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Help Downgrade to 4.4.4

jsipes

Newbie
Can someone help me figure out the best way to downgrade my N5 back to KK 4.4.4? I absolutely hate 5.0. I have apps that won't open, others that are buggy. Wish I had never installed the update.
 
I'm not exactly sure what all you have done to try to fix the problems, but I don't know how to go back. Someone will chime in below and tell you, but while we wait for them: have you tried doing a recovery cache clear or a factory reset to see if your issues got sorted out?
 
I agree with GuitarG20. A factory reset will likely help.
If that doesn't, you can always flash the factory images for 4.4
 
Thanks for each of your replies. I'm resetting now, but I'm almost certain that I'll attempt to flash the KK images. There's just so much about 5.0 that I despise, that I'd rather just stick with what I know I like, and what works (fluidly, all the time).

Is flashing the images fairly easy? I've never done any kind of tinkering with my devices before. Any suggestions?
 
Flashing the factory images is fairly straightforward

While they can seem very easy and helpful, I'd urge you to avoid using any toolkits. Using those, you won't learn anything about what is actually being done, and if something goes wrong, you won't have a clue about what has been done so far and what failed and it will be hard for anyone to help out after that.

Basically, the sequence of steps is this.
  1. Download & install ADB/Fastboot drivers to your PC - test it
  2. Download the correct factory image from developers.google.com/android/nexus/images
  3. Unlock bootloader if it isn't already unlocked - this WILL delete all your data, so backup your phone data before this
  4. Execute the flash-all.bat script from the factory image you downloaded, immediately followed by going to recovery and performing factory data reset (if you are flashing Android 5.x, the flash-all.bat doesn't seem to work right - so, you'd flash the individual images in the right sequence)
Rather than type out all the steps in detail here, I'll point you to the most comprehensive guide that I have found so far - http://forum.xda-developers.com/google-nexus-5/general/tutorial-how-to-flash-factory-image-t2513701
Read the first post at least twice so you understand the sequence perfectly.

Out of curiosity, what is it about 5.0 that you can't stand? I've been using 5.0 since it was released and can't find any reason to go back to kitkat (well, except XPosed Framework - but I think 5.0 has a lot of benefits that make me want to stick to it even without XPosed)
 
Thank you for the info on flashing the images. Among my reasons are 1. I can't connect to my wifi at work - it says there's an authentication problem (never had that issue on KK & nothing has changed with the network I'm trying to access); 2. My bank's app no longer works; 3. When my phone is locked & I receive a message, my quick reply popup will not open to allow me to reply. It goes into a "loop" of trying to open the reply popup & open the keyboard. I've been told it's an issue with Swiftkey and not my messaging app (Chomp SMS). This is increasingly frustrated b/c I don't like having to open the phone and messaging app just to reply to a msg.
 
So, basically application incompatibilities and the weird WiFi authentication issue.

What type of network security is it? WPA2? Or do they use a corporate level RADIUS server or something like that? Do you get any error message when trying to connect? Or does it show successful connection, but you can't get internet access? If so, do you at least get LAN access?

Regarding the swiftkey issue, try the google keyboard and see if the problem persists - at least that way, you can confirm that it is a keyboard issue vs something else.
 
It is a keyboard issue, for sure. Google kb works perfectly. Updated password with the network & somehow solved the issue. So, we're down to app incompatibilities. I'm presuming those will be addressed with time??
 
It is a keyboard issue, for sure. Google kb works perfectly. Updated password with the network & somehow solved the issue. So, we're down to app incompatibilities. I'm presuming those will be addressed with time??

I'm sure they will. Frankly it's surprising some apps are taking so long. The developer preview was out in July and it hasn't changed that much. I'd contact the dev's of the individual apps and see what they say.
 
Flashing the factory images is fairly straightforward

While they can seem very easy and helpful, I'd urge you to avoid using any toolkits. Using those, you won't learn anything about what is actually being done, and if something goes wrong, you won't have a clue about what has been done so far and what failed and it will be hard for anyone to help out after that.

Basically, the sequence of steps is this.
  1. Download & install ADB/Fastboot drivers to your PC - test it
  2. Download the correct factory image from developers.google.com/android/nexus/images
  3. Unlock bootloader if it isn't already unlocked - this WILL delete all your data, so backup your phone data before this
  4. Execute the flash-all.bat script from the factory image you downloaded, immediately followed by going to recovery and performing factory data reset (if you are flashing Android 5.x, the flash-all.bat doesn't seem to work right - so, you'd flash the individual images in the right sequence)
Rather than type out all the steps in detail here, I'll point you to the most comprehensive guide that I have found so far - http://forum.xda-developers.com/google-nexus-5/general/tutorial-how-to-flash-factory-image-t2513701
Read the first post at least twice so you understand the sequence perfectly.

Out of curiosity, what is it about 5.0 that you can't stand? I've been using 5.0 since it was released and can't find any reason to go back to kitkat (well, except XPosed Framework - but I think 5.0 has a lot of benefits that make me want to stick to it even without XPosed)

I wouldn't necessarily scare somebody away from using script tools. WugzFresh Nexus Root Tool is pretty easy to use, I'd say even for a beginner. It automatically unlocks, roots, downloads and flashes factory images, ROMS and custom recovery images. It shows every process in a window as it works on the phone, it even keeps a log. I was skeptical of such tools, wish I had used it first time I unlocked my N5.... VERY easy.

OTOH, manually ripping TGZs open and flashing images with ADB can be dangerous territory for a noobie....all it takes is a wrong command or bad file to brick a phone, however, in my experience I've done things to my Nexus 5 that would have attained critical mass on a different phone :) Nice thing about a N5 is that they're damn near impossible to brick.

@jsipes you have plenty of people here to help you and a few different ways to restore your N5 to 4.4.x... Do some reading in the Nexus 5 All things Root and see which restore method works for you. Have fun, but read everything carefully!
 
Really this lollipop upgrade sucks. Facing Hell lot of problems.My battery goes drain every time.And I'm wondering that to where should I go to check my clicked pics !.I could not see any gallery .
 
Really this lollipop upgrade sucks. Facing Hell lot of problems.My battery goes drain every time.And I'm wondering that to where should I go to check my clicked pics !.I could not see any gallery .

If you're having issues and you have not, I would try cache partition wipe then factory reset if that didn't work. Gallery app was made redundant and removed. You can use the "photos" app or download an alternative gallery app from the play store.
 
I have had the offer of Lollipop for a couple of weeks now, but am hanging back because of all the problems people seem to be experiencing.

Before I download it, I'd really like to know whether all the people who have encountered problems have overcome them (or not) by doing the factory reset that is being recommended on here.

Come on, people, please let me (and I'm sure other interested parties) know.
 
I can only speak for myself but a factory reset fixed all the issues I was having. However with that being said, I did go back for one reason, battery saving apps such as Juice Defender Ultimate will not work with 5.0 and my battery life is suffering. It's only been 1 day since going back and I must say that I do miss the features of Lollipop already. If Juice Defender becomes compatible with 5.0...I'll go back immediately, until then I'm sticking with 4.4.x!
 
I have had the offer of Lollipop for a couple of weeks now, but am hanging back because of all the problems people seem to be experiencing.

Before I download it, I'd really like to know whether all the people who have encountered problems have overcome them (or not) by doing the factory reset that is being recommended on here.
For every user who posts here with problems there's probably thousands who install 5.0 OTA and have none. I'm one of them. Did the standard OTA update, didn't do a reset or anything else. No problems. In fact, since starting with Android 1.0 on the original G1 I've done many OTA updates and never done a reset afterward and have never had problems. Other people I know have had multiple trouble-free OTA updates.

So...will you have any trouble? Need to do a reset? It's possible.

Are the odds good that you can do a simple OTA update and go? Yes!

Just do it...
 
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I have had the offer of Lollipop for a couple of weeks now, but am hanging back because of all the problems people seem to be experiencing.

Before I download it, I'd really like to know whether all the people who have encountered problems have overcome them (or not) by doing the factory reset that is being recommended on here.

Come on, people, please let me (and I'm sure other interested parties) know.

I endured hell trying to get 5.0 on my phone, had to see what the buzz was about. Couldn't flash it directly, had to downgrade to 4.4.2 and let it do the OTA. Despite the trouble I encountered getting it on my phone, it ran great. No false storage readings, freeze ups or app conflicts at all. Even gained double battery life and it was lightning fast. No factory wipe either. Guess I was one of the lucky few...

Reason I got rid of it? I feel, aesthetically it's disgusting (looks like iOS). Secondly, Google designed Looliepoop to match their 'cool, gnarly and hip' persona alongside their other electronic/software functionality, all while having that unsettling Apple 'We know what u want before U know what you want facade: Uploading mass amounts of your activity data to their servers and utilizing algorithms to custom tailor your UI and web browsing. And no, I'm not one of those conspiracy theorists, its just... Damn.... Annoying, and it polluted my lock screen with scores of useless GN cards and notifications, arrival times to work where, my work, well, wasn't. Its like having an even more invasive Google Now that you can't shut off. I never even wanted Google Then. To top it off, the annoying things that once had menu settings to disable now don't exist. Not for me, but Apple fanpeeps all around the world will bask in the grey and light blue sugary goodness they are right at home with. Devs and hardcore Android peeps surely will find many great things about 5.0, but for what I use my phone for, it left a very bitter taste. But that's just me.

Sorry, rant over. All in all, 5.0 is great performance- wise, just uh, void in a few departments.

I'm back running a CM11 nightly, and now my phone and I couldn't be any happier. ;) Matched performance without the Google hipster tagging alongside.
 
Not trying to sell anything, but it is still just as easy to turn off most of the Google stuff as it ever was. I've never used Google Now and don't use most Google apps. First thing I do when I set up is open the Google account and uncheck everything. ;) You most certainly can disable Google Now and a lot of other things, as before, in the Google Settings app (definitely around since KitKat).

I'm not crazy about all the white, but the performance is very nice. Hopefully ROMs or Themers will provide options for the white.
 
For every user who posts here with problems there's probably thousands who install 5.0 OTA and have none. I'm one of them. Did the standard OTA update, didn't do a reset or anything else. No problems. In fact, since starting with Android 1.0 on the original G1 I've done many OTA updates and never done a reset afterward and have never had problems. Other people I know have had multiple trouble-free OTA updates.

So...will you have any trouble? Need to do a reset? It's possible.

Are the odds good that you can do a simple OTA update and go? Yes!

Just do it...

I think that what you're saying is true. I've finally got the N5 w/4.4.4, and i've been holding off on upgrading, because of what i've read in various forums(Android Central, Google Nexus, etc.). I see now that the minority have problems, but the majority don't. It may be an app problem, that's carried over from 4.4.4. I'm completely stock, so everything should go smoothly.:p
 
Although I agree that the chances are that if I do upgrade I'd find no problems. I have still only heard from one person who had problems and overcame them fully by doing a factory reset. Perhaps others have too, but not posted on here.
 
When I first upgraded to 5.0 through the Google factory images (weeks ago)... Apon first boot my N5 had no status bar and no navigation bar.
Immediately I booted to recovery and performed a factory date reset and I haven't had any issues with 5.0 since.
 
I've really tried to make myself like this upgrade, but the more I use it, the more I don't like it. I'm what you'd call a "noobie" in terms of tinkering with devices. Gonna give this downgrade a shot, as 5.0 just isn't for me at all and the factory reset rendered nothing different. @jj14x, is the method you listed fairly easy & straight forward?
 
I'm sure they will. Frankly it's surprising some apps are taking so long. The developer preview was out in July and it hasn't changed that much. I'd contact the dev's of the individual apps and see what they say.
And I'm more surprised that it's SwiftKey, of all apps!! I'm literally at my wits end . . .
 
I've really tried to make myself like this upgrade, but the more I use it, the more I don't like it. I'm what you'd call a "noobie" in terms of tinkering with devices. Gonna give this downgrade a shot, as 5.0 just isn't for me at all and the factory reset rendered nothing different. @jj14x, is the method you listed fairly easy & straight forward?
I must admit - I'm unclear about the issue now :) From your earlier posts, it seemed like there was just some issue with an incompatible app, and that other issues were fixed. Is there some other issue going on? Or is that app critical enough to warrant going back to kitkat?

I'd like to believe the method is fairly straightforward - just read those steps carefully and ask any questions you have before you attempt anything. Don't forget to read the first post of the thread that I linked to. It is very thorough.

Just remember to backup everything you need from your phone first, download the right factory image, and don't forget to test the ADB/fastboot drivers (setting the drivers up correctly is probably the hardest part). The rest is pretty straightforward. Again, read those steps and ask any questions you might have.
 
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Is there any way i can downgrade from 5.0.2 to 4.4.4, without a computer? Im rooted and running a custom rom
 
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