Database Users

FAQS/Guide/Additional Info For Rooting S2 - High level summary

I rooted my S2 a few days back... there is a lot of info in the forums but spread all over the place and it took quite a long time to find the specific answers to some of the questions i had. Thus I've done a short form guide to help anyone looking to root and give them a bit of extended background and *hopefully* reduce all the copy threads/posts in the forum.
NB/ I'm no android expert. Please don't flame if something i've said is wrong. Let me know/PM me and I'll change it. This is only meant to be high level info!
1. What is rooting?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rooting_(Android_OS)
2. What are the warranty implications?
Warranty is void BUT you can return the phone back to *stock* (standard manufacturer ship state) so, as long as you don't bone anything in the root process you can get still get warranty returns.
3. What is [recovery]/[kernel]/[rom]?
Your samsung device memory is separated into different partitions to load different parts of the software to make you device work.
http://www.villainrom.co.uk/vBwiki/index.php/Glossary_of_Android_Terms
Typically you have the kernel partition which tells the device what to load on power on), you have the system partition where your ROM (main operating system is loaded) and you have the recovery partition which allows a user to access and write to the system partition (i.e. load custom roms).
Only difference on the galaxy s2 is that the kernel partition and recovery partition linked. What this means for you is that if you change the kernel, you also change the recovery.
4. What is stock [kernel][firmware]?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1125282
Essentially the stock kernel is the original Samsung kernel shipped on the device (split into many different variants subject to location, sub model, carrier, date etc...) and firmware essentially is the kernel with the Samsung Rom.
5. My current kernel is KG*|KF*...n, can i install any other stock kernel? What are all the different stock kernels? Can I install one over mine?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1075278
Yes you can use any Kernel from any country as long as it is for SGS2 with the correct hardware
Check the models are the same.
6. What's the difference between Cf-Root and Clockworkmod and which do i want?
CF-Root is simply a customised version of the clockwordmod recovery. It still functions the same but cf-root has it's own app for making direct recovery calls from within android as CF-root doesn't function with Rom manager, where pure clockworkmod recovery does work with rom manager.
As far as I'm concerned, it's a question of whether you want to use Rom manager really?
7. How do I root the samsung galaxy S2?
All I will say is..ENSURE KIES IS NOT RUNNING IN SYSTEM TRAY OR TASK MANAGER. KILL THE WHOLE PROCESSS TREE IF YOU FIND IT BEFORE DOING ANY ROOTING!
CF-Root http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1103399
Clockworkmod http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1118693
N00b guide http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1126522
You can also use the root toolbox method for some stock firmwares without having to flash the recovery:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1319653
8. What is superoneclick and what is odin? Where do i get them?
Odin is a flash utility to allow you to push a kernel to your phone from your pc.
Superoneclick is a flash app that will root your phone from your pc.
If you don't want to use superoneclick then simply flash an unsecured kernel (i.e. CF-Root) using Odin and you'll get root already.
Look in the kernel posts and you'll find latest versions there.
9. Can i still get OTA (over the air) updates to my stock rom eventhough I've rooted?
you can update via Kies and root again. Kies wont detect if your phone is rooted or not as long as you are on Stock firmware.
10. How do i get back to stock (as if nothing has ever happened to the phone/factory ship)?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1075278
Flashing a full stock rom and kernel (firmware) using odin will remove everything.
11. What is this yellow exclamation mark and how do I get round it?
Whenever you access the download mode, and write a new kernel, your phone will know you've changed the kernel. The exclamation mark is simply a flag for samsung to easily know whether you've messed with the kernel on returns. You can easily get rid of it by using a jig OR re-flashing the stock kernel following an initial root...then re-flashing the zimage from the CWM image. - Jig is far easier and quicker though.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=14283369&postcount=2
12. What is the custom binary download counter and how can I restore it?
A counter living in the kernel to record the number of times you've changed the kernel. Only way to remove it is to get a usb jig...
13. What is a jig and what does it do?
it's a little usb plugin from ebay then puts the phone into download mode (even if you bricked a kernel update) resets the kernel counter and removes the yellow exclamation mark.
Simply boot off the phone. Plug it in. The screen will say something like 'Erasing boot information'...then unplug it and re-boot. Very simple.
A jig is a cheap and essential piece of hardware that everyone rooting should invest in!
14. What is download mode and what is recovery mode and how do I access them?
Recovery > enter recovery with the key combination of Vol Up + Home + Power
Download > Accessible on all phones, regardless of kernel via Vol Down + Home +
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1134290
15. What is deodexed|Odexed?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=16461907&postcount=2
http://www.villainrom.co.uk/vBwiki/index.php/Glossary_of_Android_Terms
16. Once rooted I can install custom roms, but can I overwrite the kernel?
Yes, so long as the kernel is compatible with the hardware and in some cases the rom.
17. I've rooted and put CF-Root XWKF(...n)...But I want to put a different kernel on and still have the CWM recovery?
Simply flash the CF-Root over the current CF-Root. However if you are updating a major version (i.e. CWM 4 to CWM 5) just check on CF-Root's thread first.
18. I've pwned my device? What do I do now?
Get a jig to put back into download mode and then flash the original stock firmware.
19. My device is sim locked and/or full of carrier apps? How can I get rid?
To get rid of carrier branding and apps simply flash a different firmware/rom that isn't branded from a carrier. See questions 4 and 5 above for lists of the different stock firmwares.
To get rid of the sim lock you have two options:
1. Root and then use one of the apps from market place (mixed success across the boards); or,
2. Extract some data from your phone in hex code and try and calculate the unlock code yourself.
I bought mine sim free so not done any of this but a quick scan of the forums turned up these two posts which may be useful.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1207513&referrerid=2648941
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1064978&referrerid=2648941
20. What is a 'cooked' rom?
Cooked roms are just roms that someone has made based on the stock rom with slight high level changes. They are different from developed roms such as Cyanogen or Villainrom which receive significant low level modifications and developments.
Check out the Rom kitchen project which when released in stable version will allow you to build your own rom on the fly and select all the apps etc.. you want in it: brilliant example of the benefits of Android!
http://www.romkitchen.org/beta/index.php
21. What is CSC and how do i change my ROM CSC?
CSC = consumer software customisation. The file contains the software packages specific to that region, carrier branding and also APN settings for data connection, SMS, MMS etc...
Three ways to change it (NB it will wipe your device!):
1. Flash a multiCSC ROM and that use CSC Select from Market;
2. Flash a multiCSC ROM and type *#272*Device IMEI# into the dial pad and selecting the csc of your choice;
3. Flash a ROM using ODIN, then flash the desired CSC separately using ODIN.
22. Do you just install Rom over an existing?
Some people do and 9 times out of 10 it works, however I personally boot into recovery, wipe all data/factory reset and wipe Davlik cache > then power off > boot into download mode and install the new rom as above. Best way to ensure a 100% clean install.
23. What is the best way to go from Android 2.x to Android 4.x (Ice Cream Sandwich)?
I struggled trying to get Titanium to quickly and efficiently migrate my data (I'm sure it's very possible but I didn't have the time nor inclination to work around it) therefore I just restored my apps data after manually installing the apps from the marketplace. Once you have a stable working phone on ICS future titanium backup/restores are easy as normal.
24. Titanium Backup? What's the difference in app colour?
Menu => Legend;
Green = App - with data that you should backup;
White = App - should be fine to backup;
Red = System app/service - Wouldn't backup as typically installed by default.
Other tools apps that will be helpful are Titanium Backup (from Android Marketplace https://market.android.com/details?id=com.keramidas.TitaniumBackup&hl=en) and also get a Dropbox account (for free) from Free 2GB Cloud Storage from Dropbox as Titanium can sync to Dropbox.
25. Anything else of note?
Other tools apps that will be helpful are Titanium Backup (from Android Marketplace https://market.android.com/details?id=com.keramidas.TitaniumBackup&hl=en) and also get a Dropbox account (for free) from Free 2GB Cloud Storage from Dropbox as Titanium can sync to Dropbox.
Also slightly linked, if every you want a good UK based hosting for blogs/web/dev - I couldn't recommend TsoHost enough. They are the best hosting company I've ever worked with! Unlimited sql databases and PHP setting modification! If you want 10% off all hosting packages use the code 'wibbsy' at checkout!

Would not this be better in the General section .As a sticky even though noobs dont read stickies .
Witness a very similar Guide posted long time .
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1125282
jje

I welcome suggestions on how to move it and or make it sticky?
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App

wibbsy said:
I welcome suggestions on how to move it and or make it sticky?
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
PM a Mod.
jje

This was exactly what I was looking for - thanks for this! I got my Galaxy S2 about 3 hours ago and now it's all rooted and awesome thanks to this guide.

You have been great help thnx man .
---------- Post added at 05:01 AM ---------- Previous post was at 04:59 AM ----------
Can you post a step by step guide as how to debrand the S2 ?
it will be very much appreciated.

Debranding is easy... just flash a rom that isn't branded. See q. 19.

New to xda. Thanks to threadstarter, really useful information for newbies like me.

great info there . keep up the good work.

thank you very much

Thanks
Just like to say thanks for this appreciate you taking the time to write this.
Nice one

I want to flash back to stock firmware, but after download from http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1075278, instead of PDA, CSC and MODEM files, there were several image files (Power ISO). What to do with them? I desperately need to download stock firmware with MSR - CSC... Any help would be so appreciated!

Thanks. I think it is nice to have all the info in one post. Makes life easier.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk

thanks for the info!

Thanks dude for the very useful info.

Thanks for the info. Nice to have it all in one place.

i get its. thanks for guide

Thanks! Makes much sense!

Thanks for the summary! This have helped a lot for newcomers like me

+1. Very helpful.

[HOWTO] Rooting + Wiping + Flashing : For the ultimate noob.

Note from rootsu:
XDA staff have transferred ownership of this thread to me so that I can update the rooting methods. The reason for this is because the rooting method contained within is outdated and since identified as unsafe.
I have PM'd the original OP @Stormlister to update the thread but unfortunately have received no response.
I aim to keep the structure of the thread in tact. I am only here to edit out / replace outdated and unsafe methods contained within this thread. The work below is not my own.
Disclaimer:
This guide is for total noobs (I am one myself). Until the information here can be confirmed by an experienced person please don't bet on the fact that this information is 100% accurate. I studied and put together bits and pieces of information that I found everywhere, tried it and it worked. I will mention the sources. Even though its probably not a good idea for a noob to write any sort of guide, these were taken from working sources, I have tried it myself and all works flawlessly.
About me:
I write open source software and also write documentation.
Why:
I wrote this tutorial as I found the scattered information all over kinda confusing on the subject of flashing, wiping and ROMS.
Who's it for?
You already know what you want to do, but don't know where to start.
THIS IS A WORK IN PROGRESS.
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Getting Started - Rooting
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Root means you are opening the operating system to allow a user or application full read and write access. This is needed by some special applications to change operating system files. For example the "Adfree" application changes system files to block certain domains which completely stops ads from showing up on your phone. Unlike other systems like in the iOS, all the root applications are available in the Google Play store, I think Google is great for allowing this.
The main thing I root first even though it is not needed to flash a rom is the fact that you ALWAYS need to make a backup, if something goes wrong you have a something to fall back on and the friendly xda community can help us get things running again.
The easiest way I found to quickly and safely root was by using the following software:
ODIN (Desktop software) (Incorrect usage may make your phone unusable.)
Before you start using Odin, make sure all the Kies* services on your desktop is stopped. (On Windows, you can press Ctrl+Alt+Delete, go to task manager, services and stop it from there). Infact you should consider uninstalling Kies altogether as it is really not needed if you are going to root. There are more than enough backup software that does not add the bloatware.
This piece of genius is a tool to flash among other things a new ROM to your phone.
We will be using this piece of software twice, first to root it, and then to flash your S3 with a new ROM.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
<rootsu insert>
Recommended methods to "root" depending on your requirements...
1) You want root only. No custom ROMs, kernels etc. Just root, just to use root apps.
CF Auto Root Via Odin
Why? Tried and tested method, simple to use. No need to choose what exploit you want to use as it's tailored for your device.
What does it do? It gives you a stock recovery (so can't flash things) and roots the Android OS
The Steps:
1) Download the Latest Odin
2) Download CF-Auto-Root for your model
3) Follow These steps to root
2) You want to flash custom ROMs / Kernels
If you want root on your existing Android ROM, you can do 1) first. Then flash a recovery of your choice (CWM, Philz, TWRP) via Odin
However, if you immediately plan on flashing a ROM, there's no need to root your existing ROM. Simply skip straight to installing a recovery. Backup then flash what you like.
The Steps:
1) Download the Latest Odin
2) Download recovery of your choice CWM, Philz, TWRP
3) Follow The steps to Flash Philz recovery (But for the recovery of your choice)
These steps can also be followed to update recovery to newer versions
</rootsu insert>
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Difficulty: Easy
After you have completed the tutorial your phone should be rooted and ready to go to the next step.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Backing up
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The next thing we will need to do is backup our current apps, settings and even ROM. Now that the phone is rooted we can install a few applications to help with this process. Lets do this now.
In Google Play Store, search and install:
Titanium Backup (Google Play)
With this tool, you will be able to backup application and settings of your current installation.
To do so;
Open Titanium Backup
At some point it will ask for root access, you will need to allow it root access.
Click on Backup/Restore.
It will show you a list of software.
Click the ok tick top right.
It will now show a list of actions you can take.
You will now [ RUN ] Backup all user apps+ system data.
It will flip to a new screen, click top right ok tick again.
The backup process will take a few minutes.
After the backup completes, we will need to copy it to a safe place, just in case something else goes wrong.
With above explained, there are more optimized Titanium Backup methods, this is a must read:
http://checkrom.com/threads/titanium-backup-explained.433/
You could also backup your whole system from the boot menu of ClockWorkMod / custom recovery - which you will already have if you used the rooting method above. Have a look at this short yet very informative video to do just that:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPvNr7LqP30&feature=related
Difficulty: Easy
Bear in mind that custom recoveries vary, they all work pretty much the same. The backup is referred to as a "nandroid" backup, but in the recovery menus, it may well be referred to as simply "backup and restore".
To boot into whichever custom recovery you have installed, power off the phone. From off, hold Volume Up + Home then press and hold Power until the S3 splash screen shows. Release power. Once in recovery, find the backup and restore menu and take a backup.
There is one more place you need to manually write down some settings, the APN for your data and MMS, this is the only area besides the branding when another countries stock rom might affect you if you chose to use it. So head over to;
Settings->More Settings->Mobile Networks->Access Point Names.
Click on each and write down its settings.
Backing up EFS folder
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The EFS is a filesystem folder which contains important information like for instance your IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity) number, even though I cant find any evidence that anyone lost their EFS folder yet, I think it is probably important enough to back it up. First open your favorite file browser like ASTRO and click on your internal build in sdcard0 and see if you have a efs_Backup folder. If you have such a folder its is probably backup up inside already. To be honest, I dont know what backed mine up, but it was there, and it will be likely there if you followed the procedures listed in the collection of this tutorial.
However, the folder is only 6mb, if you don't have such a backed up folder, using an application like KTOOL, gives you the ability to backup the whole "/efs" folder to wherever you like. The external SSD and also your PC would be a good idea to back it up to.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Difficulty: Easy
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ROM - Hunting for a new rom
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************************************************************************************************************
My ROM is not YOUR ROM
But I have an S3, wtf is this? Note that when hunting for a ROM that you make sure it is either based on your models ROM or supports your models ROM. The reason this should be noted is because the models are so profoundly different, from Dual Core to Quad Core, from 1GB memory to 2GB memory etc. This means each ROM is optimized of based on a specific model. If you have the GT-I9300, you have the most popular model which has a lot of custom ROMS.
Read more about the differences here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1870827
************************************************************************************************************
This is where I got confused, I did not know if I had to match the code base of my factory stock rom to the rom I wanted. I was afraid that it might flash my modems software making my phone unusable with my service provider. It seems that the rom file is only to flash the actual OS and wont include the modem flash too.
So what ROM to pick, there seems to be very good ROMS out there, but know, the further you go away from the stock rom, the more difficult things become. You might just want to upgrade to the latest Jelly Bean and not worry about an improve stock Samsung rom. Or you might want to take it to a whole new level and perhaps install a pure Android rom (however, I noted a few people having trouble with the pure android rom, you really need to know what you are doing). But as I say, it seems things gets kinda tricky the further you move away from the Stock Rom.
Lets look at a few examples of solid roms:
At this stage we only have one stock rom available in Jelly Bean, this is most probably the safest bet when you only want to upgrade to Jelly Bean (If you do decide to just go with the safest rom, you can just root again after the rom was successfully flashed) [INTERNATIONAL GALAXY S3 ONLY] [DONT USE THIS ROM ON ANYTHING ELSE THAN INTERNATIONAL VERSION (IT WONT WORK)]:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1646610
Now we can start looking at roms based on stock roms that was improved by a linux guru, very good example of such a rom which is very solid is Android Revolution HD, if you have other Samsung devices I would recommend sticking to this one as it comes stock with Allshare Play:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1797334
The most popular OMEGA rom for the S3 international, pure awesomeness:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1663656
Then you get completely customized roms like Cyanogenmod, this is next level roms and should probably only be tried once you are more confident with flashing ( . Y . )
Note that Cyanogenmod is very controversial for the international version of the S3, there are technical issues, and newer stable version is always behind, I would NOT go for Cyanogenmod at the moment..
http://www.cyanogenmod.com/
For a very nice list of roms and some explanations have a look at:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1674286
Now that you have your rom, lets continue.
Difficulty: Easy
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Wiping & Flashing - Cleaner Flashing Method
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[I will try and confirm all my findings below]
When people refer to the term wipe, it is my understanding that it means to delete the old ROM from various locations. This ensures a more clean installation, almost like its better to install Windows afresh instead of an upgrade. However, this is not Windows, its Linux, I am sure the logic behind this is because the way Linux works, it has certain files in certain directories, that if the file is there, the service is loaded automatically. Now if you had to replace a stock rom with something completely different, some of those auto loaded files will be left behind and you will be stuck with loaded services that should not be there. But this is just my experience, I am not sure if this completely accurate.
This is where things might start becoming slightly confusing. Many people seem to argue that when upgrading from a stock version to another stock version that you don't need to wipe, I completely agree with this, as this will almost be the same upgrade process the default upgrade will follow.
However, if you upgrade to a very different ROM, start paying attention, as things might just get slightly more complicated. This I have not tried myself yet, but it seems that for this to work you wont need Odin.
Some people also recommend formatting and not just deleting, I will even advice against this, this is the EXT4 filesystem, not some NTFS filesystem. I cannot see the real benefit of formatting.
At this stage I don't know how to wipe the phone if you are going to use the alternative Odin flashing method explained below, this I have done, tried and tested, working fine:
[Below method I use to flash my own international S3]
This is what you will be doing to install a custom rom while wiping it for a fresh install (make sure you have your titanium backups handy ):
Copy your ROM inside an easy locatable phone folder by browsing to it, from your PC and copying it to your phones folder using your micro USB cable. I strongly recommend using your External SD card as some roms may wipe your internal SD card leaving you without any ROM to update.. that will be very sad. :crying:
Boot into recovery (Vol up + Home + power from off)
You will see a new Unix like screen appear, use volume + and - to navigate up and down, home button is enter, and soft touch back button back is back.
Next we will wipe the phone (if your ROM does not have special instructions on wiping this is a standard method).
Goto Wipe Data/Factory Reset -> Yes
Goto Wipe Cache Partition -> Yes
Goto Advance -> Wipe Dalvik Cache -> Yes
Next Select Install Zip from SD Card (You may also mount External SD card and load ROMS from external SD card (I can recommend this))
It will take a while...
Reboot, and hope to god all is good.
I can confirm above works perfectly, I have flashed HD Revolution ROM successfully using above method.
BUT PLEASE BE WARNED: HD Revolution recommends using Super Wipe, the instructions are unclear, it says you must copy it to the your sd card, if you do this and copy it to your internal sd card all will be wiped including your images, I think you are screwed then. Rather copy them to your EXTERNAL SD card and choose zip from EXTERNAL SD card.
Or you can see a very clear example video of how to wipe data from your phone in preparation of a new rom;
Be aware, this video shows that you should UNLOCK your bootloader, some phones wont boot after this, don't do it except if you know you have to.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJUCOtX1cUk
Difficulty: Medium
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ALTERNATIVE Flashing - With Odin
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you have not followed the wiping method and you will just be going for the stock updated rom, you should not be needing any wiping, you can just download the stock rom as linked and follow this great guide:
STOCK ROM:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1646610
ODIN GUIDE
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1671969
Difficulty: Medium
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Restoring your data
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
After you have are done with a successful flash, we want to recover our apps, but its not just a matter of recovering everything, it will be a mess if you do that.
Many people carry out a backup before installing a custom rom and didnt really understand what kind of backup they should of carried out and have just gone with what they have seen, WRONG!!! when it comes to custom roms there is only one type of backup you can do.
Custom roms have their own system files and dont like other system files being installed over it, you will definitely have rom problems if you carry out this kind of restore from a backup over a custom rom.
When using Titanium Backup its important not to use the settings - backup all system data and backup all user apps + system data, you cant use these with a custom rom, so dont try this kind of backup, this kind of backup is to restore your phone back to its previous state, should something go wrong with the rom installation.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Read more detail here:
http://checkrom.com/threads/titanium-backup-explained.433/
Difficulty: Easy
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Getting rid of bloatware
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you went for a stock based ROM, you might want to get rid of all the SAMSUNG bloatware that sits in memory and really never gets used.
This is mostly all the "S" software like "S Suggest", I believe not a lot of people is going to use this for instance. And one can't simply uninstall it as it is hiden from uninstalling.
There is a very easy way if you are rooted though (another reason to root). Simply install the little greatness called "Nobloat Free" from the Play store.
Now select those bloatware you dont want and simply uninstall. But make sure it might not be useful for yourself. To give you an idea, "AllShare Play" might sound useless, however, if you have a XBMC media pc, by simply enabling "PNP" in the configuration, you can display photos and videos instantly from your G3, does not matter where you are in XBMC.
Difficulty: Very Easy
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Unrooting and getting back your Warranty!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
At some stage you might want to sell your phone or it is giving you hardware issues that has nothing to do with software. At this stage you want to reset the phone to it 100% factory state and status. It is completely possible, unfortunately it wont work to just update the rom to the stock factory rom as there are built in counters and status writes who flags the phone as modified. However, by following these tutorials, you can quickly reset your phone.
You will need the factory rom for your country, this can be downloaded here:
http://www.sammobile.com/firmware/
Then watch both of these tutorials and decide which one you feel the most comfortable with:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZEI_c1R0_nQ&feature=related
And another approach to regaining your warranty:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TEsBwtqY2xE&feature=related
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Oops, if you are stuck on a crossroad and you think you might have bricked (term used to define the fact that you made your phone unusable) your phone, following this tutorial will help you out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ypmqJbZqOaU&feature=related
Difficulty: Easy
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Thanks to everyone
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I just want to say thanks to the wonderfully smart people who makes rooting possible. It is amazing how much more fun some people can make the life for other. I truly appreciate every bit of it.
Also special thanks to xdadevelopers who keeps an awesome community together.
Odin Greatness!
CF-Root
SuperSu
CWM
CWMManager
ClockworkMod (WTF, this is omg awesome!)
Titanium Backup
Adfree
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Congrats on your new firmare!
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FAQ
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JiiNDER said:
Hey I want to thank you so much for your guide! It actually makes rooting a lot easier. I had one question though, if I root and a new official firmware comes out, can I still update to the latest stock rom with Kies even though I will lose my root.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It all depends what ROM you loaded, if its not the default factory ROM or based on it, you will have to follow the instructions of the CUSTOM rom provider on how an upgrade should be achieve. Else simply use the newest default rom and simply re-root, should be a very quick to do. Also, dont use KIES if you have already rooted, rather use ODIN and follow the instructions. NOTE: KIES, if left running will make ODIN behave incorrectly.

just a slight correction/heads up.... if you root with cf root then cwm recovery is installed, hence no need to use Rom manager, it's kinda outdated now imho
---------- Post added at 05:51 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:49 PM ----------
further to that you may want to provide instructions after the rooting process on how to get into recovery and download mode

slaphead20 said:
just a slight correction/heads up.... if you root with cf root then cwm recovery is installed, hence no need to use Rom manager, it's kinda outdated now imho
---------- Post added at 05:51 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:49 PM ----------
further to that you may want to provide instructions after the rooting process on how to get into recovery and download mode
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, I will note that above.

The stock rom at the bottom goes to the international version rom. I found this thread in the Sprint version so u might want to note that. If someone were to flash that they wouldn't boot up.
Sent from Galaxy SIII

Added many corrections.

musclehead84 said:
The stock rom at the bottom goes to the international version rom. I found this thread in the Sprint version so u might want to note that. If someone were to flash that they wouldn't boot up.
Sent from Galaxy SIII
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Could you please explain why you think it wont boot, what exactly would be different that wont make it boot. I believe it will?

Great tutorial for the noobs. Would be really useful for them. :thumbup:
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda app-developers app

Stormlister said:
Could you please explain why you think it wont boot, what exactly would be different that wont make it boot. I believe it will?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Different CPU's, different kernels, different drivers, different partitions, different radios and tech (one being GSM the other being CDMA) and the list goes on...

graffixnyc said:
Different CPU's, different kernels, different drivers, different partitions, different radios and tech (one being GSM the other being CDMA) and the list goes on...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the feedback man... will mark it as International Only.

I had question regarding Odin behaving strangely, make sure KIES is stopped in your services. I have added it in the tutorial.

Stormlister said:
I had question regarding Odin behaving strangely, make sure Kiss is stopped in your services. I have added it in the tutorial.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you mean Kies ? (Samsung) good tut for super noobs btw
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda app-developers app

i would recommend you to recommend not installing Kies at all, or uninstall it if installed.
any backup that you can do with it, can be done by 3rd party apps. it has a lot of security issues. and worst, its slow as hell.
i think a person that want to root his phone and flash a custom rom, will have no need of it anyway.
Edit: thumbs up for the effort! i could have really used such guide when i just started, instead i learned it the hard way!

OverRipeBananas said:
Do you mean Kies ? (Samsung) good tut for super noobs btw
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, yes Kies, thanks for spotting it

Thanks, I'll try this soon! Glad I found this, voiding warranty still sounds scary. I have other rooted devices and sometimes they can blow me away, so I think I'll go for it anyway.
Cheers.

MrEdgar said:
Thanks, I'll try this soon! Glad I found this, voiding warranty still sounds scary. I have other rooted devices and sometimes they can blow me away, so I think I'll go for it anyway.
Cheers.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I personally think it is well worth-it, it is almost as if the phones turns into mini super computer when rooted. It is so much fun to have a ROM installed and setup that you are completely happy with, removing bloatware, no intrusive ads. Just stay away from overclocking, I think that is taking it too far if you are a scary pants like myself.
Also, you know how the retailers are, they almost never deliver on their warranty anyway.

No offence, but given this guide is designed 'for the ultimate noob' AND it has been stickied, there are some glaringly obvious things missing, that should be cover at the beginning of your post/guide before hitting the processes of
In the first post, you do not cover information pertaining to the flash counter and triangle away, and most importantly by far, BACKING UP THE EFS. Also, possible risks from installing potentially malicious apks from 'other sources' to a rooted device.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda app-developers app

Good job! :good:

bootx1 said:
No offence, but given this guide is designed 'for the ultimate noob' AND it has been stickied, there are some glaringly obvious things missing, that should be cover at the beginning of your post/guide before hitting the processes of
In the first post, you do not cover information pertaining to the flash counter and triangle away, and most importantly by far, BACKING UP THE EFS. Also, possible risks from installing potentially malicious apks from 'other sources' to a rooted device.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
None taken, but in a community it works like this. We build a tutorial together. Instead of taking the time pointing out what you think is missing. Why did you not just write the part so I could add it? This tutorial is based on the international version, I am not sure if the triangle notification does not affect this version but I could not test it as I did not ran into this problem.
Regarding the EFS, I will do some research regarding this and add it to the tutorial.

I have added detail on backing up EFS folder and also triangle away.

CF-Root 6.4 - SuperSU+CWM5.5+CWMManager does not work on stock JellyBean Firmware right?

General Noob Root and ROM update Questions

So I am new to the whole Root and ROM Android arena. And I came up with a few questions that hopefully you guys can help me with.
1. I read people saying they lost their ROOT after an update from 4.1 to 4.2 or 4.2.1 to 4.2.2? How did this happen for them?
Do you have to Un-root and flash to stock before updating to a different build (Such as 4.1 to 4.2 or 4.2.1 to 4.2.2)?
2. Right now I am using a custom ROM on Android Version 4.2.2.... if a new Custom ROM with a new android version released (Let's say 4.2.3) can I flash from one Rom to the other with just wiping Cache/Factory wipe and Dalvik Cahce or is there something else I would need to do because of the Android version update?
Sorry those two questions above are very similar but I wanted to ask them both ways.
3. If I were to get bored of the Custom ROM I am currently on. Are there any Best Practices "rules" I should know about when switching from one custom ROM to another?
4. Last if I am on a custom ROM with a nightly build..... is it more common to update to every nightly build that releases? Or is it more common people to only pick and choose choice nightly build versions. And if people do update to every new Nightly build.... can you update too much and destroy your device?
Sorry guys I know these seem like very basic questions..... and Yes I did search the forums. However while I found some very basic answers nothing went into great depth in explanation. All the answers seemed to be very vague.

does anyone have some suggestions on where to find these answers?

1. If you are on stock, rooted, and you update versions of the OS, you are essentially UPDATING the /system partition. That is how you lose 'root' when upgrading. If you modify any system files while rooted, you have to either revert to stock or change those modified files back to the original before running the update.
2. Just run FACTORY RESET in your custom recovery and flash the new custom rom. No need to wipe any caches (/cache is wiped during a factory reset anyway). It doesnt matter what version to what version. Sometimes new versions might require new bootloaders, but you will be bombarded with that information here if that becomes the case.
3. See number 2. Its the same thing. backup your apps with Titanium Backup, do a Factory Reset in custom recovery and flash new rom....done.
4. doesnt matter. you can update as much or as little as you like. some people prefer stability over new shiny, but then others are just crack-flashers....and will literally flash ANYTHING posted to see what happens

Pirateghost said:
1. If you are on stock, rooted, and you update versions of the OS, you are essentially UPDATING the /system partition. That is how you lose 'root' when upgrading. If you modify any system files while rooted, you have to either revert to stock or change those modified files back to the original before running the update.
2. Just run FACTORY RESET in your custom recovery and flash the new custom rom. No need to wipe any caches (/cache is wiped during a factory reset anyway). It doesnt matter what version to what version. Sometimes new versions might require new bootloaders, but you will be bombarded with that information here if that becomes the case.
3. See number 2. Its the same thing. backup your apps with Titanium Backup, do a Factory Reset in custom recovery and flash new rom....done.
4. doesnt matter. you can update as much or as little as you like. some people prefer stability over new shiny, but then others are just crack-flashers....and will literally flash ANYTHING posted to see what happens
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks I really appreciate the response. :good: You'd be surprised how many "Tiny Parts" of answers you get from searching. Very rarely the whole answer you need.
I am glade to hear that Question 2 only requires you to just factory rest. From the misinformation gathered on other forums... I was starting to think you had to flash back to stock before updating to another Custom ROM Build.

@20mmrain
You've probably looked at a number of posts by confused newbs. For better or worse, this site is nothing like a moderated wiki, so you find treasure mixed in with trash.
Rooters fall into four broad classes:
(a) Those that "root & modify" stock ROMs
(b) Those that abandon stock and use custom ROMs and kernels
For each of the above cases, there are diligent and careful users who make full (nandroid) backups... and lazy idiots who do not. It is almost always the lazy idiots you observe coming in here in a panic, independent of whether they are in class (a) or (b).
Beyond that, newbs taking approach (a) seem to perpetually labor under the false impression that their modified versions of a stock ROM should be able to be upgraded by the OTA process - when in fact that there is absolutely no reason to believe that. The OTAs carefully check hundreds of different files before they perform any changes; if even a single one of them has been altered, the OTA aborts without making any changes.
It is *possible* that if none of those hundreds of files are changed that an OTA will succeed on a "nearly stock" ROM. When this happens though, it is quite typical that:
- the "su" binary (part of a root kit) in either /system/bin or /system/xbin gets its' setuid permissions reset by a recursive permission-setting command in the OTA
- the custom recovery can possibly be overwritten by the new stock recovery.
Folks tend to refer to either of the above as "losing root". True in principle, but they are trivially fixed up - if the user actually understands how Android rooting works. (With fastboot, you simply reflash the custom recovery, boot into that and reflash the same root kit originally used).
It's too bad that folks who put together rooting guides seem to neglect putting an emphasis on making backups. They give you both security and freedom.
Bottom line: whatever you choose to do, make nandroid backups. You don't need to keep them all on the tablet - but for convenience reasons, you should have at least one known good ROM as a backup available to be restored.
good luck

Wow that is a really in-depth explanation and that is exactly what was looking for! Since I have been working in the IT world for years I will say with pride that I am an individual who believes in safety first and always back up any important project I am working on! So I am happy to hear I made the right decision there.
I guess a great deal of my questions also stem from working in a windows based world for so long ....that I am still learning Linux/android.
Right now I do keep a nandroid backup on my nexus 7 but only one. How backups do you have? And do you just keep the rest on a thumb drive?
Sent from my Nexus 7 using xda app-developers app

20mmrain said:
Right now I do keep a nandroid backup on my nexus 7 but only one. How backups do you have? And do you just keep the rest on a thumb drive?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
At the moment I have 6 on the tablet - all generated in the last 60 days. Two in the last two days (one a rooted stock/jdq39, another a cm10.1 nightly). Plus recent TiBu market app & data backups. 32 GB model, so I have plenty of room.
That doesn't reflect any particular strategy or goal. I hook it up to a PC every once in a while and at that time either copy off any backups worth saving or delete them. Most of the those I have on the PC will eventually be deleted as well without ever being used. You could use a USB key if you want to. Really you only need to keep one on the tablet - mostly as a convenience in case you wedge your daily driver ROM with some random mod: you can restore a working ROM right from your tablet rather than having to find a USB key or return to your PC to get the tablet booting again.
There is one type of ROM backup that I think is very useful to keep a permanent copy of - a pure stock ROM. The reason for that is that any radio images (tilapia) or bootloader upgrades that are *sometimes* delivered by OTA can be trivially installed by:
- make a backup of the current ROM
- restore a pure stock ROM backup (including the stock recovery! ***)
- take the OTA
- ***soft-boot a custom recovery and make a backup of the NEW stock ROM (including its' recovery!)
- hard-flash the custom recovery to the tablet
- restore the backup from the first step above.
Doing things this way is the safest possible way to install either a bootloader or a radio image. Not only that, but for folks that prefer to mod stock ROMs, it gives them a backup archive of /system to recover arbitrary (stock) files from.
*** soft-booting a recovery is the most convenient way to capture a stock recovery as part of a nandroid backup. I.E.
Code:
fastboot boot recoveryimagefile.img
If you hard-flash a custom recovery before you make a nandroid backup of a stock ROM, you lose the opportunity to get a copy of the stock recovery along with the rest of the stock ROM.
good luck

Fido Canada S4 rooting/flashing questions

Hello!
So, I've read through the beginner guides (and that is a hilarious video btw!) and just want to double check a few things. I'm on Fido (Canada) with a stock S4 (i337M) that I got a couple days ago.
1. I assume I use the instructions here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2314494 [HOW-TO] and here http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2298299 [Canadian Root and Recovery].
1a. That tool will allow me to un-root in case I need the warranty, yes?
2. I also want to flash to vanilla Android (aka Pure Google / Google Edition)... which ROM do I use? There are so many I can't tell.
2a. I know the Samsung camera app doesn't work on the Pure Google ROM, but is basic functionality still working, i.e. can I still take a picture / video / etc.? Is there any other basic functionality missing? (I heard something about the volume button?)
3. Which ROM do I use if I want to restore to factory?
4. I also need to backup my SMS, contacts, call log, app data, settings etc. so I can restore them easily after flashing to new ROM, or after restoring to factory ROM. Will Titanium handle all of this?
Thanks

kabutar said:
Hello!
So, I've read through the beginner guides (and that is a hilarious video btw!) and just want to double check a few things. I'm on Fido (Canada) with a stock S4 (i337M) that I got a couple days ago.
1. I assume I use the instructions here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2314494 [HOW-TO] and here http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2298299 [Canadian Root and Recovery].
1a. That tool will allow me to un-root in case I need the warranty, yes?
2. I also want to flash to vanilla Android (aka Pure Google / Google Edition)... which ROM do I use? There are so many I can't tell.
2a. I know the Samsung camera app doesn't work on the Pure Google ROM, but is basic functionality still working, i.e. can I still take a picture / video / etc.? Is there any other basic functionality missing? (I heard something about the volume button?)
3. Which ROM do I use if I want to restore to factory?
4. I also need to backup my SMS, contacts, call log, app data, settings etc. so I can restore them easily after flashing to new ROM, or after restoring to factory ROM. Will Titanium handle all of this?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That guide should be fine. If you want "vanilla Android", right now the closest thing would be CM, you can get it from http://get.cm and select "jfltecan" (the canadian S4 model). Ye,s, Titanium can backup all of those things you mentioned, although I am not certain about system settings - there will be a lot of different settings between TouchWiz and AOSP.

CommentProvider said:
That guide should be fine. If you want "vanilla Android", right now the closest thing would be CM, you can get it from http://get.cm and select "jfltecan" (the canadian S4 model). Ye,s, Titanium can backup all of those things you mentioned, although I am not certain about system settings - there will be a lot of different settings between TouchWiz and AOSP.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
awesome thanks. I'm not worried about system settings just apps and their settings.
for the factory ROM would this work?: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2261573 (again, I'm on Fido in Canada)
and lastly, I'm still not clear on the difference between Odin/Loki/whatever you use to root and/or flash - would someone be able to clarify?
Also, just to be clear, what is meant by 'recovery'?
Thanks again

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=41989987
Loki
refers to the exploit that allows us to run custom recoveries as well as custom roms. You only need to have a loki'd rom if you have a model with a locked bootloader (AT&T).
recovery is a partition that you can access at boot by holding down a combination of keys. (volume up and home button in the case of our sgs4) every phone has recovery stock but it doesn't do much. you can replace stock with clockwork mod recovery which is extremely useful for flashing all kinds of things and making backups before you do. There are other alternative recoveries besides clockwork but that seems to be the most common. TWRP is also gaining popularity these days. You can easily switch between recoveries and or upgrade your current recovery. All that needs to happen is for a new image to be flashed onto the recovery partition. See the rooting guide for more info on how to flash a custom recovery.
Sent from my SGH-I747

mymusicathome said:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=41989987
Loki
refers to the exploit that allows us to run custom recoveries as well as custom roms. You only need to have a loki'd rom if you have a model with a locked bootloader (AT&T).
recovery is a partition that you can access at boot by holding down a combination of keys. (volume up and home button in the case of our sgs4) every phone has recovery stock but it doesn't do much. you can replace stock with clockwork mod recovery which is extremely useful for flashing all kinds of things and making backups before you do. There are other alternative recoveries besides clockwork but that seems to be the most common. TWRP is also gaining popularity these days. You can easily switch between recoveries and or upgrade your current recovery. All that needs to happen is for a new image to be flashed onto the recovery partition. See the rooting guide for more info on how to flash a custom recovery.
Sent from my SGH-I747
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ok, great, thanks. just to clarify one last time: am I correct in understanding that I don't need to have a custom recovery in order to flash a ROM? or is that what installing clockwork mod/TWRP means? (or is that what rooting means?)
Lastly... is there somewhere with a list of what each custom ROM is, and/or what things don't work in the ROM? I do want vanilla, but I'd also be interested in checking out the other ROMs to see if there's one that will keep some TouchWiz functionality while removing the ridiculous skin.
Also, for vanilla Android, would you recommend waiting till devs release a MOD based off of the S4 GE?

kabutar said:
ok, great, thanks. just to clarify one last time: am I correct in understanding that I don't need to have a custom recovery in order to flash a ROM? or is that what installing clockwork mod/TWRP means? (or is that what rooting means?)
Lastly... is there somewhere with a list of what each custom ROM is, and/or what things don't work in the ROM? I do want vanilla, but I'd also be interested in checking out the other ROMs to see if there's one that will keep some TouchWiz functionality while removing the ridiculous skin.
Also, for vanilla Android, would you recommend waiting till devs release a MOD based off of the S4 GE?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Check out the link in my first post. A plethora of knowledge that will help you in your Rom journey.
Play around and test the options of roms you have. Each user has different likes/dislikes. MAKE SURE YOU READ THE ORIGINAL POST OF THE ROM YOU ARE PLANNING ON FLASHING. They will contain the basic inductions to flash the Rom and usually any bugs that exist.
Check out this thread for a list of compatible roms -
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=41834056
[GUIDE][NOOB'S]These non-AT&T ROMs work on AT&T/TMO/Canadian S4 devices. Here's how!
A quick search can be a beautiful thing
Sent from my Nexus 10 using xda premium

mymusicathome said:
Check out the link in my first post. A plethora of knowledge that will help you in your Rom journey.
Play around and test the options of roms you have. Each user has different likes/dislikes. MAKE SURE YOU READ THE ORIGINAL POST OF THE ROM YOU ARE PLANNING ON FLASHING. They will contain the basic inductions to flash the Rom and usually any bugs that exist.
Check out this thread for a list of compatible roms -
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=41834056
[GUIDE][NOOB'S]These non-AT&T ROMs work on AT&T/TMO/Canadian S4 devices. Here's how!
A quick search can be a beautiful thing
Sent from my Nexus 10 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks again for the link! I have actually seen several of those... but am just still very confused. mainly on these points:
- FIDO's rom isn't in those lists, and the variety of options for flashing (e.g. some ROMs say they need to be flashed with ODIN not TWRP) is a bit overwhelming!
- there's a post saying the Canadian ROMs are for odin not recovery flashing?
- I'm still not clear on whether I need to install a custom kernel just to flash a different ROM
- Also not clear on how to restore to factory stock (to take it to store for example)
- In the link you sent, the OP said non-ATT people should use the versions in their own forums... but does this apply to Canadian users too or is this ok for them?
Feel free to tell me if I'm being really dumb, but I really am a little lost lol.
As for buggy ROMs... would it be better to wait for one based off the S4 Google Edition?
Thanks again

Canadian dont need loki dont use loki never use loki
Take time to understand everithing before flashing
rodger is the same as fido exept for the rodger bloatware (my accout,visual voicemail etc)
what i did root with cf auto root
installed goomanager on google play ,this app can installed twrp and it really easy
in recovery i flash mint jelly rom ,after its done i flash faux kernel for canadian
To factory restore you have to installe stock rom thru odin ,(from what i understand) it change the rom and the kernel at the same time

zild8 said:
Canadian dont need loki dont use loki never use loki
Take time to understand everithing before flashing
rodger is the same as fido exept for the rodger bloatware (my accout,visual voicemail etc)
what i did root with cf auto root
installed goomanager on google play ,this app can installed twrp and it really easy
in recovery i flash mint jelly rom ,after its done i flash faux kernel for canadian
To factory restore you have to installe stock rom thru odin ,(from what i understand) it change the rom and the kernel at the same time
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ok, so I'm just sorting through all of this. Successfully rooted and flashed CM nightly. However, now I see 'rogers' instead of 'fido' and 4G in the status bar, which I understand means that I'm on LTE according to stock JB icons.
So to sort this out:
a) what do I do about this incorrect network name?
b) if I restore to stock rom through odin, and it installs the 'rogers' rom, how do I get back to the fido apps? will I still have the network access / wrong name problem?
c) if I want to go BACK to stock eventually, I seem to have two options:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2261573 [FACTORY STOCK]
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2269304 [12 May Official STOCK firmware collections for Canadian S4]
which do I use?
d) I took a nandroid image, BUT: can I restore from this (after wiping all data) to get back to factory ROM, or MUST I use ODIN? Or, do I need to use ODIN and then nandroid to restore everything about the stock ROM?
Thanks!!

A = I think cm have an option to rename carrier label if not you can install xposed framework and notach xposed and the go in frameword,module then activate nottach .open nottach then chose any option that you want ,over 100...
or i think you can try change your apn to show fido ( not sure)
B= check playstore for fido app
C= ? i dont know i think both of then are good, iwould use the one that say canadian stock firmware
D = if you restore from nandroid i think you flash counter gonna still show that you running cutom rom ,best way should be thru odin
Read a lot before you do anithing,you have to understand ..seem to be easy to brick .did not happen to me since one years ,but i read a lot..
And hit the thanks button when somebody helps you

zild8 said:
A = I think cm have an option to rename carrier label if not you can install xposed framework and notach xposed and the go in frameword,module then activate nottach .open nottach then chose any option that you want ,over 100...
or i think you can try change your apn to show fido ( not sure)
B= check playstore for fido app
C= ? i dont know i think both of then are good, iwould use the one that say canadian stock firmware
D = if you restore from nandroid i think you flash counter gonna still show that you running cutom rom ,best way should be thru odin
Read a lot before you do anithing,you have to understand ..seem to be easy to brick .did not happen to me since one years ,but i read a lot..
And hit the thanks button when somebody helps you
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
AWESOME, thanks for all that. Successfully flashed, so hopefully that's the end of it all. And thanks for pointing out the thanks button!!
Two LAST quick things:
- if I use the Canadian stock firmware, do I still end up with a wrong carrier name sign? I imagine I may need to ask the dev that, but just in case you happen to know. I actually can't seem to fix it using the methods you suggested, so I'd prefer not to have this happen.
- ok so I can flash with ODIN and then use nandroid to restore a snapshot of the filesystem I assume?

kabutar said:
AWESOME, thanks for all that. Successfully flashed, so hopefully that's the end of it all. And thanks for pointing out the thanks button!!
Two LAST quick things:
- if I use the Canadian stock firmware, do I still end up with a wrong carrier name sign? I imagine I may need to ask the dev that, but just in case you happen to know. I actually can't seem to fix it using the methods you suggested, so I'd prefer not to have this happen.
- ok so I can flash with ODIN and then use nandroid to restore a snapshot of the filesystem I assume?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
-If you flash back to your stock carrier specific firmware with ODIN the carrier will be correct. You will be back to just as when you first got it from the dealer (provided they didn't set it up for you first).
-You shouldn't be able to restore the nandroid if you ODIN back to stock because you will no longer have a custom recovery.

blyndfyre said:
-If you flash back to your stock carrier specific firmware with ODIN the carrier will be correct. You will be back to just as when you first got it from the dealer (provided they didn't set it up for you first).
-You shouldn't be able to restore the nandroid if you ODIN back to stock because you will no longer have a custom recovery.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
- Well the problem is that my carrier is Fido, a subsidiary of Rogers, and so CM only has a 'Rogers' release. Similarly there is only a 'Rogers' stock firmware, so I don't want to flash back to that and have the carrier still wrong...
- OK, well I assume I could root, flash nandroid, and then unroot - yes?
Thanks!

kabutar said:
- Well the problem is that my carrier is Fido, a subsidiary of Rogers, and so CM only has a 'Rogers' release. Similarly there is only a 'Rogers' stock firmware, so I don't want to flash back to that and have the carrier still wrong...
- OK, well I assume I could root, flash nandroid, and then unroot - yes?
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
-I see the dilema.
-Well as opposed to even flashing to stock with ODIN in the first place. I would suggest booting to recovery (TWRP or CWM), and restore your Nandroid backup. This should bring you to the point before you flashed any ROM. Keep in mind this won't however remove status showing 'custom'.
If you happened to already ODIN back to stock you would have to root again, install custom recovery and perform the step above.

blyndfyre said:
-I see the dilema.
-Well as opposed to even flashing to stock with ODIN in the first place. I would suggest booting to recovery (TWRP or CWM), and restore your Nandroid backup. This should bring you to the point before you flashed any ROM. Keep in mind this won't however remove status showing 'custom'.
If you happened to already ODIN back to stock you would have to root again, install custom recovery and perform the step above.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
that is what I was thinking... there are ways to unroot as far as I know so hopefully that should be ok!
thankfully I did take a nandroid backup. speaking of which - I have 3 files, does this sound ok?:
- boot/sys/data (these were originally selected so just went with it)
- efs
- other (everything else)
last clarification: I thought nandroid was not recommended if switching between ROMs? like if I had a computer backup (i.e. nandroid) but took the backup in Windows XP (i.e. stock rom) and then tried to restore it over Windows 8 (i.e. CM rom), bad things would happen? or is the nandroid more like an acronis boot image thing where it completely wipes everything?
lastly, if I do that... do I need to wipe factory data, dalvik cache, etc or will nandroid take care of that for me?
many thanks again!

kabutar said:
that is what I was thinking... there are ways to unroot as far as I know so hopefully that should be ok!
thankfully I did take a nandroid backup. speaking of which - I have 3 files, does this sound ok?:
- boot/sys/data (these were originally selected so just went with it)
- efs
- other (everything else)
last clarification: I thought nandroid was not recommended if switching between ROMs? like if I had a computer backup (i.e. nandroid) but took the backup in Windows XP (i.e. stock rom) and then tried to restore it over Windows 8 (i.e. CM rom), bad things would happen? or is the nandroid more like an acronis boot image thing where it completely wipes everything?
lastly, if I do that... do I need to wipe factory data, dalvik cache, etc or will nandroid take care of that for me?
many thanks again!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think when you go into recovery and restore nandroid everything will restore.
I would just restore the nandroid from your current state via recovery. If you are worried about it or it causes a problem, it isn't to many more steps to flash to stock via ODIN, root and install recovery and proceed with restore.
I think it is always safe practice to wipe first, and not to dirty flash.

blyndfyre said:
I think when you go into recovery and restore nandroid everything will restore.
I would just restore the nandroid from your current state via recovery. If you are worried about it or it causes a problem, it isn't to many more steps to flash to stock via ODIN, root and install recovery and proceed with restore.
I think it is always safe practice to wipe first, and not to dirty flash.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ok thanks.
However: I may be SAVED! I just realized that Fido is often tagged as FMC, and there's a stock firmware for that one in this thread. Thank the heavens!

kabutar said:
ok thanks.
However: I may be SAVED! I just realized that Fido is often tagged as FMC, and there's a stock firmware for that one in this thread. Thank the heavens!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Didn't know that! Never been with Fido. Great news for you, all you have to do is ODIN that firmware

blyndfyre said:
Didn't know that! Never been with Fido. Great news for you, all you have to do is ODIN that firmware
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, very relieved, and now just gotta figure out why my phone is showing up as a Rogers phone when the nightly is tagged Rogers + Fido and I'll be good to go. I must say I miss multi-window a little and the handwaving over screen a lot, but by god TouchWiz was ugly.

hey kabutar
Yesterday i flash the 12 may stock firmware thru odin ,to revert backt to stock
Here what i did
-latest odin 3.07
-put your phone in download mode with usb not pluged to computer ...
-closed all kies software
-plug your phone in computer
add firmware on pda button ,dont touch any other option.
reboot i add a lot of crashing app so i went to recovery and errase data
reflash thru odin the stock firmware ,and boom everthing was stock ,no more custom in os or in download mode

Hi all. I'm new to rooting can any one please help and point me to the right tutorial to root a samsung s7

Hi All
Looking for a best tutorial to follow and the right one for my phone really don't want to brick it, obviously :/. as there seems to be a few versions for the S7
I have the following: S7 android 8.0.0 SM-G930F not sure what else I need to know! I'm in the UK so I assume UK phones come with Exynos cpu's
and as far as I am aware android 8 is Oreo! but when they say Stock Rom I assume they mean the same as what came with the phone the original rom?
if so is there an alternative stable rom without the crap included or is it just as simple to delete every thing you don't want now it's rooted! and does that mean if I reset the phone its back to normal with all the crap included! or is there a way to keep it rooted even after reset! and should anything be disabled I.e prepare the phone before attempting to root like any kind of auto encryption that needs disabling and just one more question
if at anytime the rooting process hangs for a ridiculous amount of time when should I throw in the towel! and what are the chances of retrieving the phone back to original state! or does a dirty shutdown brick it?.
I started the root process but failed at first hurdle!, followed instructions install Odin3_v3.13.1 but when I connected the phone nothing showed up in Odin? though I will have another go just to confirm I followed it correctly, I'll update this when it's done.
this was the tutorial I followed:
Easy 4 Newbie [Root Guide]SM-G930F, G935F, G930FD, G935FD (Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge)
Warning ! Please note that the official TWRP for Nougat on Galaxy S7/ S7 Edge is not available yet but based on my experience the Marshmallow version is working on Nougat. By installing a custom recovery on your S7 and S7 Edge and rooting it...
forum.xda-developers.com
I know alot of questions I would really appreciate any help and clarification on the above.
many thanks
Regards
Daz

Look pal, rooting the phone is just like being an adult, it means you will get rid of Samsung's "Child Care".
Yes, UK models use Exynos chip, but you have to be sure, look at your baseband version, if it is G930FXXX, then you are good.
ROMs are in two shapes:
Stock-based: These are just like the one you are using, or other Samsung phones does, like Samsung Experience, One UI, TouchWiz. Maybe MIUI and FlymeOS will come into account, as there are ROMs based on them + Samsung's.
AOSP: These are pure Android ROMs, with few modifications to the core, but keeping the UI as close to the source as possible, Google & OnePlus phones come with a near-to-pure operating systems.
Changing a ROM is not risky, as long as you follow the instructions, without any unaccounted improvising.
Before you install a ROM, read the working and bug list, to make sure you are installing something you have an idea of.
You need to install TWRP recovery (or any other one you like), and format data, in order to be able to travel among ROMs and/or root your device.
Formatting is only required because the phone is forcibly encrypted, and TWRP can not decrypt it, at least not for this device.
Rooting is simply about flashing a 5-MB file, Magisk, then rebooting to system, no need to wipe data.
No need to do any additional steps, unless you are trying to hide root from some apps and/or pass SafetyNet.

Mohamedkam000 said:
Look pal, rooting the phone is just like being an adult, it means you will get rid of Samsung's "Child Care".
Yes, UK models use Exynos chip, but you have to be sure, look at your baseband version, if it is G930FXXX, then you are good.
ROMs are in two shapes:
Stock-based: These are just like the one you are using, or other Samsung phones does, like Samsung Experience, One UI, TouchWiz. Maybe MIUI and FlymeOS will come into account, as there are ROMs based on them + Samsung's.
AOSP: These are pure Android ROMs, with few modifications to the core, but keeping the UI as close to the source as possible, Google & OnePlus phones come with a near-to-pure operating systems.
Changing a ROM is not risky, as long as you follow the instructions, without any unaccounted improvising.
Before you install a ROM, read the working and bug list, to make sure you are installing something you have an idea of.
You need to install TWRP recovery (or any other one you like), and format data, in order to be able to travel among ROMs and/or root your device.
Formatting is only required because the phone is forcibly encrypted, and TWRP can not decrypt it, at least not for this device.
Rooting is simply about flashing a 5-MB file, Magisk, then rebooting to system, no need to wipe data.
No need to do any additional steps, unless you are trying to hide root from some apps and/or pass SafetyNet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi Mohamedkam000
Thanks for replying. I'm not confused about why I want to root the phone. I'm just trying to understand the inner workings and the risks as I'm not as clued up with phone OS's as I am windows. I don't care about warrantees or hiding the the fact it's rooted I just want a clean rooted phone free of big brother well inside at least I know you will never completely keep them out but making it hard is a start lol.
Thank you very much for all the above especially on clarifying about the roms and the reason TWRP formats due to encryption nice one
My Baseband version slightly different though it's G930FXXU8ETI3 not sure if having a U instead of a third X makes any difference!
and I posted wrong tutorial I'm actually following this one below again not sure if that matters.
Guide How to root Android 8.0 Oreo Stock ROM on Galaxy S7 ( 100% Working )
Hi . i see too many peoples have problem on rooting Android 8.0 Oreo Stock Rom on Galaxy S7 ( edge ) and they cant get passed from the verification field error ! ok its bcuz they do only 1 step wrong , here i just wanna tell you all the steps 1...
forum.xda-developers.com
Again many thanks for clarifying that lot up very informative and much appreciated.
Kind regards
Daz

CitizenSmith said:
Hi Mohamedkam000
Thanks for replying. I'm not confused about why I want to root the phone. I'm just trying to understand the inner workings and the risks as I'm not as clued up with phone OS's as I am windows. I don't care about warrantees or hiding the the fact it's rooted I just want a clean rooted phone free of big brother well inside at least I know you will never completely keep them out but making it hard is a start lol.
Thank you very much for all the above especially on clarifying about the roms and the reason TWRP formats due to encryption nice one
My Baseband version slightly different though it's G930FXXU8ETI3 not sure if having a U instead of a third X makes any difference!
and I posted wrong tutorial I'm actually following this one below again not sure if that matters.
Guide How to root Android 8.0 Oreo Stock ROM on Galaxy S7 ( 100% Working )
Hi . i see too many peoples have problem on rooting Android 8.0 Oreo Stock Rom on Galaxy S7 ( edge ) and they cant get passed from the verification field error ! ok its bcuz they do only 1 step wrong , here i just wanna tell you all the steps 1...
forum.xda-developers.com
Again many thanks for clarifying that lot up very informative and much appreciated.
Kind regards
Daz
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It doesn't matter which version of Android you are using, root is the same.
However, on stock ROMs, it might sometimes get rough, as you may end up with Wi-Fi not working (happened to me Q1 2020).
If you really want to learn how Android OS works, then rooting the stock ROM is not your way.
Try AOSP ROMs, preferably start with Oreo ones, you can root in 3 common way, LineageOS SU Add-on, Magisk, Super SU.
But before you tickle your phone, you have to make a backup of your current device, of every partition, EFS is the most important partition, so make sure it is safe.
Baseband version doesn't matter a lot, unless you're paranoid with updates, it is sorted alphabetically, each string on its own.
The phone is more similar to a linux machine than to a Windows PC.
Edit: To root stock ROM, you have to flash dm verity, so you don't end up encrypted again.

Mohamedkam000 said:
It doesn't matter which version of Android you are using, root is the same.
However, on stock ROMs, it might sometimes get rough, as you may end up with Wi-Fi not working (happened to me Q1 2020).
If you really want to learn how Android OS works, then rooting the stock ROM is not your way.
Try AOSP ROMs, preferably start with Oreo ones, you can root in 3 common way, LineageOS SU Add-on, Magisk, Super SU.
But before you tickle your phone, you have to make a backup of your current device, of every partition, EFS is the most important partition, so make sure it is safe.
Baseband version doesn't matter a lot, unless you're paranoid with updates, it is sorted alphabetically, each string on its own.
The phone is more similar to a linux machine than to a Windows PC.
Edit: To root stock ROM, you have to flash dm verity, so you don't end up encrypted again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks again for clearing quite a few things up I thought rooting stock rom would have been far safer way forward wow how wrong was I! but I guess I am just trying to find any kind simile to windows in any way but as you pointed out again it's more like Linux which again I've only played around with ubuntu and mint for a short period so again not to up on Linux lol.
It's funny I was just reading up on AOSP ROMs then got your message. I see they have a stable but not complete! Android 10 not that I would consider it need as I need a stable OS so Oreo is fine for me.
I have backed up phone using Smart Switch on the PC I assume that copy's every thing that's needed, I reset the phone in anticipation all be it prematurely but at least it restored all my data so if anything that was a good test of the back up at least .
I will have look at some AOSP ROMs and see what's involved there, I'll check out their tutorial hopefully it will include the whole process including root.
I gather by your comment using a AOSP ROM you don't need to use dm-verity or will that still be needed!.

The first thing to do is to flash (install) TWRP, it's a custom recovery (think of it as a mini OS that can boot before Android), that will be the base for any of your future tinkering.
Here is the thread, read the FP carefully: [Recovery][Exynos] Official TWRP for Galaxy S7 (herolte)
Once TWRP installed, you can do many things:
Install addons like Magisk. Magisk is the tool you use to obtain root. Forget SuperSU, its outdated, and don't works in modern versions of Android.
Install a custom ROM (this subforum is the perfect place to find them).
Backup & restore an image of your current ROM (very useful).

mooms said:
The first thing to do is to flash (install) TWRP, it's a custom recovery (think of it as a mini OS that can boot before Android), that will be the base for any of your future tinkering.
Here is the thread, read the FP carefully: [Recovery][Exynos] Official TWRP for Galaxy S7 (herolte)
Once TWRP installed, you can do many things:
Install addons like Magisk. Magisk is the tool you use to obtain root. Forget SuperSU, its outdated, and don't works in modern versions of Android.
Install a custom ROM (this subforum is the perfect place to find them).
Backup & restore an image of your current ROM (very useful).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks Mooms for the input
I tried to follow your links tutorial which he gives three options only one is any good to me and that was installing twrp using Odin but I'm having issues at every turn!. I can't even get Odin to recognise my phone it just wont pick it up I have Samsung driver installed and I have reinstalled many times I found an article claim to have a workaround but that was BS just selling some other app I even change the driver as described on there page,
7 Tips to Fix Odin Not Detecting Phone
Are you using Odin flash tool to flash your Samsung phone but it is not recognized by Odin? Here are 7 tips to fix Odin not detecting phone.
www.imyfone.com
.
but that did nothing so reinstall normal driver again.
feels like it's just not meant to be :/
Thanks again.

CitizenSmith said:
Thanks again for clearing quite a few things up I thought rooting stock rom would have been far safer way forward wow how wrong was I! but I guess I am just trying to find any kind simile to windows in any way but as you pointed out again it's more like Linux which again I've only played around with ubuntu and mint for a short period so again not to up on Linux lol.
It's funny I was just reading up on AOSP ROMs then got your message. I see they have a stable but not complete! Android 10 not that I would consider it need as I need a stable OS so Oreo is fine for me.
I have backed up phone using Smart Switch on the PC I assume that copy's every thing that's needed, I reset the phone in anticipation all be it prematurely but at least it restored all my data so if anything that was a good test of the back up at least .
I will have look at some AOSP ROMs and see what's involved there, I'll check out their tutorial hopefully it will include the whole process including root.
I gather by your comment using a AOSP ROM you don't need to use dm-verity or will that still be needed!.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
AOSP ROMs are pure, you can't say they are not complete. They are complete, and what OEMs do, like Samsung and Xiaomi is just a customization that you can do, too.
It is preferred that when you take a backup, take it with TWRP, just to ensure you backed up phone's partitions, along with "EFS".
The root procedure on Android 6+ is done by patching the Kernel (boot.img), so unless you take backup of that, you cannot keep root.
There are stable custom ROMs, custom ROMs are meant for custom adjustments, however the stability depends on your phone, and the way you use it, you can compare AOSP vs. Stock and see the difference.
AOSP ROMs doesn't need dm verity, well, at least not if the developer did not mention the encryption part.

Mohamedkam000 said:
AOSP ROMs are pure, you can't say they are not complete. They are complete, and what OEMs do, like Samsung and Xiaomi is just a customization that you can do, too.
It is preferred that when you take a backup, take it with TWRP, just to ensure you backed up phone's partitions, along with "EFS".
The root procedure on Android 6+ is done by patching the Kernel (boot.img), so unless you take backup of that, you cannot keep root.
There are stable custom ROMs, custom ROMs are meant for custom adjustments, however the stability depends on your phone, and the way you use it, you can compare AOSP vs. Stock and see the difference.
AOSP ROMs doesn't need dm verity, well, at least not if the developer did not mention the encryption part.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Some of the roms I have looked at mention external touch buttons at bottom of phone do not work or something else in the phone I'm just reading their comments.
I understand about the stock & custom rom's now that's not my problem at least not at the moment as I am miles away from choosing a rom! as I can't even get out the starting gate!. I can not get TWRP on my phone as the only way I can see to get it on a unrooted! phone is to use Odin but as I said Odin doesn't work at least not for me it does not see my phone. I would love to take a back up using twrp but that won't happen until I find a way to get TWRP on a unrooted phone. what crazy paradox is this!. you can't root phone without twrp installed and twrp won't install on a unrooted phone!. that makes perfect sense.

CitizenSmith said:
Some of the roms I have looked at mention external touch buttons at bottom of phone do not work or something else in the phone I'm just reading their comments.
I understand about the stock & custom rom's now that's not my problem at least not at the moment as I am miles away from choosing a rom! as I can't even get out the starting gate!. I can not get TWRP on my phone as the only way I can see to get it on a unrooted! phone is to use Odin but as I said Odin doesn't work at least not for me it does not see my phone. I would love to take a back up using twrp but that won't happen until I find a way to get TWRP on a unrooted phone. what crazy paradox is this!. you can't root phone without twrp installed and twrp won't install on a unrooted phone!. that makes perfect sense.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Does your phone allow MTP communication? I mean can you transfer files when the phone is turned on?
Does the phone show any notification about a usb connection?
If not, then you have probably a bad USB cable, at least, or you have a hardware issue that can go as deep as a burned charging port.
If yes, then either your USB cable is not as fast as the phone requires, or you haven't installed the Samsung USB Drivers on your PC.
Unfortunately, you cannot root your device without PC, at least not since Lollipop.

CitizenSmith said:
Thanks Mooms for the input
I tried to follow your links tutorial which he gives three options only one is any good to me and that was installing twrp using Odin but I'm having issues at every turn!. I can't even get Odin to recognise my phone it just wont pick it up I have Samsung driver installed and I have reinstalled many times I found an article claim to have a workaround but that was BS just selling some other app I even change the driver as described on there page,
7 Tips to Fix Odin Not Detecting Phone
Are you using Odin flash tool to flash your Samsung phone but it is not recognized by Odin? Here are 7 tips to fix Odin not detecting phone.
www.imyfone.com
.
but that did nothing so reinstall normal driver again.
feels like it's just not meant to be :/
Thanks again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Which version of Odin are you using ?
Use this version (latest): Odin v3.14.4
Which version of the Samsung USB drivers are you using ?
Use this version (latest): https://developer.samsung.com/mobile/android-usb-driver.html

Mohamedkam000 said:
Does your phone allow MTP communication? I mean can you transfer files when the phone is turned on?
Does the phone show any notification about a usb connection?
If not, then you have probably a bad USB cable, at least, or you have a hardware issue that can go as deep as a burned charging port.
If yes, then either your USB cable is not as fast as the phone requires, or you haven't installed the Samsung USB Drivers on your PC.
Unfortunately, you cannot root your device without PC, at least not since Lollipop.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi
Yes I can transfer files.
Yes phone asks to allow or block file transfer and it ohone shows up in Devices and Drives list and I can access the phone directory and shows up as Samsung s7 icon.
I will try another USB lead but the one I'm using is new and wasn't cheap but still a possibility I have had leads that weren't suitable for other things I was trying so it is worth a try.
Thanks

mooms said:
Which version of Odin are you using ?
Use this version (latest): Odin v3.14.4
Which version of the Samsung USB drivers are you using ?
Use this version (latest): https://developer.samsung.com/mobile/android-usb-driver.html
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When I downloaded Odin this was latest one Odin3_v3.13.1 though I have doubts that one version update will fix this issue as I did not see many if any people having my issue so they all used Odin and I believe theirs are fine even with older versions! but as I said Mohamedkam it's worth a try I will down load that version and give it a try.
As for the Samsung usb driver I believe that is where I got mine
SAMSUNG_USB_Driver_for_Mobile_Phones no version visible under properties on file version 1.7.23.0.
The USB connection seems to be fine I have uninstalled then re-download and reinstalled a couple of times.
I can transfer files no problem it shows up as Galaxy S7 Icon with card and phone drive inside.
I'll update shortly thank you.
Update:
I just went to try new Odin and whilst checking my phone have seen I have Offical TWRP app installed? I have no clue as to how that's got in there! as Odin did not show phone so I could select nothing!.
In the phone I open app and if i select backup existing recovery it opens and Select Folder tab and under that Selected Folder: /sdcard Filename: Recovery .img and at the bottom of screen Root access required.
I just hope it's installed correctly!. it is showing in playstore my apps as well just to confirm. if this is now installed what should I do next Now not sure what tutorial to start following.
I am just going to try the new odin and see if it picks up the phone back soon.

OK Seem that it now shows up in the new Odin. at least I think it has! in the log window I see this: <ID:0/004> Added!!
I didn't see that before.
Would be grateful if you could tell me how to proceed from here!

Correct, you don't need he latst version of Odin or the Samsung drivers, bit it was just to be sure.
You need to be in download mode, but before, you must have checked OEM unlock & USB debug in developer options (mandatory).
I've written a tutorial with images here (in French):
Samsung Galaxy S7 (edge) - Mangez un Oreo! [Topic Unique] - Page : 487 - Téléphone Android - Technologies Mobiles - FORUM HardWare.fr

mooms said:
Correct, you don't need he latst version of Odin or the Samsung drivers, bit it was just to be sure.
You need to be in download mode, but before, you must have checked OEM unlock & USB debug in developer options (mandatory).
I've written a tutorial with images here (in French):
Samsung Galaxy S7 (edge) - Mangez un Oreo! [Topic Unique] - Page : 487 - Téléphone Android - Technologies Mobiles - FORUM HardWare.fr
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As I said the older version did not show any kind of data what's so ever and the phone was in download mode. phone displayed "Downloading" which I believe it says that even if it's not doing anything! so a tutorial explained. I think it must have installed the Official TWRP app even though phone did not show up in Odin everything was blank however when I installed the new version of Odin like you suggested it then showed up as <ID:0/004> Added!!. so your suggestion work thanks for that and I did enable OEM unlock & USB debug I did long time ago.
I would check out your tutorial but unfortunately I don't speak French and translating instructions is too risky but thank you for the offer but I'll carry on look around still undecided on what custom rom to go for as I said some comments point out small issues and the developers also state certain things are not working so that is making it hard to consider one if you know what I mean.
Again Thank you for your input very much appreciated.

CitizenSmith said:
As I said the older version did not show any kind of data what's so ever and the phone was in download mode. phone displayed "Downloading" which I believe it says that even if it's not doing anything! so a tutorial explained. I think it must have installed the Official TWRP app even though phone did not show up in Odin everything was blank however when I installed the new version of Odin like you suggested it then showed up as <ID:0/004> Added!!. so your suggestion work thanks for that and I did enable OEM unlock & USB debug I did long time ago.
I would check out your tutorial but unfortunately I don't speak French and translating instructions is too risky but thank you for the offer but I'll carry on look around still undecided on what custom rom to go for as I said some comments point out small issues and the developers also state certain things are not working so that is making it hard to consider one if you know what I mean.
Again Thank you for your input very much appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Take a note that, when you flash TWRP, you have to boot immediately to the recovery, so as to enforce its existence, cause I remember they phone has an original recovery backed up somewhere, and gets triggered when you reboot directly to system instead of the unofficial binary.
I advise you to watch guides on YouTube, it's more .. understandable.

CitizenSmith said:
still undecided on what custom rom to go for as I said some comments point out small issues and the developers also state certain things are not working so that is making it hard to consider one if you know what I mean.
Again Thank you for your input very much appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I recommend to go with ALEXNDR ROM: zero bugs, everything works perfectly (it's based on stock ROM).
[ROM][G930F/FD][ALEXNDR] * U8EUE1 * DevBase v7.4 * Encryption support [Jul-10]
Important notes for Developers / Chefs !!! This ROM is NOT based on any other custom ROM. My work contains many original ideas and innovations that I introduced as the first in the ROM development (see "Changelist" in post #2). Of course, it...
forum.xda-developers.com

Mohamedkam000 said:
Take a note that, when you flash TWRP, you have to boot immediately to the recovery, so as to enforce its existence, cause I remember they phone has an original recovery backed up somewhere, and gets triggered when you reboot directly to system instead of the unofficial binary.
I advise you to watch guides on YouTube, it's more .. understandable.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yer I read that but I've ended up with TWRP installed and did not do that process because I was unaware it installed until it showed up.
As I said I'll just keep looking for now I know I'll find one that works for me from start to finish.
and I've been checking youtube but wouldn't want to use any links their providing but it may help familurise myself with the whole process if i watch enough of them.
Thanks again for your help.

mooms said:
I recommend to go with ALEXNDR ROM: zero bugs, everything works perfectly (it's based on stock ROM).
[ROM][G930F/FD][ALEXNDR] * U8EUE1 * DevBase v7.4 * Encryption support [Jul-10]
Important notes for Developers / Chefs !!! This ROM is NOT based on any other custom ROM. My work contains many original ideas and innovations that I introduced as the first in the ROM development (see "Changelist" in post #2). Of course, it...
forum.xda-developers.com
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi Mooms
I will check that out many thanks. I wonder if you could help me here. I am in the middle of the rooting process but have hit a snag. again!
I have now installed TWRP successfully then no-verity-opt-encrypt-3.1 all went fine and I'm at point of flashing Magisk but have an issue when I swipe to flash is gives me a error in red saying "invalid zip file format !"
I downloaded it from github here.
GitHub - topjohnwu/Magisk: The Magic Mask for Android
The Magic Mask for Android. Contribute to topjohnwu/Magisk development by creating an account on GitHub.
github.com
I click on "code" tab and then "download zip" and I placed that in a download folder on my sd card when I select it I get the above error any ideas as to why I am getting this am I downloaded the correct file?
thanks for any assistance you could give.