Current phone information should be attached. Short form is, I'm using the Gummi 1.2.0 rom, put onto my phone after using safestrap (and following the instructions to make a backup before doing so). Safesystem is enabled.
Two backups: located on my external SD card
nonsafe-2012-05-26.07.52.54/
safe-2012-05-27.08.06.28/
Safestrap recovery v1.09 (afraid to update to 2.0 without breaking more stuff)
What I'm looking to do is return my phone to working stock, which I believe was Gingerbread 2.3.6. That said, every time I've touched this thing trying to go back, I've black screened it. I don't live in an area with 4g (screw the mountains, and their 1x service), so any attempts to connect to the 4g network for any part of the process will require me driving into Pennsylvania, 30 minutes away. I've heard before that you can't return from the ICS leak to the Stock for the Droid 4, for various reasons (but i believe the important one was it was a later firmware and it isn't a process designed to go backwards)
I'd like to know if thats still the case currently, or if something has changed. I'm getting shaky wifi/data/cell reception up here, and its flawless back on stock. Hell, I've got an old razor as an emergency phone that's flawless up here. Next time I'll do more research for this stuff I was a proud OG droid owner, and ran cyanogenmod on it before the vid card fried one evening. Thought the droid 4 would be a good deal, but I've had nothing but trouble with the roms on it.
All that said, I can simply smash and return this droid if its the only way to get a stock one back, but I don't like destroying useful and good technology when I can help it. Besides, I like fixing the problems I create.
Thanks for the help XDA, either way.
-- TheChaoticDoctor
Did you flash the leak ICS from Motorola or did you use Safestrap and flash Gummy ICS?
If you flashed the leaked ICS, there is no going back. You will need to find get the files to flash the partial .219 system back so you can run the .206 leak update again.
If you just used safestrap to flash Gummy 1.2.0 then you can use the .219 flash files to completely re-do your phone.
Currently there are no ROMs to flash if you are on the leak, Hashcode just released his Safestrap 2.0 to do so but still nothing to flash. All the current ICS ROM builds are for the stock phone running the Gingerbread Kernel.
Sorry about the delay, was off camping. I rooted the phone first on gingerbread, then eventually installed safestrap and flashed the gummi rom. Can you (or someone else) walk me through the steps for flashing the .219 files and then flashing the .206 files?
TheChaoticDoctor said:
Sorry about the delay, was off camping. I rooted the phone first on gingerbread, then eventually installed safestrap and flashed the gummi rom. Can you (or someone else) walk me through the steps for flashing the .219 files and then flashing the .206 files?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You should probably go up to .208, that's the latest leak. Make sure to use rootkeeper, and follow all the instructions. So far I haven't lost root, but be aware I'm stuck on .206 because I don't want to lose root....
Look here for more info:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=26311439
Sent from my XT894 running ICS
First of all, it sounds to me like you've just flashed a ROM, not flashed the leak. If that is the case, you can just toggle the safe mode in safestrap to get back to stock. Safestrap lets you toggle between stock and the ROM. It is pretty awesome because you can play with the ROM and then go back to stock whenever you need to.
If you HAVE flashed the Motorola leak (as opposed to just a ROM) you are SOL.
If you haven't flashed the Motorola leak and just want to get back to factory conditions, you'll have to flash via RSDLite. That info you should be able to find here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1622256
Honestly I WOULD NOT flash the leak at this time. IMHO, it doesn't really offer enough to risk getting off the upgrade path forever, and losing the ability to flash back via RSDLite.
I've flashed and flashed and flashed both ICS and GB roms on my bionic and I've yet to find one that works. I've had more luck with ICS roms than GB, but still I get roms that the dialer is bugged and you can't hear anyone or anything when using it. My data drops every 2 seconds on both ICS and GB roms.
I've tried Eclipse roms, everything worked fine, but I couldn't hear no one on the phone unless they called me first. So I had to get rid of that one for that reason.
I've tried every ICS rom out there, gummy works the best for me, but I get data drops every 2 seconds, bluetooth (which I use all the time) works, but if you forget to leave it on you can't hear nothing on calls. And for some reason it's started doing the same as Eclipse rom is doing, I can't hear no one on the phone not even if they call me and bluetooth is not on.
I've then tried Liberty rom, and I couldn't get data working period, the phone wouldn't work either.
Did I just get a crappy phone that just doesn't like to be flashed so many times or what?
Are you wiping data, cache & dalvik when you switch ROMs? Not doing wipes is the biggest cause of ROM malfunctions. Some ROMs just don't like it when you don't wipe. ROMs are built under the impression that they're starting out with a blank /data partition.
I ran Eclipse 2.2 for a while and everything on it worked without issue. However, Ice Cream Sandwich ROMs are a problem and will continue to be a problem for everyone. To me, it's a miracle that ICS ROMs even boot up on the Bionic. The locked bootloader means that the kernel cannot be modified except by official Motorola updates. This means that all these ICS builds are running on a Gingerbread kernel.
Yea, I'm wiping everything on each flash.
When I flashed the Eclipse rom, I wiped data, cache, dalvik and everything was fine except the call issue where I couldn't hear anything but people could call me and it'd be fine.
I've had better luck with the ICS roms than the GB roms though for some reason, minus the bluetooth/data issues.
What are you using to Flash, Bootstrap or SafeStrap? I know Eclipse has been giving me minor issues, but all and all it still works. Forget about trying Liberty or even anything else unless the Dev. modifies them to work with the 902 radios. There have been some people trying out the new radio leaks such as 904 and 905, but if they ever issue a true OTA you have to FXZ back to the 902 in order to apply the update. To touch up on some other stuff you can do also is format the internal storage. There could be something in there causing those issues to happen. Before I flash a new 902 compatible rom I go and backup everything important onto my external storage using ES file explore and then format the internal using the storage settings in the system settings.
I do the wipe data/factory reset, not sure if that gets the internal storage or not. Followed by the wipe cache, wipe dalvik.
I was using Safestrap, but FXZ'd back to stock and started using Bootstrap. Right now I'm sitting on the stock rom with bloatware frozen.
Hello everyone,
Before I describe the issue I have been experiencing, I would like to say thanks in advanced for providing me assistance.
Okay currently, I am running.905 base band, and have followed the method for flashing back to .902(FXZ) in order to receive the .905(OTA), and have rooted my device using the moto-fail exploit. The issue I have been experiencing is persistent boot loops when flashing any ICS ROM(I am using CWM 4.0.1.5) via Bionic Bootstrap.
The procedure I have been using(assuming I am rooted and on .905),
Boot the device into recovery(CWM via Bionic Bootstrap)
Wipe Data/Factory Reset.
Wipe Dalvik, and System.
Apply update from SD-CARD(Initial ROM).
Apply update from SD-CARD(correct GAPPS for build).
Reboot ----->> Then the device boot loops.(I restore the device using the FASTBOOT Method).
I am aware of safestrap(but I do not want to "pseudo dual boot", ROMS, I prefer to flash over existing installs.
Is there anyone else experiencing this issue? or does anyone have a recommended solution(other than using safestrap)?
Thanks again!
Most, but not all, ROMs require GApps. Make sure the one you are installing does.
There is now a .905 FXZ that you can use to shorten the waiting time.
Make sure you are NOT using Bootstrap for ICS .
Most ROMs already wipe /system as a party of the install procedure.
*** MAKE SURE YOU ARE USING A ROM DESIGNED TO BE INSTALLED IN BOOTSTRAP AND ONE THAT IS NOT DESIGNED TO RUN ON THE ICS LEAKS.
HTH
Sent from my rooted BIONIC running ICS 6.7.235 via Tapatalk 2
johnlgalt said:
There is now a .905 FXZ that you can use to shorten the waiting time.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Where?
The one that has been available for download is not a true zip.
It fails in RSD and no zip utility can decompress it.
I've tried downloading from 3 different sources.
-s
Atheistnofaith said:
Hello everyone,
Before I describe the issue I have been experiencing, I would like to say thanks in advanced for providing me assistance.
Okay currently, I am running.905 base band, and have followed the method for flashing back to .902(FXZ) in order to receive the .905(OTA), and have rooted my device using the moto-fail exploit. The issue I have been experiencing is persistent boot loops when flashing any ICS ROM(I am using CWM 4.0.1.5) via Bionic Bootstrap.
Thanks again!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you installing one of the ICS releases like AOKP or CM9 or are you trying to install an ICS Leak?
If you're trying to install one of the official ICS Leaks, they will only flash in Stock Recovery.
suprsidr said:
Where?
The one that has been available for download is not a true zip.
It fails in RSD and no zip utility can decompress it.
I've tried downloading from 3 different sources.
-s
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's there, it's not an OTA, it is a true FXZ, given to us one week ago.
If the file you are downloading is less than 300MB it is definitely not the right one. The file name is the same as the .902 FXZ except .902 is replaced by .905.
I don't have the link on my phone, but PM me and i can link you to it back here tomorrow.
Sent from my rooted BIONIC running ICS 6.7.235 via Tapatalk 2
johnlgalt said:
It's there, it's not an OTA, it is a true FXZ, given to us one week ago.
If the file you are downloading is less than 300MB it is definitely not the right one. The file name is the same as the .902 FXZ except .902 is replaced by .905.
I don't have the link on my phone, but PM me and i can link you to it back here tomorrow.
Sent from my rooted BIONIC running ICS 6.7.235 via Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just tried again w/ the one listed http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1328100
VRZ_XT875_5.9.905.XT875.Verizon.en.US_CFC.xml.zip ~488MB
and you cannot use it in RSD as it will fail and you cannot unzip it
7zip:"Can not open file 'VRZ_XT875_5.9.905.XT875.Verizon.en.US_CFC.xml.zip' as an archive"
I found it listed 3 different places and DL'd all each w/ same result.
I spent all day last Thursday flashing different ROMs and each time I had to use the OTA to get to .905 if this VRZ_XT875_5.9.905.XT875.Verizon.en.US_CFC.xml.zip had worked it would have saved me hours.
If you know where I can find a working version you would get my vote for president.
-s
suprsidr said:
I just tried again w/ the one listed http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1328100
VRZ_XT875_5.9.905.XT875.Verizon.en.US_CFC.xml.zip ~488MB
and you cannot use it in RSD as it will fail and you cannot unzip it
7zip:"Can not open file 'VRZ_XT875_5.9.905.XT875.Verizon.en.US_CFC.xml.zip' as an archive"
I found it listed 3 different places and DL'd all each w/ same result.
I spent all day last Thursday flashing different ROMs and each time I had to use the OTA to get to .905 if this VRZ_XT875_5.9.905.XT875.Verizon.en.US_CFC.xml.zip had worked it would have saved me hours.
If you know where I can find a working version you would get my vote for president.
-s
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Though I haven't tried it, this one might be the correct one, it's about 512 MB in size.
http://rombot.droidhive.com/ROMs/targa/fastboot/VRZ_XT875_5.9.905.XT875.Verizon.en.US_CFC.xml.zip
**Disregard, it is only listed as being 512 MB, it is actually the same as above.
Hey,
This is a pretty long post, so if all you're interested in is the 905 FXZ file, scroll down to the "FXZ to 905" section, it's bolded.
Problems with flashing ICS ROMs ( in regards to OP, by Atheistnofaith ) :
You may already know this, but each custom ROM is "built off" of one of the stock roms, flashing from a different starting point will often cause your phone to not boot correctly ( boot loop, or freeze at the Motorola logo ), or will boot, but not work correctly ( i.e. something like data will not work ). This, combined with the fact that many new ICS ROMs are built on the ICS leaks, could account for the problem ( Are you sure you're not trying to flash a ROM built on an ICS leak? That would definitely not work! ).
Another possible issue is that you are using the Bionic Bootstrap program to flash CWM. The version of CWM flashed by that program is rather old ( 4.x.x.x vs current: 5.x.x.x ). You may not like this, but Safestrap is the way to go. Before you defer me to the OP, "I am aware of safestrap(but I do not want to "pseudo dual boot", ROMS, I prefer to flash over existing installs." I want to point out that Safestrap is not for the purpose of Dual-booting ROMs, or at least, that's not how many people use it. Safestrap has many features that will: prevent being stuck at bootloops ( and needing to re-Flash 902/905 every single time ), allow you to always have a backup system ( i.e. I've soft-bricked the side that I flashed ROMs on, and since I needed to use my phone, I just opened safestrap ( battery pull, start booting phone, and hit the menu button at the Safestrap prompt ), and toggled safe system in the safeboot menu. This brings up another advantage of Safestrap: you don't need to be able to boot the phone to access CWM, installing safestrap adds a new bootup prompt that either lets you open safestrap or boot normally. Again safestrap is based on a much newer version of CWM, so if you don't want to install it for any other reason, install it for that one...
Setting up for, and using Safestrap:
So if I've convinced you that you want to use Safestrap ( I really recommend you do ), follow the instructions given here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1771993 until step 10. Then root with motofail, and install Safestrap 2.0 ( download it here:
Code:
http://api.viglink.com/api/click?format=go&drKey=1359&loc=http%3A%2F%2Fforum.xda-developers.com%2Fshowthread.php%3Ft%3D1328100&v=1&libid=1343056993296&out=http%3A%2F%2Frombot.droidhive.com%2FROMs%2Ftarga%2FBionicSafestrap-ICS-2.00.apk&ref=http%3A%2F%2Fforum.xda-developers.com%2Fforumdisplay.php%3Ff%3D1006&title=%5BLIST%202012-07-18%5DOne%20Stop%20Shop%2C%20ROMS%2C%20MODS%2C%20SCRIPTS%2C%20TOOLS%2C%20ROOT%2C%20BOOTSTRAP%20-%20xda-developers&txt=2012-06-22%20Safestrap%20v2.0&jsonp=vglnk_jsonp_13430595105542
). The file should be an apk, just install it on your phone, open it, and select the option to flash it.
If I haven't convinced you to use Safestrap, go to the section titled, "Picking a compatible ICS ROM". ( Then reconsider, and come back, lol ).
When you're ready to flash a ROM, power off the phone, turn it back on, while booting, a new screen will pop up, saying something like "Safe system: Disabled", while that screen is shown, hit the menu button. The screen will temporarily go blank ( Don't panic ), then it should enter a CWM-like setup ( it looks very similar and functions the same ). Now's a good time to do a full backup ( Same as CWM ). From there, go to safeboot menu, then go to toggle safe system ( Don't do quick toggle ). This will take a few minutes. Next flash the zip like you normally would with CWM. If All goes well, you can exit that ( same as CWM ) and the ROM should boot. If it doesn't ( give it at least 5 minutes though ), do a battery pull, and power on the phone again, going into the Safestrap menu like before ( hit the menu key at the screen ), and then go to the safeboot menu and toggle safe mode ( DO NOT QUICK TOGGLE NOW!!! Doing this will require you to re-FXZ ). After that finishes, reboot and your phone should be back to stock, ready to load a working ROM on it.
Picking a compatible ICS ROM:
As mentioned before, each ROM is built on a certain OTA release, like 905 or 902, or even the leaked ICS OTAs. Any ROM that say "ICS" and "LEAK" in its name is not for 905, or anything prior. For a list of 905 based ICS ROMs, check this out: http://rombot.droidhive.com/ROMs/targa/ ( Make sure you don't install anything from the "ics-leak-builds" folder ). CM9, AOKP, and AOKP AXIOM should all contain 905-based ICS builds. Try flashing something from there.
If you have a specific ROM in mind, read the forum post about it, making sure it doesn't say that you need to be on an ICS leak build. Make sure it's 905 based.
FXZ to 905:
I found two links to the new 905 FXZ. While I can't guarentee that either will flash ( I don't want to flash right now, I like where I am... lol ), I have tested and found that RSD Lite is willing to extract them, so they should flash. If one doesn't work, you can always try the other:
https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B26Hj6_2TMNTZ256eV9QbWpBSTQ from: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1771993
http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?71oyq7h8eskax6d from: http://androidforums.com/motorola-d...u-ics-back-updated-7-21-12-a.html#post4664922
Keep in mind that flashing these will essentially perform a factory reset on your phone, remove root, remove CWM and Safestrap, and possibly wipe all internal storage ( i.e. /sdcard and /mnt/sdcard ).
Conclusion:
Hopefully you found what you're looking for here. I would suggest trying out an ICS leak, they're all much more stable than the 905-based ICS builds. Also, there's a good amount of development going on that's based on them. ( For ICS builds based on the ICS leaks, See here: http://rombot.droidhive.com/ROMs/targa/ics-leak-builds/ ).
So if you want to try out an ICS leak, here's a link to a how-to ( but first a disclaimer ):
WARNING: DO NOT FLASH THE 235 ICS LEAK. YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO FXZ BACK TO 905. YOUR BEST BET IS 232
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1771993
If you use the 905 FXZ linked to above, make sure to give crobs808 ( The OP of that above thread ), a good thumbs up, he's the one that posted the FXZ.
Sorry this got so long. I hope this helps you get things working again. Good luck,
jedi453
projektorboy said:
Are you installing one of the ICS releases like AOKP or CM9 or are you trying to install an ICS Leak?
If you're trying to install one of the official ICS Leaks, they will only flash in Stock Recovery.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To further explain, I am not flash any of the ICS leaks, I am flash aokp, other etc etc. Also other posts stat to flash directly via FXZ file(the 905 firmware). I have attempted to flash the .905 on two bionics on both coming from 905 already, and will most defiantly wipe your web-top files, and corrupt your phones firmware(not brick it but Fasboot will end up failing to boot "A.6 error"), this is well documented not to flash directly to the fxz(.905) if you already have it installed it will corrupt your web-top files soft bricking your phone. The process requires you restore back to .902 and then apply .905 update(not fxz). Anyways thanks for the help, I have not flashed any of the leaks, only attempt were AOSP based roms. Maybe it is time to test out safestrap?
jedi453 said:
Hey,
This is a pretty long post, so if all you're interested in is the 905 FXZ file, scroll down to the "FXZ to 905" section, it's bolded.
Problems with flashing ICS ROMs ( in regards to OP, by Atheistnofaith ) :
You may already know this, but each custom ROM is "built off" of one of the stock roms, flashing from a different starting point will often cause your phone to not boot correctly ( boot loop, or freeze at the Motorola logo ), or will boot, but not work correctly ( i.e. something like data will not work ). This, combined with the fact that many new ICS ROMs are built on the ICS leaks, could account for the problem ( Are you sure you're not trying to flash a ROM built on an ICS leak? That would definitely not work! ).
Another possible issue is that you are using the Bionic Bootstrap program to flash CWM. The version of CWM flashed by that program is rather old ( 4.x.x.x vs current: 5.x.x.x ). You may not like this, but Safestrap is the way to go. Before you defer me to the OP, "I am aware of safestrap(but I do not want to "pseudo dual boot", ROMS, I prefer to flash over existing installs." I want to point out that Safestrap is not for the purpose of Dual-booting ROMs, or at least, that's not how many people use it. Safestrap has many features that will: prevent being stuck at bootloops ( and needing to re-Flash 902/905 every single time ), allow you to always have a backup system ( i.e. I've soft-bricked the side that I flashed ROMs on, and since I needed to use my phone, I just opened safestrap ( battery pull, start booting phone, and hit the menu button at the Safestrap prompt ), and toggled safe system in the safeboot menu. This brings up another advantage of Safestrap: you don't need to be able to boot the phone to access CWM, installing safestrap adds a new bootup prompt that either lets you open safestrap or boot normally. Again safestrap is based on a much newer version of CWM, so if you don't want to install it for any other reason, install it for that one...
Setting up for, and using Safestrap:
So if I've convinced you that you want to use Safestrap ( I really recommend you do ), follow the instructions given here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1771993 until step 10. Then root with motofail, and install Safestrap 2.0 ( download it here:
Code:
http://api.viglink.com/api/click?format=go&drKey=1359&loc=http%3A%2F%2Fforum.xda-developers.com%2Fshowthread.php%3Ft%3D1328100&v=1&libid=1343056993296&out=http%3A%2F%2Frombot.droidhive.com%2FROMs%2Ftarga%2FBionicSafestrap-ICS-2.00.apk&ref=http%3A%2F%2Fforum.xda-developers.com%2Fforumdisplay.php%3Ff%3D1006&title=%5BLIST%202012-07-18%5DOne%20Stop%20Shop%2C%20ROMS%2C%20MODS%2C%20SCRIPTS%2C%20TOOLS%2C%20ROOT%2C%20BOOTSTRAP%20-%20xda-developers&txt=2012-06-22%20Safestrap%20v2.0&jsonp=vglnk_jsonp_13430595105542
). The file should be an apk, just install it on your phone, open it, and select the option to flash it.
If I haven't convinced you to use Safestrap, go to the section titled, "Picking a compatible ICS ROM". ( Then reconsider, and come back, lol ).
When you're ready to flash a ROM, power off the phone, turn it back on, while booting, a new screen will pop up, saying something like "Safe system: Disabled", while that screen is shown, hit the menu button. The screen will temporarily go blank ( Don't panic ), then it should enter a CWM-like setup ( it looks very similar and functions the same ). Now's a good time to do a full backup ( Same as CWM ). From there, go to safeboot menu, then go to toggle safe system ( Don't do quick toggle ). This will take a few minutes. Next flash the zip like you normally would with CWM. If All goes well, you can exit that ( same as CWM ) and the ROM should boot. If it doesn't ( give it at least 5 minutes though ), do a battery pull, and power on the phone again, going into the Safestrap menu like before ( hit the menu key at the screen ), and then go to the safeboot menu and toggle safe mode ( DO NOT QUICK TOGGLE NOW!!! Doing this will require you to re-FXZ ). After that finishes, reboot and your phone should be back to stock, ready to load a working ROM on it.
Picking a compatible ICS ROM:
As mentioned before, each ROM is built on a certain OTA release, like 905 or 902, or even the leaked ICS OTAs. Any ROM that say "ICS" and "LEAK" in its name is not for 905, or anything prior. For a list of 905 based ICS ROMs, check this out: http://rombot.droidhive.com/ROMs/targa/ ( Make sure you don't install anything from the "ics-leak-builds" folder ). CM9, AOKP, and AOKP AXIOM should all contain 905-based ICS builds. Try flashing something from there.
If you have a specific ROM in mind, read the forum post about it, making sure it doesn't say that you need to be on an ICS leak build. Make sure it's 905 based.
FXZ to 905:
I found two links to the new 905 FXZ. While I can't guarentee that either will flash ( I don't want to flash right now, I like where I am... lol ), I have tested and found that RSD Lite is willing to extract them, so they should flash. If one doesn't work, you can always try the other:
https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B26Hj6_2TMNTZ256eV9QbWpBSTQ from: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1771993
http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?71oyq7h8eskax6d from: http://androidforums.com/motorola-d...u-ics-back-updated-7-21-12-a.html#post4664922
Keep in mind that flashing these will essentially perform a factory reset on your phone, remove root, remove CWM and Safestrap, and possibly wipe all internal storage ( i.e. /sdcard and /mnt/sdcard ).
Conclusion:
Hopefully you found what you're looking for here. I would suggest trying out an ICS leak, they're all much more stable than the 905-based ICS builds. Also, there's a good amount of development going on that's based on them. ( For ICS builds based on the ICS leaks, See here: http://rombot.droidhive.com/ROMs/targa/ics-leak-builds/ ).
So if you want to try out an ICS leak, here's a link to a how-to ( but first a disclaimer ):
WARNING: DO NOT FLASH THE 235 ICS LEAK. YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO FXZ BACK TO 905. YOUR BEST BET IS 232
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1771993
If you use the 905 FXZ linked to above, make sure to give crobs808 ( The OP of that above thread ), a good thumbs up, he's the one that posted the FXZ.
Sorry this got so long. I hope this helps you get things working again. Good luck,
jedi453
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for the advice, but I have tested the method of flashing .905 directly via fxz on two bionic's, and can/will soft brick your phone. This has been documented not to because the webtop files are not included in the .905 fxz files, and if you flash an existing systems running 905 you will corrupt your firmware(the good old AP Fasboot failing to boot with an A.6 error I have tested this on two bionics with the same results both running .905. The solution is to flash back to .902, and then apply the OTA update(or dump the update to the cache directory) to .905. That is just a warning.
jedi453 said:
Hey,
This is a pretty long post, so if all you're interested in is the 905 FXZ file, scroll down to the "FXZ to 905" section, it's bolded.
Problems with flashing ICS ROMs ( in regards to OP, by Atheistnofaith ) :
You may already know this, but each custom ROM is "built off" of one of the stock roms, flashing from a different starting point will often cause your phone to not boot correctly ( boot loop, or freeze at the Motorola logo ), or will boot, but not work correctly ( i.e. something like data will not work ). This, combined with the fact that many new ICS ROMs are built on the ICS leaks, could account for the problem ( Are you sure you're not trying to flash a ROM built on an ICS leak? That would definitely not work! ).
Another possible issue is that you are using the Bionic Bootstrap program to flash CWM. The version of CWM flashed by that program is rather old ( 4.x.x.x vs current: 5.x.x.x ). You may not like this, but Safestrap is the way to go. Before you defer me to the OP, "I am aware of safestrap(but I do not want to "pseudo dual boot", ROMS, I prefer to flash over existing installs." I want to point out that Safestrap is not for the purpose of Dual-booting ROMs, or at least, that's not how many people use it. Safestrap has many features that will: prevent being stuck at bootloops ( and needing to re-Flash 902/905 every single time ), allow you to always have a backup system ( i.e. I've soft-bricked the side that I flashed ROMs on, and since I needed to use my phone, I just opened safestrap ( battery pull, start booting phone, and hit the menu button at the Safestrap prompt ), and toggled safe system in the safeboot menu. This brings up another advantage of Safestrap: you don't need to be able to boot the phone to access CWM, installing safestrap adds a new bootup prompt that either lets you open safestrap or boot normally. Again safestrap is based on a much newer version of CWM, so if you don't want to install it for any other reason, install it for that one...
Setting up for, and using Safestrap:
So if I've convinced you that you want to use Safestrap ( I really recommend you do ), follow the instructions given here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1771993 until step 10. Then root with motofail, and install Safestrap 2.0 ( download it here:
Code:
http://api.viglink.com/api/click?format=go&drKey=1359&loc=http%3A%2F%2Fforum.xda-developers.com%2Fshowthread.php%3Ft%3D1328100&v=1&libid=1343056993296&out=http%3A%2F%2Frombot.droidhive.com%2FROMs%2Ftarga%2FBionicSafestrap-ICS-2.00.apk&ref=http%3A%2F%2Fforum.xda-developers.com%2Fforumdisplay.php%3Ff%3D1006&title=%5BLIST%202012-07-18%5DOne%20Stop%20Shop%2C%20ROMS%2C%20MODS%2C%20SCRIPTS%2C%20TOOLS%2C%20ROOT%2C%20BOOTSTRAP%20-%20xda-developers&txt=2012-06-22%20Safestrap%20v2.0&jsonp=vglnk_jsonp_13430595105542
). The file should be an apk, just install it on your phone, open it, and select the option to flash it.
If I haven't convinced you to use Safestrap, go to the section titled, "Picking a compatible ICS ROM". ( Then reconsider, and come back, lol ).
When you're ready to flash a ROM, power off the phone, turn it back on, while booting, a new screen will pop up, saying something like "Safe system: Disabled", while that screen is shown, hit the menu button. The screen will temporarily go blank ( Don't panic ), then it should enter a CWM-like setup ( it looks very similar and functions the same ). Now's a good time to do a full backup ( Same as CWM ). From there, go to safeboot menu, then go to toggle safe system ( Don't do quick toggle ). This will take a few minutes. Next flash the zip like you normally would with CWM. If All goes well, you can exit that ( same as CWM ) and the ROM should boot. If it doesn't ( give it at least 5 minutes though ), do a battery pull, and power on the phone again, going into the Safestrap menu like before ( hit the menu key at the screen ), and then go to the safeboot menu and toggle safe mode ( DO NOT QUICK TOGGLE NOW!!! Doing this will require you to re-FXZ ). After that finishes, reboot and your phone should be back to stock, ready to load a working ROM on it.
Picking a compatible ICS ROM:
As mentioned before, each ROM is built on a certain OTA release, like 905 or 902, or even the leaked ICS OTAs. Any ROM that say "ICS" and "LEAK" in its name is not for 905, or anything prior. For a list of 905 based ICS ROMs, check this out: http://rombot.droidhive.com/ROMs/targa/ ( Make sure you don't install anything from the "ics-leak-builds" folder ). CM9, AOKP, and AOKP AXIOM should all contain 905-based ICS builds. Try flashing something from there.
If you have a specific ROM in mind, read the forum post about it, making sure it doesn't say that you need to be on an ICS leak build. Make sure it's 905 based.
FXZ to 905:
I found two links to the new 905 FXZ. While I can't guarentee that either will flash ( I don't want to flash right now, I like where I am... lol ), I have tested and found that RSD Lite is willing to extract them, so they should flash. If one doesn't work, you can always try the other:
https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B26Hj6_2TMNTZ256eV9QbWpBSTQ from: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1771993
http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?71oyq7h8eskax6d from: http://androidforums.com/motorola-d...u-ics-back-updated-7-21-12-a.html#post4664922
Keep in mind that flashing these will essentially perform a factory reset on your phone, remove root, remove CWM and Safestrap, and possibly wipe all internal storage ( i.e. /sdcard and /mnt/sdcard ).
Conclusion:
Hopefully you found what you're looking for here. I would suggest trying out an ICS leak, they're all much more stable than the 905-based ICS builds. Also, there's a good amount of development going on that's based on them. ( For ICS builds based on the ICS leaks, See here: http://rombot.droidhive.com/ROMs/targa/ics-leak-builds/ ).
So if you want to try out an ICS leak, here's a link to a how-to ( but first a disclaimer ):
WARNING: DO NOT FLASH THE 235 ICS LEAK. YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO FXZ BACK TO 905. YOUR BEST BET IS 232
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1771993
If you use the 905 FXZ linked to above, make sure to give crobs808 ( The OP of that above thread ), a good thumbs up, he's the one that posted the FXZ.
Sorry this got so long. I hope this helps you get things working again. Good luck,
jedi453
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Thank you for the advice, I have already tried safestrap, but I do not want to dual boot,(safe strap will not allow you to flash over any currently installed ROMS, it appears to "sandbox" and new installs). To answer your question, I am not using the ICS leaks straigh AOKP, AOSP, and CM9(none flash without bootloops in CWM), and I understand the only way to install them is via stock recovery. lol I do not want a "sandboxed rom", because it simply is wasteful in regards to diskspace. Although, I do have a question are the ICS leaks still using motoblur as a the default launcher? Thank you again!!!
problems with process com.android.phone!.
it is the only problem apart from dropping DATA on ICS bionic.
I am running LiquidSmoothBLUR and for some reason it seems to just constantly end this process.
It is stuck in a loop and my phone is unusable.
This happens after my second reboot after a new flash, every time. It works fine for a few reboots and then it just constantly crashes.
I don't know what to do.
Stock ICS OTA 2233 works fine, apart from the data problems -- I'm on ATT US.
anyone offer any help? i'm baffled. I've tried repairing permissions but it still doesn't work!
solidus636 said:
problems with process com.android.phone!.
it is the only problem apart from dropping DATA on ICS bionic.
I am running LiquidSmoothBLUR and for some reason it seems to just constantly end this process.
It is stuck in a loop and my phone is unusable.
This happens after my second reboot after a new flash, every time. It works fine for a few reboots and then it just constantly crashes.
I don't know what to do.
Stock ICS OTA 2233 works fine, apart from the data problems -- I'm on ATT US.
anyone offer any help? i'm baffled. I've tried repairing permissions but it still doesn't work!
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Well if the ICS leak 2233 worked fine and the problem only happens when you apply the LiquidSmoothBLUR rom then I would point at the rom you are trying to install. Something's borked in your installation or perhaps you're trying to load a program that isn't compatible with LiquidSmoothBLUR. Did you make sure to follow the instructions on installing the rom to the dot? Most roms require you to wipe your cache but if you're installing the rom directly on top of the leak without wiping cache you could run into issues. Or perhaps you're one of the few phones that isn't compatible with the new rom. Try downloading a the rom from a different source and reinstalling it.
it's weird. it happens on nearly EVERY single custom ICS rom, has happened on a leak. and yes I am flashing properly, definitely not missing any steps! wipe dalvik and cache, data, format system, then install the rom, and it is from a good source, checked the MD5 checksums, everything ads up!
another question : installing a custom ICS based on a leak ON TOP of 905 would stop me from downgrading, correct? say if i install project rectacle v2 -- a 232 based motoblur rom -- would it stop me from downgrading?
also -- safestrap is only for the leaks, correct?
solidus636 said:
it's weird. it happens on nearly EVERY single custom ICS rom, has happened on a leak. and yes I am flashing properly, definitely not missing any steps! wipe dalvik and cache, data, format system, then install the rom, and it is from a good source, checked the MD5 checksums, everything ads up!
another question : installing a custom ICS based on a leak ON TOP of 905 would stop me from downgrading, correct? say if i install project rectacle v2 -- a 232 based motoblur rom -- would it stop me from downgrading?
also -- safestrap is only for the leaks, correct?
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Click to collapse
I don't think that installing Reticle on top of .905 would even boot up. If it's based on a leak, such as .232, it requires a kernel from one of the leaks to run. If you want to install an ICS ROM on top of .905, you can't use one which was based on a leak. Most of the compatible ones are CM9 based and are either fairly old builds, or specifically say that they can be flashed on the non-leak versions. As for safestrap, there are versions that work with the .905 base, I'm not sure, but I think you need something lower than a 2.x build for that.