Excuse the long thread title lol..
I've been gently lowering myself into all this tampering with my phone as I've always been a bit of a tinkerer with everything i've ever owned.
So back in march my phone, an unbranded handset on o2 uk was on 2.2.1. My first foray into modifying my handset was to flash the jvk gb firmware. I then rooted it using cf root. All very simple. I then flashed it using cwm with Simply honey 3.2 and then the latest 3.5. No issue.
So this afternoon, I flashed it with the "unspoken ones" kernel just cos I could lol. Something didnt seem right though. There was a bit of lag and I got one or two forced closures so I decided to restore one of the cwm backups I had. Thing is, it hung upon reboot at the i9000 screen, for about 10 minutes so I pulled the battery. Now I couldnt get it restarted. Panic set in. This was my first proper issue and I just wished I was back in march on 2.2.1 again.
As said, couldnt get it started so went hunting some advice. Install a base stock rom with 3 files and a 512 pit. I struggled. Could I find 3 files ? Nope. Not on samfirmware. Every file I downloaded was one file. JP1 JPU JPY. All 1 file. So. As JPY was the firmware I was on originally, I chose the 1 file version, put the phone in download mode and flashed it via odin. It worked !!! And then I plugged it into kies and up popped the box, I have an firmware update ! JPO GB! So i installed that. I'm quite surprised that I got the update because you always see lots of threads regarding people being unable to update by kies once they have modified their phones. Why did mine work? Because the handset in unbranded perhaps ?
Anyway, I wanted to get back to the Simply Honey rom because it ran really well and the battery life is fantastic but Simone hasnt done a version based on JVO yet as far as I could tell so I thought, I know, I'll root with cf root, again and try that backup again using cwm. And it worked, and here I am back where I was earlier today ! Ace ! lol
Sorry about the essay but I'm sure that there are some questions in there worth answering.. ?...and also to serve as a bit of help to those that find themselves in a dodgy situation. Just calm down, search for the advice, it is out there and do as it says and everything will be cool
Posted from my restored and working handset...
the files you download from samfirmware are rar files (have a .rar extention). This means you need to decompress them into a folder and the "three files" will be in there. You need a rar extractor app. You can use 7-zip which is free.
You need odin (or ezodin or heimdal) to flash the stock rom but I am sure you know that already. There are a few guides around for all tools.
There is a lot of information here, especially in the "sticky" posts. If you feel like learning what you are doing rather than copy instructions (as I think you do), it may be a good idea to go through them.
Anyway you got your phone working in the end so that's good!
simple solution when an install hangs is only to reflash the kernel in odin: that restarts the phone.
cwm is not invincible and the restored rom is there but the phone hangs on the boot because of the kernel hiccup. Reflashing the kernel to the one you now want will allow the phone to boot and access the rom that matches -- you do have to ensure the recovery version rom and the kernel you are flashing are in sync.
Persist. You only really panic the first time this happens -- after that you know it is a possibility and how to fix it.
Worst case scenario: pull the battery, reinsert, go to download mode and reflash the kernel and base rom of your choice. At least now you have a clean phone!
Two things are important to remember: (1) always do a backup before installing a new rom or kernel and (2) use titanium backup for all applications -- easy to restore everything.
Also I find it easier to use google calender and my internet email as bases for dates, appointments and contacts -- that way if I loose everything on the phone I can quickly reload my data by sync with online accounts once I have the phone "rebuilt".
Related
Hi all.
I have a Samsung Vibrant that's still on 2.1. I want to get into rooting and running custom ROMs, but my first attempt failed miserably. I had only rooted the phone and played with a little bit of overclocking for a couple of days when I received an OTA update announcement. Not thinking about it, I accepted it. After that, I got stuck on the "Vibrant" startup screen during the reboot. I took the phone and flashed it back to stock using the method most use (ODIN?). Anyway, even back to stock it would get stuck in a loop of running the media scanner during startup...needless to say I had to get a new phone.
My point is that I want to get my phone more personalized but I'm a bit stand-off-ish because of my prior experience. There is a ton of terminology I'm not familiar with at all...the most I can do with a computer is turn it on and use it.
Is there a place I can go that's an entry level course in rooting and the terminology associated with it? Thanks.
Check my signature. Noob guide. If something is not answered please pm me so I can add it.
I would not use kies to get 2.2.
What is "kies?" Also, I've been reading through (obviously there's a lot of reading to do) but I have another question that relates to my previous experimentation with rooting:
Is there ANY way to do a full back up of my phone now so that if I ever have to go back to stock using ODIN I can go back to how my phone is now? The last time I tried I could not find the same software I had before and a few things had been changed...basically like it wasn't a true stock file.
OK, so you are nooBie
Here are a list of things you are going need if you want to update your phone to 2.2
1. If you do not know what you are doing (which is the case) then, read
member-s15274n Noobie guide in the Bible. This will get you up to speed on the knowledge necessary to modify the phone.
2. If you decide to do the factory (from tmobile/samsung) update, then read on that process. I personally do not recommend updating that way.
3. If you update via some of the excellent roms in the Dev section (which I recommend) then read up on them Master's Axura, Jellette's Einherjar rom and Team Whiskey's Roms are all excellent and there are others YOU NEED TO READ UP ON THESE,
4. If you go with a custom rom Then you need The following programs/patches:
A. Odin 1.7 (this installs on the computer)
B. Oneclick root. (Go to unlockr.com) they have a video easy to follow and have the links for this.
C. Clockwork (Rom Manager) free installs on the phone
D. Titanium Backup (installs o nthe phone)
E. Original 959JFD 2.1 stock ROM (in case you f#ck-up) you can odin back
F. The Custom rom of your choice.
That is all you need, read up and once you get going you will maybe have questions..... Ask in the Q & A we all here welcome a new person to the forum and help them.
BMRbrnSNRbrd said:
What is "kies?" Also, I've been reading through (obviously there's a lot of reading to do) but I have another question that relates to my previous experimentation with rooting:
Is there ANY way to do a full back up of my phone now so that if I ever have to go back to stock using ODIN I can go back to how my phone is now? The last time I tried I could not find the same software I had before and a few things had been changed...basically like it wasn't a true stock file.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Samsung Kies is an official program that syncs your phone to your PC. This includes downloading and installing official OS updates to your phone.
A NANDroid backup can backup everything except the kernel. When you restore this backup your phone will go back to the state it was in when you backed it up.
Remember to always read a lot before doing anything.
I'm kinda new too. I personally chose Team Whiskey's ROMs. Their guide and s15274n's Noob Guide helped me a lot. Have fun!
Thanks for the information.
Ok, now I really feel like a noob....I am to the phone rooting idea, but not to forums...but I cannot for the life of me find the Developers section...
Vibrant > vibrant android development
Ok, I want to leave a message on here for future noobs like me with a Galaxy S
i9000 but it might work for others too.
My issue when flashing custom roms is that I have not been able to access my galaxy from my computer via usb since literally day 1 (when it did work once).
I spent a week trying to connect to Kies on multiple computers (vista and Windows 7). Tried via Android SDK, even tried hiemdall. I almost tried in ubuntu also but I never did get that working as I really don't know linux well enough. I've now given up...
So then I saw that you can do flashing all on the phone with the clockwork mod. With clockwork, my first rom flashed, well, like clockwork! But then I had some issues with lag and hang ups and reception and I decided to switch to another rom (seearms jl2 based rom - good stuff so far).
However this rom install went sideways... It said that it had installed ok but on reboot it stalled on the Galaxy I9000 screen and froze. Luckily I could still use the 3 button recovery to boot to clockworks but the hitch was that I HAD NO OTHER ROM to flash back to.
I had done a backup through clockworks but when I tried to restore it said the systems.img file was missing so it skipped it and the end result was the same freeze.
Normally everone says to reflash at this point with odin but that was not an option for me. So this is where I got lucky. The SeeARMs rom included Steam recovery module (though I thought it was the stock 3 button recovery menu for a while - I was panicking a little). I highly recommend seeing if you can get steam because it allows access to the External SD card for flashing which can be a lifesaver. Ahh, finally I could get the old rom on that, reflash it and go one with my life. My theory being that at least the issues would be aligned with the this rom and it worked.
So the lessons I learned:
1) Always have your new rom and your old rom on the interanal SD card in case of issues.
2) check your nandroid backup - even try testing it? - they don't always work perfectly with every device.
3)I highly recommend finding out if Steam or similar will work if you cannot access the USB connection and load things on when things go wrong.
Some tips I saw that also worked for me
1) flash a new kernel before you flash a new whole rom.
2) if things go sideways, try redownloading or retransferring the file to make sure there were no errors.
I did both and then reflashed (with my old rom Voodoo Doctor, SeeArms Rom and Darky's 8.1 rom on the card just to have options) and all was good!
PS: the steam recovery knocked off the first letter of the file when executing for some reason so I had to make 2 copy's of each rom I wanted access to ie Darkysrom.zip and arkysrom.zip just look for that error when you are doing this.
Good post - hopefully it'll help someone out who's stuck.
Hopefully
I'd like to stick some of that in on the thread for your rom but I need put another 7 half relevent messages out there before I am worthy... I understand the rule but I'd rather only post where it is meaningful...
GF
I want say thanks to all they great people on this forums out who help us in our times of needs.
Here is my story:
In preparation to the upcoming gingerbread update for my i9000m I decided to disable my lagfix and revert back to an RFS filesystem. I had installed a new kernel. I had replaced my stock kernel with a Kernel switcher app because I did not want to use Odin. Having an i9000m that was plagued with a failed motherboard back in December, I did not want to have another brick in my hand.
So Friday night, I went in the recovery boot. Disabled Ext4 in favour of RFS. Rebooted to convert the filesystem. Went I went from RFS to EXT4 the whole thing took approximately 20 minutes. After an hour of converting, it was stuck on one file for about 45 minutes that is when I should I ask instead of act. I pulled the battery and hoped for the best. It restarted. The filesystem seemed to have been converted and it booted into android without an itch. I decided then to revert back to the stock kernel which is when I brick my phone. It did not reboot. After the animation screen it never loaded into Android. After wiping out and trying for format my SD card, I got over my fear of Odin and decided to flash the custom kernel once again, however, instead of flashing it through PDA, I flashed it through CSC. My bad… At this point I was able to see the Galaxy S I9000m screen but never loaded the animation. I thought I was screwed badly. I tried to find over the forum the darn CSC tar file for the KC1 update but couldn’t find it all by it self. After reading a few post I registered myself over at samfirmware, downloaded the whole update, flash it through Odin again because at least I was able to load into download mode. Now, I was able to see the animation screen once more but nothing after that. I loaded into recovery mode; saw the notice that it cannot mount the E:something, which I suspect was there all along. I search over the forum for the solution. Found it, applied the missing file through Odin. Phone booted into android perfectly.
I made every the mistakes that I should not have done, primarily not searching for a solution first before acting. I acted before reading and I screw up my phone and lost all my data because of that. If I had read the error that my phone was giving me and applied the patch, I would still have all of my information and all my apps, but this is the price I accept to pay for my mistakes. I have learned my lesson but also have learned that Odin is very easy to use.
Thanks again to all the people who keep this forum alive with solutions and great apps, ROMs and kernel.
I've had the SGS2 for close to a month and in this time, i swear to honest God i've been more confused then i've been during my Symbian authoring days with my N95. I'm a tech savvy individual that reads up and researches things to death before acting but i'm just dumbfounded.
I have a Vodafone Romania SGS2 with the fallowing firmware: PDA: KE1 / Phone: KE1 / CSC: KE1 (CNX). I want to update to the KE5 firmware Kies is apparently showing me but due to a CTD Kies refuses to work and actually froze up my PC.
After repeaded tries, reinstalls, updates and tweaks i gave up on using Kies, especially after reading that it bricked some phones. So on i went to manually flashing it with Odin. I didn't get far because i've stumbled upon the thread with the official ROMS. So far i just want to install the official honest to god KE5 update for my network, to not mess anything up and still keep the warranty.
Romania
BUKE1:multiupload.com/7C3C2AOWGZ
Firmware info: PDA:BUKE1| PHONE:BUKE1| CSC:CNXKE1
BUKE1 Stock Kernel: Use the UK Kernel, it's the same.
BUKE5:multiupload.com/KHFWY2ZUOW
Firmware info: PDA:BUKE5| PHONE:BUKE1| CSC:CNXKE1
BUKE5 Stock Kernel:multiupload.com/EQ8RFFVB7A
Password: intratech XDA
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So, i assume i need the BUKE5, which is the KE5 update, the full one, not the kernel alone? So i go there and the filename is: GT-I9100_VDC_I9100BUKE1_I9100BUKE1_I9100VDCKE1.exe (265.11 MB)
Am i just paranoid or is that not the correct firmware update? Also, upgrading the firmware needs to delete all my apps and app data. I backed them up using astro and the kies software to the best of my ability, but i ended up being stonewalled that doing anything, from firmware to rooting to etc, lands me with more work to be done restoring the apps and settings after i'm done with it.
I just had so many issues with the phone, and in the end it doesn't seem as 'smart' as i though it'd be. Everyone had high praise for it and to be honest, after beating around with it so much, i really wish people would have told me about the numerous issues it has before buying. Sadly, only glowing and positive reviews. -.-
In the end, can someone please help me atleast update the firmware?
LE: Forgot to mention in case of the Kies, Win7 Professional.
external sd card doesn't get wiped. Internal sd card doesn't get wiped.
You could try a no wipe root by just flashing a rooted kernel like chainfire rather than full rom. Then backup user apps using titanium.
Use odin for both and generally only use PDA file, and defaulted options like reboot and do on. See various kernel threads for that.
Look here http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthead.php?t=1103399
[29.06.2011][CF-Root v4.0] KE2/7/8, KF1/2/3/4 - su+bb+CWM4
Or here...
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1075278
[ROM + Guide]Official i9100 KE7/KE8/KF1/KF3/KF4/KF2/KF3 download and Root Guide.
The difference its that chain fire adds recovery tools but its only a kernel. You can add that later if you want.
After that, first full custom rom or rebranded rom does mean /data which are user app data directories may get wiped.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk
Edit I have ke7
Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk
Ok then, so i'm installing CF kernel to make a full backup for one thing. I get to the post, stumble around only on google with fake versions to see Odin at the bottom of the post attached. Get that, get the Zip, then get to the 'put your phone in download mode'. Ok i guess that's the USB mass storage? Two minutes later.. nope. More google. Realise it ment to reboot the phone in download mode by pushing Volume down, power button and the home key.
Right, finally i manage to install the CF kernel without issues. Now i accessed Titanium Backup and begin backing up all it can.
Will keep updated here.
After a bit of searching, i found Intratech actually put the wrong link up for the BUKE5 update on the vodafone network for Romania. I PM'd him and waiting for an update.
Good Luck. I'm sorry to hear you have had so many problems.
With regards to your warranty, you can always Odin the stock firmware and buy a USB Jig (devs are currently working on a software solution, should be cracked soon removing the need for the jig) from ebay to reset the custom ROM counter before you return the phone if needed.
The very next day, i got the BUKE5 firmware update and installed it succesfully. I will continue by rooting the phone with CF again and i should be done.
Atleast i got my 'totally painless easy-to-update firmware'.
Later edit: Seems there is no KE5 CF root. -.-
You probably do not need ke5 root.
So called insecure kernel only needed for two things.
1) flash secure rom (ke5) then insecure kernel (ke2 or ke7 kernel only) that you flash over your secured rom (ke5).
Insecure lets running one click root, that installs super user and busy box.
That is what you do I guess.
Then optionally you flash regular kernel (ke5) kernel only, not whole rom. You will keep super user and root but I lose adb root which you probably will not miss.
2) flash custom kernel. E.g. one like tegrak for cpu flexibility, or one like chain fire keep for custom recovery if you like
Cmw recovery
.
So get the latest that is compatible. New over old its often okay.
ke7 or kf2. Or do what some are doing and wait for ke9 (rumoured gingerbread upgrade release from samsung) that on my magic was a big upgrade in performance)
You get to do great stuff like tegrak over clock app with both 1 and 2.
Advantage of (1) is that flashing a genuine kernel after an insecure one used just too get root gets rid of that yellow ! you get with custom kernel when you boot the phone that could alert an engineer with a warranty claim.
Or stay on custom kernel and use a jig like previous poster said to clear the alert. Two pounds fifty well spent.
Advantage of (2) is that recovery installs are very convenient, and do not put the ! warning. Oh and updating phone on the train gets funny looks from fellow passengers looking over your shoulder.
On the other hand some people like using odin anyway "because that's what samsung engineers use"
Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk
I've grown tired of CLM chrashing all the time, and I want to go back to the latest possible european firmware. This, however, proved to be quite the challenge. This is our story so far:
1. Our hero starts up Odin and (appearently does not) revert his SGS to it's orignal state. Instead, he gets BSOD, but manages to boot the phone into download mode because he's a hacker.
2. Our hero randomly finds Darkys mod. He installs the mod, and everything actually works. Except that Darkys is way worse, and our hero longs for the days of speedmod kernel stock firmware.
3. Our hero reads somewhere that it's a good idea to factory reset his SGS, so now he cant boot into anything but boot into download and recovery. The phone is, however, very not bricked anymore.
4. This is were the hero asks the league of justica (or XDA) for help. He wants the following:
A link to the latest firmware for european Samsung Galaxy S, i9000, and some sort of guide to which files to use where in Odin (or heimdall). The problem is, all the guides I've tried so far linked to firmware that was inconsistent with what ODIN requested (it had no .pit file etc).
Can anyone of you champions of justice and peace help me with this?
Hey man.
Why haven't you looked a bit in the development section? There are plenty of stock firmwares over there
Here's the link with everything you need: click.
I suggest you flash JVT, it's the best stock ROM, as far as I know.
I hope I was able to help you. Bye