[Q] Need a bit of help - Vibrant Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

Problem: Whenever I boot my phone after the galaxy S logo dissapears the screen stays black, while the backlight on the touch sensitive buttons still come on.
So here is my background on what I have done with the phone
- It is on 2.1 Eclair
- Everything was fine. I had it rooted and running Bionix.
- When the problem started was when I was trying to install a matrix boot image, and a theme for Bionix.
- First symptons would it wouldnt get past the Vibrant (text) startup screen.
- In response I Restored to the Clockwork mod Restore which would have brang my phone back to normal.
- It did bring my phone back to normal except for one thing, there was a bug that said my cards were full and couldnt install any apps.
- So I went back into clockwork mod recovery and figured out quickly it didnt recognize my sd ext. But when my phone was on it did.
I understand that this problem is very out of now where and probably isnt very solveable with just a one click program. But I would be very thankful if anyone could give me any kind of information on this. Even if it is just saying "Its a problem with your Kernel". AlthoughI hope to see downloads and full instructions.
Thank for reading this.

CWM recovery is not supposed to be able to see your external sd, you are only supposed to be able to flash files from the internal sd.

Thanks given.
Do you know of any method I can do to fix this

You could Odin back to stock 2.1, but first turn off lag fix if there is one via voodoo app.

You want to ODIN using stock firmware and the 512 pit file. This will repartition your internal SD. You will (should) not lose personal data such as pictures, music, files.... You ended up trying to flash a theme or bootanimation that was not compatiable and when you restored traces of it have been left behind.
ODIN is the best method in these situations. Note that in rare cases it may be neccessary to do a full SD reformat.
The first thing you want to do is back everything up to your computer. All those pictures, music anything you want saved and then and only then try the odin with 512 pit.

If you need the files for odin you can check my sig for the odin exe pit file and tar file, if instead you need instructions on how to use odin i'd check here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=13132341#post13132341

shreddintyres said:
If you need the files for odin you can check my sig for the odin exe pit file and tar file, if instead you need instructions on how to use odin i'd check here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=13132341#post13132341
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for referring, I've also included the files in the guide just in case.

I certainly hope you aren't in a partitioning brick situation. I've seen this now twice and both were running Bionix 1.3.1 w/ Voodoo enabled and both somehow got certain bml partitions in an recognizable format by CWM and the Android OS. So far it hasn't been fixable with conventional flashing and PIT repartitioning. I will be trying a full JTAG re-write on one of the customer's phones tonight. I'll report back to this thread whether a JTAG session in which I fully re-write all addresses in the NAND block was able to fix this.
This marks the 3rd instance of what I'm referring to as partitioning bricking that was involved on a Vibrant that was running Bionix 1.3.1 at the time of the brick. I'm not blaming the ROM or the developer as I have used it with no issues and it's a great piece of work but perhaps the CWM packaged with it is allowing users to do things they don't intend to do causing this issue.

Thank you everyone very much for all the information and I was able to restore my phone back to stock 2.1 Eclair and then I flashed the rom bionix onto it.
I have given thanks to everyone that has posted from here on up ^^
Also if anyone is stuck in this situation also and Is reading this thing saying "what the heck I have no idea what to do". Just message me and I could full througho instructions.
Once again thank everyone and I have solved my problem. I am pretty sure it was the boot logo that made it happen.

Related

Problem rooting again....

I recently recovered my phone through ODIN and then upgraded to JI6 through Kies.....I wanted to re-root the phone and get it back to where it was before, but I'm having problems. I loaded the root file and put the update.zip in the root (not the avatar folder) and tried to update packages through recovery. I get an error message that says e:can't open /sdcard/update.zip no such file or directory. I checked the file type in both drives (avatar is on e: and everything else on g, the avatar folder shows a FAT file type, but the g: drive shows an unknown file type. I had received information to try a different update.zip file, but it won't change the error message I get when select update packages in recovery. What can I do? I've searched a lot of posts (and I risk a flaming on this one, I know), but I can't seem to find one that seems to follow my trail of getting to where I am at today. One last thing, when I was recovering through ODIN, i did not select repartition because i could not get the 512 pit file to populate in ODIN. Thanks to anybody who can help me (again).....
gtiryan said:
I recently recovered my phone through ODIN and then upgraded to JI6 through Kies.....I wanted to re-root the phone and get it back to where it was before, but I'm having problems. I loaded the root file and put the update.zip in the root (not the avatar folder) and tried to update packages through recovery. I get an error message that says e:can't open /sdcard/update.zip no such file or directory. I checked the file type in both drives (avatar is on e: and everything else on g, the avatar folder shows a FAT file type, but the g: drive shows an unknown file type. I had received information to try a different update.zip file, but it won't change the error message I get when select update packages in recovery. What can I do? I've searched a lot of posts (and I risk a flaming on this one, I know), but I can't seem to find one that seems to follow my trail of getting to where I am at today. One last thing, when I was recovering through ODIN, i did not select repartition because i could not get the 512 pit file to populate in ODIN. Thanks to anybody who can help me (again).....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ok....
are you SURE you are putting update.zip on the right sd card....it goes on the INTERNAL CARD ( the 16gb one )...
I'm pretty sure I am, this is the one where all of the apps and apk were stored previously?
ok then start over...
odin back to stock and re-root
ok, ODIN back to stock. No change for the update.zip. This time when I flashed I added the pit file, and also checked repartition. No change in anything regarding the message or anything from before. I have tried tyhe update before and after I went from JFD to JI6. I really have no basis to speak from, but it seems that the path from my e drive (avatar) to g drive (everything else), is where the problem is, or else I got a bad flash. They all look the same though. I assume I would need root to get anywhere other than JI6 anyway. Thanks again for your help with this. I do appreciate it.....
gtiryan said:
ok, ODIN back to stock. No change for the update.zip. This time when I flashed I added the pit file, and also checked repartition. No change in anything regarding the message or anything from before. I have tried tyhe update before and after I went from JFD to JI6. I really have no basis to speak from, but it seems that the path from my e drive (avatar) to g drive (everything else), is where the problem is, or else I got a bad flash. They all look the same though. I assume I would need root to get anywhere other than JI6 anyway. Thanks again for your help with this. I do appreciate it.....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ok....
1. when you Odin you are supposed to load both pit and tar files and not check repartition...
2.read that...http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=849028
3. are you trying to go to a stock JI6 ROM?? If so...why??
My suggestion:
Click on the Noob Guide (signature)
Download files
Load ODIN
Get phone in download mode
follow my instructions in the guide
You will then have a stock froyo leak + root
at that point I would backup, then flash something, maybe NeroV3 and then enable voodoo (if you like).
I don't see how the alt method could lead you wrong.
I apologize, I sincerely didn't notice anything that mentioned not to partition. Going forward, if I reflash through odin with the right pit and tar files WITHOUT checking partition, do you think I should be ok? As a note (if it even matters), all of my files and things were still in the internal sd card, although the new market is there from my old 2.1 rom. Not sure if it matters, just more information.
gtiryan said:
I apologize, I sincerely didn't notice anything that mentioned not to partition. Going forward, if I reflash through odin with the right pit and tar files WITHOUT checking partition, do you think I should be ok? As a note (if it even matters), all of my files and things were still in the internal sd card, although the new market is there from my old 2.1 rom. Not sure if it matters, just more information.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
just follow s15274n's guide...he wrote a nice guide for noobs (no offense)...it'll walk u through going back to stock and you'll be ok...
Excellent information, but one question since I'm still learning. Not in the way I had hoped, but trial-by-fire.....If I download the leaked froyo with root, don't I need root access first. Also if I can flash this through ODIN, where does the update file go in the ODIN screen, do I need the 512 pit file, what about the pda, phone csc windows, what do i poopulate in those options, if any. I do bow to your experience and knowledge. I promise once I get back to where I was before I may never do this again! All this from trying to flash a new kernal that was supposed to be compatible with all bionix platforms (I was running 1.9 w/jac's ocuv). Thanks again....
gtiryan said:
Excellent information, but one question since I'm still learning. Not in the way I had hoped, but trial-by-fire.....If I download the leaked froyo with root, don't I need root access first. Also if I can flash this through ODIN, where does the update file go in the ODIN screen, do I need the 512 pit file, what about the pda, phone csc windows, what do i poopulate in those options, if any. I do bow to your experience and knowledge. I promise once I get back to where I was before I may never do this again! All this from trying to flash a new kernal that was supposed to be compatible with all bionix platforms (I was running 1.9 w/jac's ocuv). Thanks again....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
(sigh)....
ok in Odin....as long as the phone is in Download mode...Odin has root access to the phone(technically) so just make sure you're in download mode...
Odin needs 2 files to flash a VIBRANT to stock...the pit and tar files...load the pit file in the PIT field and the tar goes in the PDA field..( i know its tricky) dont mess with any other settings...click start and WAIT
Odin is a flasher's best friend....learn to use it and you'll love it
In process now. I do like ODIN although yesterday afternoon, I would have rather taken a sharp instrument to the neck rather than use it. I preferred to use ROM manager or other methods. I know it means nothing to you guys that have experience, but this is a learning experience and one I am grateful for with all of the experience on these forums. I know you devs don't like these dumb questions, but sometimes kids just want to be professional football players but end up working in a supermarket instead....get back to you soon.
it said updating firmware then it's sitting on cache.rfs for about 5 minutes. no green loading symbol like when I flashed before. Not sure if I should unplug and retry....
waited about 20 minutes with it stuck at the cache.rfs line. Unplugged and retried. Same thing. I need to get a working phone at least for tonight. I tried one more time, but check repartition and it started loading completely. Maybe there's something wrong with one of the files? Not sure. Will update when I get home to my laptop.....
Use this version of ODIN (older versions are known to hang)
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=8863820&postcount=138
The files you need to get the leaked froyo + root: CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD
(IGNORE THE OLD OLDN VERSION IN THIS .ZIP - USE THE ONE I POSTED ABOVE)
1 - download the files to your pc
2 - open ODIN on your pc
3 - connect USB to pc (not to the phone)
4 - power off phone
5 - go into download mode (hold both volume keys... then insert usb to the phone)
6 - ODIN should be connected, and you should be in download mode
7 - load pit file
8 - load tar file
9 - click start
10 - it will run it's course, once done the phone will reboot
11 - once rebooted, go to stock recovery and wipe data/cache (I made this bold below for emphasis since not in the video)
I gotta hand it you guys, you really bailed me out and for that I am eternally grateful. I will have to scrape the funds together for whomever needs a donation, but it is well worth it. I have one last remaining question. Now that I have Eugene's Rom, am I safe to flash another ROM by update.zip, or is ODIN the only reliable way for me to get one on the phone. I like the phone better now, but it seems like it is an out of the box ROM, which is fine. I didn't mind bionix 1.9 on 2.1 either. I just made a big mistake. Anyways, thanks again, and whomever can answer my last question I will extend my thanks in advance!!
Download rom manager
Flash cwr
Make backup in cwr
D nownload nero v3
Flash it in cwr
Enable voodoo if you desires
Enjoy your much improved phone that has a stable backup for an emergency.
I you need detailedsteps for this, read my sticky threads.
I dowloaded ROM manager last night and flashed recovery. I went to recovery and applied packages. I'm still getting this error that says the update.zip file is invalid through my e: drive (avatar folder). I just looked on both e and f. I can't seem to find any update.zip file on either card and I can't seem to flash any other ROM or even enter CW recovery. I looked at another post from someone and noticed that I never pulled my external sd card when I used ODIN to go back to stock or flash Eugene's ROM that I was suggested to use. Any formats I could try or tricks to suggest. I've looked around, but I'm not sure if this is a partition issue, an sd card (internal or external), or otherwise. Thanks again....
i noticed that there were a lot of additional file in places i didn't notice originally. I found in the CW file a recover-update and I thought that might be confusing things, I put it in a seperate folder and retried cw recovery, but that didn't work.

Rooting the Fascinate Regardless of OS Version

post no longer relevant
If you want to update this, My modified cwm thread has the RED clockwork odin package.
adrynalyne said:
If you want to update this, My modified cwm thread has the RED clockwork odin package.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i think omj is going to change his op on af...ill copy that over when he does
When I get in Odin and select CWMRecovery_DJ05_DL09.tar.md5, it fails.
I did not touch any settings in Odin, just clicked PDA and selected that file.
Edit: Redownloaded that file and got it to work. I am now having an issue when applying update.zip... it starts but then comes up with an exclamation point inside of a triangle and the little Android guy... phone reboots fine.
Did you get this solved? Check out the thread at AF I had the same problem
worked like a charm..thanks!
SoCalSpecialist said:
worked like a charm..thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ok so i havent been able to find a full answer..but does this leave the device in DI01 or 05 or 09?
just by looking at the files it seems as if it goes from 05 to 09 but once in about phone>build number it reads : DI01
so im just looking for a little clarification here..just rooted my Facinate minutes ago so im still stuck in the whole mindset of the Incredible.
I tried this. Have EA28. Not sure how. Didn't install. Saw install screen on phone last night and hit cancel.
Anyway, Ran Odin, CWMRecovery_DJ05_DL09.tar.md5, reboot, blue text, apply sdcard:update.zip, switched to red text, install zip from sd card, choose zip from sd card, su-2.3.6.1+busybox1.19.zip, choose zip from sd card, DJ05_DL09_kernel.zip (plain kernel due to dl09), ran titanium backup, could not acquire root priv.
Startup screen has sound, but not animation anymore. Installed superuser and it shows titanium backup under "allow". When I run TB, I get the error screen and below in another small screen says, "Titanium Backup has been granted superuser permissions". But can't get anywhere to backup apps. Says Root Access: Failed.
ideas?
Another thing that confused me was the red cwm says voodoo lagfix recovery v2.5.1.x. I thought you weren't supposed to use any voodoo for DL30? Not that I've made it that far due to titanium backup issue, but....
Can anyone confirm whether or not this to sure does or doesn't work with ea28? My wife updated he phone and now she wants it rooted.
Edit this does work for EA28. Everything went smoothly. Thanks nitsuj.
Sent from my SCH-I500 using XDA App
mdisaac said:
When I get in Odin and select CWMRecovery_DJ05_DL09.tar.md5, it fails.
I did not touch any settings in Odin, just clicked PDA and selected that file.
Edit: Redownloaded that file and got it to work. I am now having an issue when applying update.zip... it starts but then comes up with an exclamation point inside of a triangle and the little Android guy... phone reboots fine.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I also got stuck at the same screen. what did you do to resolve it????
Here is the link to my guide for rooting with a MAC. I do not have a PC and used these steps to successfully root my phone. After completing last step in guide and getting blue cwm on your phone, DL new red cwm and install
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=967641
Sent from my SCH-I500 using XDA Premium App
EA28 going to DL09?
Hello..
I am just getting around to rooting my fascinate now. I have EA28. From the instructions, it appears you are going back to DL09. Is that correct? What is the significance of that? Should I care?
Thanks in advance!
This thread is old and should be deprecated. The directions still work, but you need to use the Odin package of ClockworkMod in this thread (it's the very first item linked) instead of the md5 file (DL05_DJ09) above.
However, if you're going custom the thing you should *really* do is Odin in one of the full-Froyo packages. This will include both root and recovery.
s44 said:
This thread is old and should be deprecated. The directions still work, but you need to use the Odin package of ClockworkMod in this thread (it's the very first item linked) instead of the md5 file (DL05_DJ09) above.
However, if you're going custom the thing you should *really* do is Odin in one of the full-Froyo packages. This will include both root and recovery.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks S44. My goal is to go froyo, but I need to be rooted first in order to do that.
I have been reading all the threads but many of them are very long. The DL30 thread is over 50 pages long.
So should I:
1) follow the instructions in this thread but use the new ClockworkMod then
2) update to froyo.
What is the most current thread for updating to froyo on the fascinate while after I am rooted?
Appreciate it.
TheTinRam said:
Thanks S44. My goal is to go froyo, but I need to be rooted first in order to do that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually, no you don't. Download mode is magic. You *do* need to be rooted to back up apps with Titanium, if you want to do that. In that case, follow the directions above (with the new recovery). Then back up your user apps + app data.
Whether or not you do this, you should move to Froyo with a full-Odin package. Download the ROM you want (either Nameless, Super Clean, or whatever) in zip form to your SD card. Follow the directions here (under "Most Thorough Method of Fixing Every Problem You Might Have") using the first two files here and the recovery I mentioned in my previous post. Yes, this is sort of overkill, but better to avoid stuff like corrupted dbdata from the beginning and not have to fix it later.
You might want to wait a day or so because it looks like jt is finally fixing up Clockwork.
EDIT: I read almost all of the 52 pages of the DL30 thread to realize that DL30 is out of date . I guess Its going to be EB01 or Superclean. Do you know if Superclean has the audio out via USB working for the docks?
I have some questions in regards to picking ROMs:
I am a little confused in where to find the latest versions. For example in the "most thorough me..." thread, there is a link to super clean version form 3/30/2011 yet wiki has super clean from last year. Where can I look at all the ROMs and descriptions?
Which froyo ROM would you recommend? I love Google's stock froyo, but I also want to use the fascinate's USB audio out on the car and desktop dock. I also would like to wifi tether.
Thanks again!
This post had a link to download ODIN but it was removed. Could you please provide that link again. It also had a link to "Samsung Drivers", don't I need that too?
I am going to take a shot at following the ""Most Thorough Method..." steps tomorrow morning and install superclean on my Facinate. Quick Q: In step one, it simply says to ODIN EB01. I can just do this without being rooted?
Also, you said jt is fixing up clockwork. What do you mean by this, what exactly does not work?
I know these are noob questions, but I am just starting out with this.
Thanks
Driver links are here. Odin is here.
Yes, download mode lets you Odin in complete firmware packages without root.
Most people are using Super Clean, so that has the most support (and themes), but there are some odd issues floating around with it. My guess is that a lot of those issues have to do with not cleaning up in the super-thorough way I'm suggesting, and with the permissions bug after flashing a theme (below). There's also navendrob's EC10-based "Nameless" ROM, and ahmgsk's DL30-based "TrulyFascinating" ROM. Nameless is good but he's about to drop a version 4 with a lot of fixes, so you might wait a day or so for that. TrulyFascinating seemed to be pretty good (heavily stability-tested), but he hasn't updated it in a while (busy with more recent Epic leaks, I guess). You might try running it with one of the state-of-the-art EC10 Voodoo kernels.
There are a couple of Clockwork bugs, but the one causing the most current problems is that the old one couldn't fix permissions properly. This causes issues after making a change to the /system after the initial ROM flash, generally when you flash a theme on top of it. The new one I linked above *can* fix permissions, but still requires you to manually mount /dbdata beforehand (actually, go to the "mounts and storage" submenu and make sure /system /dbdata and /data are all mounted -- that is, the option referring to them says "unmount", which will happen when they're mounted -- before you go to the "advanced" submenu and run the fix permissions script). The new new one coming soon will just fix it without a problem, and do other stuff too.
Once again thanks. I have everything I need....or so I thought.
I restored my phone to factory, loaded the drivers, fired up ODIN and added the PDA and PIT. I hit start.... nothing happens. "All threads complete, succeed 0 / failed 0"
Looks like I am missing something. Do I need to somehow tell ODIN where the phone is? I don't see a way to do that.
PS in step 4 its states "ODIN the CWM Recovery package ROM from this post". Does CWM bin file go into PDA or phone in ODIN?
I one again apologize for my noobiness.
The Clockwork step comes after you do the full package and boot with that.
Make sure you have Odin open *before* you connect the phone in download mode.

After rushing in, ODIN is not helping me to recover =(

Hi I'm a new member,
I rooted my fascinate easily enough. Then searching and learning about ROMs and Kernels I decided to do use ODIN CWM Recovery to 'backup' or whatever most forums tell you to before installing a new ROM. Point is my phone is stuck in manual boot mode and I cannot undo it.
I have tried multiple times using ODIN plus the four stock files
Stock-i500-VZW-Kernel.tar.md5
Stock-i500-VZW-pit.pit
Stock-i500-VZW-Recovery.tar.md5
Stock-i500-VZW-System.tar.md5
(I always would try to implement them in order pit/system, pit/kernel, pit/recovery)
Unfortunately after the first one (pit/system) ODIN says the process fails, I go ahead with the other two and they both amount to nothing happening. My phone does not reset or do anything for this matter and I am forced to shut down ODIN and unplug my phone (upon which it dies with no battery).
Then I put back in the battery and Im back to before in manual boot mode with
Reboot system Now
Apply sdcard:update.zip
wipe data/factory rset
wipe cache partition
Btw wiped data and wiped cache and it didn't help me =(.
Please someone help me, I really don't want this new phone to be dead... Thanks in advance
Oh and when I press "apply sdcard:update.zip" I receive
E:Can't mount \dev\block\vold\179:9
(No such file or directory)
E:Can't mount SDCARD:update.zip
Installation aborted.
I really don't care at all about keeping the phone rooted or not or whatever. I just want to be able to make calls again!
So it looks like you're stuck in blue recovery ... sounds like something that Odining a stock package should fix.
Here is a nice thread for getting back to stock (it's a sticky in the general section). The packages include system, recovery, kernel, and radio in a single file (I've actually never odin'd four separate files to get back to stock, or even ever flashed a system-only file), though no pit file.
So open up odin with your phone in download mode (with the battery out, otherwise there's a small chance of odin stalling at the end), and use:
- either the DI01 all-in-one, EB01 all-in-one, or this DL09 package in PDA
- the pit file in PIT (the link says DI01/EB01 but it also works with DL09)
- check "re-partition" if it isn't already checked
- run odin and hopefully in five minutes your phone will work again If for some reason it doesn't, that thread has instructions for using heimdall, although I've never had to resort to it.
So try this and see if it works! (For which package to use, I'd suggest trying DL09 first (since you'll need it to get to the official froyo build) and DI01 if that fails. If you're wondering whether DL09+pit actually works, I've used it to get out of a "stuck in blue recovery after odining stuff" situation myself so yes, it works.)
Thank you for the response! It's encouraging to hear any support and I think yours is promising.
So unfortunately I tried D101 and no go. Turns out this was before I realized this was for 2.1 and I'd prefer 2.2 for the upgrades. Although would you suggest 2.1 for the purpose of rooting/ROMing/Kerneling in the future? I ask because I'm slowly gaining confidence that after fixing this I might be willing to try this again...
Odin (1.7 -> I decided at your poster friend's advice to upgrade from 1.3) worked well said 'pass' and everything. Unfortunately when booting my phone it went straight to the boot screen as always.
Meanwhile I'm downloading the EB01 and your suggested DL09 to test those two.
Hopefully one of those will work but if not, I guess I'll try that heimdall technique the poster suggested in the other forum. Hopefully not tho b/c it looks a bit more complicated.
I'll let ya know if one of these others works.
Yes it worked!! Thank you so much! I would buy you a round at the ale house if I could!
After running EB01 it worked (with the pit file going all the way back to factory settings). So I'm not sure what this means - maybe since it was after upgrading to 2.2 that my phone bugged out, it could only be restored to the 2.2 state which is EB01?? Idk, thanks anways.
Oh ya for the future if I try do this again - would you suggest I stay away from ROM Manager for backing up, which I believe is what started this problem in the first place? It seemed like ODIN did a fine job of managing my OS. Any thoughts? Thankss!!
mattjac1 said:
Yes it worked!! Thank you so much! I would buy you a round at the ale house if I could!
After running EB01 it worked (with the pit file going all the way back to factory settings). So I'm not sure what this means - maybe since it was after upgrading to 2.2 that my phone bugged out, it could only be restored to the 2.2 state which is EB01?? Idk, thanks anways.
Oh ya for the future if I try do this again - would you suggest I stay away from ROM Manager for backing up, which I believe is what started this problem in the first place? It seemed like ODIN did a fine job of managing my OS. Any thoughts? Thankss!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Definately stay away from rom manager cwm if you have the voodoo lagfix enabled, but since all the new fascinate roms are edify scripted, flashing through cwm in rom manager would be ok.
Sent from my Froyo'd Evil Fascinate full of PB&J

Q: blank screen after T-Mo splash animation, possible to fix without wiping?

Hello all,
I have a question that has not been answered after many hours of searching. Hopefully I'm just dumb, and my buddy's stock firmware and data isn't hosed. I'm trying to get his stock firmware running again so I can back it up safely.
What I've done:
Tried to flash CWM's update.zip via stock recovery (signature verification failed on the three different zip's I could find in the forums and various links)
Used Heimdall to push "cmenard-T959-CWM" zImage (this worked, and I get a different screen at boot)
The phone boots to the point of the T-Mobile splash screen with the annoying shriek sound, but goes to a black screen after. If i touch any of the soft buttons, they light up and remain lit. It'll stay like that for at least 20 minutes.
Is it possible to re-flash the system partition and not the data partitions using ODIN? Is that even feasible? Like I mentioned above, I'd like to get the stock firmware running such that I can make a good backup of it with all the user data intact. I haven't been able to because the CWM+root wouldn't flash.
Any suggestions or insight would be greatly appreciated.
thanks in advance!
Well as long as you don't format the internal SD, any pictures and videos and things should remain intact.
Here is a similar thread. See if it resembles your issue.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/archive/index.php/t-794869.html
Toast6977 said:
Well as long as you don't format the internal SD, any pictures and videos and things should remain intact.
Here is a similar thread. See if it resembles your issue.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/archive/index.php/t-794869.html
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the suggestion, Toast. I don't believe the internal SD has been messed with, and I don't plan to mess with it either. The thread you linked is not quite related to my issue, as far as I can tell.
I am able to get into Download Mode, and the Stock Recovery mode as well. However every time I try to flash an 'update.zip' with the Stock Recovery, I get an error about Signature Verification Failure.
After stepping back from it for a day, I think I've gained some clarity. Since all I've done is flash a different Kernel with Heimdall, I'm going to try to flash a stock kernel then see what happens.
Is this phone on stock Froyo or have you got it back to JFD (eclair)?
If Froyo, that's the problem. Using Odin back to Eclair and run update.zip. It won't work from stock Froyo.
*-*- I made some assumptions in my previous post. The shrieking sound. Black screen. Lights stay lit. Sounded like a poltergeist.
Glad you can get in download mode and recovery.
The old 2E vs 3E problem. Nice catch Toast
Give this a whirl: recovery 3e modified to work like recovery 2e
Might have to ABD push it to your internal SD card though.
Toast6977 said:
Is this phone on stock Froyo or have you got it back to JFD (eclair)?
If Froyo, that's the problem. Using Odin back to Eclair and run update.zip. It won't work from stock Froyo.
*-*- I made some assumptions in my previous post. The shrieking sound. Black screen. Lights stay lit. Sounded like a poltergeist.
Glad you can get in download mode and recovery.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Woodrube said:
The old 2E vs 3E problem. Nice catch Toast
Give this a whirl: recovery 3e modified to work like recovery 2e
Might have to ABD push it to your internal SD card though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hahaha poltergeist!
Wow, so I'm glad I asked. I wouldn't have known about this issue, as I do not have any history with this device.
I know that the ROM is currently 2.2, and the Android System Recovery is showing "3e".
If I understand correctly, once I'm ready to flash up to ICS, I'll need to ODIN back to 2.1 to get Android System Recovery "2e", which will let me flash 'update.zip' packages freely. Then I flash an 'update.zip' to get CWM, then flash CM7, then CM9 (and CM9 is my intended destination).
The things mentioned in the thread you linked do appear to apply to my situation.
However I still want to get the stock OS booted and working, then do a Nandroid backup of it. (it's the computer tech/security pro in me. Since I'm new to this device, I -tried- to read up on everything first, and didn't want to make a change without being sure it would work.)
Does anyone happen to know if flashing a stock kernel over the 'cmenard' kernel will harm anything, and hopefully get a successful boot? Again, I'm trying to get the stock ROM booting again in order to verify I have everything I need off of it, then do a nandroid backup. Flashing to CM9 will come afterwards.
Ok, here are some things for you.
Here is a kernel pack that you can use. Read the OP because there are Froyo AND Gingerbread kernels in there.
[KERNELS] Moped_Ryder SGS Kernel Pack v2 [20+ Froyo/GB Kernels]
I really suggest using something like BaliX 1.2 or BaliUV kernels to make your back up. They are smooth, fast and OC/UV-able. To flash just Wipe /cache, /dalvik -> flash kernel -> Wipe /cache, /dalvik (I also fix permissions too bc that is the way that I learned and I just do it that way all the time). Reboot and Bam!! you should be able to get to the point that you can make a backup.
Look in my signature, there are downloads and flashables that are direct download linked. There is also an ICS install guide that can help your journey. Once you have your backup, then use Odin from the Toolbox in my signature and flash back to stock JFD. From there you will be able to follow my guide.
If you need any files, just let me know and I will upload them when I get home (won't be until late though, i have plans right after work).
Using HB, can I choose any theme? I am not so acquainted with the Theme chooser and boot animation of my phone. I flashed a boot animation zip yesterday and it was stuck in "ANDROID" screen. So I have to flash again. I never used any boot animation and themes in my phone yet. I want to know about them.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using xda app-developers app
Wrong thread. Put that question in the Jelly Bean Banter thread. No need to hijack this thread until we get OP up and running.
Ugh, so I've been on vacation for a while, and since being back I've been super freaking busy =(
Finally spent some time with the phone tonight. Took some fiddling to get the right drivers working for the phone on my Win7x64 laptop.
In any case, I checked out that Kernel thread, and extracted the Bali kernel. Since I had flashed successfully(?) with Heimdall at first, and I'm becoming more familiar with it, I used it to flash the Bali_1.8.8-zImage. That appeared to work, as I get a new boot screen/animation with the Bali logo.
However, after the Bali logo disappears, the T-Mobile animation+sound plays, and then gives me a black screen. The screen is on (backlight is on) but all black. Also, if I touch a soft-button, they'll light up and the phone will remain in that state for as long as I can stand to wait. (one episode of Archer)
So, it's doing the same thing as before, but with a new boot logo/animation.
I wonder if something else in the ROM has been messed up? Should I forget trying to save it, and just use ODIN to flash a whole new rom/kernel package? I'll talk to the owner tomorrow and see if he's now willing to do that.
I also wonder if I was wrong to use Heimdall again, instead of using the CWM method. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but I think those two methods end up doing the exact same thing. Is one method more reliable than the other?
Bah, this sucks; I have more questions than answers at this point =( Any ideas, Woodrube, Toast?
maxpeet said:
Ugh, so I've been on vacation for a while, and since being back I've been super freaking busy =(
Finally spent some time with the phone tonight. Took some fiddling to get the right drivers working for the phone on my Win7x64 laptop.
In any case, I checked out that Kernel thread, and extracted the Bali kernel. Since I had flashed successfully(?) with Heimdall at first, and I'm becoming more familiar with it, I used it to flash the Bali_1.8.8-zImage. That appeared to work, as I get a new boot screen/animation with the Bali logo.
However, after the Bali logo disappears, the T-Mobile animation+sound plays, and then gives me a black screen. The screen is on (backlight is on) but all black. Also, if I touch a soft-button, they'll light up and the phone will remain in that state for as long as I can stand to wait. (one episode of Archer)
So, it's doing the same thing as before, but with a new boot logo/animation.
I wonder if something else in the ROM has been messed up? Should I forget trying to save it, and just use ODIN to flash a whole new rom/kernel package? I'll talk to the owner tomorrow and see if he's now willing to do that.
I also wonder if I was wrong to use Heimdall again, instead of using the CWM method. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but I think those two methods end up doing the exact same thing. Is one method more reliable than the other?
Bah, this sucks; I have more questions than answers at this point =( Any ideas, Woodrube, Toast?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wrong they are not the same. cwm can do the work without a PC beside you can erase, back up , restore and flash, which make our life easier, heimdall or Odin ," I prefer odin "are the last option when you can't fix it with cwm
To fix your phone use Odin or heimdall and go back to stock don't worry all your files, photo, music, will be safe. Then
1 get root on you , if you don't how ask
2 get cWm
3 do a nandroid back up
4 have fun flashing all roms you want lol
Sent from my SGH-T989 using xda app-developers app
Yeah, I would just Odin back to stock JFD w/ repartition checked...
Then I'd flash something real stable for him. There are lots of stable ROMs to choose from. I used Bionix V for a long time before moving onto Jelly Bean.
Since the phone belongs to someone else, I'd stick with something lower than JB though. 911 can have/has issues.
Toast6977 said:
Yeah, I would just Odin back to stock JFD w/ repartition checked...
Then I'd flash something real stable for him. There are lots of stable ROMs to choose from. I used Bionix V for a long time before moving onto Jelly Bean.
Since the phone belongs to someone else, I'd stick with something lower than JB though. 911 can have/has issues.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
do no check de re-partition button and use a .pit file follow this tutorial and you will be fine
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=848737

[Q] Trouble with Geewiz

Have not flashed anything in quite some time. Odin'd back to stock then odin'd to 4.4. Was going to connect phone to XP pc but wouldnt recognize it. Did the tap 7 times trick turned on debugging. Turned off phone. Upon restart I am stuck on the turn on samsung logo. I have done nothing more than what I have wrote. I can make it go into EDIFY recovery but nothing else. Walked off and left phone for about 15 minutes still on Samsung logo.
Thoughts on fixing this or getting back to stock even so I can try again?
kriscris said:
Have not flashed anything in quite some time. Odin'd back to stock then odin'd to 4.4. Was going to connect phone to XP pc but wouldnt recognize it. Did the tap 7 times trick turned on debugging. Turned off phone. Upon restart I am stuck on the turn on samsung logo. I have done nothing more than what I have wrote. I can make it go into EDIFY recovery but nothing else. Walked off and left phone for about 15 minutes still on Samsung logo.
Thoughts on fixing this or getting back to stock even so I can try again?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's possible that it could have been a bum ODIN session, did you remove the SDCARD and the battery while executing the ODIN? For whatever reason, ODIN seems to occasionally screw up if the SDCARD or the battery is present (I have no idea why, and it's not exactly commonplace). Also, I learned from some folks that PMed me that GeeWiz 4.4 is "too big" for some devices, there is almost no room left on the SYSTEM volume on my dev phones with GW 4.4, and that seems to have caused a problem for at least some iterations of the Fascinate. I apologize for this, I thought all Fascinates were created equal
When you ODINed back to stock, did you specify the .PIT file if you were using a custom ROM (all current custom ROMs for the Fascinate that I am aware of *except* GeeWiz modify the device partition table).
> If you still want to give GeeWiz 4 a shot, here's what I recommend since you can still get into Recovery. Power down, download this newer version of GeeWiz 4: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=40050730&postcount=288 and put that file on your SDCARD. Replace the SDCARD, boot into Recovery and install that. Then, do a Factory Reset (Wipe Device Data / Wipe all User Data (Factory Reset)). That version of the ROM is smaller, the reports have been that it's small enough to fit on the devices where v4.4 is problematic.
> If you want to just go back to stock and try a different ROM, there should be no problem with that at all, you can just ODIN back to EH03 like you did before and install the ROM of your choosing, as far as I know all of them are equipped to deal with a stock device. If you need a known-good full EH03 package, I have one posted here for everyone: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=36427778&postcount=3, along with a copy of ODIN for the Fascinate and the mystical PIT file GeeWiz uses the stock partitions, so you shouldn't NEED the .pit file after going full stock, but I wanted people to have easy access to it, since it can be elusive to find.
I apologize for the difficulty, and thank you for trying my little GeeWiz ROM! I have a new (v4.5) version built that is almost identical to that zip-based version I linked above, but have not made the ODIN files for it yet, and probably won't get to that for at least a few days. Based on your description, my guess is that it was a bad ODIN or the partition tables are wonky and perhaps trying again with the SDCARD removed, battery removed, and specifying the .PIT file may clear this up. If the ROM is too big for your version of the Fascinate, I could also link up the previous (v4.3) iteration of the ROM for you, but I forget what bugs/challenges there were in that version. (It was like SO last month - lol)
Good luck, and please let us know how it goes for you.
Thanks
I just want to start off by saying thanks. I havent flashed anything in a while and maybe a forgot a few things. Its also nice to see a Dev putting so much into a project. BRAVO. I always prided myself on reading and looking for an answer before just asking.
Knowing a couple things I odin'd back to stock and then odin'd your ROM again and now it works beautifully. This is all I have done. Taken no other steps. If there is another step I didnt know it or do it. However 3 days and I couldnt be happier. Battery is going a little faster but thats never been a real issue for me.
My only problem now is I placed the edify update in the root of the sd card but when I reboot into recovery its not there. I took it off redownloaded it and put it on again same issue. Did I miss a step?
Thanks again for all the work. Breathed a bit of new life into a phone I was thinking about replacing.
djp952 said:
It's possible that it could have been a bum ODIN session, did you remove the SDCARD and the battery while executing the ODIN? For whatever reason, ODIN seems to occasionally screw up if the SDCARD or the battery is present (I have no idea why, and it's not exactly commonplace). Also, I learned from some folks that PMed me that GeeWiz 4.4 is "too big" for some devices, there is almost no room left on the SYSTEM volume on my dev phones with GW 4.4, and that seems to have caused a problem for at least some iterations of the Fascinate. I apologize for this, I thought all Fascinates were created equal
When you ODINed back to stock, did you specify the .PIT file if you were using a custom ROM (all current custom ROMs for the Fascinate that I am aware of *except* GeeWiz modify the device partition table).
> If you still want to give GeeWiz 4 a shot, here's what I recommend since you can still get into Recovery. Power down, download this newer version of GeeWiz 4: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=40050730&postcount=288 and put that file on your SDCARD. Replace the SDCARD, boot into Recovery and install that. Then, do a Factory Reset (Wipe Device Data / Wipe all User Data (Factory Reset)). That version of the ROM is smaller, the reports have been that it's small enough to fit on the devices where v4.4 is problematic.
> If you want to just go back to stock and try a different ROM, there should be no problem with that at all, you can just ODIN back to EH03 like you did before and install the ROM of your choosing, as far as I know all of them are equipped to deal with a stock device. If you need a known-good full EH03 package, I have one posted here for everyone: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=36427778&postcount=3, along with a copy of ODIN for the Fascinate and the mystical PIT file GeeWiz uses the stock partitions, so you shouldn't NEED the .pit file after going full stock, but I wanted people to have easy access to it, since it can be elusive to find.
I apologize for the difficulty, and thank you for trying my little GeeWiz ROM! I have a new (v4.5) version built that is almost identical to that zip-based version I linked above, but have not made the ODIN files for it yet, and probably won't get to that for at least a few days. Based on your description, my guess is that it was a bad ODIN or the partition tables are wonky and perhaps trying again with the SDCARD removed, battery removed, and specifying the .PIT file may clear this up. If the ROM is too big for your version of the Fascinate, I could also link up the previous (v4.3) iteration of the ROM for you, but I forget what bugs/challenges there were in that version. (It was like SO last month - lol)
Good luck, and please let us know how it goes for you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
kriscris said:
I just want to start off by saying thanks. I havent flashed anything in a while and maybe a forgot a few things. Its also nice to see a Dev putting so much into a project. BRAVO. I always prided myself on reading and looking for an answer before just asking.
Knowing a couple things I odin'd back to stock and then odin'd your ROM again and now it works beautifully. This is all I have done. Taken no other steps. If there is another step I didnt know it or do it. However 3 days and I couldnt be happier. Battery is going a little faster but thats never been a real issue for me.
My only problem now is I placed the edify update in the root of the sd card but when I reboot into recovery its not there. I took it off redownloaded it and put it on again same issue. Did I miss a step?
Thanks again for all the work. Breathed a bit of new life into a phone I was thinking about replacing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No problem, I'm happy that it's useful for you, and I truly appreciate the kind words!
My recovery has a limitation that could be at fault here, it doesn't allow you to scroll beyond one screen of files. If the .zip is alphabetically beyond what the list will show, there is no way to select it :crying: If that's the case, you can rename it so it's aplhabetically higher up (or you can wait for me to actually do something about that limitation, but it's been that way forever .. I may have some extended off time from work coming up, perhaps I should make good on that fix ... it's been a problem for over a year I think!
The other possibility I can think of is that the file isn't really "there". How are you copying the file to the SDCARD? I've found that if the SDCARD isn't unmounted properly files are frequently truncated/lost. For example, if you are plugging the phone into a Windows PC, you should be certain to 'safely remove' it before unplugging it or turning off USB access from the phone (also applies to Linux). If you are physically removing the card and using a PC to copy the file, same thing, it should be 'safely removed' or unmounted before disconnecting it and plugging it back into the phone. If you are indeed physically removing the card, also be sure if the phone is ON when you do it to go into Settings/Storage and choose "Unmount SD card" before you pull it out. If the phone is off you can just eject it.
I hope one of these suggestions solves the problem. Please post back if not!!
Fixed
djp952 said:
No problem, I'm happy that it's useful for you, and I truly appreciate the kind words!
My recovery has a limitation that could be at fault here, it doesn't allow you to scroll beyond one screen of files. If the .zip is alphabetically beyond what the list will show, there is no way to select it :crying: If that's the case, you can rename it so it's aplhabetically higher up (or you can wait for me to actually do something about that limitation, but it's been that way forever .. I may have some extended off time from work coming up, perhaps I should make good on that fix ... it's been a problem for over a year I think!
The other possibility I can think of is that the file isn't really "there". How are you copying the file to the SDCARD? I've found that if the SDCARD isn't unmounted properly files are frequently truncated/lost. For example, if you are plugging the phone into a Windows PC, you should be certain to 'safely remove' it before unplugging it or turning off USB access from the phone (also applies to Linux). If you are physically removing the card and using a PC to copy the file, same thing, it should be 'safely removed' or unmounted before disconnecting it and plugging it back into the phone. If you are indeed physically removing the card, also be sure if the phone is ON when you do it to go into Settings/Storage and choose "Unmount SD card" before you pull it out. If the phone is off you can just eject it.
I hope one of these suggestions solves the problem. Please post back if not!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It was the alphabetically ordered problem. Took about 5 minutes to fix. Thank you again.

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