Related
This post will no longer be updated and is pretty much for the archives at this point. It detailed the rooting process for Linux users right after the Slide was first rooted. Since then, newer, more foolproof methods have been devised. For those rooting their phones today (or any point since T-Mobile's OTA update), please see this link: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=780213. It says it's Ubuntu-specific, but the instructions there should apply to any GNOME desktop and any other desktop with slight modification. Thanks for the comments on this thread. I hope it helped.
Most of this is not new information, but it's all in one post for the first time. I post it in case Linux (and probably MacOS) users need clarification on the process. It should keep people from having to dig in deep threads to find all the info needed. I only added the loop.sh for Linux and the partitioning information.
For all the following, I assume that the reader knows how his computer works, but not necessarily Android rooting.
Preliminary Information
1. As always, make backups and take notes. You might want to make a list of installed apps you want to reinstall later, for example.
2. Install adb. Download it here: http://developer.android.com/sdk/index.html. adb is a little program distributed as part of the Android software development kit (SDK). Its job is to communicate with the phone from a shell (terminal). To install adb, I strongly suggest you copy the adb file from the tools directory into your system's /usr/local/bin directory. This way, it will always be in your path. If you don't intend to do development work on Android applications, feel free to delete the rest of the SDK after installing adb.
3. Start adb as root. In more traditional Linux distros, this can be done by typing "adb devices" in a root terminal ("su" then "adb devices"). In Ubuntu-based distros, "sudo adb devices" followed by your password should do the trick. You'll get a message about the adb daemon being started. If not, sometimes typing "adb root" or "adb start-server" as root will do the trick.
4. Make sure your phone has "USB Debugging" checked off in Settings > Application > Development
5. It may not make any difference, but I turn off the "disk drive" option, so that my SD card doesn't mount when the phone is plugged in via USB (unless I need it to).
Partitioning the SD Card (Optional)
This is an optional step, as ROMs are coming out now that allow swapsace (virtual memory) and apps2sd (installing applications to the SD-card rather than on the phone's internal memory). Right now, most Slide ROMs support apps2fat32, so the whole card can be left as is (one, big, fat32 partition). If your desired ROM supports apps2sd using an ext2 or ext3 partition, you can save some headache later by doing this step first. If you don't want it, just skip to the next section.
1. Using the package manager for your Linux distro, install parted. GNOME users have a great, graphical frontend to this utility called gparted. KDE users have the KDE Partition Manager available to them. I only have gparted, but the instructions should be similar for all variants. The graphical frontends take a lot of the pain away from using parted (automatically formatting for ext4, for example). For the braver souls, there is a much more detailed tutorial for using vanilla parted from the command line here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=4098568&postcount=1.
2. Mount your sd-card, either using the "disk drive" function of the phone, or in an external card reader.
3. Make a backup of your sd-card by simply copying and pasting to a new folder.
4. Start up the partition manager of your choice with root permissions (using gksu or kdesu).
5. Make sure your desktop environment (KDE or GNOME) or a terminal doesn't have a file manager window open to the sd-card partition. You can't unmount a partition that's being accessed.
6. Find out which device node is assigned to the partition by typing "dmesg" in a terminal. The last few lines should tell you how it's assigned. Mine was /dev/sdg1, for example.
7. Using the dropdown menu, select your sd-card partition in parted.
8. Right-click on the partition in the bottom pane of the window and select "unmount".
9. Delete the partition using the same, right-click menu.
10. Now you're left with free space to configure as you see fit. You use the same right-click menu to create partitions.
11. When done, click "apply" and the partition manager will create and format the partitions you've selected.
12. When done, the computer should mount two partitions from the card, one for apps, the other for user data. Copy your backed-up files to the larger partition.
NB: Android phones can work with a smallish ext* partition at the beginning of the card for apps (around 512MB should be more than enough for almost anyone), a super-small swapspace in the middle (no more than 32MB, if any at all--it's up for debate whether the Slide benefits from swapspace at all), and the rest of the card formatted as FAT32 for the "normal" partiton. I'll leave those decisions to those who have the need and desire. Also, whether to use ext2,3, or 4 for the apps partition is a matter for debate, and some kernels for other phones didn't support the newer versions at all. All that is beyond the scope of this howto, mainly because I won't be trying it out.
NB2: Eugene has released Koushik Dutta's recovery scripts that can help automate the partitioning process. It can be done directly from recovery, rather than on the computer. I much prefer the old way, as it gives more flexibility. For reference, the post with instructions is found here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=6993132&postcount=1.
Getting root (original HOWTO at: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=6820344&postcount=1)
The following instructions are "the old way" to gain root. There is a new method found at: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=7658764&postcount=1 that seems to be a saner process, but I have not tested it as of yet.
1. Download the Slide Root package: http://outboundlink.us/anxo/dr_ta_1...ttp://www.4shared.com/file/IfrPbWG7/Root.html
2. Extract it somewhere convenient (I'm using the Desktop folder here. I'm also renaming the folder "slideroot" to keep things simple).
3. Open a terminal and cd to the slideroot folder you just created.
4. The "loop.bat" file here is of no use to you. Use a text editor to make your own loop.sh file, or edit loop.bat and rename it when you're done. It should contain the following:
Code:
#!/bin/sh
watch -n .50 adb devices;
done
5. Power on the slide while holding down the Volume-down button. This will bring you to the bootloader screen (three droids on skateboards). Plug the Slide in via USB.
6. Just to make sure everything is working correctly, type "adb devices" in the terminal to make sure the system is seeing your phone properly. If so, run your loop.sh by typing "sh loop.sh".
7. Use the Volume-down button on the phone to select "recovery" and press the power button to enter. The terminal will flash a few messages like "offline" and "recovery". When the phone's screen shows an icon of a phone with a red triangle, you know it worked.
8. Press Volume-up and Power together to enter the recovery menu on the phone.
9. Now, back in your terminal, hit "ctrl-C" to cancel the loop.sh script.
10. Type "adb push ota.zip /sdcard/update.zip" and hit enter.
11. Type "adb push update.zip /sdcard" but DO NOT hit enter yet.
12. This step requires some coordination and timing. On the phone, select "run update.zip" and press the power button. When you see a little greenish progress bar at the bottom in the background, hit enter in your terminal.
13. If it worked as planned, the phone will see the keys from the first file you pushed, and then use the file you're pushing now to run clockwork recovery. If not, don't worry. Just repeat. I haven't had to do it more than once yet.
14. Once this is done, reboot the phone from the menu system and wait. You can use "adb devices" in the terminal to see if the phone is detected.
15. Type "adb shell" and look for the "$" prompt. If you type "su" you should get a "#" (root) prompt. Give yourself a pat on the back.
Installing the Engineering ROM (original HOWTO at http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=6821968&postcount=1)
A. Now that your phone is rooted, you can "downgrade" it to the Engineering ROM. This gives a better recovery environment that allows other ROMs to be installed (custom ROMs are signed with the test keys; the original recovery will not install them since it looks for your carrier's keys.)
B. Download two files: http://outboundlink.net/anxo/dr_ta_1/goto.php?DR_id=1359&linkout=http%3A//www.4shared.com/file/OsmF_ZD7/ESPRIMG.html and http://www.4shared.com/file/sz0VO2TL/SlideEng-package.html.
C. I extracted the SlideEng-package.zip, copied the contents inside loose to the Desktop, and copied the ESPRIMG file to my sd card.
1. cd to the Desktop and type "adb push flash_image /data/local" and hit enter.
2. Type "adb push mtd0.img /data/local" and hit enter.
3. Start an adb root shell as above ("adb shell" then "su")
4. Type "cd /data/local"
5. Type "chmod 04755 mtd0.img" and "chmod 04755 flash_image". I didn't change any permissions on the other files in that folder, just in case.
6. Type "./flash_image misc ./mtd0.img" and hit enter.
7. Power off the phone.
8. Holding Volume-down, power the phone back up. The recovery will scan the sd card and automatically detect the update file (from step "C" above) and prompt to install it. Hit Volume-up to install.
9. You're done. Just reboot the phone after the update and you're good to go. The boot process will be a little longer this time around.
Updating the Radio (May be optional) (Original HOWTO at: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=6856313&postcount=1)
I leave this section here for archive purposes. Since switching the ROM to ChiefzReloaded's OTA in the "Installing a custom ROM" section below, this step is no longer necessary, as it contains the newest radio. Unless you're installing a custom ROM released before the last T-Mobile over-the-air update, feel free to skip this section.
When we downgraded the system to the Engineering ROM, we downgraded our radio as well. The following instructions will bring us back to the stock radio version.
1. Download the following file: http://files.androidspin.com/downloads.php?dir=chiefzreloaded/ROM/&file=Newest_Slide_Radio.zip and copy it to your sd-card.
2. Remember that update.zip way back in the rooting section? The one found in the slideroot package? Copy it to your sd-card as well, if it's not already there. I deleted the one on my sd-card and re-copied it, just in case. It contains the clockwork recovery and can be left on your sd-card for future upgrades.
3. Reboot the phone into recovery (should be easy now.)
4. Select "apply update.zip from sd card" to start clockwork recovery. No looping necessary anymore!
5. From the clockwork menu system, apply the Newest_Slide_Radio.zip file you just copied over.
6. Once that's done, just reboot. The boot process will take longer and you'll see a few crazy icons before the system finally loads up. When all is finished and you're back to the home screen, the phone will pop up a dialog telling you the update was successful.
Installing a Custom ROM (Original HOWTO at: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=6827968&postcount=1)
For this install, I'm using the new OTA update rooted by ChiefzReloaded. Complete information on this ROM is here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=7534163&postcount=1. Like the older SLIDEMEROOT2 I had here before, I picked it because it's mainly the same, stock ROM the phone shipped with, but with root. I had way too many "fast, stable, feature-packed" custom ROMs on other phones that really weren't that fast or stable. I don't want to lose the use of my camera/camcorder to have live wallpapers, for example. These instructions will work for any custom ROM (adjusting for the new ROM in step 1 and 4.)
1. Download the following file: http://db.androidspin.com/androidspin_filedownload.asp?release=330&type=1 and copy it to your sd card.
2. Boot the phone into recovery mode.
3. From the recovery menu, select "apply update.zip from sd card". As stated earlier, this update.zip file contains the clockwork recovery. Applying it like an update will always load clockwork from now on.
4. In the clockwork menu, select "apply any zip from sd card" and select CR_Mod_1.35.531_OTA.zip.
5. Let the update take its course, reboot, wait, and enjoy.
Going Back to Stock (Just in case) (Original HOWTO at: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=6994424&postcount=1)
There may come a time when you might need your phone just the way it came from the store. It could be that you're tired of custom ROMs, a feature you find you can't live without is broken, or you need to return the phone for warranty purposes. If it gets to that point, here's how:
1. Download the following file: http://outboundlink.net/anxo/dr_ta_1/goto.php?DR_id=1359&linkout=http%3A//www.4shared.com/file/x7HRRsbM/ESPRIMG_2_.html and copy it to your sd-card.
2. Reboot the phone into recovery (just the regular one, not clockwork). The file will be automatically detected.
3. After checking the file, you'll have to hit Volume-Up to confirm the flash.
4. Once done, reboot and the Slide will be good as new.
Very nice!
I kind of wish I would have seen this before I rooted this morning!
I just rooted mine this afternoon. Figured I'd put it up while I still had it in my head.
Excellent summary!
I also wish I'd seen this before muddling through the other guides myself. Thanks for posting it!
Quick question. I plan on rooting my MyTouch Slide within the next couple days. I was just reading over your list and thought I'd try to move the adb file first. After I moved it to /usr/local/bin, and then opened a root terminal. I typed "adb", but nothing came up about a dameon being started. It looked like I had asked for the man page. Any idea why? Or if it started it anyway?
The first time you run adb, do so as root "sudo adb devices", "sudo adb root" or the equivalent. It will start the daemon. A normal user (ie, not superuser) will not have the permissions to start a daemon.
When you run just "adb" without any options, it shows you the command-line options you can use with adb. Most Linux command-line apps work the same way when run without options.
beartard,
huge props to you. this is, by far, the best guide for rooting anything that i have ever used, and certainly for the slide.
as mac osx is a *nix system, this worked great. none of the steps were missing, everything was a normal sized font, and left justified, and took me from the stock to a custom rom flawlessly.
thanks a bunch.
really.
I'm very glad it worked for you. Thanks! Did you have to do anything differently under MacOS? I used to use it before OS X came out. I know the newer versions are based on *nix, but I didn't know how similar they were underneath.
I didn't do very much differently.
I started with "How to get Root" section, as I didn't want to partition my sdcard and already had the SDK installed (obviously, though I really need to look into working with it more, as right now it scares the bejesus out of me).
I used a "do while [1]" style (I love accidentally rhyming) loop.sh file though, mostly because my terminal couldn't understand "watch" for some silly reason.
Your guide was just the one that felt the least like a tween myspace page (no offense to the other guides).
Ok, I am re-rooting my slide after having to get a replacement. I am trying to get it done using the newest ubuntu. I am a newb to ubuntu but I was able to get adb setup. When the device is booted up normally I can adb devices and recognize the device.
When I boot the phone into fast boot and adb it does not find anything. I went ahead and ran the loop.sh file and started recovery And saw the device pop up for a split second so I CTRL-C.
It does the same thing that it did when I rooted my old slide With XP. It saw the device but as soon as I CTRL-C its gone. I can do a battery pull, rerun the loop and boot into recovery and it wont find it.
Is this crap gonna be the same as on windows where you just gotta get lucky and get it to recognize? Sit here for hours on end every day until it gets recognized?????
By the way I am running everything as Root by typing sudo su in terminal before I start.
sultan.of.swing said:
Ok, I am re-rooting my slide after having to get a replacement. I am trying to get it done using the newest ubuntu. I am a newb to ubuntu but I was able to get adb setup. When the device is booted up normally I can adb devices and recognize the device.
When I boot the phone into fast boot and adb it does not find anything. I went ahead and ran the loop.sh file and started recovery And saw the device pop up for a split second so I CTRL-C.
It does the same thing that it did when I rooted my old slide With XP. It saw the device but as soon as I CTRL-C its gone. I can do a battery pull, rerun the loop and boot into recovery and it wont find it.
Is this crap gonna be the same as on windows where you just gotta get lucky and get it to recognize? Sit here for hours on end every day until it gets recognized?????
By the way I am running everything as Root by typing sudo su in terminal before I start.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not sure what the problem is, man. I've never had to try more than once using the process above. You're using a new install of ubuntu. Do you have adb from the latest sdk?
Just added the link to a new method for rooting and updated a few minor points.
Updated partitioning info to reflect what's actually going on in the MT3GS world.
Changed custom ROM to ChiefzReloaded's OTA, eliminating the need for the "updating the radio" section.
Beartard, I want to say thank you for taking the time for typing this all out. It worked like a charm with not one problem. I have spread your link to others so they can get the same satisfaction I got from this thread. Thanks again
[Update 12/23] For those of you unable to install the new system update, I've found a solution -- scroll down to the update! I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DAMAGES THAT MAY OCCUR!
So I figured I'd at least get things started - Credit goes to whomever first tried z4root on their Droid Pro - and to mahst687 for the deodexing.
Lets Begin!
Resources:
Motorola ADB Driver
Android SDK
xUltimate V2.2.2
(Can't post links apparently, sorry -- googles your friend!)
#1 Root:
As seen on numerous android sites already, root is obtainable via z4root in the market. It may not work the first, second, or even third time -- just keep trying, it works I promise.
#2 Bootstrap and Clockwork Recovery
Download and install 'Rom Manager' from the Market. Once installed flash the Droid2 Clockwork Recovery. After flashing, obtain the Droid2 Bootstrapper and install it. Confirm Clockwork Recovery works by booting to recovery via Bootstrap.
#2 Deodex:
Download Android SDK for ADB, as well as the Motorola ADB Drivers posted above. Second, download xUltimate - also posted above. Once everything is downloaded and installed we're ready to begin.
1. Run Main in the xUltimate package - if the ADB drivers installed successfully you should be greeted with a menu containing several options - great!
2. Next run option 1.
3. Run option 2.
3. Run option 3 - sit back and relax for a bit
4. Once option 3 is done doing its thing, navigate to the xUltimate folder, more specifically the "origi_frame", and delete guava.odex
5. Run option 4 - it'll be a short wait
6. Exit the xUltimate
7. Enable USB Mass Storage on the phone and transfer both "done_app", and "done_frame" to the ROOT of the SD card.
8. Once both folders have transferred disable USB Storage, but keep the phone plugged in via USB.
9. Open up a command prompt and browse to the android SDK Tools folder (or where ever your ADB executable is located).
10. Enter the following commands:
Code:
adb shell
su
stop
mount -o rw,remount -t ext3 /dev/block/mmcblk1p21 /system
cp /sdcard/done_app/* /system/app/
cp /sdcard/done_frame/* /system/framework/
rm /system/app/*.odex
rm /system/framework/*.odex
mount -o ro,remount -t ext3 /dev/block/mmcblk1p21 /system
reboot
11. If all went well your phone should reboot - which may take a few minutes. Enjoy!
[Update]12/23/2010
For those of you unable to get the new Droid Pro OTA working I have found a solution! You will need:
1)Root
2)Clockwork Recovery
3)System.img from update
4)Current Nandroid backup of your phone
5)ADB drivers and ASDK
So lets begin.
1)Boot into Clockwork recovery and create a backup of your phone.
2)Once complete, mount the phone as USB storage and pull the system.img file from the nandroid backup folder, as well as the nandroid.md5 (KEEP THESE FILES SAFE!!!!!)
3)Obtain the system.img file from here (Compliments of whoopsiedaisy).
4)Replace the system.img file in the Nandroid backup folder on your PHONE.
5)ADB into your phone (preferably still in recovery) and do the following:
Code:
adb shell
# cd /sdcard/clockworkmod/backup/2010-xx-xx.xx.xx.xx
# rm nandroid.md5
# md5sum *img > nandroid.md5
6)If all goes will it should create a new MD5 checksum file utilizing the new system.img
7)Go to the 'backup and restore' menu in Clockwork, and select 'Advanced Restore'
8)Select the correct nandroid backup folder where the new system.img file is located, and then select 'Restore System'
9)Assuming all goes well, go to Settings, About and check your new system version!
Nice, can't wait to try this on my wifes phone after work.
Sent from my ADR6300 using XDA App
Is the second step necessary if you just want root access so you can install Wireless tether, etc?
jayhammy said:
Is the second step necessary if you just want root access so you can install Wireless tether, etc?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not at all. Simply run z4 if all you require is root access (and a host of apps like Wireless Tether, DroCap, Titanium Backup ...)
Can you please post the quickoffice apk from the Dpro so I can put on an DX? Same would go for the software that allows me to Invite attendees to meetings using GAL. It be copasetic if you can.
Thanks a ton! Freaking worked flawlessly on my Droid X.
Nate
Cool. Cant wait to try this on my wife's phone.
I downloaded everything you said and i started my deodex but when i select option 3 in main it tells me "error no odex file" have i done something wrong please advise
Is it really that simple?
I feel like I must be missing something. I just download an app from the market and reboot and I'm rooted?
Also, what is the deodex for? I want to root my phone to install the apps I want and I want wifi tether. Do I need it?
Also, I really want to understand what is going on under the hood, but I don't know where to start. Is there a 'for dummies' tutorial somewhere that I can go to to start understanding what all of this stuff is, so I can make informed decisions for myself about what I want instead of begging for help on internet forums? Thanks in advance for any suggestions.
Is there a way to unroot? I am not rooted but just curious.
rllong1 said:
Is there a way to unroot? I am not rooted but just curious.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, Z4Root app allows you to root, re-root, and UNroot.
I see no uproot button on the screen. Only a root button
Sent from my DROID PRO using XDA App
I had version 1.1 of z4. I now have the. 3 version and it has the unroot button
Sent from my DROID PRO using XDA App
rllong1 said:
I see no uproot button on the screen. Only a root button
Sent from my DROID PRO using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You'll only see the unroot button once you've rooted. Otherwise, it will first show only the "root" option.
jayhammy said:
You'll only see the unroot button once you've rooted. Otherwise, it will first show only the "root" option.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was rooted. I had titanium installed and superuser. Z4 ran fine but I had an old version of it. I dont know if that matters but thats all I did. I downloaded the 1.3 version and I now have the unroot button. On the old version there was no option for temp root either. Just root. On the version I have now there is a temp root and perm root button.
Would just like to let people know that your method for "updating" via nandroid backup would not work for me. Followed all the instructions to the letter and during the advanced restore I continually received md5sum mismatch errors.
So I took the chance and updated through the OTA update, it installed fine but lost root. Ran z4root (twice) and gained root access again .
Looking forward to some real custom daily driver roms for this guy.
darkninja157 said:
Would just like to let people know that your method for "updating" via nandroid backup would not work for me. Followed all the instructions to the letter and during the advanced restore I continually received md5sum mismatch errors.
So I took the chance and updated through the OTA update, it installed fine but lost root. Ran z4root (twice) and gained root access again .
Looking forward to some real custom daily driver roms for this guy.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is there a way to uninstall the CWM recovery?
darkninja157 said:
Would just like to let people know that your method for "updating" via nandroid backup would not work for me. Followed all the instructions to the letter and during the advanced restore I continually received md5sum mismatch errors.
So I took the chance and updated through the OTA update, it installed fine but lost root. Ran z4root (twice) and gained root access again .
Looking forward to some real custom daily driver roms for this guy.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Kinda new to the whole rooting thing, just got a new Pro and rooted successfully with z4root, got rid of bloatware and installed titanium backup, wifi tether, etc. Am I correct in reading your post that I can unroot, OTA update, and re-root again? If so, will I have to uninstall bloatware again, or reinstall root apps? Or any other repeats? Any danger in doing this?
mynameismolotov said:
Kinda new to the whole rooting thing, just got a new Pro and rooted successfully with z4root, got rid of bloatware and installed titanium backup, wifi tether, etc. Am I correct in reading your post that I can unroot, OTA update, and re-root again? If so, will I have to uninstall bloatware again, or reinstall root apps? Or any other repeats? Any danger in doing this?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No need to un-root. This update is for the system portion only and does not touch the userdata. I simply went ahead on the rooted phone, let the OTA update download and install. In doing so lost root, but had no trouble gaining root access again via z4root. Did not have to re-remove any of the bloatware, at least if I remember correctly. Root apps will not need to be reinstalled but you may need to re-give them permission for root access. No danger that I have noticed or can think of.
For anyone doing the update the android method....
For it to work
You must do the adb "new" md5 creation portion with your phone in clockwork recovery for it to work and to not receive the mismatch error...
To do this, reboot recovery... then plug in usb from your computer... during the phone boot into recovery you should hear the alert from your computer that something from usb was plugged in. Finally, use the mount option in recovery to mount sd card to be able to transfer the .img file over to the correct directory then unmount sd card and do the adb commands in terminal window...
I had the same mismatch errors using my windows 7 machine and creating the md5 with android booted
Hope this helps
Looking through the menus in my ICS i've noticed the option to set "Desktop Backup Password" and thought to myself - "Well, How odd... Android does not have any desktop backup solution built in..."
It took some digging since there wasn't a lot of information online - but I ended up stumbling upon this page:
http://www.tested.com/news/feature/...-data-from-your-galaxy-nexusno-root-required/
As it turns out - Google created a mechanism in ICS to create full desktop backups for apps, data and even system apps, without the need to have the device rooted.
Keep in mind this only works on Ice Cream Sandwich... So don't ask me if this will work on GB based ROMS... It WON'T.
Make sure you have a recent version of ADB on your machine, go to the developer menu, set-up a password, and then use adb with the following syntax to create a backup of your system (taken directly from ADB's help):
Code:
adb backup [-f <file>] [-apk|-noapk] [-shared|-noshared] [-all] [-system|-nosystem] [<packages...>]
-f <file> (write an archive of the device's data to <file>. If no -f option is supplied then the data is written to "backup.ab" in the current directory.)
-apk|-noapk enable/disable backup of the .apks themselves in the archive; the default is noapk.)
-shared|-noshared (enable/disable backup of the device's shared storage / SD card contents; the default is noshared.)
-all (means to back up all installed applications. This will include SD-Card backup)
-system|-nosystem (toggles whether -all automatically includes system applications; the default is to include system apps)
<packages...> (is the list of applications to be backed up. If the -all or -shared flags are passed, then the package list is optional. Applications explicitly g
iven on the command line will be included even if -nosystem would ordinarily cause them to be omitted.)
I hope this proves helpful to some of you...
This is awesome i had been wondering if google was going to release a backup tool
Thanks man
Don't have adb yet but I will after reading this, great find.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA
Do you know how you would go about restoring the backup once its created?
apeironer said:
Do you know how you would go about restoring the backup once its created?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you would also use adb to restore...
syntax:
adb restore <file>
where <file> is, of course, the name of the backup file...
adb requires root, however
This looks like a neat idea, however installing adb itself, requires root, making this somewhat moot.
Does anyone know of an app or method to do a full Android backup to desktop (Mac, Linux or if necessary Windows) which does not require root in any way, so I can completely factory-wipe my carrier-provided Galaxy Note II and restore it, and be back up in running in minutes?
desrod said:
This looks like a neat idea, however installing adb itself, requires root, making this somewhat moot.
Does anyone know of an app or method to do a full Android backup to desktop (Mac, Linux or if necessary Windows) which does not require root in any way, so I can completely factory-wipe my carrier-provided Galaxy Note II and restore it, and be back up in running in minutes?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ADB does NOT require root.
You are limited to the things you can do with ADB when then phone is not rooted - you will not be able to work with the system folders, but you should still be able to create the backup.
Just make sure you go to Settings > Developers Settings, and enable Android Debugging.
Let me know if it works.
Exactly what I was looking for.
Thank You!
for noobs
Just enable developer options, enable USB debug mode, create a desktop full backup password, revoke USB debug authorizations, install ADB on your PC (link below), open CMD and cd to the folder and run "adb start-server" then "adb backup -all"... it will create a backup file in that folder (mine was 200MB) called backup.ab.
https://developer.android.com/studio/releases/platform-tools.html
Anyone using this in 2023? What are the downsides, how does it compare to Google Cloud Backups?
EDIT: okay, that explains why it's not mentioned anymore
% adb backup -all
WARNING: adb backup is deprecated and may be removed in a future release
Now unlock your device and confirm the backup operation...
EDIT2: my backup is only 7MB... doesn't seem right? What's in there?
Yes, I'm a noob, and I was simply installing applications from the store based on reviews. Thank you all for spending the time to read this post; should you respond, thank you even more!
T-Mobile Galaxy S III 16GB.
NO SD card installed! - /sdcard apparently mirrors the phone storage.
Otterbox Defender case installed by the salesman.
On PC, installed Odin 3.0.4
Rooted via http://www.redmondpie.com/how-to-root-galaxy-s-iii-att-t-mobile-or-sprint-model-tutorial/
included the CWM_SuperUser_v3.0.7.zip file from there
Failed to get CM10 installed
Installed ClockworkRecoveryMod 5.8.4.6
Installed CM10 (20121110 Nightly)
Installed Google Apps
Set a long password
** Encrypted storage **
Installed GetJar, Google Play, DroidWall
Set Droidwall to whitelist mode; allowed only GetJar and Google Play store/Download app/Play services access.
Installed LBE Privacy Guard (I had no idea there was any issue with JB)
Granted LBE Privacy Guard Superuser and let it remember SU rights (that was a mistake too)
On PC (Windows 7), installed Android SDK 20.0.3
On PC, used SDK to download platform tools and Google USB driver.
Attempted to follow tmpfs instructions in http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1401813&page=2
ADB shell responds with "device not found" when in the CWR screen.
ADB shell has a limited amount of time to respond when in the main OS after the decryption password is entered.
After booting the phone into the main OS and decrypting the phone, I can get the normal unlock kscreen. However, the screen goes blank and re-locks right around the time I can get my unlock password entered - if I go really fast, I have a second or two after. Eventually it reboots itself and the cycle starts over.
I can definitely use the power button at the decyrption screen to reboot into recovery or download modes.
In the CWR screen, of course, I can't mount /sdcard, since it's encrypted.
How can I recover to a useful function, either by disabling LBE Privacy Guard, deleting LBE Privacy Guard, or resetting the phone to bare CM10 and/or stock?
On PC:
Followed wiki Howto:_Install_the_Android_SDK
Note that device showed up as Samsung.... before, now it's Android ADB Interface.
Tried again
boot in Recovery
ok
format cache partition
"wipe cache partiton" ok
adb shell mount -t tmpfs none /sdcard
no error
adb push cm-10-20121110-NIGHTLY-d2tmo.zip /sdcard
168375589 bytes in 31.947s
use the recovery to flesh the ROM as usual
??? I tried:
install zip from sdcard
choose zip from sdcard
And the SIII responded:
E:Can't mount /sdcard/
I then tried
adb shell
df
And saw no sdcard
ls -al
showed that the CM-10 was now "sdcard", so I tried:
mv sdcard cm10.zip
mkdir sdcard
mount -t tmpfs none /sdcard
df
this shows /sdcard is a "none" filesystem
mv cm10.zip sdcard
cd sdcard
ls -al
shows cm10.zip
In CWR, I again try "choose zip from sdcard
And again get:
E:Can't mount /sdcard/
In adb shell, I see
df
none 849028 164600 684428 19% /sdcard
ls -al | grep sdcard
drwxrwxrwt 2 root root 60 Jan 3 20:02 sdcard
Again, if anyone can provide me with some assistance, I'd appreciate it.
The actual set of fixes:
1) To remove LBE Privacy Guard, boot into "Safe Mode" by holding down just the lower left "menu" touch sensitive button (NOT the actual home button) during a reboot. Then remove LBE Privacy Guard.
You can then use the phone. Regrettably, neither CWM nor TWRP can see the encrypted data, nor back it up, nor install files from it. Goomanager doesn't, therefore, appear to be able to apply updates to it. Overall, the system tools on Android are just not capable of handling an encrypted device at this point in time.
2) To remove encyrption and allow most of the system level apps to work again:
2a) Back everything up as best you can. I used Titanium Backup Free and Mybackup Root Free to do inital backups, and then "adb root" and "adb pull / drive:\path" to get as much as I could of that local. I also used "adb pull /data/data drive:\path" (or maybe it was "adb pull /data/data/ drive:\path") to make sure I got "drive\path\com.android.providers.contacts\databases" which contains the SQLite Contacts database, just in case.
2b) Boot into TWRP (installed via Goomanager)
!!? Probably not required ?!! 2c) Wipe everything - EVERYTHING. Format EVERYTHING, even when it warns it could be bad.
2d) Use Odin to load up the Stock Root66 rooted ROM from the thread: T-Mobile, Wind, Mobilicity, Videotron Samsung Galaxy S III > T-Mobile Galaxy S III Android Development > [Firmware/OTAs] T999(V) Official, Leaked & Root66 FW & OTA Updates! (sorry, no hotlink - I don't have enough posts)
2di) Remember to follow the instructions in page 2 of that thread VERY CAREFULLY
2e) Boot into Recovery mode again after the device tries to ask you for the encryption password (which no longer works). Then wipe the /data partition entirely. Reboot again
2f) Now you can go through initial setup on your rooted phone and install your preferred ROM normally.
TryingToBeBetter said:
The actual set of fixes:
1) To remove LBE Privacy Guard, boot into "Safe Mode" by holding down just the lower left "menu" touch sensitive button (NOT the actual home button) during a reboot. Then remove LBE Privacy Guard.
You can then use the phone. Regrettably, neither CWM nor TWRP can see the encrypted data, nor back it up, nor install files from it. Goomanager doesn't, therefore, appear to be able to apply updates to it. Overall, the system tools on Android are just not capable of handling an encrypted device at this point in time.
2) To remove encyrption and allow most of the system level apps to work again:
2a) Back everything up as best you can. I used Titanium Backup Free and Mybackup Root Free to do inital backups, and then "adb root" and "adb pull / drive:\path" to get as much as I could of that local. I also used "adb pull /data/data drive:\path" (or maybe it was "adb pull /data/data/ drive:\path") to make sure I got "drive\path\com.android.providers.contacts\databases" which contains the SQLite Contacts database, just in case.
2b) Boot into TWRP (installed via Goomanager)
!!? Probably not required ?!! 2c) Wipe everything - EVERYTHING. Format EVERYTHING, even when it warns it could be bad.
2d) Use Odin to load up the Stock Root66 rooted ROM from the thread: T-Mobile, Wind, Mobilicity, Videotron Samsung Galaxy S III > T-Mobile Galaxy S III Android Development > [Firmware/OTAs] T999(V) Official, Leaked & Root66 FW & OTA Updates! (sorry, no hotlink - I don't have enough posts)
2di) Remember to follow the instructions in page 2 of that thread VERY CAREFULLY
2e) Boot into Recovery mode again after the device tries to ask you for the encryption password (which no longer works). Then wipe the /data partition entirely. Reboot again
2f) Now you can go through initial setup on your rooted phone and install your preferred ROM normally.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
did this work for anyone?
EDIT: I just fixed permissions and was able to get back into the phone and uninstall LBE from the play store.
I put CM7 on my daughter's Wildfire S a year ago, and everything has been fine until now - and it just bootloops on the CM7 animation.
I have tried wiping dalvik & cache, fixing permissions in CWM, reflashing CM7 (the version from last year - cm-7-20120717-UNOFFICIAL-marvel.zip) and gapps. Nothing helps. Any ideas please, before I try a full wipe? I am trying to avoid that since she has no backups...
fjuniper said:
I put CM7 on my daughter's Wildfire S a year ago, and everything has been fine until now - and it just bootloops on the CM7 animation.
I have tried wiping dalvik & cache, fixing permissions in CWM, reflashing CM7 (the version from last year - cm-7-20120717-UNOFFICIAL-marvel.zip) and gapps. Nothing helps. Any ideas please, before I try a full wipe? I am trying to avoid that since she has no backups...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try flashing the latest version, it'll have less bugs anyway. I don't think you absolutely need to wipe when updating a ROM but it would probably be advisable.You can try this however.
-Download the Android Debug Bridge (adb) from Google's site onto your computer.
-Plug your phone into the computer and open the Terminal Emulator.
-Type cmd in the little window that appears and press enter.
-Navigate to the folder that you downloaded ADB to. (Example: cd C:\Users\Guest\Downloads\platform-tools )
-Type "adb backup" without the quotes to take a copy of your phone's data onto the computer.
-Now you can safely do whatever you want.
99Aaron99 said:
Try flashing the latest version, it'll have less bugs anyway. I don't think you absolutely need to wipe when updating a ROM but it would probably be advisable.You can try this however.
-Download the Android Debug Bridge (adb) from Google's site onto your computer.
-Plug your phone into the computer and open the Terminal Emulator.
-Type cmd in the little window that appears and press enter.
-Navigate to the folder that you downloaded ADB to. (Example: cd C:\Users\Guest\Downloads\platform-tools )
-Type "adb backup" without the quotes to take a copy of your phone's data onto the computer.
-Now you can safely do whatever you want.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks. That is the latest version of the ROM unfortunately - old ROM on an old phone now.... If I go to e.g. CM10, I will have to do a full wipe anyway.
I have ADB already installed. It does respond to ADB commands like adb reboot, but using adb backup just results in the full set of commands being listed i.e. it doesn't know what to do. Are there other parameters to use? backup isn't in the list presented.
...
I found a suggestion to use
adb backup –apk –shared –all –f /backup/mybackup.ab
But I just get the response
adb: unable to connect for backup
fjuniper said:
Thanks. That is the latest version of the ROM unfortunately - old ROM on an old phone now.... If I go to e.g. CM10, I will have to do a full wipe anyway.
I have ADB already installed. It does respond to ADB commands like adb reboot, but using adb backup just results in the full set of commands being listed i.e. it doesn't know what to do. Are there other parameters to use? backup isn't in the list presented.
...
I found a suggestion to use
adb backup –apk –shared –all –f /backup/mybackup.ab
But I just get the response
adb: unable to connect for backup
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'll be honest, I've never used that command before. I just know how it works, I took a Nandroid backup when I first rooted my phone so have never needed it. I can't really help from this point on.. However if your phone will boot into recovery, assuming you have ClockWorkMod installed you can do a backup through that.
99Aaron99 said:
I'll be honest, I've never used that command before. I just know how it works, I took a Nandroid backup when I first rooted my phone so have never needed it. I can't really help from this point on.. However if your phone will boot into recovery, assuming you have ClockWorkMod installed you can do a backup through that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi, I was hoping to do an app+data kind of backup like Titanium. I did take a nandroid in CMW and then restored it, but it perfectly reproduced the bootloop behaviour haha. In the end I did a full wipe and told my daughter that she needed to start from scratch. 14 year olds are more pragmatic that I would be - she was just grateful she had her phone back and could get on FB. Google restored her contacts, which is the main thing. So all sorted, but the bootloop cause remains a mystery...