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Root Flashing OMGB issue: all SD Card Apps missing + Recovery problem (no MD5 file)

jwithy

jwithy

Newbie
Hello folks!

Before we start, I should say that I'm brand new to flashing anything other than rooted versions of the OTA updates. When I did that, the folks on these forums were amazingly friendly and helpful, so I am hoping I can lean on you again.

So here's the deal: today I decided to flash OMGB 1.1.2 using ROM Manager.

After doing so, my phone worked fine...except that all of the apps I had previously moved to my SD card (unfortunately, almost all of my apps) were not showing in the app list.

So, issue #1: How do I get the apps that are all on that SD card to appear?

Moving along...I the decided, "hey, no problem! I will just flash back to the backup that ROM manager made for me!"

EXcept I also had the backup problem that apparently a lot of people have had with the MD5 file. In my case, the backup created by ROM manager didn't include an MD5 file at all. This means I could not restore to the backup I had made.

Issue #2: Is there anything I can do to get that backup that I made today to work? I figure that solution outlined above could work, but it's hacking beyond what I understand, and I don't want to brick my phone.

Finally! The last time I had made a restorable backup was back in July (yeah, I know, I know)...I flashed that. Even that one seems like it is missing some of the apps that are on my SD card. Some of the apps seem to be older versions, and the home screens are all blank. :confused:

I dunno. What's the best thing to do here? I still would love to use OMGB or something else for a while, but does that mean that SD card apps will never show up in the apps list? Am I married to Sprint stock unless I want to constantly update my apps?
 
jwithy said:
Hello folks!

Before we start, I should say that I'm brand new to flashing anything other than rooted versions of the OTA updates. When I did that, the folks on these forums were amazingly friendly and helpful, so I am hoping I can lean on you again.

So here's the deal: today I decided to flash OMGB 1.1.2 using ROM Manager.

After doing so, my phone worked fine...except that all of the apps I had previously moved to my SD card (unfortunately, almost all of my apps) were not showing in the app list.

So, issue #1: How do I get the apps that are all on that SD card to appear?

Moving along...I the decided, "hey, no problem! I will just flash back to the backup that ROM manager made for me!"

EXcept I also had the backup problem that apparently a lot of people have had with the MD5 file. In my case, the backup created by ROM manager didn't include an MD5 file at all. This means I could not restore to the backup I had made.

Issue #2: Is there anything I can do to get that backup that I made today to work? I figure that solution outlined above could work, but it's hacking beyond what I understand, and I don't want to brick my phone.

Finally! The last time I had made a restorable backup was back in July (yeah, I know, I know)...I flashed that. Even that one seems like it is missing some of the apps that are on my SD card. Some of the apps seem to be older versions, and the home screens are all blank. :confused:

I dunno. What's the best thing to do here? I still would love to use OMGB or something else for a while, but does that mean that SD card apps will never show up in the apps list? Am I married to Sprint stock unless I want to constantly update my apps?
Click to expand...

First get rid of ROM Manager its buggy and useless. Learn the Recovery. As far as your apps I would look on my SD Card and see if they are still there. For Future I would 1. Invest in Titanium backup for all my apps and their data. 2. I would start making a Nandroid backups Before doing anything with the phone. 3 I would keep a fresh Nandroid on my computer incase something happens to my Card.

As Far as using OMGB Flash it from recovery. You should also take time to read the Guide.
 
Hey--

Thanks for responding so quickly. I read the guide when I was first rooting my phone and doing anything like this. Flashing new versions of the stock OTA never caused any problems, though.

I totally get now that using the recovery is better-- this is the only broken backup ive ever had.

Yes, my apps are still on my SD card. The phone just seems to not "know it" if that makes sense. That's the issue.

So I guess my questions remain the same.
 
1. I used Apps2SD for some of them. Others I moved there just by using manage applications. For a few, I forced them with Titanium Backup (which I unfortunately used more often to remove crapware and move apps than to make backups).

2. I will definitely check out that second method--looks like there's a bit of hacking involved.

I'm wondering, though--the apps are there. I can see them when I check with Androzip. They are just gone from the apps list and so I can't run them.

I did end up flashing an old old backup and the apps that were there during that backup are definitely showing up now. That's the best I've got so far. :-)

Thanks!
 
jwithy said:
1. I used Apps2SD for some of them. Others I moved there just by using manage applications. For a few, I forced them with Titanium Backup (which I unfortunately used more often to remove crapware and move apps than to make backups).

2. I will definitely check out that second method--looks like there's a bit of hacking involved.

I'm wondering, though--the apps are there. I can see them when I check with Androzip. They are just gone from the apps list and so I can't run them.

I did end up flashing an old old backup and the apps that were there during that backup are definitely showing up now. That's the best I've got so far. :-)

Thanks!
Click to expand...

ok so here is the problem with apps2sd which both the manage apps in setting does as well as some of the apps on the market does as well. what apps2sd does it moves only parts of the app to the card. the rest of the app is still on the phones memory so when you flash another rom, if you did not back them up with titanium backup then you will have lost that app.
 
ocnbrze said:
ok so here is the problem with apps2sd which both the manage apps in setting does as well as some of the apps on the market does as well. what apps2sd does it moves only parts of the app to the card. the rest of the app is still on the phones memory so when you flash another rom, if you did not back them up with titanium backup then you will have lost that app.
Click to expand...

Weird. So then how does that free up memory on the phone itself?

This makes sense though. With the OTA updates, I never wiped the phone.

I DID have the foresight to sync with appbrain before the mess happened. Does that mean I should/can just download them all again with appbrain and call it a day?

Is there a way to put apps on the SD card that doesn't cause this problem?

Thanks!
 
well, read up on a2sd. you might have seen some talk about it in here. Some roms support it natively, some I understand you have to use a zip they call Dark Tremors and terminal emulator.

You have to have your sd card partitioned to use it. That i why some of us were talking about the class 10 sd card because it has a really fast r/w speed and won't slow down apps that need it.

It moves a lot more to the card but still puts some on the phone. When you do your nandroids then you have to back up the sd ext too. And When you want to flash a new rom, when you are using it, you have to wipe the sd ext first, too.

When you have the card partitioned and flash a rom that supports it, it will still put system apps in the phone, but when you restore your apps, the ones that can go on sd ext will be put there automatically. you will be able to see the activity when you use titanium backup.
 
jwithy said:
Weird. So then how does that free up memory on the phone itself?

This makes sense though. With the OTA updates, I never wiped the phone.

I DID have the foresight to sync with appbrain before the mess happened. Does that mean I should/can just download them all again with appbrain and call it a day?

Is there a way to put apps on the SD card that doesn't cause this problem?

Thanks!
Click to expand...

1. by taking some of the program you move some of the "Weight" to another location. (Kind of like when the wife says I lost 5 pounds and you see her butt and go I found it) Thats what Apps2sd does.

2. I believe you can do this with appbrain yes. I have never done it but i'm assuming its going to be a tedious task to download install and setup all those programs again.

3. I am not sure but I believe that Dark Tremors a2sd is capable of moving the programs over however I am not sure how to run the commands to have it reset the links if it is able to do so at all. I'm assuming you could run the reinstall and that would recreate links but since they are already
on the sdcard not sure how this works. I personally have an App Backup that I keep on the computer incase anything ever happend to my card. Even with a backup of Titanium on my computer if there were programs I didn't have backed up yet at least I can reinstall them from that backup. Really only saves me a step from having to download them.
 
dustwun77 said:
Trunicated:
It moves a lot more to the card but still puts some on the phone. When you do your nandroids then you have to back up the sd ext too. And When you want to flash a new rom, when you are using it, you have to wipe the sd ext first, too.
Click to expand...

Ok I have not used this program as I do not have a fancy class 6 or above card I have one of those Wally World SanDisk specials. Its so low in class it doesn't even tell ya what class it is. However to help me understand when I install a new rom I have to Wipe the sd ext. After I install the New Rom how would I go about getting my SD EXT Nandroid Backup back over to the Extended partion? Could I Copy and Paste from my Computer (Running Linux Ofcourse) or is their a command in a2sd that will allow me to restore from that backup? Or do you just have to isntall and move everything all over again.
 
The guide talks about a2sd and partitioning your card. The new mik roms support it natively, you don't need to flash dt or use terminal emulator with them.

When you flash one of them fresh, you won't see any difference until you re-install your apps.

Then, if you look at the overview page of titanium backup, you will see activity in your a2sd partition at the bottom, you will see it start to fill up, a little.

When you flash a new rom, or restore a nand you made of an a2sd rom, you want to wipe your sd ext first. When you make that nan, you tell it to back up your sd ext and when you restore it, the stuff will just go right back in there.

Edit: I initially did it with a class 4 and it worked just fine, I didn't play any games or use any apps that were really intense though.
 
dustwun77 said:
The guide talks about a2sd and partitioning your card. The new mik roms support it natively, you don't need to flash dt or use terminal emulator with them.

When you flash one of them fresh, you won't see any difference until you re-install your apps.

Then, if you look at the overview page of titanium backup, you will see activity in your a2sd partition at the bottom, you will see it start to fill up, a little.

When you flash a new rom, or restore a nand you made of an a2sd rom, you want to wipe your sd ext first. When you make that nan, you tell it to back up your sd ext and when you restore it, the stuff will just go right back in there.

Edit: I initially did it with a class 4 and it worked just fine, I didn't play any games or use any apps that were really intense though.
Click to expand...

Guess I could always try and see what it does. I do have a couple of 8gig cards around so if it did tear up my current 16 gig at least I have one of those. I don't play any games either with exception to solitaire. I will read the guide on it. Its been awhile since I rooted so haven't been to the guide in a while :) I am currently on Evervolv Does anyone know if its supports a2sd? Will I need to flash it?

So I want to make a Nandroid just of the EXT partition by itself and just restore that after I flash a new rom and it should work? Or will titanium backup reinstall them back to the SD EXT?
 
I don't know about that rom in particular. You know where you go to read about the roms though, on the developers pages? It should mention it in there a2sd. You make a regular nand, but x in sd ext too. Then when you restore to a card with the SAME SIZE partition, it will work automatically.

There seems to be plenty of confusion regarding the terminology though. i guess some roms have DT baked in, and you don't have to run the term emulator commands and it works. It doesn't hurt them to do it though, and the guide tells about them.

Some roms, apparently, will work with Dark Tremors, DT, (Where do they get these names? :) ) But you have to flash the zip first, then run the term emulator commands. I haven't used that method so I don't know if you do this process after you have your apps restored to rom, and it moves them, or if you do it at some point and it moves them and ones that come later as well, or if you have to keep doing it when you want to move apps.

Don't use it and apps2sd though, or maybe just not on same apps. I think if you did, and backed up android secure, as well, that they would be saved and restored too, that is just a theory though. but not on same apps at same time.

a 1 gig partition was plenty for me, but I was getting the 16 gig card so I went with the 2 gig partition, barely use a fraction of it though.

Mik2.5x and 3d beta 1 support it out of the box, this new exploded aosp rom seems to as well. I have stuff that moved to the partition by itself.
 
Boy oh boy, you guys lost me quickly. :-D

Okay not really, but I have to read carefully, and be much more meticulous about it instead of "Wheeee experiment!"

I'll try to look up and read up more about this stuff. It sounds like right now I'm pretty much in the state of starting all over though, huh?

As in, the apps that I had, that I thought were backed up properly, probably were not, and so even though there's stuff on the SD card, it's not the right stuff, and so those apps that aren't showing up are not going to be restored some way. It sounds like I might as well delete them off of the SD card and begin again, perhaps with a partition involved so that I can switch from ROM to ROM (if so desired) without losing anything.

Is this right? I don't want to start all over (or rather, try to download those apps again, etc. etc.) unless I need to. :-D
 
jwithy said:
Boy oh boy, you guys lost me quickly. :-D

Okay not really, but I have to read carefully, and be much more meticulous about it instead of "Wheeee experiment!"

I'll try to look up and read up more about this stuff. It sounds like right now I'm pretty much in the state of starting all over though, huh?

As in, the apps that I had, that I thought were backed up properly, probably were not, and so even though there's stuff on the SD card, it's not the right stuff, and so those apps that aren't showing up are not going to be restored some way. It sounds like I might as well delete them off of the SD card and begin again, perhaps with a partition involved so that I can switch from ROM to ROM (if so desired) without losing anything.

Is this right? I don't want to start all over unless I need to. :-D
Click to expand...

ok so lets see if i can shed some light on this. there are two confusing terms that look alike but are different. there is app2sd and there is a2sd. both get confused and even the devs use the wrong terminology sometimes as well. but they are different in how they move apps to the card.

apps2sd only moves part of the app to the card. part of the reason why the app is not fully on the card is that the stock card is only a class 2 and thus the read and write speed is very slow. so that if you have apps on the card, the performance of the app will suffer. so what they did was to move only part of the app that does not need to depend on the read and write speeds so that your apps will be fine. now this is only a small part of the app that does this and this is also why you cannot use widgets associated with that app. and you are right, this has tricked people into thinking that this will reduce or add more internal memory to their phone, but in reality it will only free up a very minimal amount of space.

a2sd is completely different on how it moves apps to the sd card. it you need to be rooted and you need to have your card partitioned. it is also recommended that you have a class 6 or higher (more on this in a sec.)

basically a2sd moves the entire app to your card. the only thing on your phone will be a symbolic link that tells your phone where the app is on your card. the link to the app is very small and thus by having your apps on the card, it will free up your memory. but because the app is entirely on your card, you need a high class the card. the higher the better. if you have a low class card then the read and write speeds will be slow and your apps will suffer. if you like to play games or have some app that is very intensive like that then you want a card that is very fast.

so i hope this answers some of your questions on it. if you have anymore please feel free to ask.
 
ocnbrze said:
apps2sd only moves part of the app to the card. part of the reason why the app is not fully on the card is that the stock card is only a class 2 and thus the read and write speed is very slow. so that if you have apps on the card, the performance of the app will suffer. so what they did was to move only part of the app that does not need to depend on the read and write speeds so that your apps will be fine. now this is only a small part of the app that does this and this is also why you cannot use widgets associated with that app. and you are right, this has tricked people into thinking that this will reduce or add more internal memory to their phone, but in reality it will only free up a very minimal amount of space.
Click to expand...

This is SO helpful! Now I understand a lot more.

AND. This is why this is the first time that flashing a ROM messed up my apps--it was the first time I wiped the phone when flashing a new ROM!

Awesome. Thank you.
 
jwithy said:
This is SO helpful! Now I understand a lot more.

AND. This is why this is the first time that flashing a ROM messed up my apps--it was the first time I wiped the phone when flashing a new ROM!

Awesome. Thank you.
Click to expand...

no worries. and yes that is why. when you flash a new rom one part of the app is gone from the phone internally and all you have left is whatever is on your card. but that part of the app will not work because the other part of the app is gone due to the new rom.
 
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