Hi everyone,
I am new to the android world having just bought a galaxy s2, so please be gentle. I'm a previous iphone owner and always hated the restrictions apple put on their phones and dictated the way I could use my handset! I've since moved over to android and my first impressions are OMFG, how confusing is all of this!! I'm not techphobic by any means but I am struggling to piece together how the world of android works and I have spent a lot of time reading various things about ROMs, rooting, flashing, kernels etc... but I am getting more and more confused!
I recently bought a Galaxy S2 which is running a custom ICS ROM on it (resurrection remix 1.0) and also has CWM on it. Having looked at the forums i can see that another version in out (1.3 i believe) but i'm very hesitant to try a flash as i dont want to screw my phone.
The way I see it i've got two choices, either try and reset the phone to stock so that warranty etc... remains uneffected and then update to ics through kies when its available or try and install a later version of one the ics ROM's that are availabe. I was wondering to that end if you lovely people coudl give me some guidance.
If I were to reset my phone to stock how do i do this bearing in mind i am confused about
a) what kernels are in the first place and
b) which one i woudl need for my phone and will I need a usb jig for this?
c) -i need to unroot my phone to return it to stock and if so how do i do this
also:
-what is the difference between an insecure and secure kernal
-if i flash my phone to a newer version of ics can i revert back to 1.0 as at the mo apart from the odd app crashing here and there I'm not having any probs with it.
I'm reading about GAPPS and APKs and dont know what the hell these are either but they keep popping up every so often.....basically i'm confused and on the verge of a breakdown!!
Please could somebody help mw with this and massive apologies if i've posted where i shoudnt have.
Thanks in advance
Saf
If you had taken the same time took for typing here to search and read you would have learnt almost everything...
go through these stiky threads
also see my links in singnature.......read as much as possible....no other substitute for reading and learning, nobody will answer you in essays like you typed
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1544657
Appreciate what you're saying mate and thank you for taking the time to reply. I have been reading various threads over the last day or so but the problem is when something like this which is quite techinical is completely new territory you dont know where to start. Google throws up page after page of stuff that doesnt make much sense and i've searched on the forums here and read up on quite a bit but again am not sure if i've grasped it.
problem is I didnt install the custom ROM on the phone, i bought it like this and to do anything further with it i dont know if i need to go back to the original owner with more questions or can i just go ahead and start tinkering with it without knowing what software was originally on the phone? (bearing in mind that various posts state that you need certain software which is as close to the original one as possible)
Thanks anyway
Saf
this is the stage which passed by all the noobs including me, dont worry
Your strating treble will only be over when you start flashing a ROM,
cool.
ima go ahead and try and install version 1.3 of resurrestion remix! Wish me luck hehe!!
Good luck,
dont forget to follow the steps mentioned the ROM thread atleast...
All,
Originally posted a request for help in the Galaxy S4 International forum for using Odin to downgrade my Verizon Galaxy S4 SCH-I545 from Lollipop to KitKat.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s4/help/odin-fails-to-downgrade-galaxy-s4-t3278803
Eventually one helpful guy mentioned that Verizon crippled this device with a locked bootloader, (or a mismatched age/version of the bootloader) something never even hinted at in ANY instructions I've ever found for using Odin. I'm really disappointed in the Lollipop version that I've been stuck with, mainly due to the slowdowns on the phone and the need to kill off all apps at least every day., and the need to hit buttons multiple times before enough system resources clear up and it does what I want. All I wanted to do was go to an earlier version, and it looks like that might not be possible.
I see forum posts talking about rooting this version of the phone, but I don't have a handle on what good that will do for me in my particular situation. Now that I've found the correct forum, any suggestions? Part of me likes the idea of rooting and debloating to speed things up, but if I can't downgrade and the performance reduction is just a function of the version of Android I'm stuck with, then I don't see the point in wasting even more days of my life fighting this aging phone.
Oh, and as an aside, what the hell is OC1 and OF1? Can't find anywhere that explains what the heck they're talking about. My best guess is they're versions of firmware, are the designations just random?
Thanks!
Ryan
I'll try to write you some things i've learned about this device, hope it helps you
Samsung Galaxy S4 Verizon SCH-I545 has the same specs than others Qualcomm Galaxy S4, but this one is managed by Verizon to distribute, update software, etc... That means, even when it has the same hardware than others it will have some differences on software and limitations. Now, let's talk about our "charming" bootloader:
When we talk about bootloader, we use as reference the last 3 characters of bootloader version (this also applies to firmware, kernel), you can get your bootloader version by running this command on terminal emulator getprop ro.bootloader (this is why we refer to lollipop OC1, OF1, to kitkat NG5, NG6, NK1 and so on) when you get a software update almost always your bootloader is updated. Only MDK bootloader (first firmware released) was unlocked. After that, Verizon decided to start locking the bootloader to prevent rooting, software downgrade... So, why don't we unlock the bootloader? because they used something called qfuse, the qfuse is hardware related and when it's triggered (updated) cannot be untriggered (downgraded).
After reading this you may be really dissapointed and thinking to get another device, I was in that situation, but you can root your device (this means, you can debloat and do something to speed your s4), even you can install a custom rom's (they're really nice), maybe it's not the best solution, but, hey! it's really better than stay stuck with device stock rom. Btw, you cannot downgrade with custom roms, you can just install those that are meant for your bootloader or higher.
Edgardo_Uchiha said:
After reading this you may be really dissapointed and thinking to get another device...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is what I'm leaning towards. The frustrating part is the time wasted trying this in the first place. I think I'm just going to cut my losses, suffer my crippled phone with quiet grace and dignity, and replace it at some point.
Thanks for all the help!
Ryan
So, is there any way to root a Galaxy S4 verizon phone with 5.0.1 (Lollipop)?? I've been reading threads and how-tos and trying various techniques for several hours with zero success.
Don't despair too much. There is a great dev who has provided the means to flash a very stripped down version of Lollipop OC1. I can honestly say that, in the 2-1/2 years I've owned this device, it has never run better since installing his ROM.
It is still a Touchwiz ROM, but everything, and I do mean everything that can be considered crapware has been removed from this ROM. The result? a slim, sleek user experience that will cause you to never look back (considering we will NEVER have a true AOSP ROM for our device.
Check his link out below. Read everything and make sure you understand what you have now and what you will need to do. Then study some more. It took me a month before finally feeling confident to make the plunge. Even then I needed help, but got all I needed from the good folks...especially Stang5litre, on the discussion board.
Good luck!
http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s4-verizon/development/stang5litre-ediition-5-0-t3132555
---------- Post added at 03:18 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:12 PM ----------
gonyere said:
So, is there any way to root a Galaxy S4 verizon phone with 5.0.1 (Lollipop)?? I've been reading threads and how-tos and trying various techniques for several hours with zero success.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Presuming you are on OF1, have a look here...
http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s4-verizon/general/root-of1-t3249971
jwhistler said:
Don't despair too much. There is a great dev who has provided the means to flash a very stripped down version of Lollipop OC1.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just took a peek, that looks well beyond me, and at least a dozen times more complex than the tantalizing downgrade forum posts that pulled me down this road in the first place. Heck, pretty much every other word is some acronym I've never heard of. Thanks though, I'll pass.
Hi,
so I am having issues with the Wifi on my, recently acquired, LG V30.
I have got a strange model, L-01K, from Japanese provider DOCOMO.
I have unrooted / flashed .. currently running Havoc 3.11 on Android 10.
The wifi often loses connection/signal and in order to restore requires a complete device reboot.
Looking for some help.
Regards,
H.
haevaristo said:
Hi,
so I am having issues with the Wifi on my, recently acquired, LG V30.
I have got a strange model, L-01K, from Japanese provider DOCOMO.
I have unrooted / flashed .. currently running Havoc 3.11 on Android 10.
The wifi often loses connection/signal and in order to restore requires a complete device reboot.
Looking for some help.
Regards,
H.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Check your network stability? Don't use Havoc?
ldeveraux said:
Check your network stability? Don't use Havoc?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is this a joke ?
Not really a joke... did the phone work fine on a stock ROM? You never told us what you came from.
How did you get to Havoc 10? As far as I've seen, Pie ROMs often have issues after install... I can't imagine 10-roms to be any better. Did you try any of the fixes mentioned in the ROM threads instead of just asking here? Sounds like it's probably ROM specific...
Well, is it my first custom, so I have no past experience and I don't know if this is specific to the ROM or the firmware drivers, or etc... hence I am asking around here for some support.
I assumed it was clear where I cam from, I came from stock. I only had the phone stock for a short period so I do not know if it was better or not before flashing. The phone was trully horrible with all the Japanese software crap on it.
I think I saw somewhere that this phone is known to have crappy drivers from LG.
haevaristo said:
Well, is it my first custom, so I have no past experience and I don't know if this is specific to the ROM or the firmware drivers, or etc... hence I am asking around here for some support.
I assumed it was clear where I cam from, I came from stock. I only had the phone stock for a short period so I do not know if it was better or not before flashing. The phone was trully horrible with all the Japanese software crap on it.
I think I saw somewhere that this phone is known to have crappy drivers from LG.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You also don't have a model number I've ever seen before, nor is it mentioned in the WTF thread. We have no clue what you installed here or how you did it, so I would suggest flashing one of the stock ROMs through TWRP if that's your bag. The Havoc ROM used in this forum is v3.9, again don't know how you got 3.11
Perhaps its not 3.11 ... I got it from the V30 Telegram group ... the zip file is "Havoc-OS-v3.11-20201128-joan-Unofficial.zip", I cannot seem to find the running software version, so I dont know how to check ... I am also trying to get some help there but I thought it wouldn't hurt to ask here as well.
are you rooted and or unlocked bootloader?
Also I've never heard of there being an issue with WIFI on this device.
Yes. TWRP installed as well
You say you came from stock, but WHAT stock? Oreo? Pie? US998? Something else? All this matters. You can't just slap a ROM on without having the rest of the stuff prepared on this phone.
As others mentioned, the model number doesn't make sense to us, so it could be some weird stock ROM that is not compatible with Havoc (or other custom ROMs). Even for many of these, you need to start with a known stock ROM, so that the proper blobs (binaries) are present as well as the partition layout in the phone. As you don't seem to know what it was (eg US998 is preferred) then I'd recommend you start there and then move forward. This means Frankensteining to US998, then moving forward.
Of course, given your weird model number, this may not be advised either... but if you want to try that's where I'd start.
OK.
So, phone came with stock Docomo android 8. Dont know too many details as I didnt kept it long.
Then I had some discussions on telegram group, where people advised me to unroot the phone, and install TWRP. It was mostly same as described in the thread for the LGv30 here in the forums.
I had to install a pre 2018 ROM version, using samsungs tools.
I don't recall anymore all the details order i did things from this on, I followed the steps as advised ... but I had to flash a V300 to H930 ROM. I also remember that an important step in the flashing process was not to flash modem, xbl and xbl2. So I did skip those.
Then initially I rooted Revolution Remix android 9.0, from stock android 10.0 ... by mistake, then I reverted back and I installed Havox android 10.0 instead.
The stock filename was "H93020d_00_OPEN_EU_OP_0326.kdz" and "V300_to_H93031a_converter.zip".
Edit: perhaps it wasnt Android 8 but rather 9 as someone corrected, this phone did not shipped with android 8. As mentioned, I did not keep the phone stock for long as it was literally unsuable with all the Japanese software, so I have not paid too much attention.
haevaristo said:
OK.
So, phone came with stock Docomo android 8. Dont know too many details as I didnt kept it long.
Then I had some discussions on telegram group, where people advised me to unroot the phone, and install TWRP. It was mostly same as described in the thread for the LGv30 here in the forums.
I had to install a pre 2018 ROM version, using samsungs tools.
I don't recall anymore all the details order i did things from this on, I followed the steps as advised ... but I had to flash a V300 to H930 ROM. I also remember that an important step in the flashing process was not to flash modem, xbl and xbl2. So I did skip those.
Then initially I rooted Revolution Remix android 9.0, from stock android 10.0 ... by mistake, then I reverted back and I installed Havox android 10.0 instead.
The stock filename was "H93020d_00_OPEN_EU_OP_0326.kdz" and "V300_to_H93031a_converter.zip".
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're ostensibly trying to combine 2 tutorials and forums to fix your problem. My guess is that flashing all those random ROMs, unrooting to install TWRP (?!?!), and using a Samsung tool definitely were not the right move. I'd advise against doing anything else unless @ChazzMatt gives his blessing, but he's away for a bit. Either that or ask for your Telegram friends to fix what they broke.
Also, wtf is docomo? The V30 did not come stock with Android 8.
ldeveraux said:
You're ostensibly trying to combine 2 tutorials and forums to fix your problem. My guess is that flashing all those random ROMs, unrooting to install TWRP (?!?!), and using a Samsung tool definitely were not the right move. I'd advise against doing anything else unless @ChazzMatt gives his blessing, but he's away for a bit. Either that or ask for your Telegram friends to fix what they broke.
Also, wtf is docomo? The V30 did not come stock with Android 8.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you had read my earlier posts, I explain who is docomo and why I have such a weird model.
They are not my 'Telegram friends' but a community of people who use the LG V30. From what I gather it seems several of them are very active in ROMs, fixes and also part of the XDA forums here. They continue trying to help me however I though it would not hurt to also ask here in parallel ... it is also far easier for someone who later may face the same issues, to benefit from the solution if they can find this thread. Perhaps it was a mistake, this reminds me why I dont really miss much using forums ...
Using the LG tool was definitely the right move as written everywhere in the forums here and advised by anyone you ask to directly. As a first step, you need to break the encryption/security on the phone and you can only do that by reverting to an older version, preJuly 2018, where a known exploit exists. And guess what, until you root the phone, you can only do that by using a tool developed by LG.
And yes, I am definitely trying to combine several tutorials as there simply is no single tutorial or source of information.There are also no instructions, or even knowledge, for my model on the forums, and since the information is vague, outdated or incomplete on the different threads, you simply have no choice other than combining it. I followed the instructions as advised by my 'Telegram friends' considering it was clear I had to Frankenstein to something anyhow and the information they gave me, It all made sense, when compared to the forums information and according to the rationalle that they gave. So I took the risk. It worked without me bricking my phone, so I consider that a success.
It was definitely not 'random ROMs', if you go into the XDA section on LGv30 it is clearly explained why you need each of those and how. Its only the specifics, and versions, for my case that is not clear.
Seriously dude, you obviously have not enough knowledge nor interest in helping, .. so why don't you do me a favor, ignore this thread and go spend your time somewhere else and let others who can actually help reply... thanks, seriously!
Oh OK, no problem. Hope you and the other user who bothered replying twice can fix your cockup. With the 0 Likes and 2 weeks on XDA, I'm sure you'll solve it immediately.
... another really helpfull post, you really never disappoint ...
You really need to be far more clear in what you are doing or did. Don't blame the other users for your mistakes, nor should you complain to them when they're trying to help you with limited info. If you want help, you need to give a LOT more info. And you did, indeed, flash multiple different custom ROMs, which is a recipe for trouble.
Your terminology is also confusing, as you keep saying "unroot" and then install TWRP. You need to unlock the bootloader to install TWRP, maybe that's what you mean. Unrooting is a very different operation. You need to be precise in what you are asking for help with, otherwise you'll get bad info from anyone. Know the terms and use them properly, otherwise we can't help you... bad info will always lead to trouble.
Bottom line, as far as I know, there's only one way to do this right on the V30, which we can only assume you have. If you want to proceed, then you need to focus on one process and not try to mix with every other person's idea of what's right. Chazz has been great on this, and has provided detailed info... follow that.
Again, I won't tell you to do this because I don't want you to blame me if you brick the phone. So, if you want to proceed, you do so at your own risk. That said, I would start by getting to US998 stock ROM via KDZ. Follow the Frankenstein thread hereon XDA to see how to get there first. Once there, check to see that the phone operates properly - it should. If it doesn't then stop jumping around and fix that first.
Once all is good on that stock ROM, follow the WTF thread to install TWRP again (KDZ will remove it), with the version mentioned there (there may be newer versions, but you need to stick to what's detailed there to prevent problems, as those are the ones that are tested and known to work). Once you get that done, again, make sure the phone is working properly... then you can consider going to a custom ROM.
If you decide to move ahead, then you need to read the requirements of the custom ROM carefully. Most PIE ROMs, for example, require the PIE blobs, so you need to get to a stock PIE ROM as prescribed before going to a custom ROM. I don't know what the specifics are for 10-ROMs, so you'll have to see what's possible and how it's done based on that ROM's thread.
Well, I am not blaming anyone for my mistakes nor am I complaining to anyone trying to help me, you've been really helpful so far, not only giving ideas on what could be done but as well trying to teach and correct me, and I haven't complained about it.
However, the other guy is literally just patronizing.
Even for me who is new to this, I can clearly see by his comments that he doesn't know what he is talking about, this device in particular, and he even didn't bother to read Chad's thread to try and understand the typical, normal, process.
Just feel free to read again everything that I posted and everything that he posted, 'helping' me, its all registered above.
As for your points you are right, I am trying my best to understand all the details, but as you can notice I have literally just registered here in the forums and this is in fact my first attempt at customizing an android phone ROM.
I have initially, wrongly assumed, that the information I provided was enough and I expected this to be a more common issue that someone with experience could quickly point me to the problem or what I did wrong. And yes, my terminology is wrong, nothing I can do about that at the moment. The posts and information are literally full of jargon, abreviations, code names and sometimes spread over multiple replies or even different threads, this is not for the faint of heart and anyone new will always struggle to understand it all, no matter how smart they are, ... I am literally doing my best to try and catch up as quickly as possible.
So, wherever you read 'unroot' earlier, just replace with "unlock bootloader". As far as I understood it, and as I recall all the things that I have done, I have literally followed the process outlined in Chad's post here in XDA ... I have however frankensteined using the V300 to H930 patch, also according to instructions outlined here (I'm not sure at this moment, if that is also a post by Chad) as per the advice I received in the Telegram group. BTW, I have looked into the telegram group and Chad is also part of it, though he has not been active in the past days, so its not just a random group of people as pointed out earlier.
Anyway .. as far as I was explained, this device requires you to first flash A9 before going straight to A10, otherwise there are some 'blobs' issues with it, i dont really understand the details. During the process of discussion in the chat group, there was some miss understanding and I ended up going straight to A10 and then I installed LineageOS. Later when we noticed this, I tried to correct this by then going back again to A9 and then A10 and then finally I installed Havoc instead of going back to LOS.
So there was some mix up there, and I mentioned this not to blame anyone but just because I thought this could potentially be a source of the problems I am facing and a hint at the potential solution.
Thank you for your suggestion, I am literally half way in the process of sort of doing what you suggest. I am now back to stock A9 and see if the WiFi behaves better. I did flashed stock via TWRP, not KDZ. So I did not went all the back as you suggest. If this proves unsuccessful I might do that.
Not that he/she/they needs my defense, but ldeveraux is a senior member (more-so than me) and has tons of knowledge on this device, in my experience. That's all I want to say about that.
So it sounds like the problem was jumping to A10 from A9. Also, using instructions from one ROM to end up jumping to another. Each ROM has its needs/requirements, so you can't really do that. Also, at least on this phone, going between Android levels is somewhat tricky, so you can't just jump around from what I've read.
Yes, there can be some jargon and such. Chazz's thread (post 193) explains most, if not all, of that, but if you're missing something I strongly recommend reading MUCH more, rather than just moving forward. It is a very long thread, but it's very important you read through ALL of it, and understand it before moving forward. Then read it again. Don't read it on a phone/device - use a computer because browsers and apps have a bad habit of truncating the message. These are Chazz's recommendations as well, for good reason (and also at the top of this thread). I did a TON of reading before I did my phone unlocking/rooting, and with that thread alone, so I have read it MANY times myself (well, at least the older revision when I did my hacking) and I didn't have to ask questions... so I know the answers can be found.
US998 is the best "foundation" to start with for various reasons. Fact is, US998 should work on pretty much any carrier to start with, so it's a great foundation for that reason too. That's why I suggest starting there to be sure you have a good, working basis.
I have read that if you go to A9 or A10, going to another version may require going all the way back to Nougat first. You may need to do that now, if you want to get back to a stable US998 to begin with. The Pie/10 threads probably have info on this... I haven't read them up myself as I don't want to bother. I have stuck with Oreo because it does everything you need anyway... I see no advantage to Pie or 10. I believe Chazz has also stayed on Oreo for this reason.
Senior or no senior, he should just not patronize people. He has clearly the option to ignore if he doesn't feel like helping .. I have even politely asked him to do so ... but instead he decided to come back and patronize further ...
I rest my case...
OK. So, I am still in the process of finalizing everything, but I think it is safe to say that for the L-01K models, the US998 is the safe way to go.
Make a backup of your modem partition, then do the Frankenstein to US998 then once you are done, you can restore you original modem partition and everything should work fine!!