I have added a few apps to my phone but before I get into changing rom should I back up phone? Whats a good app to back up phone and what do you do..backup phone when its working before adding a bunch of apps then after its all done can you do another back up??
Let me know
I downloaded advanced config tools and did 3 different cache changes that were reccomended to speed it up or something..so I decided to do it and tweaked mine.. Should I not back up now b/c of doing that??
you can use sprite backup
For me, i always, loose all programs after reset, it cleans out old junk i no longer use. But in case i need some save files or backup files for some programs, yes i do a backup for those.
Other than that, you should backup your contacts, call logs, messages, if needed. Best program to do all the above is PIM Backup, its a wonderful free tool that does the job PERFECTLY.
EnergyROM always has PIM Backup in it, which btw is the best ROM out there. Every time i want to place a new EnergyROM, i first do a backup of what i need, then flash then run PIM Backup again and restore. All done in less than 3 minutes
Cheers mate
Closing thread guys,
There are plenty of applications out to the public on backing up your pda.
Also this is an area for rom development.
Peace,
Joshua
Related
Am i right in thinking that these 2 programs are essentially the same (with the exception that PIM backup is independently developed, and freeware, whereas Sprite Backup is commercial software + not free) ?
Can PIM backup do things that Sprite backup cannot?
Just wondering, as i got Spite Backup bundled with my Kaiser.
Thanks!
PIM Backup
PIM Backup, only backup for Contact, Calendar (appointment), To do, Task, Massages (SMS).
Spritebackup could do everything PIM Backup do, Plus all setting System (include register) and all software have been installed.
PIM backup allows PIM information to be transferred across different operating systems and different devices.
I can transfer my Agenda Fusion appointments from my HTC X7500/WM6 to my IPAQ 2755/WM2003 with no problem.
Using Sprite to do any of that will give completely unreliable (or no) results.
Both are good programs, Sprite backup is awsome though
Your phone's databases are .pim files hence the name PIM backup. As stated above it only backs up and restores these pim files. Sprite backup backs up everything as described above as well. The reason for my post is to correct nrm (post above this one). Sprite backup can restore to different devices. When you are restoring you have to specify what type of restore you want to run (level 1-3). Also you can manually specify what you want to restore. If you just want to restore your personal data (PIM databases) you can select just this. So Sprite can do exactly what pim can do but so much more. One down side to sprite is that the version I am running (v.6.5.4) is not compatible with WM6.5 or WM7. I havent bothered to even check if they have a new version out that is compatible. Sprite still works with these newer versions of Windows Mobile but M$ has changed the format of the above mentioned databases (files on root of device with .pim extension) and it will not back them up. So until there is a new compatible version of sprite backup you will need to use pim to backup your databases and you can still use sprite to backup everything else.
And what about Spb Backup?
I've tried them both. PIM Backup is great for the Contact/Calendar/Task/Message backup, and I have been able to backup and restore across WM5/WM6/WM6.5 ROMs. I've tried an older version of Sprite and it had some problem restoring the Contact/Calendar/etc. Perhaps this problem goes away for the newer version.
Sprite Backup is great for automatically backing up the entire device including files and settings. When I hard reset because I messed something up, Sprite makes it very easy to do a complete restore. When you are changing ROMs I take a more manual approach.
I backup the entire device using Sprite Backup to get all the files and settings on the device (just in case I forget anything). Using Total Commander, I zip up the following folders: Start Menu, Windows (just the files installed since the flash like Titanium CPR files and any file installed programs might save here), Program Files, Applicaton Data, My Documents, and Root folder. I also backup HKCU\Software and HKLM\Software registry entries. I copy those reg backup files to my computer and use a text editor to delete all entries that might cause a conflict (typically all HTC, Microsoft, IA Style, OEM folders).
Then when I need to change ROMs I have all the files and registries to get my device back on my feet very quickly. I don't have to reinstall all my software, nor go thru e-mails to find registration keys, or re-do each programs' settings. Most of their settings are stored in the registry, so its a very easy upgrade.
I haven't tried a recent version of Sprite. They may have improved the upgrading feature between ROMs and have better support for WM6.5 so my need to manually backup and edit registry entries might be already done automatically by Sprite.
Cassatta said:
And what about Spb Backup?
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Click to collapse
SPB Backup is better than Sprite... but PIM Backup is essential so you can backup your PIM from to time to time easily.
TheRem said:
SPB Backup is better than Sprite... but PIM Backup is essential so you can backup your PIM from to time to time easily.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree but with spb you can also schedule backup's and choice only pim data.
yup but you can't separate the contacts, tasks and appointments in SPB Backup.
all r right but sometimes restoring from spb or sprite deletes new regestery values from new rom and we will not able to use of that rgu benefit.lots of time i got less ~4mb ram from usual coz of that complete restore and slight slower device.....
there's an option in SPB Backup (Customize Restore)... in System Data, you can uncheck Restore Registry.
TheRem said:
yup but you can't separate the contacts, tasks and appointments in SPB Backup.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree, but is it usefull?
Ok folks, great input, but to tell you the truth, I would say you need both.
PIM Backup + your favorite backup program (I use SPB Backup) but have used Sprite as well.
Personally I will backup using SPB before I make a major change or test a Beta program just and sometimes (once a week if I have done any updates/installation of new software).
But, anytime I add any really important contacts/appts/tasks I will use PIM backup as well in case I decide to change my ROM (I usually just do a manual install of the cabs I want).
saurabh88 said:
all r right but sometimes restoring from spb or sprite deletes new regestery values from new rom and we will not able to use of that rgu benefit.lots of time i got less ~4mb ram from usual coz of that complete restore and slight slower device.....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The last spb Backup version detects if you have a new rom installed and suggests a special restore for same device but different rom. It has worked very well for me when flashing new roms.
is it possible with one of these software to transfer sms from an older device to a new one without deleting sms stored on my new device..
I'm not sure I'm clear here
I have a tytn2 with thousand of messages that I want to keep
I have a tp2 with some messages that I want to merge with the old tytn2's messages.
don't want to erase everything accidentaly, please give me an advice
use PIM Backup to backup your sms on the tytn2 , then copy PIM Backup and the backup file to your tp2 , and restore the file on the tp2.
it will let you choose how to restore each item , overwrite existing info or just merge them~ keep an eye on it ,overwriting is by default
saurabh88 said:
all r right but sometimes restoring from spb or sprite deletes new regestery values from new rom and we will not able to use of that rgu benefit.lots of time i got less ~4mb ram from usual coz of that complete restore and slight slower device.....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The advantage of SPB Backup is that you can choose to restore to a new ROM and so it does not overwrite the new system files and registries. I always use it after flashing a new ROM and it works very nicely.
I only recently discovered this myself, but pim backup can do quite a bit more than just backup pim.vol and cemail.vol. It also has a custom file backup, which is a wonderful feature and is very easy and intuitive to use. If you uncheck "binary", you can easily access the individual files (change backup extension from .pib to .zip). You can backup individual files or entire directories (like application data). It's well worth checking out. Just highlight "Custom" then click the 'Options' button to get going on it.
As a semi noob, I have been reading this forum for the last 3 months. I am ready to take the plunge and upgrade to the latest rom and radio.
I have just 1 question:
-I have quite a few medical apps loaded, they all are complicated installs and take serial #'s that change at every install. I need to wait on hold for about 30 mins every time i reload them.
Is there a decent backup program I can use,
-or will there be too many compatability issues this way and i should just install everything from scratch
I highly recomment you re-install the apps after upgrading, as they will not function properly if you use something like Sprite backup and you most likely will mess up the OS.... It sounds like a pain in the butt, but it will make life easier for ya in the long run.....
just make sure backing up contacts and all personal info, then install all programs after upgrading. i use sprite only if i ever need to hard reset or reflash. if its a major radio upgrade or new ROM release, i will start over. if they are apps that use different serial numbers, i will back them up with sprite.
What about contacts?
Is it safe to backup your contacts usuing PIM Backup and then restore after upgrading from 6.0 to 6.1?
the 0ne said:
Is it safe to backup your contacts usuing PIM Backup and then restore after upgrading from 6.0 to 6.1?
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Just use ActiveSync, synchronise before the ROM update and the synchronise when finished. Might as well keeps things as simple as possible and avoid potential complications when moving between ROMs.
Most of the contact, schedule, and mail backup utils are intended for situations when one is away from their PC.
the 0ne said:
What about contacts?
Is it safe to backup your contacts usuing PIM Backup and then restore after upgrading from 6.0 to 6.1?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What you can also do which is easy is just back up your pim file using file explorer from your phone. I usually just copy it to my sd card. Never had a problem.
Hi!
I have the Energy rom on my TP.
I want to upgrade to the last rom avaliable all the time.
If i use a software like Resco Backup, is it possible to perform a full backup, flash a new rom and then restore my full settings and customizations and aply to the new rom??
thanks!
tntnt said:
Hi!
I have the Energy rom on my TP.
I want to upgrade to the last rom avaliable all the time.
If i use a software like Resco Backup, is it possible to perform a full backup, flash a new rom and then restore my full settings and customizations and aply to the new rom??
thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can chose whatever backup software you want. Sprite offers a restore after ROM upgrade, so does SPB but be assured that in 8 out of 10 cases it will FAIL, your brand spanking new ROM will be messed up, sluggish, unresponsive.
The only way these backups DO work is a 1:1 restore. Let's say you back up, installed a theme, phone hangs or you don't like the theme and cannot convert back.
Hard reset SAME ROM --> Restore --> > Done.
Get accustomed to MyPhone, PIM copy, UC, Sashimi and other tricks because you wont be happy with the restore.
Catch phrase --> "Trust me!"
agree with tyguy...
PIM Backup, SASHIMI, and UC is very useful in backup/restore... I use them all
r04d5t3r said:
PIM Backup, SASHIMI, and UC is very useful in backup/restore... I use them all
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are SOME things that will work that way. If you use Sprite Backup, you can decide which things to restore. If you avoid restoring the registry, you can still use it to restore selected items like PIM databases. I used Sprite Backup but it has become unusable and it seems the company has stopped responding to support requests. AFAIK, SPB doesn't offer the ability to select but I may be wrong.
I'm curious about one thing though. When using things like PIM Backup, what usually happens is once I sync, all PIM Info gets duplicated (Active Sync thinks the data restored via PIM Backup is something "new"). Does anyone know a way to fool Outlook/Active Sync to not behave that way?
If like me you have meetings and contacts in the thousands, using Outlook/Activesync to restore PIM info to the phone after flashing a new ROM takes a really long time...
I can confirm that newest version of SPB Backup never worked for me on EnergyROMs. I could not connect to gsm network even on a same ROM. Sprite Backup works like a charm, but only on the same ROM. It is good just if you are installing something you never know what happens. So it could work just like some restore points in windows. As the guys here said, best method is to learn UC customizations, Sashimi, but i have to say, it is not that easy, for some people...
i work with SPB Backup with ROMeOS and it worked perfektly even on different ROM Versions. I tried to restore a backup made with SPB Backup under ROMeOS WWE and restored it under GENY GER Version, worked without Problems after changing some names/pathes in the registry (Speicherkarte => Storage Card etc) depending on the language. Not working links like Total Commander werent in the installation of GENY in the main memory; they run after installing TC in the windows directory; for me the Speed was absolutely ok, but i dunno, how fast it would be if you work with UC. I restored all my BUs since ROMeOS since version 1.4 until ver 2, but then i decided to install everything new, what took 2 weeks of braincooking but i got 50 MB more free RAM. Of course its better to install everything new, but if its a complex program & settingsstructure, with a lot of tweaks, colored task bars and so on it is much easier & faster to restore a BU...
SPB has the opportunity to choose which parts of BU you want to restore ... from complete restore (with ROM Upgrade mode/ phone Changing mode) over all or single databases to even single files, if i remember right...
Greetz
Boris
P.S.: i only worked with WM 6.1 ROMs
If I'm in the right mood I'll start a new thread under the general Raphael section because I think this does belong here to the ROM dev. section.
Just in a nutshell:
Sprite has and had major problems if the basic SYS changes dramatically (WinMo 6.1 to 6.5 or 6.5 to 6.5.3) thus I stopped using it BUT it has a nice but not really great working "Restore after ROM change feature".
My basic tricks are:
PIM Backup with SPB
Sync with MyPhone
XML changes (like program paths etc.) with Adv.Config
Install with Sashimi
Copy with Total Commander (programs, Opera settings and bookmarks).
Username and personal data either manual input or Sashimi.
This worked since WinMo 5.0 with no issues and it takes me ~ 30 minutes after a flash to be back 99.9%. I do have to install a few things manually
Don't have much time now so I'll post the link to the "How To" later today.
You can actually do a lot with just pimbackup. The custom option is pretty cool-it allows you to backup and restore custom files, much like sashimi does, except that once you set it up, it will do the backup for you instead of having to do it manually. If you uncheck the 'binary' option, you basically just get a zip file with a directory of all the files you selected for backup.
There's a lot that can go wrong using sprite or a similar app. Even if you don't restore registry settings, you might insert something into the startup folder that screws up your phone (it's easier than you'd think, lol). A week or so ago, I decided to try running a task manager at startup (IT Task, which is really cool), and for whatever reason, when you put a shortcut for it in the startup folder, you have major problems booting up the phone. After about 10 tries, I got lucky and the phone booted up, so I didn't have to do a hard reset (which I wasn't fully prepared for).
You're probably ok restoring with sprite if you stick to the same rom-line, but it could certainly be a mess if one chef stores apps in \program files but the new chef has them all in rom (in \windows). Then you'll end up with two copies of everything, which is a waste. It may work, but it's a lousy way to go.
Hi Guys,
I am running the the latest Axura ROM (2.2.5.7 I believe) and have now purchased the premium versions of the following Apps: ROM Manager, Titanium Back Up & Launcher Pro.
With all this awesome capability, what should I do in the way of a back up to restore my phone if something ever happens? Basically my goal is to be able to go into recovery and restore my phone totally if I FUBAR it.
Please keep in mind I just entered this world as of Sunday starting with Rooting and then ROM flashing : D
Thank you for all your help now and in the past!
From another post I made:
The way I have things set up for backups, and this is just for my personal convenience, is as follows...
I have a stock JFD ODIN rom to flash in case anything goes wrong. (A lot of people here will tell you to flash this whenever flashing a new rom. It is safer, and cleaner to do it this way, but not absolutely necessary)
I make a nandroid of my last stable rom (I only keep one at a time cause the files are huge) and keep a backup of that on my PC.
I backup all my apps and a few other things (call logs, bookmarks, sms) through Titanium backup. If you get the pro version, you can load it up after flashing a new rom and have it automatically restore all your apps in one click (system settings can be dangerous to restore when going from rom to rom, so be careful with those.) I also keep a backup of this on my PC.
I will also occasionally backup both of the sd cards to the PC.
Maybe overkill, but you probably wont ever lose anything forever.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well I just backed up my ROM through ROM manager... I have another one in there too dated Saturday (when I first flashed) which I assume is my stock vibrant ROM...?
I do have the Pro version of Titanium... how would I back up everything for a one click set-up?...If I did that should I just delete my ROM back up in ROM manager? Trying to avoid unnecessary redundancy and the wasting of precious space on my phone : P
Go into Titanium and click on Backup and restore and than click on menu and then batch and then select backup all user apps. then run batch file. You also have the choice to back up system data as well. I would not recommend deleting any of your backups in Rom Manager. Just backup all of your apps(and system data if you wish) and you are good to go.
Thanks all!
tenbeau said:
I would not recommend deleting any of your backups in Rom Manager.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why is that? Nandroid backups are very large, and if you're playing it safe and making a nandroid each time before flashing a rom, you will run out of space very quickly. You should always keep at least one (for me its my most recent, stable, daily driver), but it certainly is NOT necessary to keep all of them.
I'm running streakdroid 1.9 but I would like to do some experimentation with my streak. If I flash a new rom what will I lose? How do you backup your data so you can flash to your hearts content?
Thanks
if u flash stock roms, they do a factory reset during first start up.
So u end up loosing everything.
However if u flash .zip version of the stock roms using CWM or streak recovery , u will retain almost everything but may loose somethings like root and so on.
Remember stock roms will flash its default recovery everytime it boots up
Ok thanks. Is it wise to do a factory reset anyway?
What tools can I use to backup messages, apps, photos, etc?
I use titanium backup.
If you do a nandroid backup, when you restore it, everything will be just as it was before you flashed another ROM...
As far as using Titanium... it has never worked for me completely, nor has MyBackUp Pro, they cause me more headache than being useful...
I have gotten to the point to when I flash a new ROM, I just manually install everything, I know it sounds like some hassle, but you end up with a much smoother operating phone.
I even do a nandroid backup first, then go into my ROM and manually uninstall everything, so that when I boot up my new ROM and setup my market account, it doesn't try to install everything on its own and bog down my phone at first, I install everything manually in the order I want and set them up as I go.
I know this sounds cumbersome, but I have found it creates a cleaner environment and practically eliminated force closes
That is the way I like to do things also but what about the things that you can't just re-install e.g. sms, application specific data?
Advice
I was having a sim card and constant restart issue after updating to streakroid 2.4.4, and even after flashing dsc, the problem persisted. After I reviewed the steps I had taken I realized that I never did a factory resest (fearing I would forever lose my precious app data, which I did -_-). It turned out that was the fix, after doing the factory reset, my sim card was recognized immediately and a couple of the text I had missed showed up. However, I fixed one fixed problem and developed another.
Even though I restored a MyBackup and Titanium backup I did right before resetting I recovered my several apps without their precious data (setting, notes, bookmarks). I tried doing internal backups within the apps, some conveniently had syncs to a cloud yet I missed doing that with a few apps because I have over 100+ and I use more than half on a regular basis (even if for 5 minutes). All my apps are on my device, which is a good thing but I cant appreciate that given the missing data.
So my advice is:
Use apps that have can automatically backup or sync data -- there are enough apps with similiar utility that you can avoid ones without that function.
Do a manual backup within your important apps. -- Some apps backup files to locations that may be wiped during update, doesn't have auto backup or the last backup is months old.
Pics, texts, call logs are easily backed up -- Backup programs will explicitly state or ask what to back up in that regard.
Do a nandroid backup -- I believe this only restores rom and apps but someone can correct me.
Caveat
Through all the research done before actually need to restore a backup I missed the fact when restore apps depending on the restore program every app has to be reinstalled individually. If you have more than 25 apps then #$#@!, also for some reason when restoring with titanium if during a batch restore you come across an app if you hit cancel during one of the install prompts because you actually don't want to restore that app the batch will freeze and you'll have to force close titanium and start the restore all over. Go through the list of restore options and choose each app one by one, save yourself the time.
Lastly, to piggy back off what was said before, a factory reset( FR) after updating rom is always recommended but its not always needed. Most roms will update without causing you to lose any data but like I said previously I had sim card issues when I updated without a FR. YMMV
At this point I don't know if this helps the OP but maybe it will benefit someone else who reads this thread.
This guide by _n0p_ tells how to do an upgrade and minimize the re-installation of apps.
Key items:
Use the backup function of any apps that have it
Don't count on restoring data with TB or My Backup
Make a nandroid - just in case
I have found TB and My Backup to be useful for things like browser bookmarks.
The post linked to discussed going from Froyo to Gingerbread but the same techniques apply for moving to any other ROM.
Last time i changed roms, i used the Dell backup utility for evertyhing but the apps, which can be backed up together with their data with QtADB which creates a backup folder on your SD. After installing the new rom, i chose advanced recovery from the Dell Utility and set it to recover everything but the apps, which i recovered with QtADB. However, I also strongly recommend nandroid, in case the steak doesn't boot after the install.