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Restore phone to its factory setting to return it

I've rooted my phone, installed CWM, installed a custom ROM. Now my phone is still buggy, freezing a lot, rebooting a lot no matter what i try, now I want to make sure I do the correct steps to be able to return with no problem.
1. Flash stock ROM
2. Flash stock recovery
3. Unroot the phone
Am I missing something?
Sent from my LG-P999 using XDA App

Step 3 is unnecessary as the stock ROM is not rooted

I doubt they'd look for root before accepting the return but if u wana be safe..

They wouldnt even know better. Unless you install CM7 where your boot screen is custom.
Sent from my LG-P999 using XDA App

Yah unless you have a complete unrooted nandroid back up of the stock rom then unrooting it isn't necessary.
If you don't have a unrooted stock rom then you will need to download a stock rom rooted or unrooted somewhere and flash it.

i have returned g2x's with root on it. Mainly with Eagleblood on it. whoever receives it as a refurbished unit will be lucky. i saved them some adb commands. T-Mobile prolly wont even boot the device up in front of you. They just check for water damage and physical damage. I seen it plenty of times. but if u dont want to risk it.
download/install the stock root rom
use superoneclick to unroot
take batt out and hold vol up/down at the same time plug cable in
use one click recovery flash stock recovery
reboot into recovery and reset

i don't know about you all but i always unroot before i send any phone back to t-mobile, they'll sneak you when you think they're not.

strung said:
Step 3 is unnecessary as the stock ROM is not rooted
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where is this unrooted stock rom? flashable via cwm? i must be missing something. all i have seen are the bin files which proved to be to much of a pain to flash.

Newbie Help

Ok just got this phone and have decided to go with Phoenix Blood rom, but how do i start? I have to be on froyo to root? Im coming from samsung epic on sprint that i flashed so im not completely retarded. Thanks for any help

Use superoneclick to root on froyo.
If your on 2.3.3 gb there's a flashable. Zip in development section to root.
Also you will want to use tgagunnmans nvflash method to install clockworkmod recovery in dev section.
Phoenix blood is a great choice btw, enjoy!
Sent from my LG-P999 using xda premium

You're still on Froyo? To my understanding it's a good idea to flash the OTA GB first so that you'll get the up to date baseband. Once that's done just go ahead and flash PB.

no im on gb jsut thought i had to go back to froyo to root, so i just flash clockwork mod then pb and thats it?

reeshmd23 said:
no im on gb jsut thought i had to go back to froyo to root, so i just flash clockwork mod then pb and thats it?
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Yes, but make sure you're using NVFlash to get CWM. Don't use Rom Manager.

Easiest way is using the tool unlockroot. It supports gb on the G2X. Or you can use nvflash, whichever you prefer.
Sent from my LG-P999 using XDA App

redmonke255 said:
Easiest way is using the tool unlockroot. It supports gb on the G2X. Or you can use nvflash, whichever you prefer.
Sent from my LG-P999 using XDA App
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If he wants to change Roms he will still need Nvflash regardless how he gets it rooted.

GTWalling said:
If he wants to change Roms he will still need Nvflash regardless how he gets it rooted.
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Agree. Nvflash=bullet proof.

what is nvflash?

reeshmd23 said:
what is nvflash?
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http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1056847
From that thread:
Flashing the custom recovery using NvFlash is the only way to ensure that in the case your phone will not boot up, you will be able to get into recovery to fix the issue / flash a ROM / restore from nandroid backup. That is what this app will do for you.
If you flashed the ClockworkMod recovery from ROM Manager it does not flash the recovery to your phone, it fake flashed it. The only way you can gain access to ClockworkMod recovery is through ROM Manager at that point. Using this method is the only way to flash recovery so it is persistent and accessible booting to recovery.
If you have already flashed through ROM Manager you can still proceed with this method. Flash Away!
(You can use both ROM Manager CWM and have the nvflashed version working together. You just access either or one at a time, having the nvflashed one means you can boot to CWM. Welcome to Tegra2)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Follow the link. This is a must for tegra 2 based phones. It is always better to be safe than sorry and it also allows you to do a ton of other things, such as making backups and flashing roms. Let us know if you need help. The phone is pretty much unbrickable after you do this. It gives you the ability to recover from any major mistake.

Its in the dev thread, it low level flashes clockworkmod recovery to our phones internal memory partition. You need to install apx drivers first in order for the g2x to be nvflashed.
Sent from my LG-P999 using xda premium

thanks for the help guys got it all set up

Just to add in, nvflash allows u to boot into cwm recovery whenever u want and u don't need to be next to a computer. I think that is how it worked for Samsung phones and Odin, where u needed a computer, but haven't used a Samsung phone so I could be wrong. Remember always make a back up of everything and play around with the different roms, not every rom works for everyone
Sent from my LG-P999 using xda premium

Actually Odin is just like nvflash. It is used to put cwm on you phone and to put the stock recovery back on.
Once you have cwm you can flash what ever rom or kernel without the need for root. Just back up your stock unrooted stock rom before flashing anything else.
If you do that you will have your own stock backup with no need of finding it in the forums if you need to go back to stock.
Sent from my LG-P999 using xda premium

[Q] Rooting and Flashing custom rom without tripping counter

Ive been searching around on this topic for about one week and there doesnt seem to be a definitive answer on this. What I do know is that there is a custom rom flash counter in the download recovery menu that Samsung or AT&T can use to see if you modified the device. Im also hearing that on the 2.3.5 and above, using the USB jig doesnt allow you to reset that counter either anymore.
So..... to my question. It seems (if Im right) that rooting doesnt trip the counter. But Im guessing here. Specifically when I look at say the way DoomLord method works and the SuperOneClick it doesnt specifically talk about using ODIN (which again Im just assuming here). Then these methods put on CWM as your recovery menu that you can use to flash custom roms with.
I tried to analyze how that counter is tripped but some say it only trips if you flash a custom rom using ODIN and doesnt trip if you use CWM, but no real answer there.
I had a Skyrocket shortly before it had issues, I rooted it with DoomLord method, and put the Nexus 2.0 custom rom on it, then had to return it to stock using CWM, then unrooted it using DoomLords method. I didnt know about this flash counter till afterwards (after the device was replaced) so never got a chance to see if it tripped. But from what I read it says once its tripped this Yellow Warning logo or sign is always shown on bootup for a short time, mine definitely didnt have that.
So all in all just looking for a method to root/unroot and also once rooted flash custom roms (if even possible) without tripping that counter.
Thanks
Dixit

I root using doomlords, installed cwm recovery using rom manager app, and flashed custom rom through cwm.. did NOT trip counter.

Thats awesome. I believe that was the exact same way I did it on the now returned skyrocket.
Im wondering if the flash counter only trips if you flash custom roms using ODIN. I do see alot of other folks that mention their counters have tripped and are sitting in the 10-20-50 range already. But I also see the devs who produce the custom roms also claim it does not trip the counter, so I was kind of lost on what actually causes it to trip? Is it using ODIN to flash a custom rom? Does using CWM and not ODIN basically bypass that counter from tripping? Again Im speculating here as Im not an expert in this area, just got into Android. Came from being a BB user for almost 10 solid years.
Dixit

Yes... the only thing I've seen that trips the custom binary counter is flashing a boot.img (kernel) using Odin. If a. tar has a kernel in it, it will trip. If you use Odin to just flash the Recovery Partition (i.e., CWM) it will NOT trip the counter.... then use CWM to flash Rom/Kernel zip files, you will be OK. I've also Odin flashed the stock 3e Recovery and it did not trip.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using XDA App

DoctorQMM said:
Yes... the only thing I've seen that trips the custom binary counter is flashing a boot.img (kernel) using Odin. If a. tar has a kernel in it, it will trip. If you use Odin to just flash the Recovery Partition (i.e., CWM) it will NOT trip the counter.... then use CWM to flash Rom/Kernel zip files, you will be OK. I've also Odin flashed the stock 3e Recovery and it did not trip.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using XDA App
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This.
Flashing the recovery partition (CWM or the stock 3e) with Odin, and flashing .zip files within CWM will NOT trip your counter.
Flashing anything else (back to stock, for example) in Odin WILL trip the counter.
If you need to return to stock, use a Clockwork backup. It's what I've been doing and I've flashed 4 or 5 different roms several times and am now back on the newest stock again with my counter at 0.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using xda premium

I learned the hard way about Odin flashing. Tripped my counter 2 or 3 times while learning how to flash files to Samsung devices.

Fortune090 said:
This.
Flashing the recovery partition (CWM or the stock 3e) with Odin, and flashing .zip files within CWM will NOT trip your counter.
Flashing anything else (back to stock, for example) in Odin WILL trip the counter.
If you need to return to stock, use a Clockwork backup. It's what I've been doing and I've flashed 4 or 5 different roms several times and am now back on the newest stock again with my counter at 0.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using xda premium
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Thanks, this is what I suspected and you clearly confirmed it for me. Thanks again.
I had a good feeling that as long as one stays away from ODIN and uses CWM you would be fine. I did the same as you on the previous skyrocket, did a full backup of the device as stock on CWM then saved that off, then when I needed to return it back to stock, I simply restored that backup file.
So for those that have tripped it, just out of curiosity, is the statements true then that everytime you bootup you get that yellow warning symbol for a brief moment?
Dixit

There is no way to reset the counter at all? I have 2 clicks on it even though I've done nothing different from what I was doing on my Hercules, which had 0 clicks after A LOT of flashing

From what I read and searched you used to be able to use the USB jig and actually reset the "flash counter" before, but on the 2.3.5 and 2.3.6 Samsung updated the bootloader and you cannot do it anymore. Same issue is on the Galaxy SII side as well. So far no one has figured out a way to reset that counter on the latest bootloader.
Dixit

dixit said:
So for those that have tripped it, just out of curiosity, is the statements true then that everytime you bootup you get that yellow warning symbol for a brief moment?
Dixit
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Nope... haven't seen one yet, and I reboot a lot.
But I know I've tripped it a couple of times.

Going back to Stock ROM.

If I wanted to go back to my stock rom for warranty purposes, do I just download the original from samsung-update
Put the .zip into my SD card. And use CWM to install it?
Plus, if I put the original ROM back onto my phone, will the "Custom" bootloader appear or will it be normal?
And how would I get rid of CWM? Just delete recovery.img?

The file you'll download is going to be a file that you need to flash with Odin, once flash it puts everything back the way it was. No you won't get the custom when flashing back to stock since you'll be using an official signed rom. You should, however, might want to make sure you don't have a counter going for the number of unsigned rom flashes.
Sent from my SCH-I535

scsa20 said:
The file you'll download is going to be a file that you need to flash with Odin, once flash it puts everything back the way it was. No you won't get the custom when flashing back to stock since you'll be using an official signed rom. You should, however, might want to make sure you don't have a counter going for the number of unsigned rom flashes.
Sent from my SCH-I535
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What's a counter?
Do I delete everything by with CWM and then use odin to flash my GS3?
Or do I just use odin over my custom rom?

emckai said:
What's a counter?
Do I delete everything by with CWM and then use odin to flash my GS3?
Or do I just use odin over my custom rom?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Prior to using odin to flash the stock image, be sure to use EZ-Recovery for VZW Galaxy S3 to flash the stock recovery.

Click link in sig...your questions are answered there.

Droidstyle posted a great step by step on how to go back stock, in the developers section of this forum
Sent from my Verizon Samsung GSIII xda developers-app

droidstyle said:
Click link in sig...your questions are answered there.
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Ohhh, thank you very much. I'll be using that!
chip594 said:
Droidstyle posted a great step by step on how to go back stock, in the developers section of this forum
Sent from my Verizon Samsung GSIII xda developers-app
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Thanks!

PJnc284 said:
Prior to using odin to flash the stock image, be sure to use EZ-Recovery for VZW Galaxy S3 to flash the stock recovery.
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Is that necessary? I odin'ed using the stock image and my custom recovery is gone, so was the unlocked keypad.

simollie said:
Is that necessary? I odin'ed using the stock image and my custom recovery is gone, so was the unlocked keypad.
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I had a kexec recovery installed and flashed back to stock a couple nights ago and completely lost recovery. Luckily it booted into the rom and I was planning to re-root anyway using the simple root to make sure I didn't have any Sprint stuff like the initial root method.

[Q] Restore to stock

My nandroid backup was made after rooting, so after a restore from cwm (I was on jb deodexed) I was still rooted. I flashed a stock image from sammobile with Odin from PC and I lost root (that was my intention). All my apps and data are still here, did not lost anything. No wipe no cache clear nothing else. Binary count 0.
I want to be sure that when jb ota is released I'll be able to install it from the device without any issues.
Do I have to do anything else? I read in some posts that I have to flash the stock recovery, in others that the stock recovery is flashed within the stock firmware so I'm not really sure. Is there a way to verify?
Sent from my GT-N8010 using Tapatalk 2

KoRoZIV said:
My nandroid backup was made after rooting, so after a restore from cwm (I was on jb deodexed) I was still rooted. I flashed a stock image from sammobile with Odin from PC and I lost root (that was my intention). All my apps and data are still here, did not lost anything. No wipe no cache clear nothing else. Binary count 0.
I want to be sure that when jb ota is released I'll be able to install it from the device without any issues.
Do I have to do anything else? I read in some posts that I have to flash the stock recovery, in others that the stock recovery is flashed within the stock firmware so I'm not really sure. Is there a way to verify?
Sent from my GT-N8010 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
try booting into recovery by holding down the power and volume up button at the same time until it starts to boot then release the power button and keep holding the volume up. This will boot into recovery and there you can tell if it's stock or CWM.

It's stock. After the nandroid restore from cwm when I wanted to reboot I was asked if I want to keep cwm or to restore stock, and I choose stock. I think I''ll do a wipe and whatever I can from the stock recovery. I'm just bored....
Sent from my GT-N8010 using Tapatalk 2

yeah and if all else fails when the update comes and you aren't able to get it then you can just factory reset and odin the stock firmware and then all should go smoothly.

I already did that
The red triangle in the stock recovery is normal?
Sent from my GT-N8010 using Tapatalk 2

Use TriangleAway to get rid.

theoneofgod said:
Use TriangleAway to get rid.
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+1 it's worth the money to always have that as an option, just make sure you follow the directions (pretty simple)

It was the first thing I did after flashing the jb. As I stated in my first post, everything is ok on my device, I just wanted to be sure that I didn't miss something and that I'll be able to receive and use future OTA updates. I guess I'll have to wait to be sure, no point in making a tutorial on this yet.
Sent from my GT-N8010 using xda premium