Database Info

Nandroid & Titanium

... do you need to use BOTH?

I use both simply because Titanium is good for restoring single apps+data, and at times I've found that invaluable.

Yeah. Titanium backs up your apps and data to sd card. Which mean you can restore it from ROM to ROM.
Nandroid backs up everything above the radio level. Kernel, boot.img, /system, basically the whole ROM.
So say I was on ROM 1 and wanted to change to ROM 2. I'd do a Titanium, then a Nandroid (or the other way around, whichever's most convenient xD).
After I do my wipe and install ROM 2, I don't have my apps! But if I download Titanium from the market, it'll see my backups on my sd card and I can restore them.
Now say I don't like ROM 2. I can use my nandroid backup to change back to ROM 1, with all of ROM 1 intact.
Hope that helps =]

Thanks a bunch for the use case. That is what I thought as well but I wasnt 100%.

Backups: Nandroid v. TiBu

Can someone help me understand the difference between a Nandroid backup and using Titanium Backup? Is it similar to the difference between image-based backup vs. file/application based backup? Under what circumstances would one be better than the other?

Your simile is spot on. Nandroid backup is used to completely restore a system with all apps and data.
Titanium Backup is used to restore/reinstall apps and data without changing your system. It's really handy if you get brave and decide to flash a new ROM on your phone. TiBu can put all your previously installed apps into place very quickly.
If you don't like the new ROM, just restore your old system from the Nandroid backup.

Ok, so help me think this through.
I've already Rooted/S-off/flashed a ROM on my phone. So presuming that the ROM image I download via CWM or XDA is on my card anyway, and I have TiBu (I have the paid version) that I can use to selectively restore apps, settings and data, would not Nandroid be redundant in this case?
OlafTheOx said:
Your simile is spot on. Nandroid backup is used to completely restore a system with all apps and data.
Titanium Backup is used to restore/reinstall apps and data without changing your system. It's really handy if you get brave and decide to flash a new ROM on your phone. TiBu can put all your previously installed apps into place very quickly.
If you don't like the new ROM, just restore your old system from the Nandroid backup.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

The point of a nandriod backup is to easily go back to a working setup without having to spend time installing apps and tweaking all the numerous settings to your liking. 5 minutes to restore a nandroid backup vs. 2 - 4 hours of installing & tweaking.
DInc with CyanogenMod 6.1 & Invisiblek #28 kernel.

Download Nandroid
Where do I download Nandroid?
Will this one work from the G1 thread?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=459830
Thanks

Nandroid is actually part of Clockwork Recovery. If you reboot to recovery mode you can make and restore backups from there.
As you say your on a custom ROM I assume Clockwork Recovery/CWM/ROM Manager was installed as part of the process.

There is a good overview of ClockworkMod Recovery at http://www.addictivetips.com/mobile/what-is-clockworkmod-recovery-and-how-to-use-it-on-android-complete-guide/#features

BillTheCat said:
Can someone help me understand the difference between a Nandroid backup and using Titanium Backup? Is it similar to the difference between image-based backup vs. file/application based backup? Under what circumstances would one be better than the other?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was just wondering about the same thing, so thanks for the thread.
Making a Nandroid backup right now ;-)

BTW, nandroid backups are stored on your SD card. You can free up space by either deleting or moving them to storage off the phone. Just keep a backup of your preferred restoration ROM on the SD card. Also, at the very least, it's a good idea to save a backup of the original manufacturer's ROM somewhere.
DInc with CyanogenMod 6.1 & Invisiblek #28 kernel.

technoplunk said:
There is a good overview of ClockworkMod Recovery at addictivetips dot com
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thanks for the link.
One issue though... it says ClockWorkMod requires ROOT access to create a backup rom image, which on my phone (ATT Aria with HBOOT 1.02) require to have S-OFF first with alpharev, yet most instructions tell you to create a nandroid backup first (which makes sense in case something goes wrong)...
Am I missing something ? you can't create a back, and you take risk doing S-OFF+Root to get there.
I want to remove unwanted ATT crapware, and install non market apps, but I need root access for all this. right ?

Titanium Backup Question

I (finally) flashed v2.0 touchmiuiwiz, someone suggested that since nandroid restores cause fc's, that i should flash the rom, reboot, let it load, then go back into cwm and restore data.
i did that, and the music player/camera/gallery/etc still dont work. i guess i'm being forced into titanium backup. question is - does it work if i make a backup ON THIS ROM then restore? or do i have to flash a different rom that doesn't fc said apps, THEN backup, then flash v2.0 and restore?
also, how does tit backup work? after flashing, where do i go to restore data? thanks bros.

anyone? =|

when you make a backup and restore you have to wipe data/factory ereset and it will work from any rom!
titanium backup makes a backup file of all your apps on the sd card and you can backup whenever you want.

so after the data wipe, i re-download titanium backup and restore from there?

Yeah, pretty much. TB Pro you don't have to confirm each app install when restoring. It was expensive but since I flash often it really speeds up the recovery process.
You can back up settings as well as apps. But I would only restore settings if on the same rom, no matter the version, unless significant. But all else, apps you can restore from any rom no problem. However, if you get a FC in an app (sometimes I'd get it for Gmail) you can just wipe the data for that app. It usually resolves the problem.

[Q] How do I do a full backup of my phone?

I rooted my Desire S and now I want to install a ROM on it, this is my first time so I'm being a little cautious.
How do I make a full backup of my phone? In the case I don't like the ROM and want to return to how my phone is now, is this possible?
If so, how to make this backup? And how would I restore my phone back to it?
Thanks!

Assuming you've rooted your phone and put a custom recovery on it (4EXT or CWM), run a backup - also called a NANDROID backup - and that will give you an image saved on your SD Card that you can restore if you ever need to.

Alright, I've got CWM and just did a NANDROID backup, it created 6 files on my sd card, which are:
boot.img
cache.img
data.img
nandroid.md5
recovery.img
system.img
How do I used these files to restore back to if I ever need to?

Just go into CWM again and select 'Restore'. I don't know if it is 100% necessary, but I always do a full wipe of all partitions (except for sdcard) before restoring as well just to be certain.

Alright, thanks for that!
Since that back up is done, going to back up all my app's now then flash my first ROM

Assuming (again) that you are using Titanium Backup to backup your apps - although this is probably true for other backup methods - be careful when restoring. There can be problems if you are restoring Sense app backups to an AOSP ROM or vice-versa. If you start getting problems post-restore then try restoring a few apps at a time to see if you can pin-down the problem app. From my experience, it's often better to install the app fresh from the marketplace and then restore just the settings (if you need them).

Make sure to use md5 sum check and verify them after every backup. It's good practice to avoid corruptions.
I use 4Ext control for that
Sent from my HTC Desire S using xda premium

[Q] How to use Nandroid backup and what exactly it does restore?

Hello,
I have problems restoring from nandroid backup.
Here what I did"
1) Flashed ROM1 and Flashed Kernel1.
2) Installed all My apps which I use.
3) Took Nandroid back-up.
4) Flashed ROM2. Flashed Kernel1.
5) Installed all apps.
6) After 1 days reflashed ROM1 and Kernel1.
7) Tried restoring Nandroid back-up I created 1 day back.
AND IT FAILS!!
Everytime I did a complete wipe of all data and catch and dalvik.
Same happened with CWM and AmonRa
CWM: md5 sums mismatch!!
AmonRa: Oops! Something went wrong!!
Am I mistaken about Nandroid back-up? Am I doing something wrong?
Actually I wanted to restore all my apps and data related to apps. I took whole system and data and everything backed up in the option.

1 Nandroid backup means it reflashes your backed up system with all your installed apps i.e if you have gb rom and do nandroid backup it will backup your current system( in this case gb) with all installed apps at the time you did backup.
2 You said it failed did it display any error while backing your nandroid backup.
3 Never heard of a backup being failed, you must have messed up something.
4 Md5 checksum mismatch means you either had a bad flash or if you moved or replaced some file also backup from different recovery will not work if you backed up from cmw then you cannot restore from amonra recovery, did you change recovery after backing up if you did then it wont work.
5. If you want to backup your apps and data next time try backing it with titanium backup root.Open titanium backup and press batch and then press backup all apps + data.
6. After flashimg new rom install titanium backup root from google play and press restore all app+data this will restore your apps with data.
7. If you use nandroid backup then your rom also changes to the rom that you had while backing up.
hope this helps

Go to your SDcard.. search and go to clockworkmod folder.. go to backup.. now whichever file you see.. Rename it xyz or anything WITHOUT any space!!
Try restoring then!!

hsingh1993 said:
1 Nandroid backup means it reflashes your backed up system with all your installed apps i.e if you have gb rom and do nandroid backup it will backup your current system( in this case gb) with all installed apps at the time you did backup.
2 You said it failed did it display any error while backing your nandroid backup.
3 Never heard of a backup being failed, you must have messed up something.
4 Md5 checksum mismatch means you either had a bad flash or if you moved or replaced some file also backup from different recovery will not work if you backed up from cmw then you cannot restore from amonra recovery, did you change recovery after backing up if you did then it wont work.
5. If you want to backup your apps and data next time try backing it with titanium backup root.Open titanium backup and press batch and then press backup all apps + data.
6. After flashimg new rom install titanium backup root from google play and press restore all app+data this will restore your apps with data.
7. If you use nandroid backup then your rom also changes to the rom that you had while backing up.
hope this helps
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I hadn't change anything but the name of the folder with some appropriate name like "CM-9.1.1 Final + CandiedIce Kernel + Apps", so that I can recognize it when I need it. No changes in the 5-6 files of recovery.
Didn't try restoring CWM back-up with AmonRa. Tried Amonra to Amonra and CWM to CWM. Failed all times (almost 5 to 6 times).
Does making folder name without any spaces in between work? If it's so, it's weird!! Is it that way? Should the folder name has to have NO SPACE?
"clockworkmode > backup > CM-9.1.1 + CandiedIce Kernel + Apps" - won't work.
But "clockworkmode > backup > CM-9.1.1+CandiedIce_Kernel+Apps" - will work??
Also, as known CWM couldn't back-up sdext. But otherwise No Error. While AmonRa did all back-up without any sort of error.

Dude.. just do it. WITHOUT ANY SPACE.. if you want to restore!!
And keep a small name!!
Eg: cm9.1.1.candied.ice
Dont use any special characters like $ & #

Thanks
rr0yy said:
Dude.. just do it. WITHOUT ANY SPACE.. if you want to restore!!
And keep a small name!!
Eg: cm9.1.1.candied.ice
Dont use any special characters like $ & #
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the betterment of my knowledge. I shall keep this in mind for future use!! Recently I am stable with CM 9.1.1 without Gapps.

rr0yy said:
Dude.. just do it. WITHOUT ANY SPACE.. if you want to restore!!
And keep a small name!!
Eg: cm9.1.1.candied.ice
Dont use any special characters like $ & #
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks man for the tip! :good:
I usually put spaces in my backup though i have'nt encountered that problem.

wyndcryst25 said:
Thanks man for the tip! :good:
I usually put spaces in my backup though i have'nt encountered that problem.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So keeping a small name and without spaces is important??

sn809 said:
So keeping a small name and without spaces is important??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yes, this is Linux, means no spaces.

i have a question about this subject,
if i want to backup my rom my stock 4.1.1 on my galaxy nexus how can i do that so that when and if i choose to return or sell the phone i would like to load up the stock Rom back on the phone in case the person isnt tech friendly.
does a Nandroid back up Rom files and kernel as well ???
thanks for any help guys

fariswheel said:
i have a question about this subject,
if i want to backup my rom my stock 4.1.1 on my galaxy nexus how can i do that so that when and if i choose to return or sell the phone i would like to load up the stock Rom back on the phone in case the person isnt tech friendly.
does a Nandroid back up Rom files and kernel as well ???
thanks for any help guys
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Use a custom recovery to backup. You can find them at galaxy nexus forum on xda
Yes, it restores everything. Nandroid backup is 1:1 copy of your entire phone memory. It will even restore your messages, call logs, accounts etc

sarus_b said:
Use a custom recovery to backup. You can find them at galaxy nexus forum on xda
Yes, it restores everything. Nandroid backup is 1:1 copy of your entire phone memory. It will even restore your messages, call logs, accounts etc
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So any NANDroid backup is 1:1?
Does that mean that NANDroid also wipes all data?

Searz said:
So any NANDroid backup is 1:1?
Does that mean that NANDroid also wipes all data?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yes, is 1:1; if you restore a nandroid it will take the same space as the rom you backed up, and no, if you make a nandroid backup, you won't loose any data whatsoever, you still can continue using the rom you backed up, but if you are going to restore a nandroid it's better to make a full wipe, like if you are installing a rom, that's the way i do it...

gabo_lope said:
yes, is 1:1; if you restore a nandroid it will take the same space as the rom you backed up, and no, if you make a nandroid backup, you won't loose any data whatsoever, you still can continue using the rom you backed up, but if you are going to restore a nandroid it's better to make a full wipe, like if you are installing a rom, that's the way i do it...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, I didn't mean that you'd lose data when making a backup. That defeats the point of making a backup in the first place, lol.
I was talking about when you restore it. And from what you just wrote I assume that files that aren't overwritten when restoring remain. Similar to how you can flash a ROM "dirty".

Searz said:
No, I didn't mean that you'd lose data when making a backup. That defeats the point of making a backup in the first place, lol.
I was talking about when you restore it. And from what you just wrote I assume that files that aren't overwritten when restoring remain. Similar to how you can flash a ROM "dirty".
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Files will be overwritten. For example, if you make a nandroid, then update an app, when you restore that nandroid, you will restore the previous version of that app.
Sent from my LG-VM670 using xda app-developers app

upconvert said:
Files will be overwritten. For example, if you make a nandroid, then update an app, when you restore that nandroid, you will restore the previous version of that app.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yea, exactly how I thought it worked. Thanks for confirming that for me.

guys i have some questions.........
1) nanadroid backs up all system apps and saved data like messages, phonelogs, contacts, saved settings right ??
2) if I flash a new ROM and then want to go back to the previous state by flashing nandroid backup, does it unroot my device?
3) I backup system apps + data by nandroid backup and SD card apps by Titanium Backup. Is this right ??
Searz said:
No, I didn't mean that you'd lose data when making a backup. That defeats the point of making a backup in the first place, lol.
I was talking about when you restore it. And from what you just wrote I assume that files that aren't overwritten when restoring remain. Similar to how you can flash a ROM "dirty".
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
4) If I have a backup of stock ROM then flash a custom ROM like CM, system files will be different in CM. SO when I restore the stock ROM, files that are new to CM will still remain right?
sorry for asking noob questions..........I'll really appreciate it if u guys answer this

Hmm
mike_24_11 said:
Hello,
I have problems restoring from nandroid backup.
Here what I did"
1) Flashed ROM1 and Flashed Kernel1.
2) Installed all My apps which I use.
3) Took Nandroid back-up.
4) Flashed ROM2. Flashed Kernel1.
5) Installed all apps.
6) After 1 days reflashed ROM1 and Kernel1.
7) Tried restoring Nandroid back-up I created 1 day back.
AND IT FAILS!!
Everytime I did a complete wipe of all data and catch and dalvik.
Same happened with CWM and AmonRa
CWM: md5 sums mismatch!!
AmonRa: Oops! Something went wrong!!
Am I mistaken about Nandroid back-up? Am I doing something wrong?
Actually I wanted to restore all my apps and data related to apps. I took whole system and data and everything backed up in the option.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
do you use cwm recovery or twrp idk about twrp but if you are using cwm go to the cwm recovery go down to backup and restore now backup it to sdcard1 (sometimes its shown as backup to external sd card depends on your phone what u use) or just press backup it backups your current rom and your files and now press restore and chose your restore file or if you backup it to your sd card you can do the same thing just chose restore from external sd card and chose your restore file :good: done :good: