[P3400 ROM Development] krazy_about_technology:
Frequently Asked Questions

FAQ (Frequently Asked Question) Read Carefully Please

Q1. What is the basic information about my phone that i would need to get started with this process or for troubleshooting?

Ans. The basic information that you need is displayed on the white htc splash screen that shows up when you start your phone. This inludes:

ONBL version, SPL version, GSM or Radio version and OS version.

Apart from that, you will also need the serial number of your device. This can be found behind the battery on your device or on one side of the packaging box in which your device came.

An optional thing that may come handy is the version number of your ROM which can be found by going to Start > Settings > System > Device Information. Look for the ROM Version there.

Q2. What is SPL, Why it needs patching, and what are the things i need to keep in mind?

Ans. SPL or Second Program Loader is a part of your phone's firmware. Its responsible for both loading of operating system and it is also used by operating system for some low level tasks. By Default, HTC and Other Manufacturers too, design it in such a way that it does not allows custom ROMs to be flashed in the phone. It does no by checking for the Digital Signature of HTC on roms. So it need to be patched in order to flash custom ROMs made by chefs in this forum.

There are two SPLs available right now for P3400 and P3400i. One is Olipro's SPL for Old Gene and Second is Orefkov's SPL for New Gene. These should be used according to the device they are meant for. Using wrong SPL can make your device dead.

One more thing is, SPL is needed to be updated just once. Only one of the given SPLs will work for you and you will never need to patch it again. This is true for those situations too when you flash a rom and your phone does not boots past the White HTC splash screen. In that case too, As you have just flashed an incompatible ROM, you just need to use another, compatible ROM to get your phone back. NEVER UPDATE YOUR SPL ONCE IT IS PATCHED BY EITHER OF THE METHODS

Q3. How can i be sure which version i need to use, i am not sure whether i have an old gene or new gene?

Ans. Earlier it was being thought that one can differentiate between New Gene and Old Gene on the basis of Onbl and Serial Nos. But this has not found to be true as evident from many cases of bricking.

One of the possible checks for knowing that is if your phone originally came with Windows Mobile 5, its probably an old gene, and If it came with Windows Mobile 6, its probably an New Gene. However, this is also not a concrete basis to decide the version of SPL.

So i recommend to follow these steps, These should work for any Gene without problem.

1. Use the Olipro method first. It will work properly if your device is an old gene.

2. If it fails and your phone becomes dead, just follow the instructions for using Gene Unbricker for new gene and your phone will be back again. This way, your new gene will be flashed with Orefkov's method.

Q4. Are there any precautions that i need to take when selecting a ROM for flashing to my device?

Ans. Yes, there are indeed some things that you need to keep in mind before making mind to flash a ROM.

1. Make sure your SPL is patched, ie. On boot screen it should have either SPL 1.10.Olip displayed in case of an old gene OR SPL 1.07.Oref in case of a new gene. If it is not, patch it using the Guide given below. If it is, dont ever try to patch it again.

2. After patching your SPL you will become sure that whether your phone is a new gene or old, because of knowing the version of SPL that worked for you. Now, never choose a ROM which is not built for your phone. Only use ROMs appropriate for you phone. And if you ever accidently flash a ROM of wrong version, dont panic. Just flash another ROM for your version and your phone will be back.

3. In general, never try to downgrade your ROM. Means if your original ROM was WM 5 and you upgraded to WM 6 or 6.1 Dont try to downgrade to WM5. This is specially true for WM 5 because of reasons i'll explain later.

Q5. Why is it not recommended to downgrade the OS version, ie. moving to a previous ROM version?

Ans. There is no problem actually in doing so. But there are some situations that needs to be taken care of. What happens is, Somtimes, the previous version of Original ROMs from htc, contain the older version of SPL that is very specifically made for that version of ROM.So if you flash this ROM, your SPL will again become locked. This is specially true for original WM 5 ROMs

In case your phone came with WM5 originally, and the version of ROM exactly with the one that was originally on your device, It wont give any problem. But if this ROM is not exactly the version your phone originally came with, this will brick your device and you'll have to take it to service center. No homemade solutions works then.

Even bigger problem arises when your phone came with Wm 6 originally and you try to downgrade it to WM 5. This will certainly brick your device and force you to take it to service center. SO DONT EVER TRY TO DOWNGRADE A GENE TO WM5 IF IT ORIGINALLY CAME WITH WM 6.

ROMs created by users here do not contain the ONBL, SPL and GSM parts (dont worry about the names). These only contain the OS part which is safe to use.

Q6. What are the things i can try if i get a problem while this process?

Ans. You shouldn't get any trouble if you take all the precautions, but even if you do, you can try :

1. If your gene is bricked by Olipro SPL, use the gene unbricker for new gene by Orefkov.

2. If you flashed your phone with a ROM made by some user on this forum and it doesn't works, just flash another version of the ROM or some other compatible ROM. NO need to touch anything else.

3. If you downgraded/Upgraded using any of the Original HTC ROMs and your phone is bricked, try the JTAG Method by Orefkov. Search for it, you'll easily find it. If even that doesn't helps, Take your device to service center.

Q7. What is bootloader mode, and how do i enter it?

Ans. Bootloader mode is a special mode which is use to flash ROMs. Bootloader is the part of your phone's firmware that kicks in even before SPL and initializes it. You may need to enter this mode while patching your SPL or sometimes while flashing a ROM. To do that, Shutdown your phone, Press and Hold the Camera Button and press the power button or the soft reset key using your stylus. This will take you to a 3 colored screen with your Onbl and SPL version displayed on it. This is called the Bootloader mode.

Q8. What is Hard Reset and Soft Reset and how to do it?

Ans. Soft reset is a second name for restarting your phone. It can be done using power button too but sometimes, when the phone is hanged, it needs to be done by pressing the soft reset key, situated in a small hole near the mini usb port you use for charging and headfone, using your stylus. Your phone will restart immediately without any harm. But if you have any unsaved data, like an open, edited word file or a text message half written and not saved, they will be lost. But all your saved data is safe.

Hard reset is something that needs to be done when there is some problem with the phone that is not being solved using any standard method or restarting the phone. This method erases all the files and data in phone memory (not SD card) and makes your phone as it came new from factory or just after a fresh ROM upgrade. You'll loose all your emails, calender items, Todo list, sms, contacts etc. But most of the problems get solved using this. So before using this, backup your PIM data using utilities like PIM Backup by dotfred etc.

To do a hard reset, shutdown your phone, Press and hold the two soft keys (the keys above the call accept and call reject keys) and press the reset button using stylus. A black screen will appear warning you about the consequesnces. Press the Green key (call accept key) to start the process.