Tmobile: Relocked: S-ON: Stuck in bootloaded

[redpoint73]

Glad it worked for you. Which method did you end up using, the RUU or the TWRP stock backup? Just out of curiosity, they are both valid methods. But the RUU is probably easier in your situation, and probably makes for a "cleaner" install (writes all partitions to "factory" condition).

I feel so silly, considering I was using sneaky ghosts unsigned fullwipe firmware... Blah!
Again, you both are awesome, kind to a moron!

It's not that silly. I made the same error a while back, thinking that sneakyghost's firmwares were signed. In my case, it flashed anyway since I was s-off, so I don't think I knew any better until someone told me.

The description "full stock" firmware to me implied "official" and "signed", but that isn't the case in reality. It's counterintuitive that a fully stock (unmodified) firmware would be missing the signature. But I'm sure there is a reason for it to be unsigned (don't know the background, personally).

 

[jdub1983]

Glad it worked for you. Which method did you end up using, the RUU or the TWRP stock backup? Just out of curiosity, they are both valid methods. But the RUU is probably easier in your situation, and probably makes for a "cleaner" install (writes all partitions to "factory" condition).



It's not that silly. I made the same error a while back, thinking that sneakyghost's firmwares were signed. In my case, it flashed anyway since I was s-off, so I don't think I knew any better until someone told me.

The description "full stock" firmware to me implied "official" and "signed", but that isn't the case in reality. It's counterintuitive that a fully stock (unmodified) firmware would be missing the signature. But I'm sure there is a reason for it to be unsigned (don't know the background, personally).

I ended up flashing the firmware, unlocking bootloader, flashing twrp, then installed lineageOS, gapps, and root.

I must say lineageOS is great for battery life. Although, charging is EXTREMELY Slow, and, my radio signal is horrible now. Before I had full LTE, now, it bounces between nothing and 1n2 bars. Weird that the new firmware didn't improve it.

I might flash the RUU just to be certain everything is the way it should be internally, and then re flash twrp and lineageOS.

Thanks again for your support and help yesterday!

 

[redpoint73]

I ended up flashing the firmware, unlocking bootloader, flashing twrp, then installed lineageOS, gapps, and root.

Ah yes, that's right, you were just going to flash a custom ROM anyway. So that process makes sense.

my radio signal is horrible now. Before I had full LTE, now, it bounces between nothing and 1n2 bars. Weird that the new firmware didn't improve it.

I might flash the RUU just to be certain everything is the way it should be internally, and then re flash twrp and lineageOS.

Might just be that the T-Mobile stock ROM was rigged to show more bars. There isn't a standard for what signal strength corresponds to number of bars. It can literally mean anything the carrier or manufacturer wants it to mean. AT&T is notorious for adding a bar (5 instead of 4?) on the signal icon in their stock ROMs, to make it look like their network is somehow "better" in some way that doesn't exist.

Better to go by the signal strength shown in the Settings>Other.

On the other hand, running the full RUU can't hurt. Might help.

 

[jdub1983]

Ah yes, that's right, you were just going to flash a custom ROM anyway. So that process makes sense.



Might just be that the T-Mobile stock ROM was rigged to show more bars. There isn't a standard for what signal strength corresponds to number of bars. It can literally mean anything the carrier or manufacturer wants it to mean. AT&T is notorious for adding a bar (5 instead of 4?) on the signal icon in their stock ROMs, to make it look like their network is somehow "better" in some way that doesn't exist.

Better to go by the signal strength shown in the Settings>Other.

On the other hand, running the full RUU can't hurt. Might help.

I'm hoping there is something the RUU has that the firmware doesn't for whatever reason, the signal keeps dropping in and out, a bit annoying. I wasn't on a stock room before, was CM12. The signal goes from -120 to -80 or so. Very odd.

 

[redpoint73]

The signal goes from -120 to -80 or so. Very odd.

Yeah, -120 is pretty bad, and -80 is pretty good (remember, the numbers are negative, and the closer to zero, the better). So that is odd.

I don't follow Lineage too closely. Did you check if the ROM has any known signal issues?

If anything, the RUU will put you on the stock T-Mob Marshmallow ROM, and you can see if that suffers the same signal fluctuations.