yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Envious_Data:
thanks

im not sure about used but i dropped my old X-S in my toilet (lol) and i got this one from my insurance , but Thanks :D
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Piyush Rawal:
Someone tried it on Xperia ZL and it didn't work. How come OP is sure that it will work on Xperia S, did he test it?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] mirhl:
well, the theory says that if you flash back the TA you previously had, your phone would be like it was... so no harm should come..

isn'it?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Piyush Rawal:
theoretically it should work for Xperia ZL as well, isn't it?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Marsou77:
In theory, yes. Maybe the backup fails so it didn't work with the owner of Xperia ZL.

Since this is a risky method, I can't test without I've the proof that's works with my Ion. And I know I'm not the only one !
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Piyush Rawal:
We need a Daredevil here. :silly:
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] m1st3r1:
well, the locked bl (drm keys) are used for bravia engine and download music info right? any other use for it?

for be and download music info there's a work aroud so that both will work with relocked bootloader (without this TA partition restored or anything). so just use it. :)

this trick is one year late :D. i hope that be will work in stock jellybean (when it comes out) without any trick, or if it wont, someone can make the trick, like we have in stock ics.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] mirhl:
music info download worka too? Are you sure?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] ishaan6698:
FOR ZL try the commands rather than the script

after two days of work i still cant extract the contents of the img

CAN SOMEONE DO IT?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] m1st3r1:
there is a trick for music info download even for unlocked bootloader. as i have no need to use it (music info download, heck i dont even use the walkman app :D ), i dont know.

link for music info download: http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=2121945
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] greatpatel007:
dude try flashtool in advance option ... you will get how to backup-restore and edit TA file
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] _SIL_:
DRM keys is stored in TA in /dev/block/mmcblk0p1

Where is stored bootloader code? Also in /dev/block/mmcblk0p1?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] ishaan6698:
just how?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] ThaweK:
If you buy me brand-new XS, I'll test it :D. I've got XS locked BL [unlockable], currently on stock .45 ROM. :)

But I'm not a millionare, I'm not even rich to get second phone ;).
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Piyush Rawal:
I'm thinking of testing this but want someone to write down the correct procedure step-by-step here.

Here's what i think I gotta do.

1. Backup TA.

2. Unlock Bootloader.

3. Check BE.

4. Lock Bootloader.

5. Restore TA.

6. Check BE again.

Is this correct or do I not need to relock bootloader as TA will do it automatically?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] kraatus90:
yes restoring TA will relock bootloader , it means you can skip step 4 ;)
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Lodotux:
so, has someone tested it yet ? does it work on xperia S ?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Piyush Rawal:
So you were able to restore drm keys thus were able to get BE and music info to work properly after relock?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] xperiasblack:
Can anyone upload his backup of drm keys?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] FenrirMX:
Why?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] xperiasblack:
Try to restore my ta partition ;)
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Kevin-0100:
Flashing someone else's backup will result in a hard brick
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] FenrirMX:
Had you actually read the thread, you'd know this.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] ishaan6698:
someone tell me how to decompile ta.img
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] FireMax_:
Someone tested the backup / restoration? I made a backup using the DD / terminal, then unlock the bootloader and then installed the Jelly Bean.

To return to the ICS I should restore the .55 using the FlashTool and then restore the backup TA.img?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] mirhl:
Yes, this should do the trick
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Vaith:
Are you parent of xperiablack? This is his phone and if he don't know how to read it's his problem. If he want brick his phone let him do that.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] newdon07:
is anybody here, who could say that he successfully tried this and got positive results with restored DRM keys and working BE in our XS??
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] datvu:
Please what is the normal size of backup?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] FenrirMX:
You're an angry little bugger, aren't you? :P

He can do whatever he wants, he should be aware of the risks, though.

2048 kb
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] smiechowy:
anyone? i'm sick of stock :<
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] piyush95:
i think i restored the ta,img which was provided in the zip.....my phones ta,img was saved in c:\Ta-backup\tools\backup\

but i had extracted the zip in the desktop...now i accidently flashed the ta.img from zip...

it was working fine...

but wen i turned off the phone....it wont respond again.....what should i do...

my bl is still locked...

srry its my mistake that i bricked my phone....but do u guys hav any idea how to recover...?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] kraatus90:
time to buy new one :(
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] piyush95:
holy s***!!!

there must b sum way....

my parents are gonna kill me....

the service center guys arent gonna replace it....?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] newdon07:
man... this is sad!! :(

did u tried hard reset??

or u may want to check this out: http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=1849170
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] piyush95:
Yeah I tried.....

Phone doesn't respond to anything.....

One thing I keep asking myself....y did I try restoring....i just had to backup....:'(

Now my parents have kicked me outta my HOME....coz it's just been a week since I bought this phone.....n the same thing had happened to my xperia mini.....

M at my friends home....

M so f***ed.....:'(
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] mirhl:
can't you reflash your original TA?

via flashtool?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Member90:
Try to tell centre it happen during updating..i think they gonna believe it..bcoz i done it bfore, but that im using Samsung..
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] piyush95:
I had made a backup of ta.img using flashtool too.... But my phone doesn't go into flash mode or fastboot mode.....

Member90......i will try.... But the people at the centre here are jerks....

if I say I did it while updating...... They'll tell me to go back home and buy a new phone....

I'll say.... It turned off while using.....
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] n4s:
Sure,

And say the same to your parents, don't need to get problems at home. Faulty units exist! No one needs to know you caused it.

Just go to service center and say, it stopped working, suspecting of low battery I putted it in the charger but it also doesn't do anything, I don't understand. I'm really disapointed with your product!!!
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] newdon07:
did u tried just everything that mentioned on the page, i posted a link for?? just try everything with patience, everything means JUST EVERYTHING, thats a long thread n u might have 2 wait for 2 days, just read it thoroughly, n i hope you will be able to find out ur way!!
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] DekinGBar:
This is so funny!I mean dude sorry to hear that,and as it is mentioned above,noone have to know you did it,faulty units always exists!I know when I hard bricked my phone,I called the centre and told them I had a low battery and the charger wasn't help,they tried with another charger and that of course didn't do it,so they gave me a new one.Whatever they ask you or whatever you do,just play cool,have a poker face and you'll make it.Goodluck!
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] piyush95:
Thank ya'll.......

I'm trying my best......

I think I have an idea..... If I try to unlock my bl..... It will erase the ta partition too..... Right....?

But the phone doesn't go into fastboot mode....:(
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Captain Droid:
Is this Available for Xperia Ion ? :fingers-crossed:
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] mirhl:
Unlocking bootloader will EDIT your TA, it won't completelly erase it
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] newdon07:
since nobody is here to confirm that this method is fruitful, now m going to try this. I'll post the result by 2morrow evening!! hope i'll come up with positive results!! :fingers-crossed::fingers-crossed:

btw i appreciate piyush's attempt, but unfortunately, he bricked his device by restoring wrong TA.img!!
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] piyush95:
[MENTION=4900593]mirhl[/MENTION]....... Ok thanks for the info buddy....

[MENTION=3829799]newdon07[/MENTION]....yeah man.....hope there's some way.....m waiting for my battery to drain now.....

Hope it gets recovered soon.....I've become too desperate.....

Even while sleeping....m dreaming about it getting revived....:(

N btw.....i extracted this tool to desktop......n backed up the ta.img.... It was saved to c:/ta-backup/tools/backup/

I didn't see it before....

Then I backed up again and again..... Then I tried restore....

then the tool restores from which directory.... The place where it backed up or inside the folder where the tool is extracted....

If it is the first place.... Then my phone is bricked by restoring my own ta.img....

If second place... Then it is bricked by restoring the ta.img provided in zip. ....

(Just curious)

Sorry for the trouble guys.....
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Marsou77:
It restored the TA.img that was in C:/backup-TA/

Envoyé depuis mon LT28h avec Tapatalk
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] piyush95:
Marsou77....... Then I bricked my phone by restoring my own ta.img....?

Weird....
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] greatpatel007:
dude dont worry just go to sony center and tell them i just try to reflash (update) the software because i m have slow process issue ... and when all done sony pc companion says DONE but my phone didnt boot .... it just go blank ... they will replace you if your phone is in under warranty ... because currently there is no way to check that u have locked/unlocked boot loader ... or anything else ... service center doesn't repair cell phones in like this conditions ... so they will pass to company and beside that they will give you another cell .... but you have to patient for that process it took around 1 or more week ...
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] newdon07:
now u r scarring me... :eek: :eek:

if u r sure on this, then definitely m not going 2 try this!! bcoz i do not want 2 hard brick my device...
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Piyush Rawal:
This is from Backup-TA.bat

:restore

adb.exe push C:\Backup-TA\tools\backup\TA.img sdcard/TA.img

echo.

echo --------------------------------------

echo Only continue if both md5 match !!!!!]

echo --------------------------------------

echo.

echo --------------------------------------

md5 C:\Backup-TA\tools\backup\TA.img

echo --------------------------------------

echo.

echo --------------------------------------

adb shell data/local/tmp/busybox md5sum sdcard/TA.img

echo --------------------------------------

echo.

echo.

pause

adb.exe shell dd if=/sdcard/TA.img of=/dev/block/mmcblk0p1

after looking at this it's pretty clear that it restored the TA.img available in C:\Backup-TA\tools\backup

Did you give attention to md5? Was it same or different?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] piyush95:
Newdon07...... I'm sure man......i had backed up before restoring..... And it restored the one in c:/.....n that's mine....

Piyush.....i backed up.... Then restored..... Didn't give attention to md5....:(
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Smartid:
Can i used this for my Xperia P?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] newdon07:
did u manually installed adbd-Insecure apk in ur fone?? or u just tried to backup without installing that apk in ur fone??
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] piyush95:
I installed that.... Opened that application.... Enabled that box....n then gave super user rights....

Then I backed up.... Then restored...
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] newdon07:
i think this clearly means that this method don't work for our XS!! Sadly!! :(
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] piyush95:
We can't be sure man.... It can be some mistake I made at some point....

Maybe restoring in locked bl can cause brick.... We don't know for sure...

Even flashtool has option for backing up ta partition...
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] newdon07:
ohh man!!..... u mean to say u tried to restore that TA.img without unlocking BL???but Y??

anyways that means, we still have some hope...now again i think i can try this!!
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Lodotux:
i think this is the point. you should restore TA.img to an unocked BL, i think, restoring the img re-lock the BL.

can anyone confirm that i'm right ?

:confused:
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] piyush95:
Yeah man......i accidentally "restored"....

Don't u try it.... Until you're sure..

Hope my phone gets revived soon.....i have to wait till June to go to the service center.....
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] piyush95:
Alright!!!!

I got red led... Been charging all night....
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] datvu:
Works this method or not ?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] RHBH:
Guys, if I backup my TA image before unlock my BL and later flash stock rom and stock kernel then restore my TA will it relock my bootloader and set it as fresh/factory with DRM keys and everything?

Anyway, I don't know exactly when, but I'll buy a new phone and when I buy it I'll test on my XS.

Need use flashtool or the tool on the official topic (http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=2234627) for backup/restore TA partition?

1- Backup TA partition.

2- Unlock BL and enjoy custom kernel/rom.

3- Flash stock rom AND stock kernel.

4- Restore TA partition (restoring TA partition does relock your BL, that's why you need be on stock rom/kernel before this).

Is this right?

EDIT:

I checked the official topic (XZ forum), the backup part was ok, now I'm afraid of keep going :p

http://xdaforums.com/showpost.php?p=41199064&postcount=423
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] jaxzkeren:
i just thinking ....

on step 2 , we should backup JB Ta ( because what we already backup is ICS Ta )

xperia z is ALREADY JB , xperia s is ICS to JB , what do you think ?

so, just in case there is no way to go back to ICS , then maybe we could Restore JB Ta ...

or

i just think when official jb is come, then we just have to flash kernel and system ...no need to back to ICS first , because this is where the brick thing came...
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] RHBH:
I've read the official topic on the Z forum (more than 40 pages) and I couldn't find any information about TA partition changing (except when you unlock / relock your bootloader).

But it's interesting, check if when we officially update to JB something on TA partition changes.

But I don't think that TA partition stores anything related to the ROM that is currently running.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Egan:
Its very important to be absolutely sure the backup image has the same MD5 hash as it had after you made the backup, before restoring it. When they are not the same you can write a faulty TA with hard-brick as a result.

Actually to be more sure this method works on Xperia S, someone has to make a dump of all its partitions with the 'dd' command, unlock its bootloader and then again make a dump of all its partitions and compare the two dumps to see which partitions changed after unlocking the bootloader. Maybe on Xperia S it changes more than just the TA partition and thus restoring only TA can be incomplete.

---------- Post added at 05:27 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:23 PM ----------

Well actually in these 40 pages I mentioned that the TA changes very often. It keeps a boot log for one and perhaps some more. So yes it changes without changing the lock status. However this should be irrelevant when restoring a valid backup image.

---------- Post added at 05:49 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:27 PM ----------

The backup tool provided in this thread does not provide a ZIP file. So I dont know what image you extracted from where, but it might not be the backup you think you restored.

My version (v6) of the tool for Xperia Z does provided a ZIP file, but it is never a good idea to just unzip the image yourself and flash it straight away with another tool and without checking its MD5 first. The image may have corrupted while extracting it and thus you may have flash a corrupted backup. Your story sounds like you didnt know what you were actually doing and didnt pay attention on it either. I'm sorry about your phone, but let this be a lesson, be more careful next time!
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] piyush95:
The tool provided is a rar file...

Sorry..

My mistake...

What I did was backed up my ta.img..(i couldn't find where it was saved... So I went to backup again...at that time... Instead of backing up...i accidentally restored using the same tool.... Not by some extraction method...)

I didn't check the md5..
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Egan:
This tool has a TA.img in the tools\backup folder out of the box from another user, probably the OP's backup. When you restore someone else's backup you hard-brick your device. Couldnt this have happened here?

EDIT: After reading your post again I think we are talking about the same. You probably restored the TA.img from the OP and therefor not your own TA, thus hard-bricked your device. If thats the case the tool may still work for the Xperia S.

[MENTION=4949563]ishaan6698[/MENTION]: Please remove your TA.img from the tools\backup folder. It will hard-brick people their devices when they restore it.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] jaxzkeren:
agree with you ... :cowboy:

But this is the most Sensitive Area, where the manufacture keep their identity here ( include lock status or carrier, imei, drm, and other security things in here ) ....

Just one single error ...and bummm ... it's a hardbrick ...

I think we should Not play with this area , and leave this to very qualified person ... :D

just be patient for 1 week, and hope that JB is coming ... :D
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] RHBH:
Actually we'll need learn this, because XS won't get android 5.0 (key lime pie), maybe... MAYBE with luck we get 4.3 JB, cause our chipset manufacturer said will jump 4.2 and release drivers for next android (4.3) probably there will be no drivers for 5.0+ so Sony won't update it beyond 4.3.

I can help with it as a tester but only when I save money for my next device (in case of a hard-brick.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] piyush95:
I didn't restore his ta.img...

I mentioned before....i extracted this tool on the desktop....(so his ta.img was also in the folder in desktop)

However when I backed up.... It automatically created folders...

C:/Backup-TA/tools/backup/ta.img....(no other files inside the tools folder.... Just the backup)

Hence when I accidentally restored...

As Piyush Rawal described... The tool restores the ta.img which was backed up in c:/(that's mine)

N not from where I extracted the tool....which is on the desktop...

---------- Post added at 08:18 AM ---------- Previous post was at 07:49 AM ----------

N btw wanted to ask one doubt...

At the Sony unlock bl site....i gave my imei n.all....n got the unlock code...

But couldn't unlock my phone....coz I bricked my phone before that...:P

However as I have warranty.....(its just been 3 weeks)

When I take it to the service center.... They check if I have warranty...

So will they know that I had accepted all the terms and decided to unlock my bl

(they check using the imei.... )
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] jaxzkeren:
as far as i know, you can ask for unlock code, but if you have not use it ( or decide that you don't want to use it ), then you still got your warranty ...

i think they only cek your imei on the phone with the one in the box / or warranty card ..

so your device still can't enter fastboot mode ?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] piyush95:
K thanks.....

I didn't unlock my phone... So I have my warranty...

What do they check exactly...?

N I can't get my phone into fastboot or flash mode....

When I plug it wall charger or pc...i get a red led... Nothing else..

:'(
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Egan:
You may have extracted to the desktop, the backup you made was written to C:\Backup-TA\tools\backup but the restore took place from {desktop}\Backup-TA\tools\backup.

Bottom line here is that this tool for Xperia S is heavily flawed and bricks anyone's device when not extract to the exact C:\Backup-TA directory. It will then always restore the OPs TA.img which he accidentally left in the backup folder.

So this method may still work for Xperia S, but the tool provided by OP is extremely risky to use. I am sorry, but you hard-bricked your device because of a bug in the tool. Still it's always your own responsibility when starting these risky undertakings. Your phone can not be recovered by software outside of the Sony factory. You have to send it to a Sony Service Center for board swap.

[MENTION=4949563]ishaan6698[/MENTION]: Please remove your tool and instructions from this thread until your tool is fixed. Currently it will brick practically every device that restores it. Contact me by PM!
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] piyush95:
K thanks Egan.....

:)

Sorry to bother you though....
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] jaxzkeren:
on other phone , u 86 kiss ( china phone that use quad core snapdragon ).. they can use Acronis TrueImage software for back up and recovery , using QPST Mode ( power + vol min )...

IDK , maybe you can try something ...
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Egan:
Here is my latest version of the Backup-TA tool v7 (file > download). The following things have changed compared to the OP's version:

- Check Compatibility, to see if your device is compatible.

- Trial and error busybox check.

- More output for better support when needed.

- MD5 checks for more security and less risk.

NOTE: This is the recommended version of Backup-TA tool to use!

My advice is to not use any other version of this tool to prevent a possible brick.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] lee480:
Haven't unlock my ion. Warranty worries :P

Though I didn't bother for my Kumquat.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] RHBH:
My XS also is locked, is there a way to get BE and TRACK ID work on unlocked bootloader?

I don't care about music info download.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] RHBH:
On my XS I can't open the tool, after checking for busybox it says: "OK" and stays there forever.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Egan:
Thnx, will look into it today.

Edit: found the problem, will fix it this morning.

Edit2: Download fixed v7 here (same link as before).
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] lee480:
Why not backup and restore TAs via flashtool?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Egan:
Same answer is in 'Z' thread :).
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] RHBH:
But the tools is interesting because of the compatibility check (which isn't working for me).

The backup commands and compatibility check command are giving me: "The system cannot found the specified path" is it a error on the .bat script or with my busybox?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] piyush95:
[MENTION=2613436]Egan[/MENTION]

I got it....a "SEMC Flash Device"

N In flashtool it says device connected with usb debugging off....

Usually a phone isn't recognized when it's bricked...

Whats happening....???
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] RHBH:
Can't you flash the stock rom/kernel and see what happens?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] piyush95:
It doesn't go into flash mode or fastboot mode...

Just this one...

Semc flash device... What does that mean...
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] lightstar3103:
Hello everyone, I saw in flashtool an option to backup and restore TA partion, is this option working well or not?

If yes, I must do this before unlock my BL is that right? and if later I want to relock my BL, Should I relock it before flash TA partion or after?

Also, To unlock my BL, should I go to sony's website or is there a program that can unlock it without lost my warranty? And also, is IMEI is lost after unlock the BL?