yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[Galaxy S 4 General] smartypantsphone:
I want to install the Optimized LineageOS 19.1v6 on a GT-I9505 (jfltexx), but just had a few questions before I begin as some things have changed since last time I tried.

The custom jdcteam twrp is no longer updated, should we use the custom touch recovery instead of the official twrp, or is the official the most stable and safe to use on completely stock firmware and first time installing custom recovery or rom ( as I need to backup stock and efs etc so want a good backup )?

We have no choice but to use mindthegapps because opengapps ( really wanted pico ) is only out for android 11? Is it possible to uninstall the extra stuff in MTGapps to bring it close to the OGapps pico?

The link to recommended odin 3.12.3 is from odindownloaddotcom.

But in both of these xda threads:

official odin

clean and patched

they say they have the only clean versions, and to NOT download from odindownloaddotcom.

Should I download from those threads and should I download 3.13.1 or the latest 3.14.1, as they dont have 3.12.3.

Thanks!
[Galaxy S 4 General] Retrial:
Do not use JDCTeam TWRP Recovery since it had some issues and also is outdated and EOL.

Use latest Official TWRP. Link at OP.

MindTheGApps is the only that support A12L ARM atm.

You can use Unofficial OpenGApps if you want from Recognized Contributor in XDA. Link at OP at Gapps section.

About Odin I never heard or encounter anything strange. As far as I remember I use it from there. I also scan everything with Windows Defender and Malwarebytes and didn't found anything.
[Galaxy S 4 General] smartypantsphone:
Thanks.

So is it ok to use the latest 3.14.1 from the xda thread ( if the op uploads arent safe, surely someone would have said so in the thread ), or do I need to use 3.12.3?
[Galaxy S 4 General] Retrial:
I guess it's fine to use it, I never used it before from there but it should be ok. As I said I always use the versions from the link in my thread and it's ok. :p
[Galaxy S 4 General] mittfh:
After one false start (3-5 minute bootloop), I rebooted my main computer (just to be on the safe side, as I hadn't rebooted after a kernel update), plugged the sdcard directly into it (rather than slinging a cable between my PC and phone), re-downloaded everything and tried again, and this time: success (Optimised Lineage 19.1) - using my Nova Launcher backup to remind me which packages I'd had installed as Google helpfully decided it couldn't find a backup from the Opt Lin 16 I'd had on previously). I had the WiFi issue at first when setting up, but after clearing network connections, it found it again and hasn't played up since.

I can't yet test out mobile functions, as I'll need to grab a new SIM first (the SIM in there was a PAYG, and as I hadn't done any chargeable activity on it for over 6 months, it had been deactivated), but I've noticed that it can't see any GPS satellites (whereas Lin 16 could see them but couldn't get a fix on any). I don't know if that's a known issue, whether it needs an active SIM installed (even though GPS is a completely different radio and doesn't use any mobile data) or something else.
[Galaxy S 4 General] Retrial:
New Update: 29/10/2022 🗓️

Changelog: 📑

ROMs:⚡

Updated the link of LineageOS for GT-I9506 to new android 13 version LineageOS 20.0. Congrats @khalvat!🥳

GApps:🤖

Changed the link of BiTGApps (and microG BiTGApps) since it's totally refreshed project.

Added NikGApps Core. (Only Core version may work on ARM devices, even if it says ARM64)

Magisk:🧙‍♂️

Updated to Magisk v25.2

Added a guide in Collection and in Guides with steps to follow if your bank apps detect root.

Useful Apps: 🎯

Added ReVanced Manager at Multimedia sub-section.

Added Clipeus, ConvertNOW, Unite Converter Ultimate, OpenScan, microMathematics Plus, OpenCalc, Open Note Scanner, QR Scanner (PFA), SecScanQR at Office Tools sub-section.

Added Aurora Store, Neo Backup, Neo Store, RustDesk, Obtainium at Miscellaneous sub-section.

Added Fritter at Social sub-section.

Revert back the name and the link of Droid-fy (Miscellaneous sub-section) since the lead deav split the project from NeoStore. More infos here

Guides: 👨‍🏫

Reordered the Guides sections.

Added MIXER_PATHS (INCREASE VOLUME VALUES) and DISCORD sections.

Remove PrivacyTools link from Privacy & Security section since the owner of that site is no longer care for privacy. Use PrivacyGuides instead.

Changelogs: 📑

Revamped the section with links to posts of changelogs instead of copy paste them (again) here. This is due XDA have limits how long a post can be.

side/JDCTeam Universe:🪐

Added the tag EOL near Ubuntu Touch.

Announcement:🥳 Introducing a new thread for 🗃️Windows Ultimate Collection & Guides📚. Check it out!

If you like my work and you want to support me, buy me a coffee :coffee:​
[Galaxy S 4 General] Retrial:
Hey guys,🙋‍♂️

I just released an another thread 🗃️Android Ultimate Collection & Guides📚!

That thread contains a collection of applications along with guides that are very useful for any Android user. I will try to keep it updated.

If you have any suggestion, correction or idea feel free to ask.

Don't forget, I recently also released similar thread for 🗃️Windows Ultimate Collection & Guides📚!

I hope you like it!

Cheers! :)
[Galaxy S 4 General] nieebel:
@Retrial The root guide might not be sufficient enough to get Outlook/Teams/Intune working as of today.

After a lot of try and error this ended up working for me: https://xdaforums.com/t/tutorial-ro...ake-it-work-with-magisk.4402273/post-87877117

Probably there are better ways, but maybe you can mention a note in your super awesome Docu or link to this "intune" thread which was pretty helpful in getting this working :)
[Galaxy S 4 General] Retrial:
Hi,

That's something specific with these apps. I will take a look tomorrow and I will probably mention it somewhere.

Thanks.
[Galaxy S 4 General] GoodSoul:
Hey, updated my tutorial. It's working again by installing Shamiko. See the guide.
[Galaxy S 4 General] Retrial:
Thanks I will add it tomorrow.
[Galaxy S 4 General] Retrial:
New Update: 18/01/2023 🗓️

Changelog: 📑

General:🗃️

Added Reddit Crosspost link.

TWRP:🛠️

Added OrangeFox Recovery for gt-i9505 and similar variants.

Magisk:🧙‍♂️

Added another guide to pass SafetyNet and have certified Play Store along with YouTube Video Guide.

Useful Apps: 🎯

Changed the title of the sub-section Useful Apps to Ultimate Collections & Guides (Apps).

Revamp the whole section with my new threads 🗃️Android Ultimate Collection & Guides📚 & 🗃️Windows Ultimate Collection & Guides📚 & ▶️ReVanced & ReVanced Extended - Guides & Useful Links📚.
[Galaxy S 4 General] spaced<->out:
So it's been 16 months
[Galaxy S 4 General] Retrial:
How it's going? :p

What's the problem?
[Galaxy S 4 General] spaced<->out:
Sorry, I'll try again... (phone lagged, I posted inadvertently and you're too quick for me to edit the post in place :) )

So it's been 16 months since I embarked on the modded S4 life thanks to Retrial's fantastic guides here. I'm truly in awe and appreciative of the wonderful minds that keep our devices alive and supported with builds and guides. I settled into using Official LineageOS 18.1 with OpenGApps and OTA updates and it's been great and mostly without a hitch. Yeah the device is often a bit laggy, and there's occasional hiccups with spontaneous OS crashes and restarts, but it's prolonged the life of the S4 as my daily driver and allowed me to forestall committing to a new device even further. The S4 still does everything I need, so why would I change? 🙃

But I fear my warrior S4's days may be drawing to a close. I embarked on the mod journey 16 months ago in an effort to recover the S4 from a bootloop condition it had spontaneously developed on its stock firmware. That was ultimately successful beyond my hopes.

But two weeks ago, the same thing happened again on LineageOS. I had to wipe and reinstall from scratch in TWRP, and go through a bit of setup pain but eventually got back up and running. The bootlooping has happened a couple more times since, although I've been able to recover by re-flashing the OS without losing everything.

Then three days ago, it stopped detecting the SIM card. Now, I've previously had the "SIM Card Removed" error sporadically over the years, and the old hack of applying some pressure over the connector resolved it, but the old tricks aren't working for me this time. I've read around and it seems the thing that needs to be done is a hot air reflow of the NFC IC to repair the solder joints.

I'll give that a go, but even if it resolves the SIM issue, I'm concerned about the increasing frequency of issues I'm experiencing lately. Does it bode imminent outright failure?

🥺
[Galaxy S 4 General] Retrial:
Well....the issue seems a bit complicated. I don't know....if I was you I would buy a new device and I would have S4 as second device. I mean it's 2023, S4 can't handle everything anymore plus your S4 seems a bit damaged. I think it's time to move on...🥹

Even if you have low budget you can still get decent phones nowdays.
[Galaxy S 4 General] spaced<->out:
I managed to restore my SIM card 😍

On a hunch I decided to try re-flashing the Bootloader+Modem according to your guide... upon restart my mobile service was back again. Phew! Glad I tried that before tearing it down and pointing a heat gun at the bare motherboard. 😬

New devices can't handle everything either - like plugging in headphones, controlling TVs with the IR blaster or swapping the battery. So that cuts both ways 😜

Seriously though I did start looking into what I could get as a necessary replacement, but I was having a hard time identifying anything that didn't compromise my expectations. Thinking I want expandable memory + audio socket + wireless charging... but it seems practically no-one is offering that combination in the current market. Nokia XR20 might be the closest thing I can purchase new... my other best idea is to procure a secondhand Samsung S10, but those are pushing four years old already...

I'm 7 months out from 10 years with my S4. I've had to make a few repairs and replace some components along the way, but to date it's kept going. What I worry about now is the flash memory wearing out (as I know they can only take a finite number of writes). If my OS bootloops and nonfunctional modem are fixed by reinstalls, would that signify the cause is software corruption, which could be occurring due to the memory failing? 😓
[Galaxy S 4 General] Retrial:
Yeayyy glad you fixed the issue with the SIM. But you didn't already flashed my combined bootloader/modem before? So it may happen again?

About new devices there are some good choices out there, I will try to search when I have some free time if you tell me your max budget. For battery replacement you can manually open the phone and replace it, it's not that hard. I recently did this in my Poco f1 in 10minutes by watching a YouTube video. However if you live in Europe there are some good news, I hear Europe will try to force manufacturers to make phones with full replacements parts, include battery etc. so people to stop buying every year new phones and so to help the environment etc.

I still can't imagine how you use S4 nowdays xD First of all I don't have space to install all these apps I want, the apps general became hungry on ram/battery/cpu/storage/battery, it's kinda laggy because of the apps became hungry, battery is small for todays standards and also you will find really hard a good battery replacement, camera is not so good either for todays standards.

If you managed to be happy somehow with S4 as main device nowdays, I can't say anything tho, everyone has his own standards and opinions 😜

For me S4 it's a legacy phone and it's ok as 2nd device with the help of custom ROMs.
[Galaxy S 4 General] DiamondJohn:
Sorry for the OT.

My previous phone was an S4. Bits kept dying (eg GPS), and I was building ROMs for the device, so I actually have 4 devices,.

I was really interested in the S10e when it came out, but it was veeeery overpriced. Size is also a big thing for me.

A couple of years ago I upgraded to the Pixel 4A, and have been pretty happy with it.

I never thought I would buy a phone without a storage card, but, I only ever needed a 64GB SD card, so the 128GB in the P4A is as good/better than using a 128GB card in a device. (I actually use to fill up the 64GB in the S4).

The other big kicker is that this device is one of the few new ones to have a headphone jack.

If you compare them side-by-side (S10e & P4A) they are very similar (from memory). And the P4A was cheap compared to the samsung and newer. There are a lot of YT clips justifying why its still a good choice today.

The P4A was a good upgrade from the S4 for me. And now they are coming down in price second hand. I just bought a second one off ebay...
[Galaxy S 4 General] Retrial:
Sorry for the delay, I was a bit busy.

I agree with @DiamondJohn about the SDCard. Plus if you lose your device, SDcard it's easy acceable from everyone and so your data. I doubt you will get out of storage, nowdays phones comes with big Internal Storage.

For Audio Jack since most devices comes without it nowdays too, you can use a small adaptor type c to audio jack, they are cheap and very small.

Are u looking to buy now a new device or in future?
[Galaxy S 4 General] spaced<->out:
Quick question (comparatively speaking)...

Can I package your modem file (and bootloader?) on the SD card in my S4 so it can be installed using TWRP? I understand TWRP can do it, but I'm unclear on what steps are required. Do I need to extract the files from the .tar and put them in a .zip with some special structure or is it way more involved?

It would be much more convenient, if I have to flash those files again, to do so in-place on the device itself, than to go to my PC and connect Odin; particularly if I'm away from home.
[Galaxy S 4 General] DiamondJohn:
And now the ugly part of a Pixel 4A

From my perspective, there isnt a 100% working TWRP. So no nandroids. Flashing ROMs is done via fastboot. App data backups are in Android.

The ROM choices are not all that abundant. And they havent been releasing new/updated builds (non LOS) of recent. However, for me, I only run one ROM and its actually Android 11; Bliss. I use to build many different ROMs for multiple devices, including the S4. I use to run a personal build (shared here on XDA) of Havoc Oreo. I have just started trying to build A13 Bliss from source. The source is updated but no new builds for Pixel 4A; an official device

Regarding SDCard and ROM / backups. I use to use an OTG flash drive. Similar to your use of SDCards, but I could quickly unplug out of phone and into computer and back again, if I missed anything. All within TWRP.

Another hidden cost of phone ownership is repair. I owned a Nexus 5 just before the S4 and they are basically the exact same phone internally (without an SDCard), but the N5 was such a cheap build quality. Nearly every 2nd hand one on ebay had a broken screen, as internally, it was a thin sheet of glass with no support. Whereas the S4 has all the circuit board pasted behind the glass adding strength. In addition to nearly everyone having a failing power button on the N5.

With my P4a, I have broken the glass twice (glass protector but no case). Last time I took the phone in for repair, the guy said he saw of lot of them come in with broken screens. I would guestimate due to the true edge to edge screen. I have now learnt and have a silicon case.

One of the reasons I didnt go for the S10e, is that it was all glass. I knew I would have killed an expensive glass phone over & over.

Regarding the size of handsets, I miss my old Gold Sony XPeria RAY with its 3.3inch screen. People commented it looked like something James Bond would use (it was tiny even back then), and it use to fit in my change pocket. PS: I had a 32GB sdcard in it.
[Galaxy S 4 General] notnoelchannel:
I don't think that's possible, but if twrp allows you to flash on the modem partition then you can do it there.

I recommend using Odin though, it's way safer :)
[Galaxy S 4 General] Berni-0815:
A Google Pixel 6a would be my favourite...
[Galaxy S 4 General] piero-e:
Hello,

you could replace it by a second hands galaxy s4 international LTE (gt-i9505) for 30/50€...

But if you want a newer device, the only one as easily repairable as the galaxy s4 is a Fairphone device
[Galaxy S 4 General] spaced<->out:
A bit of support for Pixel then, I see.

Yesterday I learned that Google has partnered with iFixit to sell official repair kits going all the way back to the Pixel 2. I also saw the 7a finally has wireless charging, and although the latest release, it's not impossibly out of reach of my budget.

So there look to be some compelling arguments to support picking up a Pixel - possibly either a 5a (last to feature the audio jack) or trying to stretch to the 7a...

Thanks for the suggestion. I was aware of Fairphone but I'm not sure what their status is in Australia (as far as distribution/sales etc). Something to research in my spare time.

Edit: Right, did some bedtime reading and learned they're currently distributed only in Europe and UK, they have some fans in Australia but no official sales channels here. I'm not averse to using a device that's less common or a little quirky (I feel there's competitive deals to be had if you look past incumbents), but having to go private import would be a bridge too far for what it is... Pity as it would otherwise be great to have the option here in Aus.

Yeah, I always thought I'd upgrade to something with a bit larger screen than the S4, but comparing the size on the latest Plus and Ultra devices it's a little comical. All that screen is probably glorious to use, but I wonder how I'd adapt to carrying it. I thought maybe a standard S10 is about the size I could see myself pocketing; although truthfully, a S10e or Pixel A also have larger screens than the S4, but they're doing it in a comparable size package.

Funny you mention James Bond. My wife's Z5C actually came packaged in a box emblazoned with the 007 Spectre logo - Sony having a product placement deal to feature the Z5 in the film - so I guess it is a genuine Bond phone 😉

I did think about it - I could even buy a broken one, as long as it has a good motherboard, I could parts swap components from mine to resurrect it. But that doesn't seem like a rational use of funds - I used my S4 continuously for nine and a half years and wore it out, any replacement would have a massive question mark over how long it could possibly last. Plus now I'm on the Z5C, I'm finding it performs overall better than the S4 did (LOS and apps load faster, it doesn't lag as much when the on-screen keyboard pops in, etc)... it certainly makes no sense to go back to daily driving a S4.

So since it will never work again, I was thinking I could honour the S4 by doing one of those DIY display frames to showcase the internals of the phone... (if I kid myself that I've got enough time for a project like that...)
[Galaxy S 4 General] kitros3942:
Hi, I have a GT-i9505 device running LineageOS 18.1 and am planning to wipe it and re-install LineageOS.

And as I don't have a Windows PC for personal use and can't use Odin right now, I'm debating over installing the latest bootloader & modem following the instructions of the guides in this thread.

Since I'm not knowledgeable about the bootloader and modems,

(For instance, whether the bootloader and modems are not contained in a LineageOS'es rom file is not really clear to me)

I'd appreciate it if someone could confirm that updating them indeed has some potential benefits.

Thanks.
[Galaxy S 4 General] spaced<->out:
I think in basic summary:

Bootloader file is like the BIOS that runs before the OS starts up.

Modem file is like the drivers for the radios - mobile service (SIM card) and possibly WiFi/Bluetooth/NFC.

As you might know from experience with other devices, having the right/latest firmware and drivers often brings enhancements or is even necessary for the device to work at all.

They aren't contained in LineageOS, which is why the instructions have you load them separately. Odin on a PC is really the only feasible way to apply them to your i9505. (If you see my post a few entries above, I asked about flashing them in-situ on the device using TWRP, which I think might technically be capable of doing with a terminal command. It's documented for other devices but I didn't get confirmation here, so it would be an experiment.)

Fortunately you shouldn't need to, as, if you already are running LineageOS, you must have flashed bootloader and modern previously. The files provided by Retail have an upload date of 6 Sep 2019, so if you modded after this date then you would already have the most up-to-date version, and there would be no need or benefit of flashing it again.
[Galaxy S 4 General] Retrial:
Yo space<>out did finally bought a new phone?

If no, worth checking Fairphone 5, you may like it.

Sustainable and repair-friendly Fairphone 5 released - gHacks Tech News

The new Fairphone 5 promises software support until 2031, improved repairability and sustainability.

www.ghacks.net
[Galaxy S 4 General] spaced<->out:
Haha, thanks for thinking of me. Yeah, I did get a new device... kind of, not really... ultimately, I went for the Samsung Galaxy S10 as I posited in my earlier posting. I got a good deal on a refurbished device from a local recycling business, installed LineageOS 20 on it and have been very happy with the outcome.

I was trying really hard to make friends with any of the devices currently on store shelves, but there was nothing I was happy about paying the cost of admission for, and I couldn't wait forever for things coming down the pipeline. Unfortunately my Sony Z5C seems to have some hardware issues, the camera stopped working and I kept getting crashes or kernel panics, so it was just getting a bit too hard to live with.

Haha, yeah, I saw Martin on The Friday Checkout cover this last week, and it looks right up my alley - 10-year lifespan, that's almost enough for me😝

Unfortunately Fairphone don't distribute to Australia, so it's still unobtainuim for me. Maybe when the FP6 comes out they'll have the distribution channel set up...
[Galaxy S 4 General] gwm121:
i have lineage 18.1 istalled on note 4 trite samy. After instal if the fone ran out of battery or was switched off by power button it wouldn't restart. (Also wouldn't restart in twrp) Completely dead. However after 4 days with the battery removed it restarts. . . Eventually I tried lineage on a second identical note 4. Same thing happened.

Has anyone idea of why.
[Galaxy S 4 General] Retrial:
Note 4 is different device from S4 so I don't know much about it.

Did you tried to report it on LineageOS dev?

Have you tried different ROM to check if this still happening?
[Galaxy S 4 General] gwm121:
thankyou. yes, once this effect.. no restart for 4 days happens any other rom or version i try does the same, and now on 2 note 4.

I read somewhere that uou were supposed to pull the battery before first restart and do first restart into twrp, otherwise some sort of opening file twrp put on was cancelled, is that true, I have no knowledge this deep!.

Its curious ive never seen on note 4 or other samy devices, ANY other person with this problem. Its unlikely hardware as after trying sort out for 3 yrs on one note 4 it immediately happened on my second on first load.

These removable battery samy fones with missed call led are fantastic.
[Galaxy S 4 General] piero-e:
If running LineageOS 18.1, I presume you already have latest Samsung Firmware installed as a base.

If not sure or you want starting from scratch, instead of Odin3 on a Windows PC, on a Linux PC, you can use Odin4, or Thor, or Thor GUI, or Heimdall, or Heimdall-frontend.