yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[Xperia Arc General] Alejandrissimo:
Hello my friends.

I think its a good idea to offer this simple guide and explanation for new Xperia and Android users about how to play with their new toys.

I will add new stuff to the content when needed.

First I want to start with the kernels and recovery.

Kernels

WTF is a kernel?

The kernel is the communication bridge between software and hardware, is the most important part of any OS.

All OS have a kernel, even windows and iOS but since android its based on linux the kernel must be a GPL. So manufacturer must be public the source code of the kernel and third party devs can compile and modify it.

Now since SE decided to open the bootloader of certain devices (and the_laser find the way to do it to the rest :D) we can use those nice kernels we are talking about. And this is how to do it.

You will need:

Unlocked Bootloader

This fastboot pack

A custom kernel (.img)

1. Unpack the Fastboot.7z on C:/. There are 6 files and 1 folder. Folder contain fastboot driver.

2. Make sure the drivers are running. Check this thread to see how to install it. Jump to "2. Install S1 Boot Fasboot Drivers..."

3. Inside the pack are 2 batch files (.bat)

The first one (1.) can be used to start the phone with the custom kernel to test. The kernel will get back to original after reboot the device.

The second (2.) its used to flash the kernel on the proper partition. This will persist after reboot (You can flash any other kernel in the same way to overwrite it)

To use this files you just need to drag and DROP the kernel in .img format on selected .bat file.

There will appear a window like this:

Sometimes the window blinks and dissapear, in that case copy the .img file inside the fastboot folder and repeat the process.

Now attach the phone in fastboot mode.

The black window will show how the kernel its flashed or loaded and it will close itself.

Now all its done, you have a custom kernel.
[Xperia Arc General] Alejandrissimo:
Custom ROMs

WTF is a ROM?

The rom is the software of our devices, the Android OS.

There are 3 kind of roms, Stock or Stock Based, AOSP and CyanogenMod roms.

Stock or Stock Based:

Are the official ROMs or the ones based on the original, with tweaks and stuff added. Normally this kind of ROM (Stock Based) are the most stable choices.

AOSP - Android Open Source Project

Vanilla android, like the nexus devices, its a native android interface and its the base of the next.

CyanogenMod & MiUI

The best custom roms out there. Great support and continuously improved, has unique features to enhance the customization experience. Both support themes.

How to install a custom ROM:

You will need:

Unlocked Bootloader

Recommended custom kernel with recovery

Recomended Baseband (Folder from FXP)

Custom ROM in .zip file

1. Copy the .zip ROM in the sdcard. Its better to put inside a folder (start called with A or Z to easy access.)

2. Flash the proper baseband with flashtool.

3. Now flash the custom kernel recommended for the rom. Check the first post to check how to.

4. Start the phone and boot into recovery. To do this you need a custom kernel with built in ClockWorkMod (CWM). In the arc you need to press several times volume down button to enter into recovery for example.

5. On recovery you should see something like this (maybe different):

To move use Volume buttons, to select use Home button

Select "Wipe data/factory reset". Confirm operation.

Select "Wipe cache partition". Confirm operation.

Go to "advanced" menu

Select "Wipe Dalvik Cache". Confirm operation.

Select "Wipe Battery Stats". Confirm operation.

Go back and select "Install zip from sdcard"

Select "Choose zip from sdcard"

Search and install the ROM in .zip format that you copy to sdcard in step 1.

That's all, you have the ROM flashed and ready to start.
[Xperia Arc General] Alejandrissimo:
reserved too....
[Xperia Arc General] PANCHOMATASANO:
THANKS

Thanks

i am testing cm 7.2 rc1 iyokan

in mk16
[Xperia Arc General] myil:
nice one thanks :)
[Xperia Arc General] guza88:
I'm still new to all this, is this method any better or the same as using Flashtool (for installing kernel)?

Edit: nwm, its the same...
[Xperia Arc General] Steven08:
Sometimes the window blinks and dissapear, in that case copy the .img file inside the fastboot folder and repeat the process.

i can't do this.whatever i do,the window dissapears
[Xperia Arc General] ArcMan09:
But we have to format system also in mounts and storage..!! Before installing a rom.."
[Xperia Arc General] ataraxy:
Great! I'm subscribing to this thread.

Can you also explain baseband too?

By the way the images are not showing - no bandwidth?
[Xperia Arc General] Daniel_.:
Thank u very much!

I've succesfully installed a kernel (Doomkernel v04) for the first time.
[Xperia Arc General] warisz00r:
Followed the steps with neo V to try CM9 and I'm stuck at step 4 of installing custom ROM. The phone simply won't boot.

I have

-rooted and unlocked the bootloader

-installed CWM

-flashed recommended baseband

-flashed the supplied kernel

Any help, please?
[Xperia Arc General] kumbangdesa:
No need to install CWM..custom kernel have already the recoverymod inside it..try to uninstalled that CWM and flash the kernel again..
[Xperia Arc General] warisz00r:
Still the same problem... by the way, to add info about the original problem, I encountered bootloop after flashing the 62 baseband but I proceeded to flash the custom kernel anyway.
[Xperia Arc General] Daniel_.:
Try with .64 baseband.

That's recommended for CM9.

---------- Post added at 08:54 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:48 PM ----------

Another reason can be, that you've forgotten to format the system.

Before installing a ROM you have to do that too.
[Xperia Arc General] emzeeraj:
Hi there, im stuck with this problem too. i installed cmw without a custom kernel and install a custom rom and now its stuck on boot-loop. im kinda a noob in this. please help me out, panic here. dunno what to do. :(
[Xperia Arc General] mikhail69:
Thank god this thread exist.. I have been looking for something like this.. Im really interested in installing CM9 on my XperiaPro.. Im just waiting for the stable release from cyanogen themselves..
[Xperia Arc General] jcgechevarria:
Good and usefull post, thanks, but can you say me wath have to be first?, kernel or rom?, or it's not important, and how much important is the base band??

Thanks.

Como veo que eres de Mexico, te lo pregunto en castellano, ya que estoy en España, así me expreso mejor:

hay algún orden en especial?. cual a de instalarse primero el kernel o la rom?, que importancia tiene el base band?

Gracias.
[Xperia Arc General] samurai_vara:
great info for noobs like me :p

Thank U :)
[Xperia Arc General] Daniel_.:
I should move a rom to your SD card, then flash a kernel and then flash rom in CWM. ;)

Baseband is not very important. It has to do with the battery, signal reception, call quality etc.
[Xperia Arc General] black3v1L:
is there any stable custom kernel for xperia pro?

I try custom kernel from this xperia pro ultima but it's not stable :( :(
[Xperia Arc General] Daniel_.:
I don't have many experiences with xperia pro, but I don't think there are more custom kernels. There are enough roms for xperia pro though :rolleyes:.
[Xperia Arc General] black3v1L:
yeah, I know about another custom roms, but there's so much bug, so I wanna use stock rom with custom kernel and hope no bugs :D
[Xperia Arc General] Silvermatrix:
how to install

CM7.2.0 - Official

i m getting error while installin from CWM zip ??
[Xperia Arc General] thefirecrow:
hello guys I think that this topic is the good one to ask my question :

Do some of you have heard about a free bootloader unlock way?

I know that my question is noobish but I searched for too long now and the only way that i've found to have a custom rom was to flash jj doctor's rom but unfortunatly that is the only rom for locked bl...

Jj s rom is the rom that I use now but I d really like to use other rom and better kernels :)

Sorry for my bad english
[Xperia Arc General] Daniel_.:
Do you have CM's own kernel? With a custom kernel you can't install CM rom.
[Xperia Arc General] Daniel_.:
There are a few ways to unlock the bootloader. Take a look at rooting guides :rolleyes:.
[Xperia Arc General] acid_5nak3:
I've tried many times to flash my kernel and I always get "1 bad block encountered problem"

Is there any alternative way to flash the kernel... I've seen videos in which mobile users flash kernel through recovery.

Or may be the .img file could somehow be converted to .sin file after which I could flash it using flashtool.

Mine is an Xperia Arc LT15i, unlocked bootloader [regretting it since there really is no use of unlocking it as I can't flash custom kernels :(]
[Xperia Arc General] tajoloco:
thank you Alejandrissimo
[Xperia Arc General] trungonljne:
nice one thank :d
[Xperia Arc General] peshango:
"Sometimes the window blinks and dissapear, in that case copy the .img file inside the fastboot folder and repeat the process."

I have tried your steps and I cannot get it to work. it just flashes and goes away :( and I can't get it to work on flashtool either. I have looked at many Q/A on this forums and found nothing to make it work. If anyone can help with this guide or on flashtool it would be great. exactly what files do I put in flashtool and exactly what do I do?

My phone info.

Model number - ST18i

Android version - 4.0.4

Kernel version - 2.6.32.9-perf

BuildUser@BuildHost #1

Fri Mar 2 13:02:20 2012

Build number - ThilinaC@xda_pureness_10.0

All I want to do is change kernel to "boot_7x431.img"
[Xperia Arc General] Android_is_Awesome:
NO s1 boot fastboot

Hey I was going through the list and it came to a sudden halt when i went to device manager, had my r800x in fasboot mode connected to my computer. and there was no s1 boot fastboot option! HELP!
[Xperia Arc General] veryangrydwarf:
Confused

I can't seem to get my phone to boot after flashing the baseband and kernel. I have an unlocked bootloader. Not sure what to try next. Any advice? Would a faulty device driver prevent proper use of Flashtool and your .bat file?
[Xperia Arc General] andrey.d:
What kernel did you flash?

Try to flash this kernel via flashtool.
[Xperia Arc General] veryangrydwarf:
I'm sorry, which kernel? Did you mean to post a link? :laugh: I managed to flash a doomlord kernel but none of the ROMs (several FXPs and CM9 zeusc unofficial by Pax) I've tried work with it They all abort. My goal is to flash the most functional ICS kernel/ROM package I can find. Any advice on that front? Which kernel were you suggesting? I'm just realizing this post is in the Xperia Arc forum! My model is an r800x, the CDMA play. So sorry! Still, if you have any advice on how best to convince this thing to flash another kernel I am all ears.
[Xperia Arc General] sandroidnz01:
Deleted
[Xperia Arc General] Madaditya:
s1 Flashboot driver installation problem

hi,

I tried connecting my device in flashboot mode and instal s1 Flashboot drivers,directed update s1 Flashboot driver through device manager to the folder containing usb_Flashdriver but it says it couldnt find the required file! and installation aborts!:confused:

Edit: Solved just directed to proper drivers :p
[Xperia Arc General] sonuame:
DoomKernel

Where can i find DoomKernel v22 for Xperia Pro (mk16i)

please somebody help me out
[Xperia Arc General] abdel12345:
Where do you get the baseband to flash and do you flash the kernel or rom first?
[Xperia Arc General] Ghostfreak NB:
You may flash the kernel pre Rom flash or Post Rom flash!

It doesn't matter!

After flashing kernel,do wipe

Dalvik cache and cache!

Baseband is in the kernel.sin (stock kernel)
[Xperia Arc General] Kn!ght L!fe:
thanks for all the useful guides. its been a really helpful for getting new roms to my phone :good:
[Xperia Arc General] El_Crosso:
Great work and great start voor noobs like me :laugh:
[Xperia Arc General] :
thank this was very helpful
[Xperia Arc General] xtrabit:
thanks
[Xperia Arc General] axeslinger34:
I'm trying to flash the Tigris v1.2.1 kernel to my Neo L which is already rooted and unlocked BL. I have all the ADB drivers properly installed in my Win XP machine. Everytime I try to flash the said kernel using fastboot, the command prompt for fastboot quickly disappears. I've been trying and re-trying for the nth time, to no avail. This is so frustrating. Anyone know the fix or workaround to this? Appreciate your help.
[Xperia Arc General] happy420:
finding my way

Thank you for reading post.

I just was looking around on the forums again and trying to find something else I can root or make better. When it hit me I have a insignia ns-42e859a11 that was one of the only tv that run chumby apps. I just happen to have more then a couple and would be willing to part with one or some cash if I could get a way to remove the chumby app rom and kernel and replace it with a androild app rom,and kernel setup. I know in my head it sounds easy and I bet it is a waste of time for some. But I in vision a large android tv that I can use my phone to talk to and do everything but make sweet love to me. Well thanks for reading and I hope my bad writing didn't scare you to much. thank you

I did find a bunch of info online about the tv's and the chumby, but can't make heads or tails of it.
[Xperia Arc General] guerrez:
Hi, thank you for the guide, it is very clear!

Unfortunately the link for the Recomended Baseband does not work! :(

Could someone repost it?

Thank you guys! :)
[Xperia Arc General] guerrez:
Hi, no need anymore, I have used a different configuration, perfectly working:

LuPuS v14

Xperia Ultimate HD 3.0.2

ICS404XperiaKeyboardSign.zip for the keyboard (do a wipe Dalvik for the WIFI !!)

Hope this help everybody

Thank you all guys!!!
[Xperia Arc General] kira325:
another case, how to flash baseband? i mean like HBOOT on HTC?
[Xperia Arc General] Someguyfromhell:
Basebands are supplied in FTF files, which are normal Flashtool files, that can be flashed when phone is in flashmode.
[Xperia Arc General] t_adams:
Great thread for noobs. Great job :thumbup:
[Xperia Arc General] shoiebarshad:
Really helped me a lot. thanks a lot.
[Xperia Arc General] lazl0brav0:
nice tuts. :good:
[Xperia Arc General] pitsgraft:
How did U solved it?

Please advice...

If possible to share link for xperia P driver
[Xperia Arc General] Diabblo:
what you need ?

http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=2671929

http://www.mediafire.com/download/2z4a3vrz2973yge/Flashtool-drivers.exe

http://developer.sonymobile.com/downloads/drivers/xperia-p-xperia-u-and-xperia-sola-drivers/
[Xperia Arc General] ezro:
fastboot pack link is dead. can somebody reupload it?
[Xperia Arc General] lazl0brav0:
here is the link

http://www.mediafire.com/download/3ndjpkm66jfoxag/fastboot.rar
[Xperia Arc General] castello96:
can someone make a video for SONY XPERIA ARC S android to 4.4 kitkat? me really not understand how to make it :') need u all help. :rolleyes:
[Xperia Arc General] ZeroLive:
Galaxy Tab 7 Plus not Flash Kernel of Omni Rom

And the Galaxy Tab 7 Plus Model P6200L,'m not doing it! I do not think kernel tar format for flashing by odin, also already tried converting with this tutorial:. http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=1644240, but it did not work out, can someone help me? I need this for Flash Rom!

Link of Rom:http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=2565632
[Xperia Arc General] AATRONIX:
Where can i get custom kernals for my mt6572 devices
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II SGH-I777] silashj:
I wanted to see if I can post something without getting ridiculed. Seriously doubt that now cause I accidentally posted this in the general Q&A first and did not know how to move it or delete it so i am posing again here. Hopefully a moderator can just take care of that stray posting I made in the general area.

I am on my second ATT SGS2. First one had a GPS issue. Tried everything and finally convinced ATT warranty services that the problem was hardware. They said they would advance replace the handset. So I got it back to stock in every way except the flash counter,this was in December so long before I was aware of mobile odin. Flash counter was at about 12 when I was done trying different ROMs,mostly just try to get the GPS to work. It was in perfect shape, bone stock except for the counter. I cannot imagine I will have an issue, but has anyone ever heard of someone getting charged on a return to stock phone that had a flash counter above stock? Ill update once I know for sure the outcome.

My real question, does everyones SGH-I777 crash on occasion? If so how often? I so happy with the current code that is running on the phone with the exception that it sometimes sleeps and wont wake up, and sometimes it just plain crashes hard, locks up and has to be hard rebooted. Usually this happens about twice a day one or the other. I wiped before installing current kernel. The only reason I am not stock is cause I wanted the CKK6, 2.3.6 update to work and to keep root privaledges, but also needed my wifi cause ATT is throttling me down to dial up speeds when I reach 2GB. So wrong!!! Anyway thats another thread.

I loaded shostock with siyah kernel 2.6.35.14. after wiping everything including both caches. The GPS is solid now, phone is fast, battery is egh, I keep a charger with me... but it crashes hard from one to three times a day. Locks up playing tunes, or wont wake up with out being plugged in or hard booted. Do I have another defective handset or should I just go back to 2.3.4 and UKH7 or should I just deal with it and consider the crashes, "excellent opportunities to reboot."?

Thanks for the all the hours of fun, u know who you are.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II SGH-I777] axis01:
I honestly don't remember my phone crashing at all. If it's crashing, it aint stable. Did it crash when it was stock?
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II SGH-I777] silashj:
yeah I mean duh right? The new handset was updated, rooted, downreved and flashed with the custom rom before it was put under any load, so I do not know if it would have crashed before. I have wiped, re downloaded, checked with hashtab and re flashed my current kernel, so it seems like it has to be hardware, again... ugh. Especially since no one else is having issues with shostock and siyah. I wonder how hard it is going to be to get warranty services to replace the second phone in 3weeks!? Lol.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II SGH-I777] getbuzzin:
Try going back to stock and run it for a couple hours to see if it still crashes. If it still crashes then more than likely hardware issues.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II SGH-I777] Entropy512:
If it's crashing on stock without SetCPU to set a screen-off profile, you have a hardware problem.

I haven't had a crash, freeze, or spontaneous reboot in ages - despite running kernels that a few others have reported stability problems with (and I have effectively halted my kernel until I can get to the bottom of those reports...)
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II SGH-I777] TheSniperFan:
Too often is when it happens regularly, period.

I'm running CyanogenMod 9 and have almost no crashes, despite it being experimental.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II SGH-I777] silashj:
I reverted to stock last night shortly after posting this. Ran fine until re loaded SHOstock v1.9.2-UCKK6. It is not "crashing" but it will go to sleep and not want to wake up again. I can sometimes plug in the charger and that will wake it up but other times I have to hard reboot. So no more crashing, but will not wake from sleep about 10% of the time. Not a huge deal, but its a bit weird because I know that the code I am running is ok, and it seems the hw is ok, so... not sure why this is happening. Anyway thanks all for your suggestions etc.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II SGH-I777] dandrumheller:
This sounds like SoD (sleep of death) to me. I would recommend reading through Entropy's kernel thread (yes, it is a LOT of reading) but it might give you some insight into possible causes and/or solutions, and you'll get a great feel for where development on this device has come from, from the beginning...
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II SGH-I777] AndAllThingsWillEnd:
I had the same problem using the latest siyah kernel, but never with entropy's. I would suggest flashing a new kernel.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II SGH-I777] votinh:
1. To answer the OP question, I have experienced ONCE that was when I tried to run the Andy's TI-83 emulator on my virgin stock ROM. The result is either my fault or the application isn't compatible with the running OS.

2. With bone stock, it shouldn't crash at all. If it does, RMA.

3. If the owner(s) have "some fun" around it such rip it off, hack it up, install different kernels, different ROMs, ...... then please DO NOT complain the device is suck.

I've seen a lot of knuckleheads who tried to mod their devices, screw them up then claim "they're suck".
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II SGH-I777] silashj:
Thanks this sounds like a plan. I have to do something things have gotten worse. About 3 out of ten times I go to put the phone to sleep now, instead of blinking out the phone takes a screen shot. My fingers are no where near any of the other buttons and it takes a screen shot over and over when I press the power button. I have to move around from screen to screen, hit the home button and then hit the power button to put it to sleep. Weird stuff, could be worse though. Did I say that I thought the phone sucks? I thought I read in one of the replies up there something like that. Aside from the GPS issue that was hardware related, and problems I have brought on myself because stock wasnt good enough, this is hands down the most awesome piece of electronics I have ever owned. iPhone smyphone. I just need to find the perfect turbo charged, rooted but as stock as possible configuration that is stable and I will be set. I really like where I am, hopefully the kernel you suggested does not change much but fixes the problems. Thanks again all.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II SGH-I777] axis01:
Grab one of Entropy's DD Kernels and flash it with CWM. I'd suggest getting one from Jan or earlier. His latest ones are trying to track down a issue.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II SGH-I777] silashj:
Ok the noob is going to shine through here... but you say to flash with CWM. With my current config, when I enter recovery mode I am taken to the siyah kernel recovery console. Are we talking the same difference here, and when I go to flash as you mentioned can I do so with Siyah recovery or shall I flash with something that will give me back cwm first and then flash the config that you mentioned in your reply?
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II SGH-I777] Simba501:
That recovery will work. After installing the DD kernel, CWM will change.

Sent from my Galaxy SII
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II SGH-I777] paleman27:
I get a crash here and there everyday...
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II SGH-I777] Alucardis666:
Have only ever crashed while messing with voltages or clock speeds. if it's crashing something is wrong.
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II SGH-I777] T90:
A few people's phones just do not play well with Siya kernal. Most of those people flash Entropy's DD and the sleep deaths go away... give it a try, I bet it will help!
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II SGH-I777] Edgarhighman:
Mine crashes a few times a day if I'm cycling through a lot of apps or installing things. (Stock+root) the other day my phone would crash anytime I tried, to watch a video in web browser. (Either mxplayer or phone)
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II SGH-I777] paleman27:
With Siyah I crashed more often than I do know with DD...
[AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II SGH-I777] silashj:
Ok flashed the DD from 01-30-2012

Thanks for all the help. I will post again when I know if things are better.
[Samsung Galaxy S (4G Model)] Shortbus-Driver:
Im just wanting to know what app seems to be the most accurate in keeping track of data consumption....is the my tmobile account app trustworthy and accurate or is there a better app?

I hate getting that dreaded message a week before the new billing cycle.......
[Samsung Galaxy S (4G Model)] FBis251:
The tmobile app gets the data from tmobile... Since tmobile keeps track of your data and get to decide when to cap you I think that's your best bet ;)