Database Users

[Q] ClockworkMod Recovery Issues

Hi All,
I need real help with ClockworkMod Recovery. I have been installing Android on HD2 using storage card (haret.exe) method. Then I moved to NAND without any problems.
But I am not able to understand ClockworkMod Recovery at all. I looked at lots of threads and also the main thread for ClockworkMod Recovery. I know how to install it. I have installed it on my phone. But for some reason I was stuck in the loop after installing the ROM {[22 JAN] -=MDJ's CyanogenMod 7 v. 2.6 [A2SD+][GRH78C][RMNET][Kernel: MDJ S10.4 OC]}. I did exactly same as the video tutorial says. My radios and HSPL is fine. Coz I am able to use the same ROM in NAND mode. But still in ClockworkMod Recovery mode the phone kept restarting and never got to the main screen.
I also do not know what ext2, ext3, ext4 partitions are. Do I need to make them before installing the ROM? Also on the main thread for ClockworkMod Recovery, it has 3 partition files. 250MB, 350MB and 450MB. I do not know what that is. Which one to use for which ROM and what are the differences between them?
What is the use of ClockworkMod Recovery if I have to flash this partitions every time I install new ROM?
Also can someone tell me what backing up the ROM means? Does it mean I can back up my current one and flash new one, and if I do not like the new one I can restore the old one in the same state (with my APPS and SETTINGS)?
Please please help me with ClockworkMod Recovery fundamentals. I would really appreciate it.
One more thing, I would not post a question if I haven't looked around enough for answers. As you can see I have been doing this from months, but only asked one question before and this is the second one. So please do not take me for someone who does not look around for answers. I do, its just that I did not find anything real good to explain me from the bottom. So please someone help me out.
Thanks in advance.

EXT partitions can be thought of as extended partitions on your SD card. They are used to "extend" your storage capacity. Some ROMS place some of the ROM files on the SD-EXT partition. This is done particularly for the EU HD2 where it has only half the storage on-board that the TMOUS HD2 does. If you are using a ROM that requires one you do have to create the partitions before installing/flashing the ROM.
The three different flash.cfg files on the CWM thread are files used to instruct DFT how to re-partition your on-board storage (NAND). There are several partitions, up to 16 at the moment. Some ROM's use 4 partitions, some use 6 or more. Typically, non-CWM ROM's use only 4 partitions (boot, system, data, cache), whereas CWM ROM's use those same ones as well as a miscellaneous and recovery partition.
The main reason for the different files is that some ROM's use more space for the system partition. The different flash.cfg files just simply allocate more or less space to the system partition.
You don't technically have to flash new partitions every time you flash a new ROM. As long as you know how to modify the ROM to work with your current partition setup it will work. Or, get ROM's that use the same type of partition layouts. Since the release of CWM, more ROM's are becoming available for installation via the ZIP deployment method in CWM, which means they ALL use the same partition (with exception of the system partition size) setup.
If you have a TMOUS HD2 with plenty of onboard storage it's easier to just create a larger system partition and never have to worry about repartitioning. That's what I did. I have a 450 MB system partition and every time I deploy a new CWM ZIP ROM I don't have to repartition anything.
You nailed it on the head about backing up via CWM. It backs up all your partitions (boot, system, cache, sd-ext, data, etc) and saves them to your SD card. That way you can flash a new ROM or do a hard reset. Then later if you want you can do a full restore and be exactly where you left off before doing so. That is, if you flash a ROM that has the same partition layout. If you flash a ROM with a different partition layout, the restore may or may not work until you repartition the same as the original ROM was when you flashed it.
The only issue with all this is that since there isn't a set standard yet for ROM's and their partition layouts any ROM chef can define their own partition scheme which can make for a hassle when trying different ROM's. I expect that at some point there will be a standard set of partitions that will be used between all different chefs to make things easier. CWM ROM deployments and updates are definitely the future of this and how all native Android devices are handled. I imagine that will become the case down the road for the HD2 as well.
Hopefully that clears it up for you a bit. Sorry about writing a novel...

Digital Outcast said:
EXT partitions can be thought of as extended partitions on your SD card. They are used to "extend" your storage capacity. Some ROMS place some of the ROM files on the SD-EXT partition. This is done particularly for the EU HD2 where it has only half the storage on-board that the TMOUS HD2 does. If you are using a ROM that requires one you do have to create the partitions before installing/flashing the ROM.
The three different flash.cfg files on the CWM thread are files used to instruct DFT how to re-partition your on-board storage (NAND). There are several partitions, up to 16 at the moment. Some ROM's use 4 partitions, some use 6 or more. Typically, non-CWM ROM's use only 4 partitions (boot, system, data, cache), whereas CWM ROM's use those same ones as well as a miscellaneous and recovery partition.
The main reason for the different files is that some ROM's use more space for the system partition. The different flash.cfg files just simply allocate more or less space to the system partition.
You don't technically have to flash new partitions every time you flash a new ROM. As long as you know how to modify the ROM to work with your current partition setup it will work. Or, get ROM's that use the same type of partition layouts. Since the release of CWM, more ROM's are becoming available for installation via the ZIP deployment method in CWM, which means they ALL use the same partition (with exception of the system partition size) setup.
If you have a TMOUS HD2 with plenty of onboard storage it's easier to just create a larger system partition and never have to worry about repartitioning. That's what I did. I have a 450 MB system partition and every time I deploy a new CWM ZIP ROM I don't have to repartition anything.
You nailed it on the head about backing up via CWM. It backs up all your partitions (boot, system, cache, sd-ext, data, etc) and saves them to your SD card. That way you can flash a new ROM or do a hard reset. Then later if you want you can do a full restore and be exactly where you left off before doing so. That is, if you flash a ROM that has the same partition layout. If you flash a ROM with a different partition layout, the restore may or may not work until you repartition the same as the original ROM was when you flashed it.
The only issue with all this is that since there isn't a set standard yet for ROM's and their partition layouts any ROM chef can define their own partition scheme which can make for a hassle when trying different ROM's. I expect that at some point there will be a standard set of partitions that will be used between all different chefs to make things easier. CWM ROM deployments and updates are definitely the future of this and how all native Android devices are handled. I imagine that will become the case down the road for the HD2 as well.
Hopefully that clears it up for you a bit. Sorry about writing a novel...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Amazing explanation. Thanks a lottt man. Just one more question, I have TMOUS HD2 abd I did the same thing as you said. 450MB of partition. And then tried to install the MDJ's CM7 ROM. I got the message saying the ROM is successfully installed. and then I rebooted my phone. But it kept rebooting itself. Any particular reason you know of?

jalshah05 said:
Amazing explanation. Thanks a lottt man. Just one more question, I have TMOUS HD2 abd I did the same thing as you said. 450MB of partition. And then tried to install the MDJ's CM7 ROM. I got the message saying the ROM is successfully installed. and then I rebooted my phone. But it kept rebooting itself. Any particular reason you know of?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is this using the 400 MB flash.cfg file from the CWM thread? The reason I ask is that I checked that flash.cfg file and the boot partition is flagged as the bootable partition. I'm not familiar with the CM7 ROM from MDJ, but is it set to deploy via CWM with a boot folder in the ZIP file?
Also, have you run logcat (if you're familiar with that) while the issue is happening to see what is going on?

To be very frank I did not understand what you just told me sir. Only thing I can tell for sure is I downloaded the .zip file from the thread at http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=877777 . And I do not know what logcat is. I am sure you must be thinking that I am an idiot. Forgive me for my ignorance.

Google is your friend!
I'm a better one: http://wiki.cyanogenmod.com/index.php?title=Logcat
Edit: very interesting read by the way, Digital Outcast. Much appreciated!

Digital Outcast said:
Is this using the 400 MB flash.cfg file from the CWM thread? The reason I ask is that I checked that flash.cfg file and the boot partition is flagged as the bootable partition. I'm not familiar with the CM7 ROM from MDJ, but is it set to deploy via CWM with a boot folder in the ZIP file?
Also, have you run logcat (if you're familiar with that) while the issue is happening to see what is going on?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks a lott Digital Outcast for this amazing explanation. I hope I can get the Recovery mode working. I will try some different roms and see what can be done. meanwhile if you get chance please explain me your response "Is this using the 400 MB flash.cfg file from the CWM thread? The reason I ask is that I checked that flash.cfg file and the boot partition is flagged as the bootable partition. I'm not familiar with the CM7 ROM from MDJ, but is it set to deploy via CWM with a boot folder in the ZIP file?
Also, have you run logcat (if you're familiar with that) while the issue is happening to see what is going on?"
Thanks a lott once again.

[Q] what is app2sd and please can you help me activate it ? ?

what exactly is app2sd??
I am using RAFDROID ROM on a TMOUS HD2
in the instructions he said that if I am using a euro HD2 with 512 rom I should partition my sd card
so I did not do that and flashed the rom on my NAND
then when I started using apps I noticed that after two weeks usage I have only 50 MB left!!!!
so I want to activate app2sd and move my apps to the sd card..
so please I need some help from the experienced users on this great forum that can advise me about what exactly is this and how to activate and use it
thanks in advance!!

Apps2sd moves your apps to the sdcard, usually to an ext 3/4 partition. I don't know about the ROM you're using, but on the one I use (mdj's Cyanogen 2.6), you can move apps to external storage like this: settings --> applications --> manage applications. Then select an app and there is an option to move to sdcard.

@freeincolorado, the method you described is not A2SD+, that method is called move2sd.
A2SD+ puts the dalvik cache as well as the applications in a EXT2/3/4 partition, usually called the sd-ext partition. This method will still show you that the application is in the ROM. However, the sd-ext is used instead, depending on the chief implementing A2SD+ in their ROM, the remaining ROM space is suppose to report the partition "sd-ext" free space, however, certain ROMs are not properly done in my view, and will report the userdata partition free space instead. Such as MDJ's Cyanomodgen 7+ Gingerbread.
How to use A2SD+
Usually, they require you to partition your SD Card into 2 primary partition. The first partition is FAT32 where you store all your extras, such as music, ebook, etc (Like how your SD card is presently used). The 2nd partition is EXT2/3/4 depending on your preference, most people do not use EXT2 anymore as it does not support Journaling, since data can be easily corrupted with a battery pull. EXT3 and EXT4 contains journaling feature, so when battery is pulled, data corruption is minimal.
NOT ALL ROMS SUPPORT EXT4. This is a kernel thing, so if the rom uses a kernel that does not use EXT4, then it will not read the partition.
A2SD+ has a nice feature as well, when you switch ROM, you do not need to re-install all the applications, since all applications are placed in the sd-ext folder, including the dalvik cache. However, this also includes the system default applications which might not be compatible with another rom build.

[Q] JokerDroid + AlphaRev + Sense Fix

Hello
I installed JokerDroid ROM and I really like it. After fresh install i have 167mb of free internal memory ( because of a2sd). But as we know there are some problems with sense based roms (2.2.1) and AlphaRev - no setup wizard, no htc wallpapers... and MMS send/receive problem.
After that i flashed Sense fix. Now i got working setup wizard and most important I can send and receive MMS.
But the problem is that after fix i get only 120mb of free internal space and all new apps are installed on phone. Somehow that Sense fix destroyed a2sd option.
Is there a way how to fix this?
Thanks

The 167mb free memory after fresh installation is not because of a2sd. Make sure you have created ext partition correctly. Then install "a2sdgui" from market and see if it is working.
Sent from my HTC Wildfire using XDA App

I installed ext partition correctly because i was using it normal last month with this ROM.
Before i created ext partition i got 120mb free with this ROM(fresh install) and after i created ext i get 167mb. Also after ext partition when i install angry birds it uses only about 2mb of internal storage, before about 22mb. So yes ext partition works.
The problem starts when i flash Sense fix.
Any idea?

urkotheone said:
I installed ext partition correctly because i was using it normal last month with this ROM.
Before i created ext partition i got 120mb free with this ROM(fresh install) and after i created ext i get 167mb. Also after ext partition when i install angry birds it uses only about 2mb of internal storage, before about 22mb. So yes ext partition works.
The problem starts when i flash Sense fix.
Any idea?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No idea. I haven't used jokerdroid actually. So, maybe I'm out of knowledge. But I doubt getting 120MB free memory on fresh install (without ext partition).
And regarding angry birds, suppose if you install it without ext partition, I guess it will be installed to ".android_secure" folder of sdcard (atleast on stock froyo rom). Because it supports default apps2sd and also has default install location to sdcard (fat partition). So, maybe you shouldn't consider it on judging that ext partition works.
Sent from my HTC Wildfire using XDA App

Re-enable A2SD using the terminal emulator with the required commands (a2sd reinstall and a2sd cachesd), or, download A2SD GUI from the market and re-enable it.

Just before I read this last post i fixed this problem with A2SDGUI. I found that after Sense Fix the dalvik cache was moved to internal storage. I just moved it back to sd and now it works.
Thanks to both of you for your answers.

how to install jokerdroid rom in android 2.3 cyanogenmod 7.1 wildfire?

Arunragav said:
how to install jokerdroid rom in android 2.3 cyanogenmod 7.1 wildfire?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same as any rom, flash it in recovery. But if you mean running sense on a cyanogenmod rom it's more complex, you'd have to port it from another source
Sent by fire!

Questions to sense roms

Hey,
So I wanted to give sense a chance, since I really like sense 3.5.
But I'm having problems finding a good rom, I tried it with energy but its slow and runs not smooth at all, even tho other people dont seem to have problems with it.
And Im also confused about all that SD-Partitioning, tried doing it like in the Guides but from all the partitioning my SD Card is only 900MB out of 2GB now and I cant seem to delete all the other partitions.
Regards

try RCMix3D Runny v5.0, i heard some good things about it.
as for sd card partitioning:
flash 4ext recovery (in attachment) with CWM, your phone should reboot into 4ext recovery.
in 4ext go to: Advanced -> Partition SD Card -> Remove all partitions and start from scratch.
Now it will prompt you for the desired sizes for all your partitions, but don't get confused if it asks twice for the ext size, the 1st time is for the 1st ext partition the 2nd for the 2nd partition.
Generally you wouldn't want/need a 2nd ext partition so choose 0 mb for that one.
ext-4 is the desired type for the ext partition.
hope i have been of help..

Thanks man!
Will try that out tomorrow.
But about that rom you posted, I read in the Rom specific Thread that it runs relatively slow, anyhow I'll try it.

So I installed it now, did a 1024M sd-ext partition and flashed 210M CWM with 5M cache using the HD2 Toolkit.
But after the clean install I only get 993 quadrant score and it is pretty laggy/slow
Is this normal with sense roms? oO

I don't find the rom to be slow at all.
I have yet to try v5. I'm still on 4.xx.
For me the rom is fast and I heard with Kernel v6 or Marc's kernel the rom goes great.

Was my post helpful?

If you want to try sense I would look at haldrics sense roms he has done a great job with both 2.1 and 3.5 also they are both smooth and fast.

Maxp101 said:
try RCMix3D Runny v5.0, i heard some good things about it.
as for sd card partitioning:
flash 4ext recovery (in attachment) with CWM, your phone should reboot into 4ext recovery.
in 4ext go to: Advanced -> Partition SD Card -> Remove all partitions and start from scratch.
Now it will prompt you for the desired sizes for all your partitions, but don't get confused if it asks twice for the ext size, the 1st time is for the 1st ext partition the 2nd for the 2nd partition.
Generally you wouldn't want/need a 2nd ext partition so choose 0 mb for that one.
ext-4 is the desired type for the ext partition.
hope i have been of help..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That .zip didn't work out for some people. I would recommend using minitool partition wizard. It's free and works great (Windows)
If you are using linux, try gparted.

MccM MixTheme Runny+Ryhme V10
Hi, I'm running MccM MixTheme Runny+Ryhme V10 on SD card, I've got 2171 in Quadrant Standard. i have 16GB card with 8GB free.
The only problem with this is Wifi hotspot is not working, so I use "Barnacle"
Have any one try that? any better ROM than this?

jeNova- said:
So I installed it now, did a 1024M sd-ext partition and flashed 210M CWM with 5M cache using the HD2 Toolkit.
But after the clean install I only get 993 quadrant score and it is pretty laggy/slow
Is this normal with sense roms? oO
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In my opinion no. I'm on the TBD v3.1 Sensation XL themed ROM, it comes with Sense 3.5 and works really fine!
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1275119
Do you have an opportunity to try it with another SD-Card? Maybe it's broken.

alx85 said:
In my opinion no. I'm on the TBD v3.1 Sensation XL themed ROM, it comes with Sense 3.5 and works really fine!
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1275119
Do you have an opportunity to try it with another SD-Card? Maybe it's broken.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
if you follow the link, you see the rom, but it's crab, only 1319 in quadrant???
why don't you try the one i have "MccM MixTheme Runny+Ryhme V10"
you can get around 2100 in the quadrant, but as i said the only problem is WIFI HOTSPOT is not working you have to use "barnacle" instead.
have any one try it? and let me know is there a fix for "wifi-hot spot"?

Sense to me, just feels too slow & clunky but the sense 2.1 feel faster to me

Can you share 2.1 ROM?

[Q] Size of ext4-partition, space for apps

Hallo together,
this is my first thread in this forum.
I plan to install the NexusHD2-JellyBean-4.1.2-CM10 V1.3a [NativeSD] on my Leo and I have one principal question:
I must have two partitons on the sd-card, one ext4 and one fat32. Which of those two partitions is the one all android apps are stored/installed on? Is it possible that all apps are installed on fat32-partition? In this case a size of the ext4-partition of 2 GB would be sufficient. But if all apps are installed in the ext4-partition it has to bigger, hasn't it?
Is there an app that manages all apps to be installed on sd-card (fat32-partition)? Is app2sd the right application?
I hope someone can give me some useful advice.
Greetings,
kteamchief

Which of those two partitions is the one all android apps are stored/installed on? ext4, if you installed rom with dataonext
Is there an app that manages all apps to be installed on sd-card (fat32-partition)? link2sd
Is app2sd the right application? yes, but you need to flash a2sd script first
you should choose one of three line above
I prefer to dataonext :laugh:

if the rom is nativesd, (it is) and you install it as nativesd, then there would be no point putting teh apps on teh fat32 partition, since they would already be on the faster ext partition anyway.
if you installed it as nand, then use a script to put teh apps/data on the ext partition, , teh fat32 partition is always going to be slowest.