Database Users

Backup new Nexus S

I sold my iPhone 4 today and bought a brand new nexus s. I'm not new to android though, I used to own a nexus one before iPhone 4.
My question is that I want to install custom roms on it, but I might want to restore it back to original factory settings in case I want to return it to best buy. How can I backup my phone so that best buy would take the phone back without questions?
I saw a thread to root the phone without unlocking the bootloader. Is that what I should do? Any help is appreciated!
Sent from my Nexus S using XDA App

Just root and do a nandroid backup. If you use rom manager to install the custom recovery you can just use it to so the backup.
Sent from my Onyx CM7 Google Nexus S!

Go to the Samsung nexus s android development section. Look for the thread that begins with Odin 1.81... bookmark that thread. That thread will help you flash completely back to stock. And always make sure you relock your bootloader.
Sent from my Nexus S using XDA App

The only advantage of not unlocking the bootloader is to avoid a full wipe of your internal storage such as pics, music etc. However custom roms or apps may have stability issues without an unlocked bootloader. No harm in unlocking the bootloader because you can always lock it again. Just make sure you back up any files you may want to keep.
Sent from my Nexus S using XDA App

peeturr said:
The only advantage of not unlocking the bootloader is to avoid a full wipe of your internal storage such as pics, music etc. However custom roms or apps may have stability issues without an unlocked bootloader. No harm in unlocking the bootloader because you can always lock it again. Just make sure you back up any files you may want to keep.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree that the only advantage to not unlocking the bootloader is to avoid a full wipe and loss of all data.
I'm curious if you can point to an example of any current existing ROM that displays issues because the bootloader is locked... if so, I need to add that information to the non-unlock method instructions.

Sorry I don't. I was just quoting one of the root guides in here. But then again there's always that IF. Now that I think about it, unlocking the bootloader is to be able to install root and a custom recovery. If you can do that without unlocking the bootloader then you should still be golden. Don't see why a rom or app would be dependent on the bootloader. Sorry for the confusion.
Sent from my Nexus S using XDA App

peeturr said:
Sorry I don't. I was just quoting one of the root guides in here. But then again there's always that IF. Now that I think about it, unlocking the bootloader is to be able to install root and a custom recovery. If you can do that without unlocking the bootloader then you should still be golden. Don't see why a rom or app would be dependent on the bootloader. Sorry for the confusion.
Sent from my Nexus S using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, we've found no reason to HAVE-TO unlock it yet. Just to be clear, I wasn't challenging you, just looking for anything I might need to add to the guide on doing it without the unlock. I already have a caveat that it might be an issue for something, but don't know what something could be.
Anyways, if you're a fresh out of the box phone, no problems unlock method, since you have no data to lose in the wipe. For late-comers, the no unlock method spares them that data wipe. The beauty of it is that you can root and install titainium or other backup software without wiping the phone if you already have data on it, and then if needed you can always unlock it and re-root, and then restore your wiped data. Best of both worlds for some.

Pretty much exactly what happened to me Distorted loop, Very thankfull for that non wipe root method, definately saved my ass as i had a good play with the phone before getting it to a PC for backup/rooting.
I am going to swap my device for another tommorrow to confirm if my reboot issue is even remotely hardware related. So i will have 30 mins with no nexus s ...s'gonna kill me as i love this lil thing (even with my calling problems).
Looking forward to a nice stable nexus, and then i'll try out some of the mods and roms (still on stock for now)

To update... Or not to update... That is the question.

A few days back, my wife got me a shiny new nexus 10. This thing is cool for sure. However the one I'm using now isn't the one from a few days back. It is in fact, a replacement because after I hooked into my WiFi and loaded up the apps I have on my GNex off of Google backup, I got a notification for an android update. So I said "SHURE... I need that stuff" so I pushed the item in the notification and it said "push OK to restart...", so I did.... And it did restart to a DEAD ANDY ICON AND A "NO COMMAND" under him! I did a factory reset three times and never got further than the boot animation. The dude at google play support was a bit flummoxed but beyond a reset... Well... He pronounced it mostly dead. So rather than screw up the warranty, I took it back to where we bought it and got a new one.
So here I am again... I'm at JVP15P... And I've got a pending update downloaded and ready to fry my second N10! I've heard 4.2 has some kind of update issue just like this on the N10.... Is that true? What should I do? If this is true how do I get past this... I sure as s**t don't want to return anther one! Any suggestions are most appreciated.
Sent from my Nexus 10 using xda app-developers app

A short time ago, I was unable to update to 4.2.1 from 4.2, either from the automatic update, or from adb sideload. This was because I was using some older factory image (not sure what was wrong with it), but after downloading the latest factory image from Google and flashing it, I was then able to update without any issue

I finally did my updates.
Thankfully all went smooth. Although, my N10 ran as cool as ice before the updates. I could play games for a long time and it would barely get warm. Now it seems to run extremely warm. I wouldn't say hot, but it is noticeably a lot warmer and that is doing nothing but surfing the web.
Not sure what was in that first update, but it changed the way it runs. No other issues though.

What procedure did you use to flash? When you tried the ota updates, did your update attempts brick your tablet?
Sent from my Nexus 10 using xda app-developers app

I'm seeing the term "brick" used to lightly these days, but rest assured, the dead Android recovery is completely recoverable.
FYI for anyone reading, as it's becoming a pet peeve of mine ... "brick" means your device is TOTALLY dead, and as useful as a brick, if you get something (anything) on the screen, it's not a brick.
I think we should start lining up and shooting the people who throw that term around too lightly.
Anyway, back on topic, dead android screen with "no command" means the reboot to recovery flag is still set, but the device has no commend for recovery to perform, there are several ways out of it.
Worst comes to worst, and you want an easy way out, get the factory images from the dev site, flash them and you're golden.

alias_neo said:
I'm seeing the term "brick" used to lightly these days, but rest assured, the dead Android recovery is completely recoverable.
FYI for anyone reading, as it's becoming a pet peeve of mine ... "brick" means your device is TOTALLY dead, and as useful as a brick, if you get something (anything) on the screen, it's not a brick.
I think we should start lining up and shooting the people who throw that term around too lightly.
Anyway, back on topic, dead android screen with "no command" means the reboot to recovery flag is still set, but the device has no commend for recovery to perform, there are several ways out of it.
Worst comes to worst, and you want an easy way out, get the factory images from the dev site, flash them and you're golden.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Okay.... Soft-brick.... I stand corrected
I tried to do that using Wug's toolkit... But it didn't take. Did I need to unlock the boot loader first?
Sent from my Nexus 10 using xda app-developers app

Doctor Dedroid said:
Okay.... Soft-brick.... I stand corrected
I tried to do that using Wug's toolkit... But it didn't take. Did I need to unlock the boot loader first?
Sent from my Nexus 10 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's a boot-loop, technically, but now I'm just being a pedant
I'm not too sure about the toolkits because I don't use them, but yes, you have to unlock to flash stock images.
Easiest way it do download the zip from the dev site, unlock manually, then just double click the flash-all script, that will take care of the rest, then just relock after and happy days.
I know it's a bit nerve racking when it won't boot, but that will get you out of most sticky situations, in the case of boot loops, a wipe/factory reset from recovery should normally solve the issue, if it doesn't just flash the images again as above.
Pesonally, if I'm messing i'll make sure my device is up to date and working, then fastboot boot TWRP (without unlocking or modifying my device) and backup to a USB drive, then, you can restore your system as is at any stage later if things mess up.
fastboot boot is fantastic because it lets you temp boot a custom recovery, and do all your usual stuff (including rooting etc) without replacing the stock recovery, and without unlocking, soon as you reboot, it's gone, cause it just boot the reovery into RAM.

Doctor Dedroid said:
What procedure did you use to flash? When you tried the ota updates, did your update attempts brick your tablet?
Sent from my Nexus 10 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you are talking to me, mine is stock and used regular updates that were DL and ready.

I talk to anyone willing to listen to my drivel! I have heard of similar issues on this device ... Not many to be sure but my concern is if is an endemic issue going from the JVP15P... to JRO... 4.2 . it's good to know that this works for some if not most folks.
Sent from my Nexus 10 using xda app-developers app

Doctor Dedroid said:
I talk to anyone willing to listen to my drivel! I have heard of similar issues on this device ... Not many to be sure but my concern is if is an endemic issue going from the JVP15P... to JRO... 4.2 . it's good to know that this works for some if not most folks.
Sent from my Nexus 10 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It was only a particular issue that caused the update problem from 4.2 to 4.2.1, due to different filesystem formats in the factory images presented by google dev site. You *should* only have experienced it if you had flashed stock images before they updated to fix them.
I havn't seen cases of it happening otherwise. Unlocking will however boot loop you device because it doesn't do the full factory reset like it used to on the XOOM et al. Simple factory reset from stock recovery, after an unlock gets you booting again on the N10.

alias_neo said:
It was only a particular issue that caused the update problem from 4.2 to 4.2.1, due to different filesystem formats in the factory images presented by google dev site. You *should* only have experienced it if you had flashed stock images before they updated to fix them.
I havn't seen cases of it happening otherwise. Unlocking will however boot loop you device because it doesn't do the full factory reset like it used to on the XOOM et al. Simple factory reset from stock recovery, after an unlock gets you booting again on the N10.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Got it! To be sure when I tried to update I was around 60% on the battery level... Hopefully my issue was a fluke or due to a low battery.
Update: all updated and good to go. Thanks one and all!
Sent from my Nexus 10 using xda app-developers app

[Q] Possible Hard Brick? (URGENT)

A little background info:
ATT GS4, rooted and on stock firmware
Had TWRP 2.6.0.0 on my phone
Tried to flash Illusion 7|15 or 7|16?
---------------------------------------------------
In the past, I've tried to flash illusion, with some success. I was able to get to the homescreen, but when I flashed my data backup. The phone wouldn't boot, so I reverted to stock. A few weeks later, I decide to take another spin at the rom and get it working. I wiped the data/cache/dalvik, and flashed the rom with gapps, rebooted the phone, and nothing happens. The phone keeps vibrating, but there is nothing happening past that.
After a significant amount of research, I've found a few tools/advice. I've downloaded ODIN and the (disgustingly large) tar file, but it doesn't have any use if the phone cannot be recognized by the computer since I am unable to enter download mode or recovery mode.
I found another tool that is supposed to "resurrect" the phone provided by legija. The only unfortunate part is there are no instructions provided, and once again, my computer isn't recognizing the phone as a device, as if it wasn't plugged in to the usb port at all. The application asks for a port number, but I have no clue what relevance a port number has, or at least that a usb port has a numerical value.
Anyway, is there anything left for me to do or is this a fancy new paperweight?
Excuse me for any poor grammar, I'm a little antsy about this

Gfrt94yn said:
A little background info:
ATT GS4, rooted and on stock firmware
Had TWRP 2.6.0.0 on my phone
Tried to flash Illusion 7|15 or 7|16?
---------------------------------------------------
In the past, I've tried to flash illusion, with some success. I was able to get to the homescreen, but when I flashed my data backup. The phone wouldn't boot, so I reverted to stock. A few weeks later, I decide to take another spin at the rom and get it working. I wiped the data/cache/dalvik, and flashed the rom with gapps, rebooted the phone, and nothing happens. The phone keeps vibrating, but there is nothing happening past that.
After a significant amount of research, I've found a few tools/advice. I've downloaded ODIN and the (disgustingly large) tar file, but it doesn't have any use if the phone cannot be recognized by the computer since I am unable to enter download mode or recovery mode.
I found another tool that is supposed to "resurrect" the phone provided by legija. The only unfortunate part is there are no instructions provided, and once again, my computer isn't recognizing the phone as a device, as if it wasn't plugged in to the usb port at all. The application asks for a port number, but I have no clue what relevance a port number has, or at least that a usb port has a numerical value.
Anyway, is there anything left for me to do or is this a fancy new paperweight?
Excuse me for any poor grammar, I'm a little antsy about this
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you have AT&T insurance? Maybe the phone can have an accident? I would know of no other way to fix it if Odin isn't recognizing it. ):

Gfrt94yn said:
A little background info:
ATT GS4, rooted and on stock firmware
Had TWRP 2.6.0.0 on my phone
Tried to flash Illusion 7|15 or 7|16?
---------------------------------------------------
In the past, I've tried to flash illusion, with some success. I was able to get to the homescreen, but when I flashed my data backup. The phone wouldn't boot, so I reverted to stock. A few weeks later, I decide to take another spin at the rom and get it working. I wiped the data/cache/dalvik, and flashed the rom with gapps, rebooted the phone, and nothing happens. The phone keeps vibrating, but there is nothing happening past that.
After a significant amount of research, I've found a few tools/advice. I've downloaded ODIN and the (disgustingly large) tar file, but it doesn't have any use if the phone cannot be recognized by the computer since I am unable to enter download mode or recovery mode.
I found another tool that is supposed to "resurrect" the phone provided by legija. The only unfortunate part is there are no instructions provided, and once again, my computer isn't recognizing the phone as a device, as if it wasn't plugged in to the usb port at all. The application asks for a port number, but I have no clue what relevance a port number has, or at least that a usb port has a numerical value.
Anyway, is there anything left for me to do or is this a fancy new paperweight?
Excuse me for any poor grammar, I'm a little antsy about this
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've seen the repeated vibrating issue before from flashing the wrong file. Download mode was still accessible. Try again by hooking up the phone to the USB slot without the battery in it. Hold Vol Down + Home while inserting the battery. See if download mode will come up. If it does, Odin may not fix it, and you may end up using KIES, and that's if it does go into Download mode.

Phone is toast, fortunately the phone is still under warranty and they couldn't even get it to turn on so they replaced it
Still lost data, but it's not the end of the world. Thanks for the help though!

Gfrt94yn said:
Phone is toast, fortunately the phone is still under warranty and they couldn't even get it to turn on so they replaced it
Still lost data, but it's not the end of the world. Thanks for the help though!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good deal man, glad you got a new one.

I have another question for somebody knowledgeable in rooting/rom flashing:
I think this was because the s4 bootloader is locked (through an update), would this cause the phone to hard brick? I've had nasty experiences in the past with locked bootloaders!
If it is locked, is there a way to unlock it? Or does it even need to be unlocked to flash a rom?
Thanks!
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using xda app-developers app

Gfrt94yn said:
I have another question for somebody knowledgeable in rooting/rom flashing:
I think this was because the s4 bootloader is locked (through an update), would this cause the phone to hard brick? I've had nasty experiences in the past with locked bootloaders!
If it is locked, is there a way to unlock it? Or does it even need to be unlocked to flash a rom?
Thanks!
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The bootloader is locked yes, but Loki is there to workaround that. What is the build version on your replacement?

JDQ39.I337UCUAMDL
Is Loki on xda? I haven't found anything like that yet, although I've heard many references to that
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using xda app-developers app

Update:
Maybe I should open my eyes lol, found it in about 30 seconds
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using xda app-developers app

One more update:
I ran the casual root and now have my root and recovery. A couple of questions:
Does this also unlock the bootloader?
Somebody said that twrp flashes roms as if the bootloader is unlocked, so it wouldn't matter if it was or not. Is this true?
I guess really my question is, once I run casual root, is my phone ready to flash?
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using xda app-developers app

Gfrt94yn said:
One more update:
I ran the casual root and now have my root and recovery. A couple of questions:
Does this also unlock the bootloader?
Somebody said that twrp flashes roms as if the bootloader is unlocked, so it wouldn't matter if it was or not. Is this true?
I guess really my question is, once I run casual root, is my phone ready to flash?
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Your phone is ready to flash, just make sure the ROM you flash has been Lokied or you'd have to flash a Loki kernel/LokiDoki after flashing the ROM (but before rebooting).

Gfrt94yn said:
One more update:
I ran the casual root and now have my root and recovery. A couple of questions:
Does this also unlock the bootloader?
Somebody said that twrp flashes roms as if the bootloader is unlocked, so it wouldn't matter if it was or not. Is this true?
I guess really my question is, once I run casual root, is my phone ready to flash?
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you are going to use TWRP, make sure the ROM has LOKI applied, and if it doesn't, flash the Loki_Doki patch last before rebooting.
If you use OUDHS recovery, it will Auto-Loki whatever you flash.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I am proud to announce that I've successfully flashed a rom without bricking my phone! *applause*
I thank(ed) you all for the help!
GS4 running slimbean and kanged key lime pie theme.

GiantBallSack said:
If you are going to use TWRP, make sure the ROM has LOKI applied, and if it doesn't, flash the Loki_Doki patch last before rebooting.
If you use OUDHS recovery, it will Auto-Loki whatever you flash.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What happens if one accidentally reboots before flashing Loki? Just need to reboot back into recovery and flash it?

godefroi said:
What happens if one accidentally reboots before flashing Loki? Just need to reboot back into recovery and flash it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using xda app-developers app

Broken screen - USB debug disabled - What to do?

Hey all,
my wife dropped my previous Nexus 4 many times and now the screen is dead. Would like to sell it for parts. Digitizer still works. Now, I would like to clean everthing, and it a perfect world, install Lollipop!
But, I need to get access to the phone. I've spent many hours now reading different methods, but I'm getting to a common issue: USB debug (ADB) not enabled. I would need to get in recovery mode and put a custom ROM. However, even with the method to get into recovery mode, I would need the screen at the choice at boot to select Recovery, unless someone here tells me exactly what button to press to get into this.
I'm also open for any other solution.

Is the bootloader unlocked? Do you have a custom recovery? If your bootloader is unlocked you can boot into twrp custom recovery and get access to your files though it.
Sent from my Nexus 9 using XDA Free mobile app

Well I only got in the boot when I got the phone the first time a year ago and wiped everything to factory, so I don't think I still have the bootloader unlocked, unless wiping everything doesn't wipe the bootloader.

kensiko32 said:
Well I only got in the boot when I got the phone the first time a year ago and wiped everything to factory, so I don't think I still have the bootloader unlocked, unless wiping everything doesn't wipe the bootloader.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unless you specifically unlocked it using fastboot or a tool kit I doubt it's unlocked. Which is too bad because it would have made it easier to get to the files. Now you'll have to blindly use the keys to get into recovery and do a factory reset. And hope for the best because you'll probably never know for sure whether you got it right or not.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using XDA Free mobile app

Stuck in bootloop

Stock, up-to-date. Using my Facebook app, and phone seems to freeze. Black screen, with Google. I can access bootloader, but NOT recovery mode. My warranty expired like 5 days ago. Am I SOL?

Ronin3178 said:
Stock, up-to-date. Using my Facebook app, and phone seems to freeze. Black screen, with Google. I can access bootloader, but NOT recovery mode. My warranty expired like 5 days ago. Am I SOL?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If your bootloader is unlocked you may not be. Search for items you can Flash to fix the bootloop issue. I don't have the URL handy sorry. If your bootloader is locked you might be in trouble. There are some tricks in the same fix post to tell you how to try to get back into your phone and then once you do get the bootloader unlocked quickly so you can load the fix
Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

funnel71 said:
If your bootloader is unlocked you may not be. Search for items you can Flash to fix the bootloop issue. I don't have the URL handy sorry. If your bootloader is locked you might be in trouble. There are some tricks in the same fix post to tell you how to try to get back into your phone and then once you do get the bootloader unlocked quickly so you can load the fix
Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, I never unlocked the bootloader. I let it sit for a few hours, turned it on for S&G, tried and succeeded to get into Recovery mode for a few minutes, but because I forgot the way to access the menu. It dropped back into the bootloop. Going to try again in a few hours, now I know how to access the menu, I'll try wiping cache.

Ronin3178 said:
Yeah, I never unlocked the bootloader. I let it sit for a few hours, turned it on for S&G, tried and succeeded to get into Recovery mode for a few minutes, but because I forgot the way to access the menu. It dropped back into the bootloop. Going to try again in a few hours, now I know how to access the menu, I'll try wiping cache.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If your not gonna send for warranty I would unlock your bootloader. Also get your hands on the 4 core modified boot for your Android version. Find out more in the BLOD thread.