters that may remember those days. Unfortunately, even now I'm still have issues following along with new technology. So far, I have really enjoyed the android system and have made modifications through various launchers. I did use SuperSU and rooted the phone by the automated process. I realize these may be 'noob' questions, however; everyone I suppose goes through it at some point. I do have some general questions and several of them that I have read about have conflicting information. This will be somewhat long, but I do appreciate any input:
The Galaxy S4 that I have is SPH-L720, MK2, and 4.3 version.
At this point, I backed-up and installed several Google Games, Books, and Sprint ID, Sprint Worldwide, etc.....general bloatware using Titanium Back-up. Again the root method I used was SuperSU by Chainfire. I have NOT use TWRP/Clockwork Mod or flashed any custom ROMs. I just have it rooted and diabled some bloatware, installed Xposed Installer and other root only apps. I checked my phone and its status says 'custom'.
1. Given this set-up, can I still get OTA for new Android versions ? I don't care if it removes root, but I was just wondering if I can get OTA updates to get new versions for my phone. Some threads I have read say yes, others say no. If I cannot, how can I then get new updates ? I don't want to not be able to permanently update to 4.4 in the future. I know there is a way to update via Kies to the computer.
2. The root access via Chainfire SuperSU involves 2 components from what I understand. SU.apk and busybox. I was using Terminal Emulator based on the advice from this thread: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2565758
I could not get it to work when typing in the prompts on the screen, it just would not go through. I tried downloading Total Commander which allows root access. Can I instead of using Terminal Emulator to get rid of busybox, use Total Commander to get into the /system/xbin folder and manually delete all busybox files prior to using the permanent unroot of SuperSU feature in settings ? Or does the Full unroot remove everything ?
3. Maybe I still don't understand the flashing process, but it seems, you download Odin, then use the ROM file you need under the PDA selection then start the process while the phone is in download mode (home button, down volume, etc...) Is this how all custom ROMs and re-stores are performed ? Is this form of the restore different that the phone Samsung settings (back-up/restore) ? I've read about TWRP, custom recovery, Clockwork Mod, etc....but I dont understand what all these are. It seems easy enough to download files then put them via Odin then hit start....
At this point, I've refrained from doing anything other than back-up/uninstalling some bloatware and using some cool apps that supposed xposed installer. I'm worried that I might brick my expensive phone or render it unable to get anymore updates :crying:
Thanks for the input !
mikeprius said:
Hello everyone-
New user for the Samsung Galaxy S4 here. I used to own both the iPhone 3GS and 4S prior. My general background was writing VB in version 3.0 for AOL back in the late 90s for all you old school people, progs/punters that may remember those days. Unfortunately, even now I'm still have issues following along with new technology. So far, I have really enjoyed the android system and have made modifications through various launchers. I did use SuperSU and rooted the phone by the automated process. I realize these may be 'noob' questions, however; everyone I suppose goes through it at some point. I do have some general questions and several of them that I have read about have conflicting information. This will be somewhat long, but I do appreciate any input:
The Galaxy S4 that I have is SPH-L720, MK2, and 4.3 version.
At this point, I backed-up and installed several Google Games, Books, and Sprint ID, Sprint Worldwide, etc.....general bloatware using Titanium Back-up. Again the root method I used was SuperSU by Chainfire. I have NOT use TWRP/Clockwork Mod or flashed any custom ROMs. I just have it rooted and diabled some bloatware, installed Xposed Installer and other root only apps. I checked my phone and its status says 'custom'.
1. Given this set-up, can I still get OTA for new Android versions ? I don't care if it removes root, but I was just wondering if I can get OTA updates to get new versions for my phone. Some threads I have read say yes, others say no. If I cannot, how can I then get new updates ? I don't want to not be able to permanently update to 4.4 in the future. I know there is a way to update via Kies to the computer.
2. The root access via Chainfire SuperSU involves 2 components from what I understand. SU.apk and busybox. I was using Terminal Emulator based on the advice from this thread: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2565758
I could not get it to work when typing in the prompts on the screen, it just would not go through. I tried downloading Total Commander which allows root access. Can I instead of using Terminal Emulator to get rid of busybox, use Total Commander to get into the /system/xbin folder and manually delete all busybox files prior to using the permanent unroot of SuperSU feature in settings ? Or does the Full unroot remove everything ?
3. Maybe I still don't understand the flashing process, but it seems, you download Odin, then use the ROM file you need under the PDA selection then start the process while the phone is in download mode (home button, down volume, etc...) Is this how all custom ROMs and re-stores are performed ? Is this form of the restore different that the phone Samsung settings (back-up/restore) ? I've read about TWRP, custom recovery, Clockwork Mod, etc....but I dont understand what all these are. It seems easy enough to download files then put them via Odin then hit start....
At this point, I've refrained from doing anything other than back-up/uninstalling some bloatware and using some cool apps that supposed xposed installer. I'm worried that I might brick my expensive phone or render it unable to get anymore updates :crying:
Thanks for the input !
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can answer 1 & 3 for you.
1. No, you won't be able to take an OTA because you removed or modified system files. This will cause the update file of the OTA to abort once it encounters the modded file or can't find the file your removed. The best process to take an OTA would be to return the phone to stock before taking the OTA. The easiest method is to use Odin and install the full stock tar file that you are currently on. In your case it would be the MK2 tar file. This will return your phone to stock with the stock recovery and allow your phone to update via OTA, then you can re root.
3. Odin is used to flash things like stock tar files, modems(basebands), recoveries & firmwares. If you are installing a custom rom, that is usually done using a custom recovery like Phillz's or TWRP. These recoveries can be installed via odin or TWRP via goomanager app in playstore. Once the custom recovery is installed you copy the rom file or other mod to your sdcard and install through recovery.
cruise350 said:
I can answer 1 & 3 for you.
1. No, you won't be able to take an OTA because you removed or modified system files. This will cause the update file of the OTA to abort once it encounters the modded file or can't find the file your removed. The best process to take an OTA would be to return the phone to stock before taking the OTA. The easiest method is to use Odin and install the full stock tar file that you are currently on. In your case it would be the MK2 tar file. This will return your phone to stock with the stock recovery and allow your phone to update via OTA, then you can re root.
3. Odin is used to flash things like stock tar files, modems(basebands), recoveries & firmwares. If you are installing a custom rom, that is usually done using a custom recovery like Phillz's or TWRP. These recoveries can be installed via odin or TWRP via goomanager app in playstore. Once the custom recovery is installed you copy the rom file or other mod to your sdcard and install through recovery.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the response....Does it matter what version of Odin I use if I were to restore the phone back to stock ? Also do I need to manually remove all rooted program and features, or can it be flashed back to stock ROM as is ? I have a lot of apps that I also don't want to lose and I've tried manually back up files on my SD card, but I didn't know if there was a way to back it up, so that it literally can be dumped right back in when stock is restored.
mikeprius said:
Thanks for the response....Does it matter what version of Odin I use if I were to restore the phone back to stock ? Also do I need to manually remove all rooted program and features, or can it be flashed back to stock ROM as is ? I have a lot of apps that I also don't want to lose and I've tried manually back up files on my SD card, but I didn't know if there was a way to back it up, so that it literally can be dumped right back in when stock is restored.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I believe if you are on MK2 you will want to use the latest version of odin which is ver3 3.09. If you are using the MK2 complete stock tar file it will rewrite everything in system and restore all the apps that were removed or modded so you don't need to manually remove root. Currently, the stock files available to us do not wipe the data partition so anything you have in that partition will remain there unless you do a factory reset. One thing you will want to make sure you are doing is backing up to the external sdcard and not the internal. You can then use TB to replace any files if you did a factory reset.
cruise350 said:
I believe if you are on MK2 you will want to use the latest version of odin which is ver3 3.09. If you are using the MK2 complete stock tar file it will rewrite everything in system and restore all the apps that were removed or modded so you don't need to manually remove root. Currently, the stock files available to us do not wipe the data partition so anything you have in that partition will remain there unless you do a factory reset. One thing you will want to make sure you are doing is backing up to the external sdcard and not the internal. You can then use TB to replace any files if you did a factory reset.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm using Kies 3 and using the data back-up feature ? I assume this is backing up to the computer then I was planning on using the 'restore data' feature once they phone is back to stock. Will this revert it back to the way it was previously customized before root ? So if I understand correctly, once I download Odin 3.0, I load the MK2 .tar file into the phone, enbable download mode, then hit start and the phone will be like it was out of the box and ready to be OTA and restored with prior data ? I may be confusing flashing the stock firmware with factory reset ?
I also noticed there is an update firmware feature on Kies 3, if I try using this while SuperSU is present and the phone is rooted, will I also have a failed update/issues ? Again, thanks for your help. Do appreciate it.
mikeprius said:
I'm using Kies 3 and using the data back-up feature ? I assume this is backing up to the computer then I was planning on using the 'restore data' feature once they phone is back to stock. Will this revert it back to the way it was previously customized before root ? So if I understand correctly, once I download Odin 3.0, I load the MK2 .tar file into the phone, enbable download mode, then hit start and the phone will be like it was out of the box and ready to be OTA and restored with prior data ? I may be confusing flashing the stock firmware with factory reset ?
I also noticed there is an update firmware feature on Kies 3, if I try using this while SuperSU is present and the phone is rooted, will I also have a failed update/issues ? Again, thanks for your help. Do appreciate it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have never used Kies and heard that it doesn't work with the MJA or MK2 software yet. I don't believe Kies will work if your status is custom but I could be wrong on that. If you odin the MK2 full tar file your phone will be back to stock but your data should still be there. You will only lose your data if you do a factory reset in recovery. Remember, a factory reset is just wiping the data partition and does not restore any software or apps.
cruise350 said:
I have never used Kies and heard that it doesn't work with the MJA or MK2 software yet. I don't believe Kies will work if your status is custom but I could be wrong on that. If you odin the MK2 full tar file your phone will be back to stock but your data should still be there. You will only lose your data if you do a factory reset in recovery. Remember, a factory reset is just wiping the data partition and does not restore any software or apps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok, I think I have the general idea. It sounds similar to putting back on the stock 'image' nothing else.........I currently have the Odin 3.0 software, but I have been having a hard time finding the stock firmware online and downloading it. I will keep looking. Once I get the .tar and flash in download mode, will I just see all the bloatware back on, but everything else the same ? I was wondering what will happen if I kept Titanium Back-up, SuperSU, and Xposed Installer on when I do this ? Does it just render them all un-useable, but the new OTA will still install anyway ? Thanks.
mikeprius said:
Ok, I think I have the general idea. It sounds similar to putting back on the stock 'image' nothing else.........I currently have the Odin 3.0 software, but I have been having a hard time finding the stock firmware online and downloading it. I will keep looking. Once I get the .tar and flash in download mode, will I just see all the bloatware back on, but everything else the same ? I was wondering what will happen if I kept Titanium Back-up, SuperSU, and Xposed Installer on when I do this ? Does it just render them all un-useable, but the new OTA will still install anyway ? Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Every thing in the data partition(titanium backup) will remain and everything in the system partition (SuperSU & stuff modified via xposed installer) will be gone and replaced with the bloatware.
Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk
Ok, so it appears to have worked. I flashed the 4.3 prior version however it was hooked up to wifi and automatically downloaded the new version and removed root (not a big deal). My status says custom still, but I am assuming that I can OTA after the flash b/c it updated to the most recent 4.3 in Dec 2013. I re-rooted so it is back to prior, but I know now how to do it.
Is there anything that I may delete or uninstall that cannot be replaced by flashing the stock firmware ? For example I was thinking about getting rid of the 'help' on the phone and Titanium Back up said it is odexed or something to that extent and can only be replaced by using Titanium Backup and the exact same copy ?
I figured that I might as well just try deleting the bloatware and not back up b/c worse case scenario if something happens I can just flash back the stock ROM and all is well ?
Being able to flash the stock .tar through ODIN gives me peace of mind from screw ups, even if it removes root and takes time.
mikeprius said:
I figured that I might as well just try deleting the bloatware and not back up b/c worse case scenario if something happens I can just flash back the stock ROM and all is well ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you haven't spent much time customizing, that'll work fine. Most of us use custom recoveries (like Philz or TWRP) to make "nandroid" backups of our setups. A nandroid is like a drive image on a computer, so restoring it will restore all of the customizations you've done (accounts, apps, app data, bloatware deletions, etc). Nandroids don't back up firmware (modem, bootloader,etc), but back up the ROM completely. A Titanium backup is almost as good, but requires a bit more work.
As for deciding what apps you can delete, most of the custom ROM creators post a list of the bloatware they remove. So, if it's on their list, it's almost certainly ok to delete it on your phone too.
nobody291 said:
If you haven't spent much time customizing, that'll work fine. Most of us use custom recoveries (like Philz or TWRP) to make "nandroid" backups of our setups. A nandroid is like a drive image on a computer, so restoring it will restore all of the customizations you've done (accounts, apps, app data, bloatware deletions, etc). Nandroids don't back up firmware (modem, bootloader,etc), but back up the ROM completely. A Titanium backup is almost as good, but requires a bit more work.
As for deciding what apps you can delete, most of the custom ROM creators post a list of the bloatware they remove. So, if it's on their list, it's almost certainly ok to delete it on your phone too.
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Thanks being able to flash the stock .tar and use ODIN gives me peace of mind of any potential screw ups. So far I'm just using stock rom and toggling some of the features with xposed installer and titanium back up.
I'd like to explore more eventually with custom ROMs and I've heard of Clockwork mod and TWRP, Nandroid, Cyanogen, etc... but I don't know what any of that means or what it is.
Is TWRP/Philz like ODIN program then you download custom ROMS like Cyanogen the same way as the stock firmware. tar ?
As you can tell I am extremely new to this.....this is also my first time owning an Android phone as well, but I never messed with jailbreaking my past 2 iPhones in the past. I just have used VB 3.0 back in the day....
mikeprius said:
Thanks being able to flash the stock .tar and use ODIN gives me peace of mind of any potential screw ups. So far I'm just using stock rom and toggling some of the features with xposed installer and titanium back up.
I'd like to explore more eventually with custom ROMs and I've heard of Clockwork mod and TWRP, Nandroid, Cyanogen, etc... but I don't know what any of that means or what it is.
Is TWRP/Philz like ODIN program then you download custom ROMS like Cyanogen the same way as the stock firmware. tar ?
As you can tell I am extremely new to this.....this is also my first time owning an Android phone as well, but I never messed with jailbreaking my past 2 iPhones in the past. I just have used VB 3.0 back in the day....
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To me, one of the hardest parts of this whole thing is getting to the point where the basic terms make sense. I've been at this for a couple of years with an HTC Evo and now the GS4 since October, and sometimes it still makes my head spin. Here is an attempt to explain my understanding of a few things:
1. Booting...you can boot into Download mode, recovery, or system. Download mode is what you use with ODIN, you need the correct drivers on your computer (which can be found lots of places), so that ODIN and your phone can communicate. In download mode, the phone just accepts whatever ODIN sends it, so it's the easiest way to totally brick your phone. Don't mess with partitions and follow the instructions for whatever you're doing very carefully, because I think this is the only way to "hard brick" your phone.
2. Recovery - something you use to create images of your phone's ROM (nandroids), flash ROMs and mods, and restore past nandroids. The stock recovery will only flash approved updates from the carrier, so to do any of the things I listed you need a custom recovery. Most people use Philz (which is based on the ClockworkMod recovery) or TWRP. To flash the custom recovery, use ODIN and follow the instructions in the thread exactly. There is a way to flash recoveries without ODIN, but I've never done it. I was using TWRP, and switched to Philz to flash the rooted stock 4.3 update because the thread suggested it. They both seem to do the same thing, and I have been happy with both. I'm sure there are technical differences, but I couldn't explain what they are. You can switch back and forth as much as you'd like between the recoveries with ODIN. Recoveries can flash a complete ROM or just partial changes (like the hotspot mod). In a custom recovery (or the stock) you can also do factory resets and cache cleaning (most ROMs suggest you do this before flashing). Factory reset doesn't return the ROM to the factory original, it just clears out all of the user data (including user apps). A nandroid is the fastest way to restore a phone if you screw it up...I always make one before making significant changes to the phone. It takes several minutes to do, but I think it's well worth it. The operating system can't be running when you make one, that's why you need to boot into recovery mode. You create a Nandroid in Philz by selecting "backup and restore" then "backup to" which will allow backup to the internal storage or external SD card.
3. ROM - the actual operating system used by the phone when you actually use it as a smartphone. There are 2 basic flavors for the GS4...touchwiz and AOSP (Android Open Source Project). Touchwiz is Samsung's "flavor" of Android, AOSP is the "pure Google" version of Android. A lot of the things the GS4 will do rely on touchwiz (multiwindow is one example...but there are several). Some people really like the AOSP ROMs (Cyanogen is AOSP), but make sure you understand their limitations. I've never used one on the GS4. There are several touchwiz custom ROMs which have various features. I've tried a few and just settled on the stock rooted touchwiz ROM, but there are lots of options from great developers. I think most custom ROMs require you to use a custom recovery to flash them, but there might be ways to do it using ODIN. I like having a custom recovery, so I've only used ODIN for flashing modems and recoveries.
4. Firmware - as far as I can tell, there are two important parts of the firmware...the modem (sometimes called "radios" or "baseband"...find your version by looking in "about device"->"Baseband version"...the different modems are described by the last 3 letters you see) and the bootloader. The modem and the version of the ROM you flash need to match or you'll have problems with the radios in the phone (wifi seems to be the biggest problem if you have a mismatch). MF9 was the last modem version based on 4.2.2, and 4.3 has had MJA and MK2 (MK2 is the latest). The bootloader is what the phone uses to initially decide how to boot up. If you have the 4.3 version of the bootloader it will include "Knox", which will prevent you from flashing older versions of the modem, so you'll have to use a 4.3 ROM. Knox also "trips" a counter if you flash a custom ROM and Samsung claims they won't honor the warranty on a phone with the "Knox flag" tripped. If you have the 4.3 bootloader you're stuck with it (for now at least). I still have the 4.2.2 bootloader, so I don't have much more to offer on this subject. There are ways to get the 4.3 modem and ROM without the 4.3 bootloader. There is a lot here (and lots on youtube) on how to navigate the Knox minefield if you care about it. If you still have the 4.2.2 bootloader you can flash older (and newer) modems as much as you'd like without getting the updated bootloader using ODIN.
Hopefully this helps...this is a great place with lots of great people. Sometimes the scale of the amount of information here is overwhelming. But, search is your friend along with lots of time! Feel free to keep asking questions.
thanks for explaining this nobody-
The information does help quite a bit and I am still learning, however; I do enjoy the process of messing with the phone. My GS4 now runs the RAM at 750-800mg instead of a bloated 1.2GB which was happening quite a bit. I had to originally not use a lot of apps I wanted to like Facebook bc the programs themselves bloated up to accomidate the existing bloatware which was also running. I did flash my phone back with the stock firmware today and it looks like it installed all the stock software. My status said 'custom' when I looked at it however I was already connected to wifi and it went from 4.3 (Oct 2013 version which I flashed) to Dec 2013 version automatically so it appears that the OTA feature works.
I assumed if I accidently delete something from the phone that I really need to affects the phone, I can always flash the stock ROM to fix it. Losing the root is not that big of an issue, but I did lose Superuser and had to re-root the phone. I suppose I do have a few more questions, one was when I was reading another carrier provider thread.
1. Is there anything I can delete from the phone that I could not eventually recover by flashing the stock firmware ? When I uninstall for example the 'help' app on the phone Titanium Backup says this only copy can be replaced by using Titanium 5.1 and it's existing copy ? Could this just be replaced by flashing the stock firmware as well ? I like being able to flash the stockfirm ware rom at any point as a fail safe.
2. The other issue is the bootloader that I heard about ? It was on a Verizon thread where the person was able to flash the stock firmware on his phone, but then after an upgrade, he was not longer able to flash the rom b/c the carrier in the most recent upgrade he did blocked ODIN ? Is this something that I should possibly be concerned about in the future not being able to flash stock firmware via ODIN ? As you can tell, I'm pretty OCD about being able to have a failsafe for my phone. LOL. Thanks again for your help, I do appreciate it.
mikeprius said:
1. Is there anything I can delete from the phone that I could not eventually recover by flashing the stock firmware ? When I uninstall for example the 'help' app on the phone Titanium Backup says this only copy can be replaced by using Titanium 5.1 and it's existing copy ? Could this just be replaced by flashing the stock firmware as well ? I like being able to flash the stockfirm ware rom at any point as a fail safe.
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Yes, you can always flash the stock firmware to fix whatever you do to the ROM (just to the ROM, use ODIN very carefully). In the case of the Help file, you could also back it up using Titanium, then delete the app, and restore it later using Titanium if you want it back. This is probably obvious, but use Titanium to delete the app, but don't delete the backup.
2. The other issue is the bootloader that I heard about ? It was on a Verizon thread where the person was able to flash the stock firmware on his phone, but then after an upgrade, he was not longer able to flash the rom b/c the carrier in the most recent upgrade he did blocked ODIN ? Is this something that I should possibly be concerned about in the future not being able to flash stock firmware via ODIN ? As you can tell, I'm pretty OCD about being able to have a failsafe for my phone. LOL. Thanks again for your help, I do appreciate it.
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Sprint is a lot more friendly toward its users modifying their phones than Verizon. But, they could change their minds any time. For now, there are no issues (other than the Knox warranty issue). But, don't presume that'll always be the case. The best precaution is to not take OTA (over the air) updates. OTAs are the ones that pop up as a notification on the phone saying "system update available, tap to install". Kit Kat should become available in the next month or two, who knows what'll come along with the OTA. Threads will start here almost immediately when the update rolls out; watch those threads and don't do the update until you're comfortable with what's inside. I will wait and flash something from the development section, even if it is just the stock ROM.
nobody291 said:
Yes, you can always flash the stock firmware to fix whatever you do to the ROM (just to the ROM, use ODIN very carefully). In the case of the Help file, you could also back it up using Titanium, then delete the app, and restore it later using Titanium if you want it back. This is probably obvious, but use Titanium to delete the app, but don't delete the backup.
Sprint is a lot more friendly toward its users modifying their phones than Verizon. But, they could change their minds any time. For now, there are no issues (other than the Knox warranty issue). But, don't presume that'll always be the case. The best precaution is to not take OTA (over the air) updates. OTAs are the ones that pop up as a notification on the phone saying "system update available, tap to install". Kit Kat should become available in the next month or two, who knows what'll come along with the OTA. Threads will start here almost immediately when the update rolls out; watch those threads and don't do the update until you're comfortable with what's inside. I will wait and flash something from the development section, even if it is just the stock ROM.
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It was good that you mentioned the Knox bootloader issue with the 4.3 upgrade. When I purchased my cell phone back in Nov, I believe it had the 4.3 (1st) version loaded, but it already had Knox features as I do recall seeing them. If I were to try and flash 4.2.2 like the version you initially had, would the phone have a bootloop error or fail to flash because there were some free wifi tethering exploits that were not yet fixed in the 4.2.2 version ? This may have been the error I read about due to the new Knox feature.
I think since my phone is currently rooted and I altered some of the bloatware system files that the update if it were made available OTA should not update anyway due to the root. Will the stock ROM/firmware .tar files eventually be posted in the developers section that can just be flashed via ODIN later on ? With that, if I were to load 4.4 and not like it, could I flash back 4.3 ? I am guessing this is the part where you mentioned that the carrier may decide differently later on.....I suppose I will just keep an eye out in the meantime.
Good good............, I'm picking up this pretty well so far.............
mikeprius said:
If I were to try and flash 4.2.2 like the version you initially had, would the phone have a bootloop error or fail to flash because there were some free wifi tethering exploits that were not yet fixed in the 4.2.2 version ?
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I'm not sure what symptoms you'd see if you installed 4.2.2 with the 4.3 bootloader. Most likely the phone would fail to boot. ODIN will flash whatever you tell it to, I don't believe it does any compatibility checking on its own. You can still get the wifi hotspot feature to work even with Knox and the 4.3 bootloader, I don't think that was what they were trying to do with the update. There are threads discussing 4.3 and what changed, but there wasn't much obvious to the user. For now you can't go back if you're on 4.3, but there might be an exploit discovered down the road that lets you get the old bootloader and go back.
Will the stock ROM/firmware .tar files eventually be posted in the developers section that can just be flashed via ODIN later on ?
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Yes, they won't be available immediately though. It can take some time for the community to re-obtain root too, depending on how big the changes are.
With that, if I were to load 4.4 and not like it, could I flash back 4.3 ?
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I think you alluded to the answer already, but it depends. It took a month or two before you could flash the stock 4.3 without the 4.3 bootloader. There were custom ROMs available that used custom kernels sooner, but there was a problem trying to use the stock kernel with the 4.2.2 bootloader. So, always read and read and read some more before flashing updates.
So far i think i got the hang of it. I have been modifying the phones original touchwhiz. I ended up freezing alot of files instead of deleting them so the ability to turn them back on is there. Some of the files while there are not meant to be frozen/disabled/turned off. I tried a few methods for keeping SuperSU over an ODIN with no luck. I do have a question though. If i turned off (but did not delete) alot of system files and were to run ODIN again will all of them including the bloatware be turned back on and restored? That would be bad if i flashed, lost root, then simultaneously had all the system files disabled with no way to turn them back on......
This also a dumb question but what exactly am i flashing with ODIN? Its a 1.5 GB file with Sprint and it is a tar that restores all bloatware and turns the phone status back to official so i can get OTA updates. Am i flashing the entire stock ROM or just the firmware? Its nice that i have not lost any existing apps or data. It just restores the bloatware and removes root
Reading the above posts im guessing firmware....along the lines of the previous question will this restore system files and apps as well that have been shut off because ive been on a roll disabling and freezing a lot of files and apps and not sure what to turn back on to restore function to some of them. If the ODIN firmware flash resets all settings then that will also be very useful as well. Thanks much
mikeprius said:
Reading the above posts im guessing firmware....along the lines of the previous question will this restore system files and apps as well that have been shut off because ive been on a roll disabling and freezing a lot of files and apps and not sure what to turn back on to restore function to some of them. If the ODIN firmware flash resets all settings then that will also be very useful as well. Thanks much
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The .tar you are flashing from sprint is what we would call stock firmware image. This is the image that shipped on the phone from the factory. I'm an avid flasher and would highly recommend installing twrp or philz touch, creating a nandroid backup and giving some debloated touchwiz roms a shot. You'll see some significant improvement in battery life and performance and some really cool upstream features. I use odin as a last resort, when I need to go back to stock for whatever reason (ie domestic sim unlock) or have fubar'd my current setup past a point of no return.