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[Q] Explain (not with a HOWTO!) Goldcard, Bootloader, SPL, RUU, CID to me

Ok, so I'm not all that new to this rooting thing, I've rooted several HTC Magics, a Nexus One, helped out on a Legend, rooted a Hero and managed to install Android on an HTC Tytn II.
I'm getting used to the different terms about rooting and I'll recite them for you so you know where I'm at.
My Question/Request for you all is to help me figuring out what all these words mean and how they correspond/correlate/work together.
=== Things I have understood almost completely ===
Root
As in Linux, gives a user or script the permission to write to otherwise protected partitions and file systems of the handset.
Recovery
A partition(?) that manages some tasks involved with the basic building blocks of the system, such as installing/flashing different partitions/parts of the handset. Also has the ability to wipe the data-partition as well as Dalvik-cache.
Bootloader/HBOOT/SPL
A partition(?) that fires up the basic buildingblocks on the handset. Such as recovery, OS, and whatnot. With Fastboot-commands it's possible to flash partitions, as long as the bootloader allows remote writing through command-line.
=== Things I've almost completely understood ===
CID
CarrierID. This is when a mobile phone network carrier "locks" the phone to a specific network. But this also means that the carrier hands out updates to the Android-system installed on the handset? And the only way of updating a factory-state handset is by getting hold of updates from the carrier?
RUU
ROM Update Utility. Used by HTC to update their manufactured handsets. There might be other manufacturers who use this abbreviation, but I've seen it used almost exclusively in regards to HTC. There are checks being made when trying to install a RUU-package on the handset. These are/could be(?)
* Current RUU version already installed (if the RUU-package that is being installed is older, the installation quits)
* Current CID (If the CID in the RUU doesn't match the CID on the handset, the installation quits)
=== Things that confuse me ===
Goldcard
This is a modified SD card that supposedly bypasses the CID/RUU-check. Now, this to me sounds like I can install any RUU no matter what version I currently have installed on my handset and no matter what CID my handset came with.
This also sounds to me that I can potentially install a Desire RUU on my HTC Magic, if it is true that the RUU/CID-check is bypassed by the goldcard.
This also sounds to me that the requirement for a newer RUU-version of the package I'm installing is bypassed. For instance, I will, if I use a goldcard, be able to install a RUU-package with the version 1.28 on a handset that currently have version 1.31 installed?
Reverting a root
Is it as easy as grabbing the latest official RUU-update from HTC:s website and install that? Does it contain all the partitions and system-files necessary to restore the handset to a factory-state? Or will there be complications because of the root and different custom-ROM:s and custom-recoveries that are on the handset?

Shameless bump. SOMEONE has to know this. Or this is such common knowledge that there is a wikipedia article and I missed it?
If I only get an answer to my Goldcard questions I'd be real thankful.

Sounds to me like you have a very good grasp of all these things. It's nice, but rare, to see people doing their own research and learning this much before posting questions!
There's nothing i can add really but to confirm that ,yes...flashing a stock ROM will revert changes although some devices can be picky with which stock ROM is best.
As an aside, have you considered doing development work yourself, perhaps ROM building? You're obviously capable, interested and 'have the right stuff'!

DirkGently1 said:
Sounds to me like you have a very good grasp of all these things. It's nice, but rare, to see people doing their own research and learning this much before posting questions!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, thank you. I'm slowly beginning to get used to doing as much research as I can get by with and provide what I know, or at least think I've been able to conclude, and then ask a question about it.
DirkGently1 said:
There's nothing i can add really but to confirm that ,yes...flashing a stock ROM will revert changes although some devices can be picky with which stock ROM is best.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When you say flashing a stock ROM, would this also apply for RUU-packages? As an example; If I have an HTC Hero and I manage to downgrade it through som root-method, will I be able to run an official HTC-provided RUU to get it back to a factory state?
The only way I have been able to return my Nexus One to a factory state is by the use of a PASSIMG.zip-file, but then I would have to make sure that I am using the stock recovery. One reason for my question is that I'd also like to know if it's possible to run an RUU-package on a rooted, and/or custom recovery-flashed and/or engineering SPL-flashed handset and have it returned to a factory state.
DirkGently1 said:
As an aside, have you considered doing development work yourself, perhaps ROM building? You're obviously capable, interested and 'have the right stuff'!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, sure, the thought has struck me once or twice. I'm currently in my last months of my education in becoming a Master in Software Engineering, but at the moment I'm into getting to know more about how Android works on different handsets and how the different parts are connected to each other. I will very soon dive into Android development as it's the only really interesting area for handsets/mobile communication, that doesn't have the price of a whole Apple Macintosh to even be able to begin programming for it.
I'm sure I will get an Apple suite later on, I like the diversities of different manufacturers but for the time being I'm price conscious.

Is there anyone who knows a thing or two about Goldcards?
One of my questions in the first post was about the CID/RUU-relation to the Goldcard.
I have read from one or maybe two people on random forums, stating that the Goldcard is _only_ needed when the handset is carrier-locked. I'm very interested in getting to know more about the Goldcard and when it is supposed to be used and/or required.
Because a lot of the times when dealing with rooting HTC handset it boils down to having a Goldcard or not. But at times I hear about methods where Goldcards aren't needed. But the statements differ from "You need a goldcard" to "You only need a Goldcard when your handset is CID-locked" to "You need a Goldcard to be able to flash an RUU that is older than the one you currently have on your handset." to "You need a Goldcard if you want to flash an RUU with a different CID" to "You don't need a Goldcard at all".
Somehow I think there are some kind of specific combinations, for instance something like this;
CID-locked handset => Needs a Goldcard to be able to root
RUU-version on the handset is new => Needs a Goldcard to be able to flash older RUU-version
RUU/CID-combination is X and Y => Needs a Goldcard to be able to flash an RUU that has the RUU/CID-combination A and B
...
...
There are times when some rooting methods do not require a Goldcard at all, but it seems to me they are pretty rare when compared to those who require a Goldcard.
Someone out there should have the whole story about this and I'm very interested to know how these things work and I'm also grateful for sharing this with me.

[Q] Rooting and S-Off?

Hi all. im new to this scene and need some advice. originally all i wanted was to root my phone to get rid of 'manufacture installed apps' that i never use. now im looking into it and hear about the s-off capabilities. i want to try it out,but fear i may brick my phone as i dont fully understand all the terminologies people use and the programs affiliated. is there somebody who can explain it all simply and the risks involved? i have looked into many forums so far, but people are speaking a language i dont understand!
what is:
eMMC
De-Branding
Flashing
RUU
Bootloader
any help is greatly apprieciated
Craig

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=CfBxiFGexRA. Hope this helps you out
Sent from my HTC Sensation 4G using xda premium

Follow the guides exactly and you wont fail. The Sensation is one of the easiest devices Ive ever rooted. It is literally a 2 minute opperation to get s-off.
Sent from a rebel ship by storing the message in an R2 unit. (Help me, XDA. You're my only hope)

well - I think that if this thread is a brief info for newbies it is important to mention that there is no way to do S-OFF if you have updated your device to ICS and hboot 1.27.0000 before you start. TRKAAA have given me an excellent overview of the options for the moment in that case
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1472298&highlight=trkaa&page=32

Read the guides and download all the necessary files, use the search to look for what means what. and also read carefully the guide to s-off and root. Is a BIG help.
Sent from my HTC Sensation 4G using xda premium

so i finally have a htc sensation now...
i want to root it...
version: 4.0.3......

DR_MOOSAVI said:
so i finally have a htc sensation now...
i want to root it...
version: 4.0.3......
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As you want 4.0.3 first you should make your device ics flashable
For that this is the best guide
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1192300
Follow every step carefully
Then you can flash custom Rom of your choice
For ARHD you can follow the thread posted earlier by henrylar
Sent from my HTC Sensation XE with Beats Audio using xda premium

My tip is to read, read, read then read it again. Make sure your totally comfortable about the procedure and what is supposed to happen and what can happen. And if you get stuck, SEARCH. what ever happens to you, guaranteed 100% its happened to someone else.
Sent from my HTC Sensation XE with Beats Audio using XDA

@ everyone who's responded so far: I don't think you're understanding what he's asking for. You can't follow the guides word-for-word when there's words you don't understand in it, like flash. And even if the instructions were completely dumbed-down, some people would actually like to understand what and why they're doing this instead of blindly following orders. Plus, outside of the step-by-step instructions, writers will use the lingo again. These are terms that should really be addressed in the n00b guide but aren't. I'm just moving to the Sensation, and it's my first HTC phone, and it can be quite confusing!
@Craig:
Google is your friend. Just type in something like "RUU android" (without quotes) and you'll find plenty of answers. But, as someone who just spent several days trying to understand the lingo, I know that it takes time and sometimes some awesome searching skills to find the answers. Plus, I like explaining concepts I've just learned to others to make sure I definitely understand them! So, here you go:
eMMC: Embedded MultiMedia Card. Basically, it's like an SD card that's integrated into the hardware (and obviously can't be removed).
De-Branding: Most carriers load extra software/mods onto their devices. For example, you might have an app to interact with your account, see how many minutes you've used, pay bills, etc. You might also have a bootscreen (the one that plays right before the lockscreen shows up and can go on and on for several minutes depending on what mods you've just done) that has your carrier's logo, and various apps for other services, and a lot of other junk. When you "debrand" your phone, you're removing all the changes the carrier made and reverting to the manufacturer's version of the ROM.
Flashing: This basically means "installing from fastboot/recovery mode". The term refers to the "flash memory" in your device that's being used in the process.
RUU: ROM Update Utility. It's actually a PC application (made by HTC) that helps you update your ROM. The ROM it will install is bundled with it, so there's many RUUs available. For that reason, the term is frequently used to refer to a carrier-specific ROM. Very helpful if you want to unroot your phone and make the carrier think you've never done anything that voids the warranty.
Bootloader: Loads up the boot sequence on your device. It's the very first thing that runs when you power on your device (or computer, or anything that has an OS), and tells it (after some little self-tests) the physical location of the OS and how to start it.
Some good resources that aren't specific to the Sensation:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=805247
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1146601 (the "general guides")

[GUIDE] Noobs guide to Rooting and ROM flashing

Hello everyone,
I'm am pretty sure there are many guides in rooting your htc phone as well as flashing a custom ROM. I am also pretty sure that there are guides out there that uses BIG words with not enough Lament words, so here is a simple noob friendly guide to basically make your life easier.
1. Download and install HTCDriver3.0.0.007.exe from http://unrevoked.com/rootwiki/doku.php/public/revolutionary
2. Download revolutionary-0.4pre4.zip for windows from http://revolutionary.io
3. Extract it and run revolutionary.exe
4. Connect HTC Sensation to PC and select HTC Sync.
5. revolutionary.exe should detect your HTC Sensation phone and provide your with details about hboot and serial number.
6. select the hboot version and type the serial number into the box and hit enter.
7. It will now try to root phone. Wait and the phone will restart a few times.
8. When it's done, it'll ask to install clockworkmod recovery (cwm). Choose Y for yes or N to refuse. Install recovery based on what the ROM suggests. For ARHD, it suggested EXT4 touch recovery, so press N.
9. Press volume button up or down to navigate and select reboot phone by pressing power button.
10. Download EXT4 touch recovery at http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1377759 (thanks to Madmaxx82)
11. Read the Read Me to learn how to install EXT4 Touch recovery.
12. Download firmware 3.32 for the related CID and MID. Be sure to check your phone's CID and MID
13. Download Super Wipe at http://xda.androidrevolution.nl/db_...ndroid_Revolution_HD_Super_Wipe_Sensation.zip
14. Download the ROM found at http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1098849 (credit to Mike1986)
15. Copy the file PG58IMG.zip to the root of microSD. (root - meaning not in a folder)
16. Copy the super wipe and 6.6.3 ROM zip files to the root of microSD.
17. Power off your phone/ Remove battery from phone
18. Hold volume-down and power button simultaneously to get into bootloader mode.
19. When in Bootloader, it will automatically ask you to update your firmware, press 'yes.'
20. Once the update is complete, immediately take out your battery. (it may sound scary, but it's actually quite safe)
21. Take your MicroSD out and connect it to your pc to remove the PG58IMG.zip and insert it back once completed.
22. Get into boot loader once again (volume down + power button)
23. Now your bootloader screen should read:
-revolutionary-
PYRAMID PVT SHIP S-OFF RL
HBOOT-1.27.1100
RADIO-11.22.3504.07M
24. Select 'recovery' and it will automatically lead you into 4EXT recovery (the one you installed earlier)
25. Install 'superwipe' script.
26. Select 'install from sd card' and look for the Custom ROM you have copied into the root of your Sd card.
27. During the installation you will be asked the following questions:
-Do you have a TMOUS sensation 4g?.
-Do you want to flash the sony bravia engine support?.
-Do you want to flash Stock or Custom Kernel?
-If you picked custom then you will be given a choice between Faux or Sebastian Kernel
-Do you want to flash HQ camera?
Once again this is all your choice, please read up on what each of them does.
28. When the ROM is fully flashed select back
29. Select reboot from 4ext recovery
30. Done, enjoy ICS with Beats Audio, the first boot should take around 5-10 mins
HAVE FUN ROOTING AND FLASHING CUSTOM ROM NOOBS :-D
Just remember, do this at your own risk, I will not take any responsibility for you Bricking your phone***

Good job!

Prinz069 said:
Good job!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, just want other HTC sensation newcomers to enjoy their sensation just as much as i have.. Buying the sensation/xe is the first step.. Rooting and flashing ROM is the next step Cheers~ and happy rooting!

Some feedback to your thread
Hi, i wanted to give some feedback about this.
Regarding the content of your post, you might want to correct some things you've wrote that make the guide not so simply but confusing and inaccurate... sheer constructive criticism.
"Download firmware 3.30 for the related CID and MID.". If you are pretending to guide someone on how to flash any "newly" released ICS ROM you need to download and flash 3.32 firmware, not 3.30.
"This phone MID is modelid: PG5813000 and CID is cidnum: HTC__044. So if new kernel appear in the future, be sure to download from this category only.". You meant your specific phone, right?. Every guy out there has a different phone and more likely a different CID. There is a CID thread just in case you want to check out some of the available CIDs. Also, (and even more confusing) CID and model aren't related in any ways to kernel or firmware, what do you mean with "a new kernel appear in the future"? we have new kernels almost every 2 days from faux, sebastian, show-p and other developers, and what category are you talking about specifically?
In the third point you wrote It will now trying to root phone. Wait and the phone will restart a few times. Revolutionay tool is intended to S-OFF the device, not rooting. Then your guide isn't about how to root the phone as the thread title says ... i think this is the guide noobs are actually looking for.
If you are quoting or using content from others posts the correct thing to do is to give proper credit to the author i.e: Mike1986., authors of revolutionary tool, madmaxx among others.
I'm speaking for myself here and i want to ask you kindly to credit my work in the things you've pretty much copied literally from my thread [GUIDE][APR.16.12] How to flash ICS 3.32 firmware | flash/update ARHD 6.6.x ICS ROM, first post, steps 4 and 5.
I'm reffering to steps 18 to 37 in your guide which are 99% the exact same words i've wrote in my guide. I've spent some time and effort writing that guide, While i don't see why you wanna re-write my guide If you want to use my work it's ok, i don't mind, but please at least give proper credit and don't go around saying is your guide and your work when 50% of it's copy-pasted from my thread.
Also i've taken down the download link of 4EXT recovery touch flashing tool (steps 11 and 12 in your post) which i've modded and packed myself and it's also posted in my guide, if you want the dropbox download link i can give it to you, but again, proper credit.
You've open a thread in Android development section, and this is clearly not a development thread. Pleas ask a mod to move your thread to the correct section. Nevermind, thread has been moved already. Thanks to the mods.
Thanks

Couldn't agree more, it's not that we don't appreciate the effort but there are enough guides on this forum and all the info is there for grabs, you just have to find it. There's no need to create new guides because people don't use the search button.

Hello everyone.. Not that i wanted to copy any of your work and take credit for it, as i have never seen your guide.. I am sorry if i have offended you in any way.. I practically just wrote down what my friend told me over the phone, as he was explaining to me the proper way to root as well as put in a custom ROM on my sensation. I did not in any way meant or did not know that i was copying anybody's work. As far as i know, i only wrote this guide to help beginners, as i was once one. The only guide i have read was mike's guide on the front page of the ARHD thread, which at first i did not really understand. Another thing, it's not that i didnt want to give mike credit and take all the credit for my own, as you can see i am using's Mike's ARHD banner as well as i have given links to his thread. As for your guide, i will rephrase everything if it makes you feel better cheers mate~ The most important thing for me is to expand the sensation community.

Keupie said:
Couldn't agree more, it's not that we don't appreciate the effort but there are enough guides on this forum and all the info is there for grabs, you just have to find it. There's no need to create new guides because people don't use the search button.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Brother, if there is enough guides on this forum, why do new beginners always ask the same questions? ..well let me tell you my experience, understand certain guides is a bit difficult as they contain words not familiar to beginners. Once again, i made this guide so i wouldnt have to refer to anyone else's guide if someone else needed my assistance/help. cheers mate~

Would like to once again apologize for my premature posting of this thread. I should have asked my friend what his sources were. Thanks again all for the heads up

Keupie said:
Couldn't agree more, it's not that we don't appreciate the effort but there are enough guides on this forum and all the info is there for grabs, you just have to find it. There's no need to create new guides because people don't use the search button.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well there is no absolute need, but then again he is free to do as he pleases.
If he (or ANYONE for that matter) is simply trying to help the noobs that come on here every day asking, "How i root plzzz help thx", then I am all for it.
But I don't think anyone should be denied the right to create these sorts of guides. Plus, the poorer written ones eventually die anyway, its the way a forum works.
Leemur89 said:
Would like to once again apologize for my premature posting of this thread. I should have asked my friend what his sources were. Thanks again all for the heads up
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No problem, but next time read up a bit more, and be more precise. Also, remember to give credit to the required people, as somebody stated earlier.

Leemur89 said:
Brother, if there is enough guides on this forum, why do new beginners always ask the same questions?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sometimes it's just sheer laziness. Other times they may not understand other guides or just need reassurance.
Either way, I appreciate you taking the time to create this.

Like i said, offcourse we appreciate the effort! What i'm trying to say is that people need to use the search function more. There are enough guides, If you don't understand something in the guide than ask it in the thread, no need to make a new thread about it.
Also, my experience is that If you use the search function enough, you will learn a lot about your phone and the ways to modify it. With that knowledge you can help other people. It's a vicious circle ;-)
Sent from my HTC Sensation using XDA

Simple way... just use hasoon2000's all in one toolkit from dev section

Im lost
OK guys, I have never rooted a phone but decided today to give it a try, why.. first cause I dont wish to wait till June for ICS and second becuase I saw this simple looking step-by step guide......so I thought simple.
First off I am PC savy but NOT at all cell phone hacking savy. All of this jargun you all use CID, MID, RUU, 4EXT means nothing to me and I have gotten lost.
I started with the instruction on this thread but then got the bright idea of seeing if there were some youtube step-by-steps how to's and there were. But the two videos I watched must have been older cause they had one major step differnt.
They say to type Y to Install recovery mod after S OFF, and I did. so now the next steps in the video dont work and I have veired off track what you all say to do.... I'm scared and lost.
I'm a realtor and my phone is my money maker, I can't brick it.
Someone help please.
Jerry
954-214-6104

Thanks!
Hey man thanks for the easy guide man! Helps heaps!

hortaja said:
OK guys, I have never rooted a phone but decided today to give it a try, why.. first cause I dont wish to wait till June for ICS and second becuase I saw this simple looking step-by step guide......so I thought simple.
First off I am PC savy but NOT at all cell phone hacking savy. All of this jargun you all use CID, MID, RUU, 4EXT means nothing to me and I have gotten lost.
I started with the instruction on this thread but then got the bright idea of seeing if there were some youtube step-by-steps how to's and there were. But the two videos I watched must have been older cause they had one major step differnt.
They say to type Y to Install recovery mod after S OFF, and I did. so now the next steps in the video dont work and I have veired off track what you all say to do.... I'm scared and lost.
I'm a realtor and my phone is my money maker, I can't brick it.
Someone help please.
Jerry
954-214-6104
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Bro, i understand what you're saying.. haha trust me.. My only advice to you is.. If i were you and my phone was of great importance. Don't root your device.. Even if the process is quite easy and most of the time people don't brick their devices, there is still a small percentage.. The best thing you could do is update to ICS via official HTC release, which if i am not mistaken, has already been done in many countries. Cheers mate.

hortaja said:
OK guys, I have never rooted a phone but decided today to give it a try, why.. first cause I dont wish to wait till June for ICS and second becuase I saw this simple looking step-by step guide......so I thought simple.
First off I am PC savy but NOT at all cell phone hacking savy. All of this jargun you all use CID, MID, RUU, 4EXT means nothing to me and I have gotten lost.
I started with the instruction on this thread but then got the bright idea of seeing if there were some youtube step-by-steps how to's and there were. But the two videos I watched must have been older cause they had one major step differnt.
They say to type Y to Install recovery mod after S OFF, and I did. so now the next steps in the video dont work and I have veired off track what you all say to do.... I'm scared and lost.
I'm a realtor and my phone is my money maker, I can't brick it.
Someone help please.
Jerry
954-214-6104
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok pal paste us a link to the video you followed. Now, does your phone still start up properly? If so then this should be easy. Power off the device fully. Remove the battery for around 20 seconds or so then reinsert. While holding down volume down also hold power until the device boots to bootloader. (Bootloader is equal to BIOS for a PC). It will give you some information. Post that Info up here. If it says s-off then using the volume buttons scroll down to recovery and push power. If you see a red triangle and/or exclamation mark then you have a stock recovery. If it says clockwork mod recovery then you are s-off with a custom recovery and all seemingly has went well
Also Cid stands for carrier identification and is used for carrier information and software I think. Mid is used to reference the country/ area you are in, for software as well as networks. They are both used together. Ruu stands for rom utility update and is a HTC program for updating HTC phone software and ext4 is a custom recovery that uses an exit4 partition on the sdcard I believe
sent from my android powered beast!

hortaja said:
OK guys, I have never rooted a phone but decided today to give it a try, why.. first cause I dont wish to wait till June for ICS and second becuase I saw this simple looking step-by step guide......so I thought simple.
First off I am PC savy but NOT at all cell phone hacking savy. All of this jargun you all use CID, MID, RUU, 4EXT means nothing to me and I have gotten lost.
I started with the instruction on this thread but then got the bright idea of seeing if there were some youtube step-by-steps how to's and there were. But the two videos I watched must have been older cause they had one major step differnt.
They say to type Y to Install recovery mod after S OFF, and I did. so now the next steps in the video dont work and I have veired off track what you all say to do.... I'm scared and lost.
I'm a realtor and my phone is my money maker, I can't brick it.
Someone help please.
Jerry
954-214-6104
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
oppps. XD guess i didnt answer your questions properly..sorry i misread.. The first thing we need to know is whether or not your phone can start up and does not just blank out when you turn it on.

Hey guys, thank you for the quick replies. Yes thank goodness it does power up.
ok here is the youtube video i followed, opps.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvg0i8in96M
All I got was to turn the phone to s-off but not rooted.
So yes the phone functions, but not my voicemails. It now say
"This phone was associated with a different account. Do you want to delete the exsisting voicemails?"
So I would like to proceed with the upgrade to ICS, unless becuase I am SUCH a noob you all think I should just some how revert back to S-on and leave my phone alone?
I just read here all the time, you should root, its SOOO easy... and it not if you are a noob..
Thank you all for your time, and I love this site.
Jerry
954-214-6104

hortaja said:
Hey guys, thank you for the quick replies. Yes thank goodness it does power up.
ok here is the youtube video i followed, opps.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvg0i8in96M
All I got was to turn the phone to s-off but not rooted.
So yes the phone functions, but not my voicemails. It now say
"This phone was associated with a different account. Do you want to delete the exsisting voicemails?"
So I would like to proceed with the upgrade to ICS, unless becuase I am SUCH a noob you all think I should just some how revert back to S-on and leave my phone alone?
I just read here all the time, you should root, its SOOO easy... and it not if you are a noob..
Thank you all for your time, and I love this site.
Jerry
954-214-6104
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i cant see it being an issue bud firstly, i am yet to own this device (but soon! roll on payday ^^) so i can only take you as far as rooting and custom recoverys, but for ics updates youd best ask others go to this guide http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1192300 and follow steps 2 through to 4 and then you will have a custom recovery, full root and supercid ^^ after that if you want to try an ice cream sandwich rom look
at the dev thread here. http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=1112&order=desc&page=2 always double check that you understand what your about to do before you do it, and all threads *should* have full instructions on how to flash them. remember that installing a custom rom will WIPE ALL YOUR DATA so remember to do a nandroid back up from your recovery good luck pal and enjoy

OK guys, well I did not chicken out. I followed the video once again, but this time used my original stock SD card and everything worked. I am rooted! so now to the next steps...
wish me luck.
Jerry

SOLVED - OTA - update downloads but fails to install - Rev & Root

Nobody could help but finally i managed to take the risk and it paid off thankfully.
It is the easiest way to unroot, remove superuser, revolutionary and to restore hboot back to normal and S-On again, to get official updates including ICS.
Download the attachment "usmanxhmed.rar", it has Android Flasher and FlashENGHBOOT.
Attach your phone to PC with USB cable, make sure you have HTC fastboot drivers installed.
Open Android Flasher and select bootloader and browse to the file FlashENGHBOOT which you downloaded in file "usmanxhmed.rar", boot phone into fastboot and click flash.
It will remove REVOLUTIONARY **** from the phone.
Now download your specific RUU from this link http://www.filefactory.com/f/c64d333a2755a421/ i was unsure which is my RUU for the phone as i bought it second hand, my phone was unbranded, i matched the software version and radio version in my software information of the phone and downloaded the specific RUU.
After flashing the RUU my Desire S became factory fresh and back to S - ON and updated my phone with Android 2.3.5 and Sense 3 and hopefully/ may be i will get ICS in future as well
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ORIGINAL POST
(Please Don't tell me to search the forums, as my situation is bit different and i am newbie here)
I have Desire S (I bought used from Market and sadly it has S-off with Revolutionary and Superuser App installed)
Problem is that, i get notification of update 1.47.401 and it gets download, when it tried to install after reboot i see android icon with triangle exclamation mark.
Now my situation is different because i have a feeling despite S-off i am on official rom which is 2.3.3, so i want to jump to 2.3.5 and later on official ICS
So i think if i just remove revolutionary and root and S-off to S-On may be, i may able to install the update as i already have official or stock rom in my phone i think.
I have android 2.3.3
software number 1.28.401
Update that i download is 1.47.401
Revolutionary S 0ff
hboot 6.98
I dont even know which hboot i need to get this update to inslall or what i need to do? is there any caring guy who can help beside just taunting as i have seen here?

Forget update, simply flash a custom ROM
Would also suggest that you out ENG boot loader over the alpha Rex one
See INDEX (in my signature) for links
Swyped from my DesireS

@poster
for u to conviniently use htc OTA updates u need to S-ON again
or just forget it and install custom ROMs like Ben just said
cheers

Thanks both of you for replying, its the beauty of God that we all have different mind sets, unlike most guys here, i am a man who would prefer official/stock rom and would prefer to have official updates instead of amateur ROM. May be because
- It causes far less phones to brick
- Manufacturer understands device better then amateur developers
- i see no special advantage of custom ROM over stock rom
- i can live life without root and s off as i can have more secure android experience
- Manufacturer invests may be billions to understand the best combination of hardware and software may be that's they don't usually port gingerbread on g1.
- Official update can remove few bugs where as most custom ROMs have bugs as we often read in almost all the posts here thst camera or wifi or tethering is not working yet and so on
- Customs ROMs can over heat the hardware and can damage it as they lack proper hardware knowledge, training and research.
There are endless points due to which some poeple like to stay stock, unlike most here and by above points i am not saying lovers of custom that they are wrong or not demotivating them at all, just sharing my own thoughts due to which i think i better have stock rom in normal circumstances.
So is there any (expert) guy who can help me to resolve my problem instead of telling me to get custom ROM, which i know my self, and which i said i don't want. Its ok not having 2.3.5 but i will be unlucky not to have official ICS if it gets available on my phone.

Wow! where to start...I'll leave that for now (although you may wish to re-consider your use of the word amateur as its rather insulting).
I believe that you need to flash the (98.2) ENG hboot over your Revolutionay (6.98).
See previous post of instructions here
You need to know if the phone is branded or un-branded and from which country/region its from in order to download the correct RUU.
I'd then suggest that you download your stock RUU and run that from the PC which will reset your recovery to stock and un-root you phone, you should then be in a position to request an OTA.

@usmanxhmed
A simple question comes to my mind after reading your post: why are you posting your issue here instead asking HTC support? I hope they will be as half friendly as Ben is. Thanks to God of course
Sent from my HTC Desire S

Well? support from HTC? firstly they may not bother to reply being HTC, not the best in customer service like any big company, secondly my phone is rooted, so its not there fault for them to fix it, thirdly here i have common guys just like me, may be someone with situation just like me.
Yeah use of word Amateur sounds rude here, bit insulting too, but if we are willing to face the reality, that is truth, they are not developing to earn living, they are not manufacturing devices giving warranties, instead saving there soul in every post we are not responsible, as they are greatly unsure about the validity of everything they are teaching/guiding here and on and on and on, so all of this must be categorized as Amateur.
See the people of Revolutionary? after ruining/screwing the warranty and OTA of all phones, they are unable to give simple guide to undo there mess? Most procedures here are with warnings and posts users that they bricked there devices? With custom ROMs no processor is converted from single core to dual y magic so i should want custom ROM so badly.
It may work, it may brick phone, my screen stuck there, it stuck here, camera not working, wifi not working, lagging? For a poor guy like me who can't change phone weekly these things are somewhat burden. Nokia/HTC/Apple will give one click software updates and they will not tell you do it on your own risk, you may brick your phone, they online tell you if you disconnect cable than your device may not work, it does not mean they are brick prove, but more reliable thats why they are professional and brothers here are amateurs.
I don't know, i just bought used phone with revolutionary root and i can't install update even after downloading it, i don't know my phone belongs to which compnay, which RUU i need, which hboot i need out of 20 out there, single mistake can brick my phone without even letting it fall on ground from my hand, let me sleep and live with 2.3.3

usmanxhmed said:
Well? support from HTC? firstly they may not bother to reply being HTC, not the best in customer service like any big company, secondly my phone is rooted, so its not there fault for them to fix it, thirdly here i have common guys just like me, may be someone with situation just like me.
Yeah use of word Amateur sounds rude here, bit insulting too, but if we are willing to face the reality, that is truth, they are not developing to earn living, they are not manufacturing devices giving warranties, instead saving there soul in every post we are not responsible, as they are greatly unsure about the validity of everything they are teaching/guiding here and on and on and on, so all of this must be categorized as Amateur.
See the people of Revolutionary? after ruining/screwing the warranty and OTA of all phones, they are unable to give simple guide to undo there mess? Most procedures here are with warnings and posts users that they bricked there devices? With custom ROMs no processor is converted from single core to dual y magic so i should want custom ROM so badly.
It may work, it may brick phone, my screen stuck there, it stuck here, camera not working, wifi not working, lagging? For a poor guy like me who can't change phone weekly these things are somewhat burden. Nokia/HTC/Apple will give one click software updates and they will not tell you do it on your own risk, you may brick your phone, they online tell you if you disconnect cable than your device may not work, it does not mean they are brick prove, but more reliable thats why they are professional and brothers here are amateurs.
I don't know, i just bought used phone with revolutionary root and i can't install update even after downloading it, i don't know my phone belongs to which compnay, which RUU i need, which hboot i need out of 20 out there, single mistake can brick my phone without even letting it fall on ground from my hand, let me sleep and live with 2.3.3
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
huhu...i dont think that peoples here are amateurs...they've come up with much better custom roms than official one i believe...

I believe this can be quite long and useless discussion. Just to mention some of the devs around ARE working for the big companies.
Anyway back to topic. To restore to stock you will find all the necessary info in the second half of the amateur guide about emmc in my signature. Good luck
Sent from my HTC Desire S

For someone after assistance, I do find you're attitude negative and insulting. The forum is full of various guides and sticky threads which contain most of the information that you require, your problem is not unique and therefore had been solved many times over in the past and therefore is well documented here on the forum.
While you may be correct in that many people here at Xda are either young and starting out or merely interested novices and therefore could be classed as ameteurs
I think that you'll find that the developers of the most popular ROMs are in fact professional programmers who code here, in their spare time for the benefit of others.
Swyped from my DesireS

I have nothing against the love for developing, that people have over here, obviously its a skill, but do let me know they develop for the benefit of whom or i mean what are the benefits of developing to a normal consumer.
Over here i found good guides for revolutionary and rooting but there is no detailed/complete guide to undo the stuff, in fact the most of famous guide to undo now claims that i closed this topic, you can find that forum everywhere here which most people link to me, the guy says he is sick of brick phones so he is taking off the guide.
No guide tells for which stock version which hboot is required, nobody tells which RUU version i need when i don't know my Desire belongs to which country, as i cannot find where to locate it.
The only thing i understand here revolutionary dirt is most painful to undo as i remember i unrooted my xperia x10mini with almost one click with some software like superone by connecting to my PC.
Now i understand what benefits developers are giving to consumers here, which can be
- Loss of warranty
- Plenty of dead phones
- One developer narrates if your phones bricks during my guide and if you will complain from me, i will laugh on you, sure you must
- Robbing you from facility of One Click OTA
- OTA usually remove bugs and adds functionality so you can't have it
- And on and on and on
According to my thoughts, xda developers should be bringing solutions to current problems and limitations, instead of doing above mentioned thing to already working phone, Now i think my Old Symbian phone was better at least i could get OTA just by changing product code in a second with ease.
Anyways thanks for everyone who tried to help and i am sorry for being bit cheeky and playful here.

usmanxhmed said:
I have nothing against the love for developing, that people have over here, obviously its a skill, but do let me know they develop for the benefit of whom or i mean what are the benefits of developing to a normal consumer.
Over here i found good guides for revolutionary and rooting but there is no detailed/complete guide to undo the stuff, in fact the most of famous guide to undo now claims that i closed this topic, you can find that forum everywhere here which most people link to me, the guy says he is sick of brick phones so he is taking off the guide.
No guide tells for which stock version which hboot is required, nobody tells which RUU version i need when i don't know my Desire belongs to which country, as i cannot find where to locate it.
The only thing i understand here revolutionary dirt is most painful to undo as i remember i unrooted my xperia x10mini with almost one click with some software like superone by connecting to my PC.
Now i understand what benefits developers are giving to consumers here, which can be
- Loss of warranty
- Plenty of dead phones
- One developer narrates if your phones bricks during my guide and if you will complain from me, i will laugh on you, sure you must
- Robbing you from facility of One Click OTA
- OTA usually remove bugs and adds functionality so you can't have it
- And on and on and on
According to my thoughts, xda developers should be bringing solutions to current problems and limitations, instead of doing above mentioned thing to already working phone, Now i think my Old Symbian phone was better at least i could get OTA just by changing product code in a second with ease.
Anyways thanks for everyone who tried to help and i am sorry for being bit cheeky and playful here.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Buddy I hope you get well soon...really bad way to ask for help and insult people here....if you have so many problems with you phone please return it and never buy a HTC phone and before you say something about other have a look at their profile and I belive this is the most friendly forum and no other forum would ever tolerate what ever you have posted....
Anyways all the best....
Risk it to get the biscut...
Sent from my HTC Desire S using XDA

usmanxhmed said:
but do let me know they develop for the benefit of whom or i mean what are the benefits of developing to a normal consumer.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Let me see....
- Overall (way) faster phone
- Batterylife that doubles or more (this alone is worth a custom rom!)
- OTA updates are still added to the custom roms, so no benefit for you
- Sometimes bugs that the 'great HTC developers' left in are removed
- Lot`s of 'under the hood' tweaks that make your phone faster, safer and better
- Garbage from HTC that is removed
- Nice tweaks in screenbrightness, wakeup with volume keys etc. etc.
Since you are already s-off with revolutionary i can`t see why you want to take the hard and tricky way to go back to s-on. (The OTA reason is not legit and your warranty is already gone)
Just fyi, there are also 100% stock untweaked up-to-date roms you can flash with ClockWorkMod Recovery...

usmanxhmed said:
(Please Don't tell me to search the forums, as my situation is bit different and i am newbie here)
I have Desire S (I bought used from Market and sadly it has S-off with Revolutionary and Superuser App installed)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi,
I can understand you. I was thinking nearly same like you when I bought my DS. After 6-7 months later of purchase my DS, I decided to S-OFF and flash a custom rom. First I flashed Endymion (than 2-3 roms too but used them for 1-2 hours) and I started to like my DS again. It took months for Sense 3 update and we're still waiting for ICS for ages. I can understand about your worries but XDA's Dev community working harder than manufacturer's devs. Getting new updates very quickly, and there lots of ICS roms by devs. So you should respect them.
You can flash Eng Hboot (this topic) then download official stock 2.10.401.8 rom from here. Follow instructions after connect your DS to PC

Thanks for helping and being kind, my rude language was partially explained by my current rude life may be and thanks for tolerating me. Custom ROMs may be cool, but don't you guys think the % of bricked phones are more here? for example if i download and install a ROM from clockwork by following instructions, can i be next to sure if i will boot up next time?
I may have to have it the hard way or i will have to ignore android versions and just use the phone for the sake of phone like an Old Man or a Girl.
Yet i hope, men at Revolutionary or at XDA could bring one easy and assured way to undo revolutionary and its root.

[Q] tried many things, now need help for daughters phone

Hi Guys,
I'm trying to get a 'stable' rom for a phone I've given to my daughter (Evita / Telstra one XL).
I've tried a heap of things, tried to s-off, change radio files etc... Anyway, current status is that it's been unlocked, s-on, and I have twrp.. I'm using KickDroid XL v4.0.0 ROM, looks great, but the phone keeps on rebooting... Also loosing 3G signal, so have to reboot it quite a few times a day to resolve. (tired another rom, same problem, loss of 3g signal and multiple reboots during the day)
I'm sure it's got to do with the radio file, but can't seem to fix that. I've read 'so much!' information, but really confused now. I've tried to supercid it, unsuccessfully, tried to find the all-in-one toolking (bt it looks like its been removed)..
So, this is what I have when I boot it:
*** TAMPERED ***
*** UNLOCKED ***
EVITA PVT SHIP S-ON RL
HBOOT-1.11.0000
RADIO-0.23a.32.09.29
OpenDSP-v28.1.0.32.0504
eMMC-boot
Jun 7 2012,13:10:34
TWRP recovery
2.6.3.0
htc one xl
Evita​
Any help in how to (or if I should) get the radio/hboot up to hopefully resolve the loss of 3G?
I'm no expert, but not that dumb either. I follow instructions from the start, but most of the time it gets stuck half way (ie, when doing supercid, boots to the HTC logo, but won't go any further)..
Any help really appreciated.

The problem is not that the ROM is unstable, the ROM is perfectly stable if you meet the requirements. The problem is your current firmware version. You need to update to the 2.15 firmware package. It does state that very clearly in the "You Need" section in the beginning of the Kickdroid thread. Please search/research properly before posting in future, it's part of the XDA rules. This issue has been discussed extensively in every single Sense 5 ROM thread, plus this is probably the 100th thread like this in our Q&A section.
Sent from my Evita

Why are you even giving your daughter a rooted/modded phone at all? Unless she has an understanding of what root means, its not a good idea. Does she even need anything except a bone stock phone?

thanks timmaaa, I appreciate you taking the time out to reply.
I'll do some more checking on firmware 2.15... I've honestly read about 5 hours last weekend on various threads... some lead to dead ends (it toolbox), some I can't get to work (supercid)... I tried this a couple of months ago, and almost bricked it, but managed to get twrp working...
Redpoint73, are you asking why give her a phone, or why a rooted phone? The answer to the first one is that she is 11, and catches the bus to and from school. The phone is used in an emergency. I've rooted it to give her some new features, and because it was locked with Telstra and that is not the carrier we are using anymore (much cheaper options here than Telstra), so I needed to get rid of the firmware...
Overall, I appreciate any help. I actually run 5 forums (car related), and I fully understand noob's coming on and asking the same question week after week. Our forums have a lot less posts than this one (< 200,000), but we still have members, week in-week out, answering the same questions because they like to help, and because sometimes there is too much information out there to sift through, especially when somebody is willing to point you in the right direction with a friendly smile

duplicate post, (sorry, hit save twice!)

jnrdavo said:
Redpoint73, are you asking why give her a phone, or why a rooted phone? The answer to the first one is that she is 11, and catches the bus to and from school. The phone is used in an emergency. I've rooted it to give her some new features, and because it was locked with Telstra and that is not the carrier we are using anymore (much cheaper options here than Telstra), so I needed to get rid of the firmware...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Its pretty clear from my post that it was root/mod that I was referring to. Root has nothing to do with Subsidy (SIM) Lock, and the firmware has little to do with the carrier you are on (I've been using the German T-Mobile stock ROM for a while now, despite being on AT&T).
Of course its up to you to decide what you do with the phone. But you should consider (if you haven't already) the security risk of giving a rooted device to a user that knows little or nothing about such things. Even more so for s-off, which is necessary for the solution that timmaaa suggested.
My question has less to do with exactly "who" the phone is for. But more to the point, when people come on here saying they are modding the phone for "someone else" (be it mom, third cousin, or whatever), if that person isn't doing it for themselves, its pretty questionable whether they need such mods at all.

ok, thanks redpoint73..
I understand where you are coming from, and appreciate your comments.
Now, anybody else like to point me in the right direction (to a link to get the latest firmware, or a compatible one working)?

jnrdavo said:
Now, anybody else like to point me in the right direction (to a link to get the latest firmware, or a compatible one working)?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You serious? timmaaa already told you where to find it.
Since I'm feeling charitable right now, here it is, complete with step-by-step instructions (only need to follow Posts #2 and 4): http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2485865
The original thread where Turge posted his firmware package (see under "OPTIONAL", s-off is required before doing this): http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=45072132&postcount=1
Or just install the Beastmode kernel (S-off not required): http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2165880

thanks mate. I appreciate the charity, I really do I'm trying not to be a nob.. I'm actually having another go this morning... I've got win 8.1 (yeah, I know) so trying to get the latest driver to work is a pain.... Just trying x_factory windows, backups up twice, but then doesn't run the next command (to change CID)...
Anyway, thanks again. I'll persist on...