[UnBrick]TOTAL WIPE and reflash back to 1.4.0 via Ubuntu Recovery --Now Easier!!!!

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PeteSeiler2010

Senior Member
Aug 24, 2010
594
111
Mechanicsburg
I'm using a class 4, 8 gb micro sd and I am also getting stuck at writing zeros to system....it just times out. I have ttried two different class 4, 8 gb cards and im getting the same result.....weird thing is, I have used the exact same card in the past to this very thing on this same NT.
 

renofreak

Senior Member
Aug 8, 2011
50
8
How long does this process take?



This post can unbrick any Nook Tablet as long as there is no hardware damage.

Introduction
Some of you might know that I've been working on getting Ubuntu 11.10 running on the Nook Tablet. Why Ubuntu 11.10? It's optimized for touchscreen. My work with Ubuntu is not totally ready yet. The touchscreen is totally wonkey and unusable for touch input.

...Well, without a 3.0 kernel tailored to our device, Ubuntu is quite unusable as a Graphical User Interface. I've tried to compile a few times without any real results to report. The best results I've come across use a 2.6 kernel based on the kernel used for our device by Android. Anyway, if anyone can help get us a operational 3.0, 3.2+ kernel with full support for our device, I can get Ubuntu running.

However, all is not lost. Ubuntu DOES boot on a 2.6 kernel and it WILL perform most tasks that do not require special device control, like wiping the disk and reflashing. I've come up with a total wipe and restore program for SDCard based on ubuntu.

So, as a result of my work, I would like to present the first ever Ubuntu Recovery. This will totally wipe your device. With the exception of the ROM Partition which contains serial information, every single partition will have zeros written to it then flashed with just enough to perform an initial factory reflash. Normally when you perform an update or flash of a device, it is simply formatted. A formatted device can be unformatted. A zeroed device cannot be unformatted. All information is overwritten with zeros.

This will also work if you've damaged the bootloaders or recovery partition.


how to create your own bootable Ubuntu Recovery SDCard


You will need:
  • A Class 4 SDCard with at least 4Gigs of space
  • 6 gigs of free space (for downloading sdcard image and uncompressing)
  • The SDCard Image: http://ge.tt/9rVFXxC?c

Linux/Mac Instructions
  1. Open a terminal in Ubuntu by typing "terminal" in the search bar then hit enter
  2. uncompress the Downloaded SDCard Image
    Code:
    cd ~/Downloads
    tar -xvwzf ./AdamOutlerUbuntuTotalReFlash.tar.gz
  3. With the SDCard or reader removed from the computer, get a list of all disks
    Code:
    ls /dev/sd?
  4. Insert your sdcard or usb sdcard reader, then press the up key and enter to repeat the last command. The new device will show up as sdb, sdc, sdd or sde. each new device gets a higher letter. Note this newly plugged in device.(ie. /dev/sdc)
  5. Use the following command to make your new SDCard, where "sdc" is the name of your SDCard device.
    Code:
    sudo dd if=./AdamOutlerUbuntuTotalReFlash of=/dev/sdc bs=4096; sync
    Wait 5-20 minutes (depending on SDCard speed) until the image burning completes.
  6. Shove it in your nook and turn it on by inserting the USB cable(do touch the power button, just insert the usb cable). Your nook will boot Ubuntu and perform a total factory restore. The process will take 15 minutes to complete with a Class4 micro SDcard.

Pro-tip: to copy and paste easily in Ubuntu, highlight text in the browser, then press the middle mouse button on the terminal.
Pro-tip: The tab key will auto-complete filenames.


Windows Instructions
Thanks to cyberma007 for Windows instructions.
  • Extract AdamOutlerUbuntuRecoveryImage with Winrar
  • Rename the resulting file to Add the .img extension to the filename
  • Download and open Win32 Disk Imager. note: The open source project can be found here: https://launchpad.net/win32-image-writer
  • Choose the drive letter of your SD Card from Win32 Disk Imager
  • Click the Write button
  • Turn of your nook and put in the SD Card and turn it back on.

Your Microsoft®™ Windows©®℠ computer sucks at reading anything except Microsoft formats. It cannot read the Open Source Linux EXT4 format. You will only see one partition after creating the SDCard but it will work fine. If you want to inspect the contents, install a Linux distribution on your computer.

znq6ur.jpg


Theory of operation
how it works
When you insert the SDCard and turn on the device this is what happens.
  • The device boots from SDCard.
  • The Ubuntu GUI will load. Personally, I recommend that you do not touch anything
  • You will be presented with a 100 Second countdown
  • If you wish to stop, press and hold power for 10 seconds before flashing has started
  • You will be presented with a progress bar status update only. Closing this will not affect the process. the only way to stop is to turn the device off.
  • At this point, the flashing process will begin
Flashing Process
After Ubuntu has booted here is the procedure which takes place
  1. MLO partition will be written with all zeros, then flashed
  2. U-BOOT partition will be written with all zeros, then flashed
  3. RECOVERY partition will be written with all zeros, then flashed
  4. BOOT partition will be written with all zeros, then flashed
  5. BOOTDATA partition will be written with all zeros, then flashed
  6. BOOTDATA is mounted and a command is sent to factory reset the device upon next boot.
  7. FACTORY partition will be written with all zeros, then flashed in two parts to work around a 120 second filesystem operation bug.
  8. A sync operation takes place to ensure all data is written to the device
  9. SYSTEM partition is wiped with all zeros
  10. SYSTEM partition is recreated as a blank EXT4 filesystem
  11. CACHE partition is wiped with all zeros
  12. CACHE partition is recreated as a blank EXT4 filesystem
  13. SDCARD partition is wiped with all zeros
  14. SDCARD partition is recreated as a blank FAT32 filesystem
  15. A sync operation takes place to ensure that all data is written
  16. You are notified to press and hold power. When the screen goes black remove your SDCard
note: Using a Class4 SDCard, the screen timeout will be aproximately 30 seconds after the entire operation has completed. Do not confuse screen-timeout (blank screen) with turning off the device (black, unilluminated screen). Turn the device off and then remove the sdcard or risk corrupting the data on the sdcard.

It's my intention that this may help someone. This will at least be one more method for people to try before giving up on restoration to 1.4.0. I generally receive 5-10 PMs per week requesting support on the acclaim_update.zip. Hopefully this will reduce those and give people another option to try.

Ubuntu isn't ready for daily use yet, but this recovery tool is more thorough than any other recovery method out there. I need some help porting the 3.0 kernel to the Nook Tablet.

How long does this process take?
 

maxshare

Member
Jul 17, 2008
14
1
I can't express how much I appreciate this fix. I've been struggled with my NT for the past three days, try to figure out how to fix the mess among recoveries, format all system partitions and roms, boot SD, all sorts you name them.
This fix all my problem, and now I have a working NT.

Thanks again.
 
  • Like
Reactions: AdamOutler

vantm

New member
Dec 21, 2006
3
0
Hey guys,

I use this method, everything ok until I restart the nook. It showed “clearing data” and then “restart your device and try again. If you encounter…” What can I do next? Pls help
 
Last edited:

khanhdaojtk

Member
Sep 2, 2014
32
0
Nook tablet 8GB cant boot from SD card create from this post. SD card Sandisk 16gb class 10. Anybody help me please ?
 

khanhdaojtk

Member
Sep 2, 2014
32
0
Describe what happens when you try to boot your NT from the power-off state by insertion a powered USB cable.

Power off -> insert sd card -> press power in 5 sec ( computer inform OMAP4450 ) -> black screen during after that , nothing happen on screen -> in about 5 min, i see N on screen, after that inform " sorry, you must restart or call services ..... " and come back brick sittuation :(
 

digixmax

Senior Member
Jan 17, 2011
2,129
682
Power off -> insert sd card -> press power in 5 sec ( computer inform OMAP4450 ) -> black screen during after that , nothing happen on screen -> in about 5 min, i see N on screen, after that inform " sorry, you must restart or call services ..... " and come back brick sittuation :(
Try:
  1. power off,
  2. insert SD card,
  3. then insert powered USB cable, don't press power button, just wait for NT to boot.
Also, have you tried other unbrick methods such as those described in section "Info/Tools for Restoring to Stock" at http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=2575489?
 

ajbiz11

Senior Member
May 23, 2012
1,129
389
Ann Arbor, MI
Power off -> insert sd card -> press power in 5 sec ( computer inform OMAP4450 ) -> black screen during after that , nothing happen on screen -> in about 5 min, i see N on screen, after that inform " sorry, you must restart or call services ..... " and come back brick sittuation :(
A) use the POWER BRICK
B) make sure its the stock cable and brick

Sent from my m7spr
 

lipps

Member
Feb 18, 2011
47
14
I got myself in a situation where CyanoBoot would boot directly into recovery, with no options. I think from formatting /rom. I used this process, and was stuck at "Writing all zeroes to SYSTEM" for hours. But, I shut it down, pulled out the SD card, and rebooted, and it came back up stock 1.40.

Thanks Adam! :D

Now it's time to get CM11 back on it...
 

Vol4Ever

Senior Member
Jan 22, 2012
128
8
Piperton, TN
I have 2 NT that I want to get back to pure stock to sell. This method worked perfectly on the first, but the card will not boot on the second. Screen stays black 10-15 seconds and then goes to the factory "try again or you may need tech support". Can't remember actual words as tablet is not in front of me. To be safe, I re-downloaded the original file in this thread and created a 2nd card from scratch. Same thing. What's weird is the tablet will boot the Albert Wertz rooting card just fine, so I know the slot will see a bootable card. Any ideas on the wipe card??
 

Koneesha

Senior Member
Jan 4, 2011
94
21
Does anyone have the original file that messed with your serial number, and all that. I originally used that one, and have tried to switch my serial number back to the original but because the nook is looking for the correct private and public keys i can no longer use my nook on stock. If anyone has the original file, or the serial number and mac address it flashed that would be awesome!
 

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  • 75
    This post can unbrick any Nook Tablet as long as there is no hardware damage.

    Introduction
    Some of you might know that I've been working on getting Ubuntu 11.10 running on the Nook Tablet. Why Ubuntu 11.10? It's optimized for touchscreen. My work with Ubuntu is not totally ready yet. The touchscreen is totally wonkey and unusable for touch input.

    ...Well, without a 3.0 kernel tailored to our device, Ubuntu is quite unusable as a Graphical User Interface. I've tried to compile a few times without any real results to report. The best results I've come across use a 2.6 kernel based on the kernel used for our device by Android. Anyway, if anyone can help get us a operational 3.0, 3.2+ kernel with full support for our device, I can get Ubuntu running.

    However, all is not lost. Ubuntu DOES boot on a 2.6 kernel and it WILL perform most tasks that do not require special device control, like wiping the disk and reflashing. I've come up with a total wipe and restore program for SDCard based on ubuntu.

    So, as a result of my work, I would like to present the first ever Ubuntu Recovery. This will totally wipe your device. With the exception of the ROM Partition which contains serial information, every single partition will have zeros written to it then flashed with just enough to perform an initial factory reflash. Normally when you perform an update or flash of a device, it is simply formatted. A formatted device can be unformatted. A zeroed device cannot be unformatted. All information is overwritten with zeros.

    This will also work if you've damaged the bootloaders or recovery partition.


    how to create your own bootable Ubuntu Recovery SDCard


    You will need:
    • A Class 4 SDCard with at least 4Gigs of space
    • 6 gigs of free space (for downloading sdcard image and uncompressing)
    • The SDCard Image: http://ge.tt/9rVFXxC?c

    Linux/Mac Instructions
    1. Open a terminal in Ubuntu by typing "terminal" in the search bar then hit enter
    2. uncompress the Downloaded SDCard Image
      Code:
      cd ~/Downloads
      tar -xvwzf ./AdamOutlerUbuntuTotalReFlash.tar.gz
    3. With the SDCard or reader removed from the computer, get a list of all disks
      Code:
      ls /dev/sd?
    4. Insert your sdcard or usb sdcard reader, then press the up key and enter to repeat the last command. The new device will show up as sdb, sdc, sdd or sde. each new device gets a higher letter. Note this newly plugged in device.(ie. /dev/sdc)
    5. Use the following command to make your new SDCard, where "sdc" is the name of your SDCard device.
      Code:
      sudo dd if=./AdamOutlerUbuntuTotalReFlash of=/dev/sdc bs=4096; sync
      Wait 5-20 minutes (depending on SDCard speed) until the image burning completes.
    6. Shove it in your nook and turn it on by inserting the USB cable(do touch the power button, just insert the usb cable). Your nook will boot Ubuntu and perform a total factory restore. The process will take 15 minutes to complete with a Class4 micro SDcard.

    Pro-tip: to copy and paste easily in Ubuntu, highlight text in the browser, then press the middle mouse button on the terminal.
    Pro-tip: The tab key will auto-complete filenames.


    Windows Instructions
    Thanks to cyberma007 for Windows instructions.
    • Extract AdamOutlerUbuntuRecoveryImage with Winrar
    • Rename the resulting file to Add the .img extension to the filename
    • Download and open Win32 Disk Imager. note: The open source project can be found here: https://launchpad.net/win32-image-writer
    • Choose the drive letter of your SD Card from Win32 Disk Imager
    • Click the Write button
    • Turn of your nook and put in the SD Card and turn it back on.

    Your Microsoft®™ Windows©®℠ computer sucks at reading anything except Microsoft formats. It cannot read the Open Source Linux EXT4 format. You will only see one partition after creating the SDCard but it will work fine. If you want to inspect the contents, install a Linux distribution on your computer.

    znq6ur.jpg


    Theory of operation
    how it works
    When you insert the SDCard and turn on the device this is what happens.
    • The device boots from SDCard.
    • The Ubuntu GUI will load. Personally, I recommend that you do not touch anything
    • You will be presented with a 100 Second countdown
    • If you wish to stop, press and hold power for 10 seconds before flashing has started
    • You will be presented with a progress bar status update only. Closing this will not affect the process. the only way to stop is to turn the device off.
    • At this point, the flashing process will begin
    Flashing Process
    After Ubuntu has booted here is the procedure which takes place
    1. MLO partition will be written with all zeros, then flashed
    2. U-BOOT partition will be written with all zeros, then flashed
    3. RECOVERY partition will be written with all zeros, then flashed
    4. BOOT partition will be written with all zeros, then flashed
    5. BOOTDATA partition will be written with all zeros, then flashed
    6. BOOTDATA is mounted and a command is sent to factory reset the device upon next boot.
    7. FACTORY partition will be written with all zeros, then flashed in two parts to work around a 120 second filesystem operation bug.
    8. A sync operation takes place to ensure all data is written to the device
    9. SYSTEM partition is wiped with all zeros
    10. SYSTEM partition is recreated as a blank EXT4 filesystem
    11. CACHE partition is wiped with all zeros
    12. CACHE partition is recreated as a blank EXT4 filesystem
    13. SDCARD partition is wiped with all zeros
    14. SDCARD partition is recreated as a blank FAT32 filesystem
    15. A sync operation takes place to ensure that all data is written
    16. You are notified to press and hold power. When the screen goes black remove your SDCard
    note: Using a Class4 SDCard, the screen timeout will be aproximately 30 seconds after the entire operation has completed. Do not confuse screen-timeout (blank screen) with turning off the device (black, unilluminated screen). Turn the device off and then remove the sdcard or risk corrupting the data on the sdcard.

    It's my intention that this may help someone. This will at least be one more method for people to try before giving up on restoration to 1.4.0. I generally receive 5-10 PMs per week requesting support on the acclaim_update.zip. Hopefully this will reduce those and give people another option to try.

    Ubuntu isn't ready for daily use yet, but this recovery tool is more thorough than any other recovery method out there. I need some help porting the 3.0 kernel to the Nook Tablet.
    10
    Note: to neuter recovery and just use ubuntu, remove the file called /root/recovery from the sdcard before loading into your Nook.
    10
    Here is the rehosted file and new instructions. Let me know if there are any problems so I can redo the first post.


    You will need:

    Instructions:
    1. Open a terminal in Ubuntu by typing "terminal" in the search bar then hit enter
    2. uncompress the Downloaded SDCard Image
      Code:
      cd ~/Downloads
      tar -xvwzf ./AdamOutlerUbuntuTotalReFlash.tar.gz
    3. type "ls" to get a file listing and locate the name of the new file. (ie AdamOutlerUbuntuTotalReFlash).
    4. With the SDCard or reader removed from the computer, get a list of all disks
      Code:
      ls /dev/sd?
    5. Insert your sdcard or usb sdcard reader, then press the up key and enter to repeat the last command. The new device will show up as sdb, sdc, sdd or sde. each new device gets a higher letter. Note this newly plugged in device.(ie. /dev/sdc)
    6. Use the following command to make your new SDCard, where "AdamOutlerUbuntuTotalReFlash" is the name of the uncompressed file and "sdc" is the name of your SDCard device.

      Code:
      sudo dd if=./AdamOutlerUbuntuTotalReFlash of=/dev/sdc
      Wait 5-45 minutes (depending on SDCard speed) until the image burning completes.
    7. Shove it in your nook and turn it on. The process will take 15 minutes to complete with a Class4 micro SDcard

    Pro-tip: to copy and paste easily in Ubuntu, highlight text in the browser, then press the middle mouse button on the terminal.
    Pro-tip: The tab key will auto-complete filenames.
    4
    Which kernel branch did you try to build?
    I've tried several. The problem is in configuration. I eventually settled for the stock 2.6 android_4430BN_defconfig. It seems to function best for this until we have a proper 3.0 kernel.
    4
    Thanks Adam very nice work. Question what if we want to revert to 1.4.0 or 1.4.0 is it possible or we will be stick it lol. Can this be supported for dual/multi boot?

    ~ Veronica

    Sent from XDA premium using my Nook Tablet :p
    Thats what this does. It reverts you to 1.4.0. It uses Ubuntu as a dedicated recovery. If you would like to dual boot, just remove the /root/recovery file. You can boot Ubuntu or normal by inserting and removing the sdcard. But like i said, the touchscreen is wonkey and there's no way to fix most of the problems without a 3.0 kernel.



    Very good work Adam.
    I have one trivial question... Why on all your projects do you use Ubuntu and not any other distro?

    I use Ubuntu on my desktop. I like Ubuntu because it has a large user base and if i come across a problem, it is easier to correct or has generally at least been discussed. For a mobile device, it makes more sense than other Linux distributions because newer versions have been optimized for touchscreens. In general, i find Ubuntu supports more things than other Linux distributions.