Bricked after editing build.prop - Galaxy S5 Mini Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

Hi, All!
I rooted my galaxy s5 mini (SM-g800F) using kingo root.
Since then i edited something in the build.prop that said something like 'ro.securesystem=true' and deleted the whole sentance (before, after and including the =) and replaced it with 'false'- I did this so i could see the wifi keys of the networks ive previously connected to).
i rebooted my device and got stuck in a bootloop.
I started watching a video turorial online to fix the problem which got me downloading samsung mobile usb drivers and adb drivers.
But then i couldnt go any further because I dont have cwm recovery (only stock) nor had i created a backup build.prop file.
Can i get cwm onto the phone via usb? Can i get the original build.prop file on there as well some how?
I have also downloaded odin, the custom firmware for my device (orginal unrouted ROM) and android studio.
Also when using the adb in cmd prompt it detects the device when i type 'adb devices' but when typing in 'adb shell' it returns 'error:closed'
I hope the information I've given will be enough to help me out with a method of unbricking this thing, otherwise will factory resting get it back up and running or not?
Any help will be much appreciated
Thanks!

Use Odin to flash the exact stock firmware version you have now. If you are lucky you won't need to factory reset it afterwards in order to boot... Using Odin won't touch your data partition but if you have some incompatible software you will need a factory reset in order to boot normally. If you rooted or flashed a custom kernel you may need to flash stock ROM twice to fully restore the system.

Related

[Q] soft bricked lg g2. expert knowledge needed ;)

Hello guys,
i bricked my vs980 and now i need help.
Here is the story.
I was on 4.4.2 ROM. i installed towelroot and rooted phone. Then i downloaded autorec for vs980 to install twrp. After reboot all i can see on phone are colorful lines. Phone wont boot to OS (after few seconds it auto reboots). I have no download mode or fastboot mode. ALL i have is twrp installed, but i cant see anything on screen (anythinkg usefull - only those multi-colored lines). In twrp i can enter sideload mode.
When i enter sideload mode i see i adb my phone and it says im in sideload mode. So using adb i can install something (at least i think so).
Is it possible to unbrick my phone or is it totally lost?
I think i would need to somehow install original partitions on it using adb sideload.
I dont know how. i tried installing some roms, no success. Still phone wont boot to OS. I propably messed something with partitions when i was trying to unbrick it.
I tried installing kernel KK_Kernel_VS980_jdi, it doesnt help.
Any help appreciated. Thanks in advance.
// edit
Restoring download mode would be good. I would flash kdz then. But no idea how to do it having adb sideload only
//edit 2
I managed using sideload to flash 26a bootskatck and xdabbeb 2.3.0 rom. Then i flashed KK_Kernel_VS980_jdi which should repair those white lines. Now in recovery i still have all those lines (cant see anything on screen), but phone boots to OS. In OS, there are some lines but i can see everything on the screen (KK_Kernel_VS980_jdi helped). I guess now i need to restore download mode. But how?
//edit 3
I restored dl mode using zip from xdabbeb 2.3.0 thread and managed to install 24a using kdz method. It partiallly repaired phone - there are some lines, but according to info found on net they will disappear after some time (24h approx).
Rafal.

Unable to Reflash via LG Flash Tool

Hey all, thanks for reading. I've caught myself in a predicament. I can solve most issues that crop up my way, but right now I'm a bit stuck. It is likely fairly simple and I am just dumb...
The huge issue here is that I am running stock lollipop for the D415 model. I am having the typical base-band and WiFi issue that a lot were having. Like most, I just booted up into TWRP and restored a backup. I Wanted to try again so I flashed the stock ROM and tried again; didn't work...oopss..
LG Flash Tool refuses to locate my device. Download mode fails to connect my device properly. Error is:
EP1/out FAIL nfo=40 pg0=ffbd880
usb_read() transaction failed
So now I am stuck with a broken stock ROM, no TWRP, and no current way to re-flash a stock ROM.
Steps taken so far:
1. Reinstall all drivers
2. Attempt to root and install TWRP to access my backups (No access to Download mode)
3. Started all over with original USB.
What can I do? Thank you again for reading my long post.
Came back to it after a few weeks and issue has been resolved. Despite error warnings fastboot operated correctly, only manually. Any script etc. that booted device into fastboot would never find the device. Simple as flashing recovery and restoring a backup.
tl;dr: I'm not very bright.
FiniteDGk said:
Hey all, thanks for reading. I've caught myself in a predicament. I can solve most issues that crop up my way, but right now I'm a bit stuck. It is likely fairly simple and I am just dumb...
The huge issue here is that I am running stock lollipop for the D415 model. I am having the typical base-band and WiFi issue that a lot were having. Like most, I just booted up into TWRP and restored a backup. I Wanted to try again so I flashed the stock ROM and tried again; didn't work...oopss..
LG Flash Tool refuses to locate my device. Download mode fails to connect my device properly. Error is:
EP1/out FAIL nfo=40 pg0=ffbd880
usb_read() transaction failed
So now I am stuck with a broken stock ROM, no TWRP, and no current way to re-flash a stock KDZ.
Steps taken so far:
1. Reinstall all drivers
2. Attempt to root and install TWRP to access my backups (No access to Download mode)
3. Started all over with original USB.
What can I do? Thank you again for reading my long post.
EDIT: Forgot to include that I see the proper devices in device manager.
EDIT 2: Device is properly configured and can be found in ADB when powered on.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
where u able to fix it? i currently have no recovery or OS it just stays at the LG screen i can only get into Download mode i tried to flash a kdz but it cant read my phone....it turns on but thats it i cant got past the LG screen and when i connect my phone now i get different device drivers than before like LGE AndroidNet USB Serial Port and USB Modem....idk what to do

I simply cannot flash recovery

I nearly bricked my Razr i XT when downgrading from a Kitkat update to JB 4.1.2 but thanks to the great work here I am making some progress but cannot get Recovery or Root. the unlocking of bootloader via the Motorola website went fine and thanks to this post
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2239706 I got the rom I wanted, and it's fine.
I have read many other tutorials on installing a recovery and have downloaded and tried 6 or 7 CWM and TWRP images
but it never completes - fastboot says it has, but the phone stubbornly hangs at the flashing.
I have no problems getting into fastboot, but failed many times, and in desperation have tried with USB debugging on and off
and with and without sim and sdcard inserted.
attached are some photos to show where I am stuck at, and I would greatly appreciate some help
carkev said:
I nearly bricked my Razr i XT when downgrading from a Kitkat update to JB 4.1.2 but thanks to the great work here I am making some progress but cannot get Recovery or Root. the unlocking of bootloader via the Motorola website went fine and thanks to this post
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2239706 I got the rom I wanted, and it's fine.
I have read many other tutorials on installing a recovery and have downloaded and tried 6 or 7 CWM and TWRP images
but it never completes - fastboot says it has, but the phone stubbornly hangs at the flashing.
I have no problems getting into fastboot, but failed many times, and in desperation have tried with USB debugging on and off
and with and without sim and sdcard inserted.
attached are some photos to show where I am stuck at, and I would greatly appreciate some help
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
U said fastboot hangs at flashing the recovery, but on the command lines on your PC it says finished. Have u tried booting into recovery?
What recovery did u use and where did u get it?
USB debugging, simcard and sdcard don't have anything to do with fastboot. But it is likely that u didn't know that
thanks for looking at this.
I did try booting into recovery from my PC by after rebooting it and then taking the recovery option, but the phone hung at the Motorola bootloader unlocked warning screen.
this link was typical of the various tutorials I used: http://androidteen.com/motorola-razr-i-how-to-root-and-install-clockworkmod-cwm-recovery-on-android-4-1-2-jelly-bean-firmware/
to be fair I cannot recall where I got all the recovery images from - I have that many, and had to rename them recovery.img, so cannot remember the original download names
update:
I have just tried an app from the google play named Root Android, which advised trying other apps - Kingroot, Framaroot & Towelroot,
but they all failed .
what did catch my eye yesterday was the yellow text when in fastboot that says 'dismatched partition entry'
I ignored it as the img files I was trying to flash are all much smaller than the 100mb stated,
but today I am beginning to think that perhaps my recovery partition is corrupt and look for ways to repair it.
does that make any sense?
carkev said:
update:
I have just tried an app from the google play named Root Android, which advised trying other apps - Kingroot, Framaroot & Towelroot,
but they all failed .
what did catch my eye yesterday was the yellow text when in fastboot that says 'dismatched partition entry'
I ignored it as the img files I was trying to flash are all much smaller than the 100mb stated,
but today I am beginning to think that perhaps my recovery partition is corrupt and look for ways to repair it.
does that make any sense?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That could be it. Try flashing a rsd lite package from JB. Than go to the recovery and see if u have stock back.
Hazou said:
That could be it. Try flashing a rsd lite package from JB. Than go to the recovery and see if u have stock back.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thanks HazouPH, I'll give that a go
I have solved my problem with CWM:victory:
whilst I am not 100% certain I am pretty much sure it was a driver problem - for those who this may benefit, here is what I did.
1. I did not reflash my phone, but stayed with the one in my original post.
2. remember that the main problem was that Fastboot said I had succeeded in flashing a Recovery image, but that the phone 'hung'
at flash as in my photo. and then from my phone I could not get to recovery from the fastboot menu .
3. I stumbled across a posting (on XDA, but I cannot remember where) that said the Motorola drivers were not as good as they should be and that the Motohelper one's would be fine - so I downloaded them, and have attached the zip below.
4. I then decided to tidy up my PC and uninstalled all mobile phone drivers, plus any redundant USB Device drivers
5 for the USB tidying up I tend to use USBdview, which is superb and can be found here
6 when all this was done I simply tried the reflash of CWM - and got the same situation I had been having all along
but amazingly, when I selected 'recovery' it went in CWM - I nearly fainted with surprise!
from all this I can only assume it was a driver problem as I had changed nothing else.
perhaps it was Motohelper drivers- perhaps it was USBdview that did it for me - I will never really know, nor care!
I now have CWM v6.0.1.9 - it is touchscreen and permanent, plus I use the cute Reboot by app by Petrus to control my phone.
happy days!

adb unauthorized help

Good morning i just got my lg g4 yesterday i was able to root it and flash custom recovery twrp via adb yesturday i even flashed some roms but today no matter what i do i cant get adb to work i keep on getting unathorized. On adb im stuck i cant get to boot to twrp either every time i try to whit the buttons vol down power at factory resets im stuck on exorsism rom but because i factory reset it dont got super su i tried diffrent computers and i get same error i uninstall android sdk and install whit no luck i tried lg flash tool to flash KDZ file gives me error can't connect to network try again in a few minutes can some help is their away to boot to twrp whit out adb ? Or how can. I fix the unauthorized on adb i think the problem is in my phone i tried diffrent computers windows 7 and 10 any help will greatly appreciates thanks
Sent from my LG-H811 using XDA-Developers mobile app
Did you try USB 2.0, if you a have a USB3.0 port it causes problems,
does your G4 serial starts with serial 505 to 510 and harware 1.0 ? those seems affected by the hardware flaw that makes boot loops
I read somewhere in here that serials 601and upper have the bootloop flaw fixed
Anyway, if you have an SD card installed, with the phone off remove it
and try again without the SD card
sometimes that helps
looks like G4 is a unstable beast
I did the same thing, I still haven't gotten adb working again but you can boot into recovery via kernel auditor. Or do a factory reset via the hardware keys and it will take you to twrp.
Sent from my LG-H811 using Tapatalk
I'm stuck at pretty much the same juncture. Kernel Auditor requires root to function (which we both seem to have lost) and the hardware buttons/factory reset just do that then boot me back into the rom. I also assume it's something with the phone since it reads "unauthorized" on 3 separate machines. Any other thoughts guys?
Also it has become apparent that although I fastbooted into TWRP initially, it did not stick. Leaving me with stock recovery, and clueless how to flash a recovery without ADB access.
@oogsaggie this what i did to get it fixed just download LGUP, put it in download mode, download the 20i KDZ file, and go back to stock 20i. and then root again make sure you permanently flash twrp move the twrp. image to your phone and flash iy from twrp
Sent from my LG-H811 using XDA-Developers mobile app
COCODRILO45 said:
@oogsaggie this what i did to get it fixed just download LGUP, put it in download mode, download the 20i KDZ file, and go back to stock 20i. and then root again make sure you permanently flash twrp move the twrp. image to your phone and flash iy from twrp
Sent from my LG-H811 using XDA-Developers mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
@COCODRILO45 Ended up doing exactly that. Wish I had seen your post earlier, but regardless great minds and all that stuff. For future reference I think COCODRILO45's solution is the most painless way to go. Cheers!

Factory Reset to Stock (8.0) from root 8.0 updated to 8.1 - No USB Connection

Greetings,
I recently got a Pixel 2 XL and the first thing I did was try to root with SuperSU and TWRP. I had some issues with it and someone suggested Magisk. It worked great and I was able to update from the 8.0 to 8.1 with root. I kept up with the latest Magisk installs until the past week or so.
My phones USB port appears to have failed partially. Luckily I can still charge, but there is no way to see the device storage from a PC. Support has defaulted, after much troubleshooting, to an RMA solution with a refurbished phone. Thankfully, this seems to be covered by warranty and isn't going to pose a cost issue. However, through the troubleshooting I was forced to do a factory reset. I looked up some information regarding factory reset with rooted devices. I cannot find the exact tutorial I followed or thread I gained the how-to information, I'm not sure which it was. I simply searched how to factory reset magisk 8.1 device. It was quick and most of the stuff I find now has the same information.
Open Magisk, uninstall. Open TWRP, uninstall. Device Settings, Factory Reset. Easy
This seemed to have worked. I didn't run into any locked hardware issues thankful because I don't have USB to really flash something to it.
Before I continued, prior to attempting the reset I fully backed up the device to my computer using ES File Explorers FTP transfer over the wifi. This was great, lots of photos were able to be saved with no hassle. I copied the entire root directory and have it backed up.
The problem with the reset is that while Magisk remained uninstalled, TWRP has a basic file installed that upgrades to the full app. I still have root, which would have been nice, except I still need to unroot and go back to factory settings before I can send this device in.
Before I make a mistake moving forward, I want to find the best way to unroot, (preferrably relock the boot also), and return to factory stock as it was the day I got it so I can return in it in the best state I can.
I am running rooted android 8.1.0 Pixel 2 XL with kernel 4.4.88 if the helps. When I reset to factory defaults TWRP remains installed and root persists. I cannot connect via USB and run android dev tools to flash anything directly. How can I restore this device? I should have all original kernels backed up. During the root process I remember them saying to copy the old ROMs first and I performed every step exactly. I do have access to move files to and from the device via WiFi. Is it this even possible?
PS, does anyone think the firmware and rooted install could be the problem with the USB? It seems entirely like failed hardware to me but the troubleshooting was extremely thorough and seems to indicate softare/firmware are likely to be the issue instead of the hardware issue that was determined. Could this still rooted device have corrupted the USB transfer? It seems I should do my best to rule this out as well, more so than just giving them a factory reset device. I'd rather keep my phone if it can be fixed easily, than obtain a possibly low quality heavily used refurbished model.
Regards
Did you try removing and reinstalling the drivers?
Sent from my MI 5 using Tapatalk
teddy0209 said:
Did you try removing and reinstalling the drivers?
Sent from my MI 5 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I assume you mean for the PC. Yes, I have tried uninstalling and reinstalling both using Microsofts found drivers and directly sent packages from the support team. Updates and 2 different PCs. DevKit installed on the one I originally used to root and a new PC with fresh driver installs.
They wouldn't suggest drivers for the phone, if you know of a way to install new drivers for the phone, please let me know, I'd definitely give that a shot.
Regards
BlazzedTroll said:
I assume you mean for the PC. Yes, I have tried uninstalling and reinstalling both using Microsofts found drivers and directly sent packages from the support team. Updates and 2 different PCs. DevKit installed on the one I originally used to root and a new PC with fresh driver installs.
They wouldn't suggest drivers for the phone, if you know of a way to install new drivers for the phone, please let me know, I'd definitely give that a shot.
Regards
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I should include all troubleshooting I mentioned for those that think they have a solution for the dead USB. My original request was for the OTA flash directions without USB, but I think a lot of people will want to suggest fixes for the phone as I suggested in the PS section.
Step 1: Check computer software.
Windows users, check to see if you have the latest version of Windows Media Player and have installed all recent system updates. Visit omitted for more information.
Mac users, make sure you install and are using Android File Transfer. Visit omitted for more information.
Step 2: Check for system updates.
On your device, go to "Settings" > Scroll down to "System" > Touch "About phone" (or tablet) > Touch "System updates".
If your device has a modified OS, troubleshooting may not resolve your device issue. Re-image your device back to Android factory settings using the instructions from the following link: omitted
Step 3: Restart your device in safe mode.
With the device on, hold the Power button to get the "Power off" prompt.
Touch and hold "Power off" until the "Reboot to safe mode" prompt appears.
Touch "OK" to reboot in safe mode.
Note: To exit safe mode later, simply restart the device normally.
Step 4: Unlock your device.
Before connecting the device to a computer, if your device is password protected, unlock your device. A locked device will not connect to the computer.
Step 5: Connect USB cable directly into computer.
If the USB cable is connected through a USB hub or extension, unplug the cable from the hub/extension and plug it directly to the computer.
A pop-up window should appear.
Mac users will have the Android File Transfer window appear.
Windows users may have a pop-up window appear. If not: On the computer, click the Windows Start button on the bottom left > click Computer > under Portable Devices, click on the device > click on the device's Internal Storage.
Step 6: Test if you can transfer files.
Try transferring a small file.
If file transfer works, success! No need to do the next steps.
If file transfer still isn't working (no pop-up windows to allow file transfer), proceed to Step 7.
Step 7: Change your USB computer connection settings.
Android 6+ Marshmallow only:
Plug in the device.
Slide down the notifications drawer from the top of the screen.
Touch the notification saying "USB for charging."
Touch the option for "File Transfers".
Test file transfer again (from Step 6). If the file transfer does not work, proceed to Step 8.
Older Android OS Versions:
Go to "Settings", under "Device," touch "Storage"​ > touch the "Menu" button (three vertical boxes at the top right) > touch "USB computer connection".
Only Media Transfer Protocol (MTP) should be checked. Uncheck MTP, check and then uncheck PTP, then re-check MTP.
Test file transfer again (from Step 6). If the file transfer does not work, proceed to Step 8.
Step 8: Windows Only: Install Google USB Driver.
Go to omitted and click the blue button on the right labeled "Download Google USB Driver."
After the download completes, right click the file ("latest_usb_driver_windows.zip") and select "Extract All."
Follow the USB Driver installation instructions available here: omitted
Test file transfer again. If file transfer still isn't working (no pop-up windows to allow file transfer), proceed to Step 9.
Step 9: Turn on "Developer options" and disable USB debugging.
Go to "Settings."
If using a phone, swipe down the screen with two fingers, then touch "Settings."
If using a tablet, swipe down the screen from the right side of the top of the screen, then touch "Settings."
Scroll down to "System" and touch "Developer options." If you don't see "Developer options," turn them on as follows:
Touch "About phone."
Scroll down to the "Build number."
Touch "Build number" 7 times to activate "Developer options."
Under "Debugging," verify that the box for "USB Debugging" is not checked. If it is checked, touch the checkmark to uncheck "USB Debugging."
Once USB Debugging has been deactivated, test file transfer again.
Step 10: Try different USB connections.
Try plugging the USB cable into a different USB port on the same computer.
Try connecting to the same computer but using a different/spare USB cable.
Try connecting your device to another computer.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My apologies on readability, I tried to include HTML formatting. I couldn't figure it out, the options support code highlighting but not the code itself.
Additionally, I tried different USB cables, safe mode, and the factory reset that I could perform.
@BlazzedTroll
Summary:
You've uninstalled Magisk, so you don't have root access when booted. TWRP still remains, so you have root access there.
If I read you correctly, what you need to do is to get rid of TWRP. Right?
Download the corresponding factory image, extract recovery.img and flash that by issuing the Install Image option in TWRP.
Just make sure you've done everything you need to before doing this, since you can't get back to a custom recovery if your USB really is busted. Other things to do could include flashing the system.img the same way to revert any possible /system modifications, etc.
Didgeridoohan said:
@BlazzedTroll
Summary:
You've uninstalled Magisk, so you don't have root access when booted. TWRP still remains, so you have root access there.
If I read you correctly, what you need to do is to get rid of TWRP. Right?
Download the corresponding factory image, extract recovery.img and flash that by issuing the Install Image option in TWRP.
Just make sure you've done everything you need to before doing this, since you can't get back to a custom recovery if your USB really is busted. Other things to do could include flashing the system.img the same way to revert any possible /system modifications, etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When you say corresponding factory image, does that mean I need the exact one that came on the device? Or just the latest factory image for the right device?
*EDIT* Never mind that, I found the backup folder in the Unified Toolkit which contains a compressed zip just like the ones on the site. I'll use that and transfer to my device over WiFi and use TWRP to flash it and come back with the results.
Thank you for your assistance
@Didgeridoohan
I have a backup locally saved that resembles those packages. I was unable to locate a recovery.img in either my saved file or the one on the site. My version that was backed up was 1.171019.011, which is 8.1. I know my phone came originally with 8.0 so I tried looking at one of the those for a recovery.img and still could not locate one.
In the zip there are several files
bootloader-taimen-tmz12a.img
flash-all.bat
flash-all.sh
flash-base.sh
another zip
radio-taimen-g8998-00164-17... .img
inside the second zip, many more .img files looked promising
abl.img
aes.img
android-info.txt
boot.img
cmnlib.img
cmnlib64.img
devcfg.img
dtbo.img
hyp.img
keymaster.img
laf.img
modem.img
pmic.img
rpm.img
system.img
system_other.img
tz.img
vbmeta.img
vendor.img
xbl.img
Same files in all 3 zips I checked.
TWRP only expects recovery.img for "BACKUP EXISTING RECOVERY"
TWRP also has "TWRP FLASH", which I did as one of my troubleshooting steps before and got the Google Pixel 2 XL (taimen) flash. These still keep the TWRP and root, which I believe is to be expected for that flash option.
DELETED
BlazzedTroll said:
I assume you mean for the PC. Yes, I have tried uninstalling and reinstalling both using Microsofts found drivers and directly sent packages from the support team. Updates and 2 different PCs. DevKit installed on the one I originally used to root and a new PC with fresh driver installs.
They wouldn't suggest drivers for the phone, if you know of a way to install new drivers for the phone, please let me know, I'd definitely give that a shot.
Regards
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're right, I mean for PC...
You can usually get twrp backups from same device with same rom and flash it on yours via twrp ( ask on your device forum)... You will need system.img, recovery.img, and boot.img... I'm not so sure if you can relock the device without working usb/fastboot...
Sent from my MI 5 using Tapatalk
@BlazzedTroll
My apologies... I'm still not used to these damned A/B devices. :laugh:
If I remember correctly, recovery is included in the boot image, so what you need to do is flash the stock boot.img file to slot A. Don't know if this is possible in TWRP.
teddy0209 said:
You're right, I mean for PC...
You can usually get twrp backups from same device with same rom and flash it on yours via twrp ( ask on your device forum)... You will need system.img, recovery.img, and boot.img... I'm not so sure if you can relock the device without working usb/fastboot...
Sent from my MI 5 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'll give this a shot, I have system.img and boot.img, as I said in reply to Didgeridoohan, I do not have a recovery.img in the files.
Sad news about relocking, but that should be OK.
Thanks for lending some help
Didgeridoohan said:
@BlazzedTroll
My apologies... I'm still not used to these damned A/B devices. :laugh:
If I remember correctly, recovery is included in the boot image, so what you need to do is flash the stock boot.img file to slot A. Don't know if this is possible in TWRP.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's alright. I don't know much of anything about them. It's easy enough to follow tutorials and if I had my USB connection I could do as you say pretty quickly. The problem is I don't understand what TWRP even is. There doesn't seem to be an option to flash you own custom img. "TWRP FLASH" only lets you select from the latest versions and downloads the one you select and starts the flash. "BACKUP EXISTING RECOVERY" expects a recovery.img and doesn't let me select anything other than that. I could try renaming system.img to recovery.img, but until I find out what the difference between the images is, I'm not to keen on trying that one. Sounds like a good way to get hosed before I return it. At this time, I would think without having USB access the folks at Google would be happy to have root on the phone. Rather return it working, but rooted, than bricked.
So I was trying to follow some other suggestions and it seems like maybe the device is actually not rooted anymore.
There is no SU file located in system/bin or system/xbin.
When I download something like "Root Checker" it gets stuck verifying the root.
I tried to use apps like rashr and flashify to flash a stock recovery and neither app will load properly suggesting no root access.
This means when I ran the uninstalls, everything did uninstall and unroot but the TWRP install must not be very clean (I don't think it's being maintained anymore for most devices). So I need to try and find where this app is located and remove it manually before I run the recovery again. If I solve this I'll post back.
BlazzedTroll said:
So I was trying to follow some other suggestions and it seems like maybe the device is actually not rooted anymore.
There is no SU file located in system/bin or system/xbin.
When I download something like "Root Checker" it gets stuck verifying the root.
I tried to use apps like rashr and flashify to flash a stock recovery and neither app will load properly suggesting no root access.
This means when I ran the uninstalls, everything did uninstall and unroot but the TWRP install must not be very clean (I don't think it's being maintained anymore for most devices). So I need to try and find where this app is located and remove it manually before I run the recovery again. If I solve this I'll post back.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You don't have root access, since you uninstalled Magisk. TWRP has it's own root, so while booted to recovery you can still do root stuff...
The only way to restore the stock recovery is to flash the boot image to your device.
And TWRP is pretty much the only maintained custom recovery for most devices...
Just a small note: this demonstrates the issues with using toolkits... It's just to click away and you never really learn how things actually works. Can bite you in the bee-hind when things go south.
Didgeridoohan said:
You don't have root access, since you uninstalled Magisk. TWRP has it's own root, so while booted to recovery you can still do root stuff...
The only way to restore the stock recovery is to flash the boot image to your device.
And TWRP is pretty much the only maintained custom recovery for most devices...
Just a small note: this demonstrates the issues with using toolkits... It's just to click away and you never really learn how things actually works. Can bite you in the bee-hind when things go south.
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At this point I've just ordered the RMA replacement and I'll send it in. Hopefully those at Google are able to verify that the hardware malfunction is entirely unrelated to the root and they still honor the warranty. If the USB hadn't failed, I would easily flash back to stock as you have suggested. It's a fairly trivial action.
I agree somewhat with the idea that toolkits can be problematic in this way. There was quite a bit involved in running through the toolkit, it wasn't that One-Click root/jailbreak type stuff. I issued all of the commands over ADB and was fairly knowledgeable about what actions I was performing. This issue lies in this toolkits maintenance. The latest update to TWRP removed a ton of features and I'm unable to find the other version. Magisk was fully uninstalled as expected. TWRP did not make it clear that the flashed recovery would in fact contain was is essentially an ad for their toolkit. The placeholder app, as they call it, is literally just an ad that pops up when your recover that says "Don't forget to install us!". You can't even remove that file from the recovery partition, you must reflash to remove it. So the problem isn't just that you don't learn how it works, it's that you aren't forced to go through the changes with a fine-toothed comb as you would creating your own recovery. Had I created my own recovery I would have left it stock so that in the event of a failure such as this you are returned to factory stock without any changes except the unlocked bootloader. I guess in the future I'll have to do this myself. I did take the easy way out and just run the defaults from the toolkit in most cases.
Thanks to you and the others who threw in some helpful suggestions.
For anyone stumbling across this in the future, the problem is a 'semi-rooted' recovery can't be flashed without USB transfer capabilities. The solution is to RMA the faulty hardware hopefully. They should be reflashing all phones they get after repair/refurbish anyway.
Best Regards
For future reference...
BlazzedTroll said:
Greetings,
I recently got a Pixel 2 XL and the first thing I did was try to root with SuperSU and TWRP. I had some issues with it and someone suggested Magisk. It worked great and I was able to update from the 8.0 to 8.1 with root. I kept up with the latest Magisk installs until the past week or so.
My phones USB port appears to have failed partially. Luckily I can still charge, but there is no way to see the device storage from a PC. Support has defaulted, after much troubleshooting, to an RMA solution with a refurbished phone. Thankfully, this seems to be covered by warranty and isn't going to pose a cost issue. However, through the troubleshooting I was forced to do a factory reset. I looked up some information regarding factory reset with rooted devices. I cannot find the exact tutorial I followed or thread I gained the how-to information, I'm not sure which it was. I simply searched how to factory reset magisk 8.1 device. It was quick and most of the stuff I find now has the same information.
Open Magisk, uninstall. Open TWRP, uninstall. Device Settings, Factory Reset. Easy
This seemed to have worked. I didn't run into any locked hardware issues thankful because I don't have USB to really flash something to it.
Before I continued, prior to attempting the reset I fully backed up the device to my computer using ES File Explorers FTP transfer over the wifi. This was great, lots of photos were able to be saved with no hassle. I copied the entire root directory and have it backed up.
The problem with the reset is that while Magisk remained uninstalled, TWRP has a basic file installed that upgrades to the full app. I still have root, which would have been nice, except I still need to unroot and go back to factory settings before I can send this device in.
Before I make a mistake moving forward, I want to find the best way to unroot, (preferrably relock the boot also), and return to factory stock as it was the day I got it so I can return in it in the best state I can.
I am running rooted android 8.1.0 Pixel 2 XL with kernel 4.4.88 if the helps. When I reset to factory defaults TWRP remains installed and root persists. I cannot connect via USB and run android dev tools to flash anything directly. How can I restore this device? I should have all original kernels backed up. During the root process I remember them saying to copy the old ROMs first and I performed every step exactly. I do have access to move files to and from the device via WiFi. Is it this even possible?
PS, does anyone think the firmware and rooted install could be the problem with the USB? It seems entirely like failed hardware to me but the troubleshooting was extremely thorough and seems to indicate softare/firmware are likely to be the issue instead of the hardware issue that was determined. Could this still rooted device have corrupted the USB transfer? It seems I should do my best to rule this out as well, more so than just giving them a factory reset device. I'd rather keep my phone if it can be fixed easily, than obtain a possibly low quality heavily used refurbished model.
Regards
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Click to collapse
Try downloading a stock Fastboot Image for your device then unzip it, collect boot.img, then flash just the stock boot.img from TWRP. Should solve the issue upon the following reboot with no more TWRP or root. If youre on magisk or systemless SuperSU. Not locking the bootloader though lol that's hopeless without usb function unless it's possible to lock bootloader using the terminal command with an WiFi ADB app from another device then follow with "adb reboot bootloader", "fastboot boot TWRP.img", then flash stock boot.img from there. I'm just spitballing the second one lol, but if it'll make it to the TWRP part successfully it should work in theory unless the WiFi ADB connection can't make it past reboot which I've never tried. Should probably get an unlock box like NCK Box Pro or whatever supports your device and you'll always know if the port is ****ed or not and flash back to full locked stock with the box if it isn't. It's what I do now. Handy little ****ers lol.

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