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Hi, i just rooted my nexus 7, with custom recovery and unlocked bootloader. Just wanna know will i still recieve ota from google for my tablet? of i would have to relock my bootloader and flashh the stock recovery before i can recieve the ota...?
Since you have flashed a custom recovery, you'll have to flash back the original recovery in order to do a ota.
It doesn't matter if your rooted or if you have a unlocked boot loader.
BTW, You will loose root if you don't use ota keeper from the market.
Sent from my Xperia Arc
mazlano27 said:
Hi, i just rooted my nexus 7, with custom recovery and unlocked bootloader. Just wanna know will i still recieve ota from google for my tablet? of i would have to relock my bootloader and flashh the stock recovery before i can recieve the ota...?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
First question is why would you care? Its not like there are OTA's happening all the time. there has been basically one OTA since the device first came out and most people got it as soon as they started to use their device.
Second, if you have a custom recovery, that will stop it from working.
IF you put the recovery back, the question of if you will lose Root or not really depends on the OTA type. Most OTA's are incremental, meaning they only contain the changes of the system, not the whole system. If it is an incremental, unless there is something in the OTA that seeks out and removes root, it most likely will not affect it. However, if you have made any real changes to the system (removed system programs) the OTA may fail to run as it assumes everything in a normal system is there.
IF the OTA is a full system update like what the Kindle Fire was doing for a long time, it will flush the complete system area and load a new one, that effectively removes root since when it is done, it is no longer physically there. OTA Root keeper won't help you in those cases since the entire system area get wiped. Getting root back is trivial though as hard as it was originally.
I'd tend to think that the OTA's will be incremental... and I see little need or desire by Google to be hunting down root since it is a Nexus device and it is designed to allow for that. Its not like it is a phone like device where the Wireless operator is having a cow as to whether or not you gained access... its supposed to have that kind of access.
However, it really doesn't matter. When the next OTA comes out, there will be a number of devs which will take it apart and release an update you can use with the recovery you currently have and root and will keep root just fine. these typically get released within hours that someone notices a new OTA in the wild and sometimes you can get it before you actually even have a chance to get the real OTA over the wire.
So not a real big deal. I'd just stay where you are and when one comes out watch to see what gets released to mimic it.
Note changing the state of the bootloader will wipe your device. Unlocking will wipe it and locking it will wipe it. You are best off, unlocking it and just leaving it that way.
Hello everyone-
New user for the Samsung Galaxy S4 here. I used to own both the iPhone 3GS and 4S prior. My general background was writing VB in version 3.0 for AOL back in the late 90s for all you old school people, progs/punters that may remember those days. Unfortunately, even now I'm still have issues following along with new technology. So far, I have really enjoyed the android system and have made modifications through various launchers. I did use SuperSU and rooted the phone by the automated process. I realize these may be 'noob' questions, however; everyone I suppose goes through it at some point. I do have some general questions and several of them that I have read about have conflicting information. This will be somewhat long, but I do appreciate any input:
The Galaxy S4 that I have is SPH-L720, MK2, and 4.3 version.
At this point, I backed-up and installed several Google Games, Books, and Sprint ID, Sprint Worldwide, etc.....general bloatware using Titanium Back-up. Again the root method I used was SuperSU by Chainfire. I have NOT use TWRP/Clockwork Mod or flashed any custom ROMs. I just have it rooted and diabled some bloatware, installed Xposed Installer and other root only apps. I checked my phone and its status says 'custom'.
1. Given this set-up, can I still get OTA for new Android versions ? I don't care if it removes root, but I was just wondering if I can get OTA updates to get new versions for my phone. Some threads I have read say yes, others say no. If I cannot, how can I then get new updates ? I don't want to not be able to permanently update to 4.4 in the future. I know there is a way to update via Kies to the computer.
2. The root access via Chainfire SuperSU involves 2 components from what I understand. SU.apk and busybox. I was using Terminal Emulator based on the advice from this thread: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2565758
I could not get it to work when typing in the prompts on the screen, it just would not go through. I tried downloading Total Commander which allows root access. Can I instead of using Terminal Emulator to get rid of busybox, use Total Commander to get into the /system/xbin folder and manually delete all busybox files prior to using the permanent unroot of SuperSU feature in settings ? Or does the Full unroot remove everything ?
3. Maybe I still don't understand the flashing process, but it seems, you download Odin, then use the ROM file you need under the PDA selection then start the process while the phone is in download mode (home button, down volume, etc...) Is this how all custom ROMs and re-stores are performed ? Is this form of the restore different that the phone Samsung settings (back-up/restore) ? I've read about TWRP, custom recovery, Clockwork Mod, etc....but I dont understand what all these are. It seems easy enough to download files then put them via Odin then hit start....
At this point, I've refrained from doing anything other than back-up/uninstalling some bloatware and using some cool apps that supposed xposed installer. I'm worried that I might brick my expensive phone or render it unable to get anymore updates :crying:
Thanks for the input !
mikeprius said:
Hello everyone-
New user for the Samsung Galaxy S4 here. I used to own both the iPhone 3GS and 4S prior. My general background was writing VB in version 3.0 for AOL back in the late 90s for all you old school people, progs/punters that may remember those days. Unfortunately, even now I'm still have issues following along with new technology. So far, I have really enjoyed the android system and have made modifications through various launchers. I did use SuperSU and rooted the phone by the automated process. I realize these may be 'noob' questions, however; everyone I suppose goes through it at some point. I do have some general questions and several of them that I have read about have conflicting information. This will be somewhat long, but I do appreciate any input:
The Galaxy S4 that I have is SPH-L720, MK2, and 4.3 version.
At this point, I backed-up and installed several Google Games, Books, and Sprint ID, Sprint Worldwide, etc.....general bloatware using Titanium Back-up. Again the root method I used was SuperSU by Chainfire. I have NOT use TWRP/Clockwork Mod or flashed any custom ROMs. I just have it rooted and diabled some bloatware, installed Xposed Installer and other root only apps. I checked my phone and its status says 'custom'.
1. Given this set-up, can I still get OTA for new Android versions ? I don't care if it removes root, but I was just wondering if I can get OTA updates to get new versions for my phone. Some threads I have read say yes, others say no. If I cannot, how can I then get new updates ? I don't want to not be able to permanently update to 4.4 in the future. I know there is a way to update via Kies to the computer.
2. The root access via Chainfire SuperSU involves 2 components from what I understand. SU.apk and busybox. I was using Terminal Emulator based on the advice from this thread: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2565758
I could not get it to work when typing in the prompts on the screen, it just would not go through. I tried downloading Total Commander which allows root access. Can I instead of using Terminal Emulator to get rid of busybox, use Total Commander to get into the /system/xbin folder and manually delete all busybox files prior to using the permanent unroot of SuperSU feature in settings ? Or does the Full unroot remove everything ?
3. Maybe I still don't understand the flashing process, but it seems, you download Odin, then use the ROM file you need under the PDA selection then start the process while the phone is in download mode (home button, down volume, etc...) Is this how all custom ROMs and re-stores are performed ? Is this form of the restore different that the phone Samsung settings (back-up/restore) ? I've read about TWRP, custom recovery, Clockwork Mod, etc....but I dont understand what all these are. It seems easy enough to download files then put them via Odin then hit start....
At this point, I've refrained from doing anything other than back-up/uninstalling some bloatware and using some cool apps that supposed xposed installer. I'm worried that I might brick my expensive phone or render it unable to get anymore updates :crying:
Thanks for the input !
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can answer 1 & 3 for you.
1. No, you won't be able to take an OTA because you removed or modified system files. This will cause the update file of the OTA to abort once it encounters the modded file or can't find the file your removed. The best process to take an OTA would be to return the phone to stock before taking the OTA. The easiest method is to use Odin and install the full stock tar file that you are currently on. In your case it would be the MK2 tar file. This will return your phone to stock with the stock recovery and allow your phone to update via OTA, then you can re root.
3. Odin is used to flash things like stock tar files, modems(basebands), recoveries & firmwares. If you are installing a custom rom, that is usually done using a custom recovery like Phillz's or TWRP. These recoveries can be installed via odin or TWRP via goomanager app in playstore. Once the custom recovery is installed you copy the rom file or other mod to your sdcard and install through recovery.
cruise350 said:
I can answer 1 & 3 for you.
1. No, you won't be able to take an OTA because you removed or modified system files. This will cause the update file of the OTA to abort once it encounters the modded file or can't find the file your removed. The best process to take an OTA would be to return the phone to stock before taking the OTA. The easiest method is to use Odin and install the full stock tar file that you are currently on. In your case it would be the MK2 tar file. This will return your phone to stock with the stock recovery and allow your phone to update via OTA, then you can re root.
3. Odin is used to flash things like stock tar files, modems(basebands), recoveries & firmwares. If you are installing a custom rom, that is usually done using a custom recovery like Phillz's or TWRP. These recoveries can be installed via odin or TWRP via goomanager app in playstore. Once the custom recovery is installed you copy the rom file or other mod to your sdcard and install through recovery.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the response....Does it matter what version of Odin I use if I were to restore the phone back to stock ? Also do I need to manually remove all rooted program and features, or can it be flashed back to stock ROM as is ? I have a lot of apps that I also don't want to lose and I've tried manually back up files on my SD card, but I didn't know if there was a way to back it up, so that it literally can be dumped right back in when stock is restored.
mikeprius said:
Thanks for the response....Does it matter what version of Odin I use if I were to restore the phone back to stock ? Also do I need to manually remove all rooted program and features, or can it be flashed back to stock ROM as is ? I have a lot of apps that I also don't want to lose and I've tried manually back up files on my SD card, but I didn't know if there was a way to back it up, so that it literally can be dumped right back in when stock is restored.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I believe if you are on MK2 you will want to use the latest version of odin which is ver3 3.09. If you are using the MK2 complete stock tar file it will rewrite everything in system and restore all the apps that were removed or modded so you don't need to manually remove root. Currently, the stock files available to us do not wipe the data partition so anything you have in that partition will remain there unless you do a factory reset. One thing you will want to make sure you are doing is backing up to the external sdcard and not the internal. You can then use TB to replace any files if you did a factory reset.
cruise350 said:
I believe if you are on MK2 you will want to use the latest version of odin which is ver3 3.09. If you are using the MK2 complete stock tar file it will rewrite everything in system and restore all the apps that were removed or modded so you don't need to manually remove root. Currently, the stock files available to us do not wipe the data partition so anything you have in that partition will remain there unless you do a factory reset. One thing you will want to make sure you are doing is backing up to the external sdcard and not the internal. You can then use TB to replace any files if you did a factory reset.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm using Kies 3 and using the data back-up feature ? I assume this is backing up to the computer then I was planning on using the 'restore data' feature once they phone is back to stock. Will this revert it back to the way it was previously customized before root ? So if I understand correctly, once I download Odin 3.0, I load the MK2 .tar file into the phone, enbable download mode, then hit start and the phone will be like it was out of the box and ready to be OTA and restored with prior data ? I may be confusing flashing the stock firmware with factory reset ?
I also noticed there is an update firmware feature on Kies 3, if I try using this while SuperSU is present and the phone is rooted, will I also have a failed update/issues ? Again, thanks for your help. Do appreciate it.
mikeprius said:
I'm using Kies 3 and using the data back-up feature ? I assume this is backing up to the computer then I was planning on using the 'restore data' feature once they phone is back to stock. Will this revert it back to the way it was previously customized before root ? So if I understand correctly, once I download Odin 3.0, I load the MK2 .tar file into the phone, enbable download mode, then hit start and the phone will be like it was out of the box and ready to be OTA and restored with prior data ? I may be confusing flashing the stock firmware with factory reset ?
I also noticed there is an update firmware feature on Kies 3, if I try using this while SuperSU is present and the phone is rooted, will I also have a failed update/issues ? Again, thanks for your help. Do appreciate it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have never used Kies and heard that it doesn't work with the MJA or MK2 software yet. I don't believe Kies will work if your status is custom but I could be wrong on that. If you odin the MK2 full tar file your phone will be back to stock but your data should still be there. You will only lose your data if you do a factory reset in recovery. Remember, a factory reset is just wiping the data partition and does not restore any software or apps.
cruise350 said:
I have never used Kies and heard that it doesn't work with the MJA or MK2 software yet. I don't believe Kies will work if your status is custom but I could be wrong on that. If you odin the MK2 full tar file your phone will be back to stock but your data should still be there. You will only lose your data if you do a factory reset in recovery. Remember, a factory reset is just wiping the data partition and does not restore any software or apps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok, I think I have the general idea. It sounds similar to putting back on the stock 'image' nothing else.........I currently have the Odin 3.0 software, but I have been having a hard time finding the stock firmware online and downloading it. I will keep looking. Once I get the .tar and flash in download mode, will I just see all the bloatware back on, but everything else the same ? I was wondering what will happen if I kept Titanium Back-up, SuperSU, and Xposed Installer on when I do this ? Does it just render them all un-useable, but the new OTA will still install anyway ? Thanks.
mikeprius said:
Ok, I think I have the general idea. It sounds similar to putting back on the stock 'image' nothing else.........I currently have the Odin 3.0 software, but I have been having a hard time finding the stock firmware online and downloading it. I will keep looking. Once I get the .tar and flash in download mode, will I just see all the bloatware back on, but everything else the same ? I was wondering what will happen if I kept Titanium Back-up, SuperSU, and Xposed Installer on when I do this ? Does it just render them all un-useable, but the new OTA will still install anyway ? Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Every thing in the data partition(titanium backup) will remain and everything in the system partition (SuperSU & stuff modified via xposed installer) will be gone and replaced with the bloatware.
Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk
Ok, so it appears to have worked. I flashed the 4.3 prior version however it was hooked up to wifi and automatically downloaded the new version and removed root (not a big deal). My status says custom still, but I am assuming that I can OTA after the flash b/c it updated to the most recent 4.3 in Dec 2013. I re-rooted so it is back to prior, but I know now how to do it.
Is there anything that I may delete or uninstall that cannot be replaced by flashing the stock firmware ? For example I was thinking about getting rid of the 'help' on the phone and Titanium Back up said it is odexed or something to that extent and can only be replaced by using Titanium Backup and the exact same copy ?
I figured that I might as well just try deleting the bloatware and not back up b/c worse case scenario if something happens I can just flash back the stock ROM and all is well ?
Being able to flash the stock .tar through ODIN gives me peace of mind from screw ups, even if it removes root and takes time.
mikeprius said:
I figured that I might as well just try deleting the bloatware and not back up b/c worse case scenario if something happens I can just flash back the stock ROM and all is well ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you haven't spent much time customizing, that'll work fine. Most of us use custom recoveries (like Philz or TWRP) to make "nandroid" backups of our setups. A nandroid is like a drive image on a computer, so restoring it will restore all of the customizations you've done (accounts, apps, app data, bloatware deletions, etc). Nandroids don't back up firmware (modem, bootloader,etc), but back up the ROM completely. A Titanium backup is almost as good, but requires a bit more work.
As for deciding what apps you can delete, most of the custom ROM creators post a list of the bloatware they remove. So, if it's on their list, it's almost certainly ok to delete it on your phone too.
nobody291 said:
If you haven't spent much time customizing, that'll work fine. Most of us use custom recoveries (like Philz or TWRP) to make "nandroid" backups of our setups. A nandroid is like a drive image on a computer, so restoring it will restore all of the customizations you've done (accounts, apps, app data, bloatware deletions, etc). Nandroids don't back up firmware (modem, bootloader,etc), but back up the ROM completely. A Titanium backup is almost as good, but requires a bit more work.
As for deciding what apps you can delete, most of the custom ROM creators post a list of the bloatware they remove. So, if it's on their list, it's almost certainly ok to delete it on your phone too.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks being able to flash the stock .tar and use ODIN gives me peace of mind of any potential screw ups. So far I'm just using stock rom and toggling some of the features with xposed installer and titanium back up.
I'd like to explore more eventually with custom ROMs and I've heard of Clockwork mod and TWRP, Nandroid, Cyanogen, etc... but I don't know what any of that means or what it is.
Is TWRP/Philz like ODIN program then you download custom ROMS like Cyanogen the same way as the stock firmware. tar ?
As you can tell I am extremely new to this.....this is also my first time owning an Android phone as well, but I never messed with jailbreaking my past 2 iPhones in the past. I just have used VB 3.0 back in the day....
mikeprius said:
Thanks being able to flash the stock .tar and use ODIN gives me peace of mind of any potential screw ups. So far I'm just using stock rom and toggling some of the features with xposed installer and titanium back up.
I'd like to explore more eventually with custom ROMs and I've heard of Clockwork mod and TWRP, Nandroid, Cyanogen, etc... but I don't know what any of that means or what it is.
Is TWRP/Philz like ODIN program then you download custom ROMS like Cyanogen the same way as the stock firmware. tar ?
As you can tell I am extremely new to this.....this is also my first time owning an Android phone as well, but I never messed with jailbreaking my past 2 iPhones in the past. I just have used VB 3.0 back in the day....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To me, one of the hardest parts of this whole thing is getting to the point where the basic terms make sense. I've been at this for a couple of years with an HTC Evo and now the GS4 since October, and sometimes it still makes my head spin. Here is an attempt to explain my understanding of a few things:
1. Booting...you can boot into Download mode, recovery, or system. Download mode is what you use with ODIN, you need the correct drivers on your computer (which can be found lots of places), so that ODIN and your phone can communicate. In download mode, the phone just accepts whatever ODIN sends it, so it's the easiest way to totally brick your phone. Don't mess with partitions and follow the instructions for whatever you're doing very carefully, because I think this is the only way to "hard brick" your phone.
2. Recovery - something you use to create images of your phone's ROM (nandroids), flash ROMs and mods, and restore past nandroids. The stock recovery will only flash approved updates from the carrier, so to do any of the things I listed you need a custom recovery. Most people use Philz (which is based on the ClockworkMod recovery) or TWRP. To flash the custom recovery, use ODIN and follow the instructions in the thread exactly. There is a way to flash recoveries without ODIN, but I've never done it. I was using TWRP, and switched to Philz to flash the rooted stock 4.3 update because the thread suggested it. They both seem to do the same thing, and I have been happy with both. I'm sure there are technical differences, but I couldn't explain what they are. You can switch back and forth as much as you'd like between the recoveries with ODIN. Recoveries can flash a complete ROM or just partial changes (like the hotspot mod). In a custom recovery (or the stock) you can also do factory resets and cache cleaning (most ROMs suggest you do this before flashing). Factory reset doesn't return the ROM to the factory original, it just clears out all of the user data (including user apps). A nandroid is the fastest way to restore a phone if you screw it up...I always make one before making significant changes to the phone. It takes several minutes to do, but I think it's well worth it. The operating system can't be running when you make one, that's why you need to boot into recovery mode. You create a Nandroid in Philz by selecting "backup and restore" then "backup to" which will allow backup to the internal storage or external SD card.
3. ROM - the actual operating system used by the phone when you actually use it as a smartphone. There are 2 basic flavors for the GS4...touchwiz and AOSP (Android Open Source Project). Touchwiz is Samsung's "flavor" of Android, AOSP is the "pure Google" version of Android. A lot of the things the GS4 will do rely on touchwiz (multiwindow is one example...but there are several). Some people really like the AOSP ROMs (Cyanogen is AOSP), but make sure you understand their limitations. I've never used one on the GS4. There are several touchwiz custom ROMs which have various features. I've tried a few and just settled on the stock rooted touchwiz ROM, but there are lots of options from great developers. I think most custom ROMs require you to use a custom recovery to flash them, but there might be ways to do it using ODIN. I like having a custom recovery, so I've only used ODIN for flashing modems and recoveries.
4. Firmware - as far as I can tell, there are two important parts of the firmware...the modem (sometimes called "radios" or "baseband"...find your version by looking in "about device"->"Baseband version"...the different modems are described by the last 3 letters you see) and the bootloader. The modem and the version of the ROM you flash need to match or you'll have problems with the radios in the phone (wifi seems to be the biggest problem if you have a mismatch). MF9 was the last modem version based on 4.2.2, and 4.3 has had MJA and MK2 (MK2 is the latest). The bootloader is what the phone uses to initially decide how to boot up. If you have the 4.3 version of the bootloader it will include "Knox", which will prevent you from flashing older versions of the modem, so you'll have to use a 4.3 ROM. Knox also "trips" a counter if you flash a custom ROM and Samsung claims they won't honor the warranty on a phone with the "Knox flag" tripped. If you have the 4.3 bootloader you're stuck with it (for now at least). I still have the 4.2.2 bootloader, so I don't have much more to offer on this subject. There are ways to get the 4.3 modem and ROM without the 4.3 bootloader. There is a lot here (and lots on youtube) on how to navigate the Knox minefield if you care about it. If you still have the 4.2.2 bootloader you can flash older (and newer) modems as much as you'd like without getting the updated bootloader using ODIN.
Hopefully this helps...this is a great place with lots of great people. Sometimes the scale of the amount of information here is overwhelming. But, search is your friend along with lots of time! Feel free to keep asking questions.
thanks for explaining this nobody-
The information does help quite a bit and I am still learning, however; I do enjoy the process of messing with the phone. My GS4 now runs the RAM at 750-800mg instead of a bloated 1.2GB which was happening quite a bit. I had to originally not use a lot of apps I wanted to like Facebook bc the programs themselves bloated up to accomidate the existing bloatware which was also running. I did flash my phone back with the stock firmware today and it looks like it installed all the stock software. My status said 'custom' when I looked at it however I was already connected to wifi and it went from 4.3 (Oct 2013 version which I flashed) to Dec 2013 version automatically so it appears that the OTA feature works.
I assumed if I accidently delete something from the phone that I really need to affects the phone, I can always flash the stock ROM to fix it. Losing the root is not that big of an issue, but I did lose Superuser and had to re-root the phone. I suppose I do have a few more questions, one was when I was reading another carrier provider thread.
1. Is there anything I can delete from the phone that I could not eventually recover by flashing the stock firmware ? When I uninstall for example the 'help' app on the phone Titanium Backup says this only copy can be replaced by using Titanium 5.1 and it's existing copy ? Could this just be replaced by flashing the stock firmware as well ? I like being able to flash the stockfirm ware rom at any point as a fail safe.
2. The other issue is the bootloader that I heard about ? It was on a Verizon thread where the person was able to flash the stock firmware on his phone, but then after an upgrade, he was not longer able to flash the rom b/c the carrier in the most recent upgrade he did blocked ODIN ? Is this something that I should possibly be concerned about in the future not being able to flash stock firmware via ODIN ? As you can tell, I'm pretty OCD about being able to have a failsafe for my phone. LOL. Thanks again for your help, I do appreciate it.
mikeprius said:
1. Is there anything I can delete from the phone that I could not eventually recover by flashing the stock firmware ? When I uninstall for example the 'help' app on the phone Titanium Backup says this only copy can be replaced by using Titanium 5.1 and it's existing copy ? Could this just be replaced by flashing the stock firmware as well ? I like being able to flash the stockfirm ware rom at any point as a fail safe.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, you can always flash the stock firmware to fix whatever you do to the ROM (just to the ROM, use ODIN very carefully). In the case of the Help file, you could also back it up using Titanium, then delete the app, and restore it later using Titanium if you want it back. This is probably obvious, but use Titanium to delete the app, but don't delete the backup.
2. The other issue is the bootloader that I heard about ? It was on a Verizon thread where the person was able to flash the stock firmware on his phone, but then after an upgrade, he was not longer able to flash the rom b/c the carrier in the most recent upgrade he did blocked ODIN ? Is this something that I should possibly be concerned about in the future not being able to flash stock firmware via ODIN ? As you can tell, I'm pretty OCD about being able to have a failsafe for my phone. LOL. Thanks again for your help, I do appreciate it.
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Click to collapse
Sprint is a lot more friendly toward its users modifying their phones than Verizon. But, they could change their minds any time. For now, there are no issues (other than the Knox warranty issue). But, don't presume that'll always be the case. The best precaution is to not take OTA (over the air) updates. OTAs are the ones that pop up as a notification on the phone saying "system update available, tap to install". Kit Kat should become available in the next month or two, who knows what'll come along with the OTA. Threads will start here almost immediately when the update rolls out; watch those threads and don't do the update until you're comfortable with what's inside. I will wait and flash something from the development section, even if it is just the stock ROM.
nobody291 said:
Yes, you can always flash the stock firmware to fix whatever you do to the ROM (just to the ROM, use ODIN very carefully). In the case of the Help file, you could also back it up using Titanium, then delete the app, and restore it later using Titanium if you want it back. This is probably obvious, but use Titanium to delete the app, but don't delete the backup.
Sprint is a lot more friendly toward its users modifying their phones than Verizon. But, they could change their minds any time. For now, there are no issues (other than the Knox warranty issue). But, don't presume that'll always be the case. The best precaution is to not take OTA (over the air) updates. OTAs are the ones that pop up as a notification on the phone saying "system update available, tap to install". Kit Kat should become available in the next month or two, who knows what'll come along with the OTA. Threads will start here almost immediately when the update rolls out; watch those threads and don't do the update until you're comfortable with what's inside. I will wait and flash something from the development section, even if it is just the stock ROM.
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Click to collapse
It was good that you mentioned the Knox bootloader issue with the 4.3 upgrade. When I purchased my cell phone back in Nov, I believe it had the 4.3 (1st) version loaded, but it already had Knox features as I do recall seeing them. If I were to try and flash 4.2.2 like the version you initially had, would the phone have a bootloop error or fail to flash because there were some free wifi tethering exploits that were not yet fixed in the 4.2.2 version ? This may have been the error I read about due to the new Knox feature.
I think since my phone is currently rooted and I altered some of the bloatware system files that the update if it were made available OTA should not update anyway due to the root. Will the stock ROM/firmware .tar files eventually be posted in the developers section that can just be flashed via ODIN later on ? With that, if I were to load 4.4 and not like it, could I flash back 4.3 ? I am guessing this is the part where you mentioned that the carrier may decide differently later on.....I suppose I will just keep an eye out in the meantime.
Good good............, I'm picking up this pretty well so far.............
mikeprius said:
If I were to try and flash 4.2.2 like the version you initially had, would the phone have a bootloop error or fail to flash because there were some free wifi tethering exploits that were not yet fixed in the 4.2.2 version ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not sure what symptoms you'd see if you installed 4.2.2 with the 4.3 bootloader. Most likely the phone would fail to boot. ODIN will flash whatever you tell it to, I don't believe it does any compatibility checking on its own. You can still get the wifi hotspot feature to work even with Knox and the 4.3 bootloader, I don't think that was what they were trying to do with the update. There are threads discussing 4.3 and what changed, but there wasn't much obvious to the user. For now you can't go back if you're on 4.3, but there might be an exploit discovered down the road that lets you get the old bootloader and go back.
Will the stock ROM/firmware .tar files eventually be posted in the developers section that can just be flashed via ODIN later on ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, they won't be available immediately though. It can take some time for the community to re-obtain root too, depending on how big the changes are.
With that, if I were to load 4.4 and not like it, could I flash back 4.3 ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think you alluded to the answer already, but it depends. It took a month or two before you could flash the stock 4.3 without the 4.3 bootloader. There were custom ROMs available that used custom kernels sooner, but there was a problem trying to use the stock kernel with the 4.2.2 bootloader. So, always read and read and read some more before flashing updates.
So far i think i got the hang of it. I have been modifying the phones original touchwhiz. I ended up freezing alot of files instead of deleting them so the ability to turn them back on is there. Some of the files while there are not meant to be frozen/disabled/turned off. I tried a few methods for keeping SuperSU over an ODIN with no luck. I do have a question though. If i turned off (but did not delete) alot of system files and were to run ODIN again will all of them including the bloatware be turned back on and restored? That would be bad if i flashed, lost root, then simultaneously had all the system files disabled with no way to turn them back on......
This also a dumb question but what exactly am i flashing with ODIN? Its a 1.5 GB file with Sprint and it is a tar that restores all bloatware and turns the phone status back to official so i can get OTA updates. Am i flashing the entire stock ROM or just the firmware? Its nice that i have not lost any existing apps or data. It just restores the bloatware and removes root
Reading the above posts im guessing firmware....along the lines of the previous question will this restore system files and apps as well that have been shut off because ive been on a roll disabling and freezing a lot of files and apps and not sure what to turn back on to restore function to some of them. If the ODIN firmware flash resets all settings then that will also be very useful as well. Thanks much
mikeprius said:
Reading the above posts im guessing firmware....along the lines of the previous question will this restore system files and apps as well that have been shut off because ive been on a roll disabling and freezing a lot of files and apps and not sure what to turn back on to restore function to some of them. If the ODIN firmware flash resets all settings then that will also be very useful as well. Thanks much
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The .tar you are flashing from sprint is what we would call stock firmware image. This is the image that shipped on the phone from the factory. I'm an avid flasher and would highly recommend installing twrp or philz touch, creating a nandroid backup and giving some debloated touchwiz roms a shot. You'll see some significant improvement in battery life and performance and some really cool upstream features. I use odin as a last resort, when I need to go back to stock for whatever reason (ie domestic sim unlock) or have fubar'd my current setup past a point of no return.
I was offered the 5.1 update on my 2013 Nexus 7. In an attempt to be on the safe side, I uninstalled busybox, titanium, and fully unrooted (I always had the stock recovery, so I didn't have to worry about that). Anyway, even after all those precautions, the attempt to install failed after a couple of minutes with an android keeled over and a red warning triangle. The highly informative message "Error!" was displayed under the keeled over android. Just wondering if other folks are seeing this same problem.
About 5 minutes later while I was poking around in this forum, the tablet rebooted itself and it appears to be running 5.0.2 with no obvious problems.
Any clues about what might be going on? Any way to extract more information than "Error!"?
Claghorn said:
I was offered the 5.1 update on my 2013 Nexus 7. In an attempt to be on the safe side, I uninstalled busybox, titanium, and fully unrooted (I always had the stock recovery, so I didn't have to worry about that). Anyway, even after all those precautions, the attempt to install failed after a couple of minutes with an android keeled over and a red warning triangle. The highly informative message "Error!" was displayed under the keeled over android. Just wondering if other folks are seeing this same problem.
About 5 minutes later while I was poking around in this forum, the tablet rebooted itself and it appears to be running 5.0.2 with no obvious problems.
Any clues about what might be going on? Any way to extract more information than "Error!"?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To take ota you must have a clean non rooted system. Not one you attempted to remove traces of root from. If you want ota you have to flash 5.0.2 system.img extracted from the factory image. Any trace of root or a missing file or apk will cause it to fail.
madbat99 said:
To take ota you must have a clean non rooted system. Not one you attempted to remove traces of root from. If you want ota you have to flash 5.0.2 system.img extracted from the factory image. Any trace of root or a missing file or apk will cause it to fail.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not sure what would leave a trace. I've always been able to get OTA previously via the fully uninstall everything technique.
Claghorn said:
I'm not sure what would leave a trace. I've always been able to get OTA previously via the fully uninstall everything technique.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Since lollipop it is very sensitive to anything different or missing in system. Just flash the 5.1 factory image with the ~w removed from the flash-all.bat file so it doesn't wipe data. Or use wugs to flash stock 5.1 image with "no wipe" enabled. Or like I said in previous you can always flash a clean system image of 5.0.2 then take ota. Either way will update you without wiping data.
Just use fastboot and manually flash system.img and boot.img, then format cache. It works every single time, without wiping data and you can easly root it again with CF Auto Root. I don't get it why people bother with OTA all the time. Always issues with them. I just did this and went from 5.0.2 to 5.1 without losing any data, and tablet now really flies. It keeps a lot more apps in RAM, for better multitasking, and I don't experiance any lag what so ever. I strongly recommend everyone to update to 5.1, because it feels like you just got a new tablet. Good job Google !
neo5468 said:
... I don't get it why people bother with OTA all the time ...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not really bothering with it - it just showed up and started bothering me .
1.Backup everything.
2.Flash 5.1 with nexus root toolkit.
3.Restore all the data.
4.Change your build in NRT to android 5.1
5.Root it and flash TWRP/CWM if you want.
6.?????
7.Profit! duh
neo5468 said:
Just use fastboot and manually flash system.img and boot.img, then format cache. It works every single time, without wiping data and you can easly root it again with CF Auto Root.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
... or wait for a week until someone will release a rooted 5.1 update
sensboston said:
... or wait for a week until someone will release a rooted 5.1 update
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why would you wait a week, we already waited too long for offical 5.1 to come out for our tablet. It is 5minutes of work, works 100% and also fasboot is the safest way to flash. Also you download the image straight from developers.google.com so there is no bs. I much rather flash that. But to each his own.
There is already a recovery flashable "stock rooted 5.1" thanks to scrosler (cleanrom Dev).
5.1 rooted ROM
neo5468 said:
Why would you wait a week
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agree, week is too long. A few days - better words And "one click" solution is much better in case of possible mistakes during flashing separate partitions, rooting etc...
neo5468 said:
Just use fastboot and manually flash system.img and boot.img, then format cache. It works every single time, without wiping data and you can easly root it again with CF Auto Root. I don't get it why people bother with OTA all the time. Always issues with them. I just did this and went from 5.0.2 to 5.1 without losing any data, and tablet now really flies. It keeps a lot more apps in RAM, for better multitasking, and I don't experiance any lag what so ever. I strongly recommend everyone to update to 5.1, because it feels like you just got a new tablet. Good job Google !
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I haven't done this in forever, is it just adb reboot bootloader, then the fastboot commands for flash system.img/boot.img. I have a custom recovery, does that matter?
beall49 said:
I haven't done this in forever, is it just adb reboot bootloader, then the fastboot commands for flash system.img/boot.img. I have a custom recovery, does that matter?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Custom recovery is fine. There is also a new boot loader to flash as well I think. You can also run the flash all batch file in the factory image and just remove the -w from it so it doesn't wipe data. But what you posted is also correct, but flash the boot loader too. If your rusty at it just use wugs toolkit, it will run the commands for you.
Solid, removing the -w was what I was forgetting. I knew there was something else.
Thanks!
Well this popped up for me yesterday and I, in a total blonde moment, clicked OK and it promptly crashed my tablet. Which is what is expected to happen being that it was running rooted and non stock recovery.
So yes it was bricked. But is it a Nexus. It was a soft brick and easily fixed with the Nexus Root Toolkit. Which is what I would have done to update it anyway. I don't normally take OTAs. Yes I sinned before the Gods of RomFlashing and paid for it with wasted time. LOL
nlinecomputers said:
Well this popped up for me yesterday and I, in a total blonde moment, clicked OK and it promptly crashed my tablet. Which is what is expected to happen being that it was running rooted and non stock recovery.
So yes it was bricked. But is it a Nexus. It was a soft brick and easily fixed with the Nexus Root Toolkit. Which is what I would have done to update it anyway. I don't normally take OTAs. Yes I sinned before the Gods of RomFlashing and paid for it with wasted time. LOL
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's a little odd, usually (since lollipop) it will just fail. Bummer it actually flashed and soft bricked.
madbat99 said:
That's a little odd, usually (since lollipop) it will just fail. Bummer it actually flashed and soft bricked.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No big deal really. I don't keep important data on it. It's mostly used for Kindle and games. Easy to fix.
Dumb question, but I'll ask anyway if I root will I not be able to receive OTA updates? Because I know whenever I did that with my Note 4 that if I tried it would give a message saying operating system is modified or something in that nature.
joe1blue said:
Dumb question, but I'll ask anyway if I root will I not be able to receive OTA updates? Because I know whenever I did that with my Note 4 that if I tried it would give a message saying operating system is modified or something in that nature.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You will not be able to take the ota. You have two options when marshmallow comes out.
1) Use the return to stock tool and take the ota them reroot
2) Wait for a flash able zip to become available.
TrenchKato said:
2) Wait for a flash able zip to become available.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Which will most likely be faster available than waiting for the OTA.
I'm not sure that will be the case for the MXPE. Fastboot shows the OS as "original," leading me to believe that OTA updates may work. Remember that on the Note 4, et al, unlocking the bootloader wasn't supported by the OEM or carrier. Since Moto is supplying the unlock codes, I suspect that OTA updates will not be disabled on the MXPE as long as no other OS changes are made. I could be wrong, but we'll find out when the time comes.
Tanker Bob said:
I'm not sure that will be the case for the MXPE. Fastboot shows the OS as "original," leading me to believe that OTA updates may work. Remember that on the Note 4, et al, unlocking the bootloader wasn't supported by the OEM or carrier. Since Moto is supplying the unlock codes, I suspect that OTA updates will not be disabled on the MXPE as long as no other OS changes are made. I could be wrong, but we'll find out when the time comes.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Chances are, if you unlocked your bootloader, you flashed a custom recovery. You can't take an OTA through a custom recovery -- not because it's "blocked," but because the OTA tool is not written to work with that recovery.
Could be. Easy enough to fix if so. Just tell TWRP to allow the OS to overwrite it, the reflash TWRP after the update.
Can't you just flash the stock recovery to take the OTA? Sure, you'll lose root, but you could still take the OTA, then flash your custom recovery again. Is there anything, other than a stock recovery, that prevents OTA updates?
I wish we had a release date. Getting excited for the new features. Should have kept my Nexus 5!
jonathanbailie said:
Can't you just flash the stock recovery to take the OTA? Sure, you'll lose root, but you could still take the OTA, then flash your custom recovery again. Is there anything, other than a stock recovery, that prevents OTA updates?
I wish we had a release date. Getting excited for the new features. Should have kept my Nexus 5!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
A modified system will prevent the install. You would need to flash the system image as well.
Sent from my XT1575 using Tapatalk
I know some owners rooted their device for different reasons other than roms, but imo better to wait for 6.0 for OTA first. This phone comes with pure Android rom. Not like you need to remove bloat apps. Just need custom roms and kernels which is slow developing. Maybe the devs don't want to waste time with lp and their also waiting for marshmallow. I'm surprised how slow this device is moving under development. Oneplus one didn't have mass sale but their development was quick. Being so similar with nexus 6, hopefully we can get some love with MXP.
Sent from my XT1575 using XDA Free mobile app
I have been holding out on unlocking for this reason. I'm lazy and don't want to set everything up again so I will use Marsh to back everything up first then I will go to town
Tanker Bob said:
I'm not sure that will be the case for the MXPE. Fastboot shows the OS as "original," leading me to believe that OTA updates may work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OTA will not work for rooted MXPE's.
1) Rooting the MXPE requires you to load an alternative recovery (TWRP), which doesn't work with the OTA installation scripts.
2) Rooting the MXPE modified /system files. And OTA updates check /system integrity before it runs the update. Rooted phones will fail that integrity check, and will fail to OTA for that reason.
You could restore your MXPE to stock conditions (un-root, and load stock recovery) to have it accept an OTA. I'm sure that most people will do that, and then re-install TWRP and re-root after that is done. However, I'd recommend you wait a bit for other people to try this first, just in case there are any issues and to verify that root is still available in Android Marshmallow 6.0
Makes sense. Somebody has to be first. I will do a nandroid backup before attempting to update by any means.
Prior comments in this thread:
"You will not be able to take the ota. You have two options when marshmallow comes out.
1) Use the return to stock tool..."
and
"You could restore your MXPE to stock conditions (un-root, and load stock recovery) to have it accept an OTA..."
I just wanted to clarify that the Return to Stock tool does not currently remove TWRP...
Factory image will appear here once available: https://motorola-global-portal.custhelp.com/app/standalone/bootloader/recovery-images
(Must log in with Motorola registered ID or gmail address)
Keep in mind you will see a Moto X (2nd Gen) Pure Edition already there...that is not ours.
hijax2001 said:
Prior comments in this thread:
"You will not be able to take the ota. You have two options when marshmallow comes out.
1) Use the return to stock tool..."
and
"You could restore your MXPE to stock conditions (un-root, and load stock recovery) to have it accept an OTA..."
I just wanted to clarify that the Return to Stock tool does not currently remove TWRP...
Factory image will appear here once available: https://motorola-global-portal.custhelp.com/app/standalone/bootloader/recovery-images
(Must log in with Motorola registered ID or gmail address)
Keep in mind you will see a Moto X (2nd Gen) Pure Edition already there...that is not ours.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
More clarification: Restore-To-Stock-Tool does replace TWRP. Have a gander inside the zip. I spy recovery.img within. What do you see?
PiousInquisitor said:
More clarification: Restore-To-Stock-Tool does replace TWRP. Have a gander inside the zip. I spy recovery.img within. What do you see?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yup, you're correct ... I just used the tool earlier today and I do indeed have stock recovery.
Sent from my XT1575 using Tapatalk
Sharing my experience... good it's supposed to. Didn't for me, for some reason, until 2nd power cycle. It is stock recovery now though. Sorry for the confusion.
Ok, I unlocked bootloader and rooted. No issues at all.
Now, I was curious on relocking the bootloader & load stock rom.
The method that I used to flashed the firmware was the Autoflash, something like that.
Now what I did was extracted all the files within that folder. And click the autoflash, mijiggy. Lol
But I believe the most current firmware was MPH24.49-18
BUT I had MPHS24.49-16 - from what I can recall.
Pretty sure that was the latest on the site.
After flashing the phone, it successfully with any issues. The root is no longer present.
But no matter how many times that I add "fastboot oem lock" which does say okay - finished.
I still get that bootloader is unlocked, after it told me it was finished, no errors....
The other issue is upgrading the software OTA, failed!
As far as the radio part, I hope it still works. I don't have an extra Sprint sim card. But I'm pretty sure it will be ok.
Appreciate your help and time to read my crazy thread..lol
Sent from my Portable
PassatSport15 said:
Ok, I unlocked bootloader and rooted. No issues at all.
Now, I was curious on relocking the bootloader & load stock rom.
The method that I used to flashed the firmware was the Autoflash, something like that.
Now what I did was extracted all the files within that folder. And click the autoflash, mijiggy. Lol
But I believe the most current firmware was MPH24.49-18
BUT I had MPHS24.49-16 - from what I can recall.
Pretty sure that was the latest on the site.
After flashing the phone, it successfully with any issues. The root is no longer present.
But no matter how many times that I add "fastboot oem lock" which does say okay - finished.
I still get that bootloader is unlocked, after it told me it was finished, no errors....
The other issue is upgrading the software OTA, failed!
As far as the radio part, I hope it still works. I don't have an extra Sprint sim card. But I'm pretty sure it will be ok.
Appreciate your help and time to read my crazy thread..lol
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
A few problems here... First off, you likely had MPHS24.49-18-16 not just 16 (I don't think there is such a version) and the one your using MPHS24.49-18 is really old, it's the original MM firmware from Moto's website (the one on Moto's site is very old and dated incorrectly). We don't have the 18-16 image yet, so you cannot relock or even effectively fix this.
Also, you used a tool to flash, so when pieces failed to flash, you didn't even know it... And now you are in a mixed state with a ROM that is partially -18 and part 18-16, which is why an OTA won't take.
When you relock a Moto device, you don't just enter "fastboot oem lock" like a Nexus device, there is a process where you start with "fastboot oem lock begin" then flash a complete, signed factory image, wipe, and end with "fastboot oem lock" in one process.
Many parts to this process went wrong... Right now you are just kind of stuck.
BTW, relocking the bootloader has no effective gains except security... You will still be able to see in a glance it was unlocked from the bootloader screen or a fastboot command and the unlocked bootloader warning screen will still be there (you have to flash a custom logo to make it go away).
Did you make a backup of your stock ROM with TWRP prior to rooting? Restoring the backup with TWRP along with stock recovery is usually going to be the simplest and easiest way to go back to full stock.
As acejavelin stated, there really is no benefit to relocking the bootloader except from a security standpoint. As long as the stock ROM and recovery are restored to preroot condition with no system mods, you can take OTAs regardless of bootloader status.
acejavelin said:
First off, you likely had MPHS24.49-18-16 not just 16 (I don't think there is such a version) and the one your using MPHS24.49-18 is really old
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My apologies for giving the incorrect info.
When I had purchased the phone about 3 weeks ago.
I upgraded the latest software update via Sprint OTA.
acejavelin said:
And now you are in a mixed state with a ROM that is partially -18 and part 18-16, which is why an OTA won't take.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What would be the best route for me to learn.?
The phone is not going anywhere. It is a backup phone, current have a Note 5. So I might as well take advantage of the opportunity.
Being that I'm mixed with 16 - 18 firmware, should I get the latest MM? Or am I just Fubarred..lol
Now what is the latest MM that I can download? Only because I would like to do an OTA when Nougat comes out.
I guess my goal is to start fresh again which seems impossible for now..
Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thank you again!
Sent from my Portable
PassatSport15 said:
My apologies for giving the incorrect info.
When I had purchased the phone about 3 weeks ago.
I upgraded the latest software update via Sprint OTA.
What would be the best route for me to learn.?
The phone is not going anywhere. It is a backup phone, current have a Note 5. So I might as well take advantage of the opportunity.
Being that I'm mixed with 16 - 18 firmware, should I get the latest MM? Or am I just Fubarred..lol
Now what is the latest MM that I can download? Only because I would like to do an OTA when Nougat comes out.
I guess my goal is to start fresh again which seems impossible for now..
Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thank you again!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think 18-12 is the latest we have so far, but trying to flash it would not help... Your best bet at this point is either custom ROM or wait until we can get the image for 18-16. The problem here is Moto's don't support downgrading, it can be done but it often leaves you in a mixed state.
You could try flashing the latest version we have available manually (don't use a tool) and it might be close enough to able to OTA from there. You have some though, rumor has it initial surveys for an upgrade on the Pure just went out to MFN users this week, assuming it is the Nougat upgrade trial then once it starts you have 4-6 weeks barring any problems they encounter before public release. Assuming of course that history repeats itself and Lenovo follows the same path as Moto has previously.
So basically I'm saying have patience... We don't know when (or really if) we will get the current firmware image, sometimes it's quick and sometimes it takes months.
Update on my xt1575, that I could not take an OTA, it gave me an error - unsuccessful.
My original software was MPHS24.49-18-16, December update, latest software.
Well, I went ahead unlocked the bootloader, installed TWRP, then rooted....
Days later I had decided to unroot, so I would be able to take the OTA.
While I unrooted my device, it was successful, but could not take the updates at all.
Now I reflashed again, in this order below.
Autoflash Script with MPHS24.49-18-8.
Reboot the phone, checked if it was unrooted (No root)
Now I went to software update, and the phone did it's upgrade, like last time. Did the update, device rebooted and it was SUCCESSFUL!
I am finally back to the original software MPHS24.49-18-16
Which was December 2016 update.
Sent from my Portable