Possible to install older versions of Android? - Nexus S Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

This seems like a long shot, but I'm wondering if there's any way to install an older version of the Android OS. I know it seems counterintuitive to want an OLDER version of Android, but it'd be really handy for app-testing purposes if I could switch between versions of the OS without resorting to emulators. Please let me known if you have any ideas.
P.S. I only have access to Nexus S and Galaxy S II phones right now, which both shipped with 2.3, so flashing an original, pre-update ROM isn't an option.

bikeracer4487 said:
This seems like a long shot, but I'm wondering if there's any way to install an older version of the Android OS. I know it seems counterintuitive to want an OLDER version of Android, but it'd be really handy for app-testing purposes if I could switch between versions of the OS without resorting to emulators. Please let me known if you have any ideas.
P.S. I only have access to Nexus S and Galaxy S II phones right now, which both shipped with 2.3, so flashing an original, pre-update ROM isn't an option.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yes, its possible.

Related

[Q] Kocaso M730W, updating OS

I have a Kocaso M730W that comes with Android 2.3.4. It crashes frequently, and at this point, I want to either upgrade it or return it. How can I get a later version of Android onto this tablet?
audiodef said:
I have a Kocaso M730W that comes with Android 2.3.4. It crashes frequently, and at this point, I want to either upgrade it or return it. How can I get a later version of Android onto this tablet?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have had one of these for over a year and searched exhaustively. No one has really bothered with this cheap tablet as far as porting any of the ROMS to it. I don't even know how to boot it into recovery mode so you could flash a ROM to it even if I had one. Short answer: I think we're SOL on this one. If you keep screwing with it, try a different launcher and tweak some of it, you can get it to run pretty stable. If you do find a way, please let me know!

[Q] Need help understanding how all of this works

Greetings all and thanks for any help offered.
I come from the world of pcs. I have several android devices, however have never tried to dive into the deeper workings of them. I am used to the pc world where if you want to install a new operating system you go buy or down load it then you install in. Brand of pc did not matter nor did the model. So I guess I am having a hard time understanding the concept of hardware specific roms. Can't I just get a stock kit kat rom and install it, and if not why not.
on another note does a stock kit kat rom even exist? All I find are things like cyanogen mod, or clockwork mod. I assume that these are essentially someone taking kitkat and adding stuff to it to customize it and then naming it.
I am looking to make a kindle fire hd look and feel like a nexus 7 with nothing but android 4.2.2 (or what even the number sequence is for the lates version of kitkat).
Thanks again for your replies
Hesperian9x said:
Greetings all and thanks for any help offered.
I come from the world of pcs. I have several android devices, however have never tried to dive into the deeper workings of them. I am used to the pc world where if you want to install a new operating system you go buy or down load it then you install in. Brand of pc did not matter nor did the model. So I guess I am having a hard time understanding the concept of hardware specific roms. Can't I just get a stock kit kat rom and install it, and if not why not.
on another note does a stock kit kat rom even exist? All I find are things like cyanogen mod, or clockwork mod. I assume that these are essentially someone taking kitkat and adding stuff to it to customize it and then naming it.
I am looking to make a kindle fire hd look and feel like a nexus 7 with nothing but android 4.2.2 (or what even the number sequence is for the lates version of kitkat).
Thanks again for your replies
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same question i also want to ask...... they say android is open source.....where can i find the original kitkat
...and can i flash it to my device or not.......why does every phone/tab model need specific rom version.....
I think ram and cpu are enough......what is the deference between all device....
Hesperian9x said:
Greetings all and thanks for any help offered.
I come from the world of pcs. I have several android devices, however have never tried to dive into the deeper workings of them. I am used to the pc world where if you want to install a new operating system you go buy or down load it then you install in. Brand of pc did not matter nor did the model. So I guess I am having a hard time understanding the concept of hardware specific roms. Can't I just get a stock kit kat rom and install it, and if not why not.
on another note does a stock kit kat rom even exist? All I find are things like cyanogen mod, or clockwork mod. I assume that these are essentially someone taking kitkat and adding stuff to it to customize it and then naming it.
I am looking to make a kindle fire hd look and feel like a nexus 7 with nothing but android 4.2.2 (or what even the number sequence is for the lates version of kitkat).
Thanks again for your replies
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Getting a new OS (in this case we call these OS's: ROMs) on android is a little similar to PC installation it just has a few things we have to get past. so if you know what Linux is (another OS its almost like OSX for macs) that's what android is built upon the only problem is is that we don't have Admin access or in other words, super user, rooting your Android device gives you root/admin/SuperUser Access so there are lots more things you can customize about your device in this case a New operating system. Clockworkmod is almost like booting into your Bios on a computer, its pretty much a fail-safe if we break something or want to install (our way of installing is called "Flashing") a mod or a new OS.
Now there are a few different types of ROMs its all the personal preference on what you want most roms are AOSP which is pretty much Stock android (Nexus phones/tablet look) with a few mods here and there. Cyanogenmod is one of the type of roms as well (most popular), its is basically pure android with a little here and there stuff that you wouldn't need to worry about and i would recommend if you do flash a new ROM on any device i would start with Cyanogenmod first if its available, it has the most work put into it and is stable for the most part. (not that other ROMs developers don't put hard work into their own ROMs but still Cyanogenmod is getting bigger and bigger) be advised that flashing a new rom deletes all of your data, its just what we have to do to make the rom install properly, if you bought kindle books you can still get the books back by downloading the kindle fire app on the play store when you do get a new ROM. WARNING: DO NOT Flash roms that are for other devices, it will brick your tablet making it unrecoverable.
Seeing that the kindle fire hd is a very popular tablet and does have a few kitkat roms. (Android 4.2.2 is Jelly bean, Android 4.1 - 4.3 is jelly bean as well, Android 4.4 is kitkat) so pretty much it looks like the kindle fire hd has a locked bootloader which can be a problem but seeing that there is custom roms it must have been unlocked. a locked bootloader pretty much means we cannot flash a new OS but we are still able to root it. so pretty much see herehttp://forum.xda-developers.com/kindle-fire-hd (there are two kindle fire HD's 7" and a 8.9" which is yours?) ask in the Q&A where you can start, i imagine you would need to do this stuff in this order: Unlock bootloader, Root the tablet, install a custom recovery (like Clockworkmod or TWRP) Wipe Data/Factory reset, Wipe Cache (these two actions are done in your recovery) flash a new Rom.
If you have any other questions or i left something out please ask
---------- Post added at 03:21 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:18 PM ----------
Killwish said:
Same question i also want to ask...... they say android is open source.....where can i find the original kitkat
...and can i flash it to my device or not.......why does every phone/tab model need specific rom version.....
I think ram and cpu are enough......what is the deference between all device....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you have a kindle fire HD as well? Android is sorta open source sure we can root it and install new OS's and other mods but Google allows OEMs can lock boot-loaders and cause awful lot of mess by not letting us developers do anything. You CANNOT flash a rom that is not for your device, it has to do with the other Devices Specs.
why does every phone/tab model need specific rom version.....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
what do you mean here?
Trozzul said:
Getting a new OS (in this case we call these OS's: ROMs) on android is a little similar to PC installation it just has a few things we have to get past. so if you know what Linux is (another OS its almost like OSX for macs) that's what android is built upon the only problem is is that we don't have Admin access or in other words, super user, rooting your Android device gives you root/admin/SuperUser Access so there are lots more things you can customize about your device in this case a New operating system. Clockworkmod is almost like booting into your Bios on a computer, its pretty much a fail-safe if we break something or want to install (our way of installing is called "Flashing") a mod or a new OS.
Now there are a few different types of ROMs its all the personal preference on what you want most roms are AOSP which is pretty much Stock android (Nexus phones/tablet look) with a few mods here and there. Cyanogenmod is one of the type of roms as well (most popular), its is basically pure android with a little here and there stuff that you wouldn't need to worry about and i would recommend if you do flash a new ROM on any device i would start with Cyanogenmod first if its available, it has the most work put into it and is stable for the most part. (not that other ROMs developers don't put hard work into their own ROMs but still Cyanogenmod is getting bigger and bigger) be advised that flashing a new rom deletes all of your data, its just what we have to do to make the rom install properly, if you bought kindle books you can still get the books back by downloading the kindle fire app on the play store when you do get a new ROM. WARNING: DO NOT Flash roms that are for other devices, it will brick your tablet making it unrecoverable.
Seeing that the kindle fire hd is a very popular tablet and does have a few kitkat roms. (Android 4.2.2 is Jelly bean, Android 4.1 - 4.3 is jelly bean as well, Android 4.4 is kitkat) so pretty much it looks like the kindle fire hd has a locked bootloader which can be a problem but seeing that there is custom roms it must have been unlocked. a locked bootloader pretty much means we cannot flash a new OS but we are still able to root it. so pretty much see herehttp://forum.xda-developers.com/kindle-fire-hd (there are two kindle fire HD's 7" and a 8.9" which is yours?) ask in the Q&A where you can start, i imagine you would need to do this stuff in this order: Unlock bootloader, Root the tablet, install a custom recovery (like Clockworkmod or TWRP) Wipe Data/Factory reset, Wipe Cache (these two actions are done in your recovery) flash a new Rom.
If you have any other questions or i left something out please ask
---------- Post added at 03:21 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:18 PM ----------
Do you have a kindle fire HD as well? Android is sorta open source sure we can root it and install new OS's and other mods but Google allows OEMs can lock boot-loaders and cause awful lot of mess by not letting us developers do anything. You CANNOT flash a rom that is not for your device, it has to do with the other Devices Specs.
what do you mean here?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry dude....... But I just want to say that on PCs I just need windows or Linux or any os image...... And I can install it on any brand cpu ram motherboard........ It doesn't depend on brand..... Then why they made android or phone devices like this.... I m not saying that they would have make android free but.. It should be installable on all devices with better confg than minimum requirement.... Thats all.
Killwish said:
Sorry dude....... But I just want to say that on PCs I just need windows or Linux or any os image...... And I can install it on any brand cpu ram motherboard........ It doesn't depend on brand..... Then why they made android or phone devices like this.... I m not saying that they would have make android free but.. It should be installable on all devices with better confg than minimum requirement.... Thats all.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
that a little harder to explain, from what i think its mostly because of the CPU drivers, these ROMs are non professional, anyone can make a rom but its a harder to make your own OS for a computer. i cant explain the most part of it for you but we just cant do it right now. you sure can port roms but it has to be from a similar device with almost every spec the same.
Trozzul said:
that a little harder to explain, from what i think its mostly because of the CPU drivers, these ROMs are non professional, anyone can make a rom but its a harder to make your own OS for a computer. i cant explain the most part of it for you but we just cant do it right now. you sure can port roms but it has to be from a similar device with almost every spec the same.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you sir......
Trozzul said:
that a little harder to explain, from what i think its mostly because of the CPU drivers, these ROMs are non professional, anyone can make a rom but its a harder to make your own OS for a computer. i cant explain the most part of it for you but we just cant do it right now. you sure can port roms but it has to be from a similar device with almost every spec the same.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I understand that the roms are not professional. That is why I asked for the "stock" kitkat as google released it. shouldn't the "stock google release work on any android device?? if not why not?? this is nothing like pc world ans mentioned above.
I have installed linux on pcs. It runs the installer and does its thing and a few minutes later you have a shiny new system to run. Why is this so different in the mobil environment since as you already mentioned android is essentially linux. None of this device specific ROM stuff makes any sense to me.
Hesperian9x said:
I understand that the roms are not professional. That is why I asked for the "stock" kitkat as google released it. shouldn't the "stock google release work on any android device?? if not why not?? this is nothing like pc world ans mentioned above.
I have installed linux on pcs. It runs the installer and does its thing and a few minutes later you have a shiny new system to run. Why is this so different in the mobil environment since as you already mentioned android is essentially linux. None of this device specific ROM stuff makes any sense to me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
as for why Roms dont work on all devices and have to be made for specific only i cannot answer, i think it has to do with specs being so different, i think its the CPU that ruins it all because today there are so many different types of partitions for each kind of CPU given out, Rockchip, mediatek, samsung exynos, TI Omap, qualcomm there is quite a lot i cant list lol.
There sorta is a "Stock Google release" for some devices but that is only for Google play edition devices like a Samsung galaxy s4/HTC one M7/M8. if you bought a Non-Google play edition S4 or m7 you are able to install a official Google rom (different process not like flashing stuff in custom recovery's) please dont think that Just because Roms are non-professional does not mean that they are broken or dont work as good as stock material because Custom Roms most of the time get the bugs worked out and everyone is happy. i would recommend a custom rom over Stock kindle firmware, its very limited plus you dont have access to the google play store which has so much more stuff.

[Q] Help flashing UNLOCKED XT926M stock 4.1.2 to CM12

I want to install a custom Lollipop ROM on my phone, but even after days of sifting through years and various iterations of information and methods, I'm pretty confused.
I have a Razr Maxx HD. I believe the model is XT926M. I bought my phone in December 2012 from Verizon and it's running Android 4.1.2 OTA (stock) currently. The currently installed ROM is 9.18.94.XT926.Verizon.en.US. I'm not using a custom recovery. The bootloader is UNLOCKED and the phone is rooted! I used the Motopocalypse exploit method from around April of 2013. I've been extremely happy with the stability of 4.1.2, after the lockup/freeze/crash bug was fixed, which is why I haven't been quick to upgrade to anything else until now. I've also been afraid to mess with the phone out of fear of doing something wrong and creating more trouble for myself than it is worth (such as a soft brick from a failed OTA upgrade). I've seen enough posts about something going wrong or experiencing glitches in flashing methods which required workarounds that I want to ask before taking any action.
So, now I want to install a recent ROM free of Verizon's bloatware, in this case CM12. However, I can't seem to find any solid guide targeted at my scenario. Most of the information I find is either outdated (old methods, old software), or for the XT925 rather than the XT926(M), or the wrong country/carrier. Additionally, I know the newer ROMs are only available for KKBL, but I'm pretty sure that I'm still on JJBL if I'm on 4.1.2 OTA, and I can't find any recent or relevant guide for getting me out of where I am starting. If I was already on KKBL, I know all I would need to do is install a custom recovery and then install a custom ROM, but I'm at a disadvantage because I'm not even there yet and it's probably the part that's confusing me most.
I don't care about losing any data on my phone - I want to start completely fresh. The only thing I've done is create a nandroid backup (using the Online Nandroid app) for both CWM and TWRP recoveries. What next?
I don't know where to begin. Can someone help steer me in the right direction? I'd greatly appreciate it if you could be as specific as possible with versions and/or links to files I would need. Thanks!

What is the latest Root Method for SM-P900 us version?

Looking through many post, all of them seem rather old, Im finally ready to root my tablet, Im tired of all of the lag I get and it seems as Samsung has let the 12.2 pro die.
Im running 5.02
Build: LRX22G.P900UEU1COL1
Kernel: 3.4.39-5574008
Knox: 2.3
I found this post by dwl99 http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-note-pro-12/general/success-rooting-sm-p900-knox-0x0-t3377416
It seem only one person has tried it
Thanks for any input you may have
I'm not sure if you found your answer, but if you're willing to trip KNOX, I was able to root my p900 US version on 5.0.2 by using the method in the post found here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-note-pro-12/general/guide-install-official-lollipop-p900-t3154362
Thanks
I will check it out, I dont care about Knox at this point since Samsung has let this tablet die
Hitch_Itch said:
Thanks
I will check it out, I dont care about Knox at this point since Samsung has let this tablet die
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep. My faith in Samsung hardware is hit or miss, but my faith in them having too many models for them to keep up with is starting to wane.
Anyways, I had no problem getting TWRP on it, and flashing SU. Just follow the post and if it doesn't show up on your computer, try other USB ports. For some reason these samsungs are picky. I had to try three USB ports to get it to register in Odin. After that it was no problem. I verified it with JRummy's tool, and have run other root apps, and it took just fine.
I wasn't able to get xposed working, but that might be an issue with the stock ROM. No big deal though. Backups, moving apps to SD, and such, are all capable with root and TWRP, though it would have been more tidy to have the SD card as an extension of the on-board, I can live without it.
If you need my stock ROM build info it's P900UEU1COI1_P900XAR1COI1 (cellular south). There are two US ones I see available for 5.0.2, and have no idea what the difference is, but that one works fine for me. So if you have to Odin first, or after, that one seemed to go well for my US P900. Use that info at your discretion, because I can't see your current build info.
Thanks for the info
The tablet seem very laggy when on the net lately, Im tired of it
My Build: LRX22G.P900UEU1COL1
Hitch_Itch said:
Thanks for the info
The tablet seem very laggy when on the net lately, Im tired of it
My Build: LRX22G.P900UEU1COL1
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same build here.
Follow the directions carefully (you likely don't need to do the first area as you're already up to date), and you should be all set. Just remember to backup everything important first. Since you already have your info/apps in place, and aren't changing ROMS's, there isn't much to it. Don't forget to do a backup using TWRP after you have everything up and running. You'll want to download busybox from the app store, after you're rooted.
Careful if you decide to go with a custom ROM after. I didn't have much luck with cyanogen mod 13, because it knocked out a lot of my Spen needs, and there are a fair number of reports of random reboots on the one I tried. Hopefully that will change and I can update to 6.0.1 when/if it does.
For you, there shouldn't be a need to wipe data or factory reset, but if the lag continues you may want to wipe your cache's once you have your nandroid backup.
PM me if you run into any issues, or better yet, with any questions you're unsure about, before an issue happens
Will Do Blade, :good:
Thanks
build
Hello. I can't find the files for my build number. Can i use this one instead? ( Yes , I am noob.)
Build no: LRX22G.P900XXU0BPE1

Step-by-step for flashing safe ROM to GT-S5830I

Hi there.
I got myself a Samsung ACE phone, so that I have a backup Android phone in case my main phone breaks.
I've tried playing around with flashing some old tablets etc. before, but wasn't able to complete the process.
So, I was wondering if there is a simple, step-by-step way to flash a relatively new Android version to my phone?
I see that for example banking apps require a non-rooted phone, so I guess rooting the phone and installing versions of Android that don't come from a phone vendor isn't seen as safe. So what's the safest, relatively new version of Android I can install on my phone?
I'm upgrading to the newest version of Ubuntu now, so if I can flash my phone using Ubuntu and a USB data cable, that would be sweet.
TIA,
Morten

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