PLEASE MAKE SURE YOUR HAVE FASTBOOT AND RECOVERY FULL UNLOCKED BEFORE USE!!!!
so recently i have had my GT540 stolen, so i though next time ill SEMI-brick my phone over the air. i am currently developing an app that will;
1. listence for a text
E.g. "Brick Me PASSWORD IMEI"
PASSWORD would be your preset password
IMEI would be your IMEI number
2. upon receving this text it will;
extract the "erase_image" binary and erase your boot partition, then run "reboot -p" which will turn off your phone.
this meen that the phone wont be able to boot up the android OS, but it WILL be able to boot into recovery mode and fastboot mode.
So, this mean that a nandroid back up is required before testing. could anybody help me out with testing this app(i would but i wont have a new phone for a wile yet, awating the Nexus 3 release ). Also an emulator doesnt have busybox installed, and wont install.
Download
wowowowowowwowowow nice idea!!!you planning to make this a paid app on the market ????? well i want to help but im too busy studying for my end of year exams so maybe next time.....
thinking about it, but need to make sure it works first.
So, basically.. the software would screw up your phone, leaving it in a state where it's pretty easy to repair, and all your personal information would stay intact.. and just re-flashing a good boot.img would make your phone fully accessible again. Sorry, not a good idea, because any sensitive information you have on your phone would still be accessible(in the right hands anyway). The software's definitely not going to help you get your phone back, so I figure there's no reason for the data on it to stay intact. If you can figure out a way to wipe it AND screw it up, that would be more useful(sdcard too!). Also, having to rely on sending an SMS to yourself is also a bit useless, because no one in their right mind will leave the phone on, and with the SIM card in, so I'm thinking you should rather make the client(phone-side) application await commands not only from messages, but also from the internet(Of couse, I imagine that would require an online service, where the client stays logged in in order to keep an updated IP, and also that would mean more traffic on the monthly bill, but it's a small price to pay).
Just my thoughts on this.. the overall idea is great, but you should at least consider a different method of activation(rather than SMS). Good luck.
P.S. Actually.. when i think about it. You could also pair the client with the current SIM card, so when and IF that's replaced, and the phone is turned on, it sends a message to some other predefined number with the new card's number, and you could operate with that. There was a software for Symbian UIQ(and probably not only) that did exactly this.
Good ideas, will work on erasing all data, and damaging the sdcard. not shore on how well it would work though because my app would be in the data partition.
update: ok, so i managed to wipe the sdcard and data partition, any idea on deleting all the partition with busybox?
ill wait till i get a new phone to test it. thanks ofr your suggestion nutterbg
theres an app out there atm called Seekdroid, it can track your phone to within 30metres, lock it , wipe sd , wide anything as a matter of fact and u can cancel everything the user wants to do. Check it out , all u do is log onto a website to find it
lukemovement1 said:
Good ideas, will work on erasing all data, and damaging the sdcard. not shore on how well it would work though because my app would be in the data partition.
update: ok, so i managed to wipe the sdcard and data partition, any idea on deleting all the partition with busybox?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry, not a developer, so I've no idea. I do good as a common-sense-endowed-person though. I doubt it's possible to damage the sd card.. irreperably anyway, and I'm guessing you wouldn't want that(how does one test that?), but yeah, wiping it is more than enough.
ChriisM said:
theres an app out there atm called Seekdroid, it can track your phone to within 30metres, lock it , wipe sd , wide anything as a matter of fact and u can cancel everything the user wants to do. Check it out , all u do is log onto a website to find it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Or androidlost app FREE!
http://www.androidlost.com
lukemovement1 said:
Good ideas, will work on erasing all data, and damaging the sdcard. not shore on how well it would work though because my app would be in the data partition.
update: ok, so i managed to wipe the sdcard and data partition, any idea on deleting all the partition with busybox?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you could make the app that has a update.zip in it and use recoverys extended commands to reboot into recovery and auto flash the zip that has a .sh and the flash_erase file in it to erase the system/data/boot partitions just an idea
bs828 said:
wowowowowowwowowow nice idea!!!you planning to make this a paid app on the market ????? well i want to help but im too busy studying for my end of year exams so maybe next time.....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmm. Nice idea. But, it is kind of risky if implemented correctly.
You can modify erase_image to remove recovery, data and cache partitions. This way it will do a remote wipe as well.I believe it would be possible to mess up the boot loader as well rendering the phone completely useless.
nibras_reeza said:
Hmm. Nice idea. But, it is kind of risky if implemented correctly.
You can modify erase_image to remove recovery, data and cache partitions. This way it will do a remote wipe as well.I believe it would be possible to mess up the boot loader as well rendering the phone completely useless.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hm, you got me thinking.. Does a phone with a messed up bootloader(obviously no fastboot, no regular boot, no recovery) still boot into Download Mode(no battery)? I wonder if the bootloader's responsible for that too... otherwise you could render the phone not only completely useless, but irreparable, and I'm not sure we want that... Or how we can test that without losing a phone.
nutterbg said:
Hm, you got me thinking.. Does a phone with a messed up bootloader(obviously no fastboot, no regular boot, no recovery) still boot into Download Mode(no battery)? I wonder if the bootloader's responsible for that too... otherwise you could render the phone not only completely useless, but irreparable, and I'm not sure we want that... Or how we can test that without losing a phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Depends on how much you damage the boot loader. If you fully wipe it, the phone would become useless. The only way to fix it would be writing directly to the motherboard in super-dev mode using special equipment. I don't know if this is supported by LG Optimus though.
Nonetheless, after reading this, I got a cooler idea. Why shouldn't we write a trojan and inject it to a system core apk? Perhaps to the browser or location service?
This way we could find the location of the phone even after a factory reset provided the system apks were not replaced. ie, when the thief finally sells it and someone else uses it, we would be able to track it and get it back. Also, we can have a feature to wipe user data and a complete destruction mode where we damage the phone beyond repair.
Related
When booting the Nexus One I get an Android with an explanation point, then I am able to toggle the volume key and power to get into "Android system recovery <2e>" screen which gives me the options
-reboot system now
-apply sdcard:update.zip
-wipe data/factory reset
-wipe cache partition
when it's in this screen I can NOT access it through fastboot or adb.
It looks like it is only allowing me to push "officially" signed update.zip files to it and nothing else.
I cannot get it in to hboot or anything else it ONLY boots into "Android system recovery <2e>"
Maybe someone has an official update.zip boot image they can send me to or some other idea it would be much appreciated since I cannot use the phone at all.
Thank you in advanced, Please help!!!
Did you try holding trackball and power button when the phone is turned off to bring you directly to fastboot?
irishrally said:
Did you try holding trackball and power button when the phone is turned off to bring you directly to fastboot?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, with no luck, it just goes straight to the Android and explanation point
Are you rooted? Unlocked bootloader? What did you do to get you into this situation?
Not to worry you, but usually not being able to boot into fastboot is not a good thing.
hyperandy said:
Maybe someone has an official update.zip boot image they can send me to or some other idea it would be much appreciated since I cannot use the phone at all.
Thank you in advanced, Please help!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Heres a thread that contains the official 2.1 update1 zip.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=627823
Maybe the volume key or trackball is stuck/damaged?
irishrally said:
Are you rooted? Unlocked bootloader? What did you do to get you into this situation?
Not to worry you, but usually not being able to boot into fastboot is not a good thing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ya at this point I was kinda figuring that but I am hopeful ...I unlocked the boot loader and everything was going great until I partitioned the sd in the recovery image, then I started getting a weird MISC error and couldn't boot up at all, only in recovery but fastboot and everything still worked. Then I saw a post about applying the original image to the device via fastboot, preformed that and ever since then I have had a $500 brink that lights up
I don't think you can brick the N1 by just flashing a ROM, usually this only happens when changing the radio or spl.
I would try taking out your sd card, copy all your files you your computer, format your sd card, copy your files back to your sd card and see what that does for you. Maybe some issue arose when you partitioned your sd card, although you said fastboot still worked until you flashed the ROM. Worth a shot though.
If you can access fastboot then, I would flash Amon Ra's custom recovery image via fastboot and take it from there.
well I actually tried a completely different sdcard and then none at all. No luck. If it's not letting me into hboot do you think it may have gotten corrupted or something
hyperandy said:
well I actually tried a completely different sdcard and then none at all. No luck. If it's not letting me into hboot do you think it may have gotten corrupted or something
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Honetly, I don't know. Did you try copying the .zip in the link posted above to your sdcard and then applying that zip in recovery?
Hopefully someone that knows more than me will chime in and have some better ideas.
irishrally said:
Honetly, I don't know. Did you try copying the .zip in the link posted above to your sdcard and then applying that zip in recovery?
Hopefully someone that knows more than me will chime in and have some better ideas.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
maybe it's because I just woke up but I am not clear what you are asking, can you rephrase that? The link above my SD card?
hyperandy said:
maybe it's because I just woke up but I am not clear what you are asking, can you rephrase that? The link above my SD card?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you try copying the .zip file in the link below to your sd card and trying to flash it in recovery?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=627823
Thank you, ya I didn't see the link the first time. duh. Yep I tried that and I get a build.prop error (although this update says installing for a second and i see a progress bar, I have tried that same file from a few download locations to make sure it wasn't a bad download too):
file_getprop: Failed to stat "/system/build.prop": No such file or directory
E:Error in /sdcard/update.zip
(status 7)
Installation aborted
Thank you for all your help!! but I am afraid this isn't looking to good.
I also tried creating that file just to see but since it wasn't officially signed it gave me an error about that
I think at this point it is looking for a specific signed update.zip file, where I find that, I have no idea.
It almost seems like I need the whole update.zip officially signed by google and/or HTC and then it would flash. I highly doubt they are going to hand that over. I am half temped to see if I could send it in to them to be reflashed even for a fee if it means I can get this thing working again, but I don't even know if they would offer that. It's only 2 months old and I think the file I need maybe out there but damned if I have been able to find it anywhere.
hyperandy said:
I think at this point it is looking for a specific signed update.zip file, where I find that, I have no idea.
It almost seems like I need the whole update.zip officially signed by google and/or HTC and then it would flash. I highly doubt they are going to hand that over. I am half temped to see if I could send it in to them to be reflashed even for a fee if it means I can get this thing working again, but I don't even know if they would offer that. It's only 2 months old and I think the file I need maybe out there but damned if I have been able to find it anywhere.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I wouldn't give up yet. I'm sure there is someone out there that can tell you you are completely hosed, or help you fix the problem.
If you can't fix it, I have heard it will cost $196 for a new motherboard if you send it in to HTC. They could just reflash your phone but I heard they handle a case like this by charging you for a motherboard swap. Second hand information though.
irishrally said:
I wouldn't give up yet. I'm sure there is someone out there that can tell you you are completely hosed, or help you fix the problem.
If you can't fix it, I have heard it will cost $196 for a new motherboard if you send it in to HTC. They could just reflash your phone but I heard they handle a case like this by charging you for a motherboard swap. Second hand information though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I believe that, I work in the field service industry and I see stuff like that all the time. Although I would rather pay the 196 instead of 560+ again. I am almost 100% certain this could be re-flashed with the right file. but I have so far spent 2 full days trying different things, I think I will give it until tomorrow and then send it in (by then I should be good an sick of searching). Unfortunately, I am in love with my Nexus. it's been a while since I had a phone I really enjoyed as much. If I knew another great phone was coming out in a week I would probably say the heck with it and just buy the next one but this is still an awesome device.
hyperandy said:
I believe that, I work in the field service industry and I see stuff like that all the time. Although I would rather pay the 196 instead of 560+ again. I am almost 100% certain this could be re-flashed with the right file. but I have so far spent 2 full days trying different things, I think I will give it until tomorrow and then send it in (by then I should be good an sick of searching). Unfortunately, I am in love with my Nexus. it's been a while since I had a phone I really enjoyed as much. If I knew another great phone was coming out in a week I would probably say the heck with it and just buy the next one but this is still an awesome device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have you tried every option in all the other "HELP BRICK" posts?? I don't really have time to search (and my nexus is working fine) but I know there has been plenty of threads like this before. Multiple options where tried, some successfully and some not. I would not give up unless it won't power on at all. Does ADB logcat work during a boot? Fastboot Devices? anything??????
martin0285 said:
Have you tried every option in all the other "HELP BRICK" posts?? I don't really have time to search (and my nexus is working fine) but I know there has been plenty of threads like this before. Multiple options where tried, some successfully and some not. I would not give up unless it won't power on at all. Does ADB logcat work during a boot? Fastboot Devices? anything??????
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No haven't tried those checking the Help Brick post I will see what I can find. No adb and not fastboot devices, just says waiting for device if I try anything.
Since you have unlocked the bootloader have you tried a complete reload?
fastboot: flash boot, flash recovery
recovery: wipe everything, reset, install latest CM.
Did you ever figure this out?
My Droid 4 is bricked, but out seems to me that if I could get safestrap recovery in, I could boot any working "safe" ROM and leave my non-functioning "unsafe" system alone until the day a fastboot image becomes available.
The only wrinkle is that since the current OS is bricked, I can't load the Safestrap recovery via Apk. Is there any way to load it using one of the remaining capabilities in the phone (normal recovery, fastboot, etc.)?
I definitely don't have the full technical ability to answer your question, but to get the ball rolling:
Can you get adb up and running? If you can't, my guess is no... If you can, somebody who knows more than I do might be able to get you going...
Call Motorola or the wireless vendor where you got your phone and play dumb.
How did you brick your phone?
I bricked mine the first time by restoring a saved stock rom that I had made. Little did I know, but I got the webtop save mixed up, and totally soft-bricked my handset.
Safestrap is a good alternative to having nothing, but you should read everything there is to know about it before installing it. Conceptually, it doesn't share a whole lot with the original clockworkmod recovery.
RueTheDayTrebek said:
Call Motorola or the wireless vendor where you got your phone and play dumb.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've thought about it. (1) there's stuff on the internal "sdcard" (/sdcard, as distinct from the removable real SDC) I'd like to recover if I could, so restoring the phone I have right now is preferable, unless restoring from a fastboot recovery wipes /sdcard).. and (2) I hate the idea of "cheating" on a warranty for a self-inflicted product failure, both on the ethics of it and on the remote possibility I could get caught.
How did you brick your phone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had safely rooted the phone (Droid 4 Utility is awesome) and installed Titanium Backup Pro. I was playing around with freezing bloatware, deleting bloatware, and the like... the last thing I did before rebooting and never coming back was integrating system application dalvik cache into the ROM and then undoing that integration. But I can't be sure that was the killer, since I hadn't rebooted for a while before that... one of the other changes earlier could have been it.
Safestrap is a good alternative to having nothing, but you should read everything there is to know about it before installing it. Conceptually, it doesn't share a whole lot with the original clockworkmod recovery.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, I recognize it's a very different world because of the locked bootstrap, so I'd obviously have to adapt to the differences, but just the ability to get some use out of the phone before the fastboot recovery leaks would be a good start. My needs are not great. Something besides repeated reboots ("Droid..." every 10 seconds until the battery runs flat) would make me happier than a pig in slop.
podspi said:
I definitely don't have the full technical ability to answer your question, but to get the ball rolling:
Can you get adb up and running? If you can't, my guess is no... If you can, somebody who knows more than I do might be able to get you going...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah. The times I've tried, the phone never boots to the point that the USB debugging driver on the PC ever sees the phone ("adb devices" lists nothing).
About the only interaction I can get to is to force the phone into fastboot and plugging in with the fastboot USB driver on the PC. RSD Lite does see the phone then. Too bad I don't have a fastboot recovery to use at that point.
Have an issue here, kinda
i was bored and (playing around) i was in Ti Back up and clicked " integrate system apps into rom"
while it was doing so i again "retarded me" hit back out and it stopped the process at about 40 ish % and i was worried. i rebooted it.
now it has power power cycled a few times, keeps telling me " google keyboard has stopped, Google services has stopped, Motorola modality has stopped , google + has stopped, and my google account linked to phone is there but unlinked. " and application requires install for google wallet- and com.google.android.gsf.login- assume that means i need to link the account per say.
wifi will connect just cant type to connect to it for password. at work so not on open one at home.
when i try to get on 4G it stays orange will not connect in any setting. global or LTE, i can receive and make calls and get text, cant use keyboard so cant connect to wifi cuz i cant type, cant get on play store no internet, and i did have 105 system apps now i have 103, missing two, causing some issues,'
things i tried
locate the files or apps- no go - did locate corpses in SDMaid= lib_google.android.gms- appdata three of those - com.google.android.gms-1 applib-2mb size
tried to re install system apps- not fix
tried to disable xposed mod(s) and reboot various times- no go
very confusing and frustrating
I dont want to re flash image unless i have to ( dont want to loose music pics vids and what not) can back it all up but not able to at the moment
Is there any solution now, or next 15 hrs while im at work.
thanks:crying:
Sounds like a mess.... And unless someone has a better suggestion, I'm afraid I'm going with the reflash firmware answer. Lol
Now, If the files for your carrier and android version are available, you should be able to flash just the sysyem.img ... Hopefully. You wouldn't lose apps or your pics and stuff. If that doesn't work out, you could flash everything, but don't erase or overwrite "userdata". You will lose apps, but not your pics and whatnot.
If all that fails, you can use RSDLite, but you'll lose everything.
You can't connect to your pc and transfer over your pics and whatnot?
All this depends on if your firmware is available to flash . As you can't downgrade.
See the complete moto x guide in general section and read the Returning to Stock section. ?
hmmm
KJ said:
Sounds like a mess.... And unless someone has a better suggestion, I'm afraid I'm going with the reflash firmware answer. Lol
Now, If the files for your carrier and android version are available, you should be able to flash just the sysyem.img ... Hopefully. You wouldn't lose apps or your pics and stuff. If that doesn't work out, you could flash everything, but don't erase or overwrite "userdata". You will lose apps, but not your pics and whatnot.
If all that fails, you can use RSDLite, but you'll lose everything.
You can't connect to your pc and transfer over your pics and whatnot?
All this depends on if your firmware is available to flash . As you can't downgrade.
See the complete moto x guide in general section and read the Returning to Stock section. ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
so can i just mfastboot the stock image if i have a 4.4.4 one (fxz) which i do...?
bradleynomus said:
so can i just mfastboot the stock image if i have a 4.4.4 one (fxz) which i do...?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yup. Try just flashing System image first. See if that does it.
... data...
KJ said:
Yup. Try just flashing System image first. See if that does it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
and that should not erase user data either right.. cuz here goes nothing
or something at least
bradleynomus said:
and that should not erase user data either right.. cuz here goes nothing
or something at least
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It only will write to the system partition.
Anything system related will be reset. Sounds and whatnot. Usually. ?
If that doesn't fix it tho, full wipes and reflashing may be needed.
????.... weelll
KJ said:
It only will write to the system partition.
Anything system related will be reset. Sounds and whatnot. Usually. ?
If that doesn't fix it tho, full wipes and reflashing may be needed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
well so far kinda good, all the forcecloses stopped and keyboard works, just can get my google account to link up yet, but thanks man ..phew was a little nervous if i wwas at home i woulda been good..come to find out i had the fxz file already on my phone as if in the past i knew i was going to jack it up in the future.. lol
Awesome!
If you have other issues tho, I'd backup to the pc and restore fully. ?
Hi all. I could use some help with this issue I've been having. Basically, about a week ago, I went on a trip to Colorado and at the same time had an issue with my data through VM. After talking to them, I had to change my service plan. Since then I haven't been able to maintain any kind of connection with VM; it reads no service a lot, even in places I've never had an issue (home, school, practically everywhere...). Before I deal with VMs customer service yet again, I wanted to see if there is any issues with my phone/rom/kernel and any updates to either I could use.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/desire-510/help/how-to-treat-sd-internal-storage-t3029186
I used this guide to root my phone and install all that stuff in order to use my sd card as my internal storage. So, could there be some issue with that wHich could cause me to not be able to get any service? Is there anything I could do on my side to determine if the problem is with my phone?
If the issue lies with VMs network, are there any updates to the kernel or roms with newer versions of Android that I could use and still use my sd card as my main storage? Side question: on any rooted device, could you do the ad card as main memory thing with the apps, Apparted and Link2sd?
Thanks anyone who can help me out.
Edit: I'm running Android 4.4.2
Kernel version
3.4.0-Missed-Kernel-v2.6.1
[email protected] #4
SMP PREEMPT
Build number
1.48.652.2 CL373881 release-keys
Umm, can think what else I should add. Thanks
Cypher5235 said:
Hi all. I could use some help with this issue I've been having. Basically, about a week ago, I went on a trip to Colorado and at the same time had an issue with my data through VM. After talking to them, I had to change my service plan. Since then I haven't been able to maintain any kind of connection with VM; it reads no service a lot, even in places I've never had an issue (home, school, practically everywhere...). Before I deal with VMs customer service yet again, I wanted to see if there is any issues with my phone/rom/kernel and any updates to either I could use.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/desire-510/help/how-to-treat-sd-internal-storage-t3029186
I used this guide to root my phone and install all that stuff in order to use my sd card as my internal storage. So, could there be some issue with that wHich could cause me to not be able to get any service? Is there anything I could do on my side to determine if the problem is with my phone?
If the issue lies with VMs network, are there any updates to the kernel or roms with newer versions of Android that I could use and still use my sd card as my main storage? Side question: on any rooted device, could you do the ad card as main memory thing with the apps, Apparted and Link2sd?
Thanks anyone who can help me out.
Edit: I'm running Android 4.4.2
Kernel version
3.4.0-Missed-Kernel-v2.6.1
[email protected] #4
SMP PREEMPT
Build number
1.48.652.2 CL373881 release-keys
Umm, can think what else I should add. Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Tap settings and then scroll to the bottom and look for either software update or about phone and then look for the option to select PRL update, do that and then go back and do a profile update in the same spot as the PRL update and then reboot the phone.
MrMike2182 said:
Tap settings and then scroll to the bottom and look for either software update or about phone and then look for the option to select PRL update, do that and then go back and do a profile update in the same spot as the PRL update and then reboot the phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep, I've tried that one. But for the sake of thoroughness, I tried it twice more to no avail. Any other tips/tricks?
Cypher5235 said:
Yep, I've tried that one. But for the sake of thoroughness, I tried it twice more to no avail. Any other tips/tricks?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Flash this via twrp and let me know if it works.. After you flash this wipe the cache and dalvic cache too then reboot.
Edit: Are you running the stock rom or something else?
MrMike2182 said:
Flash this via twrp and let me know if it works.. After you flash this wipe the cache and dalvic cache too then reboot.
Edit: Are you running the stock rom or something else?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Alright, tried that, too, now. Still a no-go.
I'm not sure if I have a custom rom, but I don't think so. I just followed that guide, and I believe it only needed me to install a custom kernel. This thing acts weird. I'll pick it up and unlock it, and it will have 5 bars, but then quickly jump down to 1 then no service. As I'm driving to class, I'll have 4-5 bars but when I get to school, it's gone. It feels like whenever there are WiFi signals, I lose my service connection, if that helps.
Thank you so much, btw.
Cypher5235 said:
Alright, tried that, too, now. Still a no-go.
I'm not sure if I have a custom rom, but I don't think so. I just followed that guide, and I believe it only needed me to install a custom kernel. This thing acts weird. I'll pick it up and unlock it, and it will have 5 bars, but then quickly jump down to 1 then no service. As I'm driving to class, I'll have 4-5 bars but when I get to school, it's gone. It feels like whenever there are WiFi signals, I lose my service connection, if that helps.
Thank you so much, btw.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Install this and see what happens but first create a backup of your current system in recovery... http://forum.xda-developers.com/desire-510/orig-development/modded-cm11-32-bit-t3245291/post63749189
MrMike2182 said:
Install this and see what happens but first create a backup of your current system in recovery... http://forum.xda-developers.com/desire-510/orig-development/modded-cm11-32-bit-t3245291/post63749189
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmm, definitely going to try this tonight. I've now tried to revert to my stock image, and things just haven't gone well since then. So, since I've already removed or backed up all data, should I just wipe everything (data, system, boot, cache, dalvik, etc), flash root, flash custom kernel, then restore this rom? That way, everything is fresh with no chance of interferences?
Cypher5235 said:
Hmm, definitely going to try this tonight. I've now tried to revert to my stock image, and things just haven't gone well since then. So, since I've already removed or backed up all data, should I just wipe everything (data, system, boot, cache, dalvik, etc), flash root, flash custom kernel, then restore this rom? That way, everything is fresh with no chance of interferences?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No flashing anything the boot/kernel is already in the folder just wipe and restore no using custom kernels there's already a custom kernel in it. It already has root access you do not even need a computer to do this just download extract and move the modded folder to twrps backup folder and restore. This is a full custom modified CyanogenMod 11.. Not stock rom at all.
MrMike2182 said:
No flashing anything the boot/kernel is already in the folder just wipe and restore no using custom kernels there's already a custom kernel in it. It already has root access you do not even need a computer to do this just download extract and move the modded folder to twrps backup folder and restore. This is a full custom modified CyanogenMod 11.. Not stock rom at all.
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Okay, wow. I really like this, man. It's really slick. But, sadly, I'm still SOL. Sometimes there is a connection with VM, but it goes away quickly. I've really appreciated your help, but the problem seems to lay on VMs side, or there is a physical problem in my phone preventing it from maintaining a connection.
Im going to try to deal with their customer service and see if they can do anything. In the end, the phone only cost me $50, I guess. If I get it worked out, I'll post what it was about so you may be able to help the next guy with the issue, lol.
Cypher5235 said:
Okay, wow. I really like this, man. It's really slick. But, sadly, I'm still SOL. Sometimes there is a connection with VM, but it goes away quickly. I've really appreciated your help, but the problem seems to lay on VMs side, or there is a physical problem in my phone preventing it from maintaining a connection.
Im going to try to deal with their customer service and see if they can do anything. In the end, the phone only cost me $50, I guess. If I get it worked out, I'll post what it was about so you may be able to help the next guy with the issue, lol.
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Lol that's definitely gotta be VM's side then.. I'm on VM to but let me ask you a question... Is that a pay as you go, like 1 monthly payment or is it prepaid? If it's the monthly payment then ask VM to reprovision the phone but restore back to your stock backup before calling.
MrMike2182 said:
Lol that's definitely gotta be VM's side then.. I'm on VM to but let me ask you a question... Is that a pay as you go, like 1 monthly payment or is it prepaid? If it's the monthly payment then ask VM to reprovision the phone but restore back to your stock backup before calling.
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It's their $35/month unlimited plan. I just got off the phone with them after 1.5 hours, so not that long, lol. They claim there is a cell tower being worked on, and everything should clear up in 48-72 hours....and yet I can't get a stable signal 20 miles away at school, so it sounds like a rote answer when they have no clue. On the other hand, my wife's S2 barely gets a signal, too.
They are going to comp my for the 2 weeks it's been down, tho. If after this weekend there isn't any improvment....wwell, I'll figure something out, I guess.
Cypher5235 said:
It's their $35/month unlimited plan. I just got off the phone with them after 1.5 hours, so not that long, lol. They claim there is a cell tower being worked on, and everything should clear up in 48-72 hours....and yet I can't get a stable signal 20 miles away at school, so it sounds like a rote answer when they have no clue. On the other hand, my wife's S2 barely gets a signal, too.
They are going to comp my for the 2 weeks it's been down, tho. If after this weekend there isn't any improvment....wwell, I'll figure something out, I guess.
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The "Cell tower being worked on" is just an incompetent fools answer because they in fact have no idea what the problem really is. What carrier does your wife have, VM to?
MrMike2182 said:
The "Cell tower being worked on" is just an incompetent fools answer because they in fact have no idea what the problem really is. What carrier does your wife have, VM to?
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Lol, I've figured that one out when they told me that a couple months ago, I called back the next day and asked about the tower and they told me there was no record of any tower problems. Yeah, she's on VM also, with a Samsung S2, completely stock. When I check her signal, she has a connection, but it's low, around -100 to -120 dba.
Cypher5235 said:
Lol, I've figured that one out when they told me that a couple months ago, I called back the next day and asked about the tower and they told me there was no record of any tower problems. Yeah, she's on VM also, with a Samsung S2, completely stock. When I check her signal, she has a connection, but it's low, around -100 to -120 dba.
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If it's both phones doing it then it's certainly not on your side.
MrMike2182 said:
If it's both phones doing it then it's certainly not on your side.
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Hey Mike. I hate to bother you again, especially since I've been reading how much you've been dealing with other people, so I think I know how to do this, I just would like to run this by you to make sure I have it right.
I'm going to try to have VM replace my phone, so I need it back to looking clean.
1) So, I need to relock the bootloader first. I first "fastboot oem lock" in cmd, then.
2) I DL the RUU from HTC's site, specifically the VM 1.49.652.3 file.
3) While still in fastboot usb, I run the RUU repeatedly till it completes
4) Go back to hboot and do a factory reset.
Thanks man. I've tried to read things through, but I want to make sure it'll be clean if they do replace it.
Edit: Wait, I just saw someone said to input "fastboot oem rebootRUU" then run the RUU.
Cypher5235 said:
Hey Mike. I hate to bother you again, especially since I've been reading how much you've been dealing with other people, so I think I know how to do this, I just would like to run this by you to make sure I have it right.
I'm going to try to have VM replace my phone, so I need it back to looking clean.
1) So, I need to relock the bootloader first. I first "fastboot oem lock" in cmd, then.
2) I DL the RUU from HTC's site, specifically the VM 1.49.652.3 file.
3) While still in fastboot usb, I run the RUU repeatedly till it completes
4) Go back to hboot and do a factory reset.
Thanks man. I've tried to read things through, but I want to make sure it'll be clean if they do replace it.
Edit: Wait, I just saw someone said to input "fastboot oem rebootRUU" then run the RUU.
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Click to collapse
Just relock the bootloader then flash the stock recovery and then run the RUU from the PC but you don't need to factory reset after that because the RUU is the reset.
If you ever had loaded into recovery in temporary TWRP you'll note that even after formating /data/ and doing an advance wipe (selecting everything), then enter the file manager there is still a bunch of folders and some files throughout your device.
Is there a way to wipe out everything and start completely 100% fresh?
DO NOT DO THIS --- OR --- DO but do not cry about it
I have an answer to my question and it is as I suspected. The short and more official answer is, no. The longer answer is, yes, technically. -- But you should not try it unless you are 100% sure you can live without your phone (forever).
As it turns out no one had a full 100% flash for the whole device and its complete file system structure (except for Motorola). But as it turns out without a manufacturing cable it would be useless anyway. This is because part of your phone is protected and cannot be wiped clean and flashed so blindly... ie... Unlike your desktop computer. But if you're like me you have noticed some orphan files (a few logs).
Is it worth taking the risk just to clear some orphan files? Probably not. But since you do not have a manufacturing cable and technically, your phone can recover, what you can do is the following.
Do NOT use the TWRP installed on your phone. Rather use it in memory
Code:
sudo fastboot boot twrp-3.3.1-0-payton.img
Load TWRP and format DATA
Reboot, go to advance wipe, wipe everything.
Reboot to TWRP (again)
In TWRP via the terminal type in
HTML:
rm -r -f *
You will see a lot of things that cannot be deleted. This is because you do not have permission to do so. What little is removed will likely be restored after reboot from the master rom hidden somewhere on your phone which cannot be played with unless you have a manufacturing cable (so I am told). ---- If you have such a cable --- DO NOT DO THIS. --- If you suspect you have such a cable --- Do NOT do this. -- I did this with just my normal charging cable.
After you have run the command which will take forever. Tell TWRP to reboot to bootloader. You will now have a BLACK screen. This is where I panicked. I waited a while and long pressed down the power button (presumably turning off my device). Then I pressed down the power button and the lower volume button. -- Keep holding the buttons. -- It will take longer than you like but your phone will boot up. And low and behold everything that was in the master rom (chip?) has been restored and you will now see the bootloader screen (finally). Load TWRP and install your ROM of choice.
How many times have I done this successfully? 2x
Does this mean this is dependable? Unlikely
Do I recommend this? No.
Should you depend on this? No.
Are you taking a large gable? YES
Can this brick your device? YES, more than likely.
Should you do this if you have any doubts? NO.
Will you get any help if this goes wrong? NO.
So why did I do it? As I look to possibly upgrade my phone in the future I feel a little more daring and can afford to do so. lol
you say "yes, technically", but I have yet to see someone get back to a fully operational stock. The best they can do is get to a mostly operational custom ROM. I (and a bunch of other folks here) would love to be proven wrong.
KrisM22 said:
you say "yes, technically", but I have yet to see someone get back to a fully operational stock. The best they can do is get to a mostly operational custom ROM. I (and a bunch of other folks here) would love to be proven wrong.
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After performing this I installed only the official firmware. No additional ROM or GSI. The firmware itself includes the stock software.
A word of caution. --- I did this on 3 phones now. 2 work just fine. But 1 does not. The one that does not reports my IMEI as 0. This means it boots, it loads, it will play games and apps and update via Google Play Store, but it will never make a single phone call ever again. --- Food for thought.
Thanks. That got me thinking - I wonder if you took the one with no IMEI and plugged it to Moto's Smart Assistant, would it recognize it? Would it allow you to force flash it?
KrisM22 said:
Thanks. That got me thinking - I wonder if you took the one with no IMEI and plugged it to Moto's Smart Assistant, would it recognize it? Would it allow you to force flash it?
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The world will never know. lol --- I'm a Linux user and their app doesn't seem to like Wine. I suppose I could set up a virtual machine with Windows and hope to connect through that. But I was once informed you really cannot do that via a virtual machine. Unless I was misinformed?! In any case, flashing the phone is not a problem. I can wipe it and reinstall any ROM or GSI at the moment. Or I can repeat my process too back to stock under a full wipe. The results appear to be the same.
I already have ordered a cheap Moto G7 from Google as a replacement. My current plan will be to find a very light (small), bare-bones ROM / GSI and install it onto this Moto X4. From there I'll load it up with games and such and let the kids play with it. Figure since it cannot make or receive calls anymore (or text messages either) it will make for a fun little toy.
MotoX4 said:
The world will never know. lol --- I'm a Linux user and their app doesn't seem to like Wine. I suppose I could set up a virtual machine with Windows and hope to connect through that. But I was once informed you really cannot do that via a virtual machine. Unless I was misinformed?! In any case, flashing the phone is not a problem. I can wipe it and reinstall any ROM or GSI at the moment. Or I can repeat my process too back to stock under a full wipe. The results appear to be the same.
I already have ordered a cheap Moto G7 from Google as a replacement. My current plan will be to find a very light (small), bare-bones ROM / GSI and install it onto this Moto X4. From there I'll load it up with games and such and let the kids play with it. Figure since it cannot make or receive calls anymore (or text messages either) it will make for a fun little toy.
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Thanks! Yeah, in the past I have been a lot on Ubuntu and stuff like this is not forgiving for wine.
It's a darn shame that we can't just send these phones to Moto with $25 and get it fixed. Oh well!
KrisM22 said:
Thanks. That got me thinking - I wonder if you took the one with no IMEI and plugged it to Moto's Smart Assistant, would it recognize it? Would it allow you to force flash it?
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Moto smart assistant can`t recognize the phone in rescue mode..
St.Noigel said:
Moto smart assistant can`t recognize the phone in rescue mode..
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I know it can't on yours, and most folks with this prob. I was wondering about MotoX4's case. But thanks for trying it!
I had high hopes for that smart assistant when I discovered it, but no joy. When we lost RSDlite, we lost a lot - unless they upgrade it...
KrisM22 said:
I know it can't on yours, and most folks with this prob. I was wondering about MotoX4's case. But thanks for trying it!
I had high hopes for that smart assistant when I discovered it, but no joy. When we lost RSDlite, we lost a lot - unless they upgrade it...
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RSDlite? Lost? Is this what you seek? https://rsdlitetool.com/
MotoX4 said:
RSDlite? Lost? Is this what you seek? https://rsdlitetool.com/
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6.2.4 won't recognize a Moto X4 after it is upgraded to Pie.
I used RSDLite since the times of the P2K and MAGX (Linux)... but since it's easier to use fastboot commands...
I have a stock X4 Android One around, if I want to flash Pixel Experience, can I go back to stock in the future?
joel_sinbad said:
...snip...
I have a stock X4 Android One around, if I want to flash Pixel Experience, can I go back to stock in the future?
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In all probability, NO.
Then I'm gonna stay on Stock Rom, so... If I want to flash custom Roms, there's not way back...
joel_sinbad said:
Then I'm gonna stay on Stock Rom, so... If I want to flash custom Roms, there's not way back...
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If you read a lot on this forum, that's the message I see.
I agree, NO going back. You can, I have... flash any factory Pie rom . All will flash fine and no IMEI, wifi. Radios are gone. I use Google Fi and cell data services go wierd on custom roms, if you want carrier switching.
This makes me think that the Moto X4 is more dangerous than the back then Atrix 4G with their Tegra 2 chipset...
joel_sinbad said:
This makes me think that the Moto X4 is more dangerous than the back then Atrix 4G with their Tegra 2 chipset...
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I don't recall thinking that the Moto Atrix 4g was at all dangerous when I had one - a rather nice phone imho, though that was a very long time ago. I don't think of the Moto X4 as "dangerous" - it is simply that there is not a correct understanding of the Pie file structure by the custom ROM devs such that their ROMs would not so change the file structure of the phone as to prevent it from being flashed back to stock.
Users need to recognize that, with this phone, you can't get back to stock if you flash any custom ROM.
afaik.
This change happened with the file structure and boot structure changes of the Pie update. Prior to that, folks could get away with all manner of mods. Devs for this phone need to approach modifications with the idea of assuring that any mod can be flashed back to stock, BEFORE it is released. That has not happened. And likely won't. User beware!
KrisM22..... Thank you for stating what I could not do as well.
kkjb said:
KrisM22..... Thank you for stating what I could not do as well.
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we ALL do it, and CAN do it - all in hopes of saving some newbie from disaster!