[Q] Got another new Epic, let's talk backup & restore strategies - Epic 4G General

After going through refurbs from Sprint, I was finally able to get my hands on a brand new in box Epic! I've rooted and flashed 4 Epics in the last week, only to have to return them to stock because of issues.
What is the best way to restore my apps and app data from my previous device? I don't care much about system settings, preferences, etc. I've done a full restore through CWM on a reurb, but that resulted in a bunch of problems (whether it be due to a lack of journaling, general SD corruption, or bad backups). This was done on an Epic that received the EC05 OTA, then flashed to SRF1.1 with the TZ kernel.
I have concurrent backups in:
- CWM
- Titanium Backup Pro paid version
- MyBackup Root
My only real concern is the market apps, Amazon apps, and their saved data. It seems that Titanium Backup is best, but I'd rather not have to sit there and keep pressing "Install" for all my apk files. How do you guys do it?
I suppose it's temporary given the pending GB release, but I don't think I can stay on the stock rom for 2 weeks...

I use cwm too back up. But if u have problems when u back up. Your going to have them when you restore. And why wait you want the stock sprnt gb rom? Go ahead and root and forget the ota there will be aflasable zip on here in a timly maner once the ota begins.

It backed up fine in CWM but the restore seems to cause issues (eg LauncherPro Plus running low on memory). I'll try a different SD card.
My option for now is to either flash+restore my data or run stock EC05. I think I'll pass on the latter because it feels so limited in comparison to SRF.
Doing the initial charge so I'll wait to get some input

I hear you I'm on srf 1.1.1 and I could nver go back to stock rom. I tried the gingerbread leak. Wow rfs and tock rom. Felt sooo slow

How do you like 1.1.1 compared to 1.1? I think I read that 1.2 is due out soon as well?

Just restore an entire cwm backup on the new epic, wipe cache ad dalvik, the erase /data/lost+found/ and /data/tombstones
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App

Titatanium is the way to go to avoid old corrupted or incompatible data from your old clockwork backup.
Only problem with titanium is that if u dont use launcher pro it doesnt save homescreen settings like widgets or apps placed on the homescreen.
I like titanium a lot cause i have it backup nightly so i always have a recent backup

I've just learned to give it up and not have any sort of attachment to my apps. I dont even bother restoring backups anymore. I reflash all the time and after I've messed with settings and wallpapers and such, it only takes about 15 minutes in the market and setup to get my must-have apps up and running. 90% of the apps I download I hardly ever use and can just take the 30 seconds to get them from the market again. The only exception I can think of would be game progress if you're into that, and TB should be sufficient with very few problems if its just the games. Otherwise, most app data is just logins and preferences. Since I started doing it this way, I've had WAY less problems flashing roms and such, because there are less possible conflicts.

Related

Some super-simple noob backup questions

Quick and to the point:
1. Is a clockwork backup a full image of the system, such that if I restore from it no matter what kernel, rom, mod, etc. I've installed, I get exactly the completely system and state that I had when I made the backup? I.e., it is a true failsafe against messing up the phone, so long as CWR will boot and the SD card is intact?
2. A complete backup with Titanium, backing up all apps and system data, is a migration path for trying a new ROM? IOW, I can simply do a complete backup with Titanium, wipe wipe wipe, install the target ROM, then restore "missing apps and data" from Titanium and -- voila! I'm on the new ROM, but with all my apps, configuration, etc. I had before?
I'm getting ready to try out the Syndicate ROM...
dwallersv said:
Quick and to the point:
1. Is a clockwork backup a full image of the system, such that if I restore from it no matter what kernel, rom, mod, etc. I've installed, I get exactly the completely system and state that I had when I made the backup? I.e., it is a true failsafe against messing up the phone, so long as CWR will boot and the SD card is intact?
2. A complete backup with Titanium, backing up all apps and system data, is a migration path for trying a new ROM? IOW, I can simply do a complete backup with Titanium, wipe wipe wipe, install the target ROM, then restore "missing apps and data" from Titanium and -- voila! I'm on the new ROM, but with all my apps, configuration, etc. I had before?
I'm getting ready to try out the Syndicate ROM...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ha! I am searching now for the exact same question! I am looking to try the Epic Experience. I will follow this thread to see what the answer is.
Thanks.
First off might I comment that Syndicate Rom is a great choice. Not just saying that cause any of them are my buddies either, cause IDK Any of them... so far though Running Syndicate Rom/Kernel with SetCPU at 200-1200 has been the smoothest Rom experience I have had up to date.
1. Is a clockwork backup a full image of the system, such that if I restore from it no matter what kernel, rom, mod, etc. I've installed, I get exactly the completely system and state that I had when I made the backup? I.e., it is a true failsafe against messing up the phone, so long as CWR will boot and the SD card is intact?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes in theory it is a backup of everything, data, apps installed, boot, system, literally the entire phone is backed up. Is it a failsafe though? I would rather say not. On some phones we can restore a clockwork recovery and have no issues, but since I've had my epic and switched around with different Roms, I've noticed that restore dosen't work quite as it should, probably because Roms are so much different, and you run into FC's, boot loops, and other issues... Restoring peices in advanced restore works well but a complete restore almost always has bugs.
True statement though that even if you screw up and get a boot loop, or constant force closes/phone restarts, as long as you can get back into clockwork your phone is not screwed. You were right on that one. So no worries if you wanna test and play.
2. A complete backup with Titanium, backing up all apps and system data, is a migration path for trying a new ROM? IOW, I can simply do a complete backup with Titanium, wipe wipe wipe, install the target ROM, then restore "missing apps and data" from Titanium and -- voila! I'm on the new ROM, but with all my apps, configuration, etc. I had before?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You have the idea right. You really don't even need to back all your apps up with titanium anymore these days, though, it too is plagued with FC's and problems. If you are using clockwork recovery, and you have made a backup already... all you have to do when installing a NEW rom is first wipe-fest, then let it boot once, then restart, go to clockwork, go to Advanced Restore, and ONLY restore the DATA part. (Reason for this is if you restore Boot, System, etc it will try to restore the Rom you just installed... Data is where all your apps/settings are at) This will do exactly the same thing as titanium backup will do, only with less bugs and alot easier.
Cool... thanks for the great response.
It's too bad there isn't an iron-clad, 100% reliable means to take a snapshot of the phone that can be restored reliably.
On WM it was simply a matter of using one of the various backup utilities (I used SPB Backup 2) to make an image of the system. No matter what I did to the phone, I could always wipe it back to factory clean, then restore from backup and have my phone back exactly as it was, with no issues.
I'm trying a CW backup, factory reset, restore cycle right now to see what happens. I'll report back on my experience.
EDIT: Okay, one deviation from the WM experience: The factory reset did NOT reset the kernel -- MixUp is still showing as the running kernel. Is Odin the only way to get the factory kernel back?​No matter what, I'm on my way after that to the Syndicate ROM!
EDIT: Okay, the CW restore seems to have restored everything back to the way it was, without problems after some brief playing around. No FCs (so far). On to wiping again, installing Syndicate Standard, then restoring data from CW as recommended here.​
OperationMove said:
You have the idea right. You really don't even need to back all your apps up with titanium anymore these days, though, it too is plagued with FC's and problems. If you are using clockwork recovery, and you have made a backup already... all you have to do when installing a NEW rom is first wipe-fest, then let it boot once, then restart, go to clockwork, go to Advanced Restore, and ONLY restore the DATA part. (Reason for this is if you restore Boot, System, etc it will try to restore the Rom you just installed... Data is where all your apps/settings are at) This will do exactly the same thing as titanium backup will do, only with less bugs and alot easier.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Alright I took the plunge and it seemed to work well. Some things that I noticed was that on first boot (before I did the restore), all of the preinstalled apps showed up (for instance, wireless tether, wired tether, launcher pro, etc...). Since I did a restore of the data, all of MY apps are there, but some of the apps that were preinstalled disappeared. Not all of them, though. For example, Launcher Pro and Wired and wireless tether disappeared, but Car Home is still there.
Another thing to note is that my widgets on the home screen don't seem to function correctly at first. I had to remove them and readd them to the home screen for them to work.
Other than that, everything is as it should be.
hotwired34 said:
Alright I took the plunge and it seemed to work well. Some things that I noticed was that on first boot (before I did the restore), all of the preinstalled apps showed up (for instance, wireless tether, wired tether, launcher pro, etc...). Since I did a restore of the data, all of MY apps are there, but some of the apps that were preinstalled disappeared. Not all of them, though. For example, Launcher Pro and Wired and wireless tether disappeared, but Car Home is still there.
Another thing to note is that my widgets on the home screen don't seem to function correctly at first. I had to remove them and readd them to the home screen for them to work.
Other than that, everything is as it should be.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmmm... okay. So just to provide a different datapoint, I'll go the Titanium route to get my own apps and settings back, and report. I'm guessing CW wiped the DATA partition before the restore, wiping out the pre-installed stuff from the ROM.
dwallersv said:
Hmmm... okay. So just to provide a different datapoint, I'll go the Titanium route to get my own apps and settings back, and report. I'm guessing CW wiped the DATA partition before the restore, wiping out the pre-installed stuff from the ROM.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok, since yesterday, I tried both ways. I did a wipe back to the default Syndicate Rom and installed Titanium Backup. While restoring, I noticed that not all apps would restore (seemed to be ones that were in the stock ROM so it's understandable). I did a restore of apps + data. Now, I had most of my apps back, however, I noticed that some of the data was missing. For me, most importantly was the SMS Messages. I also wanted to note that doing an application by application restore of the backup was very time consuming! I had to basically reinstall every app (and then Titanium restored the data)
Nandroid doesnt seem to touch the kernel on our phones ether I noticed. I had a problem yesterday after I flashed a new rom and when I went to do a restore through nandroid I got a bootloop. Once I reflashed the kernel it fixed the bootlooping problem. I have noticed this in other instances to with kernels not being backed up since I did one after I rooted my phone so I would have a stock image.
Thanks guys on your experience and feedback on the backup thing that I'm wondering what to do after stock root.
dito33
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
pyroswithoutfire said:
Nandroid doesnt seem to touch the kernel on our phones ether I noticed. I had a problem yesterday after I flashed a new rom and when I went to do a restore through nandroid I got a bootloop. Once I reflashed the kernel it fixed the bootlooping problem. I have noticed this in other instances to with kernels not being backed up since I did one after I rooted my phone so I would have a stock image.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is what I have been told in the past- a nandroid restore does not replace the kernel

[Q] Help with updating to rooted GB

I have a question about flashing the leaked rooted GB to my DX. My phone is already rooted using z4root. I have titanium backup. If I wipe data and flash the new GB, when I use titanium backup to restore my apps, does this also restore my settings and basically bring my phone back to what it was before the update just now with the updated GB ROM. I have been scared to do this because I was scared I would have to start over with alot of the settings and custom boot animations, boot logo, etc that I have put on there.
I'm by no means an expert. But I read elsewhere here at XDA that using your Titanium Backup system files from Froyo doesn't work well on GB.
When I went to GB the other day I used Titanium to restore all my apps and data, but the only system data I restored was bluetooth pairings. I didn't want to restore anything else for fear of messing something up. Yeah, it's a pain to get your settings back, but GB looks different enough that I didn't mind having to poke around here and there to set the phone back up. I was more concerned with the apps/data than I was with any system settings.

Problems with a new CM7 install

Hey guys. I've had it with MIUI. and i'm ready to switch to a new rom. i figured now was as good a time as any to try out CM7. So i downloaded the latest stable version, backed up my existing install and flashed. The phone got stuck at the bootscreen. I assumed it was because i neglected to wipe data and cache, so i went back, wiped everything, reflashed and booted into CM7(after an extensive wait)
Everything was running great and i just finished restoring my apps with MyBackup. I was getting FCs on a few apps, but i chocked it up to CM7 not having all the components that some of those apps require. I was about to start removing the offenders when the phone crashed and went back to the bootscreen. It sat there for 2 hours before i pulled the battery and restored back to MIUI.
In short, i really want to try out CM7, but if it's going to be this unstable, obviously it won't cut it. Am i doing something wrong??
Some apps just do not play nicely when being restored from a backup. Can you restore apps 1 at a time so that you only get the apps that you know work? Then re-download the apps that are causing problems.
Possibly. That seems like an unnecessary step though. Would a rom really crash because of app incompatibility? I thought they would just FC every time i tried to run them, not blow up the whole ROM.
If you are using ROM MANAGER you can try to use the utility for "Fix Permissions". I'm sure there is a way to do it in the recovery them selves, but the process escapes me.
This is not an uncommon requirement when restoring from one complex ROM to another.
I had some quirkiness restoring a few apps with Titanium backup. I ended up just reinstalling them from Market and haven't had issues since. Also, after restoring my contacts with Mobile Backup II, I could not edit them from the phone. Force closes. Had to delete them and re-sync with Gmail and exchange server. No problems after that.
I have flashed Synergy, Swagged Out Stock, SavagedZen, and a few others and always wandered back to CM7. In my experience, whenever you switch ROMs like that, there are always quirks, so I have taken to getting apps one at a time from MyBackup Root when I do switch. And yeah, I have had App conflicts cause forced bootloops before, it is not completely unheard of. I second the notion of installing one at a time, and Market DLing any that force loops. And as always, I reccomend a cache/dalvik/data whipe when switching full roms.

best way to backup before factory reset

Hey there, i have my phone rooted, i have installed the OTA update, and i have slowly removed some bloat through titanium backup.
i am still experiencing quite a bit of lag, and want to factory reset my phone, then see if that helps. i want all my data to stay though, can i just back it all up through keis? or is there an easier way?
Dallenn said:
Hey there, i have my phone rooted, i have installed the OTA update, and i have slowly removed some bloat through titanium backup.
i am still experiencing quite a bit of lag, and want to factory reset my phone, then see if that helps. i want all my data to stay though, can i just back it all up through keis? or is there an easier way?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I personally use Titanium Backup Pro (if you haven't bought Pro yet, it's totally worth it - it has saved my @$$ countless times!). I Haven't actually uninstalled any bloatware, but frozen plenty of it. This made it really, really easy to get the OTA installed - all I had to do was unfreeze the 3 magic APKs that let me install the OTA, and even kept the rest frozen. Re-froze when done with OTA.
I have two sets of Titanium Backup backups right now:
- A backup of all system apps plus data. I would never want to restore my system apps, unless I get bored and start modding stuff later. I figured I'd just snag a backup NOW in case it ever comes down to that - I'd be able to theoretically restore a single broken APK, or manually extract the apks out of the backup files later.
- A backup of all my user apps plus data. Be careful not to ever restore system app backups, even the "green" or "yellow" ones in TiBu. Rarely, you can get away with restoring these (like SMS, or WiFi access points, or sometimes even the System Settings), but it's usually asking for trouble. If you're going from the same ROM to the same ROM without any version change, it's usually "okay" to try. Otherwise, use extreme discretion and be prepared for weird behavior.
So to answer your question, I would recommend using Titanium Backup Pro to keep data backed up. If you're thorough and have the patience, you can effectively backup all of your data, individually, for all of your apps and your system settings. I'm actually planning on doing a data wipe for good measure (haven't done so yet since I got the OTA), and this is how I plan to restore all my data and settings.

Any problems moving to 4.3 after restoring apps and settings w/Titanium Backup Pro?

I'm thinking about finally moving to 4.3 using a custom ROM (haven't decided which one yet). I have Titanium Backup Pro and plan to restore all my apps and settings after the upgrade. Is this process likely to end in a stable system? I don't have the time and patience to go through installing and configuring everything again, so if it's not a dependable process I might as well wait for the OTA update (and deal with Knox later...)
Thanks!
Don't worry, this is what I did all is fine.
Before anything, make a backup of your internal SD (just in case), EFS backup and all apps with Titanium. Then in Phils recovery select option to erase everything for new ROM flashing. I also did manual wipe of cache & dalvik just in case. Don't worry, your internal card won't be touched, but always better safe than sorry. Then flash MJ5 kernel, and finaly flash your chosen ROM. Then you can restore apps from titanium. I had like 2 apps that didn't work at all after restore, probably incompatible with 4.3. The system is stable 100%. Never had a reboot.
Thank you Dalanik. This is very encouraging to know.
oren_b said:
I'm thinking about finally moving to 4.3 using a custom ROM (haven't decided which one yet). I have Titanium Backup Pro and plan to restore all my apps and settings after the upgrade. Is this process likely to end in a stable system? I don't have the time and patience to go through installing and configuring everything again, so if it's not a dependable process I might as well wait for the OTA update (and deal with Knox later...)
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you try it? How did it go?
I had faced a lot of issues when I did this recently. My contacts and message apps started to crash. Could have been OS problem no idea, but I was losing all my messages and my contacts. Ended up using super backup and import/export feature. Then on TB i restored only the apps and not the settings or system data. Now its perfectly stable, no crashes whatsoever
If you erase phone completely for flashing, contacts will be restored automaticaly from google contacts, but I'm afraid SMSes won't. That's another thing worth backing up. I used SMS BAckup and Restore, works perfectly, although you can also use Titanium as well.

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