Related
So, I have been having some major problems with my phone. Tons of force closes, major lag times and things like that. I have tried a handful of different ROMs, including CM7, the nightlys, Miui and a few others. I hear great stories about people and rooting and I want to be one of them. I am tired of all the hassles. So, when talking to someone in the office who has had no issues with his Droid 2, he suggested, and said he has read, the best thing to do is go back to stock, unroot, as they will remove all possible conflicting files that could be causing problems. Then, re-root, and install whatever.
Any thoughts on that? Generally, my process for installing a new ROM, I boot into recovery manually, clean cache, clean Dalvik, then install ROM. Then, I restore apps and data from Titanium and restore the Nandroid from Rom Manager. The past couple times, I have done the factory reset, but eventually, a day or 2, it goes back to the same problems. Maybe, I should just try it without the restoring the Nandroid (even though it is a backup from when there was no problems) and the app data from Titanium. I assume, you know what happens when you assume, that both the Nandroid and Titanium backups are clean as I backed up when I was having no issues.
So, any thoughts here? Unroot, then re-root or is there something else I should try to wipe everything clean to solve the problems? Currently, on the original Droid Incredible (got it on the release day, so the first screen), running 2.2 when I rooted, currently on Miui 1.9.16, but just installed it 10 minutes ago and was running the Cyanogen nightly's before hand..
Thanks in advance
When flashing a new ROM you should always do the following before flashing, especially if you're flashing completely different ROMs:
Wipe user data/factory reset
Mounts and Storage - format /system, format /boot, format /data, format /cache
Advanced - Wipe Dalvik, Wipe Battery Stats
Then flash the ROM zip.
Try not restoring apps and data from Titanium, as restoring the app is okay, but restoring data can cause unwanted things to happen more times than not.
When you say restore nandroid from ROM Manager, what do you mean here? A nandroid is backing up your ROM via ROM Manager, which gets stored to your clockworkmod/backups folder...you shouldn't be pulling anything from that...
If you flash the RUU to return to stock and re-root, make sure you use the 2.2 RUU. If you use the 2.3, you need to be s-off to get rooted again. If you use the 2.3 RUU and you're s-on, no root for you...come back one year.
The ONLY time you want to restore a nandroid backup is if you've wiped your device clean and want to return to a previously backed up setup. You should never restore a nandroid backup over a ROM you've just installed. If that's what you're doing, that's your problem. You're effectively replacing whatever ROM you just flashed in it's entirety.
As for Titanium, I restore apps with data all the time, but system data should almost never be restored as it's OS and app version specific. Basically, if it's green, it's safe. If it's red, don't mess with it. If it's white, like a user app, app and data are usually safe to restore.
ROM Manager is a bigger pain in the ass than it's worth and is useless for anything more than flashing a new recovery. If my recovery is working reliably, I never install ROM manager. Most devs will tell you to never flash with ROM manager anyways. Any function that ROM Manager performs can be performed in recovery in a safer, more reliable fashion.
loonatik78 said:
The ONLY time you want to restore a nandroid backup is if you've wiped your device clean and want to return to a previously backed up setup. You should never restore a nandroid backup over a ROM you've just installed. If that's what you're doing, that's your problem. You're effectively replacing whatever ROM you just flashed in it's entirety.
As for Titanium, I restore apps with data all the time, but system data should almost never be restored as it's OS and app version specific. Basically, if it's green, it's safe. If it's red, don't mess with it. If it's white, like a user app, app and data are usually safe to restore.
ROM Manager is a bigger pain in the ass than it's worth and is useless for anything more than flashing a new recovery. If my recovery is working reliably, I never install ROM manager. Most devs will tell you to never flash with ROM manager anyways. Any function that ROM Manager performs can be performed in recovery in a safer, more reliable fashion.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the correction, I forgot to put system in there...restoring system data is not good.
+1 on ROM Manager issues, always get a zip file of the ROM, and flash through recovery.
RMarkwald said:
When flashing a new ROM you should always do the following before flashing, especially if you're flashing completely different ROMs:
Wipe user data/factory reset
Mounts and Storage - format /system, format /boot, format /data, format /cache
Advanced - Wipe Dalvik, Wipe Battery Stats
Then flash the ROM zip.
When you say restore nandroid from ROM Manager, what do you mean here? A nandroid is backing up your ROM via ROM Manager, which gets stored to your clockworkmod/backups folder...you shouldn't be pulling anything from that....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is pretty much what I do, except for the Mounts and Storage parts.
For the Nandroid part, maybe I have my terminology mixed up. I do a restore from Rom Manager...which I thought was called the Nandroid backup. It seems to me, that it makes sure the launcher and things are set up right.
loonatik78 said:
The ONLY time you want to restore a nandroid backup is if you've wiped your device clean and want to return to a previously backed up setup. You should never restore a nandroid backup over a ROM you've just installed. If that's what you're doing, that's your problem. You're effectively replacing whatever ROM you just flashed in it's entirety.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I rarely use the ROM Manager to do anything, just restore (what I thought was called the Nandroid) to make the launcher the way things were..
But it seems like that is my problem. I am installed the new ROM, then just restoring a back up of all the problems. DUH.. Guess I should try it all without restoring anything from the ROM Manager and see how it all works. That will be my project tonight..
Thanks
MikeDaub said:
That is pretty much what I do, except for the Mounts and Storage parts.
For the Nandroid part, maybe I have my terminology mixed up. I do a restore from Rom Manager...which I thought was called the Nandroid backup. It seems to me, that it makes sure the launcher and things are set up right.
I rarely use the ROM Manager to do anything, just restore (what I thought was called the Nandroid) to make the launcher the way things were..
But it seems like that is my problem. I am installed the new ROM, then just restoring a back up of all the problems. DUH.. Guess I should try it all without restoring anything from the ROM Manager and see how it all works. That will be my project tonight..
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you want to restore your launcher, try it through Titanium Backup. If that doesn't do it, and I can't promise you it will work correctly, you're probably SOL on restoring a launcher unless some other backup app does the job better.
loonatik78 said:
If you want to restore your launcher, try it through Titanium Backup. If that doesn't do it, and I can't promise you it will work correctly, you're probably SOL on restoring a launcher unless some other backup app does the job better.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am fine with not restoring it, I just thought "that is what you should do".
I don't venture too far from the regular settings, so it isn't a pain to do, just thought I should...
RMarkwald said:
When flashing a new ROM you should always do the following before flashing, especially if you're flashing completely different ROMs:
Wipe user data/factory reset
Mounts and Storage - format /system, format /boot, format /data, format /cache
Advanced - Wipe Dalvik, Wipe Battery Stats
Then flash the ROM zip.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
One more quick question since I am thinking of it....is this same process if doing nightly updates from Cyanogen, or just is I change from say, Cyanogen to Miui or something??
Thanks again for all the help..
MikeDaub said:
One more quick question since I am thinking of it....is this same process if doing nightly updates from Cyanogen, or just is I change from say, Cyanogen to Miui or something??
Thanks again for all the help..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Generally, CM nightlies can be flashed over top of each other without a wipe since the vast majority of the code is identical. However, if an issue crops up, a wipe and flash might be a good thing to try. Probably won't help though, since nightlies, by definition, are experimental.
Always wipe and flash when moving from one ROM type to another.
loonatik78 said:
Generally, CM nightlies can be flashed over top of each other without a wipe since the vast majority of the code is identical. However, if an issue crops up, a wipe and flash might be a good thing to try. Probably won't help though, since nightlies, by definition, are experimental.
Always wipe and flash when moving from one ROM type to another.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's kinda what I figured, but I thought it was worth asking so I don't completely wipe the whole thing every time I install an update. The nightly I am on now seems to be working, so the new plan is keep whats working until it doesn't work anymore, or some major update comes along..
Thanks again for the help. I really appreciate it.
If the issue continues you can try copying everything off of your SD card to your PC and reformatting your SD card. Remember to use FAT32 format. Then copy everything back to your SD card. I've read threads were this helped the force close issues for many people - Just a thought.
jackbtha1 said:
If the issue continues you can try copying everything off of your SD card to your PC and reformatting your SD card. Remember to use FAT32 format. Then copy everything back to your SD card. I've read threads were this helped the force close issues for many people - Just a thought.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Certainly worth a thought. The card that is in it now came from a different phone. I am pretty sure I formatted it when I first plugged it in, but it can't hurt to try...
Thanks
guys i have a question for you .i flash my evo with new roms and all i wipe is factory.data catche and davik catche is this correct ? ive seen ppl wipe data /boots/ whats safe to wipe when flashing a rom and not loosing your contacts
As long as you are backed up to gmail with your contacts it is safe to wipe every option but sdcard and don't wipe batt stats unless u are charged to 100% if your SD is partitioned make sure you wipe sdext. If u don't save your contacts to gmail go to the contacts app and export to sdcard b4 wiping and you can wipe everything and import your contacts after the flash
Sent from my Classic-EViLizED-ToMAToFiED-EVo4g-
like what he said its all to do with your gmail, because I pretty much go down the list on ra's recovery 3 times plus run a wipe all zip.
You can find a format all zip I'm the link below and it wipes your whole rom off. So if you use it, you will HAVE to flash a rom or else your phone will not even boot
Having trouble with AOSP? http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1295702
If you are flashing a new ROM..wipe everything except SD card...And to be honest I always wipe SD card also...Simply back up your apps with Titanium Backup...and backup your entire SD card to your computer. This is called a complete wipe and will always give best results.
heres the thing i have miui restored but love the new features i added to this miui now can i back up this one and delete the old miui rom ? if i back the miui rom i have now caqn i wipe data also
g35slammed said:
heres the thing i have miui restored but love the new features i added to this miui now can i back up this one and delete the old miui rom ? if i back the miui rom i have now caqn i wipe data also
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Correct, you can backup your current MIUI, and delete the older backup. Also when backing up, you don't need to delete anything. You only need to wipe the data, ect upon flashing a new rom.
thanks a lot man .now do you know whats the latest miui rom . i go to update and it says i have the latest one
MIUI is released every Friday, so the newest one would be 1.12.2 as in 2011, December (12th month) 2nd (day).
And I will always, always, always, no matter what the argument is, wipe everything in Amon Ra, except SD Card: and never use Wipe Scripts, and I can say I have very few issues that a lot of people report having
Don't forget about backing up your .android folder too. That's where all your apps are stored on your sd card and occasionally they can get corrupted or lost when switching ROMs.
im a person who likes to learn so sorry for the noob questions .lets say i want to update to the newest update on miui ,do i have to save this rom and wipe catche and davilik catche. i have the miui rom backed up but i have not backed up the miui rom that i have added all the tweaks to so will i have to back up the tweaked miui and than zipp the new update or will it just update on its own
g35slammed said:
im a person who likes to learn so sorry for the noob questions .lets say i want to update to the newest update on miui ,do i have to save this rom and wipe catche and davilik catche. i have the miui rom backed up but i have not backed up the miui rom that i have added all the tweaks to so will i have to back up the tweaked miui and than zipp the new update or will it just update on its own
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you're not going to return to your current rom, no need to back up, though you may want to in case it doesn't flash.
Simply backup your launcher settings, backup all you apps with titanium backup , boot to recovery, do a full wipe, except for sd card, then flash you MIUI rom, boot up, restore apps and re-set up.
the miui rom i am using right now is backed up and i restored it and its in use ,however, i have added alot of apps and have everything good on this one .my question is i want to upgrade to the latest miui update do i have to save this rom and just flash the new update
Even easier, use the Back Up app to back up your theme, desktop settings, messages and WiFi settings so you don't have to reset all that manually.
Stuck
I just received a notification from sprint of an update for the evo4g, when I try to apply it the phone started to do it and then 15 secs later it is stock on a exclamation mark and a lil drawing of a little android under it.... now is not even doing anything.
What did I do wrong?
BTW the evo is rooted and backed up with clockworkmod, so I guess I will have to reflash the backup on it.
portedbikes said:
I just received a notification from sprint of an update for the evo4g, when I try to apply it the phone started to do it and then 15 secs later it is stock on a exclamation mark and a lil drawing of a little android under it.... now is not even doing anything.
What did I do wrong?
BTW the evo is rooted and backed up with clockworkmod, so I guess I will have to reflash the backup on it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Your NEVER SUPPOSED TO ACCEPT OTAs. !!!!!!!!
from my miui evo 4g
OK, so no OTA, but isn't this update supposed to fix some issues with their service? since I'm having many of them atm... like my 3g data connection keeps on shutting itself up and leaving me without service whenever it pleases.
I just hope removing the IQ and the loggers of the phone is not what is affecting my service that bad. Because it actually sucks right now, without wifi Pandora will not play 1 song without getting service problems, can't do a search on the internet without lossing the net. GRRRR
HipKat said:
MIUI is released every Friday, so the newest one would be 1.12.2 as in 2011, December (12th month) 2nd (day).
And I will always, always, always, no matter what the argument is, wipe everything in Amon Ra, except SD Card: and never use Wipe Scripts, and I can say I have very few issues that a lot of people report having
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why no wipe scripts
Having trouble with AOSP? http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1295702
gwwinslett said:
If you are flashing a new ROM..wipe everything except SD card...And to be honest I always wipe SD card also...Simply back up your apps with Titanium Backup...and backup your entire SD card to your computer. This is called a complete wipe and will always give best results.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmm! Restoring all the sd card takes forever
Sent from my PC36100 using xda premium
First of all I searched on the subject and i have not been able to find a similar question with an answer (maybe its a really dumb question)
Basically my phone is FULL of unused files, so much so on my 16Gb I have only 1.5Gb free. I have no media (Music, Video E books Etc They are all on my SD card) This is also with virtually no apps loaded after a rom install.
IDK what i can do to fix this. Also Will Root Be Removed if I tried to Factory Reset it Rooting isnt difficult but I wouldnt want to do it so often because of the hassle and it must be
I have been flashing a lot of roms and testing apps and i have a lot of bloat IDK how to remove safely as IDK if I delete these files will my backups still work?? IDK how the backup works but they are certainly not large enough to be a "IMAGE"
In all what do I do to clean up my phone and how to keep it clean. I like to think i am not learning impaired but IDK. In all I just want to remove the bloat and not ruin my system. I tried an app called SD Maid and although it found files it did not free up the gigs of space i should have.
PLEASE HELP​
I think either twrp or cwm has an option to wipe internal sdcard.
Just make sure you have backed up anything important first.
Factory reset will only wipe internal sd if you have stock recovery installed and no, you shouldn't lose root by factory reset. You will lose all data and user installed apps.
If you've been flashing a lot of roms and stuff, I would suggest doing a full wipe from recovery and then reflash the rom you want. Basically start from scratch, and restore only the data you need from your backups.
Sent from my SGH-T999 using xda app-developers app
After some research i have seen that that would be the only way to do what I want. Flashing a lot of roms and testing apps really bloats your Nand.
So after i do this my backups will no longer work?
Will it remove the rom from my internal SD that i plan on using to basically "Start Over' ?
After this procedure will the phone boot without installing a rom?
In all I have CWM and it has the option you speak of. Just before I do it i just wanted to know a little more.
What i should do is boot into recovery mode then use the system wipe option, then flash desired rom, (is normal rom install procedures still needed wipe of cache and dalvik ETC? or will this do a full wipe)
If anyone can Answer my above questions and maybe give a short how to (i know most of the basics but this is my first time doing a full system wipe)
I greatly appreciate any response and thank you for reading my post.
Why wouldn't your backups work?
If you wipe system, no the phone won't boot.
Have your rom on External sd. If you choise format data, or wipe internal storage it will do just what it says and you won't have the rom to flash.
Factory reset formats the entire data partition, except for internal sd if your using cwm. You have to choose format data or specifically wipe internal sd.
System wipe shouldn't be necessary. When you flash a new rom its should format system as part of the process.
Sent from my SGH-T999 using xda app-developers app
Thanks for all your help doc (BTW I like the name)
OK, I have decided I want/need to wipe my internal SD its just too bloated with leftover stuff from apps and IDK what else (IDK if Roms leave anything else I have flashes about 10 already. I have decided on what I want as my daily driver (for now) probably AOKP then I'll cherry pick more mods maybe cm10 IDK exactly so if anyone reads this this is what I am going to do please post if I am going to somehow soft brick my phone.
I have CWMR (I am kinda annoyed with the small issues with the build I have 6.0.1.2 and am thinking about switching to TWRP although I am still green and don't want to mess up my recovery and brick my phone) anyway back on topic
I have nothing I wish to save except my contacts an calender which Google takes care of so I wont be backing anything up I'm not really concerned with app settings I can take care of that easily later.
First, I plan on doing a full internal SD system wipe
Next, I plan on flashing a ROM from my SD card (just in case should I remove my SD card when I do this then insert it when I wish to flash the ROM)
Then I suppose I will then enjoy
Install goo manager from the market and in app, press menu then install openRecovery script. Wait till a toast CONFIRMS install and you now have TWRP.
Id still make a nandroid backup just in case. Its always good to have the extra option when wiping everything. You can delete and make a fresh one after your new rom is flashed.
Just keep your rom on the external sd and you should be fine. Remember to wipe internal sd from cwm or twrp you have to choose wipe internal storage or format data.
Shouldn't need to remove the sdcard. External won't be touched unless you specifically tell it to.
Good luck!
Sent from my SGH-T999 using xda app-developers app
Thanks for all the help I Read TWRP has the same backup date issue and I don't NEED touch recovery So right now i will stick with CWM and may later change but for now it works and so far i see no reason to change. Unless I find something to convince me TWRP works better than CWM.
So Today or tonight I will wipe, and probably install AOKP with Faux Kernel (i am using Faux right now and it works VERY Well) and probably some audio mods. I will report my hopeful Success later Ill also post what i did step by step for future reference in searching so others like me will not need to post such a post.
I'm freaking out and need some help. I recently rooted my S3 and everything went smoothly. I was running stock android 4.1.2 I think (multi-window feature) with root. Wanted to flash the cyanogemon 10.1 rom. I got titanium back up,backed up eveything. Flashed it. Seemed to be working normally but as I tried to restore my apps and things from the titanium back up it went all wrong. "Unfortunately,Email has stopped,the process android,process media has stopped. Also says process.acore has stopped and process.gapps has stopped pop up that is constant. I freaked out and tried to go back to normal and now I'm screwed.
I tried recovery and it tells me I dont have a OS on my phone. I than decided to Unroot the phone and start from a fresh stock android but it seemed like it worked 50%. I see the background and it shows me the set up google account for the phone but the pop up messages haven't stopped.If I go into the normal recovery and wipe data/factory reset will it solve the issue? And if it will should I choose to wipe cache partition first before doing so?
Which recovery do you have? Also I never backup system apps such as email, because they change when going from 1 rom to the next. No OS means you wiped system, without having another ROM saved on your sd card. If your computer still sees the internal and external memory and your custom recovery is still working, you should be able to save a new rom, do a full wipe-system, data, cache, dalvik cache. Then flash rom you already saved to your memory. I take it you didn't do a Android backup after you rooted and flashed custom recovery?
sent from somewhere
Miguelcoo1 said:
I'm freaking out and need some help. I recently rooted my S3 and everything went smoothly. I was running stock android 4.1.2 I think (multi-window feature) with root. Wanted to flash the cyanogemon 10.1 rom. I got titanium back up,backed up eveything. Flashed it. Seemed to be working normally but as I tried to restore my apps and things from the titanium back up it went all wrong. "Unfortunately,Email has stopped,the process android,process media has stopped. Also says process.acore has stopped and process.gapps has stopped pop up that is constant. I freaked out and tried to go back to normal and now I'm screwed.
I tried recovery and it tells me I dont have a OS on my phone. I than decided to Unroot the phone and start from a fresh stock android but it seemed like it worked 50%. I see the background and it shows me the set up google account for the phone but the pop up messages haven't stopped.If I go into the normal recovery and wipe data/factory reset will it solve the issue? And if it will should I choose to wipe cache partition first before doing so?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok, first I'll describe what you did and how that (most likely) messed up your phone. Then I'll describe what you can do to fix it.
Problem
It seems like your original flash of CM10.1 went smoothly. It must have been something to do with your Titanium Backup (TiBu) restores. More than likely, you tried to restore too much. In TiBu, the different apps have different colors: Red, Yellow, Green, and White. In the menu, you can see the following Legend:
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}
White: User Application. These are apps that you installed from the Play Store or sideloaded by directly installing an apk. These are safe to restore.
Red: System Application. These are system files that heavily rely on which Android version (4.1.x vs. 4.2.x) and whether you're on TW or AOSP. I always try to avoid restoring these backups (even when just upgrading to a newer version of the same Rom). Some people will say that you can restore the Data only for these, but my motto is: caution will help prevent mistakes (ground-shaking, I know).
Green: System Service with Useful Data: These are system apps that have useful information (such as User Accounts, etc.). I treat these the same as Red Backups, but am a bit more likely to restore the data of them (green means go, right?).
Yellow: These backups are system data that can be restored as an xml file. These are inherently safer than the red and green ones, and I say restore away (I always restore my Call Log, Messages, and Wi-Fi Access Points).
The reason you were getting FCs was restoring a red or green backup. This can sometimes work, but has a lot of potential for issues when switching between TW and AOSP Roms. Most likely something in your /system folder is messed up due to restoring an app. Even when you flash a new Rom, it just overwrites items in your System folder, it doesn't wipe /System. So whatever is wrong in your /System folder is still there, regardless of what you flash.
Ok, now that we've identified what's wrong with your phone, we can now help solve it!
Solution/Fixes
Are you able to get into a custom Recovery? If not, you need to use Odin and follow The Rooting Guide to get back to a custom recovery (I recommend TWRP, but CWM is just as good).
Next, you want to download a Rom and put it on your device. I'd recommend (just for now), to get Freeza's stock TW Rom.
Now, before you try to flash this Rom, you'll have to wipe. In order to get rid of the FCs, you'll have to at least wipe System. I'd recommend a full wipe of your Internal SD Card (after backing up anything you want to save), but it's not technically necessary. Afterwards, you can wipe data and cache/dalvik cache.
Then you can flash your Rom. It seems like you know how to do this, but in case you don't, I have previously posted directions over here.
Hope this helps!
joeyhdownsouth said:
So you never had a custom recovery, like CWM or TWRP? Also I never backup system apps such as email, because they change when going from 1 rom to the next.
sent from somewhere
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I did have a Custom Recovery. I believe it was TWRP. I think all this happened was because when it occured I might of went into the recovery and accidently wiped system. I know that the phone didn't have OS on it and was blank. It just stayed on the Samsung boot screen. About 20 minutes ago I tried to unroot the phone and start with stock android. I didn't have much important stuff on my phone so I don't mind. The problem is when I did that it seemed to work. Only to find out that the pop-ups still exist and are constantly popping up where I cant do anything.
I would it worked seeing as though I can go into my stock recovery mode. Could it be possible to just wipe everything there and factory reset it or would it brick the phone? Also if I can just factory reset it through the stock recovery should I wipe the cache partition first?
topherk said:
Ok, first I'll describe what you did and how that (most likely) messed up your phone. Then I'll describe what you can do to fix it.
Problem
It seems like your original flash of CM10.1 went smoothly. It must have been something to do with your Titanium Backup (TiBu) restores. More than likely, you tried to restore too much. In TiBu, the different apps have different colors: Red, Yellow, Green, and White. In the menu, you can see the following Legend:
White: User Application. These are apps that you installed from the Play Store or sideloaded by directly installing an apk. These are safe to restore.
Red: System Application. These are system files that heavily rely on which Android version (4.1.x vs. 4.2.x) and whether you're on TW or AOSP. I always try to avoid restoring these backups (even when just upgrading to a newer version of the same Rom). Some people will say that you can restore the Data only for these, but my motto is: caution will help prevent mistakes (ground-shaking, I know).
Green: System Service with Useful Data: These are system apps that have useful information (such as User Accounts, etc.). I treat these the same as Red Backups, but am a bit more likely to restore the data of them (green means go, right?).
Yellow: These backups are system data that can be restored as an xml file. These are inherently safer than the red and green ones, and I say restore away (I always restore my Call Log, Messages, and Wi-Fi Access Points).
The reason you were getting FCs was restoring a red or green backup. This can sometimes work, but has a lot of potential for issues when switching between TW and AOSP Roms. Most likely something in your /system folder is messed up due to restoring an app. Even when you flash a new Rom, it just overwrites items in your System folder, it doesn't wipe /System. So whatever is wrong in your /System folder is still there, regardless of what you flash.
Ok, now that we've identified what's wrong with your phone, we can now help solve it!
Solution/Fixes
Are you able to get into a custom Recovery? If not, you need to use Odin and follow The Rooting Guide to get back to a custom recovery (I recommend TWRP, but CWM is just as good).
Next, you want to download a Rom and put it on your device. I'd recommend (just for now), to get Freeza's stock TW Rom.
Now, before you try to flash this Rom, you'll have to wipe. In order to get rid of the FCs, you'll have to at least wipe System. I'd recommend a full wipe of your Internal SD Card (after backing up anything you want to save), but it's not technically necessary. Afterwards, you can wipe data and cache/dalvik cache.
Then you can flash your Rom. It seems like you know how to do this, but in case you don't, I have previously posted directions over here.
Hope this helps!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well as of right I believe I just unrooted the phone and went back to stock android because when I try and go into recovery mode, it gives me the normal stock recovery. I thought it would work but needless to say the applications pop-ups saying it stopped working is still happening. I can see the google account set up but cant do anything because of the pop-ups and also theres a I icnon with a no symbol around it on the top left corner (dont know what that means). Is it possible to factory reset and wipe the data from this stock recovery? And if so should I wipe cache partition first?
Also thanks for the help. My head hurts trying to figure out how to fix this...It just seems like everything I try and do makes it worse or the same.
Miguelcoo1 said:
I did have a Custom Recovery. I believe it was TWRP. I think all this happened was because when it occured I might of went into the recovery and accidently wiped system. I know that the phone didn't have OS on it and was blank. It just stayed on the Samsung boot screen. About 20 minutes ago I tried to unroot the phone and start with stock android. I didn't have much important stuff on my phone so I don't mind. The problem is when I did that it seemed to work. Only to find out that the pop-ups still exist and are constantly popping up where I cant do anything.
I would it worked seeing as though I can go into my stock recovery mode. Could it be possible to just wipe everything there and factory reset it or would it brick the phone? Also if I can just factory reset it through the stock recovery should I wipe the cache partition first?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's not gonna work because you wiped system, and now you have stock recovery. I would follow topherk's post above this one. Very well written.
sent from somewhere
Miguelcoo1 said:
Well as of right I believe I just unrooted the phone and went back to stock android because when I try and go into recovery mode, it gives me the normal stock recovery. I thought it would work but needless to say the applications pop-ups saying it stopped working is still happening. I can see the google account set up but cant do anything because of the pop-ups and also theres a I icnon with a no symbol around it on the top left corner (dont know what that means). Is it possible to factory reset and wipe the data from this stock recovery? And if so should I wipe cache partition first?
Also thanks for the help. My head hurts trying to figure out how to fix this...It just seems like everything I try and do makes it worse or the same.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're doing well, don't get too frustrated.
Stock recovery is relatively limited and it won't be able to wipe what you need to wipe. When you do a factory reset in Stock (or custom) recoveries, you are just wiping the /data folder. Since we've identified that it's most likely an issue with /System, a Factory Reset won't do any good.
Your best bet it to get a Custom Recovery again through the Rooting Guide. That guide is really well-written and has pictures so it's easier to follow.
After you have CWM and TWRP, it's real easy to wipe everything (in TWRP 2.5.0.0, you just wipe internal sd card and you're good to go). Or you can do a comprehensive wipe by wiping /System, /Data, Cache and Dalvik Cache. Then you can flash a Rom (again, I'd recommend Freeza's). After you get Freeza's Rom up and running, I'd make a Nandroid Backup immediately (in a Custom Recovery). This will be the backup that you can return to whenever something doesn't flash well.
topherk said:
You're doing well, don't get too frustrated.
Stock recovery is relatively limited and it won't be able to wipe what you need to wipe. When you do a factory reset in Stock (or custom) recoveries, you are just wiping the /data folder. Since we've identified that it's most likely an issue with /System, a Factory Reset won't do any good.
Your best bet it to get a Custom Recovery again through the Rooting Guide. That guide is really well-written and has pictures so it's easier to follow.
After you have CWM and TWRP, it's real easy to wipe everything (in TWRP 2.5.0.0, you just wipe internal sd card and you're good to go). Or you can do a comprehensive wipe by wiping /System, /Data, Cache and Dalvik Cache. Then you can flash a Rom (again, I'd recommend Freeza's). After you get Freeza's Rom up and running, I'd make a Nandroid Backup immediately (in a Custom Recovery). This will be the backup that you can return to whenever something doesn't flash well.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for all the help. I'm downloading the GS3 Root Kit Zip so I can follow your instructions. I'm going to try and bring my phone back to life. I'll update when hopefully its fixed lol.
topherk said:
You're doing well, don't get too frustrated.
Stock recovery is relatively limited and it won't be able to wipe what you need to wipe. When you do a factory reset in Stock (or custom) recoveries, you are just wiping the /data folder. Since we've identified that it's most likely an issue with /System, a Factory Reset won't do any good.
Your best bet it to get a Custom Recovery again through the Rooting Guide. That guide is really well-written and has pictures so it's easier to follow.
After you have CWM and TWRP, it's real easy to wipe everything (in TWRP 2.5.0.0, you just wipe internal sd card and you're good to go). Or you can do a comprehensive wipe by wiping /System, /Data, Cache and Dalvik Cache. Then you can flash a Rom (again, I'd recommend Freeza's). After you get Freeza's Rom up and running, I'd make a Nandroid Backup immediately (in a Custom Recovery). This will be the backup that you can return to whenever something doesn't flash well.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well I did everything but flash the rom. My question is in the link you gave me to flash Freeza's rom which one do I download, The first one on the top?
Miguelcoo1 said:
Well I did everything but flash the rom. My question is in the link you gave me to flash Freeza's rom which one do I download, The first one on the top?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I knew this question was going to pop up... I should've put it in my original post.
You're probably going to want to flash the Deodex MD4 one:
DeOdex:
Sprint Touchwiz Jelly Bean 4.1.2 L710VPBMD4
MD5: 77262D9D6CF1A6AF30A8981A95A75D57
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I find that a lot of mods require DeOdex Roms, so in case you decide to flash one in the future, it'll help to have it. And the main negative of DeOdex is a slightly longer start-up time, so I recommend people use DeOdex.
topherk said:
I knew this question was going to pop up... I should've put it in my original post.
You're probably going to want to flash the Deodex MD4 one:
I find that a lot of mods require DeOdex Roms, so in case you decide to flash one in the future, it'll help to have it. And the main negative of DeOdex is a slightly longer start-up time, so I recommend people use DeOdex.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok, I'm downloading the massive zip file on my desktop and waiting for it to be finished. My question is how am I going to transfer the zip file into the sdcard? Could it be just as simple as putting the phone in download mode and connect to my computer to transfer the file? Also I wanted to know once I Flash the rom and Custom Recovery which would be TWRP to Backup does it back up everything or is there only a few things I do need to back up. I ask because as of right now my phone is shut off and doesn't have a OS on it. Just waiting on the zip file to finally flash the rom and back it up.
I also wanted to ask you about something I been thinking about. When all this mess happened because I backed up files I wasnt suppose to back up with titanium back up, the backup file still exist on my sdcard. Is it possible for me to delete everything other than just the apps and it will work fine? I ask because I'm planning on getting the Cyan 10.1 rom again because I loved it (for the few minutes it ran fine). Or should I just not do it and start fresh? Would it be possible to use those app back up files when I install titanium back up again?
Miguelcoo1 said:
Ok, I'm downloading the massive zip file on my desktop and waiting for it to be finished. My question is how am I going to transfer the zip file into the sdcard? Could it be just as simple as putting the phone in download mode and connect to my computer to transfer the file? Also I wanted to know once I Flash the rom and Custom Recovery which would be TWRP to Backup does it back up everything or is there only a few things I do need to back up. I ask because as of right now my phone is shut off and doesn't have a OS on it. Just waiting on the zip file to finally flash the rom and back it up.
I also wanted to ask you about something I been thinking about. When all this mess happened because I backed up files I wasnt suppose to back up with titanium back up, the backup file still exist on my sdcard. Is it possible for me to delete everything other than just the apps and it will work fine? I ask because I'm planning on getting the Cyan 10.1 rom again because I loved it (for the few minutes it ran fine). Or should I just not do it and start fresh? Would it be possible to use those app back up files when I install titanium back up again?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok, so from what I can tell, you've already wiped your internal memory. Since you can't load up into the Rom to copy the files, there are a couple of ways to get them on your phone:
Manual Copy: Take the external Micro SD card out and pop it into an adapter and insert it into your computer to copy the file (I've done this once or twice).
Recovery Mounting as USB: If you have TWRP 2.4.1.0 or 2.5.0.0, there should be an option which allows you to mount the phone as a usb mass storage. It should be in the mount menu.
ADB Copy: Connect the phone to the computer and boot the phone into download mode. You can then use adb to copy the file over to the phone. I'm personally not very good with adb, but there are good guides on here with how to do this. (Guide 1) (Guide 2)
Once you get a Rom up and running on your phone, you won't have to do these, but since it wasn't working before, this is the way to do it.
topherk said:
Ok, so from what I can tell, you've already wiped your internal memory. Since you can't load up into the Rom to copy the files, there are a couple of ways to get them on your phone:
Manual Copy: Take the external Micro SD card out and pop it into an adapter and insert it into your computer to copy the file (I've done this once or twice).
Recovery Mounting as USB: If you have TWRP 2.4.1.0 or 2.5.0.0, there should be an option which allows you to mount the phone as a usb mass storage. It should be in the mount menu.
ADB Copy: Connect the phone to the computer and boot the phone into download mode. You can then use adb to copy the file over to the phone. I'm personally not very good with adb, but there are good guides on here with how to do this. (Guide 1) (Guide 2)
Once you get a Rom up and running on your phone, you won't have to do these, but since it wasn't working before, this is the way to do it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok, the phone is back and running good. I just flashed and its working great...Again, Thanks a lot. Thanks for being so patient with me lol. It's been a all day affair for me wit this. I just Backed up the Rom in the TWRP recovery mode and just backed up /System /Data /Boot. I also compressed it and put it on my external SD. Now that I got that out the way, I wanted to verify if my thought on using the back up files (apps only) from the last titanium backup (which messed up my phone) to maybe try and restore them to get the phone to how it was and wont lose my apps/games? Can this be done or would it be difficult to know the differences between a app and other files?
When I backup in twrp, I typically choose everything. The recovery and cache are typically so small it doesn't matter.
In terms of titanium backups, I'd say it's safe to restore any user apps, but no system apps, not even the green ones.
Glad to hear everything worked for you!
Sent from my SPH-L710 using xda app-developers app
topherk said:
When I backup in twrp, I typically choose everything. The recovery and cache are typically so small it doesn't matter.
In terms of titanium backups, I'd say it's safe to restore any user apps, but no system apps, not even the green ones.
Glad to hear everything worked for you!
Sent from my SPH-L710 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Believe me you saved me from disaster. I was going nuts trying to find a way to fix it. Glad you saw my thread and your patience to help. I'm thinking about backing up the rom again after updating all the normal stock apps but before I try and get my apps that I downloaded from the play store. I do have one quick question, The TWRP backup also backs up the apps that you have right?
I have one last question. If my backup file (titanium) is on my external SD how can I tell which apps I can restore when I download titanium back up again? Is there even a way to know?
Yeah, it's better to have a nandroid backup of your set-up phone. It makes a restore much more palatable.
In terms of TiBu, it should find your restore folder. If not, you can manually set it from the settings.
Sent from my SPH-L710 using xda app-developers app
topherk said:
Yeah, it's better to have a nandroid backup of your set-up phone. It makes a restore much more palatable.
In terms of TiBu, it should find your restore folder. If not, you can manually set it from the settings.
Sent from my SPH-L710 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I now learned to always have a nandroid backup to make life so much easier lol. My only concern with TiBu finding the restore folder on my External SD, I'm concerned that all this might happen again. So from what you told me just restore the user apps only..Nothing more? Thank you man, your a life saver.
No problem man, I enjoy helping people and it deepens my understanding of my own phone.
TiBu shouldn't restore your apps unless you tell it to. I always restore one app at a time, so I know exactly what I'm restoring. I have my TiBu to automatically backup my phone daily at 3am. It backs up everything, system and user apps. I just make sure that I only restore user apps when I flash a new Rom.
Sent from my SPH-L710 using xda app-developers app
topherk said:
No problem man, I enjoy helping people and it deepens my understanding of my own phone.
TiBu shouldn't restore your apps unless you tell it to. I always restore one app at a time, so I know exactly what I'm restoring. I have my TiBu to automatically backup my phone daily at 3am. It backs up everything, system and user apps. I just make sure that I only restore user apps when I flash a new Rom.
Sent from my SPH-L710 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry to bother you again but I just saw something that seems pretty fishy. I been practically on Wifi since I flashed the phone and now everything works. The issue i'm seeing though is that the signal bars are good with reception yet the 3g symbol isnt showing up. I tried to make a call and it seems like it works but I can't go on the internet. It just gives me the webpage not available screen. I dont think I have a data connection..Any ideas?
Update profile and prl.
Transmitted with a portable device using Xparent Blue Tapatalk 2
Hi,
I recently tried a custom rom on my old phone and it worked pretty well. I liked the OS and now want to also do that on my current phone. But i do still have a few questions i hope you can help me with.
- Can i make a full backup of my phone (with app data) to my PC or maybe to my old phone? I am currently not rooted and tried helium backup but saw that sadly not all apps allow a backup.
- I know about titanium backup. Is there some way (if the above cant be done) i can root my phone without wiping the phone? So i can then use titanium backup to make a proper backup with data, then install the custom rom and after restore the apps+data.
In short: I hope i can somehow make a full backup with app data so i can install the custom rom and restore my app data again.
Looking forward to your replies.
Thanks in advance.
Nothing? No one ? =(
To root you need to unlock the bootloader, which wipes all user data. So you can't use root to backup your data. This is why I unlock the bootloader immediately after getting a phone.
You can try an adb backup though.
razr96 said:
To root you need to unlock the bootloader, which wipes all user data. So you can't use root to backup your data. This is why I unlock the bootloader immediately after getting a phone.
You can try an adb backup though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for your reply and thx for the tip. Ill be doing that too from now on when i get a phone.
As long as i can make a full backup with abd (with app data), Im fine with wiping to root it. But just wanted to make sure i can get app data back after the root process.
Do you happen to have a link to a proper backup using abd guide?
Thanks
no
sm00th4f3 said:
https://forum.xda-developers.com/android/general/how-to-backup-restore-android-device-t3602583
You might wanna read this and try it
https://forum.xda-developers.com/android/help/adb-fastboot-commands-bootloader-kernel-t3597181
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well with a few side searches i was able to open the cmd (admin), do a adb devices (which found a device) and then run the app + data command.
('adb backup -apk -shared -all -system -f C:\backup.ab')
I saw the screen on my phone to start it, which i did but it stays on Shared Storage (where before this mentioned the apk's that were being backed up). This is taking pretty long (as in hours). Is this normal or did something went wrong and is it stuck on that part?
Edit (Update): I stopped the whole thing and tried again. Now it finished in about 10 - 15 min. I did get a message "backup finished". However in the folder i gave up, there is nothing to see. folder is still empty
Edit2 (update): Found the backup.ab file. Apparently it was in a different folder i thought it would be. So if i then also make a copy of the internal storage and do this command, i should be good right? After doing that, unlock and root, i can use the 'adb restore C:\backup.ab' and have all apps + app data back as it was before the unlock/root ?
no
sm00th4f3 said:
In a sense. Yes, but you might wanna read some threads about that first.. Otherwise. No one would wanna go back after unlocking his phone. Since restoring a backup from a locked phone on an unlocked phone can cause some issues.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not really sure what you mean though.
If i unlock my phone with my code and then make the backup with adb and just in case, a copy of my internal storage, can't i use restore on the unlocked/rooted phone to have the apps + their data back and use them again ?
no
sm00th4f3 said:
No you can't. It will brick your device. The backup can only be used when your phone is still locked. So it is basically not needed at all.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So you are saying that there is no possibility to backup my apps+data, unlock/root/custom rom, and then restore my apps+data at all?
That was some what the question of my first post.
So its either, fully wipe with everything lost, then root etc. etc. or just keep it the way i have it now?
no
sm00th4f3 said:
The normal procedure is as follows:
After an unlock.- your data always gets formatted. So a backup is totally wasted time.
The backup isn't wasted time - if it is done after unlocking your phone, while it still has stock rom.
In case flashing goes wrong, make the backup while not having flashed twro etc at all.
You don't have to wipe anything if you just want root, since the phone will reset-wipe your data on its very own.
Just unlock it, let it reboot, Flash twrp, install root zip file. Reboot
In case of flashing a custom rom. Flash twrp, boot to twrp. Use the Reboot menu and reboot again into recovery
Reboot->Recovery (in twrp menu).
Then Wipe-> Factory Reset
Wipe-> Advanced Wipe-> Wipe System partition only
Wipe-> Advanced wipe-> select Data partition-> Change file system to ext4
Reboot Menu in TWRP->Recovery
Wipe Dalvik and Cache
Flash Rom
Flash Gapps if not stated otherwise in Instructions of Rom Thread
Flash Magisk or SUperSu , depends if you want root or not. If you don'T want encryption on older Roms, flash one of the two.
Encryption will later on be optional through Phone Security Options.
Wipe dalvik and cache.
Reboot.
Wait a bit.
Setup phone, done.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes but as you mentioned, unlocking means a full wipe. And i cant restore apps + their data from a stock phone backup to an unlocked phone as it can cause issues.
In my very first post i asked if i could make a backup of the apps + their data to restore them after unlocking/rooting/custom rom or whatever. Simple answer then is no.
So i either have to just wipe my phone and basically start all over, only unlock/root etc etc first.
Or just keep my phone stock like how it is now and just do nothing and wait until i get a new phone (which will be in a long time still)