I'm not a complete noob, but I'm new to HTC phones. If I'm correct, S=OFF gives us access to the radio and and NAND partitions, right? What exactly can we do with these that we can't do with an unlocked bootloader and fastboot?
Sorry if I sound like a complete idiot right now, but I'm curious.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/show...php?p=18962248
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Some great news.. the evo view 4g is now officially unlockable from HTC via htcdev.com. hope to see some magic happen now
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using Tapatalk
This belongs in general.
Thx for info ThoughtHalo, the skilled dev above me (globatron) actually brought us to the dev game in HC before HTC.. That's the greatness of XDA, were always ahead of the game.
So what does this mean for us with stock GB looking to go to HC but want root?
It means now you should be able to flash a recovery and install a superuser zip
this still sucks compared to s-off. really wish HTC would stop shafting it's loyal customers so hard. It's like they want us to buy galaxy tabs :-(.
at least all of the updaters have a way to root now.
contradude said:
this still sucks compared to s-off. really wish HTC would stop shafting it's loyal customers so hard. It's like they want us to buy galaxy tabs :-(.
at least all of the updaters have a way to root now.
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It means more than that, they've given us a way to roll back to GB, which in turn means that OTA updaters can get S-OFF after all.
It means now we can also just fastboot flash everything regardless of what firmware we are on which is even better.
Indirect said:
It means now we can also just fastboot flash everything regardless of what firmware we are on which is even better.
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If you rollback to GB and S-OFF then yes, otherwise you are way off the mark, it doesn't even come close to allowing you to do that.
With an unlocked bootloader, you should be able to flash new recoveries and other things...unlocked from HTC is the same as S-off. It allows the flashing of unsigned firmware. Unless this device is unlike every other device I've had from HTC, I'm pretty sure I'm correct.
Although since I never had to use it on any of my devices (Never had something like Evo 3D) then I might be incorrect. However, based off my thoughts as an unlocked bootloader means you can flash new recovery, boot, and OTA updates that are unsigned / have broken signatures.
If you're happy with it fine, but you're misinformed. It's really not the same as S-OFF at all as many including myself have already explained. I can't be bothered with repeating the explanations again.
I apologize for being mistaken but provide information so I can be correct in the future
Sent by breaking the sound barrier
Indirect said:
I apologize for being mistaken but provide information so I can be correct in the future
Sent by breaking the sound barrier
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Well one difference I know about between soff and htc unlock is that you have to fastboot flash kernels and recoveries you cant flash them through cwm when the device is only htc unlocked, however you can get fastboot to flash them, at least thats how it is on the evo 3d.
mark920 said:
Well one difference I know about between soff and htc unlock is that you have to fastboot flash kernels and recoveries you cant flash them through cwm when the device is only htc unlocked, however you can get fastboot to flash them, at least thats how it is on the evo 3d.
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10 points for mark
flashing radios;custom(or stock) RUUs when unlocked; downgradability (not blocked on stock view hboot this time);but the s-off hboot protects itself from getting replaced so no nasty OTA surprises;bypassing CID restrictions, there are a few more but they are probably of no interest to most people.
EDIT: Yeah, also forgot HTC unlock erases your DRM keys.
That's good news... I'd assume I need to be back to the stock RUU S-ON to unlock it? As I already have the Rev. S-Off on my View now.
If it's not going to break it then I'll just go have it unlock it now.
globatron said:
10 points for mark
flashing radios;custom(or stock) RUUs when unlocked; downgradability (not blocked on stock view hboot this time);but the s-off hboot protects itself from getting replaced so no nasty OTA surprises;bypassing CID restrictions, there are a few more but they are probably of no interest to most people.
EDIT: Yeah, also forgot HTC unlock erases your DRM keys.
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But all root apps work right? And you can still flash radios and custom RUUs through the bootloader, correct? And taking OTA's isn't smart when rooted either way. So what are the consequences of losing the DRM keys?
GadgetMonger said:
But all root apps work right? And you can still flash radios and custom RUUs through the bootloader, correct? And taking OTA's isn't smart when rooted either way. So what are the consequences of losing the DRM keys?
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Correct, you can root and all apps will work, Wrong; go read, can't do radios or RUUS, Normally it's perfectly fine with a stock recovery and a protected hboot.
DRM keys are not really a problem unless you bought from watch or some other built-in thing like that.
Honestly, I couldn't care less which people do, but unlock is a pain for developers to deal with and frustrating when flashing roms. But I dislike incorrect statements like saying S-OFF and unlock are the same thing.
While its a "half assed s-off through fast boot, its still technically an s-off. Just not proper. So they aren't the same, just similar. They aren't however what people WANT on their devices.
Sent by breaking the sound barrier
Indirect said:
While its a "half assed s-off through fast boot, its still technically an s-off. Just not proper. So they aren't the same, just similar. They aren't however what people WANT on their devices.
Sent by breaking the sound barrier
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Do this. Unlock with the HTC method then boot to bootloader. You will notice that your device is telling you that it is unlocked but still s-on. As far as I know s-on means exactly that and not "half assed" s-off. I dont think you're understanding the difference.
No I understand the difference. S-off means the entire device is no longer secured at all. You can flash anything from the device. With unlock, you can only flash using fast boot and you can't flash certain things like radios etc. Only kernels, recovery, and downgrading RUU's
Therefore, its a "halfassed" s-off
Sent by breaking the sound barrier
Quick question about the Rezound. I have always owned a Motorola Phone and I am accustomed to being able to restore my phone Via SBF/XML file and I am wondering how one would fix their phone if they brick it. Is an RUU file something similar to an SBF file? I was about to flash a new rom and a new radio but I wanted to be sure what all this stuff was before I started flashing different things and if there were recovery files and say stock radios and such.
Thanks for any help you provide
I think the word "brick" has taken on a completely different meaning than intended. Bricking means it is just that...a brick...not repairable.
I also think you should review the posting guidelines for the development forum. This thread has no reason to be here at all. Head over to the general section for questions.
reddawn1563 said:
Quick question about the Rezound. I have always owned a Motorola Phone and I am accustomed to being able to restore my phone Via SBF/XML file and I am wondering how one would fix their phone if they brick it. Is an RUU file something similar to an SBF file? I was about to flash a new rom and a new radio but I wanted to be sure what all this stuff was before I started flashing different things and if there were recovery files and say stock radios and such.
Thanks for any help you provide
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Click to collapse
This should be posted in General. To answer your question an RUU will return you to stock, however there are no flashable radio's on the Rezound since there is no S-Off. If you soft-brick(I hate that term) you can run the RUU and it should bring you back from the proverbial dead.
MrSmith317 said:
This should be posted in General. To answer your question an RUU will return you to stock, however there are no flashable radio's on the Rezound since there is no S-Off. If you soft-brick(I hate that term) you can run the RUU and it should bring you back from the proverbial dead.
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MrSmith has this correct. One addition though, in order to run the RUU on an unlocked device, it must be re-locked with fastboot first. This can be done by typing
Code:
fastboot oem lock
in fastboot mode. You can then type
Code:
fastboot reboot-bootloader
and run the RUU. You can also download the RUU converted into a PH98IMG.zip that will flash itself from HBOOT similar to kernels
Is there a way to quickly unlock after the RUU or do you have to do the last steps of htc's unlock process over again?
Hi guys. I'm still a complete newbie to all this development stuff. I'm just absolutely blown away by what work the developers do here and their specialized knowledge. I'm still having trouble differentiating between a rom, kernel and radio for instance, so I'm easily impressed, lol. Even though I read these threads and try to do my homework, I'm still coming up short on some answers.
Thankfully by following some detailed steps, I was somehow able to unlock the bootloader on my Rezound and get it rooted. Now I'm hearing exclusive to HTC phones are S-OFF and S-ON. Mine is S-ON. I'm hearing that there hasn't been a way to get S-OFF yet, right? I believe S-OFF is only on select Rezounds out of the box, maybe some special, developer units or whatnot?
I believe my phone now is pretty much to doing anything except for flashing custom radios thanks to S-ON right? Aside from that, is there anything else I should know? Is having S-ON really that much of a detriment?
Thanks a lot!
This what I have gathered. You can do same thing as everyone else just in a different way. We can still flash kernels and recoveries, but in a different way. You are correct, with S-off we can't flash radios or SPL. In reality we shouldn't be messing with that stuff in the first place. Really the only major difference between S-off guys and us is we use fastboot more often.
I have read that you can't flash radios with s-on.
This is turning into the blind leading the blind thread. lol. (including myself in this comment )
Can Flash:
System
Boot(Fastboot/HBOOT Only)
Recovery(Fastboot/HBOOT Only)
Data
Cache
Can't Flash
HBOOT
Radio
con247 said:
Can Flash:
System
Boot(Fastboot/HBOOT Only)
Recovery(Fastboot/HBOOT Only)
Data
Cache
Can't Flash
HBOOT
Radio
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Con is absolutely right, but considering you're a newbie; You have complete freedom with everything you're capable of wanting/willing to do to your phone(Assuming you are actually a newbie!)
Hey All. I Did my first flash ever with my Evo3d and the Viper Rom way back when it first came out. With the Rev tool to get unlock and S off. Now Ive had to have my phone replaced due to a bad digitizer and id like some ICS fun. But the Phone is now Hboot 1.50. Ive had Ramjet explain some stuff but still having some confusion. I did the HTC unlock and the phone is unlocked. I now need to install/flash 4EXT recovery. I assume this is something I need to flash to the bootloader/Fastboot Vs just a download (which I did get the paid for app.) Ive been r4eading some of the stuff here and there. But still a little lost. Then I guess I need to root? then I can S off? Sorry for the dumb questions and being noob about this. Just wanting to learn/relearn the right ways. I know once I see it I can handle it just fine. Thanks for the help.
constevens said:
Hey All. I Did my first flash ever with my Evo3d and the Viper Rom way back when it first came out. With the Rev tool to get unlock and S off. Now Ive had to have my phone replaced due to a bad digitizer and id like some ICS fun. But the Phone is now Hboot 1.50. Ive had Ramjet explain some stuff but still having some confusion. I did the HTC unlock and the phone is unlocked. I now need to install/flash 4EXT recovery. I assume this is something I need to flash to the bootloader/Fastboot Vs just a download (which I did get the paid for app.) Ive been r4eading some of the stuff here and there. But still a little lost. Then I guess I need to root? then I can S off? Sorry for the dumb questions and being noob about this. Just wanting to learn/relearn the right ways. I know once I see it I can handle it just fine. Thanks for the help.
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Hi, not sure if you are on GSM, if yes, best guide i think: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1743466
DeathLT said:
Hi, not sure if you are on GSM, if yes, best guide i think: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1743466
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Click to collapse
I'm actually on a sprint based cdma phone.
Have you looked at the HTC Unlock Guide (also in my signature)? Post 4 I think covers flashing the recovery & SU correctly.
- once unlocked, use fastboot commands to push the the recovery.img to the phone, boot to recovery and flash SU. Reboot.= Htc Unlocked stock rooted rom. (Note: there is also a link to the hboot differences thread you should read after getting s-Off).
Then you can use Jbear to get S-Off for Gingerbread/2.17 base.
MeanRom 2.6
Thanks mpgrimm
Id really like to end up with ICS is the direction im heading but im sure that will help. Thanks!! May have some further questions. Hope thats all right?
Sure thing. I haven't done the Jbear Wire Trick (I did the hboot 1.50 downgrade) but I can point you where to go.
Let me start off my saying what im trying to do in relation to my questions. Im trying to go back to GB after flashing ICS on the rezound. I have an unlocked boot loader and AmonRa recovery. I downloaded a stock GB rooted rom and flashed it it went to hboot to do the kernel, got an error (cant remember) so i flashed the kernel myself. and oh my god is things effed up, 4g drops all the time, i dont have an accessable SD card external or internal, and i cant figure out alot of things, all the tutorials and guides assume prior knowledge which i dont have, so here goes
What is S-off, and why do i apparently need it to go back to true stock?
What is "wrong s-on" i dont understand what that even means (but its a major stipulation in the guides)
Is "S-on relocked" considered s-off?
Why must a file be named "PH98IMG.zip" to do anything?
I feel like all the guides are like making a witches potion or some ritual. I really like to know what im doing and i rarely post in forums like this, but my own devices have failed me.
Please help, your time is greatly appreciated
PS hope i posted this in the right spot
blackbelt27 said:
Let me start off my saying what im trying to do in relation to my questions. Im trying to go back to GB after flashing ICS on the rezound. I have an unlocked boot loader and AmonRa recovery. I downloaded a stock GB rooted rom and flashed it it went to hboot to do the kernel, got an error (cant remember) so i flashed the kernel myself. and oh my god is things effed up, 4g drops all the time, i dont have an accessable SD card external or internal, and i cant figure out alot of things, all the tutorials and guides assume prior knowledge which i dont have, so here goes
What is S-off, and why do i apparently need it to go back to true stock?
What is "wrong s-on" i dont understand what that even means (but its a major stipulation in the guides)
Is "S-on relocked" considered s-off?
Why must a file be named "PH98IMG.zip" to do anything?
I feel like all the guides are like making a witches potion or some ritual. I really like to know what im doing and i rarely post in forums like this, but my own devices have failed me.
Please help, your time is greatly appreciated
PS hope i posted this in the right spot
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Click to collapse
My gtalk is [email protected], shoot me an invite and I'll be around to answer your questions.
S- on = Security On, S-Off = Security Off
Locked and relocked s on has nothing to do with being s-off
S-On means that there are security measures in place by the manufacturer to keep people from flashing **** that isn't officially signed as HTC proprietary software/firmware.
S-off means that all those safety precautions are gone. It means that you're allowed to flash the wrong **** on your phone, you're completely able to screw it up, or make it better, or just different, anything the users heart desires. S-on will not let you flash firmware that isn't signed by HTC in its original packaging. S-off will allow you to flash the firmware from a completely different phone if you want theoretically and brick it, have a paperweight.
It's also a security measure for the service provider. Keeps people from using custom firmware for evil purposes just like it keeps users from flashing **** that doesn't belong on their phones.
The software is written so that it recognizes "PH98IMG.zip" as being an "oh **** this is from my manufacturer and I'm supposed to see it" filename.
When you first boot the bootloader, it's startup process is to check for that file on the sd card, and the one and only thing its supposed to do in that case is allow you to confirm or deny that you are trying to update the software.