No solutions found - Soft-Bricked Samsung Galaxy S3 SPH-L710 - Sprint - Android Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

Hi,
I’d really appreciate it if someone can help me, as I’ve not been able to find my exact problem and solution anywhere in the last 5 days of trying to fix my Samsung Galaxy S3 SPH-L710 – Sprint.
Not sure what happened but I had just swapped out my battery and my problem began – I have 3 batteries that I charge and swap when needed… one of the reasons I’m still using the S3. Been wanting to get a new phone but just haven’t decided which one and kept putting if off. Anyway… After charging the battery I turned on the phone and it got stuck on the Samsung Galaxy S3 screen. Went online and read I should try a cache wipe. I did that and got a bunch of failed to mount lines and a few other failures. Mostly failed cache. Not sure if this had anything to do with it but I was running low on the internal free space and had to delete a few things to make more space and then it would fill up again etc… Internal size is 16gb.
Here’s what I tried:
Attempted the 4.4.2 ROM flash in Odin. – Got a PIT partition message and then tried again and got write Failures after NAND started. Tried a few more times and same thing but I don’t get the PIT error anymore… I tried different Odin versions, computers, and cables, and same results. I have the correct USB driver. I’m using the same version ROM that’s on my phone, but the build name on my phone is last (newest) update and I could only find the previous build of the same 4.4.2 version. Note – This phone was a swap by Sprint when my first S3 had a start button issue. This one is a refurbished… not sure if that changes anything.
I also tried a TWRP install via Odin and it Failed.
I tried to Root via Odin and it Failed.
I DID NOT do a factory reset because I don’t want to lose all my data.
MORE INFO:
Phone is not Rooted and never was.
Phone goes into download mode and also stock recovery mode without any problems.
I never set the developer option and I didn’t enable debugging. Not sure how, now that my phone is soft-bricked.
QUESTIONS:
I’d like to preserve all my data and settings and somehow back them up so that I can put them on a reset phone.
Is there any way to work around this soft-brick and grab all the info including the system info and settings, all my files, and pictures, etc??… Everything! … I’d like to get the phone working again and put it all back on it and be the same as it was. I have so much important stuff on the phone. I have been doing backups via Kies but haven’t done it for a few months and I don’t even want to lose even a few months of data, and the way my phone was set up. Is there anything I can do to basically get a mirror image of my phone? Assuming all the information is still intact but it just can’t mount properly.
Is the developer / debugging setting preventing me from being able to do what I tried? Is it because I’m not Rooted? Is there OEM Locking on my phone?
Should I try to install TWRP from the stock recovery via external SD card? And then Backup from there? Is that different than doing it from Odin or will that fail too?
Please help – I love my S3. No phone for 5 days and I feel so disconnected :crying:
Thank you!

Related

[Q] S3 'Sudden Death' Soft-brick Help

Hi, if anyone can help I'd really appreciate it!
So I've got a Samsung Galaxy S3 I9300, it's on Orange, from phones4u, bought it in August 2012. No sd card, all data on the internal storage. I updated to Jelly Bean about a month or so ago when the update came through on my phone. Basically I think my phone's suffered the S3 Sudden Death Syndrome and soft-bricked itself.
I've NEVER messed with it (roms, flashing etc.) and as of today my phone has just up and soft-bricked ie. this morning, it died the standard low battery death far earlier than it should have, and then trying to charge it/turn it on, it gets to the boot screen and just sits there.
I can still get into both the recovery mode and download mode, and my pc recognises that something is plugged into it and will install some drivers, but it won't do the mass storage style stuff it used to (probably because the phone won't actually boot) and Kies refuses to connect (though I've not used Kies before so I don't know if it would have connected successfully before).
I've tried the obvious soft reset, taking the battery out. I've booted to the recovery mode and rebooted, and wiped the cache. Nothing.
Now, my phone is in warranty, so I can send it back to get it fixed hopefully. But I'm trying desperately to save my data (texts, photos, game save files, etc.) seeing as google sync seems to have failed me with my contacts and photos (I know, it's on me for not realising things hadn't backed up properly/at all).
Any and all suggestions would be appreciated (although please tell me if you it might void my warrantly), if anyone knows an alternative to Kies that I could try please do let me know.
do a full wipe from recovery
Thanks - but won't that wipe all the data I'm trying to save?
Well, reflash the same firmware you we're using prior to the "soft-brick" and see.
Do you know if that will void my warranty?
Otherwise, can you help me identify what build my phone is/which software I should flash on? I'm aware that the wrong one will just cause more problems
Katanaqui said:
Do you know if that will void my warranty?
Otherwise, can you help me identify what build my phone is/which software I should flash on? I'm aware that the wrong one will just cause more problems
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Assuming you are flashing the stock fw from Samsung via Odin, nope it will not void warranty.
Not sure if O2 and Orange is the same thing, but it shouldn't cause any issues.
Look for the rom for your region at sammobile.com (GT-I9300)
Then just flash the .tar.md5 via PDA on Odin.

[Q] Is my S II soft-bricked?

Hi everyone,
I have a Galaxy S II from Bell Canada and it was recently updated via Kies to Android 4.1.2 a couple weeks ago. I've been having all sorts of problems with it since the update, including random freezing, crashing, and so on, so I intended to backup and factory reset this weekend. Before I could do that however, it shutdown and now I can't boot it back up.
Symptoms:
- The phone gets past the Samsung Galaxy S II animation, but then goes immediately to the glowing SAMSUNG logo and stays that way for several minutes before shutting down.
- Battery power is not an issue. Half-full to full battery makes no difference.
- Connecting it to my PC allows Windows 7 to install most of the needed drivers, except it fails on 'MTP USB device failed'. This might simply be because the phone doesn't fully boot.
What I've tried:
- Multiple reboots (shutdown and restart)
- Removing the SD card and multiple reboots
- Wiping the cache partition several times and booting via the stock recovery menu (reached by Volume + Home + Power)
I have backups but from several months ago, so anything I can do to flash the firmware and retain my data would be appreciated. I've looked at other threads but many users seem to have slightly different issues or are with other carriers. I haven't played around with flashing or anything since getting the phone two years ago, so I don't know how much of a difference their steps would be from mine.
The phone is either just inside the warranty period or just outside... I don't have the exact date if that makes a difference here.
Any help tracking down the issue or helping to get it back to functional would be appreciated.
Firstly, from your post it looks your phone is not rooted. If that is the case then i am afraid we are left with not much options to try.
I would advise, if u want to come out of this issue and data is not the concdrn then do a hard reset by getting into the recovery console.
And, if you are rooted than simply reinstall the rom without resetting anything. This will bring back the rom and you will also not loose any data.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using xda premium
vishal11in said:
Firstly, from your post it looks your phone is not rooted. If that is the case then i am afraid we are left with not much options to try.
I would advise, if u want to come out of this issue and data is not the concdrn then do a hard reset by getting into the recovery console.
And, if you are rooted than simply reinstall the rom without resetting anything. This will bring back the rom and you will also not loose any data.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's correct, the phone isn't rooted. I'd like to exhaust all other options before attempting something that will wipe the data... is it possible to determine the exact problem some other way?
Nope. If it were me I'd be doing a wipe (and this wouldn't faze me because I back my stuff up regularly).
toast_tcg said:
That's correct, the phone isn't rooted. I'd like to exhaust all other options before attempting something that will wipe the data... is it possible to determine the exact problem some other way?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Looks difficult to save the data. But you may try, i am not sure it will work.
find out a compatible rooted kernel. Get into the download mode and with the help of odin flash this kernel. (ensure its *.tar file ).
Once done try to boot the phone. if no luck, clear the cache and then again try. Still no luck, then i am afraid you have to hard reset.
Best of luck.

[Q] Samsung S4 I9502 root / flash failed - NEED HELP

Hey Guys,
I tried to root my Samsung S4 GT-I9502 (OS Android 4.3), for that I found this website:
http://marrkdaviid.com/2013/08/fix-caller-id-install-google-play-on-the-galaxy-s4-i9502/
But it failed (more information below) and I had the following error message and no wifi.
I am able to put the device into download mode, though I keep getting this error message when I try flashing the device in Odin.
(here someone with a similar problem: http://androidforums.com/international-galaxy-s4-all-things-root/768632-sos-cannot-open-gt-i9502-after-failed-boot.html)
"Complete(Write) operation failed."
When attempting to flash the device, it quickly goes through boot.img, recovery.img and system.img (when it should take longer for each step, and you should see the little green progress bar move), before failing. Does this mean that Odin is having issues writing to the device?
I live in China and I just bought the phone, I needed 5 days to download the necessary files, because most download pages are blocked in China. So I am loosing my last nerve right now.
I am pretty confident that I have the correct Samsung drivers installed. I don’t have Samsung Kies installed. I have even tried using a different computer (Laptops), and two different ROMs.
I have tried flashing the below ROMs:
I9502ZNUCMG2_I9502CHUCMG2_I9502ZNUCMG2_HOME.tar.md5
I9502ZNUEMK3_I9502CHUEMK3_I9502ZNUEMK3_SVA.tar.md5
Someone with a the same problem tried the 'Firmware upgrade and initialization' option in Samsung Kies, but it didn’t work, so I didn’t try. (Here the link: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2382979)
Instead I tried a recovery. I used Odin 3.07 and the following file:
i9502-cwm-recovery.tar.md5
I got my phone back to work for a while, I reset the phone, just in case. But know I can’t switch the Wifi on and the phone wants to Reboot.
So I allowed the phone to Reboot, I clicked on “reboot system now” and then on “Yes – (I forgot what was written behind the Yes, but I didn’t just click on the normal Yes, I clicked on the Yes - …)
The problem here: The Phone changed to a China Unicom Screen and stayed like that. After 5 h I took the battery out, but I couldn’t restart the phone.
So I did an cwm recovery and know I am afraid to reboot. The Wifi is not working and I can’t find any information about how to fix it.
So please help me. Do I reboot? Can I already install SVA ROM, although I couldn’t flash the Stock Firmware? Do I send the phone back and give up?
Please let me know if you need any other information to be able to help me.
PS: This is the first time that I flash a smart phone. And although I already spent several days now, searching the internet for how-to-dos, tips & tricks, guidelines, Q&As and god knows what, I still do not fully understand what exactly I am doing here. Hence, I would be very happy to receive somewhat easy understandable answers.
Thank you so much for your help!
Anna

Backup/Recover app data with download mode?

My phone was working fine on Thursday morning. Around noon I went to check my phone and it was off. I turned it on and it gets stuck at the initial Samsung boot screen. With the research and testing I have done so far the current state of the phone is...
- Any attempt at normal boot results in getting stuck at the initial Samsung boot screen.
- I am NOT able to enter recovery mode by any method I've tried so far.
- I AM able to enter download mode by holding volume down or both volume buttons while inserting the USB cable.
- The phone DOES charge via USB.
- Connecting to the computer gives a "USB Device Not Recognized" error.
- I have tried cleaning the USB port with alcohol pads as best I can and it had no effect.
- ADB does NOT see the devices (and I know ADB/Drivers/USB Debugging/etc is configured correctly because I develop with this device)
- The phone is NOT rooted nor have I changed ANYTHING within the past few weeks.
- The device IS carrier unlocked (not that this should matter at all).
- The phone does have Google Voice with Groove IP Lite installed (and I remember news that the GV API would change around this time, maybe it broke something?)
- ODIN 3 v1.85 can SOMETIMES see the phone at 0:[COM3] (I'm still trying to figure this out. I THINK it only works if I put battery in, boot to download mode by inserting USB, then after it boots to download I remove and re-insert USB to re-connect the device on the computer, but I'm not certain yet)
I was going to replace the device next month anyways so I don't really care about the device itself. What I am trying to figure out is whether there is any way to recover certain data such as memo notes or game/app data from the device? If I tried to install a new rom via ODIN will that wipe out my app data and notes and stuff or would the data persist like it would for a carrier-pushed update? Can I somehow pull this data off the device from within download mode before I try to flash the device? Am I going in the wrong direction and should be trying something entirely different to begin with? What do you guys suggest? Thanks.
I was waiting to see if anyone else would pitch in with useful information about recovering your data. However, since no one has, I can say that I am pretty sure that you will not be able to recover anything currently in any of the system partitions. (System, kernel, data, preload, etc.) Once you recover your phone, you will still almost certainly have the information that was on your internal sdcard (USB Memory.)
Using Odin3, you should open Odin on the desktop of your pc first, then use the method that works for you to get into download mode, and Odin should recognize your phone.
I understand that you are not too concerned about the device. I would point out that a working I777 that is in good working condition with a clean esn is worth probably $100.00 to $125.00 on Swappa. It would be in your best interest to recover the phone. (Or if that's too much trouble, you can always send it to me, lol.)
Since the phone can enter download mode and be recognized by the computer, it is almost certainly recoverable. The only possible reason that it would not be recoverable is if the problem is due to damaged emmc memory in some part of the system partitions. When you flash the stock firmware, or any firmware, you will lose any possible access to the data partition. You will most likely be required to enter recovery after the flash to perform a wipe data/factory reset before the phone will boot into the system. The data will not persist as it would for an over the air or kies update. But again, as I said in the other thread, you may retain the game data if it is saved to the sdcard. Memo notes are definitely stored in the data partition, so those are lost.
The only thing you can do within download mode is flash firmware, nothing else is possible. I don't know of any other direction you could be going than what we have discussed so far.
As I said before, someone with good developer skills and understanding may be able to help, but as far as I know, no one with that level of skill hangs out in this forum, or has any interest in the I777 any more.
creepyncrawly said:
I was waiting to see if anyone else would pitch in with useful information about recovering your data. However, since no one has, I can say that I am pretty sure that you will not be able to recover anything currently in any of the system partitions. (System, kernel, data, preload, etc.) Once you recover your phone, you will still almost certainly have the information that was on your internal sdcard (USB Memory.)
Using Odin3, you should open Odin on the desktop of your pc first, then use the method that works for you to get into download mode, and Odin should recognize your phone.
I understand that you are not too concerned about the device. I would point out that a working I777 that is in good working condition with a clean esn is worth probably $100.00 to $125.00 on Swappa. It would be in your best interest to recover the phone. (Or if that's too much trouble, you can always send it to me, lol.)
Since the phone can enter download mode and be recognized by the computer, it is almost certainly recoverable. The only possible reason that it would not be recoverable is if the problem is due to damaged emmc memory in some part of the system partitions. When you flash the stock firmware, or any firmware, you will lose any possible access to the data partition. You will most likely be required to enter recovery after the flash to perform a wipe data/factory reset before the phone will boot into the system. The data will not persist as it would for an over the air or kies update. But again, as I said in the other thread, you may retain the game data if it is saved to the sdcard. Memo notes are definitely stored in the data partition, so those are lost.
The only thing you can do within download mode is flash firmware, nothing else is possible. I don't know of any other direction you could be going than what we have discussed so far.
As I said before, someone with good developer skills and understanding may be able to help, but as far as I know, no one with that level of skill hangs out in this forum, or has any interest in the I777 any more.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah. It was worth a shot but I think I am out of luck on this.
I tried using Odin 3 v1.85 and also Odin 3 v3.09 from 2 separate computers with several cables in order to flash the PDA/AP from 'I777UCMD8_I777ATTMD8_I777UCMD8_HOME.tar.md5' but without any luck. After 10-20 minutes Odin says 'fail' and there is never any change on the phone screen at any point in the process. I also tried the 'I777UCKH7 OCD No BL.exe' one-click link from your signature links with a similar result. The program starts with factoryfs.img but the progress bar never moves and after 10-20 minutes it fails. The phone never shows any change at any point in the entire process.
I might be doing something wrong (perhaps with Odin I MUST flash the bootloader/phone/csc as well?) but it's looking more and more like the phone has a memory issue or something like that. Do you have any other suggestions? I'm willing to try anything at this point just to get the phone running for a few weeks while I decide on the next phone (hmmmm, Nexus 5, OnePlusOne, G3 or...)
Regardless of all that, thanks for all your help so far!
Both of those packages are complete in themselves. On the UCMD8 you only need the one tar in the PDA slot.
To discover if there is nand read/write corruption try this:
Instructions to clear nand read/write corruption. Instructions are specific. Do in order, and don't skip.
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.
For the record, no one writes those kinds of instructions as well as you do - both you and 4-2ndtwin have been great examples of how to help people for many years.
Thank you both for showing the rest of us how to convey help in an eloquent manner.
I tried your instructions with both v1.85 and v3.09 and although there was a brief glimmer of hope it looks like my device really is locked up beyond any further use. Odin shows the 'KERNEL' flash and the progress bar fills up in a second or two but then it goes to '<ID:0/003> NAND Write Start!!
' and like every other attempt it either hangs here indefinitely or fails after 10-20 minutes.
The only other things I can think of is to do a repartitioning or to physically disassembly the phone to look for any trouble spots (maybe a little dust or corrosion is shorting something) but of course being realistic there is virtually no chance of these having an effect.
I don't frequent the boards enough to know the standards here but I can say thank you for all the help you have provided. It's more than anyone can ask for such an old (but still good!) device.
Maybe it will take a jtag repair to get it going again, or perhaps there is actual eMMC damage, which can also be repaired. Whatever the problem is, a good option at this point would be the folks at Mobile Tech Videos repair shop. They have an excellent reputation here in the forum, and can do all sorts of repair.

Verizon Note 2 MDM lockout...

So i'm helping a buddy out that was having an issue with several Note 2's that were purchased from a company that restricted their employees access to a lot of things on the phone. My friend handed a couple off to me. The first one was not passcode locked and it was a breeze (Basically just enabled USB Debugging). It is up and running. The other ones are passcode locked and when you try to go into wipe the data/factory reset from recovery it says "MDM does not allow factory reset". The Note 2 I'm having issues with in particular has a locked bootloader on KitKat 4.4.2 through Verizon.
I've spent almost literally every waking moment trying to find a way around this issue. I may have compounded it though. I discovered ODIN, flashed the stock firmware in the hopes that it would clear the phone. It did not (password was still in place). I then decided to flash the stock firmware with the .Pit file for an SCH-I605 and made sure re-partition was checked as well as erase nand. After the process completed successfully and the phone rebooted it will no longer boot beyond the Verizon screen. I still have access to recovery and download mode but in recovery its throwing out a bunch of command lines such as E:failed to mount /data etc. I've tried to reflash the stock firmware with and without the .pit file to no avail.
In the mean time I've tried to unlock the bootloader, attempted auto root, and install custom recoveries to see if I could some how get around the MDM issue. I've also attempted to install or flash from ADB and its still the same deal.
Anyway I'm tired, kind of exhausted, and not really sure what avenues I have left. That's where I'm hoping some of you guys come in. If you have any questions for me let me know and I'll try to shed some more light on it for you. Data DOES NOT matter to me so if you can think of anyway I can get this thing completely wiped out it so I can start from scratch it would be greatly appreciated, Thanks.
Is it just one phone with this problem or several? The mounting issues are becoming more common around here, and seem to be internal memory failure.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/note-2-verizon/help/stuck-boot-file-exists-t3286946
Droid_Nut said:
Is it just one phone with this problem or several? The mounting issues are becoming more common around here, and seem to be internal memory failure.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/note-2-verizon/help/stuck-boot-file-exists-t3286946
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well tonight I'll be getting my hands on a couple other test SCH-i605 phones that are in the same situation (Password locked and no ability to wipe from recovery) and I'll put them through the paces to see if I wind up with the same issue and get back with you on it.
The basic issue with this phone is just after trying that repartition with the pit file it doesn't want to boot beyond the verizon logo anymore and thats when it started throwing those errors in recovery. It could be a coincidence I guess.
I've been messing with Heimdall today to see if I could get a custom recovery flashed that way but the phone fails protocol initialization. The only thing I can get to flash to this phone is 4.4.2 and the i605 pit file through ODIN. Nothing else will budge.
I guess the question I really need answered, is there another way to wipe data/factory reset without the option in the stock Samsung recovery and no access beyond the lock screen?
What I have to work with is ODIN mode and whatever is in recovery that is not wipe data/factory reset.
So I did get my hands on a couple other phones with passcode locks that have the MDM lockout within the stock recovery that still fails to flash anything in Odin except the stock 4.4.2 firmware. So I can eliminate the idea its hardware. I have 4 phones here 3 of which have the same issue and the 4th I was lucky enough to not have a passcode. Quick fix to get MDM removed that way.
Again any ideas that are slightly more outside the box would be appreciated. Thanks.
Edit: If this helps the phone that is working that I manage to clean all of that stuff off of also throws the same error in ODIN with or without USB debugging so it leads me to believe there is something I'm actually missing... Time to go read more.
Well, sound like it is more than coincidence. Maybe you should contact Samsung and see if they can help?
Yeah I might do that. I'd just hope they have a one size fits all solution because I have about 600 to 1000 phones to tackle... Hahaha.
The conundrum here is that for the MDM company to release the lock on the phone I have to be able to get beyond the lock screen for the phone to process the request. To get beyond the lock screen I need the psswords that the previous company allowed their employees to put on the phones that for some odd reason they didn't have remove.
Anyway if I get this figured out i'll let you guys know how I got it. Thanks for the suggestion.
((deleted))

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