[Desire HD Android Development] mark14:
Here goes. This is my guide on how to take a carrier locked Desire HD - root, reflash and enjoy the many amazing custom ROM mods out there!

I can't claim to being an expert - won't be much use when troubleshooting issues relating to this process - and can take no responsibility for bricked devices. All I want to do here is tell you all what worked for me.

In a nutshell you have three main steps:

[Step 1]

Setup the ADB stuff from google on your PC so you can connect with the phone. This includes the driver setup as the standard one doesn’t seem to work for the Desire HD.

[Step 2]

Downgrade to 1.32 (Android 2.2) so it can be unlocked. You’ll need a gold card for this, which is basically an SD card with some hacked HEX code that gets around carrier restrictions – which you then drop the 1.32 ROM onto and reflash by going into the bootloader (powering up while holding volume down).

[Step 3]

After that you need to do a few steps to unlock the bootloader, then get a custom bootloader and radio, then you can flash new ROMs to your hearts content.

[Important note: During different steps in the process you need to either connect with charge only or disk drive mode – so pay attention to instructions on that one]

Full instructions:

[Step 1]

Get java

http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/downloads/jdk-6u26-download-400750.html [Download]

Get ADB setup on your PC

http://dl.google.com/android/android-sdk_r11-windows.zip [Download]

http://wiki.cyanogenmod.com/wiki/Howto:_Install_the_Android_SDK [HowTo]

Get Desire HD driver setup on your PC - the default didn't work for me so I required a custom driver

http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=983615 [Download] Desire HD driver

[Step 2]

Create goldcard (SD card setup to get around carrier based restrictions)

http://android.modaco.com/content/general-discussion/305672/creating-a-goldcard/ [HowTo]

downgrade to 1.32 using gold card SD

http://wiki.cyanogenmod.com/index.php?title=HTC_Desire_HD:_Rooting [HowTo]

[Step 3]

Install ROM manager from the Android market place

https://market.android.com/details?id=com.koushikdutta.rommanager&hl=en [AndroidMarket] ROM Manager

Install Visionary to temproot and then permroot device – from downloadable APK – save to SD card and use Astro file manager to navigate and install from SD card

http://www.addictivetips.com/?attachment_id=44615 [Download] Visionary APK

https://market.android.com/details?id=com.metago.astro [AndroidMarket] Astro File manager

Check whether you really have SU privs using a terminal emulator and typing SU

https://market.android.com/details?id=jackpal.androidterm&feature=related_apps [AndroidMarket] Terminal Emulation test app

temproot then permroot with Visionary

http://www.addictivetips.com/mobile/how-to-permanently-root-htc-desire-hd-complete-guide/ [HowTo]

Use ROM manager to install clockwork mod recovery - this is your custom bootloader

http://www.addictivetips.com/mobile/how-to-install-clockwork-recovery-to-your-android-phone/ [HowTo]

Radio S-OFF (SimUnlock)

http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=857537 [HowTo]

Eng S-OFF HBOOT

http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=855403 [HowTo]

[Optional: Install new radio if ROM recommends it]

http://tinyurl.com/66q2bp2 [Download] recommended Radio for Revolution HD + instructions in ZIP file

Install new ROM using files loaded onto SD card by booting device into custom clockworkmod bootloader. Example below for Revolution HD

http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=840040 [HowTo]

This last step is the one I had trouble with, after you install ROM manager, you open the app and click flash clockworkmod. This is supposed to drop a zip file in the root of the sdcard called update.zip and that is used by the device when rebooting to get into the advanced boot mode. It took me about 20 goes to get this, I had to turn on fast boot, enable a flag for erase recovery settings in the app, and then clear the app cache from the settings menu. Then on the main app click > boot into recovery and it worked like a charm – but you may need to be patient on this one.

> I hope I'm not repeating information or stepping on any toes - my ultimate aim here is to collate all the information I pieced together over the past week. I've learned a lot - haven't had to ask too many questions (but thanks to Koush for some support on ROM Manager).

Let me know if this has helped to deliver some clarity!