There's a guy over at the official Motorola support forum with a sad problem that really could have bitten any of us at some point... he naively saved everything to the internal flash, then his phone got messed up and can no longer boot into Android. Motorola told him he has to do a factory reset, which will reformat everything, including /sdcard and the data in it (hmmm. Will it really? That does seem kind of harsh & extreme, but I can see them doing it.)
I *know* he could almost certainly pull the data off with a little help from a JTAG programmer (if only because he could probably use it to write something like Clockworkmod onto the phone, then boot into it and use THAT to copy /sdcard to an external card's /sdcard-ext), but the Photon seems to be hardcore virgin JTAG territory. I haven't even been able to find so much as a commented teardown pic with an arrow saying, "These are the JTAG testpoints", let alone something like a RIFF box with official support for the Photon. Does anybody have any ideas?
Is this the english language? I don't understand any of that lol. I have a buddy who jtags xbox's but thats it lol. Im limited to cooking roms and compiling from source. No experience to help you but ill be following this thread to learn a thing or 2.
Can you link us to the thread on the official forums?
From what you have told us, I can't figure out much. Is the phone not booting? Or is it hanging at the bootloader? Or is it stuck a the boot animation? Or is it crashing after loading the homescreen?
Basically, how much of the phone is still functional?
If the phone can still get to bootloader, put it in RSD mode. Then run RSD Lite with the same SBF version as the one thats on his phone. This will reflash the system.img, recovery, bootloader, etc, but should allow him to keep his apps and settings.
Oh, and the I believe the lesson learned here is to use Titanium Backup to backup everything on the SD card (the real sd card, not the fake internal one). TB backups everything short of the ROM and recovery/bootloader (you need a NANDroid for that). It will get his contacts, apps, data, wifi points etc.
I have flashed sbf and reset through the privacy menu. It will not clear the internal storage. There is a separate option to clear it. Not sure if they want him to clear it a different way.
Sent from my MB855 using XDA App
Here's the relevant thread, in case anybody can put him in touch with somebody who has the equipment and expertise to do the job: https://supportforums.motorola.com/thread/59942
According to my research, the Photon 4G uses a MDM6600 (according to posts in various forums). You can find the data sheet for that chip by Googling "80-Vr001-1" (I can't post links yet). It has some JTAG info in it.
If I'm not mistaken, I think the early iPhone unlocks were found by locating the JTAG pins on the radio chip, then following the circuit on the phone's PCB to find where to solder in to.
Wow
I have JTAG routers and those are easy, but a phone is much smaller in size.
All I can say is good luck -
did anyone find the correct jtag points for the board?
Related
I did NOT paritition my gTablet after I installed CWM 0.8. My CM7-based ROMs have installed and worked just fine, including the new Market app. Do I need to partition?
The only real error I have had is the inability to transfer files (using Astro) between my internal 16 GB memory (/mnt/emmc/) and my installed 2GB sd card (/mnt/sdcard). Will partitioning help solve this?
TIA!
I think partitioning is an important step and really should be a mandatory step at least for the first flash. It sets up your memory structure in the same architecture that the roms and recovery were built in. Its quick, painless and can solve many issues before they even start. Its best done right when you first start flashing as it destroys all data on the tablet, so anything you want to save needs to be backed up on a PC first.
Mantara said:
I think partitioning is an important step and really should be a mandatory step at least for the first flash. It sets up your memory structure in the same architecture that the roms and recovery were built in. Its quick, painless and can solve many issues before they even start. Its best done right when you first start flashing as it destroys all data on the tablet, so anything you want to save needs to be backed up on a PC first.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree with Mantara. I think it reduces the chances of corrupting the tablet's data. Also, repartitioning is a bigger pain if you decide to do it later when you have a like a ton of files in your internal memory and have to back it up because repartitioning reformats the internal sd card.
McGoo,
I don't disagree with Mantara that prevention might be good. You'll have to make that call.
I look at re-partitioning from the recovery perpective -- it simply hinges on the fact
that I have noticed what I believe is a correlation between Boot Loops and the need
to re-partition. Re-partitioning (and the associate wipes/etc.) seems to fix the boot
loops most of the time.
If your tablet is working fine, I go with the old computer quote "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!!!"
*********
Your other question -- I don't have a firm answer. The Android file system and the
USB stuff on the tablet -- to me operate in a strange. Kind of an OS with an arm or
two tied behind it's back. I know that's not an answer, so I'll quit.
Rev
butchconner said:
McGoo,
I don't disagree with Mantara that prevention might be good. You'll have to make that call.
I look at re-partitioning from the recovery perpective -- it simply hinges on the fact
that I have noticed what I believe is a correlation between Boot Loops and the need
to re-partition. Re-partitioning (and the associate wipes/etc.) seems to fix the boot
loops most of the time.
If your tablet is working fine, I go with the old computer quote "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!!!"
*********
Your other question -- I don't have a firm answer. The Android file system and the
USB stuff on the tablet -- to me operate in a strange. Kind of an OS with an arm or
two tied behind it's back. I know that's not an answer, so I'll quit.
Rev
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
that's the approach i'll take for now. when time comes for officially official CM7 tablet releases, i'll reformat then. until then i'll just enjoy things as they are. thanks for the feedback, all.
I'm sure there is an article or thread somewhere that outlines things like what is stored to the 2gb miniSD, what goes on the 16gb, if there is a built in memory chip and what is on that.
If anybody can point to one, I would be very appreciative.
I'd also like a link to a definitive explanation of what happens during the different types of recoveries. What is the difference between using zip files and pkg files, for example. How come some zip updates only make small changes but others can completely rewrite the phone and brick it?
What does it take to do the equivalent of formatting your computer and starting completely over with a fresh phone? I mean cleaning everything out.
What is it about this phone that a full nandroid backup will successfully bring back the phone one day and fail miserably the next?
I want to really understand this phone, because I am not going back to a smaller screen so it looks like I'm stuck with it for a while because there just doesn't appear to be a mad rush of manufacturers releasing 5 inch phones.
mid_life_crisis said:
I'm sure there is an article or thread somewhere that outlines things like what is stored to the 2gb miniSD, what goes on the 16gb, if there is a built in memory chip and what is on that.
If anybody can point to one, I would be very appreciative.
I'd also like a link to a definitive explanation of what happens during the different types of recoveries. What is the difference between using zip files and pkg files, for example. How come some zip updates only make small changes but others can completely rewrite the phone and brick it?
What does it take to do the equivalent of formatting your computer and starting completely over with a fresh phone? I mean cleaning everything out.
What is it about this phone that a full nandroid backup will successfully bring back the phone one day and fail miserably the next?
I want to really understand this phone, because I am not going back to a smaller screen so it looks like I'm stuck with it for a while because there just doesn't appear to be a mad rush of manufacturers releasing 5 inch phones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are many out there, too many to list as a matter of fact... if you just use the Search function you will find all your answers. I hate to sound rude but this is just the type of thing the search is meant for. There are several guides that outline all you want to know, but I point them out to you, you won't be any the wiser by just clicking on them. The jargon you have to go through to get to the meat of your questions will teach you everything you need to know along the way.
I've tried searching. The problem is choosing words that get usable results without also getting a ton of useless ones to wade through.
mid_life_crisis said:
I'm sure there is an article or thread somewhere that outlines things like what is stored to the 2gb miniSD, what goes on the 16gb, if there is a built in memory chip and what is on that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is no single article where you can get all of this info. Best general resource is the XDA Wiki on the Streak.
For more info on the workings of the inner SD Card see this thread at MoDaCo.
mid_life_crisis said:
I'd also like a link to a definitive explanation of what happens during the different types of recoveries. What is the difference between using zip files and pkg files, for example. How come some zip updates only make small changes but others can completely rewrite the phone and brick it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The stock recovery will install .pkg files (update.pkg or OTA upgrades). These are a full replacement for the software on your phone. When installing as an update.pkg file it is best to use the recovery for the version you are installing.
When installing an OTA update the recovery that preceded the one you are installing should work if your are 'upgrading' to a ROM from the same region, the checks that are done during an OTA update will prevent a phone from one region using an OTA update from another region. The advantage to using the OTA update process is that you retain your apps and settings. OTA updates are done by downloading the file to your phone and then tapping the DL notification in the notification bar.
A custom recovery (use StreakMod recovery) will write .zip files. These files can be a theme like a new notification bar or a ROM like StreakDroid or SimpleStreak. Custom recoveries are able to write a subset of the phones software. Most custom ROMS are not a full replacement for the the phones software, which is why they may include directions to flash a certain baseband or other additional files.
mid_life_crisis said:
What does it take to do the equivalent of formatting your computer and starting completely over with a fresh phone? I mean cleaning everything out.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Installing a stock rom with a stock recovery from recovery mode will do this. Since a stock ROM is the whole software package this will also make sure that the baseband and amss.nbn files are all in sync (same version). Doing this or a factory reset formats the internal SD Card.
mid_life_crisis said:
What is it about this phone that a full nandroid backup will successfully bring back the phone one day and fail miserably the next?
I want to really understand this phone, because I am not going back to a smaller screen so it looks like I'm stuck with it for a while because there just doesn't appear to be a mad rush of manufacturers releasing 5 inch phones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have never had a nandroid backup fail. I use StreakMod recovery.
If you check out the links in my signature you may find more answers.
Posts like that last make me really pissed off that I can only click "Thanks" once per post.
Modding your Streak - where to start expands on my answer posted here.
Hi guys, i looked at some of the other related threads but couldnt find the info I need!
I want to get some of the data that is stored in the phones memory. i use windows 7 x64.
also if anyone has experience with getting a phone replaced/repaired by an insurance company, do you know if they care about a phone being rooted and having a custom rom on it?
they will only be repairing the screen, nothing else. If they will care, I would want to flash the rom back to stock, and unroot just case. is this possible without a screen?
where to even begin...
"I want to get some of the data that is stored in the phones memory. i use windows 7 x64." THANK YOU FOR SO MUCH DETAIL I CAN TELL YOU EXACTLY HOW TO GET THAT DATA MAYBE TRY COPY AND PASTE OR ALTERNATIVELY DELETE SYSTEM 32.
and yes the insurance company might care, flash stock for safety.
umm what more information would you like? the make and model are evident, the situation has been explained and the platform my computer runs on has also been stated. the rest is down to an experienced user informing me what programs/tools I will need to do what I wish to do.
ve managed to get the data i wanted off the phone my self by tinkering around, but im at a loss as to how I would flash to stock without the screen.
protectress said:
umm what more information would you like? the make and model are evident, the situation has been explained and the platform my computer runs on has also been stated. the rest is down to an experienced user informing me what programs/tools I will need to do what I wish to do.
ve managed to get the data i wanted off the phone my self by tinkering around, but im at a loss as to how I would flash to stock without the screen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you haven't installed the phone driver's install it using Samsung Kies and when you connect the phone it will automatically connect in mtp mode(if you enabled usb debugging you will get it connected as a flash drive) in both cases the phone memory and sd card will be mounted and you can retrieve your data.
Yes you will definitely need to flash a stock rom (or they will make you pay for it) since you can do it via Odin and download mode, you can pretty much do it safely without the screen but be sure to perform a factory reset and the required wipes beforehand to avoid bootloops(no idea how to do it without the screen you might have to guess your way through this).
Using GT - I9100
I thank those who give helpful comments
I expect the same from others.
Thanks king, i was wondering if ODIN would be useful in this process. I wonder if there is a sort of 'map' of the cwm menus so i could carefully (blindly) navigate the menus and factory reset.
protectress said:
Thanks king, i was wondering if ODIN would be useful in this process. I wonder if there is a sort of 'map' of the cwm menus so i could carefully (blindly) navigate the menus and factory reset.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am sure if you search around you will get picture posts here but I recommend you Google how to install a rom using CWM (be sure of your version) and several videos from YouTube will surely pop up follow their pattern of using CWM it will be more assuring to follow.
Hope this helps.
Using GT - I9100
I thank those who give helpful comments
I expect the same from others.
i cant remember what cwm i have. is there a way of finding out by browsing the files stored on the phone?
protectress said:
i cant remember what cwm i have. is there a way of finding out by browsing the files stored on the phone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
CWM is integrated with the kernel
you can't access its information from the internal memory or the sd card which you can access from your computer, you better flash a kernel containing CWM (version known ) and then try to wipe and flash it, and it will mostly be 5.5.0.4 if it was a recent kernel, but better be safe than sorry.
Also if you know what version kernel you installed you can check the developer page for CWM information or ask there for the version.
Using GT - I9100
I thank those who give helpful comments
I expect the same from others.
---------- Post added at 12:32 AM ---------- Previous post was at 12:19 AM ----------
postfatal said:
where to even begin...
"I want to get some of the data that is stored in the phones memory. i use windows 7 x64." THANK YOU FOR SO MUCH DETAIL I CAN TELL YOU EXACTLY HOW TO GET THAT DATA MAYBE TRY COPY AND PASTE OR ALTERNATIVELY DELETE SYSTEM 32.
and yes the insurance company might care, flash stock for safety.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
"ALTERNATIVELY DELETE SYSTEM 32" What do you mean by this?
Are you telling him to corrupt his Windows installation or was it a typo? :screwy:
"THANK YOU FOR SO MUCH DETAIL I CAN TELL YOU EXACTLY HOW TO GET THAT DATA MAYBE TRY COPY AND PASTE"
He has given enough detail for the problem, your sarcasm is pointless :what:
Don't jump the gun and be rude to people, not all of them are trolls.
Using GT - I9100
I thank those who give helpful comments
I expect the same from others.
hey man i had siyah kernel with paranoid android! i honestly cant remember what version though.
I tried getting my phone into download mode, but ODIN didnt detect anything. I think im just going to take a shot and send it off to the insurance company and see what happens.
they should only be fixing the screen and nothing else, so hopefully they wont care about the custom rom
If you don't see anything, well you could use the windows media center, I don't use Win 7,
but I know that it existed before.
Alternatively, you could use "adb" (from android sdk) for use when your phone is plugged on usb,
using simple command lines you will be able to go through your filesystem and
copy what you need using the "pull" command (explained under the adb interface).
And indeed, it works better with a rooted phone.
I am a noob and I am not a developer or even really great at programming or PC's in general.
I've managed to mess up my phone and have been looking all over the web for how to fix it and I am at a loss.
I decided to register and ask for help. Please be patient and understanding if I ask a lot of questions or don't understand things you accept as basic, understood or common. I looked through existing threads for help and couldn't find the answer I needed. Many thanks in advance for the help. Readers digest of the issue below.
Samsung Galaxy S 4G. T-Mobile. T959V5B5-Custom.
I tried the non-mandatory firmware update from T-mobile and it wrecked the functionality of my phone. I tried to go back with a couple new Rom versions and think I more or less ended up with three roms installed on my internal storage which has given me basically no space which was never an issue for me before. I have used a disk viewer to verify there is unmounted data that is taking up space but I can't figure out how to get to it through the phone or my pc to delete it. I assume if I do this that the empty space will be absorbed and fix the internal storage issue.
Again, thank you for taking the time to read and respond. I love my phone and just want it working right again.
JBMFT said:
I am a noob and I am not a developer or even really great at programming or PC's in general.
I've managed to mess up my phone and have been looking all over the web for how to fix it and I am at a loss.
I decided to register and ask for help. Please be patient and understanding if I ask a lot of questions or don't understand things you accept as basic, understood or common. I looked through existing threads for help and couldn't find the answer I needed. Many thanks in advance for the help. Readers digest of the issue below.
Samsung Galaxy S 4G. T-Mobile. T959V5B5-Custom.
I tried the non-mandatory firmware update from T-mobile and it wrecked the functionality of my phone. I tried to go back with a couple new Rom versions and think I more or less ended up with three roms installed on my internal storage which has given me basically no space which was never an issue for me before. I have used a disk viewer to verify there is unmounted data that is taking up space but I can't figure out how to get to it through the phone or my pc to delete it. I assume if I do this that the empty space will be absorbed and fix the internal storage issue.
Again, thank you for taking the time to read and respond. I love my phone and just want it working right again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The course of action I would recommend at this point is using a tool called Odin to re-flash the stock ROM to your phone. I would recommend taking a look at this guide for the step-by-step procedure on how to do this. Let me know if you still have questions .
shimp208 said:
The course of action I would recommend at this point is using a tool called Odin to re-flash the stock ROM to your phone. I would recommend taking a look at this guide for the step-by-step procedure on how to do this. Let me know if you still have questions .
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey! Big thanks for the reply. Here come the questions...
I used Odin to put the other OS versions on the phone so I am familiar with the software though its been several months. I also still have the ROM that I flashed to phone. I am curious though that if it didn't wipe the previous partitions last time, what would keep it from doing the same thing this time and really messing me up? Or did I click or not click something in Odin or use the wrong option and doing it differently this time would fix the problem?
I located the files on the phone and have verified they are not mounted and looked at their size using DiskInfo. They are located at "/dev/block". Do you know what this is or why they are there? I can delete them using ES File Explorer with SuperUser. Is it ok to delete these and would I get the benefit of increased storage by doing so? I played around with moving them to the SD card and didn't see an increase in my internal storage but was afraid that a reboot after doing to might be bad.
Can you tell I am a little gun shy?
Here are the names of the files, the set starting with t starts at 0 and goes to 12 and the other 1 to 12.
tsfr0-tfsr12
bml1-bml12
Thanks again!
JBMFT said:
Hey! Big thanks for the reply. Here come the questions...
I used Odin to put the other OS versions on the phone so I am familiar with the software though its been several months. I also still have the ROM that I flashed to phone. I am curious though that if it didn't wipe the previous partitions last time, what would keep it from doing the same thing this time and really messing me up? Or did I click or not click something in Odin or use the wrong option and doing it differently this time would fix the problem?
I located the files on the phone and have verified they are not mounted and looked at their size using DiskInfo. They are located at "/dev/block". Do you know what this is or why they are there? I can delete them using ES File Explorer with SuperUser. Is it ok to delete these and would I get the benefit of increased storage by doing so? I played around with moving them to the SD card and didn't see an increase in my internal storage but was afraid that a reboot after doing to might be bad.
Can you tell I am a little gun shy?
Here are the names of the files, the set starting with t starts at 0 and goes to 12 and the other 1 to 12.
tsfr0-tfsr12
bml1-bml12
Thanks again!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Using Odin to re-flash the stock ROM will automatically setup the right configuration for. Do Not delete the files in /dev/block these are critical to the phones operation and part of the phones normal partitioning and operation as previously stated deleting these will cause a lot of problems if you delete them. If you really want to free up some internal storage space I would recommend deleting the carrier pre-installed bloatware, before you delete any bloatware makesure to backup the apps you deleted with Titanium Backup or a similar backup or flash Clockworkmod Recovery or Team Win Recovery Project and make a Nandroid Backup which is a complete backup of your phone. And don't worry about being gun shy we are all beginners at some point the only real way to become an expert if practice, practice, practice .
So I am working on the Heimdall One-Click.
Handshaking with loke, got no response. FML.
Help.
Edited: Apparently a low battery is not your friend...
after a little reading around on the net I tried a different one and BAM.
Back to stock. We'll see how this goes.
Being rooted with superuser had me spoiled...so much bloatware.
I see countless threads on this issue everywhere, but frankly, they are all completely over my head. I have 0 experience in any of this stuff.
I gave my s2 9100 international unbranded version that I bought used from a hacker kid with cyanogenmod on it to my parents after i upgraded to an s3.
I never had any issues with space and had a lot of apps.
my parents have installed solitaire, and not much more, and it's out of space already. wtf.
I did a factory re-set to format the phone before i gave it to my parents. So, i'm guessing the kid i got it from did something to it to not have the app space problem and by doing the reset i ruined it.
I don't know where to start. All this pit, odin, etc etc talk is all completely over my head and i really need a spoon-fed, hand-held guide on what to do explaining everything. like- if i need to put the phone in dev mode, tell me how to do that too because I have NO IDEA what i'm doing. I've tried to follow along a couple threads and i'm just completely lost because they all assume you kinda know what you're doing.
Thanks for any help.
briansol said:
I see countless threads on this issue everywhere, but frankly, they are all completely over my head. I have 0 experience in any of this stuff.
I gave my s2 9100 international unbranded version that I bought used from a hacker kid with cyanogenmod on it to my parents after i upgraded to an s3.
I never had any issues with space and had a lot of apps.
my parents have installed solitaire, and not much more, and it's out of space already. wtf.
I did a factory re-set to format the phone before i gave it to my parents. So, i'm guessing the kid i got it from did something to it to not have the app space problem and by doing the reset i ruined it.
I don't know where to start. All this pit, odin, etc etc talk is all completely over my head and i really need a spoon-fed, hand-held guide on what to do explaining everything. like- if i need to put the phone in dev mode, tell me how to do that too because I have NO IDEA what i'm doing. I've tried to follow along a couple threads and i'm just completely lost because they all assume you kinda know what you're doing.
Thanks for any help.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is the whole internal sd card full? Try deleting the lost.dir folder and see what happens. Delete any battery logs and try another factory reset
Where is that file located, and how do i delete it? just through the phone? (i don't have it with me, as it's my parents)
briansol said:
Where is that file located, and how do i delete it? just through the phone? (i don't have it with me, as it's my parents)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's a folder located in the internal sd card. You can delete it through es file explorer or other file explorer.