[Q] HTC Desire A8181 - Need to restore to Factory Defaults - Desire Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

Hi all,
Firstly, I would like to say thanks to all of the devs providing such a wide array of optional extras, rooting, themes, ROM's etc.
Recently, I purchased HTC Desire from portagadgets - $455.00 AUD delivered/unlocked. I am VERY happy with the purchase! One VERY annoying thing that is preloaded on my phone is some muslim praying app called Al-Moazin, iQuran, Arabic keyboard. When I first started the phone the only languages available were English Arabic and some other. Thank god they've included at least one English! At first, I thought, ah well, I can live with this, but, it was very embarrassing when the phone started that praying app by itself at work (even that the phone was on vibrate only). Boy, was that stupid or what. Then I started having a look around and found this forum.
Now, I am one of the people that respects forum rules and have been forum member of Doom9 for almost 10 years
So far I have learned that in order for me to remove these apps, I will have to "root" my phone and /or reload ROM, right?
I use Linux MiNT 10 and Windows 7. I would prefer to use Linux, but if Windows is needed to perform any of the tasks, that would not be a problem.
Unrevoked seems to be the way to go as far as I can tell.
All I want to do is to restore the phone to factory defaults without "those" apps. I like the Sense UI and I would like to keep it default a for now. As soon as the 2.3 becomes available I will update.
Does that mean the I would need to "root" the phone or download RUU official for HTC Desire or what?
Here are the phone details:
Android Version:
2.2
Baseband Version:
32.49.00.U_5.11.05.27
Kernel Version:
2.6.32.15-gd96f2c0
htc-kernel and18-2 #1
Build Number:
2.32.466.1 CL283905 release-keys
Software Number:
2.32.466.1
Also, the market app was NOT preloaded on my phone as well, that's weird, right? I have tried to do factory reset, but that did not solve the problem at all.
I would VERY much appreciate if someone would point me out in the right direction so I can enjoy my newly purchased phone. Thanking you for your input in advance. Waiting for further instructions

Lulz, New age conversion much....
anyway enough with the racisim. Yeah easiest to just flash back to stock ROM. Im in the same boat as you except i only use linux, gotta send in warranty claim to telstra (telescum) and my phone is rooted with unr3voked with clockwork recovery mod.
L> for program i can flash a rom on ubuntu linux
Ps: Yeah there are tons of places to get the stock rom for australia brb ill get one now

Hi
I am in the same boat, but with a Desire S. Has all this crap I can not seem to remove so would like to reinstall the stock rom?
I come from a nokia user and it was as simple as using the nokia software updater to update the phone. Is HTC similar?

Check this thread for bringing phone to stock: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=880268
It's weird, though, can't you just uninstall the app ? Or just factory reset the phone from the menu.

thanks for the link, ill have a read
for me, the phone had additional apps installed & this was noted by the person I got it from. As this is my first smart phone I am cautious that there maybe something installed which should not be. eg steal my details etc
So would like to wipe and start again knowing its a clean install

Then definitely do the procedure which involves the installation of a stock ROM and probably it would be a good idea to format the SD card. Nothing fancy just reformat with the phone.

OK, after some further reading I have managed to root my HTC Desire, partitioned my SD card and running SuperDooperAwesomeROM v0.3. Unfortunately, as a "newbie" here, cannot post in the dev forum so here I am. Waiting for the latest v0.4 and changelog. SDAROM is something that I am very interested in or any other stock,clean GB with Sense, minimal customization and just needed apps. If anyone has any suggestions, feel free
No WiFi issues with SDAROM at all, but I had HTC sense crashing unexpectedly on couple of occasions. Also, the cam crashed 3 times as well. Phone just restarts by itself. Smooth operation, unfortunately not stable. Hope the next version will be a bit better.
Cheers,
Ivan K.

CyanogenMod7,,,, slick, stable, and no annoying "extracirricular" audios.
Glad you had no problems flashing; Usually... but a lot of folks here are very knowledgable...
The "random" audios you heard, were "come to prayer" audios. Undoubtedly synced with your time zone.

Related

[Solved] New questions about Android

Everything is working nice for me now, except for missing ÆØÅ, but I guess Ill get used to it.
The os is a bit slow, but meh.
So my I have found answers to my questions, but below are the original ones.
New questions:
Hello again!
Thanks for the information. Big thanks to this wonderful forum, because I can run Android on my phone!
But as I have tested it I have some questions:
1. The wifi is really slow. It feels like I am using Internet through the SIM card, but I am indeed not. (I took out the SIM card to test). And there isn't any problem with our Internet, because it is fast and good on everything else.
Downloaded some older files and the WiFi is working much better now!
2. I got some problems with vertical lines, but after readings some FAQs I found out about a setting. It has worked overnight, but is it permanent?
This problem is solved, haven't experienced any vertical lines after boot fix.
3. I'm not sure if GPS is working, because it take ages to start. Just says loading... loading... etc.
GPS is working, but slow.
4. Since I am from Norway it seems like I have custom physical keyboard. (with ÆØÅ) And because of that all the FN keys are messed up, well except for numbers.But as I read somewhere the default mapping for Tytn II should be FN + Q = @
And that is how my keyboard look now. But it should be FN + Q = ? according to the text on the keyboard and how it worked in WM.
And is there any way to do the same for the Android keyboard?
Anything I can edit without too much hazzle to fix this? Cause its a pain to write texts without the Norwegian letters.
I found a custom kernel and it is working nice (I have asked for a custom build of it so I can have ÆØÅ too, but mapping is good)
Besides that I am SO happy with it! I just love the menus and how its so easy to touch compared to WM.
Original questions:
Code:
Okey, first of all.. this is probably a newbie question and I might have found my answer if I searched for a while.
But as both you and me know, it would've taken me much more time to search and read a bunch of threads than it would be to just simply ask the question.
I am a newbie at the whole ROM and radio business on phones. To be honest I just found out yesterday that it was even possible.
As you might have guessed I want to run Android on my phone. Im going to run it from the microSD card etc.
Well there werent really any problems to download the Android files together with Haret and then put them on the sd card. (If I wasnt able to do that I wouldnt bother.)
The problem is that when trying to run Android from within WM (6.1) it just freezes at full bar with the text "Go Go Go". The whole phone is just frozen and I have to restart it.
Well as I read on the troublehooting guide on "androidonhtc.com" I have to update my radio which then leads me to this website.
Fine so far. The problem is that I do not really want to mess with the phone itself. First I want to know how I can "backup" the radio so if I mess up something while flashing I can easily go back.
Second of all Im not really sure which radio which works with which rom.
I am running the original rom which came with the phone and I do not really want to mess up anything.
Here are the infos I got from the phone:
Rom version: 3.29.409.0 NOR (Yeah, Im from Norway)
Rom date: 05/05/08
Radio version: 1.65.16.25
Protocol version: 25.83.40.02H
The phone is HTC Tytn II running Windows Mobile 6.1
The guide on androidonhtc said that I needed "1.65.24.xx or 1.71.xx.xx"
Can I then use a 1.71.xx even though I have a 1.65.16.25 now?
tl;dr:
I want to know which radio I can use for the phone with the specs above.
The recommended radio for most android builds is 1.71.xx, however it will still run on older radios, but may experience some audio, wifi, bt, gps, and possibly other issues.
If you intend to run from SD card, then this may not be much more than an annoyance, since you can reboot to Winmo at any time, and as a newcomer to android this would have been my advice anyway.
To upgrade the radio is a simple step usually, provided your device is prepared properly.
A prepared device means that is ready and able to be flashed, and this requires HardSPL, ( basically an unlocked bootloader that allows you to flash roms/radios/ splash screens etc).
I recommend reading through the guides and tutorials sticky in the 'main' rom forum: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=533976
This should give you an understanding of what might be involved in starting to flash your device, and should answer many of your questions about radios, flashing, unlocking, roms and other things you may need to know about before proceeding.
Good luck, and remember, I was once as new as you, and that thread was where I learned all I know about my devices
So if I update to 1.71.09.01 while still using the original ROM, I wont get any big problems?
Or do I have to upgrade the ROM too?
You see.. this stuff is confusing to me. I consider myself a PC geek, but I suck at phones.
The instructions are pretty easy to follow, but its not so easy to know if I'm able to revert the stuff I'm doing.
I want to do as little "damage" to the phone as possible.
Is it necessary to backup the radio which is on the phone now, or do I have to find another radio from here and flash it on?
And one last question. Is there any difference between the original radio on the phone and the radios I'm downloading from here?
cXhristian said:
So if I update to 1.71.09.01 while still using the original ROM, I wont get any big problems?
Or do I have to upgrade the ROM too?
You see.. this stuff is confusing to me. I consider myself a PC geek, but I suck at phones.
The instructions are pretty easy to follow, but its not so easy to know if I'm able to revert the stuff I'm doing.
I want to do as little "damage" to the phone as possible.
Is it necessary to backup the radio which is on the phone now, or do I have to find another radio from here and flash it on?
And one last question. Is there any difference between the original radio on the phone and the radios I'm downloading from here?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You don't need to upgrade the ROM. All you need to do is install hardSPL, then install the radio. If you install hardSPL properly, your phone will be almost impossible to brick. It's really the first thing any person should do to their phone when beginning to do modifications. You can't "back up" your radio, but all available radio versions, including the one you currently have, are available HERE. So if you ever want to go back to your original radio, it will always be there. I honestly don't know the difference between the radios, I just know that certain versions are recommended depending on what ROM you are using, for the best signal and least bugs with wifi and bluetooth, as zenity previously mentioned. Hope this helps you some, good luck!
Thanks, thats what I wanted to hear.
The reason why I want to try out other mobile OS and ROMs is that I hate how the menus are so frigging tiny on the WM 6.1
If I'm trying to do stuff fast I always click the wrong button.. And yeah I have lost my stylus.
Anyway, thanks for all the help. After getting some answers and reading some threads I feel ready to update the radio.
cXhristian said:
And one last question. Is there any difference between the original radio on the phone and the radios I'm downloading from here?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Basically the higher the radio version number, the newer the radio software, as our devices aged, HTC brought out a number of software updates.
Our network carriers usually have custom ROM's which have a 'matched' radio for best operation, however even these 'matched' radios had small bugs, which were patched by releasing newer radio versions, of which 1.71.xx was the lastest and last official HTC radio for the Kaiser series.
There are also radios from other devices which work with our kaisers, but these are not recommended unless you have a particular need for one of those.
As far as the ability to 'undo' any modifications you make is concerned, it can all be reversed and your device put back the way it was relatively easily, instructions for this are best found on the wiki pages for the kaiser, along with a load of other information about radios, roms, flashing etc.
But unless the reason for not messing with your kaiser is in case you have warranty concerns, then pretty much everything is 'safe' to do, ( there is ALWAYS a risk of a bad flash, or unforseen power cut, but even these are recoverable in all but the most extreme circumstances).
Finally, take everything one step at a time, don't be tempted to rush in and try everything at once, you will make mistakes, you will also learn how to fix them.
As with everything else, remember to backup anything you really cannot afford to lose, get a 128Mb SD card with an HTC ROM on it, and don't panic
Hello again!
Thanks for the information. Big thanks to this wonderful forum, because I can run Android on my phone!
But as I have tested it I have some questions:
1. The wifi is really slow. It feels like I am using Internet through the SIM card, but I am indeed not. (I took out the SIM card to test). And there isn't any problem with our Internet, because it is fast and good on everything else.
2. I got some problems with vertical lines, but after readings some FAQs I found out about a setting. It has worked overnight, but is it permanent?
3. I'm not sure if GPS is working, because it take ages to start. Just says loading... loading... etc.
4. Since I am from Norway it seems like I have custom physical keyboard. (with ÆØÅ) And because of that all the FN keys are messed up, well except for numbers.But as I read somewhere the default mapping for Tytn II should be FN + Q = @
And that is how my keyboard look now. But it should be FN + Q = ? according to the text on the keyboard and how it worked in WM.
And is there any way to do the same for the Android keyboard?
Anything I can edit without too much hazzle to fix this? Cause its a pain to write texts without the Norwegian letters.
Besides that I am SO happy with it! I just love the menus and how its so easy to touch compared to WM.
I'm having the exact reverse, m FN + Q is ?.
If i remember, fn+q='?' means you are using a tilt keymap on a non tilt keyboard, if you are running from nand, try a non-tilt nbh, if you are running from SD theres a setting in default.txt. ( board-kaiser-keypad.atttilt=1 ) if it's set to 1 change it to 0
No, on the nbh i'm using, the tilt keypad layout is set to 0. But I'm back on ext2 now so it isnt a problem anymore.

[Q] Thanks and quick help on recovery pls.

Hi,
I have a HTC Desire and just after I got it I managed to muddle through unbranding it to get rid of the Vodafone addons. At the same time I managed to root it.
I recently decided to take the jump and try some of the non stock ROMs as that's one of the reasons I went for Android.
I have to say there are some great tools out there and my sincere thanks to the developers, namely:
o AlphaRev
o ClockworkMod
o ROM Manager
o unrevoked
Wow nandroid is a real bare metal restore that works ))
When I decided to take the plunge I went through the recommended approach detailed elsewhere in this forum.
I've so far tried LeeDroid, Oxygen & Defrost.
I now have a slight problem that seems (perception) to be getting worse.
In summary, if I reboot into recovery (either power/back or ROM Manager) it sometimes works and more often now doesn't work. When it fails it just hangs at the AlphaRev screen, just a boot screen I guess. When it hangs it never recovers, battery out and try again, again, again .... then it'll work.
Does anyone have any thoughts on this boot into recovery issue ?
Colin
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
HTC Desire
AlphaRev S-OFF
Radio 32.49.00.32U_5.11.05.27
ROM currently Defrost (still trying the various flavours)
This is the issue, people get a brand new shiny phone and the first thing they do - as opposed to actually USING the thing - is find as many ways to bodge it as possible...
People need to actually read everything, take some time to absorb it and then read it again. Then use the phone as chances are unless they're a real app whore they'll never need to worry about internal space...
I've no idea why you're having issues but I assume you don't have a copy of the RUU your Desire originally came with so should you need to return to stock you can?? this is the first thing anyone should do before undertaking any type of customising and would save a lot of headaches
Hmm,
Not quite valid. I've had the phone for a few months now. I originally wanted to get rid of the Vodafone crap as that's caused me issues in the past with other phones, albeit not Android based. At the same time I wanted to go to Froyo which was on the never/never from Vodafone at the time. Again upgrading phones in the past has caused more issues when it's been used for a while.
I work in the IT sector and have dual boot on my laptop (XP & Ubuntu) as they do different things in different environments, so I'm used different look/feel/behaviour. I wanted to try some of the non HTC Sense ROMs, a couple of things bugged me a bit and after all you can try in the Android environment. That after all is the beauty of an Open System as opposed to a closed environment, e.g. Nokia Symbian, M$ Windows.
My only issue I have at the moment seems to be the tempremental behaviour of getting into recovery.
BTW I have a copy of the stock ROM but have no intention of ever going back to a Vodafone branded pre-froyo Android environment.
When I rooted, installed S-OFF, ClockworkMd, ..... I fully accepted the risks and knew that if I bricked the phone, it'd be my fault.
Regards
Colin
how bout reflashing recovery?
gol_n_dal said:
Hmm,
Not quite valid. I've had the phone for a few months now. I originally wanted to get rid of the Vodafone crap as that's caused me issues in the past with other phones, albeit not Android based. At the same time I wanted to go to Froyo which was on the never/never from Vodafone at the time. Again upgrading phones in the past has caused more issues when it's been used for a while.
I work in the IT sector and have dual boot on my laptop (XP & Ubuntu) as they do different things in different environments, so I'm used different look/feel/behaviour. I wanted to try some of the non HTC Sense ROMs, a couple of things bugged me a bit and after all you can try in the Android environment. That after all is the beauty of an Open System as opposed to a closed environment, e.g. Nokia Symbian, M$ Windows.
My only issue I have at the moment seems to be the tempremental behaviour of getting into recovery.
BTW I have a copy of the stock ROM but have no intention of ever going back to a Vodafone branded pre-froyo Android environment.
When I rooted, installed S-OFF, ClockworkMd, ..... I fully accepted the risks and knew that if I bricked the phone, it'd be my fault.
Regards
Colin
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I didn't mean it as a flame btw, just that so many people come on here and blindly follow everyone else without actually realising what they're doing
>> I didn't mean it as a flame btw, just that so many people come on here and blindly follow everyone else without actually realising what they're doing
NP,
I get it all the time having to "help" people who tried things on their Home PCs or TVs, BluRay, HDMI inerconnect, ..... Shops offer bloody useless help to them. ;-)))
>> how bout reflashing recovery?
Yes, I've tried reflashing ClockworkMod through ROM Manager, it's currently 2.5.0.7 confirm by ROM manager and when it finally gets into recovery.
It just seems an intemittent issue that only arises when I want to do a Nandroid backup or "play" with the ROMs / Radio etc. The only solution I have is to remove the battery, count to 3 and re-insert it. Then try again.
It's not a show stopper just a real pain, especially when installing a new ROM/Radio when it's supposed to reboot. It's a case of how long do I leave it and hope it recovers to sod it, battery out and pray it's not bricked as a result.
Regards
Colin

How to hack / modify Desire Kernels???

Hi all!
I have spent over half an hour searching but to no avail so thought I'd ask here, how are the kernels hacked or modified?
When it comes to the real tech stuff I'm a bit lost, and to be honest before I stumbled across this site I knew nothing about making custom ROMS, but thanks to all of you out there, you have taught me loads without me asking much, so its here I need to ask!
Thanks in advance for your time & replies,
Arty.
just search the web for "linux kernel" the android kernel is a linux one.
when you know a bit about linux kernel you can add kernel mods to it, as in android.
you just need to download the source of the kernel modify it and compile it than.
hope this helped a bit
ps.: and if you dont have the source you have to be a tech/kernel genius like -snq
Thanks for your reply there crendot!
I was afraid I'd have to know about Linux stuff, which to be quite honest I dont!
I have messed about with a Ubuntu Virtual Machine in the past (when I first read how to root the Desire) but I find it too difficult to understand, I'm much more at home with the old DOS commands personally!
Only reason I ask is that my fone is playing up and has overheating / reboot loop issues with anything greater than Android 2.2 (since it came back from repair when I dropped it & cracked the screen completely) and so far I am stuck with my own slightly customed Rooted 2.2 with standard features (no 4-in-1 menu, no wake & unlock on trackpad and the DSP manager wont work) also, I have not yet tested it, but I know only a few kernels will let me send & recieve MMS, the previous build was a lightly customed LeeDrOiD_V3.0.8.2_GB_A2SD ROM, but alas kept bootlooping after it became warm and I found I couldnt do much with it :-(
I am hoping to get a shiney new Sensation soon, but until then I wanted to know how to modify the kernel to add / remove stuff!
Is there an easy way to take a kernel file & be able to 'read' it so I could copy the stuff I need into the stock kernel at all, or is that my wishfull thinking again?
Thanks again & sorry about the long reply!
Arty.
to understand what a kernel for the desire is, u can download the stock one on the htcdev.com site http://htcdev.com/devcenter/downloads
for example u can download the latest for our desire: "HTC Bravo – GB MR – 2.6.35 kernel source code"
that is the source code..u will see there are thousands of .c files...is not easy at all modify the kernel..it requires strong skills on linux and C language
about the send sms and mms, that is related to the rom and ur apn settings i think..not to the kernel..the kernel handle very low level actions..
maybe u would like to make custom roms..this is a bit much easy if u just cook it for example with the android kitchen (search for it)..the rom contain the kernel and the operating system and some apps
so lets check the facts!
did the phone overheat when it came back from repair (with stock rom)?
or have you flashed the new rom instant?
i would say you save all your stuff and do a nandroid backup.
than you follow this instructions to flash the rooted stock 2.2 rom and the radio
if the problem is still there i would say its a hardware problem, if not you can try other roms as long as no problems occure
dont play around with kernels, you dont have to, the stable kernels are in the roms
if they arent stable for you its not the kernels fault
i guess something messed up while you flashed something...
ps.: if you have absolutly no linux skills and so on, i would say you read into that before playing around with your mobile ^^
andQlimax:
Thanks for your reply also!
I know the APN settings for the mobile data & the MMS as I have written them down, the strange thing is I rooted my fiancee's Desire with the same ROM I was using at the time & she couldnt send or recieve MMS either (I'm O2 and she on Orange, both contract) and I have only found a few custom ROMs that allow the sending & recieving of MMS messages.
Also, I can make custom ROM's, I use Android Kitchen for most of the stuff (such as de-odexing, adding root, bash, busy box etc) but I find mostly when I bake the ROM using the kitchen I have errors on install, so I just prefer to use the kitchen for adding the needed stuff, then I'll just use windows to add / remove apps, boot animations & the audio files I want and just zip it myself & flash which has a higher success rate if I'm honest!
crendot:
so lets check the facts!
Q: did the phone overheat when it came back from repair (with stock rom)?
A: No, I didnt have stock ROM on, I still had either LeeDroid HD or a HD InsertCoin ROM, which when I got the phone back I did a nandroid restore (I make them quite regular & copy them to my PC for extra piece of mind!)
Q: or have you flashed the new rom instant?
A: I also have installed an untouched ROM(untouched by me) a day or so after as the nandroid backup wasnt the version I wanted, I was due to be on holiday to Blackpool for a week, so I flashed the LeeDrOiD_V3.0.8.2_GB_A2SD ROM on both my desire & my fiancee's desire, hers was stable, mine I couldnt have the screen on for long before it got too hot (managed about 5 picture captures before I had to turn screen off for a while or it got too hot) then thing is, my fiancees gets got too, mine is the metal holders for the memory & sim cards, i either have to place something cold on them like a glass or even hold a fan to it for a few minutes until it cools down again!
Q:i would say you save all your stuff and do a nandroid backup.
than you follow this instructions to flash the rooted stock 2.2 rom and the radio
A:My current ROM is the standard one after downgrading HBOOT & using Unrevoked, but I used the phone's update feature to update everything to 2.2, then I rooted it and all works fine, BUT, if I add any modifications, like circle battery it is too much for the phone & gets too hot & power cycles, it gets to the boot anim then automatically reboots again, it can do this for about half hour before it works again, but I mostly just pull the battery & put something cold on the affected area! Yesterday I put my fone in the freezer for 10 mins, but using even the most basic customisation was getting hot again so I reverted back.
Q:if the problem is still there i would say its a hardware problem, if not you can try other roms as long as no problems occure
I have tried a number of other ROM's, but I think I will just stick with what I know works for now!
Q:dont play around with kernels, you dont have to, the stable kernels are in the roms if they arent stable for you its not the kernels fault
A: thanks for that, think I'll leave them alone for now lol!
Q: i guess something messed up while you flashed something...
A: Nothing went wrong with the flashing, as Ive done it so much in the past year or so I know what its sucessfull or not!
Q: ps.: if you have absolutly no linux skills and so on, i would say you read into that before playing around with your mobile ^^
A:Thanks!
I really dont know what the cowboys done with my fone, but they have totally screwed it up, the microphone dont work and I have to almost eat the damn thing n shout, even then sometimes nobody can hear me! The WiFi signal is horrendous since it came back, can only get a full signal if I sit on top of the router, so using the WiFI out of the room is now out of the question! I also noticed they had cut off or pulled off something that I am convinced is the WiFi aerial, it sits just under the flash, a black tab it looks like, they insist they didnt do it, I KNOW otherwise!
When I first saw the phone, the back cover wouldnt fit on & it looked like they hadnt installed everything right, so they had it back as also the in-call speaker didnt work either, there are still outstanding problems, but as I have left it so long (main shop in Glasgow, me in Paisley with no way of getting there myself) I doubt they will do anything about it, i am SOO angry there isnt a swear word I dont shout every time the bloody fone hets hot & power cycles!
Again thanks for all your replies & sorry for the essay lol!
Arty.
hi, ok it really sounds like they have messed up your little desire!
first of all i want to apologize i thought you dont have a clue about anything ^^
so i would suggest you try to flash a new radio maybe the 32.56.00.32U_5.17.05.23 helps, if you have it on your mobile reflash it just to be sure(if you have a different hboot, you have to do it with fastboot)
if this didnt help, i would say you try to flash the RUU
and when that fails i would start yelling at the customer support
wish you the best
ps.: i just started thinking if it is maybe the battery, change it with a/the other one

[Q] Advice on Installing a New ROM

So, I have been rooted for ages.
I liked rooting because it was simple to follow the instructions on what to do (it was just like installing any old application on a PC if I remember). I haven't exactly explored the full features of rooting as I am just an average user but now I am finding I want more apps than the phone will allow, so it's time to get a new ROM.
Here's Some Information:
HTC Desire - Unbranded (UK)
Rooted with Clockwork Mod
S-Off Status: Don't know
Android: 2.2
Software: 2.29.405.5
Why Do I Want to Get a New ROM?
Space issues really.
I am nearly constantly warned these days about low space. I've been running with about 30Mb to spare, but now when I update various apps, it moans at me. It also means I am limited to what I can now install, even though I may only use the app once every few months.
My battery life is good (well, 2-3 days) and everything else is fine, it's just the space issue that I need to solve.
What ROM's Have I Looked At?
Starburst:
Seems to be to be the one I need, although I perhaps am being narrow minded with the whole "I want sense" and "I need the DATA2SD" thing.
CyanogenMod:
Seems nice, but no Sense? Maybe I can pull away from Sense as really I only use the clock/weather, the larger weather, calendar, a little bit FriendStream, but I am happy without FriendStream and HTC Peep I could install by itself or go without it (I can just text Twitter). There are many calendar apps and again, it might be possible to install it as a stand alone app, or I might find one that is simply better.
Someone else suggested LeeDroid which I've heard a lot about too, although I haven't really looked into it.
So, I have a few questions now:
Should I be looking to upgrade to Gingerbread?
Is Sense 3.5 a good way to go?
Is there a ROM that has the DATA2SD with Sense 3.5?
I have read that Titanium Backup will allow me to save all the apps and their data/saved games somewhere and then it's just a one-touch-install to have them all back again, is that correct?
Will some ROM's allow me to delete/choose not to install things like Teeter?
If I install a new ROM, I can put it back to a standard stock ROM correct? Just so when I come to sell the phone on, it's back to what it was.
When I've installed a custom ROM, I can still use the Market/App Brain to update apps correct?
I think that's it.
I don't really want to be installing one ROM, then deciding it's rubbish so installing another, then another, I'd just like an informed view. I think my main aim is ease of install. I'm not very confident with adb, although I can obviously follow "type this and that" step by step guides.
If anyone has any other suggestions then that would be great.
Thanks
I don't know all the answers, but I'll try to answer some. I had the same problem as you did.
Is Sense 3.5 a good way to go?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I found that Sense 3.0, Sense 2.1+3.0 hybrids were very slow(I guess this applies for Sense 3.5 since it's newer than 3.0)
I have read that Titanium Backup will allow me to save all the apps and their data/saved games somewhere and then it's just a one-touch-install to have them all back again, is that correct?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes.
Will some ROM's allow me to delete/choose not to install things like Teeter?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Most Sense ROMs are pretty stripped of crap like that. However if you do have it you can uninstall it afterwards.
If I install a new ROM, I can put it back to a standard stock ROM correct? Just so when I come to sell the phone on, it's back to what it was.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do a backup before flashing a new ROM! That way you will have your old ROM. However I'm not sure about how to unroot, but it is possible.
When I've installed a custom ROM, I can still use the Market/App Brain to update apps correct?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes.
P.S. My first try was CyanongenMod, and I haven't regretted it since. Almost every Sense app/widget can be replaced by apps in the market.
Please use the Q&A Forum for questions Thanks
Moving to Q&A
Man, I thought this forum was busy and there'd be loads of recommendations.
Seems not :/
I believe Sense 3.0 is good enough since Sense 3.5 ROM is not yet stable.
Cool3d / Aurora has good performance. But you need to S-OFF your phone first. It's very important before jumping into ROM that requires ext4 and CM7

Worth rooting?

Hi guys.
Obviously I am new, and noob so this might sound silly, but is it worth rooting?
I mean, I have been having stock Desire Z for, I dunno, almost 2 years, and it's been working perfectly, but since HTC and Google are moving on, leaving me on 2.3 and without any new updates, I was thinking of moving on on my own.
The thing is, I am as noob at rooting as I am in here, and bricking scares the **** out of me. Also, I don't know what ROM to chose, if that is the only thing to chose after rooting. I've stumbled upon cyanogen mod, and there are quite detailed step-by-step description on how to downgrade/root/install CM7, but CM7 looks like crap - I don't like it really.
I do like this http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1546915http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1546915 thou,, but since it's still beta, I don't want to end up with half working phone when I need it the most.
So, should I go for it, or stick with my guns?
and thx for replying or even reading :good:
I can't really comment on Sense roms (never cared for them, too bloated in my opinion). But I would prefer either Mimicry 1.3.1 or EliteMod ICS (which I'm using now), in regards to ICS (4.0.*).
Far as guides. Some like the Cyanogenmod one can be 'easier' to read, but the XDA wiki has a lot more information.
http://wiki.cyanogenmod.com/index.php?title=HTC_Vision
Since you're on gingerbread now you would go the Desire-Z Gingerbread route for unlocking/exploit before proceeding to root it. (but on the plus side sticking with a Desire-Z hboot will ensure your /system size is big enough to play with the Sense roms).
With ICS some things to keep in mind is that the most common issues tend to be :
1) Camera isn't "fully" working, in some cases like on mimicry and elitemod (or other non-Sense ICS roms), you can take a picture, you can record a video, but usually only with the stock camera app and usually won't have features like 720p recording or special effects.
2) Graphical glitch with the text can happen on an app, although rarely occurs, is easily fixed by closing the app or restarting (tends to stay with one app when it happens).
Those are probably the two most common issue you'll see with just bout every ICS rom out there for DZ/G2.
By the way some of the Sense roms are incorporating the 3.0 kernel from the Virtuous Infinity Preview (Full Sense 4.0), as such they're getting a decent camera with filters, but course there are still some bugs. (Previously Sense 4.0 roms had no camera functionality at all).
Edit
To clarify, even if you use the CM Wiki to unlock/root you do not have to install Cyanogenmod 7.2 afterwards, you can pretty much install any compatible rom once you've gotten it unlocked and running with a custom recovery (though I prefer 4EXT over clockworkmod).
I am sure it is worth ... i was just like u ..satisfied with my GB but i was so curious and so on so i followed this guide: http://wiki.cyanogenmod.com/wiki/HTC_Desire_Z:_Rooting and now iam rooted at the moment iam running Elite ROM ice cream sandwich and its ********* fast .... when you have root and you try new rom you will never want to stop of course there are some risks but I think that if you will have any kind of problem here on XDA is so many great people willing to help you ... my advice is to do it go step by step according to that guide and if you dont understand something just ask here on xda Best of luck....
back in the g1 days a friend of mine rooted his, i was astonished what could be done to phones now adays. i quickly rooted my g1 and began learning a ton about everything mobile, just like many before and after me i was hooked. even if you never found a better rom than stock the learning process is well worth it. even if you dont use most of the new features available to you at least having them is worth it. and unless you dont research/read first, or are mostly stupid/have bad luck, you wont brick your phone. i have rooted 50~60 phones and tablets, maybe more and never had a hard brick, sure when i first started out there was some close calls but with a little common sense you will be fine, also know you are now part a large community eager to help
so follow the xda or cyanogen wiki and downgrade and root your phone, move on to the rom compilation (found in the developers thread here) try a few roms and see what you prefer. you will be happy you did
on and one last point; the best reason to root your phone right when you get it, if there ever is a problem it is much easier to fix a rooted phone with software/firmware problems then an unrooted one. the only drawback could be if you need to send it back for warranty... but how likely is that, and the phone you have now im sure has little/no warranty left
happy flashing!
follow kbeeize's advice on how to root and try a few roms out
PS: One of the major advantages of having a custom recovery, is the ability to perform a backup of your currently installed rom. If you screw something up, you need only go back into recovery Wipe (factory-reset/cache/etc) and restore the backup to get right back to where you were. And you can have several backups too if you were trying out several different roms.
So basically the process of rooting/unlocking offers a safety net once you're up and running, be it in the recovery , or apps like Titanium Backup. Getting there is mainly the intimidating part.
kbeezie said:
Mimicry 1.3.1 or EliteMod ICS (which I'm using now), in regards to ICS (4.0.*).
Far as guides. Some like the Cyanogenmod one can be 'easier' to read, but the XDA wiki has a lot more information.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So you would recommend EliteMod & Cyanogen guide for starters?
kbeezie said:
Since you're on gingerbread now you would go the Desire-Z Gingerbread route for unlocking/exploit before proceeding to root it. (but on the plus side sticking with a Desire-Z hboot will ensure your /system size is big enough to play with the Sense roms).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Uhhh... What?
kbeezie said:
With ICS some things to keep in mind is that the most common issues tend to be :
1) Camera isn't "fully" working, in some cases like on mimicry and elitemod (or other non-Sense ICS roms), you can take a picture, you can record a video, but usually only with the stock camera app and usually won't have features like 720p recording or special effects.
2) Graphical glitch with the text can happen on an app, although rarely occurs, is easily fixed by closing the app or restarting (tends to stay with one app when it happens).
Those are probably the two most common issue you'll see with just bout every ICS rom out there for DZ/G2.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can deal with that. Really, camera for me is one of the most useless apps. So stock app will do just fine
kbeezie said:
To clarify, even if you use the CM Wiki to unlock/root you do not have to install Cyanogenmod 7.2 afterwards, you can pretty much install any compatible rom once you've gotten it unlocked and running with a custom recovery (though I prefer 4EXT over clockworkmod).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So, rooting won't delete everything from my phone, it will just be unlocked, so I could install some ROM apps that would do the rest of the work for me?
jumptoin said:
when you have root and you try new rom you will never want to stop of course there are some risks but I think that if you will have any kind of problem here on XDA is so many great people willing to help you ... my advice is to do it go step by step according to that guide and if you dont understand something just ask here on xda Best of luck....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is changing ROM deleting all my apps, messages etc., and is it doing so every time I change it. I've spent quite a lot of time and care to set the whole thing up, so I don't thing I would swap the ROMs so easily as you say
demkantor said:
back in the g1 days a friend of mine rooted his, i was astonished what could be done to phones now adays. i quickly rooted my g1 and began learning a ton about everything mobile, just like many before and after me i was hooked. even if you never found a better rom than stock the learning process is well worth it. even if you dont use most of the new features available to you at least having them is worth it. and unless you dont research/read first, or are mostly stupid/have bad luck, you wont brick your phone. i have rooted 50~60 phones and tablets, maybe more and never had a hard brick, sure when i first started out there was some close calls but with a little common sense you will be fine, also know you are now part a large community eager to help
so follow the xda or cyanogen wiki and downgrade and root your phone, move on to the rom compilation (found in the developers thread here) try a few roms and see what you prefer. you will be happy you did
on and one last point; the best reason to root your phone right when you get it, if there ever is a problem it is much easier to fix a rooted phone with software/firmware problems then an unrooted one. the only drawback could be if you need to send it back for warranty... but how likely is that, and the phone you have now im sure has little/no warranty left
happy flashing!
follow kbeeize's advice on how to root and try a few roms out
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
THX! :good:
kbeezie said:
PS: One of the major advantages of having a custom recovery, is the ability to perform a backup of your currently installed rom. If you screw something up, you need only go back into recovery Wipe (factory-reset/cache/etc) and restore the backup to get right back to where you were. And you can have several backups too if you were trying out several different roms.
So basically the process of rooting/unlocking offers a safety net once you're up and running, be it in the recovery , or apps like Titanium Backup. Getting there is mainly the intimidating part.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So it's like making an image file of the whole windows OS with all the programs preinstalled and restoring it when things go bust?
StipeP said:
So you would recommend EliteMod & Cyanogen guide for starters?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
EliteMod ICS isn't really for everyone, something like Andromadus Mimicry would be an easier start if you wanted ICS.
StipeP said:
Uhhh... What?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The T-Mobile G2 hboot (0.76.200) has a /system of ~400MB, /cache of ~200MB and /data of ~1.3GB, but 400MB is not big enough for a Sense rom. So if you were following the cyanogenmod wiki for exploiting/rooting, you would need the Desire-Z Engineering hboot (0.84.2000) which has a /system of ~550MB, /cache ~300MB, /data 1GB. Otherwise you would have to avoid Sense roms or roms that say you need a DesireZ hboot.
Since you said you had a Desire-Z you may not even run across that issue.
StipeP said:
I can deal with that. Really, camera for me is one of the most useless apps. So stock app will do just fine
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Then that's all good then.
StipeP said:
So, rooting won't delete everything from my phone, it will just be unlocked, so I could install some ROM apps that would do the rest of the work for me?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Depends on how you root, and if your phone needs to be downgraded/exploited. Which most of the time it does (i.e.: to get ENG S-OFF), which will of course erase the existing data on the phone so backups is suggested.
StipeP said:
Is changing ROM deleting all my apps, messages etc., and is it doing so every time I change it. I've spent quite a lot of time and care to set the whole thing up, so I don't thing I would swap the ROMs so easily as you say
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's where root tools like Titanium Backup come in very handy. You can flash a band new rom, open up Titanium Backup, and then restore all your apps along with their settings/etc.
StipeP said:
So it's like making an image file of the whole windows OS with all the programs preinstalled and restoring it when things go bust?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Normally once you get an initial rom setup, you can do a backup in recovery. If things go bust, you just reboot into recovery, wipe/factory-reset and then restore from the backup which will put the phone at the exact same state as you backed it up.
But yea I guess it's kind of like taking a Ghost image of your hard drive, which is stored on the SD Card at /clockworkmod/backup
Dear StipeP,
Greetings!
I bought my Desire Z, my very first android mobile in April 2010 and since then I was thinking 'O my God! what the **** people are talking about rooting their mobile!!!'. It was not that I was not curious, it was the difficult looking procedure and always lingering fear of bricking my set . At that time, I was a toooooootal noob . Then HTC pushed gingerbread update. All was well before ICE rolled out and some other mobiles were getting it while desire z was no where in line. I decided I should give it a try but still I preferred some 'one click root' methods over the detailed one given at XDA (it seemed too intimidating). But every such method could not root a desire z on android 2.3.3 (they could have when I was on Froyo). Then I finally made my mind to take the bull by horn and started reading as much as possible about rooting the hard way. Finally, I went for the XDA-wiki and also stumbled upon a guy named Strawmetal's wonderful effort of putting all the necessary files and instructions at one place. One night, I sat after dinner just rooted it (though I remembered all possible Gods at some steps like matching the MD5 sums:fingers-crossed. I was so excited that I didn't sleep the whole night!
Now, question was which ROM to install ( I hated to be back on Froyo). I started fiddling with some gingerbread ROMs and then shifted to ICS ROMs. There are problems as mentioned by others. I would mention below some pros and cons (those matter to me) of these ROMs:
1. Gingerbread ROMs are generally quite stable. Some excellent examples are Virtuous Glite v2.01, EliteMod120316 (this is awesome!) etc. I found BeatMod Bliss Sense hybrid to be too heavy (it's a Sense 3.5 ROM).
2. Camera works fine with Gingerbread ROMs generally (It was good in EliteMod120316).
3. ICS ROMs are faster. Even browser there seems faster to.They give a lot of customization options (Rightnow, I'm on EliteMod 120728 and believe me, it would just enthrall you with its beauty and customization options).
4. For me, ability to read Hindi fonts is a bonus and ICS ROMs do this.
5. Regarding Camera on ICS ROMs, it is true that they are not good. But the Camera on EliteMod 120728 is working well. Only you cannot record 720p video:crying.
6. I'm yet to try some other good ROMs like CM9 unofficial so cannot say much about them.
7. One issue that I faced was that I could download from Play Store when using a gingerbread ROM but could not when using ICS ROMs. It was giving "error 403". Finally, resolved that today (of course, with help from others).
One thing that I should mention here is that after rooting and trying some ROMs, I felt frustrated and thought is there any way to go back to stock gingerbread rom without loosing root. Main issues was Camera (I use it a lot). But more I read and kept finding/trying new ROMs, more the desire to revert to gingerbread subsided. Finally, when I got EliteMod 120316, I was more than content. And now am using EliteMod 120728 (an ICS ROM).
Last but not least, I believe that the biggest advantage of rooting my desire z is not ability to run custom ROMs but the learning process and getting an opportunity to mingle with extra-ordinarily helpful XDA-guys.
Now, you have to take a decision about taking the plunge
Best of luck
Right, enough courage; time to get cracking.
I will go process by process, slowly following this: wiki.cyanogenmod.com/index.php?title=HTC_Vision
If I get stuck, all my hopes are on you guys.
Wish me luck
StipeP said:
Right, enough courage; time to get cracking.
I will go process by process, slowly following this: wiki.cyanogenmod.com/index.php?title=HTC_Vision
If I get stuck, all my hopes are on you guys.
Wish me luck
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
All the Best...
p.s.: take your time and better take notes of steps. It would help in bringing clarity. And make sure to copy your commands and outputs from ADB to a notepad. It would be of help if, God forbid, anything goes wrong. If you have already downloaded and setup the ADB, just try the msm_rotator command (adb shell cat /dev/msm_rotator). If you get following output, you are ready to go: /dev/msm_rotator: invalid length
Hi,
Another Android rooting NOOB, but experienced with Linux, including embedded (that's the day job )
Looking to root my HTC Desire Z, as is being discussed here.
From all the threads, it seems you have to downgrade to a very old stock ROM before starting. Several talk about being able to take a backup from Clockwork Recovery after you've rooted the phone in case things go wrong, but obviously by then the existing phone build will be gone.
What I'd really like to be able to do is to take a full backup of the stock Gingerbread setup I've currently got, so that if either (a) things go wrong or (b) I don't like the end result I can get back to where I am now.
None of the threads I've found so far (here, here, here and possibly others, I've been surfing around a lot the last couple of days!) talk about any way of doing this, some talk about using Titanium Backup or MyBackup Root to backup Apps, Call Data, SMS logs etc, but these presumably aren't a full OS backup.
Is there a relatively easy way of doing this from the fre3vo temporary root? Presumably 'dd' against the various /dev/block/mmcXXXX partitions will get most (all?) of the data? Are there sections that aren't available from Android device files as root?
One more (hopefully minor) thing - having worked down the start of this downgrade thread[URL], for now I've skipped the "Changing Version Number to Allow Downgrade and Gaining SuperCID with a Goldcard" section and tried the "Temp-Rooting to Backup" section (from my understanding of these two sections, I don't think anything from the section I skipped is relied upon in the backup section). I seem to find that the /system/bin/su file keeps getting corrupted or deleted. Is this HTC trying to stop me doing this, or is it one of the applications (SuperUser?) trying to protect the file and getting it wrong? In case it's making a difference, I also have Better Terminal Emulator Pro installed, which I'm using the "bash" from for some of the steps, as it has proper Linux auto-complete etc. which makes life easier.
I think I've managed to make a usable backup with MyBackup Root, but obviously can't easily test this without going further.
I'd really like to be as sure as possible that I can get back to where I am now before I start the downgrade to Froyo process...
Thanks in advance for any advice on this
Michael
I am worhtless.
Right now I am downgrading GB folowing CGmod guide wiki.cyanogenmod.com/wiki/HTC_Desire_Z:_Firmware_Downgrade_(Gingerbread), and I am stuch at step 6. On the computer, open terminal and run the following commands:
Erm, what terminal????
btw, I extracted and copied the downloaded files into ADB install folder. That is the right one?
what terminal ? .... u just click start run and type in "cmd" ,,, or find command promt
says: adb is not recognized as an internal or external command, operable program or batch file.
I am sorry to bother you, but I would be very grateful
so you downloaded adb from the sdk package right? you need to either change directories in cmd or change the path in enviromental variables
easiest thing to do would be hold shift and right click in the folder adb and files are in and choose open command here. then the path is chosen
also make sure debugging is turned on (in phone)
Sent from my HTC Vision using xda premium
demkantor said:
so you downloaded adb from the sdk package right? you need to either change directories in cmd or change the path in enviromental variables
easiest thing to do would be hold shift and right click in the folder adb and files are in and choose open command here. then the path is chosen
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
did as you said but still the same problem: adb is not recognized as an internal or external command, operable program or batch file.
If only I could post screenshots here for you to see what exactly am I doing (wrong)
what does it say when you open the cmd?
C:/user......?
is that the folder adb.exe is in?
are you using windows 7, vista, xp? mac, linux?
Sent from my HTC Vision using xda premium
demkantor said:
what does it say when you open the cmd?
C:/user......?
is that the folder adb.exe is in?
are you using windows 7, vista, xp? mac, linux?
Sent from my HTC Vision using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have ADV Manager.exe and SDK Manager.exe
No adb.exe
This is what I have downloaded and installed developer.android.com/sdk/index.html
(Win7)
ok, you may need to open sdk and download adb from there, otherwise you can check if you did without knowing it. go to your harddrive (C) and see if there is an android folder or android sdk or something like that, look for I think platform tools in there and see if there is a program called adb
if you can't find this try search in computer
or just open the sdk manager and download the tools in the first chunk, specifically platform tools
Sent from my HTC Vision using xda premium
Here you go.

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