Since updating to 4.1.2, I've installed Titanium Backup and TWRP, and used both to backup my N7. Does anyone have a preference of one over another? Or should I continue to do both?
Sent from my Nexus 7 using xda app-developers app
They both serve their purpose. A TWRP serves as a safety net and sort of a last resort if you truly screwed up your device with flashing or the likes, to restore everything to the exact state it was in when you took the backup.
TB is very customizable and app-based. It'll usually allow you to restore your apps across roms, move them across partitions, protect them, set schedules for backing up only their data etc etc etc...
I usually do one nandroid (TWRP) after flashing or updating and regular Titanium backups.
Logic_ said:
They both serve their purpose. A TWRP serves as a safety net and sort of a last resort if you truly screwed up your device with flashing or the likes, to restore everything to the exact state it was in when you took the backup.
TB is very customizable and app-based. It'll usually allow you to restore your apps across roms, move them across partitions, protect them, set schedules for backing up only their data etc etc etc...
I usually do one nandroid (TWRP) after flashing or updating and regular Titanium backups.
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Hi MightyBK. As Logic_ described, both forms of backup have their uses; however, when testing a new ROM for yourself, it is best to typically perform a clean installation (factory reset/wipe cache/ etc) without using Titanium Backup's restore capabilities as soon as you are in the OS. This will give you better insight with regard to how the ROM is performing without the chance of conflicts, and you may always attempt to restore from Titanium Backup after getting a feel for the ROM.
Often, if you are upgrading a ROM to a newer version of the same series, the developer will inform you that a full wipe is not necessary, but it is always important to follow the instructions of the developer every time you flash as, with major changes, they may instruct you to perform a full wipe.
With regard to TWRP's backup, it is like creating an image of an operating system such as recovery media on a new Windows machine. It will save the exact state your machine was in previously. The old ROM/apps/data will all be preserved exactly, so this is intended as a rollback if you do not like your new ROM or if it is not functioning correctly.
I personally keep very little local data on my phone. Google's backup services are becoming more mature and the app restoration works fine for me. All of my pictures and such are all stored with Google+. This keeps everything clean and up-to-date after a clean install. It is admittedly more time consuming, though.
I hoped this helps.
Related
Hi
As you've prob guessed I'm a noob, hence the help.
Ive just recently rooted and unlocked my nexus 7 with wugfresh 1.6.2 and am now looking at putting a custom rom on it.
Ive followed the advice and put titanium backup on and backed up my apps and system data.
Having read the instructions for installing Smooth Rom 4.4, it states 'Please do not restore a 'system' data backup as it would overwritte some important files'
does this mean I cannot restore my apps from titanium backup as I cant restore system data as they where backed up together or is there some other way for me to do it ?
does titanium backup get wiped as well ?
All Help appreciated, this is my first rom install and I dont wanna **** it up.
Robbie_UK said:
All Help appreciated, this is my first rom install and I dont wanna **** it up.
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The most important thing to do is to make a FULL nandroid backup before you begin.
The 2nd most important thing to do is to get that backup copied someplace else besides the tablet. (PC, USB key, etc) Screw-ups involving accidental erasure of the psuedo- SD card area on the tablet are commonplace with folks that are new to this. It won't do you any good to make a backup if you immediately erase it while fooling around with a custom recovery (or toolkit) that is new to you.
I suggest you learn to make backups using the custom recovery rather than relying on a toolkit.
If you are happy with the tablet in it's current configuration, then a back-up allows you to survive any ****-ups that inevitably follow as you can return back to a known state and proceed again having learned from your mistakes.
FULL NANDROID BACKUPS. COPIED SOMEPLACE SAFE (OFF THE TABLET)
As for TiB, the only thing that is 100% safe is to only restore apps & their data that are NOT pre-installed in whatever ROM you are installing. Note this means not restoring any of the Google gapps as well, as you may have had a different versions of those apps running on your current ROM than on the to-be-installed ROM, whether pre-installed or updated later.
Yeah it's a bit of work restoring apps one by one and re-configuring things. There probably are System apps that can have their data safely restored to the wrong version of the app - but there are absolutely no guarantees that correct operation of the app will follow that.
cheers and good luck
I've been running PA for a while now, and I was wondering what the best method for swapping Roms is. (What to wipe) and how to do so without losing what is stored on my internal sd card, our currently installed apps.
(As a side question, what are some good roms with pie?)
Nexus 7
Factory reset, which will wipe data (but leaves /data/media intact) and cache. Although generally not necessary, I'd also format /system. Many devs will have their updater script format it as part of the flash, but I have seen a handful that have not. Your apps will be wiped when doing a clean flash- that's just the way it is. You should not be dirty flashing (wiping just cache and dalvik) between roms as it will lead to problems. You can use apps such as Titanium Backup or Rom Toolbox to backup and restore your user apps. Do not restore system apps or data.
Your side question is a quick and easy way to get this thread locked. Go to the dev forum for your device, whether it's tilapia or grouper, and do some reading and test drive a rom or two that piques your interest. There is no substitute for research and forming your own informed opinions.
you should also nandroid backup before you flash anything, that way you have a safe point to restore to if something goes wrong, or you don't like the new rom.
if it's a rom upgrade (not rom switch), you can flash directly over the top at your own risk if the changes are relatively minor and the dev says full wipe not needed. you won't lose any data and it saves having to set everything up again. i've personally never had a problem when flashing an upgrade straight over the top. I always do a nandroid backup beforehand though just in case :good:
and yeh..find a rom you like, not what someone else says is best for them...
If you're flashing 'like-for-like', ie, flashing a ROM upgrade, you can generally 'dirty flash' it over the top - UNLESS THE DEVELOPER STATES OTHERWISE.
The developer of the ROM I use always states 'no wipes needed' when he releases a new version...
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If you're changing ROMs completely, then a factory reset is necessary, otherwise you're likely to have all manner of problems...
So backup your apps using Titanium beforehand...
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You can optionally format /system... but be careful... make definitely sure you have on internal storage, either...
a) A flashable ROM .zip
...or...
b) a NANDROID backup
...or you'll find you have a tablet with no OS... just a custom recovery and the bootloader... although not irresolvable, such a situation is a pain in the arse to fix!
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Above all... before you do anything - MAKE A NANDROID BACKUP - I cannot emphasise this enough. It takes less than 5 minutes. And it is your lifeline back to a functioning Nexus, should anything go wrong.
Good luck...
Rgrds,
Ged.
Still no way to backup multi user data/apps?
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda app-developers app
I've owned Nexus devices before and am aware of Nandroids for backing up the OS, but I have never used them.
When I re-do my device, I tend to do a pretty clean install (wipe every partition, then flash the new ROM/kernel). I ensure that no old data can "mess up" anything pretty much I keep backups of pictures, music, and game data on my computer.
Nandroids afaik are a complete OS backup of how the device was exactly during that backup. This sounds pretty awesome on-paper, but how exactly "detailed" is this process? I'm thinking the Nandroid only backups stuff found on the main partition of the device, and doesn't touch anything else (recovery, baseband, bootloader). To be fair though, I don't really care for it to touch recovery or bootloader anyway, but there are other partitions afaik, baseband being one of them.
So I guess my question is, does a Nandroid truly backup the entire state of the phone, and restore that entire state? Or does it only do a partial state restore/backup? If it's partial, how far does it really go when backing up/restoring?
If I switch to a new custom ROM or something and have issues with it, I'd rather know that such issues won't somehow persist if I restore a Nandroid basically.
espionage724 said:
I've owned Nexus devices before and am aware of Nandroids for backing up the OS, but I have never used them.
When I re-do my device, I tend to do a pretty clean install (wipe every partition, then flash the new ROM/kernel). I ensure that no old data can "mess up" anything pretty much I keep backups of pictures, music, and game data on my computer.
Nandroids afaik are a complete OS backup of how the device was exactly during that backup. This sounds pretty awesome on-paper, but how exactly "detailed" is this process? I'm thinking the Nandroid only backups stuff found on the main partition of the device, and doesn't touch anything else (recovery, baseband, bootloader). To be fair though, I don't really care for it to touch recovery or bootloader anyway, but there are other partitions afaik, baseband being one of them.
So I guess my question is, does a Nandroid truly backup the entire state of the phone, and restore that entire state? Or does it only do a partial state restore/backup? If it's partial, how far does it really go when backing up/restoring?
If I switch to a new custom ROM or something and have issues with it, I'd rather know that such issues won't somehow persist if I restore a Nandroid basically.
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Click to collapse
If you restore a nandroid backup the new rom and settings/config will be overwritten as it will restore the previous backup system config and apps afaik.
it restores everything, like a snapshot of the state your phone was in at the time. everything but what was in your storage, thats a separate partition. its like a a free ticket to take your phone back to where it was when you made the nandroid backup.
I rooted my device with wug's toolkit and was running TWRP. The OTA came out so i flashed back to stock, unrooted to update to JWR66Y. Now i rooted the device again and also have TWRP. Before i flashed back to stock i backed everything up with titanium backup, i created an android backup with the toolkit and i also created a nandroid backup with the toolkit. I then restored my nandroid backup with the toolkit and the OTA was not applied anymore and i was back to square one. my mistake.... what do i have to do to put everything back the way it was without it reverting back to JWR66V? I am sorta new to this and have a good general knowledge of what is going on and i just need to know what direction to go in.
thanks
I am now rooted with TWRP again... Back to stock with none of my apps but I am up to date with the OTA. Still dont know what direction to go in to restore everything as it was and keep the JWR66Y update.
If you just restore the data partition, that should give you your user apps and app data back but im unsure how well it will work restoring 4.2 data to a 4.3 os
Sent from my LG-P768 using xda app-developers app
donk165 said:
If you just restore the data partition, that should give you your user apps and app data back but im unsure how well it will work restoring 4.2 data to a 4.3 os
Sent from my LG-P768 using xda app-developers app
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Ok thanks alot.
I was on 4.3 JWR66V before i flashed stock and updated to JWR66Y. Should i use wug's toolkit to restore (just data, not system) or do it through titanium backup?
flyers27 said:
Ok thanks alot.
I was on 4.3 JWR66V before i flashed stock and updated to JWR66Y. Should i use wug's toolkit to restore (just data, not system) or do it through titanium backup?
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Click to collapse
Id say try using the toolkit first, if it doesnt work, wipe data partition and then try using titanium backup. Another good tool is nandroid manager, i use that to restore apps and data from a CWM nandroid backup. If you put the nandroid backup from the toolkit onto your tab and then use nandroid manager and see if it will read the backup.
Good luck!
donk165 said:
Id say try using the toolkit first, if it doesnt work, wipe data partition and then try using titanium backup. Another good tool is nandroid manager, i use that to restore apps and data from a CWM nandroid backup. If you put the nandroid backup from the toolkit onto your tab and then use nandroid manager and see if it will read the backup.
Good luck!
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Click to collapse
ok, i just recovered only the data from my nandroid backup with the toolkit and it seemed like everything was ok at first. I tried a few games and they worked until i tried ones that i had saved game data and realized my saved games were not saved. Also the games i had with obb files previously did not work because the obb files were gone. Another thing... all my apk's on the internal card are not there, yet the games are working. I then took the titanium backup folder that i copied to my computer with the backup and put it on the internal card and loaded titanium backup. It did not recognize the folder and it showed that i did not have anything backed up at all.
now what to do?
Update: I clicked on the batch button on titanium backup and was able to try and restore my apps and data. It did not put the apk's back on the internal card or allow me to play my saved games.... I also tried just to restore the Andoid backup using the tookit and that didnt bring anything back either.
I flashed the stock recovery and unrooted with the toolkit to undo everything i just did. I then rooted the device and added TWRP using the toolkit. Now i am rooted with none of my previous apps or saved games, but i am updated to JWR66Y.
Hopefully someone can help me restore all my apps and saved games because what ive done isnt working.
I really dont want to put all the apk's and reinstall all my games and apps back on my nexus. Someone must have some insight please.
thanks
flyers27 said:
I really dont want to put all the apk's and reinstall all my games and apps back on my nexus. Someone must have some insight please.
thanks
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Hi, flyers27...
Sorry to read about your difficulties restoring you tablet back to it's pre-4.3 glory.
Unfortunately, there are no easy shortcuts to getting all your apps back the way they where. You're going to have to use Titanium... your NANDROIDs from 4.2.2 won't really help you...
If you have Titanium backups of your apps on your Nexus 7 (by default they're located in /storage/emulated/0/TitaniumBackup), then it's just a case of going through each listed app backup and selecting either (from the Backup/Restore tab) Restore App only or Restore App+Data.
Personally, I only ever use Batch for backing up apps, preferring a more discretionary approach to the apps I restore, and whether or not I choose to restore a given apps associated data. It is, I grant, a bit of a slog, but it's not a task that's going to crop up everyday... it's just a once-in-while-sort-of-thing.
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Up until Jellybean 4.3 was released a few weeks ago, I'd been happily running a Jellybean 4.2.2 based custom ROM/Kernel combo for six months or so, and I knew if I wanted to avail myself of Jellybean 4.3, I had to wipe the metaphorical slate clean and begin anew.
Here is what I did...
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1). Performed a NANDROID backup of my (then) 4.2.2 based Custom ROM/Kernel combo. This was more for insurance sake, so should anything go wrong, I could easily get a working system back, relatively quickly. But if everything went according to plan (which it did), that NANDROID backup would be essentially redundant (which it was).
2). Performed a full Titanium backup of all my 150+ user installed apps.
3). Copied EVERYTHING off of my Nexus 7, to my laptop. (NANDROIDs, Titanium backups, Videos, Music, Documents, Images, etc., et.al.)
4). Fastboot flashed Jellybean 4.3 (build JWR66V). Which, also wiped the tablet.
5). Fastboot flashed TWRP and Rooted.
6). Copied EVERYHING (except the NANDROID), back to my Nexus 7. (Titanium backups, Videos, Music, Documents, Images, etc., et.al.)
7). Set about the business of selectively restoring my Titanium backed-up apps.
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I had the whole thing done in slightly less than 2 hours. Upgraded from 4.2.2 custom to 4.3 stock... and rooted.
Sometimes there are no easy ways; you've just gotta bite the bullet, and get it done. And none of this is technically difficult, it's just a bit tedious.
In your case, it shouldn't take that long... if you have your Titanium backups on your Nexus 7, just restore what you want FOR NOW... and perhaps maybe come back to those less urgent apps at a later date. Not everything has to be restored immediately. The difference between TWRP/CWM NANDROIDS and Titanium, is the former is Monolithic (the restore is all or nothing), but the latter is Granular (you can cherry pick from Titanium).
Anyway... just my thoughts. Hope it helps.
Rgrds,
Ged.
GedBlake said:
Hi, flyers27...
Sorry to read about your difficulties restoring you tablet back to it's pre-4.3 glory.
Unfortunately, there are no easy shortcuts to getting all your apps back the way they where. You're going to have to use Titanium... your NANDROIDs from 4.2.2 won't really help you...
If you have Titanium backups of your apps on your Nexus 7 (by default they're located in /storage/emulated/0/TitaniumBackup), then it's just a case of going through each listed app backup and selecting either (from the Backup/Restore tab) Restore App only or Restore App+Data.
Personally, I only ever use Batch for backing up apps, preferring a more discretionary approach to the apps I restore, and whether or not I choose to restore a given apps associated data. It is, I grant, a bit of a slog, but it's not a task that's going to crop up everyday... it's just a once-in-while-sort-of-thing.
----------------------------------------------------------
Up until Jellybean 4.3 was released a few weeks ago, I'd been happily running a Jellybean 4.2.2 based custom ROM/Kernel combo for six months or so, and I knew if I wanted to avail myself of Jellybean 4.3, I had to wipe the metaphorical slate clean and begin anew.
Here is what I did...
----------------------------------------------------------
1). Performed a NANDROID backup of my (then) 4.2.2 based Custom ROM/Kernel combo. This was more for insurance sake, so should anything go wrong, I could easily get a working system back, relatively quickly. But if everything went according to plan (which it did), that NANDROID backup would be essentially redundant (which it was).
2). Performed a full Titanium backup of all my 150+ user installed apps.
3). Copied EVERYTHING off of my Nexus 7, to my laptop. (NANDROIDs, Titanium backups, Videos, Music, Documents, Images, etc., et.al.)
4). Fastboot flashed Jellybean 4.3 (build JWR66V). Which, also wiped the tablet.
5). Fastboot flashed TWRP and Rooted.
6). Copied EVERYHING (except the NANDROID), back to my Nexus 7. (Titanium backups, Videos, Music, Documents, Images, etc., et.al.)
7). Set about the business of selectively restoring my Titanium backed-up apps.
----------------------------------------------------------
I had the whole thing done in slightly less than 2 hours. Upgraded from 4.2.2 custom to 4.3 stock... and rooted.
Sometimes there are no easy ways; you've just gotta bite the bullet, and get it done. And none of this is technically difficult, it's just a bit tedious.
In your case, it shouldn't take that long... if you have your Titanium backups on your Nexus 7, just restore what you want FOR NOW... and perhaps maybe come back to those less urgent apps at a later date. Not everything has to be restored immediately. The difference between TWRP/CWM NANDROIDS and Titanium, is the former is Monolithic (the restore is all or nothing), but the latter is Granular (you can cherry pick from Titanium).
Anyway... just my thoughts. Hope it helps.
Rgrds,
Ged.
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thank you very much, i will try what you said.
SOLVED!
cheeseypi said:
I have been scouring the internet for over 2 hours, and I can't seem to find anyone who has done something similar to this, so here goes:
I currently have a Nexus 6P with the Pure Nexus Project Rom installed. I would like to switch to CyanogenMod. Normally, this would be no problem, however I am running into some difficulties with backups. Ideally, I would just do a NANDroid backup from TWRP, but I don't have enough space on my device. Right now I am running a full ADB backup to my computer, but in this instance I don't know if I'll be able to restore that backup to a new CyanogenMod installation.
TL;DR: Will an ADB backup restore to a new custom rom i.e. restore to CM from PureNexus? If not, is there a way to do a NANDroid backup directly to my computer?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You shouldn't be using TWRP to backup/restore data between different ROMs in the first place. That will not only back up your apps but all settings as well, which will cause problems on a different ROM. The only safe way is to use Titanium Backup to backup your user apps (not system apps) and then restore that backup on the new ROM.
Heisenberg said:
You shouldn't be using TWRP to backup/restore data between different ROMs in the first place. That will not only back up your apps but all settings as well, which will cause problems on a different ROM. The only safe way is to use Titanium Backup to backup your user apps (not system apps) and then restore that backup on the new ROM.
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Click to collapse
Well that goes against everything I've seen... Thanks though.
cheeseypi said:
Well that goes against everything I've seen... Thanks though.
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Click to collapse
Could you point me to where you've seen someone recommending to restore a nandroid /data backup on a different ROM? It's widely known that this is nothing but trouble, if it's on XDA it probably needs to be taken care of.
cheeseypi said:
I have been scouring the internet for over 2 hours, and I can't seem to find anyone who has done something similar to this, so here goes:
I currently have a Nexus 6P with the Pure Nexus Project Rom installed. I would like to switch to CyanogenMod. Normally, this would be no problem, however I am running into some difficulties with backups. Ideally, I would just do a NANDroid backup from TWRP, but I don't have enough space on my device. Right now I am running a full ADB backup to my computer, but in this instance I don't know if I'll be able to restore that backup to a new CyanogenMod installation.
TL;DR: Will an ADB backup restore to a new custom rom i.e. restore to CM from PureNexus? If not, is there a way to do a NANDroid backup directly to my computer?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Titanium backup is the only really viable solution in such a case. When you need to make a snapshot of your whole system in case of failure you use a Nandroid backup, however when you need to transfer data between /system formats then it's best if you use titanium backup.