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Broken screen, need to retrieve files off phone! help please

My screen first cracked and then the LCD completely went now... I have files I need to retrieve off the phone. It is rooted and running some ICS build... I believe the phone is in USB debugging mode, the screen still 'works' I can unlock the phone but nothing is displayed on the screen. Possibly someone could help me out with the adb process for pulling the contents off the /sd
Any help will be GREATLY appreciated, thank you for your time.

ur usb mass storage should still work. can u just plug ur phone to a usb port and get things off the phone ?

As previously stated. I believe the phone was in USB debugging mode. And now the screen is completely black... impossible to navigate to where i need to be.

You'll need adb setup on your computer, and you'll need to cd your way into the folder with adb.exe. Forgive me for hotlinking, but this will make it easier: Download this file, courtesy of NexusSHacks.com (I believe it is Zedomax around here). I would advise to unzip the contents in this file to your C:\Nexus directory, so that adb.exe is at C:\Nexus\adb.exe.
Now, plug in your phone. Open your start menu and search for "cmd" and open up Command Prompt. This is the basic Windows CLI (Command Line Interface).
First, you'll need to open the directory of the Nexus folder you created earlier. To do this, type in the command prompt:
Code:
cd C:\Nexus
Now, you want to make sure adb sees your phone:
Code:
adb devices
The adb service should start and if it sees your phone it will pop up a serial number. If there is no serial number, you can't use adb while inside android and you'll need to tick the option or find an alternative way. Assuming it finds your device, you are good to go.
In order to copy the /sdcard folder of your Nexus S, you will use the pull command. We will throw all of the files into C:\Nexus\sdcard, for reference. So in the command prompt, type:
Code:
adb pull /sdcard .\sdcard
It looks a little confusing but don't stress. Just make sure you type it in exactly (dot, correct slash, etc). This will take a little while since it might transfer up to ~15GB worth. You'll see a new line with "C:\Nexus>" with a flashing cursor when it is done. Then you can view all the contents of your sdcard at C:\Nexus\sdcard and do with them as you please.
Also note, for this you'll need up to ~15GB of free space on your C:\ partition, make sure you have this before you start. Good luck

old post I know, but I just dropped my Samsung Captivate (rooted with debugging on) and internal screen cracked (gorilla glass is perfectly fine!), so I am in the same boat. After DAYS... actually DAYS of trying everything from every forum I FOUND A FIX!!!
Now admittedly, I am unsure which of these two (or both) fixed the issue, but here is what I did:
via Google Play's online "shop", I installed "Auto Mount Your SD Card" by JRTStudio (admittingly, unsure if this did anything as I cannot verify if it installed or anything via the phone)
https://play.google.com/store/apps/...wsMSwxLDEsImNvbS5qcnRzdHVkaW8uYXV0b21vdW50Il0.
then I DL'ed MoboRobo and after a few frustrated phone reboots, usb cable connections and much cursing IT CONNECTED!
http://www.moborobo.com/
I am currently DLing all my files from my broken phone!
I had to pass this along as I said... NOBODY seems to know about this as it has taken me DAYS to do this! Not even ATT (Current carrier) nor Spring (whom I am switching to in a month or so) could help me!

You save my life with that "moborobo". Thank you very much.

Glad I could help!!!

Thanks went to both of u, quit important piece of knowledge.
One question; r u downloading "moborobo" on ur Android, on your pc or on both of them?

just on PC, not needed on the phone unless you want to go via WiFi

Harbb said:
If there is no serial number, you can't use adb while inside android and you'll need to tick the option or find an alternative way.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What do you mean by this?
My adb service doesn't detect my phone, I used Droidzone's tutorial. I believe usb debugging needs to be on for adb to work, which in my case is useless cause my screen is broken so can't turn on usb debugging.
This is what happens:
---------------------------
C:\>adb devices
List of devices attached
C:\>
---------------------------
---------- Post added at 11:31 PM ---------- Previous post was at 11:23 PM ----------
^when I say broken, I mean the whole screen is distorted, I cannot see anything

droidoidoid said:
What do you mean by this?
My adb service doesn't detect my phone, I used Droidzone's tutorial. I believe usb debugging needs to be on for adb to work, which in my case is useless cause my screen is broken so can't turn on usb debugging.
This is what happens:
---------------------------
C:\>adb devices
List of devices attached
C:\>
---------------------------
---------- Post added at 11:31 PM ---------- Previous post was at 11:23 PM ----------
^when I say broken, I mean the whole screen is distorted, I cannot see anything
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Reboot to recovery. Bam, working ADB. You can navigate there pretty easily. Pull battery, then re-insert. VOL + & PWR, two click on VOL -, PWR button once. You're in recovery now.

QtADB also can be used is this case
http://qtadb.wordpress.com/download/

paskalion said:
QtADB also can be used is this case
http://qtadb.wordpress.com/download/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No go on this either.
Downloaded QtADB, ran the .exe
Pointed to the folder with the aapt and adb binaries, program opened up
Phone's connected and on (I can hear texts coming through), hit refresh a few times, still not detecting

polobunny said:
Reboot to recovery. Bam, working ADB. You can navigate there pretty easily. Pull battery, then re-insert. VOL + & PWR, two click on VOL -, PWR button once. You're in recovery now.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's a little tough. I'm using a Galaxy S so I'm following instructions for that, but it's hard to know if I'm in recovery mode or not. Since adb doesn't detect the device, it's hard to know whether the phone went into recovery mode, or whether adb is setup correctly. It would be handy for a voice sample to play "recovery mode" once the phone boots into it.

droidoidoid said:
That's a little tough. I'm using a Galaxy S so I'm following instructions for that, but it's hard to know if I'm in recovery mode or not. Since adb doesn't detect the device, it's hard to know whether the phone went into recovery mode, or whether adb is setup correctly. It would be handy for a voice sample to play "recovery mode" once the phone boots into it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're in the wrong forum, then.
And whether or not adb is installed properly, you would know in your device manager under Windows. Appears as a device.

polobunny said:
You're in the wrong forum, then.
And whether or not adb is installed properly, you would know in your device manager under Windows. Appears as a device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok... Galaxy S i9000 stuff goes in the Galaxy S i9000 forum.... that's probably why my other post got deleted! :laugh:
As for adb... it appears as a process in task manager, so it's running - I know that much. It's not appearing as a device in device manager (why would it if it's a process? or are you referring to my phone appearing as a device?)
Only areas I can think of that aren't correct are the environment variable and the way I'm doing recovery mode. Since I can't see the screen, I don't know which one is causing the issue! :crying:

Samsung broken??
Contact this guy in Paris , he's very good and friendly!! he repairs my blue Galaxy S3 in front of me
Tel: 0950 850 500 Direct Technique
repare-galaxy com
don't hesitate to call them because i know their skills and it's very good!!
tell them that u call from Mike ciao guys!!

Problem!
Harbb said:
Code:
adb pull /sdcard .\sdcard
It looks a little confusing but don't stress. Just make sure you type it in exactly (dot, correct slash, etc). This will take a little while since it might transfer up to ~15GB worth. You'll see a new line with "C:\Nexus>" with a flashing cursor when it is done. Then you can view all the contents of your sdcard at C:\Nexus\sdcard and do with them as you please.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey, I got to this problem and I got stuck. I also have a Nexus S with a cracked screen. When I put in the final phrase into the command window it just told me that 0 filles were pulled! Why didnt it pull my files?
What I am trying to do is get all of my pictures and others off the phone.
Please help!

SkullMblem said:
Hey, I got to this problem and I got stuck. I also have a Nexus S with a cracked screen. When I put in the final phrase into the command window it just told me that 0 filles were pulled! Why didnt it pull my files?
What I am trying to do is get all of my pictures and others off the phone.
Please help!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This happened to me as well. You have to make sure that your phone has its sdcard folder mounted. Type "adb shell" to get access to the phones command terminal. Then type in "mount /sdcard" I think, or maybe it was "mount sdcard". Either way will probably work so long as you are in the root directory of the phone. You can navigate around in the phone just like a normal linux terminal. "ls" shows list of files and folders in the current directory, "cd foldername" moves into a folder, "cd ../" moves back, "cd /" goes to root directory, etc. Anyhow, once you have mounted the sdcard, you can type exit to leave the shell terminal, and then issue the command "adb pull /sdcard .\sdcard" to get the files. I had a custom rom image in the root of my sdcard so the move took quite a while ~15 minutes. On success of the pull command you should see a bunch of statuses like:
pull: sdcard/data/somefile -> .\sdcard/data/somefile
pull: sdcard/DCIM/somefile -> .\sdcard/DCIM/somefile
.
.
.
XXXX files pulled. 0 files skipped
(Some more transmission stats)
Hope it works out for who ever reads this.
Side note:
On my phone the screen was smashed. I replaced it and it still would not turn on, but it was still running. I had a rooted phone with CM10 rom on it. ADB debugging was one (if its off your pretty much screwed). I started up the phone, and plugged in the usb cable. I tried to use both adb and fastboot from windows terminal. "fastboot devices" would echo back nothing, and "adb devices" would echo back my phone's device number but state it was offline. So to get it online I did the following:
1.) pull batttery.
2.) boot into bootloader (hold power and volume up) the phone shouldn't vibrate if it does you have just normally powered it on. It took me quite a few times to get this to go into the bootloader. To make sure you get in the bootloader type "fastboot devices". If nothing comes up you not there.
3.) once verified you are in the bootloader you need to go into recover mode. Press volume down twice and then hit power (this would normally move the cursor on your phone down to recovery and select it if you could see whats happening on the screen).
4.) wait a bit for it to load into recovery, try typing "adb devices". You should eventually see you device show up as online. At this point you may enter the shell as above, mount the sdcard, exit the shell and pull your files.
Windows instuctions:
Prerequisites are installing adb.exe and fastboot.exe via installing the Android SDK on your computer. They will show up in the platform-tools folder of the install location. Add that folder to your environmental path variable so you can run the ADB and fastboot commands from any folder. Install the ADB driver for your phone (allows you to issue adb commands to your phone when USB is plugged in) by plugging in your phone and going to device manager, find your phone which should show up as a exclamation point, right click update driver, click "browse...", then "let me pick...", click top entry something like "show all", and then let the list populate. On the left look for "samsung" and then select the first one that is something like "samsung adb driver interface". And you should be good to go.
Sorry for the long winded post, I just like to try and explain as much as possible.

Successfully Recoverd data
Well My Samsung S2's Screen broke down few days ago.. Now i have retrieved the data by following the 2nd method in the following article..! I Hope this works for you aswell...
I can not Post the link here.. PM me if you want the link...!

Root Nvidia Shield clarification

Hi after reading through the post on GitHub on how to simply root your shield I have a few questions that the tutorial doesn't make clear:
1)There are a ton of files at the top and not sure what to do with them...
2) There is a bit where it explains "On your computer, navigate into the directory containing this file and enter the following command:
fastboot boot zImage_dtb ramfs.img.gz"
But it doesn't say that after you open the directory what you do with it?
Do you keep the window open and that's fine?
Do you type in it's location into command prompt before you type in: fastboot boot zImage_dtb ramfs.img.gz?
Just a bit confused as to what all the files are and where I put them and how they have to be utilised etc
Just need clarification for peace of mind
wanted to post the link but forum won't let me yet

Root explanation
Hi here is the main walkthrough from github but as I said there are a few plot holes for people who are new.
If your SHIELD is already unlocked, you can skip this section.
SHIELD ships with an unlockable bootloader. The bootloader is locked by default, which prevents anyone (including yourself) from booting custom OSes and changing system partitions to potentially obtain extra privileges. This is a significant security feature: in the event that your device gets stolen, an attacker will not be able to retrieve your personal data or use your device if your lock screen has a password set.
By unlocking the bootloader, you allow anyone with physical access to your SHIELD to boot custom images and flash system partitions. This opens the way for an attacker to access your personal information or physically damage your device. For this reason, unlocking the bootloader will erase all your personal data like a factory reset does (so a potential thief cannot get it) and will also void your warranty.
If you know you really, really want to take these risks, here is how you unlock SHIELD's bootloader.
Switch your SHIELD off (long press the NVIDIA logo button and select Power off).
Power your SHIELD on while maintaining the back and home buttons pressed (these are the two buttons that lie under the big NVIDIA-logo button, on its left and right). Release them once you see the bootloader screen.
Connect your SHIELD to your computer using a USB cable.
On your computer, enter the following command:
fastboot oem unlock
This will display the unlock menu. Read the disclaimer and think one last time about what you are doing. This is your last chance to stop.
Use the back and home buttons to select your option. If you decide to continue, select Unlock and press the NVIDIA-logo button to validate. Your personal data will be erased and your device marked as warranty-void permanently.
Regardless of your choice, you will be back to the bootloader screen. Using the same buttons, navigate to Poweroff and select this to power your SHIELD off.
Rooting SHIELD
Now your bootloader is unlocked, but you still don't have root access. For this, we need to install SuperSU, and we will do so by booting a custom Linux image that will do this for us.
Power your SHIELD on while maintaining the back and home buttons pressed (these are the two buttons that lie under the big NVIDIA-logo button, on its left and right). Release them once you see the bootloader screen.
Connect your SHIELD to your computer using a USB cable
On your computer, navigate into the directory containing this file and enter the following command:
fastboot boot zImage_dtb ramfs.img.gz
The kernel and ramdisk will be downloaded and started. You will see 4 penguins on your screen, and the message ROOTING SHIELD will appear. Shortly after, your device will reboot. Congratulations, you are rooted!
For some unknown reason USB debugging in Developer options might become unchecked after rooting. You will need to re-check it if you want to use ADB.
It is safe to perform the rooting operation as many times as you want (e.g. after an OTA). Your user data will not be erased by rooting itself, it is the act of unlocking the bootloader that does.
Is there anyone who can add a little to this to make it more simple for a noob like me?
I understand there is a file set that is at the top of the page and I downloaded the files which include zImage_dtb ramfs.img.gz
but don't know how to utilise them etc
There are no videos on youtube of how to do it and if anyone can add just a few more steps so that I know where I'm going with this (don't want to brick my system).
I just want controller support installed like Tincore or gamekeyboard so I can unlock the potential of the games library on GooglePlay.
Thanks for reading.

you copy those two files "zImage_dtb" & "ramfs.img.gz" to the same directory your adb and fastboot executeables are (same directory you issued the oem unlock command from)
then navigate to the same directory you did the oem unlock from via command line then issue the command "fastboot boot zImage_dtb ramfs.img.gz"
it's pretty simple but I can run you through a simple example of what I did
1)download android sdk
2)copy platform tools folder to a directory on c drive (exp c:\tools\ )
3)copy the 2 files above to the same folder along with cwm recovery(optional)
4)boot shield into fastboot mode (home+back+power)
5)navigate to the folder with adb, fastboot, and the above files in it.
Code:
cd c:\tools
6)detect if fastboot driver is installed with "fastboot devices" if result, then continue, if no result, then check if correct driver and check connection
7)issue oem unlock command and follow the onscreen prompts
Code:
fastboot oem unlock
8)restart device, after a full boot cycle(wipes data), power back into fastboot
9)issue the "rooting image" command, device with automatically reboot
Code:
fastboot boot zImage_dtb ramfs.img.gz
*10) optionally reboot back into fastboot and install cwm recovery
Code:
fastboot flash recovery recovery.img
pretty simple

thanks for fast reply.
Ok so I have Two different versions of Android SDK (32 bit and 64 bit) which one do I use?
"copy platform tools to a directory on C drive (exp C:\TOOLS\)"
What are platform tools?
"copy the two files above to the same folder along with cwm recovery"
What two files? do you mean the zImage_dtb and ramfs.img.gz? Do they go into the C:\TOOLS\ folder?
"navigate to the folder with adb, fastboot, and the above files in it"
What do you mean by navigate? Do you simply mean open the folder or do I use a program to do this?
"Detect if fastboot driver is installed with "fastboot devices" if result, then continue, if no result, then check if correct driver and check connection"
What's fastboot devices? What does result and no result mean? What does Check driver and check connection mean? how dod I do that?
I'm confused by all the lingo, what applications I should be using and when exactly do I start using command lines etc
Thanks for help so far been great but I need step by step instructions eg
open folder, copy and paste file1 and file 2 to this folder
open application X
click import file 1 and file 2
type XXXXXX\root\cdrive into command
press enter
see?
I do not know what some of the words mean and how to do some of the stuff the tutorial says. It's jargon and I have all these files, in all these folders with no idea how to do this from start to finish.
Appreciate the help so far but you are dealing with a novice. I know the work won't take long but I need all the relevant info, in one list, with consistent language to ensure I do everything as it should be done.
Bless you sir and...
Good luck

If your confused by my instructions you need to wait for a "one click" installer, sorry.

gogul1 said:
Ok so I have Two different versions of Android SDK (32 bit and 64 bit) which one do I use?
"copy platform tools to a directory on C drive (exp C:\TOOLS\)"
What are platform tools?
"copy the two files above to the same folder along with cwm recovery"
What two files? do you mean the zImage_dtb and ramfs.img.gz? Do they go into the C:\TOOLS\ folder?
"navigate to the folder with adb, fastboot, and the above files in it"
What do you mean by navigate? Do you simply mean open the folder or do I use a program to do this?
"Detect if fastboot driver is installed with "fastboot devices" if result, then continue, if no result, then check if correct driver and check connection"
What's fastboot devices? What does result and no result mean? What does Check driver and check connection mean? how dod I do that?
I'm confused by all the lingo, what applications I should be using and when exactly do I start using command lines etc
Thanks for help so far been great but I need step by step instructions eg
open folder, copy and paste file1 and file 2 to this folder
open application X
click import file 1 and file 2
type XXXXXX\root\cdrive into command
press enter
see?
I do not know what some of the words mean and how to do some of the stuff the tutorial says. It's jargon and I have all these files, in all these folders with no idea how to do this from start to finish.
Appreciate the help so far but you are dealing with a novice. I know the work won't take long but I need all the relevant info, in one list, with consistent language to ensure I do everything as it should be done.
Bless you sir and...
Good luck
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Step by step instructions like that would take quite a long time to write. Its basically assumed that navigate is a straight forward instruction, namely, open My Computer, click C:\, click something else, etc etc. 32 bit vs 64 bit, again, you should know what your computer is running and use the correct one respectively.
The reason they dont issue novice instructions is for 1 reason only. People who such as yourself claim to not understand the "jargon" are also those who are more likely to make a mistake when rooting. This can lead to a completely bricked device, ie one that will no longer turn on and load up android, totally dead device. As far as the manufacturer is concerned, a bricked device unless bricked by one of their own updates on a non rooted shield installed correctly, is not covered by warranty. This leads said novice to accuse the tutorial writer of having something wrong in the tutorial when in reality they have clicked the wrong thing etc.
Either way, end result: dead device.
Rooting is not aimed at the novice. It is aimed at the advanced user.

Thank you
I understand that and appreciate the explanation. I can work my laptop and I know that my laptop is 32bit or 64bit but it did not say at any point that it was referring to my computer. It just said download the 32 or 64 bit version. Well I have to make sure what they are talking about before I go and try to root my device as I like clarification on everything I do so that I get it right (and don't brick it). At the moment the explanations are all over the place, some info here, another bit there and was hoping somebody could link it all for me and make sense of the order in which I would do things. I have installed graphic cards in my laptop, put custom firmware on to ipods, psp's, computer etc but this is my first foray into android territory and would like to get it right. I am trying to follow a video tutorial but my computer's reaction to driver updates for the ADB/Fastboot drivers is telling me my drivers are up to date and I'm not getting the error message his is. This means I'm not sure where to go as the situation is diffferent s He is trying to get motochopper working for shield so it will root the device and hoped it would do the same for me.
Hopefully some clarification will come sooner rather than later but won't venture fourth until I'm absolutely sure of what needs to be done.
Again, thanks for the help it is appreciated.:laugh:

Sorry for being so abrupt, it wasn't my intension, you are trying to learn. I will not give a step by step which I feel would be the best, yet potentially more dangerous option for you though.
The parts written in the "code" blocks are what you copy and paste into the command line. When I say navigate I mean by changing directory via command line. You can copy files with a graphical file manager as it's quicker but navigate could also mean graphically.
Google search how to tell if you are running 32 or 64 bit windows, there are better guides and videos than I would be able to describe in a few lines. I was assuming you had already unlocked your bootloader as it is required before root, I covered it as point of reference only.
Platform tools is a folder in the SDK, if you install the SDK you will see that folder where you install it.
Fastboot is the utility also in the SDK that you run from command line that's in the code blocks I posted. If you run the command it will either give a result saying a device is detected or it won't show anything (no result) and you have an issue. If you have a driver issue then that's a whole other problem with a specific forum topic for, but I also assumed you unlocked your bootloader which would require you have fastboot and driver issue resolved.
Main cause of my snappiness is it says the requirement (first line of what you quoted) is unlocked bootloader and you are asking questions about rooting (step two after unlocking bootloader) didn't realize you were stuck in step 0, trying to figure out where to start.

gogul1 said:
I understand that and appreciate the explanation. I can work my laptop and I know that my laptop is 32bit or 64bit but it did not say at any point that it was referring to my computer. It just said download the 32 or 64 bit version. Well I have to make sure what they are talking about before I go and try to root my device as I like clarification on everything I do so that I get it right (and don't brick it). At the moment the explanations are all over the place, some info here, another bit there and was hoping somebody could link it all for me and make sense of the order in which I would do things. I have installed graphic cards in my laptop, put custom firmware on to ipods, psp's, computer etc but this is my first foray into android territory and would like to get it right. I am trying to follow a video tutorial but my computer's reaction to driver updates for the ADB/Fastboot drivers is telling me my drivers are up to date and I'm not getting the error message his is. This means I'm not sure where to go as the situation is diffferent s He is trying to get motochopper working for shield so it will root the device and hoped it would do the same for me.
Hopefully some clarification will come sooner rather than later but won't venture fourth until I'm absolutely sure of what needs to be done.
Again, thanks for the help it is appreciated.:laugh:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Download 64 bit software for 64 bit windows and 32 bit on 32 bit windows. Only notable exceptions are where a guide explicitly says to get 32 bit for some particular reason (in my case the only time I have come across this is MSI afterburners screen recording facilities only functioning on a 32 bit program for some reason, no 64 bit version) or if you are running 32 bit windows and physically cannot run 64 bit software even though a guide says "use 64 bit java etc etc".
rather interested in installing a graphics card in a laptop seeming as laptops use graphics cards that are soldered down to the motherboard not on a seperate removable card in all with very few (but existant) exceptions.... I think asus, dell and someone else did offer them at one point, its actually what the MXM connector was invented for (but its used for a few other things now instead).
Anyway. Its always good to have clarification. I think the post above me gives a few starting points and as always: google is your friend (so are bing and yahoo, but they are those friends where once you leave your job or school or whatever you probably wont ever see again).

boot achieved
I boot loaded the Shield through dab and boot loader.
Shield restarted once I chose to unlock the shield. I lost all my stuff (as expected) and it restarted. The drivers then reinstalled on my laptop.
I restarted my laptop and the shield again and tried to reinstall the drivers that were made for the ADB but sadly I get this message now...
"Windows has determined that your driver software is up to date MTP USB DEVICE"
So I restarted everything and the device is now showing up in the Andriod Device driver list.
I am using minimal adb and Fastboot application. It opens the command menu
I type in
adb reboot bootloader and I get the reply "error:device not found"
any ideas?
Sigh!

gogul1 said:
I boot loaded the Shield through dab and boot loader.
Shield restarted once I chose to unlock the shield. I lost all my stuff (as expected) and it restarted. The drivers then reinstalled on my laptop.
I restarted my laptop and the shield again and tried to reinstall the drivers that were made for the ADB but sadly I get this message now...
"Windows has determined that your driver software is up to date MTP USB DEVICE"
So the shield is now showing up in my computer manager under Portable Devices and not under the Android Devices like it did when I installed the custom drivers the first time.
Will this be an issue when I come to root?
Sigh!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
the MTP driver is for plugging the shield in and viewing the file system. If the device isn't under android devices in device manager then you may need to reinstall the ADB drivers or just double check that the ADB can see the device (it may).
Open a command prompt. type "cd [path to the android sdk]\platform-tools"
Then type "adb devices".
It should list all the android devices it can make a debug connection to. If the Shield is in that list your good, otherwise don't proceed any further until you can rectify that.
The other solution is that you dont need ADB drivers on a linux system for some reason. Don't ask why. I havent a clue. But that would necessitate installing linux.
And something that is useful for finding the adb on the command line again in future for windows. You don't want to "cd" into the correct folder every time (the command line equivalent of opening folders). Sometimes you just want to be able to open the command prompt, type "adb devices" and it to just work. That's doable by altering your system PATH variable.
Open my computer. Right click > Properties, should open the System window.
Left side there should be a button saying "Advanced system settings".
It will open the "System Properties" window to the "Advanced" tab (if it isnt on that tab just switch).
Bottom of the window should be a button saying "Environment Variables...". Click it.
Now the window that appears will be split in 2. User variables and System variables. There is a PATH entry in both, it is best that you only change 1. If you are the only user or you only want your user to be able to access the adb, you can change the User variable. Otherwise you can change the system variable for the adb to work on all users. For me I had to add python to my path once but I wanted to do this for all users so I changed the system one, the PSP SDK I installed however altered the User variable by default. Make your choice and find the variable "PATH" in either one.
Click Edit. A window will appear with Variable name and Variable Value. At this point what I recommend doing is copying the entire contents of value into a notepad file and saving them as a backup. Then cancel and go back into it.
Code:
C:\Program Files (x86)\Intel\iCLS Client\;C:\Program Files\Intel\iCLS Client\;%SystemRoot%\system32;%SystemRoot%;%SystemRoot%\System32\Wbem;%SYSTEMROOT%\System32\WindowsPowerShell\v1.0\;C:\Program Files (x86)\Windows Live\Shared;C:\Program Files (x86)\Intel\OpenCL SDK\2.0\bin\x86;C:\Program Files (x86)\Intel\OpenCL SDK\2.0\bin\x64;C:\Program Files\Intel\Intel(R) Management Engine Components\DAL;C:\Program Files\Intel\Intel(R) Management Engine Components\IPT;C:\Program Files (x86)\Intel\Intel(R) Management Engine Components\DAL;C:\Program Files (x86)\Intel\Intel(R) Management Engine Components\IPT;C:\Program Files (x86)\Lua\5.1;C:\Program Files (x86)\Lua\5.1\clibs;C:\Python27;c:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft SQL Server\100\Tools\Binn\;c:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server\100\Tools\Binn\;c:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server\100\DTS\Binn\
That is my Path variable.If you look the path variable is mostly a series of filepaths (or other variables too) which are seperated with ";". When you type a command such as "adb" into a command prompt what windows does is searches the current command prompt directory for a file it can execute which is called "adb" (it ignores extensions unless explicitly given one), if it doesnt find it in the current directory it searches each folder in the system path variable for the same executable (it ignores sub directories, it will only search the folders above on my system). So if we want to be able to type adb from any folder, we need the folder the adb is in to be added to the system path variable.
Simply add this to the end of it
Code:
;[whatever the path to the adb folder on your system is]
It will be whatever you had to add after "cd" to get to the adb earlier (must not leave out the C:\Users etc etc if its stored in your documents, cd will let you get away with ignoring that, the variable requires the FULL filepath).
Save the variable. Open a command prompt. Type adb, should work. If not, QUICKLY RESTORE THE BACKUP BEFORE WORKING OUT WHAT WENT WRONG. Should be safe with the broken variable to be fair, but you don't want to risk anything. If you dont think your going to use the adb often then simply dont bother updating the path variable rather than taking the (minimal) risk.
Wow my path variable is beginning to get a bit long now I only manually added python and lua to it. The rest will be the default entries and the SQL server stuff appears to be from installing visual studio. Yours probably wont match.

hehe you're going to hit me in a minute...
message deleted as I was being a moron....

ok I should be entirely clear as you guys are trying to help
ok I should be entirely clear as you guys are trying to help me so it's best i let you know what I have done up until this point.
Ok so I boot loader my shield.
I downloaded minimal ADB and Fastboot. I also downloaded the drivers you recommended in the forum.
I installed the drivers:
My shield showed up in the computer Manage list as a Portable device.
I chose to install the new drivers, it asked if I still wanted to go ahead as the drivers could not be verified and I said yes.
The drivers installed and the Shield changed from being in the portable list to showing up as an Android device.
Success I believe.
I then opened ADB BOOTLOADER and booted my Shield Manually.
I then typed in the relevant prompts in the command and a list of options showed up on the shield.
It showed my device number in the command prompt which was the one on my shield screen.
I then command the unlock function and the shield offered me the option to lock or unlock.
I chose Unlock and it then rebooted.
When it restarted, my computer reinstalled the device drivers and my shield had reset to factory settings (as it should).
I then looked in the Computer Manage list and my Shield had reverted back to being in the Portable Devices list.
I restarted both again and the Shield then showed up under Android Devices like it did when I installed the custom drivers the first time.
But the name of the device is Nvidia Shield - not Nvidia Shield ADB like in the tutorial video... not sure it that helps.
I enabled USB Debugging,
put the Superuser.apk and Su bin file into the minimal AADB and Bootloader folder.
I then put the Thor-insecure-boot.img in the Minimal ADB and Bootloader folder too.
I started up the command prompt from the minimal ADB and Bootloader.
I then saw this
C:\Program files <X86>\Minimal ADB and Fastboot>
I then typed in adb reboot boot loader and pressed enter
I got
error: device not found
So I decided to take the above advice and opened a command prompt
I typed in cd C:\tools\adt-bundle-windows-x86_64-20130729\sdk\platform-tools
and pressed enter:
It repeated what I typed and I then put in adb devices.
It then came back with:
List of Devices attached
but nothing was listed....
doh!

Progress!
Ok so I uninstalled my drivers to start again, plugged in the shield and it reinstalled my drivers and now under Android Devices it shows NVIDIA SHIELD ADB
Result!
Now I opened the dab cmd prompt
typed in
adb reboot fastboot
and it booted my shield! jolly good
But then I typed in
fastboot boot thor-insecure-boot.img
I then had
<waiting for device>
show up in the command window.
This is where it stayed.
On the screen of my shield I have options:
continue
restart bootloader
recovery mode
poweroff
Do I have to choose one of these in order for it to begin the thor img command?

C:\tools\adt-bundle-windows-x86_64-20130729\sdk\platform-tools Just incase you didnt get it earlier. That would be the path required for the variable change above. Just whack a ; on the end of the existing variable and throw that new path on the end and done.
But yes, adb devices not listing shield is not a good thing. Try reinstalling the ADB driver for the shield manually (you cant do it via device manager etc).

cool
I'm past that and now <waiting for device> problem to rectify. Am looking online now but there isn't much on there so far...
looking under device manager it shows up under Android Device as Nvidia Shield ADB but it also shows up under portable devices as SHIELD.
Whilst in boot mode the device only shows up in portable devices with a exclamation mark next to the device.
*UPDATE*
I uninstalled the portable device driver because I think it may have been causing confusion.
I then typed adb devices into CMD and a list of devices showed the serial number of the nvidia Shield.
I then typed in adb reboot bootloader in and it booted.
I then tried adb devices again and nothing showed up.
When I go into bootloader The Android Device: Nvidia Shield ADB driver disappears in manager once I go into bootloader mode. Is this normal?
Hmmmmmmm
definetly something to do with the drivers.
I'm on windows 7 64bit by the way.
Going back into device manager I noticed that there is another device under Other devices, upon looking at it it is Fastboot and has an exclamation mark in a yellow triangle next to it (Minimal dab and fast boot is open though).
Such a bummer as I'm so close yet so far

picture
ok so here is a pic of my devices list fastboot is there

before boot
This is the devices it can see before I put the shield in boot mode

devices seen after shielf in boot mode
the are the devices seen after I put the Shield in boot mode. It can't see any devices

waiting for devices
This is the screen on the shield in boot mode. The CMD screen says "Waiting for Devices"

Bricked Idol 3, need help recovering

I installed the OTA update last night and it's just looping through the "alcatel one touch" and "smart move" screens. It's been like that for hours.
I need assistance in getting into recovery mode, and hopefully getting my files off the device.
I have downloaded android-studio and am about to install it to get adb and fastboot, and have downloaded the drivers for the idol 3. At this point when it's plugged in, my computer doesn't recognize the device.

If you did not have usb debugging enabled BEFORE the boot loop installing adb and fastboot now won't do you any good. Are you still able to get into recovery and is it twrp or the factory recovery? Without a direct way to get the phone into bootloader regretfully the only solution is to send it in for warranty repair (or replacement via your credit card if you paid that way under purchase protection)
Are you trying to remove the data to prevent access by others or because you need the data? Did you make any backups to external sd or copied to the pc?

I as well am stuck in bootloop. Was able to get into factory recovery and reset phone several times. Still no luck. I have a TWRP backup, but how to I do a temporary boot into it? Only option available in factory recovery was to sideload via ADB, but no luck using fastboot commands there. Phoned Alcatel and they have referred me back to Amazon. Amazon only wants to refund me, won't exchange! Of course I bought at the pre-order price. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

wrench588 said:
I as well am stuck in bootloop. Was able to get into factory recovery and reset phone several times. Still no luck. I have a TWRP backup, but how to I do a temporary boot into it? Only option available in factory recovery was to sideload via ADB, but no luck using fastboot commands there. Phoned Alcatel and they have referred me back to Amazon. Amazon only wants to refund me, won't exchange! Of course I bought at the pre-order price. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The factory reset killed you....if you had usb debugging enabled prior and had not done a factory reset (which kills /data) you could have possibly gotten to an adb shell long enough to do an adb reboot bootloader. The problem is there's no way now to get you into bootloader....you can't get to it from recovery (factory).
If you purchased it by credit card you might see if their purchase protection (typically 60-90 days) allows a claim submission for a replacement....in this case they would cut you a check for the cost of a replacement after mailing in your old one. That's the only solution I see to remain at the $199 price.
You could also see if amazon will issue a $50 credit to your account in addition to return to allow for repurchase. Unlikely but possible.

Ok thanks for the input and advice. As a last ditch effort, is there a way to create or modify the twrp file as a "signed" zip file so that I could boot into it via stock recovery. This was how I rooted my old Galaxy S2, although it was a CWM recovery.

wrench588 said:
Ok thanks for the input and advice. As a last ditch effort, is there a way to create or modify the twrp file as a "signed" zip file so that I could boot into it via stock recovery. This was how I rooted my old Galaxy S2, although it was a CWM recovery.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nothing so far has worked in that regard...in fact I created a update.zip using "zipme" to replace the build.prop that another user says the factory recovery refused to process.
Without a full factory rom to pull needed info in or the source code to compile one we can't do some of the things which would "save" the device.

wrench588 said:
...Only option available in factory recovery was to sideload via ADB, but no luck using fastboot commands there.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Strange ... the stock recovery of 6039y has an option for reboot to the bootloader.

petrov.0 said:
Strange ... the stock recovery of 6039y has an option for reboot to the bootloader.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you post a screenshot where the option is? I'm not doubting your word but perhaps he's looking in the wrong place? I'm back on TWRP so can't look in the stock recovery myself.

famewolf said:
Can you post a screenshot where the option is? I'm not doubting your word but perhaps he's looking in the wrong place? I'm back on TWRP so can't look in the stock recovery myself.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is no option for screenshot while the phone is in the stock recovery. I need a camera to take a picture of the menu. I can do this later. The menu however looks like this:
Code:
reboot system now
apply update from ADB
apply update from sdcard
apply update from phone storage
wipe data/factory reset
wipe cache partition
reboot to bootloader
power down
view recovery log

petrov.0 said:
There is no option for screenshot while the phone is in the stock recovery. I need a camera to take a picture of the menu. I can do this later. The menu however looks like this:
Code:
reboot system now
apply update from ADB
apply update from sdcard
apply update from phone storage
wipe data/factory reset
wipe cache partition
reboot to bootloader
power down
view recovery log
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If it's right off the main page like that then I can confirm it's not on the 6045. It's been one of the main issues with folks bricking their devices...if their rom gets messed up and they have factory recovery they have no way to get into bootloader to do anything to repair the device. Seems alcatel needs to add the reboot to bootloader to our recovery. I wonder where we could report that.
Is there a way to "lock" recovery so the updates cannot replace twrp? TWRP allows adb access and reboot to bootloader.

famewolf said:
If it's right off the main page like that then I can confirm it's not on the 6045. It's been one of the main issues with folks bricking their devices...if their rom gets messed up and they have factory recovery they have no way to get into bootloader to do anything to repair the device. Seems alcatel needs to add the reboot to bootloader to our recovery. I wonder where we could report that.
Is there a way to "lock" recovery so the updates cannot replace twrp? TWRP allows adb access and reboot to bootloader.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is a snapshot from the recovery menu of 6039y.
The short answer of your question regarding the "lock" is ... no. If a longer explanation is needed ... this is from the update file, a link to which was provided by you:
Code:
if ! applypatch -c EMMC:/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/recovery:18393344:f9062580503eb61b315a5d12c5c6b3bb133aa4b2; then
....etc.
what it does is to check the sha1 sum of the recovery partition and if the sha1 sum doesn't match to f9062580503eb61b315a5d12c5c6b3bb133aa4b2 will continue with an overwriting of the recovery partition and then will apply a patch. It can't be changed because the whole update will fail.

yep no bootloader

I've got reboot to boatloader on main page from stock recovery on my 6045k
Sent from hell

famewolf said:
Is there a way to "lock" recovery so the updates cannot replace twrp? TWRP allows adb access and reboot to bootloader.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Back to the "lock" question. Probably it is possible the OTA update to be slightly modified and then to be flashed through the TWRP recovery (there is an option in TWRP to skip the signature verification ... the verification will fail if the zip file is modified). But I prefer to wait for the OTA update of the 6039y, as I want to perform some tests with the upgrade.

ractar28 said:
I installed the OTA update last night and it's just looping through the "alcatel one touch" and "smart move" screens. It's been like that for hours.
I need assistance in getting into recovery mode, and hopefully getting my files off the device.
I have downloaded android-studio and am about to install it to get adb and fastboot, and have downloaded the drivers for the idol 3. At this point when it's plugged in, my computer doesn't recognize the device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am in the same boat as OP re the state my Idol 3 (6045i) is currently in. I also unchecked superuser but did not unroot completely before installing the update. I have not yet done a data wipe through recovery though. Unfortunately, back when I rooted the phone I did NOT check the box telling the phone to remember the computer/RSA key for future use. As a result, now when the phone is stuck at the white/animated Alcatel boot logo I can see the phone under adb devices, but it shows as unauthorized.
One thing that did seem odd, was browsing through stock recovery when trying to browse to apply an update from either phone storage or the SD card, no files are showing up at all. All it is showing is the folder root ( /.. ) in both instances and nothing else. Even after I attempted loading several system update and twrp images (in .zip and .img formats) on the SD card from my computer, once loaded in the phone none of the files show up through stock recovery. Is this SD card not compatible/formatted wrong or is something else going on?
Is there any current method to gaining access to the phone via adb manupulating the adbkey files in the $User$/Home/.android folder? I do currently have the adbkey files on my Mac from connecting the phone previously. I'm assuming these files are uniquely generated hashes?
That is ridiculous if the 6045k has bootloader access from recovery and 6045i does not. What would be the reasoning for this?

Nikola Jovanovic said:
I've got reboot to boatloader on main page from stock recovery on my 6045k
Sent from hell
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Does the sha1 sum of your recovery happen to match f9062580503eb61b315a5d12c5c6b3bb133aa4b2 ? If so it could solve some issues but why do I suddenly think all 3 models have their own recovery?
---------- Post added at 08:47 AM ---------- Previous post was at 08:43 AM ----------
n3tnut said:
I am in the same boat as OP re the state my Idol 3 (6045i) is currently in. I also unchecked superuser but did not unroot completely before installing the update. I have not yet done a data wipe through recovery though. Unfortunately, back when I rooted the phone I did NOT check the box telling the phone to remember the computer/RSA key for future use. As a result, now when the phone is stuck at the white/animated Alcatel boot logo I can see the phone under adb devices, but it shows as unauthorized.
One thing that did seem odd, was browsing through stock recovery when trying to browse to apply an update from either phone storage or the SD card, no files are showing up at all. All it is showing is the folder root ( /.. ) in both instances and nothing else. Even after I attempted loading several system update and twrp images (in .zip and .img formats) on the SD card from my computer, once loaded in the phone none of the files show up through stock recovery. Is this SD card not compatible/formatted wrong or is something else going on?
Is there any current method to gaining access to the phone via adb manupulating the adbkey files in the $User$/Home/.android folder? I do currently have the adbkey files on my Mac from connecting the phone previously. I'm assuming these files are uniquely generated hashes?
That is ridiculous if the 6045k has bootloader access from recovery and 6045i does not. What would be the reasoning for this?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
adb reboot bootloader won't work even with it showing unauthorized? If you can get into bootloader you can fix /system without messing up your /data (don't wipe data or you lose adb entirely...you may figure out how to add the correct hash if we can find how it's generated)
Here's some info on the hashes you might find useful taken from: http://nelenkov.blogspot.com/2013/02/secure-usb-debugging-in-android-422.html
Secure ADB implementation
The ADB host authentication functionality is enabled by default when the ro.adb.secure system property is set to 1, and there is no way to disable it via the system settings interface (which is a good thing). The device is initially in the OFFLINE state and only goes into the ONLINE state once the host has authenticated. As you may already know, hosts use RSA keys in order to authenticate to the ADB daemon on the device. Authentication is typically a three step process:
After a host tries to connect, the device sends and AUTH message of type TOKEN that includes a 20 byte random value (read from /dev/urandom).
The host responds with a SIGNATURE packet that includes a SHA1withRSA signature of the random token with one of its private keys.
The device tries to verify the received signature, and if signature verification succeeds, it responds with a CONNECT message and goes into the ONLINE state. If verification fails, either because the signature value doesn't match or because there is no corresponding public key to verify with, the device sends another AUTH TOKEN with a new random value, so that the host can try authenticating again (slowing down if the number of failures goes over a certain threshold).
Signature verification typically fails the first time you connect the device to a new host because it doesn't yet have the host key. In that case the host sends its public key in an AUTH RSAPUBLICKEY message. The device takes the MD5 hash of that key and displays it in the 'Allow USB debugging' confirmation dialog. Since adbd is a native daemon, the key needs to be passed to the main Android OS. This is accomplished by simply writing the key to a local socket (aptly named, 'adbd'). When you enable ADB debugging from the developer settings screen, a thread that listens to the 'adbd' socket is started. When it receives a message starting with "PK" it treats it as a public key, parses it, calculates the MD5 hash and displays the confirmation dialog (an activity actually, part of the SystemUI package). If you tap 'OK', it sends a simple simple "OK" response and adbd uses the key to verify the authentication message (otherwise it just stays offline). In case you check the 'Always allow from this computer' checkbox, the public key is written to disk and automatically used for signature verification the next time you connect to the same host. The allow/deny debugging functionality, along with starting/stopping the adbd daemon, is exposed as public methods of the UsbDeviceManager system service.
We've described the ADB authentication protocol in some detail, but haven't said much about the actual keys used in the process. Those are 2048-bit RSA keys and are generated by the local ADB server. They are typically stored in $HOME/.android as adbkey and adbkey.pub. On Windows that usually translates to %USERPOFILE%\.android, but keys might end up in C:\Windows\System32\config\systemprofile\.android in some cases (see issue 49465). The default key directory can be overridden by setting the ANDROID_SDK_HOME environment variable. If the ADB_VENDOR_KEYS environment variable is set, the directory it points to is also searched for keys. If no keys are found in any of the above locations, a new key pair is generated and saved. On the device, keys are stored in the /data/misc/adb/adb_keys file, and new authorized keys are appended to the same file as you accept them. Read-only 'vendor keys' are stored in the /adb_keys file, but it doesn't seem to exist on current Nexus devices. The private key is in standard OpenSSL PEM format, while the public one consists of the Base 64 encoded key followed by a `[email protected]` user identifier, separated by space. The user identifier doesn't seem to be used at the moment and is only meaningful on Unix-based OS'es, on Windows it is always '[email protected]'.
While the USB debugging confirmation dialog helpfully displays a key fingerprint to let you verify you are connected to the expected host, the adb client doesn't have a handy command to print the fingerprint of the host key. You might think that there is little room for confusion: after all there is only one cable plugged to a single machine, but if you are running a couple of VMs, thing can get a little fuzzy. Here's one of way of displaying the host key's fingerprint in the same format the confirmation dialog uses (run in $HOME/.android or specify the full path to the public key file):
awk '{print $1}' < adbkey.pub|openssl base64 -A -d -a \
|openssl md5 -c|awk '{print $2}'|tr '[:lower:]' '[:upper:]'
We've reviewed how secure ADB debugging is implemented and have shown why it is needed, but just to show that all of this solves a real problem, we'll finish off with a screenshot of what a failed ADB attack against an 4.2.2 device from another Android device looks like:

famewolf said:
adb reboot bootloader won't work even with it showing unauthorized? If you can get into bootloader you can fix /system without messing up your /data (don't wipe data or you lose adb entirely...you may figure out how to add the correct hash if we can find how it's generated)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just tested using adb reboot bootloader again and this is the result: error: device unauthorized. Please check the confirmation dialog on your device.
Something else I tried was running fastboot commands in the narrow window that the phone initially boots (black screen with Android logo) but that didn't seem to work either. I tried:
fastboot reboot-bootloader
fastboot -i 0x1bbb reboot-bootloader
fastboot -i 0x1bbb devices
I noticed if you plug the phone into the computer via USB while the phone is off, it will briefly power on to the Android logo/black screen before flashing the battery status once and turning off. Is this an opportunity to send fastboot or adb commands to the phone?
I'll try messing with the adbkey stuff later when I have time to dig into it.

There is a tool from Alcatel (TCL) which can perform upgrades of the device from a Windows PC. You can try it if nothing else helps. There are two COM ports available under Windows when the device is powered off and the USB cable is connected to the phone. This tool use them to perform some checks on the device and probably will continue with an upgrade (it says that all of your data will be wiped after the upgrade etc. so there is a possibility to overwrite everything with a stock image) ... there are instructions how to work with it. The link is from the French support section of Alcatel. Despite that the program has support for 6039 and 6045 is not clear for which of their versions.

petrov.0 said:
There is a tool from Alcatel (TCL) which can perform upgrades of the device from a Windows PC. You can try it if nothing else helps. There are two COM ports available under Windows when the device is powered off and the USB cable is connected to the phone. This tool use them to perform some checks on the device and probably will continue with an upgrade (it says that all of your data will be wiped after the upgrade etc. so there is a possibility to overwrite everything with a stock image) ... there are instructions how to work with it. The link is from the French support section of Alcatel. Despite that the program has support for 6039 and 6045 is not clear for which of their versions.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The problem is we currently have no stock images in the format it requires to flash to restore the device. I would think those have to be available first?
---------- Post added at 02:56 AM ---------- Previous post was at 02:55 AM ----------
n3tnut said:
Just tested using adb reboot bootloader again and this is the result: error: device unauthorized. Please check the confirmation dialog on your device.
Something else I tried was running fastboot commands in the narrow window that the phone initially boots (black screen with Android logo) but that didn't seem to work either. I tried:
fastboot reboot-bootloader
fastboot -i 0x1bbb reboot-bootloader
fastboot -i 0x1bbb devices
I noticed if you plug the phone into the computer via USB while the phone is off, it will briefly power on to the Android logo/black screen before flashing the battery status once and turning off. Is this an opportunity to send fastboot or adb commands to the phone?
I'll try messing with the adbkey stuff later when I have time to dig into it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can't do fastboot commands until the phone is IN bootloader....so you'd have to do adb reboot bootloader
adb devices
etc....

famewolf said:
The problem is we currently have no stock images in the format it requires to flash to restore the device. I would think those have to be available first?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is possible the program to download these images from a server.
I found another interesting thing. The device has a download mode. It is activated when the phone is powered off and connected to a PC. You must wait the display to turn off after the charging battery symbol and then to press and hold both volume keys, after which to press and hold the power button (without releasing these for the volume). But still don't know what to do in this mode. No device is detected on my Linux box when the phone is in this state. Probably I should try in Windows.
Also when the Alcatel upgrade tool was trying to detect the phone I'm almost sure that one of the COM ports was
Qualcomm HS-USB Diagnostics 9006
there is a lot information for other devices how this can be used to unbrick your phone, so this is a some start. The images which the people flash through it are in raw format.

Pixel 6 Pro full backup to different phone

So I had a pixel 6 pro and unfortunately my wife got mad and threw it against the wall a few times, causing the frame to bend and entire back glass to shatter. The front LCD didn't break, but glue came apart and it separated from the frame.
I had all my 2fa accounts on there, as well as very valuable data that I need to recover.
The phone still powers on, but there's nothing visible on the screen. A local repair shop advised we start by replacing the screen and then work on transferring everything out.
I have a replacement pixel 4a and want to be prepared for when my phone comes back online.
What's the best way to backup my 6 pro and restore on the 4a?
I need everything copied as a whole image, and restored on the 4a. I want to be able to boot up my 4a, open my authenticator app, and have all my accounts listed there.
Someone please tell me this is possible, and if so, please post instructions.
Thank you in advance.

I doubt 1:1 image cloning is possible because encryption is hardware-backed and therefore device-unique. it's not even possible to restore backup on origin device after factory reset since android apps can use keystore in TEE.
side note: you could connect HDMI multiport usb-c otg adapter to TV and mouse so you have access to phone at least

aIecxs said:
I doubt 1:1 image cloning is possible because encryption is hardware-backed and therefore device-unique. it's not even possible to restore backup on origin device after factory reset since android apps can use keystore in TEE.
side note: you could connect HDMI multiport usb-c otg adapter to TV and mouse so you have access to phone at least
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The HDMI multiport didn't work. Nothing was displayed. I don't know if it's because my phone is badly damaged, or if the pixel 6 doesn't support HDMI out over USB C
I tried this one https://www.amazon.com/dp/B081VBSNRZ/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_i_5NF5RPBKZ97YW4KFW9AX
What are my other options?

the best option would be previously unlocked bootloader, so you can have full access. but you did not unlock bootloader so this is no option for you, because unlocking will factory reset device.
HDMI might require some setting or app installed on device. apps can installed remotely from PC google play with proper google play account. not sure how to start an app though, but guess app can autostart.
at least usb keyboard is working, you could try to navigate blind and enable usb-debugging, this would allow you to use scrcpy. maybe connect headphones or use talkback to get some kind of audio feedback.
of course both methods requires some information from another identical device and need to tested on fully functional pixel 6 pro before..

some (not) useful apps
https://forum.xda-developers.com/t/i-broke-my-screen-and-digitizer.4436261/#post-86791963
https://forum.xda-developers.com/t/broke-the-display-of-my-phone.4424413/#post-86676229
https://forum.xda-developers.com/t/...asily-manage-multiple-android-devices.2707556

Anyone else have suggestions?

AcuraKidd said:
Anyone else have suggestions?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is not a full backup, but it might help you interactively recover some items without replacing the broken screen. Also, assuming this is something you're still looking to solve...
If you have adb debugging enabled, you can try to use https://github.com/Genymobile/scrcpy to interact with your phone over USB from a computer.
If you do not have adb debugging enabled, you can try to enable it via Recovery Mode. The steps to enable Recovery Mode below are from https://www.tenorshare.com/android/how-to-enable-usb-debugging-on-android-with-black-screen.html (I have not tried these steps).
Less:
To enable ADB without a screen:
1. Download the ADB toolkit for your computer and extract its contents to a folder.
ADB toolkit can be found at https://developer.android.com/studio/releases/platform-tools
ADB requires you have USB debugging enabled on your phone.
Since your phone has a black screen, reboot your phone into recovery mode to accomplish this.
Press the Volume Down and Power buttons at the same time to enter recovery mode.
2. Connect your phone to your computer, open a Command Prompt window in the ADB folder, and type the following command.
adb devices
3. You should see your device listed there.
Run the following commands one by one.
adb shell
mount data
mount system
4. Use the following command to pull the persist.sys.usb.config file from your phone to the PC.
adb pull /data/property/persist.sys.usb.config C:\Users\[your-username]\Desktop\
5. Access the persist.sys.usb.config file on your computer with a text editor and edit it to mtp,adb.
6. Run the following command to send the file back to your device.
adb push "C:\Users\[your-username]\Desktop/persist.sys.usb.config" /data/property
7. Download the build.prop file from your phone by using this command.
adb pull /system/build.prop C:\Users\[your-username]\Desktop\
8. Launch the build.prop file in a text editor like NotePad++ on your computer, and add the following code to it.
persist.service.adb.enable=1
persist.service.debuggable=1
persist.sys.usb.config=mtp,adb
9. Save the file and transfer the file back to your device using this command.
adb push "C:\Users\[your-username]\Desktop/build.prop" /system/
10. Reboot your device using the following command.
adb reboot
11. You are all set. Your phone will boot up with USB debugging enabled.

Phone's screen partially working, need to activate USB Debug

Hello everyone,
my phone (Xiaomi MI 9T) has fallen in the water and now it's partially working.
I really need to recover some data from it, but any method I've found on the internet requires USB Debug active. The phone turns on but it works only as long as it stays on the lock screen or if I go to settings from the notification bar. If I unlock it, the launcher doesn't work (but I can still drag down the notification's bar) and after few seconds the phone reboots I'm also able to activate the toggle of the USB Debug but it looks like it doesn't stay active because if I go back and re-enter developer's section, USB Debug is OFF.
At this point I don't really know what to do. The phone enters fastboot and recovery mode, unfortunately everything is stock, so my possibilities are limited.
I haven't tried to change the screen, but I doubt that would solve the problem, since if I stay in those specific areas, it works fine.
Android version: 10
MIUI 12
Thank you

Dona2592 said:
Hello everyone,
my phone (Xiaomi MI 9T) has fallen in the water and now it's partially working.
I really need to recover some data from it, but any method I've found on the internet requires USB Debug active. The phone turns on but it works only as long as it stays on the lock screen or if I go to settings from the notification bar. If I unlock it, the launcher doesn't work (but I can still drag down the notification's bar) and after few seconds the phone reboots I'm also able to activate the toggle of the USB Debug but it looks like it doesn't stay active because if I go back and re-enter developer's section, USB Debug is OFF.
At this point I don't really know what to do. The phone enters fastboot and recovery mode, unfortunately everything is stock, so my possibilities are limited.
I haven't tried to change the screen, but I doubt that would solve the problem, since if I stay in those specific areas, it works fine.
Android version: 10
MIUI 12
Thank you
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Due to the security implications of remotely enabling USB Debugging, the only way to enable it is through Developer Options. You can try rebooting to recovery and clearing cache although I am doubtful as to how much that might help you. If your device took a swim, you're going to be looking at repair, which will most likely result in wiping your data.

V0latyle said:
Due to the security implications of remotely enabling USB Debugging, the only way to enable it is through Developer Options. You can try rebooting to recovery and clearing cache although I am doubtful as to how much that might help you. If your device took a swim, you're going to be looking at repair, which will most likely result in wiping your data.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you know if changing the screen could solve the problem? Or do you think there's a way to copy data 1:1 on another device (such as a used mi 9t I could buy)?

Dona2592 said:
Hello everyone,
my phone (Xiaomi MI 9T) has fallen in the water and now it's partially working.
I really need to recover some data from it, but any method I've found on the internet requires USB Debug active. The phone turns on but it works only as long as it stays on the lock screen or if I go to settings from the notification bar. If I unlock it, the launcher doesn't work (but I can still drag down the notification's bar) and after few seconds the phone reboots I'm also able to activate the toggle of the USB Debug but it looks like it doesn't stay active because if I go back and re-enter developer's section, USB Debug is OFF.
At this point I don't really know what to do. The phone enters fastboot and recovery mode, unfortunately everything is stock, so my possibilities are limited.
I haven't tried to change the screen, but I doubt that would solve the problem, since if I stay in those specific areas, it works fine.
Android version: 10
MIUI 12
Thank you
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How long ago was it dropped in water, have you allowed it thoroughly dry out? Can you open the body of the device to allow it to dry?

Droidriven said:
How long ago was it dropped in water, have you allowed it thoroughly dry out? Can you open the body of the device to allow it to dry?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It stayed in the water for few seconds, the bottom half of it. I shut it down and I let it dry for 2 days, after removing the battery. Anyway I brought it to a center that made a treatment for electronic contacts, an they said that it's needed to change the display first, then run some tests to see what else is wrong. The problem is that changing the screen costs 130€ and, in my opinion, won't solve the issue.

Dona2592 said:
It stayed in the water for few seconds, the bottom half of it. I shut it down and I let it dry for 2 days, after removing the battery. Anyway I brought it to a center that made a treatment for electronic contacts, an they said that it's needed to change the display first, then run some tests to see what else is wrong. The problem is that changing the screen costs 130€ and, in my opinion, won't solve the issue.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you find a stock update for your specific model number in the form ol stock update.zip that can be flashed in your stock recovery like a OTA update? If so, you might be able to extract the build.prop file from the update then open the build.prop file in a note editor and edit the file by adding or editing lines that enable USB debugging. Then save the file. Then remove everything from the update.zip except for the Meta-inf or "updater script" file/folder then place your modified build.prop file in the update.zip so that it is the only thing in the zip other than the Meta-inf/updater script. Then put it on external sdcard, insert it into your device and boot into stock recovery then choose the option that lets you install updates from sdcard and try flashing your modified update.zip file and reboot the device, if it works, it will enable USB debugging. The next obstacle is getting past your lock screen, which is pointless if the device reboots in seconds. If you can get it to stop rebooting, you might be able to use adb to unlock the lock screen by using adb commands that simulate the touch input required to unlock the screen. You'll have to do some searching to find out the "address" and order of each part of the screen that you need to simulate the touch input on the screen in the right order. It's a bit complicated for those that aren't familiar but it can be done if you do the research.
Or,you can try connecting a USB mouse to the device and see if it will let you open the lock screen.

Droidriven said:
Can you find a stock update for your specific model number in the form ol stock update.zip that can be flashed in your stock recovery like a OTA update? If so, you might be able to extract the build.prop file from the update then open the build.prop file in a note editor and edit the file by adding or editing lines that enable USB debugging. Then save the file. Then remove everything from the update.zip except for the Meta-inf or "updater script" file/folder then place your modified build.prop file in the update.zip so that it is the only thing in the zip other than the Meta-inf/updater script. Then put it on external sdcard, insert it into your device and boot into stock recovery then choose the option that lets you install updates from sdcard and try flashing your modified update.zip file and reboot the device, if it works, it will enable USB debugging. The next obstacle is getting past your lock screen, which is pointless if the device reboots in seconds. If you can get it to stop rebooting, you might be able to use adb to unlock the lock screen by using adb commands that simulate the touch input required to unlock the screen. You'll have to do some searching to find out the "address" and order of each part of the screen that you need to simulate the touch input on the screen in the right order. It's a bit complicated for those that aren't familiar but it can be done if you do the research.
Or,you can try connecting a USB mouse to the device and see if it will let you open the lock screen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Droidriven said:
Can you find a stock update for your specific model number in the form ol stock update.zip that can be flashed in your stock recovery like a OTA update? If so, you might be able to extract the build.prop file from the update then open the build.prop file in a note editor and edit the file by adding or editing lines that enable USB debugging. Then save the file. Then remove everything from the update.zip except for the Meta-inf or "updater script" file/folder then place your modified build.prop file in the update.zip so that it is the only thing in the zip other than the Meta-inf/updater script. Then put it on external sdcard, insert it into your device and boot into stock recovery then choose the option that lets you install updates from sdcard and try flashing your modified update.zip file and reboot the device, if it works, it will enable USB debugging. The next obstacle is getting past your lock screen, which is pointless if the device reboots in seconds. If you can get it to stop rebooting, you might be able to use adb to unlock the lock screen by using adb commands that simulate the touch input required to unlock the screen. You'll have to do some searching to find out the "address" and order of each part of the screen that you need to simulate the touch input on the screen in the right order. It's a bit complicated for those that aren't familiar but it can be done if you do the research.
Or,you can try connecting a USB mouse to the device and see if it will let you open the lock screen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The procedure looks good, I'd give it a try but is there any alternative to the SD card? Cause my phone has no SD slot available. Maybe an external usb card reader to plug into the phone?

Droidriven said:
Can you find a stock update for your specific model number in the form ol stock update.zip that can be flashed in your stock recovery like a OTA update? If so, you might be able to extract the build.prop file from the update then open the build.prop file in a note editor and edit the file by adding or editing lines that enable USB debugging. Then save the file. Then remove everything from the update.zip except for the Meta-inf or "updater script" file/folder then place your modified build.prop file in the update.zip so that it is the only thing in the zip other than the Meta-inf/updater script. Then put it on external sdcard, insert it into your device and boot into stock recovery then choose the option that lets you install updates from sdcard and try flashing your modified update.zip file and reboot the device, if it works, it will enable USB debugging. The next obstacle is getting past your lock screen, which is pointless if the device reboots in seconds. If you can get it to stop rebooting, you might be able to use adb to unlock the lock screen by using adb commands that simulate the touch input required to unlock the screen. You'll have to do some searching to find out the "address" and order of each part of the screen that you need to simulate the touch input on the screen in the right order. It's a bit complicated for those that aren't familiar but it can be done if you do the research.
Or,you can try connecting a USB mouse to the device and see if it will let you open the lock screen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Plus, I don't really get why the system fails right after the lockscreen, I'm actually able to enter the code and the phone unlocks but the launcher seems not working, while the notifications bar works fine, and after some seconds the phone reboots. How can the system work fine in some aspects and bad in others at the same time? Can it be some flash memory issue?

Dona2592 said:
The procedure looks good, I'd give it a try but is there any alternative to the SD card? Cause my phone has no SD slot available. Maybe an external usb card reader to plug into the phone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes USB should work in place of sdcard

Dona2592 said:
Plus, I don't really get why the system fails right after the lockscreen, I'm actually able to enter the code and the phone unlocks but the launcher seems not working, while the notifications bar works fine, and after some seconds the phone reboots. How can the system work fine in some aspects and bad in others at the same time? Can it be some flash memory issue?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That or kernel panic due to some other important hardware is damaged.
Maybe you can use a adb script to interrupt the running processes right after the device unlocks. Something to stop everything from loading beyond screen unlock. It might allow you to use adb to pull whatever you want from the device via adb pull commands.
Or, if there is a custom recovery for your device and if your bootloader is already unlocked(if it isn', don't unlock it, it will wipe your data), you can install the custom recovery and use it to create a backup of your data then extract your data from the backup.

Droidriven said:
That or kernel panic due to some other important hardware is damaged.
Maybe you can use a adb script to interrupt the running processes right after the device unlocks. Something to stop everything from loading beyond screen unlock. It might allow you to use adb to pull whatever you want from the device via adb pull commands.
Or, if there is a custom recovery for your device and if your bootloader is already unlocked(if it isn', don't unlock it, it will wipe your data), you can install the custom recovery and use it to create a backup of your data then extract your data from the backup.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unfortunately I still have the stock recovery. Plus USB debug is deactivated. What really boggles me is the fact that I can still enter settings and get to developer options, turn ON the toggle of USB debug, but it's like the phone doesn't save the setting, cause if I go back to the main setting screen and enter again developer options, USB debug is OFF. I mean, what the hell?

Having access to device's Stock Recovery you can try as shown below to enable ADB / USB Debug ging: yes you can run Android shell commands from within Android's Stock Recovery.
Unplug device's USB-connection , boot into recovery mode. Having successfully booted into recovery mode, connect device via USB-cable with computer - what switches the USB driver to ADB mode.
Now enable USB debugging via recovery:
Code:
adb shell
echo "persist.service.adb.enable=1" >> /system/build.prop
echo "persist.service.debuggable=1" >> /system/build.prop
echo "persist.sys.usb.config=adb,mtp" >> /system/build.prop"
reboot

Dona2592 said:
Unfortunately I still have the stock recovery. Plus USB debug is deactivated. What really boggles me is the fact that I can still enter settings and get to developer options, turn ON the toggle of USB debug, but it's like the phone doesn't save the setting, cause if I go back to the main setting screen and enter again developer options, USB debug is OFF. I mean, what the hell?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hardware damaged. You're going to have to repair the hardware or forget about retrieving your data, unless you can find a reputable shop that has the equipment and experience to pull your data directly from the chip itself.

xXx yYy said:
Having access to device's Stock Recovery you can try as shown below to enable ADB / USB Debug ging: yes you can run Android shell commands from within Android's Stock Recovery.
Unplug device's USB-connection , boot into recovery mode. Having successfully booted into recovery mode, connect device via USB-cable with computer - what switches the USB driver to ADB mode.
Now enable USB debugging via recovery:
Code:
adb shell
echo "persist.service.adb.enable=1" >> /system/build.prop
echo "persist.service.debuggable=1" >> /system/build.prop
echo "persist.sys.usb.config=adb,mtp" >> /system/build.prop"
reboot
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks mate, I'll give it a try for sure

Droidriven said:
Hardware damaged. You're going to have to repair the hardware or forget about retrieving your data, unless you can find a reputable shop that has the equipment and experience to pull your data directly from the chip itself.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok, but do you know what could be the damaged piece of hardware?

Dona2592 said:
Ok, but do you know what could be the damaged piece of hardware?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
NO

xXx yYy said:
Having access to device's Stock Recovery you can try as shown below to enable ADB / USB Debug ging: yes you can run Android shell commands from within Android's Stock Recovery.
Unplug device's USB-connection , boot into recovery mode. Having successfully booted into recovery mode, connect device via USB-cable with computer - what switches the USB driver to ADB mode.
Now enable USB debugging via recovery:
Code:
adb shell
echo "persist.service.adb.enable=1" >> /system/build.prop
echo "persist.service.debuggable=1" >> /system/build.prop
echo "persist.sys.usb.config=adb,mtp" >> /system/build.prop"
reboot
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That might work but I've never had any luck with adb in stock recovery, not on the devices that I've owned, at least.

Dona2592 said:
Hello everyone,
my phone (Xiaomi MI 9T) has fallen in the water and now it's partially working.
I really need to recover some data from it, but any method I've found on the internet requires USB Debug active. The phone turns on but it works only as long as it stays on the lock screen or if I go to settings from the notification bar. If I unlock it, the launcher doesn't work (but I can still drag down the notification's bar) and after few seconds the phone reboots I'm also able to activate the toggle of the USB Debug but it looks like it doesn't stay active because if I go back and re-enter developer's section, USB Debug is OFF.
At this point I don't really know what to do. The phone enters fastboot and recovery mode, unfortunately everything is stock, so my possibilities are limited.
I haven't tried to change the screen, but I doubt that would solve the problem, since if I stay in those specific areas, it works fine.
Android version: 10
MIUI 12
Thank you
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is your bootloader locked?

Droidriven said:
That might work but I've never had any luck with adb in stock recovery, not on the devices that I've owned, at least.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah in fact when I type "adb shell" it gives me error, but I can enter fastboot mode and the phone is seen. Unfortunately I can't do much from there

Arealhooman said:
Is your bootloader locked?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah. **** me, for once I kept everything stock and this happened . I've always rooted and customized my phones and nothing like this has ever happened.