[Q] Who wants to help me install a ROM? - Acer Iconia A500

A while ago I posted on here looking for help installing the latest and greatest ROM for my A500. After a short, confusing time I gave up because of general incompetence, impatience and confusion.
Well, I'm back and trying again. This time, I've found the ROM I want to install here. The guide for installing it is simple enough, but then I get stuck on step 1: flashing the bootloader. I opened the thread for it, and it linked to a guide which linked to other guides, it got to the point where I had six tabs open with miscellaneous guides in them and I had no idea what parts of which guides I needed to do. It doesn't help that the development section of this forum is a disaster area, full of yet more guides and random ROMs and images.
Someone please point me in the right direction. I've flashed ROMs before, used fastboot and ADB, used RSD Lite and Heimdall and Odin. It's not lack of experience that is my problem. My A500 is a rooted, stock OTA ICS v4.0.3. Please point me where I need to run.

Ill help, one second...
Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk 4

I'll help. This was what I did a few days ago:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2049778
Nothing worked for me except the babsector
Heres the link to babsector.rar
How to use babsector -
Turn your tab off and put it in apx mode manually. Press and hold reset button, hold power for 3 secs after the light comes on and release it, after another second release the reset button. Your screen is black and the power light is on.
Download and extract the .rar to a folder on your PC
Connect your tab to your PC
Navigate to the babsector folder and click on 501 A.bat
Reboot into recovery
Go to Mounts and Storage and Format System twice and Power Off
Go back into apx mode and run 501 B.bat
Reboot into recovery and do the wipes and flash your rom
Reboot!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hope that helps!

Actually, yes ryukiri, BabSector worked perfectly for me too. The other thing didn't work because of some stupid problem with the partition thing. Wow, that was really simple. Why couldn't all the guides be this simple? It was all overcomplicated with guides referencing other guides referencing other guides... This guy knows how to do it right.

p_025 said:
Actually, yes ryukiri, BabSector worked perfectly for me too. The other thing didn't work because of some stupid problem with the partition thing. Wow, that was really simple. Why couldn't all the guides be this simple? It was all overcomplicated with guides referencing other guides referencing other guides... This guy knows how to do it right.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
glad i could help...have fun flashing roms!

Related

An alternative to three button combo recovery

I don't know where I found these files, probably in a thread hidden away on XDA but looked again and had no luck!
Basically, the attached zip file, unzip the files. Plug in SGS with USB debugging on and open the recovery batch file.
The phone automatically goes into recovery.
Useful if anyone is struggling with the three button combo!
This has been posted in the rooting guide.
ADB reboot method does not help the phone when it fails to start properly.
mengsuan said:
This has been posted in the rooting guide.
ADB reboot method does not help the phone when it fails to start properly.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I couldn't find the rooting guide! If you do, please credit that thread and poster with this but this is useful for people in a separate thread. I've used it numerous times!
It's certainly no good for a crashed/bricked phone but is useful for just testing new firmwares, rooting, lagfixing, etc.
AV1985 said:
I don't know where I found these files, probably in a thread hidden away on XDA but looked again and had no luck!
Basically, the attached zip file, unzip the files. Plug in SGS with USB debugging on and open the recovery batch file.
The phone automatically goes into recovery.
Useful if anyone is struggling with the three button combo!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's not entirely helpful, the reason why the 3 button modes are needed is if your phone cannot be reached by the SDK.
DarthV said:
That's not entirely helpful, the reason why the 3 button modes are needed is if your phone cannot be reached by the SDK.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've used it several times just to reboot into recovery to flash a firmware rather than the hassle of taking battery out because three button combo didn't work.
You don't have to like it or use it but if it was useful to me then even if there's ONE other person who this is useful to, then great.
Considering a guy takes his time to make a post to try and help, maybe it'd be better if you didn't just slate it because it wasn't useful to you?
Just downloaded the file, all it does is use adb.exe from a batch file. It's not something new and I'm pretty sure it's been posted before. This is only useful if your phone is booting into a functioning OS state.
You are right that for phones without working 3 button modes, it's how you would get into recovery.
AV1985 said:
I couldn't find the rooting guide! If you do, please credit that thread and poster with this but this is useful for people in a separate thread. I've used it numerous times!
It's certainly no good for a crashed/bricked phone but is useful for just testing new firmwares, rooting, lagfixing, etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The rooting guide: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=728754
AV1985 said:
I've used it several times just to reboot into recovery to flash a firmware rather than the hassle of taking battery out because three button combo didn't work.
You don't have to like it or use it but if it was useful to me then even if there's ONE other person who this is useful to, then great.
Considering a guy takes his time to make a post to try and help, maybe it'd be better if you didn't just slate it because it wasn't useful to you?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry man, but the guys are right. It is against XDA rules to repost threads. As well, this should be in the General Section to begin with as it isn't directly related to Rom-Development.
Please see the new sticky about forum structure...
Thread moved to general section, and closed as it is redundant.

Trying to root - problems [SOLVED]

Hey guys.
I've been attempting this all morning and so far I've had no luck. I have a VodafoneAU Legend which I updated to the official 2.2 yesterday. But now I want to try root.
I've been trying to follow the HBOOT 1.01 guide but there's a few problems. First, I cannot connect to the phone with adb unless it's in htc sync mode. No other mode will work. So when it's time to copy testimage.zip to the card I have to change from sync mode to disk mode, whereby adb loses it's connection. What do I do about this? Is it a driver problem (in Win7 here) or something else?
Thanks,
Dave.
Ok, the first problem were drivers.
Now I can't finish the second guide. When I try using clockwork to install the firmware.zip, the phone just boots to the red triangle. What do I have to do?
Dave.
So I pressed the up button/power combo at the red triangle and get the Android system recovery. Selecting "apply update.zip" says it can't verify. What do I do? Is this guide for my phone or do I need to follow something else?
I don't understand this guys. Anyone help? I'm thinking since this is a step to root the phone, I'm not actually rooted yet so I can't use the clockworkmod? Then what is the guide for? The guides at unlockr don't mention what firmware/hboot they work for so I'm not keen to try them yet.
Read the guide on fake flash. You need the recovery file named "update.zip" in the root of your sd to proceed..
Sent from my Legend using XDA App
whitetigerdk said:
Read the guide on fake flash. You need the recovery file named "update.zip" in the root of your sd to proceed..
Sent from my Legend using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But isn't that what Rom Manager does? Download the update.zip then run it? Man this is getting even harder to understand.
Edit: And this is left out of the HBOOT 1.01 guide because.....????? When I work this out I'll write a PROPPER guide, lol.
Just checked and update.zip is on the card.
So which part of the guide am I getting wrong?
Decided to reinstall phone with the official froyo release and am now ready to try this again. Is there anyone that will walk me through the process? I will write a complete guide if the "gotchas" are still there.
i feel for you ... hope you get it fixed... thats one of the reason i havent dared messing with the phone because i've seen a few post like yours where something didnt go quite as described... for whatever reason... and im sure the answer is out there but just not within the guide instructions... i guess there is no way to gather all gotchas because there are so many environment variables...
good luck
and please share your technique
Just saw gobczak's thread in the developer forum having similar troubles with Vodafone UK phone, getting the red triangle at reboot. I'll keep an eye on his thread and see how he goes with it.
Did you run the stage1 and stage2 bats while in recovery?
dezzadk said:
Did you run the stage1 and stage2 bats while in recovery?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No because the guide didn't say to.
The thing is it seems I'm only stuck on the part where the firmware.zip file has to be flashed. The guide says to use clockworkmod for this. But when I try installing the clockworkmod recovery it gives some file verification error. Isn't there ways to do this via the pc, either through those batch files, adb etc? Or will that fake-flash update.zip file work?
jabbado said:
No because the guide didn't say to.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As I just posted on the other forum, I think you need to skip that step in guide 2 and go straight onto guide 3 after you have flashed the LEGEIMG.zip, rebooted, and then removed LEGEIMG.zip from the SD card.
Guys I've got to the point of downgrading to 1.31. But when I run the first batch file it just hangs at the "Writing zip" part, with the htc logo on the screen. Is there any way to fix this?
Can someone please explain this part of the guide:
Phone will reboot and find LEGEIMG.zip on your sdcard, copy it into RAM and check it. If you get CID error at this point, then you don't have goldcard.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok, so I don't get an error. I get nothing. The phone just boots to the fastboot screen. If I press the power button it goes to the hboot screen and I can see the messages of loading LEGEIMG.zip. But the guide doesn't say to press anything.
So should I or shouldn't I press the power button? Also, if I try making the goldcard again, at which point in the guide do I start from again? The entire process or just copying LEGEIMG.zip to card then rebooting phone? I mean, will all the other things like flashing misc1-2.img still be there?
Guys I finally got this working.
The first problem was with the goldcards. For whatever reason formatting them with the win7 format tool just wouldn't work. I had to use the command-line format tool, setting the block size etc manually.
The second problem was the unnecessary steps in the guide. A few people helped me out with this (namely blackbart at the Aus Whirlpool forum), but basically in the second step you can stop after flashing the LEGEIMG.zip. The updating froyo part isn't needed - for my phone anyway.
Then when running the batch files in the third part, for whatever reason the first batch would keep hanging at 'writing zip...' and I needed to remove the battery to unfreeze the phone. flannigan, also from the Aus Whirlpool forums suggested to just go on to the second batch file. This worked!
So my Legend is now finally a true Legend
Anyway, thanks for the help everyone - couldn't have done this by myself.
Dave
Great news, I think we need a new guide focused on rooting for HBOOT 1.01 / Stock Froyo to clear up the inconsistencies in the existing one. It's a minefield for a noob (or a rite of passage!), a revised guide will certainly save a lot of time and frustration for those taking this road in the future.
Sent from my HTC Legend using XDA App
EpicSauce said:
Great news, I think we need a new guide focused on rooting for HBOOT 1.01 to clear up the inconsistencies in the existing one. It's a minefield for a noob (or a rite of passage!), a revised guide will certainly save a lot of time and frustration for those taking this road in the future.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'll write one if ya's want. I wanted to include little tidbits like downloading the apps required (visionary, rom manager etc) from the market then backing them up to the card with Astro so if it goes all wrong and you have to start again, you can just install them all from the card Also on using adb to push the files (roms, img's etc) when the guides say "copy this blah blah". Much quicker than changing to disk mode and back. Sound good?
Sounds good! Happy to help and add my 20c worth along the way. The existing guide has got the meaty bits, a new guide would cull the stuff not relevant, help fill in the gaps and alert to the pitfalls we've fallen into.
jabbado said:
I'll write one if ya's want. I wanted to include little tidbits like downloading the apps required (visionary, rom manager etc) from the market then backing them up to the card with Astro so if it goes all wrong and you have to start again, you can just install them all from the card Also on using adb to push the files (roms, img's etc) when the guides say "copy this blah blah". Much quicker than changing to disk mode and back. Sound good?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree... i've done my reading since june of last year but then didnt check for another 4 months... and so many how to's pop up with various ways of doing it depeding on the situation... a lot of those howtos were consolidated howtos which sometimes make intermediate steps unenecessary (may be in some cases causes more head aches since it didnt take into considerations on newer version of hboots...etc)... an updated how to will be much appreciated...
And you're right the most important pre requirement is to have a safety net ... so starting with how to create a back up in case you screw it up is a must!
but im glad it worked out for you!

Bricked?

A good friend of mine supposedly shut off his A500 during a upgrade/update. The unit still powers on but all I can get it to show is "boot verified failed..." in the upper-left corner of the Acer screen. I've downloaded several ROMs and tried reflashing from the SD card but no luck in reviving this. All I get is the Android triangle. I've reformatted the SD card. I've tried the Vol + power + screen lock stuff, too. I can't get to any other screen to change any settings... period. Many of the ROMs that I would like to try are dead links now that the government has shut them down. This is a US unit. Would someone be kind enough to direct me to where I can get the right stock ROM so I can at least get this thing running for him?
Hi ..
Not sure what he done.But it sounds like this will fix this issue for you..
Just follow this link good luck
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1307539#
erica_renee said:
Hi ..
Not sure what he done.But it sounds like this will fix this issue for you..
Just follow this link good luck
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1307539#
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for your response and it DOES look like it would work... IF I could access anything on the tablet - like enabling USB Debugging, etc. I can't get to it. What I need is something I can flash or boot right from the SD card as that's the only thing I have access to.
with this you do not need to have access to nothing. Download the file From the thread above to your windows pc. OPEN THE Zip file. it will have all the tools and A VERY DETAILED set of instructions. Find the instruction file and fallow it.
Many people have used this with ease. If you want help just flashing another.zip file. post the rom that was on the tablet . the recovery installed as well.
erica_renee said:
with this you do not need to have access to nothing. Download the file From the thread above to your windows pc. OPEN THE Zip file. it will have all the tools and A VERY DETAILED set of instructions. Find the instruction file and fallow it.
Many people have used this with ease. If you want help just flashing another.zip file. post the rom that was on the tablet . the recovery installed as well.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OK, I tried it out and it doesn't pick up the tablet as I don't think USB debugging is enabled and I have no way to enable it. That's why I'm asking for a method to flash it from the SD card.
BTW, I found the S/N inside the SD card door.
You could try decrypting one of the update roms;
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1113878
Note that some are encrypted, and you have to de-crypt with the tool listed there.
Extract and copy the update.zip. Copy to SD.
Boot by vol- or vol+, and see if it will install.
There are a couple of other tips in the threads, like toggling the button for Portrait lock, to force the tab to start formatting.
Moscow Desire said:
You could try decrypting one of the update roms;
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1113878
Note that some are encrypted, and you have to de-crypt with the tool listed there.
Extract and copy the update.zip. Copy to SD.
Boot by vol- or vol+, and see if it will install.
There are a couple of other tips in the threads, like toggling the button for Portrait lock, to force the tab to start formatting.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks VERY much! I swear I must have tried these before and they didn't work. However, I missed one important step - unzipping the update.zip from the file! DOH! I feel really stupid but the tablet is running 100% perfectly.
Again, my most sincere thanks!
gjtoth said:
Thanks VERY much! I swear I must have tried these before and they didn't work. However, I missed one important step - unzipping the update.zip from the file! DOH! I feel really stupid but the tablet is running 100% perfectly.
Again, my most sincere thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey, really, it's no problem. Glad we all could help get you up and running.
No, I haven't used that method, since my HTC desire. Same principle though.
I'd tell you the principle behind it, but it's rather long.
Glad you got it going.
My pals and I, are launching a new site. Hopefully it will be for people not so technically PHD'd with android. Not quite so technical as XDA. You're more than welcome to place some info, when we launch. It's more community orientated, so a different venue.
XDA, is, and always will be the place to come for the really technical stuff. As you see, there are users here, which will give you what they know. May not always be the fix, but, some people here "do" care.
Moscow Desire said:
Hey, really, it's no problem. Glad we all could help get you up and running.
No, I haven't used that method, since my HTC desire. Same principle though.
I'd tell you the principle behind it, but it's rather long.
Glad you got it going.
My pals and I, are launching a new site. Hopefully it will be for people not so technically PHD'd with android. Not quite so technical as XDA. You're more than welcome to place some info, when we launch. It's more community orientated, so a different venue.
XDA, is, and always will be the place to come for the really technical stuff. As you see, there are users here, which will give you what they know. May not always be the fix, but, some people here "do" care.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Be happy to check it out. While I don't have a lot of tech savvy in Android, XDA has been my "go to" for almost all things Android for MY A500. While I can't contribute much (if anything ), I have sure picked up a wealth of help/tips here.
gjtoth said:
Be happy to check it out. While I don't have a lot of tech savvy in Android, XDA has been my "go to" for almost all things Android for MY A500. While I can't contribute much (if anything ), I have sure picked up a wealth of help/tips here.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey, we all start "somewhere".
Androidtabletgeeks.com And remind you, it is not competition. Just an alternative.
Officially, it has not launched. Still working on tutorial videos and such. Like I said, it's a different venue.
We all start somewhere......
Moscow Desire said:
Hey, we all start "somewhere".
Androidtabletgeeks.com And remind you, it is not competition. Just an alternative.
Officially, it has not launched. Still working on tutorial videos and such. Like I said, it's a different venue.
We all start somewhere......
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I peaked very nice.hope you don't mind.
Did not reg.
erica_renee said:
I peaked very nice.hope you don't mind.
Did not reg.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No problem. Still have tons of video tutorials to make.
Moscow Desire said:
You could try decrypting one of the update roms;
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1113878
Note that some are encrypted, and you have to de-crypt with the tool listed there.
Extract and copy the update.zip. Copy to SD.
Boot by vol- or vol+, and see if it will install.
There are a couple of other tips in the threads, like toggling the button for Portrait lock, to force the tab to start formatting.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
MD, i was unable to download any of the 3.0.1 update files. When i click on the link it takes me to some xml tree. is there any other place where i could download?
Bricked??
Hello All,
I was running ICS ota on my a500, I am trying to boot with recovery, and it gives me an icon of android with gears and reboots, with the following error:
Not legal! Abort
The blob package is not official ~Abort!
After which it just shows the word android and blinks every few seconds.
My a500 was not rooted.
I tried afew things posted on the forums, civato method, downloading a previous OTA and running it. nothing works.
Please help....
When i start up normally the screen shows the word ANDROID and stay`s on that.
volume down and power android puppet with exclamation mark.
Volume up and power give`s me the menus skrilax bootloader V6 reboot- fastboot mode – Boot recovery – Set Boot secondary Kernel image – Set Debug mode on – Wipe cache.
I have tried all options.
Finally holding reset and power button down and after 3 sec release power and 1 sec after that the reset
When I use Blackthund3r`s flashtool v0.4 I get the message no APX mode devices are connected.
Can you help me out? Preferably whit a Dutch recover.
Many thanks in advance

[Q] A little help needed upgrading to ICS

Hi all, I'm running a rooted A500 (Android 3.1 build number Acer_A500_4.010.13_COM_GEN2) using the 2.6.36 Honeyvillian 1.0 kernel (so I could OC) and would like to upgrade to a rooted ICS. But since I changed from the stock kernel I get a little confused trying to follow other threads on what to do. The threads seem to start out on topic but tend to drift and for somebody like me, that can make it very hard to understand. I'd like to stay away from a custom ROM, no insult to the hard working dev's intended. You guys have saved alot of my devices from ending up on the top shelf of the closet. I'd like to upgrade to a "stock" rooted ICS with proper bootloader, kernel, etc. If I decide later to try a dev's ROM then I'll always have that option, but since I've never messed with ICS...stock may do all I need. I'd like to root for OC because some of the things I do seem to run better if the device is OC'd. So, what I need are a clear set of instructions on what to do. OTA's dont work, I'm guessing thats because of the root and kernel. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.
There are 2 threads with Stock rooted ICS roms in the developer section. Read each and choose the one that suits you. Also, you may need to separately update the bootloader. To do this there is a new tool in the developer section called afterota 1.02. This will help automate the process for you.
Thanks Cruise, but thats where the problem comes in. I've read over the threads you mentioned and I get lost. Because the threads are a generic install method and cant be refined to match my exact situation I dont know where to start. I dont know if I need to return to stock kernel before I do anything else or if I can flash the new stuff the way it is. Do I need to flash the bootloader first or the ROM and what about flashing recovery? Thats why I asked for a clear step by step, the Dev threads tend to be a little hard to follow for somebody with my novice knowledge.
realityrat said:
Thanks Cruise, but thats where the problem comes in. I've read over the threads you mentioned and I get lost. Because the threads are a generic install method and cant be refined to match my exact situation I dont know where to start. I dont know if I need to return to stock kernel before I do anything else or if I can flash the new stuff the way it is. Do I need to flash the bootloader first or the ROM and what about flashing recovery? Thats why I asked for a clear step by step, the Dev threads tend to be a little hard to follow for somebody with my novice knowledge.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you want to go completely stock (stock kernel, non-rooted), then you need only to install one of the Stock ICS Roms. This set's your bootloader back to a stock condition. So that's simple enough. You can do this through CWM
You said you're on Honeyomb right now. So my suggestion, is to follow these steps to upgrade your a500 to ICS.Go Here and read the steps;
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1622425
Pay attention to step 4. You have a choice. Stock Rom with Full Root, or (in small print (stock rom no root).
If you decide to install Stock Rom No Root, then skip steps 5 and 6. Just copy the file to your EXT SD Card, boot to your recovery (pwr & Vol-) and install Zip From SD. It'll be a done deal. Recovery gone, ICS Stock bootloader and rom.
I have you do steps 1-3 because I want you to write down your UID!!!!!! It's the only thing that will save you if something messes up.
Then you can decide if you want to root and install some custom stuff later.
MD
MD, can you run setCPU w/o Root? I didn't think so. Since this OP requests the ability to OC specifically I think that the steps listed would all need to be followed in Civato's post.
RR, Here are the steps I recommend, it's an opinion, and I think the best route to take as a fairly novice rooter, I've done my A500 many times and BN Nooks, but nothing else and am not a DEV, but have professionally been in IT for 20 years...so I use novice loosely here...
First, know why you're getting your CPUID:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=25429111#post25429111
Don't forget to BACKUP!!
Second, select which ROM you want on your tab, I recommend putting a couple on the MicroSD card so that you can test them. DON'T INSTALL ANYTHING, JUST PICK A COUPLE OF ROMS AND PUT THE ZIPS ON THE SD.
Don't forget to BACKUP!!
Third, follow the steps in the post that MD listed, read twice, run once...
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1622425
Don't forget to BACKUP!!
Fourth, flash one of the ROMs you chose previously while in recovery. Can't give you steps on this because they are all different unless you're just using the option in step 4 of the above post (stock w/ root)
Don't forget to BACKUP!!
Fifth, not sure if you can OC the stock w/ root or not, but if not pick a custom ROM and test several, they're all great, and see what fits your needs best. I use Flexreaper Extreme and love it, posted below, but look at ALL of them and find the one you like best, they're all GREAT! We have great DEVs here.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=22964651&postcount=1
Don't forget to BACKUP!!
Good Luck, Have fun, and did I mention to make sure you Backup before each step so that you can get back to that point if you run into issues, and make sure you write down or put in a text file on a different device your CPUID...both very important.
Good luck again!
-DB
Thanks everybody for the info but I think I'll be staying on HC for now. The linked threads are the problem I mentioned in the OP. If you look at those threads with novice eyes they are incredibly hard to follow. Not sure why I cant find simple instructions but I do appreciate everyone's help. Maybe somebody will come up with a guide for dummies. Until then I guess I'm stuck with HC. Thanks again for the info.
Mate, it can be daunting even to experienced flashers...
My advice, go to this thread - http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1622425
This has been cleaned up to make it easy to understand...
I use the manual method to go to apx mode but each to their own...
Now, follow each step. Make sure each step has been followed EXACTLY. Don't skip ahead or you will regret it, sooner than later...
If you have a doubt, go back a step.
Good idea to read through to the end first, especially the bit about checking you sdk...
Good luck....
Step 1: Install Acer drivers. DONE
Step 2: Get cpuid. DONE used afterota, got cpuid and SBK.
Step 3: Get SBK. DONE (see Step 2) I guess I could verify my cpuid and SBK
using the link in this step.
Step 4: Place ROM's on SD card. DONE
Steps 5 & 6: Enter APX mode and Installing ICS bootloader. NOT DONE
I downloaded the apx utility tool and the V7 flash package. The flash package does NOT contain an .a500apx file. The utility tool instructions say to select the .a500apx file NOT the .zip. Where do I find the correct .a500apx flash package? The last step in the Automated Flashing Tools section says to turn off the tablet and power on. I've read you're supposed to flash a ROM before turning off the tablet. Which one is correct? Can I do this with my current configuration as described in the OP or do I need to return my kernel to stock? And last...is ICS really worth the trouble? Thanks again for everybody's input. I do appreciate everybody taking the time to help out.
realityrat said:
Step 1: Install Acer drivers. DONE
Step 2: Get cpuid. DONE used afterota, got cpuid and SBK.
Step 3: Get SBK. DONE (see Step 2) I guess I could verify my cpuid and SBK
using the link in this step.
Step 4: Place ROM's on SD card. DONE
Steps 5 & 6: Enter APX mode and Installing ICS bootloader. NOT DONE
I downloaded the apx utility tool and the V7 flash package. The flash package does NOT contain an .a500apx file. The utility tool instructions say to select the .a500apx file NOT the .zip. Where do I find the correct .a500apx flash package? The last step in the Automated Flashing Tools section says to turn off the tablet and power on. I've read you're supposed to flash a ROM before turning off the tablet. Which one is correct? Can I do this with my current configuration as described in the OP or do I need to return my kernel to stock? And last...is ICS really worth the trouble? Thanks again for everybody's input. I do appreciate everybody taking the time to help out.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
According to the written steps., you have to download the flash package you want to use from here;
http://a500bootloaderflash.tk/bundles/20120527/
Save then to the same directory you unzipped the tools.
Just checked and everything is in order, so looks like you missed a step
Actually, you really don't have to flash a rom before restarting. If you have a ICS rom installed, more than likely it will boot. (I hope) However, most custom roms have kernels altered to work with the unlocked bootloader. But I would try with your current ICS configuration. If you have any issues, then you can install the custom ICS rom that you saved on your SD Card.
Is it worth it? I think so. Eventually, all support for HC based roms will end. It's the nature of the beast. Most people will be on ICS, and if you have issues with HC, you may not get any recent support.
It's like having a Froyo rom, and trying to get support when most are on Gingerbread and moving to ICS.
You will get responses like "upgrade your device". I will in the near future, end all support for my HC based roms.
MD
Moscow Desire said:
According to the written steps., you have to download the flash package you want to use from here;
http://a500bootloaderflash.tk/bundles/20120527/
Save then to the same directory you unzipped the tools.
Just checked and everything is in order, so looks like you missed a step
Actually, you really don't have to flash a rom before restarting. If you have a ICS rom installed, more than likely it will boot. (I hope) However, most custom roms have kernels altered to work with the unlocked bootloader. But I would try with your current ICS configuration. If you have any issues, then you can install the custom ICS rom that you saved on your SD Card.
Is it worth it? I think so. Eventually, all support for HC based roms will end. It's the nature of the beast. Most people will be on ICS, and if you have issues with HC, you may not get any recent support.
It's like having a Froyo rom, and trying to get support when most are on Gingerbread and moving to ICS.
You will get responses like "upgrade your device". I will in the near future, end all support for my HC based roms.
MD
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the response MD but I still get confused on the step to download the flash package. When I save the file to my computer it no longer has .a500apx in the file name or extension. for example, "a500-icsv6-pubrecovery0.2.a500apx" (from the index of bundles) is downloaded and saved as "a500-icsv6-pubrecovery0.2.zip" so do I extract it and select that file when asked by the utility tool? The guide for the tool says not to select the .zip but to select the .a500apx file. but I dont see one to select.
Also, you said I didnt have to worry about flashing the ROM before restarting. I am currently running HC 3.1 so will an ICS bootloader boot to a HC ROM.
Again, thanks for taking the time to answer my questions. It is really appreciated.
realityrat said:
Thanks for the response MD but I still get confused on the step to download the flash package. When I save the file to my computer it no longer has .a500apx in the file name or extension. for example, "a500-icsv6-pubrecovery0.2.a500apx" (from the index of bundles) is downloaded and saved as "a500-icsv6-pubrecovery0.2.zip" so do I extract it and select that file when asked by the utility tool? The guide for the tool says not to select the .zip but to select the .a500apx file. but I dont see one to select.
Also, you said I didnt have to worry about flashing the ROM before restarting. I am currently running HC 3.1 so will an ICS bootloader boot to a HC ROM.
Again, thanks for taking the time to answer my questions. It is really appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok, the link I sent you, is an index of all apx files. It should download as an apx file (I just now checked, and it downloaded and saved as an apx.)
Not sure why they are saving as zips on your system, as none of them are in a zip format. Try doing a "file save as"
Sorry for confusion about rom. I forgot you have an HC rom. I'm running several threads right now for folks with issues. Downlaod an ICS rom to your SD card, so you can install it after you update your bootloader.
MD
EDIT: If you still have issues getting the apx files, let me know, and I'll re-package them in a real zip file and upload it for you.
Moscow Desire said:
Ok, the link I sent you, is an index of all apx files. It should download as an apx file (I just now checked, and it downloaded and saved as an apx.)
Not sure why they are saving as zips on your system, as none of them are in a zip format. Try doing a "file save as"
Sorry for confusion about rom. I forgot you have an HC rom. I'm running several threads right now for folks with issues. Downlaod an ICS rom to your SD card, so you can install it after you update your bootloader.
MD
EDIT: If you still have issues getting the apx files, let me know, and I'll re-package them in a real zip file and upload it for you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks MD, trying to download the apx files doesnt work for me. Not sure why but .zip is the only option I'm given even if i use "save as". So if you could upload the files for me I'd appreciate it. Also, since I will have to disconnect the tablet from the PC after flashing the bootloader can I just power it off, disconnect from PC, reboot into recovery and then flash the new ICS ROM? I also want to be sure that coming from a stock (but rooted) HC rom with a custom kernel wont affect anything. Thanks again for all your help.
realityrat said:
Thanks MD, trying to download the apx files doesnt work for me. Not sure why but .zip is the only option I'm given even if i use "save as". So if you could upload the files for me I'd appreciate it. Also, since I will have to disconnect the tablet from the PC after flashing the bootloader can I just power it off, disconnect from PC, reboot into recovery and then flash the new ICS ROM? I also want to be sure that coming from a stock (but rooted) HC rom with a custom kernel wont affect anything. Thanks again for all your help.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I zipped 4 apx packages for your 500. They have the ICS Booltoader and different recoveries. Unzip them to the same folder as your installation package.
http://www.4shared.com/zip/9TE6rTH-/500Bootloader_package.html
Yes, after you finish the bootloader/recovery installation process, turn tablet off. Press and hold Vol- and PWR till you see 2 lines of text in upper left corner, then release both. This will be your recovery menu. From here, you need to follow the instructions from the Rom page where you got your new Rom for the installation. Pretty simple really.
Also, I can't advise you on which recovery to use. I haven't tried the public recovery or TWRP yet.
MD
Thanks MD. Got the files downloaded. I'm gonna read over the threads a few times and make sure I havent missed anything and I also want to research some of the ROM's available. I'll probably give it a try in the next few days. Thanks again for all your help.
**UPDATE**
After reading the threads multiple times and following the instructions carefully I am now running ICS 4.0.3 with updated bootloader!! Everything went fine with only a couple problems that I was easily able to overcome. I'd like to address those problems so if anybody else has problems, 1: when entering the sbk its important to note that the spaces between the sets of numbers ARE needed, and the 0x at the beginning of each set has to be typed with a lowercase "x". 2: I used ezterry ICS 1.031.00stock- full root with busybox, and more tweaks and a500 public recovery. Following the instructions for this ROM I used the "clean up tablet" option in recovery. This DOES NOT do a full data wipe. So first boot had my custom boot animation and all my other apps and settings still there. ICS didnt like this and kept forcing reboots. I had to do a full data wipe and all is good now. I'm on ICS rooted stock and OC'd and loving it. Thank you all for your help, without your input I dont know if I would've tried this but I'm glad I did and I really appreciate everyone taking time out of their busy schedules to help some guy in NY get some ICS love. Thank you all again!

[Q] Another bricked A501

Noob, here. I have a small computer repair business and offered to take a look at a friend's A501. I am quite embarrassed to admit it, but I have searched through these (and other) forums and I am clueless. Due to my complete ignorance, I fear I may have made matters worse by becoming flash happy. Would anyone be able to give me *very* remedial instructions for what to try? I have no idea what the CUID is or how to obtain it, and I know nothing more about the machine than what I am able to extract by looking at it. Humbly, Anne
Let me add that I have searched and tried to follow the instructions on many other posts on this subject, I believe that haven't been successful because it seems that there is a prior knowlege/familiarity required with the OS/device that I don't have. Thanks again.
annenap said:
Noob, here. I have a small computer repair business and offered to take a look at a friend's A501. I am quite embarrassed to admit it, but I have searched through these (and other) forums and I am clueless. Due to my complete ignorance, I fear I may have made matters worse by becoming flash happy. Would anyone be able to give me *very* remedial instructions for what to try? I have no idea what the CUID is or how to obtain it, and I know nothing more about the machine than what I am able to extract by looking at it. Humbly, Anne
Let me add that I have searched and tried to follow the instructions on many other posts on this subject, I believe that haven't been successful because it seems that there is a prior knowlege/familiarity required with the OS/device that I don't have. Thanks again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hehehe 'flash happy' welcome to the club!!! Yes the acer is a strange beast, luckily though its fairly 'unbrickable' unless your tab suffers from the hardware fault prob.
There are a couple of guides in my sig you should look at before attempting a fix.
The cpuid guide for a start, there are quite a few different ways of retrieving this - its all explained in the OP.
The root guide is a500 based, but everything will work for the 501 and has links to all the tools you will need
You don't say whats actually wrong with the tab - does it boot still, is there a custom recovery (power vol down buttons) on there and can you boot to that?
The more info you can give the easier it will be to provide the best solution
rgds donna
dibb_nz said:
hehehe 'flash happy' welcome to the club!!! Yes the acer is a strange beast, luckily though its fairly 'unbrickable' unless your tab suffers from the hardware fault prob.
There are a couple of guides in my sig you should look at before attempting a fix.
The cpuid guide for a start, there are quite a few different ways of retrieving this - its all explained in the OP.
The root guide is a500 based, but everything will work for the 501 and has links to all the tools you will need
You don't say whats actually wrong with the tab - does it boot still, is there a custom recovery (power vol down buttons) on there and can you boot to that?
The more info you can give the easier it will be to provide the best solution
rgds donna
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi Donna-
Yeah, I guess explaining what it's doing might be helpful. Right now, if I just power it up, the acer logo is in the center and in top left corner is "boot verified failed" in red.
Power + vol up, displays in the top left corner:
erasing cache before sd update
sd update cmd: recovery
update package=sd card update.zip
booting recovery kernel image
then it shows the android guy working then the android guy dead
I'll take a stab at determining the CPUID tomorrow.
Thanks again.
annenap said:
Hi Donna-
Yeah, I guess explaining what it's doing might be helpful. Right now, if I just power it up, the acer logo is in the center and in top left corner is "boot verified failed" in red.
Power + vol up, displays in the top left corner:
erasing cache before sd update
sd update cmd: recovery
update package=sd card update.zip
booting recovery kernel image
then it shows the android guy working then the android guy dead
I'll take a stab at determining the CPUID tomorrow.
Thanks again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
EDIT: I'm just uploading a 501 update.zip - the 500 will work ok you just won't have 3G
I'll post a link when its done
ok you might be able to get fixed by heading to the root guide in my sig.
download the 3.1 FULL update.zip - rename it to update.zip and make sure it doesn't end up as update.zip.zip
Copy it to your external sd card
Start the update by Pwr and vol up
If it works your tab will be back on HC 3.1
Grab your CPUID - its the easiest way
From there you can get system updates all the way to ICS OR
Install the v8 bootloader to flash any ICS/JB roms
If it doesn' work you will need that CPUID
Good Luck m8!!
rgds donna

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