The Official XDA Support thread for Android Phones (Updated)

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samuel2706

Inactive Recognized Developer
Jan 1, 2011
2,348
1,694
North Yorkshire
androidquestions720.png


HELP AND SUPPORT


DESCRIPTION OF THIS THREAD

  • Back in 2011 I sat down and wondered what I could do to help a community that helped me so much and continues to help people everyday from bricked phones to shiny new things on their respective devices and this is what I created, with the guidance of certain moderators of course.


    [*]I wanted to create a thread in which any question can be asked, be it porting related or anything and we all help each other out, this has been going for a few years now and has been a huge success so I have updated the quick start guide and I will be a more ever-present force in the thread to answer any help and such that you may need, because if we all help each other this place can be a more user-friendly and more interactive place to visit.


  • Please also note you may PM me if you wish to ask anything in private, or if you feel the need to just say hello.

  • Please also note that this thread was indeed a sticky at one time however I had other commitments in 2011 (College and such) and it was removed by November 2011.


    [*]For donations, I would kindly ask you to donate to the Macmillan cancer care and support, however if you wish to donate to me I will donate it to the charity anyway, myself and Macmillan thank you for your support, no one should have to face cancer alone.



HERE IS A GUIDE TO GET STARTED


GENERAL KNOWLEDGE v1.0

  • Rooting - Gives you complete root system access allowing things to be done that usually would be denied.

    [*]S-OFF - (HTC Devices) Basically means you can flash ROM's to the SYSTEM partitions and such.

    [*]Write Protection - This can mean a variety of things, from a locked boot-loader to SD card access, consult your device forum for information.

    [*]Bricked(Soft) - Soft brick means that it can be recovered using appropriate methods found in your device forum.

    [*]Bricked(Hard) - Very hard to fix usually means it's beyond repair but can be fixed in certain circumstances and at a local repair dealer for your phone.

    [*]Kernels - The backbone of the phone, they are responsible for making everything run, the CPU, Schedulers and such are configurable using the kernel.

    [*]CPU0 - Different for each phone however CPU0 is usually the 1st logical processor followed by 1,2,3 for quad core phones.

    [*]Dual Core/Quad Core - Dual core means you get CPU0 and CPU1, Quad core means CPU0, CPU1, CPU2 and CPU3 are all available.

    [*]Chip-set - This is your main-board, it means what your phone is built upon.

    [*]Lib files - Found in /system/lib usually however this can be different, they control the software to firmware gaps on your phone, so they enable sound, camera, video; the major things live here, don't touch it unless you know what you're doing.

    [*]Battery Stats - These control how long your battery lasts, they are reset when you delete the file from the system however it's strongly recommended you don't delete them.

    [*]AOSP - Basically means the original Google Android software as a bare-bone OS.

    [*]Partitions - These are different for each phone and should be treated with great care for example flashing a puppy to the radio partition would be a foolish action.

    [*]Launchers - They change the UI of the phone, there are many out there so try them all until you find one that suits you just right.

    [*]Logcat - This is only useful if you have an error with your phone, it's a simple adb logcat command however I prefer to use QTADB which is a nice GUI style logct application.

    [*]ROM's - You flash these on phones that are able to flash Custom software, you can get many varieties however the main ones are 'Stock' the original phone OS, 'CM' which is AOSP, 'MIUI' An AOSP/AOKP style crossover mimics the iOS UI.

    [*]Recovery - When flashed; custom recovery allows you to make changes to the different partitions inside the phone for example flashing a custom ROM.

    [*]Flashing - Basically writing information to a partition or making a fool of yourself in public (the latter is not recommended due to laws)

    [*]Over-clocking - This means pushing your hardware beyond its manufacturers original settings, this can be useful to create a faster phone but treat it with care as you can damage phone hardware.

    [*]Under-clocking - This means lowering the stress on the system by making the hardware run slower than it's intended to do, great for saving battery.

    [*]Under-volting - This means under-volting your CPU or GPU, this can cause stability issues but on the plus side can save battery, it's all about striking a balance.

    [*]Benchmarking - This means to test your phone to its max and find out how it stacks up against other devices.

    [*]IO Schedulers- They control how the system reacts in different situations, there are different types of Schedulers available so use each until you find one suitable for you (protip: Use fiops or noop)

    [*]CPU Governors - They control the CPU frequencies and such for example "Performance governor" will give you constant speed, whereas "Conservative governor" will give you low speed.

    [*]GPU Governors - They do the same as their CPU counterparts except they control the graphical section of the hardware.

    [*]Radios - They control the baseband aspects of a phone (your network and such) they have different names for each device, they are very dangerous to mess around with.

  • Note:
    Updated as of 12/06/13

So what are you waiting for? Ask questions!
 
Last edited:

alsworld

Member
Mar 4, 2011
11
0
comnd promt is responding

I hav managed the ss number and when put in the beta f oth d par revolutionary it come from the cmd promt to root the htc evo any ideas
 

mcsplatt

Senior Member
Aug 16, 2011
317
73
i used revolutionary cwm, loaded rmk's root zip, and wound up in a permanent bootscreen. so i flashed rmk gingersense r1 rom, and now i dont have cwm anymore. it just boots normal. wtfdid? do i need to reinstall cwm every time i flash the rom? any tips would be appreciated. total root newb if you couldn't tell.
 

vamsi4012

Member
Aug 15, 2011
6
9
inspire rooting

HELP AND SUPPORT


From now on, i shall be conducting a help session for ANYONE with any kind of problem relating to android, be it a brick or a problem with fastboot or you can't root your phone, hell we have all been there, so maybe i could help you.

it shall be


If you have any other problems or need help or even want to learn about android and become a developer then just post in the thread, i'll get back to you. ALL OF YOU.

so don't worry if i don't get back within the first hour or so, i'll help you don't worry.

I'm not doing this for my own benefit, i'm doing it for yours, i'm patient and i understand how daunting places like this must be, i felt the same way when i first joined, i was scared about rooting my phone and still get a bit scared when it doesn't boot straight away but once you know the basics things just flow to you

i want to help you, help yourselves. so drop by with any questions about android, i'm going to be there from the moment this is posted

i have an inspire 4g with gingerbread i want to root it and put coredroid in it i tried bubbys method and also the hack it kit and both did not root my device i live in india and my inspire is carrier unlocked please suggest me a simple method to root my phone
 

samuel2706

Inactive Recognized Developer
Jan 1, 2011
2,348
1,694
North Yorkshire
i have an inspire 4g with gingerbread i want to root it and put coredroid in it i tried bubbys method and also the hack it kit and both did not root my device i live in india and my inspire is carrier unlocked please suggest me a simple method to root my phone


This should work

i know you said you had tried it but try again, DO everything as it says, even if it's as simple as case sensitive names..
 

Jamin13

Senior Member
May 20, 2011
1,123
241
Do you know any methods of rooting 2.3.4? The device I'm looking to root is a Kyocera Echo running GB 2.3.4. Gingerbreak, SuperOneClick, and z4root (lol), have all failed in rooting the device.
As far as I know, there's no locked bootloaders or anything that should be in the way except for no recovery. The Echo has fastboot if there's actually a method of rooting through there.

Thanks.
 

vamsi4012

Member
Aug 15, 2011
6
9
just tried it not working after some time it says device connected do u think coredroid is worth all the trouble?
 

samuel2706

Inactive Recognized Developer
Jan 1, 2011
2,348
1,694
North Yorkshire
Do you know any methods of rooting 2.3.4? The device I'm looking to root is a Kyocera Echo running GB 2.3.4. Gingerbreak, SuperOneClick, and z4root (lol), have all failed in rooting the device.
As far as I know, there's no locked bootloaders or anything that should be in the way except for no recovery. The Echo has fastboot if there's actually a method of rooting through there.

Thanks.

Z4ROOT is apparently said to work, there isn't a lot on the forums for this device but i will keep my eyes peeled and PM you when i find something out
 

Jamin13

Senior Member
May 20, 2011
1,123
241
Z4ROOT is apparently said to work, there isn't a lot on the forums for this device but i will keep my eyes peeled and PM you when i find something out

That was probably for Froyo but maybe it does. I'm thinking if someone could get a custom recovery working, we could root it by just flashing Superuser.

Sent from my M9300 using XDA Premium App
 

samuel2706

Inactive Recognized Developer
Jan 1, 2011
2,348
1,694
North Yorkshire
i used revolutionary cwm, loaded rmk's root zip, and wound up in a permanent bootscreen. so i flashed rmk gingersense r1 rom, and now i dont have cwm anymore. it just boots normal. wtfdid? do i need to reinstall cwm every time i flash the rom? any tips would be appreciated. total root newb if you couldn't tell.

Nah man you shouldn't need to install it every single time bro, you got any logcats or things you could send me?
 

samuel2706

Inactive Recognized Developer
Jan 1, 2011
2,348
1,694
North Yorkshire
or a recovery log? that would be awesome, if you don't know how to get these :) i'll teach you just pop over to the IRC if not then i'll tell you on here, it's fine :cool:
 

kennydied23

Senior Member
Oct 6, 2009
151
5
I'd like to try and become a developer, mainly because my Samsung Droid Charge hasn't received any AOSP love yet and I want to try and help the dev(s) that are working on it, also I would like to make my own rom. But I have no idea where to start, and I have questions like do I need Linux, do I need to/where do I learn terminal commands, how does smali/baksmali work, how to compile/decompile, how does github work, what is a toolchain, do I need to know how to code, do I need to know any languages, what is Eclipse...stuff like that. I'm a complete noob at this kind of stuff and I feel it's a bit far out of my reach but I'm willing to give it a shot if I can get a decent start. I realize it won't just happen overnight, I have the patience to keep learning and doing research to figure it out, but I would like help getting started.
 

0vermind

Senior Member
Apr 13, 2010
537
434
Salt Lake City, Utah
@samuel2706: I have a Droid x2 and as you it has a locked bootloader. I also have a Galaxy Tab 7" which does NOT have a locked bootloader. I've been in Android for a very very long time, I am an experience flasher and rooter, but I want to get into the development side.

Could you direct me to what I need to read up on and learn about and do for me to become a developer? I would like to develop from my devices, I know that a locked bootloader steeply limits what I can do, that's why I am more interested in developing for my tablet. I mean a lot of things interest me. I look at my logcat on my devices, I see errors, and I just want to go in and fix them, I want to make my device smooth as butter, lol.

I'm also interested in finding an exploit of some sort for my Droid x2 so that I can crack it. There has gotta be a way to crack it open.

Thanks!!! :)
 
Last edited:

MaddestMax

New member
Aug 18, 2011
1
0
Stock rooted Gingerbread for HTC Inspire

Hey Samuel. Thanks for doing this. I got my Inspire about a weeks ago, rooted it the day I got it, and have been lurking these forums since. Saw this opportunity to ask a n00b question, and registered. So, I'm looking for a stock, rooted Gingerbread ROM. It was suggested I don't return my phone to stock, update, and then re-root. Not sure why, but I'll listen. Thanks in advance, and thanks for doing this.
-MM
 

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  • 106
    androidquestions720.png


    HELP AND SUPPORT


    DESCRIPTION OF THIS THREAD

    • Back in 2011 I sat down and wondered what I could do to help a community that helped me so much and continues to help people everyday from bricked phones to shiny new things on their respective devices and this is what I created, with the guidance of certain moderators of course.


      [*]I wanted to create a thread in which any question can be asked, be it porting related or anything and we all help each other out, this has been going for a few years now and has been a huge success so I have updated the quick start guide and I will be a more ever-present force in the thread to answer any help and such that you may need, because if we all help each other this place can be a more user-friendly and more interactive place to visit.


    • Please also note you may PM me if you wish to ask anything in private, or if you feel the need to just say hello.

    • Please also note that this thread was indeed a sticky at one time however I had other commitments in 2011 (College and such) and it was removed by November 2011.


      [*]For donations, I would kindly ask you to donate to the Macmillan cancer care and support, however if you wish to donate to me I will donate it to the charity anyway, myself and Macmillan thank you for your support, no one should have to face cancer alone.



    HERE IS A GUIDE TO GET STARTED


    GENERAL KNOWLEDGE v1.0

    • Rooting - Gives you complete root system access allowing things to be done that usually would be denied.

      [*]S-OFF - (HTC Devices) Basically means you can flash ROM's to the SYSTEM partitions and such.

      [*]Write Protection - This can mean a variety of things, from a locked boot-loader to SD card access, consult your device forum for information.

      [*]Bricked(Soft) - Soft brick means that it can be recovered using appropriate methods found in your device forum.

      [*]Bricked(Hard) - Very hard to fix usually means it's beyond repair but can be fixed in certain circumstances and at a local repair dealer for your phone.

      [*]Kernels - The backbone of the phone, they are responsible for making everything run, the CPU, Schedulers and such are configurable using the kernel.

      [*]CPU0 - Different for each phone however CPU0 is usually the 1st logical processor followed by 1,2,3 for quad core phones.

      [*]Dual Core/Quad Core - Dual core means you get CPU0 and CPU1, Quad core means CPU0, CPU1, CPU2 and CPU3 are all available.

      [*]Chip-set - This is your main-board, it means what your phone is built upon.

      [*]Lib files - Found in /system/lib usually however this can be different, they control the software to firmware gaps on your phone, so they enable sound, camera, video; the major things live here, don't touch it unless you know what you're doing.

      [*]Battery Stats - These control how long your battery lasts, they are reset when you delete the file from the system however it's strongly recommended you don't delete them.

      [*]AOSP - Basically means the original Google Android software as a bare-bone OS.

      [*]Partitions - These are different for each phone and should be treated with great care for example flashing a puppy to the radio partition would be a foolish action.

      [*]Launchers - They change the UI of the phone, there are many out there so try them all until you find one that suits you just right.

      [*]Logcat - This is only useful if you have an error with your phone, it's a simple adb logcat command however I prefer to use QTADB which is a nice GUI style logct application.

      [*]ROM's - You flash these on phones that are able to flash Custom software, you can get many varieties however the main ones are 'Stock' the original phone OS, 'CM' which is AOSP, 'MIUI' An AOSP/AOKP style crossover mimics the iOS UI.

      [*]Recovery - When flashed; custom recovery allows you to make changes to the different partitions inside the phone for example flashing a custom ROM.

      [*]Flashing - Basically writing information to a partition or making a fool of yourself in public (the latter is not recommended due to laws)

      [*]Over-clocking - This means pushing your hardware beyond its manufacturers original settings, this can be useful to create a faster phone but treat it with care as you can damage phone hardware.

      [*]Under-clocking - This means lowering the stress on the system by making the hardware run slower than it's intended to do, great for saving battery.

      [*]Under-volting - This means under-volting your CPU or GPU, this can cause stability issues but on the plus side can save battery, it's all about striking a balance.

      [*]Benchmarking - This means to test your phone to its max and find out how it stacks up against other devices.

      [*]IO Schedulers- They control how the system reacts in different situations, there are different types of Schedulers available so use each until you find one suitable for you (protip: Use fiops or noop)

      [*]CPU Governors - They control the CPU frequencies and such for example "Performance governor" will give you constant speed, whereas "Conservative governor" will give you low speed.

      [*]GPU Governors - They do the same as their CPU counterparts except they control the graphical section of the hardware.

      [*]Radios - They control the baseband aspects of a phone (your network and such) they have different names for each device, they are very dangerous to mess around with.

    • Note:
      Updated as of 12/06/13

    So what are you waiting for? Ask questions!
    9
    inspire rooting

    HELP AND SUPPORT


    From now on, i shall be conducting a help session for ANYONE with any kind of problem relating to android, be it a brick or a problem with fastboot or you can't root your phone, hell we have all been there, so maybe i could help you.

    it shall be


    If you have any other problems or need help or even want to learn about android and become a developer then just post in the thread, i'll get back to you. ALL OF YOU.

    so don't worry if i don't get back within the first hour or so, i'll help you don't worry.

    I'm not doing this for my own benefit, i'm doing it for yours, i'm patient and i understand how daunting places like this must be, i felt the same way when i first joined, i was scared about rooting my phone and still get a bit scared when it doesn't boot straight away but once you know the basics things just flow to you

    i want to help you, help yourselves. so drop by with any questions about android, i'm going to be there from the moment this is posted

    i have an inspire 4g with gingerbread i want to root it and put coredroid in it i tried bubbys method and also the hack it kit and both did not root my device i live in india and my inspire is carrier unlocked please suggest me a simple method to root my phone
    3
    Do you know any methods of rooting 2.3.4? The device I'm looking to root is a Kyocera Echo running GB 2.3.4. Gingerbreak, SuperOneClick, and z4root (lol), have all failed in rooting the device.
    As far as I know, there's no locked bootloaders or anything that should be in the way except for no recovery. The Echo has fastboot if there's actually a method of rooting through there.

    Thanks.

    Z4ROOT is apparently said to work, there isn't a lot on the forums for this device but i will keep my eyes peeled and PM you when i find something out
    3
    Hi.

    I am impressed by your willingness to spend time helping others get "up to speed".

    I have quite recently entered the world of Android, so I openly admit that I lack much valuable knowledge. I'm a long time developer and computer tech, but I've actually never felt more "noob" than I do now.

    Anyway:
    * I have an HTC Sensation
    * I want full control, i.e. root privileges
    * I decided to wait for HTC's official bootloader unlocking procedure, thinking that it would be wise to do it "the proper way"

    So, basically I have an unlocked HTC Sensation now.. But the bootloader still says "S-ON", and for example, I'm unable to have it accept Clockwork Recovery images etc..

    I thought that S-OFF == unlocked bootloader, but I have been proven wrong. Perhaps someone could help me clarify these terms and their relationship with each other. Believe me, I have tried to locate this information by reading many "introductions to rooting" and various articles across the web, but I find contradictory statements, suggesting that at least some authors don't really know what they're talking about (and I am not capable of sorting what's correct and what's not at this point).

    For example, does an unlocked bootloader mean that it will no longer require manufacturer-signed images? What does S-OFF really mean? I have assumed that:
    S-OFF != root access and writable filesystem
    S-OFF == unlocked bootloader

    Many, many people seem to look for "simple" solutions and binary files they can just push to their devices to obtain root (without understanding any of the "dirty details" themselves). I want to understand how it works, but I won't find all I need to know in the Google Android's docs, and am under the impression that much -- especially manufacturer or model specific aspects -- is not properly and officially documented (for whatever absurd reason).

    Perhaps you could help me understand a bit more than I do today (which is, quite frankly, very little, it seems).


    First of all your not a noob so don't worry about it, your learning this all. i was the same as you :)

    Now the part you wanna hear, S-OFF is an unlocked bootloader

    screw the HTC way, i'd personally go and get it done via revolutionary io at least that way you can put it back (i think, don't quote me) and HTC would be none the wiser, now that would allow you to root and install apps that require root

    The root itself is actually a beautiful thing named SUPERUSER it has a binary in system/bin named "SU" this allows you to be BOSS of your phone, it allows you to execute low level commands and mess with system files/remount and write things to your phone, then when you go to flash a rom it allows you to, as your S-OFF you can flash to your hearts content!

    Now the other thing SUPERUSER does is it installs a system application named SUPERUSER it's a little skull and cross bones and it gives you GUI access to root, so when you open up say titanium backup, you need root and instead of going through the big process of setting it as root and going through terminal you can just click ALLOW which means its set by SUPERUSER to allow you to use all the root features of the program!

    Clever tool if i may say so myself!

    I hope this answered your question if not, feel free to tell me i'm wrong and to not quit my day job ;) cheers pal, just write back if your unsure on anything i'll be happy to help.
    2
    i have an inspire 4g with gingerbread i want to root it and put coredroid in it i tried bubbys method and also the hack it kit and both did not root my device i live in india and my inspire is carrier unlocked please suggest me a simple method to root my phone


    This should work

    i know you said you had tried it but try again, DO everything as it says, even if it's as simple as case sensitive names..