[Q] After-root steps for ROM install galaxy s2? - Galaxy S II Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

Hi folks, first like to say thank you to everyone who puts this stuff together- mindboggling for me so it is.
ANyway, im not a techie, but im getting there.
I've rooted my S2, and i now have CWM and superuser on the phone. I have read ALOT of threads , and i'm a bit confused about my next steps. I have no sd card.
I want to get one of those ROMS to help the battery and all the other jazz(phone call recording sounds particularly sweet), but im wary of jumping into it... I have android 2.33 on the phone, and it was the kf3 kernal that i flashed on with ODIN to ROOT the phone successfully;
Q1. I was thinking of the lightning ROM for my phone- do i need to check which kernel and android version i have and match them up with a specific version of whichever ROM i go for?
Q2. Do i have to 'wipe' the phone before installing the ROM? ( i dont know what this means)
Q3. with the above in mind, can anyone point me towards a detailed tutorial on putting a ROM on the phone? ( i have looked honestly, im not being lazy- they dont seem to say what to do if youve already rooted the phone)
EDIT Q4- Should i have NOT rooted with KF3 V 4.0 and just installed the litening ROM, which would have rooted the phone aswell? - I'm really confused. Basically i can't figure out if ive made it harder to put a ROM on there, or easier.
EDIT Q5; will this method work ( im still not sure how to identify what rom fits my system)
How to install a ROM using CWM
Installing a ROM using CWM is a lot less hassle then installing via Odin. The ROM developer will specify which method of installing their ROM you can use, but it is usually done by a CWM flashable .zip.
To flash:
1. Boot into CWM as described above
2. Navigate to 'install zip from sd card'
3. Select it, and then navigate to 'install zip from sdcard' again!
4. Select the ROM you downloaded from your sd card
5. Navigate down to yes
6. Let CWM install you new ROM!
Many Thank yous in advance for anyone who can help this cabbage (ie, me).
Cheers

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fracked said:
Hi folks, first like to say thank you to everyone who puts this stuff together- mindboggling for me so it is.
ANyway, im not a techie, but im getting there.
I've rooted my S2, and i now have CWM and superuser on the phone. I have read ALOT of threads , and i'm a bit confused about my next steps. I have no sd card.
I want to get one of those ROMS to help the battery and all the other jazz(phone call recording sounds particularly sweet), but im wary of jumping into it... I have android 2.33 on the phone, and it was the kf3 kernal that i flashed on with ODIN to ROOT the phone successfully;
Q1. I was thinking of the lightning ROM for my phone- do i need to check which kernel and android version i have and match them up with a specific version of whichever ROM i go for?
Q2. Do i have to 'wipe' the phone before installing the ROM? ( i dont know what this means)
Q3. with the above in mind, can anyone point me towards a detailed tutorial on putting a ROM on the phone? ( i have looked honestly, im not being lazy- they dont seem to say what to do if youve already rooted the phone)
EDIT Q4- Should i have NOT rooted with KF3 V 4.0 and just installed the litening ROM, which would have rooted the phone aswell? - I'm really confused. Basically i can't figure out if ive made it harder to put a ROM on there, or easier.
EDIT Q5; will this method work ( im still not sure how to identify what rom fits my system)
How to install a ROM using CWM
Installing a ROM using CWM is a lot less hassle then installing via Odin. The ROM developer will specify which method of installing their ROM you can use, but it is usually done by a CWM flashable .zip.
To flash:
1. Boot into CWM as described above
2. Navigate to 'install zip from sd card'
3. Select it, and then navigate to 'install zip from sdcard' again!
4. Select the ROM you downloaded from your sd card
5. Navigate down to yes
6. Let CWM install you new ROM!
Many Thank yous in advance for anyone who can help this cabbage (ie, me).
Cheers
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
A1 No, lighting Rom includes its own kernal and will update your phnes android version when you install it.
A2 you should to make sure their are no stray bits of data floating around. Go to cwm and put it into recovery mode. clean the cache, the go into into advanced and clean daavik cache.
this is what is mean by wiping the phone. if you want you can also do a factory reset.
A3 the method in in question 5 is the usual way to do it from cwm but make sure that you copy it into the internal sdcard.
A4. rooting makes it easier in as it gives you access to the file structure of the phone. It is always a good idea to root the phone, if you want to customize it.
A5. To use cwm mwthod any rom has to come it a zip file version. Tar file versions are used with odin but in any case always follow the developers instructions to get the best out of the rom.

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Cosmic Blue said:
A1 No, lighting Rom includes its own kernal and will update your phnes android version when you install it.
A2 you should to make sure their are no stray bits of data floating around. Go to cwm and put it into recovery mode. clean the cache, the go into into advanced and clean daavik cache.
this is what is mean by wiping the phone. if you want you can also do a factory reset.
A3 the method in in question 5 is the usual way to do it from cwm but make sure that you copy it into the internal sdcard.
A4. rooting makes it easier in as it gives you access to the file structure of the phone. It is always a good idea to root the phone, if you want to customize it.
A5. To use cwm mwthod any rom has to come it a zip file version. Tar file versions are used with odin but in any case always follow the developers instructions to get the best out of the rom.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi Cosmic blue,
thak you so much for coming back to me, i really appreciate it.
So if i can just clarify my proposed method then from the above with a few more questions;
1 go to cwm recovery and clean the two caches you mentioned above while in recovery mode. ( i see the menu now in recovery mode- would i be right in saying the ones to select are 'wipe cache partition' and i can see the dalvik one in advanced no problem)
2 I need to get the rom zip file from the developers thread. SO i download that to my laptop- then whats the best way to transfer to the phone internal sd card as you said...Do i Need an external sd card yes? (sorry, i know this sounds dumb )
3 ( please ignore this one if youre busy- no big deal as i can do more research) can you recommend a good ROM thats not majorly complicated, saves the battery, looks cool i suppose and has some good extra fucntions? as i was saying i liked the lite'ning one but ive read some places that its a bit of a battery drain...
Thank you so miuch again, its so appreciated.
Cheers

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fracked said:
Hi Cosmic blue,
thak you so much for coming back to me, i really appreciate it.
So if i can just clarify my proposed method then from the above with a few more questions;
1 go to cwm recovery and clean the two caches you mentioned above while in recovery mode. ( i see the menu now in recovery mode- would i be right in saying the ones to select are 'wipe cache partition' and i can see the dalvik one in advanced no problem)
2 I need to get the rom zip file from the developers thread. SO i download that to my laptop- then whats the best way to transfer to the phone internal sd card as you said...Do i Need an external sd card yes? (sorry, i know this sounds dumb )
3 ( please ignore this one if youre busy- no big deal as i can do more research) can you recommend a good ROM thats not majorly complicated, saves the battery, looks cool i suppose and has some good extra fucntions? as i was saying i liked the lite'ning one but ive read some places that its a bit of a battery drain...
Thank you so miuch again, its so appreciated.
Cheers
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. correct, wipe those 2 to prepare your phone.
2. no, you do not need an external card. Go to the laptop root directory, you will see the internal sdcard of your phone as a drive, create a new folder in the phone sdcard and copy the zip file to it.
then detach cable and go into recovery and flash the zip file.
3. you will need to experiment with different roms. Lite'ing is fine all custom roms are a bit of battery drain because of the extra functions. But the battery life is still better then the stock as they have tweaked the battery to discharge slower for longer battery life.
4. Everyone has different preferences. try different combinations of firmware, kernal and modem till you find one that you will like.