System Image Partition - Moto Z Questions & Answers

Hi,
I've found an additional partition while taking nandroid backup in TWRP. It's called "System Image" and is about 5GB.
I didn't find anything useful on google, but this post here seems to be related https://forum.xda-developers.com/moto-z-play/help/4gb-firmware-partition-twrp-t3520886 .
I guess it's a factory / stock rom backup ?
Is it useful for anything / can it be booted somehow from recovery ?
If not (and because I'm quite sure, I wont return to stock): Is it possible, to reclaim/repartition that space for data ?

Related

[Q] Nand Data Partition Restore

If I install an newer version of a rom, one that has had some changes to the data partition such as adds and deletes, does then restoring my most recent nand data partition over it wipe the new changes or simply combine the two? IOW, will a nand data restore keep my old data PLUS the new data from the new rom or is the new data changes simply over written by the restore?
I have been doing this for some time but now I'm faced with an updated rom with data partition changes that I would like to keep and I'm afraid that running a nand data restore will overwrite all the new rom data additions
Thanks for your assistance. A search for this subject turned up a few hits but none of them answered this question in particular.
alexv59 said:
If I install an newer version of a rom, one that has had some changes to the data partition such as adds and deletes, does then restoring my most recent nand data partition over it wipe the new changes or simply combine the two? IOW, will a nand data restore keep my old data PLUS the new data from the new rom or is the new data changes simply over written by the restore?
I have been doing this for some time but now I'm faced with an updated rom with data partition changes that I would like to keep and I'm afraid that running a nand data restore will overwrite all the new rom data additions
Thanks for your assistance. A search for this subject turned up a few hits but none of them answered this question in particular.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This all depends on how the custom recovery handles the data partition restore function. Most custom recoveries, CWM and TWRP are using images of the data partition as opposed to a .tar. The image of the data partition will overwrite anything previously on the partition as the process essentially copies back the full partition image made previously.
If a .tar file was being used, the .tar file could be laid on top of whatever was previously in the partition, but I don't think these are being used.
Double checked and TWRP latest open source code version is using images of the data partition opposed to .tar files. This means restoring the data partition will very likely overwrite any previously held information on the /data partition.
https://github.com/TeamWin/Team-Win-Recovery-Project/blob/master/backstore.c#L256
The best way to know for sure, make a backup and then experiment! No better answer than personal experience!
Hope that helps!
Thanks, Joey!

[Q] onandroid TWRP backups messed up

I've been using onandroid to make CWM backups of my device for a while now.
It does work really well and I want to take the time to congratulate onandroid developer, congratulations Ameer!
Anyway, I recently got a TWRP image that supports my device and was very pleased with it as it has neat features compared to CWM (which is still awesome and flawless). So, I flashed TWRP recovery image and the next thing I did was create a typical TWRP backup with onandroid (v9.51).
Now, the thing is that I cannot properly restore the backup from TWRP. The system/kernel/recovery images seem to be recovered correctly because the system boots fine after a complete wipe, but the data is just not there. Instead I'm greeted with the typical brand new Android OS language selection, bla, bla. Everything is missing.
In an attempt to understand why I also backed-up my tablet's system and data partitions with TWRP (from recovery), this is what I ended up with both method:
TWRP
=====
system.ext4.win (508 MB)
data.ext4.win000 (1.47 GB)
data.ext4.win001 (805 MB)
Onandroid v9.51
=============
system.ext4.win (507 MB)
data.ext4.win000 (1.02 GB)
data.ext4.win001 (1.16 GB)
data.ext4.win002 (30.0 MB)
TWRPs backed-up data partition is correctly restored while onandroid isn't. Also, the contents of those archives are totally different. TWRP creates a data.ext4.winXXX structure with AndroidManifest.xml, resources.arsc file, res and META-INF folder, etc... while onandroid structure is the raw folder/file structure from the partition. I also need to mention that onandroid doesn't log any error during the process which takes around 10 minutes.
Is this normal? Am I doing something wrong?
I also tried using onandroid through Online Android Backup and I had the exact same result/problem.
PS: FYI my data partition is >2GB
Thanks for the help.
I am having the same problem. Restoring from onandroid backup restores everything but the data for me. I have tried multiple different ways to restore the data but no luck.
Teleshot said:
I am having the same problem. Restoring from onandroid backup restores everything but the data for me. I have tried multiple different ways to restore the data but no luck.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry about this but... FINALLY!
I thought nobody else had this damn problem.
I concluded onandroid is the problem because the backups do not follow the norm in comparison to the ones made by TWRP recovery.
I'm not sure if TWRP backups were officially made differently in previous versions. This is the single thing keeping me from using TWRP as a whole.
I even posted this issue on onandroid Github but so far I had no reply from the developer. Fortunately I have a choice between TWRP and CWM, unfortunately not everyone has both compatible custom recovery roms.
I have the same problem with a CWM based recovery. Everything is restoring fine but when It comes to the data it stops with an error
DirkStorck said:
I have the same problem with a CWM based recovery. Everything is restoring fine but when It comes to the data it stops with an error
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is a very different issue and I don't get errors restoring TWRP backups, it just doesn't restore the data.
Anyway, what error(s) do you get while restoring your CWM backup?
Is your data partition over 2GB?
What CWM backup method do you use (default, split, incremental)?
What is your CWM rom version?

[Solved] Qtions about backup / restore nandroid feature on twrp recovery mass deploy

Hi guys,
I've got 60 phones to setup, and that's just the biginning. I looked for some solutions to mass deploy them, the fastest way possible. I of course already know titanium backup and applications like that, but i would prefer not to root phone...
I was pretty confident about a nandroid backup : flashing the recovery of the phone is really quick, and i would just have to backup on card or on usb on the go on the master phone, and to restore the backup on all the phone remaining. But it didn't worked as expected, it happens that on each phone, twrp is generating backup in a folder named something like "420khg66g6cca200" and which is different on each phone, and when you put the card in another phone, this one doesn't see the main backup.
I of course tried to sneak arround and generate a backup on the second phone, which i replaced with the content of the first one, but the phone doesn't even boot anymore.
I used twrp because i dind't find another recovery avaiable for the phone, which is by the way a samsung Xcover 3 also known as SM-G388F.
I tried to backup only system, system image, and data and to restore it and the phones is stuck on boot screens.
I tried to backup again with boot partition, same thing happen'd. There's something i don't understand tho, there's some warning about /system partition which can't be mounted when i look around on the recovery of the slave phone.
I'm on stock rom, no root. I looked for similar post (really), but there's mostly guys which make backup / restore on the same phone, and i didn't find my answer.
My questions are : is there someone's who did this before ? Why the phone doesn't boot anymore ? Is there something that's making the backup unrecoverable on another phone ?
In this case, is there anyway to bypass that ?
Thank you by advance.
So...
We've done more tests, and when we only select the data partition, it does what we want.
So what I've done to deploy 50 phone :
- Prepared my "master" phone with all my apps and parameters
- Gone in TWRP to backup, saved the folder inside TWRP/BACKUPS/cde0654364576****/ (the generated folder), so saved the folder inside UNTOUCHED on my computer (for unknow reason, if i use it once to restore a phone, i can't use it again on another phone, so keep a copy somewhere)
- Boot to twrp on the slave phone, generate a backup to also generate the name folder
- Boot on system phone, delete what's inside the folder, and copy / past the previously generated backup from the master phone
- Boot again in twrp end restore. Reboot and that's done, you're slave phone should be the same as the master.
If someone find this thread, don't hesitate to ask more details.

How to backup phone without recovery installed?

Hi,
is it possible to backup a rooted android phone without recovery?
Backup must cover system apps, settings and maybe even all partitions - as much as possible
Thanks
As far as i know all "backup apps" cover only user apps and maybe system app settings, but i havent found any which includes all system apps itself too! Is there something which covers that too? Or asked with different words, is there a app (with root privilege) which can back up entire system partition?
Yes, with this app: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.h3r3t1c.onnandbup&hl=en_GB Online Nandroid Backup you can make a CWM or TWRP backup of everything on your phone, this works and have used it myself to make a backup when there was no custom recovery for my phone.
THIS app: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.h3r3t1c.bkrestore&hl=en_GB Nandroid Manager says it can restore the backup you have made, but have never used it so cant confirm.
The first app saved everything from a stock rom so I could get all the files I needed to port a new rom, and all my data and apps so I know that works fine.

How to do a NAND Stock backup??

Hi! I have a Leeco Le Max 2 X829, and as there arenĀ“t any official stock ROM I wanna save a 100% stock Backup of my X829 with 16S USA ROM. I mean ROM + Recovery, just as it is unpacked(without downloaded Apps and my data).
Could I make it booting in temporaly TWRP with fastboot and doing NAND backup choosing:
- Boot
- Recovery
- System
- Data...
Any other option? All options that TWRP show? thanks!
Yes. EFS too
Turn on phone with power+volume keys.
Fastboot boot TWRP.img
unrafa said:
Yes. EFS too
Turn on phone with power+volume keys.
Fastboot boot TWRP.img
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Then must I choose all options in TWRP backup?
One more thing... I Will be in a booted Recovery, so original Recovery is going to be still, then the one saved in the backup Will be the booted one ore the stock one? Thanks!
If you just want a factory setup without your apps and data I would say just backup the system image in twrp, backing up data definitely uncheck .
Only system is bit to less...
I would keep the us version.
eUI is not that bad and until we all get the update to android 7 ... it s probably the best and most stable rom running.
Why change it, when the other opportunities are leading to an less smooth running phone ?
To me all the cooked roms have disadvantages.
I need to have a fully working phone/ camera /fingerprint sensor...
without option to go back to the US rom I wouldn't change a thing!
castuis said:
If you just want a factory setup without your apps and data I would say just backup the system image in twrp, backing up data definitely uncheck .
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Mmm, then all options least Data? Thanks!
Don't listen to them. Back up everything. Who cares about a few space? Besides data is probably empty or with a few stock tools. Just backup all for your complete image. EFS contains IMEI and other stuff. It is important to have it. You can Back up everything, and then move it to a computer or somewhere else
It will have stock recovery backed up to TWRP and it's better if you backup as image, that way it saves the partition structures too.
Only first backup as image,to have perfect copy, the next backups you do is better do them as normal backups compressed (not image).
unrafa said:
Don't listen to them. Back up everything. Who cares about a few space? Besides data is probably empty or with a few stock tools. Just backup all for your complete image. EFS contains IMEI and other stuff. It is important to have it. You can Back up everything, and then move it to a computer or somewhere else
It will have stock recovery backed up to TWRP and it's better if you backup as image, that way it saves the partition structures too.
Only first backup as image,to have perfect copy, the next backups you do is better do them as normal backups compressed (not image).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi, I have done and it made a lot of .win archives, is that right? thanks
Yes those are md5 or Sha sums, drag the whole TWRP folder to computer and you are good to go, don't change any name of any folder inside TWRP folder or TWRP will never detect that backup.
I don't know why but once I copied all except 73shf38 folder, and it turned out that folder with those numbers matter, and I couldn't restore without the exact name

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