[Q] Backing up before flashing new rom help. - Samsung Galaxy Nexus

Hey
So I'm going to go right into my question..
I own a Verizon Galaxy Nexus which is working great so far (except for the horrible battery life) currently I'm running THIS rom on my device. I am rooted boot loader is unlocked and have clockwork mod installed etc
I want to flash BAMF Paradigm 1.2 rom but I have some concerns
If I do a nandroid back up will it backup my text messages, apps and photos on the the internal storage?
IF i do a factory reset/wipe data will I loose EVERYTHING?
I want to try out this new one or if you have a better rom you'd like to recommend . I just don't want to loose all my files and data or settings in the process.
Thanks in advance btw

The nandroid will back those things up, but after you've wiped data, etc... they won't be visible to you on your newly flashed ROM assuming you've done the right thing and wiped. Titanium backup can be used to bu and restore your apps/data, but it's not a good idea to restore system data, restore user apps (+ data that you can't live without) after you've installed your new ROM; back ups aren't affected by wipes, unless you format your entire SD card.
Separate apps are available that can back up SMS's, can't think of any names offhand.

A nandroid will backup everything up including texts, apps, photos etc. as the previous poster said. However, when you factory reset/wipe data, CWM will not touch your virtual SD card so things on it will remain on it e.g. nandroids, photos if that's where you save them etc. The only time your SD card will be wiped is if you do fastboot oem lock/unlock or if you flash the stock Google image. Everything on the phone will be wiped though e.g. contacts (unless they're synced to Google), app data etc.
Personally I'd recommend AOKP but I'm just biased because that's what I use (well a derivative of it that's themed).

Thanks!

Related

[Q] A few questions about flashing ROMs

Hey All,
I am curious about a few things...
I had a couple/few nandroid back ups that were stored on my phone, do you all only keep 1 nandroid and delete your previous backups?
I am running mikfroyo and flashed another ROM about 2 days ago, had some issues so I went back to mik. I think I may have done it in a way that nobody else does...I did it like I was flashing it for the first time, wipe everything and flash from sd card.
Should I have just did a nandroid restore? What does this actually bring back? Text, recent calls, apps?
When doing a nandroid restore should I wipe all before doing so? I would imagine the answer is yes.
And one more, before switching to any new ROM, should I always flash Caulkins Format All zip?
Thank you.
Nand restore will restore everything that was on your phone when you made the backup. Definitely a good idea to flash the zip when installing a new ROM. I also do it to restore though.
When you restore, unless you are backing up the cache, which isn't necessary, you need to minimally wipe the cache/dalvik before you restore. Also, if your SD Card is partitioned, you would need to wipe SD EXT. I pretty much flash Calk's format all anytime I restore or flash a new ROM.
I almost never have one back up. I have a few ROMs I like so, I set them up the way I want and restore between them when I get bored, which is like 100 times a day it feels like.
I do usually only keep the latest backup of any one ROM though. At any given time I probably have at least 5.
Edit: I re-read your post and I think I misunderstood one part the first time. Sometimes, when I got back to a previous ROM, I do just reflash it and start over, but I am anal about fresh starts. Usually I do just nand restore, especially if I know the setup was running well. I don't typically restore a lot between ROMs b/c I feel like it just adds to something that can go wrong. A lot of times I redownload apps instead of restoring, especially if they are purchased, since they are just stored in my apps in the market anyway. And I never restore app data. Usually end up only restoring about 30 apps w/out data, but most people do backup/restore a lot of info with no problems.
You should have just restore from a previous backup. When you restore, it bring ti back to EXACTLY how it was, texts, number of calls, ect. Actually you don't need to wipe when doing a restore. Well you can manually wipe all of them, or flash the format all, so I'm saying yes.
Also, I suggest against wiping data before creating a nandroid backup, lol. That would defeat the purpose, as your info and apps will be gone! Just wipe cache and davlik before a backup, or nothing at all, just so there's no confusion.
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App
Yeah, I didn't mean to wipe anything before backing up. But if your going to restore a different ROM and there's no cache included in the nand back up you're going to restore, then best to wipe it before you restore.
jstalford said:
Also, if your SD Card is partitioned, you would need to wipe SD EXT. I pretty much flash Calk's format all anytime I restore or flash a new ROM.
It is partitioned, what gets stored on there that needs to be wiped, apps?
Thanks for your help
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is partitioned, what gets stored on there that needs to be wiped, apps?
Thanks for your help
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If the ROM has a2sd built in, yeah, if not, nothing. I always wipe it just so I'm in the habit of doing it for when it's there. Also depending on how a2sd is set up, dalvik can be on there.

[Q] Wiping Data?

I rooted my Evo4G and its working pretty good but I think there is like extra clutter in there taking up space and in the sd card from past apps. I have stock rom btw. Before I got Titanium backup, I deleted some stock sprint apps without backups eek I got too excited with the whole root thing and went on some sites to check out what apps were safe to remove. Anyways, my questions is, If I wipe the data, will those removed apps cause a problem in the process? Would I have to restore all the stock apps I uninstalled or will they come back or not come back but not pose a problem? Or do I have to flash back the stock rom? You can see in the images what apps were not backed up. What I would like happen is wipe data, have my phone turn on (with or without those uninstalled apps) and start adding apps again from scratch. That way I can clear out my sd card too and have maximum power!
Just wiping data (or a factory reset) will not touch your system partition. Any apps that you've removed will still not be there after resetting. Any apps that you've added to /system/app (if you have for any reason) will remain.
My suggestion is to backup your SD card and format it. Then move back only what you want/need (photos, music, backups). Before booting the phone again, either do a factory reset or wipe everything and flash the stock rooted rom (or another if you're feeling adventurous). I believe that you said that you were stock. If you're on a different rom, you can of course wipe and flash that.
This will give you a fresh start on both your SD card and data partition.
Sent from my Evo + MIUI using Tapatalk!
Hmm so is there a difference between factory reset and wiping everything? I have my sd backed up to my comp so I don't care if I loose anything on the phone or sd card. What would be the easiest for me since I wanna keep it stock but rooted and not flash unless I have to. Do I have to flash to stock rooted rom regardless or can I just factory reset and everything will work fine?
Ok so I did a factory reset and it turned on fine. Those apps that I uninstalled didn't come back which is good. That's exactly what I wanted. The best part is I didn't have to flash. Thanks though.

Backup and flash questions

I rooted my Evo a while ago. Now I want to try a different rom and I am not clear about somethings. If the new rom requires a data wipe how can I migrate my data to the new rom?
I can use recovery to do a full backup then wipe and install the new rom. Can I then flash my old data back? Or would that not be considered a wipe? In other words does a wipe for a rom require all new data or is it OK that the data be "reinstalled"? Is the issue the actual contents of the data or the location in flash of the data partition?
If I can't use my existing data with a new rom is Titanium backup the only way to migrate existing data to a new rom?
Second, and related, is a basic question about partitions. If the size of a partition is fixed, at least at installation of a rom, then is there any benefit in deleting bloatware? If I install a rom that still has some sprint apps and then I delete one do I get that space back? Or is the size of that partition fixed so the deleted space is now empty but not available to my data partition?
Finally, if I install a rom that has new versions of an app is there an easy way to tell and to delete the version from data? For example if i have Google maps in data and then upgrade to a rom that has new maps how can I tell which is newer? Can I just uninstall the app in market, if the data version is older or the same as the rom?
Thanks for help with these basic questions.
I realize that I am missing a basic understanding of the "disk structure" of android. But I have not been able to figure out a good source to explain this.
Sent from my Xoom using XDA App
If the new rom requires a data wipe how can I migrate my data to the new rom?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Contacts and calendar should be backed up to google, as long as they are "google contacts" and not "phone contacts".
Texts can be backed up with SMS Backup and Restore.
Pics should obviously be on the sd card.
Apps and their settings can be backed up and restored with Titanium Backup.
Using the above things, the ONLY thing that you should have to setup when flashing a new rom is: first, your google account, and then your homescreen layout and system settings. Keep in mind, Titanium will back these up for you, but this is NOT to be used to restore between roms, it is only to be used within the same rom. If you try to restore system settings and home screen layouts between roms, it will mess up the rom.
I can use recovery to do a full backup then wipe and install the new rom. Can I then flash my old data back? Or would that not be considered a wipe?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, as that would defeat the purpose of wiping data in the first place. I know it's a pain, but you NEED to wipe data when flashing roms, if you dont you WILL have many problems with the new rom. I've got it down to about 20 minutes from flashing a new rom to being fully set up again.

[Q] Data still available after Flashing new ROM

Hi
I just flashed my first ROM on my GS3. I went from the LH1 stock OTA from Samsung, rooted, installed CWM, and then flashed AOKP(Jellybean) Task & Ktoonsez - http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1766684 - many thanks to them btw for some amazing work.
Anyway once I flashed the ROM and GAAPS and my device booted up, all my data was still there... my photos, my apps reloaded, even the data inside the apps was still there, which I cannot understand how. Don't get me wrong I am happy that everything was still there. Also, I did make a backup from CWM but I did not restore it because I did not need to (since all the data loaded on its own).
My question is: was this feature built into this ROM or is this something that is normally supposed to happen.
If you didn't factory reset (wipe data/cache) before flashing AOKP, then yes, all your apps will still be there. That's not recommended though because lingering system settings from the stock ROM could mess with things.
And factory reset doesn't erase your internal storage or SD card, it just wipes apps and settings, so your photos and stuff will be there regardless.
MdX MaxX said:
If you didn't factory reset (wipe data/cache) before flashing AOKP, then yes, all your apps will still be there. That's not recommended though because lingering system settings from the stock ROM could mess with things.
And factory reset doesn't erase your internal storage or SD card, it just wipes apps and settings, so your photos and stuff will be there regardless.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the reply. I did definitely did factory reset in CWM as I followed all instructions to the T. I am not sure why but all of my apps remained, I saw some of them auto download rather quickly and for example I have this app called Vaulty. All of its contents were still inside.
Odd nonetheless

[Q] Now CM 10, 4.1.2 going to 4.2.2. How easy to go back?

I've been running CM 10, 4.1.2, on Verizon gn. Works fine.
But I can't leave well enough alone, and want to try 4.2.2.
That should be easy right, just flash the recent CM 10.1. No cache wiping. Right?
But if I do that and I don't like it. how do I go back? Is it as simple as just flashing CM 10?
Also, I have Ti backup. The backup folder is sdcard/TitaniumBackup. I've read that 4.2.2 creates /sdcard/0/ for data. Does this mean that my present backup will be deleted?
Any help appreciated.
Since you are migrating Android versions, I would recommend that you do a full wipe, so system, data, and cache (and restore apps from TiBu if you must). You can do a nandroid backup from recovery; if you don't like 4.2 just restore it. When restoring a nandroid backup everything will be exactly the same.
seandarcy said:
Also, I have Ti backup. The backup folder is sdcard/TitaniumBackup. I've read that 4.2.2 creates /sdcard/0/ for data. Does this mean that my present backup will be deleted?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just upgraded from 4.1.2 to 4.2.2 and had the same concern about being able to go back if I had problems and knowing that the partitioning of internal storage would be changed.
I recently got my GN back from Samsung after getting the screen replaced. Before sending it off, I totally wiped and reset the phone to stock. I made sure I did a full Ti backup first, then a Nandroid backup, and finally copied the entire contents of internal storage via "adb pull" to my desktop computer. When I got the phone back, I reversed the process and was able to restore the phone entirely to where it was before the wipe.
I did the same operation before upgrading to 4.2.2, without wiping the phone. So if I'd have wanted to go back to 4.1.2, I'd have wiped the phone, including internal storage, and restored as described above. I'm pretty confident that this would have removed the new partitioning from 4.2.2 and reset it to where it was before the 4.2.2 upgrade.
Sorry to be dense, but...
So I do a nandroid backup from TWRP 2.4.4.0, system, data and cache
From TWRP flash the CM 4.2.2.
Do nandroid restore from TWRP?
Flash gapps, restore apps from TiBu.
Now if want to go back to 4.1.2:
Flash 4.1.2, wipe system data cache.
Flash gapps, restore apps from TiBu
Do I have this correct?
Nandroid the entire thing from TWRP, wipe system, data and cache from TWRP, flash CM10.1 and gapps from TWRP, restore apps from TiBu in ROM. If you don't like it just restore the nandroid from TWRP. TiBu only restores apps, nandroid restores everything: ROM, account, system settings, apps, etc.
The only extra thing I referred to was making a full copy of your phone's internal storage to your computer using "adb pull". This would allow you to wipe the internal storage and restore it, in case the partitioning change from "/storage/sdcard0" to "/storage/emulated/0" needed to be removed. But if TWRP's nandroid backup and restore takes care of this, this step isn't necessary.
How easy? Dead easy.
Sent from my Nexus

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