[Q] Dual, Tri, or Quad-Boot? - Nexus 5 Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

I'd like to quad-boot my Nexus 5 with Android, Ubuntu Touch, Sailfish, and Firefox OS. Can this be done? I would also happily settle for tri-boot or dual-boot. What is the best way to go about this? My phone is not rooted (yet).

Multirom, probably

Thanks, I've been researching this all morning and I've come up with a couple problems.
There doesn't seem to be a way to do a full backup of the stock phone. A Nandroid backup would be perfect but in order to do that, custom recovery must be installed which requires unlocking the bootloader which wipes the phone. One of MultiROM's features is "Boot from USB drive attached via OTG cable". Can I do that and leave the phone's internal memory 100% untouched so I don't have to unlock the bootloader and wipe the phone?
It sounds like MultiROM itself requires custom recovery so I won't be able to receive OTA updates for an Android booted from MultiROM. Does that mean I will have to wipe Android each time I want to update it?
I don't think there would be any need to root the phone in order to set up and use MultiROM, correct?

You do have to unlock bootloader.

Think you are trying to run before you can walk. With 4 roms where would you store apps as well for them all. Most of those have little support anyway
SENT BY ENTANGLEMENT

Aren't apps written to the ROM are you're using the OS like the rest of the user data?
Lack of support is OK.
Can I leave the phone's memory untouched and install MultiROM on a USB stick? I would think custom recovery would be required in order to boot from USB which would require unlocking the bootloader which wipes the phone.

You do have to unlock your boot loader and root your device for multirom to work,
Just back up your data and restore it after you finish the process.
I currently have an N5 with multirom installed and can boot
4.4.4
Dirty Unicorns 5.1.1
Pure White 5.1.1
Ubuntu Touch
FirefoxOS
The storage space is shared on android roms so you can view your file downloads, music and videos. You can view on Ubuntu Touch
The apps are separated by the Roms, so you can install the same app on each rom with different settings.
I have a 32 GB N5 with 580 songs, Copilot GPS app + data on the 4.4.4 rom, and a 2 TWRP backups (one for original 4.4.4 and one for the multirom) I still have 7.96 GB left of storage

qnc, the problem is there is no way to do a full backup without first unlocking the bootloader which wipes the phone. There are various backup techniques available but none of them restore your phone exactly as it was like a NANdroid backup/restore does.
Android shouldn't need to be rooted in order to install MultiROM. That can be done from the command line with the phone connected to a computer via USB.
Have you tried Sailfish OS? That's the one I'm most excited about due to their Android app compatibility layer.

xdadevelopersrocks said:
qnc, the problem is there is no way to do a full backup without first unlocking the bootloader which wipes the phone. There are various backup techniques available but none of them restore your phone exactly as it was like a NANdroid backup/restore does.
Android shouldn't need to be rooted in order to install MultiROM. That can be done from the command line with the phone connected to a computer via USB.
Have you tried Sailfish OS? That's the one I'm most excited about due to their Android app compatibility layer.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ahh understood. I missed the full backup.
I only worry about SMS/MMS backups and pictures. I don't worry about app data.
Question what data would be lost if a full backup is not done?
I have not tried Sailfish OS, I will look into it to see what it is.

qnc said:
Question what data would be lost if a full backup is not done?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Google Authenticator stuff for one thing. But in general the point of a full backup for me is I don't have to think about it and I won't be surprised after the restore.
qnc said:
I have not tried Sailfish OS, I will look into it to see what it is.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's created by the former Nokia OS team in Finland. You can actually run Android apps inside the OS.

xdadevelopersrocks said:
Google Authenticator stuff for one thing. But in general the point of a full backup for me is I don't have to think about it and I won't be surprised after the restore.
It's created by the former Nokia OS team in Finland. You can actually run Android apps inside the OS.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I see, I don't use Authenticator much, if at all.
I'm guessing that I probably don't since I don't worry about it. I change ROMs on my phone so much it would probably be a hassle for me.
Sailfish OS sounds very cool I will look at it and flash later today.

qnc said:
I see, I don't use Authenticator much, if at all.
I'm guessing that I probably don't since I don't worry about it. I change ROMs on my phone so much it would probably be a hassle for me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So when you want to update a stock Android install, you have to backup/restore since you're using third-party recovery/bootloader?
Please let me know how you like Sailfish if you get a chance.

no i dont have to back up and restore for upgrade
since i upgrade manually i just flash everything except userdata image. i get the upgrade without deleting data.
also i flashed sailfish OS. it is really smoorh.
gestures are killing ubuntu.
im posting in sailfish right now.

Nice, my Nexus 5 shows up today (right after the 5 o'clock free crack giveaway) so I'll be dialing in MultiROM over the weekend.
So you keep your userdata on a separate image? How do you do that?

xdadevelopersrocks said:
Nice, my Nexus 5 shows up today (right after the 5 o'clock free crack giveaway) so I'll be dialing in MultiROM over the weekend.
So you keep your userdata on a separate image? How do you do that?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is just a matter of flashing each image individually.
I'm on my phone so I can't find the link, but there are directions on how to update while saving user data.
You just flash bootloader, recovery, system, boot, radio images and do not flash userdata image.
You systems is upgraded and you keep you user data and apps.
You then must root and ad back custom recovery, but thstcis pretty simple.
There are directions on XDA I just can't find link on my phone right now.

Related

Wifi Tether (any fixes)?

I'm obviously new to this so bare with me.
I just rooted my Sprint HTC Hero and the first thing I would like to do is use it to tether. I've tried both versions of Android_wifi_tether (1.52, 1.6) but have had no luck in getting it functional. Basically; It broadcasts the signal (I'm at work so the only way to test it was with a Macbook) just fine. The Macbook even connects to it and my phone shows "3KB down 7.8KB up" meaning it detected something has connected. Once that happens nothing else works. The Macbook indicates it has no internet connection.
I was wondering if anyone has been able to get this to work? I'm a little hesitant on installing a custom ROM because it seems like a lot of work and I'm not too knowledgeable when it comes to Linux.
Also, can my phone still be updated or is that still unkown? If I install a root app and the update kills root does that mean I lose it entirely or just for anything I try to install post update?
As a side note: Someone should make a post with step by step guides to follow. What I mean by this is put the guides in chronological order.
1) Root your phone (guide link)
2) Run Nandroid backup (guide link)
3) etc.
Anyway, really appreciate the work! This is exciting.
fatkitty420 said:
I'm obviously new to this so bare with me.
I just rooted my Sprint HTC Hero and the first thing I would like to do is use it to tether. I've tried both versions of Android_wifi_tether (1.52, 1.6) but have had no luck in getting it functional. Basically; It broadcasts the signal (I'm at work so the only way to test it was with a Macbook) just fine. The Macbook even connects to it and my phone shows "3KB down 7.8KB up" meaning it detected something has connected. Once that happens nothing else works. The Macbook indicates it has no internet connection.
I was wondering if anyone has been able to get this to work? I'm a little hesitant on installing a custom ROM because it seems like a lot of work and I'm not too knowledgeable when it comes to Linux.
Also, can my phone still be updated or is that still unkown? If I install a root app and the update kills root does that mean I lose it entirely or just for anything I try to install post update?
As a side note: Someone should make a post with step by step guides to follow. What I mean by this is put the guides in chronological order.
1) Root your phone (guide link)
2) Run Nandroid backup (guide link)
3) etc.
Anyway, really appreciate the work! This is exciting.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Currently the only phones that have wifi tethering working are the ones who installed MoDaCo's ROM...something in there is configured differently to allow it to work.
thecodemonk said:
Currently the only phones that have wifi tethering working are the ones who installed MoDaCo's ROM...something in there is configured differently to allow it to work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How functional is the ROM?
The one thing I'm scared of is that if I install a ROM I'll be dependent on this community to make future things work?
I mean, can you still access the Market? What about future updates? Will applications I purchased already still be available?
Like I said, I'm still fairly noobish.
fatkitty420 said:
How functional is the ROM?
The one thing I'm scared of is that if I install a ROM I'll be dependent on this community to make future things work?
I mean, can you still access the Market? What about future updates? Will applications I purchased already still be available?
Like I said, I'm still fairly noobish.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No sweat! If you look at my join date and postcount, you can see I'm not exactly the veteran around here either.
The MoDaCo ROM doesn't modify very much yet...just adds functionality (it's not the heavily optimized kernel that the GSM users have for example). I'm finding it fairly stable...there's a few quirks but those have fixes pretty easily found so far.
I can still purchase from the market...the stuff you purchased already is tied to your google account, not your phone. I bought Docs2Go before I rooted and flashed and I was able to redownload and install without any hassle or added cost.
On a custom ROM, future updates do depend on the person who is building the ROM. However, MoDaCo has proven pretty reliable thus far in keeping up with releases so it's a bit of a trust thing, do you trust MoDaCo to continue that trend or would you rather place your trust in the manufacturer? (It's a preference thing and willingness to risk either way).
The upside is that once you root to a recovery image (Not even changing your OS), you can take a Nandroid backup of your phone, which is an image you can drop back on there to get back to stock/manufacturer spec (as if you never left).
Any changes to your phone since the backup will not show up but that's kindof the risk.
thecodemonk said:
k on there to get back to stock/manufacturer spec (as if you never left).
Any changes to your phone since the backup will not show up but that's kindof the risk.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is somewhat confusing for me. My phone is currently rooted. If I restore it factory default will it still be rooted?
If not,
Then should I restore to factory default first, take a Nandroid back up (this looks difficult), then root my phone?
The recovery image is basically replacing the "Factory reset" image, right?
fatkitty420 said:
This is somewhat confusing for me. My phone is currently rooted. If I restore it factory default will it still be rooted?
If not,
Then should I restore to factory default first, take a Nandroid back up (this looks difficult), then root my phone?
The recovery image is basically replacing the "Factory reset" image, right?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah ok...the recovery image is like a second mini OS you are booting into that has menu options and specializes in updating your phone with a custom ROM, running Nandroid for backups, and enabling you to mount your SDCard to your computer, so installing that doesn't actually do anything to your phone's running OS.
Nandoid takes a backup of the phone's OS (the one you use every day) as it is right now. It places the backup onto your sdcard under a folder called "nandroid" (where you can take a copy of it and put it on your computer to be safe). So whenever you Nandroid your phone, it's taking a snapshot of how your phone is currently configured (the whole thing) and if you restore from that three weeks from now after doing a bunch of things...it restores to the phone as if you hadn't done anything to it in those three weeks.
So to make an example: if you take a backup of your phone right now (rooted, right?) and then you do a bunch of things to it...then restore from that backup, it's as if you didn't do any of those things you did since the backup (but it will still be rooted since you backed up a rooted phone).
Second Example: If you nandroid your phone when it's running MoDaCo's ROM...when you restore it, it will be running MoDaCo's rom and configured however it was configured then.
I wouldn't worry about trying to get to factory default first...HTC has an official utility that can get you back to the state your phone was in when you first openned it out of the box. (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=559622)
thecodemonk said:
Ah ok...the recovery image is like a second mini OS you are booting into that has menu options and specializes in updating your phone with a custom ROM, running Nandroid for backups, and enabling you to mount your SDCard to your computer, so installing that doesn't actually do anything to your phone's running OS.
Nandoid takes a backup of the phone's OS (the one you use every day) as it is right now. It places the backup onto your sdcard under a folder called "nandroid" (where you can take a copy of it and put it on your computer to be safe). So whenever you Nandroid your phone, it's taking a snapshot of how your phone is currently configured (the whole thing) and if you restore from that three weeks from now after doing a bunch of things...it restores to the phone as if you hadn't done anything to it in those three weeks.
So to make an example: if you take a backup of your phone right now (rooted, right?) and then you do a bunch of things to it...then restore from that backup, it's as if you didn't do any of those things you did since the backup (but it will still be rooted since you backed up a rooted phone).
Second Example: If you nandroid your phone when it's running MoDaCo's ROM...when you restore it, it will be running MoDaCo's rom and configured however it was configured then.
I wouldn't worry about trying to get to factory default first...HTC has an official utility that can get you back to the state your phone was in when you first openned it out of the box. (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=559622)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Great, this really clarified things.
I love technology but, like most of these things, it's very overwhelming at first.

[Completed] Can I backup my android phone apps and app data from the custom recovery menu?

I was using latest cyanogenmod versions on my Moto g safely for the past 2 months or so. Today after trying to restart my device it got stuck on the boot animation. I am fairly confident that I can simply reinstall the OS to fix this issue however as far as I know, only media files will stay intact whereas apps and their data will vanish. If I understood correctly, the backup option through the recovery (CWM in my case) will backup entire ROM, so I tried using one available through "adb backup" command when phone is plugged in my PC. However it asks me to unlock and confirm it on my phone so I guess the OS needs to be actually running for this. Is there another way?
XDA Visitor said:
I was using latest cyanogenmod versions on my Moto g safely for the past 2 months or so. Today after trying to restart my device it got stuck on the boot animation. I am fairly confident that I can simply reinstall the OS to fix this issue however as far as I know, only media files will stay intact whereas apps and their data will vanish. If I understood correctly, the backup option through the recovery (CWM in my case) will backup entire ROM, so I tried using one available through "adb backup" command when phone is plugged in my PC. However it asks me to unlock and confirm it on my phone so I guess the OS needs to be actually running for this. Is there another way?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello, and welcome to XDA! You could try a clean install again, and you might find that the phone boots, or you could try flashing another rom. One option would be to check the cm thread to see if others have had this issue and if it's now been fixed, or to ask for help. Did you download your rom from an XDA thread? If so, ask in that thread. If not, try this rom and see if it solves the problem: http://forum.xda-developers.com/moto-g/orig-development/rom-official-cyanogenmod-12-nightly-t2994749. You would need to register in order to post.
Good luck!

Can I restore a TWRP backup of my /data partition to a different device?

Hello, I have a Oneplus One whose screen seems to be on the verge of death. The screen is constantly artifacting and flickering and turning off so much it's basically unusable. I was able to make a backup of the /data partition using TWRP recently before this occurred and I managed to pull my music and photos and other important files using ADB. I already performed a screen repair on this phone a while ago (likely the cause of the current issue) and I think I'm going to just get a new phone, likely the Oneplus X. Now I'm wondering if the backup of my /data partition from my OPO will restore nicely on a different device. If not, is there any way I can make a backup of my apps and app data on my OPO with only ADB and no root that will easily transfer to a different device?
Rallph said:
Hello, I have a Oneplus One whose screen seems to be on the verge of death. The screen is constantly artifacting and flickering and turning off so much it's basically unusable. I was able to make a backup of the /data partition using TWRP recently before this occurred and I managed to pull my music and photos and other important files using ADB. I already performed a screen repair on this phone a while ago (likely the cause of the current issue) and I think I'm going to just get a new phone, likely the Oneplus X. Now I'm wondering if the backup of my /data partition from my OPO will restore nicely on a different device. If not, is there any way I can make a backup of my apps and app data on my OPO with only ADB and no root that will easily transfer to a different device?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can make a data backup..but unless you install exact android version (e.g from 8.0 one plus one to 8.0 One plus x) on other phone you might face minor problems..
Or you can use pc software like mobogenie/moborobo to make your backup
dmilz said:
You can make a data backup..but unless you install exact android version (e.g from 8.0 one plus one to 8.0 One plus x) on other phone you might face minor problems..
Or you can use pc software like mobogenie/moborobo to make your backup
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok, in that case would you happen to know where I could find a build of CM13 (Android 6.0.1) for the OPX? If not, do you know if a build of stock Android 6.0.1 would still work? CM shutting down hasn't really made things easier, and Lineage OS doesn't host CM13 builds for the X.
My plan is to flash 6.0.1 to the X as well as root it so that I can backup all the apps using titanium backup, and then wipe the phone again and do a clean install of LineageOS and restore my apps.
Rallph said:
Ok, in that case would you happen to know where I could find a build of CM13 (Android 6.0.1) for the OPX? If not, do you know if a build of stock Android 6.0.1 would still work? CM shutting down hasn't really made things easier, and Lineage OS doesn't host CM13 builds for the X.
My plan is to flash 6.0.1 to the X as well as root it so that I can backup all the apps using titanium backup, and then wipe the phone again and do a clean install of LineageOS and restore my apps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have no idea.. but you can google that...also check the one plus x thread
Recommend--The best option and easiest for you would be using an android desktop manager like moborobo/mobogenie... Give that a try..
Better use Titanium Backup. It's confirmed that it works

All data wiped after Oxygen OS 5.1.6 update [rooted phone]

Hi,
My phone and all my personal data (4 years of photos, videos, and other app data) just got WIPED.
Here's how it happened:
* I was on OS 5.1.5 till yesterday. Had TWRP as my recovery and Magisk as my root method. Everything was hunky dory.
* Oxygen OS 5.1.6 hit my phone today. I downloaded the update and installed it. Before installing - it clearly stated that my phone will be unrooted by the update. I was ok with that, as I would have simply installed Magisk again from TWRP.
* After the reboot, I opened Magisk manager and saw that Magisk wasn't installed.
* So I did a reboot to recovery from the phone's reboot options (advanced reboot was ON in developer options)
* It did not boot to TWRP. Instead, I saw a stock recovery type screen (black background, OnePlus logo).
* There was a single text called "Decrypt" and a terminal type basic keyboard displayed on the screen.
* At this point I knew TWRP is gone and this would definitely be the stock recovery, asking me for my PIN, to decrypt storage.
* I entered my PIN and pressed ok. IMMEDIATELY after that the screen displayed the message - "Wiping" along with "do not turn off your device while this happens" or similar.
* I was shocked to see this, as all I had done was enter my PIN in a stock-looking recovery with the OnePlus logo.
* The phone rebooted, and lo and behold - I see the new installation screen saying "Hello" to me!
ALL MY DATA IS GONE. Without any fault of mine! I simply did an OS update, and boot to recovery!
PLEASE HELP!
So you went 4 years without doing a backup? I think your out of luck.
First, I am pretty sure all your data is gone absent some expensive recovery.
Second, when you took the ota, you went back to stock, which is why twrp and magisk disappeared. This is actually how the system is supposed to work.
I don't know what you did in the stock recovery to cause a wipe. You should have rebooted to bootloader and reinstalled twrp from fastboot.
iElvis said:
First, I am pretty sure all your data is gone absent some expensive recovery.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
is it possible to recover encrypted storage on an android? i have simply turned the phone off immediately on seeing the new install screen boot up.
iElvis said:
Second, when you took the ota, you went back to stock, which is why twrp and magisk disappeared. This is actually how the system is supposed to work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Fair enough. I knew that.
iElvis said:
I don't know what you did in the stock recovery to cause a wipe. You should have rebooted to bootloader and reinstalled twrp from fastboot.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is exactly where it's just crazy wrong. It just booted up to a recovery, with a screen saying "Decrypt" and a keyboard! NO mention of the next step being "Wiping".. ! This is just plain crazy, if that's how its designed!
94burns said:
So you went 4 years without doing a backup? I think your out of luck.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
pretty much. was just migrating data from one phone to the next using titanium backup/restore.
How could 4 years of photos and vids be gone? The phone is only weeks old. Surely you have backed these up to a cloud or even a pc at some stage? If you habe data backup turned on, you should have all your apps ready to reinstall.
You should have booted into bootloader, flashed twrp and magisk after the update. The OTA will always resort any custom recovery to stock.
hallo dare said:
How could 4 years of photos and vids be gone? The phone is only weeks old.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just kept migrating it from the previous phones to the next phones. Google photos does have backup of photos and videos. But there was so much more: SMS, call logs, whatsapp photos (the ones which were unlinked due to being moved to SD card earlier), screenshots, voice recordings, telegram images/videos, google authenticator tokens, and many apps whose data doesn't get backed up as part of android/google backup.
angadsingh said:
is it possible to recover encrypted storage on an android? i have simply turned the phone off immediately on seeing the new install screen boot up.
This is exactly where it's just crazy wrong. It just booted up to a recovery, with a screen saying "Decrypt" and a keyboard! NO mention of the next step being "Wiping".. ! This is just plain crazy, if that's how its designed!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't have answers for either question. You might have more luck posting in the OP community, or in the official firmware thread.
angadsingh said:
Hi,
My phone and all my personal data (4 years of photos, videos, and other app data) just got WIPED.
Here's how it happened:
* I was on OS 5.1.5 till yesterday. Had TWRP as my recovery and Magisk as my root method. Everything was hunky dory.
* Oxygen OS 5.1.6 hit my phone today. I downloaded the update and installed it. Before installing - it clearly stated that my phone will be unrooted by the update. I was ok with that, as I would have simply installed Magisk again from TWRP.
* After the reboot, I opened Magisk manager and saw that Magisk wasn't installed.
* So I did a reboot to recovery from the phone's reboot options (advanced reboot was ON in developer options)
* It did not boot to TWRP. Instead, I saw a stock recovery type screen (black background, OnePlus logo).
* There was a single text called "Decrypt" and a terminal type basic keyboard displayed on the screen.
* At this point I knew TWRP is gone and this would definitely be the stock recovery, asking me for my PIN, to decrypt storage.
* I entered my PIN and pressed ok. IMMEDIATELY after that the screen displayed the message - "Wiping" along with "do not turn off your device while this happens" or similar.
* I was shocked to see this, as all I had done was enter my PIN in a stock-looking recovery with the OnePlus logo.
* The phone rebooted, and lo and behold - I see the new installation screen saying "Hello" to me!
ALL MY DATA IS GONE. Without any fault of mine! I simply did an OS update, and boot to recovery!
PLEASE HELP!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You have a rooted device with a custom recovery so how did you install those in the first place and not loose data then? That wipes your phone doing that. It wiped again because it was being unlocked and relocked that always wipes it. Don't claim this is no fault of your own your running a modified device so yes it is your fault don't come on here and play victim it's really annoying
---------- Post added at 11:50 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:47 AM ----------
94burns said:
So you went 4 years without doing a backup? I think your out of luck.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wants to go 4 years without a backup then mod his phone and claim it's not his fault he lost data ??? what a joke
That happened to me too, but I solved it because after I flashed stock and then upgraded to 5.1.6 I installed TWRP in fastboot before booting to recovery.
angadsingh said:
I just kept migrating it from the previous phones to the next phones. Google photos does have backup of photos and videos. But there was so much more: SMS, call logs, whatsapp photos (the ones which were unlinked due to being moved to SD card earlier), screenshots, voice recordings, telegram images/videos, google authenticator tokens, and many apps whose data doesn't get backed up as part of android/google backup.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Surely you have those titanium backup files though still right? Just restore from that, sure you may lose a week or two but it's better than 4 years.
Sent from my ONEPLUS A6003 using Tapatalk
TechOut said:
You have a rooted device with a custom recovery so how did you install those in the first place and not loose data then? That wipes your phone doing that. It wiped again because it was being unlocked and relocked that always wipes it. Don't claim this is no fault of your own your running a modified device so yes it is your fault don't come on here and play victim it's really annoying
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Android is supposed to wipe data only on unlocking the device. Once it's unlocked there's no reason Android should automatically wipe data.
It did not get relocked. It is still unlocked. How did you come to that conclusion?
Also, I root my device ONLY to install TitaniumBackup and Helium. I do not meddle with anything else being root (no ROMs, tweaks, etc.). Is it my fault that Android STILL doesn't have a way to backup everything without having to root your phone and install special backup apps?
How can the OS just wipe the data partition without user consent? With NO message displayed whatsoever. Just ask a password go on "Wiping.. please wait". What the hell.
geoff5093 said:
Surely you have those titanium backup files though still right? Just restore from that, sure you may lose a week or two but it's better than 4 years.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes I could recover some data from the SD card of my previous phone. Not the TB backups though.
I really need a way to (a) image the phone so that I can possibly recover/pay for recovery in the future (b) recover the data from the phone
I did a little reading. Apparently forced encryption is something that Android Oreo comes along with. All the data files are now by default encrypted (at a file level not a partition level). It is apparently encrypted with some randomly generated encryption key decided by Android, and not the PIN you have set to lock the phone. The PIN is just associated with that key. I'm pretty sure that key got deleted as well when the device was wiped (I'm assuming it must have been implemented like that as a security measure). So I have a wiped data partition with encrypted files!
NateDev said:
That happened to me too, but I solved it because after I flashed stock and then upgraded to 5.1.6 I installed TWRP in fastboot before booting to recovery.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You knew the data partition would get wiped otherwise? I've been rooting for years and never seen such behavior
angadsingh said:
Yes I could recover some data from the SD card of my previous phone. Not the TB backups though.
I really need a way to (a) image the phone so that I can possibly recover/pay for recovery in the future (b) recover the data from the phone
I did a little reading. Apparently forced encryption is something that Android Oreo comes along with. All the data files are now by default encrypted (at a file level not a partition level). It is apparently encrypted with some randomly generated encryption key decided by Android, and not the PIN you have set to lock the phone. The PIN is just associated with that key. I'm pretty sure that key got deleted as well when the device was wiped (I'm assuming it must have been implemented like that as a security measure). So I have a wiped data partition with encrypted files!
You knew the data partition would get wiped otherwise? I've been rooting for years and never seen such behavior
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Take this as a lesson, always have a backup. Especially if you mod your phones
Sent from my ONEPLUS A6003 using Tapatalk
angadsingh said:
Android is supposed to wipe data only on unlocking the device. Once it's unlocked there's no reason Android should automatically wipe data.
It did not get relocked. It is still unlocked. How did you come to that conclusion?
Also, I root my device ONLY to install TitaniumBackup and Helium. I do not meddle with anything else being root (no ROMs, tweaks, etc.). Is it my fault that Android STILL doesn't have a way to backup everything without having to root your phone and install special backup apps?
How can the OS just wipe the data partition without user consent? With NO message displayed whatsoever. Just ask a password go on "Wiping.. please wait". What the hell.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It did have consent when you took the OTA with your modded device and it said decrypt and asked for your password it was about to wipe. Again you modded your phone and didn't keep a back up this is no one's fault but yours
Yeah I always back up my messages, photos, etc.. To a PC before any type of flash or update, I use smsbackup and have it uploaded to Google drive also titanuim backup and move the files to PC and just back ur DCIM folder. Sorry for ur luck but we all learn lessons the hard way, and no u Cannot recover, but if u have ur old phone may still have the texts on them and use oneplus switch to move them over
I guarantee this post is from a troll, nobody is dumb enough to do any or all of the idiotic things the OP claims.
Got the (important parts) of my data back. It only wiped the "data" partition - which contained internal app data and sms/calls, etc. It did not wipe the "sdcard" partition (also called "internal storage"). Found this out when I was installing TWRP again (before going through the OS welcome process) to create a dd image of my device for possibility of a future recovery. Android file transfer (thanks to TWRP's MTP support) popped up and showed all my files on the sdcard partition. Immediately backed it up.
To all those senior members who're making fun of this, thanks for all the help, really. You guys were really helpful.
angadsingh said:
Hi,
My phone and all my personal data (4 years of photos, videos, and other app data) just got WIPED.
Here's how it happened:
* I was on OS 5.1.5 till yesterday. Had TWRP as my recovery and Magisk as my root method. Everything was hunky dory.
* Oxygen OS 5.1.6 hit my phone today. I downloaded the update and installed it. Before installing - it clearly stated that my phone will be unrooted by the update. I was ok with that, as I would have simply installed Magisk again from TWRP.
* After the reboot, I opened Magisk manager and saw that Magisk wasn't installed.
* So I did a reboot to recovery from the phone's reboot options (advanced reboot was ON in developer options)
* It did not boot to TWRP. Instead, I saw a stock recovery type screen (black background, OnePlus logo).
* There was a single text called "Decrypt" and a terminal type basic keyboard displayed on the screen.
* At this point I knew TWRP is gone and this would definitely be the stock recovery, asking me for my PIN, to decrypt storage.
* I entered my PIN and pressed ok. IMMEDIATELY after that the screen displayed the message - "Wiping" along with "do not turn off your device while this happens" or similar.
* I was shocked to see this, as all I had done was enter my PIN in a stock-looking recovery with the OnePlus logo.
* The phone rebooted, and lo and behold - I see the new installation screen saying "Hello" to me!
ALL MY DATA IS GONE. Without any fault of mine! I simply did an OS update, and boot to recovery!
PLEASE HELP!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think this is impossible.. First the phone didn't return to me the root message before updating like oneplus 5 and second point, if you enter the pin to decrypt your data in recovery it never do an automatic wipe i'm a bit confused on what you've really done, but for sure you did something wrong because updating system had never wiped anything
Hitman478™ said:
I think this is impossible.. First the phone didn't return to me the root message before updating like oneplus 5 and second point, if you enter the pin to decrypt your data in recovery it never do an automatic wipe i'm a bit confused on what you've really done, but for sure you did something wrong because updating system had never wiped anything
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well this is completely possible, I just had the same thing happened to me. It was exactly as OP described it (except it was OOS 5.1.7, and it did not even ask me to input a pin when I rebooted to recovery). Fortunately I had a backup, so it didn't impact me much but still, it is a very weird thing.
angadsingh said:
Got the (important parts) of my data back. It only wiped the "data" partition - which contained internal app data and sms/calls, etc. It did not wipe the "sdcard" partition (also called "internal storage"). Found this out when I was installing TWRP again (before going through the OS welcome process) to create a dd image of my device for possibility of a future recovery. Android file transfer (thanks to TWRP's MTP support) popped up and showed all my files on the sdcard partition. Immediately backed it up.
To all those senior members who're making fun of this, thanks for all the help, really. You guys were really helpful.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for being sarcastic about being helpful. Sorry we can't hold your hand and fix all your problems because your not responsible for your own actions of modding your phone and can't take the consequences when they arise. Maybe you should learn how some more things work and what can happen when you do this before you do it and don't backup your device ever

[HEEEEEELP]-TWRP stock Backup deleted - Xiaomi mi a2 lite

Hi all,
As you all know Android rolled out the new 9 pie Update on all xiaomi devices.
After updating my mi a2 lite became the crappiest phone on earth as all the bugs started appearing(phone was rebooting multiple times, image was broken, sd xcard not recognised and battery life draining fast as hell).
Because of that I decided to root my phone and install Havoc 2.0. Fair enough, I used the rom for a bit but honestly I am not really happy about it too as doesn't seem really stable at all (many functions are there but not working, the camera app is crap, the volume bar appears every time I touch the fingerprint sensor and the fingerprint lock isn't working as well). At this point I wanted to revert and get back to the stock oreo 8.1 so I booted the recovery twrp to restore the firmware backup that I did at the beginning before installing havoc but this disappeared!!!!!
Reading again the procedure i followed I noticed that one of the steps was to wipe the caches and, as the procedure was saying, the system as well(I know.... I am an idiot for relying on what the procedure said)!
Obviously this deleted my previous backup completely leaving me empty hands without any stock firmware/rom.
Is there any chance to revert back to the stock (maybe downloading all the pieces and then force flashing them?) or I am screwed?
I know, I should have followed one of your tutorial (and I am sorry for asking now for your assistance) but now I think you are the only one that can actually help me.
Best regards,
D.
manna.davide87 said:
Hi all,
As you all know Android rolled out the new 9 pie Update on all xiaomi devices.
After updating my mi a2 lite became the crappiest phone on earth as all the bugs started appearing(phone was rebooting multiple times, image was broken, sd xcard not recognised and battery life draining fast as hell).
Because of that I decided to root my phone and install Havoc 2.0. Fair enough, I used the rom for a bit but honestly I am not really happy about it too as doesn't seem really stable at all (many functions are there but not working, the camera app is crap, the volume bar appears every time I touch the fingerprint sensor and the fingerprint lock isn't working as well). At this point I wanted to revert and get back to the stock oreo 8.1 so I booted the recovery twrp to restore the firmware backup that I did at the beginning before installing havoc but this disappeared!!!!!
Reading again the procedure i followed I noticed that one of the steps was to wipe the caches and, as the procedure was saying, the system as well(I know.... I am an idiot for relying on what the procedure said)!
Obviously this deleted my previous backup completely leaving me empty hands without any stock firmware/rom.
Is there any chance to revert back to the stock (maybe downloading all the pieces and then force flashing them?) or I am screwed?
I know, I should have followed one of your tutorial (and I am sorry for asking now for your assistance) but now I think you are the only one that can actually help me.
Best regards,
D.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wiping system is not what wiped your backup, your backup was stored on internal storage or on external sdcard, it does not get stored in system. The only you could have wiped the backup is if you also chose the option to wipe the internal storage when you wiped cache and system.
Factory reset and the normal wipes in TWRP do not wipe /data/media, /data/media is where your user data is stored. Only specifically choosing the option to wipe internal storage can wipe /data/media.
And you aren't an idiot for following instructions, you're an idiot for following instructions incorrectly. If you had wiped cache and system but left internal storage alone, you wouldn't be in the mess you're in.
Have you tried doing a Google search for:
"Return to stock (your model number)"
If it's available, that should find the instructions, tools and files you need.
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Droidriven said:
Wiping system is not what wiped your backup, your backup was stored on internal storage or on external sdcard, it does not get stored in system. The only you could have wiped the backup is if you also chose the option to wipe the internal storage when you wiped cache and system.
Factory reset and the normal wipes in TWRP do not wipe /data/media, /data/media is where your user data is stored. Only specifically choosing the option to wipe internal storage can wipe /data/media.
And you aren't an idiot for following instructions, you're an idiot for following instructions incorrectly. If you had wiped cache and system but left internal storage alone, you wouldn't be in the mess you're in.
Have you tried doing a Google search for:
"Return to stock (your model number)"
If it's available, that should find the instructions, tools and files you need.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi, first of all thanks for replying.
Interbal storage hasn't been wiped out, i am sure about it as the proceedure was saying not to do it. (I've selected just the first 3 options and internalbstorage is the 4th so I am def8nitely sure about it). Might be somewhere else then?
I did a second back up now and I see it so at this point I am not really sure where this could be!
Is 12 hours that I am searching proceedures but everything is very confusing.
manna.davide87 said:
Hi, first of all thanks for replying.
Interbal storage hasn't been wiped out, i am sure about it as the proceedure was saying not to do it. (I've selected just the first 3 options and internalbstorage is the 4th so I am def8nitely sure about it). Might be somewhere else then?
I did a second back up now and I see it so at this point I am not really sure where this could be!
Is 12 hours that I am searching proceedures but everything is very confusing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Mate @Droidriven you're a monster!
I found it in data/media in the internal storage! thanks a lot mate!
I'll run it and see if all comes back as usual.
Infinite thanks!
Good to go.
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Droidriven said:
Good to go.
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Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you mind me asking you one last thing?
At this point, having the original backup, I can try another custom Rom before reverting everything to Oreo.
My question are 2:
-Because you seem very driven, do you know any stable custom rom that I can run on this Xiaomi MI A2 lite?
-Do you know if I can Install the old Havoc on and purge this pie version?
Thanks again,
Davide
manna.davide87 said:
Do you mind me asking you one last thing?
At this point, having the original backup, I can try another custom Rom before reverting everything to Oreo.
My question are 2:
-Because you seem very driven, do you know any stable custom rom that I can run on this Xiaomi MI A2 lite?
-Do you know if I can Install the old Havoc on and purge this pie version?
Thanks again,
Davide
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't know anything about any of the ROMs for your device, I don't have your device.
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