[Q] Please Help! Flashing errors - T-Mobile, Samsung Galaxy SIII

[Q] Please Help! Flashing errors - T-Mobile, Samsung Galaxy SIII

Samsung Galaxy s3 T-mobile SGH-T999 4.3 jellybean
I have been trying for a few days to flash my phone but no luck. All I want is to get cyangenmod but I encounter errors everywhere I go. I have tried the simple method provided by cyanogenmod themselves but at the end of the process it boots me up into recovery mode telling me that I might lose root and asking that if I want to fix it. No matter what I choose it decides to boot up into regular touchwiz with no apparent changes. I have tried the mobile odin method but it comes up with an error and boots up yet again. It came up with an error but the screen turned off before I could read any further. I have tried flashing the rom via rom manager but everytime I do it boots me up into recovery mode with an error and eventually asks me that same question regarding root just before returning me back to touchwiz. I have even tried using odin307(which I used to root my phone) but it no longer recognizes my phone. I have no idea what to do. My phone still works fine although I get more errors concerning google application after a factory reset but I can still use it no problem. Also, whenever I try to boot up into recovery mode it just shows up with that cyanogenmod icon and then it dissapears just before having it boot up normally so i can no longer boot up into recovery mode. I have downloaded clockworkmod recovery but no luck. I have done so many things that I wouldn't be surprised if my phone turned out to be broken now. whenever I boot up into download mode it now tells me that everything is custom. I have heard of problems concerning knox but when I rooted my phone it didn't it didn't seem to get rid of it. This is really driving me nuts and I now hate samsung for having it made so hard to tweak anything in this phone. Does anyone know of a way get passed all of this stuff and flashing the rom? is my phone broken now? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

It helps a lot if you included exactly what errors you saw. A recovery log, what exactly you're trying to flash, and any other related details goes a long way.
If odin doesn't see your phone its probably a driver issue. What does it say in device manager?
Sent from my SGH-T999 using Tapatalk

DocHoliday77 said:
It helps a lot if you included exactly what errors you saw. A recovery log, what exactly you're trying to flash, and any other related details goes a long way.
If odin doesn't see your phone its probably a driver issue. What does it say in device manager?
Sent from my SGH-T999 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As you can see, I am a complete noob when it comes to this stuff so I apologize in advance if I don't answer your questions in the correct manner.
If you are talking about the phone drivers, I had already installed them some time ago. I have even installed kies and kies3. Odin recognized my phone before I did all of this since it was what I used to root my phone. I am still able to access the phone's files through my computer.
when I used rom manager it would give me an error right after the whole backup process and show me recovery mode. I would try to look up the same rom via the recovery directory but it would give me the same error message. If i clicked on the reboot option, it would boot me up to stock. If I clicked on the **go back** option a couple of times it would give me this message.
Root Access Possibly Lost Fix?
THIS CANNOT BE UNDONE
1. YES fix root (/system/xbin/su)
2. NO do not fix
*Go back*
no matter what I clicked on, it would boot me up into stock yet again.
I tried doing this again just now and it turned off. it then showed that small strip of blue at the top left that it usually shows before booting up into recovery mode and the screen turned off shortly after. at this point I was unable to turn on the phone even with the charger on. I was only able to turn it on after booting it up into download mode.
This same root message appeared when I tried to flash using the cyanogenmod website method. the only difference was that it only showed this message and not the whole recovery menu.
The device manager reads it as "Samsung device"

Ok, first thing you should do is uninstall kies. Odin usually wont work if its installed. If it still fails to see it in odin, uninstall your drivers through device manager, then install the stand alone driver pkg from my sig. (Use the second or third newest to start, the latest should work, but its had a lot more changes for the S5 and Note3.)
Once you get Odin working, download TWRP and flash. (Put the file in PDA if using Odin v3.07, or put it in AP if v3.09). See my sig for everything you need. (Get the .tar or .tar.md5 file for flashing in Odin btw.)
Next boot recovery and flash your rom. A factory reset would probably a good idea at this point, but you can try without first if you want.
If you have any questions or problems feel free to ask. Most of us dont mind helping at all, so long as you are willing to make an effort to help yourself first.
Good luck!
Sent from my SGH-T999 using Tapatalk
---------- Post added at 02:16 AM ---------- Previous post was at 02:15 AM ----------
Oh, and Sammys devices wont turn on when plugged in. This is perfectly normal.
Sent from my SGH-T999 using Tapatalk

DocHoliday77 said:
Ok, first thing you should do is uninstall kies. Odin usually wont work if its installed. If it still fails to see it in odin, uninstall your drivers through device manager, then install the stand alone driver pkg from my sig. (Use the second or third newest to start, the latest should work, but its had a lot more changes for the S5 and Note3.)
Once you get Odin working, download TWRP and flash. (Put the file in PDA if using Odin v3.07, or put it in AP if v3.09). See my sig for everything you need. (Get the .tar or .tar.md5 file for flashing in Odin btw.)
Next boot recovery and flash your rom. A factory reset would probably a good idea at this point, but you can try without first if you want.
If you have any questions or problems feel free to ask. Most of us dont mind helping at all, so long as you are willing to make an effort to help yourself first.
Good luck!
Sent from my SGH-T999 using Tapatalk
---------- Post added at 02:16 AM ---------- Previous post was at 02:15 AM ----------
Oh, and Sammys devices wont turn on when plugged in. This is perfectly normal.
Sent from my SGH-T999 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for the timely and thorough responses.
Okay so odin is now reading my device. It just isn't reading my device while on download mode though.
I tried the .tar version first and this is what came up:
C:\Users\Jerry\Desktop\openrecovery-twrp-2.4.0.0-d2tmo.tar
<ID:0/004> Added!!
<ID:0/004> Odin v.3 engine (ID:4)..
<ID:0/004> File analysis..
<ID:0/004> SetupConnection..
<ID:0/004> Complete(Write) operation failed.
<OSM> All threads completed. (succeed 0 / failed 1)
I attempted this four times and they all ended with "fail" at the top
I then attempted the .tar.md5 and I received this.
<OSM> Enter CS for MD5..
<OSM> Check MD5.. Do not unplug the cable..
<OSM> Please wait..
<OSM> MD5 hash value is invalid
<OSM> openrecovery-twrp-2.3.1.0-d2tmo.tar.md5 is invalid.
<OSM> End...
It seems like it is not even reading this file. This came up before even connecting my device. I tried a couple versions of this but they all had the same result.
My phone then asked to update clockworkmodrecovery and I did.( I actually installed the rom installer version) After doing so, I decided to try my luck and boot up into recovery mode. This time I was successful in booting up into recovery mode although it still showed me that cyanogenmod icon right before getting there. I then went on to install a zip from sd card only to receive the same message I have been receiving since the very beginning:
Installing: /sdcard/0/cm-11-20140217-NIGHTLY-d2tmo.zip
Finding update package...
Finding update package...
Opening update package...
Installing update...
assert failed: THEN A BUNCH OF THESE getprop(" ro.bootloader") =="T999VVLUVUBMK4" (WITH VARIATIONS AFTER T999)
E: Error in /data/media/0/cm-11-20140217-NIGHTLY-d2tmo.zip
(status 7)
Installation aborted.
After error I clicked on the "reboot now" option, only to come up with this message again:
Root Access Possibly Lost Fix?
THIS CANNOT BE UNDONE
1. YES fix root (/system/xbin/su)
2. NO do not fix
This message is what seems(at least to me) to be the main problem. It has appeared after a successful cyanogenmod standard installation (the one from their website) only to restore everything to default after I click on it. Instead of rebooting normally like cyanogenmod said, it would bring me up to this screen. so it seems that even if i were to have a successful installation, this would keep it from going through
I also tried mobile odin but, once again, showed an error that disappeared before I could remember anything.
Thanks your help is really appreciated.

If odin isnt seeing it in download mode try reinstalling your drivers, maybe a different version. Also, check what version of odin you are using. If 3.07, try 3.09. If using 3.09, try 3.07.
Another thing I noticed is the twrp you were trying to use is quite old. Try 2.7.0.0. If you still cant do this from Odin, use the Goo Manager app from the store. (Press menu, then install openrecovery script)
Also, install Terminal Emulator, and enter this:
getprop ro.bootloader
Tell me what it returns. Finally, if you want, open the rom zip file and find the updater script. Open with Notepad++ and delete the assert lines at the top. Save then delete the sig files from the rom, rezip and flash. (There are 3 signature files, cert, manifest, and another. If found, delete, if not, ignore)
Sent from my SGH-T999 using Tapatalk

DocHoliday77 said:
If odin isnt seeing it in download mode try reinstalling your drivers, maybe a different version. Also, check what version of odin you are using. If 3.07, try 3.09. If using 3.09, try 3.07.
Another thing I noticed is the twrp you were trying to use is quite old. Try 2.7.0.0. If you still cant do this from Odin, use the Goo Manager app from the store. (Press menu, then install openrecovery script)
Also, install Terminal Emulator, and enter this:
getprop ro.bootloader
Tell me what it returns. Finally, if you want, open the rom zip file and find the updater script. Open with Notepad++ and delete the assert lines at the top. Save then delete the sig files from the rom, rezip and flash. (There are 3 signature files, cert, manifest, and another. If found, delete, if not, ignore)
Sent from my SGH-T999 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey man I was finally able to flash my rom! I updated both the drivers and odin and was able to successfully install the recovery file. It still did not install cyanogenmod reading an md5 error and "error executing updater binary in zip" though. anyway I installed AOKP instead and it finally worked. I think the cyanogenmod files that I downloaded were just incompatible with my device or faulty (even though i tried like 10. maybe something wrong with my phone?). Anyway I am really grateful for all of your help. I was so happy after I was finally getting it. It seriously frustrated the heck out of me. I no longer hate my samsung and am quite liking this new rom. Thanks again!

Glad I could help and that you seem to be happy with it so far!
Sent from my SGH-T999 using Tapatalk

Related

[Q] Internal Memory Reduced from 32GB to 12GB After Root

Hi All,
This is my first post. So, I apologize now if I don't do it correctly per forum requirements.
I have a U.S. T-Mobile Samsung Galaxy S3, which I've rooted. I updated to T999UVDMD5 via the method described here - http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2282603. I'm running Android 4.3.1. I just updated to Cyanogenmod 10.2.1.
Everything is great operationally. However, after using this setup for several months, I just realized that my internal storage has decreased from 32GB to 12GB. I'm now getting insufficient storage messages. I don't know if this happened from the method referenced above or when I first rooted the phone as I haven't hit a wall with storage until now.
I've looked into this issue on the forum and think I might need to update my PIT file, but I'm not sure. I don't feel confident enough in this route to do it. So, I'm hoping someone can assist me with figuring out what is going on.
Please help. Thank you in advance for your time and assistance.

Internal memory may reduce due to several reasons. Pit files is just one of them.
The UVDMD5 Thread you posted is for Bootloader only. In order to clear up your issue, Please fhash Root66 via Odin. Follow this thread for details. Make sure to choose UVDMD5 version alone.
Once that's completed, flash latest recovery of your choice (either CWM or TWRP). Then flash CM version again.

Perseus71 said:
Internal memory may reduce due to several reasons. Pit files is just one of them.
The UVDMD5 Thread you posted is for Bootloader only. In order to clear up your issue, Please fhash Root66 via Odin. Follow this thread for details. Make sure to choose UVDMD5 version alone.
Once that's completed, flash latest recovery of your choice (either CWM or TWRP). Then flash CM version again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for the prompt response. I've done as you said. However, Odin is hanging on aboot.mbn. I haven't touched it, but it's been like this for about five minutes. The phone still reads, "Downloading... Do not turn off target!!" What do you advise I do? Thanks again.

Keep the phone in downloading mode. Make sure your download of Root66 is valid. Follow the instructions from the thread I linked. Reboot computer and try another cable.

Perseus71 said:
Keep the phone in downloading mode. Make sure your download of Root66 is valid. Follow the instructions from the thread I linked. Reboot computer and try another cable.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you Perseus71. I'll give this a shot tomorrow and get back to you. I appreciate your help.

Perseus71 said:
Keep the phone in downloading mode. Make sure your download of Root66 is valid. Follow the instructions from the thread I linked. Reboot computer and try another cable.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I went ahead and gave it a shot. I plugged the micro usb into a USB 3.0 port on the back of the machine instead of using one of the auxiliary ports on the front of my computer. That seemed to fixed the problem. I guess a direct connection with the motherboard makes a different. It flashed and I'm back up and running with the stock rom.
Quick question - I created a backup of my phone today. If I flash cyanogenmod back onto it, can I restore the phone from that backup? Or, is it no good now since I flashed it with root66?
Thank you so much!

Perseus71 said:
Keep the phone in downloading mode. Make sure your download of Root66 is valid. Follow the instructions from the thread I linked. Reboot computer and try another cable.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Update: I just checked and unfortunately I still have the 12gb of space. What do you recommend I do from here? Sorry. I hate to continue to bug you with this. Thank you.

If you took a Nandroid after the Root66 flash today, you can restore it anytime. As to the Space, its probably taken up by Samsung Bloat. Go ahead and flash CM. Make sure to do factory Reset, wipe Dalvik + Cache before and after the flash.
Check the space usage immediately after flash. Post a screen of Storage settings at the end.

Perseus71 said:
If you took a Nandroid after the Root66 flash today, you can restore it anytime. As to the Space, its probably taken up by Samsung Bloat. Go ahead and flash CM. Make sure to do factory Reset, wipe Dalvik + Cache before and after the flash.
Check the space usage immediately after flash. Post a screen of Storage settings at the end.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I know the term, but I'm not 100% confident in what you mean by Nandroid. So I will just explain what I did. Prior to flashing root66, I used CWM Recovery to create a backup file on my SD card.
I downloaded ROM Manager and re-installed CWM Recovery. I then rebooted into recovery and wipe all data, wiped the cache partition, and wiped the Dalvik Cache. Then, I restored the backup I created before I flashed root66.
Next, I rebooted the phone. It's still telling me I have 12 GB of internal memory. One thing that is different from before is I have about 9GB of free space now versus roughly 1GB of free space before. I've attached a screenshot of this.
Another issue I am having, which I had before is I'm getting an insufficient storage message when I try to install certain apps. What's weird is the error doesn't come up with all apps, only certain ones. I've attached a screenshot of this error message as well. Lastly, I put a screenshot of part of my partition table in case you are able to see something I'm not, in there.
If you have any other thoughts on what might be going on, I would greatly appreciate your insight. Thank you.

What you did in CWM is the Nandroid. I didn't want you to restore anything before flashing Root66. So please can you wipe everything again and then flash Root66 ? This time don't flash CWM after Root66. Just check the Spaces.
P.S. - Continue using the phone in that fashion (Just Root66 nothing custom). For now at least.

Perseus71 said:
What you did in CWM is the Nandroid. I didn't want you to restore anything before flashing Root66. So please can you wipe everything again and then flash Root66 ? This time don't flash CWM after Root66. Just check the Spaces.
P.S. - Continue using the phone in that fashion (Just Root66 nothing custom). For now at least.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry, I may have miscommunicated. I restored the Nandroid after I flashed root66. I did check the internal memory space before I restored the Nandroid and it hadn't changed. I'll flash root66 again and get back to you. Please standby. Thank you.

If it still continues to be the case, this post has correct .PIT file. You use Odin to flash it. I think you know that already.

Perseus71 said:
If it still continues to be the case, this post has correct .PIT file. You use Odin to flash it. I think you know that already.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks Perseus71! I'm on a new computer today. So I'm downloading root66 again so I can flash it. If the issue remains, I'll flash the PIT file. I downloaded the file at the link you sent me.
Do you by chance know of a good tutorial on flashing the PIT. I presume it's the same process with flashing anything and I use the PIT button on Odin. However, I'm paranoid that I'll brick my phone and prefer to be over cautious than presumptuous. Thank you sir!

And the saga continues... man this is frustrating!
I flashed root66 and checked the storage in settings. It's still at 12GB.
So, I did some digging on flashing the PIT file. Everything I read said to accompany the PIT file with the ROM. So, I rebooted into download mode, then plugged in the micro-USB, and Odin recognized the device. I unzipped the PIT file on my computer. I then clicked the PIT button on Odin and selected the PIT file on my machine. Next, I added the root66 ROM via the PDA button on Odin. Then, I clicked the Re-Partition checkbox so that the Auto-Reboot, Re-Partition, and F. Reset Time checkboxes were all checked. I hit start and then Odin failed on me.
Here's what Odin said:
<ID:0/004> Added!!
<OSM> Enter CS for MD5..
<OSM> Check MD5.. Do not unplug the cable..
<OSM> Please wait..
<OSM> root66_TMO_T999UVDMD5.tar.md5 is valid.
<OSM> Checking MD5 finished Sucessfully..
<OSM> Leave CS..
<ID:0/004> Odin v.3 engine (ID:4)..
<ID:0/004> File analysis..
<ID:0/004> SetupConnection..
<ID:0/004> Initialzation..
<ID:0/004> Set PIT file..
<ID:0/004> DO NOT TURN OFF TARGET!!
<ID:0/004> __Xmit Write fail
<ID:0/004> Removed!!
<ID:0/004> Re-Partition operation failed.
<OSM> All threads completed. (succeed 0 / failed 1)
Am I doing something wrong here? Please help. Thank you again for your time and assistance.

Perseus71 said:
If it still continues to be the case, this post has correct .PIT file. You use Odin to flash it. I think you know that already.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think I may have really screwed up. Ever since Odin failed on the re-partition, it is no longer recognizing my device. When I go into "Devices and Printers" in Windows 8, it's no longer displaying SGH-T999. Now it's displaying "Qualcomm HS-USB QDLoader 9008 (COM7)"
I'm afraid I just bricked my phone. I hope you have better news for than this. Please help when you can. Thank you.

Do All of the same above but do not hit Re-partition. Here's a good Guide. Make sure you have latest Odin ( v3.09) and its running as Admin on Windows.

Perseus71 said:
Do All of the same above but do not hit Re-partition. Here's a good Guide. Make sure you have latest Odin ( v3.09) and its running as Admin on Windows.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok. Good news. I was afraid to reboot the phone from the Download mode after Odin failed (for fear that I might not be able to get back into Download mode). However, I did reboot it, and the phone rebooted fine into Touchwiz (courtesy of root66). My computer then recognized the device as SGH-T999 once again. (Thank you Jesus!)
So, I have now rebooted back into download mode. I've download Odin v3.09 as you suggested (was using v3.07 before). I've selected the PIT file and root66 (via Odin's rebranded AP button). However, when I select the PIT file, Odin automatically checks the Re-Partition checkbox. You told me not to check that this time. Stupid question but should I just uncheck it?
I haven't done anything yet as I'm now terrified after the last experience of venturing out on my own. Waiting on your guidance. Thank you again.

Perseus71 said:
Do All of the same above but do not hit Re-partition. Here's a good Guide. Make sure you have latest Odin ( v3.09) and its running as Admin on Windows.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Update: I figured it was relatively low risk to uncheck Re-Partition so I went ahead and un-checked it and flashed the PIT and ROM. It succeeded. The phone booted normally. I reboot into recovery, did a factory wipe and wiped the cache partition; then reboot.
Total space is still reading 11.95GB. Although, apps do appear to be installing fine. So that issue is resolved.
I discovered an interesting piece of information. I downloaded the app Partition Table and was able to get a picture of the internal memory card (see "mmcblk0"). It says it's "unmounted." See the attached screen shot.
Any ideas on where to go from here?

If you are up to it, get a Root Explorer such as ES File Explorer. Make sure to turn on its Root Features. (That requires granting Root Access to it.)
Now go to /Proc folder. You will see 2 files. Mounts and Partitions. Post them here please.
Also see if you CWM can mount all partitions.

Perseus71 said:
If you are up to it, get a Root Explorer such as ES File Explorer. Make sure to turn on its Root Features. (That requires granting Root Access to it.)
Now go to /Proc folder. You will see 2 files. Mounts and Partitions. Post them here please.
Also see if you CWM can mount all partitions.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks man. I'm on it, but I'll have to get back to you tomorrow. I really appreciate your continued guidance. Talk to you soon.

N7100 stuck on Samsung Screen

Please please can someone help?
I'll start at the beginning; I have a galaxy note 2 (n7100) in the UK, unlocked for use on any network. I have had this phone from new.
I rooted the phone about a year ago and installed twrp recovery I also installed a script that would allow me to swap the internal memory with the external memory.
Everything has been fine for about 8 months and then the other day I went to switch on my phone and it froze on the screen where I put my pin number in, I didn’t think much about it and turned the phone off & on, but now it just sits at the “Samsung galaxy note 2” screen.
I have booted into twrp and that is telling me there is “No Operating system installed”, it also will not allow me to browse the external SD card.
I have tried to reflash the stock rom using ODIN and everything appears to work and I get the “PASS” sign up, but the phone refuses to boot!!
Also when I boot into twrp it asks me to enter a password, I have never set a password so I'm baffled as to what this is?
And one last thing is that when I plug the phone into the charger with the phone switched off, the battery symbol appears on the screen but it just has a little circle in the battery and doesn’t show the battery charging animation.
I have just tried to flash a PIT file and now can no longer get into TWRP recovery, it seems to be going from bad to worse.
Please can someone help?
Pete

peter7769 said:
Please please can someone help?
I'll start at the beginning; I have a galaxy note 2 (n7100) in the UK, unlocked for use on any network. I have had this phone from new.
I rooted the phone about a year ago and installed twrp recovery I also installed a script that would allow me to swap the internal memory with the external memory.
Everything has been fine for about 8 months and then the other day I went to switch on my phone and it froze on the screen where I put my pin number in, I didn’t think much about it and turned the phone off & on, but now it just sits at the “Samsung galaxy note 2” screen.
I have booted into twrp and that is telling me there is “No Operating system installed”, it also will not allow me to browse the external SD card.
I have tried to reflash the stock rom using ODIN and everything appears to work and I get the “PASS” sign up, but the phone refuses to boot!!
Also when I boot into twrp it asks me to enter a password, I have never set a password so I'm baffled as to what this is?
And one last thing is that when I plug the phone into the charger with the phone switched off, the battery symbol appears on the screen but it just has a little circle in the battery and doesn’t show the battery charging animation.
I have just tried to flash a PIT file and now can no longer get into TWRP recovery, it seems to be going from bad to worse.
Please can someone help?
Pete
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
why did you use a pit file? anyway. if you flashed stock with odin there souldn't have been remained any TWRP.
reflash without pit file. after that boot in stock recovery and wipw data/factory reset. phone should boot up.
if all fails, (jope not) use this http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2088809

mariosraptor said:
why did you use a pit file? anyway. if you flashed stock with odin there souldn't have been remained any TWRP.
reflash without pit file. after that boot in stock recovery and wipw data/factory reset. phone should boot up.
if all fails, (jope not) use this http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2088809
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i used pit file as last resort, i have tried everything else, i was thinking the same as you in that if i flashed custom rom then it should be custom recovery, ODIN says passed when its finished but something is obviously going wrong somewhere.
Thanks
Pete
i have tried the link you suggested but the phone wont connect with Kies, i have all the drivers installed but still wont connect

Well even though ODIN says its flashing and passed its not working, i have just tried for the 3rd time flashing a stock ROM, it said it had passed but its still booting into TWRP, and i cant do anything from within TWRP, firstly it ask for my password, if i press cancel then it goes to the main screen, but that's it.
if i look in the log file it just keeps saying
E: unable to find partition size for boot
E: unable to find partition size for recovery
etc
also
Unable to mount /efs
Unable to mount /cache
Unable to mount /system
etc

peter7769 said:
Well even though ODIN says its flashing and passed its not working, i have just tried for the 3rd time flashing a stock ROM, it said it had passed but its still booting into TWRP, and i cant do anything from within TWRP, firstly it ask for my password, if i press cancel then it goes to the main screen, but that's it.
if i look in the log file it just keeps saying
E: unable to find partition size for boot
E: unable to find partition size for recovery
etc
also
Unable to mount /efs
Unable to mount /cache
Unable to mount /system
etc
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
try this rescue firmware. also close all kies running apps from task manager prior to opening ODIN
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=32273406&postcount=5

mariosraptor said:
try this rescue firmware. also close all kies running apps from task manager prior to opening ODIN
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=32273406&postcount=5
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, but the hotfile links are dead
i managed to find a link further on, d/l and tried it but still no joy im afraid, ODIN said it had all passed but nothing was written to the phone!!

peter7769 said:
Thanks, but the hotfile links are dead
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
https://www.4shared.com/zip/814t0y9A/N7100XXDLJ2_OXA_FACTORY.html

mariosraptor said:
https://www.4shared.com/zip/814t0y9A/N7100XXDLJ2_OXA_FACTORY.html
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, but as you can see from my post above it didn't work :crying:

what do you mean? this is from 4shared not hotfile

mariosraptor said:
what do you mean? this is from 4shared not hotfile
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
no we are getting crossed wires, your original link sent me to download a rescue package from Hotfile, this no longer works.
but i managed to find another link further in the post that did work, i downloaded that and tried it but still had no success.
i have now downloaded your file from 4shared, and when i try and add all the various parts into Odin and click start, i get a message saying "Failed", this happens almost instantly.
any suggestions?
Pete

peter7769 said:
no we are getting crossed wires, your original link sent me to download a rescue package from Hotfile, this no longer works.
but i managed to find another link further in the post that did work, i downloaded that and tried it but still had no success.
i have now downloaded your file from 4shared, and when i try and add all the various parts into Odin and click start, i get a message saying "Failed", this happens almost instantly.
any suggestions?
Pete
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
first, are you closing any Kies remaining tasks from task manager?
second. what does it say when you are in donload mode? write all here

mariosraptor said:
first, are you closing any Kies remaining tasks from task manager?
second. what does it say when you are in donload mode? write all here
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi
i have unistalled KIES as the phone wouldnt connect, no matter what usb port i tried, but i have kept the samsung drivers.
When i go into download mode i get this..
ODIN MODE
PRODUCT NAME - GT-N7100
CUSTOM BINARY DOWNLOAD: YES (2 COUNTS)
CURRENT BINARY:CUSTOM
SYSTEM STATUS:CUSTOM
like i said before it seems like nothing is being written to the phone, i even tried to flash the latest version of TWRP to the phone via ODIN, it passed but when i booted into recovery it still showed the old version number within TWRP
Pete

peter7769 said:
Hi
i have unistalled KIES as the phone wouldnt connect, no matter what usb port i tried, but i have kept the samsung drivers.
When i go into download mode i get this..
ODIN MODE
PRODUCT NAME - GT-N7100
CUSTOM BINARY DOWNLOAD: YES (2 COUNTS)
CURRENT BINARY:CUSTOM
SYSTEM STATUS:CUSTOM
like i said before it seems like nothing is being written to the phone, i even tried to flash the latest version of TWRP to the phone via ODIN, it passed but when i booted into recovery it still showed the old version number within TWRP
Pete
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. Try to flash the stock firmware.
2. If it bootloops, try to access recovery.
3. If didn't work, try to flash custom recovery such as philz touch
4. Try factory reset, wipe cache and dalvik cache.
Let us know if it works

iamjerbergerber said:
1. Try to flash the stock firmware.
2. If it bootloops, try to access recovery.
3. If didn't work, try to flash custom recovery such as philz touch
4. Try factory reset, wipe cache and dalvik cache.
Let us know if it works
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have you even read what he wrote? He did all those things but despite Odin reporting success, nothing in the phone was altered.
@peter7769 - what Odin version are you using? Is it started as Administrator? What is the driver version that is reported in Device Manager when you connect the phone? Can you uninstall Kies and try again to flash Samsung firmware (not custom one)?

mat9v said:
Have you even read what he wrote? He did all those things but despite Odin reporting success, nothing in the phone was altered.
@peter7769 - what Odin version are you using? Is it started as Administrator? What is the driver version that is reported in Device Manager when you connect the phone? Can you uninstall Kies and try again to flash Samsung firmware (not custom one)?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, like you said i have tried everything that iamjerbergerber suggested and nothing works,
i have tried using ODIN 3.07 & 3.09 as admin, what am are looking for in the device manager?, i can only see SAMSUNG Mobile USB CDC Composite Device listed under USB controllers, and SAMSUNG Mobile USB Modem listed under modems.
i have already tried the stock firmware which i got from SAMmobile but still no joy, i have been reading up that people said something has happened to the read/write permissions and that is why nothing is being flashed to the phone, though i cant understand why ODIN reports a PASS, as soon as i flash and go into TWRP is firstly asks for my password (never set one!) and then tells me no operating system installed.
Pete

Also i do get failed messages on ODIN when i try to flash anything but the PDA & PIT File Boxes.
Just trying to give you as much info as i can.
Pete

Just flashed stock firmware, all passed but same result
<ID:0/003> Added!!
<OSM> Enter CS for MD5..
<OSM> Check MD5.. Do not unplug the cable..
<OSM> Please wait..
<OSM> N7100XXDMB2_N7100OXXDMB2_N7100XXDLK7_HOME.tar.md5 is valid.
<OSM> Checking MD5 finished Sucessfully..
<OSM> Leave CS..
<ID:0/003> Odin v.3 engine (ID:3)..
<ID:0/003> File analysis..
<ID:0/003> SetupConnection..
<ID:0/003> Initialzation..
<ID:0/003> Get PIT for mapping..
<ID:0/003> Firmware update start..
<ID:0/003> sboot.bin
<ID:0/003> NAND Write Start!!
<ID:0/003> tz.img
<ID:0/003> system.img
<ID:0/003> boot.img
<ID:0/003> cache.img
<ID:0/003> hidden.img
<ID:0/003> recovery.img
<ID:0/003> modem.bin
<ID:0/003> RQT_CLOSE !!
<ID:0/003> RES OK !!
<ID:0/003> Removed!!
<ID:0/003> Remain Port .... 0
<OSM> All threads completed. (succeed 1 / failed 0)

peter7769 said:
Thanks, like you said i have tried everything that iamjerbergerber suggested and nothing works,
i have tried using ODIN 3.07 & 3.09 as admin, what am are looking for in the device manager?, i can only see SAMSUNG Mobile USB CDC Composite Device listed under USB controllers, and SAMSUNG Mobile USB Modem listed under modems.
i have already tried the stock firmware which i got from SAMmobile but still no joy, i have been reading up that people said something has happened to the read/write permissions and that is why nothing is being flashed to the phone, though i cant understand why ODIN reports a PASS, as soon as i flash and go into TWRP is firstly asks for my password (never set one!) and then tells me no operating system installed.
Pete
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What driver version are you using? This one (look at included screenshot)?
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}
From the listing you provided, the Odin behaves well. What happens after it reboots the system (Auto reboot and F.reset time are enabled, yes?)
Does the first window at the top print PASS! on green color with time underneath?
As I understand you tried to flash recovery with Odin? Could you try Philz recovery flashable from Odin, can be downloaded from HERE
You know, this message from TWRP stating that it can't locate partitions may mean you flashed an invalid PIT file...
Attached is a PIT file I have used in times of 4.1.2 firmware flash when I hosed my system.
Also PIT can be flashed ONLY with full system flash or you may loose EFS (along with IMEI) and that would be a disaster without correct backup.

mat9v said:
What driver version are you using? This one (look at included screenshot)?
View attachment 2601488
From the listing you provided, the Odin behaves well. What happens after it reboots the system (Auto reboot and F.reset time are enabled, yes?)
Does the first window at the top print PASS! on green color with time underneath?
As I understand you tried to flash recovery with Odin? Could you try Philz recovery flashable from Odin, can be downloaded from HERE
You know, this message from TWRP stating that it can't locate partitions may mean you flashed an invalid PIT file...
Attached is a PIT file I have used in times of 4.1.2 firmware flash when I hosed my system.
Also PIT can be flashed ONLY with full system flash or you may loose EFS (along with IMEI) and that would be a disaster without correct backup.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks again for the help so far, firstly yes auto reboot is enabled and the other one, when the phone reboots it just sticks on the Samsung GT-N7100 screen and doesn't move, yes the window is green with PASS on it, although i cant recall seeing a time.
as for the driver it says driver date 02/01/2014 and version 2.11.7.0
i will try the pit file and philz recovery in a while as im just updating some stuff on the pc.
i will report back with the results.
Pete

Hi
one question i forgot to ask, when i flash the pit file do i have a tick in the Re-partition box, or should i leave it blank?
Thanks again
Pete

Guess what? I bricked my SGH-i317M :)

I had a relatively good OmniROM on my Samsung Galaxy Note 2 SGH-I317M for a while. I was in the middle of listening to some music that my phone crashed and rebooted and it got stuck at the OmniROM logo. I waited but then as I noticed it's not getting anywhere, I rebooted the phone. Then it got stuck at the Samsung GN2 logo.
I can go to download mode and I do have TWRP 2.6.3.1 as recovery mode and it's working. The weird thing is that, when I go to TWRP it asks for a password which I'm sure I've never set up in first place! Using File Manager of TWRP, I can browse but all critical folders are empty (system, data, etc, ...). Even if I insert my external SD card, the sdcard1 folder doesn't show anything! Worse than all, I can't wipe, backup, restore, install or mount or pretty much any of the functionalities in TWRP as folders are empty and external microSD card is not mounted. I can confirm all folders exist but are empty as I said. Apparently, it is unable to mount any folder!!!
In download mode, I tried to flash the stock ROM for 4.1.1 and 4.3 but it always fails with NAND Write started Operation fail error. And just to make sure I have tried different versions of Odin, different cables and 2 computers, all same error. I appreciate if someone can help me. This phone is new.
Another symptom is that when I power off the phone and charge it by plugging it in, the battery logo shows up but it's always show empty. I know the battery is being charged because when in TWRP, it shows percentage on top of screen, say 83%. Please help.
I can even adb from my PC to the phone.
Here is what Odin shows:
<ID:0/003> Added!!
<OSM> Enter CS for MD5..
<OSM> Check MD5.. Do not unplug the cable..
<OSM> Please wait..
<OSM> I317MVLUCMK5_I317MOYACMK5_HOME.tar.md5 is valid.
<OSM> Checking MD5 finished Sucessfully..
<OSM> Leave CS..
<ID:0/003> Odin v.3 engine (ID:3)..
<ID:0/003> File analysis..
<ID:0/003> SetupConnection..
<ID:0/003> Initialzation..
<ID:0/003> Get PIT for mapping..
<ID:0/003> Firmware update start..
<ID:0/003> sboot.bin
<ID:0/003> NAND Write Start!!
<ID:0/003>
<ID:0/003> Complete(Write) operation failed.
<OSM> All threads completed. (succeed 0 / failed 1)

idoit said:
I had a relatively good OmniROM on my Samsung Galaxy Note 2 SGH-I317M for a while. I was in the middle of listening to some music that my phone crashed and rebooted and it got stuck at the OmniROM logo. I waited but then as I noticed it's not getting anywhere, I rebooted the phone. Then it got stuck at the Samsung GN2 logo.
I can go to download mode and I do have TWRP 2.6.3.1 as recovery mode and it's working. The weird thing is that, when I go to TWRP it asks for a password which I'm sure I've never set up in first place! Using File Manager of TWRP, I can browse but all critical folders are empty (system, data, etc, ...). Even if I insert my external SD card, the sdcard1 folder doesn't show anything! Worse than all, I can't wipe, backup, restore, install or mount or pretty much any of the functionalities in TWRP as folders are empty and external microSD card is not mounted. I can confirm all folders exist but are empty as I said. Apparently, it is unable to mount any folder!!!
In download mode, I tried to flash the stock ROM for 4.1.1 and 4.3 but it always fails with NAND Write started Operation fail error. And just to make sure I have tried different versions of Odin, different cables and 2 computers, all same error. I appreciate if someone can help me. This phone is new.
Another symptom is that when I power off the phone and charge it by plugging it in, the battery logo shows up but it's always show empty. I know the battery is being charged because when in TWRP, it shows percentage on top of screen, say 83%. Please help.
I can even adb from my PC to the phone.
Here is what Odin shows:
<ID:0/003> Added!!
<OSM> Enter CS for MD5..
<OSM> Check MD5.. Do not unplug the cable..
<OSM> Please wait..
<OSM> I317MVLUCMK5_I317MOYACMK5_HOME.tar.md5 is valid.
<OSM> Checking MD5 finished Sucessfully..
<OSM> Leave CS..
<ID:0/003> Odin v.3 engine (ID:3)..
<ID:0/003> File analysis..
<ID:0/003> SetupConnection..
<ID:0/003> Initialzation..
<ID:0/003> Get PIT for mapping..
<ID:0/003> Firmware update start..
<ID:0/003> sboot.bin
<ID:0/003> NAND Write Start!!
<ID:0/003>
<ID:0/003> Complete(Write) operation failed.
<OSM> All threads completed. (succeed 0 / failed 1)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're only kinda hosed....
You need to find an ODIN package WITHOUT the sboot.bin. That's the bootloader that is not flashing....

dicksteele said:
You're only kinda hosed....
You need to find an ODIN package WITHOUT the sboot.bin. That's the bootloader that is not flashing....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
By reading around, I was getting the impression that I need to flash .pit file along with the stock ROM but as I don't want to get things worse I was reluctant to do it. My searches for odin package without sboot.bin takes me no where. Not that I am a super Android toddler but any help is certainly more than appreciated. Well Ok, I'm noob. admit it. :good:
Edit: I found out about N7100UBALJ2_N7100TCEALJ1_TCE ROM from http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2523366 but not sure if that solves the problem or that's relevant as it's for N7100 and mine is SGH-i317m... same family but who knows maybe different ROMs! ?

Can you connect to your pc and transfer rom files?
If not, in download mode you can use adb.exe and "adb push / mnt/sd card rom name" if you can't transfer.
Don't use a pit file. That partitions all of your phone.

rangercaptain said:
Can you connect to your pc and transfer rom files?
If not, in download mode you can use adb.exe and "adb push / mnt/sd card rom name" if you can't transfer.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Update: I uploaded the recovery.log file from TWRP by accessing with adb in recovery mode.
Nothing happens when I connect it to PC in normal mode... I mean just connecting it as it is. (NOT in recovery mode or download mode).
Right now, I am in Windows and when I connect it in download mode, I try to adb but it says device not found. In recovery mode, I can adb but as I said in first post, I can't read or write. MicroSD is not recognized, so I can't put stock ROM there either. Is there any hope to get my phone back?
Don't use a pit file. That partitions all of your phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, I did try to flash a pit file from here, but it fails with same NAND Write error!

I have a good news.
So I went to /dev/block folder when ADBing and noticed mmcblk0 device. I manually mounted mmcblk0p1 and yoohoo it is mounted. It means now i can put my TWRP backup files there and run TWRP restore. Is that a good idea?! Does it make sense at all? I mean I am desperate for any way to get this thing back, a shadow of hope is huge for me too now.
Update: Ahhh damn it! I mount the MicroSD from adb to /external_sdcard (this is the folder where it used to mount my external microSD) in TWRP. Using File Manager provided by TWRP, I confirm the folder is there. But when I go to Restore section, it doesn't show any partition and it doesn't let me choose external memory. It's like this:
- Internal Memory (0MB)
- External Memory (0MB)
- USB OTG (0MB)
Any thoughts? I feel I am so close but not there yet.

The reason adb doesn't work is you need a setting checked in developer options. I wish that was a default setting.
You're not bricked if there's any lifesigns.
Have you used the Kies website? I generally don't recommend Kies, but when your operating system is borked, Kies has an emergency firmware recovery option.
Before you go to Kies, copy down the information on the sticker under your battery, and it will be case sensitive when Kies asks for that info.

rangercaptain said:
Before you go to Kies, copy down the information on the sticker under your battery, and it will be case sensitive when Kies asks for that info.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Alright, done.
The reason adb doesn't work is you need a setting checked in developer options. I wish that was a default setting.
You're not bricked if there's any lifesigns.
Have you used the Kies website? I generally don't recommend Kies, but when your operating system is borked, Kies has an emergency firmware recovery option.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When in Kies, it can't connect to my device. tried all usb cables and all 3 modes: Normal, download and recovery. Always says connecting... spinning forever. I suppose I should work in download mode anyways, right? Anyway, I went to Tools > firmware emergency recovery and entered the serial number. It finishes to 100% but it the end prompts with this error:
<Firmware emergency recovery stopped due to error. If the problem persists, please contact the Samsung service center.>

Now to report back the result from Kies FER:
I follow the instructions word by word. As the screenshot shows, Kies tells me to put phone into "Recovery mode"by pressing on power button. Well, either Samsung doesn't know what recovery mode is or ... Anyways, I take battery out and etc and boot to normal phone by pressing on power button... and "Free Upgrade"button is still grayed out. I go to Recovery mode (Power + Home + Volume Up) and it is still grayed out. (first screenshot attached below)
It's only in Odin Download mode (Power + Home + Volume Down and then Volume Up) that it becomes available.
After some time, the following error appears. I have done it a couple of times now and I restarted my Windows too. but no dice.
(second screenshot attached below)

idoit said:
Alright, done.
When in Kies, it can't connect to my device. tried all usb cables and all 3 modes: Normal, download and recovery. Always says connecting... spinning forever. I suppose I should work in download mode anyways, right? Anyway, I went to Tools > firmware emergency recovery and entered the serial number. It finishes to 100% but it the end prompts with this error:
<Firmware emergency recovery stopped due to error. If the problem persists, please contact the Samsung service center.>
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And you're on an i317M on ATT?
Was this an original Rogers or Bell phone???

dicksteele said:
And you're on an i317M on ATT?
Was this an original Rogers or Bell phone???
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have i317M and it was originally for Bell. I got rid of stock ROM and then installed OmniROM until this happened.
Kies is not helping the poor smartphone either (well now it is dumbphone ). Keeps giving that error too.

idoit said:
I have i317M and it was originally for Bell. I got rid of stock ROM and then installed OmniROM until this happened.
Kies is not helping the poor smartphone either (well now it is dumbphone ). Keeps giving that error too.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Cool.... So where did you get this
I317MVLUCMK5_I317MOYACMK5_HOME.tar.md5
The ODIN file that's blowing up on the bootloader?

dicksteele said:
Cool.... So where did you get this
I317MVLUCMK5_I317MOYACMK5_HOME.tar.md5
The ODIN file that's blowing up on the bootloader?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have to say this: When my phone was alive, in order to unlock the carrier from Bell, I had to flash a 4.1.1 modem and I flashed one from Rogers to unlock. So my under setting in my Phone was showing Rogers brand. Now with this in mind:
I downloaded that file from here under heading I317MVLUCMK5 4.3 Stock Firmware. I noticed it is for Rogers. (where for Bell was available too but I downloaded Rogers one.
I have tried some other original i317m stock roms (from sammobile.com), 4.1.1 for Bell but no luck same NAND error. I simply guess ODIN can't write anything, and the eMMC is corrupted! ?

idoit said:
I have to say this: When my phone was alive, in order to unlock the carrier from Bell, I had to flash a 4.1.1 modem and I flashed one from Rogers to unlock. So my under setting in my Phone was showing Rogers brand. Now with this in mind:
I downloaded that file from here under heading I317MVLUCMK5 4.3 Stock Firmware. I noticed it is for Rogers. (where for Bell was available too but I downloaded Rogers one.
I have tried some other original i317m stock roms, 4.1.1 for Bell but no luck same NAND error. I simply guess ODIN can't write anything, and the eMMC is corrupted! ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's trying write the sboot.bin file which is the bootloader.
The 4.3 bootloader slaps down any attempts to overwrite it. That's why you're seeing the fail.
I'm downloading a 4.1.2 to see if sboot.bin is in there
---------- Post added at 08:58 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:23 PM ----------
Good news the I317M_RWC_I317MVLBMA3_I317MOYABMA3_Original.zip from the
Rogers – 4.3 Jelly Bean RWC_I317MVLBMA3_I317MOYABMA3_I317MVLBMA3 download does not have the sboot.bin.
That should bring you back.. Or at least get past the ODIN flash fail
---------- Post added at 09:02 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:58 PM ----------
idoit said:
I have to say this: When my phone was alive, in order to unlock the carrier from Bell, I had to flash a 4.1.1 modem and I flashed one from Rogers to unlock. So my under setting in my Phone was showing Rogers brand. Now with this in mind:
I downloaded that file from here under heading I317MVLUCMK5 4.3 Stock Firmware. I noticed it is for Rogers. (where for Bell was available too but I downloaded Rogers one.
I have tried some other original i317m stock roms (from sammobile.com), 4.1.1 for Bell but no luck same NAND error. I simply guess ODIN can't write anything, and the eMMC is corrupted! ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Awesome on the firmware site BTW !

dicksteele said:
It's trying write the sboot.bin file which is the bootloader.
The 4.3 bootloader slaps down any attempts to overwrite it. That's why you're seeing the fail.
I'm downloading a 4.1.2 to see if sboot.bin is in there
---------- Post added at 08:58 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:23 PM ----------
Good news the I317M_RWC_I317MVLBMA3_I317MOYABMA3_Original.zip from the
Rogers – 4.3 Jelly Bean RWC_I317MVLBMA3_I317MOYABMA3_I317MVLBMA3 download does not have the sboot.bin.
That should bring you back.. Or at least get past the ODIN flash fail
---------- Post added at 09:02 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:58 PM ----------
Awesome on the firmware site BTW !
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you very much dicksteele! I'm downloading it too and it will take 8 hours I believe, so I'll report back later. Now, here is the thing: Reading some comments from that page makes me be careful though.
Specifically, talking about the following comments:
Hi Guy, my problem is that my phone lost baseband version and IMEI number. I download the stock rom: TLS_I317MVLBMA3_I317MOYABMA3_I317MVLBMA3; The rom did not fix the issue. After I install it, the baseband version and IMEI number still shown Null. Could you please help me? Thousands thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This was posted long before the 4.1.2 came around, but you have all the guts there when trying to roll back to 4.1.1 not even aware that there might be a new bootloader added on 4.1.2 I317MVLBMA3 update and returning back to 4.1.1 is quite risky
If you did not touch your device before using rooted kernels and/or custom. I suggests that you must stay on 4.1.2.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Now, what should I do now to make sure I will be able to make calls, assuming (hopefully) I'll get this sucker back to life?
Oh boy, will I ever again install OmniROM on it? Hell NOOO!

You won't lose your baseband or IEMI. What you are doing is returning your phone to 100% factory stock (except for the 4.3 bootloader). You can deal with any other issues as they arise/if they arise from a working phone easier than you can from a borked phone.
Why eight hours to download?

idoit said:
Thank you very much dicksteele! I'm downloading it too and it will take 8 hours I believe, so I'll report back later. Now, here is the thing: Reading some comments from that page makes me be careful though.
Specifically, talking about the following comments:


Now, what should I do now to make sure I will be able to make calls, assuming (hopefully) I'll get this sucker back to life?
Oh boy, will I ever again install OmniROM on it? Hell NOOO!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The losing the IMEI was because of a different issue I believe.... The /efs partition holds all the important cel info. As long as that's not hosed you're fine...
OMNIROM should not have touched that.
Backing up your /efs can be done a couple of ways.
http://www.xda-developers.com/android/backup-your-efs-partition-with-easy-to-use-app/

So I downloaded that file and it took almost 8 hours. But it still has sboot.bin and boot.img file inside! Obviously flashing with Odin gave same error. @dicksteele: Can you please share with me the link I can download? I downloaded this file (http://rg.to/file/c036fd8b51b8836bf0a399eee83ee680/%20I317M_RWC_I317MVLBMA3_I317MOYABMA3_Original.zip.html) from http://androidromupdate.com/2012/11...-sgh-i317m-canada-original-stock-romfirmware/ under I317MVLBMA3 4.1.2 Stock Firmware, Rogers – 4.3 Jelly Bean RWC_I317MVLBMA3_I317MOYABMA3_I317MVLBMA3
P.S. I opened the tar.md5 file with 7-zip.
@rangercaptain: My internet speed is good, it should have been because of the download link above (from rapidgator) which made it so slow. Where do you guys download from that's faster?!
Thanks everyone.

idoit said:
So I downloaded that file and it took almost 8 hours. But it still has sboot.bin and boot.img file inside! Obviously flashing with Odin gave same error. @dicksteele: Can you please share with me the link I can download? I downloaded this file (http://rg.to/file/c036fd8b51b8836bf0a399eee83ee680/%20I317M_RWC_I317MVLBMA3_I317MOYABMA3_Original.zip.html) from http://androidromupdate.com/2012/11...-sgh-i317m-canada-original-stock-romfirmware/ under I317MVLBMA3 4.1.2 Stock Firmware, Rogers – 4.3 Jelly Bean RWC_I317MVLBMA3_I317MOYABMA3_I317MVLBMA3
P.S. I opened the tar.md5 file with 7-zip.
@rangercaptain: My internet speed is good, it should have been because of the download link above (from rapidgator) which made it so slow. Where do you guys download from that's faster?!
Thanks everyone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm a dumbass It was
I317M_RWC_I317MVLALJ2_I317MOYAALJ2_Original
And you're right it was rapidget that was slow.... I have a download manager that I use and it pulls it down quick.
Another location is here
http://www.sammobile.com/firmwares/3/?download=8176
I know I know RC.
You need a login to download, registration is free.
I'm trying to upload the one I downloaded but upload dies 3 MB into it.
If you have probs with the sammobile one, I'll try and get the other one downloaded so you don't have to waste another 8 hours because I'm a dumbass.
And 7zip to verify was good, that's what I did.

dicksteele said:
I'm a dumbass It was
I317M_RWC_I317MVLALJ2_I317MOYAALJ2_Original
And you're right it was rapidget that was slow.... I have a download manager that I use and it pulls it down quick.
Another location is here
http://www.sammobile.com/firmwares/3/?download=8176
I know I know RC.
You need a login to download, registration is free.
I'm trying to upload the one I downloaded but upload dies 3 MB into it.
If you have probs with the sammobile one, I'll try and get the other one downloaded so you don't have to waste another 8 hours because I'm a dumbass.
And 7zip to verify was good, that's what I did.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is being downloaded quickly. Until that download is finished, I knew yesterday I downloaded I317M_BWC_I317MVLALJ2_I317MOYAALJ2_Original (Similar to the one you just said to download but for Bell). You're right, this one doesn't have sboot.bin but it does have boot.img. Anyways, I tried to flash it with Odin3 v3.04, and it fails on me!
Firmware update start...
boot.img
NAND Write Start!
Complete(Write) operation failed.
Now, I have no idea what to do next! Wow, phones and even products from big companies like Samsung are so fragile.
[Off-topic]
Boy, these last 3 days had been hectic. First this happened to my Phone. Then today, when I was in Windows (which I rarely use, I went on Disk Management and made my C partition active). Stupid Windows, wiped all my partition table!!! And now my laptop is a piece of brick too. Oh boy, you know, when it rains it pours!

[q] sgh-t989d soft bricked [solved]

Hello readers,
It has been over a year since I've posted anything on these forums. I'll try keeping this post as short (yet as informative) as I possibly can. Chances are it won't be too short, but please take out some time and read this to see if you have a possible solution.
I recently bought my Samsung Galaxy T989D phone (a week ago) and updated it to 4.0.1 the day I did (I installed Kies on my computer). I then checked all around the internet for further updates and found that its clone, SGH-T989, was now able to be updated to 5.0.2. Wanting the update for my phone as well, I did an extensive research on this T989D, trying to figure out whether I can download the T989 updates on this. Every forum said yes, so I thought to give it a try. I wanted the latest version, but also only wanted to have it flashed from my phone, just so that I don't have to go through the rather long process of flashing it from the computer. I used this ROM: http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s2-tmobile/development/rom-aosp-lollipop-preview-t2931716
Stupidly enough, I did use the ROM but not the method for flashing it. All I did was merely install that file on my phone, reboot into recovery (I have TWRP; obtained it using ODIN v1.85), make the backup of ONLY my /data (was so sure it would flash without problem), Factory Reset, and flash the ROM...
After the ROM was installed, it rebooted itself - and that's about all it did. It was stuck on the Cyanogenmod 12 boot logo for a good 30 minutes before it chose to restart and repeat. Now it was just going on a boot loop. I then tried searching up a fix to this problem, but unfortunately, ALL of the websites that take you through the steps to unbricking your device require you to get into "Download Mode." I have access to only the TWRP Recovery mode, which doesn't have any "USB Debugging/Download mode". The closest it gets to is the "USB Storage mode". However, when I plug my phone onto the computer, the computer does detect it, and so does Odin. It says "Added!!" and the "COM:6" pops up. So then I thought that since it does detect my phone, it should work. And when I say "it" I mean this method of unbricking: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1513359
Instead of downloading the stock T989 ROM from Samsmobile.com, I downloaded the T989D ROM (4.0.1 was all that was available) and uploaded that to Odin v1.85. Now, it seemed to me that everything was going fine thus far- I got the right file; my phone is detected in Recovery Mode; and I had deleted everything prior to the flash. But once I press the Start button, these are the Messages that would pop up:
<ID:0/004> Added!
<ID:0/004> Odin v.3 engine (ID:4)..
<ID:0/004> File analysis..
<ID:0/004> SetupConnection..
<ID:0/004> Complete(Write) operation failed.
<OSM> All threads completed. (succeed 0 / failed 1)
I would get this big "FAIL" sigh on the top. Other times in the message box I would get "All threads completed. (succeed 0 / failed 0)" Now the phone doesn't even show the Cyanogenmod 12 logo, set aside getting stuck there. After the "Samsung Galaxy S II T989D" page, the screen goes blank. So what's wrong here? Have I flashed wrong file(s)? Have I done something wrong in the process? Or is there another solution to this flashing problem? Some have said that the Odin application itself can be causing problems. Note that I have both Kies and Odin v1.85 installed on my computer, and (working)TWRP Recovery installed on my SGH-T989D phone.
Please don't mind the awfully long post - I'm trying to be as informative as possible to make it easy for anyone to point out any potential mistakes I've made during the process (or if someone has another possible solution to this problem). As of now I'm completely stuck, and not to mention fed up from searching so much and finding no fix to this problem. I would consider this phone my "prized possession" and would very highly appreciate anyone's help in this regard. Thanks in advance!
Kind regards,
Xx Jafours xX

UPDATE: I got my phone to work again. I did not use Odin v1.85; instead, I went ahead and installed another version of the T989D firmware. I installed it onto my computer, and then copied it onto my phone (I can do that through the TWRP's "Mount USB Storage" option.) And that was basically it - I just booted it and it worked! It did prompt me to install SuperSU. This ROM's current version is 4.0.2, but I'll be updating that through Kies. Luckily enough, I have my /data backed up in TWRP and will restore that once I update the firmware. Thanks for the moral support guys!

Xx Jafours xX said:
UPDATE: I got my phone to work again. I did not use Odin v1.85; instead, I went ahead and installed another version of the T989D firmware. I installed it onto my computer, and then copied it onto my phone (I can do that through the TWRP's "Mount USB Storage" option.) And that was basically it - I just booted it and it worked! It did prompt me to install SuperSU. This ROM's current version is 4.0.2, but I'll be updating that through Kies. Luckily enough, I have my /data backed up in TWRP and will restore that once I update the firmware. Thanks for the moral support guys!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Edit to add [SOLVED] to the title

Done. Thanks for the reminder.

Phone Stuck on Dowloading (Do not turn off target)

Hi,
Phone; SM-AF520F
My phone has been restarting on its own from the past month and I ignored it. It showed me occasionally Google services failed or system UI is not responding.
I factory resetted the phone as any noob would do and the restart occurrence went to only at night, which I was unbothered with. A little time passed and the phone went to the downloading sky blue screen.
I'm aware with flashing roms and stuff but I never really tried it. I tried everything;
i) Used Odin, three different versions
ii) Used Stock firmware, three different versions
iii) Used Smart switch
The phone only went in download phase and than in the phase where you press home button, volume and power and it shows fonts in the left hand corner. Odin always giving me errors, sometimes stucking on setting up connection.
Two errors:
i) There is no PIT partition
ii) Write operation failed
There are always these things happening.
When I restarted with volume down and power key, the system showed, there was an error and try smart switch, updated my drivers but when I go in the settings to emergency recover my phone, it does not show my phone.
After restarting the phone couple of time, Im in downloading mode again, in between the screen also turns full sky blue with no text.
I tried installing custom recovery but the image didn't load, ( I dont know what i am doing at this point, even if this was a good idea).
I have scavanged every forum, every post, everything on the internet but I just can't seem to fix it, I tried every possible thing and it just dosent work. I know it can be fixed but I don't know how. I know I'm doing something stupidly wrong but I can't seem to figure it out.
This is an old phone, I'm going to buy another one soon but I just hope it works for another week? Can I wipe the whole system and start from scratch (Which i dont know how to do).
Any type of help would be greatly appreciated, or just tell me to give up hope on it so I can just throw it away and move on.

1-Install 7zip application in windows
Then using 7zip, try to open file (in stock ROM files) -⇾ "CSC_ODD_***"
2-There is your phone pit file for a520f.
Extract that file and keep it between your stock Rom files.
3-Download the Odin from this link and open it:
https://dl2018.sammobile.com/Odin3-v3.14.4.zip
4-Go to download mode (blue screen) in your phone!
Add 4 part of your ROM to Odin.
Then in pit tab of Odin add your phone pit file!
5-In option tab of Odin toggle Re-Partition option.
6-click on start and wait until it shows a green icon and phone restarting!
It must be fixed!

matkali said:
1-Install 7zip application in windows
Then using 7zip, try to open file (in stock ROM files) -⇾ "CSC_ODD_***"
2-There is your phone pit file for a520f.
Extract that file and keep it between your stock Rom files.
3-Download the Odin from this link and open it:
https://dl2018.sammobile.com/Odin3-v3.14.4.zip
4-Go to download mode (blue screen) in your phone!
Add 4 part of your ROM to Odin.
Then in pit tab of Odin add your phone pit file!
5-In option tab of Odin toggle Re-Partition option.
6-click on start and wait until it shows a green icon and phone restarting!
It must be fixed!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for your response.
I did what you exactly said, previously it failed at the instant, now it moved one tab and than failed.
I tried the provided Odin, than tried two roms with, with the pit filed extracted and enabled re partition.
The error occurred: Complete(write) operation failed.
The error occurred every time I tried to flash, it never worked.
Do you think there is anything else to do?

Try this way to go download mode:
Press vol-down + power until phone restart
Then instantly press vol-up + Home + Power to going to download mode!
If it not works for you! You can use (eMMC programmer or easy JTAG) to writing rom on your phone memory (Last Option)!

I gave up on it and asked for professional help. Idk what he did, but he fixed the phone. It was sluggish at first but it works like a charm now.
It took 7 minutes to turn it on, than It said, there was an authorized user who tried to access your phone, use your previous email password to access your phone. I put it on my previous details and the works okay after some updates.
I wonder what he did? And i never knew android has a feature where if somone tries to reset your phone, google account locks it? Wow.
Is flashing a custom os a good idea? I'm afraid I'll brick it or something or just keep running one ui and wait for it to die again.
Thank you for your help btw, made me learn alot.

matkali said:
1-Install 7zip application in windows
Then using 7zip, try to open file (in stock ROM files) -⇾ "CSC_ODD_***"
2-There is your phone pit file for a520f.
Extract that file and keep it between your stock Rom files.
3-Download the Odin from this link and open it:
https://dl2018.sammobile.com/Odin3-v3.14.4.zip
4-Go to download mode (blue screen) in your phone!
Add 4 part of your ROM to Odin.
Then in pit tab of Odin add your phone pit file!
5-In option tab of Odin toggle Re-Partition option.
6-click on start and wait until it shows a green icon and phone restarting!
It must be fixed!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
im having the exact same problem this guy has, installing a pit file will erase my data? if i use HOME_CSC will the pictures stay? i only care about the photos.

Develop Bugs

welcome