[Q] AT&T bricked my S3 - Help please. - AT&T, Rogers, Bell, Telus Samsung Galaxy S III

Ok the backround. about 5 days ago the software update started. All seemed ok but then I was getting reboots 4-5 times a day. Brought it to AT&T and they tried to reflash. After backing up info I signed the release form holding them not liable for bricking the phone. Asked the tech how many have bricked on him and he said none. Sorry I was his first...maybe. Screen asking for Kies program to repair. AT&T tech not allowed to use Kies. I downloaded Kies but no luck.
Got the bugger to go to the Boot screen of "Warning...a custom OS....". Then the "Downloading, do not turn of target" screen. It is stuck there or I should say I have left it there. Top of screen says Odin Mode (in red), Produce Name: SGH-I747, Current Binary: Samsung Official, Qualcomm SecureBoot: Enabled, Warranty Bit: 0, Bootloader Ap SWREV: 3.
I have downloaded Odin 3.09. I have the USB drivers installed. I want to restore last known version of AT&T android 4.2.2 or the upgrade 4.3 that didn't seem to take. I am not sure which version it was running before the crash. My wife's S3 is running 4.3.
What Next? Where do I get the file to upload to the phone? Thanks.

So your s3 was trying to upgrade from 4.1.2 or 4.3?

thenexusgeneration said:
So your s3 was trying to upgrade from 4.1.2 or 4.3?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not sure. I think I checked the build version after the install and it read 4.2.2. Can't be absolutely certain when i saw that build number. Would make sense to check it after the install assuming the install happened at all. But again the wife and I bought the two S3's at the same time and hers is running 4.3.

If you got the ota a few days ago, and judging from the SWREV (Software Revision), you are currently on 4.4.2 firmware (NE4). This means you cannot flash older firmware on Odin (or any other way, OT it'll really brick). From now on you can only flash NE4 firmware.
You can, however, flash older roms.
If you haven't already, try factory resetting from recovery. (This will wipe all your data including the internal sdcard)
If that doesnt work, my only other suggestion is to flash TWRP via Odin, then boot TWRP recovery and flash the stock NE4 rom from enewman17.

DocHoliday77 said:
If you got the ota a few days ago, and judging from the SWREV (Software Revision), you are currently on 4.4.2 firmware (NE4). This means you cannot flash older firmware on Odin (or any other way, OT it'll really brick). From now on you can only flash NE4 firmware.
You can, however, flash older roms.
If you haven't already, try factory resetting from recovery. (This will wipe all your data including the internal sdcard)
If that doesnt work, my only other suggestion is to flash TWRP via Odin, then boot TWRP recovery and flash the stock NE4 rom from enewman17.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can't get to the factory reset screen, only the warning screen before pressing volume up to load a custom OS. I'm confused....well on may levels but I digress. I thought ROM and firmware were the same thing.
Also the TWRP site has two files, same file I Assume, in different formats, md5 and tar. Are they the same file? Do I use one over the other? To flash TWRP using Odin what screen should I start with on the S3? thanks.

To boot recovery hold volume up, home and power. When it vibrates release power only.
A rom (as we use it here) is just the O/S on the /system partition and is usually flashed in recovery. They also include kernels most of the time. The firmware is this, and more. It includes images for multiple partitions. (aboot, sbl2, sbl3, tz, rpm, modem, recovery, boot, system, cache)
Around here you'll see a lot of folks refer to this as just the bootloaders, but they are talking about the base firmware. Sorry if I confuse anyone with that btw, I try to remember to call it the bootloaders, but am just used to using the term firmware.
As for flashing twrp from odin, it must be a .tar or .tar.md5. Both are used by odin. The .md5 extension just tells odin a hash value is included. It will then run an md5 checksum to verify the file about to be flashed is valid, or not corrupted. Either one will work, but the .tar.md5 is safer. If the download gets corrupted somehow, odin will catch it and refuse to flash.
When flashing anything in odin you need to be in Download mode.

DocHoliday77 said:
To boot recovery hold volume up, home and power. When it vibrates release power only.
A rom (as we use it here) is just the O/S on the /system partition and is usually flashed in recovery. They also include kernels most of the time. The firmware is this, and more. It includes images for multiple partitions. (aboot, sbl2, sbl3, tz, rpm, modem, recovery, boot, system, cache)
Around here you'll see a lot of folks refer to this as just the bootloaders, but they are talking about the base firmware. Sorry if I confuse anyone with that btw, I try to remember to call it the bootloaders, but am just used to using the term firmware.
As for flashing twrp from odin, it must be a .tar or .tar.md5. Both are used by odin. The .md5 extension just tells odin a hash value is included. It will then run an md5 checksum to verify the file about to be flashed is valid, or not corrupted. Either one will work, but the .tar.md5 is safer. If the download gets corrupted somehow, odin will catch it and refuse to flash.
When flashing anything in odin you need to be in Download mode.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks Doc, when I try the boot recovery hold volume up, home and power I get the "Firmware upgrade encountered an issue. Please select recovery mode in Kies & try again." message. If I use the hold volume down, home and power combo I get to the "Warning!! A custom Os can cause....." screen. If I press volume up it goes to the "Downloading...Do not turn off target!!" screen. If I press volume down it reboots to the "Kies" screen. Which screen mode should I be in when attempting to flash the TWRP file with Odin? thanks.
OK I tried to flash the TWRP file. Put S3 in download mode, Opened Odin, plugged in S3, Odin showed "added", tried to load the TWRP file into Odin but it freezes Odin. Non responsive Odin. Tried 4 times with and without plugging in phone. any clues?

Try downloading the file again. Could be a corrupted download. Also, what version of Odin are you using?
Oh, and kies interferes with Odin. Uninstall it and try odin again.

DocHoliday77 said:
Try downloading the file again. Could be a corrupted download. Also, what version of Odin are you using?
Oh, and kies interferes with Odin. Uninstall it and try odin again.[/QUOTE
Thanks I tried 3.09 first then 3.07. 3.09 hangs right away. 3.07 doesn't say "not responding" but nothing happens. Looks like it will but no. I wait for about 45 min. I will try everything from scratch. I did uninstall Kies with no help. Kies can't find the device - generic code 43.
Is it the Bootloader ap SWREV: 3 that indicates I need 4.4.2?
If its an older version such as 4.3 can i/should I still install 4.4.2?
Where do I find 4.4.2. Thanks for all your help because this is like finding a specific needle in a stack of needles without even fulling understanding what a needle is! God I miss DOS.
I've been doing all the above without sim or sd card installed. Does that make any difference.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

IT's BACK ALIVE! Now what?
What happened? None of the .MD5 files would load and would just lock the Odin. Since I had nothing to loose I used a 2.6 version of the .tar file without the .MD5 check. It loaded fine, rebooted and there is my phone screen with all my apps and info. I'm afraid to even unplug it from the cable (silly I know). Checked the version and it reads 4.4.2., baseband version I747UCUFNE4, Kernel version 3.4.0-1514807, build number KOT49H.I171UCUFNE4, SE for Android status Enforcing SEPF_SAMSUNG-SGH-I747_4.4.2_0016.
Am I done? Is it safe to put back in service or should I do something else? thanks

Weird! Sounds like something on your system didn't like the md5sum. Never seen that before!
But if it appeared to flash ok, rebooted and it says PASS in Odin, you should be good to go.
First though, what exactly did you flash? Can you link to it? To my knowledge there is no NE4 firmware package available. Ive been trying to make one but it hasn't worked yet....

DocHoliday77 said:
Weird! Sounds like something on your system didn't like the md5sum. Never seen that before!
But if it appeared to flash ok, rebooted and it says PASS in Odin, you should be good to go.
First though, what exactly did you flash? Can you link to it? To my knowledge there is no NE4 firmware package available. Ive been trying to make one but it hasn't worked yet....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just flashed the TWRP http://true-android.blogspot.com/2014/01/install-twrp-recovery-2631-on-at-galaxy.html. It passed it and phone rebooted to the normal reboot and my old screen. Weird? I do weird all the time. I used Odin 3.09. I have run it through some of its apps. I will wait 24 hours to see if it reboots by itself.

Cool, sounds like it should be ok then. Hopefully it'll make it through your testing period!

DocHoliday77 said:
Cool, sounds like it should be ok then. Hopefully it'll make it through your testing period!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well it's functioning but we are back to the reboots 4-5 x a day. I can get to the recovery screen now. Anyone have a guess of my best next option?

Not sure, could be a faulty power switch though. Lots of these have been going bad in recent months, but it usually happens all the time, not just a few times a day.
Sent from my SGH-T999 using Tapatalk

Just a F/U. The reboot was getting to be a problem. Also had a problem with back up and restore apps. Found one that worked so I did a factory reset. All is good again. Love my S3 again. Still not happy with how AT&T handled the problem though.

Related

[Q] TWRP 2.6.3.1 Asks for password

I woke up this morning to my phone perpetually rebooting.
I was running a nightly of CM 11.
Now when I try to go into Recovery I get a screen that asks for a password. I have no idea what that password is as I did not set one. I tried wiping data to no avail. I tried flashing a new recovery via Odin this did not work (Odin said successful but the screen on the phone never showed the transfer of the file). No matter what wipe method I use in recovery it just says fail, doesn't work at all and hangs or will say it can't mount. I have searched and searched and tried and tried and I'm stuck. I even tried ADB that didn't work either. Please help!
Try flashing Philz Touch (based on CWM) over TWRP via Odin. I have always had good luck with CWM and Philz.
Download the tar version: http://goo.im/devs/philz_touch/CWM_Advanced_Edition/d2att
audit13 said:
Try flashing Philz Touch (based on CWM) over TWRP via Odin. I have always had good luck with CWM and Philz.
Download the tar version: http://goo.im/devs/philz_touch/CWM_Advanced_Edition/d2att
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried this already. I cannot flash ANYTHING via ODIN. Odin states that the process completed but the bar on the phone on the download screen never shows up to show that it has accepted a file.
therecker said:
I tried this already. I cannot flash ANYTHING via ODIN. Odin states that the process completed but the bar on the phone on the download screen never shows up to show that it has accepted a file.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you unchecked F . reset and unchecked auto reboot when you flashed recovery in Odin? After you flash the file you have to pull the battery then replace it and boot to recovery do not allow the phone to boot to OS or you have to flash again as your recovery will only stick if you pull the battery and boot to recovery after flashing it. After you get into it the first time all will be well with the world again you can flash your heart out.
I had twrp ask me for a password once I hit the back arrow key and told it to mount my external SD card then flashed my rom, bootloader, kernel and modem then rebooted no problem.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using xda app-developers app
theramsey3 said:
Did you unchecked F . reset and unchecked auto reboot when you flashed recovery in Odin? After you flash the file you have to pull the battery then replace it and boot to recovery do not allow the phone to boot to OS or you have to flash again as your recovery will only stick if you pull the battery and boot to recovery after flashing it. After you get into it the first time all will be well with the world again you can flash your heart out.
I had twrp ask me for a password once I hit the back arrow key and told it to mount my external SD card then flashed my rom, bootloader, kernel and modem then rebooted no problem.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This did not work. When I use ODIN all that is happening is that ODIN says it has succeeded but the little progress bar that usually shows up on the phone when you are in download mode never comes up. I did try this method though and it didn't work.
I restarted the phone in ODIN mode then opened ODIN then connected the USB cable then unchecked the two boxes you mentioned then flashed a new non TWRP recovery then waited for ODIN to say successful then the phone never showed the progress bar so I waited 2 mins until I pulled the battery then I restarted phone directly to recovery and still have the password prompt. Even after hitting cancel I cannot interact with recovery because every option I choose just says fail. I cannot even mount external sd card.
What phone do you have? What was the most recent stock ROM on your phone? Maybe you can flash a stock ROM.
There is a copy of the stock Samsung 3e recovery (which we can't use to flash zips with) I'm curious if maybe it can overwrite what you have going on? On the password screen I wasn't hitting cancel I was simply hitting the back arrow key. I will see if I have a copy of the stock recovery, just maybe you can flash it then flash another recovery after that so you can fix your phone.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using xda app-developers app
I have Samsung Galaxy S 3 At&T (d2att) SGH-I747 whichever one of those you want. The most recent stock rom on the phone was when I bought it brand new a few months after it came out. I tried installing a stock rom. I tried this using ODIN and it failed. The issue here is that TWRP somehow encrypted the entire file system so NOTHING at all in recovery works. When I use ODIN mode it never shows on my phone that it is accepting a transfer from the computer. When I tried the stock rom via ODIN method it actually failed in ODIN instead of telling me it succeeded and then just not work. It failed at the point when it says Firmware Update Start...aboot.mbn...NAND Write Start!...Complete(Write) operation failed. I am up for any suggestions but I need them to be detailed instructions because I have tried so many things I need to know what exact steps to follow.
I believe the aboot file is a bootloader. Did you ever have a stock 4.3 ROM on the phone? If you did, it probably has the stock 4.3 AT&T bootloader which cannot be downgraded without bricking the phone which means you cannot flash a ROM with an older bootloader via Odin.
audit13 said:
I believe the aboot file is a bootloader. Did you ever have a stock 4.3 ROM on the phone? If you did, it probably has the stock 4.3 AT&T bootloader which cannot be downgraded without bricking the phone which means you cannot flash a ROM with an older bootloader via Odin.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To my knowledge I never had a stock 4.3 ROM on the phone. The only stock ROM to touch this phone was the one that came on it. So be specific what are you actually suggesting in this post that I do?
therecker said:
To my knowledge I never had a stock 4.3 ROM on the phone. The only stock ROM to touch this phone was the one that came on it. So be specific what are you actually suggesting in this post that I do?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am surprised that the aboot file was giving you a problem because the bootloader can be downgraded as long as it is not a 4.3 bootloader.
Do you recall exactly which ROM was on the phone when you got it? Where did you get the stock ROM?
audit13 said:
I am surprised that the aboot file was giving you a problem because the bootloader can be downgraded as long as it is not a 4.3 bootloader.
Do you recall exactly which ROM was on the phone when you got it? Where did you get the stock ROM?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It was a CM11 Nightly ROM from the very beginning of February. And before that it was a CM10.2 Stable ROM.
Which stock ROM was on your phone before you loaded a custom ROM?
audit13 said:
Which stock ROM was on your phone before you loaded a custom ROM?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have no idea. It was when I first got the phone in November of 2012.
Sounds like your phone may be running a 4.3 bootloader which means your bootloader is locked and cannot be downgraded. This may explain why you are getting errors when trying to flash Odin. There is no stock AT&T 4.3 ROM that can be flashed via Odin.

[Q] "Kernel is not seandroid enforcing" :(

I have PayPal for which I will use to donate an amount to the person(s) who can help me.
I just recently got a new GS4 becuase of an insurance replacement. I looked at the specs before I flashed TWRP. After failing to install 4.2.2 ROMS, I finally found a 4.3 mk2 stock ROM to install. I have the phone working. But TWRP is not installed. My phone tests positive for ROOT with Rootchecker
Currently I'm getting this message everytime I boot "Kernel is not seandroid enforcing"
I have multiple 4.4.2 and 4.3 ROMs I like to use on my SD card, I'd like to continue from a TWRP backup i've made using that recovery.
Here are my current specs:
Model
SGH-M919
Android Version
4.3
Baseband
M919UVUEMK2
Kernel Version
[email protected] #1
Build Number
JSS15J.M919UVUEMK2
SELinux status
Permissive
Secure boot status
Type: Samsung
The replacement phone was probably already on the MK2 bootloader and modem when you received it. Which means you had Knox pre-installed and tripped it when you rooted the phone. The "kernel is not seandroid enforcing" error message does not affect the functioning of your phone in any way. It's just a part of the Knox bootloader. You can continue to re-install TWRP recovery and flash any ROM you want. Your phone will function as normal. Just don't try reverting to the 4.2.2 MDL baseband/modem because it won't work. There's currently no way to revert to 4.2.2 MDL if you're on MK2 or higher. If you want to get rid of the message just flash the stock kernel in a recovery.
Try to be careful with your replacement phone now since you tripped Knox. It might be harder to get a replacement depending on how T-Mobile is.
No donations are needed for these kinds of things.
Ok Im flashing Infamous 4.4.2 Version 3.7 after ODIN flashing TWRP 2.6.3.1
The only reason I'm flashing that ROM is because no backups are not showing theirselvesin the Restore option, what would cause that?
Is TWRP 2.5.0.2 better?
Did I miss a step? All my actions were using odin to flash the twrp recover, and then flash another ROM, or restoring a Previous Back. Should I have flashed a rooted bootloader, or rooted firmware or anything besides those two?
nopotential said:
Ok Im flashing Infamous 4.4.2 Version 3.7 after ODIN flashing TWRP 2.6.3.1
The only reason I'm flashing that ROM is because no backups are not showing theirselvesin the Restore option, what would cause that?
Is TWRP 2.5.0.2 better?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The backups could either be stored on the internal or external SD card. Try switching between both and see if they appear. They'll be in the TWRP folder on the root of either the internal/external storage.
I've had no problems with the latest TWRP v2.7.0.1. If you have problems then use v2.5.0.2.
If you have connection problems after installing Infamous 4.4.2, you might need to Odin the newest KitKat NB4 modem found here.
Download the file and flash MODEM.bin via Odin under the phone slot.
Personally, since you already tripped Knox, you should just Odin flash the complete NB4 KitKit stock ROM which will give you the newest modem without having to mess with anything else or do various flashing of things. Everything for flashing NB4 KitKit can be found here. Download the full 4.4 firmware from here.
brian117 said:
The backups could either be stored on the internal or external SD card. Try switching between both and see if they appear. They'll be in the TWRP folder on the root of either the internal/external storage.
I've had no problems with the latest TWRP v2.7.0.1. If you have problems then use v2.5.0.2.
If you have connection problems after installing Infamous 4.4.2, you might need to Odin the newest KitKat NB4 modem found here.
Download the file and flash MODEM.bin via Odin under the phone slot.
Personally, since you already tripped Knox, you should just Odin flash the complete NB4 KitKit stock ROM which will give you the newest modem without having to mess with anything else or do various flashing of things. Everything for flashing NB4 KitKit can be found here. Download the full 4.4 firmware from here.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I want to use a custom ROM because of the features. Should I still flash the latest firmware, the KitKat NB4?
nopotential said:
I want to use a custom ROM because of the features. Should I still flash the latest firmware, the KitKat NB4?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You will still be able to flash the custom ROM after you Odin flash the KitKat NB4 firmware. The steps are as followed:
1. Open Odin v3.07.
2. UNcheck the boxes that say auto reboot and f. reset time.
3. Power off your phone and enter Download Mode by holding down the Vol DOWN + Home + Power buttons at the same time. Hit Vol UP after the warning message comes up.
4. Connect your phone to your PC and wait for it to appear in the COM: box in Odin.
5. Click the PDA tab and select the "M919UVUFNB4_HOME.tar.md5" file that you extracted from http://www.cheatersedge.org/android/m919/M919UVUFNB4_M919TMBFNB4_TMB_FENNY_FIXED.zip.
6. Wait for it to run an MD5 check. The program will freeze and unfreeze when it's done.
7. Click start and let Odin flash the ROM.
8. When it says PASS, unplug the phone and long press the power button until the phone turns off and reboots on its own. Leave it alone for about 2 minutes and then power it off.
9. Reboot back into Download Mode and then flash the CF-Autoroot found here.
10. Flash that via the PDA slot in Odin, reboot, and you should now be rooted. You can then continue to do everything else such as install TWRP and flash Infamous 4.4.2.
brian117 said:
You will still be able to flash the custom ROM after you Odin flash the KitKat NB4 firmware. The steps are as followed:
1. Open Odin v3.07.
2. UNcheck the boxes that say auto reboot and f. reset time.
3. Power off your phone and enter Download Mode by holding down the Vol DOWN + Home + Power buttons at the same time. Hit Vol UP after the warning message comes up.
4. Connect your phone to your PC and wait for it to appear in the COM: box in Odin.
5. Click the PDA tab and select the "M919UVUFNB4_HOME.tar.md5" file that you extracted from http://www.cheatersedge.org/android/m919/M919UVUFNB4_M919TMBFNB4_TMB_FENNY_FIXED.zip.
6. Wait for it to run an MD5 check. The program will freeze and unfreeze when it's done.
7. Click start and let Odin flash the ROM.
8. When it says PASS, unplug the phone and long press the power button until the phone turns off and reboots on its own. Leave it alone for about 2 minutes and then power it off.
9. Reboot back into Download Mode and then flash the CF-Chain's Autoroot found here.
10. Flash that via the PDA slot in Odin, reboot, and you should now be rooted. You can then continue to do everything else such as install TWRP and flash Infamous 4.4.2.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the step by step. I'm following it now. The NB4_HOME.tar.md5 is taking a long time to flash with ODIN. But I will follow it closely, if everything looks good I'll send out a donation, I appreciate your help.
nopotential said:
Thanks for the step by step. I'm following it now. The NB4_HOME.tar.md5 is taking a long time to flash with ODIN. But I will follow it closely, if everything looks good I'll send out a donation, I appreciate your help.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Like I said donations are not needed. It does take a while for it to flash through Odin so that's normal.
It was boot looping, went into optimizing apps to something about media database multiple times. I went into the stock recovery and cleared cache and factory reset. It's trying to boot now.
nopotential said:
It was boot looping, went into optimizing apps to something about media database multiple times. I went into the stock recovery and cleared cache and factory reset. It's trying to boot now.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My Wifi is unable to be turned on in this stock rom. I'm going to flash TWRP and then Infamous
nopotential said:
It was boot looping, went into optimizing apps to something about media database multiple times. I went into the stock recovery and cleared cache and factory reset. It's trying to boot now.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes that will happen. You just boot into recovery and factory reset and it will boot. Let me know if that works.
nopotential said:
My Wifi is unable to be turned on in this stock rom. I'm going to flash TWRP and then Infamous
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you continue to have WiFi problems, flash this via recovery.
brian117 said:
Yes that will happen. You just boot into recovery and factory reset and it will boot. Let me know if that works.
If you continue to have WiFi problems, flash this via recovery.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It looks like everything is looking good by following your list. Thank you.
nopotential said:
It looks like everything is looking good by following your list. Thank you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Awesome! Good to hear man. Enjoy KitKat and the newest modem. The new modem has gave a significant reception boost for a lot of people. Hope it's the same for you. And please check your PM.
-Deleted-

[Q] Note 2 bricked after 4.4 update, can't get into recovery

After trying to update to kit kat my note 2 will not get past the "note 2" splash screen. What sucks even worse is that I can't get into recovery to install a new rom. I've been searching tons of threads and whatnot across XDA and other websites but nothing has worked.
What I've tried:
-Flashing TWRP, CWM, Philz recoveries. Odin says they succeeded but I still can't get to any of them.
-Flashing srock roms downloaded from multiple sources. When I try this I get an error in odin, usually fails right after sboot.bin
-Using other versions of Odin, different usb's, etc. Same stuff happens no matter what.
-Kies, but it won't connect and says device is unsupported.
-Android toolkit, but i couldn't really do much with it in this state
-I even tried re-partitioning with some t0lte pit file. This really didn't change anything.
-I found an "mk4_recovery.tar" file in a thread on here. That finished and succeeded, but I still can't get anywhere, However I did notice that this changed the "current binary" on my phone from "custom" to "official samsung binary." I'm not sure if that is important or not.
I feel like I am running out of options and my phone is hard-bricked. You guys are my last hope and I'm hoping there's something you guys can help me with!! If you have anything I can try please let me know!!!
SCAND1UM said:
After trying to update to kit kat my note 2 will not get past the "note 2" splash screen. What sucks even worse is that I can't get into recovery to install a new rom. I've been searching tons of threads and whatnot across XDA and other websites but nothing has worked.
What I've tried:
-Flashing TWRP, CWM, Philz recoveries. Odin says they succeeded but I still can't get to any of them.
-Flashing srock roms downloaded from multiple sources. When I try this I get an error in odin, usually fails right after sboot.bin
-Using other versions of Odin, different usb's, etc. Same stuff happens no matter what.
-Kies, but it won't connect and says device is unsupported.
-Android toolkit, but i couldn't really do much with it in this state
-I even tried re-partitioning with some t0lte pit file. This really didn't change anything.
-I found an "mk4_recovery.tar" file in a thread on here. That finished and succeeded, but I still can't get anywhere, However I did notice that this changed the "current binary" on my phone from "custom" to "official samsung binary." I'm not sure if that is important or not.
I feel like I am running out of options and my phone is hard-bricked. You guys are my last hope and I'm hoping there's something you guys can help me with!! If you have anything I can try please let me know!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This happened to me today too. I didn't like the OTA 4.4 so I was trying to get a custom rom again. Thanks to jlmancuso he made the best solution here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=53035491&postcount=287&nocache=1&z=4473536636214703
Simply download the attached file. It is BRICKED heaven! (worked for me.) and have your recovery (twrp, philz, cwm) file. And have Odin.
1) Extract all files fix / recovery (if haven't already) / and odin (again if haven't already)
2) Open Odin in PDA put in the "fix" file. BEFORE continuing, UNCHECK Auto Reboot. (HAS TO BE UNCHECKED)
3) Connect phone to computer
4) Once the file has finished (Odin will say pass) disconnect the phone.
DO NOT TAKE THE BATTERY OUT
5) Put it back in Recovery Mode (home / volume up / power )
Give it a minute and it will load a custom recovery.
If you were stuck at a bootloop you probably don't have a rom on your phone (cleaned and empty).
If so try flashing this in Odin as well (https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B0CWousOd0ntTHl2RmxPbHJWODQ/edit?usp=sharing}
When the custom recovery loads you can flash what you want.
Odin will not let you downgrade from NE2 to anything below (bootloader). I suggest flash over Philz and flash that way.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2768847
Has a NE2 rooted already. Flash this and save a backup. YOU WILL NEED IT.
Once in the custom recovery that comes up I suggest to flash the M2 Stock with Count Reset. (back to complete stock) then can do what you want from there.
**If the custom recovery does not show up**
Repeat the steps above (Odin / add fix to PDA / Uncheck Auto Reboot / Connect Phone / start flash)
Then again DO NOT PULL BATTERY ... (once it shows pass) disconnect and reboot back in download mode ( home / volume down / power )
Flash over your recovery ... (do not pull battery) and try the Recovery Mode ... my first time I thought it was still stuck in bootloop so give it a second.
michael85tx said:
Once in the custom recovery that comes up I suggest to flash the M2 Stock with Count Reset. (back to complete stock) then can do what you want from there.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What a nightmare!
I odined back to stock MK4, did the 4.4.2 OTA last night. Then did the CF Auto Root via odin, installed custom recovery. The phone is currently on pageplus network. I started messing around, did the GSM Mod, then tried the international and domestic sim unlock procedures. The result was not satisfying, so I tried flashing different modems. Eventually CDMA works, but GSM not. So I made a huge mistake by attempting to downgrade from NE2. And of course failed. Now the phone can't register on either CDMA or GSM.
So once I flash M2 Stock with Count Reset, I can play with the 4.4.2 OTA zip again to get a 100% 4.4.2 system?
michael85tx said:
This happened to me today too. I didn't like the OTA 4.4 so I was trying to get a custom rom again. Thanks to jlmancuso he made the best solution here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=53035491&postcount=287&nocache=1&z=4473536636214703
Simply download the attached file. It is BRICKED heaven! (worked for me.) and have your recovery (twrp, philz, cwm) file. And have Odin.
1) Extract all files fix / recovery (if haven't already) / and odin (again if haven't already)
2) Open Odin in PDA put in the "fix" file. BEFORE continuing, UNCHECK Auto Reboot. (HAS TO BE UNCHECKED)
3) Connect phone to computer
4) Once the file has finished (Odin will say pass) disconnect the phone.
DO NOT TAKE THE BATTERY OUT
5) Put it back in Recovery Mode (home / volume up / power )
Give it a minute and it will load a custom recovery.
If you were stuck at a bootloop you probably don't have a rom on your phone (cleaned and empty).
If so try flashing this in Odin as well (https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B0CWousOd0ntTHl2RmxPbHJWODQ/edit?usp=sharing}
When the custom recovery loads you can flash what you want.
Odin will not let you downgrade from NE2 to anything below (bootloader). I suggest flash over Philz and flash that way.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2768847
Has a NE2 rooted already. Flash this and save a backup. YOU WILL NEED IT.
Once in the custom recovery that comes up I suggest to flash the M2 Stock with Count Reset. (back to complete stock) then can do what you want from there.
**If the custom recovery does not show up**
Repeat the steps above (Odin / add fix to PDA / Uncheck Auto Reboot / Connect Phone / start flash)
Then again DO NOT PULL BATTERY ... (once it shows pass) disconnect and reboot back in download mode ( home / volume down / power )
Flash over your recovery ... (do not pull battery) and try the Recovery Mode ... my first time I thought it was still stuck in bootloop so give it a second.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You, sir, helped the hell out of me! I thought my phone was screwed and I've already tried everything. Thank you soo much!
Just curious, did you ever get kitkat to work? I've tried going to MC2 stock then upgrading a couple more times but it ends up doing the bootloop again every time :/ did you ever get that to update?
I'm so glad to have a working phone now though! Thanks!
SCAND1UM said:
You, sir, helped the hell out of me! I thought my phone was screwed and I've already tried everything. Thank you soo much!
Just curious, did you ever get kitkat to work? I've tried going to MC2 stock then upgrading a couple more times but it ends up doing the bootloop again every time :/ did you ever get that to update?
I'm so glad to have a working phone now though! Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I did the procedure everything went well but is there any way to update lastest firmware kitkat as i tried to and keep having to do the same procedure to unbrick it? thanks
brooklynman2020 said:
I did the procedure everything went well but is there any way to update lastest firmware kitkat as i tried to and keep having to do the same procedure to unbrick it? thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The best way to do the upgrade (since you know how to get your phone back if it happens again) is to just simply use Odin now to flash the 4.4.2 tar file thanks to "garwynn" for taking the time in making it.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2780984
since most of my links don't work after I post lol I'm giving the download too. I tried uploading it but the file size is too big to post. So I hope this link works let me know and I'll re-upload it and post another link if the link stops working. 4.4.2 stock rom .tar
---------- Post added at 03:05 AM ---------- Previous post was at 02:55 AM ----------
lilila said:
What a nightmare!
I odined back to stock MK4, did the 4.4.2 OTA last night. Then did the CF Auto Root via odin, installed custom recovery. The phone is currently on pageplus network. I started messing around, did the GSM Mod, then tried the international and domestic sim unlock procedures. The result was not satisfying, so I tried flashing different modems. Eventually CDMA works, but GSM not. So I made a huge mistake by attempting to downgrade from NE2. And of course failed. Now the phone can't register on either CDMA or GSM.
So once I flash M2 Stock with Count Reset, I can play with the 4.4.2 OTA zip again to get a 100% 4.4.2 system?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
sorry for the late reply but yes you can. I have gone back and forth trying to decide which 4.4.2 works best for service and style. lol right now I'm on 4.4.2 stock rooted (took FOREVER to get rooted I think it just finally clicked in I had given up). but there's already a .tar file for 4.4.2 you can just flash the .tar file and you have a OTA STOCK (unrooted) version of 4.4.2 for SPRINT only. It's the easiest way to get your phone back to working if it' soft bricked or just won't load recovery.
...NOTE... you can UPGRADE flash your bootloader (i.e. ... M2 .. MK4 ...N2) from Odin. You just CAN NOT downgrade firmware via Odin if you're going to go back to 4.1/4.2/4.3 versions. You will 99% of the time get "failed" at write to sboot .. for recovery I recommend Philz as it clears your cache and such when you flash roms and gapps and such for you.
---------- Post added at 03:10 AM ---------- Previous post was at 03:05 AM ----------
SCAND1UM said:
You, sir, helped the hell out of me! I thought my phone was screwed and I've already tried everything. Thank you soo much!
Just curious, did you ever get kitkat to work? I've tried going to MC2 stock then upgrading a couple more times but it ends up doing the bootloop again every time :/ did you ever get that to update?
I'm so glad to have a working phone now though! Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're welcome lol when it happened to me I wanted to punch a wall or something because I couldn't make a call to help me and there was no way Sprint would have helped me. It took me 8 hours to find it that day lol I had almost started giving up hope
You may already know this, but you also want to read up and see what versions of odin people are having success with. As well as what custom recoverys (and versions) seem to be working.
I used Odin v3.09 with no problems. Heard that others had success with v3.07
Flashed and running Philz custom recovery v6.0.4.5
I flashed update-supersu-v1.94.zip (originally flashed cwm-supersu-v0.94.zip, which DID NOT work). Supersu is a little buggy. On both the note2 and s3, after install apk would fc. Went to play store and updated supersu, supersu will then work (even "partially" disables knox for you)
Sent from my SPH-L710 using Xparent Cyan Tapatalk 2
g_money said:
You may already know this, but you also want to read up and see what versions of odin people are having success with. As well as what custom recoverys (and versions) seem to be working.
I used Odin v3.09 with no problems. Heard that others had success with v3.07
Flashed and running Philz custom recovery v6.0.4.5
I flashed update-supersu-v1.94.zip (originally flashed cwm-supersu-v0.94.zip, which DID NOT work). Supersu is a little buggy. On both the note2 and s3, after install apk would fc. Went to play store and updated supersu, supersu will then work (even "partially" disables knox for you)
Sent from my SPH-L710 using Xparent Cyan Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah that's true I use Odin 3.09 Philz Recovery (latest version if that doesn't work the 6.07.09 has had some good success) and SU v1.93 is the one I have.
Stuck with 4.4.2 OTA
michael85tx said:
This happened to me today too. I didn't like the OTA 4.4 so I was trying to get a custom rom again. Thanks to jlmancuso he made the best solution here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=53035491&postcount=287&nocache=1&z=4473536636214703
Simply download the attached file. It is BRICKED heaven! (worked for me.) and have your recovery (twrp, philz, cwm) file. And have Odin.
1) Extract all files fix / recovery (if haven't already) / and odin (again if haven't already)
2) Open Odin in PDA put in the "fix" file. BEFORE continuing, UNCHECK Auto Reboot. (HAS TO BE UNCHECKED)
3) Connect phone to computer
4) Once the file has finished (Odin will say pass) disconnect the phone.
DO NOT TAKE THE BATTERY OUT
5) Put it back in Recovery Mode (home / volume up / power )
Give it a minute and it will load a custom recovery.
If you were stuck at a bootloop you probably don't have a rom on your phone (cleaned and empty).
If so try flashing this in Odin as well (https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B0CWousOd0ntTHl2RmxPbHJWODQ/edit?usp=sharing}
When the custom recovery loads you can flash what you want.
Odin will not let you downgrade from NE2 to anything below (bootloader). I suggest flash over Philz and flash that way.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2768847
Has a NE2 rooted already. Flash this and save a backup. YOU WILL NEED IT.
Once in the custom recovery that comes up I suggest to flash the M2 Stock with Count Reset. (back to complete stock) then can do what you want from there.
**If the custom recovery does not show up**
Repeat the steps above (Odin / add fix to PDA / Uncheck Auto Reboot / Connect Phone / start flash)
Then again DO NOT PULL BATTERY ... (once it shows pass) disconnect and reboot back in download mode ( home / volume down / power )
Flash over your recovery ... (do not pull battery) and try the Recovery Mode ... my first time I thought it was still stuck in bootloop so give it a second.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Followed this procedure after accepting OTA and couldn't get chainfire autoroot to work. This worked flawlessly for me and I'm flashing again !!!!
lewisyiv said:
Followed this procedure after accepting OTA and couldn't get chainfire autoroot to work. This worked flawlessly for me and I'm flashing again !!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Where is the fix file for download? I cant flash the tar file, all time show fail in odin, I was try with firmware 4.4.2, 4.2, 4.1.2 and nothing my note 2 enter in download mode but not in recovery mode, alwais is in bootloop in logo... maybe I have brick?
vegitamaster66 said:
Where is the fix file for download? I cant flash the tar file, all time show fail in odin, I was try with firmware 4.4.2, 4.2, 4.1.2 and nothing my note 2 enter in download mode but not in recovery mode, alwais is in bootloop in logo... maybe I have brick?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Two post above you or in the quote above you has the link for fix. You need to follow the first link (xda thread link) and it will take you to my post that has the upload.
Sent from my SPH-L900 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
Second post in this thread helped me immensely. Thank you!
I broke my note 2 that I had rooted and was running rwilco's mostly stock rom on.
Got another note 2 off craigslist and decided I should root it too for speed and for tethering. Tried the liquid smooth rom and it failed leaving me with no ROM.
Every ROM I tried failed until I found this thread and used Odin to flash "ALL_SPT_L900VPUCNE2_L900SPTCNE2_1561791_REV04_user_low_ship.tar.md5" that was linked.
So phone is now running 4.4.2 can I safely try again to load a custom ROM?
What do I need to do to make sure I don't have the same problem?
I'm not really savvy with this stuff but I can follow destructions
does any of the above steps wipe internal data?

Soft-brick solution issue

I have left my phone off for 2 days and when i go ahead to start it up it is stuck on the "Samsung galaxy s4"
Logo. I cannot enter recovery, only download mode. I flashed .tar stock file and still that doesn't work. Can anyone help me,?
Subzero000 said:
I have left my phone off for 2 days and when i go ahead to start it up it is stuck on the "Samsung galaxy s4"
Logo. I cannot enter recovery, only download mode. I flashed .tar stock file and still that doesn't work. Can anyone help me,?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Flash it twice. Boot into download - Flash once. Remove Battery. Boot into download - Flash again. Don't try to boot between flashes.
Also, get your .tar from here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s4-tmobile/general/firmwares-official-mdl-mk2-nb4-t2816508
Rob
rlichtefeld said:
Flash it twice. Boot into download - Flash once. Remove Battery. Boot into download - Flash again. Don't try to boot between flashes.
Also, get your .tar from here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s4-tmobile/general/firmwares-official-mdl-mk2-nb4-t2816508
Rob
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ive tried this process a million times and ive tried it again. It isnt working, and can only go into download mode. When i try to boot into recovery it just shows the blue saying "recovery booting..." but never goes into recovery, nor does it boot. Maybe a PIT file would work? Even though i think i dont need one, idk
Subzero000 said:
Ive tried this process a million times and ive tried it again. It isnt working, and can only go into download mode. When i try to boot into recovery it just shows the blue saying "recovery booting..." but never goes into recovery, nor does it boot. Maybe a PIT file would work? Even though i think i dont need one, idk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try a different computer to flash it, or it is done for. Does ODIN indicate that there was an error flashing?
There is nothing else we can do for you on this forum, if it won't flash the stock firmware. That is the last resort. The firmware has everything you should need to be able to get it back working, if it is software related. It could be hardware.
Rob
rlichtefeld said:
Try a different computer to flash it, or it is done for. Does ODIN indicate that there was an error flashing?
There is nothing else we can do for you on this forum, if it won't flash the stock firmware. That is the last resort. The firmware has everything you should need to be able to get it back working, if it is software related. It could be hardware.
Rob
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The stock firmware is what i have been flashing and it Odin does say 'Successful'. Since it has everything i need then i guess the phone is done for i opened the phone to checke the hardware, it seems the battery is a bit swelled, do u think that may play a role in this? And when i plug it in to charge the phone doesnt show battery status picture instead, it just keeps vibrating as if i were to plug in and remove the charger. The charger is brand new btw. I really appreciate ur help Rob.
rlichtefeld said:
Try a different computer to flash it, or it is done for. Does ODIN indicate that there was an error flashing?
There is nothing else we can do for you on this forum, if it won't flash the stock firmware. That is the last resort. The firmware has everything you should need to be able to get it back working, if it is software related. It could be hardware.
Rob
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm getting somewhere, it seems as if only CWM recovery and PhilZ recovery work. Twrp does not work. I installed 3 custom roms and still didnt work, i tried restoring a back up and the phone restarts in the middle of it making as if it crashes. I went into the root of the phone and i realized the only folder that DOES NOT open is the 'boot' which now i am thinking when i flash anything the boot isnt sticking. Do u know if there is a boot tar file or zip that i can flash?
Subzero000 said:
I'm getting somewhere, it seems as if only CWM recovery and PhilZ recovery work. Twrp does not work. I installed 3 custom roms and still didnt work, i tried restoring a back up and the phone restarts in the middle of it making as if it crashes. I went into the root of the phone and i realized the only folder that DOES NOT open is the 'boot' which now i am thinking when i flash anything the boot isnt sticking. Do u know if there is a boot tar file or zip that i can flash?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If it is the boot partition, you'll need to update the firmware, not just the ROM. You'll have to do that with ODIN and a PC, not CWM nor PhilZ. TWRP works fine as long as you use v2.8.4.0 or earlier. The v2.8.7.0 has bugs.
If you are flashing different recoveries, you should be able to flash the firmware. Again, you HAVE to flash twice in a row for it to stick. Flash with ODIN. Remove battery. Flash again. Then, boot the phone.
Rob
rlichtefeld said:
If it is the boot partition, you'll need to update the firmware, not just the ROM. You'll have to do that with ODIN and a PC, not CWM nor PhilZ. TWRP works fine as long as you use v2.8.4.0 or earlier. The v2.8.7.0 has bugs.
If you are flashing different recoveries, you should be able to flash the firmware. Again, you HAVE to flash twice in a row for it to stick. Flash with ODIN. Remove battery. Flash again. Then, boot the phone.
Rob
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried the oldest twrp and doesnt work, maybe ill try 2.8.4.0. I did that with odin. As soon as it installs and vibrates and shuts the screen i remove the battery and put it back in and go back into download mode and flashed again. It still did not stick. Or should i flash, then as soon it reboots i hold down volume to enter download mode, rather than remove battery?
Subzero000 said:
I tried the oldest twrp and doesnt work, maybe ill try 2.8.4.0. I did that with odin. As soon as it installs and vibrates and shuts the screen i remove the battery and put it back in and go back into download mode and flashed again. It still did not stick. Or should i flash, then as soon it reboots i hold down volume to enter download mode, rather than remove battery?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Uncheck the Reboot box on ODIN. Don't let it reboot. That is the problem. '
In ODIN. Load the .tar. Uncheck Reboot.
Boot into Download mode and Flash. DO NOT REBOOT.
Pull the battery.
Wait a few minutes.
Put the battery back in.
Boot into Download Mode. Flash.
Then reboot.
There are several threads about how to do this on this section of the forum and on the General section.
Rob
rlichtefeld said:
Uncheck the Reboot box on ODIN. Don't let it reboot. That is the problem. '
In ODIN. Load the .tar. Uncheck Reboot.
Boot into Download mode and Flash. DO NOT REBOOT.
Pull the battery.
Wait a few minutes.
Put the battery back in.
Boot into Download Mode. Flash.
Then reboot.
There are several threads about how to do this on this section of the forum and on the General section.
Rob
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I did exactly that, i waited 10 minutes with the battery removed and redid process again. Not working ? why is it only cwm working and not twrp? I wonder whats making it work...
Subzero000 said:
I did exactly that, i waited 10 minutes with the battery removed and redid process again. Not working ? why is it only cwm working and not twrp? I wonder whats making it work...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
At this point, I have no idea. But, IIRC when you flash the firmware, it should be replacing your custom Recovery (CWM) with the Stock Recovery.
So, are you flashing CWM after you are flashing the firmware? Or, are you trying to use CWM to flash the firmware? If so, that is the issue. You have to use ODIN with a computer to flash the firmware.
CWM, Philz and TWRP are for flashing ROMs, kernels, etc, not firmware.
Rob
rlichtefeld said:
At this point, I have no idea. But, IIRC when you flash the firmware, it should be replacing your custom Recovery (CWM) with the Stock Recovery.
So, are you flashing CWM after you are flashing the firmware? Or, are you trying to use CWM to flash the firmware? If so, that is the issue. You have to use ODIN with a computer to flash the firmware.
CWM, Philz and TWRP are for flashing ROMs, kernels, etc, not firmware.
Rob
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, i am not flashing anything after i flash the firmware. I am using odin to flash the stock firmware. Even stock revovery doesn't work. When u flash and it attempts to boot ,it shows the blue letters 'recovery booting' with the galaxy s4 logo and stays stuck there. At this point i am very lost. Do you think it's a power button issue?
Subzero000 said:
No, i am not flashing anything after i flash the firmware. I am using odin to flash the stock firmware. Even stock revovery doesn't work. When u flash and it attempts to boot ,it shows the blue letters 'recovery booting' with the galaxy s4 logo and stays stuck there. At this point i am very lost. Do you think it's a power button issue?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would not think it is the power button, since you say it does turn on. And, it does seem the Volume rocker works, since it tries to get into Recovery and does get into Download mode.
Which version of the firmware are you trying to flash?
Depending on the version of the bootloader/modems, etc. you can't downgrade versions of the firmware. You can only flash the same version or higher.
Are you flashing the 4.4.4 from here?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s4-tmobile/general/firmwares-official-mdl-mk2-nb4-t2816508
Are you sure you have a SGH-M919 version of the S4? If you look under the battery, it should have a sticker with that model number.
rlichtefeld said:
I would not think it is the power button, since you say it does turn on. And, it does seem the Volume rocker works, since it tries to get into Recovery and does get into Download mode.
Which version of the firmware are you trying to flash?
Depending on the version of the bootloader/modems, etc. you can't downgrade versions of the firmware. You can only flash the same version or higher.
Are you flashing the 4.4.4 from here?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s4-tmobile/general/firmwares-official-mdl-mk2-nb4-t2816508
Are you sure you have a SGH-M919 version of the S4? If you look under the battery, it should have a sticker with that model number.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried the firmware from that posting and dkd not work so, i went and got it from sammobile.com and still didnt work. I had this phone for 2 years and yes it is Sgh-m919 4.4.4 i had on it. And i flashed a i9505 custom rom on it through twrp and worked flawlessley. The phone was off for 2 days and i turned it on and this happened :/
rlichtefeld said:
I would not think it is the power button, since you say it does turn on. And, it does seem the Volume rocker works, since it tries to get into Recovery and does get into Download mode.
Which version of the firmware are you trying to flash?
Depending on the version of the bootloader/modems, etc. you can't downgrade versions of the firmware. You can only flash the same version or higher.
Are you flashing the 4.4.4 from here?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s4-tmobile/general/firmwares-official-mdl-mk2-nb4-t2816508
Are you sure you have a SGH-M919 version of the S4? If you look under the battery, it should have a sticker with that model number.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sir, i after following the procedure and didnt work i left the phone battery out and phone off for 3-4 days. I put the battery in today, literally just now and it somehow worked amd booted normally... it instantly sent goosebumps throughout my body because it just seemed so odd and unexpected with no reasoning for it to work now. Do u have any idea of what it may have been?
Subzero000 said:
Sir, i after following the procedure and didnt work i left the phone battery out and phone off for 3-4 days. I put the battery in today, literally just now and it somehow worked amd booted normally... it instantly sent goosebumps throughout my body because it just seemed so odd and unexpected with no reasoning for it to work now. Do u have any idea of what it may have been?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have no idea. Just thank the gods of electronics and carry on.
But, it could be some sort of hardware connection that is sometimes connected and sometimes not. You may want to start looking for a backup or spare.
Rob
rlichtefeld said:
I have no idea. Just thank the gods of electronics and carry on.
But, it could be some sort of hardware connection that is sometimes connected and sometimes not. You may want to start looking for a backup or spare.
Rob
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Id like to thank you a lot as u are an outstanding helper on xda. I warmly appreciate your kindness to guide me through the issue. Best wishes to you

GT-I9195 multiiple unsuccessfull recovery flashing even though ODIN success

Hi, I've digged through much of xda and not found a satisfying answer. My phone boots into download, is detected by odin (7,8,9,12 all ok), and whatever I do, odin says it was successfull. I tried flashing the stock ROM, the official ROM with 4.4.2, pit file, all in vain. Before crashing my s4 was running cm13 with twrp3.0.2-1. When turning phone on, it just displays "Samsung GalaxyS4 mini / GT-I9195 label on black screen, with "set warranty bit: kernel" in upper left corner. Download mode boots ok, but recovery - twrp 3.0.2-1 logo is displayed for about 8 seconds, and then phone reboots to "normal" mode - displaying the logo.
It would be great if some of you had an idea of what to do as I've been trying on my own for 3 weeks now and nothing changed for better.
As there are people looking at this thread, it would be great to hear from you! I still did not succeed in flashing anything, twrp screen shows for 8sec and then phone reboots to normal, which is samsung splash screen. I'm using samsung drivers, have tried different usb ports, used different computers, still nothing.
Did you try 4 files firmware?
http://firmware.smartphonewp.com/download-samsung-galaxy-s4-mini-gt-i9195-full-firmware-4-files/
Hi,
Unfortunately I can't help you here, but I have a similar problem and it might be related to yours. I have also have a Samsung S4 mini GT-i9195 LTE. Originally with Android 4.4.2 but lately with no OS at all. And I can't figure out how to get one back. What happened, chronologically and (very) detailed:
I rooted my phone with KingoRoot, which worked fine as far as I can tell. When I didn't like the KingoSuperUser-App I installed SuperSU. But it failed to work, apparently because of Knox or something like that. I later wanted to flash my phone with a LineageOS ROM (lineage-14.1-20170505-nightly-serranoltexx-signed.zip) and therefore I wanted to install TWRP as custom recovery. As the usual way with Odin seemed a bit complicated to me at the time, I decided to install the "TWRP Manager" App, which went well. But as soon as I tried to install my ROM with it, it asked if my bootloader was unlocked. So, after searching the internet about that and it said that Samsung phones usually have an unlocked bootloader and only have to be rooted, I went on with installing the LineageOS ROM using the TWRP Manager. Mind you, I am not talking about the custom recovery that you have to boot in to by pressing Vol-Up+Home+On/Off-Button, I am talking about the app that you can download and just needs root permissions to do the same stuff. I had downloaded the ROM-zip onto my SDcard before and wanted to flash it from there.. Now, when I let the app go on, the screen just went blank. And this might be the moment I overreacted. I panicked and tried to start my phone again. But it only went as far as the Samsung logo and didn't go further and I had to pull the battery to turn it off. I then tried to boot into recovery mode by pressing Vol-up+home+On with no result, I then tried with Vol-down+home+On and found Download mode with:
Code:
ODIN MODE
PRODUCT NAME: GT-I9195
CURRENT BINARY: Custom
SYSTEM STATUS: Custom
KNOX KERNEL LOCK: 0x0
KNOX WARRANTY VOID: 0x1 -> this one might have been 0x0 the first time
CSB-CONFIG-LSB: 0x30
BOOTLOADER RP SWREV: 2
WRITE PROTECTION: Enable
After some research I downloaded Odin3 (v3.12.5) and managed to flash TWRP (2.6.3.0) onto my phone. And I found the ROM-zip file, but it would not let me unpack and flash it and it didn't help to uncheck the "Zip file signature verification." When I tried to flash I always got the same error massage:
Code:
Updating partition details...
Running boot script...
Finished running boot script.
Installing '/external_sd/lineage-14.
Checking for MD5 file...
Skipping MD5 check: no MD5 file foun
Warning: No file_contexts
Target: 1493971678
detected filesystem ext4 for /dev/bl
Can't install this package on top of
E: Error executing updater binary in
Error flashing zip '/external_sd/lin
Updating partition details...
And it gives a "failed" response. Now, I tried moving the zip to internal_sd and flashing with no better result. I also tried to flash a stock ROM which I downloaded from Sammobile.com. This didn't work either. The adb push method and the sideload didn't work out either.
Interestingly, when I go to "Reboot" -> "Power Off" to turn the phone off I get a dialog:
No OS installed! Are you sure you wish to power off?
-> "Swipe to power off"
-> then comes the next dialog:
Install SuperSU?
Your device does not appear to be rooted.
Install SuperSU now?
This will root your device.
-> "Swipe to install."
Which had no effect at all but to inform me that my phone apparently isn't rooted after all. I therefore downloaded the S4Mini_RootKit_v2.zip and tried flashing it, which was successful. But I still got the same dialog when powering off and I couldn't install the zip files either.
That's where I am now and I really don't know what to try or do next. As I could flash TWRP onto my phone, shouldn't it also be possible to flash an OS?
I hope this was a precise enough description. If someone has any further question, please ask.
@albaCross @desolate_sorrow
Try an factory reset with the recovery.
Download a multiple Firmware from Sammy with PIT.file
Boot into Download mode.
Download Odin 3.07 or 3.09 not newer
Flash all Files with Pit.file
Reboot.
bierma32 said:
@albaCross @desolate_sorrow
Try an factory reset with the recovery.
Download a multiple Firmware from Sammy with PIT.file
Boot into Download mode.
Download Odin 3.07 or 3.09 not newer
Flash all Files with Pit.file
Reboot.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I posted this thread precisely because my recovery DOES NOT work. No option for factory reset. It just reboots after ~8 secs of twrp 3.0.2-1 screen. Flashed with ODIN 3.09, official intern. ROM from sammobile into AP and drive. google. com /file/d /0Bx2R0nz6jh17bllKenctWnVsWkE/edit <-- this PIT file. Also tried this pit with different versions of twrp - 2.6, 3.0, 3.1 - still no change at all, no recovery booting
@desolate_sorrow
But you are not tried a multiple ROM with PIT.file.
You flashed only a Single File ROM under AP.
On the multiple ROM you can extract the CSC File and than you have the PIT.
Pit you can only flash with Odin and a ROM.
bierma32 said:
@albaCross @desolate_sorrow
Try an factory reset with the recovery.
Download a multiple Firmware from Sammy with PIT.file
Boot into Download mode.
Download Odin 3.07 or 3.09 not newer
Flash all Files with Pit.file
Reboot.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Perfect! Worked like a charm for me! While factory reset itself did nothing to improve the phone, the other stuff worked. I flashed my phone with the .tar.md5 file I extracted from the .zip file (from sammobile.com) using Odin 3.09 and my phone works again, thank you soo much!
I then rooted it again and flashed LineageOS (lineage-14.1-20170505-nightly-serranoltexx-signed.zip) onto it. It worked but during the first startup I got the error massage "Setup wizard keeps stopping". I then tried the newest (20170519) version and got the same error again. Any Idea how I might repair this?
About the pit. file: what exactly is the difference between this multiple pit file, a "usual" pit file and the .tar.md5 file I used?
On a multiple ROM file is all separately, Bootloader, Phone , Modem and CSC file.
The PIT file is the partion File of the RAM. You can extract this seperat from the CSC file.
To the issue the the gapps. Try an older Version or flash first the LOS and setup WiFi.
Than flash Opengapps with wipe cache and dalvik than normally works the wizard.
bierma32 said:
@desolate_sorrow
But you are not tried a multiple ROM with PIT.file.
You flashed only a Single File ROM under AP.
On the multiple ROM you can extract the CSC File and than you have the PIT.
Pit you can only flash with Odin and a ROM.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i got the same problem, that the recovery is not working, flashing a multiple rom with pit doesn't help (neither recovery nor rom is working).
but i guess the main problem is, that i got a REV02 phone and I only can find REV01 firmware (e.g. this one here: http://firmware.smartphonewp.com/download-samsung-galaxy-s4-mini-gt-i9195-full-firmware-4-files/)
are there any REV02 firmwares out there, which maybe can help? or does anyone (@bierma32, @albaCross or @desolate_sorrow) got any other ideas?
bierma32 said:
To the issue the the gapps. Try an older Version or flash first the LOS and setup WiFi.
Than flash Opengapps with wipe cache and dalvik than normally works the wizard.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for replying. I tried flashing the LOS ROM and booting without gapps. According to TWRP it was successful. But when I booted for the first time I got similar error messages as before "[any app name] stopped running". Just with several names and all of them one after the other. Most of them appear to be named something like .android.com with different pre- and suffixes.
I then tried a more actual version of LOS with a similar result (same error message, similar names). After several times I decided to go back to my previously created TWRP backup (of the stock ROM with root access and several of the more annoying apps removed, also I had checked all partitions when backing up): I did a custom recovery and recovered my backup file and it seemed to work, TWRP said "success". On booting I again had the now so familiar error messages on the screen. Same happened when I flashed the stock ROM and recovered my backup after that, or at least tried. While TWRP still said it was a success it would not get past the screen where you choose your language.
After this I gave up and went back to the stock ROM and "rebuilt" my old phone. Maybe my phone just doesn't like anything but the stock ROM, so I should probably just stick to it.
But, just out of curiosity, what exactly is the problem with the phone if neither custom ROMs nor system backups work on it properly?
1of16 said:
i got a REV02 phone and I only can find REV01 firmware
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
this was me just 2 days ago!
i was on lineage os 7.1.1 with TWRP and was stuck wanting to go back to stock.
i flashed many many roms and they all failed in ODIN.
Eventually i found a Netherlands ROM that did not fail on the REV02 check - might be worth a go!
my thread
good luck!
Hello,
I own s4 mini gt i 9192
i have rooted it with kingroot when it was in a stock firmware, then i have decided to install lolipop rom with twrp with superuser in it, everything gone smooth i have used my phone over 3 months, one morning i woke up, the battery level was 43 %, i have set it in the charger returned back after 30 minutes and have seen that it only got 3% energy, pulled out the battery and inserted back, charged the phone for a while in a turned off mode, and powered it one, strangely it started but showed some kind of upgrading panel on the main screen than immediately it turned off and started to restart again and again, i have booted it in recovery mode, wiped the cache restarted the phone, main screen turned on to enter my password but in a seconds it went black again, opened it up in twrp recovery mode, went into advanced settings and wiped something in there(i can not exactly remember the name of the thing i have wiped but there was an option to wipe it in twrp advanced settings, it warned me "that my phone would not start correctly but anyway i have done it") after it's wipe phone started with s4 mini logo, and restarted like this over and over again, in recovery mode it only shows twrp logo no options panel to access to internal or external sd card, neither wipe or factory just nothing but twrp logo. I have flashed the 4 files recovery pack, (pit, ap,csc and etc,) but same it is never helped, i have used multiple recoveries, and the original stock rom from sammobile, but it has nor cure, i am a newbie on tech and xda please if you could help me, i have tried to post it to xda forms but i did not find a button to post a thread, thanks.

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