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[Q] Possibly quick noob question? Help needed! :)

Right now I'm using CM 6.1.1 on my Nexus One. When I flashed CM for the first time I wiped my SD card right after I installed the ROM, so I really don't remember too much about what happened to my apps or anything like that. So, my question is, if I want to install CM 7, can I just wipe my phone with ROM manager right before installing it, and then not wipe my SD card afterwards? Will the apps, pictures, ect., that is on my SD card right now magically appear untouched on CM 7? I guess I'm just not sure how the SD card contents will be affected when flashing ROMs, and I'm not sure if after you flash a new ROM, the ROM can use all of the stuff that's on your SD card just like the ROM you had before did.. Does that kinda make sense? I feel dumb for asking all this. Also, when I save a backup of my ROM, the backup will just be a copy of all of my phone's internal memory and the operating system, right? And when I wipe my phone and install a new ROM, the new ROM just replaces all of my phone's old contents? So if I ever flashed my original ROM again, it'd bring back all of my phone's contents, system memory, operating system, apps installed on the phone, ect?
Thanks for taking the time to read my long, poorly written batch of questions Help would be very very appreciated!

SD card isn't touched when flashing ROMs.
You can restore your backup and it'll be all like it was.
If you use DT A2SD - things start being more complicated.

Yumunum said:
can I just wipe my phone with ROM manager right before installing it, and then not wipe my SD card afterwards?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, you can leave your SD contents as is, they won't be touched.
Will the apps, pictures, ect., that is on my SD card right now magically appear untouched on CM 7?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Pictures, Music, Videos etc that are stored on the SD card will remain untouched by flashing a new ROM, however apps are a different story. Basically you've got two main types of Apps on SD cards. The first is froyos implementation which is basically used to free up space on the phone memory but will not survive a wipe or flashing a new ROM. The alternative is Dark Tremors A2SD which uses a dedicated partition on your SD card (Created through recovery) to store apps by tricking the system into thinking the folder on your SD card is actually on internal memory. Once a new ROM is installed over the current (Which obviously must use DT A2SD also) these apps should be available again with their settings etc remaining.
I guess I'm just not sure how the SD card contents will be affected when flashing ROMs, and I'm not sure if after you flash a new ROM, the ROM can use all of the stuff that's on your SD card just like the ROM you had before did
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Again, all data/media remains but apps require A2SD or its variants.
Also, when I save a backup of my ROM, the backup will just be a copy of all of my phone's internal memory and the operating system, right?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When you backup/nandroid you take a screenshot of sorts of your system. By default I think most recovery images save the boot, system, data and cache partitions when a backup is being made. Certain recoveries offer to backup other partitions such as sd-ext (Where A2SD stores the apps). Backups are designated by folders with a time stamp, I personally rename these to reflect the contents e.g. MM.v.20 tells me this is MicroMods v.20 of his GB ROM. Obviously yours will differ but I find this keeps things organised. Basically think of nandroid as the Android equivalent of Acronis true image or Norton Ghost for the PC. It lets you create any number of backups which will restore your device to the exact state at the moment of backup.
And when I wipe my phone and install a new ROM, the new ROM just replaces all of my phone's old contents?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
A newly flashed ROM will basically restore your device to factory settings but on the new ROM. Once you've signed in to your Google account certain settings and content will be automatically downloaded e.g. Calendar appointments, Contacts. Other settings will not be restored e.g. Display brightness, alarms.
So if I ever flashed my original ROM again, it'd bring back all of my phone's contents, system memory, operating system, apps installed on the phone, ect?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nope, again it would return to the factory settings. However you can restore nandroid backups you have made of your original ROM which would return the system exactly to its previous state.
Basically if you're on a stock ROM it won't have A2SD. If you wish to use A2SD from now on then find a ROM which uses it, partition your SD card appropriately (Plenty of guides around) and you'll have minimal problems moving from ROM to ROM. As for Nandroid you'll find that most ROM devs recommend wiping all data from the phone (Not SD card) before flashing their ROM. Otherwise files or settings from other ROMs can cause some undesired effects on your current one.
Good luck and get reading the Nexus wiki, it's very helpful for these types of questions
Note: For some reason I vaguely remember someone noting that Froyos A2SD can be used to move apps to another ROM or at least the base app itself (If not the individual setup/settings) but I can't seem to find any info after a quick Google and it never interested me enough to look into it further. Perhaps someone can clear this up?

Hollow.Droid said:
Note: For some reason I vaguely remember someone noting that Froyos A2SD can be used to move apps to another ROM or at least the base app itself (If not the individual setup/settings)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I dont think thats true.. suppose it's formatted during a wipe.. titanium backup serves the purpose like a charm.. (with all the settings for the apps and the resumes for the games)
Sent from my Nexus One

I have a similar question to the OP. I use a 1GB EXT through DT's A2SD. If I wanted to flash a new ROM would the following be my step-checklist?
1 - Nand backup (just in case)
2 - Backup apps with Titanium
3 - wipe system data & cache
4 - flash new rom
5 - restore apps?
I'm just wondering what the procedure is to keep the apps in A2SD on a new flash without re-setting up.

Wiggz said:
I have a similar question to the OP. I use a 1GB EXT through DT's A2SD. If I wanted to flash a new ROM would the following be my step-checklist?
1 - Nand backup (just in case)
2 - Backup apps with Titanium
3 - wipe system data & cache
4 - flash new rom
5 - restore apps?
I'm just wondering what the procedure is to keep the apps in A2SD on a new flash without re-setting up.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yeah that would be fine..
btw 1: if you upgrading a cm nightly, you need not wipe system n cache..
2: if you do a titanium backup before, then you can finish all the steps in the recovery in one go..
n I dint quite get what you are asking. but from what I know, apps 2 sd folder (ie android.secure) is erased in a wipe.. that isnt changing
Sent from my Nexus One

shreyas - thanks for your help.
I understand the A2SD (EXT) partition onthe sd will be wiped, but I'm assuming I would have to do nothing to get the new rom to see the ext and use it?
That's really my question. Would recovering my apps from Titanium push them back on the A2SD location or would I need to install A2SD again?

i don't think so..
I suppose that the pro version must support the direct a2sd.. but give it a try.. if it dosent work then you have do manually..
Sent from my Nexus One

Begginers Tips

Hi all, I wanted to start a thread for beginners like me to not get confused from all the similar threads and to keep it clean for instructions that are related for basic setting up the phone.
It would be nice to keep the first post updated with data that are 100% correct for any region or provider based phone.
So, to get started with me, i have read through the threads for a couple of days but still have some questions that hopefully someone will answer.
1) SIM-Unlock
I recently got my Mini from my provider Telenor in Serbia, and the first thing for carrier based phones someone will probably want is to SIM-unlock them. You can check if your phone is locked by entering *#7465625# in the dialer pad.
The cleanest and fastest solution that works 100% so far is from this thread
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1335548
I used the second method since I'm on OSX and have no way of installing Android SDK but can find a hex editor ("Hex Fiend" ) that works under OSX.
2) ROM-Upgrade
For people that have SIM-free phones the first step may be upgrading to newer ROM(and since Ginger is the favorite ROM my guess that I don't need to write any info for Froyo based devices), my suggestion is that you download Official ROM-s from sammobile.com because they are guaranteed 100% clean and you can also find carrier based ROM-s if you mess something up and want to take your phone for warranty reparation.
How to update your phone to Ginger is described here
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1255305
After the update it is recommended to do cache and data cleanup. And a hard reset by entering *2767*3855# in the dialer pad.
Go into restore mode(Power off your phone, hold Home and Power button), and when a menu comes up select "clear cache", and "clean data", select reset afterwards and wait for it to boot .
After this you are ready to go and explore Android OS
3) Install CWM
And that's it for people who want to just use their phone as an android device. But. If you want to get the maximum potential from your device custom ROM-s are a must. For flashing custom ROM-s you will need Clock Work Mod to be installed, which is described here
http://yagyagaire.blogspot.com/2011/09/installing-clock-work-mod-recovery-in.html
4) Custom ROM
Afterwards download the custom Rom of your choice from xda , the installation instructions may wary form ROM to ROM but they always are described in their threads( SO READ THEM CAREFULLY ), here
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1318735
And here is where i stopper, and need further help from experienced people
My questions are:
1. After i installed the custom ROM, I need to repartition and reformat my sd-card to a different file system ex. ex-fat for faster performance using Clock Work Mod???
2. Do I have to do some zip-aligning and how???
3. How many partitions do i must have on my sd-card and what size/file system must they be??? ( i know one must be for swap, one for dalvik, and one to expand internal storage but I don't know how big and which file system).
4. I want to use a custom kernel for undervolting(no OC is needed) and thus i need to move the dalvik to sd card as far as I understood, is there a tutorial or is it intuitive from the app that is used to do this???

Bump, does anyone know any of the related questions?

1. After i installed the custom ROM, I need to repartition and reformat my sd-card to a different file system ex. ex-fat for faster performance using Clock Work Mod???
--> Two options:
-ClockWordMod Recovery.. CWM partitions the sd-ext in ext3 format. Also, swap can be partirioned here. Partitioning in CWM will reformat the whole sd card.
-If you want ext4 format, you can dowload Minitool Partition Wizard. I don't know if there is an OS X version though. If you can partition drives on OS X without 3rd party software, that's great.
2. Do I have to do some zip-aligning and how???
--> I don't think you have to zip-align it yourself. Depends on the ROM I think, it's probably a feature.
3. How many partitions do i must have on my sd-card and what size/file system must they be??? ( i know one must be for swap, one for dalvik, and one to expand internal storage but I don't know how big and which file system).
--> You need:
sd-ext (ext3 or ext4) - partition used to expand internal memory
fat/fat32 - normal partition
swap - depends on the ROM, CM7 by squad supports swap.. emanon v3 does not since it uses s2e, no option for swap..
--> Depending on the number of apps that you are planning to install, sd-ext can be 512MB or 1GB or 2GB. Swap value deplends as well, 32MB to 128MB, I think. I have not come across an article on what's the best value for this.
4. I want to use a custom kernel for undervolting(no OC is needed) and thus i need to move the dalvik to sd card as far as I understood, is there a tutorial or is it intuitive from the app that is used to do this???
--> did not find any.. not sure with other models.. for our mini, CM7 by squad has an undervolt option but not sure if it is working..

[Q] How to backup my data before formatting my SD card?

Hey Guys. I have a rooted Nexus One running CyanogenMod 7.2.0-RC0-N1-KANG. Sometime back I had my SD card connected to my PC via a memory card reader. I was deleting a video file but while the file was being deleted, my SD card got unmounted. I have no idea as to what happened but now it looks like I have considerable part of that space lost.
I did scan my SD card using Windows disk check but it found no errors. Now I am thinking of formatting my SD card. I have a 1 GB EXT3 partitioned 16 GB Sandisk SD card. Most of my apps are installed on the SD card. Which is the best way to format my SD card? Also I do have Rom Manager & Titanium Backup installed. How can I ensure that I back up all my data and do an easy restore? Alternately is there any way I can recover the lost space without formatting?
Any help will be greatly appreciated

there are some programs out there to retrieve lost disk data--i have not used any but a search may help
i bu all sdcard to pc then reformat with sdformatter with full erase and size adj ON, then repartition inside phone--0 swap
nandroid first

Thanks for replying rugmankc. Do you have a direct link to sdformatter? Also do you use rom manager for the partitioning? In case if I do backup my entire rom and then format my sd card, can I simply restore everything by loading up the backup? Can you give me some simple step by step procedure of backup & format? Thanks again for your help.

Sd formatter: https://www.sdcard.org/downloads/formatter_3/eula_windows
Nandroid backup
Backup to pc
Format sd card
Create partition (either wid pc or in recovery)
Copyback to sd card
PS: hv read ppl complaining abt rom manager aka cwm creating bad partitions.
Sent from my Nexus One using Tapatalk

Hey n1newbie. Thanks a lot for your reply. Sorry for being noobish but which is the best way to make a Nandroid backup and how can I partition with PC and recovery? Also once I copy back the backup on to my sd card, how do I restore the backup?

sorry for my late reply--nite here
i use this one--but shouldn't matter--just make sure you use full erase on and size adj on--you want complete format, not partial as phone does
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/28338566/SDFormatter 2.0.mht
the steps n1newbie gave you are good ones
i use amonra so don't know cwr steps
the partition steps are done inside phone for me, as i mentioned, thru recovery and should be straight forward, including steps to bu and restore
there is no best way to nandroid an that term/folder won't be seen in cwr, just cw backups. the options should all be there in cw or rom mgr, including restore
i bu sdcard regularly and titanium too

Hi y2jamit, its a pleasure to help u
Choosing recovery is ur preference (clockworkmod,amonra,4ext)
As rugmankc said, Making a nandroid backup and restoring is done via recovery mode and is jus straight forward. Remember to use the same recovery for safer side
To format in PC try any partition tools (mini tool parition wizard )
Sent from my Nexus One using Tapatalk

rugmankc & n1newbie, I really appreciate your help guys. Thank for making this so much more easier. I guess I now have the confidence to take the plunge

good luck
just read a lot on whatever you do so you have a good idea on it and then you can ask specific questions on the process--
ICS is still alpha so fairly unstable for a lot

[Q] Can't do Nandroid backup to ext SD Card

Can anyone tell me why ROM Manager Premium v5.0.2.4 won't allow me to select Use External Storage for a Nandroid backup? The option is greyed out. I've tried to contact the dev twice but they haven't bothered to reply so far.
I'm running out of space on the internal sd card and would like to use the external.
Thanks in advance
Trevor
Ultimate N7000 XXLS7 JellyBean 4.1.2. v4

if you are on xxls7,you should have philz recovery.
boot into recovery mode. go to backup and restore.
2 options there
1. backup; by default it backups up to ext sd
2. backup to internal sd; as it says.
use it manually.

Many thanks once again for your help. That worked fine and I can see the backup file on the ext sd card. Wonder why PhilZ couldn't have labelled Option 1 "Backup to Extenal sd" but it's fine once you know.
I'm still keen to know why I can't choose this option in ROM Manager. Some posts I read said it works as long as the ext sd card is formatted for FAT32 which mine is. What I like about RM is the ability to initiate backup and restore from the menu (assuming the phone can boot of course). Some criticisms of RM/CWM suggest it's getting out of date. Maybe this is one reason why.
At the risk of testing your patience, can I ask you
1. do you know why the time portion of the file is incorrect "2012-11-22.14.36.33"? I did this backup at 22:30 so assume it should be "2012-11-22.22.30" which is what I'd expect with RM? The time on the phone is correct.
2. Why the app says "No sd-ext found... " when it's actually backing up to the ext sd card? I see a similar message when using RM.
Sorry to keep coming back with more questions. I'm extremely grateful for your help.
Trevor
nokiamodeln91 said:
if you are on xxls7,you should have philz recovery.
boot into recovery mode. go to backup and restore.
2 options there
1. backup; by default it backups up to ext sd
2. backup to internal sd; as it says.
use it manually.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

1. dont know why.. mine shows the correct time
2. its comes on all notes i guess. its on mine too. may be a partition that is predefined on CWM but not on note

[Q] Extend Storage of Micromax Canvas Turbo [Encrypted]

I have read the thread by nrupesh2912 on how to extend storage on Micromax Canvas Turbo phone. It is really helpful, however I have some complications:
I have encrypted my Internal storage and (maybe) as a result I can't take a NANDROID backup of my device which is essential before formatting my SD Card.
Another member FSadino has suggested that I can directly flash a custom ROM / new stock ROM to my device right after extending the storage.
I can proceed with the steps mentioned in nrupesh2912's thread for extending my storage but after the green circle part I'm little confused on how to proceed.
Can anyone please explain how to do it? I want to install Pure Xperia Z2 ROM.
I have rooted my phone and have installed CWM recovery on it.
Please Help.

kalyan20191 said:
I have read the thread by nrupesh2912 on how to extend storage on Micromax Canvas Turbo phone. It is really helpful, however I have some complications:
I have encrypted my Internal storage and (maybe) as a result I can't take a NANDROID backup of my device which is essential before formatting my SD Card.
Another member FSadino has suggested that I can directly flash a custom ROM / new stock ROM to my device right after extending the storage.
I can proceed with the steps mentioned in nrupesh2912's thread for extending my storage but after the green circle part I'm little confused on how to proceed.
Can anyone please explain how to do it? I want to install Pure Xperia Z2 ROM.
I have rooted my phone and have installed CWM recovery on it.
Please Help.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So what do you want to do in your phone? Extend storage? Flash Stock Rom? Flash Custom Rom? Nandroid Backup?

FSadino said:
So what do you want to do in your phone? Extend storage? Flash Stock Rom? Flash Custom Rom? Nandroid Backup?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I want to extend storage and Flash a ROM.
Thanks

kalyan20191 said:
I want to extend storage and Flash a ROM.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. To Extend Phone Storage you have this tutorial that has pictures and is very well detailed. Which part of tutorial do not you understand?
2. To flash custom rom, each rom have instructions how to install. what is your doubt?

FSadino said:
1. To Extend Phone Storage you have this tutorial that has pictures and is very well detailed. Which part of tutorial do not you understand?
2. To flash custom rom, each rom have instructions how to install. what is your doubt?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Right I do not have any doubt in individual processes. What i don't understand is how do I place the zip file of ROM after extending the storage, since the memory card becomes corrupt and needs formatting?
Thanks

kalyan20191 said:
Right I do not have any doubt in individual processes. What i don't understand is how do I place the zip file of ROM after extending the storage, since the memory card becomes corrupt and needs formatting?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You have 2 options:
First flash rom then extend storage.
OR
First extend storage, format sd card, copy zip file to sd card, flash rom.

FSadino said:
You have 2 options:
First flash rom then extend storage.
OR
First extend storage, format sd card, copy zip file to sd card, flash rom.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Okay Great Thanks.
However, How do I format the SD card after extending storage? Can you please tell me?
Thanks

kalyan20191 said:
Okay Great Thanks.
However, How do I format the SD card after extending storage? Can you please tell me?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Settings/Storage/Erase SD Card
If you want to thanks some help you need to press Thanks Button