My first post here.
So, I got a used Nexus S (i9020a), with bootloader already unlocked and superuser installed.
It’s good to have rooted device, but I am sure the previous owner put a bunch of junk on it already.
I feel like starting fresh by writing a factory image as described here
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1572307
But, I am ambivalent about overwriting bootloader and radio; what if I didn’t like the factory image for some reason? How easy to go back on bootloader and radio, not just android os? There is a lot of info about writing rooting, backing up nandroid, and writing ROM’s, but I can’t find a good guide on backing up a bootloader image and baseband image, so that I can just fastboot flash to the original, if need be.
Then, I found this
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=16008439&postcount=198
which I followed (from adb though, not on Terminal Emulator) and could save an img file (whatever in it).
And I found this
http://roguedroid.blogspot.com/2011/12/booting-unbootable-nexus-s.html
So, if I can save mtd5 (radio) into an image, I can save mtd0 (bootloader) and mtd6 (efs) too into an image, right? (or every partition if I wanted to)
So, that’s what I did, and now I have img files of mtd0, mtd5, mtd6.
My question is; can I just fastboot flash these images (or of any other partitions) back onto my NS later to get back to exactly what it is right now? (well, not entirely, but exact bootloader, radio, and efs)
Is there anyway to confirm these files are proper images of these partitions and fully functional, before actually flashing them?
Or, alternatively, I have nandroid backup of my NS current status. Does this include complete image of bootloader and radio as well? If so, I could just restore this nandroid to get the original bootloader and radio, right?
I can assure that you won't be stuck anywhere. The fastboot method of flashing is considered as most relevant.
The NANdroid just backs up the OS, the bootloader and radio are components which are written to the flash memory permanently. While a simple factory reset is a better solution if you want to stick to the OS version delivered to you.
But if in case you are planning for factory image flashing, this guide will help you. Make sure to follow each and every step as stated and I assure that you won't get into any mess. :good:
Thank you for the guide and your assurance.
I am less concerned about getting stuck while writing a factory image than something going wrong trying to go back to my current bootloader and radio after writing the factory image.
I am very interested in knowing whether images obtained by these commands
"dd if=/dev/mtd/mtd0 of=/sdcard/bootloader.img"
"dd if=/dev/mtd/mtd5 of=/sdcard/radio.img"
"dd if=/dev/mtd/mtd6 of=/sdcard/efs.img"
can be used to flash my phone to revert back to the original bootloader, baseband, and efs (or any other partitions).
Since nandroid doesn't contain bootloader nor radio, I am looking for a way to backup my current bootloader & radio, and to restore them if I want.
Would the images above work?
Any way to test these images without actually flashing them?
There is no way to test them until you don't flash them.
If you can successfully extract the images, then they will surely work, undoubtedly.
faulty_machine said:
Thank you for the guide and your assurance.
I am less concerned about getting stuck while writing a factory image than something going wrong trying to go back to my current bootloader and radio after writing the factory image.
I am very interested in knowing whether images obtained by these commands
"dd if=/dev/mtd/mtd0 of=/sdcard/bootloader.img"
"dd if=/dev/mtd/mtd5 of=/sdcard/radio.img"
"dd if=/dev/mtd/mtd6 of=/sdcard/efs.img"
can be used to flash my phone to revert back to the original bootloader, baseband, and efs (or any other partitions).
Since nandroid doesn't contain bootloader nor radio, I am looking for a way to backup my current bootloader & radio, and to restore them if I want.
Would the images above work?
Any way to test these images without actually flashing them?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why wasting time backuping the bootloader and radio images, when they're freely available on the Google Nexus images site ? Not to mention those are safe to flash and have no errors.
https://developers.google.com/android/nexus/images
You don't need to jump bootloaders and radios to switch ROM's, just keep the latest on (well unless you want to eventually **** up your phone sometime, with unneeded tasks). No ROM flashed in recovery overwrites those, you can also skip the flashing of the radio and bootloader from a factory image with just using the "update -w update.zip" part.
You're overthinking here.
madd0g said:
Why wasting time backuping the bootloader and radio images, when they're freely available on the Google Nexus images site ? Not to mention those are safe to flash and have no errors.
ttps://developers.google.com/android/nexus/images
You don't need to jump bootloaders and radios to switch ROM's, just keep the latest on (well unless you want to eventually **** up your phone sometime, with unneeded tasks). No ROM flashed in recovery overwrites those, you can also skip the flashing of the radio and bootloader from a factory image with just using the "update -w update.zip" part.
You're overthinking here.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree I tend to overthink. It's a waste of time most of the time, but saves my ass every once in a while.
It's like buying an insurance. It's a complete waste of money until the next time a disaster hits (which, may never happen).
Anyway, the site you quoted is where I got the factory image for my NS. I already tried "update -w update.zip" and got error messages
because my bootloader and radio are of different versions than the ones included in the tar from Google. Apparently, their ROM's (zipped part)
are signed to work only with the versions of bootloader and radio included in the tar (my bootloader is XXKL1 and raio is UCKE1).
So, if I want the ROM, I have to flash their bootloader and radio.
If it wasn't for that, I wouldn't have thought about backing up bootloader and radio, much less flashing them back and forth.
I apologize if I am missing something here. If your bootloader and radio are different versions than what Google include in the tar,
is there a way to flash just the zip?
Another side question is, after you flash the bootloader, radio, and zip that go together in the tar, can you flash different versions of bootloader
and radio and keep the ROM without problem?
faulty_machine said:
I agree I tend to overthink. It's a waste of time most of the time, but saves my ass every once in a while.
It's like buying an insurance. It's a complete waste of money until the next time a disaster hits (which, may never happen).
Anyway, the site you quoted is where I got the factory image for my NS. I already tried "update -w update.zip" and got error messages
because my bootloader and radio are of different versions than the ones included in the tar from Google. Apparently, their ROM's (zipped part)
are signed to work only with the versions of bootloader and radio included in the tar (my bootloader is XXKL1 and raio is UCKE1).
So, if I want the ROM, I have to flash their bootloader and radio.
If it wasn't for that, I wouldn't have thought about backing up bootloader and radio, much less flashing them back and forth.
I apologize if I am missing something here. If your bootloader and radio are different versions than what Google include in the tar,
is there a way to flash just the zip?
Another side question is, after you flash the bootloader, radio, and zip that go together in the tar, can you flash different versions of bootloader
and radio and keep the ROM without problem?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nobody here changes bootloader, because no reason to. As for radio, yes, you can flash any radio at any moment. Custom roms don't package radios, only stock roms do, and then again your old radio is a flash away.
Either way, one should simply do a nandroid backup when going for a custom rom and keep it safely so it can be restored at any moment. I still have my original, blank slate Gingerbread backup in the extreme case things explode, and it's been a year in 6 months since I've been flashing roms and kernel left and right.
Sorry, I am not describing my problem very well here.
I am NOT looking for a better bootloader.
I am NOT looking for a better radio, either.
I am NOT trying to flash any custom ROM's.
All I want to do is to flash a factory ROM for i9020a (image-sojua-jzo54k.zip) downloaded from Google developer's website;
ttps://developers.google.com/android/nexus/images
I type; fastboot -w update image-sojua-jzo54k.zip
and this is what I get;
archive does not contain ‘boot.sig’
archive does not contain ‘recovery.sig’
archive does not contain ‘system.sig’
---------------------------------------------------------
Bootloader Version...: I9020XXKL1
Baseband Version….: I9020UCKE1
Serial Number……...: xxxxxxxxxxxxx
---------------------------------------------------------
checking product…
OKAY [ 0.000s]
checking version-bootloader…
FAILED
Device version-bootloader is ‘I9020XXKL1’.
Update requires ‘I9020XXLC2’.
finished. total tiem: 0.016s
Makes me think that I NEED to flash bootloader (maybe radio too) included in the Google's tar before I can flash the zip.
Am I missing something here?
Are other people able to flash zip file only, even when their bootloader version don't match the one in the Google's download?
If so, how are they doing it?
polobunny said:
Nobody here changes bootloader, because no reason to. As for radio, yes, you can flash any radio at any moment. Custom roms don't package radios, only stock roms do, and then again your old radio is a flash away.
Either way, one should simply do a nandroid backup when going for a custom rom and keep it safely so it can be restored at any moment. I still have my original, blank slate Gingerbread backup in the extreme case things explode, and it's been a year in 6 months since I've been flashing roms and kernel left and right.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Let me suggest you something that would clear off all your doubts. First of all forget every comment that we posted here.
Secondly, just follow this Guide.
Once you follow that guide step to step, you won't need to ask any further questions.
faulty_machine said:
Device version-bootloader is ‘I9020XXKL1’.
Update requires ‘I9020XXLC2’.
Makes me think that I NEED to flash bootloader (maybe radio too) included in the Google's tar before I can flash the zip.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're right, when the bootloader is updated, old bootloaders aren't down compatible. So for 4.1.2, you need the LC2 bootloader, since it was introduced with JB.
The script just makes sure, you have the right bootloader and radio when you're flashing. One way would be also extracting the archive and flash partition .img files separately.
You can flash other bootloader after you've flashed the system .zip, but there's really no need for it. LC2 was made to run with JB and that's it. Flashing older radios might be worthwhile if you're running into signal issues at your location and want to experiment, otherwise newer is again - recommended.
If you plan to downgrade to ICS or GB, repeat the same. Download the system image, flash required bootloader and radio from the .zip, then flash the update.zip. I wouldn't bet on mixing newer bootloaders with older system images, because again there's no need for it.
Word of advice, avoid jerking around with bootloader flashing, because if it borks up, you don't get fastboot access anymore, so if anything's dangerous on the Nexus, it's flashing the bootloader.
TL;DR Update to recent radio & bootloader and you're set.
Related
Hi everyone... I've tried searching and seen references to this kind of thing, but no download links or guides...
So I've got my Nexus S (bootloader unlocked, rooted, stock 2.3.4 until attempting the following, I have no Sim card in this phone), and I tried to flash 2.3.6, and while the update appeared to run just fine, the wifi won't turn on, just gives "error". So I attempted several things, reflashing the update, flashing the 4.04 update (which was the original point), etc, but they all give the following; installation aborted, assert failed, error in xxx.zip, "status 7".
Anyways... I'm a bit at a loss, I've never had this problem, or any problems flashing ROMs on other phones or updates. It seems no update.zip, or any .zip, will install. Back in my captivate days, there was a very handy program called Odin, and it had a master clear functionality that brought you back to the stockest of stock. Ideally... is there a tool like this for the Nexus S? I don't care about whether or not it re-locks the bootloader, I can unlock it again in just a couple minutes... but I need help.
I've read guides about "return to stock" but they all involve flashing a .zip. I need a way to push past that, and get back to 2.3.4, or alternatively, a way to completely reinstall 2.3.6.
I know an Odin exists for the Nexus S, but is there a way to use that to reset to stock?
Thank you so much anyone who can help...
Do you see an android and exclamation mark as you enter recovery? This means you have stock recovery and you cannot flash anything that hasn't been signed by google here. Stock is flashed on each boot on a stock ROM, you need to rename/delete /system/etc/install-recovery.sh to stop this.
If you don't have stock recovery, update to the latest CWM (touch or not is irrelevant) and try again. It's recommended to do a full wipe (data/factory reset, format /system and optionally format /boot) when doing a major ROM change (ie, CM to non-CM, GB to ICS, etc), and failure to do so could leave you with some interesting problems like that wifi issue.
And as always, make sure you backup properly before flashing -anything-.
edit to answer more questions: Odin is available for the Nexus S but near-useless. Fastboot can do just as much, and there are official fastboot images released by google to bring you back to a pure stock state. You'll just need an unlocked bootloader to do that, though you can relock straight afterward with no repercussions.
Harbb said:
Do you see an android and exclamation mark as you enter recovery? This means you have stock recovery and you cannot flash anything that hasn't been signed by google here. Stock is flashed on each boot on a stock ROM, you need to rename/delete /system/etc/install-recovery.sh to stop this.
If you don't have stock recovery, update to the latest CWM (touch or not is irrelevant) and try again. It's recommended to do a full wipe (data/factory reset, format /system and optionally format /boot) when doing a major ROM change (ie, CM to non-CM, GB to ICS, etc), and failure to do so could leave you with some interesting problems like that wifi issue.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Heh, yeah I guess I should have wiped previous to running this upgrade. I guess I was hoping data would preserve, because theoretically it should have been just like the Google OTA.
And I have CWM... I'm not sure if it is the latest version, but the phone can't get any data connectivity so I can't update it.
Harbb said:
edit to answer more questions: Odin is available for the Nexus S but near-useless. Fastboot can do just as much, and there are official fastboot images released by google to bring you back to a pure stock state. You'll just need an unlocked bootloader to do that, though you can relock straight afterward with no repercussions.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok, so fastboot is my solution. I've used that to unlock my bootloader, but little else (on a Mac, because terminal is super easy to use, but I've got PC access too). I've found the Google fastboot images, do you (or anyone reading this) know of a good fastboot image flashing guide?
Dareoth said:
Heh, yeah I guess I should have wiped previous to running this upgrade. I guess I was hoping data would preserve, because theoretically it should have been just like the Google OTA.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Some people supposedly had troubles with the ICS update and keeping all data as-is, though i've not experienced it myself, but it is definitely possible and with such a big update, if it's in your power to start fresh it is always the best option. It was more of a general statement, not directed at your situation - something to keep in mind
Dareoth said:
And I have CWM... I'm not sure if it is the latest version, but the phone can't get any data connectivity so I can't update it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can flash the latest CWM through fastboot from your PC or Mac, you can grab the latest file from here. Name it whatever you like and put it in a known folder (preferrably current folder) and : fastboot flash recovery recovery.img
Dareoth said:
Ok, so fastboot is my solution. I've used that to unlock my bootloader, but little else (on a Mac, because terminal is super easy to use, but I've got PC access too). I've found the Google fastboot images, do you (or anyone reading this) know of a good fastboot image flashing guide?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Of course i do
Great, I'm all set now. Thanks so much.
(Also for linking to that ref guide again, I had read it three times, but I didn't get how to use it until I went in going, I just need the fastboot commands, which is all that guide gives.)
Your welcome mate. All you need for that is setting up the android SDK or essentially downloading platform-tools seperately. There are guides all over the place describing how to do this for Windows, Mac and Linux as it is no different from getting oem unlock to work, they're just mostly disguised as rooting guides.
Once you do it the first time it's quite simple, but it can definitely be confusing before that
After literally two weeks of reading thread after thread attempting to understand this , I tried to go from a sense ROM to a GPE ROM and I tried to flash the GPE firmware following Digital high's instructions here..
Things did not work out as instructed I'm afraid and that is probably due to my not understanding enough....nevertheless following DH instructions left me with repeated flash failures. Finally the following flashes got me from firmware 5.0.1- the firmware I was already on- to this:
fastboot flash zip VZWm8LfirmwareTWRP.zip - success; followed by the same ' flush" flash - again, success:
then:
fastboot flash zip 5.1_6_firmware+hboot.zip - and again another "flush" flash with success
From the way I read it we are then to reboot to bootloader and proceed further with recovery flashing the rom, blah, blah.... , however, my little android guy is overlaid with a black screen (instead of white) and he is dead. I rebooted to recovery to see if I could flash the sinless GPE ROM which is my goal in the first place (yes I realize it is a 4.4.4 but NOTHING flashes in recovery now) but now I m out of ideas. I have no workable phone and I have to get my ass to a new job in the afternoon. Can anyone help with either finishing my goal to install the sinless ROM or restore back to the adrenaline ROM I was running? I don't want to restore as I am afraid I may have altered the firmware and thus brick if I do restore...PLEASE HELP!!!! PLEASE!
right now my phone is sitting on the charger on the dead android screen. i don' dare touch it. What should i do?
Update: I am flashing digital highs GPE_5.1-multi_dh_051215.zip and I am getting a bootloader remote 24 "parsing android info fail". Does anyone know what that means or how to fix?
Update again: Figured out this needs to be flashed in recovery and not fastboot. Now I have been booting for about five minutes now. Hope I'm not bootlooped. ....
Figured it out
Got it figured out.
Mods, could you please close the thread. thanks!
kerryh said:
Got it figured out.
Mods, could you please close the thread. thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Rather than end things with a statement that you figured it out, could you elaborate on the solution and/or describe what went wrong to cause the problem (if you happened to figure that out while finding your fix)? Someone else could come here with your same problem and you are likely poised to help them out with your newly found solution.
cntryby429 said:
Rather than end things with a statement that you figured it out, could you elaborate on the solution and/or describe what went wrong to cause the problem (if you happened to figure that out while finding your fix)? Someone else could come here with your same problem and you are likely poised to help them out with your newly found solution.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Believe me, I thought about trying to do just that. That's when I realized I am not sure that I totally understood what it was I did wrong in the first place. I believed the underlying issue might have been the order in which I flashed but I can't be sure because I ended up flashing files that probably shouldn't have been flashed to begin with . What I do know is that some firmware files needed to be flashed in RUU mode while others in regular fastboot and the GPE zip flashed through recovery, not regular fastboot as I thought it needed to be. And all that even being understood I still wasn't sure if I needed the firmwares with the hboot, without hboot, with or without recovery/boot .img's....
Going back and looking at my cmd window it appears the following worked in the following order:
FastbootRUU flash 5.0.1 firmware
fastboot VZWm8Lfirmware.zip
fastboot write superCID
fastbootRUU flash 5.1 firmware
reboot to hboot (dead android here) then reboot to recovery
Recovery flash GPE_5.1_muliti_dh_date.zip
Follow the promps to install and then reboot to glory...
I am still not clear on as to whether or not I can go back to my nandroid backups as those were taken on different firmwares obviously. Instinct tells me I would brick but idk...Looks like I am stuck on GPE for a while...
That probably confused more people than helped...See why I didn't post it?
kerryh said:
Believe me, I thought about trying to do just that. That's when I realized I am not sure that I totally understood what it was I did wrong in the first place. I believed the underlying issue might have been the order in which I flashed but I can't be sure because I ended up flashing files that probably shouldn't have been flashed to begin with . What I do know is that some firmware files needed to be flashed in RUU mode while others in regular fastboot and the GPE zip flashed through recovery, not regular fastboot as I thought it needed to be. And all that even being understood I still wasn't sure if I needed the firmwares with the hboot, without hboot, with or without recovery/boot .img's....
Going back and looking at my cmd window it appears the following worked in the following order:
FastbootRUU flash 5.0.1 firmware
fastboot VZWm8Lfirmware.zip
fastboot write superCID
fastbootRUU flash 5.1 firmware
reboot to hboot (dead android here) then reboot to recovery
Recovery flash GPE_5.1_muliti_dh_date.zip
Follow the promps to install and then reboot to glory...
I am still not clear on as to whether or not I can go back to my nandroid backups as those were taken on different firmwares obviously. Instinct tells me I would brick but idk...Looks like I am stuck on GPE for a while...
That probably confused more people than helped...See why I didn't post it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When compared to the steps I took to flash the 6/15 build as cleanly as I could manage, here's what jumps out to me as strange or unnecessary:
-I don't know what the '5.0.1 firmware' is but I suspect it's the same as the 'VZWm8Lfirmware.zip' you flashed next. I chose to run the 5.0.1 RUU and considered that as complete of verizon 5.0.1 firmware as there is.
-I don't think that superCID has been necessary for DHs GPE for some time. I don't know that it would necessarily cause a problem but I've never gone to superCID and have had no problems
-flashing DH's carrier-agnostic 5.1 firmware is stated as optional in his OP and I think DH himself admitted a little while back that it may actually be the cause of some folks' wi-fi issues
Regarding restoring old nandroids to a system with updated firmware, I can say that each time a new official software has been released, I've flashed tigerstown's firmware-only zips alongside whatever custom rom I was running at the time with no issues. This points to a trend of successfully running roms on top of newer firmwares without issues. I know of many 5.x roms saying that you must update firmware but I've never read about a 4.x rom having issues with 5.x firmware. I don't think there's much risk of flashing a custom rom (or restoring a nandroid) from recovery that doesn't match the firmware beyond a possible bootloop.
Hello,
I have a rooted, unlocked XT926 Motorola Droid Razr Maxx HD on [4.4.2] 183.46.10. I have installed a custom recovery (TWRP) though I don’t really use it for much because I don’t install custom ROMs. Now I need to do something, though, because my OS has some corruption. I’d like to do the minimum possible to deal with the corruption. So I’m thinking either flash the same version [4.4.2] 183.46.10 fxz, or go up to .15.
Best case scenario, I’d prefer to still have root and still be unlocked and with TWRP when I’m through, but also still have my data. [Though yes, it’s backed up in case I lose it.]
I don’t play around with this too often, though, so I’d like to confirm that my assumptions/conclusions from my reading are correct. My thought/plan was to use RSD Flasher and go to either .10 or .15 using the Keep Data option. Will this work, and will I still have an unlocked bootloader with TWRP so that I can re-flash root? Or is there a better/different way to do this?
I got to this proposed solution through the following thought process... which is why I am questioning my plan.
1. If I use SamuriHL’s RSD Flasher, it looks like I can flash .10 or .15 and keep my data by using either the “Keep data” or the “Universal” option. But if I use TWRP to flash .10 or .15 my data will go away? Is this correct?
As a side note, can anyone point me at an explanation for the relevance of keeping GPT and TZ (Universal option) or make a recommendation about using this option over “Keep data”? Given that I’m dealing with what I believe/hope to be corruption in the OS, I’d rather get rid of as much as possible without losing my data, which sounds like “Keep Data”.
2. I am slightly confused about information telling me that if I unlock my bootloader I don’t need to worry about root exploits anymore, vs. information telling me that if I flash stock fxz’s such as the ones from drdevs (it won't let me post the link, sorry) I end up back at, well, stock… plus I’m talking about the possibility of using the RSD Flasher method rather TWRP to do this. If I use the RSD Flasher to go to .10 or .15, will I lose my TWRP/ will my bootloader re-lock? If I stay unlocked and with TWRP I assume I can then use it to re-flash root once I have completed the ROM fix. OTOH if I am relocked I assume I need to stay with .10, not .15, and re-unlock the bootloader…
Thanks in advance, dlc
Regardless of what you do, you will not lock the bootloader again. Once unlocked, the bootloader stays unlocked.
Because of this fact, you can upgrade or downgrade the OS, or replace it, without limit. If you do a complete wipe and replace, or upgrade, you will lose root temporarily, but you can then reload your custom recovery and regain root without having to jump through any hoops like you did the first time.
You can't flash the FXZ in TWRP, you'll have to flash with RSD or HoM. If you're trying to clean the phone, I wouldn't keep data. FXZ'ing will wipe your TWRP, but you can re-flash it. Once you flash TWRP again, there is an option in TWRP to allow you to install SuperSU before you reboot. Also, I believe HoM has an option that will also flash recovery, but you'll have to take a look at the thread.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
Thanks to both of you. I am reassured to hear that unlocked bootloaders stay unlocked. And I can see that I didn't quite understand that nuance - that it was still unlocked but I will still have to reflash the recovery. That all makes sense to me now. And thanks for clearing up that the FXZ flash always has to be done from RSD or HoM.
Regarding keeping data, I'm sure you're right that I should just fully wipe it. I just find it so time-consuming to rebuild that it's tempting to try to keep. I will wipe, but if anyone can enlighten me about the Keep Data vs Universal options for future reference I'd be interested to know. I did read and do understand that the universal is what I need if I want to downgrade and keep data. But if I'm upgrading or staying with the same version I'm not sure I fully understand that difference and the advantages/disadvantages of each.
Thanks, dlc
No need to flash the entire firmware. There wouldn't be any benefit in flashing modem, tz, gpt, or fsg.
Simply flash the system.img & boot.img with fastboot and wipe data to start with a clean state.
Sent from my XT1031
Im just curious, what is the exact reason devs ignore these phones? Is there anything specific that makes them undesirable to work with? I dont think I have seen an HTC device be ignored this much since the HTC Snap?
Like i said... just curious
Cheers,
disco
It's just a phone that didn't really do well in the market, and no one wants to work on a phone that has little buyers...
What I'm wondering is why the Sprint version gets even less love than the out of date AT&T version which at least has a semi-working CM build.
Ok, thanks. Sucks that bad sales numbers can make a pretty decent phone so ignored.
Do you know if M9 or M8 are at all similar enough to A9 to maybe mod one of those roms for A9?
disco_y2k said:
Ok, thanks. Sucks that bad sales numbers can make a pretty decent phone so ignored.
Do you know if M9 or M8 are at all similar enough to A9 to maybe mod one of those roms for A9?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not sure on that one, never worked with either, so it's kind of hard to tell, maybe put up a thread in the Q&A section with your question. And yes it does suck ????
This a copy/paste from somewhere in this forum, but I think its due to these reasons:
With the A9 (and the M9 prior to it), HTC has moved to a block-based OTA system. This means that even mounting system as read-write (as TWRP typically does during startup checks) will nullify the device's ability to take an OTA. Any other changes to the system partition will also cause an OTA to fail (even if that check is removed from the OTA zip) due to "unexpected contents."
Since the A9 has dm-verity enabled and forces encryption by default, root can only be achieved using the new "systemless" root methods. There are two currently working methods:
seSuperuser (this requires flashing only flashing a zip and installing an app from the Play Store)
SuperSU (automatically disables forced encryption & dm-verity, but requires a "Format Data" in TWRP)
There is also no way to take an OTA after you root. However, prior to rooting, you can take a fully untouched system image backup with TWRP, which can be used to restore a fully stock system to the device in order to take an OTA.
How do I backup stock recovery prior to flashing TWRP?
You can't. The "fastboot boot" command appears to be disabled on the A9's ABOOT, so TWRP must be fastboot flashed over stock recovery. The firmware zip included in the OTA will include a usable stock recovery image. That can be extracted and flashed after stock system is restored so that the OTA can be applied.
How do I restore stock system so that I can accept an OTA?
Check the "Mount system as read-only" box in the Mount menu.
Restore stock "System Image" backup (This will only work if you've made a System Image backup prior to making any modifications to /system).
Fastboot flash stock recovery (fastboot flash recovery recovery_signed.img)
NOTE: It is also possible to restore stock recovery via the TWRP GUI. Rename the stock recovery file to "recovery.emmc.win" and place in the backup folder with the stock system image. Recovery will then show as a restore option. MAKE SURE YOU REALLY WANT TO DO THIS, AS TWRP WILL BE GONE WHEN YOU REBOOT OUT OF RECOVERY!!
Reboot to system, install OTA.
What if I have an RUU? Do I need to worry about all this OTA nonsense?
Not if you don't care about losing all your data. If you're S-ON and have an RUU available for your exact variant (model ID and CID must match) and software number (main version must be the same or newer), then you can get back to a fully stock state by relocking (fastboot oem lock) and flashing an RUU. However, if you'd prefer to take an OTA to keep your data intact, the method stated above is how to do so. Or, you can just run a custom ROM and wait for your ROM chef to update their ROM to the latest software (though you'll still have to find a way to update your firmware if you're not S-OFF)
After I go through all this and successfully apply an OTA, how do I make sure I have a clean starting point again?
After the OTA is applied and TWRP is flashed, it will once again detect an untouched system, which will mount system read-only and allow you to make a fully stock backup and start the process over again, this time with the new base.
My ota works fine. Im rooted and you can backup by formatting data partition in the beginning. Fastboot works fine, flashing wirks fine. Really have not had any issues described above.
Oh well
I'm thinking about unlocking my bootloader (well I will eventually, it just depends on how long I can last without root), but I've forgotten, is it still possible to take OTA's after you unlock your bootloader?
Thanks
Probably not.
Why shouldn't he be able to. Up until now the last four HTC devices M7, M8, M9, and 10 all received OTA updates even though the bootloader has been unlocked. There's just one new thing which startet with the change to Block-Based-OTA updates. An OTA won't install as soon as you change anything on the system partition (meaning that even mounting r/w in TWRP causes this!), due to a change in its md5 checksum.
5m4r7ph0n36uru said:
Why shouldn't he be able to. Up until now the last four HTC devices M7, M8, M9, and 10 all received OTA updates even though the bootloader has been unlocked. There's just one new thing which startet with the change to Block-Based-OTA updates. An OTA won't install as soon as you change anything on the system partition (meaning that even mounting r/w in TWRP causes this!), due to a change in its md5 checksum.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wait, so if I flash magisk, I won't be able to take OTA?
Dang. If I just flash the stock recovery, will everything work, or will I have to restore to stock and take the OTA, then re-root?
When you unlock, then flash TWRP, first thing you do is Keep System Read Only. Then make a backup of System Image, boot image. When its time for OTA. restore system image, boot img and flash stock recovery. Reboot and then take OTA. You can now fastboot boot TWRP from download mode to make a backup of stock recovery(before flashing TWRP).
schmeggy929 said:
When you unlock, then flash TWRP, first thing you do is Keep System Read Only. Then make a backup of System Image, boot image. When its time for OTA. restore system image, boot img and flash stock recovery. Reboot and then take OTA. You can now fastboot boot TWRP from download mode to make a backup of stock recovery(before flashing TWRP).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Since TWRP can flash OTAs (firmware part of OTAs needs to be flashed separately via fastboot), restoring (and backing up) stock recovery is not mandatory.
Do you think Sunshine will come to U 11 or it's un-crackable?
schmeggy929 said:
When you unlock, then flash TWRP, first thing you do is Keep System Read Only. Then make a backup of System Image, boot image. When its time for OTA. restore system image, boot img and flash stock recovery. Reboot and then take OTA. You can now fastboot boot TWRP from download mode to make a backup of stock recovery(before flashing TWRP).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks! For some reason though, when I tried to fastboot boot twrp, it would flash successfully but hang on the rebooting part. I have no idea what was going on. Pretty frustrating.
No laughing now- I'm on an old Galaxy s4 & U11 seems like my next device, VZW is too much & Sprint has a 1yr free program. I have rooted B4, & used Odin, but I got into other things & I don't recall how Fastbooting works… PLS help the once again Fastbooy noob & explain. Since the Sprint program requires you bring an already-paid-for 'bring your own phone' this is a BIG up front investment & I can't imagine going w/out Root/TitaniumBU/ or twrp to save images to pull my coals out of potential fires… TIA, oldwolf
IMHO, fastboot commands and such to get TWRP installed is waaaaaaay easier and faster than ODIN. I actually try every few phone generations to use a samsung device, but the pains of doing updates and such through odin isn't worth it to me. Pretty much you can unlock your phone through HTC.dev and then with the bootloader unlocked you can load your own recovery like TWRP. they walk you through all the steps and everything.
tacotoy, thanks for the reply; but what constitutes a FB command, & fm what program & in what status of android boot is it run? tia, oldwolf
Yeah, lost... New VZW OTA out today, but since I'm unlocked with TWRP, won't install. Trying to find the zip in the cache so that TWRP can install it, no joy so far, re-reading the TWRP thread.
Edit: Found path: /data/data/com.htc.updater/files/OTA_OCEAN_WHL_N71_SENSE90GP_NA_Gen_Unlock_1.11.617.4-1.11.617.3_R2_release_.zip
Fails, says system modified, even after restore to stock.
deafmetal1 said:
Yeah, lost... New VZW OTA out today, but since I'm unlocked with TWRP, won't install. Trying to find the zip in the cache so that TWRP can install it, no joy so far, re-reading the TWRP thread.
Edit: Found path: /data/data/com.htc.updater/files/OTA_OCEAN_WHL_N71_SENSE90GP_NA_Gen_Unlock_1.11.617.4-1.11.617.3_R2_release_.zip
Fails, says system modified, even after restore to stock.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you check to keep system read only before restoring the backup?
oldwolf613 said:
tacotoy, thanks for the reply; but what constitutes a FB command, & fm what program & in what status of android boot is it run? tia, oldwolf
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
just google Minimal ADB and Fastboot. Download the lastest and place all your zips and images in that folder. It is a standalone program easy and pain free.
Schmeggy929, thanks, that's easy enuf, but since this is gonna be (hopefully) my 'bring your phone'
to Sprint to get the free years worth of service- it's gotta be bought outright & while it's a good investment, I cannot afford to brick it & I'd rather look like a noob again than NOT ask…
I just used the latest RUU that OBJ posted in the Collection Post. This time I'll make sure to do the initial TWRP recovery in read-only... HTC noob...