[Q] Galaxy S2 - Start - Galaxy S II Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

So, The day finally arrived!. I can now official shift from the ****tiest phone(BlackBerry 9700) to the awesomeone ( Samsung Galaxy S2)
I would like to make the phone more awesome, so this is a totally new beginning in my mobile phones experiences.
A total n00b, just want to receive a few advices to get me started ,if is a must to update the stock firmware, how can I start to modify my kernels, ROMS ,etc
Your replies will be highly appreciated!

Read the stickies in development sections.
But in short flash cfroot kernel with Odin and then flash rom you desire with the cwm.
Sent from my GT-I9100

nishtala.raj said:
So, The day finally arrived!. I can now official shift from the ****tiest phone(BlackBerry 9700) to the awesomeone ( Samsung Galaxy S2)
I would like to make the phone more awesome, so this is a totally new beginning in my mobile phones experiences.
A total n00b, just want to receive a few advices to get me started ,if is a must to update the stock firmware, how can I start to modify my kernels, ROMS ,etc
Your replies will be highly appreciated!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is not necessary a must to update firmware unless and other wise required
Anyway having latest is always good in terms of bug fixing etc.
You can use KIES for starters for updating Firmwares. Read the threads in XDA on ROM Flashing using ODIN , ROOT, modifying kernels etc then you can start play around with your phone. Stock firmware is quite good in my opinion.
have fun

Related

I got a few questions, Please have a look :)

Hi guys,
So I am new to all there android related things, I am very much interested in upgrading my android firmware.
The little says it all, it would be great if someone can help me with this,it would be nice
I have a few questions too.
1, What is the easiest way to upgrade my firmware and will there be any risk to my mobile ?
2, are the methods same for installing custom Roms too?
3, and what would you recommend me to Install? The official firmware or a custom Rom?
Thanks in advance
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
EDIT :
Thanks for your replies guys,
Now i wanna know some other things.
1, I'm from India and There is no Gingerbread 2.3 Version upgrade released here till now..Is it ok if i install the 2.3 update that belongs to other countries?
2, which is the best custom rom available for Galaxy Ace till now ?
1.through odin or kies (kies for official, odin for custom and unofficial) there is always a risk when flashing roms although i nvr bricked mine b4
2.custom roms are thru odin
3.ur choice
Sent from my GT-S5830 using XDA App
3. Better to use Custom ROMs, no bloatware apps ans highly customizable
Thanks!
Thanks for your replies guys,
Now i wanna know some other things.
1, I'm from India and There is no Gingerbread 2.3 Version upgrade released here till now..Is it ok if i install the 2.3 update that belongs to other countries?
2, which is the best custom rom available for Galaxy Ace till now ?
Hameedhudeen said:
Thanks for your replies guys,
Now i wanna know some other things.
1, I'm from India and There is no Gingerbread 2.3 Version upgrade released here till now..Is it ok if i install the 2.3 update that belongs to other countries?
2, which is the best custom rom available for Galaxy Ace till now ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. Yup, no problem.
2. All a matter of personal preference, just try them out and decide for yourself.
Cheers
Just some words from a pseudo-noob:
I've flashed two roms in my new Galaxy Ace and about 10 roms in my old HTC Touch. I've never bricked my phone and nothing never went wrong or different from the tutorials.
Maybe it's luck, but I have another guess, and I'm posting some tips here:
* I believe most of the time bricking happens is when you interrupt the flashing process;
* So, try to do the flashing process with:
- Phone with full (or almost full) battery;
- Notebook with good battery or Desktop with a good nobreak;
- An stable operating system. Be carefull with softwares that "steals" CPU in the middle of other processes or that asks to reboot your Desktop. The last thing you want is to reboot your PC while flashing a rom.
And the most important, in my opinion:
* Don't be lazy! Read a lot from the forums. Post your doubts and clear them. Be sure you're using the right software and version, the right files etc.
Sometimes we want to test a Rom or a software very quickly but the time we spent to gain some knowledge about it is worth it, it can free us from bigger problems in the future or even from a bricked device.
--
Sorry about my English.

Getting Confused more and more..Need Help

Hi Guys as my title Says..
i need Help very Badly.
First of all MODS and USERS i'm sorry i didn't knew where to post this thread so if its in in-appropriate section please move it to correct section. THanks
OK my problem is this.
i recently (less than a week ago ) bought a Samsung Galaxy S2 its by Bell Canada and its i9100M. i bought it online since my service provider is Rogers.
i guess this phone is already rooted to unlock it and i can see CWM and SU icon there.
Well i'm a Hardcore Blackberry Fan and have been using Blackberries from last 6 years. I loved the new samsung because of it looks and its screen.
I Had Lot of Problem with it like setting up my yahoo as push email, setting the Ringtone Profile, setting up the Custom Ringtones for Text Messages..
Having wrong time stamps on Recieved TEXT Message.. well i fixed all those by installing apps from market and forwarding my yahoo to my gmail...
i Hated doing all that but infront of the beauty of this phone i had to compromise but today it took 3 hours to find my gps location and day by day im using it i'm hating it .....
SO OK I DID MY RESEARCH AND FOUND OUT ALOT... the more i'm researching the more i'm getting confused...
first of all what is the difference between custom ROM and KERNEL.
i know custom rom could be like operating system but customized by unofficial person.
what the h is KERNEL..
to install rom's or kernel do i really have to root.
To unlock do i have to root or is there a paying method.
also i want to know if i'll go back to stock rom can i still unlock it.and recieve all the updates from samsung or google specially when ICS will be launched.
after unlocking and installing custom root. can i unroot it
and lastly which is best custom kernel and which is the best rom availble.
since been a blackberry user i have very basic needs. i don't play any games or download much apps and if an app is paid..i'll pay for it.. i don't want to jailbreak anything .
all i need is better battery life, gps and network coverage.
Thanks for taking time to read and reply.
Hi there.
I'll try and get through your questions as simply as possible,
Imagine your phone is like a car
A kernel is like the engine of a car - it's the low level machinery that keeps it going.
The Rom is like the body of the car around the engine. Roms can be official (or Stock Roms), or they can be customised by other people.
So, when you install a stock rom - you're installing the kernel, but you're also installing the radio (called a modem or baseband) and the registration (or the CSC which is location specific information) as well as the unique 'body' of the car for that rom - tweaks, default software, etc.
You don't have to have rooted your phone to install a Rom. When you update your phone via Kies, you are, literally, installing an stock rom. You can even install stock roms from elsewhere without rooting your phone. Because stock roms are released in different regions at different times, lots of people update their phones to the latest official roms via this method - no root required.
However, to install a custom, unofficial rom, you will need to root your phone as they will require access to the 'root level directory' of your phone's file system - which is what root really means.
You can find everything you need to know about that, how to root and also lots of stock roms you can install without rooting here:
Some shops will root you phone for you if you want to go down that path and don't want to risk it. But it's easier than you think and the galaxy s2 is very hard to break. There's lots of help available on XDA - just remember to search before you ask so you don't ask a common question the millionth time.
If you have installed a custom rom you can easily re-install a stock rom over it that will still work with Kies and thus be updateable when ICS turns up.
There is no 'best' Rom or kernel. Some Roms go 'as is' and some are customisable to the nth degree if you like fiddling with your phone non-stop. I personally use CheckRom because I like the kitchen app that lets you swap kernels, modems and mods with ease - but check out the Original Android Development threads and see which other roms you like the sound of.
Depending on what you are currently running, a new rom - even a stock one if you're running a very old one - could easily help with battery and range issues. For GPS - try installing FasterFix from the market and see if reassigning your GPS fix to a closer location helps.
Best of luck - it's a great phone once you open up its possibilities
Thanks a lot for the reply
well your reply did help me a lot...
my phone is been already rooted by someone else already from the person i bought it....
as for searching i did a lot.. and its been confusing me more and more ..well thanks for your answer
also as u said S2 is hard to break..i guess u mean is that the JIG thing on EBAY
and as for flashing the stuff i've played with other stuff just not android thing ive replaced the os on BB and jailbreaked iphones and installed macintosh on HP PC and also worked on most of the languages 10 years ago... and i believe nothing is impossible so going to someone else is never an option for me
just want to know as much as stuff i can before going further
well i have few more questions
how can i find which rom or kernel is already installed...
i mean is it possible to tell if its stock or its customized and its customized by which group.
and one last thing.. u know the words u used modem and baseband...
i read about it before...
but my question is ...
IS THE BASEBAND ANYTHING LIKE IPHONE BASEBAND???
u know in iPhones when baseband is updated u r screwed sometimes its hard to jailbreak and definately hard to unlock and reverting changes to baseband....
is it the samething in Galaxy S2 as well...
Thanks a lot for replying...i really appreciate all the time you took to reply.
Thanks once again.
Yeah baseband is the code that handles the phone part of your smartphone. Talking to your wireless provider, 3G, texts all these things are done by baseband.
Flashing a different baseband won't screw your root, and you'd still be rooted. Samsung doesn't make it hard to root as Apple does to jailbreaking. Even if something goes wrong with a new version, you can always revert back to old one using Odin(Samsung ROM flashing tool) and you are good to go.
Thanks a lot... about that quick reply...
i'm gonna collect more information and hopefully i'll be flashing it on weekend...
but how can i find which rom or kernel is already installed...
i mean is it possible to tell if its stock or its customized and its customized by which group
Everything you need to know can be found here. Most of it, anyway.
Backup your device with cwm when rooted ... So you can always restore to previous state. ;-)
Good luck there. But reading is a must.
SGS II - XDA
blackberryfan said:
thanks a lot... About that quick reply...
I'm gonna collect more information and hopefully i'll be flashing it on weekend...
But how can i find which rom or kernel is already installed...
In your dialer type *#1234#
info will apear. Now read chainfire's tutorial how to root your device ....
I mean is it possible to tell if its stock or its customized and its customized by which group
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Setting went wrong when quoting
sgs ii - xda
also you can go settings - about phone - then look at the bottom fields to see kernel, baseband and build. Quote those and we should be able to tell what you have.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App

Noob Questions Ahoy!

Hi there guys I really need educating. I come from a Samsung Galaxy S to a Samsung Galaxy S 3. I know all about firmware flashing, kernels n stuff on the original Sammy G, but haven't a clue on the Samsung Galaxy S 3.
I have managed to root the bad boy (go me!) but am unsure how to carrier unlock and to flash the latest firmware. The Sammy G was carrier unlocked but my Sammy G S3 is locked to Vodafone
Can anyone point me to the files and maybe some guides so that I can procede? Also what is this business about a flash counter? I want to be able to return to original firmware if it all goes belly up! How do I backup my original firmware?
Many Thanks In Advance
Doozy,
P.S.
Who is the best Dev to follow for A) Rom and B) Kernel? I followed CyanogenMod on the Sammy G but the CM9 nightlies fpr the Samsung Galaxy S 3 seem a little immature for me at the moment.
Cheers once again
I think you don't have to backup your original firmware because you can download the stock firmwares again later, but you can do a nandroid backup (i never did this^^)
If something goes wrong, follow this guide: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1671969
About unlocking i don't know, but i think the lock will be gone if you flash any rom (but can't give you warranty, since my phone was unlocked)
You can reset the flash counter, it's called triangle away : http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1494114
Im not able to say, whick rom / kernel is best, but why don't you check this thread and try some roms? http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1674286
The first CM9 releases had many bugs, but they seem to be ready for all day use now (but i missed the Sammy Camera App, which is very nice )
Thank You very much for taking the time to respond I will take a look at those links.
Thanks Very Much,
Doozy

[Q] Help trying to decide what root/rom combo.

Hi all,
A few newbie queries, if anyone will indulge me please?
I've just got an S3 international verison, having had various Nexus's and HTCs in the past, which I've rooted & used custom roms on. I got this s3, rooted it, then started looking for roms, but i'm a bit lost. It's tricky when you're new to a model of phone and have to re-learn the root nuances.
One of the apps I need is ARLibertator (for pionieer's appradio) which doesn't play nice with any ASOP roms, so I presume I'm going to be stuck with stock.
So far, I've rooted, but haven't updated from mb5>mg4. I've backed up the factory state with a clockwork mod backup and i've done a dump of the EFS using K tool.
Can I update from mb5 > mg4 without any issue using KIES, or do I need to be careful about the change it makes to the EFS?
Also, if i decide not to bother trying to use ARLiberator, am I good to try Cyanogen or similar now, or have I missed any steps or done the wrong thing?
There are stock based custom roms .
Kies will remove root .
Thanks - when you say 'remove' - perfectly safe to re-root the same way again after the update?
Also, what terminology would I need to search for for Roms based on stock - something like this: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1797334
Thanks for the help - really appreciate it.
james03 said:
Thanks - when you say 'remove' - perfectly safe to re-root the same way again after the update?
Yes just reroot .
http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=1566
Mostly Samsung based roms but not all of them
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep as jje linked "android development" is mainly samsung based roms where as aosp are mainly in "original android development" as they're original, not reworks if existing work.
There are some aosp roms in "android development" as they are unofficial cm builds for example.
Samsung rom threads usually have the samsung build number in the thread title, eg XXEMG4
Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 4

Help with flash a new rom...

Hello everyone I have a question to ask about the customization of my Galaxy SII GT-i9100 ... I followed the guide present in the Carbon Rom thread for the flash of the device and everything went well...now I have the TWRP with the Rom, which is not a splinter anyway, so I would need to try others, as I realize that Android 9 is a little too much for the Galaxy SII. Unfortunately, after flashing roms like Lineage OS 14, the device gets stuck on boot animation, but it is not the only Rom that does so. Can anyone explain to me how to possibly install different roms, since unfortunately I did not understand the mechanisms that underlie the modding of the Galaxy SII? Between Pit files and kernels to flash with Odin, I am a little lost xD Also I would like to know if, by flashing the stock rom with Odin, there is the risk of brick to start from scratch, without flashing the pit or anything. Thanks
Luke92s said:
Hello everyone I have a question to ask about the customization of my Galaxy SII GT-i9100 ... I followed the guide present in the Carbon Rom thread for the flash of the device and everything went well...now I have the TWRP with the Rom, which is not a splinter anyway, so I would need to try others, as I realize that Android 9 is a little too much for the Galaxy SII. Unfortunately, after flashing roms like Lineage OS 14, the device gets stuck on boot animation, but it is not the only Rom that does so. Can anyone explain to me how to possibly install different roms, since unfortunately I did not understand the mechanisms that underlie the modding of the Galaxy SII? Between Pit files and kernels to flash with Odin, I am a little lost xD Also I would like to know if, by flashing the stock rom with Odin, there is the risk of brick to start from scratch, without flashing the pit or anything. Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hmmmm it is becuz there is rollback protection so once you try 9, no way back to 7.1 or so. restock will just brick emmc.
idk about what rom is good
Samsung's official firmwares are much more stable for GT-I9100 rather than custom ROMs for it. So, there is almost no reason to install the custom ROMs.
Now you have to go to a good repair shop (preferable official Samsung's).

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