New Update (is it safet to apply) - G Tablet Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

HI all,
I see that Viewsonic is pushing out 4349 update and i have been reading up on it. I currently use TNTlite 4.40. Is it safe to apply this or wait until it is fully tested and then apply it when it is compatible with the latest roms.
Roebeet i know that you have been testing this.. What do you think..
Let me know.
thanks

Don't touch 4349 if you are on a mod, or if you use clockworkmod
...unless you want a soft-brick your device.
I'm still testing, but right now I can tell you that if you are using clockworkmod and flash to 4349, you WILL soft-brick your device. It seems to have the same traits as the infamous 3991. Again, still testing.
I'm not sure about TNT Lite 4.4.0 yet - that's on my list of tests but I want to test VEGAn first, as that's probably the most popular ROM here.

roebeet said:
...unless you want a soft-brick your device.
I'm still testing, but right now I can tell you that if you are using clockworkmod and flash to 4349, you WILL soft-brick your device. It seems to have the same traits as the infamous 3991. Again, still testing.
I'm not sure about TNT Lite 4.4.0 yet - that's on my list of tests but I want to test VEGAn first, as that's probably the most popular ROM here.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sounds good Roebeet.. Let us know.. I am going to hold of on the update until we hear from you..

i upgraded from stock 3588 and everything works flawlessly.

Confirmed as bad as 3991. I will write up a new post with details, warnings and suggestions.

Roebeet,
Plainly said -- VS always has been oriented to stock and has said the alternate ROMs
will void your warranty.
It seems apparent to me that this update is designed to work on top of the other "stock"
software they hope you are running (and probably aren't).
Stock rules in their world.
Rev
P. S. -- I just remembered -- somebody asked earlier about the "Enhancements"
on this ROM. I don't know, but I do remember trying it on 3991 and it semi-bricked
my tablet.

It has same brick issues with enhancement. How hard is it gonna be to get the Roms working with it? Specifically vegan 5.1.1?

I did it over stock, and I now have a clock/calendar, with nothing else working.

cd112 said:
Sounds good Roebeet.. Let us know.. I am going to hold of on the update until we hear from you..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can this be reverse engineered? Meaning can we flash back to our previous rom before the update by nvflashing?

This is very similar to UAT 3991, so far
The good thing about that is that we a month of experience that we can apply, here. I've been tested my own mods that I added a failsafe into and, so far, that failsafe is working. But I have a lot more testing to do -- I haven't even LOOKED at this update yet.
That failsafe, btw, was adding the 3588 bootloader as part of the flash process. That way, if someone was on 3991 (or now 4349) and flashed to TNT Lite 4.4.0 for example, the bootloader gets downleveled so that way it shouldn't soft-brick. Same should apply if you flash from stock 4349 to 3588, or vice versa.
Keep in mind that clockworkmod is about the worst thing you can use, between 1.1 and 1.2 based ROMs. It doesn't flash the bootloader, which is required.

edirector said:
Can this be reverse engineered? Meaning can we flash back to our previous rom before the update by nvflashing?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Never-mind i nvflashed and am restoring gtab back to the way she was. I couldn't deal with not having market and my favorite apps. Also I lost sound. VS did well for those whose gtab wasn't running smoothly but as for mine she was sweet before the update running like a fine tuned engine. Much faster than with the update. She hit the desktop on a dime.
For the rest enjoy your update! I just got my dream girl back.

How about if you are on a total stock gtab can you upgrade to 4349 -THEN Root the device? or is it not supported yet?

Related

[Q] [q] need help - got stuck with new gtablet

I received my new GTablet day before yesterday from Amazon. I read through a lot of forums before deciding to buy it. Out of the box, I charged it and connected it to the wireless network. Worked fine. It got updated as well. I tried few options and play with it a bit and then the most awful thing happened. I got this message "Sorry The application Dashboard Home (process com.tapntap.homne) has stopped unexpectedly. Please try again"
I tried power + volume but it didnt help. I want to go through the whole clockmod and tnt 2.4 update but right now I am stuck. Viewsonic supports recommed to send it back to Amazon and a get a newone. But if there is a way to start using my Gtablet 'now', please let me know. If I use the Clockmod, will I get stuck and will never be able to return it? I NEEED HELP...
coolrazas said:
I received my new GTablet day before yesterday from Amazon. I read through a lot of forums before deciding to buy it. Out of the box, I charged it and connected it to the wireless network. Worked fine. It got updated as well. I tried few options and play with it a bit and then the most awful thing happened. I got this message "Sorry The application Dashboard Home (process com.tapntap.homne) has stopped unexpectedly. Please try again"
I tried power + volume but it didnt help. I want to go through the whole clockmod and tnt 2.4 update but right now I am stuck. Viewsonic supports recommed to send it back to Amazon and a get a newone. But if there is a way to start using my Gtablet 'now', please let me know. If I use the Clockmod, will I get stuck and will never be able to return it? I NEEED HELP...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you have clockwork mod on it? If you DO put it on there, you CAN get it back off and return the unit to stock, so don't worry too much about that. You have to perform an nvflash though (which is not necessarily harder than installing clockwork mod or a custom rom, but can be problematic at times.)
The thread on that is here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=861950
If it were me, I would give installing clockwork mod a try and update to the newest viewsonic rom or try one of the custom roms such as Vegan, TnT Lite or TwoTapsX.
Hopefully it works out for you - I'm confident it will. These things are almost impossible to brick.
Thanks a lot for a quick reply. So the way I understood....
1: I need to install Clockmod and that will bring the Gtablet back to Stock
2: After that I need to do the nvflash
3: and then I can install tnt2.4
Does that make sense.... Do I need to do the nvflash.. Just from the look of it, it seems kind of complex.
Again I really appreciate your quick reply on this.
gogorman said:
Do you have clockwork mod on it? If you DO put it on there, you CAN get it back off and return the unit to stock, so don't worry too much about that. You have to perform an nvflash though (which is not necessarily harder than installing clockwork mod or a custom rom, but can be problematic at times.)
The thread on that is here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=861950
If it were me, I would give installing clockwork mod a try and update to the newest viewsonic rom or try one of the custom roms such as Vegan, TnT Lite or TwoTapsX.
Hopefully it works out for you - I'm confident it will. These things are almost impossible to brick.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
coolrazas said:
Thanks a lot for a quick reply. So the way I understood....
1: I need to install Clockmod and that will bring the Gtablet back to Stock
2: After that I need to do the nvflash
3: and then I can install tnt2.4
Does that make sense.... Do I need to do the nvflash.. Just from the look of it, it seems kind of complex.
Again I really appreciate your quick reply on this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. No. ClockworkMod does not bring the tablet back to stock. It makes it easier to flash custom ROM's and backup your tablet.
2. No. You do not have to nvflash after installing Clockwork. That would remove it.
3. Sort of. You can go right to installing a custom ROM as soon as you have ClockworkMod installed. DO NOT use TwoTapsX if you have installed ClockworkMod. It will not work and will result in you having to do an nvflash. TnT_Lite will work just fine.
coolrazas,
I think you should be cautious!! VS has told you to exchange it. That might not be a
bad idea.
BUT, it all depends on how serious the original error was. And I haven't heard an
authoritative answer on that yet.
IF you can handle all the stuff that's been suggested -- you might make it good as
new. But you also could have more problems.
I know you are anxious to have the tab and be up and running -- but I'd make darn
sure I had a good one first even if that means sending it back.
Rev
I agree. I think I can handle the techie stuff (new to android but seasoned on Windows platform) but you are right. If the hardware is faulty then I will be facing the same problem again. When I called Viewsonic Customer support, they said that they are aware of this issue so just send it back. She was pretty straight on the phone.
And again, I have to ask this question. Why in the world isn't viewsonic spending more resources on software? With better software, the gtab would be in direct competition with both the xoom and ipad 2.
I completely agree. If the issues are known and after reading tons of information on xda forum, its insane not to listen to this large customer base and really bring this tablet to the next level and capture a larger chunk of the market. Pretty amazing.
K J Rad said:
1. No. ClockworkMod does not bring the tablet back to stock. It makes it easier to flash custom ROM's and backup your tablet.
2. No. You do not have to nvflash after installing Clockwork. That would remove it.
3. Sort of. You can go right to installing a custom ROM as soon as you have ClockworkMod installed. DO NOT use TwoTapsX if you have installed ClockworkMod. It will not work and will result in you having to do an nvflash. TnT_Lite will work just fine.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is an excellent point - I should have mentioned this in my original reply.
coolrazas said:
I tried power + volume but it didnt help.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you let it actually restore the factory default? My Gtab did the same thing (I just got it last week) and I had to reset it. It's odd that the factory reset is different than what it ships with. But, either way, you have to wait for the message on the screen that it's reloading the image BEFORE you let go of the volume+ button.
Can Be Finicky....
coolrazas,
It also can be said that even in the best of times, the G-Tablet can be a
little finicky. One of my tablets the other day was a normal as could be.
I shut it down and the next day turned it back on. Continual "android.process.acore" errors. Had to fix it.
I say be conservative, be consistent in what you do, use only the "approved"
stuff, don't take advice you can't verify is good, and read, read, read, read!
Good luck to you. BTW, what I did was buy a second G-Tablet so I always have one up for use while working with the other!!!
Right now one is on OTA 3991 with plans to go back to 3588 when the new OTA comes out (if it does!). The other is
TwoTapX .9.0.2 and will stay there until VS lets us know the directions they are going -- and the roebeet will move ahead.
Hope this helps you. Enjoy!
Rev
I have decided to return this one and hope that the newone will not have an issue so I can move on with Clockmod and TNTlite. I will mail it today and hope I will get the new Gtablet from Amazon sometimes this week... Ah... Few more days. Thanks for everyone's input here. I will be getting back on this forum a lot more as I have to learn LOT more......
Is somebody get the same problems because of which it were necessary to return g-tablet?
Or having patience and endurance it is possible to solve any problem?
Getting my new Gtablet today
So finallly I am going to get my new replaced G-Tablet today . Just checked the UPS tracker and it says that it will be delivered this evening. Here are my plans now.... And please correct me if I am planning to do something wrong here.
After unpacking it,
1: Upgrade to the new Viewsonic firmware.... I believe it does it by default once you are connected to the wireless network.
2: Install Clockwork mod
3: Install TnT 2.4
Hopefully this will work this time. Any suggestions.....
use most recent
"3: Install TnT 2.4"
I would suggest using the most recent version of TnT. ie 4.4.0.
For this one you don't have to use use clockworkmod, but it will work ok with
clockworkmod.
If you're still unsure, you may want to try these steps:
www blendblog net/Default.aspx?tabid=36&EntryID=67
(can't post links, but a . where the space is...)
It helps that everything is layed out step by step.
Seems like the link that you provided talks about installing VEGAn. there is another embedded link in the post that talks about TnT4.4 installation as well. Considering the two platforms, which one would you guys prefer? By teh way, got my new Gtablet and ready to roll this evening with this process.
Hint: Look at the sticky force closing thread in this forum. Pay close attention to the original post.
I'm still puzzled why people aren't pointing new people to that thread.
goodintentions said:
Hint: Look at the sticky force closing thread in this forum. Pay close attention to the original post.
I'm still puzzled why people aren't pointing new people to that thread.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well. He sent that tab back and now presumably has one without that issue.
coolrazas said:
Seems like the link that you provided talks about installing VEGAn. there is another embedded link in the post that talks about TnT4.4 installation as well. Considering the two platforms, which one would you guys prefer? By teh way, got my new Gtablet and ready to roll this evening with this process.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You are correct. The link does provide steps to install vegan. I meant it as an alternative to tnt.
For me and my tab, vegan with pershoots kernel is much more responsive than tnt alone.
If you google vegan tab you'll find gojim's website. There hasn't been any updates in a few days but it sounds like one will be forthcoming. Im waiting and watching for that one as well as waiting for an update on calkulins rom. It also sounds pretty snappy.

[Q] Some of ROM instructions are freaking me out...

Folks...
I've been using ClockworkMod for a while on my HTC Incredible and today I received my Woot table.
I installed ClockworkMod on the tablet and did a backup of my "stock" image (I applied the 3588 update).
From reading these ROM threads, it looks like there's some differences in how I am used to interacting with Clockwork and some of these warnings sound pretty ****ing dire...
If I install a ROM, isn't going back to my previous backup a matter of formatting and restoring? It sounds like some of these ROMs interfere with Clockwork in such a way that could result in a bricked device. I've been wiping and restoring on my Incredible for almost a year now and I've never heard of a ROM dicking with Clockwork before...
What's the difference or am I making a mountain of a molehill here?
There is a very specific version of CW that bekkit put together for the G=Tab. The problem isn't the rom messing with CW, it usually is Rom Manager that will mess with it. Rom Manager usually will want updated, especially with CM installs.
I have had to nvflash the tablet in the past after upgrading CW via rom manager.
The other issue that is common, and I have had happen to my beloved Dinc, is having to repartition the storage. The groundwork for the Dinc was much, much more stable than the default tapNtap that is released with the tablet.
Something some people may also miss is the kernel for GB is much different than the kernel with froyo.
Rest assure, bricking this thing seems to be an accomplishment and almost impossible. Trust me, I have given my best effort to do so. With nvflash or adb almost any tablet can be recovered.
One last thing to look out for, how internal storage is handled. Some roms use internal as emmc (like the Dinc), while others mount as sdcard. CW doesn't handle this switch gracefully. You can mount usb storage in advanced menu and move the recovery files over if needed.
While dharr18 is mostly correct there are a few ROMs floating around out there that will have trouble with clockworkmod. TwoTapsX and TnT Lite 5.0 (both currently held from distribution by the developer) are based on a UAT build (3991) that require using the stock recovery and bootloader from build 3588+ to install correctly. There is some speculation that this may be the standard going forward.
Thanks KJ, I forgot about those two as I have not loaded them to date.
dharr18 said:
The problem isn't the rom messing with CW, it usually is Rom Manager that will mess with it. Rom Manager usually will want updated, especially with CM installs.
.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, I fell into that trap... really FUBAR'ed my tab until i had to nvflash a full recovery.
dharr18 said:
Thanks KJ, I forgot about those two as I have not loaded them to date.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're welcome. I run TTX regularly (well... in between my attempts to find creative new ways to brick this thing...).
Deacon,
The truth is there ARE some dire consequences. Bricking a G-Tablet is extremely hard,
but you can lose data. If something breaks on your tab and your have loaded a ROM
you do not have a warranty. There are risks involved.
And in my opinion a lot of people try to do too much too fast and too often wind up
in dire straights.
There are stickies on most of the recovery/problematic stuff. Good to read them first.
Rev
the problem isn't with the ROM
I follow roebeet and the tnt lite ROM - VS is updating their boot loader from 1.1 to 1.2 in some of their OTA updates. Mostly the 3588 and the 3991. If you are playing with those or it came installed then it can be a bit of a hassle depending on what ROM you are playing with. I updated my gtab to 3991 and was able to nvflash it back to 3588 and install vegan5.1 and tnt lite up to 4.2 without any issues. Just be sure to read up and be able to complete an nvflash if it gets ugly on you. I really recommend learning a little linux - nvflash is a breeze in there.

[q] what is 1.1 and 1.2 stock? what is the bootloader?

i know these questions can probably be found somewhere but would someone be able to give me a quick run down of what 1.1 and 1.2 stock is and how does that relate to 3588 and 4349? also what is the bootloader and why do some things require the stock bootloader and not CWM? and also, how do you go back to the stock bootloader, just nvflash the stock 1.1 or 1.2? and also why are 1.1 and 1.2 bootloaders not compatible with certain roms and such?
thanks in advance!
joshtb86 said:
i know these questions can probably be found somewhere but would someone be able to give me a quick run down of what 1.1 and 1.2 stock is and how does that relate to 3588 and 4349? also what is the bootloader and why do some things require the stock bootloader and not CWM? and also, how do you go back to the stock bootloader, just nvflash the stock 1.1 or 1.2? and also why are 1.1 and 1.2 bootloaders not compatible with certain roms and such?
thanks in advance!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can answer some ...
1.1 and 1.2 are the 2 common bootloaders for the gtablet.
I think of bootloaders as a layer of software that sits underneath a ROM and provides services to it. ie between the ROM and the hardware.
1.2 is the newer bootloader, which is needed by 4349, Bottle of Smoke (BOS) which is a Honeycomb distribution, and a few other. (Mountain Laurel, and Brilliant Corners which are 1.2 versions on TNT Lite and Vegan Tab).
All others 3588 (and before), TNT Lite *, Vegan Tab, CM (all versions maybe except one which I hear is for 1.2 for gadam?) use the 1.1 bootloader.
Stock recovery (update.zip and command file) , will update both ROM and bootloader, and is the preferred way to go between 1.1 and 1.2 based ROMs
CWM 0.8 will update ROM but *not* the bootloader.
So CWM cannot be used to go between 1.1 and 1.2 based ROMs.
If you currently use CWM, you can nvflash to a stock ROM (eg 3588), you get stock recovery back, and you should be then able to update to any ROM.
There is also a recovery pack for some 3588 based ROMS (maybe also for the 4349 ROMs) that has scripts to switch between stock and CWM recovery, although I do not know how well they work. Doing this would not require NV flashing.
My guess as to why different ROMs go with different Bootloaders, is that the newer Bootloaders, provide new functionality for new ROMs (due to which, new ROMs do not work with old bootloaders) and delete functionality needed by older ROMs (due to which, older ROMs do not work with newer bootloaders). However if the ROM could be made to not rely on these changes of services, they could in theory be made to work with both bootloaders. I have no idea if this is possible in practice.
joshtb86 said:
i know these questions can probably be found somewhere but would someone be able to give me a quick run down of what 1.1 and 1.2 stock is and how does that relate to 3588 and 4349? also what is the bootloader and why do some things require the stock bootloader and not CWM? and also, how do you go back to the stock bootloader, just nvflash the stock 1.1 or 1.2? and also why are 1.1 and 1.2 bootloaders not compatible with certain roms and such?
thanks in advance!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
3588 use the 1.1 bootloader
The recovery is only able to start an update.zip
4349 use the 1.2 bootloader (same as Honeycomb based rom)
4349 also install a new recovery that look like CWM but is Honeycomb blue
Bootloader in this case is actually a combination of 2 thing, bootloader and kernel they are save on 2 different part of the nvflash image (2-3)
The stock bootloader is needed to be able to move from a rom using version version 1.1 to 1.2 or back, the proper method is to use an update.zip since this is the only method know to update the bootloader (NVFLASH doesnt flash partition 2 and 3)
To go back use UPDATE.ZIP with a STOCK 1.1 recovery, you can even nvflash the recovery directly using nvflash (position #9)
Why are they incompatible? good question, mostly kernel related afaik, there's now cross compatible kernel available that allow you to use a 1.2 bootloader with a 1.1 rom (see Clemsyn thread) this also provide the capacity to use similar rom from other brand (seem like the gtab was using an older bootloader)
very interesting subject that do require reading a few thread to be safe...
cbay, Thanks that was very informative. I had been wondering the same question.
well, now you know the what and how, but what about the why and the history...
Viewsonic is a basically a repackager. they put their name on a product and sell it to the masses. US Merchants is the US company that imports these products from China. The Chinese company that actually builds them is called Malata.
Malata is also responsible for the Notion Ink Adam as well as some other Tegra 2 based tablets.
The odd part comes in to play when you look at the bootlaoders for each device. Notion Ink always used a 1.2 bootloader for their Adam updates and firmwares. Viewsonic, though, was using what is assumed to be an older version of firmware based on the 1.1 branch. There is a lot of speculation as to why this is, and there is no real answer.
Now, back in February, one of the devs got a hold of a firmware labelled 3391. He discovered that it was on a different bootloader than the G-Tablet was currently using. he messed around with it a bit, but it proved to be difficult to crack at the time, since everyone was on 1.1 and it wasn't an official update, so nobody really had it.
Then, Viewsonic hadn't released an official update for a while. Users were getting irritated, and a mass request went out for Viewsonic to do SOMETHING...they did, they released the 4349 firmware, but then pulled it 24 hours later. It's still known as the most recent officla firmware, thought it's not available anymore (officially) 4349 also ended up being a 1.2 firmware. SO, now since this was an official update, the developer that was messing with 3391 figured that this was the direction that Viewsonic/Malata was going to go. He made his opinions known but was rejected by some of the mods here at XDA.
Since then, he has graciously moved to another forum where he houses all of his 1.2 roms. He took it upon himself ot convert his older roms to the newer 1.2 bootloader (Brilliant Corners, Mountain Laurel). He also created a seperate Clockwork mod that will work on 1.2 bootlaoder as well.
It was discovered that the new 1.2 bootloader from Viewsonic was the same bootloader that Adam had been using all along. It seemed that Viewsonic was either using, or getting outdated software from Malata. So, now we can also use Adam Roms and Kernels on our G-Tablets as well.
Honeycomb was ported from another device, but enabled to use the 1.2 bootloader. It's still in Alpha stages, but does require the 1.2 bootloader to flash.
Essentially, 3588 was the LAST 1.1 official updated firmware directly from Viewsonic. The only way that it can be improved upon is if we get more 1.1 official updates from Viewsonic. But, since we haven't recieved ANY updates from Viewsonic, we're not holding our breath.
4349 was the FIRST (and as of now ONLY) 1.2 official update from Viewsonic.
Fortunately for G-Tablet users, the Adam bootloader being compatible with our 1.2 bootlaoder opens the door for infinate possibilities. We are no longer dependant on VS to provide updates, as updates from Notion Ink can be ported more easily.
it's been suggested that the older 1.1 roms e converted to 1.2 roms ot avoid confusion and unexpected softbricks caused by such confusion, but there is resistence.
cbay said:
I can answer some ...
If you nvflash to stock (ie without CWM), you should be able to update to any ROM.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
wrong, Nvflash doesn't update the bootloader, so the only correct way to move from one version of bootloader to the other is the update.zip method with a STOCK recovery (it also need a rom with the command "write_bootloader_image("/tmp/bootloader.bin", "EBT"" in the updater script )
Like you mentioned CWM doesn't flash the bootloader
if you check the process during nvflash, partition #2 and 3 (actually it's all the same partition only splitted in parts) are not flashed...
they can however be read using the correct command
Everything else is right, hey 2 answer for the same lazy question he's a lucky guy...
p00r, I'm very curious about that. Have you done a binary compare before and after nvflashing with different bootloaders to confirm it? If not, I may try it myself. I use nvflash to move between 1.1 and 1.2 based ROMs all the time and have never had any trouble with it. I do agree that it is probably better and safer to use stock recovery for normal usage but I've never had an nvflash fail on my tablet due to a difference in bootloaders so I'd like to learn more about it so I can use that information to avoid trouble.
P00r said:
wrong, Nvflash doesn't update the bootloader, so the only correct way to move from one version of bootloader to the other is the update.zip method with a STOCK recovery (it also need a rom with the command "write_bootloader_image("/tmp/bootloader.bin", "EBT"" in the updater script )
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What I meant was, nvflash to a stock ROM like 3588 and then use stock recovery to update to a 1.2 based ROM, instead of CWM.
As far as I know this should work, as nvflashing to a stock ROM like 3588 would get you to stock recovery as well. (Right?)
Also, at any point when updating to a ROM using stock recovery, it is good to read the thread of instructions for the particular ROM as, it may contain more steps of wiping data/ cache etc. Some ROMs may also require a change in partitioning.
K J Rad said:
p00r, I'm very curious about that. Have you done a binary compare before and after nvflashing with different bootloaders to confirm it? If not, I may try it myself. I use nvflash to move between 1.1 and 1.2 based ROMs all the time and have never had any trouble with it. I do agree that it is probably better and safer to use stock recovery for normal usage but I've never had an nvflash fail on my tablet due to a difference in bootloaders so I'd like to learn more about it so I can use that information to avoid trouble.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What do you want to compare exactly ?
There's plenty of post that explain the issue to move between 1.2 and 1.1 roebeet used to call this softbrick when he discovered the 3991 leaked viewsonic rom that used 1.2 bootloader...
cbay said:
What I meant was, nvflash to a stock ROM like 3588 and then use stock recovery to update to a 1.2 based ROM, instead of CWM.
As far as I know this should work, as nvflashing to a stock ROM like 3588 would get you to stock recovery as well. (Right?)
Also, at any point when updating to a ROM using stock recovery, it is good to read the thread of instructions for the particular ROM as, it may contain more steps of wiping data/ cache etc. Some ROMs may also require a change in partitioning.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes as soon as you nvflash a stock recovery over anything and then use the recovery to do an update.zip of another rom type it will work.
wow thanks for the help everyone! i hit the thanks button to everyone who replied.
im running the clemsyn + calkulin version 5. does anyone know how to find out what version of the bootloader that is? there is a version 6 released requiring 1.2 and i also wanted to tryout the honeycomb version.
also, a backup image created with CWM - does it back up the bootloader, rom, and kernel? or just the rom
thanks again!
P00r said:
What do you want to compare exactly ?
There's plenty of post that explain the issue to move between 1.2 and 1.1 roebeet used to call this softbrick when he discovered the 3991 leaked viewsonic rom that used 1.2 bootloader...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Compare the bootloader before and after the nvflash. I've seen all the threads on moving between 1.1 and 1.2 and quite frankly I've never had any trouble using nvflash to do it regardless of which ROM I'm going to or from as long as I use the appropriate bootloader in the nvflash command. Based on that experience I would say the bootloader is being updated on the tablet or else I would have had considerably more trouble. The only time I've seen any trouble moving between the two is when trying to use ClockworkMod.
P00r said:
Everything else is right, hey 2 answer for the same lazy question he's a lucky guy...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Err, that wasn't really a "lazy question."
Everything on here and elsewhere assumes you know what "1.1" vs. "1.2" means without explanation. There's hardly anything anywhere that explains what they mean to new users.
I'm not sure how asking a question which isn't answered anywhere else is "lazy."

[Q] Can't flash to Honeycomb style ROM, but can w/all others?

I'm fairly experienced at flashing various roms. I've done it with G Harmony Gingerbread, Vegan 7.0 Gingerbread and TNT Lite 4.x. All were successful. Sometimes I used NVram (1.2), sometimes not. I always wiped user data etc.
When I try to flash Android Illuminate Alpha 2.1 or Bottle of Smoke 6.0 all I get is stuck at the VS splash screen. I've tried everything and no matter what I do the end result is the splash screen.
I know I'm not doing the process wrong and it's a pretty good coincidence that the only ones that freeze are honeycomb based. So my question is, is there something I could try different or are some G Tablet's hardware such that honeycomb simply won't flash?
1) What ROM are you flashing from?
2) Which bootloader is it based on?
3) Are you using CWM or stock recovery (or, god forbid, ROM Manager)?
The symptom you have is common for someone trying to flash directly from a 1.1 bootloader ROM to a 1.2 bootloader ROM using CWM. Since CWM doesn't update the bootloader the new ROM can't load.
Honeycomb has a different data structure than everything else. If you want to flash into or flash out of a honeycomb rom, you need to follow my code red in the "start here" page of my website. Link in signature. Even experienced users will brick their gtab if they don't follow my instructions there.
The bootloader ROM i'm flashing from is 1.2 (I think). Before I flash, I do an NVflash 1.2. Then flash to the new ROM. I use CWM and have the NVflash setup where it automatically installs CWM.
My Kernel version is 2.6.32.9 so I'm pretty sure my stock bootloader ROM is 1.2, hence the NVram 1.2.
However, when I bought this tablet, it already had TNT Lite on it, so I really have no idea what the stock ROM was 1.1 or 1.2. I'm doing an NVflash 1.1 now and am going to try to flash Honeycomb Flashback. Fingers crossed.
goodintentions,
Problem solved because of your fantastic website. I really appreciate the hard work you put into it. When I looked at your ROM compatibility page and saw that TNT Lite was only compatible with 1.1, I new I had 1.1. So...I did a 1.1 NVflash and flashed GtabComb. I followed your instructions to the letter and it worked perfect. Man is Honeycomb nice.
I'll probably partition my SD card and upgrade to bootloader 1.2 so I can try BoS etc.
Thanks again. You rock!
tevamarc said:
goodintentions,
Problem solved because of your fantastic website. I really appreciate the hard work you put into it. When I looked at your ROM compatibility page and saw that TNT Lite was only compatible with 1.1, I new I had 1.1. So...I did a 1.1 NVflash and flashed GtabComb. I followed your instructions to the letter and it worked perfect. Man is Honeycomb nice.
I'll probably partition my SD card and upgrade to bootloader 1.2 so I can try BoS etc.
Thanks again. You rock!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just so you know, you don't have to stay with 1.1. You can nvflash to either branch. That's the purpose of nvflash, to allow you to jump branch the easy way. There's another way to jump branch, but I've decided that that way is a bit too risky for beginners and so I have not mentioned it at all.
You are indeed right. I did that and it works great. I've tried Illuminate, BoS, and Flashback. I found Flashback to be the most stable with very few lockups compared to the others.

[Q] My gtab needs rehab....

So I gave my son a gtab in April 2011 as a birthday gift. The first thing I did was root, install CWM, and vegan tab. Nothing has been changed since then. Even my CWM is 2.5 something.
Now 1 year later it is time to update it and see what has improved. I have a few questions that I'm hoping someone can answer.
I'm pretty sure I have bl 1.1. I have never used NV Flash but I think I can get it working.
I would love for the tablet to sleep and not kill the battery. That was a god send on my Nook Color when the Devs got it working. Do any current ROM's have a good deep sleep?
Am I better off staying on the 1.1 bl or moving to 1.2? If I want ICS I need to go to 1.2?
Thanks.
Steve
Yes, you will need to be on the 1.2 bootloader to run ICS. The NvFlash file you will need is in the instructions at the ICS thread (in the Gtablet > Development section). You will need to use that one, as it increases the system partition size to accommodate the larger ICS Rom and Gapps. Make sure you read the ICS threads and know what to expect, as it is a beta release. I have been running it for a few days and it looks/runs great, no serious problems so far. TeamDRH has done a great job and it will keep getting better!
Regardless, if you want to run a newer Rom you will probably want to upgrade you bootloader to 1.2. 1.1 development has pretty much ended, and even Viewsonic is finally moving to 1.2. If you aren't going to use ICS you can probably upgrade without using NvFlash, Visit this thread and follow the instructions to install the 1.1.3588 .zip to get back to stock (of course, wipe your data/cache), then just take the OTA update to get to 1.2. However, if you do decide to use NvFlash, please visit this thread first.

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