I'm about to root my new NS and every guide I see reminds me that the internal storage ("SD card") will be wiped - I'm cool with that. But since I'm unrooted I can't use Titanium yet to back up my apps.
So my question is - once I root, what's the best way to get everything back without manually doing everything all over again?
fchipm said:
I'm about to root my new NS and every guide I see reminds me that the internal storage ("SD card") will be wiped - I'm cool with that. But since I'm unrooted I can't use Titanium yet to back up my apps.
So my question is - once I root, what's the best way to get everything back without manually doing everything all over again?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I see a lot of people say appbrain lets them easily reinstall all their apps after a wipe. Apps, but not app data.
Not sure how that works, i haven't tried it myself. edit: little google search revealed this on how to do it:
Without root, there's no way you're going to save your data that's on the internal storage space.
distortedloop said:
I see a lot of people say appbrain lets them easily reinstall all their apps after a wipe. Apps, but not app data.
Not sure how that works, i haven't tried it myself. edit: little google search revealed this on how to do it:
Without root, there's no way you're going to save your data that's on the internal storage space.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah I just read some more about it - apparently it's just not at all possible yet, or ever.
Oh well better get to rooting before I have TOO much to lose.
fchipm said:
Yeah I just read some more about it - apparently it's just not at all possible yet, or ever.
Oh well better get to rooting before I have TOO much to lose.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, that's why I'm an early rooter on all my phones.
App developer's should be encouraged (or allowed by Google) to put their app data into someplace that the user can back up.
I wonder if the reason app data is put in a root-only read place of the device by default is part of the sand-boxing security.
Best backup before root
The only thing I really had to hunt for was to backup Angry Birds. Thankfully there's an app called Angry Cheaters that is both free and gives you save files for Angry Birds.
I just went through this process yesterday. Google actually saves most/all of your apps and will reinstall when you reenter you gmail address. It also restored my wifi passwords (in addition to obvious things like email/contacts). Just be careful if you have to wipe multiple times while exploring root that you let this process do its thing, it forgot a few apps that way. Thankfully appbrain had moved all of my previous apps to another list.
The only other thing I couldn't back up was some auto mileage data, so I just wrote that into notepad and called it a day.
Is there anything else you are specifically trying to get? I was really only focused on Angry Birds.
Hmmm here is a question/thought
If unlocking your bootloader whipes everything clean, would it be a possibility to run data harvesting apps on the device to get w.e data you lost back?
both on the "sd" and /data/data
I use an app called "rsync backup" ... it can generate a DSS key to install on your server of choice, and tell it to back up /mnt/sdcard/ ... the only thing it won't access on the USB Storage area is a folder called ".android_secure" ... but everything else copies just fine.
I routinely sync my phone with this app to my workstation at the office, and a system at home.
haha.. this is why i unlocked the bootloader/rooted my s right away, i didnt have any data to back up. makes it painless
simms22 said:
haha.. this is why i unlocked the bootloader/rooted my s right away, i didnt have any data to back up. makes it painless
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Kinda wish i did this, but oh well.
Still curious if my idea is even possible..anyone have any input?
I am brand new to the Android stuff and the learning curve is rather large. I am pretty well versed in modding iPhones and RIM devices. From what I have read thus far and am trying to confrim.
2.3.3 Just recently has been temp rooted on this device?
Temp or Full rooting is required to remove the bloatware crap?
SDK is installed and ADB is working. I followed the temp rooting method and was able to get SU #.
With that being done is that enough to start removing the junk?
What app should I used to delete the apk's? or should it be done in ADB Shell?
Is there anything that I should backup while I'm at this?
ounvme said:
I am brand new to the Android stuff and the learning curve is rather large. I am pretty well versed in modding iPhones and RIM devices. From what I have read thus far and am trying to confrim.
2.3.3 Just recently has been temp rooted on this device?
Temp or Full rooting is required to remove the bloatware crap?
SDK is installed and ADB is working. I followed the temp rooting method and was able to get SU #.
With that being done is that enough to start removing the junk?
What app should I used to delete the apk's? or should it be done in ADB Shell?
Is there anything that I should backup while I'm at this?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can delete the apk's in system/app
I normally use the Root Explorer app, but you can use adb shell as well
just cd into /system/app and do rm Twitter.apk for example
Root will disappear on reboot, and the bloatware will return unfortunately =/
Stuke00 said:
You can delete the apk's in system/app
I normally use the Root Explorer app, but you can use adb shell as well
just cd into /system/app and do rm Twitter.apk for example
Root will disappear on reboot, and the bloatware will return unfortunately =/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for the reply. I will wait for a more permanent solution. Are the apps reinstalled on reboot or are they never truely removed? It's annoying to have programs forced on a device that I paid for. If I didn't install it then I dont want or use it. I'm a big fan of simple and clean. I am sure something will be out soon to allow this. Thanks again!!!
This reminds me of buying a laptop that has all kinds of junk on it and looking for drivers to make it work with a clean install.....Such a pain in the ass.
ounvme said:
Thank you for the reply. I will wait for a more permanent solution. Are the apps reinstalled on reboot or are they never truely removed? It's annoying to have programs forced on a device that I paid for. If I didn't install it then I dont want or use it. I'm a big fan of simple and clean. I am sure something will be out soon to allow this. Thanks again!!!
This reminds me of buying a laptop that has all kinds of junk on it and looking for drivers to make it work with a clean install.....Such a pain in the ass.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried it with the temp root, I didn't even have to reboot before the apps reappeared. :S We gotta wait for either permanent root or S-OFF (not really too different in this case I think) to remove the apps, and by that time we can just go and install a custom ROM with the apps removed already.
I'm looking forward to permanent root at the moment, this being my first Android phone. And with recent developments, like the temp root and Revolutionary being tested on the Shift, I'd say the future looks good. So keep an eye out.
Racer_X_NFS said:
I tried it with the temp root, I didn't even have to reboot before the apps reappeared. :S We gotta wait for either permanent root or S-OFF (not really too different in this case I think) to remove the apps, and by that time we can just go and install a custom ROM with the apps removed already.
I'm looking forward to permanent root at the moment, this being my first Android phone. And with recent developments, like the temp root and Revolutionary being tested on the Shift, I'd say the future looks good. So keep an eye out.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
lol that sucks. Yeah... need to get S-OFF!
I am gaining much interest in the custom rom idea. I however have the time and the drive to want to read up and learn to do it myself. If full device customization is available I would like to be able to do so.
I have done some reading here and some google searching but is there any 1 place where I can find full info on cooking my own rom?
The main things that I want to change is disable the side button to not control ringer volume. Add native volume control for all audible things. Remove bloatware and add certin apps.
I know there are apps to control all of this, but if its possible to have it funcion at the system level...why not learn how to do it. Things like this are fun to me and I like mind challenging tasks.
Like I stated I have the time I just need to be schooled where the proper most current place to start is.
Obviously this will just be practice and learning until a full root/backup is available.
Thanks
UPDATE/EDIT: September 12th, 2011 -
I am depreciating this thread and will no longer check on or support it. For more information on this topic:
See MT4GS Stock App Encyclopedia for information about the apps themselves.
See Bloater to make stock app removal easier then you could ever imagine it being.
UPDATE/EDIT: August 21st, 2011 -
Posts 19 through 25 are a summary and how-to of what we have learned about removing apps from the stock rooted rom so far. Skip ahead if you want, otherwise the thread is a good read all the way through.
Now that we have a working S-OFF/Root procedure, a lot of us want to kill some of the stuff that came pre-loaded on our phones.
Root is required, and performing a backup through Clockworkmod is a necessity as well. Both backup and restore actions have been tested and working in CWM 4.0.0.9.
I am not responsible for what happens to your device after removing these files, so make sure you make a CWM backup BEFORE you start mucking around with this.
Some other threads that have been dealing with this for this device are Here, Here and Here. I would like to thank the people who have contributed, and continue to do so in those threads. I made this one in "themes and apps", as I think that people in the future coming in will look here first and this may cut down future confusion and questions.
There are a couple of ways you can accomplish this, but i'll start with the (almost) longest way. See the bottom of the post for other options.
We will be using a file manager to accomplish this task, "File Expert", free from the Google market. (I recommend "Root Explorer", a paid app, but if you've come this far you should get it at some point).
You will need to hit options, choose more, then Mount. Select "Mount as Read Write" to be able to delete the files/folders.
Listed below are the apps and what you have to delete to remove them.
Archived to code tags to make the post smaller. The summaries I wrote out are full page further in the thread, so it's easier to see the whole process.
Themes:
Code:
Aubergine
/system/app/aubergine.apk
/data/data/com.tmobile.theme.aubergine
Brooklyn
/system/app/Brooklyn.apk
/data/data/com.tmobile.theme.brooklyn
Jazz
/system/app/Jazz.apk
/data/data/com.tmobile.theme.jazz
Retro
/system/app/Retro.apk
/data/data/com.tmobile.theme.retro
Spring
/system/app/Spring.apk
/data/data/com.tmobile.theme.spring
Live Wallpapers
/system/app/LiveWallpapers.apk
/system/app/LiveWallpapers.odex
/data/data/com.android.wallpaper
Magic Smoke Wallpapers
/system/app/MagicSmokeWallpapers.apk
/system/app/MagicSmokeWallpapers.odex
/data/data/com.android.magicsmoke
Music Visualization Wallpapers
/system/app/VisualizationWallpapers.apk
/system/app/VisualizationWallpapers.odex
/data/data/com.android.musicvis
Sense Live Wallpaper
/system/app/Mode10Wallpapers.apk
/system/app/Mode10Wallpapers.odex
/data/data/com.htc.android.wallpaper
Streak Live Wallpaper
/system/app/HTCLivewallpaperStreak.apk
/system/app/HTCLivewallpaperStreak.odex
/data/data/com.htc.livewallpaper.streak
Weather Live Wallpaper
/system/app/HtcWeatherWallpaper.apk
/system/app/HtcWeatherWallpaper.odex
/data/data/com.htc.WeatherWallpaper
Widgets:
Code:
HTC Widget Download Manager
/system/app/WidgetDownloadManager.apk
/system/app/WidgetDownloadManager.odex
/data/data/com.htc.wdm
Bookmark Widget
/system/app/htcbookmarkwidget3d.apk
/system/app/htcbookmarkwidget3d.odex
/data/data/com.htc.fusion.htcbookmarkwidget
Calculator Widget
/system/app/htcCalculatorWidget.apk
/system/app/htcCalculatorWidget.odex
/data/data/com.htc.android.fusion.calculator
Calendar Widget
/system/app/htccalendarwidgets3d.apk
/system/app/htccalendarwidgets3d.odex
/data/data/com.htc.htccalendarwidgets
Clock Widget
/system/app/htcclock3dwidget.apk
/system/app/htcclock3dwidget.odex
/data/data/com.htc.clock3dwidget
FM Radio Widget
/system/app/com.htc.FMRadioWidget.apk
/system/app/com.htc.FMRadioWidget.odex
/data/data/com.htc.FMRadioWidget
Friend Stream Widget
/system/app/com.htc.FriendStream3DWidget.apk
/system/app/com.htc.FriendStream3DWidget.odex
/data/data/com.htc.FriendStream3DWidget
Mail Widget
/system/app/htcmailwidgets3d.apk
/system/app/htcmailwidgets3d.odex
/data/data/com.htc.htcmailwidgets
Messages Widget
/system/app/com.htc.htcmsgwidgets3d.apk
/system/app/com.htc.htcmsgwidgets3d.odex
/data/data/com.htc.htcmsgwidgets3d
Music Widget
/system/app/com.htc.MusicWidget.apk
/system/app/com.htc.MusicWidget.odex
/data/data/com.htc.MusicWidget3D
Photo Widget
/system/app/HtcPhotoWidget.apk
/system/app/HtcPhotoWidget.odex
/data/data/com.htc.photowidget3d
Setup Widget
/system/app/HtcSetupWidget.apk
/system/app/HtcSetupWidget.odex
/data/data/com.htc.setupwidget
Sync Widget
/system/app/com.htc.Sync3Dwidget.apk
/system/app/com.htc.Sync3Dwidget.odex
/data/data/com.htc.Sync3DWidget
Tips for Home Widget
/system/app/HtcTipWidget.apk
/system/app/HtcTipWidget.odex
/data/data/com.htc.rosiewidgets.tip
Trends Widget
/system/app/com.htc.TrendsWidget.apk
/system/app/com.htc.TrendsWidget.odex
/data/data/com.htc.Trends3DWidget
Twitter Widget
/system/app/com.htc.Twitter3DWidget.apk
/system/app/com.htc.Twitter3DWidget.odex
/data/data/com.htc.Twitter3DWidget
Weather Widget
/system/app/HtcWeather3DWidget.apk
/system/app/HtcWeather3DWidget.odex
/data/data/com.htc.widget3d.weather
System-Type Apps:
Code:
App Sharing
/system/app/appsharing.apk
/system/app/appsharing.odex
/data/data/com.htc.appsharing
AppPack
/system/app/MallLite-4.0.92.apk
/data/data/com.tmobile.appack
Backup
/system/app/MobileBackup.apk
/data/data/com.voxmobile.sync.mobilebackup2
Calculator
/system/app/calculator.apk
/system/app/calculator.odex
/data/data/com.android.calculator2
Home Screen Tips
/system/app/Protips.apk
/system/app/Protips.odex
/data/data/com.android.protips
Setup
/system/app/HTCSetupWizard.apk
/system/app/HTCSetupWizard.odex
/data/data/com.htc.android.htcsetupwizard
Swype
/system/app/Swype.apk
/data/data/com.swype.android.inputmethod
T Mobile Device Carbon
/system/app/TmobileAndroidDeviceCarbon-c42-n123.apk
/data/data/com.zipwhip.devicecarbon.tmobile
T Mobile TV
/system/app/com.mobitv.client.tmobiletvhd
/data/data/com.mobitv.client.tmobiletvhd
Video Chat
/system/app/qik.apk
/data/data/com.qiktmobile.android
Apps:
Code:
Adobe Reader
/system/app/AdobeReader.apk
/data/data/com.adobe.reader
Bejeweled 2
/system/app/Bejeweled2_trust5.apk
/data/data/com.eamobile.bejeweled2_small
DT-Sync
/system/app/desktopPointer-signed-v6.apk
/data/data/com.doubletwist.desktopPointer
Facebook
/system/app/HtcFacebook.apk
/system/app/HtcFacebook.odex
/data/data/com.htc.socialnetwork.facebook
Flickr
/system/app/flickr.apk
/system/app/flickr.odex
/data/data/com.htc.socialnetwork.flickr
Friend Stream
/system/app/FriendStream.apk
/system/app/FriendStream.odex
/data/data/com.htc.friendstream
Media Room
/system/app/MediaRoom.apk
/system/app/MediaRoom.odex
/data/data/com.htc.MediaLauncher
Netflix
/system/app/netflix-17-release-android-marketplace-upgrade.apk
/data/data/com.netflix.mediaclient
Peep
/system/app/HtcTwitter.apk
/system/app/HtcTwitter.odex
/data/data/com.htc.htctwitter
PhotoGrid
/system/app/HtcPhotoGridWidget3D.apk
/system/app/HtcPhotoGridWidget3D.odex
/data/data/com.htc.rosiewidgets.photogridwidget3d
Polaris Office
/system/app/PolarisOffice.apk
/data/data/com.infraware.docmaster
Slacker Radio
/system/app/slackerradio.apk
/data/data/com.slacker.radio
Telenav GPS Navigator
/system/app/TMOUS_Navigator.apk
/data/data/com.telenav.app.android.telenav
Zinio Reader
/system/app/ZinioReader.v2.03.3312.Regular.apk
/data/data/com.zinio.mobile.android
ZS Provider
/system/app/ZinioSettingsProvider.v2.03.3198.TMobile.Smartphone.apk
/data/data/com.zinio.android.settings
I have removed all of these apps from my system, and it still runs fine. No problems.
You may get a crash report to send to HTC while removing some of these things (I denied it), but you can ignore it. You will get them it when removing themes for sure.
I don't see why using an app to remove these (like Absolute System) would be an issue - just make sure to go back and manually delete the .odex files, as such apps probably won't get them.
And, of course, you could always use a terminal emulator to (rm) remove the files/folders manually.
Also, for the more adventurous: (but it wasn't a problem)
Internet
/system/app/Browser.apk
/system/app/Browser.odex
/data/data/com.android.browser
(I replaced with "Opera Mobile" by Opera Software ASA - Free app)
Mail
/system/app/mail.apk
/system/app/mail.odex
/data/data/com.htc.android.mail
(Removing mail does not prevent GMAIL from working correctly)
Music
/system/app/HtcMusic.apk
/system/app/HtcMusic.odex
/data/data/com.htc.music
Music Enhancer
/system/app/HtcMusicEnhancer.apk
/system/app/HtcMusicEnhancer.odex
/data/data/com.htc.musicenhancer
(I replaced with "Android Music" by JRTStudio - Free app)
If anyone else finds things they can safely remove, please post it for others to play with.
Have fun!
deleted most of those and got
'uids on the system are inconsistent' every time on boot
careful...
Can you list which ones you removed to cause that?
Also, were you using a theme that you deleted?
CWM backup is vital when starting to mess with this - I haven't had to restore due to system issues.
I'd love to try to duplicate your problem on my phone to find a fix. Thanks!
I prefer not to actually delete apps in case I ever want to unroot (though this probably isn't that likely but still) and I understand that by doing so, those apps need to be present. if any of you are interested, there is a free app on the market that I discovered. just search "antek" in the market and it freezes whatever bloatware you have so that it no longer runs in the background and should you want to recover it, all you do is just "defrost" it and it runs exactly as it did before. I've saved loads of battery by using this.
I'm using a custom theme that wasn't deleted. I understand that I could get the cyanogenmod fix_permissions script to fix this, but haven't located it yet.
I stuck to your list before this happened except for swype and a few others.
Wasn't looking for help with the issue, just wanted to let you know it happened. Ofcourse I made a backup before and after.
fix_permissions didn't solve. Gonna restore and try again. Btw I didn't freeze first, I just deleted. Doubt that's the reason though.
Protricity said:
fix_permissions didn't solve. Gonna restore and try again. Btw I didn't freeze first, I just deleted. Doubt that's the reason though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm sorry to hear that it's not working out so great for you. Glad to hear you did a backup first though.
It might be good to note, and I should have said it at the beginning, I did a fresh factory reset on my phone just before the S-OFF/Root procedure, and hadn't used any of the things I got rid of.
They were basically just deleted right off the phone before it got used.
Keep us updated on how it's going, and as info comes in i'll add what I can to help. Knowing what apps you got rid of specifically could narrow it down some, and what ones you used first might help as well.
Of course, restoring a backup eliminates the problem, and you may or may not be able to reproduce after - please let us know either way, and thanks for the input!
For our next trick, we're gonna dump HTC Sense.
Blue6IX said:
okay - sorry to post after myself but I got rid of kidzone.
First, I restored a CWM backup I made right after root/busybox installation.
So, my phone state is fresh S-OFF/Root with SU & busybox installed.
It may be important to note that I did a factory reset to my phone just before S-OFF/Root & had a freshly formatted MicroSD card.
I then installed ADW Launcher from the Market, and hit my "home" key. Selected "Use Default" and chose ADW Launcher.
Now my phone defaults to ADW as it's launcher.
I then installed "Absolute System" from the Market, and used it to remove "HTC Sense"
Closed out Absolute System, then scrolled between all 5 ADW desktop screens, powered down the phone, then powered up again. (*NOTE fastboot = off)
Booted fine, was able to ditch sense without issue, and KIDZONE IS GONE!
As always, make sure to do a fresh system backup before messing with anything like this, but Kidzone is linked to sense, and replacing sense with another launcher will remove it.
HTC Sense was the only app removed from the phone, and I haven't checked everything to make sure it works yet, but no HTC crash report to send, and no force close issues. (yet - to be determined)
I've been itching to ditch sense since I got the phone, and this was my first quick test at it. Works good so far.
Edit to add:
Checked the "personalize" option at the top of the "settings" list. This just brings you back to the main desktop, doesn't throw an error.
I knew this one thing would be messed up somehow after ditching sense, but the fact that it doesn't make a problem and just closes the menu is fine by me.
I'll spend the rest of the day testing out my phone without sense to see how it runs. I'll post back how it went tomorrow.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Quoted myself from the kidzone thread, I want to put the info for slimming down my phones apps here.
I'm going to see how the phone runs on just the free version of ADW for a day, then see about coming up with a procedure to remove apps and keep it all stable in the process.
Happy modding!
Protricity said:
fix_permissions didn't solve. Gonna restore and try again. Btw I didn't freeze first, I just deleted. Doubt that's the reason though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Also, a thought. Boot to CWM and clear the dalvik cache.
I looked up some info on this since rooting the other day, and after uninstalling apps it's good to do to clear out the old app data. Something to consider - it might solve your problem.
Blue6IX said:
For our next trick, we're gonna dump HTC Sense
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Does the camera app still work after you deleted sense? I wouldn't want to lose that..
I froze "T-mobile Name ID" and everything seems to be working fine.
You might also want to mention that you can temp-root your device, then freeze these apps, and they will stay frozen after reboot. Just, for anyone that doesn't want to perma-root their device right now (like me). It's not very stable to perma-root your device right now. Just read that if your MT4GS dies and your perma-rooted, you will either have to buy a new battery or find a way to charge your battery without your phone... some issue with the HBoot... So till thats fixed, and till i'm sure things are stable. I'll stick with my Temp-Root
nldroid said:
Does the camera app still work after you deleted sense? I wouldn't want to lose that..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The camera app still works, but I haven't used all the features.
I would assume this still does work completely, though, because this is only getting rid of the sense launcher, and not the underlying frameworks that power it. (which I hear the camera is dependent upon.)
A solid day of running ADW instead of sense as my launcher has been fine, i'll go play with the camera for a little while and get back to you with a more complete answer to this.
dansl said:
I froze "T-mobile Name ID" and everything seems to be working fine.
You might also want to mention that you can temp-root your device, then freeze these apps, and they will stay frozen after reboot. Just, for anyone that doesn't want to perma-root their device right now (like me). It's not very stable to perma-root your device right now. Just read that if your MT4GS dies and your perma-rooted, you will either have to buy a new battery or find a way to charge your battery without your phone... some issue with the HBoot... So till thats fixed, and till i'm sure things are stable. I'll stick with my Temp-Root
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This had to do with a charging issue using Clockworkmod 4.0.0.8 which is fixed with Clockworkmod 4.0.0.9.
I have personally run my battery to completely dead using CWM 4.0.0.9 and it charged up and booted fine.
Good to know that freezing apps stays after reboot on temp-root, that's an awesome find!
Also, just found this.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1150805
Post by rmk40, talking about freezing bloatware apps on the HTC Sensation. There are some apps ppl have frozen on there that are also on the MT4GS. I'm going to look through it now and will check back later.
The Notes app from:
/system/app/androidnotes.apk
Is that it, or is there more in the /data folder?
I think it may be /data/data/com.marigold.android.notes
and /data/data/com.marigold.android.notes/databases/notes
But I don't want to delete it without being fully sure, can someone verify this for me?
nldroid said:
Does the camera app still work after you deleted sense? I wouldn't want to lose that..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep, the camera app works completely. I tested all the modes, and used all the different manual settings in the last option. Nothing was broken, it was all fine.
Removing just the sense launcher and replacing it with something else has no impact on the camera, and I would imagine anything else that requires sense frameworks. We should test anything before making that blanket statement, though, but consider camera.apk to be tested and working without the sense launcher.
dansl said:
Also, just found this.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1150805
Post by rmk40, talking about freezing bloatware apps on the HTC Sensation. There are some apps ppl have frozen on there that are also on the MT4GS. I'm going to look through it now and will check back later.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's awesome - while i'm busy re-inventing the wheel, way to pick up where someone else left off. I glanced through there quickly, but i'm kinda having fun figuring this out. I definitely look forward to hearing what you've learned browsing through, and i'll get there at some point.
Thanks clicked on that helpful post!
Sinfamy said:
The Notes app from:
/system/app/androidnotes.apk
Is that it, or is there more in the /data folder?
I think it may be /data/data/com.marigold.android.notes
and /data/data/com.marigold.android.notes/databases/notes
But I don't want to delete it without being fully sure, can someone verify this for me?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep, you were right on. Delete the .apk in bold, then go delete the folder in bold. Once you delete the folder in /data/data, then your second line about the database in notes becomes moot, since it will have already been deleted.
Updated my list of stuff too (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=16683780).
One thing i found that I couldn't quite figure out what is was for, is the Com.Redbend.SWM-C app. I've read that it might be used for tracking/analytics or DRM content... i dont know, but I froze it, and everything seems to be working fine still! I read someone had issues with Youtube, but youtube has been working fine for me.
thank you for this thread and thanks to dansl too. I was able to remove sense and a lot of the htc bloatware, making the phone a lot better.
I don't know what doubleshotandroidzipgroup was that was running in the background, but i froze it and it seems fine...
So it seems like this thread has been helping people, in conjunction with the other threads on the different aspects of this subject. I don't deal with freezing apps, it always seemed cleaner to me to just get rid of them.
I know in some cases that's not possible, maybe for us maybe not. I've sure learned a lot from this project, and from what people have discovered by freezing apps.
I want to take a moment to thank everyone who has contributed towards what we've learned here.
I took the time to really work out what has to be done to remove the various things we discovered, and the next few posts reflect the contributions everyone has made to this project.
Also, i'm hoping that this road map we are making will cut the time down it takes for developers to introduce roms for our device. Having the locations, and user test data of what you can dump should take some of their headache away. This is one of the motivations behind my trying to lay this all out like this, making it easier not only for us to use now, but for developers to refer to later.
Enjoy, i've had fun with it so far!
There was an initial surge of testing what could or could not be removed from the phone right after we got root, which has mostly passed now. Most of the obvious "I can get rid of this" stuff has been figured out, and the rest of the things we can safely get rid of will take a closer look and involve a bit of head scratching to figure out.
Meantime, I felt like it was a good idea to summarize what we know a bit, and come up with a good procedure for removing stuff that was both simple and stable. You could (and I, as well as others, have) delete(d) this stuff all at once without issue, but i'm more comfortable with a more cautious approach - and I know others will be too.
To that end, i've taken the time to test this method a few times, re-engineer it, tweak things, change the order up a bit, and finally lay it out here. We all pretty much want to get the most out of our phones, and for almost all of us here the "extras" pre-installed on our phones get in the way of this.
This'll be fun, and pretty painless - so - ready to remove some bloat?
Setup 1: We're going to go backwards in time a few steps. The ideal situation here is:
00 - Backup all phone data to somewhere off the phone itself.
01 - Factory reset phone, power down.
02 - Remove microsd card, format in computer.
03 - re-insert microsd card in phone, power on.
04 - Set up your Gmail account, enable the Market on your phone.
05 - S-OFF (if necessary), installing CWM 4.0.0.9 and Rooting your phone.
06 - Installing Busybox and Root Checker, verifying that both root and busybox are obtained/available on your phone.
07 - Uninstalling Busybox installer, checking Busybox installation in Root Checker again, then uninstalling Root Checker.
08 - Power down your phone, and boot into recovery mode.
09 - Make a CWM backup of your system in recovery, then rebooting your phone.
10 - (optional, but recommended) Making a copy of the CWM backup to another place, like your computer.
If you did/do it this way then you can always restore to a clean CWM backup from right after you got Root & Busybox on your phone, in the cleanest ready state it can be.
Otherwise, do a CWM backup of your system now, before following the instructions laid out below to be able to restore your phone if something goes wrong.
I'll try and help anyone who needs it if something doesn't go right, but please understand you do this at your own risk and backups are your best friend!
Setup 2: Tools.
01 - Install Root Explorer.
+ Other file managers may work with varying degrees of success, and there are some free alternatives, but nothing that will do the job like Root Explorer. I highly recommend this app, and if you're going to be doing this kind of stuff on your phone you should probably pick it up. You at least need a file manager capable of read/write access to your system folders, and that can copy and delete.
02 - Install Absolute System Root Tools.
+ Again, there are probably free alternatives out there, but this program is pretty awesome and I recommend it. You should have an app that lets you uninstall system apps, and lets you clear their data before uninstalling. One thing to note, is that it won't delete the .odex files of installed apps, so you'll have to go back and get them manually with Root Explorer.
03 - Before performing any steps listed below, you should make backups of all the files you will delete. I list the locations of everything so you can navigate to it with Root Explorer and copy the files somewhere else, like your sdcard. I would also go so far as to say you should make a CWM backup before attempting each of the steps below, but i'm overly cautious when it comes to backups - that's up to you.
(You could end up making changes in files you aren't working in, without realizing it. A Nandroid backup is the only way to ensure you can restore those files if that should happen)
** - Use Absolute System to uninstall .apk files listed below, and it will also get the /data/data location as well. You will have to go back and get the .odex files manually. If you choose not to use an app to uninstall the .apk files listed below, I wrote out their full path location so you can use Root Explorer to delete them manually.
** - Changes made to /system/etc are mirrored in /etc as soon as you make them. All changes made in /system/ are mirrored in the main directory in any corresponding folders or files in real-time as you make them.
** - I recommend removing all widgets and shortcuts/folders or any other items that may be on your desktop before starting this process. You can always put back anything that survives later when you are done.
** - It might be a good idea to turn off GPS, Mobile Networks, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi before proceeding. Optional, but recommended.
Feel free to skip any apps you want to keep along the way, and you don't necessarily have to go in order, but it'll be cleaner that way. Part of the organization behind it is to make it easy for the user to remember what they are doing, and break it down into smaller blocks so you'll lose less progress if something goes wrong.
Now that we're past all that, lets get down to business.
Part 1: Stock themes and wallpapers.
00 - Make sure your phone is set to the "System" theme before continuing (default theme). Then take a picture with your camera, or get a picture you like on your phone. Set this as your background wallpaper.
01 - Using Absolute System, uninstall the stock themes:
-com.tmobile.theme.Aubergine
+ /system/app/Aubergine.apk
+ /data/data/com.tmobile.theme.Aubergine
-com.tmobile.theme.Brooklyn
+ /system/app/Brooklyn.apk
+ /data/data/com.tmobile.theme.Brooklyn
-com.tmobile.theme.Jazz
+ /system/app/Jazz.apk
+ /data/data/com.tmobile.theme.Jazz
-com.tmobile.theme.Retro
+ /system/app/Retro.apk
+ /data/data/com.tmobile.theme.Retro
-com.tmobile.theme.Spring
+ /system/app/Spring.apk
+ /data/data/com.tmobile.theme.Spring
02 - Using Absolute System, uninstall the stock live wallpapers:
-com.android.wallpaper (Android Live Wallpapers)
+ /system/app/LiveWallpapers.apk
+ /data/data/com.android.wallpaper
-com.htc.android.wallpaper (HTC Sense Live Wallpaper)
+ /system/app/Mode10Wallpapers.apk
+ /data/data/com.htc.android.wallpaper
-com.htc.android.image_wallpaper (HTC Slide Show Wallpaper)
+ /system/app/HtcImageWallpaper.apk
+ /data/data/com.htc.android.image_wallpaper
-com.android.magicsmoke (Magic Smoke Wallpapers)
+ /system/app/MagicSmokeWallpapers.apk
+ /data/data/com.android.magicsmoke
-com.android.musicvis (Music Visualization Wallpapers)
+ /system/app/VisualizationWallpapers.apk
+ /data/data/com.android.musicvis
-com.htc.livewallpaper.streak (Streak Live Wallpaper)
+ /system/app/HTCLivewallpaperStreak.apk
+ /data/data/com.htc.livewallpaper.streak
Okay, we are done with Absolute System for the moment.
Fire up Root Explorer, and go to:
03 - /system/app/ (delete the files: )
-HtcImageWallpaper.odex
-HTCLivewallpaperStreak.odex
-LiveWallpapers.odex
-MagicSmokeWallpapers.odex
-Mode10Wallpapers.odex
-VisualizationWallpapers.odex
Still in Root Explorer, now go to:
04 - /system/customize/resource/ (delete the files: )
-htc_wallpaper_01.jpg
-htc_wallpaper_01_lockscreen.jpg
-htc_wallpaper_02.jpg
-htc_wallpaper_03.jpg
-htc_wallpaper_04.jpg
-htc_wallpaper_05.jpg
-htc_wallpaper_06.jpg
-tmo_wallpaper_01.png
-tmo_wallpaper_02.png
-tmo_wallpaper_03.png
-tmo_wallpaper_04.png
-tmo_wallpaper_05.png
-tmo_wallpaper_06.png
-tmo_wallpaper_grid_preview_01.png
-tmo_wallpaper_grid_preview_02.png
-tmo_wallpaper_grid_preview_03.png
-tmo_wallpaper_grid_preview_04.png
-tmo_wallpaper_grid_preview_05.png
-tmo_wallpaper_grid_preview_06.png
-tmo_wallpaper_preview_01.png
-tmo_wallpaper_preview_01_land.png
-tmo_wallpaper_preview_02.png
-tmo_wallpaper_preview_02_land.png
-tmo_wallpaper_preview_03.png
-tmo_wallpaper_preview_03_land.png
-tmo_wallpaper_preview_04.png
-tmo_wallpaper_preview_04_land.png
-tmo_wallpaper_preview_05.png
-tmo_wallpaper_preview_05_land.png
-tmo_wallpaper_preview_06.png
-tmo_wallpaper_preview_06_land.png
-wallpaper.jpg
-wallpaper.png
Still in Root Explorer, last place to go is:
05 - /system/etc/ (delete folder: )
-slideshow
(These are all the sample images for the HTC slideshow live wallpaper.)
06 - Exit Root Explorer, Reboot your phone to recovery. In CWM choose advanced and then "Wipe Dalvik Cache". Hit back and then "Wipe Cache Partition". Reboot your phone. (It will take a little while longer to boot since you wiped your cache, but not much)
After booting back up and making sure everything still works:
07 - Reboot into recovery, make a CWM Nandroid backup of your system. Make sure to back this up somewhere off the phone too.
Congratulations! You now have a recovery image of your phone with all of the stock themes and wallpapers removed.
There is some way to remove the native apps from my rooted razr maxx hd?
braianh said:
There is some way to remove the native apps from my rooted razr maxx hd?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, however it is much better to freeze the app. You can use Titanium Backup to do that https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.keramidas.TitaniumBackup&hl=en
When you freeze it, under the default setting of Titanium Backup, it will still get updates and remain frozen (won't be used by the system or be in the app drawer or on the home screens). This is much safer than removing it because if the phone misbehaves you can always unfreeze the app as well. There's no real reason to remove the app by deleting it.
If you do want to delete it, then native apps live in the /system/app/ folder, which is mounted as a read only filesystem. Since you are rooted, you can remount it so that you can read and write to the folder and delete the app, however that said, its much better to simply rename the app. I haven't renamed apps in the system folder on this phone (just got it) but have on the Samsung SGS II, which is a much safer phone to play around with like this from the look of it so far, though.
Every app on a stock install has two files, one with a .apk file extention and one with and .odex file extention. From experience with the other Android phone, you can just rename something to, for example, videoplayer.apk.backup and videoplayer.odex.backup. It can be renamed back later if you need to. You want a file browser that will remount the filesystem so that its rewritable. Root Explorer is what I've used but there's plenty of others that are gaining in popularity. It can be done at the command line as well.
All of the above said, though, you really, really, really, want to make sure that you aren't freezing or deleting or renaming an app like this that will interfere with your ability to undo it. If you do something that gets the phone stuck with lots of things crashing and making the phone unresponsive, or worse unbootable, then that's a very bad situation. It was always really easy to deal with from the recovery screen on my SGS II but I haven't yet tried things out on my RAZR HD in this fashion and things are differant when it comes to it. I haven't tried much out yet.
Also, and I really don't want to come off as being rude, and I hate it when people do on this forum, but because you had to ask if it was possible on a rooted phone at all sort of indicates that you might want to get as much advice about what you want to freeze or delete before doing it. Its prudent on any phone and less is more until you've gathered more information; and from the amount of support on this phone's section (low number of people having the phone and tinkering at this point) of the forum my guess is that this it will take some time and patients to get all the answers and information that you want before going balls deep.
Good luck, and remember that less is more, and that support will grow over time.
If you delete you will have a difficult time taking the next OTA. Freeze them. There is almost no space to be had by removing them.
There's not a lot of information out there for the Galaxy Core Prime on how we might debloat and save more space, so I decided to make a short tutorial that might help people with some easy steps in cleaning up their device. This guide is meant to be pretty basic and to just help point people in the right direction so that it speaks to a broader scope of Galaxy Core Prime Models, but is based specifically on the SM-G360T1. The SM-G360T is essentially the exact same phone though, so all of these steps should apply directly to that device too. Other Galaxy Core Prime models will be able to use this as well, but just be sure to read the special "NOTE" part of each step. Also, I'm sure it goes without saying, but inevitably I'll get the question, so obviously, root is required for this!
Anyhow, here we go:
1) Do a full backup in recovery before deleting system stuff. This is always a good idea just in case you delete something you're not supposed to and android stops working, then you can just go into recovery(TWRP, CWM, etc.) and restore your backup and your back to square one. It's good to do a new backup too a few days after when you're sure your deleted apps aren't causing any problems so you can restore to that slimmer version later if need be. Also, you should probably save your backup files to the external sd as you will likely have more free space there.
2) Install a debloated rom in recovery. SlimPickins is a great one for the SM-G360T1. It's basically the stock firmware for the MetroPCS Core Prime, but thanks to @Koognod we can now run Android without all the extra junk using his rom. It comes already debloated, deodexed and deknoxed, so you can just install it and not have to deal with finding all the junk to delete for yourself. It's already gone! It's also great for speeding up your bogged down phone or creating more space for your apps and media. Here is the link.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/gal...rom-slimpickins-stock-rooted-bloated-t3250883
NOTE: YOU CAN NOT INSTALL THIS ROM IF YOU DO NOT HAVE THE SM-G360T1. It should work fine on the SM-G360T too, but for anyone else just try googling or searching XDA for your "model #" and "debloat rom".
3) I recommend deleting the "PreloadInstaller" folder from "/system/app/" with a Play Store root browser. You should do this before deleting any system apps in my opinion, as this folder contains an apk that is programmed to put back a lot of the system stuff you delete(either immediately or after reboot). If you don't feel comfortable deleting this folder just yet though, then you can just move it to your external sd card for now with your browser to save space in case you ever want to move it back or just skip this step. Your choice!
NOTE: If you don't have the SM-G360T1 or SM-G360T, then your "PreloadInstaller" folder may be called something slightly different or you may not even have it at all. Just look for something similar in there. Be careful not to delete the package installer though as that's the program that allows you to install apps yourself.
4) You need an app that uninstalls system apps. I use "System App Remover(ROOT)" from the Play Store personally because all your deleted system apps actually go into a recycle bin first where they can be restored later if needed. It also tells you if the app in question is a "Key Module"(ie. proceed with serious caution).
5) Google search the internet for system stuff that's ok to delete for your device. It helps to search your model usually, but I don't think there's much info out there for the Galaxy Core Prime unfortunately, so just searching something like "Debloat Samsung Safe" can be a great resource as many Samsung phones have the same system junk.
6) Delete all the obvious stuff you don't want. This would be things like any of the MetroPCS stuff(or whatever carrier you have) or even the Galaxy app store if you don't want it. A lot of Google apps can be deleted too, though you want to be a little more careful with those as Android is pretty much based on the Google Services Framework and many Google apps are tied into the system. Generally, apps like Chrome, Docs, Drive, Hangouts, Maps(if you prefer another map application like Waze or whatever), etc. are good to go if you want. I wouldn't delete any of the core Google apps though that may handle major processes on your phone, like Calendar, possibly even Gmail or any of the ones that you don't know what they do. Deleting the stock camera, gallery, video or music player may sometimes give you problems down the line too, so I would probably keep those. You can also back all your apps up before deleting with Titanium Backup from the Play Store too in case you delete something that you need to put back later.
*NOTE: Some apps, like the Google ones for instance, may cause popup errors after you delete them. This is normal. Your phone's just looking for all those files that were just secretly running a few moments ago. All you have to do is reboot to get rid of those messages. If they still persist, then just reinstall the app.
7) Download an app to clean up that leftover mess. When you delete an app, especially with system stuff, it often leaves a bunch of folders and junk behind. Go to the Play Store and download an app that allows you to clean all that up. There's lots of good ones. I like to use one called "SD Maid" myself. It's good at cleaning up those leftover files and has a feature called "CorpseFinder" in fact that does just that. It also cleans up a lot of other things on your phone.
Anyhow, if you're a heavy power user like myself or you store a lot of music or other media on your phone in addition to 20 million apps or so and you need more space, then I hope this helps you out. Take care guys. Thanks!
Out of curiosity, how does this affect the "phone unlock" feature? In case I want to change providers?
2xMakina said:
Out of curiosity, how does this affect the "phone unlock" feature? In case I want to change providers?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It won't affect it at all as long as you don't delete the "Device Unlock" app. More info on unlocking your device here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=63729887
Also, you can just install SlimPickins if you want an already debloated rom.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=63868639