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I would be very thankful to anybody who can help me recover my phone.
I have an S2.
I wanted to customize it so I embarked on my documentation on this forum.
I built quite an understanding about what the steps are.
For a lack of a centralized guide I resorted to using
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1311081
wary of the flash counter issue.
I was well aware that this thread is for the AT&T version.
I managed to root succesfully (ZergRush).
Unfortunately I had to take a long break in the process (2-3 months). When I came back I only selectively remembered all the caveats.
So the fact that the guide is not for the i9100 version escaped me.
Focused too much on the details of getting the process right that the big picture went past me - I was on the wrong forum!! (((
I installed MobileOdin, and obliviously got the latest Entropy kernel.
It installed OK.
However my home and back buttons stopped working.
Upon realization of my mistake (i777 kernel over i9100 hardware) I tried to recover by installing a CF-Root version (Unfortunately my original kernel version was lost, so I had to guess the version by reading posts with similar situations - Orange UK i9100)
I found a post suggesting to install
CF-Root-SGS2_XX_OXA_KG3-v4.1-CWM4.zip
Again I used MobileOdin but this time at reboot the phone hangs on the welcome logo screen.
If I boot into recovery I get the CWM menu alright.
However I get a list of errors at mounting recovery - see attached photo.
If I select anything from sdcard I just get the fedora hat logo and nothing shows up - have to go back by pushing power.
Any help is very apprecitated - how can I get a proper kernel in?
SDCards do not seem to be read either, just the hat logo and nothing happens.
How can I get a zip with the kernel onto the phone storage so to pick it up in CWM recovery and install it?
Thanks a lot for any input.
Can't you just flash a kernel (Siyah for example) through Odin (not Mobile Odin), or even flash a custom rom through it which replaces your kernel?
Sent from the Matrix
Donnie Sins said:
Can't you just flash a kernel (Siyah for example) through Odin (not Mobile Odin), or even flash a custom rom through it which replaces your kernel?
Sent from the Matrix
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the quick reply.
If I use Odin won't that increase the pesky flash counter?
I would much rather flash a stock kernel, would that keep the counter the way it is?
If so, could you please link me to a stock gingerbread stock kernel?
Many thanks
DorinAlex said:
Thanks for the quick reply.
If I use Odin won't that increase the pesky flash counter?
I would much rather flash a stock kernel, would that keep the counter the way it is?
If so, could you please link me to a stock gingerbread stock kernel?
Many thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's true, but why is that a problem for you? However, there are ways to 'reset' this counter (search for it here on xda if you really want this). If you have Siyah working, you can enter Recovery Mode again and you can start flashing.
Sent from the Matrix
DorinAlex said:
Thanks for the quick reply.
If I use Odin won't that increase the pesky flash counter?
I would much rather flash a stock kernel, would that keep the counter the way it is?
If so, could you please link me to a stock gingerbread stock kernel?
Many thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think you should focus on your kernal problem first once you get the phone squared away then get the triangle away app to reset your counter
GT-I9100 powered by
NeatRom Lite 4.0
Philz kernal 3.81
Many40's battery tweaks
Flash a custom ROM via Odin, I suggest LiteingRom... Then go from there...
Sent from Valhalla :mwhahaha:
Can anybody confirm that if I flash a stock, non-custom, kernel :
1. The flash counter doesn't increase
2. The CWM recovery console doesn't get replaced
Thanks so much
1) Yes.
2) If you flash a stock kernel (or any kernel for that matter) you will have the recovery that comes with that kernel I.E standard Android recovery in the case of non-rooted stock (if you flash a CFRoot kernel, which is essentially a stock kernel with root, then you'll have CWM recovery). Recovery is baked into the kernel. You can flash temporary versions of CWM that will persist until the next reboot, but if you want CWM permanently, you need to run a kernel that has it.
MistahBungle said:
1) Yes.
2) If you flash a stock kernel (or any kernel for that matter) you will have the recovery that comes with that kernel I.E standard Android recovery in the case of non-rooted stock (if you flash a CFRoot kernel, which is essentially a stock kernel with root, then you'll have CWM recovery). Recovery is baked into the kernel. You can flash temporary versions of CWM that will persist until the next reboot, but if you want CWM permanently, you need to run a kernel that has it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the prompt authoritative answers.
Given the above, can I also please ask for your suggestion to solve my problem?
i.e.: phone kernel is messed up, cannot boot, recovery is unresponsive when accessing storage. would like to keep flash counter down.
hopefully download mode works to flash new kernels (haven't tried it yet have to decide on the kernel)
Should I go with:
a) flash stock kernel using PC Odin, re-root, apply proper CF-Root custom kernel (flash counter not increasing?)
or
b) flash proper CF-Root using PC Odin (hoping counter doesn't increase)
In any case, can you be so kind as to direct me to the proper version of stock and CF-Root? The one I guessed by myself got me in this mess in the first place
CF-Root-SGS2_XX_OXA_KG3-v4.1-CWM4.zip
Or is this one right, if I don't mess it up again with Entropy?
All the kernels should be Gingerbread - since I am OK with rooting it without making a mess of myself.
Ideally, on top of the kernel names, could you please give me a URL to the location of the kernel files as well, if there is a recommended one.
Cheers
Much appreciated
Scenario A.
Your phone isn't working (I presume it's still not ?), your first priority should be getting the phone working properly. Back to stock, then you can root/flash another rom/whatever.
P.S - Forget the flash counter. You seem obsessed with it. It's irrelevant unless you have to return the phone for a warranty claim. In that case, reset the counter with Triangle Away if you're running recent firmware or a jig if you're running GB (and 'old' bootloader) at the time. At the very least worry about getting the phone up and running normally before you start fretting about flash counters.
MistahBungle said:
Scenario A.
Your phone isn't working (I presume it's still not ?), your first priority should be getting the phone working properly. Back to stock, then you can root/flash another rom/whatever.
P.S - Forget the flash counter. You seem obsessed with it. It's irrelevant unless you have to return the phone for a warranty claim. In that case, reset the counter with Triangle Away if you're running recent firmware or a jig if you're running GB (and 'old' bootloader) at the time. At the very least worry about getting the phone up and running normally before you start fretting about flash counters.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You are right I should worry about the phone. Probably in denial about it being bricked :s
So yes, get stock back in.
Considering I still have some data to back up from the phone before upgrading from GB to latest (phone was on GB before the messiness), I suppose it is better to get a GB kernel in, am I correct?
In this case, can I please kindly ask for the location of a stock kernel to download? Is it safe to get any version of GB in?
Thanks for helping me with this
If you're currently running GB firmware, the phone won't boot without a GB kernel.
Try Samfirmware or AndroidFirmwares.net. If you can't find the kernel you're after, download the entire rom & extract the zImage from the rom package. You can flash this in the PDA section of Odin. If you don't know what firmware you're running, you're going to have to flash an entire rom. In that case, it probably doesn't make much difference which rom you flash. If you flash an entire rom, you can probably kiss any data stored on the internal SD card goodbye tho.
DorinAlex said:
You are right I should worry about the phone. Probably in denial about it being bricked :s
So yes, get stock back in.
Considering I still have some data to back up from the phone before upgrading from GB to latest (phone was on GB before the messiness), I suppose it is better to get a GB kernel in, am I correct?
In this case, can I please kindly ask for the location of a stock kernel to download? Is it safe to get any version of GB in?
Thanks for helping me with this
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks to the nice people at http://androidromupdate.com/category/orange/ I was able to locate the exact version I was having since they are storing official versions for each operator.
So I am going to go ahead and try to reflash the correct kernel for my rom using Odin.
My first hurdle is that in Odin 3.07 when I select PDA the file selection box doesn't alow zImage to be shown in the window. I am able to select it by typing zImage.
Is this Ok to start flashing just having selected zImage as PDA?
Seems kinda hacky, especially since here is where you put the whole rom tar.md5.
Should I go ahead? What is the proper why to flash just the kernel with Odin?
Many thanks
The 'proper' way to flash a kernel in Odin is (if you have a package containing just the kernel) is to put it in the PDA section & flash.
Obviously you don't have that; you have an entire rom package & extracted the zImage, correct ? So obviously you'll be flashing that.
Pro tip: Don't use Odin 3.07, use 1.85 (If I see a post from you asking 'But whyyyy ???' I won't be responding. Just trust me).
So as I believe I've already said in a post the other day, you can flash the kernel on its own or the entire rom (which will obviously flash the kernel as well given the kernel is in the rom package). If you'd simply gone back & re-read what was said then, your phone would be fixed already. The instructions were pretty simple/clear.
So it's up to you what you flash. However, you've already been given every single bit of info (and some) you need to fix your phone. More posts when you could be fixing your phone is just delaying same.
I was just about to sincerely thank you for your help, but then again your attitude has surpassed any such attempt.
As a note of courtesy: if it's an ordeal to answer specific questions to well defined problems, don't. Nobody is forcing you to answer - I suppose there are members around here who are more helpful and polite in relating to people's problems. You know, people asking questions here are trying to discover knowledge you possess and have been given by others on your turn. You shouldn't be so anal giving back to the community.
As I was pointing out in my last thread - if you had bothered to comprehend it - what you were suggesting to do was not reflected in practice.
1. Odin doesn't accept zImage files for PDA - you have to hackingly add it in the file selector box.
2. There is no sign in its GUI that Odin accepts zImage file for PDA, as mainly the PDA box is used for full roms (.tar, .tar.md5)
I simply asked for confirmation that your suggested instructions - unnatural as they have turned out to be - are the right ones.
Usually when somebody suggests some actions that are not straightforward they try their best to express themselves eloquently. This wasn't the case, so I only wanted a confirmation.
But you've made it clear this time, think twice before asking for more info around here - incomplete/inaccurate information is something to deal with on your own.
Here is an update with the status of my problem.
I was able to guess out the missing information/step from the previous posts:
The file that goes into the PDA box in Odin has to be a tar file containing the various image files one needs to flash into the phone and not directly the zImage file.
Quick recap: I had a rooted phone with an original branded rom that I had successfully rooted. I flashed a custom kernel (Entropy) that was for the AT&T version of SGS2 and some buttons were not working. I then tried CF-root for Gingerbread (guessed version). After this the phone does not go past the original logo screen when booting. I used MobileOdin both times. Recovery is CWM 4 but I get cache errors, and no access to sdcard works. Download mode seems to be OK.
I have created a tar file with just the zImage file from the full branded rom that was on my phone. (I9100BVKJ4_I9100ORAKJ4_I9100BVKJ4_HOME.tar.md5)
Using Odin 1.85 I have used the newly created tar file to flash.
Everything in the window looks like Odin snapshots on guides all around the web. After clicking start in the first big box KERNEL is shown.
I get:
<ID:0/034> Added!!
<ID:0/034> Odin v.3 engine (ID:34)..
<ID:0/034> File analysis..
<ID:0/034> SetupConnection..
<ID:0/034> Initialzation..
<ID:0/034> Get PIT for mapping..
<ID:0/034> Firmware update start..
<ID:0/034> zImage
And then nothing happens.
I have tried on two laptops, rebooted, installed kies fresh on one of them with the same result.
I wouldn't flash the whole rom just yet, since I still hope to recover some data.
What could be wrong?
I have searched quite extensively for Odin info online but people didn't seem to come across something like this.
Thanks for any help
DorinAlex said:
Here is an update with the status of my problem.
I was able to guess out the missing information/step from the previous posts:
The file that goes into the PDA box in Odin has to be a tar file containing the various image files one needs to flash into the phone and not directly the zImage file.
Quick recap: I had a rooted phone with an original branded rom that I had successfully rooted. I flashed a custom kernel (Entropy) that was for the AT&T version of SGS2 and some buttons were not working. I then tried CF-root for Gingerbread (guessed version). After this the phone does not go past the original logo screen when booting. I used MobileOdin both times. Recovery is CWM 4 but I get cache errors, and no access to sdcard works. Download mode seems to be OK.
I have created a tar file with just the zImage file from the full branded rom that was on my phone. (I9100BVKJ4_I9100ORAKJ4_I9100BVKJ4_HOME.tar.md5)
Using Odin 1.85 I have used the newly created tar file to flash.
Everything in the window looks like Odin snapshots on guides all around the web. After clicking start in the first big box KERNEL is shown.
I get:
<ID:0/034> Added!!
<ID:0/034> Odin v.3 engine (ID:34)..
<ID:0/034> File analysis..
<ID:0/034> SetupConnection..
<ID:0/034> Initialzation..
<ID:0/034> Get PIT for mapping..
<ID:0/034> Firmware update start..
<ID:0/034> zImage
And then nothing happens.
I have tried on two laptops, rebooted, installed kies fresh on one of them with the same result.
I wouldn't flash the whole rom just yet, since I still hope to recover some data.
What could be wrong?
I have searched quite extensively for Odin info online but people didn't seem to come across something like this.
Thanks for any help
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Expect the SMS and call logs , all your data is safe IMHO. Contacts are backed up in your google account. and Internal SD is not formatted in a factory reset.
---------- Post added at 12:30 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:18 PM ----------
also don't worry about yellow triangle and try a custom kernel. You will be able to remove it eithr by USB jig (on GB rom) or us triangle away http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1494114
DorinAlex said:
I was just about to sincerely thank you for your help, but then again your attitude has surpassed any such attempt.
As a note of courtesy: if it's an ordeal to answer specific questions to well defined problems, don't. Nobody is forcing you to answer - I suppose there are members around here who are more helpful and polite in relating to people's problems. You know, people asking questions here are trying to discover knowledge you possess and have been given by others on your turn. You shouldn't be so anal giving back to the community.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Jesus, get over yourself. Just thank the person that he or she had taken the time to post a reply and at least try to help you because I personally wouldn't and won't give you the time of day.
If you are too bone idle to look up the solution to your problem and check out other users past experience and knowledge then why should anyone else waste their time helping.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using xda premium
The last post is a monument of self-sufficience and lack of helpfulness.
mckeowngoo said:
Jesus, get over yourself. Just thank the person that he or she had taken the time to post a reply and at least try to help you because I personally wouldn't and won't give you the time of day.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Guess what, you just did. Just in your manner, of conceited aggressivity
If you are too bone idle to look up the solution to your problem and check out other users past experience and knowledge then why should anyone else waste their time helping.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This last one is awash with fallacy and misconceptions, that I just have to keep the flame going.
It shows a complete lack of understangind of how a forum works. It's not that the question asker expects the replier to do the work of searching.
A forum relies on the presence of experienced users (i.e. people who have previously gone through the pains of learning how a thing works) who are checking up what issues less experienced people are encountering.
If they are not so high on themselves the latter more experienced users, who are also keen to return to the community what they may have on their turn been taught previously by peers, when they see a problem they quickly know the answer to, will quickly reply and save valuable effort to the question asker.
It's not that every problem has a solution posted and you just have to "look it up" and you're saved.
Half true answers may delay more. Case in point.
The solution to just put zImage in PDA in Odin DOES NOT WORK.
You have to properly package a tar file, by following guides available on the forum. The wrong assumption that you can just put the zImage in the box has delayed me a lot.
It was false also that flashing the full rom will make me lose my data. I flashed the same version of my original rom and I got everything back.
So thanks to all who offered goodwill help.
Solution was:
Flashing same version of rom (official branded, easily traceable by operator and some basic memoryon officila firmware sites), full rom, that is.
[Q][GT-I9100M Virgin/Bell] Can't Unbrick, always "Complete(Write) operation failed"
Hey everyone, thanks for taking the time to look at this and potentially help me with this issue. I'm pretty new to all of this, so I'm hoping for a little guidance in my moment of need!
First off, I'd like to say that I have tried just about every solution offered on this wonderful site and all to no avail... I currently own a SOFT-bricked (CAN open download mode, CAN'T open recovery mode) Samsung Galaxy S II (model number GT-I9100M) and have had no success in unbricking it. From what I gather (please correct me if any of this is incorrect) I need to flash the stock kernel for my phone, which should be the UGKG2 version that I have already downloaded and tried to flash. The issue I am having right now is that every time I try to flash using Odin3 v1.85 (KIES doesn't recognize my phone at this stage) I get the error "Complete(Write) operation failed." It doesn't matter what I attempt to flash, I always get this error and am told that the flash has FAILED.
The custom binary counter on my phone is up to 7 attempts now, and still no working kernel or even a working recovery mode.
A little backlog on how I ended up here, in tldr format:
1. Friend gave me the software-unlocked Virgin Mobile phone. He unlocked it so I could use it with my provider, Telus.
2. I received the JB update and allowed it to patch (unbeknown to me that it would re-lock my phone.)
3. Phone became locked and I didn't have a SIM-Unlock code (nor did I want to buy one...)
4. I attempted to re-root my phone and, long story short, something went wrong (wrong file perhaps). I can't remember what I did at this point, but the end result was that the phone would no longer load. I could only (and still can only) access download mode.
5. After several attempts of correcting my firmware and all that via searching threads, I decided to finally MAKE one so that I might get some direct help.
So now I'm here. As I've said, I have tried basically every solution that I have read about: changing my USB port, reinstalling KIES for my phone drivers, I have removed my SIM-card and Micro-SD, I have researched the firmware I need and am sure that I have the correct one, but ODIN still will not write. I have NOT done anything related to the bootloader or re-partition as I hear that tinkering there could REALLY put me in hot water, though if someone can tell me exactly what needs to be done to them (if anything) then I welcome the information.
Once again, thanks for reading and if you require ANY additional information or screenshots, please reply here and I will respond ASAP!
Do you have Kies installed on the computer you're trying to flash with? If so, ensure it's not running (kill via Task Manager) and try again perhaps... I had that happen to me when I was in the exact same situation as you and it worked for me ...
If not, try rebooting, kill Kies again, and try again. I've also had that work for me (oddly enough)..
@Porkchops: Thanks for the reply! I have tried re-installing KIES (for the Samsung drivers) and restarted my computer to allow for the drivers to finish the installation. After my computer restarts, I place the USB into a different port on the back of my computer and plug my phone into the cord. At this point windows identifies the device and its port, then I kill KIES through task manager (I have tried both killing KIES before and after plugging my phone into the computer, there doesn't seem to be a difference) and then proceed to open Odin. After Odin is open I then make sure only AUTO-REBOOT and F. RESET TIME are checked before proceeding to place the "Kernel_I9100MUGKG2.tar" (which I got from the forums here, cannot remember the link but I will post it when I find it, and yes my phone model is SPECIFICALLY GT-I9100M from Virgin Mobile).
UPDATE:
After Flashing this kernel, I get as far as I have yet (this is the ONLY KERNEL I HAVE FOUND that will PASS in odin, after doing all of these preparations for the flash) and my phone will load to the boot screen with the /!\ yellow triangle. From here, the phone will still not load however and sits at the Boot logo. After waiting over 20 minutes to see if it does anything else, I attempt to enter Recovery mode (Volume Up + Home + Power) and my phone screen changes to a Battery Charging screen with a frozen loading circle on the battery. This is where I am stuck at currently, however I am attempting to charge my phone as I type this to make sure that I am not getting this screen due to an empty battery!
Will post update if anything happens,
Cheers
IVT
Unplug your phone then try to get into recovery mode and do a factory reset. Also worth noting if you get a factory recovery mode or CWM... The S2 is nothing but a pain in the ass when the phone is plugged in and you're trying to turn it on
---------- Post added at 08:40 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:38 PM ----------
Even if you can only get to recovery (And provided it's not stock recovery) you could always load a ROM onto your SD card (provided you have a micro SD card reader or something available) and install it from CWM/custom recovery ...
Porkchops said:
Unplug your phone then try to get into recovery mode and do a factory reset. Also worth noting if you get a factory recovery mode or CWM... The S2 is nothing but a pain in the ass when the phone is plugged in and you're trying to turn it on
---------- Post added at 08:40 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:38 PM ----------
Even if you can only get to recovery (And provided it's not stock recovery) you could always load a ROM onto your SD card (provided you have a micro SD card reader or something available) and install it from CWM/custom recovery ...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried unplugging my phone and entering Recovery Mode though it still only loads to the Samsung Galaxy S II GT-I9100 boot screen with the yellow /!\ triangle. All attempts to enter recovery mode return me to this screen after the phone resets. I have a SD reader, though seeing as I cannot enter Recovery mode at this point, that wont help me yet (though you have a good point about putting the new ROM on it and installing it on the phone that way.) Any idea on how to re-obtain Recovery mode when I can only load as far as the Boot screen?
Thanks for the replies by they way, I appreciate them all.
EDIT: I've found that when trying to restart the phone while connected to a power source (either a wall socket or my computer's USB port) the phone will NOT load the boot logo, and instead loads the image of the empty battery with the frozen loading circle. Not sure if this information is important, but figure'd I would supply as much info as possible.
IVT
I think your issue might be that your phone is trying to run with a gingerbread kernel and a jelly bean firmware... If the GB kernel was flashed successfully, I would say try flashing a gingerbread firmware and see if you can get that to go.. If that won't work, perhaps try flashing a JB ROM that has a kernel included (the hard part will be finding one that can flash without CWM...
I think at the moment your best bet is to try the mgugk2 firmware though, since you already got the kernel flashed for it, then flash a Cf mgugk2 kernel to get CWM, do a nandroid backup and flash whatever you want through CWM from there
Porkchops said:
I think your issue might be that your phone is trying to run with a gingerbread kernel and a jelly bean firmware... If the GB kernel was flashed successfully, I would say try flashing a gingerbread firmware and see if you can get that to go.. If that won't work, perhaps try flashing a JB ROM that has a kernel included (the hard part will be finding one that can flash without CWM...
I think at the moment your best bet is to try the mgugk2 firmware though, since you already got the kernel flashed for it, then flash a Cf mgugk2 kernel to get CWM, do a nandroid backup and flash whatever you want through CWM from there
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the suggestion! Right now I have the firmware downloaded, however when I try to flash it through ODIN (I'm going to assume I still need to PDA flash it?) Odin FAILS to write, leaving me in the 100% soft-bricked state once again, not even loading to the boot screen until I re-flash the kernel. Suggestions or maybe links to somewhere here that would have the firmware I can use? Or possibly a link to somewhere that has the Kernel+Firmware AIO?
Thanks again,
IVT
UPDATE: I have successfully flashed CF-Root-SGS2_XX_OXA_KG6-v4.1-CWM4.tar in an effort to get CWM working. Im going to assume that the CF-root doesn't have the firmware packaged with it, as even with this flash I still reach the boot logo (though it DOES flash through Odin successfully.) Which firmware should I flash / How should I flash it, as I must be doing SOMETHING wrong to make every firmware flash fail when done through PDA.
Thanks
That's messed up that it will let you flash kernels without an issue but won't let you flash firmwares... Maybe try re downloading your firmware or run it against the MD5 hash as its possible it may have been corrupted during download. As for firmware, the exact version shouldn't matter as long and you match GB firmware with GB kernel and so on....
Flash siyah v5 and/or v6 from gokhanmoral.com and see if you can get to recovery.
You might wanna flash another ROM, maybe an I9100 JB ROM.
Thanks for the responses.
@Porkchops: Yea tell me about it, I have a feeling its this inability to flash firmware that's giving me the most grief. I have 3 versions of the firmware I need right now, though none of them work. I have tried ICS and JB stock wares, neither to any avail. As of yet the only non-stock / modified software ive been able to flash has been the KG6 CF-Root Kernel, though still no success with ROMs or stock Firmware. Thanks for all of your responses, what would you reccomend I do at this point? Would it be worth looking for an old version of a kernel and an older firmware? (ie should I maybe try to get a GB kernel and firmware running if I cant find a working match of ICS or JB?) Thanks again!
@gastonw: Hey thanks for responding,I dont have a vast knowledge of all this yet so bare with me. Would the Siyah kernel leave me rooted (like the CF-Root Kernels) or would I need to root it after flashing? This wouldnt affect me using it, I just like to know what I'm getting into. Also what ROM would you reccomend pairing with this kernel? Would I simply PDA flash Siyah and PDA flash the ROM after the phone auto-restarts? Thanks again,
Cheers to both of you,
IVT
How long are you pressing the buttons for entering recovery?
Keep volume up + home button + power button pressed for as long as it takes. Mines restarts about three times before entering recovery. If you flashed CF-root succesfully, then you should be able to enter recovery mode.
If that doesn't work, try restoring your phone with plain old Kies. I'm not sure if it works, but give it a shot. Here is the how-to.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1984717
@Lennyz1988: Thanks for the reply. So far I have only tried entering recovery up to two restarts (restarting once with Vol. Up + Home + Power, then doing it again once it restarts) though I have not tried three times like you said worked for you. I will try this when I get home today though and I'll post an update when I test it. As for KIES im a little out of luck using it, as my phone isn't recognized by KIES in its current state (even though I have all of the proper drivers, I guess not having a working firmware is blocking KIES from interaction with the device? Thanks for the suggestion, do you have any idea of being able to recover my phone enough so that KIES will recognize it again? I have tried something similar to the guide you linked but after I selected my device and enter my serial, KIES gives me some error stating that no firmware could be linked to the device I entered? I could have entered it wrong, though I tried about 2 or 3 times with no luck. I will try the exact way the guide explains when I get home today, so thank you for the link and suggestion. Also, thanks for the reply by the way!
Re: [Q][GT-I9100M Virgin/Bell] Can't Unbrick, always "Complete(Write) operation faile
Siyah will get you rooted and will install CWM recovery.
Sent from the little guy
UPDATE: Ok, so my current status today is as follows.
1. I have tried the suggestion of multiple restarts to get into Recovery Mode while the CF-Root kernel is flashed, however the situation did not change and I still only get the boot logo screen with the yellow /!\ triangle. I have tried holding for a total of 5 minutes and nothing happened, same goes for holding the buttons until it restarts, releaseing the buttons, and repressing them to restart again. No change after 10 restarts, but thanks for the suggestions! Any other ideas to share?
2. I have attempted to follow the link provided for recovering through KIES, however when I enter my model and s/n KIES gives me the message "GT-I9100 does not support initalising." I have also tried using my exact model, which is the GT-I9100M and still got the same message, except that it said "GT-I9100M does not support initalising." Not sure if I entered something incorrectly? I make sure that the model number is all capitalized as GT-I9100 and GT-I9100M, and I enter all 11 characters from my S/N (serial number). Have I done this wrong or is there some reason that KIES doesn't support my phone?
3. Currently about to try flashing Siyah and going to see how that works, I will post an update once I get the results.
UPDATE: Ok I have been able to flash Siyah, however I still cannot enter recovery mode. Any suggestions on a ROM to try and flash? As I've said, im using a Samsung Galaxy S II, model GT-I9100M from Virgin Mobile in Canada. Do I need a kernel with UGKG2 support, as that's apparently the proper firmware version that I need for this device?
Once again, many thanks to all of you for your time.
Cheers,
IVT
UPDATE (02/25 4:50pm EST): Still having immense troubles getting recovery mode to boot... I have tried using the following:
KERNEL: CF-Root ; FLASH: Successful ; RECOVERY MODE: Unable to access
KERNEL: Siyah ; FLASH: Successful ; RECOVERY MODE: Unable to access
KERNEL: CWM Recovery ; FLASH: Successful ; RECOVERY MODE: Unable to access (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1118693&highlight=kg2)
Could the issue with flashing ROMs and being unable to enter Recovery Mode both be caused by my phone not being wiped? If so, is there any way to hard-wipe the device without using a recovery manager?
Thanks,
IVT
Alright.
1. Uninstall kies completely.
2. Download the latest version of kies.
3. Install kies and make sure the drivers are selected during the install process.
4. Disable virusscanners
5. Put the device in download mode.
6. Plug the device in a backport usb (not the front). Also try different usb cables. Some work and some don't.
7. Kill all kies processes in the task manager.
8. Download the latest version of Odin. Also keep the 1.85 so you can try both. Make sure you run Odin as an Administrator!
9. Try to flash now.
If it fails, try a different cable. Then try the same procedure on a different pc. If it keeps failing report back.
Btw, I9100M is the same as I9100.
Here is a thread with stock firmwares:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1544487
First try the latest. DONT use .pit or re-partition yet. If that one does not work try this version:
I9100XWLP3
And if that doesn't work, try only flashing CWM recovery. Try first the JB version and if it fails the ICS.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1118693
Re: [Q][GT-I9100M Virgin/Bell] Can't Unbrick, always "Complete(Write) operation faile
Amen to the above.
I, on the other hand, would like you to flash this: http://www.sammobile.com/2012/11/15/i9100xxlsj-–-galaxy-s-ii-android-4-1-2-jelly-bean-test-firmware/
Only CODE, MODEM and CSC.
If the flash is successful, you should be able to pass the boot animation.
Sent from the little guy
Can you post the complete logs from Odin after trying the above? Please use something like http://pastebin.com so the topic won't get filled.
If the above fails then we will try flashing a bootloader and after that we could try using .pit and re-partition.
Re: [Q][GT-I9100M Virgin/Bell] Can't Unbrick, always "Complete(Write) operation faile
I think odin flashes are successful all the time in this case.
Sent from the little guy
Alright guys, thanks for the in depth and excellent suggestions! Currently downloading I9100XXLSJ (I9100XXLSJ_I9100OXXLS1_OXX) from gastonw's suggestion and will post what Odin does in this case. Once its finished downloading I will grab the newest version of firmware from your suggestion Lennyz1988 (have to wait between downloads, both HF mirrors) and will also post what happens when/ if I flash that (in the case that the JB Test firmware fails.)
Before flashing either I will uninstall KIES, reinstall it with drivers, disable all anti-spyware and anti-virus software, use a backport USB, and attempt using both v1.85 and v3.04 of ODIN3. I will also attempt to use all 3 windows-based machines in my house to attempt to flash, as well as trying all 4 of the cables available to me. I'm hoping that by using all of these precautions I will have success eventually.
Also, after I reinstall KIES windows update tries to re-find drivers for my phone too upon connection to my usb port. Should I let windows find the drivers or cancel it? Worst case scenario I could always try with both, letting it finish installing the drivers it finds and rejecting its installation, though I guess the safest bet is to just reject WU from downloading its own.
Well, I apparently have a heap of work ahead of me, with all of these variations to try.
(3 computers) * (4 cables) * (2 odin versions) * (11 total USB ports) = 264 variations to try, not including different firmware attempts! Seems insane, so I'm hoping I don't need to wait until the 263rd (or more) for success. I will post a pastebin of my ODIN logs as I go, so expect regular updates.
Once again, thanks for all of the help everyone. I seriously appreciate your time and input!
Cheers,
IVT
EDIT: I just want to clear up some murky understanding here, but when I flash a kernel do I need to then find a corresponding firmware and flash that afterwards? Or should I be able to get into Recovery Mode with just the kernel? Also when I do flash firmware, do I need the kernel installed BEFORE I flash firmware / ROMs or does it matter what order I do it in (I'm assuming that you need a kernel already flashed before the firmware will even flash at all?) And lastly, do I need a working stock firmware present before I can flash a modified ROM? If anyone has a good link for me to read/ watch an explanation on how modded kernels interact with modded ROMs I would appreciate the extra information (I'm trying to understand if maybe I'm not using compatible kernels and ROMs.)
Thanks everyone!
UPDATES: The following were done in order from top to bottom, meaning that CWM v5 was done first, followed by flashing CWM v5, etc etc... All flashes (unless stated otherwise) were flashed with ONLY [F. Reset Time] and [Auto Reboot] checked!
Kernel: CWM Recovery [ICS - 5.5.0.4]
Odin Version: v3.04
Flash: SUCCESSFUL
Recovery Mode: NO
Download Source: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1118693
Pastebin: http://pastebin.com/MR97fJLz
Kernel: CWM Recovery [JB - 6.0.2.7]
Odin Version: v3.04
Flash: SUCCESSFUL
Recovery Mode: NO
Download Source: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1118693
Pastebin: http://pastebin.com/vGWmdjkc
*NOTE: Upon reset and testing for Recovery access, I have found that after removing/ reinserting my battery and holding Vol.Up + Home + Power the phone will reset and still give me the boot logo with the yellow /!\ triangle, however if I keep the buttons held the screen will flash to black for a second before again returning to the boot logo screen. This will only happen once, and the device will not flash to black again if I keep the buttons held for any extra time. not sure if this is useful, though I am trying to provide any information I can.
Firmware: I9100XXLSJ + CSC + MODEM (provided by gastonw's link)
Odin Version: v.3.04
Flash: FAILED
Recovery Mode: NO
Download Source: http://www.sammobile.com/2012/11/15/i9100xxlsj-–-galaxy-s-ii-android-4-1-2-jelly-bean-test-firmware/
Pastebin: http://pastebin.com/VqTu5GyS
*NOTE: I place CODE_I9100XXLSJ.tar in [PDA], MODEM_I9100XXLS6.tar in [PHONE], and CSC_HOME_OXX_I9100OXXLS1.tar in [CSC].
*NOTE: This was flashed after the CWM Recovery JB version (v6). Not sure if the CWM kernel would affect the flashing of this firmware? Im going to try flashing the beta JB Siyah v6.0b5 (which I know will flash) and then the firmware again to see if there is any change...
UPDATE: After trying to flash the Siyah kernel and then reflash the test firmware above, ODIN still fails.
Here is the pastebin: http://pastebin.com/e4hDW9F7
SEMI-UPDATE: Also, I've noticed that occasionally Odin will lag before failing (sometimes the program stops responding for a moment, but it comes back. Other times it just a looooong time to do anything and then fails.) Sometimes Odin just completely hangs, doesn't stop responding but stays at the "Firmware update start" step.
Besides this little problem, I also notice that I have yet to find a .md5 that will successfully flash. Not sure if its connected to the format or just my usual flashing problem though.
Lastly, the error log for writing .md5 files is as follows (this was I9100XWLP3_I9100O2ULP4_I9100XXLPR_HOME.tar.md5 that was recommended):
Pastebin: http://pastebin.com/AYhxSywi
invalidtarget said:
Alright guys, thanks for the in depth and excellent suggestions! Currently downloading I9100XXLSJ (I9100XXLSJ_I9100OXXLS1_OXX) from gastonw's suggestion and will post what Odin does in this case. Once its finished downloading I will grab the newest version of firmware from your suggestion Lennyz1988 (have to wait between downloads, both HF mirrors) and will also post what happens when/ if I flash that (in the case that the JB Test firmware fails.)
Before flashing either I will uninstall KIES, reinstall it with drivers, disable all anti-spyware and anti-virus software, use a backport USB, and attempt using both v1.85 and v3.04 of ODIN3. I will also attempt to use all 3 windows-based machines in my house to attempt to flash, as well as trying all 4 of the cables available to me. I'm hoping that by using all of these precautions I will have success eventually.
Also, after I reinstall KIES windows update tries to re-find drivers for my phone too upon connection to my usb port. Should I let windows find the drivers or cancel it? Worst case scenario I could always try with both, letting it finish installing the drivers it finds and rejecting its installation, though I guess the safest bet is to just reject WU from downloading its own.
Well, I apparently have a heap of work ahead of me, with all of these variations to try.
(3 computers) * (4 cables) * (2 odin versions) * (11 total USB ports) = 264 variations to try, not including different firmware attempts! Seems insane, so I'm hoping I don't need to wait until the 263rd (or more) for success. I will post a pastebin of my ODIN logs as I go, so expect regular updates.
Once again, thanks for all of the help everyone. I seriously appreciate your time and input!
Cheers,
IVT
EDIT: I just want to clear up some murky understanding here, but when I flash a kernel do I need to then find a corresponding firmware and flash that afterwards? Or should I be able to get into Recovery Mode with just the kernel? Also when I do flash firmware, do I need the kernel installed BEFORE I flash firmware / ROMs or does it matter what order I do it in (I'm assuming that you need a kernel already flashed before the firmware will even flash at all?) And lastly, do I need a working stock firmware present before I can flash a modified ROM? If anyone has a good link for me to read/ watch an explanation on how modded kernels interact with modded ROMs I would appreciate the extra information (I'm trying to understand if maybe I'm not using compatible kernels and ROMs.)
Thanks everyone!
UPDATES: The following were done in order from top to bottom, meaning that CWM v5 was done first, followed by flashing CWM v5, etc etc... All flashes (unless stated otherwise) were flashed with ONLY [F. Reset Time] and [Auto Reboot] checked!
Kernel: CWM Recovery [ICS - 5.5.0.4]
Odin Version: v3.04
Flash: SUCCESSFUL
Recovery Mode: NO
Download Source: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1118693
Pastebin: http://pastebin.com/MR97fJLz
Kernel: CWM Recovery [JB - 6.0.2.7]
Odin Version: v3.04
Flash: SUCCESSFUL
Recovery Mode: NO
Download Source: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1118693
Pastebin: http://pastebin.com/vGWmdjkc
*NOTE: Upon reset and testing for Recovery access, I have found that after removing/ reinserting my battery and holding Vol.Up + Home + Power the phone will reset and still give me the boot logo with the yellow /!\ triangle, however if I keep the buttons held the screen will flash to black for a second before again returning to the boot logo screen. This will only happen once, and the device will not flash to black again if I keep the buttons held for any extra time. not sure if this is useful, though I am trying to provide any information I can.
Firmware: I9100XXLSJ + CSC + MODEM (provided by gastonw's link)
Odin Version: v.3.04
Flash: FAILED
Recovery Mode: NO
Download Source: http://www.sammobile.com/2012/11/15/i9100xxlsj-–-galaxy-s-ii-android-4-1-2-jelly-bean-test-firmware/
Pastebin: http://pastebin.com/VqTu5GyS
*NOTE: I place CODE_I9100XXLSJ.tar in [PDA], MODEM_I9100XXLS6.tar in [PHONE], and CSC_HOME_OXX_I9100OXXLS1.tar in [CSC].
*NOTE: This was flashed after the CWM Recovery JB version (v6). Not sure if the CWM kernel would affect the flashing of this firmware? Im going to try flashing the beta JB Siyah v6.0b5 (which I know will flash) and then the firmware again to see if there is any change...
UPDATE: After trying to flash the Siyah kernel and then reflash the test firmware above, ODIN still fails.
Here is the pastebin: http://pastebin.com/e4hDW9F7
SEMI-UPDATE: Also, I've noticed that occasionally Odin will lag before failing (sometimes the program stops responding for a moment, but it comes back. Other times it just a looooong time to do anything and then fails.) Sometimes Odin just completely hangs, doesn't stop responding but stays at the "Firmware update start" step.
Besides this little problem, I also notice that I have yet to find a .md5 that will successfully flash. Not sure if its connected to the format or just my usual flashing problem though.
Lastly, the error log for writing .md5 files is as follows (this was I9100XWLP3_I9100O2ULP4_I9100XXLPR_HOME.tar.md5 that was recommended):
Pastebin: http://pastebin.com/AYhxSywi
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
EDIT: I have noticed that basically all firmware and md5s fail at NAND Write. I hear this can be fixed through reinstalling the proper USB Drivers (will attempt to do this, AGAIN...) but can also mean that my NAND Memory is corrupted (a little pessimistic to think down this line, because I'm pretty sure that means my phone is finished...) I doubt its corrupted since I can flash kernels still, but I'm no expert. Any observations, insight, or opinions are welcome.
Thanks,
IVT
Edit: Was just looking around and kind of thought of something. If my NAND Writing is the problem, wouldn't repartitioning my phone offer a potential fix? Could the problem I have with accessing my Recovery be because of the messed up partitions?
Someone give me some feedback on this idea, and if you agree how would I go about doing something? I've heard to generally stay away from PIT and Bootloaders, as they are a little less forgiving than firmware and kernel flashing.
Hiya. Phone was fine, running UnNamed v2.3.6, until the phone completely randomly started boot looping (showing the Galaxy SII name over and over).
Tried deleting user cache, etc. from CWM, this didn't help.
Read the threads here, flashed Odin3 One-click Downloader I-777 UCKH7 Stock + Root No Bootloaders from creepyncrawly's repository page. No joy, and now I've additionally picked up the "Deleting Cryption Meta Data" problem, where that's all CWM says before it boots me out.
I've been trying to follow the guide here on how to resolve the Deleting Cryption Meta Data problem, but the link in item #3 for "SGH-I777_ClockworkMod-Recovery_5.0.2.3" goes to kind of a strange post with dead download links. My understanding is most/all i777 kernals have CWM, but I definitely don't understand enough about this to feel comfortable substituting files.
Any hope for me? I borrowed a Blackberry from work for the weekend and it's considerably less tolerable since Google pulled all of its app services. If my i777 is bricked I'd rather find out sooner than later. Thanks!
1)Assuming your phone operating system is Gingerbread, go to this post and download the Tar version of Siyah 2.6.14 Kernel. Flash it in PDA without ticking Re-Partitioning.
2) Successful? Nice. Next, flash the full stock Gingerbread distribution from the download repository, I777UCKH7 including the bootloaders and everything, in the PDA slot.
3) If that is successful your are done. If it is not, then:
4) Download the SBL Bootloader from the Download Repository. Flash it as PDA in ODIN, without ticking Re-Partitioning.
5) Flash the Kernel, as in step 1.
6) Flash the full stock Gingerbread distribution from the download repository, I777UCKH7 including the bootloaders and everything, in the PDA slot, as in step 2.
If you are unable to get any of these to flash successfully, first you should assume a bad port, or bad cable, and try other ports, other cables, even another pc. If you can get no flash to succeed, then you may have damaged eMMC memory.
In case it is damaged memory, This post from Mobile Tech Videos.
Annnd, I'm in! Thank you thank you thank you, creepyncrawly, this is amazing! I will never take a successful phone boot up for granted! (Okay, not for a little while at least.)
So would it be imprudent to restore a Nandroid backup from about a month ago? I feel like the answer is "yes," but if the bootloop was caused by firmware issues, then maybe it shouldn't matter?
Thanks so much again!
Hi all,
I have a i777 with stock UCKK6 that I was trying to root with CreepynCrawly's UCKK6 stock with root in his download repository.
I've been spending the past week reading all the posts (Thanks for all the information), and I thought I had everything down, however I wasn't expecting to get the Blue Screen of Death right when I decided to start flashing with Odin. My mistake could've been I installed the USB Drivers from Samsung's website for the i777 which was 1.5.14. I was using Odin 1.85 when it occurred on my Windows 7 x64 machine. When it first occurred, I left the cable in there, and decided to uninstall the drivers, and downgrade to a version that was available from a post on XDA. However, now the problem seems to be that I keep on getting unknown device as the device is still stuck in downloading mode. I was reading some instances where some people were just able to continue after the BSOD, however I'm not so lucky. What should I do now? I'm afraid to do anything to my phone, and I hope I can figure something out before my battery runs out.
Thanks in advance for any help.
The 1.5.14 version of USB Driver for Samsung Phones is fine. Any earlier version is probably fine also, but you will need to reboot the computer after uninstalling, then reinstall and reboot your computer again. Win7 x64 is fine also, and Odin3 v1.85 is preferred.
You didn't say if you got the BSOD on the pc or on the phone. It is usually a term that is associated with windows on the pc. You also didn't say if the Odin flash completed and if you got a pass or fail.
At this point you need to pull the battery to turn the phone off, and start over.
Make sure you have a good install of the usb driver, with reboots as above.
First try to enter recovery mode by holding down all three buttons, vol- vol+ & pwr. If that is successful, do a wipe data/factory reset and then reboot. If the phone boots up normally, then you're back in business.
If you can't get into recovery, or if you get recovery but the phone does not boot up normally, you need to flash again. Enter download mode and do the flash again.
____________________
The following is for reference. How to use stand-alone Odin3 to flash firmware:
Follow and recheck each of the following steps. Do them in order listed, as some steps are dependent on previous steps. Instructions are for Odin3 v1.85. It should work with any version of Odin, but some details, like color of items, may be different.
1.) Open Odin on the Windows Desktop.
2.) Have the USB cable plugged into USB port on the computer, but *Not* plugged in to the phone.
3.) Shut the phone off.
4.) While holding down the vol+ & vol- keys, plug micro-usb plug into phone.
5.) In Odin, you should get the yellow box under where it says ID:COM with the text 0:[COMx], and in the Message area, <ID:0/00x> Added!! where x is some number, usually 1-8.
6.) In Odin, make sure Auto Reboot and F. Reset Time are checked and all other items are not checked.
7.) Click on the PDA button. Browse to the tar file you want to install and select it so its path appears in the text edit box next to the button.
8.) Make sure the check box next to the PDA button is checked.
9.) Click the Start button.
10.) You should see the green progress bar advancing.
Let me know if it flashes successfully. Regardless if it works or not, before you close Odin, copy out the information in the Messages section and post it back here.
Thanks for the quick reply.
In my haste during the initial flash, I forgot to capture the logs, but I'm pretty sure it just started getting to "Nand Write Start". It was pretty early in the process. Then my PC had the Blue Screen of Death, (some PFN error). After realizing that I should still have the bootloader intact, I eventually unplugged the phone and then tried to resume it. I got the same error. Then I tried other versions of the USB driver 1.5.5 (uninstalling then installing with reboots), and I believe it gave me the same error. I then also tried it on another Win XP computer, and one instance I got as far as NAND write start, and then ODIN terminated it this time. Again, I didn't capture the log.
However, I did go back to my Win 7 x64 PC and then installed the latest driver 1.5.25, and I did manage to collect the log for that (I'll be sure to do that from now on):
<ID:0/004> File analysis..
<ID:0/004> SetupConnection..
<ID:0/004> Initialzation..
<ID:0/004> Get PIT for mapping..
<ID:0/004> Firmware update start..
<ID:0/004> cache.img
<ID:0/004> NAND Write Start!!
<ID:0/004> factoryfs.img
<ID:0/004> Complete(Write) operation failed.
Anywyay, I can get download mode again, but I can't seem to get recovery. I instead get a dreaded yellow triangle error message that says Firmware upgrade encoutered an issue, please select recovery mode in Kies & try again. I'm not sure if I'm pressing the correct buttons, but before this process started I was able to get into 3e recover, but it's a tricky sequence to get right sometimes.
Is my problem the image I'm trying to flash? Should I just try to use the one click to UCKH7 since the aborted ODIN flash corrupted my UCKK6?
I was thinking of using Heimdall, but just my luck that their hosting service is doing some maintenance!
Anyway, I'll go through your sequences for ODIN again, but my problem seems to be mostly centered around the driver (especially on the WinXP machine where it won't recognize the device), and on the Win7 x64 I get the Blue screen when any transfer is occurring.
I'll try with your steps outlined above, although I was kind of doing that already sometimes since I seem to recall you posting that somewhere else.
Thanks so much for your help.
Make sure you run Odin in administrator mode..!
Sent from my SGH-I777 using xda app-developers app
If I am understanding you correctly, your computer interrupted the flash during the first time you tried to flash the stock plus root package. This likely happened early in the flash cycle. (By the way, there is no bootloader in that package.)
One possible result is that you now have a partial flash in one partition of the nand, which is essentially nand read/write corruption. I would start with the following to see if it will clear the problem.
1)Assuming your phone operating system is Gingerbread, go to this post and download the Tar version of Siyah 2.6.14 Kernel. Flash it in PDA without ticking Re-Partitioning.
2) Successful? Nice. Next, flash the full stock Gingerbread distribution from the Download Repository, I777UCKH7 including the bootloaders and everything, in the PDA slot.
3) If that is successful you are done. If it is not, then:
4) Download the SBL Bootloader from the Download Repository. Flash it as PDA in ODIN, without ticking Re-Partitioning.
5) Flash the Kernel, as in step 1.
6) Flash the full stock Gingerbread distribution, as in step 2.
Thanks for the detailed instructions. I'll give it a shot. I hope your theory regarding NAND partitions is explaining the weird behavior regarding both my PCs with the USB drivers (x64 Win 7 & XP SP3). If I can't seem to resolve the USB Driver issues and Odin, is it possible to flash the Siyah Kernels with Heimdall? I think their hosting site is back...
Also, as I understand it, if I'm able to successfully flash the kernel it will trip the counter, right? Anyway, it's a moot point since I'm past warranty anyway. I'd be thrilled if I don't have.
Thanks again for all your help!
Yay! I was able to flash the Siyah kernel after lots of experimentation (long story short, I gave up on the Win7 x64 machine, and tried the XP SP3 again, and after cleaning out my registry for Samsung that improved things as well as trying a new USB port on the PC).
Now I have the i9100 screen with the yellow triangle which I assume is because of the Siyah kernel.
Before I move on to the next step, I wanted to make sure I understood things correctly. you want me to next flash the complete UCKH7 binaries linked in your Download Repository from sammobile.com? It also contains the bootloaders, right? I guess for sure I will stay away from the x64 machine since I have that Blue screen problem. I'm assuming the one click and .tar.md5 are the same, right? Since I still am not that confident about my USB drivers, what would be the Heimdall commands in case this doesn't work. I'm also wary of flashing bootloaders.
zebra72 said:
Thanks for the detailed instructions. I'll give it a shot. I hope your theory regarding NAND partitions is explaining the weird behavior regarding both my PCs with the USB drivers (x64 Win 7 & XP SP3). If I can't seem to resolve the USB Driver issues and Odin, is it possible to flash the Siyah Kernels with Heimdall? I think their hosting site is back...
Also, as I understand it, if I'm able to successfully flash the kernel it will trip the counter, right? Anyway, it's a moot point since I'm past warranty anyway. I'd be thrilled if I don't have.
Thanks again for all your help!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
zebra72 said:
Yay! I was able to flash the Siyah kernel after lots of experimentation (long story short, I gave up on the Win7 x64 machine, and tried the XP SP3 again, and after cleaning out my registry for Samsung that improved things as well as trying a new USB port on the PC).
Now I have the i9100 screen with the yellow triangle which I assume is because of the Siyah kernel.
Before I move on to the next step, I wanted to make sure I understood things correctly. you want me to next flash the complete UCKH7 binaries linked in your Download Repository from sammobile.com? It also contains the bootloaders, right? I guess for sure I will stay away from the x64 machine since I have that Blue screen problem. I'm assuming the one click and .tar.md5 are the same, right? Since I still am not that confident about my USB drivers, what would be the Heimdall commands in case this doesn't work. I'm also wary of flashing bootloaders.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I doubt that the phone has anything to do with the pc freezing. It could have something to do with bad flashes if the USB port on the phone is dirty or beginning to fail. Flashing a bootloader is minimally risky. The risk is the flash being interrupted while the bootloader code is actually being transferred, and since the sbl is so small, that transfer happens in a matter of seconds.
If it is nand read/write corruption, you most likely will need to flash the full firmware including sbl and param.lfs. You might first try flashing the package that has the sbl and param.lfs removed, just to see if it will work. But for nand read/write corruption, the sequence I posted is what is needed, afaik. There should be no difference between using the one-click downloader and stand alone Odin. The method is a little different is all.
Thanks for the info as I'll try that. I don't see a ODIN package with UCKH7 stock binaries that have the sbl & params removed. There is one for Heimdall though. I guess I was hoping to test my ODIN setup on the successful PC (running XP) before I run the whole package. Alternatively, I have played around with Heimdall on the original offending Blue Screen PC, but gave up on Win 7 x64 and successfully downloaded the PIT file on the exact same PC booting up in Ubuntu, so I feel good that the connection there is safe. As a general thing with Heimdall, does it matter the order I'm flashing the partitions, or can I even break them up into pieces, taking the UCKH7_noBL image and flashing the factoryfs, and zImage with separate commands?
Entropy512's Original I777 UCKH7 Kernel plus Non-Rooted System Package, which is the second block below the UCKH7 stock binaries is the one that has no sbl or param.
With Ubuntu, you want to use Heimdall command line tool. The code for Heimdall is in the little code boxes in the Download Repository. I don't think the order matters, but there is information in the readme file with the command line tool which suggests an order.
I'm starting to run out of ideas regarding this phone. I went back to ODIN on the Win XP PC that successfully flashed the Siyah Kernel, but after running into problems, cleaning registry entries of Samsung, I can't seem to flash anything past the "SetupConnection" phase of ODIN. It pretty much just hangs there, and I never see any indication that anything is being written to the device (ie no green bar on the phone). I was trying to just flash the Entropy's UCKH7 system files and modem as I'm afraid to just yet flash the bootloaders yet. I guess my question is, are the write problems caused by my hosed NAND partition or am I still having problems with my USB drivers on the Win XP machine. I've installed/deinstalled them many times and spent most of my time rebooting and having ODIN just hang there after SetupConnection.
In parallel, I also tried my Win7 x64 machine (the one that original caused this problem with ODIN), but I only booted up in Ubuntu with Heimdall. I found Ubuntu/Heimdall to be the most reliable as I can reliably get the PIT file at least (I don't always get that far with ODIN on XP). BTW, I think with 1.40 version of Heimdall, he did away with the hard coded names that CreepynCrawly has in the instructions of his download repository, but most of them are just simply in CAPS as opposed to the partition names in the download repository (ie --KERNEL instead of --kernel). You can find out for sure by issuing a print-pit command. With Heimdall, I'm consistently getting the OS to recognize the device in boot mode, but then when it starts writing, I get a libusb error, and I never see the green bar move on the phone.
I still haven't flashed the full stock with bootloaders yet, as I'm hoping that will do the trick. BTW, for the tar.md5 file, what slot do I insert it in since it contains bootloaders and modems? Do I just put it in the PDA slot? With Heimdall, would I issue the commands for the bootloaders first, then the non system images? Or do I just do one Heimdall command for all of them?
Anyway, I'm still not sure if I have a reliable PC that flashes correctly, or my NAND corruption is causing the write errors. If it's the latter, then I'm thinking my phone could really be bricked despite being able to get at the bootloader.
Oh, and 1 more thing. What was the point of flashing the Siyah kernel, and then stock image? I was pretty happy when I got that successfully flashed, but now I'm not sure what purpose it's serving.....
zebra72 said:
Oh, and 1 more thing. What was the point of flashing the Siyah kernel, and then stock image? I was pretty happy when I got that successfully flashed, but now I'm not sure what purpose it's serving.....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The purpose is to clear nand read/write corruption. If nand read/write corruption is the problem, then following the sequence I posted exactly should clear it and get your phone back. I don't understand the inner workings of the phone well enough to know why that sequence works. But you havn't tried this sequence yet, since you havn't flashed the full stock image.
zebra72 said:
I'm starting to run out of ideas regarding this phone. I went back to ODIN on the Win XP PC that successfully flashed the Siyah Kernel, but after running into problems, cleaning registry entries of Samsung, I can't seem to flash anything past the "SetupConnection" phase of ODIN. It pretty much just hangs there, and I never see any indication that anything is being written to the device (ie no green bar on the phone). I was trying to just flash the Entropy's UCKH7 system files and modem as I'm afraid to just yet flash the bootloaders yet. I guess my question is, are the write problems caused by my hosed NAND partition or am I still having problems with my USB drivers on the Win XP machine. I've installed/deinstalled them many times and spent most of my time rebooting and having ODIN just hang there after SetupConnection.
In parallel, I also tried my Win7 x64 machine (the one that original caused this problem with ODIN), but I only booted up in Ubuntu with Heimdall. I found Ubuntu/Heimdall to be the most reliable as I can reliably get the PIT file at least (I don't always get that far with ODIN on XP). BTW, I think with 1.40 version of Heimdall, he did away with the hard coded names that CreepynCrawly has in the instructions of his download repository, but most of them are just simply in CAPS as opposed to the partition names in the download repository (ie --KERNEL instead of --kernel). You can find out for sure by issuing a print-pit command. With Heimdall, I'm consistently getting the OS to recognize the device in boot mode, but then when it starts writing, I get a libusb error, and I never see the green bar move on the phone.
I still haven't flashed the full stock with bootloaders yet, as I'm hoping that will do the trick. BTW, for the tar.md5 file, what slot do I insert it in since it contains bootloaders and modems? Do I just put it in the PDA slot? With Heimdall, would I issue the commands for the bootloaders first, then the non system images? Or do I just do one Heimdall command for all of them?
Anyway, I'm still not sure if I have a reliable PC that flashes correctly, or my NAND corruption is causing the write errors. If it's the latter, then I'm thinking my phone could really be bricked despite being able to get at the bootloader.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The cause of the failed flashes is most likely in the phone. There is some possibility it is because of the connection between the phone and the computer. It is almost certainly not just because of the computer.
zebra72,
With a quick read of this thread i didn't see it mentioned...but have u tried a different micro usb/usb cable yet ??
Sometimes that cable that u thought was reliable can all of the sudden become not so. Using a different cable has solved heimdall flashes that weren't workin for me in the past...and even odin flashes that were not completing successfully.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using xda premium
creepyncrawly said:
The purpose is to clear nand read/write corruption. If nand read/write corruption is the problem, then following the sequence I posted exactly should clear it and get your phone back. I don't understand the inner workings of the phone well enough to know why that sequence works. But you havn't tried this sequence yet, since you havn't flashed the full stock image.
The cause of the failed flashes is most likely in the phone. There is some possibility it is because of the connection between the phone and the computer. It is almost certainly not just because of the computer.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok, Thanks again for the explanation. Right now, I'm just gun shy given what has happened since the full stock image contains bootloaders. I just don't want it to fail at any of the critical steps, however small that may be. Would I be able to try to flash the Siyah kernel again as a test of my setup, and then if it succeeds flash the full stock?
4-2ndtwin said:
zebra72,
With a quick read of this thread i didn't see it mentioned...but have u tried a different micro usb/usb cable yet ??
Sometimes that cable that u thought was reliable can all of the sudden become not so. Using a different cable has solved heimdall flashes that weren't workin for me in the past...and even odin flashes that were not completing successfully.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had thought about it, but now hearing creepyncrawly's explanation and your previous experience, it's something I'll have to check. Any recommendations on cables? Should I go with stock Samsung cables? Thanks for the suggestion!
Samsung Oem USB
http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&id=400467800450
Sent from my SGH-I777 using xda app-developers app
Wow, what a difference a USB cable makes! So after more failures today, I decided to pull out the old data cable from my Nexus One and give that a shot. I used both ODIN and Heimdall, and I was able to flash the Siyah kernel again as well as the UCKH7 modem file in Heimdall. With Heimdall, it was telling since I had turned on verbose mode, and with my original OEM cable, I would occasionally get time outs even when retrieving the pit file, but it would recover. However, with flashing, it must not have been able to overcome the errors. In retrospect, the OEM cable has been through a lot (ie chairs rolling over it, pulled and dragged) since it is the same cable as the charger. Props to 4-2ndtwin for pointing this out! And creepyncrawly, it looks like you were right. I kept on thinking it was my computer with the USB ports or drivers!
I also noticed now that I have CWM recovery on it, when I flashed the Siyah kernel a second time. After noticing how fast the ODIN flash was, I'm starting to think the first flash probably didn't fully flash correctly, but I got success after a much longer time than with the good cable. Now I'm wondering if I should risk flashing the bootloaders and instead just try to flash the the UCKH7 with root and go from there. Of course, now that my counter is tripped, can I just flash a ROM that I'm interested in?
Thanks so much for all the help!
zebra72 said:
Wow, what a difference a USB cable makes! So after more failures today, I decided to pull out the old data cable from my Nexus One and give that a shot. I used both ODIN and Heimdall, and I was able to flash the Siyah kernel again as well as the UCKH7 modem file in Heimdall. With Heimdall, it was telling since I had turned on verbose mode, and with my original OEM cable, I would occasionally get time outs even when retrieving the pit file, but it would recover. However, with flashing, it must not have been able to overcome the errors. In retrospect, the OEM cable has been through a lot (ie chairs rolling over it, pulled and dragged) since it is the same cable as the charger. Props to 4-2ndtwin for pointing this out! And creepyncrawly, it looks like you were right. I kept on thinking it was my computer with the USB ports or drivers!
I also noticed now that I have CWM recovery on it, when I flashed the Siyah kernel a second time. After noticing how fast the ODIN flash was, I'm starting to think the first flash probably didn't fully flash correctly, but I got success after a much longer time than with the good cable. Now I'm wondering if I should risk flashing the bootloaders and instead just try to flash the the UCKH7 with root and go from there. Of course, now that my counter is tripped, can I just flash a ROM that I'm interested in?
Thanks so much for all the help!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You may be able to flash custom firmware now. It won't do any harm to try. Then if it doesn't flash, you can do the steps I gave for clearing nand r/w corruption.
creepyncrawly said:
You may be able to flash custom firmware now. It won't do any harm to try. Then if it doesn't flash, you can do the steps I gave for clearing nand r/w corruption.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That was my thinking exactly, and I tried to flash UCKK6 root (trying to get back my old data), and it failed on the factoryfs partition through Heimdall. Then I just followed your instructions with the stock UCKH7 through Odin and crossed my fingers when it flashed all the important stuff (bootloader, etc), and I let out a huge sigh of relief when it all worked! I'm so excited to have my phone back as I started exploring buying other phones when it looked bleak! Now I'm ready to explore the world of custom ROMs.
Moral of the story is you really have to look at everything even if you think it couldn't be something simple like a cable!
And finally, I want to give a huge thanks to creepyncrawly for helping me out! I'd be SOL without all the prompt help you have provided for me!
This is a special case that requires extensive help from you guys (hopefully).
Problem: According to the ATT Samsung specialist the Bootloader I am using is corrupted
Attempted Solution: I have attempted to flash the stock SBL onto my phone but after trying every version of Odin3 (1.83-3.09) it did not work.
**The bar was entirely GREEN but it never finished**
Suggested Solution: Flash the stock ROM back onto the phone using Odin3
Outcome: After trying three different ROMs, all downloaded from Sammobile, using every version of Odin3 (1.83-3.09) only seemed to reach the end then fail at Modem.bin
I was wondering if anyone has any idea how to fix my phone, the original issue was that it never made it past the Samsung logo (not the Galaxy S2 Logo but the actual Samsung logo) the new issue is that it has the Samsung Galaxy SII Logo with the wrong model name (international model) and the small yellow triangle.
If my phone is permanently broken that's fine because I have a temporary phone I just want to get my files off of the phone before using my new one
I have a Jig
I can get it into Odin mode
I cannot get it into Recovery mode
I can get it into Factory mode
Help me please, I have no idea what else to do
Use this version of Odin, or just do more Google fu and find another place to download it from. [ http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=20229527&postcount=46 it may be the version of Odin you're using that's messing you up.
The link Phalanx7621 posted was supposed to point to the Download Repository (link is in my signature.)
The preferred version of Odin is 1.85. If you need it, the download link for Odin3 v1.85 at the top of the Download Repository is a working link.
If the boot loader was corrupt, the phone would be a true brick (no sign of life.) If the secondary boot loader was corrupt, the phone would not boot as far as the Samsung logo. It sounds to me like the AT&T Samsung specialist you received that information from was not fully informed.
The I9100 splash screen with the yellow warning triangle is due to flashing a custom kernel, so nothing to worry about. It can be cleared by flashing a stock kernel. Using the following procedure would have put that on your phone anyway by flashing the Siyah kernel, and then will removed it when stock Gingerbread is flashed.
Please note: The link in the Download Repository for the stock Gingerbread that you need to flash is not working, and I have yet to re-upload all these items to a new host. You will have to download this from the sammobile firmware page. It is the I777UCKH7 / I777ATTKH7 dated 2011 August. You'll need to sign in to download it. The registration is free. Edit: sammobile has not uploaded this file to a new host yet either. I will have to upload it and the sbl for you, but since today is Christmas, you may have to wait a day or two. At least you know that there will eventually be something to try.
Edit: The required files are now available with Dev-Host links in the Download Repository.
I think you will probably recover the phone by assuming it has nand read/write corruption and following this sequence:
Instructions to clear nand read/write corruption.
Odin3 v1.85 is recommended.
1) Download the Tar version of Siyah 2.6.14 Kernel. Flash it in PDA. Without ticking Re-Partitioning
2) Flash the Tar.md5 of the full stock Gingerbread distribution from the Download Repository, I777UCKH7 including the bootloaders and everything, in the PDA slot.
3) If that is successful you are done. If it is not, then:
4) Download the SBL Bootloader from the Download Repository. Flash it as PDA in ODIN, without ticking Re-Partitioning. (Please observe normal bootloader flashing caution.)
5) Flash the Kernel, as in step 1.
6) Flash the full stock Gingerbread distribution, as in step 2.
Attempt #1
When attempting to flash the Kernel in Odin3 v1.85 the bar was fully green but the program never said complete (I left it going for a few hours to no avail)
I tried flashing the SBL and the same issue happened, the bar was fully green but it never said complete (I had previously downloaded the SBL)
When attempting to flash the Gingerbread stock it does not even go past the SBL1 part, the bar does not have any green within it and the program still says NAND Write Start.
I'm not the best with this sort of thing but from observation it seems that my NAND is corrupt and isn't allowing anything to be properly flashed.
By the way: the Custom Binary Download now says: Yes (5 counts) which tells me that the phone recognizes that something is being flashed but it's not working properly
I'm back to being stuck and I think this phone may be truly broken :/
I don't think ur phone is broken.
Try a different usb/micro usb cable. Try a different usb port on ur pc (don't use a usb hub). Make sure the phone's micro usb port is clear of dirt/debris, etc.
Usually when i've had problems with Odin flashes it is something as simple as doing these things that results in a successful flash.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk
Same Issue
I'm having the same issue exactly as OP. The green bar loads, but then stops at NAND Write Start. I've switched usb ports, pcs, and cords and nothing seems to work. Is my phone beyond repair then?
androidrequest said:
I'm having the same issue exactly as OP. The green bar loads, but then stops at NAND Write Start. I've switched usb ports, pcs, and cords and nothing seems to work. Is my phone beyond repair then?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you follow exactly the sequence in post #3? If not, please try that.
creepyncrawly said:
Did you follow exactly the sequence in post #3? If not, please try that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, I tried that sequence exactly. It actually won't advance past #1. The green bar loads in Odin under kernel, but stops working at NAND Write Start. And trying the sbl ends with the same result (I believe it's the first download in the Download Repository). All of the flash attempts have failed or frozen, but the Custom Binary Download count is at 3.