How not to brick my phone? - Samsung Epic 4G Touch

I should be getting my device within the next day and I am going to root, I'm hearing all this stuff about bricking and I would like to know what to do and what not to do to end up in this situation thanks!
Sent from my Nexus S using xda premium

Darrien13 said:
I should be getting my device within the next day and I am going to root, I'm hearing all this stuff about bricking and I would like to know what to do and what not to do to end up in this situation thanks!
Sent from my Nexus S using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Follow instructions carefully. If not sure what something is or how to do it, ask instead of blindly flashing. Oh, and don't ever use CWM Touch Recovery. Good Luck

Darrien13 said:
I should be getting my device within the next day and I am going to root, I'm hearing all this stuff about bricking and I would like to know what to do and what not to do to end up in this situation thanks!
Sent from my Nexus S using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I HIGHLY recommend you follow QBKING77's videos on youtube he has videos on how to root(use the latest) he has review videos and how to install videos on every rom on this site. Stick with his video's follow them to a T and you should be good to go. I have had this phone for a good 3 months now and I LOVE it and have never had a problem while following his videos. You will love this phone it is AMAZING!
---------- Post added at 05:03 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:02 PM ----------
stargaterules said:
Follow instructions carefully. If not sure what something is or how to do it, ask instead of blindly flashing. Oh, and don't ever use CWM Touch Recovery. Good Luck
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Click to collapse
Yes I can definitely agree with that DO NOT use touch recovery, I soft bricked my phone a couple weeks back using it trying to install Phantom Hackers Blazer rom. AMAZING rom BTW!

1) Don't use ROM Manager to flash anything in its temp recovery while on a ICS kernel
2) Don't use Touch Recovery at all
3) If you want to be as safe as possible, never wipe data while on a ICS + CWM repacked kernel. Anytime you wipe data, make sure you're on a GB + CWM kernel. The EL26 stock CWM repack works nicely, but I trust the EL29 + Rogue CWM repack. Now, I've wiped data on a ICS + Rogue kernel repack twice now and it went just fine, but it does seem that this may be risky. You may never brick doing it, but some have, so it may be better to be safe than sorry.
If you don't plan to flash anything ICS related, you really don't have much to worry about besides possibly #2.

Dchibro said:
1) Don't use ROM Manager to flash anything in its temp recovery while on a ICS kernel
2) Don't use Touch Recovery at all
3) If you want to be as safe as possible, never wipe data while on a ICS + CWM repacked kernel. Anytime you wipe data, make sure you're on a GB + CWM kernel. The EL26 stock CWM repack works nicely, but I trust the EL29 + Rogue CWM repack. Now, I've wiped data on a ICS + Rogue kernel repack twice now and it went just fine, but it does seem that this may be risky. You may never brick doing it, but some have, so it may be better to be safe than sorry.
If you don't plan to flash anything ICS related, you really don't have much to worry about besides possibly #2.
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i was on calks ics rom and wiped everything then flashed his 2.9 rom. everything went just fine.

M1nze said:
i was on calks ics rom and wiped everything then flashed his 2.9 rom. everything went just fine.
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As I said ... I have done the same, as have many others. However, just because it worked once, or twice, or twenty times, there could always be that one time where you brick. Steady Hawkin said he used his kernel repack to wipe and flash CM9 4 or 5 times with no issues, then doing the exact same thing again his phone bricked. Here's the quote ...
Steady Hawkin said:
Here is the story fellas:
I was on CM9 Alpha4, and I was flashing our FB21 rev2 to pull some logs. I had flashed Alpha4 and our kernel about four or five times already without any kind of issue. For whatever reason the next time I went to reflash Alpha 4, I booted into recovery wiped cache and dalvik cache (as I had done four or five times already with the same recovery and rom build) and it just hung at installing update. It was at that time I knew my luck had run out. No Odin (including using the jig I have), no connection to ADB, no nothing, just the blue light of death.
These bricks are concerning for a variety of reasons. The biggest IMO, is that there does not seem to be a single constant. People are bricking on different recoveries, with different roms, with different scenarios each time. TBH at this point I have no idea what is causing it or where to even start. I will say it is possible that these stock kernels from Sammie could play a role in the chaos, but thats just a guess.
Bottom line is, playing with ICS before we have any sort of source is going to be a gamble. If you dont have insurance on your phone I would hold off. I'm going to continue to do my best to try and figure out what is going on, but I cant guarantee anything. With the help of the other dev's I hope we can get this situated so we can move forward. In the meantime Team Rogue will continue to play with fire in a quest to move development forward.
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Whether the extra time it takes to flash back to GB is worth it or not is up to each person.

I would recommend looking at this thread:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1525495
I believe it is the intent of the OP on that thread to get it stickied if possible to avoid duplicate threads like this one.
If I may also share some advice given to me last week: Consider just rooting the stock ROM and getting familiar with it before jumping on to other ROMs. This gives you time to become more familiar with the device and stock capabilities as well as hopefully time to fully identify the brick issues and either work around them or resolve the cause.
I would also recommend keeping tabs on this thread:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1504808
It never hurts to err on the side of caution in this case. Good luck and enjoy your E4GT when it comes in!

Related

Soooooo ICS....safe yet?

Well I've had my replacement phone for a few days now. Been reading and keeping a close eye on all the ICS threads. These are a couple of methods I've seen posted more and more frequently to safely flash ICS.
1)Make a backup
2)Full wipe
3)Flash FB whatever
4)Flash FB whatever modem
Now to get back
5)Go into odin download mode
6)Odin El29 tar
7)Boot CWM
8)CWM restore
This next method I'm not to fond of do to Rom Manager being used.
1 thru 4 same steps.
5)Install Rom Manager
6)Flash CWM for AT&TSGS2
7)CWM restore
So what I'm here to find out is has ANY of you that have used one of these methods had any issues. Primarily getting back from ICS.
Really itching to flash some new ICS awesomeness but trying to play it safe also. Not looking to dish out another 100 dollar deductible.
Thanks in advance for any feedback.
ive been using ICS since my replacement... i just refuse to flash CWM.
I use Steady Hawkins versions and havent had a problem. Once he releases a fb21 compatible kernel/recovery ill flash.
Be safe and good luck...
LOL oh no Caspersfi!!! You didn't learn your lesson the first time.
Thanks dadoc and jason I'm doin the best I can to sit back man.
Honest
Oops how did Caulkins FB21 start downloading?? LOL
caspersfi said:
Thanks dadoc and jason I'm doin the best I can to sit back man.
Honest
Oops how did Caulkins FB21 start downloading?? LOL
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LOL, thats awesome! See once you flash you can never go back.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA Premium App
Yeah I don't know.... I'm probably just being a wuss but still think I might sit back a while. Just to make sure no bad sh#t starts happening.
caspersfi said:
Yeah I don't know.... I'm probably just being a wuss but still think I might sit back a while. Just to make sure no bad sh#t starts happening.
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Yeah me too, gonna wait for a repacked kernel and CWM for the FB21... Then im all in!
My first attempt at failed badly! But with some praying and Odin, I recovered and flashed a working fb17 over. But I have yet to get a wifi tether to work. That is the only thing that keeps me from using it as my daily.
Danono
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA App
I haven't bothered with any of the FB stuff; I hate the stock look, and TW in general..
But, I have been on all the CM9 versions so far, and, I gotta say, that aside from occasional LOS, which is easily cured with a program called fresh network,and a so so gps, it pretty much works flawlessly for me...
And, it REALLY looks nice and different!
wase4711 said:
I haven't bothered with any of the FB stuff; I hate the stock look, and TW in general..
But, I have been on all the CM9 versions so far, and, I gotta say, that aside from occasional LOS, which is easily cured with a program called fresh network,and a so so gps, it pretty much works flawlessly for me...
And, it REALLY looks nice and different!
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Click to collapse
Here is a video on how to switch for TW to the native ICS (http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=6yZk_szFU7c)
and if you use the de-odex'd rom you can flash this ICS theme (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1506945)
I've been on ICS for a few days now and just went to FB21 today running TNZ's Blend ICS and it runs great. I was a little hesitant to switch too but just remember to nandroid backup, and fully wipe in cwm and your good. Use odin to flash kernels and get back cwm, then use cwm to flash modems, then update profile and prl when done. If you don't like it then just odin back to gb (don't use cwm) and flash a kernel again, then flash whatever rom in cwm that you want.
xST4T1K said:
I've been on ICS for a few days now and just went to FB21 today running TNZ's Blend ICS and it runs great. I was a little hesitant to switch too but just remember to nandroid backup, and fully wipe in cwm and your good. Use odin to flash kernels and get back cwm, then use cwm to flash modems, then update profile and prl when done. If you don't like it then just odin back to gb (don't use cwm) and flash a kernel again, then flash whatever rom in cwm that you want.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
can wait for a few updates
personally, I've jumped between ICS and stock el29 rooted several times using the second method... I think you should be fine as long as you don't flash touch recovery.
shu8i said:
personally, I've jumped between ICS and stock el29 rooted several times using the second method... I think you should be fine as long as you don't flash touch recovery.
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Click to collapse
Agreed, I won't let hitman touch my phone until it's fixed.
Ive been using these mostly everything works even sprint tv.. Only thing im missing is wifi tether but usb works.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1516176
I've flashed around 30 times between FB15, FB17, FB21 and back to EL29 in various combinations while testing the ODIN One-Click packages in my signature and the CWM repacks in the Auto Root thread.
Didn't have any problems, so I think the early flashing issues are avoided as long as fake flashing CWM Touch using update.zip or ROM manager and then subsequently using it to restore or wipe is avoided.
Thanks sfhub, that's good enough for me.
Time to start downloading and flashing some ICS goodness.

Calling all cars...

new to epic touch 4g...well actually its my friends....anyway i rooted it just fine...installed what i thought was the correct CWM...when i got into recovery it looked different than any other CWM ive ever used. Said team rogue or something. Thought i could try to flash in that recovery. Turns out i couldnt lol all flashes aborted. and then i was unable to boot up. Odin back to stock rooted. Which CWM is correct???
EDIT: also tried flashing CWM in rom manager. It boots me to the triangle and thats it
This works well http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1342728
Option C for Gingerbread or D for ICS
v2.2v said:
new to epic touch 4g...well actually its my friends....anyway i rooted it just fine...installed what i thought was the correct CWM...when i got into recovery it looked different than any other CWM ive ever used. Said team rogue or something. Thought i could try to flash in that recovery. Turns out i couldnt lol all flashes aborted. and then i was unable to boot up. Odin back to stock rooted. Which CWM is correct???
EDIT: also tried flashing CWM in rom manager. It boots me to the triangle and thats it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yikes! OK, it all depends on what you are trying to flash. Rogue works great for Gingerbread builds. The Epic Touch has recovery built into the kernel, so you can't really just mix and match. You have to have the kernel with the recovery in it. Read up about which rom you are trying to install before doing anything. The AOSP stuff requires you use the el26 "Stock" CWM. Stock refers to it is an unmodified ClocckworkMod, unlike Rogue. There is also a thread about how to not brick your e4gt, I highly recommend you read that as well. Of course, I've learned that doing anything with anyones phone other than your own will often end in disaster as well lol "Dude, why doesn't blah blah blah work?" Usually a quick fix for those in the know, but if the person can't do it themselves, they just get frustrated and mad at the @$$hole that messed up their phone lol Good luck
Specialksg1 said:
Of course, I've learned that doing anything with anyones phone other than your own will often end in disaster as well lol "Dude, why doesn't blah blah blah work?" Usually a quick fix for those in the know, but if the person can't do it themselves, they just get frustrated and mad at the @$$hole that messed up their phone lol Good luck
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This goes DOUBLE for spouses, TRIPLE if they're not tech savvy. (Personal experience)
garwynn said:
This goes DOUBLE for spouses, TRIPLE if they're not tech savvy. (Personal experience)
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Absolutely! Rooted my wife's evo and put CM7 on it a while ago, learned that lesson very quickly! No matter how much you try to warn them that some things might be a bit weird or might not work, they always be shocked if anything isn't exactly the way they had it before. She has an iphone now ... and I refuse to learn how to jailbreak it
Specialksg1 said:
Yikes! OK, it all depends on what you are trying to flash. Rogue works great for Gingerbread builds. The Epic Touch has recovery built into the kernel, so you can't really just mix and match. You have to have the kernel with the recovery in it. Read up about which rom you are trying to install before doing anything. The AOSP stuff requires you use the el26 "Stock" CWM. Stock refers to it is an unmodified ClocckworkMod, unlike Rogue. There is also a thread about how to not brick your e4gt, I highly recommend you read that as well. Of course, I've learned that doing anything with anyones phone other than your own will often end in disaster as well lol "Dude, why doesn't blah blah blah work?" Usually a quick fix for those in the know, but if the person can't do it themselves, they just get frustrated and mad at the @$$hole that messed up their phone lol Good luck
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Click to collapse
I GOT IT!! lol I had to revert back to el26...nevertheless i was able to boot into the ACTUAL cwm after flashing another file through this http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1342728...just installed cyanogenmod on his thank you very much you guys. much appreciated...didnt want to pay my friend money for his epic lol considering the money i just dropped on my Gnexus
I'm new to the rooting game as well for the EG4T. The Rogue part sounds right, it most likely had more to do with the version you used. I made the same mistake once.
My best tip would be to use QBKing77's tutorial videos and follow them step-by-step....he has one for pretty much any situation and explains things very well. They are a lifesaver. Also, since it's your friend's phone, maybe stick to GB ROMs as they seem to require the fewest tweaks and have the least FCs. If you absolutely have to have ICS, my choice on ROM would be Venum's Anaconda ROM, which was just released yesterday. It is nothing short of brilliant. However, once you go to ICS, I believe you need to start from scratch (stock) if you want to go back to GB. I hear it's a big no-no to try and recover GB from an ICS ROM (most likely what you did). Best of luck.
ChiTown29 said:
I'm new to the rooting game as well for the EG4T. The Rogue part sounds right, it most likely had more to do with the version you used. I made the same mistake once.
My best tip would be to use QBKing77's tutorial videos and follow them step-by-step....he has one for pretty much any situation and explains things very well. They are a lifesaver. Also, since it's your friend's phone, maybe stick to GB ROMs as they seem to require the fewest tweaks and have the least FCs. If you absolutely have to have ICS, my choice on ROM would be Venum's Anaconda ROM, which was just released yesterday. It is nothing short of brilliant. However, once you go to ICS, I believe you need to start from scratch (stock) if you want to go back to GB. I hear it's a big no-no to try and recover GB from an ICS ROM (most likely what you did). Best of luck.
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lol i cant believe how much more effort goes into switching a rom on this phone is compared to a nexus...its just flash and go on the nexus. i successfully flashed CM9 alpha 2 but he requested an OC kernel. im on cm9 alpha 2 on EL26...can i just flash anaconda over this with wipe? and what kernel is suggested? thanks guys u have made my day
Specialksg1 said:
Absolutely! Rooted my wife's evo and put CM7 on it a while ago, learned that lesson very quickly! No matter how much you try to warn them that some things might be a bit weird or might not work, they always be shocked if anything isn't exactly the way they had it before. She has an iphone now ... and I refuse to learn how to jailbreak it
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Click to collapse
I learned the same thing when the Optimus S had a firmware update - it was later pulled but the damage was done. So I did what I could - found a stable tweaked ROM and put it on there. I've always believed in wiping the phone before flashing - BIG MISTAKE. "Where's my messages? Where's my files?"
Funny thing about this is that they fixed the last FW update with another one that rolls out today. I know I'm going to have to flash this one but I'll be using TB to back up what I can before I flash it. Also have to figure out how to save her SMS, that's the #1 thing that will avoid a mad wife!
v2.2v said:
lol i cant believe how much more effort goes into switching a rom on this phone is compared to a nexus...its just flash and go on the nexus. i successfully flashed CM9 alpha 2 but he requested an OC kernel. im on cm9 alpha 2 on EL26...can i just flash anaconda over this with wipe? and what kernel is suggested? thanks guys u have made my day
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There aren't any kernels that overclock for ICS yet. I am not sure on this but the paid Tegrak Ultimate app allows overclocking of stock kernels we have but I haven't tried it on CM9 yet.
Once we get the ICS kernel source, things will be a lot easier when it comes to flashing. I understand where you are coming from with the Nexus though. I basically wipe everything on my NS4G then flash the Euroskank CM9 nightly and all of my apps install automatically. We don't have it that easy on the Epic Touch but once we have a kernel built from source we will be able to wipe and flash without fear of any residual issues
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using XDA
JohnCorleone said:
There aren't any kernels that overclock for ICS yet. I am not sure on this but the paid Tegrak Ultimate app allows overclocking of stock kernels we have but I haven't tried it on CM9 yet.
Once we get the ICS kernel source, things will be a lot easier when it comes to flashing. I understand where you are coming from with the Nexus though. I basically wipe everything on my NS4G then flash the Euroskank CM9 nightly and all of my apps install automatically. We don't have it that easy on the Epic Touch but once we have a kernel built from source we will be able to wipe and flash without fear of any residual issues
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using XDA
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Click to collapse
gotcha thanks man. Since i have u right here...when i try to reboot into recovery it always takes me to stock recovery...i definitely flashed CWM correctly about an hour ago because i successfully flashed CM9...now it seems to be gone. I went to rom manager and tried flashing CWM again...but no luck. I want to install Anaconda for him and i cant! lol
JohnCorleone said:
There aren't any kernels that overclock for ICS yet. I am not sure on this but the paid Tegrak Ultimate app allows overclocking of stock kernels we have but I haven't tried it on CM9 yet.
Once we get the ICS kernel source, things will be a lot easier when it comes to flashing. I understand where you are coming from with the Nexus though. I basically wipe everything on my NS4G then flash the Euroskank CM9 nightly and all of my apps install automatically. We don't have it that easy on the Epic Touch but once we have a kernel built from source we will be able to wipe and flash without fear of any residual issues
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using XDA
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Click to collapse
That's one of the things I like about the cm9 builds lately. I did a fresh install of fd02 just to check it out and when I came back to cm9 it pulls in my setup I had before, right down to changing my wallpaper for me. No backups needed. I still have to go in and put in my username and passwords on some of them and I lose my Cut the Rope game data (Oh darn!!), but I love that my apps from the play store(calling the market the "play store" makes me feel dirty lol) automatically install.
v2.2v said:
gotcha thanks man. Since i have u right here...when i try to reboot into recovery it always takes me to stock recovery...i definitely flashed CWM correctly about an hour ago because i successfully flashed CM9...now it seems to be gone. I went to rom manager and tried flashing CWM again...but no luck. I want to install Anaconda for him and i cant! lol
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OK, first things first. I will suggest you read a lot more before doing anything based on what I bolded above.
ROM Manager is generally discouraged and can cause a brick. Read more here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=24318861&postcount=2
Hopefully you got to this in time.
Good luck and once again, please do not be afraid to ask questions before you do something. It's easier than taking your friend's phone to Sprint because it bricked.
Final Edit: Sorry if I'm coming off a little harsh, but there are MANY posts out there - far longer than the ICS brick issues - that have said ROM Manager is a no-no.
v2.2v said:
gotcha thanks man. Since i have u right here...when i try to reboot into recovery it always takes me to stock recovery...i definitely flashed CWM correctly about an hour ago because i successfully flashed CM9...now it seems to be gone. I went to rom manager and tried flashing CWM again...but no luck. I want to install Anaconda for him and i cant! lol
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Like I said earlier, the recoveries are built into the kernel. Get the files you want to flash onto the sd card, then odin the el26 kernel. Before it reboots (ICS won't boot on a gb kernel, so you'll just boot loop anyway), go back into recovery and flash away.
Just whatever you do....dont flash with any Rogue ICS recovery, the source isnt avalable yet so its kinda like playing darts with a blindfold on and your friends are all drunk and not paying attention to whats going on around them.
Personally, I keep Rogue Stock EL29 (Odin version) on my sdcard and just use mobile odin to revert back to that when I need to flash (someone please let me know if this method is a bad one, so far it has worked fine though).
I haven't read up much on it, but I would avoid doing backups and restores of ICS roms via recovery until ICS is finalized (regardless of the recovery your using).
If you wanna play it safe, just stick with an EL29 rom until a final version of ICS is released, frankly I prefer stability over fancy new features and just like to test out the ICS leak for a little before odin'ing back to Rogue EL29 and restoring my gingerbread backup...it quite cool to watch the offical ICS mature and get fixed.
starnostar said:
Just whatever you do....dont flash with any Rogue ICS recovery, the source isnt avalable yet so its kinda like playing darts with a blindfold on and your friends are all drunk and not paying attention to whats going on around them.
Personally, I keep Rogue Stock EL29 (Odin version) on my sdcard and just use mobile odin to revert back to that when I need to flash (someone please let me know if this method is a bad one, so far it has worked fine though).
I haven't read up much on it, but I would avoid doing backups and restores of ICS roms via recovery until ICS is finalized (regardless of the recovery your using).
If you wanna play it safe, just stick with an EL29 rom until a final version of ICS is released, frankly I prefer stability over fancy new features and just like to test out the ICS leak for a little before odin'ing back to Rogue EL29 and restoring my gingerbread backup...it quite cool to watch the offical ICS mature and get fixed.
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Click to collapse
I'd probably go with el26 just because it's "stock" CWM and the devs are big on that recomendation.
Specialksg1 said:
I'd probably go with el26 just because it's "stock" CWM and the devs are big on that recomendation.
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Click to collapse
so just do the same odin restore back to stock el26 rooted...then it should autoboot into CWM and then flash anaconda...geesh lol
v2.2v said:
so just do the same odin restore back to stock el26 rooted...then it should autoboot into CWM and then flash anaconda...geesh lol
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Click to collapse
Don't have to do the whole odin restore. Just the kernel. Won't autoboot. Have to hold vol + and power. Like JC said, this will all become much simpler once we have sauce
Specialksg1 said:
Don't have to do the whole odin restore. Just the kernel. Won't autoboot. Have to hold vol + and power. Like JC said, this will all become much simpler once we have sauce
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got it lol thanks a million man...seriously
Thanks for picking me up there guys!
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using XDA

GB>ICS......why?

Is ics worth people bricking there phone,then going to different phone because there mad?
My brother has ICS and he loves it but I'm not taking the chance of bricking phone.....i keep seeing alota people who bricked there phone.
But is anyone sticking with GB and making more Roms and themes.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
Well as far as sticking with GB development despite working on an ICS rom, sfhub released an update to his GB rom as well.
But if you odin over a stock ics rom and don't do anything stupid you should be pretty safe from bricking. Obviously usual risks for writing firmware to a device apply. Custom rom's should be flashed from GB instead of ICS CWM. Though I have had no issues flashing from ICS, taking risks that you were told not to take is your own fault.
RainMotorsports said:
Well as far as sticking with GB development despite working on an ICS rom, sfhub released an update to his GB rom as well.
But if you odin over a stock ics rom and don't do anything stupid you should be pretty safe from bricking. Obviously usual risks for writing firmware to a device apply. Custom rom's should be flashed from GB instead of ICS CWM. Though I have had no issues flashing from ICS, taking risks that you were told not to take is your own fault.
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Click to collapse
Well i know....but I can't take that chance so I'm sticking with gb till its safe lol,but it seems like no one else is making any new roms or atleast themes for GB
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
ScubaSteev said:
Well i know....but I can't take that chance so I'm sticking with gb till its safe lol,but it seems like no one else is making any new roms or atleast themes for GB
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Using the 1-click ODIN method to flash an official leaked build of ICS is perfectly safe. Bricking happens when you use a recovery to wipe data and/or caches. Something about the new ICS kernel not being fully compatible with the current recoveries or something. As long as you don't mess with a custom recovery and just ODIN the stock leaked ROM, Kernel, and Recovery, you will not brick the phone. Until Samsung releases the kernel source, stay away from CWM or anything else that's not stock. Let me reiterate this point: stock Samsung leaks flashed via ODIN are safe. Do not touch any CWM/Kernel repacks or flash anything (other than stock leaks) via ODIN or otherwise until Samsung releases the kernel source.
sputnik767 said:
Using the 1-click ODIN method to flash an official leaked build of ICS is perfectly safe. Bricking happens when you use a recovery to wipe data and/or caches. Something about the new ICS kernel not being fully compatible with the current recoveries or something. As long as you don't mess with a custom recovery and just ODIN the stock leaked ROM, Kernel, and Recovery, you will not brick the phone. Until Samsung releases the kernel source, stay away from CWM or anything else that's not stock. Let me reiterate this point: stock Samsung leaks flashed via ODIN are safe. Do not touch any CWM/Kernel repacks or flash anything (other than stock leaks) via ODIN or otherwise until Samsung releases the kernel source.
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Click to collapse
Well i might try it.....i don't have a computer though so i still wont beable to try ics
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
I've flash a ROM through an ICS Rogue Recovery several times, I just use Calkunlin's format-all ZIP.
I think most of the bricks happened with people flashing over AOKP/CM9/Codename through CWM. I've only flashed TW leaked based ROMs and had no issues, but of course ODIN would be the safest way to go about flashing ICS. All the ICS I flashed were from Rujelus22 (beta's) and FD05 from Agat63 (last night but for a little bit, then format all and flashed back to the previous ICS ROM).
You could always just revert to GB through ODIN, and flash an ICS ROM that way. ICS is great, but if GB is working perfectly fine for you and you don't mind waiting, I say stay on it.
As the poster above stated most bricks happen when coming from CM9/AOKP/AOSP/Codename. I've flashed through fb21 rogue repacked kernel multiple times. I just stay with the leaks(Blend ICS, Blend ICS XPLOD, Venums Anakonda, and Calkulins E4GT 2 ROMs). They work great and I really haven't had any bad experiences with them. I use stock(no cwm) kernels and mobile odin back to fb21 repack to flash new ROMS. I'm a flashaholic and flash back and forth when new versions come out.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2 Beta-5
Well when i get a laptop ill have to try it out
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
Pick up mobile odin, you can flash sfhub's one-click packages but you'll have to do the modem separately.
Esoteric68 said:
Pick up mobile odin, you can flash sfhub's one-click packages but you'll have to do the modem separately.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is that and a good program it is but he can also flash from cwm on gingerbread if he has a kernel installed and id find that preferable. Of course if not can always flash a rogue kernel using mobile odin.
Remember don't use touch recovery!
quick questions can i restore a GB backup on ICS or should i odin back to EL29?
Odin
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA
tykalx said:
quick questions can i restore a GB backup on ICS or should i odin back to EL29?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ODIN only. Don't even think about restoring a GB backup on ICS.
---------- Post added at 04:00 AM ---------- Previous post was at 03:54 AM ----------
Mark.J.Linskiy said:
I've flash a ROM through an ICS Rogue Recovery several times, I just use Calkunlin's format-all ZIP.
I think most of the bricks happened with people flashing over AOKP/CM9/Codename through CWM. I've only flashed TW leaked based ROMs and had no issues, but of course ODIN would be the safest way to go about flashing ICS. All the ICS I flashed were from Rujelus22 (beta's) and FD05 from Agat63 (last night but for a little bit, then format all and flashed back to the previous ICS ROM).
You could always just revert to GB through ODIN, and flash an ICS ROM that way. ICS is great, but if GB is working perfectly fine for you and you don't mind waiting, I say stay on it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't think the bricks have anything to do with AOKP/CM9, etc but rather formatting caches from within a GB recovery packed with an ICS kernel. Calk's format-all zip may be a safe way to do it, but from what I've read, it was the format process through recovery that caused the MMC chip failure. And even the AOKP instructions specifically say to flash from GB kernel/recovery because doing it from an ICS kernel/recovery can brick the phone. It's the ICS kernel at fault here, but we're not going to know specifically why until the source is released. Until then, I'd recommend not messing with repacked ICS kernels.
sputnik767 said:
ODIN only. Don't even think about restoring a GB backup on ICS.
---------- Post added at 04:00 AM ---------- Previous post was at 03:54 AM ----------
I don't think the bricks have anything to do with AOKP/CM9, etc but rather formatting caches from within a GB recovery packed with an ICS kernel. Calk's format-all zip may be a safe way to do it, but from what I've read, it was the format process through recovery that caused the MMC chip failure. And even the AOKP instructions specifically say to flash from GB kernel/recovery because doing it from an ICS kernel/recovery can brick the phone. It's the ICS kernel at fault here, but we're not going to know specifically why until the source is released. Until then, I'd recommend not messing with repacked ICS kernels.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Most of the bricks were caused by people flashing over AOPK/CM9/etc, I know it has to do with the Kernel as well but I'm saying that chances are much higher if you're flashing over those ROMs. Thing is, to flash a TW ICS leaked based ROM, I only use Calkulin's format all, but I've also flashed Kernels/Modems through the Rogue repacked after wiping dalvik/cache and haven't had an issue. I know for sure that formatting manually before a ROM flash will probably cause a brick as well and flashing the AOSP based ROMs in an ICS recovery will most likely do the same. Either way, Odin is the safest and best way, especially if some is hesitant.
Hope you don't take it as me being a jerk or anything, just saying it how I know it, even though I may be wrong.
Mark.J.Linskiy said:
Most of the bricks were caused by people flashing over AOPK/CM9/etc, I know it has to do with the Kernel as well but I'm saying that chances are much higher if you're flashing over those ROMs. Thing is, to flash a TW ICS leaked based ROM, I only use Calkulin's format all, but I've also flashed Kernels/Modems through the Rogue repacked after wiping dalvik/cache and haven't had an issue. I know for sure that formatting manually before a ROM flash will probably cause a brick as well and flashing the AOSP based ROMs in an ICS recovery will most likely do the same. Either way, Odin is the safest and best way, especially if some is hesitant.
Hope you don't take it as me being a jerk or anything, just saying it how I know it, even though I may be wrong.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, I don't think you are being a jerk at all, and I'm trying to learn something along the way as well. We are both simply trying to prevent another bricked device, I just tend to be extremely cautious, perhaps even unnecessarily cautious. But I came here from an Evo 4G that was bricked by a bad recovery (Team Win Recovery Project touch recovery killed quite a few Evos), so I only use the absolute safest method possible for myself, which is ODIN and stock leaks. I will go back to CWM once the source is released and we know what's actually going on.
sputnik767 said:
No, I don't think you are being a jerk at all, and I'm trying to learn something along the way as well. We are both simply trying to prevent another bricked device, I just tend to be extremely cautious, perhaps even unnecessarily cautious. But I came here from an Evo 4G that was bricked by a bad recovery (Team Win Recovery Project touch recovery killed quite a few Evos), so I only use the absolute safest method possible for myself, which is ODIN and stock leaks. I will go back to CWM once the source is released and we know what's actually going on.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, I completely understand. I didn't touch a single ICS ROM until I was asked to do some testing, and even when updated the Beta I would Odin back to GB then flash it. The developer told me he had no issues with flashing the format ZIP and flashing his Betas so I tried it and no issues. It's always good to stay cautious, and there's absolutely nothing wrong with what you're doing, since after-all, it is your personal device. I recommend people use Odin as well, especially for those who aren't completely sure what they're doing. Makes perfect sense for staying away from CWM until the source is out.
All so understandable......better to have more people then less people asking question.s and giving answers....its helping me alot
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
ScubaSteev said:
All so understandable......better to have more people then less people asking question.s and giving answers....its helping me alot
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yup, that's what makes it a good community. Glad it's helping you out, and if you decide to flash, good luck!
Mark.J.Linskiy said:
Yup, that's what makes it a good community. Glad it's helping you out, and if you decide to flash, good luck!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ima try to learn a little more then flash....thanks for all info guys/gals
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
I've been on ICS roms for about a month (Calkulin's with ICS4ICS theme) and I have to admit that the battery life is absolutely horrible compared to GB roms

[Q] From Evo 3d

I'm someone, like others I've saw, that are coming over here from the EVO 3d after having to go through asurion.
As a good XDA member, I read through the stickies.
I wanted to confirm what I've learned.
ICS for you guys is rather different. I'm seeing many versions of ICS, I'm guessing leaks at different stages (haven't seen many leaks on phones in a while).
I also saw that wipe in custom recoveries is a REALLY bad idea.
In fact it said not to use custom recoveries with ICS stuff.
So why does Calkulin's E4GT rom say you MUST use a custom recovery?
I thought I saw something crazy that said it depends what version you are on for the method you root. But I can't find that again. It seems weird, but please tell me that's wrong and there's only one way to really root.
karate134 said:
I'm someone, like others I've saw, that are coming over here from the EVO 3d after having to go through asurion.
As a good XDA member, I read through the stickies.
I wanted to confirm what I've learned.
ICS for you guys is rather different. I'm seeing many versions of ICS, I'm guessing leaks at different stages (haven't seen many leaks on phones in a while).
I also saw that wipe in custom recoveries is a REALLY bad idea.
In fact it said not to use custom recoveries with ICS stuff.
So why does Calkulin's E4GT rom say you MUST use a custom recovery?
I thought I saw something crazy that said it depends what version you are on for the method you root. But I can't find that again. It seems weird, but please tell me that's wrong and there's only one way to really root.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You have to use a specific recovery to flash stuff, called the EL26/29 recovery. It's based on 5.0.2.7 (?) of ClockWorkMod recovery. This is generally accepted as the safest way to flash. Flashing from an ICS based recovery has been known to brick devices.
Samsung devices have Odin, much like HTC devices have Fastboot. We're able to put the device in Odin (download) mode and flash just about anything. There's even an app version called Mobile Odin that allows you to Odin flash directly from the phone without having to plug in.
Correct me if wrong but i think there is only an issue with ics recovery when wiping due to the emmc bug (partition corruption). Thats whats causing the bricks. There are plenty workarounds though. I use ics recovery to flash things, i just make sure to never wipe anything using the recovery. I use calk's format all zip and modified format zip whenever i need to wipe.
puff601 said:
Correct me if wrong but i think there is only an issue with ics recovery when wiping due to the emmc bug (partition corruption). Thats whats causing the bricks. There are plenty workarounds though. I use ics recovery to flash things, i just make sure to never wipe anything using the recovery. I use calk's format all zip and modified format zip whenever i need to wipe.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Correct they have come up with ways to use ICS recovery to update and flash certain things. Honestly since the OP is new to Epic Touch I would stick with the very simply odin of el26 recovery and flashing anything you need while in ICS.
agat's threads have great info if you are a stock software guy with ways to flash and upgrade while on ICS. Honestly GB is pretty damn polished and there are some awfully nice roms for it as well and you have no worries at all with how you flash. sfhub has quite a few threads with his odin one click methods which have been a god sent for a lot of us here.
First decide what you want to do then any one of the OP's will direct you in the right direction. Also if you can read up on the How not to brick your phone threads/stickies in general I believe
Would be a better idea to use the cm9 direct boot Odin file. Much easier than pulling the battery 10 times. Read all the release notes on the cm9 wiki and you'll have safe flashing.
Sent from my awesomely EPIC Phone
Rooster-just curious, why would you need to pull the battery? I've flashed plenty of roms and haven't had to pull the battery once...
Karate-the easiest easy to just gain root access is to use sfhub's one click rooted el29-just boot into download mode (vol up + power), plug into the computer and click start...easy peasy
And as playya said, the OP's of any of the rom threads all have great info and directions to keep you flashing safely. Good luck and happy flashing!
Sent from my wickedly sensational e4gt
Sunsparc said:
You have to use a specific recovery to flash stuff, called the EL26/29 recovery. It's based on 5.0.2.7 (?) of ClockWorkMod recovery. This is generally accepted as the safest way to flash. Flashing from an ICS based recovery has been known to brick devices.
Samsung devices have Odin, much like HTC devices have Fastboot. We're able to put the device in Odin (download) mode and flash just about anything. There's even an app version called Mobile Odin that allows you to Odin flash directly from the phone without having to plug in.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you a link to el2? Recovery
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1416477
Check this thread out, make sure to read all the directions and you should be able to find the auto root package where you can add cwm recovery to the kernel
Sent from my wickedly sensational e4gt
karate134 said:
I'm someone, like others I've saw, that are coming over here from the EVO 3d after having to go through asurion.
As a good XDA member, I read through the stickies.
I wanted to confirm what I've learned.
ICS for you guys is rather different. I'm seeing many versions of ICS, I'm guessing leaks at different stages (haven't seen many leaks on phones in a while).
I also saw that wipe in custom recoveries is a REALLY bad idea.
In fact it said not to use custom recoveries with ICS stuff.
So why does Calkulin's E4GT rom say you MUST use a custom recovery?
I thought I saw something crazy that said it depends what version you are on for the method you root. But I can't find that again. It seems weird, but please tell me that's wrong and there's only one way to really root.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Im one of those that went through insurance too and ended up with this today and i gotta say I love it!
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA
im also coming over from the evo4g and evo3d not because of insurance wanted something different and im loving the phone so far..i will say i was lost at first with odin and el29 its a different way of doin stuff but not hard at all
Welcome, I recently made the switch as well. The screen is incredible after looking at the E3D for so long. Seriously, I stop to look at how pretty it is at least once every day.
SkuzFoz said:
Welcome, I recently made the switch as well. The screen is incredible after looking at the E3D for so long. Seriously, I stop to look at how pretty it is at least once every day.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yup! It truly is amazing!
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA

Calkulin's Mod Questions

What are the changes from version 2.9 to v3 that some people arn't liking? I hear some people like v2.9 better.
In Calkulin's mods, are the bloatware apps and running services already removed, or is that up to each person to do?
Thanks.
Personally I don't see much of a difference in the 2.9.x to 3.0 releases. I run 3.0 and get great battery life using the El29 stock repack kernel and modem (although this week I'm going to be testing EL13 stock repack kernel and modem). And to answer the bloatware question, Calkulin has a script posted that de-bloats the ROM, as well as "bare" releases. Both options work well. Cheers!
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda app-developers app
vadyr56 said:
Personally I don't see much of a difference in the 2.9.x to 3.0 releases. I run 3.0 and get great battery life using the El29 stock repack kernel and modem (although this week I'm going to be testing EL13 stock repack kernel and modem). And to answer the bloatware question, Calkulin has a script posted that de-bloats the ROM, as well as "bare" releases. Both options work well. Cheers!
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, I'm seeing those scripts in this thread. They look helpful. After you run the Wipe script then flash the rom, do you do a first time boot, then go back into the system menu and run the de-bloat script? What is the order of running these? It's my impression that you can run his added scripts at anytime, right?
Thanks.
What I normally do when flashing is run the format all script twice (the second time just for my own peace of mind!), flash the ROM and then boot up for the first time. Just to make sure everything's looking good ill usually just fool around with the fresh install for a few minutes, then power down and run the debloat script. Reboot after that, and check everything out. From there on out when flashing scripts (like tdunhams tweaks or other mods) I always flash one script, boot up, and do some basic testing to make sure everything went smooth. I've heard horror stories of people flashing a bunch of scripts at once and then having issues and having to start from scratch anyway. Let us know how you make out.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda app-developers app
vadyr56 said:
What I normally do when flashing is run the format all script twice (the second time just for my own peace of mind!), flash the ROM and then boot up for the first time. Just to make sure everything's looking good ill usually just fool around with the fresh install for a few minutes, then power down and run the debloat script. Reboot after that, and check everything out. From there on out when flashing scripts (like tdunhams tweaks or other mods) I always flash one script, boot up, and do some basic testing to make sure everything went smooth. I've heard horror stories of people flashing a bunch of scripts at once and then having issues and having to start from scratch anyway. Let us know how you make out.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, that is helpful. The last piece I am missing is how to do the wipes and rom loads. I've been into the Samsung system menu (where I flashed the official ICS load I got). Will the stock samsung system menu allow me to Wipe and Calkulin's rom flash, or do I need ClockWork?
Sorry I had assumed you were already using a custom recovery. So you are running stock ics pushed from Sammy right now? Basically in order to do all this fancy business you need to have a kernel with a touch recovery. If you're running stock ics right now, I think its safe to say you can Odin (from your PC) the EL26 stock kernel repacked with cwm and then flash Calukins rom zip from there. Not sure of you necessarily need to go to EL26 first but I just like to play it on the safe side when dealing with ics. I believe you could also use one of the one click flashes found in the dev forums and then flash Calukins rom from there (assuming its a rooted one click package). Hopefully this makes sense.
And just be careful if you do want to return to ics after a while, you should always flash the EL26 stock kernel when flashing to ics. I believe the bricking issue has been solved and its pretty safe to flash ics with other kernels but nothing wrong with playing on the safe side.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda app-developers app
vadyr56 said:
Sorry I had assumed you were already using a custom recovery. So you are running stock ics pushed from Sammy right now? Basically in order to do all this fancy business you need to have a kernel with a touch recovery. If you're running stock ics right now, I think its safe to say you can Odin (from your PC) the EL26 stock kernel repacked with cwm and then flash Calukins rom zip from there. Not sure of you necessarily need to go to EL26 first but I just like to play it on the safe side when dealing with ics. I believe you could also use one of the one click flashes found in the dev forums and then flash Calukins rom from there (assuming its a rooted one click package). Hopefully this makes sense.
And just be careful if you do want to return to ics after a while, you should always flash the EL26 stock kernel when flashing to ics. I believe the bricking issue has been solved and its pretty safe to flash ics with other kernels but nothing wrong with playing on the safe side.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, I have the stock ICS load from Sprint/Samsung now. Now I need to figure out the best way to get the on click EL26 w/ CWM. Then I can flash up to EL29 Calk v3.
Nismo` said:
Yes, I have the stock ICS load from Sprint/Samsung now. Now I need to figure out the best way to get the on click EL26 w/ CWM. Then I can flash up to EL29 Calk v3.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This link should bring you to the One-click flasher for EL26 stock rooted (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1416477&highlight=one+click). After flashing that, you need to get a CWM kernel (http://kernelrepo.chris41g.org/default.asp?startFolder=\Recovery+Kernels\GB\Chris41g\Stock+CWM\TAR) so grab the EL26 .tar file and flash via Odin. Once that's done, you should have a CWM recovery with a rooted phone, allowing you to flash Calukin's rom zip via CWM. I would have linked earlier but I was on my phone not the PC and it's a pain to grab links on the run!
If you aren't too familiar with Odin, no worries it's very easy to do. I don't have time to hammer it all out right now but I'm sure wherever you find the download link for Odin, there will be a guide on how to use it right along side it.
With all of that said, you could probably follow the same steps to flash but while using any of the other One-click versions (EG30, EL29, etc etc) as long as you are dealing with GB roms and kernels ONLY. I know I said it before, but just to reiterate in case you are new to all this, use the EL26 as your starting point when flashing back to ics at any point. It's probably just me being super careful but I'd rather that then end up with a very expensive paperweight! Keep us posted, I'll try and check the thread later on.
Edit: I guess there are other ways to get CWM rocking on the GB platforms coming from a simply stock rooted system (via auto-root) but I just find it easier to flash the kernel right over top the old one, it keeps it simple. And not to belittle you or anything, but if you are new to flashing roms and the likes, I would REALLY recommend watching some videos on how to do everything. QBking has some GREAT tutorials on youtube to show you the basics (most importantly how to NOT brick your phone) as well as many other videos found on this forum and the ACS forums...check them out! Cheers, buddy!
vadyr56 said:
This link should bring you to the One-click flasher for EL26 stock rooted (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1416477&highlight=one+click). After flashing that, you need to get a CWM kernel (http://kernelrepo.chris41g.org/default.asp?startFolder=\Recovery+Kernels\GB\Chris41g\Stock+CWM\TAR) so grab the EL26 .tar file and flash via Odin. Once that's done, you should have a CWM recovery with a rooted phone, allowing you to flash Calukin's rom zip via CWM. I would have linked earlier but I was on my phone not the PC and it's a pain to grab links on the run!
If you aren't too familiar with Odin, no worries it's very easy to do. I don't have time to hammer it all out right now but I'm sure wherever you find the download link for Odin, there will be a guide on how to use it right along side it.
With all of that said, you could probably follow the same steps to flash but while using any of the other One-click versions (EG30, EL29, etc etc) as long as you are dealing with GB roms and kernels ONLY. I know I said it before, but just to reiterate in case you are new to all this, use the EL26 as your starting point when flashing back to ics at any point. It's probably just me being super careful but I'd rather that then end up with a very expensive paperweight! Keep us posted, I'll try and check the thread later on.
Edit: I guess there are other ways to get CWM rocking on the GB platforms coming from a simply stock rooted system (via auto-root) but I just find it easier to flash the kernel right over top the old one, it keeps it simple. And not to belittle you or anything, but if you are new to flashing roms and the likes, I would REALLY recommend watching some videos on how to do everything. QBking has some GREAT tutorials on youtube to show you the basics (most importantly how to NOT brick your phone) as well as many other videos found on this forum and the ACS forums...check them out! Cheers, buddy!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is there a reason you suggest going back to EL26?
Rolling back to GB from ICS, I was going to go this route:
Step 1: EL29
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1433101
Step 2: Then Apply CWM with option C (EL29) here
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1342728
Step 3: Use Caulks format all script 2 times.
Step 4: Then apply the Caulk v3:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1332837&page=963
Did I miss anything?
No you should be in the clear. Only reason I suggested EL26 was because when ics dropped pre-source, to avoid bricking you'd always go back to EL26 and flash from that stock repack kernel. You should be OK with the route you're taking though.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda app-developers app
Just watch QBking77 videos on YouTube. The guy is very thorough and good at explaining things for any phone he is teaching us about
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