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[Q] Help! Rooted phone with Custom Mode, ROM Manager Bricked

Hey guys,
I just got my phone and it updated to 4.4 pretty much out of the box. I still wanted to root so I used a method I found on here (will find if necessary) which is supposed to not trip the KNOX by putting the phone into "Custom Mode." Everything went fine until I tried to use ROM Manager to install CM.
When I boot I get the message "System software not authorized by Verizon Wireless has been found on your phone. Please turn off your phone and go to the nearest Verizon Wireless store for help." I've tried reflashing using Odin, clearing the cache and factory resets, but I get the same error every time.
I'm currently downloading another stock ROM which might work, but I wanted to see if anyone else has had this problem?
Thank you!

mortified21 said:
Hey guys,
I just got my phone and it updated to 4.4 pretty much out of the box. I still wanted to root so I used a method I found on here (will find if necessary) which is supposed to not trip the KNOX by putting the phone into "Custom Mode." Everything went fine until I tried to use ROM Manager to install CM.
When I boot I get the message "System software not authorized by Verizon Wireless has been found on your phone. Please turn off your phone and go to the nearest Verizon Wireless store for help." I've tried reflashing using Odin, clearing the cache and factory resets, but I get the same error every time.
I'm currently downloading another stock ROM which might work, but I wanted to see if anyone else has had this problem?
Thank you!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You are permanently stuck on the TW 4.3 OTA because the bootloader is signed with special keys that prevents:
-installing a custom recovery
-flashing custom roms/kernels
-downgrading your software below 4.3
If you can boot into download mode, do this 4.3 soft brick method.
With TW 4.3 OTA, all you can do is root using a tool called: Saferoot.

If you have 4.3 stock firmware you can root and that's it, no custom recovery, no custom rom, kernel, nothing, and just a heads up there are like 10 threads where people don't read and have done what you have, you need to flash the Odin 4.3 image for you phone to work again, never take an ota, enjoy your locked down device now
Sent from my SCH-I535 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

SlimSnoopOS said:
You are permanently stuck on the TW 4.3 OTA because the bootloader is signed with special keys that prevents:
-installing a custom recovery
-flashing custom roms/kernels
-downgrading your software below 4.3
If you can boot into download mode, do this 4.3 soft brick method.
With TW 4.3 OTA, all you can do is root using a tool called: Saferoot.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Worked perfectly! Thank you so much!

mortified21 said:
Worked perfectly! Thank you so much!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My pleasure but all the thanks is owed to ThePagel, make sure to post your success in his thread. The more people that report their success with that method, then the less fear someone else may have in using that should they suffer the same experiences. :victory::good::good:
If you need any updates on the state of TW 4.3 then keep this discussion thread bookmarked.

I did the same thing today. The 4.3 update installed by itself!!! So i rooted it using Saferoot,
i installed rom manager, clicked the Install rom from sd card and i got that message. it will repeat that message and it wont boot. So i went into Odin mode and hit the volume down button to restart it. And after that it booted normally.
So basically i am stuck with 4.3? and is there 4.4 out for our phones yet?
also forgot to mention, it says my OS is custom when i first realized it updated.

AURMEND said:
I did the same thing today. The 4.3 update installed by itself!!! So i rooted it using Saferoot,
i installed rom manager, clicked the Install rom from sd card and i got that message. it will repeat that message and it wont boot. So i went into Odin mode and hit the volume down button to restart it. And after that it booted normally.
So basically i am stuck with 4.3? and is there 4.4 out for our phones yet?
also forgot to mention, it says my OS is custom when i first realized it updated.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Once you successfully updated with 4.3, you stuck with 4.3, there is no going back or flash anything and 4.3 is the latest factory rom for now. There's no 4.4 yet for our phone. There is custom 4.4 but only for people who didn't take the 4.3 update. Since they still have unlocked bootloader so they could load any custom rom.

buhohitr said:
Once you successfully updated with 4.3, you stuck with 4.3, there is no going back or flash anything and 4.3 is the latest factory rom for now. There's no 4.4 yet for our phone. There is custom 4.4 but only for people who didn't take the 4.3 update. Since they still have unlocked bootloader so they could load any custom rom.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Dang this sucks. I have no idea how it installed automatically then. I was listening to music the whole time. And I was trying to get a custom 4.4 after the update...

AURMEND said:
Dang this sucks. I have no idea how it installed automatically then. I was listening to music the whole time. And I was trying to get a custom 4.4 after the update...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep! sucks big time!!

Need help un-bricking my soft-bricked GS3

First off, I have a Verizon GS3 (SCH-I535). As of this morning, it was running the new 4.3 standard (no root, no unlocked bootloader, no custom recovery). I didn't like some of the UI changes in 4.3, and since I wanted to try custom ROMs out anyways, I figured now would be as good a time as any.
After doing hours of research, I was able to successfully get my phone rooted and TWRP installed (using the GooManager app). I had the AOKP d2vzw rom (milestone 1) downloaded and on my phone. I then tried to use GooManager to install the ROM. The phone rebooted into download mode, then gave an error message. I think I didn't properly unlock the bootloader.
After that, the phone wouldn't boot to a ROM at all. I've been trying to install stock ROMs using ODIN and was able to get the stock recovery back, but now all I can get to is the stock recovery and the Download Mode. Whenever the phone boots normally, I get the message, "System software not authorized by Verizon Wireless has been found on your phone . . ."
The biggest issue I've had is that it seem like nothing will install properly using ODIN. When trying to flash TWRP, it fails after NAND Write Start!!. When trying to flash a bootloader, it'll give a write/fail after aboot.
At this point, I'll be happy just getting it back to a working ROM. Any help would be appreciated.

WhiteRabbit44 said:
First off, I have a Verizon GS3 (SCH-I535). As of this morning, it was running the new 4.3 standard (no root, no unlocked bootloader, no custom recovery). I didn't like some of the UI changes in 4.3, and since I wanted to try custom ROMs out anyways, I figured now would be as good a time as any.
After doing hours of research, I was able to successfully get my phone rooted and TWRP installed (using the GooManager app). I had the AOKP d2vzw rom (milestone 1) downloaded and on my phone. I then tried to use GooManager to install the ROM. The phone rebooted into download mode, then gave an error message. I think I didn't properly unlock the bootloader.
After that, the phone wouldn't boot to a ROM at all. I've been trying to install stock ROMs using ODIN and was able to get the stock recovery back, but now all I can get to is the stock recovery and the Download Mode. Whenever the phone boots normally, I get the message, "System software not authorized by Verizon Wireless has been found on your phone . . ."
The biggest issue I've had is that it seem like nothing will install properly using ODIN. When trying to flash TWRP, it fails after NAND Write Start!!. When trying to flash a bootloader, it'll give a write/fail after aboot.
At this point, I'll be happy just getting it back to a working ROM. Any help would be appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When you are on 4.3, you can't unlock your phone anymore. That means no AOSP roms, but you can still use custom touchwiz roms based on 4.3. You're softbricked and you have to use this thread to fix it.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2586319
After that completes, you can use this to root.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2565758
Once you're rooted, this is the only recovery you can install, don't flash any other recovery.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2605648
Read up on all the threads, 4.3 is completely different then 4.1 was.
Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2

Extra Info:
With Odin, I have made sure Kies is uninstalled. I've also tried multiple USB cables, including the ones the phone came with, and I've tried almost every USB port on my computer. Whenever Odin fails, it's in the exact same spot every time, which makes me think it's a software issue, not a hardware issue.
EDIT:
I was actually able to get the stock.vzw-root66 ROM installed by Odin without any errors. The phone rebooted immediately, then showed the android robot with the blue spinny thing in his chest, then the phone went back to the same Verizon error message.

BadUsername said:
When you are on 4.3, you can't unlock your phone anymore. That means no AOSP roms, but you can still use custom touchwiz roms based on 4.3. You're softbricked and you have to use this thread to fix it.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2586319
After that completes, you can use this to root.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2565758
Once you're rooted, this is the only recovery you can install, don't flash any other recovery.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2605648
Read up on all the threads, 4.3 is completely different then 4.1 was.
Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This worked like a charm! Thank you. I admit I am fairly new at all of this and did a ton of research beforehand, but I apparently did not research the differences between 4.1 and 4.3. You saved my butt!

WhiteRabbit44 said:
This worked like a charm! Thank you. I admit I am fairly new at all of this and did a ton of research beforehand, but I apparently did not research the differences between 4.1 and 4.3. You saved my butt!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
TW 4.3 discussion thread has most info consolidated in one place:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2575661
Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 4

[Q] Verizon S3 locks up every reboot on rooted 4.1.2 > 4.3

I am having a really weird issue I'm hoping someone can help me out with. I was on 4.1.2 Clean ROM which was working great. I wanted to move to 4.3 Clean ROM (8.1 Core Edition). I did the upgrade and then flashed my modem to ML1 both via TWRP.
The ROM setup fine and ran great. However the first time I did a reboot, the phone gets stuck at the Samsung Galaxy S3 logo and never goes anywhere. I left it sit there for 30 minutes and it was hard locked. Only a battery pull would reset it. Through numerous reboots/pulls, the same thing would happen. I tried wiping Dalvik and Cache in TWRP and fixing permissions, to no avail. Reinstalling Clean ROM 8.1 via TWRP without formatting data did not fix the issue either. The only way to get my phone back up and running was a complete wipe and reinstalling from scratch. Then as soon as I reboot the first time, the issue comes back. I've tested this on a clean install - letting the phone go through the initial setup process but not installing or updating any apps - and it still happens.
So I moved on to try AllianceROM build 22, also a 4.3 build and wiped to do a clean install. No matter what options I choose in the setup, the same problem happens. Interestingly in AllianceROM I always get a acore process has failed error on the first boot.
Then I went to download the Knox-free rooted version of stock 4.3 available from Scott's website. I have the same issue with this. Also a wipe with clean install.
It's obvious there is something my phone doesn't like about moving from 4.1.2 to 4.3. In total, I have probably installed three different ROM's about 20 times now after the past couple days.
I've searched about this problem extensively and the only thing I found is a thread for the AT&T S3 that talks about this exact issue, and using Odin to go to stock 4.3 and loading a custom ROM to fix the issue. But I am under the impression that a 100% stock 4.3 will lock my bootloader.
What I plan to do next is use Odin to flash a stock 4.1.2, then go through the process of moving to a custom 4.3 ROM again.
If anyone knows of a tar'd version of 4.3 that won't lock my bootloader, I would be grateful!
If anyone knows of a different way to fix my problem, I would be grateful for that too!

Well I think I can declare victory. My phone is running Clean Rom 8.1 CE and has survived a reboot after every app install for a total of 15 so far.
As it turns out, I think being on TWRP 2.5 and trying to upgrade to Android 4.3 was the issue. Before I went the route of flashing a stock 4.1.2 release, I thought to check if my version of TWRP was the latest, and it was not. I flashed TWRP 2.7, and did a complete wipe and clean install of Clean Rom 8.1 CE, and it's running like a champ.
I know, I know...the install guide on most every ROM says to use the latest version of your recovery - until now I thought that was a "recommendation" or "best practice" and not a hard requirement. Turns out, at least for me, that it is very much a hard requirement. In reading the release notes for TWRP 2.6 and 2.7, they both appear to implement things specifically for Android 4.3 or 4.4.
Hopefully this info helps someone who may be having the same issue.

[Q] Cyanogen Did Not Work No Service

Hey Everybody
I'm new to the whole rooting process, which I did fine on Saturday the 4th of October 2014. Today (October 8th 2014) I tried to install Cyanogen using the installer, it said it worked, but when my phone rebooted it was in the original version of touchwhiz that came with my Galaxy S3 SGH-I747 Rogers version. I wanted to get my files back, so I went into CWM and tried to recover, which didn't work. I tried again and again and it finally loaded my apps, but I had no service and I was spammed with "failure to load .gapps.google" or something like that. I went into CWM and wiped cache, tried again, same issue. I then wiped everything, went back into it and it still was NOT working. What do I do? I have no service at all! I've tried pulling the SIM and putting it back, but no success. Please HELP!
EDIT: I flashed stock ROM using ODIN, which worked. I would still like to know why CWM didn't work though, and if it is still possible to try to get it to work

lasttimelord12 said:
Hey Everybody
I'm new to the whole rooting process, which I did fine on Saturday the 4th of October 2014. Today (October 8th 2014) I tried to install Cyanogen using the installer, it said it worked, but when my phone rebooted it was in the original version of touchwhiz that came with my Galaxy S3 SGH-I747 Rogers version. I wanted to get my files back, so I went into CWM and tried to recover, which didn't work. I tried again and again and it finally loaded my apps, but I had no service and I was spammed with "failure to load .gapps.google" or something like that. I went into CWM and wiped cache, tried again, same issue. I then wiped everything, went back into it and it still was NOT working. What do I do? I have no service at all! I've tried pulling the SIM and putting it back, but no success. Please HELP!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Anybody?

I'm a beginner myself, and i do not know much about installing custom roms on samsung phones, but maybe you did not flash a compatible custom kernel to support the custom rom? it seems like you did not flash gapps either, but that should not stop you from getting network service. my last guess would be that you need to also install a baseband perhaps. all this information should be there in the galaxy s3 section of the forums.

ishaang said:
did not flash a compatible custom kernel to support the custom rom? it seems like you did not flash gapps either, but that should not stop you from getting network service. .
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey there, first off, thank you for replying.
I didn't manually use odin or other flashing software to flash the ROM. Unlike the rooting method (which went smoothly) I used the cyanogen mod installer. The installer itself said that cyanogen was installed successfully, but it was not. After it said this, my screen (on the phone) turned off, and I was brought to a fresh install of touchwhiz. I've actually fixed the networking issue by flashing touchwhiz stock,but that still doesn't explain why my CWM backup wasn't working.

I see...I haven't used the cyanogen mod installer myself so cannot say...
What I suggest is that, if you're up for trying again, to manually flash a rom - either Cyanogenmod or any other. There seem to be a lot of good roms available for your phone, and whichever rom you choose will come with instructions for how to install. The usual method will involve the following steps as far as I know:
- Root
- Unlock Bootloader
- Flash Custom Kernel with recovery
- Flash ROM
- Flash GAPPS
These steps are not difficult at all as long as you follow the instructions for your specific phone. I have a Sony Xperia SL and thats how I installed a custom rom on it many times. Sorry I could not help much not knowing Samsung procedures but good luck!

lasttimelord12 said:
Hey Everybody
I'm new to the whole rooting process, which I did fine on Saturday the 4th of October 2014. Today (October 8th 2014) I tried to install Cyanogen using the installer, it said it worked, but when my phone rebooted it was in the original version of touchwhiz that came with my Galaxy S3 SGH-I747 Rogers version. I wanted to get my files back, so I went into CWM and tried to recover, which didn't work. I tried again and again and it finally loaded my apps, but I had no service and I was spammed with "failure to load .gapps.google" or something like that. I went into CWM and wiped cache, tried again, same issue. I then wiped everything, went back into it and it still was NOT working. What do I do? I have no service at all! I've tried pulling the SIM and putting it back, but no success. Please HELP!
EDIT: I flashed stock ROM using ODIN, which worked. I would still like to know why CWM didn't work though, and if it is still possible to try to get it to work
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OK,
Download stock ROM for your device from Samsung-updates.com according to device model and region.
Then flash it with Odin.
Good luck

Has Anyone Gotten a Custom ROM onto a BLN-L24 (US Variant)?

I have tried quite a few ROMs, and all ended up going back to stock firmware because they wouldn't boot. I know I have to format data, and some ROMs ask you to change the data partition as f2fs.
Still, I think that there may be no ROMs that currently work for the US variant. One guy said LOS 13 worked, but when I flashed it, it failed. If someone has gotten it to work, can you please post as many steps as you remember on how to get it work?

Debrand to BLN-L21 following this guide and you're ready to flash cooked ROMs https://forum.xda-developers.com/honor-6x/how-to/guide-successful-debranding-to-bln-t3701050

RedSkull23 said:
Debrand to BLN-L21 following this guide and you're ready to flash cooked ROMs https://forum.xda-developers.com/honor-6x/how-to/guide-successful-debranding-to-bln-t3701050
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, but wouldn't there be more issues down the line with a debranded phone? What if I soft-bricked my phone, it seems like it'd be really hard to restore? Has anyone actually ever done this on a BLN-L24?

Hello all,
I too am having issues with flashing roms to this device, US variant (BLN-L24). In my particular case, the rom boots up (EliteRom v7.1) and will actually function. However, wifi does not work, as well as I have no sound whatsoever. Youtube also will not play, nor will any videos, which I'm guessing is tied to whatever issue is with the sound. I have flashed multiple times per the step by step instructions, as well as following the Youtube video, all with the same result over the last few days. At this point, my phone is effectively useless to me, though cellular data does still work, just no calls can be answered. Anyone have any suggestions I might be able to follow? Also, even my TWRP backup that I made before installing the rom will not restore at this point. Any help is appreciated, thanks.

Jessooca said:
You must be missing a step or something, because [Elite ROM][EMUI 5.1] Elite ROM v7.1 for Honor 6X by HassanMirza01 works on the L24 us variant without issues, I have none.
Perhaps go back to stock and start over. I haven't had any issues with his rom and I didn't do anything more than what's needed to root/install twrp and flash the rom per his instructions.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just followed the instructions; I believe to the best I could, and I'm stuck in a bootloop now. Which version of EMUI were you on before flashing? I was on EMUI 5.0 which may be my issue.
I started from EMUI 5.0
Unlocked my bootloader
Let it factory reset
Installed the Elite TWRP on the page
Booted to Elite TWRP
Formatted all partitions excpet for external sd card
Reformatted Data to f2fs
Re-wiped data
Checked that it was f2fs
Installed Elite ROM zip
Installed open gapps 7.0 ARM64
Installed the patch
Rebooted
Bootloop

i4ybrid said:
I just followed the instructions; I believe to the best I could, and I'm stuck in a bootloop now. Which version of EMUI were you on before flashing? I was on EMUI 5.0 which may be my issue.
I started from EMUI 5.0
Unlocked my bootloader
Let it factory reset
Installed the Elite TWRP on the page
Booted to Elite TWRP
Formatted all partitions excpet for external sd card
Reformatted Data to f2fs
Re-wiped data
Checked that it was f2fs
Installed Elite ROM zip
Installed open gapps 7.0 ARM64
Installed the patch
Rebooted
Bootloop
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
On one of the attempts that I did for installing, I installed the patch and it put me in a boot loop. Maybe not installing the patch can help you?

I cant get anything to work for the US version. Sure stuff boots but some of it is just broken. On octOS i am unable to use root unless i switch supersu to automatically grant root to apps. I cant get root access by using prompt because nothing pops up. On crdroid i have the same exact issue. Id rather have the prompt than allow any app root access without my knowledge. With ELITE ROM my first boot brings up a home screen with no keyboard. It completely skips any kind of setup screen. I can get the setup screen by flashing a keyboard from an aroma gapps installer but then i lose google services. The US version also seems to be forgotten as for most roms you wont see it anywhere under supported lists.

I've never been able to get a custom rom to work on my BLN-L24. Everything just ends in a never-ending bootloop of frustration.
Though, I have only ever tried with EMUI 5.0+. Maybe an earlier version of EMUI gets better results...?

code_name_duchess said:
I've never been able to get a custom rom to work on my BLN-L24. Everything just ends in a never-ending bootloop of frustration.
Though, I have only ever tried with EMUI 5.0+. Maybe an earlier version of EMUI gets better results...?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It really sucks that nothing seems to work. Ive tried flashing using multiple recoveries and ive tried all kinds of flashing to fix issues with the ROMS. Nothing helps. If anyone has successfully gotten a ROM fully working on BLN-L24 they need to tell people exactly what they did step by step.

It seems that for the roms located here, they seem to all assume that the phone has been debranded to bln-l21 variant. I don't know if it has any bearing on the current issues we're all experiencing, but I did notice that all twrps available for this device on the forums state they are the "Open Kirin Edition". It's been a while since I've rooted or rom'd a phone besides this one, but I've never encountered a twrp with a custom name like that.
I know that the developer of the EliteRom had his custom twrp, but is there a different twrp besides that one that does not state it is an "Open Kirin Edition"? Like I said, not sure if it has any bearing on things here, but I've been very confused about that.

TurtlePwr82 said:
It seems that for the roms located here, they seem to all assume that the phone has been debranded to bln-l21 variant. I don't know if it has any bearing on the current issues we're all experiencing, but I did notice that all twrps available for this device on the forums state they are the "Open Kirin Edition". It's been a while since I've rooted or rom'd a phone besides this one, but I've never encountered a twrp with a custom name like that.
I know that the developer of the EliteRom had his custom twrp, but is there a different twrp besides that one that does not state it is an "Open Kirin Edition"? Like I said, not sure if it has any bearing on things here, but I've been very confused about that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For most phone i've ever owned you never had to change the recovery for each ROM. Its confusing. Most recoverys say Open Kirin Edition when booting. What confuses me is why we need to debrand to get the ROMS to work. If the phone pretty much run on the same hardware then why is L24 having so many issues? Why are the devs not testing on these devices?

BakedOnSomeSour said:
For most phone i've ever owned you never had to change the recovery for each ROM. Its confusing
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Right, that's what I was thinking. For any phone I've ever rom'd, there was always just one twrp that everyone worked from.
Edit: found this while looking through the roll back to stock forum. I don't know if it will help anyone else, but figured I'd put it here as well if it might. All credit for this goes to the original poster johnnyrichter:
johnnyrichter said:
Tried this method after being on LineageOS for a week or two and having poor LTE signal, no MMS, and voicemail issues so I'm trying to go back to stock so I can have a fully functional phone since I rely on it heavily for work. Followed all steps using BLN-L24 B360 firmware. On step 10 I rebooted to update and it went right to "5% Installing Update" and stuck there for 5 mins, then rebooted itself, has been sitting at "honor" boot screen for 14 minutes so I made it reboot to EMUI recovery, wiped/factory reset, rebooted, loaded EMUI afte 2 more minutes. Appears to have worked and hopefully my issues are fixed!
Edit: Signal, mms, and voicemail issues fixed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hopefully will benefit someone here as well.

When debranding the BLN-L24, and branding it to BLN-L21, are there any issues with the ROMs once they're installed? I imagine the radios, and such are different for the two models??

BakedOnSomeSour said:
Why are the devs not testing on these devices?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Devs can only test devices they have in possession. If they don't have your phone model, how are they going to test it?

galapagos said:
Devs can only test devices they have in possession. If they don't have your phone model, how are they going to test it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
well, many don't want to give them a phone because most developers here tend to stop work on a ROM and leave people hanging.

I have gotten several ROMs working on L24 variant...
Yes it seems to me any Elite kernel based ROM works or should work on the L24. But /data must be ext4 format. Then even that the ROM works, the fingerprint scanner never allows a complete successful scan. I think because it must be f2fs format for that encryption to work or something. This is the link to those ROMS https://hassanmirza01.blogspot.com/p/custom-roms.html?m=1
On the other hand the LOS based ROMs never work or at least they reboot and the screen is always black or the ROM branding just stays there flashing. This sucks cause I want to run the newest Resurrection ROM but I ask the developer about why I have that problem or how long that ROM takes to boot and I never get an answer. He also just put a new beta AOKP ROM up and it does the same black screen thing too.
I am also suspicious it has to do with the version of TWRP. I think some are capable of formatting f2fs correctly or the encryption or whatever. Point is some of the devs need to be a little more consistent answering questions at a minimum. I know it takes time to fix bugs but give us a little heads up.