HTC HERO - Idiots Guide to Installing new ROM - Hero, G2 Touch Android Development

Hi Guys,
I have an Unlocked T-Mobile G2 Touch - AKA - HERO !!!
I have installed new firmware / roms on Nokia phones numerous times but Android is new to me - however i wont go back to Nokia as the Hero is great...
CAN SOMEONE ON HERE POST AN IDIOTS GUIDE MAYBE WITH VIDEO ON HOW TO DEBRAND / INSTALL ORIGINAL HTC HERO ROM
I have tried and failed reading numerous posts and there are plenty of newcomers here that are after the same.....
Please, Please help us newbies to ANDROID out...
Thanks

Checkout this link:
http://android.modaco.com/content/h...and-your-orange-t-mo-etc-device-via-nandroid/

Explain
packetlss said:
Checkout this link:
http://android.modaco.com/content/h...and-your-orange-t-mo-etc-device-via-nandroid/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi - Thanks for that but i got lost on the keep original name etc..... - I think i must be an idiot !!! HELP - someone put a step by step guide up please...

I'd second this request.
Looking through posts on modaco and here it's not obvious what you have to do and why you are doing it.
What is nandroid and recovery image etc ?
cheers

And if it could be Mac and Windows information, not all of us are Windows based here

joemax said:
And if it could be Mac and Windows information, not all of us are Windows based here
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Exactly!!!
A lot of us are Linux users too!!!

No offense, but please get more into adb and all the tools needed for reflashing.
Making things idiot proof is useless in my opinion. If you have no idea how to use adb, why upgrade anyway? Chances are you won't understand most custom upgrades/tweaks anyway..
All releases by HTC will be idiot proof, no doubt about it, but installing a custom rom takes skill, knowledge and patience.
In general, an idiot posseses none of the above.
Second, there are no custom roms available for the Hero.
If you want to install custom roms in the future, take some time to understand things. Spoonfeeding this info won't learn you anything.

Sykow said:
No offense, but please get more into adb and all the tools needed for reflashing.
Making things idiot proof is useless in my opinion. If you have no idea how to use adb, why upgrade anyway? Chances are you won't understand most custom upgrades/tweaks anyway..
All releases by HTC will be idiot proof, no doubt about it, but installing a custom rom takes skill, knowledge and patience.
In general, an idiot posseses none of the above.
Second, there are no custom roms available for the Hero.
If you want to install custom roms in the future, take some time to understand things. Spoonfeeding this info won't learn you anything.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey Sykow, I understand your point but it wasn't helpful. It's comments like these that can deter a newbie from asking questions. A person must ask questions to learn.

No doubt some of the skills needed to load custom firmware or even stock HTC firmware to de-brand your Hero are needed in order for many of us here to upgrade to the rumoured minor update and major update coming soon.
Having a handset from the telco on contract and then having to wait for weeks or even forever to get a bug fixed / performance enhanced firmware update from HTC is not something I want to have to suffer.
As soon as HTC release updated firmware, I will want to know how to load it via my Mac running OS X (preferred) or booted into my Windows partition (not preferred).
All without drama and with little risk of toasting my Hero.
Its not too much to ask surely

joemax said:
No doubt some of the skills needed to load custom firmware or even stock HTC firmware to de-brand your Hero are needed in order for many of us here to upgrade to the rumoured minor update and major update coming soon.
Having a handset from the telco on contract and then having to wait for weeks or even forever to get a bug fixed / performance enhanced firmware update from HTC is not something I want to have to suffer.
As soon as HTC release updated firmware, I will want to know how to load it via my Mac running OS X (preferred) or booted into my Windows partition (not preferred).
All without drama and with little risk of toasting my Hero.
Its not too much to ask surely
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
From what I can tell, it is pretty straight forward, just like the first time you flash a phone, a bit never racking, and a bit foreign. A co-worker of mine has assured me it is as easy as a WinMo phone.

Nice to be easy as a WiMo phone... but I've had Nokia for years.
Easy to de-brand.
Use Nemesis.
Change Product Code to one like a generic EU code.
Go back to Nokia Software Update.
Download new manufacturer direct firmware... Orange as far as I know, never approved new firmware while I used an N95, N82, N85.
Android de-branding seems to involve a complex trip to a command line editor, a download of firmware that you don't really know where it came from and a large dose of prayer and crossed fingers and toes...
I guess I will wait until someone posts how to load the upcoming updated firmware from HTC so I will end up with a more reliable, stable and faster performing handset... like the one I thought I'd signed up for.

joemax said:
Nice to be easy as a WiMo phone... but I've had Nokia for years.
Easy to de-brand.
Use Nemesis.
Change Product Code to one like a generic EU code.
Go back to Nokia Software Update.
Download new manufacturer direct firmware... Orange as far as I know, never approved new firmware while I used an N95, N82, N85.
Android de-branding seems to involve a complex trip to a command line editor, a download of firmware that you don't really know where it came from and a large dose of prayer and crossed fingers and toes...
I guess I will wait until someone posts how to load the upcoming updated firmware from HTC so I will end up with a more reliable, stable and faster performing handset... like the one I thought I'd signed up for.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am getting my Hero sometime mid-september... I will post up a walk through when I get some personal experience.

Sweet
That sounds like a plan...

Sykow said:
No offense, but please get more into adb and all the tools needed for reflashing.
Making things idiot proof is useless in my opinion. If you have no idea how to use adb, why upgrade anyway? Chances are you won't understand most custom upgrades/tweaks anyway..
All releases by HTC will be idiot proof, no doubt about it, but installing a custom rom takes skill, knowledge and patience.
In general, an idiot posseses none of the above.
Second, there are no custom roms available for the Hero.
If you want to install custom roms in the future, take some time to understand things. Spoonfeeding this info won't learn you anything.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
A touch patronising.
I Flash Roms all the time on my Blackstone, and manage to use the custom upgrades/tweeks....
Android is a new OS, and has a new set of terms and abreviations etc, As the OP says, there seems to be little out there to explain things
When there are pages and pages of wikis for the Hero/Android then yes, I can understand being frustrated about noobie questions, but until there IS threads/stickies/Wikis out there then I'm afraid there will be questions put forward like this.

Correct. But those things need time. How long has the Hero been out now? Couple of weeks? C'mon..
And a person doesn't learn by asking questions. At least, not here. There are TONS of threads around. All the things you need are in there. It's just a matter of looking, taking the time to actually learn and read. If you still don't get it after the proper research, ask questions. Give the exact problem so we can tailor the reponse to it.
I flashed my old Wizard so many times.. Then I got on to the iPhone 2G, making it work in The Netherlands. I took the time to read all the reports, stickies and the necessary info to make it work. With some motivation and some common sense every person can do this.
I'm completely new to Android and I managed to root, update and tweak my Hero within 1 hour.
I just have a problem with these guys coming here, "demanding" a guide for idiots, making no effort at all to understand the complexity of it all.
This device hasn't even been out for a month! Chill out! When the stuff is ready, it will come.

Hmmmmm
Sykow said:
Correct. But those things need time. How long has the Hero been out now? Couple of weeks? C'mon..
And a person doesn't learn by asking questions. At least, not here. There are TONS of threads around. All the things you need are in there. It's just a matter of looking, taking the time to actually learn and read. If you still don't get it after the proper research, ask questions. Give the exact problem so we can tailor the reponse to it.
I flashed my old Wizard so many times.. Then I got on to the iPhone 2G, making it work in The Netherlands. I took the time to read all the reports, stickies and the necessary info to make it work. With some motivation and some common sense every person can do this.
I'm completely new to Android and I managed to root, update and tweak my Hero within 1 hour.
I just have a problem with these guys coming here, "demanding" a guide for idiots, making no effort at all to understand the complexity of it all.
This device hasn't even been out for a month! Chill out! When the stuff is ready, it will come.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sykow - thanks for your comments, please dont call us "demanding idiots !" Like you I and many others are new to Android and yes its a huge learning curve, I have rooted my HERO and Tweaked it but merely wanted advice on some of the explanation given as i did not think it was that clear !!!
I have programmed, tweaked and installed numerous roms on blackberry and nokia previously and wanted advice on Android - you were not born with the knowledge you had to learn it....
Anyway after a polite request at least someone was polite enough to assist and it is sorted - bring on the cooked roms.

I have to agree with Sykow here to a degree. Rooting, flashing and backing up isn't for the weak of heart, and one wrong move could mean that the same newbie comes back to this forum crying about a bricked phone and bad instructions, and that would just distract people from the real point of this sub-forum, i.e. actual ROM hacking, stuff like what Haykuro is doing in the background.
Here's a starting point that worked for me:
Rooting the Hero: http://theunlockr.com/2009/08/08/how-to-gain-root-access-on-your-htc-hero/
After that, if you're looking at replacing built-in apps and cooking your own ROMs, you're better off looking in the Dream Android Development sub-forum where it all started. If you're having problems looking for technical pointers in those sub-forums and instead finding that most questions are about how-do-i root/flash/etc, you'll start to understand where Sykow is coming from
Me, I don't think you're an idiot. I just think it'd help to spend your time with the Android SDK as well as searching the other Android Dev sub-forums in XDA for what you're looking for. If you're confident enough after that to come up with a How-To of your own for the benefit of newbies, feel free to go ahead, but from what I have seen from time to time, it can be a thankless job when newbies fail to follow the instructions to a T, brick their devices then come back crying or *****ing, and expect someone to fix it for them.

I found the HTC Dream wiki section on rooting/hacking etc quite informative:
http://wiki.xda-developers.com/index.php?pagename=HTC_Dream_overview_and_useful_information
I managed to work out how to make a backup last night, using files from Paulatmodoco's rooting guide:
http://android.modaco.com/content/htc-hero-hero-modaco-com/291397/12-08-1-4-modaco-hero-patch-a2sd-root-busybox-much-more/
Simply follow his instructions up to stage 5. Then you will be in the recovery image menu and you can select to make a nandroid backup.
If I have some time later, I'll write up a dummys guide to making a nandroid backup, which is one of the most important steps I reckon And rooting using paul's system is then very, very easy. as is flashing a new ROM.

I must also agree with Sykow. I only recently got my Hero and had no knowledge of rooting. I'm sure a step by step guide would be lovely but actually it is possible and it pays to read up about it yourself.
I knew the Android SDK was needed, so I downloaded and installed that as per Android website, read about what adb and fastboot did. The files and commands were easy to source from here. About and hours reading and a complete Android noob was rooted and away. I do feel that some folk maybe can't be bothered with the reading part, but think - if something goes wrong in the process, you aren't going to know why or how to fix it.

My sentiments exactly.

Related

a request for ROM help

i need help with rom cooking. i have flashed my phone more times than i can count and i have used kitchens and and i have downloaded many rom tools to my computer. i have attempted making a few rom and when i flash them the dont boot past the windows screen. really i am asking for someone to take me under their wing and help me in the ROM cooking process. i know i am not ready for the major league entirely custom stuff but basics. like fetting to know what the some of the stuff in sys. folders are and such. i am not a complete newb but i am not experienced in programming so any help would be very much apprecieated.i have lots of patience with this stuff i am just uneducated with it.i am a well known member senior member at ppcgeeks. i just though i would post here also because i know there are some cooking legends here such as DCD. anyone with some experience your time will be much apprecieted.
Cooking roms
There is an excellent rom already out there for this phone. Unlocks the GPS features and has some of the best freeware utilities already installed. Then just install the other apps you need afterwards. If you dont keep flashing your phone it wont be so much work to put all of your apps back on afterwards....
Not to say that flashing and cooking isnt fun.. I mean I flashed my HTC Wizard about 40 different times in one night even.... Til I found that perfect ROM for it. But the GPS Vogue rom that is out there pretty good. It has almost everything most people need in it already. With most of the newest versions of stuff. (albeit a FEW things were out dated).
Not to discourage or flame you from learning how to cook.
thedove said:
There is an excellent rom already out there for this phone. Unlocks the GPS features and has some of the best freeware utilities already installed. Then just install the other apps you need afterwards. If you dont keep flashing your phone it wont be so much work to put all of your apps back on afterwards....
Not to say that flashing and cooking isnt fun.. I mean I flashed my HTC Wizard about 40 different times in one night even.... Til I found that perfect ROM for it. But the GPS Vogue rom that is out there pretty good. It has almost everything most people need in it already. With most of the newest versions of stuff. (albeit a FEW things were out dated).
Not to discourage or flame you from learning how to cook.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i use the official ppckitchen over at ppcgeeks to add my own stuff to this ROM i just want to learn how to start doing this stuff so that i can get a better understanding of things and maybe eventually be one of the gurus around here and other places. i normally dont take things as flaming just tryng to be helpful as you see my status here but at ppcgeeks.com it is a different story. i love my vogue and i want to better my understanding of it.i am also trying to learn how to write programs in C++ that is also very difficult being that i am almost 16 and have no official training in any of this. thanks for the heads up but i have had that technology on my phone for months.

Creating a custom ROM from a stock ROM

I'm sure I'm going to get attacked for posting this since it's probably been answered in 3000 other posts, but that's actually part of the problem. There's too much information and too much of it is different and confusing, so a noob like me gets lost quickly. I would like to take the stock Verizon ROM and add just a couple of things to it. I don't want to use "Bob's super special ROM" that he's added a ton of crap to and I don't want to use "Bob's super special ROM lite" that has just about nothing in it. I'm OK with what's in the stock ROM for the most part, but I want to include a few other things.
So first off, can I take the Verizon MR1 upgrade for my XV6800 and extract, uncook, whatever the term is the ROM out of the setup - or - can I get the ROM off of my XV6800 that already has the MR1 upgrade applied to it?
Second, assuming I can do that, how do I cook the ROM. I understand I need a kitchen, which I've actually played with PPCKitchen a little, but what else do I need, or is there a better kitchen?
Third, where can I go to get simple, concise, and intelligible instructions for taking my stock ROM I extracted from the setup or the phone itself, and add a couple of applications and then flash it back to my phone.
One other thing, do I have to flash another radio or if I'm OK with how the phone works after the MR1 upgrade, can I just leave that alone?
For the people that are going to abuse me for asking question that have already been asked before, sorry, it's just too much and too scattered. For those who understand the confusions and frustrations of being a noob, thanks for the sympathy .
bump....
Ouch. One last attempt at a shameless bump...
Go to ppc geeks. their forums are divided up by phone. also you will find (usually at the top of list as a stick note) step by step instructions. Easy to follow.
Thanks. I forgot about that site.

Upgrade Rom Without Data Loss...Is it remotely possible?

I recall reading a little while back a message (somewhere, sorry for not remembering) that there was a way (if i remember correctly) to make a ROM Update Utility that wouldn't harm the data on the phone (excluding MicroSD which we have to remove when updating). I don't know the truth to this, but the idea behind being able to upgrade roms and keep personal data (and maybe installed applications) is cool. I know that whenever I upgrade roms the biggest part is reinstallation of my programs (it gets very annoying!). Its not so annoying that i want to toss my Dash against the wall, I just don't like having to do it over and over again (especially with new roms and updates coming out).
Essentially, having to reinstall, and re-setup, my phone with each ROM update is really what keeps me from upgrading a big part of the time (ie: going from the Energy Rom to Ookba's new 3vo ROM). Is there any way to be able to make this process of reinstallation easier?
Have a look here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=520009
orb3000 said:
Have a look here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=520009
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That was exactly the link I had looked at (and apparently not too long ago either). I read through a good part of it, but its past Midnight here, and I am drowsy beyond belief , so I didn't make much sense of any of it. Essentially I don't cook roms, and it mentioned something about the chef having to make the RUU in a specific way (correct?). Is this in our near future?
Da_G alread made a test ROM and updated the ROM sucessfully for the Raphael. I'm sure our smartphones aren't too far from getting it either. They just have to make some tools for us chefs to use it in our kitchens now Soon.
NRGZ28 said:
Da_G alread made a test ROM and updated the ROM sucessfully for the Raphael. I'm sure our smartphones aren't too far from getting it either. They just have to make some tools for us chefs to use it in our kitchens now Soon.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Awesome! Its great to know how active this community is (even for an old-er phone like this )
Keep up the work all you EXCELLET chefs, devs, hackers, programmers, and any other division of making this phone better

[Q] Am I asking for too much?

Hi guys,
I love my Desire HD, I really do. Great phone. I get asked all the time what make it is... very nice owning it... BUT I hate Orange UK and their pesky interfering with the ROM. Some things just plain don't work.
So (and I have looked) there are lots of ROMs out there that I can Flash, but it's all very confusing to me.
What I need clear guidance on is:
1. Can I get a nice clean Genuine HTC Rom on it (with Sense)?
2. Will that give me OTA updates to Gingerbread or any future upgrades?
Sorry, but I seem to only find Mod guidance on here, but Im one of those people who like to put things back the way they were designed to be... (Im that sad...)
Ta for any help you can offer
redspecial2000 said:
Hi guys,
1. Can I get a nice clean Genuine HTC Rom on it (with Sense)?
2. Will that give me OTA updates to Gingerbread or any future upgrades?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. Yes, if you just want stock rom you can root your UK branded Rom (if its base 1.72 you have to downgrade first check this guide, thats what i used and there's also a link to a downgrade guide in it: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=964996) get S-OFF and install the official RUU (R om U pdate U tility) from 2.3.3. Or when you have root and S-OFF you can flash Clockworkmod recovery (the thing you need to flash any custom made stuff) and from there any custom rom you like. This is recommended because with it you can backup your current branded Rom in case you need to have it repaired and still want to be under warranty.
2. With official RUU you will get future OTA updates directly from HTC, but when you install 2.3.3 RUU you're already up do date. When you have a Custom Rom you will get updates from your rom Chef that you download over wifi/3g directly to your phone and flash it through Clockworkmod recovery
-> http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=840040
This is stock rom with improvements. Look at the features list, it will convince you I'd say its the most popular custom rom and a good point to start.
btw Orange is the best provider in terms of Data plans in my country. You get most out of your money. But the branding and support is horrible They have absolutely no clue what their talking about. When i asked them if my DHD was branded when i bought it the sales assistant didnt even know what that is... She had to ask someone else first. If thats the same in UK you're on a good way with installing the Rom YOU want. You'll get support here from guys that do even better than the guys from HTC. Believe me.
I've only ever met one sales assistant who knew what I was talking about, I felt strangely attracted to her...
I've tried a few roms and settled on cm7 for now, best thing to do is junk the stock rom and get flashing, the improvements in battery life should be enough to convince you lol
Sent from my Desire HD using XDA App
Thanks guys, this is really helpful....
The thing that tipped me over the edge was a trip to my local Orange Shop, where I went to get some answers as to why the Hot Spot feature wasn't working on the phone. I then had to spend 10 minutes explaining to the girl what the hotspot feature was, then DEMONSTRATE it to HER!
Orange guys must have been tinkering with the rom. Tethering and hotspot options worked out of the box for me but you better switch to a custom rom to get those features back and other goodies. Besides, it's funny .
Yep, like all the others recommended custom rom is the way forward. I was in your position before I started the flashing madness, I can promise you, you wouldn't regret it.. And we are so lucky to have such an active development section...
Sent from my Desire HD using XDA App
Yep if you follow all the instructions it is nigh on impossible for anything to go wrong. Even if it does however, due to the active forums, you will get an answer in no time!
Don't do it, once you start you can't stop flashing save yourself and run away while you can
On a serious note, the battery life improvement and virtual 24hr help with this forum are good enough reasons on there own to do it, you won't regret it...
Ok Guys.... I'm gonna give you a laugh.
I've had my DHD since March (from Orange) and like all of you I am now not happy with (what you state is Stock ROM)
At the very tender age of 53yrs and now burnt our with computing and the like I rarely understand all the lingo/terms used Etc ;((
After calling on a phone 'expert' shop yesterday and was willing to shed cash if they could root & flash (presumably after de-branding) I saw the blank expression on their face.... "Nope... we don't know what your talking about"
Hmmm (I thought) So now I am determined to scare myself to death and ATTEMPT to get my phone to where it should be! But I am SOOoo lost on all the termanology used.
I am on 2.2.1
Kernal 2.6.32.21-g46445e7
Build 1.84.61.2
At the present time I am running on SPB 3D and have Laucher Pro installed as I was exerimenting with home page mods.
Still awaiting Ginger and can't see me getting it from Orange (UK) for any time yet. Phone does som curios things at times and seems to be getting buggy.
Phone calls drop, incomming second caller now boots me from my original call, icons vannish Etc.
Oh... Not keen on all this Facebook lark which the stock Orange thing has installed.
So.. ok, Not now happy with my DHD, but don't know where to start in geriatric terms.
Love this forum tho'
Hi
I am sending you a PM with a full guide and all the tools you require

[Q] install androidOS after HSPL cooked rom?

I flashed HardSPL on my tilt 2 last year with the Energy Rom using the GTX theme. Ever since I've been noticing that android is so much easier to use and I have been reading on the android Froyo development.
What I need to know is if I have to reflash Stock Rom with SSPL to be able to Flash the Android OS to it.
I've read all the FAQs and I have not seen this question on it and am wondering if anyone can answer it for me.
I don't know if I missed it or if I was looking for the answer at the wrong place.
So can someone please give me a link to a guide on how to do it properly because I don't want to brick my phone on the process. Also tips and precautions if you got any. Thank you!
Android can't be flashed to the phone a la WinMo yet.
Devs are working on it. Works great on my CDMA RHOD, but GSM is still a mystery...
To answer your question, you would need an unlocked bootloader (hSPL) to flash any unsigned image.
Android in its current form for our devices will run on stock SPL or hSPL, it doesn't care... everything runs off the SD card.
more questions
What is an Unasigned Image and what does it do or what is it for? Thank you for your answers.
Also how fast does Froyo run on the SD card. Is it slow? Is there a program to make android to auto start instead of it having to transtion from WM to android?
AnswersInGenesis.org said:
What is an Unasigned Image and what does it do or what is it for? Thank you for your answers.
Also how fast does Froyo run on the SD card. Is it slow? Is there a program to make android to auto start instead of it having to transtion from WM to android?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unsigned image = anything that's not a stock ROM.
FroYo runs about as well as you can expect on our hardware... which I might mention predates Android entirely... Proc+RAM dates to 2007 on the TP2. Thanks HTC...
For making Android auto-start, search is your friend. Gen.Y is your answer.
Oh nice I didnt see it was you arrgggh. Ive read you posts all day for the past 3 days. I constantly wonder how you guys know all this stuff.
Have you guys thought about video instructions or image instructions for the forum?
I also had a question concerning your device. When you flashed the Cooked Rom on your device ( i know,not the android, its not cooked ) did it change the buttons on your keyboard? Mine did and Ive been looking like crazy for a program that allows me to set the keys to what ever character I want. I did come across it a year ago, but nowadays that post is long gone. Thank you for all your help.
AnswersInGenesis.org said:
Oh nice I didnt see it was you arrgggh. Ive read you posts all day for the past 3 days. I constantly wonder how you guys know all this stuff.
Have you guys thought about video instructions or image instructions for the forum?
I also had a question concerning your device. When you flashed the Cooked Rom on your device ( i know,not the android, its not cooked ) did it change the buttons on your keyboard? Mine did and Ive been looking like crazy for a program that allows me to set the keys to what ever character I want. I did come across it a year ago, but nowadays that post is long gone. Thank you for all your help.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Video/image instructions...? A few have made videos, but stuff changes so frequently it would get outdated very quickly. A PITA to maintain... It's really not that difficult, is it?
I assume you're talking WinMo. I haven't used it in over a year - but there was some weird issue that effected only Sprint devices, and there was some cab that I installed that fixed the issue. Sorry, I'm not much help for WinMo. Ask cajunflavoredbob, I just tell people not to use it .

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