A few questions for a new I9300T owner - Galaxy S III Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

Hi all,
I have an I9300T running slimbean 3.0.0 on the CM 3.0.31 kernel and CWM touch recovery. I'm having some issues and I have a few general questions which I am having real trouble getting answers to, please bear with me:
1/ I'd like to know how to do a full restore to stock ROM and kernel/firmware, I can find heaps of info on applying the stock ROM but not the kernel/firmware, how do I get it back to factory state (and where to download the neccessary files)? I'm not even sure how many different firmwares/recoveries/kernels etc there are and which ones I have changed or if they are all the same thing or not. I'm pretty new to all this and admittedly have just blindly followed the step-by-steps to install a better ROM than factory's without any real knowledge of what I'm doing.
2/ What do I need to get my MHL-HDMI adapter to work? I'd like to use my S3 with a monitor as a desktop computer and I have had no luck in getting any response to this in the slim bean developer's thread. All of the kernels' developers' posts I have looked at make no mention of support for this. Can anyone tell me if there are any third party kernels that support HDMI-out via MHL? If anyone DOES know, could you also please let me know which ROMs will work with said kernel?
3/ How do I erase the internal 'sd' card. I don't actually have an SD card in, but there is 12 or so GB of internal phone storage which, even after a Settings>Backup&Reset>Factory data reset, does not get erased. From 'storage' on the settings menu, the 'erase' button is greyed out. After a factory reset it keeps all my photos and application data which I am trying to get rid of. I have backed up everything to my PC which I need.
4/ Are there any real dumbed down beginner guides to coding for android for imbeciles like me? I've searched and searched but every "Tutorial 1 - Hello World" tutorial seems to manage to start the first sentence by confusing the hell out of me.
Thanks for the help guys and sorry for the long post, its just that I've been searching and asking around but getting answers to the above questions has been about as easy as getting blood from a stone
Cheers
Tim

For 1) flashing a stock rom will also flash the stock kernel, if included.
For 2) just buy an original adapter, works best I find.
For 3) factory reset should do the job, otherwise search for mega/super wipe which you can flash in cwm, will erase anything, first one also your rom, hence be careful!
For 4) no clue sorry
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda app-developers app

chrismast said:
For 1) flashing a stock rom will also flash the stock kernel, if included.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, that should at least get me going. Do you know how I can remove CWM recovery?
chrismast said:
For 2) just buy an original adapter, works best I find.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I do have an original adapter. It doesn't work with any rom I've tried yet and none of the developers seem to want to comment on it
chrismast said:
For 3) factory reset should do the job, otherwise search for mega/super wipe which you can flash in cwm, will erase anything, first one also your rom, hence be careful!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Will give this a go. Cheers
chrismast said:
For 4) no clue sorry
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks anyway

3. Thats phone memory left out of 16gb. You will not get more than that because of the operating system and everything else which is running your phone. Everyone with 16gb model has that amount of memory.

Dean-xXx said:
3. Thats phone memory left out of 16gb. You will not get more than that because of the operating system and everything else which is running your phone. Everyone with 16gb model has that amount of memory.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah but, how do I erase it without deleting important OS related stuff?

TimTams said:
Thanks, that should at least get me going. Do you know how I can remove CWM recovery?
Thanks anyway
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you will get back your original recovery every time you flash a stock rom, if you want to flash only the stock recovery, I guess you could extract it from one of the stock rom's files.
---------- Post added at 05:23 AM ---------- Previous post was at 05:20 AM ----------
TimTams said:
Yeah but, how do I erase it without deleting important OS related stuff?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
as I said, factory reset will delete all "your" data & apps, the rest as said by Dean is OS stuff, hence in a 16GB version you will always have less than 16GB in storage as the OS takes space.
The important OS data can be deleted, as I mentioned with mega wipe, whereas you have to make sure to have another rom on your external SD card that you can flash. This option is not always necessary to chose as a factory reset should be enough to flash any rom, whereas I like to start clean sometimes, hence use mega wipe.

TimTams said:
Hi all,
I have an I9300T running slimbean 3.0.0 on the CM 3.0.31 kernel and CWM touch recovery. I'm having some issues and I have a few general questions which I am having real trouble getting answers to, please bear with me:
1/ I'd like to know how to do a full restore to stock ROM and kernel/firmware, I can find heaps of info on applying the stock ROM but not the kernel/firmware, how do I get it back to factory state (and where to download the neccessary files)? I'm not even sure how many different firmwares/recoveries/kernels etc there are and which ones I have changed or if they are all the same thing or not. I'm pretty new to all this and admittedly have just blindly followed the step-by-steps to install a better ROM than factory's without any real knowledge of what I'm doing.
2/ What do I need to get my MHL-HDMI adapter to work? I'd like to use my S3 with a monitor as a desktop computer and I have had no luck in getting any response to this in the slim bean developer's thread. All of the kernels' developers' posts I have looked at make no mention of support for this. Can anyone tell me if there are any third party kernels that support HDMI-out via MHL? If anyone DOES know, could you also please let me know which ROMs will work with said kernel?
3/ How do I erase the internal 'sd' card. I don't actually have an SD card in, but there is 12 or so GB of internal phone storage which, even after a Settings>Backup&Reset>Factory data reset, does not get erased. From 'storage' on the settings menu, the 'erase' button is greyed out. After a factory reset it keeps all my photos and application data which I am trying to get rid of. I have backed up everything to my PC which I need.
4/ Are there any real dumbed down beginner guides to coding for android for imbeciles like me? I've searched and searched but every "Tutorial 1 - Hello World" tutorial seems to manage to start the first sentence by confusing the hell out of me.
Thanks for the help guys and sorry for the long post, its just that I've been searching and asking around but getting answers to the above questions has been about as easy as getting blood from a stone
Cheers
Tim
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi Tim,
Welcome to the S3 forum!
A few answers to your questions .
1. You can go onto Sam Mobile and find out what the latest stock firmware is for your country. As far as I know the latest for the UK is XXDLJ4 and XXDLID Modem. You can find this by going to the Stock firmware thread in the S3 forum here on XDA and downloading the latest UK release. I am currently running this myself.
2. In order to use your HDMI adapter for your S3 you need to be running a Samsung based ROM, the one I mentioned earlier is perfect(XXDLJ4)
Any other ROM AOSP or AOKP or MIUI doen not have HDMI support.
3.You can either factory rest to wipe SD or you can flash a custom recovery and then select "mounts and storge"/"format internal SD"
4.Wait for XDA university, sounds awesome!!!
Any questions PM me
Good luck!

Obagleyfreer said:
Hi Tim,
Welcome to the S3 forum!
A few answers to your questions .
1. You can go onto Sam Mobile and find out what the latest stock firmware is for your country. As far as I know the latest for the UK is XXDLJ4 and XXDLID Modem. You can find this by going to the Stock firmware thread in the S3 forum here on XDA and downloading the latest UK release. I am currently running this myself.
2. In order to use your HDMI adapter for your S3 you need to be running a Samsung based ROM, the one I mentioned earlier is perfect(XXDLJ4)
Any other ROM AOSP or AOKP or MIUI doen not have HDMI support.
3.You can either factory rest to wipe SD or you can flash a custom recovery and then select "mounts and storge"/"format internal SD"
4.Wait for XDA university, sounds awesome!!!
Any questions PM me
Good luck!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks HEAPS for the reply! I'm actually newcastle, australia but that's OK because I found it!
I guess I'll see what I can do with the stock ROM, it's a shame there hasn't been more support for MHL. It seems like it's a really big feature to have but nobody seems to care about it.
No format internal SD option for me only external SD
Didn't know about XDA University... will DEFINITELY be all over that when it hits
Cheers

Related

How to flash custom rom after rooting with CF-root

Hello, im new to androids and rooting, and i own a galaxy s2 which i have just rooted with Chainfires CF-root which also installed Clockwork mod recovery. I have a couple of questions on how to install custom roms, for example if i would like to flash villainrom, what are the exact steps i need to take? I have read as much as possible but im not sure if the same applies to custom roms in general.
So far im thinking i have to put the custom rom on my phones sd card and then flash it via clickwork mod, however i have read something about doing a nandroid backup and data wipe bdfore flashing the rom. Ideally i would hope somebody can do a quick step by step guide explaining the above, and tell me weather this applies to custom roms in general?
Im very grateful for any help, thx in advance
Once you have rooted your phone make sure you have enabled usb debugging.
Go to settings, applications, development, enable usb debugging.
Then connect phone to pc, and transfer rom.
Then boot into recovery mode, to do this switch phone off, then press vol up, home and power.
Then wipe data, wipe cache, go to advanced and wipe dalvik cache.
Then go to install zip from sd card, select zip, click ok and cwm will take care of the rest
Thx so much for the breakdown of how to do this, will this cause me to loose all data?
Baz-L said:
Thx so much for the breakdown of how to do this, will this cause me to loose all data?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes you will lose all data.
It's worth doing a backup, you can use titanium backup.
Download it from the market.
I don't tend to back things up, as contacts etc are synced and backed up with my google account.
And I just redownload my apps.
You'll find some roms don't wipe data, but it's generally advisable to always wipe before flashing any rom, and therefore backup if you have a lot of data.
JGS2 said:
Yes you will lose all data.
It's worth doing a backup, you can use titanium backup.
Download it from the market.
I don't tend to back things up, as contacts etc are synced and backed up with my google account.
And I just redownload my apps.
You'll find some roms don't wipe data, but it's generally advisable to always wipe before flashing any rom, and therefore backup if you have a lot of data.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok so its basicaly that same process when flashing any custom rom? just needed it step by step, thx for the tip on titanium bu, and thx again for ur help, much appreciated;-)
Baz-L said:
Ok so its basicaly that same process when flashing any custom rom? just needed it step by step, thx for the tip on titanium bu, and thx again for ur help, much appreciated;-)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah pretty much the same for every rom.
It's always worth reading the first post in every thread though, as I came across a rom recently that could only be flashed using odin, I think it was litening rom.
But if not 99% of custom roms can be done the way I described
And I know what you mean about needing things step by step, these forums seem very complicated at first, the best advice I can give you is to read read read.
When I first joined earlier this month everything seemed so complicated but it's fairly straight forward when you get used to it.
I now flash about ten times a day, but I have a problem lol
JGS2 said:
Yeah pretty much the same for every rom.
It's always worth reading the first post in every thread though, as I came across a rom recently that could only be flashed using odin, I think it was litening rom.
But if not 99% of custom roms can be done the way I described
And I know what you mean about needing things step by step, these forums seem very complicated at first, the best advice I can give you is to read read read.
When I first joined earlier this month everything seemed so complicated but it's fairly straight forward when you get used to it.
I now flash about ten times a day, but I have a problem lol
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry for the delayed reply, lol jeez 10 times a day, i get how it can be so fun and addictive though, trying custom roms and themes etc.
As i said though im new to android, came from an iphone 4 which i always used to jailbreak.
And yeah i know what you mean, im doing my best to read as much as i can, but here on xda things move so fast and theres that many different things to learn it gets scary hehe.
Im still to try and flash a rom, i was going to try villainrom first, but do you have any other suggestions on which devs/roms i should check out, seeing as all this is new i might aswell get some practice in....
I do have another quick question, when i connect my fone via usb, which folder do i put the zip rom file into, is it External SD?
Anyways thanks again for your help, really appreciated!
EDIT* got it sorted!
Yeah ten times a day isn't an exaggeration either lol
I find what happens is I flash a rom, then a dev releases an update for another rom then I flash that, then I flash a different modem, then I find another rom, then another update and the cycle continues
You said you sorted it, but the rom zip file just goes in the root of your internal memory.
It's not overly important as you can find the file through cwm anyway.
As sometimes I'll download a rom through my browser and then it goes to the downloads folder.
But if I download it on my pc, I will just transfer the file to the root of my internal memory on my phone.
JGS2 said:
Yeah ten times a day isn't an exaggeration either lol
I find what happens is I flash a rom, then a dev releases an update for another rom then I flash that, then I flash a different modem, then I find another rom, then another update and the cycle continues
You said you sorted it, but the rom zip file just goes in the root of your internal memory.
It's not overly important as you can find the file through cwm anyway.
As sometimes I'll download a rom through my browser and then it goes to the downloads folder.
But if I download it on my pc, I will just transfer the file to the root of my internal memory on my phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah thanks again i managed to get it sorted i guess i overthink things sometimes, but i followed your guide above and now im running villainrom
had to do a bit more reading/asking on the backup/restore front, knowing what the diff between nandroid/titanium is etc, and how and which to use to restore.
Also you mentioned above about backing up your contacts with google, i tried to do that but couldnt seem to, how did you manage it? as i cant restore contacts from my windows pc via kies right? now that im rooted with a custom rom.
Anyways thx again for the help pal, you've been awesome!

[Q] Some out of the way n00b questions.

Hi All,
Just got my S2 last week. Planning to move to CM7 this weekend. I have rooted the device and am on the Codeworkx kernel. I had a few questions:
1. Is there a problem while flashing via Odin if Debugging is not enabled (I think it is more of a OS feature which we haven't entered when in download mode, so shouldn't matter according to me.) ? I tried to disable debugging, and then went to download mode and Odin did detect the phone, but I did not try to flash anything so if anyone has tried that, your input is more than welcome.
2. The reason for above question is: What if I completely brick my phone (with debugging disabled) and no ROM .zip in the sd storage, how do I get the phone up and running ? I understand that I can flash kernels via Odin, but is it true for ROMs as well ?
3. What's the issue with ROM manager ? Is it recommended to stay away from it for S2 ? I have tried to do a Nandroid backup and it always takes me to the Android robot with a exclamation mark screen. Then I have to reboot and the backup magically restarts and completes successfully. Most people have suggested to use CWM recovery directly, so not sure if I should get rid of the ROM manager altogether.
That should be all for now. I have a jig ready by the way, so am not that worried about the process and plan to do a fair bit of reading before proceeding, however, the answers to above queries would be really great !
Thanks in advance,
Ish
I can answer some of your doubts.
I don't know if you can flash via odin in case you don't have the usb debuggin enabled so I'm not going to say anything about it.
Anyway if something happens to your phone and you dont have any ROM on your sd card but you have CWM recovery installed (which is almost everytime the case) then in CWM there is a mount usb stoage option. With it you can easily transfer .zip ROM files to flash, or even a nandroid backup you saved in your PC.
ABout ROM manager, this is what I suggest you. The first time you flash CM7 don't use ROM Manager (I even tried using it with the codeworkx kernel with no luck). Now, once you are in CM7 it works perfectly and it's really helpful to flash nightlies withouth wiping data (I flash half the nightlies as they are realeased). So the first time you flash CM7 wipe everything (do a nandroid backup first), even wipe /system, /data, cache partition, dalvik cache, so you don't have any problems. THen install zip from sd card and when it finish install the zip file again (just two installs in a row no wiping in beween, trust me, the first time I tried I didn't do that and couldn't boot the phone).
Hope it helps.
EDIT: You can flash stock ROM via odin, there is a thread by infratech were this is explained and you have a list of downloable stock ROMS you can flash with Odin, these are region and carrier specific and you probably will get the one for your carrier. I found the stock ROM for my carrier and I'm from chile, you shouldn't have any problems with that. Well, good luck, CM7 is by far the best ROM I've flashed.
Oh another thing, go for the latest nightly since the battery life is incredibly improved over the RC (or was it stable?) version.
Thanks !
tomascunill said:
Anyway if something happens to your phone and you dont have any ROM on your sd card but you have CWM recovery installed (which is almost everytime the case) then in CWM there is a mount usb stoage option. With it you can easily transfer .zip ROM files to flash, or even a nandroid backup you saved in your PC.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Awesome ! This is exactly what I was looking for. I haven't dived into all the options of the CWM, so didn't know that this feature existed.
Also, many thanks for explaining most of the things in a single concise post, it was very helpful. I'll have to check the ROM flash with Odin, so I will search for that thread and have a go through it later today.
Once I get a hang of CM7, I'll go in for the nightlies as well. And yes, I did read about the CM7 guys revert the status to an RC because of the bugs reported, so will give it a try once I definitely know what I'm getting into .
Thanks again,
Ish.
cheemais said:
Awesome ! This is exactly what I was looking for. I haven't dived into all the options of the CWM, so didn't know that this feature existed.
Also, many thanks for explaining most of the things in a single concise post, it was very helpful. I'll have to check the ROM flash with Odin, so I will search for that thread and have a go through it later today.
Once I get a hang of CM7, I'll go in for the nightlies as well. And yes, I did read about the CM7 guys revert the status to an RC because of the bugs reported, so will give it a try once I definitely know what I'm getting into .
Thanks again,
Ish.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well good luck! Tell me if you get any problem.

Couple of questions regarding ROMs and such.

Okay. Couple days ago, i got my new Samsung Galaxy S II. Fell in love with it. I previously had a Vibrant, but that met an unfortunate and violent demise. On the vibrant I hadn't been doing anything involving roms and such because i'd tried once, and completely fried the phone. LOL.
I managed to root my phone, and from what I've read, I didn't do the best method. What I did was get an unsecure kernel, and flashed that, then used a 1-click root type thing to root it. So one of my questions is, my clockwork mod isn't working, what's wrong with it? I downloaded ROM Manager, and flashed CWM. But when i reboot into recovery, i get the stock Samsung recovery screen. How can I get this to work?
And another question, is about roms such as Cyanogen mod. I really wanna get it. (I wont until I get CWM working, though.) And I'm just wondering. If I were to just go to ROM Manager, and flash cyanogen, would it work, or do i need to do more to my phone to be able to put on custom roms? I've never understood the concept of roms vs kernels vs firmware vs whatever else.
And if it matters, Samsung Galaxy S II, Android 2.3.3, rooted using SuperOneClick.
P.S Anything else that I should considering doing/putting onto my phone? And thanks in advance for halping.
Gutana said:
Okay. Couple days ago, i got my new Samsung Galaxy S II. Fell in love with it. I previously had a Vibrant, but that met an unfortunate and violent demise. On the vibrant I hadn't been doing anything involving roms and such because i'd tried once, and completely fried the phone. LOL.
I managed to root my phone, and from what I've read, I didn't do the best method. What I did was get an unsecure kernel, and flashed that, then used a 1-click root type thing to root it. So one of my questions is, my clockwork mod isn't working, what's wrong with it? I downloaded ROM Manager, and flashed CWM. But when i reboot into recovery, i get the stock Samsung recovery screen. How can I get this to work?
And another question, is about roms such as Cyanogen mod. I really wanna get it. (I wont until I get CWM working, though.) And I'm just wondering. If I were to just go to ROM Manager, and flash cyanogen, would it work, or do i need to do more to my phone to be able to put on custom roms? I've never understood the concept of roms vs kernels vs firmware vs whatever else.
And if it matters, Samsung Galaxy S II, Android 2.3.3, rooted using SuperOneClick.
P.S Anything else that I should considering doing/putting onto my phone? And thanks in advance for halping.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Okay, don't take this the wrong way, but it seems you're a bit lacking regarding knowledge about this phone... It'd pay to do your research beforehand in the SGS2 forum, read the FAQs, etc.
Okay, first off, all I can say is, go back to stock. Go flash a stock Samsung ROM for the device. Then, go into Chainfire's CF-Root Kernel thread, and download the appropriate kernel, and flash it using ODIN. After you've done that, you'll have ClockworkMod, and you'll be rooted. It is recommended that you flash another kernel though, after gaining root, as all the CF-Root kernel does it install ClockworkMod, and root the device. Personally, I recommend SiyahKernel.
If you need more detail or have any more questions, feel free to send me a PM.
Thanks,
screamworks.
screamworks said:
Okay, don't take this the wrong way, but it seems you're a bit lacking regarding knowledge about this phone... It'd pay to do your research beforehand in the SGS2 forum, read the FAQs, etc.
Okay, first off, all I can say is, go back to stock. Go flash a stock Samsung ROM for the device. Then, go into Chainfire's CF-Root Kernel thread, and download the appropriate kernel, and flash it using ODIN. After you've done that, you'll have ClockworkMod, and you'll be rooted. It is recommended that you flash another kernel though, after gaining root, as all the CF-Root kernel does it install ClockworkMod, and root the device. Personally, I recommend SiyahKernel.
If you need more detail or have any more questions, feel free to send me a PM.
Thanks,
screamworks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Alright, I did what you said. I went to stock 2.3.4, used CF-root. And now about SiyahKernel, what are the advantages of it? And is there something wrong with just staying with the CF-Root kernel?
And as of where I am now, with just root and CWM, would i be able to switch ROMs and such?
Gutana said:
Alright, I did what you said. I went to stock 2.3.4, used CF-root. And now about SiyahKernel, what are the advantages of it? And is there something wrong with just staying with the CF-Root kernel?
And as of where I am now, with just root and CWM, would i be able to switch ROMs and such?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
With a rooted device you'll be able to flash trough Odin or CMW recovery any rom you like.
Siyah kernel gives you a faster and more battery efficient phone and lets you set your own Voltage/ speed the processor has to use see this for the latest info
http://www.gokhanmoral.com/ and
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1263838
DirkTeur Velserbroncx said:
With a rooted device you'll be able to flash trough Odin or CMW recovery any rom you like.
Siyah kernel gives you a faster and more battery efficient phone and lets you set your own Voltage/ speed the processor has to use see this for the latest info
http://www.gokhanmoral.com/ and
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1263838
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Alright, so i'm pretty much ready to go? Yayayayay.
And would you recommend any roms for me? XD
Gutana said:
Alright, I did what you said. I went to stock 2.3.4, used CF-root. And now about SiyahKernel, what are the advantages of it? And is there something wrong with just staying with the CF-Root kernel?
And as of where I am now, with just root and CWM, would i be able to switch ROMs and such?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
SiyahKernel has a lot of advantages and improvements of CF-Root, which provides null, if I'm correct. Go check out the SiyahKernel thread in Original Development for details.
Yes, as stated, you can use CWM by itself to switch ROMs. Just remember that if you're switching ROMs (as opposed to performing a flash to a newer version of the same ROM), to perform a factor reset / wipe data, wipe cache, and wipe Dalvik cache (Advanced > wipe Dalvik cache) in ClockworkMod first.
Gutana said:
Alright, so i'm pretty much ready to go? Yayayayay.
And would you recommend any roms for me? XD
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For a beginninger, I can't recommend MIUI highly enough. You could go with GalnetMIUI, which is a variant, but I personally prefer the official MIUI build. If you're looking for a more, 'pure' experience, go with CyanogenMod 7.1 stable.
screamworks said:
SiyahKernel has a lot of advantages and improvements of CF-Root, which provides null, if I'm correct. Go check out the SiyahKernel thread in Original Development for details.
Yes, as stated, you can use CWM by itself to switch ROMs. Just remember that if you're switching ROMs (as opposed to performing a flash to a newer version of the same ROM), to perform a factor reset / wipe data, wipe cache, and wipe Dalvik cache (Advanced > wipe Dalvik cache) in ClockworkMod first.
For a beginninger, I can't recommend MIUI highly enough. You could go with GalnetMIUI, which is a variant, but I personally prefer the official MIUI build. If you're looking for a more, 'pure' experience, go with CyanogenMod 7.1 stable.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Alright, one more question, sorry for the nooby-ness. Haha.
So going from my phone to for example Cyanogen, I'd backup in CWM, and Titanium backup (Or does CWM backup like, EVERYTHING?) and then factory reset, flash the rom using odin, and then use titanium backup to get my apps and settings back? orwhat.
Gutana said:
Alright, one more question, sorry for the nooby-ness. Haha.
So going from my phone to for example Cyanogen, I'd backup in CWM, and Titanium backup (Or does CWM backup like, EVERYTHING?) and then factory reset, flash the rom using odin, and then use titanium backup to get my apps and settings back? orwhat.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
CWM backup (called a NANDroid backup), backs up everything. If you perform a NANDroid back, there's no need to perform a backup in Titanium Backup - it creates a full image of your system (the advantage to TB though, is that you can backup all your download apps and settings, then install the new ROM, and restore the backed up apps - If you restore a NANDdroid backup, it'll restore the old ROM, exactly as it was when the backup was made).
So yes, the installation process is, for CWM: copy the ROM.zip to your phone, then boot into CWM recovery. Hit the 'factory reset / wipe data' option, the 'wipe cache' option, and then go to Advanced, and hit the 'wipe Dalvik cache' option. After that, choose 'install ZIP from SDCARD', and choose your ROM.zip. After it finishes installing, just hit 'reboot system now', and you're good to go!
Usually, it's not required to use ODIN to flash a new ROM, unless there's a problem with the recovery.
All that said, it pays to read the thread for the ROM beforehand, as sometimes when moving from ROM to ROM (especially from stock), there's a few small things that may be required, like flashing the ROM twice, or whatever
screamworks said:
CWM backup (called a NANDroid backup), backs up everything. If you perform a NANDroid back, there's no need to perform a backup in Titanium Backup - it creates a full image of your system (the advantage to TB though, is that you can backup all your download apps and settings, then install the new ROM, and restore the backed up apps - If you restore a NANDdroid backup, it'll restore the old ROM, exactly as it was when the backup was made).
So yes, the installation process is, for CWM: copy the ROM.zip to your phone, then boot into CWM recovery. Hit the 'factory reset / wipe data' option, the 'wipe cache' option, and then go to Advanced, and hit the 'wipe Dalvik cache' option. After that, choose 'install ZIP from SDCARD', and choose your ROM.zip. After it finishes installing, just hit 'reboot system now', and you're good to go!
Usually, it's not required to use ODIN to flash a new ROM, unless there's a problem with the recovery.
All that said, it pays to read the thread for the ROM beforehand, as sometimes when moving from ROM to ROM (especially from stock), there's a few small things that may be required, like flashing the ROM twice, or whatever
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Alright, i got that done. I've tried both MIUI and Cyanogen, and both are working and lookin wonderful. But the problem is I dont get data on either one. I've tried reflashing, rebooting, factory reset. Idunno what else to try. Do you know what could be causing this?
Gutana said:
Alright, i got that done. I've tried both MIUI and Cyanogen, and both are working and lookin wonderful. But the problem is I dont get data on either one. I've tried reflashing, rebooting, factory reset. Idunno what else to try. Do you know what could be causing this?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Check your APN settings (should be somewhere in Settings under mobile network or whatever). Look your's up online ('APN settings carrier y, country z), and if they're not correct, add them in.
screamworks said:
Check your APN settings (should be somewhere in Settings under mobile network or whatever). Look your's up online ('APN settings carrier y, country z), and if they're not correct, add them in.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Got everything working, thank you very much. Thanked every one of your posts
And I've asked too many questions for one person in one thread, I happen to have one more. How can I get the Android Market on Cyanogenmod? I downloaded build 115, and there wasn't a market, so i'll be using MIUI till I get that fixed. ><
Gutana said:
Got everything working, thank you very much. Thanked every one of your posts
And I've asked too many questions for one person in one thread, I happen to have one more. How can I get the Android Market on Cyanogenmod? I downloaded build 115, and there wasn't a market, so i'll be using MIUI till I get that fixed. ><
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're more than welcome
If you've got any other questions, feel free to PM me
With CyanogenMod, there's a bit of a story to it, but basically, they're not allowed to package Market, Gmail, Maps, etc. with the ROM, so you need to download a zip file called Gapps and flash it in CWM Recovery, you can find it here. You don't need to wipe anything when flashing this.
Also, build #115 isn't the latest, build #117 is (in fact, there's another, even more current one, but there's really nothing to it), but I don't believe there's any major changes.
screamworks said:
You're more than welcome
If you've got any other questions, feel free to PM me
With CyanogenMod, there's a bit of a story to it, but basically, they're not allowed to package Market, Gmail, Maps, etc. with the ROM, so you need to download a zip file called Gapps and flash it in CWM Recovery, you can find it here. You don't need to wipe anything when flashing this.
Also, build #115 isn't the latest, build #117 is (in fact, there's another, even more current one, but there's really nothing to it), but I don't believe there's any major changes.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey, I was having troubles messaging you, since it didn't show anything in the sent box, i assumed it didnt go through. So i guess ill be still asking you on here.
So about Cyanogen, which build is the best? And if i'm going from one build to another, like from 115, to 116, would i still have to do a complete wipe? And any other roms besides MIUI and Cyanogen you recommend? cause MIUI is giving me and couldn't generate md5 errors, and i cant restore to it, and i hate starting off without it set up how i like it. D: and yeah, thanks.
Gutana said:
Hey, I was having troubles messaging you, since it didn't show anything in the sent box, i assumed it didnt go through. So i guess ill be still asking you on here.
So about Cyanogen, which build is the best? And if i'm going from one build to another, like from 115, to 116, would i still have to do a complete wipe? And any other roms besides MIUI and Cyanogen you recommend? cause MIUI is giving me and couldn't generate md5 errors, and i cant restore to it, and i hate starting off without it set up how i like it. D: and yeah, thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I only just the message 12 hours ago, if that helps?
Usually, your best bet is to go with the latest build, which you can get here. If it's stability you're looking for, go with the stable build, instead of nightlies.
Personally, out of all ROMs I've tried, I could only ever stand MIUI and CyanogenMod - but even then, MIUI started to annoy me with little things here and there. I think I'll be sticking with CyanogenMod for awhile. So, I'm not really the best authority on that. Just try some different ones, and see what appeals to you the most

Changing official firmware the best way

Hello,
I am quite new here as you can see. I searched this horum like hours, but everytime i search for some keyword it finds me the same non helpfull results, so I am asking here.
I own Galaxy S II GT-l9100 and bought it with O2 Telefonica Czech republic so I have firmware i9100XXLPS with TouchWiz + O2 ****s. So my update process is very very long ... Like this - Google adds new version - I have to wait till Samsung make it for Galaxy S II with TouchWizz - than I have to wait it is delivered to my country for language - than I have to wait for my operator to add logo and some ****ty things and after that I can finally update to newest version.
So my questions are:
1) I heard Poland firmware is updated like first ones can I install them instead my current firmware?
2) What firmware I should trust from this forum to be most stable and active? There are many of them and people said I should be careful with choosing so you have definitelly more experiences than me and provide me your experiences
3) I am still un-familiar with the processes of flashing and terms even I searched forum for all day - Do I need to flash, root to back up it with Titanium app first?
4) When Adding new firmware do I need to always wipe all data, flash it, add new rom, unlock it etc? I saw many topics what can be done with firmwares and I do not want to make any mistake here.
5) As I read forum before this post I understand that custom firmwares are logicaly not updated with kies so I need to check for new versions here and update it always manually with the same process?
Thank you for your answers I do not ask anyone to say me what to do step by step just maybe ask for any useful links because I was not able to find it here when I added any keywords to my problems. Thank you.
1) Yes you can install Polands firmwares, or any for that matter
2) Depends what you want ultimately, as close to Google Android or remain with Stock Samsung Base? For a beginer i'd recommend staying close to stock. If you want to remian on Gingerbread, try Checkrom v6, if you want to move to ICS try WanamLite, there are many others, you'll just have to try and see.
3) You'll need to root your phone before you can begin doing anything. Simplest solution is to do this using Odin software with your phone connected in download mode. Flash one of ChainFires kernels corresponding to your Rom. One you've flashed a new kernel, you'll be able to backup your current rom with CWM in recovery, this will back your apps up also. If you want to restore your apps only later after installing a new rom, then use Titantium backup, after rooting and before backing up your rom in CWM. After using Odin for the first time, you only need to use CWM Recovery to flash future kernels or firmwares. If you want to use an official firmware thats not rooted, but want to retain root, usind ChainFires Modile Odin app
4) Before flashing a new firmware, make sure you have atleast 50% charge, preferrably connected to a charger. ALWAYS do a backup of your current ROM. Then depending on which Rom you're about to flash you may need to wipe, or not wipe, read the instructions on the roms forum. Personally i always do a factory reset, wipe cache, dalvik cache, install rom, wipe cache and dalvik cache again, boot up (first boot takes a long time), then restore settings etc using titanium backup.
5) Just visit your roms forum frequently to stay up to date with the latest versions.
If someone doesn't post it before, i'll update this post with links to relevent articles to help you out. But it will only take a little effort searching the forums for S2 to find all the answers to above in explicit detail
---------- Post added at 11:47 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:42 AM ----------
New Here? Read this first
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1134290
Flash a rooted kernel
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1103399
Thanks for all your help.
if you want to move to ICS try WanamLite
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So with this I will be able to update most recent versions officially with Kies?
What about compatibility? When I use some "custom" rom from here Do applications and android market know that I have ICS and will not show just "unknown" version etc? I am worried about this one to not work correctly afer doing custom rom. So What is the most trustful custom rom here? There are many of them.
Personally i always do a factory reset, wipe cache, dalvik cache
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I already know that facotry reset can be done with holding some combinations of buttons on my phone but I do not know what is (or how to do) wipe cache or "dalvik" cache? what the hell is that?
Thank you again.
When you intall a custom rom, you won't be able to update with KIES, like i said, stay tuned on the forum you've installled your rom from for any updates. When an update does come out, simply boot into recovery (restart your phone, hold the power key, menu button and up volume)
On another note, don't have keis upon when flashing your new kernel. Have you read those link ive sent?
Cache and dalvik cache are simply data for recently accessed programs by your current rom stored somewhere to make running those recently accessed programs faster. If you're flashing a new rom, it makes sense to wipe this as it can cause conflictions.
Make sure you've done your homework. Read those links i've posted. Don't do anything unless you're 100% sure
---------- Post added at 12:05 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:00 PM ----------
Also read this,
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1615058
Some of these peeps with bricked phones may well have been seasonsed rom flashers, it happens.
There is a very real risk (all be it rare if you do things by the book), but things do go wrong. I'd recommend flashing your first kernels using Chain Fires Rooted Kernels, links i've posted above. They're based on stock kernels which will match your current firmware.
Read things twice and be doubly sure.
Drahy said:
Thanks for all your help.
So with this I will be able to update most recent versions officially with Kies?
Most recent does not mean its on Kies most recent means on XDA flash with Odin .
What is the most trustful custom rom here? There are many of them.
Any of them try them all is the only way .
I already know that facotry reset can be done with holding some combinations of buttons on my phone but I do not know what is (or how to do) wipe cache or "dalvik" cache? what the hell is that?
Basics and you require CWM and root .
NEW HERE
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1134290
bible
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1473577
Guide
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1125282
Stock Roms .and csc
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1075278
Root + CWM .
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1103399
jje
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OK I have successfully flashed my ROM and backed up all my data I hope with CWM and also with Titanium backup.
Everything works well but I have again some questions:
1) Is there any way how to get list of all installed applications? And after clean added ROM install them manually again maybe? Or maybe saved data will also be cleared right?
2) What is your best advice for ROM? I know everyone has different choice But I am searching for most fast and clean ROM like Nexus has Friend of mine said he has on his Samsung Galaxy I some "*something*something*MOD" it ended with word mod - said it is the quickiest ROM ever and i saw it with my own eyes
3) When I backed up all my aplication data and others - when I change my ROM wll these backups be there after flashing? I thought it wipes all mobile ...
Drahy said:
OK I have successfully flashed my ROM and backed up all my data I hope with CWM and also with Titanium backup.
Everything works well but I have again some questions:
1) Is there any way how to get list of all installed applications? And after clean added ROM install them manually again maybe?
Google Play will list your aps .
Or maybe saved data will also be cleared right?
That would require a backup with Titanium Pro .
2) What is your best advice for ROM? I know everyone has different choice But I am searching for most fast and clean ROM like Nexus has Friend of mine said he has on his Samsung Galaxy I some "*something*something*MOD" it ended with word mod - said it is the quickiest ROM ever and i saw it with my own eyes
Their is no best rom and its up to you to try .You can spend half an hour reading the custom rom descriptions in the development section .
3) When I backed up all my aplication data and others - when I change my ROM wll these backups be there after flashing? I thought it wipes all mobile ..
Yes they remain you can always make a copy to PC .
FAQ
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1065995
NEW HERE
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1134290
bible
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1473577
Guide
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1125282
jje
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

[Q] With ROM I have to choose?

Hi guys,
I'm new here. I didn't root my S3 yet, but I want to do it and install new rom. But first I would need your help with Rom choosing, as I'm completely blind in this matter
The thing is, I would prefer a ROM which let me choose which application I want to install on my phone and which not - check/uncheck option. This rom should be FAST and stable.
As I have no experience at all, I would like to ask you which ROM will be the best for me? Btw, it would be great if I can choose language (Polish).
Hope you will help me
Regards,
Karol
edit: sorry for typo in the topic, impossible to change it now
Hi, I am in the same boat. Stock standard international S3, but extremely slow. Ram usage on startup is 700mb.
Which rom would you guys suggest that is both stable (no bugs), and fast (using much less ram).
This is my everyday phone, I take a lot of photos, especially the camera should be functioning perfectly.
Any help would be much appreciated.
Edit: Last time I rooted and played around with these things were about 3-4 years ago with my Sony X10 mini. I am slowly getting back into it, reading up on the latest rooting apps etc.
@errolpl: Search in development subforum for 'aroma installer'. Usually these ROMs offer only system apps to choose. 3rd party user apps you'll have to install by your own. You can edit the header with edit-function.
@demozzracy: If you want full camera suport, I recommend NCS-ROM: based on last JB-firmware, but brilliant debloated. So slim, fast, battery friendly and all hardware working. I'm testing many LP-ROMs, but they are primarily newer, hardly better (for S3).
@rp158: Thank you!
I was extremely new just a few weeks back as well. I must say that my attempts on finding a solution for my slow S3 has been a rather hard and bumpy road.
To help you save some time, here is what I've gathered so far:
Last time I flashed phone firmware, a couple of years ago, it required a PC, a cable and some funky software.
Then when I flashed my S3 for the first time, about a year ago, I started out with Cyanogenmod and used their app+cable installer. I think this is still the easiest way to root the phone, and get started with custom roms. Even if you plan to use some other rom than Cyanogenmod.
When the phone is rooted you can install TWRP, simply done via an app on the appstore. TWRP is recovery firmware that can stay on the phone, even though you flash new roms. (The phone is divided into several separate sections, bootloader, recovery, actual system, and data area.... I don't even know much about it yet.) The important part is that it is extremely easy to flash new roms using this tool, and a micro SD-card.
Simply drop the rom zip file onto the card and flash them. (For some roms you need to flash some "GAPPS" as well. These are the google apps, like the play store etc. If you don't flash them you can't really use the phone for much.)
This is where the real problems start. Finding the right ROM.
The S3 is old, and only supported up to Jelly Bean for my 1GB international version, or Kitkat if you have one of the 2gb versions.
This has not stopped developers in providing both Kitkat and Lollipop to any version of the S3. However... as eager they are to provide the newest coolest features, just as lazy do they seem to be with their testing. (Sorry guys, but someone has to say it.)
So I've gone through some roms now... none of them really good.
The first Official Cyanogenmod I flashed half a year ago. I used this for almost a year.. but the camera would crash constantly, and the phone was not able to display video. For example movieclips on facebook.
Second ROM: Cyanogenmod has also stopped developing for the S3, so a few weeks back I switched to some unofficial version. It seemed to work... camera and video was ok, and everything had the nice Lollipop feel to it.
However MMS did not work. I could receive one and send one, next ones would require a reboot for them to work. The problem was brought up in the ROM Q/A tread, but the answer from the developer was: Sorry I don't use MMS so I don't really see a problem.
Third: Onto some next rom. This one was tagged STABLE. It was far from it. In fact it was even easier to discover that this rom had the same MMS problem. Because the message app would crash immediately when trying to send one.
4th attemt was the same rom, but a different kernel... still the same problem.
5th rom was Blisspop... Wau, this was beautiful! Cool webpage, Cool animations.... it was just too bad that the site is dead, and that the rom can't even run for 24 hours without the android keyboard crashing 25 times or so. Also Blisspop has OTA updates... the only problem is that it constantly says that there is a new version for the S3.. but the download fails. Apparently some bad change to the website caused this, and apparently this problem has been going on for 3 months without anyone bothering to fix it.
6th was Archidroid. The second to top ROM for the S3. It looks cool, and has many features... but just as other Lollipop ROMs, sending MMS's without error is not one of them....
I've really tried everything. People always says that the MMS problems are due to APN's not being set up correctly, doing some reboots etc.... but trust me... I've set them up so many times you wouldn't belive it.
7th. After reading this thread and rp158's recommendation of NCS-ROM I'm now running that one. Without a single thing being set up, I was able to send and receive MMS's right away.
However... now I'm stuck back at the ugly kitkat look, and Touch wiz.
tl;dr;
So what do I want to say with all this?
Get root and TWRP and start playing around with ROMs
Lollipop does not look like an option for the S3, at least not right now
Don't let yourself be fooled by nice webpages or [STABLE]-tags, or comments that say: "I've been running this since yesterday.. it's 100% stable!"
Timusius thanks a lot for that post.
Puts things in perspective.
As I said in my post, I am ok with the KitKat look, as long as it is stable, I am always on call at work, and cant afford constant phone crashes.
I am going to try the root/twrp to NCS rom in the next couple of days
@Timusius thank you for your post. You help me a lot!
S5 Sensation
errolpl said:
Hi guys,
I'm new here. I didn't root my S3 yet, but I want to do it and install new rom. But first I would need your help with Rom choosing, as I'm completely blind in this matter
The thing is, I would prefer a ROM which let me choose which application I want to install on my phone and which not - check/uncheck option. This rom should be FAST and stable.
As I have no experience at all, I would like to ask you which ROM will be the best for me? Btw, it would be great if I can choose language (Polish).
Hope you will help me
Regards,
Karol
edit: sorry for typo in the topic, impossible to change it now
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's 5 months already that im using S5 Sensation rom for i9300/9305 ( 4.4.4 kitkat). This rom has S5/Note4 features and works great im satisfied. No problems so far, no bugs, etc ^^
It comes with AROMA installer and lets you to choose which apps you want to install and which not.
Cooldato said:
It's 5 months already that im using S5 Sensation rom for i9300/9305 ( 4.4.4 kitkat). This rom has S5/Note4 features and works great im satisfied. No problems so far, no bugs, etc ^^
It comes with AROMA installer and lets you to choose which apps you want to install and which not.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How you install those rom?
Pixelzack said:
How you install those rom?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Device must be rooted + newest cwm recovery installed. After that you just download custom rom, move it to ur phone memory/sdcard and flash it throught recovery mode
Cooldato said:
Device must be rooted + newest cwm recovery installed. After that you just download custom rom, move it to ur phone memory/sdcard and flash it throught recovery mode
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My phone already rooted without cwm,can i just install cwm like i did to root my phone?
Pixelzack said:
My phone already rooted without cwm,can i just install cwm like i did to root my phone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
https://www.clockworkmod.com/rommanager here is the latest CWM versions for smartphones, but its .img file and u cannt flash it directly from Odin. U need to make .img into .tar.md5 odin flash-able file by some tools, or flash it via adb shell, etc.
Anyway here is Odin rdy .tar file , go to this link http://forum.xda-developers.com/gal...covery-clockworkmod-touch-6-0-3-2-gt-t1719744 download recovery-cwmtouch-6.0.3.2-GTI9300.tar and flash it via Odin / Download mode.
Cooldato said:
https://www.clockworkmod.com/rommanager here is the latest CWM versions for smartphones, but its .img file and u cannt flash it directly from Odin. U need to make .img into .tar.md5 odin flash-able file by some tools, or flash it via adb shell, etc.
Anyway here is Odin rdy .tar file , go to this link http://forum.xda-developers.com/gal...covery-clockworkmod-touch-6-0-3-2-gt-t1719744 download recovery-cwmtouch-6.0.3.2-GTI9300.tar and flash it via Odin / Download mode.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can I use this one?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/gal...covery-clockworkmod-touch-6-0-3-2-gt-t1719744
Pixelzack said:
Can I use this one?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/gal...covery-clockworkmod-touch-6-0-3-2-gt-t1719744
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sure, thats what i linked you above.
Cooldato said:
Sure, thats what i linked you above.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hahaha Thanks dude for helping noob like me
Pixelzack said:
Hahaha Thanks dude for helping noob like me
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No problem Feel free to poke me if u meet some troubles ^^
Cooldato said:
No problem Feel free to poke me if u meet some troubles ^^
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How to install this?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s3/development/i9300-to-n00t-bring-lte-fun-to-3g-t2886574
just need some detailed guide xD
Pixelzack said:
How to install this?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s3/development/i9300-to-n00t-bring-lte-fun-to-3g-t2886574
just need some detailed guide xD
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. Install ClockworkMod(or PhilZ) recovery
2. Put ROM on your SD card
3. Enter recovery mode
4. Perform a full data wipe(except you're running previous versions of back-to-n00t)
5. Flash ROM
6. Flash SuperSU
Cooldato said:
1. Install ClockworkMod(or PhilZ) recovery
2. Put ROM on your SD card
3. Enter recovery mode
4. Perform a full data wipe(except you're running previous versions of back-to-n00t)
5. Flash ROM
6. Flash SuperSU
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
perform a full data wipe means "Factory reset"?
How to flash rom? It's included in the recovery mode?
How to flash SuperSU?
Pixelzack said:
perform a full data wipe means "Factory reset"?
How to flash rom? It's included in the recovery mode?
How to flash SuperSU?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yeah this means doing a "Factory reset", must be done throught Recovery mode, wipe data, wipe cache, wipe dalvik cache.
Put ROM on your SD card, then enter Recovery Mode by pressing Home + Volume UP + Power buttons and ull have smth like:
Install Zip -> Choose Zip from /Storage/Sdcard (External SDcard) , Search for ur ROM file and start flashing :X
Flash the SuperSu .zip file same way as flashing ROM.

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