Can't get Galaxy S7 from custom back to normal, so many issues, please help - Samsung Galaxy S7 Questions and Answers

So, the other day I tried to root my Galaxy S7, which probably wasn't the best idea. I sort of messed up and had an issue, and ended up with a phone that is "Custom" (an icon appears on the boot up screen that says this and it also says this in "About Phone" in the settings) but not rooted (according to Root Checker and other apps).
This wouldn't be a big deal but it left my phone with random icons on the top notification bar, and also with a notification that says something about unauthorized software or changes. It also made my phone *really* laggy, killed the battery life, and then all my apps started crashing upon opening them.
I wanted to get rid of this at all costs, so after I decided to try and flash stock firmware. (**Was this the right choice?** Really, I'm and amateur and it was stupid of me to try anything like this in the first place.) Anyway, I installed USB Drivers, Got ODIN, and got the Stock Firmware. More problems only arised.
The first time failed, then I realized I didn't install the drivers (oops). But everytime I fixed one problem, another one popped up. I've tried 3 different versions of ODIN (sometimes it fails at system.img.ext4, sometimes it fails at boot.img). I think ODIN is the problem, but maybe it's the firmware I downloaded, maybe it's just my phone.
I don't know if there is a glaring flaw or what, I mean I dont have any other cords to use and I've been trying to get another version of the SM-930V stock firmware but every link is a petty website that makes your download take thirty ****ing yeras unless you pay them.
I'm getting really desperate, I just want my phone back. Any help is GREATLY appreciated. Thanks!

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[Q] Help - Verizon 4.0.4 OTA - Galaxy Nexus

The 4.0.4 OTA update was waiting for me when I woke up this morning. I started the install but when it went to reboot it hung up with a picture of the Android man on his back with a red error/warning triangle.
I haven't done anything with it, hoping someone might be able to help me out.
The phone is rooted but running 4.0.2 stock rom. the battery was a little low when i started the install, but i plugged it in before starting.
Thanks in advance for help,
jvoosh
the reason is that your phone is rooted ,so ... if you want OTA ,you had better unroot you rom or ruu
so can I hard reset the phone (pull the battery) without screwing anything up and then figure out how to unroot the phone?
thanks for your help,
j
Ditto
I'm in exactly the same boat, and hope someone answers this before I try a battery pull.
EDIT: I read around and found some people describing our situation, and mentioning that they did battery pulls to no avail. So I did, and nothing broke. However, the update didn't go through, and now I'm trying to figure out why this happened.
Same issue
I'm having the same issue. Phone got the IMM76k update, and after downloaded, was prompted to restart and install. So i did, gets through part of the install, and then goes to the android man on his back with a red exclamation mark. Have tried multiple times, all to no avail. Now, when I click check for update, it says system up to date, but still on 4.0.2.
Non-rooted, bootloader unlocked...anyone have any luck fixing this?
After downloading update, get Android man on back with red exclamation point
I'm having some difficulty getting the update to install, along the lines of some of the comments posted before mine:
I was able to force download the OTA update (IMM76K) according to the instructions on this original post. (It took a few tries, but eventually worked.)
I select the "Restart & Install" option (which is the only option available to me), and it restarts.
I get the relatively familiar Android man with his blue-green glowing polyhedron wireframe guts spinning, and a progress bar beneath him. After getting through what looks like about 20%, it slows down significantly, and I get the Android man on his back with a red exclamation point above him where the polyhedron used to be. I don't recall seeing any specific error message any of the three times that I tried this. (The first time, I did a battery pull; the second and third times, I just waited, and it eventually restarted on its own.) Needless to say, I'm still on 4.0.2.
I'm afraid I'm not very familiar with different version names and so forth (e.g,. I don't know what yakju is), but this was a phone that Verizon sent me in December 2011 here in the US.
Here's the information from my "About phone" page:
Model number: Galaxy Nexus
Android version: 4.0.2
Baseband version: I515.09 V.EK05 / I515.EK02
Kernel version: 3.0.8-gaaa2611 [email protected] #1
Build number: ICL53F
When I first got the phone, I immediately unlocked the bootloader and rooted it. I did NOT install a custom recovery, nor did I install any custom ROM.
It sounds like there might be some kind of validation error, but I do not recall doing anything that would make my OS non-stock, except perhaps side-loading Google Wallet, but since that doesn't even require root, I can't imagine that it would have any effect. My Superuser app shows only the following apps to have ever used root permissions: BusyBox Free, Secure Settings, Superuser, Terminal Emulator, and Titanium Backup. I've only used BusyBox and Secure Settings with Tasker to automate certain tasks, but nothing crazy! Mostly, I just need root for Titanium Backup. (I cannot recall exactly what I restored from my stock Gingerbread Droid X, but I was very careful to only restore apps and their corresponding app data--and I avoided restoring any Google-provided apps.) Even my tethering is done through an app not requiring root (SVTP).
Any advice (not requiring that I do a factory reset or flash a custom recovery or ROM) would be greatly appreciated! I'd also like to hear about people who have similar circumstances, but didn't have problems updating (so that I can rule out various factors).
Thank you in advance!
same exact issue here.
A "solution", albeit less than ideal
The OTA update eventually came to my phone naturally, and it still didn't work. (No surprise there.)
I called up Verizon tech support, and they had me do the Google Services Framework workaround to try to force the update again. Of course, it didn't work.
They said "We're going to need you to reset your device." (i.e., to factory default).
I told them that was wholly unacceptable, since I want to make sure that all my settings are preserved. (I'm kind of obsessive compulsive about things being set the way I like them, and Titanium Backup, as great a program as it is, has sometimes caused some trouble for me when restoring system settings, and especially since I'd be doing a restore after upgrading the OS, I was nervous about that option.)
Verizon got Samsung on the phone. They had no advice except "We're going to need you to reset your device." Both the Verizon rep and I told him that wasn't acceptable.
So Verizon's "solution" was to send me a new device, allow me five days to get everything transferred over, and then have me return the old device.
Up side: In case there was something wrong with my hardware or something else got messed up, I get a new device that I can get set up with the exact same settings as the old one.
Down side: The "new device" is refurbished, so there could potentially be some kind of baggage.
The "new device" came with 4.0.2. I booted it up without the SIM card, skipped all the logging in to Google, and immediately started going through the steps to unlock the bootloader and root the device. (I used the Galaxy Nexus Root Toolkit, which worked like a charm on a 64-bit Windows 7 machine I had lying around.) After unlocking and rooting, I logged into the device with my Google credentials and let it restore my settings and apps that I had downloaded from Google Play.
Then, it notified me that the 4.0.4 (IMM76K) update was available, so I installed that, and it worked without a problem.
Then, I installed the SIM card and got the new device activated through Verizon's website for activation.
Then, with both devices side by side, I went through every phone setting and made sure it's what I wanted, I made sure every app was installed (and if it was a non-Google Play app, I restored it through Titanium Backup), and I restored data for apps that don't store their data in the cloud (e.g., various games) through Titanium Backup. (I made a backup of my old device with Titanium Backup and transferred it over to the new device after getting the new one up and running.)
Everything seems to be working just fine, and the "new device" runs a bit faster and smoother than the old device, and that's with both devices rebooting and then going through the exact same "click paths", side by side.
So it's a bit of a hassle, but everyone who has a Galaxy Nexus should still be under warranty, so if you're polite with your Verizon tech support representative, they may be willing to help you out.
Verizon can sometimes be infuriating with their update release schedule and keeping their customers informed, but they sure do a good job accommodating their customers in other ways.
I realize this isn't really a "solution" to the Android man on his back problem, but this seemed to be the path of least resistance for me, and I'm pretty happy with the outcome so far. (It's been less than 24 hours since I got the "new device" set up!)
Other things I realized I should have tried (and still may, before I wipe my phone and send it back):
- uninstalling BusyBox (through the app itself, since it makes modifications to the system) and Secure Settings
- unrooting
Good luck!
My friend who has a nexus has his bootloader unlocked and CWM on it. He got the OTA today on his way into work and like you guys, he has a broken android when he boots up. We can get into CMW but we are unable to mount his internal SD storage onto our computer and he has no ROM zips on his phone. Any advice as to how to get his phone up and running?
Will wiping the system/data fix it? Is there a way to get a ROM like AOKP onto the device outside of CWM?
Edit: After several reboots it decided to just boot into the stock ROM. Really strange. Anyhow, flashed AOKP and all is well now.

[Q] Samsung Galaxy Rugby: various issues

Hello all,
I'm sorry, but I couldn't find any device-related subforum for the Samsung Galaxy Rugby (GT-S5690M). If my questions are in the wrong section, please move it to the right place (mods)?
So here's the story: I just got my first smartphone. Since it's locked to Bell, it has some bloatware and need for sim-unlocking. I did a lot of reading and through some tutorials I managed to root Android and got rid of some bloatware (just four Bell apps). So far so good! Then I tried to unlock the phone. There are some apps in the Google Play that state that they can unlock the phone for free ("works on various Galaxy models").
I tried them out, but none of them could provide a solution. The last app I tried (Galaxy_S Unlock) requested that BusyBox were to be installed, so I did. During the installation the app remarked that already some BusyBox version was installed, but not the version that it was trying to install. I was suppose to try another type of installing (I used the normal/safe mode). But it said it was already installed, so good enough. Right? I tried the unlocking app again, but it still said it had errors getting to communicate with BusyBox. None of the unlocking apps gave me the impression that they changed anything in the system.
I figured that maybe a reboot of the phone would fix this. However, now the phone got several issues:
- booting takes forever (18 minutes) It does the animated Samsung logo (though, not with sound any more) and then keeps on slowing the glowing Samsung name.
- the speaker doesn't seem to be working at all
- it can no longer check for updates. After agreeing with the disclaimer, it says it can't connect.
- KIES doesn't see the phone any more.
- the phone is generally very slow now. Even when typing a password the phone sometimes hangs for about 5-10 seconds. Loading the disclaimer for the Software Updater takes 10-15 seconds.
I tried to reset to factory defaults and reload the rooting zip file again, but to no avail.
I've been trying to read up on the isolated symptoms, but I'm simply starting to feel overloaded with all the info, especially since I'm a Android newbie.
Does anybody recognize these symptoms and, more important, has any tips on what to try to restore whatever has gone wrong?
Additionally, I would really be interested in knowing if there's a way to force-upgrade to Jelly Bean. It appears that this firmware hasn't been made available to Rugby users yet through the regular update channels. But are there alternatives?
Thanks in advance!

[Q] How do I suppress firmware updates?

I got a notification on my phone that there is a software update available for my phone. After reading up on it a bit, I decided it's not worth the hassle to update. I thought I had gone through steps to suppress firmware updates a while back but I guess not. What's the easiest way to suppress this warning? Let me know when you get the chance. Thanks, guys!
Well, a bit of an update, I found the original information on how to suppress OTA updates here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=56693607&postcount=370
As I thought before, I had already gone through this step and disabled it (it was disabled in the hidden menu already). However, the update still seems to have popped up. t tried to auto update this morning but reported back that it suspects my system is rooted so it wasn't able to install. That's good news to a point (at least it didn't screw anything up) but I don't like that it even attempted it without me giving it permission.
Any idea what might have changed? Or is there a difference between an OTA update and a "software update"?
I don't know the answer but I am having the same problem. My phone keeps restarting and giving the error that it wasn't able to install. This actually happened before when I was on 4.X and eventually it bricked my phone and the AT&T store couldn't fix it so they gave me a refurb. It sucked because I didn't have all my photos backed up(I have since fixed that problem.) Now I am having the same issue and I don't want it to brick my phone. I also hate that it restarts automatically...I might need to use my phone for something at the moment. I also have tried the info in the link to disable OTA both phones and neither time has it worked. If anyone can help, please do. Thanks.
The only thing I have ever done and has worked every time is to root and then freeze a file called. "software update" or "update manager". Hope this helps.
I would actually like someone to put together an update.zip that will update us to the latest version without having to go through the hassle of flashing back to stock and what not.
I like the idea of LTE voice calls but not so much that I am willing to go through the work of starting over.
sent from a location using an app
In Titanium Backup (or similar app) find the app call "Software Update 2.3.3.1" and freeze it
That is what solved me receiving software updates and I no longer see the option in the About phone area.

Looking to Undo Root and All Customization, Need Help to do So

Ok, so as the title says, I'm looking to completely undo having rooted my tablet, and all the customization I did to it, but I'm having a bit of trouble.
According to multiple apps my tablet is no longer rooted, and I got the stock rom from Sammobile flashed on it, and I have the stock recovery back, but I seem to be suffering from the wifi problem that CM suffers, I know this as I can connect to my 5G wifi as well, which I'm never able to do when the tablets wifi is working correctly, and also even connected I barely have any speed, if even any.
Now I know of the wifi fix you can flash through TWRP, but as I said, no more TWRP, and I don't want to reinstall it, I want everything back to stock.
Now, I know of Wifi Fix's for other tablets, like the Galaxy S4, that you can flash on with Odin, but I can't seem to find one like that for the Note Pro 12.2. So if anyone can send me a link I'd really appreciate it.
And also, I can't remember, but did the Note Pro 12.2 ever get anything higher then Android 5.0.2? Because I try to update it, and it says because my tablet was modified I can't do so. Plus Sammobile doesn't have higher then 5.0.2 but I read somewhere that it got 5.1.1 so I really don't know, any help on that front as well would be great.
Now, you may be wondering why I want to do this, in truth I'd rather have my tablet rooted, I save so much battery life getting rid of all the bloatware. But no matter what I do, there always ends up being a problem with my tablet.
I follow all the instructions given, I do exactly what everyone else does, even having someone walk me through it step by step once, and always it goes horribly wrong.
The first time my Nova Launcher would crash constantly, and then everything else would start crashing with it. Then the second time all my videos would play stuttering and jerky, and the audio would be out of sync horribly, and nothing I did would fix it. And now most recently, even though the tablet it connected to the computer, the drivers always fail installation, and even when they are successful, I'm still unable to actually access the tablet from my pc.
I read somewhere that it may be because I disabled Media Storage, but with Media Storage I have just as many problems, it drains my battery like crazy, it causes things to load up extremely slow when accessed through the computer, if a folder has a hundred files for example, it will take almost twenty minutes for them all to load up, and you can't do anything until they do, and if you try copying something into a folder without going into it you'll just be stuck in an endless loop of copying that never ends.
But without Media Storage everything loads up just as quickly as say an SD Card, so said 100 files only takes a few seconds.
And worse thing it caused, which troubled me for a long time before I found out what caused it, at random the media storage would decide to claim 20gb's of space, saying it was all taken up, when it isn't. And it would keep happening at random times, and at random sizes. Near the end it had taken up every bit of free space I had and didn't change back even after several days which is what led me to looking up what was causing that in the first place.
So as you can see, leaving Media Storage enabled is a big no for me. So as such I'm unable to root and customize my tablet for that reason as well.
Now, before you say how weird it is that I have such trouble, and how you have no idea why it would happen, there is a very key reason, Technology HATES me. Trust me, more often then not when I try to do something that works for literally everyone else it fails for me, like say connecting an Xbox controller and getting it to work on my pc. Yeah, never works even after almost 5 hours of trying. So yeah, technology hates, maybe even dispises me.
So anyway, if you can help me fix the wifi, and the update problem if that's possible, I'd really appreciate it.
Are you able to get it connected to a PC?
There are tutorials on how to go back to complete stock if you haven't tried Knox I might search for what people have done before they take the their device back to the carrier. Many people want to un-root before they give up their old devices.

Verizon Galaxy SG 3 i-535 failure to load efs

Folks,
During a recent power outage my battery completely drained for the first time. Powering on after a full charge, started getting screen msgs (yellow text) info on some system internals. tried rebooting, and got "failure to load efs". and the phone comes back up in Factory test mode. I had never attempted any modification on this phone and everything looked stock to me. I had bought used from B&H, so cannot swear to its complete history. Samsung recommended a "smart Recovery from Best Buy that after two swap-outs i am still getting all the above msg's. I have no experience in rooting or anything else, but have a background in software. Info found through searches seems to indicate Verizon Samsung sg3's may be the most difficult to add mods. I found a stock rom, and loaded it successfully via odin. Best Buy guy said he loaded an original stock as well, and still no luck. Even though this happened after a hardware issue, and i know its firmware, at a loss as to what is causing this. it generally degrades performance of the phone in everything, including linking to playstore to download apps. I have everything backed up, with nothing to lose if anyone has a path to a working phone....I'm game. running 4.4.2

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