[Q] I can't load CWM on my SGS 4G (T-Mobile)

Hello all,

Okay, I admit that I am gonna get a lot of "use the search tool first" replies, but please hear me out. I have done my fair share of searching. Its not that I haven't found anything, its just the things I found are useless for this SGS 4G. I really wanted to install Cyanogen Mo on the SGS (its not actually mine, a friend asked me to do it since he saw my old SGS GT-I9000 running CM).

I am gonna try and give a detailed report . The phone was originally from T-Mobile and now unlocked permanently. Its running firmware version 2.3.3 that I installed just recently. I found out that I can't install CWM on the stock kernel or bootloader or whatever and I needed a new of the thing. So I went on searching and searching....found a handful of help but none work. Every method breaks at some point and I go to the "firmware update failed" thing on the phone, which I then install 2.3.3 again using ODIN and try another method. I have tried a lot of things. Hemidall, ODIN, SuperOneClick, and a lot of gibbrish-sounding methods. None work. I am now running 2.3.3. Here are some infos:

ABOUT PHONE:
Model Number: SGH-T959V
Firmware Version: 2.3.3
Baseband Version: T959VUVKF1
Kernel Version: 2.6.35.7-T959VUVKF1-CL270364
Build Number: GINGERBREAD.VUVKF1

The files I used to flash to 2.3.3 using ODIN v1.85:
PIT: Hawk_Sidekick_VibrantPlus_831.pit
PDA: CODE_T959VUVKF1_CL270364_REV00_user_low_noship.tar.md5
PHONE: T959VUVKF1-Phone-CL1020302.tar.md5
CSC: SGH-T959V-CSC-TMB-VIBRANTP.tar.md5

I hope the above infos are enough. So, can anyone help me and point me to the right direction on how to install CWM and then install CM10 or 9 on my friends SGS 4G?

Thanks,
Tamrat

jeffsf said:

Hmmm, an interesting set of binaries, ones that don't ring a bell with me. I'm used to seeing T959VUVKJ6.

Where did you find those? Half curiosity, half trying to understand the problem, half since much of the "old" images for the phones got lost when Multiupload and what have you were shut down.

Click to expand...

Click to collapse

A long day Googling... and then a site turned up. One thing I forgot to mention was, before I installed this firmware, I had to use the "remove battery->plug usb->press the button combos->insert the battery" to enter download mode, but now I juts have to press vol down and power button.

Thanks for the reply,

Failure again

UPDATE:::

I tried to update to 2.3.6 as the guide suggests and I also wanted a clean stock OS in case the old one was not. But once again updating to 2.3.6 has been a pain. Kies Mini recognizes the phone but it doesn't recognize the firmware running on the phone. And also, firmware update is impossible since the button is greyed out.

I googled again and found the official 2.3.6 firmware for the phone (file name: T959VUVKJ6-REV00-home-low-CL694130.tar.md5) and tried flashing it using ODIN; absolutely no luck. It fails at the stage which says Slb.bin. Restarting the phone after that gives a "firmware upgrade failure" display. Only way to wake up the phone is to flash the previous OS back.

I am really confused here.

*********************EDIT***************

Some how, after like 10 retires and fiddling with ODIN, it finally flashed 2.3.6 to the SGS 4G. Still, fingers crossed.

*********************EDIT 2***************

Finally, its all working fine now. Thank you @jeffsf, thank you very much.

F*****************K

forgot an important step and now my IEMI number is gone........

do i throw the phone now, or is there any other way???