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Wiping/Formatting Internal Storage. How to perform a real....(read:actual) wipe.

Even after doing a factory reset....and after wiping every time of cache i could in recovery...my internal storage is still stuffed with stuff from the stock when my i first got the device. How do i actually perform a wipe.

Jamesyboy said:
Even after doing a factory reset....and after wiping every time of cache i could in recovery...my internal storage is still stuffed with stuff from the stock when my i first got the device. How do i actually perform a wipe.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why don't you just go into Settings -> Storage -> Format? Or just delete everything with your computer?

Product F(RED) said:
Why don't you just go into Settings -> Storage -> Format? Or just delete everything with your computer?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There's no option to format the internal storage.

Jamesyboy said:
Even after doing a factory reset....and after wiping every time of cache i could in recovery...my internal storage is still stuffed with stuff from the stock when my i first got the device. How do i actually perform a wipe.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As well, wiping the internal storage may be possible through the stock ROM under settings-> storage....but i was working with codename android. I tried the "Erase Tablet" under Settings->Backup and Restore-> Factory Reset-> Wipe all personal information.
However, after restarting, nothing was deleted.
I'm going to flash the stock ROM and try to look for a format option under Settings->Storage, and i'll try doing a factory reset under settings-> Privacy.
If that doesn't work, i'll have to reflash Revolver 4 beta, and try to look in the settings there.
But as far as trying to delete everything from a computer, idk if i have to have USB debugging enabled, or some settings switched, because browsing the contents of the internal storage over USB doesn't even show all of the folders.

if you have a SBK1 devics you can use NVFlash that wipes everything and repartitions it and i believe there is a superwipe script in the arhd thread that wipes internal storage

mrevankyle said:
if you have a SBK1 devics you can use NVFlash that wipes everything and repartitions it and i believe there is a superwipe script in the arhd thread that wipes internal storage
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Will this wipe CWM as well? Was hoping this wouldn't be too complicated. This will be a joke if i have to redo EVERYTHING.
I really just wanna wipe the internal storage and then flash a ROM from my sdcard.
So if things do work out like i want them to, I can just use the ICS Nvflash and things will be wiped?
Or will this be convoluted---as in i'll have to use the script, install ARHD (which is honeycomb right?) install CWM, rewipe (at which point i'll have some crap from ARHD in my internal storage...grr), and then, finally, install my ROM?
BTW, i have a B70 transformer that was rootable via the one-click live CD. I assume that means i have a SBK1.
I can remove my MicroSD during this, amirite?

C'mon asus, this is such a basic feature.
If i recall correctly, wasn't there a feature in settings, that if you entered your pattern or password incorrectly a certain number of times, your data would be wiped? If this wipes ALL personal information, that feature would be really handy right now.

Go here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1245892
Download the super wipe. Then use the recovery to run it. It will handle all things internal.

Not sure which CWM you are using but in Rogue XM Recovery, there's an option to format /sdcard under Mounts and Storage. IIRC the regular CWM has that option too. There is also an option to partition the SD card under Advanced.
You can also use the the superwipe(full version) script to delete everything on internal storage. No it doesn't remove CWM.
BTW, i have a B70 transformer that was rootable via the one-click live CD. I assume that means i have a SBK1.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
what is this one click live cd rooting? Some sort of linux live cd? Why didn't you just use ViperMod?
How did you come to the assumption that you have a SBK1? Did the author of the rooting method specifically say it only works for SBK1 devices?
FROM THE MODERATOR . . . Watch the use of profanity... please use respectful language in this forum--- THX

The One-Click live CD was in it's prime during intitial release. ASUS changed the bootloader encryption key during the second half of B70* production. Before the second encryption key was released, B70*+ users were in limbo.
I came to that conclusion because i had no issue rooting and installing CWM with the first batch of tools, while others, who had devices with serial numbers in the second half of the B70* spectrum did. So yes, there is a method to my madness.
And i used the Live CD One-Click method because i was rusty with a CMD prompt. To each his own. It rooted, partitioned, and installed CWM.
I might add...this was my first Android device, and it was certainly my first time lurking around root. It was perfect for someone with a limited knowledge of android and Linux (at the time).

Thanks! I might as well give ARHD a try while im at it! Will report back!

Oh I see. Yes you are right about having sbk1.
Not sure which version of CWM comes with it but it should have an option to format sdcard like I said earlier. I know this because I used that option to delete everything before flashing ICS.

horndroid said:
Oh I see. Yes you are right about having sbk1.
Not sure which version of CWM comes with it but it should have an option to format sdcard like I said earlier. I know this because I used that option to delete everything before flashing ICS.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The Super-Wipe script worked perfectly for deleting the data, but the ARHD thread says that it reformats the partitions as EXT4. i installed ARHD after using the super wipe script and during the restore (Google's cloud restore), iI immediately got swamped with Google Play Store errors- Error 403 every time it tried to install an app.
Codename Android installed, restored, and ran fine...including app installation, so im not sure what was the problem, but i have a feeling it has to do with the file system change. If this is true, be aware. The script may function well, but its also possible you'll end up having to reformat anyways to change the filesystem back. Ill post this as well in the proper thread...but i thinks it's also relevant to this discussion.
I suppose XDA and Android have led me to my next topic of research--filesystem usage in Android with stock and custom ROMs.

[Q] NVflash back to stock (Get rid of encryption?)

Hey all,
I've got a SL101 with a sku of c10. I know that for most things the slider is pretty similar to the TF101. I've tried
out a few of the posts around here involving flashing a stock rom via nvflash to get rid of this annoying encryption.
Yes, I know, it's terrible, but the job I was at required it regardless. Problem I'm having is that non of the tools/advice
I've been able to find have had any useful results. I searched around for a working method for the slider, but I wasn't
able to find much. The slider goes into apx mode fine, pc knows its there (using the naked drivers posted here on xda),
but any time I try to send a command via nvflash it disconnects the slider and fails out with the 0x4 code. Maybe I'm
just missing it here on the forums, but does anyone have any clear information on how to go about this for the slider?
Appreciate any help.

IIRC NVFlash does not work for the Slider.
A factory reset should get rid of the encryption.

CWM cannot mount /data to do a wipe, if I pass up recovery and attempt to do the wipe with the factory wipe it also fails, which is why
I was hoping for an nvflash method. Does the stock recovery have the ability to access /data while it is encrypted? Thanks for the quick
reply also.

faustus1005 said:
CWM cannot mount /data to do a wipe, if I pass up recovery and attempt to do the wipe with the factory wipe it also fails, which is why
I was hoping for an nvflash method. Does the stock recovery have the ability to access /data while it is encrypted? Thanks for the quick
reply also.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try a different recovery. Some peoples who have the can't mount sd card problems use a different recovery and it's fine. You can use PERI tool to install a new recovery and see what happen.

I've tried rogue and twrp, rogue couldnt mount /data either, and twrp wasn't functional at all on the slider... any suggestions for a custom recovery?

I had the same issue, of absolutely nothing being able to mount or read /data. I could use easyflasher (nvflash) to force a repartition and flash of stock asus ics, but it wouldn't be able to boot it. Turned out it's bad blocks on the internal EMMC, and the flash translation layer on these devices is too ****ty to properly map them out and report them to the system. So now my tablet is a giant, useless paperweight.
I've asked people for help as to how to flash a rom to an external sd card, and boot from that, but nobody has helped me. If I find anything out I'll be sure to PM you.
Good luck!

Sounds like you have even more of a problem than I do, I still have a working/functional OS. Its just
that none of these recoveries seem to be able to read the encryption. I'm perfectly able to use it
otherwise.

I hope so for your sake!
If it truly is just encryption, this superwipe script should be able to format it and remove encryption. flash it in recovery
Keep in mind it's a superwipe, so you will lose ALL your data, including the rom you have installed etc. You will retain whatever recovery you have flashed
http://goo.gl/YBW9H

If using super wipe, make sure you have a recovery that read external sd card or ADB to push a ROM top internal sd.

Ah, this worked perfectly. Just out of curiosity, is there a source available for superwipe? I would like to see how
it did it, for future reference.

faustus1005 said:
Ah, this worked perfectly. Just out of curiosity, is there a source available for superwipe? I would like to see how
it did it, for future reference.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I believed "Superwipe" script is a work of mike1986. See if he has any source in this link.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1245892

open the zip on your computer, then navigate to meta-inf>com>google>android
then open updater-script with a text editor. You'll see how simple it is, it simply formats /data, /cache, and /system
you can do this with any flashable zip

[Q] Wipe/factory reset and flashing new ROM

I'm currently on Paranoid Android and as I am a bit unsatisfied with the performance and responsiveness of the device (GT-P3110) I thought I'd try out the latest version of Slimbean as I've heard a lot of good things about it. The installation instructions says to download the ROM, doing a full wipe/factory reset and then flashing the new ROM.
Now, this probably is a really stupid question, but if I first download the ROM and then do a full wipe, won't the downloaded file also be deleted? Am I supposed to download the file to my computer and transfer it to the tablet after wiping it? Is it possible to transfer files to the tablet in recovery mode?
Bit of a noob, as you can see....

staffh said:
I'm currently on Paranoid Android and as I am a bit unsatisfied with the performance and responsiveness of the device (GT-P3110) I thought I'd try out the latest version of Slimbean as I've heard a lot of good things about it. The installation instructions says to download the ROM, doing a full wipe/factory reset and then flashing the new ROM.
Now, this probably is a really stupid question, but if I first download the ROM and then do a full wipe, won't the downloaded file also be deleted? Am I supposed to download the file to my computer and transfer it to the tablet after wiping it? Is it possible to transfer files to the tablet in recovery mode?
Bit of a noob, as you can see....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, its all good. Just put your new file onto your internal or external sd and flash from there with CWM or TWRP. I prefer to flash with TWRP from the external sd, that way I can just keep it in case I have to reflash or whatever. Good luck!

CSP III said:
No, its all good. Just put your new file onto your internal or external sd and flash from there with CWM or TWRP. I prefer to flash with TWRP from the external sd, that way I can just keep it in case I have to reflash or whatever. Good luck!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you. So basically doing a wipe/factory reset/format won't delete the file? If this is the case, what does actually get wiped?

staffh said:
Thank you. So basically doing a wipe/factory reset/format won't delete the file? If this is the case, what does actually get wiped?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Check this out: http://checkrom.com/threads/wipe-data-factory-reset.672/
Don't forget to hit the "thanks" button if I helped!

CSP III said:
Check this out...
Don't forget to hit the "thanks" button if I helped!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Done!
I have now wiped the device and done a format of the /system folder as per the instructions on the slimroms website (can't post an external link as a new user). Since my /Downloads folder (to which I downloaded the ROM .zip file) is now empty, how do I go about flashing the device?

viewshs concept
I have attempted to push the files to the device while in recovery using the ./adb push filename.zip /sdcard/download command, and while it says...
Desktop/Slim-p3110-4.2.2.build.6-OFFICIAL.zip /sdcard/download
4174 KB/s (87596355 bytes in 20.490s)
...the file is nowhere to be found in the /sdcard/download folder when I want to flash it. Any thoughts?

First, activate flash zip from sideload in CWM and then send sideload command "./adb sideload flashable.zip". Good luck!

ketut.kumajaya said:
First, activate flash zip from sideload in CWM and then send sideload command "./adb sideload flashable.zip". Good luck!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you -- worked like a charm!

opursta surviving
After installing the new ROM I realised I only have about 2gb of free space on my internal memory (out of 8gb). Is this normal? I'm thinking this may have something to do with the device being slow and unresponsive? How can I make sure my tablet is completely "wiped"?

staffh said:
After installing the new ROM I realised I only have about 2gb of free space on my internal memory (out of 8gb). Is this normal? I'm thinking this may have something to do with the device being slow and unresponsive? How can I make sure my tablet is completely "wiped"?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In TWRP, an option called "format data" will format your internal storage, just make sure that your downloaded rom, kernel and gapps are on your external storage before proceed.
Usually after performing a data format, I will reboot recovery before flashing to ensure that the partition is ready for the new rom, as per advised on the TWRP on screen instruction.

Install philz recovery it has lots of options for wipe your device fully touch to use

[Q] Issues with KatKiss 4.3.1_027 on TF101

Good morning-
I have a TF101 (with keyboard) running KatKiss 4.3.1_027 and gapps 4.3_20130914. Everything was fine until yesterday morning when I lost network connectivity and decided to reboot (this happens from time to time). Unfortunately, now my tablet won't boot. I get the splash screen with the swirling colored circles, but nothing more.
I tried booting to TWRP (v2.6.3.0 if it matters) and flashed KK and gapps again (including wipes as instructed). This time, it got to an "Upgrading Android" screen, went through my apps, but then got stuck on "Starting apps." I've given it about an hour in both situations and still nothing.
To make matters worse, my microSD slot is flaky and usually doesn't read my card. Based on what I've found, it looks like I have to use adb to push any new files to the tablet. If I boot TWRP and connect my TF to my PC (Windows 7), it tries to install "ASUS Android MTP Device" but is not successful (yellow exclamation point - "This device cannot start. (Code 10)"). I've tried downloading and installing the suite from ASUS, but that doesn't seem to help. "adb devices" doesn't list anything, so I'm stuck here as well.
Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!!
Brian

Welcome to XDA!
This is what I responded to you over at TFF:
Sorry for the issues, it looks like the issue is a corrupt /data/ partition. By default "fsync" is off because this makes it faster, however it could get in a bootloop due to this speed. The fix is to flash the "fsync_on.zip" before the boot loop happens.
Once it happens, you are stuck, but there is help.
If you have TWRP 2.6.3.0, it is supposed to have USB support. Plug in a USB drive before booting to TWRP and it should be there.
To fix your issue and lose very minimal data, here is what will need to be done:
Boot to TWRP.
Backup only the /data/ partition. I would back it up to USB if possible, or if not back it up to the internal or microSD (if the microSD is playing nice).
Next (here is the leap of faith) do the wipe of the SYSTEM, CACHE, DAVLIK and DATA partitions. Do not do a FORMAT DATA, just a WIPE DATA (in the advanced section of the WIPE menu).
Now, install KatKiss and the GAPPS.
Wipe CACHE & DAVLIK.
Reboot.
Sign in to your Google account. You can have it restore apps if you want, I usually do myself, but it does not really matter.
Once it is done restoring your apps (or if you choose not to restore) open the Play Store an install Titanium Backup and the Premium Key for TiBu. You need the premium to restore from a TWRP backup.
Open TiBu and go into the Menu section, then find the option to restore from a nandroid backup. This will scan for any nandroid backups. Pick the backup to restore from and it will take a few minutes to scan the backup. Pick the apps you want to restore data and / or the app from.
Go make a coffee and wait for it to complete.
You may lose data from one or two apps, but you will have it from the rest of them. That is better than nothing.

Thank you!!
If that's all it is, then it's not as bad as I thought.
frederuco said:
If you have TWRP 2.6.3.0, it is supposed to have USB support. Plug in a USB drive before booting to TWRP and it should be there.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unfortunately, this doesn't seem to be working for me. I used TWRP to power off my tablet. Then, I plugged in a USB stick into one of the ports on my keyboard, as this is the only way that I have access to a port. TWRP boots as expected, but I can't see my USB device anywhere. Am I doing something wrong? Is there a partition on the internal storage that I can use for the backup that won't get wiped by the process you outlined above?
Thanks again!!

You can use the INTERNAL storage option, just be sure that when you wipe you only wipe the DATA partition. Do not choose to FORMAT DATA.
WIPE DATA = wipes the /data/ partition without wiping /data/media/ (which is the /sdcard/ directory or INTERNAL)
FORMAT DATA = formats the entire /data/ partition.
As I said above, you can use the internal storage option but be sure to only use the wipe data option.

frederuco said:
You can use the INTERNAL storage option, just be sure that when you wipe you only wipe the DATA partition. Do not choose to FORMAT DATA.
WIPE DATA = wipes the /data/ partition without wiping /data/media/ (which is the /sdcard/ directory or INTERNAL)
FORMAT DATA = formats the entire /data/ partition.
As I said above, you can use the internal storage option but be sure to only use the wipe data option.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just so I'm 100% clear:
Boot to TWRP
Check only "Data" from the left menu.
On the right side, "Storage: Internal Storage" is selected and nothing needs to be changed here.
Swipe to back up
Proceed with the steps in your original post.

Correct.

frederuco said:
Welcome to XDA!
This is what I responded to you over at TFF:
Sorry for the issues, it looks like the issue is a corrupt /data/ partition. By default "fsync" is off because this makes it faster, however it could get in a bootloop due to this speed. The fix is to flash the "fsync_on.zip" before the boot loop happens.
Once it happens, you are stuck, but there is help.
If you have TWRP 2.6.3.0, it is supposed to have USB support. Plug in a USB drive before booting to TWRP and it should be there.
To fix your issue and lose very minimal data, here is what will need to be done:
Boot to TWRP.
Backup only the /data/ partition. I would back it up to USB if possible, or if not back it up to the internal or microSD (if the microSD is playing nice).
Next (here is the leap of faith) do the wipe of the SYSTEM, CACHE, DAVLIK and DATA partitions. Do not do a FORMAT DATA, just a WIPE DATA (in the advanced section of the WIPE menu).
Now, install KatKiss and the GAPPS.
Wipe CACHE & DAVLIK.
Reboot.
Sign in to your Google account. You can have it restore apps if you want, I usually do myself, but it does not really matter.
Once it is done restoring your apps (or if you choose not to restore) open the Play Store an install Titanium Backup and the Premium Key for TiBu. You need the premium to restore from a TWRP backup.
Open TiBu and go into the Menu section, then find the option to restore from a nandroid backup. This will scan for any nandroid backups. Pick the backup to restore from and it will take a few minutes to scan the backup. Pick the apps you want to restore data and / or the app from.
Go make a coffee and wait for it to complete.
You may lose data from one or two apps, but you will have it from the rest of them. That is better than nothing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
frederuco said:
Correct.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Success!! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!! Two follow-ups to this:
1.) Since I was never able to get this working, is there a way to access the USB/SD card slots on the keyboard dock in TWRP? Using the internal storage is good, but if I want to wipe the whole thing (since my microSD card slot doesn't work), I would really have no way of ever being able to do this.
2.) I actually went up to 4.4.2, mostly because I could. However, I seem to have issues with the Google Play store where apps are always stuck on "Installing..." then the get installed but not really. I think I'll go back down to 4.3 unless there's a way to solve this.
Thank you again!!

Messed up this time

My K1 has been stock rooted for awhile now, and this past weekend I decided to flash a rom on it. I downloaded everything and went into TWRP to start wiping per instructions.
In my haste I selected to wipe EVERYTHING! Internal, SD, cache- the whole works. Abbot the time the wipe finished, I thought "Oh no, I did not leave anything on there to give the tablet instructions!" No new ROM, no old one either.
I have left it in TWRP since Saturday, afraid to reboot it. I fear it will permanently brick because there isn't anything on there. It is still in TWRP, plugged in.
I tried using am OTG flash drive but TWRP does not see it. I took the SD card out & loaded the new ROM on it, but TWRP does not see it either.
I am using a Linux Mint terminal with ADB commands to do this. Sudo ADB devices sees it, shows the serial #, and says Recovery.
How do I get a ROM on this device and get it functional again? Can I reboot it? To bootloader, or to recovery again? What is my next step?
I am an amateur with Linux, so please, keep the commands simple!
Thank you!

Don't worry it's not broken. Just put your SD card in and mount it (click mount and check usb otg or sd card or whichever media you're using) and you should be able to see your media when you click install and expand devices.
You can also connect your tablet to your pc and simply drag and drop files into its internal storage, your linux pc should be able to see your shield if it's in twrp. Just open nemo (win+E) and place the files you want to flash. Just make sure if you're transfering files from linux to give it a few more minutes after transferimg before unmounting your tablet and starting to flash.

I LOVE YOU, MAN!!! I tried mounting (had not seen that in TWRP before) the SD card, but it still did not see it. I put the OTG drive back in and mounted, it saw it! I proceeded to flash the rom. I had a hard time installing gapps, I am going to reinstall it tomorrow.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your help!

biknut1 said:
I LOVE YOU, MAN!!! I tried mounting (had not seen that in TWRP before) the SD card, but it still did not see it. I put the OTG drive back in and mounted, it saw it! I proceeded to flash the rom. I had a hard time installing gapps, I am going to reinstall it tomorrow.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your help!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No problem
Make sure you've downloaded ARM and not ARM64 gapps for your android version (7.1.1 or 8.1 depending which ROM you use, you can find the version on the bottom of the first post).

I downloaded the link in the Rom post, but I will double check. Thanks again!

biknut1 said:
I decided to flash a rom on it. I downloaded everything and went into TWRP to start wiping per instructions.
In my haste I selected to wipe EVERYTHING! Internal, SD, cache- the whole works.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Maybe already lessons learned, but a couple points I often tell folks on these forums:
- The TWRP default WIPE option (which only wipes data, Dalvik and cache) says "this is the only wipe you need most of the time". It says that for good reason, and they mean it when they say that! This default works great for flashing ROMs. Some folks will swear by wiping "system" when flashing a ROM. But this is already done when you flash the ROM, so it really is redundant.
- The option to wipe other partitions (besides the default) is labeled "Advanced" and again, it is called that for good reason. My advice would be, to not wipe anything under this section, unless you know exactly what it is, and what the result will be. There are sometimes valid reasons to do so, such as you want to completely wipe internal storage, and start fresh (various ROMs and apps dump a lot of extraneous stuff there, that never gets cleaned up unless you do so by some manual means). But again, you need to be prepared, such as not having your backups or ROM (that you intend to flash) on the partitions you are about to wipe.
- If/when you do choose to use the Advanced wipe features, always double check (triple check, for that matter) what you are about to wipe. It is easy to click the wrong box, and there will not be any confirmation of what you are wiping once you swipe. It's easy (maybe too easy) to intend to wipe something harmless like cache, but accidentally tap SD card or internal storage.

@redpoint73- Believe it or not, I know that! I did want to wipe the SD Card, and the rest of the tablet, so i could get rid of everything old that was making it lag. Good thought, just not all at one time. Lesson learned!
Nothing was harmed, tablet is better, gained some Linux experience, so all around it was a win!