Hi all,
After reading some posts on Samsung S3 mini forum. Many problems could be fixed by doing a real format.
Many people aren't understanding a real format.
!!! A REAL FORMAT IS NOT THE SAME as WIPE DATA/FACTORY RESET.!!!
Real format = Format the whole data partition ( Rom, photo's, numbers, downlads,...)
wipe data = delete's your personal settings ( wallpapers , Gapps settings ,...)
It will not delete your external SD card
When doing a real format?
Installing a new rom ( from stock to custom rom)
When your rom isn't working ( bootloop) after a perfect download
When flashing from an other rom ( Carbon to CM and others)
When data partition is corrupted ( bootloop, troubles when starting up the rom)
After doing alot of flashing different Roms ( Not necessary , but it's Recommended)
When the developer brings updates from a rom, a real format isn't necessary. You can flash it over your excisting Rom
A real format is necessary in an update when the developer says it.
So here is the little guide for ClockworkmMod Recovery.
Power in Recovery mode by pressing Volume up, home and power buttom at the same time.
When in Recovery go to:
Mounts and storage --> "format /data and /data/media"
After this, you have a clean Phone and you can start flashing.
Tips:
When i do a real format, i format my system partition also.
!!!Have a Rom ready on your External SD card when doing a Real format !!!
That's all.
I hope this will help new users :highfive:
Greetz DjWacko
Related
Hello,
I was on stock Android 2.1 rooted + xRecovery + JIT + Link2SD.
I tried to install multiple custom roms (GingerDX 007, Floyo 1.0, FroyoBread 0.23) and did a Full Wipe in xRecovery (tried also CWM recovery from the Floyo).
There seems to be something "evil" going on, because multiple apps are still there from my 2.1 after full wipe or a full custom rom recovery. Some of these apps and/or services are crashing. And all of these custom roms are very laggy and slow as opposed to what I have read about them.
I do not understand why I cannot wipe everything out from my old installation.
Can anybody help please?
bump. bump.
Sounds like as you have some remains from Elcair on your SD card the new ROM somehow sees. After Full wipe (Factory Reset) and ROM Flash there shouldn't be any left-overs in the system or cache partition as xRecovery is formatting the NAND partitions.
Try backing up your data from the SD card and format it afterwards in Settings.
::: ROFL u hv to format partition... then it will not happen more
use MiniTool Partition Wizard Home Edition to format partition or delete all file from root explorer (sd ext)
Hi, apologies for my Noob questions.
I have been flashing various ICS Roms and kernels over the last few week - great fun etc. etc.
My SGS I9000 internal Sd/storage is getting pretty full with (probably useless data/folders/backups etc.) and I do not know what to safely delete....
I have started to get regular automatic reboots (3 or 4 per day) which I believe is related to these past installations...
Anyway, I would like to clean/format my phone so that I can start again.
How do I do this - what are the procedures
What will I lose?
What will I end up with - GB or ICS
What should I back up before hand?
Can I flash the latest ICS Rom or will I have go through the procedure of rooting the phone like I did when I was on GB?
Sorry for all these simple questions but I do not want to mess up my phone due to ignorance.
Thanks in advance for you help
Sorry, what is GB?
I recommend backup ur pics and music and do a sdxard and sd extrrnal back up (too have a clean phone).
Im using Cyanogen ICS 4.0.4 and works ok.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA
format
just go into cwm mode and go to advance now format dalvik cache, format system, format cache, format data........now reflash new rom.........ur problem will be shortout.
If u r a noob my friend... put a stable rom, the ics is a beta in i9000.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA
nikhilonlive said:
just go into cwm mode and go to advance now format dalvik cache, format system, format cache, format data........now reflash new rom.........ur problem will be shortout.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks Nikhilonlive,
Will the formatting clear all the "redundant/useless" folders etc. on my internal SD so if I looked at it before reflashing the Rom it would look pretty clean.
I would like to start with all the rubbish gone and only files/folders relating to latest Rom & my current Apps.
I hope that this makes sense...
Remember to install the gapps
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA
I did the following to fully clear my SGS:
Copied all important stuff e.g. Photos, Maps, preferred Rom to my external SD card - removed SD card for safety.
Back up SMS & Call log to gmail with "Backup to Gmail"
Then within Rom Control:
- Factory Data Reset/Reset Phone (tick erase SD Card) etc. etc.
- Within Storage - "erase SD card" (there will be nothing left on the SD card)
Put external SD card back into phone
Then in Recovery mode:
- Wipe data/factory reset
- Wipe cache partition
- (within Advanced) Wipe Dalvik cache
Install Rom
- Install zip from sdcard
- Choose zip from internal sdcard
- Infinitum-v2.1.zip (in my case)
- When installation is complete go back to "Reboot system now"
- Reboot system now
You should get the normal set up instructions to log into gmail etc.
- Apps should automatically install
- Restore SMS & Call log
- copy across maps etc. from external SD
This may be a little extreme but I wanted a very clean phone
My phone was clean, it only had data, apps & Maps that related to my latest Rom etc.
Stats after above:
Internal storage - Total Space = 1.85GB Apps etc. 281MB, Available Space 1.58GB
USB storage - Total Space = 5.63GB, Apps etc.264MB, Maps 1.286GB, Available Space 4.08GB
If I have done some unnecessary steps, please let me know.
Now with the release of many JB leaks for our Galaxy Note, more and more people are starting to flash custom ROMs into their devices. However, many don't do a proper clean-up / wipe of their devices before doing so, complaining about supposed "bugs" that in fact are not real bugs, but just incompatibilities with previous app data and config left from the previous ROM or improperly restored from backups (TB etc.).
So, after facing that myself with the first ROMs I flashed, reading a lot of tips from the senior members, and experimenting different approaches, I came up with a method that I always follow before flashing a new ROM, which gives me less or no issues at all.
Pros: you minimize the chance of having issues when flashing a new ROM.
Cons: you have to manually reinstall your apps (can be somewhat automated from Google Play) and reconfigure everything.
Pre-reqs: I'm assuming you have CWM installed and know how to use it, and are not a complete noob. If you don't, search the forums and read the guides. Read this guide fully and make sure you understand everything before proceeding.
IMPORTANT: ONLY wipe your device if you have a SAFE (BRICK-FREE) KERNEL. Check your kernel and search the forums. Don't proceed if you are not sure! I'm not responsible for any bricks, unexpected issues that can happen to you or personal data loss because you forgot to backup that! If you want to stay safe, don't want to experiment with your cell phone, it's critical you have it working everytime, stay with the official Samsung ROMs updates you get OTA and don't proceed with this how-to.
How-to:
1) Boot into recovery and perform a full backup (a.k.a. nandroid) to your internal or external SD card.
2) Reboot, and create backups of personal data needed from your apps in your internal or external SD card. For instance, I backup data from apps which are not cloud-based; they usually have a "backup" menu for that.
3) Plug your device into your computer, and copy everything you need from your internal and external SD cards (including the backups done in 1) and 2)). Don't forget your pictures and MP3 files.
4) Delete any apps and data from your external SD card. Leave it as clean as possible (it's OK to leave personal data such as MP3s, pictures etc.).
5) Copy the ROM you are about to flash to your EXTERNAL SD Card (don't copy to internal, because we are going to wipe it).
6) Boot into CWM Recovery and do the following wipes:
6.1) Wipe data / factory reset
6.2) Wipe cache partition
6.3) Advanced -> Wipe dalvik cache
6.4) Mounts and Storage -> Format /system
6.5) Mounts and Storage -> Format /preload
6.6) Mounts and Storage -> Format internal SD card (make sure you know if your internal SD card if /emmc or /sdcard; see below!)
7) Install Zip -> Flash ROM from your external SD card.
8) Wipe cache partition again.
9) Advanced -> Wipe dalvik cache again.
10) Reboot
11) Don't restore anything from Titanium Backup. Reinstall and reconfigure everything from Google Play. I never tried but I think that if you just restore user apps, it should work. Just never restore system apps and data. The backups you created in step 2) and copied to your computer in step 3) can be safely restored from within the apps themselves.
Now you may ask why we format the internal SD card. Many apps store their configuration and app data there, so this way we ensure no old data and config are there which may be incompatible with the new ROM. In fact it might not be that important, since it's only related to user apps, but I prefer to clean everything before flashing a new ROM.
How to find if your internal SD card is mounted on /emmc or /sdcard in CWM Recovery:
1) Boot into CWM Recovery.
2) Install Zip -> Choose zip from internal sdcard. In the top you can see where yours is mounted (/emmc or /sdcard).
3) This is the partition you should format in step 6.6. Pay attention to not format the external SD card, because the ROM zip file is there!
If you still have issues after flashing a new ROM, try to reflash it without any wipes (i.e. just do step 7 again).
Hope it can help people with their flashing!
Good job
Is it any better to just install user apps from google play and then restore just the data from TB?
Sent from my GT-N7000 using xda app-developers app
allansy said:
Is it any better to just install user apps from google play and then restore just the data from TB?
Sent from my GT-N7000 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No..the main purpose of the thread is to remove the incompatible app data and system data
Useful.
Sent from my GT-N7000 using xda premium
dbolivar said:
How-to:
6.1) Wipe data / factory reset
6.2) Wipe cache partition
6.3) Advanced -> Wipe dalvik cache
6.4) Mounts and Storage -> Format /system
6.5) Mounts and Storage -> Format /preload
6.6) Mounts and Storage -> Format internal SD card (make sure you know if your internal SD card if /emmc or /sdcard; see below!)
7) Install Zip -> Flash ROM from your external SD card.
8) Wipe cache partition again.
9) Advanced -> Wipe dalvik cache again.
10) Reboot
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
6.2 ---> unnecessary, because factory reset wipes user data and cache
6.6 ---> how on earth does formatting internal SD card help flashing any Rom?
8) ---> unnecessary, because your cache is already wiped
9) ---> see above
6.2) True, thanks for pointing out.
6.6) Some apps, including ones that usually give strange issues between ROM flashes like SNote, leave data there which may cause incompatibilities with a different version. This incompatibility is just a guess; as I said in the original post, it may not be that necessary to format the internal SD card, but I prefer to make sure there is no old data at all floating around, and this recommendation can also be useful when people are going to sell their devices (many think that just a factory reset is enough).
8) and 9) Is it possible that a new ROM can come with stuff in cache and dalvik cache, say, from the developer testing/cooking environment? If it is, can be useful to clean it again after flashing. Otherwise, I agree, it can be skipped.
Yeah total clean scenario is best. In my opinion. So also SD, but never efs
Sent from my GT-N7000 using Tapatalk 2
I too do things that are not necessary, I have a ritual when doing a deep clean lol
It involves things like the above method, but i do it twice.. No harm in that is there !
azzledazzle said:
I too do things that are not necessary, I have a ritual when doing a deep clean lol
It involves things like the above method, but i do it twice.. No harm in that is there !
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wel, better safe then sorry. Totally clean just feels right
Sent from my GT-N7000 using Tapatalk 2
Thank you very much. I will do this like you say.
I have CWM v6.0.1.2 and I don't have format/ preload. What can I do?
You can try to proceed without formatting it, or you can first flash a kernel with a more recent CWM. Always a safe kernel, of course. After flashing it, you can just select "reboot recovery" from your current CWM to boot into the new CWM. I'm not sure if the absence of /preload is due to an old CWM, or it's because you don't have a /preload partition. Anyway, trying a newer CWM won't harm.
i follow this guide , considering that i'm a noob it mean that is written really really clear. Thanks for all your job . i have a clean cooked rooted cell now.
error preload
Hello, I got error when formatting preload
it is said "make_extf4fs failed on/dev/block/mmcblk0p9
and when i'm trying to format/scard it pop up some type format
"deafult
"exfat
"fat
bla bla bla
so i choose default, am i right to choose it?
what should i do?
What device, what recovery, what rom?
dbolivar said:
flashing!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey bro,
i forgot to do step 9
9) Advanced -> Wipe dalvik cache again.
Phone is working fine, but just curious. will it have any effect ? or will it cause any problem later ?
Right, ive rooted my note, and im looking for an iPhone type Miui theme rom, ive looked at how to install the new rom and i have no idea what to do, it says that i cant flash on stock ICS ROM, currently running 4.0.1 atm, and it also says something about Aroma Installer. i am a big newb when it comes to this, i dont wanna f**k my phone up so can someone help me and tell me what to do please?
Firstly remove the stock kernel, thats what it is referring to, So flash something safe like Philz or Hydracore.
And also, Aroma installer is something that will appear when flashing via CWM, it is a neat feature which allows you to pick and choose optional extras to install, or to remove certain things from installing.
Once it appears just follow the instructions, its simple really.
when i rooted it i changed to franko kernel? what do i need to flash Miui ROM Vengeance Note v2_4-08 09 2012? im downloading that atm
Go with something popular like philz or hydracore, it will be overwritten once the ROM installs anyway.
Make sure to do the wipes (if necessary)
so i install that kernel, then flash the rom using cwm and it says to do a wipe, how do i wipe it?
In recovery there are several options, you will need to wipe data / Factory reset, then wipe cache, then go to advanced and wipe dalvik cache.
You may also need to format /system and /preload, you will find these under the mounts and storage menu
Sent from my GT-N7000 using xda premium
i still have no idea what to do.. all i know is when doing a new rom install in from sd card is all i know, i need an easy to understand explaination lol because what you're saying is just letters to me, if you can tell me how to do it because i dont know what im doing..
Okay, so you're completely stock now right? If so, head over to original android development section and download either philz kernel for your version (find this in settings > about phone) or hydracore kernel (this needs to be flashed with odin unless you are already rooted with Cwm recovery, if not just use philz)
Once downloaded place on your internal sd card, power the phone off, hold volume up + home + power all at once until you enter recovery.
Now select apply update from sd card or update . zip (can't remember which one) once flashed do the same procedure again, this time you will notice how different it is.
Now either mount usb storage in recovery (under mounts and storage) or reboot the phone to use mtp / mass storage.
Place MIUI rom in your internal sd card, reboot into recovery, select wipe data / Factory reset (will remove all apps and data, not media, so backup what's important before hand)
Now select wipe cache, then go to advanced and select wipe dalvik cache.
Now go to install zip from sd card, then choose zip from internal sd card, find the MIUI rom and flash it.
Once done, reboot and wait upto 10mins for it to boot properly.
Double check to MIUI thread for install instructions as you may need to format system and preload too when performing the full wipe in recovery.
Sent from my GT-N7000 using xda premium
oh my word...you typed all this from your phone? hoped you were using a bluetooth keyboard...
good luck paul on your install
thanks azz for typing this up..definitely bookmark worthy.
azzledazzle said:
Okay, so you're completely stock now right? If so, head over to original android development section and download either philz kernel for your version (find this in settings > about phone) or hydracore kernel (this needs to be flashed with odin unless you are already rooted with Cwm recovery, if not just use philz)
Once downloaded place on your internal sd card, power the phone off, hold volume up + home + power all at once until you enter recovery.
Now select apply update from sd card or update . zip (can't remember which one) once flashed do the same procedure again, this time you will notice how different it is.
Now either mount usb storage in recovery (under mounts and storage) or reboot the phone to use mtp / mass storage.
Place MIUI rom in your internal sd card, reboot into recovery, select wipe data / Factory reset (will remove all apps and data, not media, so backup what's important before hand)
Now select wipe cache, then go to advanced and select wipe dalvik cache.
Now go to install zip from sd card, then choose zip from internal sd card, find the MIUI rom and flash it.
Once done, reboot and wait upto 10mins for it to boot properly.
Double check to MIUI thread for install instructions as you may need to format system and preload too when performing the full wipe in recovery.
Sent from my GT-N7000 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There have been several threads about this in the past, but I couldn't find one which is actually up-to-date.
I have been flashing my N7000 for years now. I've been using several custom recovery menu's and ROMS and re-partitioned my internal storage as suggested here. I currently have the following installed on my phone:
NightOwl 20151030
PhilZ Touch 6.59.0
ClockworkMod v6.0.5.1 (as shown in PhilZ)
What I would like to do is perform a full, 100% wipe of my phone before re-flashing the same ROM I currently have installed, perhaps even update my recovery or whatnot in case my phone would benefit from it (suggestions are welcome).
The original instructions from the NightOwl thread mention the following when you want to manually update:
1. Copy Rom to your sdcard.
2. Boot into recovery
3. Flash the Rom (in current versions you dont need to reflash the gapps)
4. Wipe dalvik-cache and format the /cache partition (This will not delete your apps or data)
5. Reboot
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As mentioned these steps will not remove your apps or data. I understand that a "factory reset" does. However, I still wonder if this (including a factory reset) will actually wipe my phone 100% clean before flashing a new ROM.
That would be the following options in recovery
Factory reset to wipe data and cache
Format system
And if you want to wipe internal memory then format sdcard0.
Be careful of where you have the zip file of rom to flash again.
In CWM, go to "Mounts and Storage" section and there you'll find options to wipe totally everything.