I'm sure this has been asked many times before, but I just wanted to make absolutely sure I'm ready before I flash, so I don't brick my phone. I have been reading the forums for a few days now. I have an S3 (i747M) with Fido. I'm not totally sure which ROM to go with. From what I understand so far, I'm thinking StockMOD or Dandroid. I want a fairly minimalistic OS, latest version (4.3 vs 4.4?), so I can play the occasion game on it and get good idle battery life. I believe I have rooted my stock rom and I have disabled some of the bloat through the "Application Management" option under settings. Any advice on flashing? I have spent many years building, modding and generally tinkering with windows pcs but I haven't done anything with phones, android or linux. Any advice? Obviously do the backup of my current phone with the app mentioned on the related ROM installation page. I assume I can restore my phone back to this stock ROM is the new one fails? After the backup, do a full phone wipe and default restore. Then hook the phone to my PC via USB and use the related program to flash the phone? Thank you for any and all replies in advance. :good:
Kwijybow said:
I'm sure this has been asked many times before, but I just wanted to make absolutely sure I'm ready before I flash, so I don't brick my phone. I have been reading the forums for a few days now. I have an S3 (i747M) with Fido. I'm not totally sure which ROM to go with. From what I understand so far, I'm thinking StockMOD or Dandroid. I want a fairly minimalistic OS, latest version (4.3 vs 4.4?), so I can play the occasion game on it and get good idle battery life. I believe I have rooted my stock rom and I have disabled some of the bloat through the "Application Management" option under settings. Any advice on flashing? I have spent many years building, modding and generally tinkering with windows pcs but I haven't done anything with phones, android or linux. Any advice? Obviously do the backup of my current phone with the app mentioned on the related ROM installation page. I assume I can restore my phone back to this stock ROM is the new one fails? After the backup, do a full phone wipe and default restore. Then hook the phone to my PC via USB and use the related program to flash the phone? Thank you for any and all replies in advance. :good:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
in my opinion or anyone will say that 4.3 is the most stable right now, and 4.4 is only available for CM based roms.....Samsung Touchwiz will always be the last to update their devices to 4.4 while custom roms AOKP, SLIM BEAM, PAC ROM, BEAN STALK, CM, PARANOID, ETC they will always have nightlies on latest the Android version but will take sometime for stable roms to be released
1st before you think of flashing please research and know what you're getting into
2nd read all the info. ROOT your i747m with cf-auto root (i recommend it cuz its the simplest, easiest, safest way to root)
3rd install custom recovery there are two that i know of but am confident and comfortable with clockworkmod recovery....u can try TWRP
4th yu can either wish to stay stock touchwiz, 2types of stock
-one that comes from samsung all bloated and no tweaks and
-the one that is taken by devs debloated, modded, customized, xposed mod, minimalistic, faster and better.
--OR you can go completely Android vanilla stock, which has nothing but the normal google staff (ITS LIKE A NEXUS DEVICE from Google) you dont have any bloatware, or features/addons just plain stock
5th Once yu know the basic, the universe is yours, with Android comes endless customization and possibilities just like Microsoft Windows, Linux, ubuntu or even OSX
6th wish to become a DEV its your choice, wish to modify, play with the filesystem its your choice but without knowledge of what you're doing bricking is easy as just deleting a file yu think its not important
7th help the rest with android as you do with PC
PS am learning to code now but one thing at a time so am starting with Web design, plan to learn some computer languages, hacking, etc computer science :laugh: maybe yu can help me out
everything you need to know about what i said or root http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1725839
Thanks for the reply. It's been a while since I originally posted this. I decided to hold off on a custom ROM at that time but I find myself back again, still wanting to customize my phone (especially now that my contract is about to expire). I figure that if I do brick my phone beyond repair, I'll just get another phone anyways so not so worried about it now.
Anyways, one concern I have about flashing a custom ROM on my S3 is can I go backwards in Android versions? I can confirm that I am running the stock (Rogers / Fido) Android 4.4.2 which I believe is Kitkat? I am very interested in going either StockMOD or Dandroid, which as far as I can tell are 4.3 Jellybean? Can I do that?
Yes, you can run a 4.3 rom on your phone as long as you do not try to downgrade the bootloader.
You can go back to completely stock Rogers by using Odin to flash as stock kk rom from sammobile.com.
audit13 said:
Yes, you can run a 4.3 rom on your phone as long as you do not try to downgrade the bootloader.
You can go back to completely stock Rogers by using Odin to flash as stock kk rom from sammobile.com.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the reply. Regarding the bootloader, the versions of Android I'm looking to install say they need the 4.3 bootloader. How can I check which bootloader I am running on my phone?
If you're phone is running stock Rogers kit kit, you have a kit kat bootloader which you can't downgrade.
If the rom needs a 4.3 bootloader and since you have a newer bootloader, you can probably load the rom.
Kwijybow said:
I'm not totally sure which ROM to go with.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Using the most recent build of the most popular ROM has it's advantages.
cm-12.1-20150807-NIGHTLY-d2att.zip
fast, light, stable, secure, supported
Hi,
I know this information is probably available somewhere, but I have spent hours of reading, and still having some trouble getting my head around things. So I will try to be clear here as to what my issues are.
Firstly... I have Samsung Galaxy S-III, SGH-i747M, with virgin mobile canada. It started with android 4.1.2. I wanted to unlock it, and there was a way to do it with 4.1.1 (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2176719), so I used odin, with firmwares (found at SamMobile.com I think) to flash a 4.1.1 ROM, did the unlock procedure, and then used odin to flash stock firmware for 4.1.2 again. Seems to have all worked out ok.
Anyway, I want to try some custom roms, like cyanogenmod, as they are purported to improve battery life, speed, clearing off bloatware, giving me more control, etc.
However, I really want to maintain the ability to go back to how it is now, if I don't like the custom roms. (or if I need warranty help, though there's not much of that left).
The main thing that's concerning me is that while I was playing with this phone before, I read in a number of places that if I had updated to Android 4.3 or 4.4.2 when those had become available from my carrier, I would not have been able to downgrade to 4.1.1 (which I needed to be able to do to use the built-in unlock method). This is because of Knox, which would be installed, and gets "tripped." So now I'm scared: if I did that upgrade, I wouldn't have been able to revert; so now, if I flash a CGM ROM, will I also be unable to revert?
I think there are a few pieces of android to sort out in my mind... If I'm not mistaken, there's bootloader, there's recovery, and there's the ROM. Flashing a ROM with Odin apparently would restore recovery and the ROM? But not the bootloader (that's where knox is? though I still don't understand, if an upgrade can modify the bootloader and put knox there, where it wasn't before, shouldn't there be a way to put a pre-knox version back there?)
Oh, there's also EFS, which some say should be backed up before doing anything (though you need to root first, which in my mind counts as doing something before backing it up).
Anyway, please let me know if you can help clarify these issues, thanks!!
There is a lot to cover to address all that you bring up.
Regarding EFS, there are a number of ways to back it up. Use several. This thread is an excellent place to start for more info and several ways to make the backup. I was rooted, so I used A2 and B. I believe you can use A1 without being rooted, probably B as well. Long after that post was written wanam came out with two backup apps available in the PlayStore. One was specifically for EFS, but I do not think it is still supported. The other is a more comprehensive app, both require root.
As a rule, bootloaders and modems are not installed with custom ROMs. If you are flashing a stock ROM from these forums that is installed from within a custom recovery it probably does not install a bootloader and modem either, but read the relevant thread to be certain. Full stock ROMs flashed from with Odin, or Heimdall, almost certainly install a bootloader and modem.
Prior to 4.3 there was an ability to downgrade bootloaders and modems, nor were they required to match - be at the same version. Once you upgrade to the official 4.3 bootloader you can no longer downgrade it. Once you have upgraded to 4.4.x the bootloader and modem versions must always match. If they are mismatched you risk soft bricking your phone at a minimum. For the i747 there was an unofficial 4.3 release; ROM, bootloader, and modem. I do not recall seeing mention of an unofficial release for the i747M, so I will not go into the exceptions on the above the unofficial bootloader/modem introduced.
For TouchWiz ROMs, custom or stock, the bootloader (and modem) version should match or be more current than the ROM Android version. (One of the unofficial 4.3 release exceptions applies here, I make use of it.)
For CyanogenMod, CM based ROMs, AOSP ROMs, and their derivatives the bootloader and modem version can lag behind Android version of the ROM. With your 4.1.2 bootloader and modem you could run the earlier releases of 4.4.x CM and AOSP ROMs. Later in the 4.4.x development, around Oct or Nov 2014 IIRC, I began reading reports of needing to be on 4.3 or later, there were a few said the 4.1.2 firmware still worked for them. For the 5.x.x LP releases of CM and AOSP most report that they must be on a 4.4.x bootloader and modem.
Knox is in the ROM, not the bootloader and modem. It was introduced with the official 4.3 releases. It is not present in CM/AOSP nor most of the custom TW ROMs. It will be present in stock ROMs from official sources or sites like sammobile. Many of the stock ROM images/dumps have Knox disabled, especially those from enewman17, but read to make sure what you are getting.
I don't feel qualified to discuss tripping the Knox counter, I am still on the unofficial 4.3 bootloader, which has not kept me from running 4.4.x ROMs. I am not the only Luddite, but I feel we will all be updating bootloaders and modems due to the Stage Fright bug. I am long out of warranty so there is no loss.
ABOVE ALL, read thoroughly before taking any action. Keep in mind that I am on the i747 and not the i747M as you are, I am not be correct on all comments for your device. @audit13 should be able to clear any gaffs I have made.
@dawgdoc is correct about everything said.
It is not Knox that prevents downgrading from 4.3 to an earlier version, it is the code in the bootloader itself.
Ok, starting to feel a bit more comfortable with the whole system and relationships, thanks!
audit13 said:
@dawgdoc is correct about everything said.
It is not Knox that prevents downgrading from 4.3 to an earlier version, it is the code in the bootloader itself.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for verifying that. There could have easily been small, but very important, differences in the devices that had slipped my mind since I don't have the i747M.
This is the way xda should be. Good questions from a concerned user & great answers from @dawgdoc. Nice job guys!
canodroid15 said:
This is the way xda should be. Good questions from a concerned user & great answers from @dawgdoc. Nice job guys!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would like to extend similar praise and thanks to @mrrocketdog and @audit13
more uncertainty
Hi,
I'm a lot more experienced now, having rooted (I flashed root66_BMC_I747MVLDMF1 by MrRobinson, since CF-autoroot just made the phone show "booting recovery" then blank screen indefinitely), I backed up EFS by a couple methods, flashed TWRP, did a nandroid backup, and flashed a couple versions of CM. Still a few things I want to clarify though.
Unsurprisingly, after flashing the final CM 11 release, data did not work, as I'm still on the 4.1.2 (MF1) bootloader/modem. In general, I see a lot of posts simply saying "update the modem." From what you've said though, that will create problems, unless I update the bootloader as well, correct? Just feels like the phrase "update the modem" is said so casually, without also mentioning the bootloader, and the inability to go back.
(an older CM 11 worked with data just fine)
(a big issue is that S3 is over 3 years old, so there are over 3 years of posts, so there's a lot of conflicting information, likely due to different versions, new discoveries, etc. )
I'm not quite sure myself what I'm trying to ask, I guess it's something along the lines of "am I just being silly by not updating?" There are a lot of "Never update to 4.3 (or above) because of knox!" comments. But also in general, it seems the only real issue with knox is that warranty bit, otherwise it doesn't have too big an impact on our lives? Seems the consensus is that we can still root, install custom roms, and everything else. (Do you know if this remains true with latest bootloaders and modems (OB3 for i747M). There are also "My battery life became way worse after the upgrade" or "more FCs" or other issues, which is a significant concern if my phone which currently comfortably lasts a day starts to not last a day after updating. Though it's likely a small percent noting that, while the quieter majority are fine. Meanwhile, by not updating, we may be missing out on features and security improvements (and maybe actually improved performance). What do you guys think? (I know dawgdoc was sticking to an unofficial 4.3 rather than updating, so it's not an obvious choice).
As for updating, I think somewhere one of you suggested the better (or at least safer) way is to use odin to flash stock ROM, then do the OTA updates, or, directly flash the latest stock ROM, rather than trying to flash modems and bootloaders directly?
Once I have a 4.3 or 4.4.2 bootloader/modem, I can delete any old TWRP nandroid backups from when I had 4.1.2 since restoring them would cause a brick? Same for EFS backup (which backed up EFS, Modem, Modemst1, and Modemst2 partitions)
Thanks again!
I almost wish I'd just taken the blue pill at the start of all this
For XDA members that are new to rooting, flashing, etc., I always recommend the safest route which is to flash back to a completely stock ROM and just upgrade to the latest bootloader and modem via OTA updates. There's always a risk of something going wrong when flashing anything, be it a custom ROM, recovery, or OTA update.
If the phone still had warranty, I recommend not flashing any non-Samsung software until the warranty has expired. Once expired, flash away
Knox should not interfere with root if supersu is flashed from a custom recovery, regardless of the bootloader. I have used supersu to root the latest s3, s4, Note2, and Note3 ROMs without a problem.
Restoring old nandroid backups should not cause a brick as TWRP does not change the modem or bootloader.
sacrawfo said:
....Still a few things I want to clarify though.
Unsurprisingly, after flashing the final CM 11 release, data did not work, as I'm still on the 4.1.2 (MF1) bootloader/modem.....
(an older CM 11 worked with data just fine)
I'm not quite sure myself what I'm trying to ask, I guess it's something along the lines of "am I just being silly by not updating?" ....(I know dawgdoc was sticking to an unofficial 4.3 rather than updating, so it's not an obvious choice).
Once I have a 4.3 or 4.4.2 bootloader/modem, I can delete any old TWRP nandroid backups from when I had 4.1.2 since restoring them would cause a brick? Same for EFS backup (which backed up EFS, Modem, Modemst1, and Modemst2 partitions)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think the change date for CM11 requiring the newer bootloaders, at least NE4, is Nov 2014. Releases prior to that date would run fine on older bootloaders.
I have since updated to NE4 in order to run ROMs patched with the StageFright fixes, specifically CM11 20150831. Knox isn't installed on this ROM or even the newer custom TouchWiz based ROMs. I am not concerned about Warranty Bit being triggered. My device is long past being covered by any warranty and I have no intentions of using Knox features on this phone in a corporate environment.
Keep the EFS backups, those are from partitions not changed by flashing roms; stock or otherwise.
Finally went through the OTA updates, surprised how long it took but all done, at OB3.
Ok makes sense, restoring an old Nandroid would effectively result in a 4.1.2 OS with a 4.4.2 bootloader/modem, which != brick.
Still surprised that modem updates do not effect the "modem" partition that EFS backup saved.
Thanks,
Restoring a nandroid backup should not brick the phone brick the phone as twrp does not restore the modem or bootloader.
sacrawfo said:
...
Still surprised that modem updates do not effect the "modem" partition that EFS backup saved.
Thanks,
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are quite a few partitions not affected by flashing, not only the EFS partitions. IIRC there are secondary modem partitions, more than two extra bootloader partitions, etc.
I posted a thread a while back but I apparently posted the wrong type of thread. This one should be the right of the right type and in the right place.
On the Samsung devices I've had in the past, the boot loader was always a big deal when flashing new versions of android. I've had this tablet for a while now and haven't updated it since I bought it...and Odin flashed/rooted/installed TWRP on it.
From reading the megathreads, from threads, flashing threads, etc...it's not very clear if this is like the other Samsung devices I've had, or if this is like the EEEpad Transformer and Nexus 7 I had...and could move freely between android versions, stock roms...and nonstock ROMs, etc.
I'm running 5.0.2 and I play hearthstone competitively. I bought this for the display mainly, and now that I've loaded it with some crap, I'd like to flash a custom from/update. It seems my crap+samsungs crap saturates the ram quite well. Can I pretty much flash what I'd like? Or do I have to ODIN from stock to the latest build and then worry about number versions.
Also...I used to run an all that kept my TWRP version up to date. Goomanager I believe...but there are dozens of apps that claim to do this now...can I get a trusted suggestion?
Rooted on stock.
Android Version: 5.0.2
Kernel: 3.4.106 IronKernel V2.0 (mainly for s tweaks to boost audio)
Build LRX22G.T800XXU1BOC3
Forget about using an app to flash twrp.
Do it manually and be safe. Plus the official updates are lacking in features compared to the unofficial builds. Just check out the dev section and you'll see what I mean.
Thanks for the advice. And as far as flashing roms...can I pretty much flash what I'd like? Ex: go back and forth between Cm and stock builds...and between version builds while ignoring the boot loader? I'm basically trying to see if I've missed something critical since I rooted and flashed so long ago.
Jamesyboy said:
Thanks for the advice. And as far as flashing roms...can I pretty much flash what I'd like? Ex: go back and forth between Cm and stock builds...and between version builds while ignoring the boot loader? I'm basically trying to see if I've missed something critical since I rooted and flashed so long ago.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As long as you don't flash a firmware build that is incompatible with your current bootloader you can flash what you want back and forth.
ashyx said:
As long as you don't flash a firmware build that is incompatible with your current bootloader you can flash what you want back and forth.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thats what I figured. I'm running the stock rom rooted. I don't know what boot loader I'm on, or how to get to the latest one. I have all the access in the world-- recovery, root. But there isn't a place here...or anywhere that clearly says what am going on. I have a charging issue and would like to foahh a new Kernel, and I might as well update in the process,...by there is no "Upgrade from Xxx while on the stock rooted ROM" guide. Plus my laptop has a crappy USB port, so If I need to Odin something on here, itd be quite the process.
Ive asked around for months, literally. I've never been in this position before. Have always kept up to date. But once you fall behind, in forums like these (especially given the fact hat there are multiple devices in this section), you need something explicit to get back where you need to be.
Last time I looked, there weren't any instructions. Ill look against today to see if I can just download the latest..zip of a 10.5 stock ROM from somewhere in the dev section and then wipe, and flash that. If you know if its alright to just wipe and flash a new ROM, lemme know. Or if I have to Odin to a new one in order to get a new boot loader before I flash the latest Kernel, which I think then one I'm trying to use his BOJ. IRONKernel. I use it for S Tweaks, the sound, and a few performance tweaks.
You have to flash the bootloader with Odin they are posted in the bootloader thread.
You can flash the stock firmware with flashfire.
All,
my sgh-i747 WiFi doesn't appear to work. under settings> WiFi slider (OFF)> slide to on (remains off)
next goto WiFi setup screen: no devices listed, buttons at bottom of screen dim/greyed out.
history:
phone was bricked by a forced ATT update. I finally did a rom update/reinstall to push a working stock kernel kitkat 4.4.2
thx
Rob
ALSO i need working links to Lollipop for sgh-1747 using oden
PS: I do ROM , hardware and software updates on data storage systems with petabytes of storage. BUT THIS PHONE MAKES ME FEEL STUPID....
My Hats Off to All Of You Who Hack, Play, or Make Mods for the Phones.
Boot image not matching firmware on your phone can cause wifi to not work. The kernel doesn't have the what it needs to work with the radio you have installed. It is a fairly typical stock rom problem. Custom roms typically have broader support instead of being targeted at a specific firmware.
First step is to figure out what exactly you have on your phone now. Need to know bootloader, modem, and boot image versions since this phone is finicky. Hard bricks are possible, so don't do anything hasty. There's an app in the Play store called phone info samsung by vndnguyen that helps with that. Install it and see what it says you have for bootloader and modem/baseband. Also check in Settings -> About and see what kernel version you have (the app might tell you that too, it has been a long time). Report that all back here and it will help with how to fix it.
Alternately if you don't want to mess with the app enter this in a terminal app or adb shell:
Code:
getprop ro.bootloader
getprop gsm.version.baseband
You won't find an Odin package for lollipop. Samsung never updated this device past kitkat. Anything lollipop or newer would be a custom rom, and those are all custom recovery flashable zips, not Odin.
jason2678 said:
Boot image not matching firmware on your phone can cause wifi to not work. The kernel doesn't have the what it needs to work with the radio you have installed. It is a fairly typical stock rom problem. Custom roms typically have broader support instead of being targeted at a specific firmware.
First step is to figure out what exactly you have on your phone now. Need to know bootloader, modem, and boot image versions since this phone is finicky. Hard bricks are possible, so don't do anything hasty. There's an app in the Play store called phone info samsung by vndnguyen that helps with that. Install it and see what it says you have for bootloader and modem/baseband. Also check in Settings -> About and see what kernel version you have (the app might tell you that too, it has been a long time). Report that all back here and it will help with how to fix it.
Alternately if you don't want to mess with the app enter this in a terminal app or adb shell:
Code:
getprop ro.bootloader
getprop gsm.version.baseband
You won't find an Odin package for lollipop. Samsung never updated this device past kitkat. Anything lollipop or newer would be a custom rom, and those are all custom recovery flashable zips, not Odin.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank You
jason2678 what you said makes perfect sense to me. like needing a VIN # for a 2002 Toyota to figure out what water pump or alternator because they used 6 different versions of each, LOL
so i would like to use 5.1 lollipop which is a custom ROM i believe, if you can suggest one i will defer to your judgement
but as a fallback suggest a kitkat ROM as well
bootloader I747UCUFNJ1
BASEBAND I747UCUFNJ1
KERNEL VERSION:
3.4.0-1514807
[email protected] #1
32-bit
modem msm8960
please and thank you
respectfully
123RobH
At NJ1 you're not on the latest bootloader and modem, but you're close enough. And your bootloader and modem match. I wouldn't mess with it. You'll be able to run all the latest custom ROMs on that, no problem.
If you want lollipop, look around the development section here. I'm not sure if you'll be able to track down a lollipop rom download linked to XDA. You might have to poke around old uploads for d2att on androidfilehost.com for 5.1.1 roms. I'm pretty partial to slimkat stable 9 on this phone, and it runs fine on NJ1 firmware too.
Oct-Os is probably the most actively supported rom currently. They've moved on to nougat these days. You'll be able to run it on NJ1 too. You might want to give it a shot.
Track down a rom and matching gapps. Then full wipe and flash them with TWRP recovery. If you run into any trouble or have any questions, just ask. I'm pretty certain once you get a custom rom on your phone your wifi problems will go away. Stick to lollipop, marshmallow, or nougat and you'll be fine. Even newer KitKat ROMs will be OK on NJ1.