Develop Bugs

SGS3 Connection Issues and Download Mode Help

There are three parts to this thread - How to get into download mode, how to get into recovery mode, and how to solve problems connecting your Android device to your computer. I think you should be able to find where each one begins without too much trouble.
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GETTING INTO DOWNLOAD MODE
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"Just get into download mode and..."
Ever find yourself with a phone that's misbehaving, and you can't seem to figure out how to get it to download mode?
Here's a list of things to try, sorted in a "where are you now" setup:
Note: You will need to use Vol+ to select download mode after you reach the mode selection screen.
FROM A POWERED-DOWN STATE - BATTERY REMOVED
- Insert battery, then press and hold Vol-, Home button, and Power.
- Press and hold Vol-/Home/Power, Insert Battery.
- Use a USB jig (can be manufactured jig or homemade chain of resistors)
FROM CLOCKWORKMOD RECOVERY MENU
- Position the cursor (highlighted selection) on "Restart device", hold Vol-/Home, then press power
- (Where available) Use the "Reboot Download" option in the "Advanced" menu
FROM A FULLY BOOTED PHONE STATE, WITH USB DEBUGGING ENABLED
Note: you may need to have ADB installed on your computer, and/or an Android Terminal Emulator installed on your Android device.
- Connect your Android device to your computer, navigate to your ADB directory, and type "adb reboot download"
- (Where available) Use the rom's power menu option to reboot into download mode.
- From a terminal, type "su", then "reboot download"
- Download the app "quickboot", follow the app directions to reach download mode.
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GETTING INTO RECOVERY MODE (CWM RECOVERY)
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FROM A POWERED-DOWN STATE - BATTERY REMOVED
- Insert battery, then press and hold Vol+, Home button, and Power.
- Press and hold Vol+/Home/Power, Insert Battery.
FROM A FULLY BOOTED PHONE STATE, WITH USB DEBUGGING ENABLED
Note: you may need to have ADB installed on your computer, and/or an Android Terminal Emulator installed on your Android device.
- Connect your Android device to your computer, navigate to your ADB directory, and type "adb reboot recovery"
- (Where available) Use the rom's advanced power menu (long press power in android OS) option to reboot into recovery.
- From a terminal emulator, type "su", then "reboot recovery"
- Download the app "quickboot", follow the app directions to reach recovery mode.
- Download the app "Rom Manager", select "Reboot to Clockwordmod Recovery"
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UNIVERSAL FIRST STEPS FOR CONNECTION ISSUES
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So you've got Odin up, the phone's in download mode, it's connected to the computer, but Odin is saying "What phone?". You've tried jiggling the handle, checking the blinker fluid levels, and even using the board stretcher, but the Android guy is smirking at you with that smug green face.
Although it is possible that there is something else at work that's preventing your phone from connecting, I would suggest trying these "universal first steps" to see if you can resolve the connection issues:
1. Turn off both devices (phone and PC) - and I do mean full power-down. Go ahead and pull the phone's battery, if necessary.
2. Disconnect your phone from your computer at all points - USB out of phone, USB out of computer.
3. Start up your computer. Don't touch it, don't do anything to it. Let it fully boot and completely settle.
(Obviously, log in if it's necessary, but then let it finish booting before moving on to step 4.)
4. Start up Odin. Let that get completely started and settled.
(If on Vista/Win 7, make sure to "Run as Administrator" in the right-click menu.)
5. Connect your USB cable to a different port than the one you last had it connected to.
(If you're on a Windows desktop, the ports in the back of the computer are generally more stable and should be used. If you're on a laptop, use USB port #1)
Do not connect the phone to the cable yet.
6. Start your phone in download mode. Wait until you see the Android guy with the 4-5 lines of text in the upper left corner.
7. Connect your cable to the phone. Let it sit until Odin recognizes it (which should only take a couple of seconds).
If, for some reason, Odin doesn't recognize the phone at this point, here are a few more things to check/try:
- Repeat steps 1-7 above, making sure to change USB ports. As dumb as it sounds, sometimes the phone or computer just doesn't like particular USB ports.
- With everything still up, switch USB ports.
- Try a different OS (if possible) - sometimes Ubuntu will recognize what Windows won't, and vice versa.
- Try doing this on a different computer - again, different OS, different USB ports, they're all links in a chain and sometimes you'll come across a configuration that doesn't have the weak link.
- Try a different cable. I've had a case where I couldn't do any flashing with one cable, but everything was rock-solid and smooth on the same machine with just a different cable.
- Fully uninstall your drivers, reboot the computer, reinstall the drivers, power down, and then start again from step 2. Sometimes faulty drivers are the problem.
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Additional Note:
If you're moving from an AOSP-based rom (MIUI, CM10, etc) to a Touchwiz-based / Samsung Stock-based rom, remember to wipe data / factory reset prior to flashing a stock rom. You will hang on the "Samsung" logo if you don't.
Please note very carefully, though, to do the wipe in CWM recovery - not 3e recovery. If you do it in 3e recovery, you'll format the internal storage, meaning you lose all your pictures, music, etc.. (I learned this the hard way.)
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If anyone has any additional items / corrections, please reply and I'll update the OP accordingly. Thanks.

Reserved

Great guide!
I'd like to add my experiences, while using CWM 6.0.1.2 booting into Recovery is a bit tricky. It appears the default recovery boots instead of CWM. The only work around I know of is to Flash ClockworkMod Recovery first from ROM Manager v5.0.2.0 and then select Reboot into Recovery. Any other method I try seems to fail.
I'm running Stock At&t ROM, rooted.

Hey Mrhaley,
I just found your post. Wish I knew I had to wipe data and factory reset before flashing stock rom... well I followed another post to use kies and now Im stuck. Im hanging on samsung logo. Can you help me fix this?
Thanks

djtiko said:
Hey Mrhaley,
I just found your post. Wish I knew I had to wipe data and factory reset before flashing stock rom... well I followed another post to use kies and now Im stuck. Im hanging on samsung logo. Can you help me fix this?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OP thanks for exelent post..I had one more problem with USB connection. Sticks in usb port did not connect correctly. Just jently squize USB male connector on samsung data cable so top of male connector will bend just enough to get good connection when you push back to PC port.
@djtiko - I answer on other post to your problem..

djtiko said:
Hey Mrhaley,
I just found your post. Wish I knew I had to wipe data and factory reset before flashing stock rom... well I followed another post to use kies and now Im stuck. Im hanging on samsung logo. Can you help me fix this?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do a factory reset again, should fix you up. If not, consider using Odin to flash a stock ROM package.

Thanks got it all fixed, just had to do a data wipe in the stock recovery and then I was golden

ondin
Hey guys when i run the bootloader file should i open it up in the pda tab on ondin or in the Bootloader tab?

Should be in the pda tab I believe.
Edit. Which bootloader file are you referring to? To know for sure, you could just flash the entire stock rooted jelly bean Rom.

If using Odin with Chainfire to auto root just to root I found that the file that you are using to root you HAVE to have in the SAME folder I made the mistake of downloading the Odin then Odin with chainfire from http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1963790 then was opening the odin first downloaded then it would stall for not able to start the installation then rechecking the unzipped folder for the .tar.md5 file noticed that Odin was there too, loaded it and PRESTO rooted in less than 30 seconds... So for other that are just looking to root give chainfire a check, yes you would need to use the triangle away if you are worried about that however you don't loose anything when doing it this way so all a matter of what you are looking to do. THANK YOU so much for the help with the drivers issues!

Cannot boot t999

My t999 is running on root box custom ROM. I can tell this ROM is quite stable but after 3 weeks of using, I turned off the phone and now it won't boot up. I didn't flash or anything. It still vibrates if I try to turn on with the power button. Any idea what happen?

Is it plugged into a charger port? Unplug after letting it charge for 10 minutes, hold power until vibrate let go. If not that then might be the recently popular dying S III issue.

Update. it doesnt let me boot into safe or download mode.

mt3g said:
Is it plugged into a charger port? Unplug after letting it charge for 10 minutes, hold power until vibrate let go. If not that then might be the recently popular dying S III issue.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was able to get in download mode. Is there any way I can reset factory in download mode? I can't get into recovery though

vietthanh1206 said:
I was able to get in download mode. Is there any way I can reset factory in download mode? I can't get into recovery though
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just use odin from there, read up and do the process. Make sure you have it on the charger while it's sitting. http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1949687

re: sure fix
vietthanh1206 said:
I was able to get in download mode. Is there any way I can reset factory in download mode? I can't get into recovery though
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This guide will get your phone back up and running properly
Follow the instructions below.
Easy and sure way fix your problem - Here is s step by step guide:
Download this pre-rooted Samsung Galaxy S3 T999 Jellybean v4.1.2 rom: http://www.androidfilehost.com/?fid=22946563261203914
After downloading make a folder on your computer's desktop and unzip the
file using Winzip or 7zip so the .TAR file is in the new folder you just made.
Download and extract Odin into the same folder you made containing the TAR file
Here is the link for Odin: http://d-h.st/Q14
Download ODIN which is required for flashing the stock rooted firmware (a windows app)
Download the Odin Flash firmware for T999 Tmobile then copy it to the same folder as Odin
Run Odin by double clicking the Odin.exe within the same folder as the TAR file you extracted
Turn off your phone and boot into DOWNLOAD MODE (Volume Down + Home + Power Hold until phone powers up, then release and press Volume Up to enter Download Mode)
Once in Download Mode, connect the USB/Charger cable to the phone and plug into the USB port on your computer.
You should now see a COM** port listed toward the top-left of Odin (under ID:COM)
Click on the PDA button in the middle-right area of Odin.
Browse to and select the Firmware you downloaded (TAR file)
Make sure Auto-Reboot and F. Reset Time are the only options checked and that PDA is the only other thing checked.
TRIPLE CHECK your settings and that you have selected the correct firmware for your model phone and are using the correct options.
If you are using a laptop, make absolutely sure you are plugged in, or if on battery, that it is charged enough and will not go into sleep mode during flash.
Click Start to begin the flash. This will take a while, so be patient!
Once complete, in the top-left box in Odin, it will say PASS and the phone should have automatically rebooted.
You may unplug the phone and close Odin if you wish.
Wait at least 5-10 minutes for the system to boot the first time and then build its cache!
(It may seem to hang during boot, this is normal and you must be patient!!!)
Good Luck!

Galaxy Keeps restarting tried different fixes

Ok so I have a Galaxy S3 tmobile version, last night my phone worked excellent and been doing so for almost since the day I got it, until today morning I noticed my phone was off and its odd since every morning I have it plugged in and never turn it off
So I back up everything and I did a factory reset and my phone just keeps restarting out of nowhere, not sure whats happening I cleared the cache and its still doing it, im thinking I just got a bad build of the 4.1.2 update but I updated via OTA so not sure whats happening?

anyone??

Odin back to stock. The bible will show you how.
Sent from my SGH-T999 using xda app-developers app

re: Odin Flash
juanperez1 said:
Ok so I have a Galaxy S3 tmobile version, last night my phone worked excellent and been doing so for almost since the day I got it, until today morning I noticed my phone was off and its odd since every morning I have it plugged in and never turn it off
So I back up everything and I did a factory reset and my phone just keeps restarting out of nowhere, not sure whats happening I cleared the cache and its still doing it, im thinking I just got a bad build of the 4.1.2 update but I updated via OTA so not sure whats happening?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The following should solve your problem:
This guide will get your phone back up and running properly
Easy and sure way fix your problem - Here is s step by step guide:
Download the newest pre-rooted Samsung Galaxy S3 T999 Jellybean v4.1.2 rom: T999_UVDMD5
After downloading make a folder on your computer's desktop and unzip the file using Winzip or 7zip so the .TAR file
is in the new folder you just made.
Download and extract Odin into the same folder you made containing the TAR file.
Here is the link for Odin: OdinForWindows
• Download ODIN which is required for flashing the stock rooted firmware (a windows app)
• Download the Odin Flash firmware for T999 Tmobile then copy it to the same folder as Odin
• Run Odin by double clicking the Odin.exe within the same folder as the TAR file you extracted
• Turn off your phone and boot into DOWNLOAD MODE (Volume Down + Home + Power Hold until phone powers up, then release and press Volume Up to enter Download Mode)
• Once in Download Mode, connect the USB/Charger cable to the phone and plug into the USB port on your computer.
• You should now see a COM** port listed toward the top-left of Odin (under ID:COM)
• Click on the PDA button in the middle-right area of Odin.
• Browse to and select the Firmware you downloaded (TAR file)
• Make sure Auto-Reboot and F. Reset Time are the only options checked and that PDA is the only other thing checked.
• TRIPLE CHECK your settings and that you have selected the correct firmware for your model phone and are using the correct options.
• If you are using a laptop, make absolutely sure you are plugged in, or if on battery, that it is charged enough and will not go into sleep mode during flash.
• Click Start to begin the flash. This will take a while, so be patient!
• Once complete, in the top-left box in Odin, it will say PASS and the phone should have automatically rebooted.
• You may unplug the phone and close Odin if you wish.
• Wait at least 5-10 minutes for the system to boot the first time and then build its cache!
• (It may seem to take a long time during boot, this is normal and you must be patient!!!)
Good Luck!

ok future fix for anyone interested, it was the actual rom since it would do if even after a battery pull and even before it actually boot up, for some reason my power button I guess it was "stuck" so I open my galaxy up and took out just the plastic parts their is two, and took out the plastic power button, then I blew on the power button and I blew it with some air compressed air that you use for PC's and i pressed it with a needle just to make sure it worked installed the power button again and everything again and phone works better than before

[SOLVED] "'Firmware upgrade encountered an issue." Softbrick issue

Hello XDA!
So, idiot that I am, I decided today would be a great time to root my Galaxy S III (SGH-T999N version). It was running Jellybean 4.3, so it had fewer root options than other, older Jellybean versions, but I still found a root file on here. I put it into USB debugging mode, downloaded the driver, Odin, and the root file. I also backed the phone up on Kies, and have that on my PC., I did everything right, and... it failed. I tried again without doing anything to the phone (read: kept it in download mode), but it failed again with a different root file. So, I turned it off, sad that I wasn't able to root it, and I came upon the dreaded 'Firmware upgrade encountered an issue. Please select recovery mode in Kies & try again' screen.
After hours of searching, I saw two different solutions: downloading the 4.3 OS from online, and using Odin to flash that to the phone, or using Kies to reformat the phone. I've been trying Kies, but Kies 3 isn't recognizing the phone, and won't allow me to restore or to reformat the phone. I'm still waiting on the download of Jellybean 4.3 to finish so that I can try that (Odin HAS been recognizing the phone). While I wait, I wanted to know if other users have had similar problems that they've solved, or where I've gone wrong, and what I can fix.
As for additional details:
- I CAN put the phone into Download mode. I CANNOT do a factory reset through Vol. Up+Home+Power
- The status screen with 'Firmware upgrade encountered an issue. Please select recovery mode in Kies & try again' also has this information at the top:
ODIN MODE
PRODUCT NAME: SGH-T999N
CUSTOM BINARY DOWNLOAD: Yes (1 counts)
CURRENT BINARY: Custom
SYSTEM STATUS: Official
QUALCOMM SECUREBOOT: ENABLE
Warranty Bit: 0
BOOTLOADER AP SWAREV: 1
- The phone is carried by Metro-PCS
Thanks in advance!

Okay, turns out the downloaded Jellybean 4.3 OS did the trick. For future people who run into this issue:
1. Have Odin 3.07 or higher downloaded (Odds are that you have this due to your phone's current state).
2. Download a copy of the OS you want from here: samsung-updates.com/device/?id=SCH-I535 Go to the dropdown menu on the left-hand side, and select your phone. Don't know/remeber your phone's identifier? Open up the back, remove the battery, and there should be a white sticker with your phone's model at the top. WARNING! Unless you plan to pay, these downloads will take a while. Do this when you can have your computer on for 4+ hours.
3. Once the download is complete, unzip the file, and place it in a location that you can easily find with Odin.
4. Open Odin, and make sure that Auto Reboot and F. Reset time are the only options checked. If there are other options selected, uncheck them and proceed.
5. Click the "PDA" button, and select your copy of the Android OS from where it was stored. Assuming everything has gone correctly, a message should appear in the Odin status box along the lines of "Check MD5... Do not unplug the cable...". Wait for the message "Leave CS..." to appear before proceeding.
6. Once "Leave CS..." has appeared, put your phone into Download mode (Turn it off, then restart by holding down the Vol. Down, Home, and Power keys until you get a screen that has informed you that you are in download mode.). Then, plug your usb cable into your PC/Laptop, and then into the USB outlet on the phone.
7. Once Odin has noted that your phone is attached, you can press "Start", and assuming all steps have been followed correctly, the new OS should download, and your phone will reboot, fully functional. If you are lucky like me, it will even have kept all of your settings!

Rooting problems

Right now, I just don't know what to do. I've restored my phone (model SGH-1747) back to stock many times before using Odin and it's all worked fine. But somehow, my phone is just stuck on the Samsung booting screen. Odin even gives the green "Pass!" but my phone just can't load correctly. My phone is still able to enter download mode each time I restart my phone so I don't think all hope's lost but I just can't get past the damn pulsing Samsung screen (this is after the AT&T booting screen).
Here are the steps I do to restore my phone from stock:
1. Enter phone in download mode
2. Run Odin v3.09 via administrator
3. Click on PDA and load file "root66_ATT_I747UCDLK3.tar.md5"
4. Click start
I've tried Googling my problem but I just don't really know what solutions I'm looking for. Any suggestions?

I remember having this problem a long time ago.
This is what fixed it for me:
1. Pull Battery to get out of boot loop
2. Hold power + vol up + home --> will boot you into recovery
3. Clear Data/Factory reset
4. Reboot
5. All Done