Database Info

Rooting, Flashing, Backing up And Installing New Boot Loader

Hi guys,
I just got a SGS4G about a week ago and I would like to tweak it a little bit but I do have some concerns. This is my first android smartphone
Here are my concerns:
I would like to do a Backup of my ROM in case I ever want to go back to it. How could I do that? Do I need to install a bootloader other than the one that comes with the phone? if yes which one should I install?
I have rooted my phone and would like to get rid of a bunch of apps but was reading that if you remove some of the apps it could cause the phone to malfuncion. Is there a compiled a list of apps that should not be removed? or this is just not true?
When I'm ready to install a Stock ROM how do I do that? Via Odin? (I can look for some guide if it's via Odin)
Can anyone tell me what would be the benefit of installing Deodexed instead of using the Stock ROM?
Will i always me able to come back to my Stock ROM once i figure how to create a backup ROM?
Am I missing any important point that I should know about?
I would really appreciate if you can help clarify this doubts that I got before i try to do anything.
Thanks

i'm new to all of this too but ill try to answer some questions. Although, I think this thread should NOT be in development and should be in general. I personally have read through a lot of threads to get the answers that I was seeking for.
As far as backup goes, I think its possible through Odin via dump option? don't quote me on that, I have not had to do that before, nor have I read up on it. bootloader as far as i see, i did not need it.
there is a thread in here with virgin rom request, LOOK for it.
There is NO compiled list of apps that you can or cannot delete, but if you read, there is a dl for BLOATWARE, use that as a template to what you want deleted.
Right now, ODIN is the only way that you can flash your phone, and use the two roms listed in this development thread.
From what i read a deodexed rom just helps with file system and structure. I think?
you will always be able to go back to stock, if you have the virgin rom.
Imo, you should read up/skim through every thread in here to see what is available, problems people are having and the fixes for them. I know there is alot of information in here and it maybe overwhelming, but there were 172 views of this thread without any replies because us noobs need to READ/SEARCH. Thats the answers we'll get if we continue to make new threads. Just fyi if your new to forums.

Moved as not android development.

As newbie you should first read and use search
then if you dont see question you want, you just ask it
And about Roms , well i tried that deox v2.2 and didnt like it , switched to stock with removed bloat and love it more but thats for different thread

Well thanks for you answers and I do apologize for posting this here. I didn't know. I think i will go with what you have done. Stock ROM without bloatware. Did you flash the Stock ROM from this forum? or did you just deleted the apps one by one?
I will do the fota fix as well.

moshe22 said:
Hi guys,
I just got a SGS4G about a week ago and I would like to tweak it a little bit but I do have some concerns. This is my first android smartphone
Here are my concerns:
I would like to do a Backup of my ROM in case I ever want to go back to it. How could I do that? Do I need to install a bootloader other than the one that comes with the phone? if yes which one should I install?
I have rooted my phone and would like to get rid of a bunch of apps but was reading that if you remove some of the apps it could cause the phone to malfuncion. Is there a compiled a list of apps that should not be removed? or this is just not true?
When I'm ready to install a Stock ROM how do I do that? Via Odin? (I can look for some guide if it's via Odin)
Can anyone tell me what would be the benefit of installing Deodexed instead of using the Stock ROM?
Will i always me able to come back to my Stock ROM once i figure how to create a backup ROM?
Am I missing any important point that I should know about?
I would really appreciate if you can help clarify this doubts that I got before i try to do anything.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ClockWorkMod is the preferred way to backup your ROM, but it does not seem to be working on the SGS4G currently. I was messing with it one night and actually think I got it to backup the Rom one time but I cannot guarantee that I did because I was working on a supposed fix and did not get a chance to copy the backup file to my computer before it got wiped off my SD card. The process is called nandroid backup. If you have a virgin phone and want a clean backup of your ROM you might want to wait until the fix comes out for CWM.
Once you root your phone you can install Titainum backup. That allows you to backup your apps/Data/System settings. At least that’s what it says it does. From what I’ve read, the best way to backup your apps is with ADB which is part of the Software Development Kit. You can also use Android Commander which uses ADB to Pull your apps to your computer and make a backup there. Check http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1010006 for info on SDK and ADB commands. There is also a direction to making new apps install to your SD card natively. This link http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1001202 also shows that command and how to Reverse/Check status of settings.
The Noobs guide to Oden covers the basics to flashing your ROM fairly well: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1001759
The [ROM-ODIN]T959VUVKB5 Stock + Root and [ROM-ODIN] Deodexed KB5 Enhanced v2.2 are the two ROMs that are working now for most people. The first is Odexed the second is Deodexed. Odexed is how it comes stock and takes up less room but making modifications or taking apks from other roms is hard, While Deodexed allows modders to work on the apks & easily change stuff like themes. (Description Taken from Damage's DamageControl Thread) My suggestion is to have some patience and wait for ClockWorkMod to be updated and working for the SGS4G before you dive in too deep. Take some time to look around the 4g posts and read as much as you can to get familiar with what is working and what is not. Check some of the threads with locks on them to see what not to do. There is a wealth of information in these pages.

ClockWorkMod is the preferred way to backup your ROM, but it does not seem to be working on the SGS4G currently. I was messing with it one night and actually think I got it to backup the Rom one time but I cannot guarantee that I did because I was working on a supposed fix and did not get a chance to copy the backup file to my computer before it got wiped off my SD card. The process is called nandroid backup. If you have a virgin phone and want a clean backup of your ROM you might want to wait until the fix comes out for CWM.
Once you root your phone you can install Titainum backup. That allows you to backup your apps/Data/System settings. At least that’s what it says it does. From what I’ve read, the best way to backup your apps is with ADB which is part of the Software Development Kit. You can also use Android Commander which uses ADB to Pull your apps to your computer and make a backup there. Check http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1010006 for info on SDK and ADB commands. There is also a direction to making new apps install to your SD card natively. This link http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1001202 also shows that command and how to Reverse/Check status of settings.
The Noobs guide to Oden covers the basics to flashing your ROM fairly well: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1001759
The [ROM-ODIN]T959VUVKB5 Stock + Root and [ROM-ODIN] Deodexed KB5 Enhanced v2.2 are the two ROMs that are working now for most people. The first is Odexed the second is Deodexed. Odexed is how it comes stock and takes up less room but making modifications or taking apks from other roms is hard, While Deodexed allows modders to work on the apks & easily change stuff like themes. (Description Taken from Damage's DamageControl Thread) My suggestion is to have some patience and wait for ClockWorkMod to be updated and working for the SGS4G before you dive in too deep. Take some time to look around the 4g posts and read as much as you can to get familiar with what is working and what is not. Check some of the threads with locks on them to see what not to do. There is a wealth of information in these pages.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks man! Really helpful. I will read into these threads and probably will wait for the clockwork to work for SGS4G.
I really don't see the advantage of flashing to Deodexed. Maybe i'm missing something?

Confused about specifics, would appreciate clarification

Hi all,
I'm attempting to upgrade my Galaxy S Captivate (Rogers) 2.2 stock phone, although it is rooted and unlocked currently. I've read many of the plethora of threads both here and elsewhere, but in all honesty it is a bit overwhelming and I was hoping to get some clarification on some of the specifics and was hoping people here could help.
1) I was hoping to upgrade to 2.3, either stock or a custom ROM. Which ones are good and stable? There are really so many now, I would appreciate a few suggestions. I've looked through many of the threads, but can't really make up my mind.
2) After I choose a ROM, what are the steps for my phone. Should I unroot? Or at least remove the unlock? I was hoping to maybe just have a list of things I should look for in the guides so I know that they're accurate to my specific device and setup.
3) Just to confirm, I should be able to root and unlock with the new ROMs on 2.3, right? Same for lagfix, that was pretty damn useful.
4) Are there any modems which are better than others? Do I do that separately?
Sorry if I seem a bit confused here. Any help people could provide would be much appreciated.
Thanks!

Lucky75 said:
Hi all,
I'm attempting to upgrade my Galaxy S Captivate (Rogers) 2.2 stock phone, although it is rooted and unlocked currently. I've read many of the plethora of threads both here and elsewhere, but in all honesty it is a bit overwhelming and I was hoping to get some clarification on some of the specifics and was hoping people here could help.
1) I was hoping to upgrade to 2.3, either stock or a custom ROM. Which ones are good and stable? There are really so many now, I would appreciate a few suggestions. I've looked through many of the threads, but can't really make up my mind.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My experience (in alphabetical order)
Continuum
Mosaic
Serendipity
Lucky75 said:
2) After I choose a ROM, what are the steps for my phone. Should I unroot? Or at least remove the unlock? I was hoping to maybe just have a list of things I should look for in the guides so I know that they're accurate to my specific device and setup.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Custom ROMs (kernels) are already rooted. Nothing to do there.
Lucky75 said:
3) Just to confirm, I should be able to root and unlock with the new ROMs on 2.3, right? Same for lagfix, that was pretty damn useful.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Most (not all) kernels have a lagfix (EXT4 file system) option, some don't. It seems RFS has been behaving well for most on 2.3.
Lucky75 said:
4) Are there any modems which are better than others? Do I do that separately?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Every ROM will have one preloaded by the ROM dev. Modems are very often (geographical) area specific. They're quick and painless to flash so try out a few.
Read/study to info guides and tech terms. And especially- always follow the instruction of the ROM dev before installing- it will help you tremendously.

Thanks for the reply mate. So, I was thinking of using continuum, and I was just hoping to confirm everything as I understand it.
I'm looking at this thread: http://www.team-continuum.net/forum...ses/(guide)general-installation-instructions/
And at this thread: http://www.team-continuum.net/forum...lease)(rom)continuum-6-1-xxjvq-android-2-3-4/
1) My device is NOT the i9000, correct? (Galaxy S Captivate from rogers, I think it's the i896?)
Current Firmware: 2.2
Baseband: I896UXJL1
Kernel: 2.6.32.9
Should I have any problems?
2) I shouldn't need to re-lock my phone or anything. I use titanium backup to copy everything off my phone (I just used the batch backup)
3) Then I update the bootloader with this one (I897UCKF1), and I assume I just download and run the executable while connected?
4) Then I flash the non-i9000 kernel with odin?
5) Finally, I put the phone into recovery, and install continuum from the SD.
6) What apps do I restore from titanium? Just the apps? Or can I move some system settings over too? Might be a bit dangerous.
7) Does doing all of this wipe everything on my internal SD card? And should I take out my external SD before doing all this?
Is that correct, or am I missing something?
Thanks!

Problems can always happen with humans in the mix, but if you follow proper directions you shouldn't have any.
1. No problem there (see answer 3).
2. Make sure you copy your Titanium backup file off of your phone as you will wipe everything during the ROM flash. Not sure what you mean by "re-lock"...
3. Again, just follow the instructions to the letter- icezar (Cezar - Continuum) does well to explain the process in his thread.
4 and 5. See answer 3.
6. Apps only. I may be corrected on this but I believe going from 2.2 to 2.3 it may be best just skip any data at all. As a general rule there are very few scenarios where you would ever load system data from Titanium Backup.

Everything you asked about could be answered by spending some time reading the forums. As for which ROM, only you can answer that. There is no "best" ROM because each person has different needs and ROMs can run differently from phone to phone. Next time, spend some time doing some searches, look through the ROM-specific stickies in Q&A, and read up in the developer's ROM thread in Dev. Personalized service is nice, but this is more of a do-it-yourself forum with helpful, unpaid volunteers.

Yes, and Kona was very helpful. Thanks for that mate.
As I mentioned before, I had indeed read many of the stickies, but there are simply too many versions of the same information and I got a bit confused. It's especially hard when the same device has many different models, and each model can have multiple ROMS, and each ROM has many different versions. Factor in unlocking and rooting, and there are a vast number of possible setups. For someone who hasn't loaded a custom ROM before, that can be a bit daunting. Even the threads that try to keep things in one place can sometimes add to the confusion.

Lucky75 said:
Yes, and Kona was very helpful. Thanks for that mate.
As I mentioned before, I had indeed read many of the stickies, but there are simply too many versions of the same information and I got a bit confused. It's especially hard when the same device has many different models, and each model can have multiple ROMS, and each ROM has many different versions. Factor in unlocking and rooting, and there are a vast number of possible setups. For someone who hasn't loaded a custom ROM before, that can be a bit daunting. Even the threads that try to keep things in one place can sometimes add to the confusion.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's why it's better to post to an existing related thread rather than start a new one that just ends up adding to the clutter.

[Q] Is it safe to assume...

First off, let me apologize for being a NOOB. I hate myself. HOWEVER, I watched the video and I'm following the rules. So go easy...
AFTER having ready TONS and TONS of post and threads, I have still not found a definitive answer to my question.
Is there a copy of the stock ROM (or RUU) for the HTC Doubleshot (aka myTouch 4G Slide) that is readily available?
I have had my phone for about a month and am now wanting to root. I would like to have a stock backup for warranty reasons (obviously). I have never rooted an Android. I have "jailbroke" many iPhones and in the begining I always had a backup just in case. Is this not a possibility right now for the HTC Doubleshot?

XigntCrcmstnc said:
First off, let me apologize for being a NOOB. I hate myself. HOWEVER, I watched the video and I'm following the rules. So go easy...
AFTER having ready TONS and TONS of post and threads, I have still not found a definitive answer to my question.
Is there a copy of the stock ROM (or RUU) for the HTC Doubleshot (aka myTouch 4G Slide) that is readily available?
I have had my phone for about a month and am now wanting to root. I would like to have a stock backup for warranty reasons (obviously). I have never rooted an Android. I have "jailbroke" many iPhones and in the begining I always had a backup just in case. Is this not a possibility right now for the HTC Doubleshot?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don't hate yourself, everyone starts somewhere. Welcome to android, where a stock, un-rooted device is capable of much more then a jailbroken i-anything.
There are a couple of ways to go about getting a backup - click the link to backup guide in my signature to see how to go about making backups of your data (both through ADB and CWM).
If you want to grab a ROM file from the dev section, supposing you don't have your own backup:
In the dev section:
De-odexed stock repack
Stock - equivalent of a factory reset on a fresh device
And also, Undeadk9 made a stock version that is de-odexed, has root and so forth, check it out:
Stock - rooted, busybox, etc...
Also, once you get from S-ON to S-OFF there really is no way to go back, but it won't have any impact on your warranty or exchange ability if needed.

Thanks. I am looking forward to this. If you are referring to the Stock ROM uploading by UndeadK9 or PaulObrian ( i think those were the names) I have already kind of glanced over those. The DEVs made sure to mention that they weren't 100% stock and It was "flashing" at my own risk. I don't mind this. I am just worried that if I mess up somehow I won't be able to take it back to T-Mobile to get a new one because they will see that it has been rooted... I

The one that is the equivalent of a factory reset on a fresh device is what you would want to use, if you wanted to go back to stock, with an odexed ROM, and all.

Thank you for the help. I am reading the Backup Guide link in your signature right now...

I was following instructions on how to use the Revolutionary Method to root my phone. ALL that I did was download Revolutionary, The HTC Fastboot Drivers and I obtained my beta key from the website. I hooked up my phone on charge only with USB Debugging enabled. The program ran fine and it said successful. The next step was to power down and then do an HBOOT. HOWEVER when I hit selected power down, my phone shut off AND IT WONT TURN BACK ON! Help!
What do I do? Please help me... Did I just BRICK my phone that friggin easily?!?!?! =(... I could cry....

Turn your phone back on it should resume revs picks up where it left off normally. If it doesn't hit power and volume down at the. Same time that will bring you to hboot (skating androids) verify you have s off in the upper right it should say s off. Then reboot.
You should be fine. And if it won't turn on as in power up you may want to check your battery
Sent from my Crack Injected Doubleshot using xda premium

[Q] complete noob.please someone help me

i have no idea what im doing no matter how many videos i watch and comments and forum answers.i would love nothing more than to root my samsung droid charge and im sure many users out there had to go through this painful undertaking at some point.i dont know where to begin with roms nor what to download and where to get it from or if its even right.but im so tired of watching all these pointless verizon apps and other crap lingering and running in the background of my device.please.....sumone help me.i want to learn very badly.ive seen everything from titanium backup to and certain roms but dont quite understand it all.can and will someone kindly guide me?

First off download Odin then download an Odin based rom and cwm recovery . Run Odin flashing the rom, run it once more flashing recovery and go on the market and get super user and that's it all rooted. That easy
Sent from my SCH-I510 using xda premium

Well I came from Blackberry where I learned and the best way is just read the sticky's ask some basic questions and go from there. Search the development section and read about each rom and its base. Gingerbread being the newest.
Some come with everything you need to flash your phone which makes it east while others require you to download some programs and install. Learn the basics about your phone.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1172904
How to restore your phone to stock
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1111486
How to flash Roms
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1160580
After you decide on the Rom you want and flash you may want to add a theme which each is different in what they change. Some just color , some icons, etc..
Just take your time to take it all in and read then ask question in the correct forum as you go. Jump right in as I did and have never bricked my phone and have always been able to recover or go back to stock. I know I pointed you basically to things you could have found yourself but thats what it is about. Read jump in and get your phone the way you want.
So kinda to make it simple download the basic drivers needed to access your phone.
A. Make sure you know how to get back to stock.
B. How to flash rom in Development section which will have all drivers needed to install for your phone.
B. Pick a Rom
C. Then later on maybe pick a them or read about more advanced stuff such as scripts or changing certain files. Blackberry used .cod if I remember and android uses .apk for programs.
Im still learning myself but thought I would atleast answer your post.

Noob guide needed..

Can i get a link to a step by step guide for rooting and flashing roms in general im new to this and interested in how it works so any help given will be greatly appreciated .( links to software as well as roms if possible since i dont have the 10 post to access such)

kingofkrunck said:
Can i get a link to a step by step guide for rooting and flashing roms in general im new to this and interested in how it works so any help given will be greatly appreciated .( links to software as well as roms if possible since i dont have the 10 post to access such)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i doubt you will find any general rooting guides. reason being, there are countless roots for different devices, and each has its own way to install.
roms are pretty straight forward, every one i have ever used is flashed in recovery, which is not much more than clicking a few buttons once you have a recovery installed.
your best option to learn would be to go to your phones forum and read any threads in development titled root and recovery (likely titled "twrp" "cwm" or "phils")
before trying any of that, you will want to learn thoroughly how to return to stock. those threads are usually in the general forum of your phone. it is really important to learn how to fix your phone before installing any mods, then you wont be so frantic when you break it, and dont know how to fix it.

Thank you and I assume the same applies for tablets right ?
Its difficult finding a thread specific to my tablet reason being its not a branded tablet .

kingofkrunck said:
Thank you and I assume the same applies for tablets right ?
Its difficult finding a thread specific to my tablet reason being its not a branded tablet .
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yes
it really doesnt matter what the device is. you can only use roots, recoveries and roms that support your device, and have to follow the instructions contained with them.