[Q] Xperia Sola - Can't restore to stock ROM

NelizMastr · Feb 9, 2014

Good evening lads and lasses,

I've encountered a rather unusual issue. I am currently running CM11 4.4.2 by Munjeni on my Sola, but that's not the main focus of my problem.

Here's the story:

My girlfriend's brother needed a phone ASAP, just for a few days. I was using an iPhone at the time (yes, I know), so I was like, sure, he could have it for the time being. When I got it back, I noticed PC Companion was unable to detect any supported firmware on the phone, and could not restore or update anything (I was on the .10 ROM at the time, with .54 available). Flashtool has given me the following error ever since:

Error in processHeader: 1 : Incorrect Function

(On pretty much all versions of FlashTool, since 9.8.0)

I've verified that all of the correct drivers have been installed, and flashing kernels with fastboot still works fine. I can't flash the original ICS or GB ROMs though, and I'm stumped. I love CM, but if I buy an other phone, I want to either restore and sell this one, or restore it for use as a 2nd phone when that happens.

So, any ideas on how to proceed? It seems flashtool is out of the question to get these FTFs back on my Sola.

Extra info:
Tested on Windows 7 x64 and Windows Server 2008R2

ChikeD · Feb 9, 2014

Could be the firmware file is corrupted, try to verify with 7-Zip or other compression utility.

If you have used PC Companion with your phone before you can start repair, that will load the files and does not require the phone to be connected at all.
Once download is complete, and PCC ask you to connect in flash mode, stop it and build FTF with flashtool.
http://mytechencounters.wordpress.c...eate-an-ftf-file-of-your-xperia-ics-firmware/
http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=2188129

NelizMastr · Feb 9, 2014

ChikeD said:
Could be the firmware file is corrupted, try to verify with 7-Zip or other compression utility.

If you have used PC Companion with your phone before you can start repair, that will load the files and does not require the phone to be connected at all.
Once download is complete, and PCC ask you to connect in flash mode, stop it and build FTF with flashtool.
http://mytechencounters.wordpress.c...eate-an-ftf-file-of-your-xperia-ics-firmware/
http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=2188129

Thank you for your reply.

I will try those proceduree as soon as possible, and I will report my findings.

NelizMastr · Feb 10, 2014

NelizMastr said:
Thank you for your reply.

I will try those proceduree as soon as possible, and I will report my findings.

Reporting back:

I have been unable to restore my phone with the PC Companion. After some research, it has become clear that I can't restore using PCC, since my bootloader is unlocked, which isn't relockable at this point. Are there other ways to restore the phone without any existing backups? I haven't gotten around to backup the phone before it was ruined in this particular way.

The firmware files are solid, by the way.

I'd like to point this out:

Flashtool is out of the question, and so is PCC. Both programs refuse to flash this phone. Internal flashing with CWM works perfectly.

ChikeD · Feb 10, 2014

NelizMastr said:
Reporting back:

I have been unable to restore my phone with the PC Companion. After some research, it has become clear that I can't restore using PCC, since my bootloader is unlocked, which isn't relockable at this point. Are there other ways to restore the phone without any existing backups? I haven't gotten around to backup the phone before it was ruined in this particular way.

The firmware files are solid, by the way.

I'd like to point this out:

Flashtool is out of the question, and so is PCC. Both programs refuse to flash this phone. Internal flashing with CWM works perfectly.

Where in my post have I said restore with PCC?
Read what I wrote carefully, follow those steps to build your own FTF to flash with flashtool.
As I've said, it is only valid if you have used the phone with PCC before and it does not neet it to be connected to repair it.

EDIT: BTW which file fails the flash with flashtool?

NelizMastr · Feb 10, 2014

ChikeD said:
Where in my post have I said restore with PCC?
Read what I wrote carefully, follow those steps to build your own FTF to flash with flashtool.
As I've said, it is only valid if you have used the phone with PCC before and it does not neet it to be connected to repair it.

EDIT: BTW which file fails the flash with flashtool?

How is making an FTF from my current firmware going to help me? I don't want a backup of my current firmware, since I'm on Cyanogenmod.

I'll dig into it deeper, to see if I missed something, then.

Any FTF I try to flash fails with the error mentioned before:

Error in processHeader: 1 : Incorrect Function

I have been unable to bypass this error, thus have I been unable to restore using FTF files.

EDIT:
My phone can't do the things mentioned in the links for the following reasons:

I can't back up using PCC because I'm not on Sony firmware (I can't flash that, that's why this topic exists), so I can't make am FTF based on that.
I can't make my own FTF because it requires a locked bootloader. Mine is unlocked and can't be relocked currently, as far as I'm aware, which is an important requirement for that guide.

Hopefully you understand which problems I'm facing. I'm 99% stuck now, since neither PCC nor Flashtool appear to be working for me. The Sony Update Service doesn't support the Xperia Sola so that's a no too.

ChikeD · Feb 10, 2014

Have you flashed with flashtool with the PC you are using now and the same OS?

Open flashtool, connect phone in flash mode, see if it stays connected for about 45 seconds.

NelizMastr · Feb 13, 2014

ChikeD said:
Have you flashed with flashtool with the PC you are using now and the same OS?

Open flashtool, connect phone in flash mode, see if it stays connected for about 45 seconds.

Sorry for the late reply. I've been rather busy this week,

It does stay in flash mode for 45 seconds, yes. The PC in question is the same as when I performed the first attempt back in the day (this occured a few months ago), not the same OS though. However, I have tested this on my laptop with Windows 7, as well as my desktop with Server 2008R2, but both yield the same results.

Any thoughts? Should I try that dinosaur called Winblows XP? Or would you suggest something else?

Thanks in advance.

ChikeD · Feb 13, 2014

NelizMastr said:
Sorry for the late reply. I've been rather busy this week,

It does stay in flash mode for 45 seconds, yes. The PC in question is the same as when I performed the first attempt back in the day (this occured a few months ago), not the same OS though. However, I have tested this on my laptop with Windows 7, as well as my desktop with Server 2008R2, but both yield the same results.

Any thoughts? Should I try that dinosaur called Winblows XP? Or would you suggest something else?

Thanks in advance.

So it seems there no problem with flash mode drivers.
Now open PCC, click start under support zone. click start under update phone/tablet software, click repair, continue untill if finish downloading files, exit, build FTF as described in one of the links, your files are ready, start from there.

NelizMastr · Feb 14, 2014

ChikeD said:
So it seems there no problem with flash mode drivers.
Now open PCC, click start under support zone. click start under update phone/tablet software, click repair, continue untill if finish downloading files, exit, build FTF as described in one of the links, your files are ready, start from there.

I can't update/restore with PCC. It gives me an error that there is no software available, so it won't even bother to download files to create an FTF from. In order to use PCC, I need to have stock or stock based firmware on the phone. As soon as I attempt to flash a stock kernel + stock ROM using fastboot.exe on my pc, and CWM on the phone itself, I end up with a bricked device.

I'll try this once more once I get the chance, later today, to see if I can dig up some other results.

I suppose this is a tough one you don't see very often, here on XDA

ChikeD · Feb 14, 2014

NelizMastr said:
I can't update/restore with PCC. It gives me an error that there is no software available, so it won't even bother to download files to create an FTF from. In order to use PCC, I need to have stock or stock based firmware on the phone. As soon as I attempt to flash a stock kernel + stock ROM using fastboot.exe on my pc, and CWM on the phone itself, I end up with a bricked device.

I'll try this once more once I get the chance, later today, to see if I can dig up some other results.

I suppose this is a tough one you don't see very often, here on XDA

Did you follow the steps I posted exactly? The phone don't even need to be connected.

NelizMastr · Feb 14, 2014

ChikeD said:
Did you follow the steps I posted exactly? The phone don't even need to be connected.

Yes I did. If I check the blob_fs folder, I only get icon files, with a maximum file size of 10KB. It doesn't download anything when I follow your guide. When I remove the folder, it simply redownloads the images, but not the files required for the FTF.

As a reminder concerning the SEUS: No Sola support, at all, so no firmwares from there either.

ChikeD · Feb 14, 2014

NelizMastr said:
Yes I did. If I check the blob_fs folder, I only get icon files, with a maximum file size of 10KB. It doesn't download anything when I follow your guide. When I remove the folder, it simply redownloads the images, but not the files required for the FTF.

As a reminder concerning the SEUS: No Sola support, at all, so no firmwares from there either.

After you click repair, what happens?

NelizMastr · Feb 14, 2014

ChikeD said:
After you click repair, what happens?

Once I click repair, I get a ****load (pardon my French) of dialog boxes with check boxes to make sure I agree to continue with the repair.When that is done, it starts preparing the phone (not even selected which one) firmware, after I select the Xperia Sola, nothing happens. It just asks me to connect the phone.

ChikeD · Feb 14, 2014

NelizMastr said:
Once I click repair, I get a ****load (pardon my French) of dialog boxes with check boxes to make sure I agree to continue with the repair.When that is done, it starts preparing the phone (not even selected which one) firmware, after I select the Xperia Sola, nothing happens. It just asks me to connect the phone.

Well you have said you have used it before with this phone, case which it su\ould ask you if to repair the phone you have used with it before or choose another. and if you choose phone you have used before it would download the files without asking to connect it.
I am guessing it would refuse to repair phone with unlocked bootloader, but have you connected the phone in flash mode?

NelizMastr · Feb 14, 2014

ChikeD said:
Well you have said you have used it before with this phone, case which it su\ould ask you if to repair the phone you have used with it before or choose another. and if you choose phone you have used before it would download the files without asking to connect it.
I am guessing it would refuse to repair phone with unlocked bootloader, but have you connected the phone in flash mode?

Why would I connect it in flash mode? (And yes, it did show up, and I did select it, but that didn't change anything) Still, I have connected it in flash mode before, and all it says is: Nope, unsupported phone and such. I'll have to reboot to Winblows again and see what I can dig up...

NelizMastr · Feb 14, 2014

NelizMastr said:
Why would I connect it in flash mode? (And yes, it did show up, and I did select it, but that didn't change anything) Still, I have connected it in flash mode before, and all it says is: Nope, unsupported phone and such. I'll have to reboot to Winblows again and see what I can dig up...

Such an annoyance that I can't post external links, and the fact that all my software is Dutch, so I can only provide crappy translations of the errors I receive

I connected the phone is flash mode, I received an error that boils down to the following:

"The phone contains modified software which cannot be updated" and that's where the adventure with PCC ends.

ChikeD · Feb 14, 2014

NelizMastr said:
Such an annoyance that I can't post external links, and the fact that all my software is Dutch, so I can only provide crappy translations of the errors I receive

I connected the phone is flash mode, I received an error that boils down to the following:

"The phone contains modified software which cannot be updated" and that's where the adventure with PCC ends.

Yes, that because the unlocked bootloader, you can try and see if there is a way to relock it, make sure it's a proven one.
Did you back up your ta before unlocking bootloader?

NelizMastr · Feb 14, 2014

ChikeD said:
Yes, that because the unlocked bootloader, you can try and see if there is a way to relock it, make sure it's a proven one.
Did you back up your ta before unlocking bootloader?

Boy do I feel like a moron. I tried the 32-bit version of Flashtool, just for the heck of it, and I successfully flashed the stock .54 ROM. It is booting as we speak. I have no clue why Flashtool64 would behave differently to regular 32-bit Flashtool, but well, my phone is back on stock, with unlocked bootloader.

Thanks for your help to this point. I will definitely give you a big thumbs up for your suggestions

ChikeD · Feb 14, 2014

Interesting, might be drivers issue.

[Q] Xperia Sola - Can't restore to stock ROM

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