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Is there Dummies guide for roms?

Ironass explains in his guide that after you are rooted, you can install any ROM you wish.

Installing individual ROMs is invariably just a simple flash of the ROM's zip file, but you would need to look at the thread pertaining to the ROM you want to flash for any specific instructions just to be on the safe side.
 
when you have copied the ROM's zip to your handset, its all done from there.
how you get the zip onto your handset in the first place is up to you, either download via pc then transfer, or just download it on the handset in a browser session
 
I have only ever written one Dummies Guide for installing a ROM, "CheckROM v6 - A Dummies Guide to installation", which was for a very popular Gingerbread ROM.

Check out each ROM's Installation advice from its developer in their thread and read it carefully and thoroughly first. So long as you have already done a nandroid, Titanium and efs file backups you can't go too wrong following Hawker's advice in posts #2 and #4.

The problem is that every ROM has its own installation instructions and variations and this would mean writing a separate guide for each and every one of the myriad of custom ROM's available and I have a very short attention spa... oh look, a squirrel!
 
No I think this one is too much for me. To start, I can't find the rom to download it. Then I am not sure if I have backed up the efs file or not. I can't find the dalvik thing. So, I think at 70, i am past it!
Bri
 
bigbrithesecon said:
No I think this one is too much for me. To start, I can't find the rom to download it. Then I am not sure if I have backed up the efs file or not. I can't find the dalvik thing. So, I think at 70, i am past it!
Bri
Click to expand...

Nonsense ! I have it on good authority both Ironass and Hawker are in their early 80s ;) .

Seriously, Bri, it isn't that hard. I've done you a step by step walk through, I hope you find it useful.

Here is a direct download link to Neat ROM from my own dropbox account, I hope salesale, the ROM's developer is OK with this. Click this on your phone's browser and it will stick the .zip file you need in to "Downloads" on your SGS2 (make sure it goes to the phones internal storage and not your own SD card, you'll see why later):

https://www.dropbox.com/s/8wy29uwmnyivs48/XXLSJ_NeatROM_Full (1).zip

Now don't worry about your EFS folder, I believe you have Siyah kernel installed on your phone along with plain old vanilla Samsung ICS. Well Siyah automatically backs it up. You won't need it anyway, but better safe than sorry.

First things first, fully charge your phone and then do a "Nandroid" back up. This is a snapshot of your phone as it is before you do anything. If anything goes wrong you restore this and your phone is as it is when you did the backup. To do one in your applications you'll find an app called "CWM" (Clock Work Manager), this is automatically installed when you Root the phone and allows you to flash .zip files, mods and make Nandroid backups. Open it, pick the "ClockWorkMod" mode and confirm you want to reboot into recovery. Once rebooted in recovery mode use the touch arrow keys to highlight "backup and restore", then hit the squared touch arrow (enter) and backup is already highlighted hit enter and a Nandroid backup will be done. As long as you can get to recovery mode (for that is what this is referred to just about everywhere ) you will be safe now. Recovery mode can be gotten into without CWM , switch the phone off and wait until it's completley off, then press and hold the volume up button, the home button and the power button all at the same time and hold them until you enter recovery mode.

Here is a video of me doing a Nandroid just now, it takes a while so I've stopped it just after it starts (I hadn't enough space anyway to do one). It tells you when it's done and can take quite a while.

Doing a Nandroid backup on a SGS2 - Siyah Kerenel - YouTube



Let it finish and then reboot by going back repeatedly in the menu until you get to "reboot", "Nandroid" back up done.

Make sure your contacts are backed up somewhere safe, I sync mine to my Google account. I can't remember if flashing a ROM deletes them, I'm fairly certain it does (obviously ones on the SIM card are safe, I'm talking about the ones stored on the phone). Go to settings>Google account>tap your Gmail address under Accounts, select what you want to sync and tap sync now. Restoring once logged in once flashed is exactly the same procedure.

Now there is a way to back up your installed applications and their settings and game progress etc. It's through an app found in Play Store called "Titanium Backup". Since you are upgrading from ICS to JB I'm not going to go any further than tell you it's possible (and straightforward as well), because restoring applications data and settings from an older version of Android (ICS) to a newer one (JB) can cause problems once you have your phone up and running. If your swapping one Jelly Bean ROM for another or one Ice Cream Sandwich ROM for another then a Titanium back up is great, but for now I recommend reinstalling them all from the Play Store from scratch.

Now the fun part :) Go to recovery mode again and the third option down is "wipe cache partition" select it and wipe your "cache" now go to advanced (the seventh option down) select it and then select the second option down "wipe dalvik cache" - does what it says. Neither of these wipes touch your own stuff like photos, videos and music, they are to wipe data from your old ROM. Now, still in recovery mode go back select "install zip from sdcard", then "choose zip from internal sd card", scroll down to Download, select and find the file "XXLSJ_NeatROM_Full (1).zip". Select it and press enter. It will Flash Neat ROM JB with Philz kernel (ready rooted). Now go back through the menus and select reboot system now. The phone will reboot as if it is brand new out of the box with NEAT ROM installed. It will take a while as it is rebuilding "cache" and "dalvik cache", this happens only on first boot after flashing. It will stick on "Samsung" in the middle of the screen brightening and dimming for a while, don't panic it can take up to ten minutes. Your own files like music, photos and videos will be untouched.

Now all you have to do is re download all your apps and set it up. :)

It sounds much harder than it is when written down, I promise.
 
bigbrithesecon said:
No I think this one is too much for me. To start, I can't find the rom to download it. Then I am not sure if I have backed up the efs file or not. I can't find the dalvik thing. So, I think at 70, i am past it!
Bri
Click to expand...

70! You're only a Spring Chicken yet!

To be fair bigbrithesecon, if you've managed to root your phone, you've done the hardest part.

I wasn't suggesting that you use that ROM in my post as it is an old Gingerbread, Android v2.3.x, ROM.

The business of nandroid, Titanium and efs backups is to protect you, and make life easier, when flashing a ROM.

The nandroid backup is a mirror image, a snapshot in time if you like, of your rooted phone and is useful if you don't like a particular ROM, (firmware), and wish to revert back. The Titanium backup is a very clever app from the Play Store that can back up all your app's and settings with so that you do not have to re-do them every time you do a wipe. The efs file contains the important information related to your phone, such as your IMEI number, and if this becomes corrupted or deleted it can mean a trip to a Samsung Service Point. Kernels, such as Siyah, when installed, automatically do an efs file backup for you. There is also an app you can install, GSII Repair, that can also do this for you. All backups should be set to be saved on your external, (removable), SD card for safe keeping.

If you would like to know more about these backups, see under, "I'm rooted... now what?", in post #2 of the, "Rooting Galaxy S2 - Dummies Guide", which details these things and gives links to more information on the subject.

If you would still like to give it a go after reading up a bit more about this, then just have a go at the backups mentioned and come back on this thread and Hawker, our resident, "old boy" and boffin, and I can talk you through, say, the latest Jelly Bean, NEAT ROM, for Android 4.1.2.

Just remember Del Boy's motto in Only Fools and Horses... "He who dares Rodeney, he who dares".

EDIT Dynomot beat me to it with a good reply... his next one will be sent from A&E when Hawker and I get through with him! :pound:
 
That's brill, thank you so much. I will work my way through it later today and let you know what has happened. Little snag at the moment, just changed to Talktalk and my connection seems a bit iffy.
Bri
 
Thank you very much for all the help. I thought at my age that I would just be dumped. I am trying to go through this at the moment and will keep you posted.
Bri
 
bigbrithesecon said:
Little snag at the moment, just changed to Talktalk and my connection seems a bit iffy.
Bri
Click to expand...

Not the same TalkTalk that regularly features on the BBC TV consumer programme, "Watchdog" and is top of the OFCOM hit list!

TalkTalk somehow retains most-complained-about-ISP title AGAIN ? The Register

bigbrithesecon said:
Thank you very much for all the help. I thought at my age that I would just be dumped. I am trying to go through this at the moment and will keep you posted.
Bri
Click to expand...

Not in the slightest bigbrithesecon. Personally, my two favourite categories to provide assistance to are mature posters and females. Both of these are not afraid to say that they do not understand something and both tend to carefully and thoroughly read what has been written. ;)

Hawker said:
Who's Rodeney?
:confused:
Click to expand...

Del Boy's younger, mis-spelt, brother of course. :hmmmm:
 
bigbrithesecon said:
Thank you very much for all the help. I thought at my age that I would just be dumped. I am trying to go through this at the moment and will keep you posted.
Bri
Click to expand...

Dumped? No way. Part of the fun of the SGS2 is helping others find it and theirs potential. It really annoys me that other forums (fori?) mock, bully and generally abuse those not in the know. We all were new to Android once and decent advice from helpful people is what this forum is about.

Good luck flashing, and if you do have problems, somebody will be around to help.
 
Yippee!!!!!!!!!!! It's worked!!! I cannot thank you enough HAWKER IRONASS AND DYNOMOT. You have made me feel young again! It wonderful but now I have to find my way around it!! My misses has the same phone. If she gets green jealous, where do you normally pick the link up to get the Neat please?
Bri
 
bigbrithesecon said:
Yippee!!!!!!!!!!! It's worked!!! I cannot thank you enough HAWKER IRONASS AND DYNOMOT. You have made me feel young again! It wonderful but now I have to find my way around it!! My misses has the same phone. If she gets green jealous, where do you normally pick the link up to get the Neat please?
Bri
Click to expand...

Congratulations bigbrithesecon! :congrats:

That was quick! The NEAT ROM thread on the xda developers website, which contains lots of useful information as well as the download links and mod's, is here.

There is also an Android Forums NEAT ROM thread which the developer, salesale, regularly posts on, here.
 
ironass said:
Not in the slightest bigbrithesecon. Personally, my two favourite categories to provide assistance to are mature posters and females. Both of these are not afraid to say that they do not understand something and both tend to carefully and thoroughly read what has been written. ;)
Click to expand...

And God help all you mature females out there, as old man ironass will be all over you like a bad rash!
:flowers: :knuddel:
 
Nice one bigbrithesecon :)

You wil soon be downloading mods and tweaks and have your phone the way you wsnt it to be.

I shouldn't tell you this, but mine plays the Nokia tune on boot up. A nod to the once great "Espoo mafia". Rooting lets you do stuff like this as it lets you alter system fies and can with zip files you flash using CWM alter the entire appearence of the phone. More serious mods can improve signal reception, improve battery life no end.
 
Whoops. Slight snag. The misses was jealous so I have had to update hers. However, her keyboard does not work. I thought that I would just get another one from play store. However, play store does not work either! Most else seems fine.

It's OK, think I have sorted it pheww. Save me getting an earful!
Bri
 
Hi, i've followed this and it went well but I have a question.Since upgrading I can't connect with Kies anymore, I don't really need it except to get the contacts of my old Ipohne.I've tried export via Itunes to Gmail but it's not working.

If I did a factory reset would it still go back to like when I bought it?

Thanks
 
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