[Q] re-unlock bootloader after Motorola service? - Atrix 4G Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

Any help/advice would be appreciated, thank-you!
Mine was purchased Mar/11, I had unlocked bootloader, and running Darkside ROM, all was good.
Then haptic feedback/vibration started cutting in/out.
Tried going back to CM7, Aura... no resolution. Read on xda re: some people having hardware issues with vibe mechanism, so loaded up NFHimself's Gobstopper (thanks!) to make phone appear as stock as possible, and took in to Bell for service. Came back from Motorola repair shop, vibes fixed, running GB 2.3.6. Battery life absolutely sucks, which is what started me down this whole road of custom ROMs in first place!! As I said, Darkside was awesome, almost double battery life for same usage.
So... I want to re-unlock and get going again, really unsure where to start. Some have said follow exact same steps and unlocking first time, others say no need to repeat fastboot oem unlock, and others say just jump in at flashing a custom (Romracers) recovery??
I am leery of using RSDlite and IHOP again, heard bad things about messing with .sbf files after phones software has been updated??
I read another thread on here about antifuses, and such, not sure if that's the case, but for sure the unlocked message no longer appears during boot.
The intro on NFHimslelf's Froyo Gobstopper thread alludes to the fact that you need to RE-unlock after flashing it, and now for sure after Motorola techs updated phone, so... kindly, where should I start &/or what steps should I skip to get back to where I was without bricking??
Thanks very much!

Just flash the IHOP unlock SBF. Even if it reports as failing the install just pull the battery then reboot. Should see unlocked on the boot screen. Then boot to fastboot, flash recovery, reboot to recovery and flash your ROM or backup.
Sent from my Xoom using xda premium

d3athsd00r
Thanks very much for your reply! I will try tonight after work and report back!

I'm back in business! Thanks again

Related

[Q] Return AT&T Atrix to factory, locked condition?

Hi guys, posting for my wife here. She has an Atrix, running Cherry Pi 0.7 currently (unlocked bootloader, romracer recovery, etc). The touchscreen is completely borked, doing all kinds of weird things. I know it's a hardware issue, i have tried flashing 3 different roms, 4 different keyboards, and multiple wipe/reinstalls of roms. Always does the same stuff with the touchscreen - not responding to input, random multiple presses of qqqqqqqq when trying to type, soft buttons not working, etc.
i want to return the phone to complete stock so i can send it in to Motorola to be either repaired or exchanged. I cannot find any insrructions for this for an AT&T Atrix. How can i get back to stock os, factory recovery, and locked bootloader like when it was new? I tried search, but cant find exactly what im looking for. Can someone help me out, please? Thanks.
its been said before that once you're unlocked, you're always unlocked. Flash a fruitcake for a stock setting.
RampageRR said:
Hi guys, posting for my wife here. She has an Atrix, running Cherry Pi 0.7 currently (unlocked bootloader, romracer recovery, etc). The touchscreen is completely borked, doing all kinds of weird things. I know it's a hardware issue, i have tried flashing 3 different roms, 4 different keyboards, and multiple wipe/reinstalls of roms. Always does the same stuff with the touchscreen - not responding to input, random multiple presses of qqqqqqqq when trying to type, soft buttons not working, etc.
i want to return the phone to complete stock so i can send it in to Motorola to be either repaired or exchanged. I cannot find any insrructions for this for an AT&T Atrix. How can i get back to stock os, factory recovery, and locked bootloader like when it was new? I tried search, but cant find exactly what im looking for. Can someone help me out, please? Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you haven't updated to OTA 2.3.4, you can SBF flash 2.2.2 and it will restore your phone to default.
Note: It will remain unlocked, but it won't show the "Unlocked" text during boot.
This way you might get lucky and they fix it without noticing that it's unlocked.
Good luck.
xploited said:
If you haven't updated to OTA 2.3.4, you can SBF flash 2.2.2 and it will restore your phone to default.
Note: It will remain unlocked, but it won't show the "Unlocked" text during boot.
This way you might get lucky and they fix it without noticing that it's unlocked.
Good luck.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
the SBF file, is that the Pudding one? (sorry didnt mean to hijack just have the same problem)
Pizzaapu said:
the SBF file, is that the Pudding one? (sorry didnt mean to hijack just have the same problem)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not pudding, I meant SBF flash full stock 2.2.2 rom.
BUT YOU CAN ONLY DO IT IF YOU HAVEN"T UPGRADED TO OFFICIAL OTA 2.3.4!
Or you will HARD BRICK! LOL.
xploited said:
Not pudding, I meant SBF flash full stock 2.2.2 rom.
BUT YOU CAN ONLY DO IT IF YOU HAVEN"T UPGRADED TO OFFICIAL OTA 2.3.4!
Or you will HARD BRICK! LOL.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
guess that's a little moot in this case since he's sending it back to motorola anyways lol
The other suggestion is to sbf flash the 2.3.4 sbf, still may risk hard bricking since it's not really confirmed if it's safe since most of the hard bricks have from sbfing backwards.
xploited said:
Not pudding, I meant SBF flash full stock 2.2.2 rom.
BUT YOU CAN ONLY DO IT IF YOU HAVEN"T UPGRADED TO OFFICIAL OTA 2.3.4!
Or you will HARD BRICK! LOL.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lol hes returning back to Moto anyways ha ha! I'll try it out, I fastbooted to Gingerbread (via Kenn) So I never did the OTA.... so I guess I am safe.
Per this post, you can tell if you've flashed OTA 2.3.4. If it has been flashed already, then DO NOT downgrade to a official 2.2.2 build.
mysticdrew said:
guess that's a little moot in this case since he's sending it back to motorola anyways lol
The other suggestion is to sbf flash the 2.3.4 sbf, still may risk hard bricking since it's not really confirmed if it's safe since most of the hard bricks have from sbfing backwards.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Its safe. I have done it. U can sbf the 2.3.4 (4.5.91) over 2.3.4 (4.5.91) even after ota. I used the pudding sbf and did not brick my phone. Even still, same rules apply, your risk.
My overclocked alien atrix
Sass86 said:
Its safe. I have done it. U can sbf the 2.3.4 (4.5.91) over 2.3.4 (4.5.91) even after ota. I used the pudding sbf and did not brick my phone. Even still, same rules apply, your risk.
My overclocked alien atrix
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah but doesn't using the pudding 2.3.4 (4.5.91) still makes you have the "Unlocked" thing on the boot setting? which is what the OP wants to avoid so if he takes it to like AT&T if they see it and see Unlocked they will void the warranty, I am pretty sure the retail story wont extract his phone to see if the fuse it sparked and unlocked.
Thanks for the replies, guys. I basically need to get back to 2.3.4 with no "unlocked" logo on boot. I'm pretty sure they won't go and check bootloader status for touchscreen issues (I hope).
If I sbf the factory 4.5.91 will it remove the unlock logo and restore webtop, etc?
If I flash the fruitcake version, does that get rid of the unlock logo?
I guess that's my main concern so I can return for repair, just getting it back to appear normal. Thanks again.
RampageRR said:
Thanks for the replies, guys. I basically need to get back to 2.3.4 with no "unlocked" logo on boot. I'm pretty sure they won't go and check bootloader status for touchscreen issues (I hope).
If I sbf the factory 4.5.91 will it remove the unlock logo and restore webtop, etc?
If I flash the fruitcake version, does that get rid of the unlock logo?
I guess that's my main concern so I can return for repair, just getting it back to appear normal. Thanks again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am not sure about the sbf, but I can tell you for sure fruitcake will not get rid of the unlock logo, flashing a fruitcake is only a stock ROM.
RampageRR said:
Thanks for the replies, guys. I basically need to get back to 2.3.4 with no "unlocked" logo on boot. I'm pretty sure they won't go and check bootloader status for touchscreen issues (I hope).
If I sbf the factory 4.5.91 will it remove the unlock logo and restore webtop, etc?
If I flash the fruitcake version, does that get rid of the unlock logo?
I guess that's my main concern so I can return for repair, just getting it back to appear normal. Thanks again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No. Only if you haven't upgraded via ota update. If you did, then there is no way of removing "unlocked" yet.
My overclocked alien atrix
RampageRR said:
Thanks for the replies, guys. I basically need to get back to 2.3.4 with no "unlocked" logo on boot. I'm pretty sure they won't go and check bootloader status for touchscreen issues (I hope).
If I sbf the factory 4.5.91 will it remove the unlock logo and restore webtop, etc?
If I flash the fruitcake version, does that get rid of the unlock logo?
I guess that's my main concern so I can return for repair, just getting it back to appear normal. Thanks again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just a thought... did you ever back up your PDS partition?
Touchscreen issues sometimes are due to pds issues. If you have made a backup, wouldn't be a bad idea to try restoring it to see if that fixes your issue.
If you didn't back it up, take a look at this thread with a pds file that helped others.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1131649
RampageRR said:
Hi guys, posting for my wife here. She has an Atrix, running Cherry Pi 0.7 currently (unlocked bootloader, romracer recovery, etc). The touchscreen is completely borked, doing all kinds of weird things. I know it's a hardware issue, i have tried flashing 3 different roms, 4 different keyboards, and multiple wipe/reinstalls of roms. Always does the same stuff with the touchscreen - not responding to input, random multiple presses of qqqqqqqq when trying to type, soft buttons not working, etc.
i want to return the phone to complete stock so i can send it in to Motorola to be either repaired or exchanged. I cannot find any insrructions for this for an AT&T Atrix. How can i get back to stock os, factory recovery, and locked bootloader like when it was new? I tried search, but cant find exactly what im looking for. Can someone help me out, please? Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Probably a long shot but, I used to have very similar issues with other phones in the past when I've had a screen protector on for awhile and it gets scratched up. Maybe try remove the screen protector if there is one and see what happens.
If it is going back for repair. why not intentionally hard brick it? The first thing they will do is the full blown factory flash, erasing all evidence.
If you do this, make certain you give them a story that somehow describes both the actual problem and the bricked condition (else they might think the un-bricking fixed it and not catch the other issue.
EDIT: Maybe not all evidence, the fuse that was blown when you unlocked a 2.3.4 might be a real hardware type fuse and never be cleared. Don't know.
My device is doing this exact same thing and I'm in the same position you are in. I never backed up the PDS partition, but a backup using the image in the linked thread did not solve the problem. Nor did flashing multiple new ROMs.
I'm not sure if this is a hardware or software problem. It problem seems to go away if you lock the screen a few times, but then later reapers.
Sorry to hijack this thread, but does anyone know if replacing the digitizer will fix this problem? Since I'm in New Zealand this would be an economic solution as shipping to and from the US is pricey.
RampageRR said:
Thanks for the replies, guys. I basically need to get back to 2.3.4 with no "unlocked" logo on boot. I'm pretty sure they won't go and check bootloader status for touchscreen issues (I hope).
If I sbf the factory 4.5.91 will it remove the unlock logo and restore webtop, etc?
If I flash the fruitcake version, does that get rid of the unlock logo?
I guess that's my main concern so I can return for repair, just getting it back to appear normal. Thanks again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok, I have the same issue as you, I was able to fix the "unlocked" logo ( I havn't taken it back to AT&T yet for warranty, but I will update when I do). So this is what I did, when I upgraded to 4.5.91 I fastbooted it instead of OTA or flashing it, I also unlocked my bootloader by using pudding. Assuming if you did the same, then will be able to flash the official 4.5.91 via SBF ( I wasnt going to try 1.8.3 because I didn't want to risk the brick). I got the 4.5.91 sbf from this link: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1125944 ... My phone is still rooted, but the "unlocked" logo is now gone and I flashed fruitcakes so It looks completly stocked now! I hope this helps, I dont think you will fool motorola if you send it in for repairs, but I am pretty sure you can get by with that if you have to return it to the store for warranty reasons! Good luck : )
Pizzaapu said:
Ok, I have the same issue as you, I was able to fix the "unlocked" logo ( I havn't taken it back to AT&T yet for warranty, but I will update when I do). So this is what I did, when I upgraded to 4.5.91 I fastbooted it instead of OTA or flashing it, I also unlocked my bootloader by using pudding. Assuming if you did the same, then will be able to flash the official 4.5.91 via SBF ( I wasnt going to try 1.8.3 because I didn't want to risk the brick). I got the 4.5.91 sbf from this link: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1125944 ... My phone is still rooted, but the "unlocked" logo is now gone and I flashed fruitcakes so It looks completly stocked now! I hope this helps, I dont think you will fool motorola if you send it in for repairs, but I am pretty sure you can get by with that if you have to return it to the store for warranty reasons! Good luck : )
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just saw this. I ended up using the stock 2.3.4 sbf, and then doing a factory reset in the privacy menu. Now has all the stock info in the "about phone" section. I'll let you all know how it goes. Thanks for the suggestions.
Just got back from AT&T! they said it was a software issue! They gave me the warranty and gave me a refurbished Atrix with 1.8.3, stock froyo on it! I'll stay OTA until CM7 comes out of pre-beta then see how to root it after OTA : )

Loving this Dev support but a little overwhelmed and in need of help.

I came from motorola phones so I'm used to locked bootloaders and the methods of hacking them. I've had the Rezound for almost 3 months now, and I'm currently running cleanROM 2.3. A few days ago I see we had a new ics leak, and from what I'm guessing, the rom bases have been updated for it. I'd like to flash the rooted leak, and install an ics rom, but I have a few questions. If I'm on ics already, what steps should I take? Do i have to go back to gb, and relock, or can I flash it through the current rom I'm on? Any advice is greatly appreciated!
Sent from my ADR6425LVW using XDA
Insidious said:
I came from motorola phones so I'm used to locked bootloaders and the methods of hacking them. I've had the Rezound for almost 3 months now, and I'm currently running cleanROM 2.3. A few days ago I see we had a new ics leak, and from what I'm guessing, the rom bases have been updated for it. I'd like to flash the rooted leak, and install an ics rom, but I have a few questions. If I'm on ics already, what steps should I take? Do i have to go back to gb, and relock, or can I flash it through the current rom I'm on? Any advice is greatly appreciated!
Sent from my ADR6425LVW using XDA
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you don't have to go back to gb, but you do have to relock. as for the full instructions, they're somewhere on in the forum. searching helps. as for me, i'm got gonna update mine yet, so that's as far as i can help
Insidious said:
I came from motorola phones so I'm used to locked bootloaders and the methods of hacking them. I've had the Rezound for almost 3 months now, and I'm currently running cleanROM 2.3. A few days ago I see we had a new ics leak, and from what I'm guessing, the rom bases have been updated for it. I'd like to flash the rooted leak, and install an ics rom, but I have a few questions. If I'm on ics already, what steps should I take? Do i have to go back to gb, and relock, or can I flash it through the current rom I'm on? Any advice is greatly appreciated!
Sent from my ADR6425LVW using XDA
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wrong section bud, we have a Q & A
check out the 1st/2nd post on Wildstang's Twizted rom page. Very friendly instructions.
@mods - 'shut erdown
Ian
Here is the link from CleanRom to prepare you for new base ROMs:
http://www.scottsroms.com/showthread.php/856-HOW-TO-Prepare-for-CleanROM-4-0-Update?p=6527
It will take a while to flash and make sure you do reboot to boot loader the 2nd time so it flashes clean, but I would suggest backing up your SD card and internal storage. Good luck. I love the new leak, in the form of Clear ROM.
I'm having a bit of trouble updating my Rezound. I got the file named correctly and HBOOT detects it, however it loads/checks the RUU (blue/gold bars on the right) and then just goes back to the normal HBOOT menu without any error message or anything changing. I have relocked my Rezound.. Unsure of what else I can do. Any ideas?
You need to enter bootloader a second time for it to complete the full install.
It still isn't doing what it should be. It goes through loading/checking and then back into the normal bootloader menu. I then tried going into fastboot and back into bootloader, and the same process happened again. I also tried rebooting bootloader after it did the load/check process, but i'm not making any progress. By that, I mean it does the same exact thing.
After going through it the second time, what was the screen showing for your radio and hboot versions? Can't remember what the updated #'s off the top of my head but the radio should not be the .95### version.
Figured out the issue. I used an md5 checker and it came out wrong. guess I should try redownloading.. Must have gotten cutoff or something?
Sorry I got back so late, but thanks for the help everyone! Sorry about my post placement, I'm used to Droid forums and their Rezound section doesn't have a Q&A. Searching does help, but like I said, all of this dev support is a bit; overwhelming coming from a phone with little dev support, so people who can break it down for me are awesome.
Sent from my ADR6425LVW using XDA
Some advise
I will chime in and say that it is definitely worth it. As said before in the CleanROM thread Scott has a very detailed step by step guide. Just a few pointers before you jump in.
1) make sure you have a card reader for your computer that you can connect your removable micro-SD card to. Trust me, if you screw up somewhere in the process, having a reliable way to access the SD card is a life saver.
2) before flashing always wipe/factory reset 3 times, some think it is overkill, but if you end up with some odd glitch or bug when you just wiped once, you will most likely have to wipe and flash again to get rid of the bug...so of course you are actually saving time and hassle by just doing it 3 times in the first place.
3) make sure your battery is full or almost full before you start the process, you will avoid many problems by not having your phone battery die in the middle of a flash or update.
4) read, read and read again all the information and the instructions on what you are going to be doing, then make sure you understand and are comfortable Before you actually start. Reading through the forums and knowing beforehand what others have experienced, and the fixes, will make your life 100% better while you play with your phone.
All that said, the new RUU is awesome, better radio reception, better battery life for most (once you drain and recharge a few times), and ICS is very cool on the Rezound. Happy flashing people and hope you like ICS as much as I do.

Unlocked Bootloader (Pudding) causing SOD and random reboots

I got my Atrix a few weeks ago (used, it was unlocked already), and have been having Sleep Of Death issues since day one. I finally got fed up, and flashed the full 4.5.141 sbf via RSDLite. The SODs dissapeared completely. I rooted, still no problems. Then I unlocked the BL and SODs returned. I tried with the Automatic Unlocker, and manually with the original pudding method. Same thing.
When I do the unlocks it says I'm already unlocked, the only thing that changes is the "Unlocked" text comes back on the boot screen. But if I don't flash the pudding I still cant use fastboot to flash recovery etc.
Does anybody have an idea on what could be the problem? Maybe it's because the pudding is for 4.5.91 BL?
Thank you
EDIT:
I flashed 4.5.91 stock (almost bricked my phone), and unlocked with pudding. Still had SODs, so it's not because of 4.5.141. Any help would be really appreciated.
I also sometimes get a red text saying: Unrecoverable bootloader error 0x00000004. And have to do a battery pull to restart the device.
eNorby said:
I got my Atrix a few weeks ago (used, it was unlocked already), and have been having Sleep Of Death issues since day one. I finally got fed up, and flashed the full 4.5.141 sbf via RSDLite. The SODs dissapeared completely. I rooted, still no problems. Then I unlocked the BL and SODs returned. I tried with the Automatic Unlocker, and manually with the original pudding method. Same thing.
When I do the unlocks it says I'm already unlocked, the only thing that changes is the "Unlocked" text comes back on the boot screen. But if I don't flash the pudding I still cant use fastboot to flash recovery etc.
Does anybody have an idea on what could be the problem? Maybe it's because the pudding is for 4.5.91 BL?
Thank you
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Once the bootloader is unlocked you can't lock it back... its actually a fuse in hardware.
Sent from my MB860 running Jokersax's CM9
giqbal said:
Once the bootloader is unlocked you can't lock it back... its actually a fuse in hardware.
Sent from my MB860 running Jokersax's CM9
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, I get that. But when I flash the stock 4.5.141 sbf, the unlocked text dissapears. I understand that the BL is still technically unlocked, but for some reason I can't fastboot flash recovery, and similar stuff. Only after I flash pudding. But then I get SODs.
Stupid sod
eNorby said:
Yes, I get that. But when I flash the stock 4.5.141 sbf, the unlocked text dissapears. I understand that the BL is still technically unlocked, but for some reason I can't fastboot flash recovery, and similar stuff. Only after I flash pudding. But then I get SODs.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I installed advanced wifi lock from the market and that's helped with my SOD issues.
I used a wakelock app. but it drained my battery fast. I want a real solution. Now that I know what causes the SODs, I'm determined to fix them. I'm on stock for now with no SODs what so ever.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA
flashed 4.5.91 and unlocked. still got SOD...
bump.
Someone have any ideas?
bump
bump. please?
Its not the pudding thats causing it - Otherwise everyone here with an unlocked bootloader would be *****ing about it.... Its an app or something else you've installed that doesn't agree with something else. You'll have to spend the time tracking them down one by one. Its a PITA, but your only real option. Best bet - completely wipe everything after a full backup, and then start from scratch.
G-Man. said:
Its not the pudding thats causing it - Otherwise everyone here with an unlocked bootloader would be *****ing about it.... Its an app or something else you've installed that doesn't agree with something else. You'll have to spend the time tracking them down one by one. Its a PITA, but your only real option. Best bet - completely wipe everything after a full backup, and then start from scratch.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I already tried that. Wiped at least a dozen times, tried all the ROMs available, all the kernels, all the radios. It's the unlocked BL that is causing it. And I'm not the only one with this problem, I read about others in another thread. I don't know why only a few of us are getting this. But I'm 100% sure it's because of pudding. Because flashing back the stock BL (via rsd lite) fixes it.
Stock MotoBlur, with the locked bootloader works fine. As soon as I flash pudding (and that is the only thing I change) the reboots and SODs return.
There has to be an issue with your device then, otherwise every single person would have the same issue. Its not the pudding... If it was, EVERYONE would have this issue. Its your device, or something else on it.
G-Man. said:
There has to be an issue with your device then, otherwise every single person would have the same issue. Its not the pudding... If it was, EVERYONE would have this issue. Its your device, or something else on it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, I get that. But what I want to know is what? What is the unlocked bootloader doing, that the locked one isn't?
Its more than likely a hardware issue... This was the case back when I had my Samsung Captivate.... Some builds had no issues, and others (newer builds) were plagued with random garbage that couldn't be resolved no matter what people tried to do... I've had my Atrix 4G since pre-release day, Feb 22nd of last year. Haven't had a single issue. Others who got theirs months later, or just recently, have had some issues that I dont know why they are having (Rescue Sqad Staff on a forum dedicated to the Atrix 4G and Atrix 2) Sometimes the only way to fix certain things are to replace the device.
G-Man. said:
Its more than likely a hardware issue... This was the case back when I had my Samsung Captivate.... Some builds had no issues, and others (newer builds) were plagued with random garbage that couldn't be resolved no matter what people tried to do... I've had my Atrix 4G since pre-release day, Feb 22nd of last year. Haven't had a single issue. Others who got theirs months later, or just recently, have had some issues that I dont know why they are having (Rescue Sqad Staff on a forum dedicated to the Atrix 4G and Atrix 2) Sometimes the only way to fix certain things are to replace the device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah that is what I'm probably going to do. But I still don't get why it works flawlessly with the stock BL...
Sent from my MB860 using XDA
same issue, everything like this.. i wonder when will we find a solution for this SOD problem?..
Im having the same issue with my atrix unlocked the BL / SOD, how can you return again to stock without hardbrick the phone? Thanks for the info in advance!
I'm having the same problem...
I'm wondering , maybe the ram fixes in the pudding topic could help solve this?
I have exactly the same issue. No SOD with stock rom 4.5.141 and face with SOD after unlocking bootloader. Anybody has any ideas?
Also getting SOD ...
I have exactly the same issue. No SOD with stock rom 4.5.141 and SOD after unlocking bootloader.

[Q] Motorola Photon with U.S. Cellular SBF

OK I'm in need of dire help. I own a Motorola Photon for SPRINT. It started with the fact i was using jokersax CM9, but had no signal. Tried all the fixes but nothing prevailed, so i decided to flash back to stock. I flashed and somehow I started getting "failed to boot 2/3/4". Eventually i came into dire need for it to get past the boot screen . So eventually tried the method of flashing U.S. Cellular SBF which eventually worked. Eventually got past the activation screen (go into wireless setting through menu button and change it to GSM) but now I can't make calls, text, 3G unlike the people I heard this method from, and I'm wondering how can I do that or how can i go back to sprint SBF
U.S. GSM towers are blocked at the hardware level I believe.
Sent from my MB855 using xda premium
ninjajtm said:
OK I'm in need of dire help. I own a Motorola Photon for SPRINT. It started with the fact i was using jokersax CM9, but had no signal. Tried all the fixes but nothing prevailed, so i decided to flash back to stock. I flashed and somehow I started getting "failed to boot 2/3/4". Eventually i came into dire need for it to get past the boot screen . So eventually tried the method of flashing U.S. Cellular SBF which eventually worked. Eventually got past the activation screen (go into wireless setting through menu button and change it to GSM) but now I can't make calls, text, 3G unlike the people I heard this method from, and I'm wondering how can I do that or how can i go back to sprint SBF
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When you flashed back to Sprint stock 2.3.4 from CM9, did you format the system data? If not you will have problems going past the boot screen. I learned that the hard way.
Try the following to see if this works.
1) Use RSD Lite to flash back to Sprint stock 2.3.4 SBF
2) Turn off phone
3) Hold Power+Vol Down buttons and use Vol Down to scroll through options to "Android Recovery" and press Vol Up button
4) You'll get a triangle warning icon in the middle. Press and hold both Vol Up + Vol Down button to access stock recovery.
5) Select "format system data/factory reset" and "wipe cache partition"
6) After that is done, select "reboot phone"
7) You should be able to boot up like factory reset
8) Make sure your phone registers with Sprint during the initial setup.
9) PROFIT!!!
Let me know if this works out for you.
I just tried to go back to stock through RSD Lite and it failed at "waiting for re-enumeration" and on the phone it says "sec_exception: febe, 4e, 4e"
How many times did you try this? Did you make sure before you started flashing via RSD Lite that you put the phone in "RSD Protocol support"?
Try watching this video to flash back to RSD Lite. Skip to 3:30 for RSD Lite part and watch from there. Its very step by step on how to go back to stock.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J94VcWk-CJc
If you flashed the USCC 2.3.5 sbf and not zip file, you have effectively locked your boot oader and no amount of sbfing will help.
You won't be able to activate it for sprint because of that.
Sent from my MB855
I understood that which why if I couldn't change it back to sprint, how can i make it to where I can atleast make calls and text or use internet (3g)?
You need to flash photon radio. That will help, I think.
peetr_ said:
You need to flash photon radio. That will help, I think.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you explain in more depth, with what radio and how?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1573727
Graze through this thread to see if it is going anywhere. I used a variation of this to unlock my Electrify that shipped with 2.3.5 and a locked bootloader. If they got the method working you should be able to use it to unlock your bootloader and get back to a sprint rom.
ninjajtm said:
Can you explain in more depth, with what radio and how?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You cannot go back with any Photon sbf, but theoretically, you can get your phone service back, with flashing Photon radio through recovery (maybe bootstrap recovery, if you cannot be unlocked), try it - http://d-h.st/lS0
I don't understand why the OP flashed the USCC 2.3.5 update when he has a Sprint phone. Sounds like it was too much desperation and with a simple look on the XDA forums the problem would have been solved.
I offered the OP a few steps to try out but has yet to get back to me. Oh well I guess he missed my suggestion or ignored it. Either way good luck with that.
ericdabbs said:
I don't understand why the OP flashed the USCC 2.3.5 update when he has a Sprint phone. Sounds like it was too much desperation and with a simple look on the XDA forums the problem would have been solved.
I offered the OP a few steps to try out but has yet to get back to me. Oh well I guess he missed my suggestion or ignored it. Either way good luck with that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I did, posted 20 mins after you did with my results, and it kinda was out of desperation that I did it since all i got was a load of sec_exemptions and failed flashes that I went with the method I did. But thank you for helping with those steps, I'm currently following the thread that can probably fix my problem without flashing
ericdabbs said:
I don't understand why the OP flashed the USCC 2.3.5 update when he has a Sprint phone. Sounds like it was too much desperation and with a simple look on the XDA forums the problem would have been solved.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think the problem (at least it was for me, and given the number of people posting that they accidentally flashed it, there has to be a reason) is that one of the threads with info on restoring back to locked/stock ROM says something like 'flash the attached bootloader.' The correct bootloader is *linked* inside a list of links, and the horrible, horrible 2.3.5 bootloader of doom is actually *attached* to the message with the warning about not using on a photon being up a little higher in the thread.
In my case, having done the restore a time or two on the phone already, I thought I knew what I was doing, so I just jumped right into the steps this time, and grabbed the attached (wrong) bootloader, only to discover that I had now bricked the phone.
I did a ton of reading here yesterday, and it seems the consensus so far is that these phones are bricked until someone can get their hands on an SBF of the 2.3.5 Sprint release that is supposed to be coming out in a soak test this week along with a similarly locked bootloader. I just ended up buying a new G Nexus from a guy on craigslist that had them off-contract for $250. Gazelle is buying photons for about $125, so if I can get it fixed in the next week or so (or try for a hardware replacement from Sprint), I'll only be out $125 for an cross-grade to a more hack-friendly phone with ICS. Not the worst mistake ever.
Ok, I am thouroghly lost when it comes to the dangers of bricking this phone as I come from a samsung epic in which you can basically flash another phones rom and it won't brick.
So I have some questions. TIA
1. First of all this is for the sprint photon right? What's all this talk about a sim card slot? Isn't that gsm only?
2. From what I'm gathering 2.3.5 electrify is a big no-no
3. Some people I'm reading say that since the 2.3.5 update the bootloader has yet to be unlocked? Let's assume my photon will come with the most up to date sprint rom so is it unlockable?
Sent from my Nexus Slide 4G via Tapatalk 2
xopher.hunter said:
Ok, I am thouroghly lost when it comes to the dangers of bricking this phone as I come from a samsung epic in which you can basically flash another phones rom and it won't brick.
So I have some questions. TIA
1. First of all this is for the sprint photon right? What's all this talk about a sim card slot? Isn't that gsm only?
2. From what I'm gathering 2.3.5 electrify is a big no-no
3. Some people I'm reading say that since the 2.3.5 update the bootloader has yet to be unlocked? Let's assume my photon will come with the most up to date sprint rom so is it unlockable?
Sent from my Nexus Slide 4G via Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. Yes, Well its possible to use gsm on the Photon since its now possible unlike the at&t version (Atrix) that is GSM only, so No/ Sorta
2. It is. .but its that method you go to when you have no where else to go and you'll make a contract to the devil to get this phone to go past the boot screen
3. As far as I know yes, but I'm not sure
xopher.hunter said:
Ok, I am thouroghly lost when it comes to the dangers of bricking this phone as I come from a samsung epic in which you can basically flash another phones rom and it won't brick.
So I have some questions. TIA
1. First of all this is for the sprint photon right? What's all this talk about a sim card slot? Isn't that gsm only?
2. From what I'm gathering 2.3.5 electrify is a big no-no
3. Some people I'm reading say that since the 2.3.5 update the bootloader has yet to be unlocked? Let's assume my photon will come with the most up to date sprint rom so is it unlockable?
Sent from my Nexus Slide 4G via Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. Sim card slot is for non-USA gsm service as this is a world phone. Can't use at&t or T-Mobile.
2. Yes, very much so. Stay away.
3. If you buy a photon, it may or may not come with 2.3.5 out of the box. I don't think 2.3.5 is official yet, but I may be wrong. I'm not stock so I haven't been paying attention. If it doesn't, just don't accept the update and you're ok. Root, freeze updater with titanium backup, and no worries. At least until ics is official, and then you may need 2.3.5 for that. I don't know exactly how all that works, but I'm sure someone here does. If it does come with 2.3.5, no unlocked bootloader, but it's still rootable.
Sent from my MB855 using XDA

[Q] Dumb question maybe. Has anyone ever bricked their phone by unlocking / rooting?

The unlocker that was posted by the htc dev, I heard some trouble with that. I want to get off this stock ROM or.at least get rid of that BLOATWARE Vzw puts in there. I seen some people have inactive or (bricked) phones after unlocking...or no service? Has the bugs been worked out of that unlock software? Last thing I need is a dead phone. :/
No.
When were there ever bugs? I've never heard of any of that. The worst that happens is it will wipe your internal storage... Can't remember about external, but backup everything you need and there won't be a problem
Sent from my ADR6425LVW using Tapatalk 2
Unless you go out if your way to do something ridiculous before researching xda, im pretty sure the only way you can mess up that bad is pulling the battery while flashing a kernel /radio/firmware
Sent from my ADR6425LVW using xda premium
With just htc dev unlock and no s-off you are pretty much safe from ... just about anything
I did about 38 firmware updates for other users before we had s off which involved relocking and then unlocking in a 2 week period. Prior to that I probably helped about 15 people by remoting in to their computer and unlocking their phone new out of the box then fastboot flashing recovery and then flashing a custom rooted rom and kernel.
So I would guess without counting the updates I did where people had their unlock codes from before, I did approximately 30 htcdev bootloader unlocks.
I've never seen a bricked device or loss of signal from an OEM unlock. Also, I've never seen a true bricked device besides hardware failure that wasn't related to unlocking, it was just a rare factory defect.
Now I have helped about a dozen people (estimating conservatively) that made threads saying their device was bricked. Each time, it was because they had a different boot.img than the one from their rom and attempted to boot, often because they just forgot to flash the kernel. This results in a harmless bootloop until the user flashes a boot image and can be easily resolved by restoring the nandroid or by flashing the new kernel their rom needs.
An example of this where it's seen often is a person installs a gingerbread rom and boot.img. A month later they flash an Ice Cream Sandwich rom, and forget there's a gingerbread kernel on it needs to be replaced with the ICS kernel (kernel is in form of boot.img) So they reboot, hang on the white HTC boot screen, and panic, thus creating the "Help I've bricked my phone" threads. Sadly, some people don't wait for assistance and return their phone to Verizon before realizing it wasn't bricked it was bootlooped.
Also, with s off, I've seen the same identical problem. Their computer screws up while running the windows script. The Juopunut bear s off program has replaced the boot.IMG on said phone with the one it installs temporarily to gain s off. They see the JP bear logo when they reboot and panic because they think it's bricked. In reality, they just need to flash one PH98IMG.zip they used to install the rom and they will be right back to normal.
Most of the threads and gtalk messages I get about signal loss is because people reboot with the battery cover off and don't realize that it's because they forgot to put the cover back on and the antennas are in the cover.
I'm not calling anyone liars, just stating that in all the cases I've helped out with, the bricks weren't bricks at all just a minor misunderstanding on part of the user. I always recommend when people get frustrated they put the phone down and cool off to prevent the panic and confusion as much as possible.
Sent from my ADR6425LVW using xda premium
No reason to unlock now that we have S-Off. You'll have complete access to everything and they don't have a record that you voided your warranty by unlocking. S-Off is pretty easy to achieve now that the software has a lot of the bugs worked out of it. Also it makes flashing roms and going back and forth between versions a lot easier!
brando56894 said:
No reason to unlock now that we have S-Off. You'll have complete access to everything and they don't have a record that you voided your warranty by unlocking. S-Off is pretty easy to achieve now that the software has a lot of the bugs worked out of it. Also it makes flashing roms and going back and forth between versions a lot easier!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Pretty much everything you said about not unlocking is wrong.
You cannot do the S-OFF procedure unless you are rooted, and you aren't rooted unless you are unlocked.
In the interest of full disclosure, I know of 2 Rezounds that have bricked, but from attempting things you will never do.

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