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[Q] recovery.img and recovery-from-boot.p

Hi all,
I am trying to make sense of how the android system is made up w.r.t to boot/kernel.
I have been looking at the .img files in the build (I built for the "passion" device), and have been googling around to find some more information about the various .img files.
I ran into a nice HOWTO in android-dls.com 's WIKI, titled HOWTO:_Unpack%2C_Edit%2C_and_Re-Pack_Boot_Images (I'm sorry, I'm a new user so XDA won't allow me to post links. I will try to modify my post a soon as I'm granted permission for that)
but I am afraid it is a little outdated:
I have several questions, but I will try to be brief, so I'll focus on
one of them, and if that works I'll proceed to the next questions, all related to "Android bringup for dummy embedded linux kernel experts".
I am fairly aware of differences between different linux
configurations, and I am very familiar with linux bringup concepts, so I will just use common examples from the linux world as my terminology. Hope it will be clear enough.
I understood that boot.img a combination of a kernel (e.g. bzImage in linux) and an initial ramdisk (e.g. initrd.gz), wrapped by some header, as in common linux kernel loading practice (piggy.o etc.).
Now, the aforementioned HOWTO says that the "recovery" image is built on
the same way, and that it is stored on the target's /system/
recovery.img .
I would assume that this would be compound of the ramdisk-
recovery.img, and some other kernel.
Now, the problem is that:
1. This /system/recovery.img does not exist from what I saw (on my
Motorola XOOM tablet)
2. What does exist is /system/boot-from-recovery.p , which is
created during the boot process in obj/PACKAGING/
recovery_patch_intermediates/recovery_from_boot.p .
I saw tons of posts referring to the files, all said that "in order to
replace the rescue disk image, this file needs to be renamed" - but I
am looking for a way to figure out what it is, and how to extract its
contents.
I assume /system/recovery.img is deprecated, is that correct?
3. I did not see any flash devices in /proc/mtd (which is strange).
I searched for hours before sending this post, so I would appreciate
your help. I also posted a similar message at the google android-building group, but it has not been answered yet, and I got the impression that these forums are more active and can help me get where I need.
If it is not the right place to ask the question please let me know -
I just assume this is a general android concept and not device
specific.
Thanks,
Ron

I meant of course /system/recovery-from-boot.p , and not recovery-from.boot.p
-R

Hi,
I don't know if you managed to find out what "recovery-from-boot.p" is, since this is quite an old post, but I think I'll try to help anyway.
recovery.img is not deprecated at all. From my own experience, it looks like "recovery-from-boot.p" is a protection measure introduced in Gingerbread, but not the recovery itself. What it does is replacing any recovery currently installed on the phone with the default one on every boot.
I discovered it after flashing a custom recovery on my Android 2.3.4 phone. It worked, but just during the first boot. The next time I rebooted the phone, the default recovery image was there again. After browsing several sites, I found that "recovery-from-boot.p" is responsible for that.
So, if you flash a custom recovery image on a Gingerbread phone and want to keep it forever, you must delete this "recovery-from-boot.p" from /system, or at least rename it. That way, your new custom recovery will never get overwritten buy the default one, unless you do it yourself.
I hope this helps you and clarifies this question.

Well, it helped me. I'm new to rooting and just came across mention of this file. I am trying to learn 'why' as well as 'how'', so your post was informative.

Was going to ask a dumb question but I figured it out

i need to delet those files
bigrammy said:
Was going to ask a dumb question but I figured it out
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello
can't delete those files >> i am rooted but every time i delete or rename it take permission then nothing happen >> how i can delete them plsssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss

recovery from boot p
ahmed morsy said:
Hello
can't delete those files >> i am rooted but every time i delete or rename it take permission then nothing happen >> how i can delete them plsssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey good day. Did you get your problem fixed...? I have an xt912 it has the same file. For days I've been trying to wipe the phone. Tryed rooting it. I tryed reprogramming it. And I got through with all of that. But everytime the phone boots up it goes back to the same state. Then I used a root browser and while exploring I saw this recovery from boot file. I need help. And I don't think I can downgrade the Motorola phones. Thanks in advance.

jman0 said:
Hi,
I don't know if you managed to find out what "recovery-from-boot.p" is, since this is quite an old post, but I think I'll try to help anyway.
recovery.img is not deprecated at all. From my own experience, it looks like "recovery-from-boot.p" is a protection measure introduced in Gingerbread, but not the recovery itself. What it does is replacing any recovery currently installed on the phone with the default one on every boot.
I discovered it after flashing a custom recovery on my Android 2.3.4 phone. It worked, but just during the first boot. The next time I rebooted the phone, the default recovery image was there again. After browsing several sites, I found that "recovery-from-boot.p" is responsible for that.
So, if you flash a custom recovery image on a Gingerbread phone and want to keep it forever, you must delete this "recovery-from-boot.p" from /system, or at least rename it. That way, your new custom recovery will never get overwritten buy the default one, unless you do it yourself.
I hope this helps you and clarifies this question.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i have deleted it . then flash recovery ,, but it failed .. it wont even now go to stock recovery itself.. any help..

Does recovery from boot has to do anything with ota update applying ? or it will cause issues in system update ?

I have recovery-from-boot.p in my system and i cant root my phone i cant change the recovery img ... Help?

I hadn't had to deal with this for some time, perhaps because I've updated my devices (Nexus 4, Nexus 5, Nexus 7 '13) with the factory images, with "-w" removed from flash-all, then flashing CWM's recovery, ensure SuperSU was installed, then continuing. Today, I used the new OTA image on my Hammerhead/N5, and recovery-from-boot.p seems to be up to its old tricks again.
Solution is simple.
Flash your alternate Recovery in fastboot, fastboot flash recovery [recovery image file] . Boot into Recovery. Apply/install root app (typically via sideload). Mount /system. adb shell mv /system/recovery-from-boot.p /system/recovery-from-boot.p.bak. Reboot. Done. (If you're unfamiliar with fastboot, adb, and flashing new recovery partitions, you have some reading to do. Commence RTFM.)
I also used to have to move /system/etc/install-recovery.sh but that seems to be gone in Marshmallow. :} Or moved...?

well, after following a guide I have extracted the system.img from a pure-nexus ROM(The ROM I'm currently using), now I can see that "recovery-from-boot.p" file is responsible for recovery lock in my phone. I'll keep it short and straight to the question
"Can I remove this file and rebuild the .dat file and flash it?, so that I won't have any other problems at all"
I want to know if recovery-from-boot.p file is linked to anything other than just locking the recovery or re-flashing it innumerable times.

I need an easier guide...

To outline my situation, I have installed CWM to my phone, and flashed version 2.5.1.2 of Galaxy S i9000 (but the recovery boot doesn't show as CWM) on a Samsung InFuse 4G (this part I managed to find by scouring the forums) with Firmware version 2.2.1, Kernel 2.6.32.9, with Build FROYO.UCKH1. This is as far as I have gotten because I cannot seem to get a backup of my phone's ROM made. So, my question is can someone explain (without jargon, I haven't quite learned it yet) in simple steps how to resolve this issue and help me continue my way to flashing a custom ROM? I've checked and read so many other guides, but they are confusing because the steps aren't (sad to say) dumbed down for me. Here's an example of what I read:
1: dl CWM (actually had to go look this up and figure out what it was)
2: flash CWM (my phone model wasn't on the list, but after an extensive search found out that I could use the Galaxy S i9000 [supposedly])
3: boot into CWM Recovery (can't do it, for some reason it won't load on my phone.)
4: perform backup with CWM (as before, can't do it, read I could use Titanium backup but no depth was given)
5: dl a rom and place it on your sd card (this one is understood, short and to the point)
6: boot into CWM and flash rom
Unfortunately, when I start out on a new OS (already owning Windows and getting good at Linux) I tend to not even understand these so-called "Dummies Guides." I need something filled with minimal jargon that is short and sweet. Any information would be helpful
Also, I would like to know the likelihood of bricking my phone (based off of its specs) if it is possible to find out...

I'm a little bit confused here. How come you've flashed an i9000 (Galaxy S) firmware onto an Infuse? I think we can work out your backup problems though

I mean that I flashed the Galaxy S i9000 version of CWM Recovery to my phone because there wasn't an InFuse option. (according to one thread, it said that the i9000 version was compatible with the InFuse)
However, I flashed the Recovery, but when I booted into recovery mode, I was still in the stock recovery. Any explanation for this and everything else?
I don't really know anything about the Android system yet, but I hope to be good enough to become a developer one day.

DeltaOps said:
I mean that I flashed the Galaxy S i9000 version of CWM Recovery to my phone because there wasn't an InFuse option. (according to one thread, it said that the i9000 version was compatible with the InFuse)
However, I flashed the Recovery, but when I booted into recovery mode, I was still in the stock recovery. Any explanation for this and everything else?
I don't really know anything about the Android system yet, but I hope to be good enough to become a developer one day.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Gotcha. Sounds like the recovery hasn't flashed properly. Did you have the phone rooted before flashing the recovery?
Here is an awesome thread with video guides on just about everything you could need. Here is another. I take it you've already followed at least one of these to get the recovery flashed, so it might pay to try the 3E recovery instead and see if that works.
You may need to go right back to stock and start over. If you do, AdamOutler has got you covered right here.
I'll stay subscribed in case you need anything else, best of luck mate

My phone was rooted with SuperOneClick. Superuser was still intact. I read on a thread that the CWM Recovery could "fake flash" and that it would still be accessible by selecting "boot into recovery" but it doesn't show.
It says 3E in my recovery mode, is that the modified or is it actually stock?
I downloaded CWM from the market (method 2) but for some reason have update.zip on my phone (method 1). Any explanation? I don't exactly remember downloading a .zip file...

DeltaOps said:
My phone was rooted with SuperOneClick. Superuser was still intact. I read on a thread that the CWM Recovery could "fake flash" and that it would still be accessible by selecting "boot into recovery" but it doesn't show.
It says 3E in my recovery mode, is that the modified or is it actually stock?
I downloaded CWM from the market (method 2) but for some reason have update.zip on my phone (method 1). Any explanation? I don't exactly remember downloading a .zip file...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It may have 'fake flashed' and not worked at all. Both stock and modified recovery will say 3E, the difference is in the version numbers although I can't picture them off the top of my head. If CWM had worked, you would not be seeing 3E, you would see the typical array of CWM options. The modified 3E does not give you the same options CWM does, it just gives you the option to flash an 'unsigned' image from Recovery.
I have never had any luck with ROM Manager personally, although a lot of people swear by it. I found it especially flaky flashing recoveries to any device, very hit-and-miss. I personally prefer, and recommend, flashing recoveries manually via ADB. A little trickier, but a lot more trustworthy.
That said, try flashing recovery through RM again before taking any further steps. Flashing a recovery over a recovery won't hurt

I've tried three separate times to install the CWM recovery, but all were unsuccessful. What's this about ADB? I remember seeing the ADB Daemon in the SuperOneClick rooting process. And how tricky is it exactly, does it require code?
I have the Titanium Backup app on my phone, and I have backed up all the system and app data, but they are all separate files instead of a single (what, .md5?) file. I remember reading another thread that said you could back up a ROM via TB but I can't find a back up ROM option. Is there a particular way to do this or do I have to have the Premium/Pro version of TB? Or have I pretty much done all I can do with TB?

DeltaOps said:
I've tried three separate times to install the CWM recovery, but all were unsuccessful. What's this about ADB? I remember seeing the ADB Daemon in the SuperOneClick rooting process. And how tricky is it exactly, does it require code?
I have the Titanium Backup app on my phone, and I have backed up all the system and app data, but they are all separate files instead of a single (what, .md5?) file. I remember reading another thread that said you could back up a ROM via TB but I can't find a back up ROM option. Is there a particular way to do this or do I have to have the Premium/Pro version of TB? Or have I pretty much done all I can do with TB?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ADB is a command-line interface between your PC and your phone. You enable USB debugging and connect the phone via USB to the computer. Once you have the correct drivers installed, you can then use ADB (part of the Android SDK available for download) to send commands to your phone, as well as push and pull files. This requires full root, which you already have.
For example you can grab the recovery.img for CWN on the Infuse and tell ADB to 'flash recovery recovery.img' and actually ensure it flashes.
There are some excellent ADB tutorials floating around, this one in particular got me started. Make sure you do a bit of reading first though: the wrong command can royally screw you.
After you're familiar, you should be able to use ADB to push a recovery to your phone, whether it be unsecured 3E, or CWM.
I'll stay subscribed for any queries you may have

How close is the ADB interface to other command-line interfaces like Linux or Windows? I use both operating systems on my laptop and I have familiarized myself with both of them (mostly). What am I supposed to be expecting when I use it? Also, I can't seem to find the recovery.img file, what folder would that be under?

DeltaOps said:
How close is the ADB interface to other command-line interfaces like Linux or Windows? I use both operating systems on my laptop and I have familiarized myself with both of them (mostly). What am I supposed to be expecting when I use it? Also, I can't seem to find the recovery.img file, what folder would that be under?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don't know about Linux, but ADB works through a Windows command prompt so its pretty much the same. You will need to have ADB, Fastboot plus whatever you wish to flash (recovery.img) in a 'working' directory, then run a command prompt from that directory.
You will probably need to download the recovery.img file.from XDA. It may be zipped up (they usually are).
Sent from my Galaxy Note using XDA Premium

I've successfully got ADB started in the command prompt (not that bad :]) but when I try to pull the directory map from my phone, it says: remote object "xxxxxxxxx" does not exist. And what's this about Fastboot? Edit: Did a bootloader command test, worked just fine. No success on pulling directory
Command I used: "adb pull -s xxxxxxxxxxx C:\"

DeltaOps said:
I've successfully got ADB started in the command prompt (not that bad :]) but when I try to pull the directory map from my phone, it says: remote object "xxxxxxxxx" does not exist. And what's this about Fastboot? Edit: Did a bootloader command test, worked just fine. No success on pulling directory
Command I used: "adb pull -s xxxxxxxxxxx C:\"
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't think that's the correct format to pull directory structure. I'll have to read up on that one
Fastboot is another tool you can use to flash bootloaders, radios, recoveries etc through the command prompt.
Sent from my Galaxy Note using XDA Premium

You're right, tried using the <remote> variable as a file instead of the device serial. Typed:
adb pull .. files
prompt skitzed out after that. I know it won't damage anything since it's a copy procedure but I'm looking for the file and it's not there. it said it's pulling everything after skipping "special files"
Edit: It just finished, said it couldn't create the file because for some reason it was trying to copy the files from the phone to the phone

DeltaOps said:
You're right, tried using the <remote> variable as a file instead of the device serial. Typed:
adb pull .. files
prompt skitzed out after that. I know it won't damage anything since it's a copy procedure but I'm looking for the file and it's not there. it said it's pulling everything after skipping "special files"
Edit: It just finished, said it couldn't create the file because for some reason it was trying to copy the files from the phone to the phone
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, you'll have to give it a target directory, I think it's like this '.\sdcard' to write them to the SD card?
Sent from my Galaxy Note using XDA Premium

If that's the case, then how do I make the file copy to my HDD? The drive doesn't show up on my computer (does it)?

DeltaOps said:
If that's the case, then how do I make the file copy to my HDD? The drive doesn't show up on my computer (does it)?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm sure that with the correct command, you will be able to pull the structure to your hard drive. I'm not sure if it's .\C:/ or not, I'll have a look when I'm on a proper rig and can do a proper search
Sent from my Galaxy Note using XDA Premium

Thanks! You've been great so far
That noob video was right, XDA is full of awesome people!
Edit: Got it Thanks for the pointers. Now I need to find out how to back up the entire ROM... :/

DeltaOps said:
Thanks! You've been great so far
That noob video was right, XDA is full of awesome people!
Edit: Got it Thanks for the pointers. Now I need to find out how to back up the entire ROM... :/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Glad you got it and glad to help. There are a hell of a lot of good people here If there's anything else you need, feel free to PM me.
Good luck buddy!
Sent from my Galaxy Note using XDA Premium

Is there perhaps any way to perform a ROM backup with ADB?

DeltaOps said:
Is there perhaps any way to perform a ROM backup with ADB?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ooh good question. I don't think so, but I'm not sure. I know you can pull directories like /system/ and whatnot, but as for repackaging them into a working backup, that may be a bit more involved. I would use ADB to.push a working CWM and do it that way, but it sounds.like you're a bit better at the command-line stuff than I so you may be able to work it!
Sent from my Galaxy Note using XDA Premium

How to replace one file when failing to boot

Hey guys
I screwed up my vold.fstab trying to get "_ExternalSD" back.
Unfortunately! I did not run a nandroid before I made the change.
Now, I can dirty flash my rom on top, or go back to a nandroid from a few days ago, but I'd really just like to recover and go on my merry way. And maybe learn something in the process.
Only thing is, I can't figure out how to access the phone other than the External SD card through CWM.
Can I mount the internal /system and access through USB? Is there some facility to copy a file from one point to another? Any other methods? I guess the phone has to be up to run ADB, right?
I don't know how to generate a flashable zip but I could extract the original version of the file from the original rom. I assume that its non trivial to create a flashable zip, but maybe someone can comment? It looks like there is signing and certificates involved..
thanks for any ideas

bluenote73 said:
Hey guys
I screwed up my vold.fstab trying to get "_ExternalSD" back.
Unfortunately! I did not run a nandroid before I made the change.
Now, I can dirty flash my rom on top, or go back to a nandroid from a few days ago, but I'd really just like to recover and go on my merry way. And maybe learn something in the process.
Only thing is, I can't figure out how to access the phone other than the External SD card through CWM.
Can I mount the internal /system and access through USB? Is there some facility to copy a file from one point to another? Any other methods? I guess the phone has to be up to run ADB, right?
I don't know how to generate a flashable zip but I could extract the original version of the file from the original rom. I assume that its non trivial to create a flashable zip, but maybe someone can comment? It looks like there is signing and certificates involved..
thanks for any ideas
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
this is why i hate it when people make those guides.
messing with the vold.fstab is dangerous (even though its only a few lines) if your trying to recover your data, give up. its not going to happen. (sorry)
when you edit the vold.fstab it messed up the partitions on your internal SD card and most likely did the equivalent of wiped your /system partition. (or another important one.) your actually lucky it did not completely brick your phone.
your post was a little vague, but if you can, just restore an older nandroid, or wipe everything and install another ROM. (you can try dirty flashing but i dont think itll work)
if you cannot access CWM, then follow the steps in This guide. it should get you back up on your feet. after you follow that guide flash a gingerbread ROM (any gingerbread rom will do fine) then you can reboot and flash any ROM you want. (it needs this to fix a quirk in that script)
Hope you get it fixed
EDIT: re read your post, if your feeling adventurous and want to give it a shot, boot into CWM and connect it via usb. you can now get into an ADB shell on your phone by typing 'adb shell' if you have adb all setup and working. (im working from memory here so dont quote me on any of this)
now, you should be able to access your /system folder from that shell. be very careful though, i dont have much experience right here, and if i remember correctly you might not be in the full root directory yet)
if you can get into it try replacing your vold.fstab with a stock one,
if you dont have a stock one lying around, make a nandroid of the current state of the rom, then flash another rom, pull the vold.fstab, then re-restore back to the broken one and restore it (id upload mine but my phone is OOC right now )
after that just reboot and hope it resolves itself, if not then just follow my advice above
and keep that guide i linked to handy, messing around in CWM has the ability to brick your phone, if it does, then just follow that guide.

Klathmon said:
this is why i hate it when people make those guides.
messing with the vold.fstab is dangerous (even though its only a few lines) if your trying to recover your data, give up. its not going to happen. (sorry)
when you edit the vold.fstab it messed up the partitions on your internal SD card and most likely did the equivalent of wiped your /system partition. (or another important one.) your actually lucky it did not completely brick your phone.
your post was a little vague, but if you can, just restore an older nandroid, or wipe everything and install another ROM.
if you cannot access CWM, then follow the steps in This guide. it should get you back up on your feet. after you follow that guide flash a gingerbread ROM (any gingerbread rom will do fine) then you can reboot and flash any ROM you want. (it needs this to fix a quirk in that script)
Hope you get it fixed
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How bout adb and pushing the file back in? Or cant you access the phone via adb?
Sent from my LG-P970 using XDA

N00BY0815 said:
How bout adb and pushing the file back in? Or cant you access the phone via adb?
Sent from my LG-P970 using XDA
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
re read your post and updated my last post right after you posted
after dealing with noobies all day, i forget sometimes people want to try big things

Thanks guys. The info I was missing was there's no special trick to attaching adb while in CWM! Just plug in!
My phone is back up and running and partitions are fine as far as I can see after just booting up.

Hi there! I messed up with the vold.fstab filfe on my tablet – I replaced it with a downloaded file with the intention to transfer apps to my external SD card.
Now my tablet is only showing the startup logo and won’t continue loading. I can access recovery mode. Now I want to restore the original vold.fstab file.
My questions:
1. Using the Android SDK, the file explorer does not show any files, though my tablet is recognized.
2. Using adb push, it yields an error: permission denied, how to successfully push the original vold.fstab and replace the existing vold.fstab?
3. If I dump an image of my tablet and edit the dumped image, would this be easier compared to the steps above?
Thanks!

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1646108
Try this.
If this doesn't help you should ask in the section for your tablet to get more specific advice.

TwitchyEye said:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1646108
Try this.
If this doesn't help you should ask in the section for your tablet to get more specific advice.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, I will try it later when I got home. My tablet is not found here. I have a Skyworth S71(3G) with RK3066 chipset.

BryanF said:
Thanks, I will try it later when I got home. My tablet is not found here. I have a Skyworth S71(3G) with RK3066 chipset.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You need to do an adb remount before you can push. Was it rooted before?
-- The noob says:
This just in... my IQ has increased 50 points thanks to the g2x!

Mansa_noob, yes, my tablet is rooted. I followed some instructions about adb but had an error saying access denied, and also no files are displayed at file explorer. See my posts above. I also mounted it successfully. I will post some sreenshots later.
Please if you have some instructions, I am willing to try.
---------- Post added at 07:06 AM ---------- Previous post was at 07:02 AM ----------
TwitchyEye said:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1646108
Try this.
If this doesn't help you should ask in the section for your tablet to get more specific advice.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi twitchyEye, it did not work. It attemps to install (using the install update from ext sd card) but then says installation aborted.
Any more suggestions? Thanks

What recovery are you using? I suck with adb so I got nothing on that front.

It was the stock recovery from my Tablet. I don't have it on hand right now, I will post later. The chipset is RK3066. My problem is my tablet has no official support on the internet (maybe becaue it's still new). Model is Skyworth S71(3G).

I see. Yeah this is over my head man. I thought for sure you were running a custom recovery and it was an easy answer. I'm actually struggling right now with adb myself with a similar issue something about permissions whenever I try to do anything to my phone. So I guess right now would be a perfect time for somebody to chime in with a smarter answer!

TwitchyEye said:
I see. Yeah this is over my head man. I thought for sure you were running a custom recovery and it was an easy answer. I'm actually struggling right now with adb myself with a similar issue something about permissions whenever I try to do anything to my phone. So I guess right now would be a perfect time for somebody to chime in with a smarter answer!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you doing adb remount and still getting permission denied?
-- The noob says:
This just in... my IQ has increased 50 points thanks to the g2x!

mansa_noob said:
Are you doing adb remount and still getting permission denied?
-- The noob says:
This just in... my IQ has increased 50 points thanks to the g2x!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, I did adb remount and still access denied

BryanF said:
Yes, I did adb remount and still access denied
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is strange. A properly rooted phone would adb remount to r/w system. Something is fishy. Is it rooted+
-- The noob says:
This just in... my IQ has increased 50 points thanks to the g2x!

mansa_noob said:
This is strange. A properly rooted phone would adb remount to r/w system. Something is fishy. Is it rooted+
-- The noob says:
This just in... my IQ has increased 50 points thanks to the g2x!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am sure it is rooted, because I downloaded an application from Google play to check it it is rooted or not. It is really rooted. I alvo confirmed this as I can now fully backup and restore my apps using Titanium backup before the tablet is messed up.

BryanF said:
I am sure it is rooted, because I downloaded an application from Google play to check it it is rooted or not. It is really rooted. I alvo confirmed this as I can now fully backup and restore my apps using Titanium backup before the tablet is messed up.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OK. Odd or not, it is what it is. Is it possible for you to load a custom recovery?
-- The noob says:
This just in... my IQ has increased 50 points thanks to the g2x!

mansa_noob said:
OK. Odd or not, it is what it is. Is it possible for you to load a custom recovery?
-- The noob says:
This just in... my IQ has increased 50 points thanks to the g2x!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I want to try, but the stock recovery is my last hold as I have no stock ROM. If I overwrite the stock ROM, I cannot reinstall it as I don't have a copy of it.

So why not flash cwm with nvflash and then make a backup of your current stock rom? I did exactly that.
Sent from my LG-P999 using xda premium

[Q] 100% Original Stock ROM backup before root?

Hi there,
I am new to xda and new to Android hacking.
What I wanna ask is, (I guess it's of most newbies concern as well), can we have a 100% backup of our system (stock ROM)? Obviously, it is important because:
If we perform an official (OTA) update to a new Android version. And we don't like it. It is possible to get back to the old original one which we are used to. (not everybody likes new things, and/or not every new thing is good)
If our phones are having some problems. And we have to give it back to the company for a fix. In most cases they will flash a new ROM for us. If we wanna keep using the old one (explained in #1), we have to keep a copy of it by ourselves.
If we want to try new custom ROMs, we may want to switch it back after trying.
Whenever we do any modifications, it's always better to keep a backup/roll-back point. In case anything goes wrong, we have a safeguard.
For the official warranty issue.
Yup I do see there are some official stock ROMs downloads for some particular phones. But those are not really a backup of our original ROMs. And it's always hard to verify if those downloads are the original official releases. And, if those downloads are 100% stock ROMs, this means some guys out there could make it, so what is the way to do so?
Or, how those mobile phone companies do it in their labs?
I have been doing researches on this topic for a few days. Some posts claim that their methods are "backup stock ROM" or "backup before rooting". But after digging into it, they requires rooting and/or flashing CWM. Here comes a few questions:
Questions
Rooting will in fact changes some files/data of the system. So backup after root is NOT getting the original stock ROM. Is it?
Is there a method to "un-root", so ALL the changes are TOTALLY reverted?
Installing/flashing things like CWM in phone requires rooting, which would make the ROM not original. Is there a way to extract the system backup from a computer externally?
In addition, I have found some related pieces. which could be useful to anyone viewing this post, and might be useful for you to solve this (my) question. :fingers-crossed:
* as I'm a new user, I can't post links directly. Please delete the blank spaces in between.
ht tp://www .modaco .com/topic/351269-backup-original-rom/
In reply #5, user C3C0 raised a method of backing up the original stock ROM without root. But it seems he is flashing CWM and that method is only for ZTE Skate.
adb backup tool of Android SDK
At the first sight i came across this approach, I thought it is the official method to do whole system (ROM) backup (WOW - how nice!). But after studying for a few more posts, I think adb backup can only backup app+app_data, and possibly some system settings only. Am I correct? And also, adb backup is only for ICS (Android 4.0), isn't it?
adb backup usage: ht tp://forum.xda-developers .com/showthread.php?t=1420351
(But mentioned in the bottom of #1 the poster is having some issues on using adb backup. Perhaps there are some bugs and not reliable(?)
One more question on adb backup: Can it backup just one app+app_data, and restore just one app+app_data, without affecting other things? If yes, we don't need to root and don't need Titanium Backup (which requires root) for backup app+app_data. Isn't it?
** In case I have said anything or any terms wrongly in this thread, please DO correct me, for helping me and helping others.
P.S. i am using LG Optimus 3D.
Thanks a lot, wholeheartedly,
midnite_

Backup phone before root
Hello all this is my first post here...woohoo!:fingers-crossed: This forum is amazing as to the amount of information available. I just wish that in looking for what I need to do I did not need to look in so many places. I feel that if I want to root my T-Mobile GS3 that all the information should be in one subsection of the forum, but it is not that simple I guess....lol Anyway any help would be greatly appreciated.
I have a Samsung GS3 with T-Mobile that I want to root. Everyone says to back up the phone before you do it but I am not really seeing how to make a backup before I start. It appears that most of the guides to root just say to backup without telling you how to fo it. Another thing (correct me if I am wrong) I see the nandroid backup that I think is a backup of the phone however it seems to be done after you make changes to the phone and I thought the backup was supposed to be done before you do anything. Is it that there is not a way to make a complete backup with an unrooted phone?
My question is basically the same as the OP here. I have been reading and reading and reading posts here in the forum. There is much information here and much of it is duplicated with slight variances in some of the duplicates. I am not certain as to which rooting method I should use. There seem to be so many choices. As a new person to this forum I will say that you can find just about everything about any phone which is awesome. The hard thing is sifting through the many options to pick one to use for your issue.
I do see that Mr. Robinson has a thread with backups of the original roms. The only thing is that they are default roms that are like an out of the box phone and not my phone with my apps and my settings. That is what I want to backup...My phone with my settings and my apps.
:good: Thank you in advance for any one that can shed some light on this for me and the OP'er

ASharpEdge said:
Hello all this is my first post here...woohoo!:fingers-crossed: This forum is amazing as to the amount of information available. I just wish that in looking for what I need to do I did not need to look in so many places. I feel that if I want to root my T-Mobile GS3 that all the information should be in one subsection of the forum, but it is not that simple I guess....lol Anyway any help would be greatly appreciated.
I have a Samsung GS3 with T-Mobile that I want to root. Everyone says to back up the phone before you do it but I am not really seeing how to make a backup before I start. It appears that most of the guides to root just say to backup without telling you how to fo it. Another thing (correct me if I am wrong) I see the nandroid backup that I think is a backup of the phone however it seems to be done after you make changes to the phone and I thought the backup was supposed to be done before you do anything. Is it that there is not a way to make a complete backup with an unrooted phone?
My question is basically the same as the OP here. I have been reading and reading and reading posts here in the forum. There is much information here and much of it is duplicated with slight variances in some of the duplicates. I am not certain as to which rooting method I should use. There seem to be so many choices. As a new person to this forum I will say that you can find just about everything about any phone which is awesome. The hard thing is sifting through the many options to pick one to use for your issue.
I do see that Mr. Robinson has a thread with backups of the original roms. The only thing is that they are default roms that are like an out of the box phone and not my phone with my apps and my settings. That is what I want to backup...My phone with my settings and my apps.
:good: Thank you in advance for any one that can shed some light on this for me and the OP'er
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi ya,
It's so nice that you are having the same concern as I do.
As far as i know, the approaches of rooting differ from phones to phones. So we may have to find our own specific rooting method in the phone model sub-forums. It won't be hard for your popular S3
I would like to have a look at that Mr. Robinson's thread. If he can backup the stock ROM, those app+app_data wont a big issue (i guess).
cheers,
midnite_

midnite_ said:
Questions
Rooting will in fact changes some files/data of the system. So backup after root is NOT getting the original stock ROM. Is it?
Is there a method to "un-root", so ALL the changes are TOTALLY reverted?
Installing/flashing things like CWM in phone requires rooting, which would make the ROM not original. Is there a way to extract the system backup from a computer externally?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi midnight, welcome to a new and exciting world of Android and trying new things. First, let me assure you, what you want is NOT something new. People have been doing this type of thing for years. That is flashing and testing roms. As you will learn, it actually becomes quite addictive. We call those folks that get addicted to flashing: Flashaholics or crackflashers, lol
First let me talk about "root". This process consists of unlocking a lower level of the Android system known as the bootloader. Unlocking the bootloader of your device allows you to flash a custom recovery, flashing a custom recovery allows you to flash the Superuser binary and Superuser.apk, This is what allows you to use apps that require "root". The bootloader is not an OS file. So when you are unlocking your bootloader you are not modifying your stock rom. Only when you have flashed the Superuser package have you modified your stock rom. And even that isn't really modifying anything. When you flash the Superuser package, it adds two files to your rom at certain locations of the file system. It adds the Superuser.apk file to system/app and it adds the SU binary to system/bin. Basically you CAN have a totally S-OFF (unlocked) bootloader and still have an entirely stock rom if you want. But the real benifit is flashing a custom recovery like ClockworkMod Recovery and then flash the superuser package.
As far as extracting the stock system, you should try giving adb a go. Do it right now if you like. Ensure you have the android sdk installed and properly set up on your computer and your computer can recognize your phone. Ensure your phone is in debugging mode, connect your phone to your computer, open up a command window, and run this command:
Code:
adb pull \
This command will pull everything off your phone except for data which is where your market or Google Play apps are stored.
Beyond XDA there are aso more resources to learn from. For example, http://www.android.com is a good place to start, and to learn more about adb check out http://developer.android.com/tools/help/adb.html
If you need to learn how to setup the sdk here is the place to learn how: http://developer.android.com/sdk/index.html
I'm sure others will add to this as well which is the good thing about this community.
Welcome to XDA, I hope you have fun learning, and maybe share back someday things you learn along the way.

wildstang83 said:
Hi midnight, welcome to a new and exciting world of Android and trying new things. First, let me assure you, what you want is NOT something new. People have been doing this type of thing for years. That is flashing and testing roms. As you will learn, it actually becomes quite addictive. We call those folks that get addicted to flashing: Flashaholics or crackflashers, lol
First let me talk about "root". This process consists of unlocking a lower level of the Android system known as the bootloader. Unlocking the bootloader of your device allows you to flash a custom recovery, flashing a custom recovery allows you to flash the Superuser binary and Superuser.apk, This is what allows you to use apps that require "root". The bootloader is not an OS file. So when you are unlocking your bootloader you are not modifying your stock rom. Only when you have flashed the Superuser package have you modified your stock rom. And even that isn't really modifying anything. When you flash the Superuser package, it adds two files to your rom at certain locations of the file system. It adds the Superuser.apk file to system/app and it adds the SU binary to system/bin. Basically you CAN have a totally S-OFF (unlocked) bootloader and still have an entirely stock rom if you want. But the real benifit is flashing a custom recovery like ClockworkMod Recovery and then flash the superuser package.
As far as extracting the stock system, you should try giving adb a go. Do it right now if you like. Ensure you have the android sdk installed and properly set up on your computer and your computer can recognize your phone. Ensure your phone is in debugging mode, connect your phone to your computer, open up a command window, and run this command:
Code:
adb pull \
This command will pull everything off your phone except for data which is where your market or Google Play apps are stored.
Beyond XDA there are aso more resources to learn from. For example, ht tp://www .android .com is a good place to start, and to learn more about adb check out ht tp://developer .android .com/tools/help/adb.html
If you need to learn how to setup the sdk here is the place to learn how: ht tp://developer .android .com/sdk/index.html
I'm sure others will add to this as well which is the good thing about this community.
Welcome to XDA, I hope you have fun learning, and maybe share back someday things you learn along the way.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi Wildstang,
Thanks very much for your warm welcome and very informative reply. So are you a Flashaholics or Crackflashers yet?
As I am a newbie, please forgive me if I am asking dumb questions.
As far as I understand,
The steps of root is
1. Unlock the bootloader
2. Flash Superuser binary & Superuser.apk
** does "flash a custom recovery" means "flash Superuser binary & Superuser.apk"?
"Flash Superuser binary & Superuser.apk" is just "add SU binary to system/bin" and "add Superuser.apk to system/app". Then why not just copy them into place?
I just found on the web that "flashing" means replacing the OS of the phone with a new ROM. Would that still keeping the stock ROM?
To have a backup of the original stock ROM, can I
1. Unlock the bootloader
2. Flash Superuser binary & Superuser.apk
3. Perform the backup
And later, after I have flashed a new ROM, or whatever I do, as long as I didn't brick it, when I want to rollback my phone to its original, I can
1. Restore the backup
2. Delete "SU binary in system/bin" and "Superuser.apk in system/app"
3. re-lock the bootloader
Is this correct?
I don't mean to challenge you. But does adb pull \ really backup the system, or just all the files?
Thanks very much again!
midnite_

Hey midnite_,
I am a newbie too and have a lot of blank spots in my understanding of what we can do with android. I also came here with same question. I found how to root, this isn't a secret. Like you, I want to know how do I fix it if I break it.
So, with regards to your questions.
1. Unlock the bootloader
Not clear on this one, as not every tutorial even mentions this part. My feeling is that this might be specific to some phones, like HTC.
2. Flash Custom Recovery (such as AmonRa, CWR, TWRP...)
Recovery is an intermediate stage of phone booting process after bootloader but before OS.
It is there to allow OTA (Over the air) updates. During those, the OS is halted and replaced with a newer one.
What this means for us is that the recovery is capable of replacing OS (ROM - are these terms interchangeable?).
Recovery is the same as hidden partition on windows, that is sometimes present on a PC. It has a limited interface.
It can replace one OS image with another. It probably checks the checksum and creates the new one after the update. It is probably the gatekeeper.
Stock recovery will not replace OS with an image from SD card or from PC through USB. Only OTA.
This is the reason for flashing the custom (hacked) recovery on.
Custom recovery is made to allow additional options, such as allowing image sources such as PC or SD card, and also a ROM backup (write OS image to PC).
3. Flash update file using "upgrade from SD card" function of custom recovery now in place.
In this step, the Superuser.apk and bin files are placed. Stock recovery will not let us do that.
Also, I think the reason we can't just use ADB to "copy" superuser package to phone is because the system is either running or exists as an image (compressed?), and is probably protective of its modification. (So, likely the superuser package also replaces the checksum that the OS uses to check if it has been compromised?) Yes, this modifies your rom.
I assume that unrooting could be done after this by updating again with a file that removes superuser package and that would make your rom stock again.
4 OR flash custom ROM, which usually includes superuser package. Of course using custom rom means you no longer have stock rom.
To have a backup of original ROM, you would :
1 Unlock bootloader,
2 Flash (install) custom recovery
3 superuser doesn't matter here
4 Use custom recovery function to back up your stock ROM.
I want to know the answers to the rest of your questions as well as some clarifications to mine.
Personally, I am looking for a way to backup the stock recovery as well.
I know there are some people asking about this. The procedure appears to be as follows:
(pieced together so don't take it as a tutorial)
1 Unlock bootloader (again, unclear on this. Also some mention S-OFF and others don't)
2 With USB debugging allowed (meaning connect as device requiring a driver), Connect to a PC with ABD, and a driver installed.
3 From ADB, issue a command "adb boot recoveryimage.name" instead of the usual "adb flash recoveryimage.name".
This will make the phone boot into a custom recovery image that is residing on PC, without first writing it to the phone.
4 Unclear how, but make that custom recovery now being live to back up stock rom to pc.
5 Unclear how, but make that custom recovery now being live to flash either root or custom rom to the phone.
6 Disconnect, reboot the phone. Once in OS, use root privileges to mount recovery partition ? (this makes it visible as drive)
7 Don't know how, but use root privileges to back up now visible stock recovery partition to PC as image.
( This should give you two out of three original parts.)
Keep in mind that even if my peace-by-peace "know-how" ever works, there is at least one clearly faulty step:
The back up of the original state of the boot loader has been never made. I do not know if it is easily can be toggled back and forth from lock to unlock and back without leaving any trace. Also, like yourself, I probably don't quite understand what am I talking about, but I have tried to make as much sense of what I have read here and there.
This is my first smart phone, and my experience with linux is limited to building a minecraft server on MineOS, which was pre-made so that not much was required to make it run. I have "mounted" a partition for the first time last week, trying to break Win7recovery, booting it with Knoppix. This is why I think this is probably will come in play here too, as the recovery partition on W7 was hidden. Until then I didn't understand what mounting means, as windows always does it for you. So, take everything I say with a bunch of salt.
Please, let me know too, if you find out more. I want to flash the hell out of my Prism, but I want to be smart about it.

bump... midnite_ r u still around?

Hi Descent2,
Yes i am still around but i am busy with other stuffs at this moment. Thanks very much for your reply. You have studied a lot and you really did good summarisations. Very informative and I learnt a lot from it. Hope some of the masters or experienced ones would come by and bring us out of the mist
cheers,
midnite_
Descent2 said:
Hey midnite_,
I am a newbie too and have a lot of blank spots in my understanding of what we can do with android. I also came here with same question. I found how to root, this isn't a secret. Like you, I want to know how do I fix it if I break it.
So, with regards to your questions.
1. Unlock the bootloader
Not clear on this one, as not every tutorial even mentions this part. My feeling is that this might be specific to some phones, like HTC.
2. Flash Custom Recovery (such as AmonRa, CWR, TWRP...)
Recovery is an intermediate stage of phone booting process after bootloader but before OS.
It is there to allow OTA (Over the air) updates. During those, the OS is halted and replaced with a newer one.
What this means for us is that the recovery is capable of replacing OS (ROM - are these terms interchangeable?).
Recovery is the same as hidden partition on windows, that is sometimes present on a PC. It has a limited interface.
It can replace one OS image with another. It probably checks the checksum and creates the new one after the update. It is probably the gatekeeper.
Stock recovery will not replace OS with an image from SD card or from PC through USB. Only OTA.
This is the reason for flashing the custom (hacked) recovery on.
Custom recovery is made to allow additional options, such as allowing image sources such as PC or SD card, and also a ROM backup (write OS image to PC).
3. Flash update file using "upgrade from SD card" function of custom recovery now in place.
In this step, the Superuser.apk and bin files are placed. Stock recovery will not let us do that.
Also, I think the reason we can't just use ADB to "copy" superuser package to phone is because the system is either running or exists as an image (compressed?), and is probably protective of its modification. (So, likely the superuser package also replaces the checksum that the OS uses to check if it has been compromised?) Yes, this modifies your rom.
I assume that unrooting could be done after this by updating again with a file that removes superuser package and that would make your rom stock again.
4 OR flash custom ROM, which usually includes superuser package. Of course using custom rom means you no longer have stock rom.
To have a backup of original ROM, you would :
1 Unlock bootloader,
2 Flash (install) custom recovery
3 superuser doesn't matter here
4 Use custom recovery function to back up your stock ROM.
I want to know the answers to the rest of your questions as well as some clarifications to mine.
Personally, I am looking for a way to backup the stock recovery as well.
I know there are some people asking about this. The procedure appears to be as follows:
(pieced together so don't take it as a tutorial)
1 Unlock bootloader (again, unclear on this. Also some mention S-OFF and others don't)
2 With USB debugging allowed (meaning connect as device requiring a driver), Connect to a PC with ABD, and a driver installed.
3 From ADB, issue a command "adb boot recoveryimage.name" instead of the usual "adb flash recoveryimage.name".
This will make the phone boot into a custom recovery image that is residing on PC, without first writing it to the phone.
4 Unclear how, but make that custom recovery now being live to back up stock rom to pc.
5 Unclear how, but make that custom recovery now being live to flash either root or custom rom to the phone.
6 Disconnect, reboot the phone. Once in OS, use root privileges to mount recovery partition ? (this makes it visible as drive)
7 Don't know how, but use root privileges to back up now visible stock recovery partition to PC as image.
( This should give you two out of three original parts.)
Keep in mind that even if my peace-by-peace "know-how" ever works, there is at least one clearly faulty step:
The back up of the original state of the boot loader has been never made. I do not know if it is easily can be toggled back and forth from lock to unlock and back without leaving any trace. Also, like yourself, I probably don't quite understand what am I talking about, but I have tried to make as much sense of what I have read here and there.
This is my first smart phone, and my experience with linux is limited to building a minecraft server on MineOS, which was pre-made so that not much was required to make it run. I have "mounted" a partition for the first time last week, trying to break Win7recovery, booting it with Knoppix. This is why I think this is probably will come in play here too, as the recovery partition on W7 was hidden. Until then I didn't understand what mounting means, as windows always does it for you. So, take everything I say with a bunch of salt.
Please, let me know too, if you find out more. I want to flash the hell out of my Prism, but I want to be smart about it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

check here
All your answers can be found here: [REF] [GUIDE] Welcome to your device, the Galaxy S III. For more XDA related issues check here: [GUIDE] - XDA New User Guide - Getting started on XDA
Good Luck!
mf2112
XDA Moderator
ASharpEdge said:
Hello all this is my first post here...woohoo!:fingers-crossed: This forum is amazing as to the amount of information available. I just wish that in looking for what I need to do I did not need to look in so many places. I feel that if I want to root my T-Mobile GS3 that all the information should be in one subsection of the forum, but it is not that simple I guess....lol Anyway any help would be greatly appreciated.
I have a Samsung GS3 with T-Mobile that I want to root. Everyone says to back up the phone before you do it but I am not really seeing how to make a backup before I start. It appears that most of the guides to root just say to backup without telling you how to fo it. Another thing (correct me if I am wrong) I see the nandroid backup that I think is a backup of the phone however it seems to be done after you make changes to the phone and I thought the backup was supposed to be done before you do anything. Is it that there is not a way to make a complete backup with an unrooted phone?
My question is basically the same as the OP here. I have been reading and reading and reading posts here in the forum. There is much information here and much of it is duplicated with slight variances in some of the duplicates. I am not certain as to which rooting method I should use. There seem to be so many choices. As a new person to this forum I will say that you can find just about everything about any phone which is awesome. The hard thing is sifting through the many options to pick one to use for your issue.
I do see that Mr. Robinson has a thread with backups of the original roms. The only thing is that they are default roms that are like an out of the box phone and not my phone with my apps and my settings. That is what I want to backup...My phone with my settings and my apps.
:good: Thank you in advance for any one that can shed some light on this for me and the OP'er
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

Thanks mf2112. But those resources are seem only for GS3. And it seems it is not teaching us to backup our stock ROMs, it provides stock ROMs for us to download instead. Is there a general way to backup our stock ROMs?
Thanks,
midnite_
mf2112 said:
All your answers can be found here: [REF] [GUIDE] Welcome to your device, the Galaxy S III. For more XDA related issues check here: [GUIDE] - XDA New User Guide - Getting started on XDA
Good Luck!
mf2112
XDA Moderator
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

You must unlock your bootloader then flash a custom recovery. You will then use that custom recovery to make a backup of your rom. That backup will be stored on your sd card.
Now, I have tried to help you and so have a couple other folks. You expect us to just give you answers step by step. I am sorry but this is simply not how XDA works. XDA is set up in a way which makes it for any users to find quickly what they want to know. Use the search feature on the site and you will find many answers. I tell you to go do your own research now and be proud of what you learn on your own. And if you cannot, please do not try to modify your phone further, you may just brick it if you aren't careful.

midnite_ said:
Thanks mf2112. But those resources are seem only for GS3. And it seems it is not teaching us to backup our stock ROMs, it provides stock ROMs for us to download instead. Is there a general way to backup our stock ROMs?
Thanks,
midnite_
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I put in the GS3 links since the OP was using that phone. Every phone will be different so I don't think a general way or guide would be practical.
Sent from my HTC Sensation 4G using xda premium

Sideload twrp backup?

So ive searched for an answer to this but couldnt find it with google/xda.
I tried to install a custom rom.
My first rom install attempt ever on android
It failed with a signal 11 error
So after lots of trouble shooting trying any "fix" I could find suggested.
I read wiping before a rom install was required.
So I made a twrp backup, placed it on my pc, this is where I messed up and nobody in the countless threads I read said
I deleted the twrp backup on device
Then wiped with twrp, following the era proper directions for device allegedly.
Which was wipe everything but internal storage, also read to format in the many topics I perused.
Then found everything was wiped, including /sdcard, and system/OS
WELL I STILL GOT SIGNAL 11 on rom flash attempt via sideload, since the zip got erased on sd.
I did manage to flash a rom, but wouldnt you know it, its a rom that cant connect to pc through usb.
If I try to push the twrp backup folder, it just says error in cmd while in sideload
Anybody know the proper way to do that? Or is it just a case of murphys law getting a right good laugh at my devices expense.
I did read I could use a micro usb to external storage to mount, but I lack that.
I need to restore twrp because I think I need to pull the vendor directory off device to try to overcome the signal 11 error.
Anyway any advice is appreciated and hopefully can serve others in the future.
Thanks and cheers

Re-flash Stock ROM.

Well I dont think the device in question has a stock rom. Or I cant find one at first glance.
I had to roll back the version to unlock bootloader and root.
But that .bin wouldnt help I think.. hmm
Back to the drawing board I guess.
Perks of a decade old device.

Apparently androidmtk.com has stock roms available, but is that site safe to use?
Sorry for my noobiness.
Edit: actually that bin is the stock firmware apparently. I hope at least.
Will try and report back.
Thanks jwoegerbauer
Edit2: that worked flashing the bin. Was able to mount on pc and add the backup back up.
Did have a stumble as without making a backup there wasnt a backups folder. I tried to manually create one, but twrp couldnt see the folder I made.
Not sure if it was the naming. I tried "Backups" but twrp created "BACKUPS"
I just backed up efs since it was smallest to get twrp to make it.
Cool. Now I can backup vendor for rom comparison. Was overstressed for half the day about it, but the solution was simple and right there in front of me.
Thanks again Jwoegerbauer

what do you mean "it's a rom that can't connect to pc through usb"?
what do you mean "was able to mount on pc"?
you have backup of old ROM on pc. what do you want to do with?

No worries alecxs
Yeah I was able to sideload a custom rom but that rom had broken/missing usb drivers so mtp on pc failed.
That was before I knew I had the stock rom.
I needed stock rom to be able to restore with twrp in order to pull vendor folder off original device.
(I need vendor folder to try to fix that broken custom rom)
Just me being a noob. Sorry again.

you're welcome. just asking for clarity.
you have answered one question, so let me give you hint on guesswork.
you can connect device with usb-debugging from developer options. adb is the recommended way to transfer files. MTP is a faulty implemented Microsoft protocol I wouldn't use for large amount of data (for small files is okay).
Android devices cannot mounted since Android 5.0.1 Lollipop as UMS has been dropped in favour of MTP. /sdcard is no longer separate FAT partition but emulated storage in /data/media.
Bear in mind TWRP backup does not include /data/media so one have to backup pictures manually. this can be done from adb.
Code:
adb pull -a /sdcard
For the same reason you will lose /sdcard every time you format /data.
If you're interested to restore backup to different ROM, you cannot use TWRP. backup of /data can only restored to the exact same ROM.
For restoring backup to different ROM use Migrate.
[APP][ROOT][5.0+][1st Nov 2020] Migrate - custom ROM migration tool
Jumping from one custom ROM to another can be a challenging task. So I decided to make an app to simplify the process. Introducing Migrate! Migrate-GPE (v4.0) is on Google Play It was temporarily suspended. Read more here...
forum.xda-developers.com