Android and ParanoidAndriod on the Galaxy Nexus

[Strontium_99]

Hi all, sorry if this a really stupid question but you hear so many conflicting stories out there, sometimes you don't know what to believe.

I inherited a Galaxy Nexus phone off my brother that is currently running Android version 4.2.2 and ParanoidAndroid version 3.50.

I know I can upgrade to Android 4.3 and ParanoidAndroid 4.45 (according to their site http://aospa.co/).

My question is, can I? IE. is it as simple as accepting the Android update option from Settings > About phone > System updates, and downloading the latest version of ParanoidAndroid from the site and install that... however that's done. Not got that far yet

Or will this cause major problems, like brick my phone, wipe my phone, cause the end of time etc.

Sorry that my question comes from a lack of understanding about mobile phone op systems, and I may well be panicking about nothing.

Would really appreciate any help anybody could offer please.
Big thanks.

 

[The_Chief]

Hi and welcome to Android Forums! Sorry for the delay in answering, I just happened to pop in.

System updates via OTA are disabled when using a custom ROM (operating system) like Paranoid Android. You would want to download the new version and install it in Recovery. Usually a new ROM will require a full wipe (losing all apps, app data and settings); but an incremental update of the same ROM might only need a "dirty flash", which wipes only the system partition and the caches. User data remains.

For something like this, MAKE A BACKUP in Recovery! Then wipe System, Dalvik and Cache. Do NOT wipe Data. flash the new ROM and reboot, allowing up to 5 minutes for the first bootup. If it doesn't work, go back and wipe again, this time wiping Data as well. Flash again and reboot.

As long as you have made a backup in your phone's known good state, you can always recover to that point with a restore. So no bricking by merely updating the ROM; and hopefully time won't end: I haven't seen the Grand Canyon yet!

However, wiping Data WILL wipe your data from system memory. INTERNAL memory will not be wiped so pictures, files, etc. will remain intact. Good luck, read a lot, know what you're about to do before you do it and always remember to ask questions before you do anything!

 

[Strontium_99]

Major sized thanks for the response. I've now got a better understanding of the whole process, and as you advised, I'll do a bit more research before undertaking anything.

Thanks again for the comprehensive response. It's been very helpful.