Hello!
I am still quite new to the Android environment and I do not yet know all the ins and outs of the operating- or file system (what can be found where? Where are settings stored? etc.)
Meanwhile, I rooted my Motorola Xoom following the guides in different forums and now, I’d like to receive access to the SD card reader by updating the system to Honeycomb 3.1.
I am confused about the following questions:
- what is the best way to backup all my installed applications including their specific settings?
- Where (in which folders/files) can I find all the installed applications and their specific settings (e.g. backup of the numerous settings in “K-9 Mail”)?
- Will I be able to simply restore my installed applications (including settings) after I have done the update to Honeycomb 3.1?
Someone of you may already have all the needed experience – will you provide me with some good and helpful tips?
Thanks and cheers!
deb
(my device: European Motorola Xoom WiFi + 3G)
i think most people use titanium backup, but you can use recovery to back everything up onto your SDcard and put it away safely incase the worst happens.
I havent done it though i find it just as easy to reinstall all the apps, I have them on my HD so i just sideload them quicker than downloading them. I just use recovery to update tiamat and hope it all goes well...LOL
Lordao
Related
Hey Guys, I'm a little bit of a noob here. I have had my captivate for about 6 months now and I started to get a little frustrated with the way the Captivate was set up compared to my old HTC Hero. I didn't have to root the Hero and could do anything with it I wanted. With the captivate it was another story. I rooted the new Captivate and it has been a wild ride. I follow the forums to see what is available after having Super User installed. I have to say I went a little crazy into the exploration of what i can and cant do. I learned what I cant do the hard way and spent almost 3 day's having problems with odin3 one touch flasher. Once i got everything back running to factory settings I decided to just set up the phone the way I like it and updated the config. for example I added the root access and updated the settings.db file to allow 3rd party apk installs. I than also deleted the wealth of useless crap At&T Preloaded onto the OS such as the apps and the 20 AT&T contacts. Fortunately now my phone and layout is exactly to where I want it. Unfortunately now I am afraid to perform other root mods on the phone and have to re flash the original factory settings on it and have to set it up all over again. I am not much of a programmer but do know end user support very well and was hoping that there would be a way to create a backup of the root directory so that in case I brick my phone (happend twice when I tried to replace the launcher program) I can just flash my backup so that I don't have to install apps, configure settings, and adjust the layout all over again? I was thinking of creating an update.zip would do it that i could keep on my sd card and flash it from recovery.
Can Somebody please Help!!!
Thanks,
Jay
Generally speaking, unless you use the same ROM, it is a bad idea to restore system settings.
Check out Titanium Backup from the Market. It works really well at backing up apps, data, and system data. Be sure to get the donate version so you don't have to manually install every single app (huge time/effort saver). It won't give you an update.zip file, but if you reinstall it and point it at it's backup folder, it can restore all of your data with minimal effort.
If you are prone to bricking your phone, back it up to an external SD card by entering "/<external sd>/Titanium Backup" as the backup path, replacing <external sd> with the real path (it's different on 2.1 and 2.2 ROMs).
Good luck.
Thanks, I actually already have Titanium Backup lite and i backed it up using the batch Backup all user apps + System Data but have no idea how to restore these backups if my phone bricks. I dont necessarily want to flash the phone to try it out. Any chance you know of where i can find out a little bit more information on how to restore backups with this app?
I also have the ClockworkMod Recovery where i have backed up my phone to an SD card. It says during the process Backing up system, data, datadata and than generates an md5sum. After this the phone boots back up and I was wondering if recovering using ClockworkMod is the same as flashing an update.zip rom but instead of using the stock version? Also this app seems a lot easier to use at there is an option to reboot into recovery and select roms
How To: Backup Your Apps, Data & Settings BEFORE You Root/Change ROMs on Your Device!
I recently rooted my Evo 4G and since I had been using it for a while didn't want to lose all of my settings and data and didn't want to sit for hours installing apps and trying to set them each up the way I had them beforehand. None of the root guides that I've found seem to cover this critical first step before they get into the process of rooting the device. So a lot of people root and flash a new ROM and then realize all of their stuff is gone. So, here's how to back everything up before you root or change ROMs:
1) Locate/Download/Install Z4Root to your device. (It appears as though it was removed from the market due to people using it to get temp root in order to use hot spot tethers. The apk can be found in a thread on this forum here)
2) Install Titanium Backup from the market (I recommend the full version because it makes the restore process a one touch option whereas the free one requires you to click 'Install' and then 'confirm' for each individual app which can be a royal PITA if you have lots of apps)
3) Install 'Root Check' from the market
4) Launch Z4 and use to gain temporary root access of your device. Use Root Check to make sure you indeed do have root access.
5) Launch Titanium Backup and grant superuser permissions where necessary
6) Click the center option at the top of the screen after Titanium checks all possible scenarios. Scroll through the options and find the option (usually has the highest number on the right... or real close to it) that backs up all your apps + system data and settings. Allow it to complete this process which can take a bit.
7) Once this is complete back out of Titanium Backup and reboot your device. This will remove the temporary root access from the device. When the device has settled run Root Check one last time to make sure don't have root access.
8) Proceed with your favorite root/ROM process & enjoy not having to waste hours setting up your phone again the way you had it. When you recover make sure you chose the option to recover all missing apps and all data/settings because if you choose to recover ALL apps you can run into issues with the apps it tries to override.
Now, sometimes there are minor issues from ROM to ROM or device to device when you backup from one platform and then recover on another but for the most part it will save you a LOT of time. You can also try a reboot or two after you recover which can help with some settings that don't show up immediately after a recover. I did this before rooting my Evo 4G and it worked flawlessly.
Thanks and hopefully that helps.
Cool. I never thought about backing up while in temp root. Good find.
^_^_^'s tbolt
EEdaesung said:
Cool. I never thought about backing up while in temp root. Good find.
^_^_^'s tbolt
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Sure thing, hopefully it saves others some time & effort.
Newer and better explanation!
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1152233
Worked the first time!
Does this work with htc inspire 4g the link u provide
and the initial topic on this thread ?
Just to add, Z4Root will work for few device (older models)
Most of newer android version running on Gingerbread, it won't support.
Downloaded and installed z4 but keeps force closing??? please help. running on stock epic 4g touch
Z4Root
z4root doesn't work anymore on android jeally bean 4.2.2 ........ any ideas ??
does update.zip in cwm functions same
restore issues
if i back up using this app in stock firmware after that suppose a did a customrom. will there be any issue if i restored using this app.
jelly bean to kitkat. custom rom cynmod11.
jeswinjames6 said:
if i back up using this app in stock firmware after that suppose a did a customrom. will there be any issue if i restored using this app.
jelly bean to kitkat. custom rom cynmod11.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Should be fine as it's still just app data. I haven't personally tested it to confirm though so proceed at your own risk.
I have multiple upgrade/update questions and have searched exhaustively on this and other forums. Maybe there's no issue because in forum responses, the mechanics are never discussed. I see "just do a software upgrade", then "thanks, worked great", but not how to retain user configuration through an upgrade.
I have a Viewsonic G-Tablet (UPS300-2-2) and I have loaded CWM 0.8 and successfully flashed VEGAn-TAB GingerEdition STABLE RC1. This ROM has the beta VTL.launcher.
I've also spent several days loading music, video, wall paper, links, home-pages etc, and once I had it the way I liked it, backed up using CWM.
It all works fairly well, except I have problems with SDcard2 losing data, corrupting my partition, causing boot-loops, etc. So I avoid using the external SD slot. Should upgrades become available, I will want to try to fix this problem.
So my questions are (given all the time invested);
1) will CWM restore data as well as settings (will it restore downloaded apps, video & music stored on SDcard or SDcard2, or are these left untouched when ROM is flashed)? - answer; neither CWM nor Titanium will restore data such as downloads, books, videos, music or pictures. These will have to be copied over again. I found CWM to be a very effective backup and restore tool; all applications, settings, passwords, and vtl.launcher layouts. The advantage with Titanium is that you a) don't have to boot into APX mode, b) you can select all applications or individually to backup or restore, c) you can choose to backup just settings/data.
2) will VTL.launcher 1.6.2 retain beta launcher settings, my home page layouts (I'm required to uninstall beta VTL.launcher before installing 1.6.2)? - answer; both launchers can coexist, just flip between them by pressing home key. New launcher adds catalogs. New launcher does not use beta version settings, so home pages need to be reconfigured. To move settings from beta 1.5 to 1.6.2, I saved Launcher layout and settings (Menu-More-VTL Settings), then restored. The widgets didn't work right, but the layouts were fine, so I just reinstalled all the widgets under 1.6.2 and all is working fine. Note in this post that gojimi does not require beta uninstall before installing 1.6.2, and in fact beta cannot be uninstalled if included with ROM
3) Now that I see Android 3.0, can I update to that, or does this require a new ROM? I'm using v2.3 Android with VEGAn-TAB - answer; a new ROM will required to integrate the OS with the hardware. A ROM upgrade also appears to erase all data on SDcard, so externally stored backups are necessary. If re-flashing to root, CWM may also need to be reinstalled (see references in this thread).
4) What is a kernel (vs. a ROM)? why would I want to upgrade this? - answer; my ROM uses PERSHOOT's kernel, which has been updated since the ROM was released. Advantages are slight, but it may fix the standby problem (requiring reboot after x-min in standby), and other hardware specific enhancements.
5) If I upgrade a ROM (VEGAn-TAB RC1 to RCx for example), will I keep my old settings? - answer; no, updating a ROM (device specific Kernel + Android OS) will wipe everything on your internal SDcard. Use Titanium to selectively restore applications after re-imaging with new or updated ROM.
Thanks in advance.
Mecklenburg said:
I have multiple upgrade/update questions and have searched exhaustively on this and other forums. Maybe there's no issue because in forum responses, the mechanics are never discussed. I see "just do a software upgrade", then "thanks, worked great", but not how to retain user configuration through an upgrade.
I have a Viewsonic G-Tablet (UPS300-2-2) and I have loaded CWM 0.8 and successfully flashed VEGAn-TAB GingerEdition STABLE RC1. This ROM has the beta VTL.launcher.
I've also spent several days loading music, video, wall paper, links, home-pages etc, and once I had it the way I liked it, backed up using CWM.
It all works fairly well, except I have problems with SDcard2 losing data, corrupting my partition, causing boot-loops, etc. So I avoid using the external SD slot. Should upgrades become available, I will want to try to fix this problem.
So my questions are (given all the time invested);
1) will CWM restore data as well as settings (will it restore downloaded apps, video & music stored on SDcard or SDcard2, or are these left untouched when ROM is flashed)?
2) will VTL.launcher 1.62 retain beta launcher settings, my home page layouts (I'm required to uninstall beta VTL.launcher before installing 1.62)? - answer; both launchers can coexist, just flip between them by pressing home key. New launcher adds catalogs, but doesn't fix SDcard lost file problem. New launcher does not use beta version settings, so home pages need to be reconfigured. I reverted back to beta as catalogs offer me little advantage vs. the work to re-setup home pages
3) Now that I see Android 3.0, can I update to that, or does this require a new ROM? I'm using v2.3 Android with VEGAn-TAB
4) What is a kernel (vs. a ROM)? why would I want to upgrade this?
5) If I upgrade a ROM (VEGAn-TAB RC1 to RCx for example), will I keep my old settings?
Thanks in advance.
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Click to collapse
I cant answer all your questions but I can answer some so to start a kernel is more changing the performance of your device and the rom is more for looks and feel. Now when you flash a kernel it wont change any settings or anything but a rom will change settings some wont but if you back up on clockwork I've noticed it saves everything even apps. and for the honeycomb deal well I haven't tried it yet but I'm sure they have a rom and kernel the same or similar you can flash.
I've become a bit of a purist lately and don't really want to root my device (currently a Nexus 7 2013 running stock 6.0) and keep it as close to stock as possible. The only exception I've made to this is custom recoveries (because so far I haven't noticed any changes in OS behavior when a custom recovery is loaded).
So, my question is, how can I backup apps from a custom recovery? (with the ability to recover them individually - my recovery of choice is CWM, but I've used TWRP as well)
A little background on what makes me ask this and what I've tried so far ...
Lately I was tinkering with framework-res.apk and managed to get the system into an unusable state and was unable to fix it even by flashing the stick system image back to the device. Apparently my tinkering had messed up some bit of the user data that the system uses, but I couldn't figure out what bit to reset.
So, I went into recovery and used ADB to shell into the system and tar/gz'd the entire data partition up and then wiped everything other than the sdcard data (/data/media/0 on my device). The device booted back up normally and everything worked again (after resetting things up).
So, next I thought that if I just reinstalled some of my usual apps, start them up to let the basic structure get created, and then go into recovery and replace their data (/data/data/com.whatever.something/) with the backup I made, and reset the ownerships to the ownerships configured under the new install, that they should be back to the way they were before all this started.
But, no dice. Restoring /data/data/whatever is at best ignored by the apps I tried, and at worst causes the app to crash on startup (tried BeyondPod, Chrome, and Google Authenticator).
I've seen this process documented as working on the web. So, what gives? Did whatever framework-res.apk corruption I had actually mess up my other apps also (so that I essentially backed up a crashing/corrupted app), or does this process not work anymore?
Thanks in advance for any assistance or tips.
TechDude said:
I've become a bit of a purist lately and don't really want to root my device (currently a Nexus 7 2013 running stock 6.0) and keep it as close to stock as possible. The only exception I've made to this is custom recoveries (because so far I haven't noticed any changes in OS behavior when a custom recovery is loaded).
So, my question is, how can I backup apps from a custom recovery? (with the ability to recover them individually - my recovery of choice is CWM, but I've used TWRP as well)
A little background on what makes me ask this and what I've tried so far ...
Lately I was tinkering with framework-res.apk and managed to get the system into an unusable state and was unable to fix it even by flashing the stick system image back to the device. Apparently my tinkering had messed up some bit of the user data that the system uses, but I couldn't figure out what bit to reset.
So, I went into recovery and used ADB to shell into the system and tar/gz'd the entire data partition up and then wiped everything other than the sdcard data (/data/media/0 on my device). The device booted back up normally and everything worked again (after resetting things up).
So, next I thought that if I just reinstalled some of my usual apps, start them up to let the basic structure get created, and then go into recovery and replace their data (/data/data/com.whatever.something/) with the backup I made, and reset the ownerships to the ownerships configured under the new install, that they should be back to the way they were before all this started.
But, no dice. Restoring /data/data/whatever is at best ignored by the apps I tried, and at worst causes the app to crash on startup (tried BeyondPod, Chrome, and Google Authenticator).
I've seen this process documented as working on the web. So, what gives? Did whatever framework-res.apk corruption I had actually mess up my other apps also (so that I essentially backed up a crashing/corrupted app), or does this process not work anymore?
Thanks in advance for any assistance or tips.
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Greetings,
Thank you for using XDA Assist. Here is the Nexus 7 (2013) homepage:
Google Nexus 7 (2013)
Here is where you can ask your questions:
Nexus 7 (2013) Q&A
Good luck!
I'm really looking for a generic solution that would work across devices (not just the Nexus 7). I've been using adb to backup apps for a while just for this reason. I can recover those backups on pretty much any device as long as it has debugging available in the developer options.
TechDude said:
I'm really looking for a generic solution that would work across devices (not just the Nexus 7). I've been using adb to backup apps for a while just for this reason. I can recover those backups on pretty much any device as long as it has debugging available in the developer options.
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Click to collapse
Hello again,
Then you will want to ask for help here:
Android Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting
Good luck!
I'm about to do an upgrade from an stock ROM to Cyanogenmod on a phone I have a lot of apps and settings on.
I know the guides always say "back up before upgrading in case it fails, then upgrade, you'll lose all your previous data". And I know that's the normal way it goes.
I'm a noob to the android OS structure, but is it possible to manually take any parts of the pre-upgrade backup data and paste it in the new OS?
For example how you can copy a lot of programs and AppData (profiles, settings etc) from one installation/version of windows to another.
In my case it would take a lot of extra configuration work even after I use the play store to re-download all the apps. Not to mention some apps are from for ex fdroid or github. And then there's the xposed modules.
Cheers!
I guess I'll upgrade and then try to overwrite app data folders and see how that goes.
I know a lot of you here upgrade your ROMs like every week. Do you spend like 3 days customizing your phone back after each flash?
[EDIT] Found an answer. No thanks to you friendly community (why did someone rate my thread down without saying anything?).
- I found out that Titanium Backup can batch-store all your apps and app data - I wonder if it stores stuff like my Catapult Launcher screen layout and folders.
- Also if all you're doing is an OTA upgrade, you can do it without loosing root: http://www.howtogeek.com/192402/why-androids-ota-updates-remove-root-and-how-to-keep-it/
So flash the new ROM, Root, restore from Titanium (since CWM does a system(-based) image afaik).