[Q] Help! Can't Unbrick TMO Note 2. Please help.

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hodgestl

Senior Member
Apr 3, 2013
396
191
Lubbock, TX
Hi,
Please see below instructions for flashing via Heimdall.

1) Download and extract the attached Heimdall suite on your system.
Link: http://www.mediafire.com/download/wpadacc2v25i8ap/Heimdall_Suite.zip -> I could not attach it to this post as it is more than 8 Mb (9Mb) so I uploaded on my mediafire account.

Now setting up drivers for Heimdall is always tricky but I will list the method on how I got it working on Windows 7.
Please note the only way Heimdall worked for me was by replacing the winusb drivers with libusb drivers. Once you replace the drivers phone will not be detected by ODIN until you revert back these changes and it's easy. To revert, simply uninstall gadget serial under USB Serial Bus Controllers under Device Manager and then when you click for hardware changes system will automatically detect and install windows drivers,

2) Boot your phone in download mode and then connect it to your system via USB.
3) Open directory drivers under heimdall suite you just extracted and then execute zdiag.exe (right click and run as admin).
4) Under Zdiag click options and then list all devices.
5) Now you should see your phone listed.
6) Click dropdown menu (very right side on drivers) and select libusbk.
7) Click on Replace Drivers

At this stage Heimdall must be ready.

8) Now extract the T889UVBMD1 tar.md5 file under the directory where you see heimdall.exe.
7) Copy the pit file in the same directory.
8) Now flash all ROM components including the zip file by using this command. Make sure all files in the command are indeed in that directory.

Code:
heimdall.exe flash --repartition --pit sgh-t889.pit --CACHE cache.img --BOOT boot.img --SYSTEM system.img --RECOVERY recovery.img --RADIO modem.bin --HIDDEN hidden.img --BOOTLOADER sboot.bin --TZSW tz.img --verbose

(Please verify the name if the pit file and adjust the command accordingly)

If you see any driver or libusb errors then go to step 6) and choose libusb0 and then click replace drivers and then execute command listed in step 8.

If the interal memory is fine then this should get it fixed.

Please note, I have never tried these commands but I would have followed exactly in this order if I had to.

If this still does not work then still there the last resort is somthing I read on XDA that the ROM can be installed on an external memory card.

Hit me up on hangouts (check PM)if you want me to walk you through Heimdall.

Do not hesitate to ask if there are any questions.
Sorry for disappearing, but family, Memorial Day, etc. etc.... This will probably be my last post on this particular thread. I will be in other threads and am certainly willing to do waht I can to help someone else. Any way, after trying to look a little at Heimdall, and looking at Phzi's experience, I have decided to send the phone for JTAG repair.

Everyone here has been phenomenal, and I really wish I had the experience and patience a lot of you have. However, my wife's phone is still fried and I have put more hours into this than I can really spare right now, so JTAG for me.

I want to particularly thank Ciphercodes for his countless followups, many brilliant ideas, and his patient demeanor in working this old man, but am still sort of a noob. He truly understands community and support for each other.

Also, I would thank Coug76 for the link of the JTAG repair place I am using. I live in west Texas, and that place is here in Texas in the southeast part of the state.

Nothing additional to say, except thanks. I wish it had been easier for us all.
 
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hodgestl

Senior Member
Apr 3, 2013
396
191
Lubbock, TX
Just a final note. I sent the phone in to Mobile Tech Videos as Coug76 suggested, and they have diagnosed EMMC chip failure. They are replacing the EMMC chip and have a guaranteed result. So looks like that no matter what we did here, it was never going to work anyway. Thanks to everyone for their input and help. We just were never going to be able to do anything with the fried EMMC anyway.

You guys are the best. Thanks to all.
 

ciphercodes

Senior Member
Oct 25, 2012
488
243
Just a final note. I sent the phone in to Mobile Tech Videos as Coug76 suggested, and they have diagnosed EMMC chip failure. They are replacing the EMMC chip and have a guaranteed result. So looks like that no matter what we did here, it was never going to work anyway. Thanks to everyone for their input and help. We just were never going to be able to do anything with the fried EMMC anyway.

You guys are the best. Thanks to all.

Thanks for the update, this is the second phone which I could not help recover, if I recall correctly the EMMC chip had failed on the other phone too. Glad to know that it is going to be fixed.
 

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  • 2
    Just a final note. I sent the phone in to Mobile Tech Videos as Coug76 suggested, and they have diagnosed EMMC chip failure. They are replacing the EMMC chip and have a guaranteed result. So looks like that no matter what we did here, it was never going to work anyway. Thanks to everyone for their input and help. We just were never going to be able to do anything with the fried EMMC anyway.

    You guys are the best. Thanks to all.
    2
    I will stay with Odin, I think. I have never used Heimdall, and am a little intimidated by trying something different. Of course I don't guess I can hurt the phone any further at this point ! haha.

    Thanks again for everything. You have been a great help.

    We are a community. If my neighbor breaks his leg I'll mow his lawn for a while. If I need to replace my water heater he's there for me.

    We've all been there before.

    Hastily spouted for your befuddlement
    1
    Team, my wife has a Note II that is stock all the way. She never accepted the OTA update to 4.3 and has been running 4.1.2 perfectly since last year. Three days ago, when she powered the phone on, it said "Firmware upgrade encountered an issue". The message said we had to go into Kies and try to recover. The phone will NOT enter stock recovery mode. It will go into download mode only.

    I tried to use KIES, but Kies says the device version is not upgradeable. I took it to the store and they told me to come home and use Odin. So my wife decided since it couldn't be restored to her old phone we might as well update to 4.3 (booloader issues, I know !) I used Odin 3.07 using the MK7 version of 4.3 from last Dec, it took 10 minutes through modem, system etc. Then says FAIL. When I try to redo the Odin, it says PIT file missing or something like that.

    Phone still won't work, and I have failed with Kies, local store, and Odin. I don't know what to do but she needs her phone. This phone bricked itself Sunday morning! Thank you in advance for any help. We don't need to buy a new phone. This one is only a year old.

    Flashing stock MK7 via odin should not have any issues. Can you double check the file you downloaded is indeed MK7 ?
    Is the phone on 4.3 bootloader ? If download mode shows KNOX then yes it is.

    You can also try to restore the phone using KIES emergency and then flash MK7 via odin.
    1
    Thanks for the reply. Download mode shows shows the following:

    Odin mode
    Product Name :
    Custom Binary Download: No
    Current Binary : Samsung Official
    System Status: Custom (BTW, this said Normal before my Odin attempt)

    The word KNOX does not appear anywhere on the Download mode screen.

    Kies syas the current firmware is not upgradable. The phone will not actually connect in Kies. I try Emergency restore and put in model and S/N but its says can't upgrade. Kies won't connect to phone in normal mode.

    Thanks for any possible ideas you can come up with.

    If you can get into recovery and do a factory reset (format data and cache) then reboot and see if that will work. Make certain the SDcard is out of the phone when you format.
    1
    Thanks for the reply. Download mode shows shows the following:

    Odin mode
    Product Name :
    Custom Binary Download: No
    Current Binary : Samsung Official
    System Status: Custom (BTW, this said Normal before my Odin attempt)

    The word KNOX does not appear anywhere on the Download mode screen.

    Kies syas the current firmware is not upgradable. The phone will not actually connect in Kies. I try Emergency restore and put in model and S/N but its says can't upgrade. Kies won't connect to phone in normal mode.

    Thanks for any possible ideas you can come up with.

    The phone is still on 4.1.2 bootloader. I would advise to flash stock T889UVBMD1 from sammobile.
    Link: http://www.sammobile.com/firmwares/3/?download=15061

    Or

    If you want a rooted version you can flash MrRobinson's root 66 ROM.
    Link: http://www.androidfilehost.com/?fid=23269279319200344