[Galaxy S II Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] invalidtarget:
Alright guys, thanks for the in depth and excellent suggestions! Currently downloading I9100XXLSJ (I9100XXLSJ_I9100OXXLS1_OXX) from gastonw's suggestion and will post what Odin does in this case. Once its finished downloading I will grab the newest version of firmware from your suggestion Lennyz1988 (have to wait between downloads, both HF mirrors) and will also post what happens when/ if I flash that (in the case that the JB Test firmware fails.)

Before flashing either I will uninstall KIES, reinstall it with drivers, disable all anti-spyware and anti-virus software, use a backport USB, and attempt using both v1.85 and v3.04 of ODIN3. I will also attempt to use all 3 windows-based machines in my house to attempt to flash, as well as trying all 4 of the cables available to me. I'm hoping that by using all of these precautions I will have success eventually.

Also, after I reinstall KIES windows update tries to re-find drivers for my phone too upon connection to my usb port. Should I let windows find the drivers or cancel it? Worst case scenario I could always try with both, letting it finish installing the drivers it finds and rejecting its installation, though I guess the safest bet is to just reject WU from downloading its own.

Well, I apparently have a heap of work ahead of me, with all of these variations to try.

(3 computers) * (4 cables) * (2 odin versions) * (11 total USB ports) = 264 variations to try, not including different firmware attempts! Seems insane, so I'm hoping I don't need to wait until the 263rd (or more) for success. I will post a pastebin of my ODIN logs as I go, so expect regular updates.

Once again, thanks for all of the help everyone. I seriously appreciate your time and input!

Cheers,

IVT

EDIT: I just want to clear up some murky understanding here, but when I flash a kernel do I need to then find a corresponding firmware and flash that afterwards? Or should I be able to get into Recovery Mode with just the kernel? Also when I do flash firmware, do I need the kernel installed BEFORE I flash firmware / ROMs or does it matter what order I do it in (I'm assuming that you need a kernel already flashed before the firmware will even flash at all?) And lastly, do I need a working stock firmware present before I can flash a modified ROM? If anyone has a good link for me to read/ watch an explanation on how modded kernels interact with modded ROMs I would appreciate the extra information (I'm trying to understand if maybe I'm not using compatible kernels and ROMs.)

Thanks everyone!

UPDATES: The following were done in order from top to bottom, meaning that CWM v5 was done first, followed by flashing CWM v5, etc etc... All flashes (unless stated otherwise) were flashed with ONLY [F. Reset Time] and [Auto Reboot] checked!

Kernel: CWM Recovery [ICS - 5.5.0.4]

Odin Version: v3.04

Flash: SUCCESSFUL

Recovery Mode: NO

Download Source: http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=1118693

Pastebin: http://pastebin.com/MR97fJLz

Kernel: CWM Recovery [JB - 6.0.2.7]

Odin Version: v3.04

Flash: SUCCESSFUL

Recovery Mode: NO

Download Source: http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=1118693

Pastebin: http://pastebin.com/vGWmdjkc

*NOTE: Upon reset and testing for Recovery access, I have found that after removing/ reinserting my battery and holding Vol.Up + Home + Power the phone will reset and still give me the boot logo with the yellow /!\ triangle, however if I keep the buttons held the screen will flash to black for a second before again returning to the boot logo screen. This will only happen once, and the device will not flash to black again if I keep the buttons held for any extra time. not sure if this is useful, though I am trying to provide any information I can.

Firmware: I9100XXLSJ + CSC + MODEM (provided by gastonw's link)

Odin Version: v.3.04

Flash: FAILED

Recovery Mode: NO

Download Source: http://www.sammobile.com/2012/11/15/i9100xxlsj-–-galaxy-s-ii-android-4-1-2-jelly-bean-test-firmware/

Pastebin: http://pastebin.com/VqTu5GyS

*NOTE: I place CODE_I9100XXLSJ.tar in [PDA], MODEM_I9100XXLS6.tar in [PHONE], and CSC_HOME_OXX_I9100OXXLS1.tar in [CSC].

*NOTE: This was flashed after the CWM Recovery JB version (v6). Not sure if the CWM kernel would affect the flashing of this firmware? Im going to try flashing the beta JB Siyah v6.0b5 (which I know will flash) and then the firmware again to see if there is any change...

UPDATE: After trying to flash the Siyah kernel and then reflash the test firmware above, ODIN still fails.

Here is the pastebin: http://pastebin.com/e4hDW9F7

SEMI-UPDATE: Also, I've noticed that occasionally Odin will lag before failing (sometimes the program stops responding for a moment, but it comes back. Other times it just a looooong time to do anything and then fails.) Sometimes Odin just completely hangs, doesn't stop responding but stays at the "Firmware update start" step.

Besides this little problem, I also notice that I have yet to find a .md5 that will successfully flash. Not sure if its connected to the format or just my usual flashing problem though.

Lastly, the error log for writing .md5 files is as follows (this was I9100XWLP3_I9100O2ULP4_I9100XXLPR_HOME.tar.md5 that was recommended):

Pastebin: http://pastebin.com/AYhxSywi