Database Info

[GUIDE] How to fix IMEI / DRK issues

This Guide works on both the S7 and S7 Edge.
This also works on other Samsung device including Snapdragon variants as long as you have the correct files for your device.
FIll out my form if you require assistance
S8 users go HERE
​This guide is for those of you with EFS issues. This can cause your IMEI and/or Baseband to show Unknown or a bunch of zeros. The guide can also be used to fix DRK errors, but if your Device Root Key (DRK) is corrupt or missing, this guide will fix your IMEI/Baseband but will not fix your DRK error.
The guide gives instructions on how to flash the combination firmware. This installs the factory binary which allows your phone to read your IMEI and DRK. This should then restore your IMEI and DRK and then when you flash stock, the phone will be working as normal. If the Device Root Key (DRK) is corrupt or missing, this guide will only fix the IMEI, the DRK errors will still remain.
I take no responsibility for any issues that arise from following this guide. Do so at your own risk. The smallest mistake can cause a much bigger issue so make sure you know what you are doing and follow every step word for word!​
Please note that this will not work for everyone
Some people will still face getting stuck at boot when flashing the combination firmware.
This means you have at some point flashed firmware that is later than the latest combination firmware and unfortunately, it is not possible to fix this by downgrading the firmware to an earlier version.​
Before you proceed, you're going to need the following:
A copy of your phones stock firmware saved to your computer. If you do not already have these available on your computer, you can go HERE or you can use this tool to download the latest firmware for your device. Alternatively, you can find your firmware on SamMobile but this can take forever to download with a free account.
[IMPORTANT!] Switch off Factory Reset Protection (FRP) by going into Developer options and turning on 'OEM Unlock'. If you do not see 'Developer Options' under settings, then go to Settings > About Device > Software Info and keep tapping 'Build Number' until it confirms "You are now a developer" then go back to the main Settings screen and you will see Developer options.
if you skip this step, you only have yourself to blame if something goes wrong.
Odin. If you do not have it, download it from here
The Combination Firmware (Factory Binary). Download the combination firmware relevant to your phone (links below) and extract the .rar archive somewhere you will remember.
S7 International [G930F/FD] - (Mirror) [UPDATED 03/11/2017]
S7 Edge International [G935F/FD] - (Mirror) [UPDATED 03/11/2017]
S7 Canada [G930W8] - (Mirror)
S7 Edge Canada [G935W8] - (Mirror)
S7 Edge AT&T [G935A] - (Mirror)
Files for other models available on request via my form
​
Now you have all the files you need, follow the guide below to repair your S7.
There are 2 methods.
The first method (Method 1) is quick and can solve most issues. Especially DRK errors.
The second method (Method 2) is to use if Method 1 does not work. This guide requires more work and therefore takes a little longer.
Method 1
Boot into recovery and wipe data.
Put your phone straight into Download Mode (do not reboot or boot up the system between wiping data and booting to download mode). To do this, you can use recovery to reboot to Download mode. Alternatively, switch off your phone and hold 'Power' + 'Volume Down' + 'Home' until it boots to download mode. Then connect the phone to your computer with your USB cable.
Open Odin, press the 'AP' button and select the Combination tar/md5 file you downloaded/extracted earlier. Then press the 'Start' button. (If you have any errors while flashing, first make sure you are using the correct firmware for your phone. If it is still throwing errors, remove the ".md5" from the end of the file name and try again).
When Odin has completed flashing the combination file, it should boot into the Factory Binary. You may get a message asking you to reboot. Click reboot (If you do not get prompted to reboot, do a reboot manually).
When it has booted back up. Press the 'IME' button at the bottom of the screen and type *#06#. You should now see your IMEI has restored.
Now restore the stock firmware using the firmware you downloaded earlier. (If you're not sure how, follow this guide)
You should now have a restored IMEI. If not, this means your efs is damaged. Therefore, you will need to follow Method 2 below.
Method 2
You will need to start on a rooted device. If you are not rooted, follow this guide to root your phone or flash CF Auto Root in Odin.
Before you continue, it is extremely important that you backup your EFS partition, even if it is corrupt. You can backup the EFS partition using THIS APP. If you skip this step, you only have yourself to blame if something goes wrong and you have no backup to restore.
Download Root Explorer (Paid) or Root Browser (Free). Open 'Root Explorer' or 'Root Browser' (whichever you installed) and browse to the /efs folder located in the root of the device.
Inside the /efs folder, delete everything EXCEPT the 'FactoryApp' and 'prov_data' folders.
Reboot. Make sure it does a full reboot. When the phone boots back up, you may some errors or unusual settings, this is normal and nothing to worry about.
Boot into recovery and wipe data.
Put your phone straight into Download Mode (do not reboot or boot up the system between wiping data and booting to download mode). To do this, you can use recovery to reboot to Download mode. Alternatively, switch off your phone and hold 'Power' + 'Volume Down' + 'Home' until it boots to download mode. Then connect the phone to your computer with your USB cable.
Open Odin, press the 'AP' button and select the Combination tar/md5 file you downloaded/extracted earlier. Then press the 'Start' button. (If you have any errors while flashing, first make sure you are using the correct firmware for your phone. If it is still throwing errors, remove the ".md5" from the end of the file name and try again).
When Odin has completed flashing the combination file, it should boot into the Factory Binary. You may get a message asking you to reboot. Click reboot (If you do not get prompted to reboot, do a reboot manually).
When it has booted back up. Press the 'IME' button at the bottom of the screen and type *#06#. You should now see your IMEI has restored.
Now restore the stock firmware using the firmware you downloaded earlier. (If you're not sure how, follow this guide)
You should now have a restored IMEI.
​
Still Getting a DRK error?
If you are still getting a DRK error then you probably have a corrupt or missing Device Root Key (DRK). Unfortunately, this cannot be fixed without a JTag box (which aren't cheap). However, you can continue to use the phone as normal by flashing the no-verity zip in TWRP. You can then go ahead and use your phone as normal. Unfortunately, you will no longer be able to receive OTA updates. All updates will need to be made through ODIN and the no verity zip will need to be flashed every time a new firmware is flashed. However, you can still use custom roms as normal. Other than OTA updates, the DRK issue will have no effect on the use of the phone. You can still update via Smart Switch but will need to install TWRP and flash the no verity zip after every update.
If you would like any assistance in fixing your issue such as Method 1 & 2 do not work for you or if you have a different model than what is listed in this guide, please complete THIS FORM and I will try to get back to you ASAP (unfortunately I cannot always respond)
Many thanks to everyone that has donated!!
If you would like to donate, you can do so by clicking here
As you can imagine, finding fixes and assisting people takes a lot of my time so it's always great to receive a donation. Thank you.
​

Goooooooooooooooood,tnx

Very well detailed and clear guide bro. Thanks for posting this.
Tapped on my Echoe'd out G935F

Very good guide. Cubz helped me get my IMEI back so he knows his stuff. Thanks again.
Sent from my SM-G935F using XDA-Developers mobile app

ecera said:
Very good guide. Cubz helped me get my IMEI back so he knows his stuff. Thanks again.
Sent from my SM-G935F using XDA-Developers mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No problem. Was happy to help

What else can this factory binary do? Can it restore the original CSC? I had an AFG CSC phone and after playing around with different roms, when I go back to the original firmware (although it is a multi CSC), it chooses XSG rather than AFG no matter what I do.

onurd said:
What else can this factory binary do? Can it restore the original CSC? I had an AFG CSC phone and after playing around with different roms, when I go back to the original firmware (although it is a multi CSC), it chooses XSG rather than AFG no matter what I do.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No it doesn't. Where are you seeing the CSC?
Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

CuBz90 said:
No it doesn't. Where are you seeing the CSC?
Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I haven't seen CSC. anywhere. I was just wondering what this firmware had up its sleeves to "fix" things.

onurd said:
I haven't seen CSC. anywhere. I was just wondering what this firmware had up its sleeves to "fix" things.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What I meant is that when you say you now have a different CSC, how did you know this.
This firmware basically just feels the phone where to read the imei, baseband, and other info. This does not include the CSC.
PM me for my email address and then if you email me a backup of your EFS, I will have a look and restore your CSC for you.
Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

The original firmware of the phone was AFG for csc. Now even after using odin to get the same firmware, it defaults to xsg. Not a big deal but I don't know where the csc information is stored.
Sent from my SM-G935F using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

That's what I mean by the original csc having disappeared.

sent a PM about getting an EFS file, I hope you get it

onurd said:
That's what I mean by the original csc having disappeared.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Read this
Code:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=49425630&postcount=3

hiepgia said:
Read this
Code:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=49425630&postcount=3
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I see. Phone info won't show the original csc without root.
But how do you explain that despite using the appropriate firmware with odin, it always defaults to xsg rather than the original afg from the multi csc firmware?

Hey so I tried flashing the G935_Factory_Binary.tar file on a galaxy s7 edge, and the thing is stuck on splash screen. any idea why?

onurd said:
I see. Phone info won't show the original csc without root.
But how do you explain that despite using the appropriate firmware with odin, it always defaults to xsg rather than the original afg from the multi csc firmware?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Because you flashed another region firmware, wipe data -> All original csc will get remove. You flash back and will only get default csc. If you rooted, you can change to afg csc

Thank you CuBz90 for your great work.
I flashed the superman rom but selected the wrong CSC.
I always backup my EFS in internal storage, but today I accidently wiped my entire internal storage. LOL
I have tried your method but unfortunately my imei is still missing, I'm totally frustrating. I will follow your thread. hope some expert can figure this out.

To everyone that has PM'd me, please bare with me. I have received a hell of a lot of PM's and I am trying to get through them all. Don't worry, I will definately reply and help you as best as I can.
Please make sure you are on your original stock firmware before trying this method. I notice a lot of people have PM'ed about CSC, I will PM you with info on how to revert this but please follow my steps exactly how I write them, a lot of people have PM'ed me to say "it's not working" but I have later found they are not following my steps exactly how I say and instead are taking shortcuts. If you take shortcuts then it's not going to work. I want to help you but you need to follow my exact instructions.

How to backup Efs without root?
Wanam app only works with root.
Sent from my SM-G935F using XDA-Developers mobile app

Help me?
Who can tell me efs file? Thank
Gửi từ SM-G930F của tôi bằng cách sử dụng Tapatalk

Custom binary blocked by FRP lock.

Ok, here goes.
Have a SM-G930W8 (Canada, Rogers, S7). Was running a 7.0 ROM from XDA (ambassadii? sp?). I disabled developer options to check a possible issue transferring files from my PC to the S7's SD Card. I restarted the device.
Custom binary blocked by FRP lock. No problem, thought I. I'll boot into Download Mode, fire up Odin and flash the stock rom back to the device (also what I've read in most every thread I've come across). Launch ODIN as admin, see the device is connected, select the proper AP(also BL, CSC and CP...I'm thorough) file to flash (from Sammobile I think it was), make sure repartition is unchecked and hit Start.
Here's the result...wait I can't post them but I have the screen shots! The phone shows Secure Check Fail (PIT). Odin gives an error at that step as well.
I've tried Kies (there's no SN anywhere on my device or on the box) so that doesn't work. Smart Switch, same issue.
Does ANYONE out there have any clue what I can attempt next? Sending it in for service will likely cost as much as a new device, with the warranty void. Thank you very much in advance.

chewtoy0 said:
Ok, here goes.
Have a SM-G930W8 (Canada, Rogers, S7). Was running a 7.0 ROM from XDA (ambassadii? sp?). I disabled developer options to check a possible issue transferring files from my PC to the S7's SD Card. I restarted the device.
Custom binary blocked by FRP lock. No problem, thought I. I'll boot into Download Mode, fire up Odin and flash the stock rom back to the device (also what I've read in most every thread I've come across). Launch ODIN as admin, see the device is connected, select the proper AP(also BL, CSC and CP...I'm thorough) file to flash (from Sammobile I think it was), make sure repartition is unchecked and hit Start.
Here's the result...wait I can't post them but I have the screen shots! The phone shows Secure Check Fail (PIT). Odin gives an error at that step as well.
I've tried Kies (there's no SN anywhere on my device or on the box) so that doesn't work. Smart Switch, same issue.
Does ANYONE out there have any clue what I can attempt next? Sending it in for service will likely cost as much as a new device, with the warranty void. Thank you very much in advance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you able to boot into recovery?
If not you could try to ONLY flash the stock recovery>boot recovery>wipe everything then boot to download mode and flash complete stock firmware via odin.
or flash stock firmware with the same CSC as your custom rom has/ flash "HOME_CSC" instead of "CSC..."
good luck

mrd0pe said:
Are you able to boot into recovery?
If not you could try to ONLY flash the stock recovery>boot recovery>wipe everything then boot to download mode and flash complete stock firmware via odin.
or flash stock firmware with the same CSC as your custom rom has/ flash "HOME_CSC" instead of "CSC..."
good luck
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can't get into Recovery no. Which file of the lot has the stock recovery in it?

chewtoy0 said:
Can't get into Recovery no. Which file of the lot has the stock recovery in it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try to only flash AP, I did have the same problem as you describe but I cant remember how I resolved it, I'm on G930F tho

Your S/N is on the rear of the phone it can be a pain to see but it is there. Use smart switch to restore the firmware. Just click emergency firmware restore.

It is? The IMEI is there but I didn't see the SN. Also my phone is black so that doesn't help.
I will have another look.

mrd0pe said:
Try to only flash AP, I did have the same problem as you describe but I cant remember how I resolved it, I'm on G930F tho
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I did that. No dice.

I had the same issue as you. Used the same rom and disabled developer options. I downloaded stock firmware.. flashed it with odin. It actually took 2 tries. The first time I could see only 1/4 of the screen. The second time i flashed stock firmware from another country and it worked. You might actually have to do a hard factory reset if you cant unlock your phone.. for some reason. Then I let kies do its magic because I could then see my S/N. Right now I still feel my phone slightly different. Messenger is unstable for some reason also.

Ok.
Checked the back of the device for a SN#. Mine's black so I used a flashlight. It's not there. The Model #, IMEI, FCC ID# and IC# are all there. Does someone have a blurred out screeny of where THEY found their SN# on the back of the device?
Tried flashing with Odin the CSC(home) and AP files (stock MM from my region). Got: Custom Binary (Boot) blocked by FRP Lock.
Tried flashing TWRP again, to TRY to enter into recovery...same message.
With just the AP selected, ODIN seems to hang at "Get PIT for mapping" and fails. I'm running it again to make sure it's not a bad connection with the device.
Same result, hangs at "Get PIT for mapping".

chewtoy0 said:
Ok.
Checked the back of the device for a SN#. Mine's black so I used a flashlight. It's not there. The Model #, IMEI, FCC ID# and IC# are all there. Does someone have a blurred out screeny of where THEY found their SN# on the back of the device?
Tried flashing with Odin the CSC(home) and AP files (stock MM from my region). Got: Custom Binary (Boot) blocked by FRP Lock.
Tried flashing TWRP again, to TRY to enter into recovery...same message.
With just the AP selected, ODIN seems to hang at "Get PIT for mapping" and fails. I'm running it again to make sure it's not a bad connection with the device.
Same result, hangs at "Get PIT for mapping".
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try to flash Nougat firmware, as that was what your custom rom was on right? I dont think it really matters though as I downgraded from stock 7.0 to stock 6.0.1 via odin without errors... But you can try
As an absolute last resort I would try to check the "re-partition"-tab and provide odin with a .pit file, then load everything (BL, AP, CP...) with stock firmware <<<< do this at your own risk, if you are not careful, your phone will be bricked

I am trying to flash MM back to it .
I'm not sure I want to mess with the re partition table...But it's already soft bricked.

Mine is also black. The S/N Is immediately next to the imei number I had to use a flash light to see it but it's deffinatly there.

Matty39856 said:
Mine is also black. The S/N Is immediately next to the imei number I had to use a flash light to see it but it's deffinatly there.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'd show you a photo if I could. The IMEI is by itself on a third line of stuff. There's nothing else around it.

chewtoy0 said:
I'd show you a photo if I could. The IMEI is by itself on a third line of stuff. There's nothing else around it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not sure then. Have you tried flashing the latest unlocked version for your region? I remember on my s6 I had a similar problem that was caused because I was trying to flash a lower version of Android than what I previously had. So ended up flashing the latest unlocked version BTU for my region and it worked. Sorry I can't be of more help. It looks like the latest firmware is still 6.0.1 that's why it's blocking it from downgrading.

Was sent a PM by a person. Was skeptical at first, but in 10 minutes using TeamViewer, they fixed the issue by reflashing the device (as well as repartitioning it properly). I can't thank them enough.
This is the person on Facebook...
Unlock Network FRP Lock Remote Service

How to Reflash S7 when it is updating

To make things clear, my S7 stopped working properly and kept freezing after a minute of it being turned on. I decided to quickly install an update I postponed because I thought it would work. Now I am stuck at the installing system update screen and it keeps getting stuck at 31%. I want to reflash it but not lose any data. Is this possible with Odin? Thanks in advance.

If you can get into Download Mode it should work
Volume Down & Home & Power
ODIN 3.12.3 or newer
Load all 4 firmware sections into ODIN
CSC = Wipe (Might be best to use this if HOME_CSC doesn't work because it's bricked)
HOME_CSC = No wipe

Boot Loop?
*Detection* said:
If you can get into Download Mode it should work
Volume Down & Home & Power
ODIN 3.12.3 or newer
Load all 4 firmware sections into ODIN
CSC = Wipe (Might be best to use this if HOME_CSC doesn't work because it's bricked)
HOME_CSC = No wipe
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have successfully done what you said after doing massive amounts of research and carefully completed the software reflash. I still have the same problem as it keeps freezing and turning off and back on again but this time the update screen is gone and I cannot enter my phone at all. I heard something of a stock rom or something. Can you please give me more incite of what to do?
**EDIT**: I am using sammobile.com to download the firmware for my S7, is there a specific one I should be downloading or all of them are the same?

Nashme Al-Hadid said:
I have successfully done what you said after doing massive amounts of research and carefully completed the software reflash. I still have the same problem as it keeps freezing and turning off and back on again but this time the update screen is gone and I cannot enter my phone at all. I heard something of a stock rom or something. Can you please give me more incite of what to do?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You just flashed the stock ROM with ODIN if you added AP, CP, BL and CSC to ODIN
You could try booting into recovery (Volume Up & Home & Power) and wiping the Cache partition, see if that helps
But you might find you need to factory reset the phone if that won't work, which will result in complete loss of all data on the phone

*Detection* said:
You just flashed the stock ROM with ODIN if you added AP, CP, BL and CSC to ODIN
You could try booting into recovery (Volume Up & Home & Power) and wiping the Cache partition, see if that helps
But you might find you need to factory reset the phone if that won't work, which will result in complete loss of all data on the phone
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried that, still did not work. Again, I downloaded the firmware from sammobile.com with the same product number SM-G930F but there are a lot of them, do I need a specific one or any one of them should work?

*Detection* said:
You just flashed the stock ROM with ODIN if you added AP, CP, BL and CSC to ODIN
You could try booting into recovery (Volume Up & Home & Power) and wiping the Cache partition, see if that helps
But you might find you need to factory reset the phone if that won't work, which will result in complete loss of all data on the phone
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am seeing a lot of countries on the website, my phone says "UK" from the back but I downloaded firmware from Colombia. Did I mess up or do I need one from the UK as well? This is confusing and I am sorry for taking time off of your day. Thanks in advance.

Nashme Al-Hadid said:
I am seeing a lot of countries on the website, my phone says "UK" from the back but I downloaded firmware from Colombia. Did I mess up or do I need one from the UK as well? This is confusing and I am sorry for taking time off of your day. Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
G930F?
BTU and XEU are United Kingdom unbranded ROMs, go for one of them
No problems, that's what the forums are for

*Detection* said:
G930F?
BTU and XEU are United Kingdom unbranded ROMs, go for one of them
No problems, that's what the forums are for
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried that, still no hope. It just keeps freezing every 20 seconds and now I cannot even access the phone at all. I don't get it. Is it something with the hardware? I don't think so because it does not freeze on the download mode screen. Do I have to delete all my files or use CSC? Because I used HOME_CSC. If losing my files is the only option, is there a way to back them up now or is it too late?

Nashme Al-Hadid said:
I tried that, still no hope. It just keeps freezing every 20 seconds and now I cannot even access the phone at all. I don't get it. Is it something with the hardware? I don't think so because it does not freeze on the download mode screen. Do I have to delete all my files or use CSC? Because I used HOME_CSC. If losing my files is the only option, is there a way to back them up now or is it too late?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It could be hardware, if the storage has failed it could cause those symptoms, download mode is not on the storage, think of it as CMOS vs HDD
There is Samsung Smart Switch which has an emergency firmware recovery tool, but pretty sure that will also wipe the phone
Not many options tbh, I mean apps you can reinstall, but if you had photos/videos that were not stored on a MicroSD card / backed up to PC, then yea you're gonna lose them
CSC or Boot to Recovery and factory reset will do the reset for you
Alternatively send it in for repair and ask them to recover the data if it is mission critical
Maybe someone else can think of another method to get your data back, but atm I can't think of anything else you could try
I haven't flashed TWRP on mine so not sure what functions you can use without wiping data (Which is necessary for certain features of TWRP to work) but TWRP can create a full Nandroid backup of the current system, and you can also restore sections of it using Titanium Backup once your phone is working again
TWRP will trip KNOX though so warranty will be void and certain apps will no longer work, such as Pay and Health etc

*Detection* said:
It could be hardware, if the storage has failed it could cause those symptoms, download mode is not on the storage, think of it as CMOS vs HDD
There is Samsung Smart Switch which has an emergency firmware recovery tool, but pretty sure that will also wipe the phone
Not many options tbh, I mean apps you can reinstall, but if you had photos/videos that were not stored on a MicroSD card / backed up to PC, then yea you're gonna lose them
CSC or Boot to Recovery and factory reset will do the reset for you
Alternatively send it in for repair and ask them to recover the data if it is mission critical
Maybe someone else can think of another method to get your data back, but atm I can't think of anything else you could try
I haven't flashed TWRP on mine so not sure what functions you can use without wiping data (Which is necessary for certain features of TWRP to work) but TWRP can create a full Nandroid backup of the current system, and you can also restore sections of it using Titanium Backup once your phone is working again
TWRP will trip KNOX though so warranty will be void and certain apps will no longer work, such as Pay and Health etc
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't mind the apps, photos and videos since they are all backed up. But what about WhatsApp chats and contacts, will I lose those too? Because other than that, I would 100% do a factory reset.

*Detection* said:
It could be hardware, if the storage has failed it could cause those symptoms, download mode is not on the storage, think of it as CMOS vs HDD
There is Samsung Smart Switch which has an emergency firmware recovery tool, but pretty sure that will also wipe the phone
Not many options tbh, I mean apps you can reinstall, but if you had photos/videos that were not stored on a MicroSD card / backed up to PC, then yea you're gonna lose them
CSC or Boot to Recovery and factory reset will do the reset for you
Alternatively send it in for repair and ask them to recover the data if it is mission critical
Maybe someone else can think of another method to get your data back, but atm I can't think of anything else you could try
I haven't flashed TWRP on mine so not sure what functions you can use without wiping data (Which is necessary for certain features of TWRP to work) but TWRP can create a full Nandroid backup of the current system, and you can also restore sections of it using Titanium Backup once your phone is working again
TWRP will trip KNOX though so warranty will be void and certain apps will no longer work, such as Pay and Health etc
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I also had some notes I wish to keep, they are not that important but would be very useful if there was a way to back them up or save them in a way.

Nashme Al-Hadid said:
I don't mind the apps, photos and videos since they are all backed up. But what about WhatsApp chats and contacts, will I lose those too? Because other than that, I would 100% do a factory reset.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you had WhatsApp backup enabled, the chats will be restored when you reinstall WhatsApp, if not then they'll be lost
Notes will be lost unless you used the Samsung memo app and have your Samsung Cloud Sync enabled to backup memos, which I'm pretty sure is enabled by default and requires you to disable it if you don't want it backing things up automatically

*Detection* said:
If you had WhatsApp backup enabled, the chats will be restored when you reinstall WhatsApp, if not then they'll be lost
Notes will be lost unless you used the Samsung memo app and have your Samsung Cloud Sync enabled to backup memos, which I'm pretty sure is enabled by default and requires you to disable it if you don't want it backing things up automatically
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think I might do a factory reset. How do I go about doing that?

Nashme Al-Hadid said:
I think I might do a factory reset. How do I go about doing that?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Either boot into recovery (Volume Up & Home & Power) wait for it to bring up the recovery menu (Takes a little while watching a Droid first) then choose Factory reset from the menu
Volume keys to navigate, Power key for action
Or Flash the firmware with ODIN again but choose CSC instead of HOME_CSC, that will auto reset after the flash
If it still fails after a reset it looks like a hardware issue

*Detection* said:
Either boot into recovery (Volume Up & Home & Power) wait for it to bring up the recovery menu (Takes a little while watching a Droid first) then choose Factory reset from the menu
Volume keys to navigate, Power key for action
Or Flash the firmware with ODIN again but choose CSC instead of HOME_CSC, that will auto reset after the flash
If it still fails after a reset it looks like a hardware issue
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Before doing this, I am a bit confused about which firmware I installed. How can I know which one is the exact one I need for my phone because I cannot exactly determine which one it is. All I know that it says "UK" on the back of my phone. Can you please help me find which one it is and link me to the exact firmware I need?

Nashme Al-Hadid said:
Before doing this, I am a bit confused about which firmware I installed. How can I know which one is the exact one I need for my phone because I cannot exactly determine which one it is. All I know that it says "UK" on the back of my phone. Can you please help me find which one it is and link me to the exact firmware I need?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Boot into Download mode and check the model number at the top
Should say G930F if the phone is from the UK
Then choose either the ROM from your carrier, or BTU/XEU for unbranded
You have already flashed a ROM though, so it would make sense to just flash that same one again but use CSC
Or try a factory reset from recovery first

*Detection* said:
Boot into Download mode and check the model number at the top
Should say G930F if the phone is from the UK
Then choose either the ROM from your carrier, or BTU/XEU for unbranded
You have already flashed a ROM though, so it would make sense to just flash that same one again but use CSC
Or try a factory reset from recovery first
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are more than one G930F on the website from different countries. Can you please find one that matches mine? Do you need more info about my phone?

Nashme Al-Hadid said:
There are more than one G930F on the website from different countries. Can you please find one that matches mine? Do you need more info about my phone?
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Click to collapse
That's what I'm telling you lol
Either pick one from your country (United Kingdom) which is either BTU or XEU code as shown in the dropdown on sammobile site, or choose one from your carrier, o2, Vodafone, EE, H3G (Three) etc
Updato.com is a faster site to download from
Code:
http://updato.com/firmware-archive-select-model?q=G930F&r=btu&order=date&dir=desc
Pick the latest dated ROM (August 9th) G930FXXU1DQG1
But you said you already flashed a ROM with ODIN, so why download another one?

*Detection* said:
That's what I'm telling you lol
Either pick one from your country (United Kingdom) which is either BTU or XEU code as shown in the dropdown on sammobile site, or choose one from your carrier, o2, Vodafone, EE, H3G (Three) etc
Updato.com is a faster site to download from
Code:
http://updato.com/firmware-archive-select-model?q=G930F&r=btu&order=date&dir=desc
Pick the latest dated ROM (August 9th) G930FXXU1DQG1
But you said you already flashed a ROM with ODIN, so why download another one?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Okay, I am downloading it now and going to be attempting it again. Should I change any of the options on Odin or just keep them the same? Also, I am trying HOME_CSC again to see if that might work. And if it doesn't, I am going with CSC.

Nashme Al-Hadid said:
Okay, I am downloading it now and going to be attempting it again. Should I change any of the options on Odin or just keep them the same? Also, I am trying HOME_CSC again to see if that might work. And if it doesn't, I am going with CSC.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, leave ODIN as it is

Unable to download older firmware

Hey guys, I really screwed up big time with my S7. My model is the SM-G930F. I have numbered my mistakes below so it is easier to follow.
1) I wanted to root my phone, so I followed the guide for HighonAndroid on youtube.
2) Fast forward, got TWRP and flashed Magisk root v16 and samsung anti-root removal 2.4.
3) Restarted phone and got this message along the lines of "integrity of phone has been damaged... please factory reset"
4) I advanced factory reset, and also accidentally ticked the software reset as well :crying:
5) Phone is bricked, and stuck in bootloading error. Cannot be turned off, it would just continue to recycle the Samsung S7 screen on repeat until put into TWRP mode...
6) Can only assess download mode and TWRP mode
If you are still following, this is where I am stuck ATM. I just want a working phone at this point...
7) Download official 7.0 nougat software for my phone model.
8) Odin the firmware over however the message stays stuck at this: https://imgur.com/a/UMQPw
9) Cry
If anybody can help that will be great, thanks!

Looks like Odin is not signing a com port to the phone.
Drivers are installed? Tried different usb cables and usb ports?

audit13 said:
Looks like Odin is not signing a com port to the phone.
Drivers are installed? Tried different usb cables and usb ports?
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Click to collapse
The phone stays connected, but the second I flash my phone just reboots.

You're not flashing BL, CP, and CSC?

I was under the impression S7 was beyond the time of using single tar/md5 files, you should have 4 separate files (BL, CP, CSC, AP). Where'd you get the firmware?
Try updato.com or sammobile.com, even the oldest S7 firmware I've downloaded still came with the 4 firmware files.

Beanvee7 said:
I was under the impression S7 was beyond the time of using single tar/md5 files, you should have 4 separate files (BL, CP, CSC, AP). Where'd you get the firmware?
Try updato.com or sammobile.com, even the oldest S7 firmware I've downloaded still came with the 4 firmware files.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes I got the file from sammobile. I have tried flashing the 4 files however alas, it again just reboots my phone. I will follow up with an image when I get home and try it out again.

Beanvee7 said:
I was under the impression S7 was beyond the time of using single tar/md5 files, you should have 4 separate files (BL, CP, CSC, AP). Where'd you get the firmware?
Try updato.com or sammobile.com, even the oldest S7 firmware I've downloaded still came with the 4 firmware files.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah here we go: https://imgur.com/a/FF0Rd
Still does not work. It continues to reboot. Tried different computers the phone will just reboot. Is there any hope left? I can access TWRP, meaning is it possible to restore/flash a backup from another user?

You can try Smart Switch which is the official method of a factory flash.
Otherwise for Odin if I recall correctly the latest firmware will chuck a fit if you aren't flashing the right firmware for your country, since the DRAG bootloader is meant to be more locked down.
You could also try different Odin versions maybe https://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2711451
You could try a stock ROM flash via zip like super stock or superman choosing clean install. Would be easier than trying to orchestrate a backup from someone.

Is there any errors that I have now seem consistent with anybody else's issue? Something like I might be flashing the wrong firmware into my phone, as a result the phone just reboots in download mode?
I have tried using both the new and old versions of odin and it still has the same result.
I am using the phone model SM-G930FZDAXSG

Really thanks a lot guys. Just having you guys readily available took a lot of stress off my chest. Someone cares
The issue has just been resolved! Yey. The problem was not running odin in administrator mode. As a result, my phone would just reboot instantaneously after flashing.

Questions about software updates

Hi! I need help in installing software updates to my S7. It's a second hand phone. The model is SM-G930F, I checked it using the download mode and the Phone INFO app. I don't think the previous owner installed any software updates yet; my problem is when installing through OTA, it completes the download then when the installation process starts, it goes upto 32% then reboots prompting me to download the update again. Every single time it stops at 32%. I already tried factory resetting but the result is still the same.
I thought of doing it through Odin, but there are too many firmwares from different regions but Philippines isn't available. Which one should I get. Please help me

Update: I've downloaded the latest firmware for UK (BTU). In another thread, it was said that I can flash this through Odin without any problems, but would it factory reset my phone? And would I be able to receive OTA updates?

Some help pls? I've read some of the other threads already but they don't specify much and don't answer my question

KylesIan said:
Some help pls? I've read some of the other threads already but they don't specify much and don't answer my question
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Presuming you know how to use Odin; within the firmware zip, there'll be two tar files labelled as "CSC". The CSC starting with "CSC" is used only if you want to factory reset the phone. The CSC that starts with "Home_CSC" is used if you want to retain your data, apps etc. If you do decide to use CSC to factory reset the phone, make sure to backup the phone. Just to be on the safe side, you could remove your account from the phone before updating the firmware using odin. At least that way, FRP (factory reset protection) won't trigger if you suddenly need to factory reset the phone from recovery mode.
As for OTA updates, you'll still received them when Samsung release them. If not, then you can always download them.

Lycon70492 said:
Presuming you know how to use Odin; within the firmware zip, there'll be two tar files labelled as "CSC". The CSC starting with "CSC" is used only if you want to factory reset the phone. The CSC that starts with "Home_CSC" is used if you want to retain your data, apps etc. If you do decide to use CSC to factory reset the phone, make sure to backup the phone. Just to be on the safe side, you could remove your account from the phone before updating the firmware using odin. At least that way, FRP (factory reset protection) won't trigger if you suddenly need to factory reset the phone from recovery mode.
As for OTA updates, you'll still received them when Samsung release them. If not, then you can always download them.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you very much for responding! ? I'm planning on using the CSC file to factory reset. Which account should I remove before doing so? Again, thank you so much for answering ?.

KylesIan said:
Thank you very much for responding! I'm planning on using the CSC file to factory reset. Which account should I remove before doing so? Again, thank you so much for answering .
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You remove the account that was used to setup the phone.

Lycon70492 said:
You remove the account that was used to setup the phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Okay, thank you so much! ?