MDA ROM Upgrade without reinstalling apps?

[maikii]

I just came across the following old thread:

http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=40209

I would like to do what is described there, but with my T-Mobile (USA) MDA (HTC Wizard, WM5 PPC phone).

I still have the original ROM on the unit, purchased in March, I think 1.8.10.2. Now T-Mo finally has an official ROM upgrade, I think 2.26, which I have downloaded.

I thought I could backup my phone with SPB Backup, do the ROM upgrade, then restore from backup. But some writers on another forum emphatically recommended against doing that, said it would wreck the phone.

I spent many hours installing apps, tweaking the phone's settings, etc. I don't remember everything I did, to get my phone to its present configuration. I am loathe to have to start from scratch after the ROM upgrade, having to install all apps, do all my settings and tweaks, all over again! A daunting task!

Does someone know how to do with the MDA ROM upgrade something similar to what is suggested iin the quoted thread for an older IPAQ model, a way to do the ROM upgrade and restore from a backup, without having to start over from scratch?

Menneisys, are you reading? Anyone have an idea how to do this?

[Nurhisham Hussein]

Unless the change made between ROM versions is minor, then a complete rebuild is unfortunately still the best way to go. You actually have to analyze the before-and-after changes on a case to case basis (drivers, registry, databases), and it's just as much work as rebuilding from scratch. A further complication with the Wizard is that there are so many different versions (with different, carrier-specific ROM revisions), you actually have to have the same exact type before this work can be carried out - I know Menny's got a Wizard, but I don't know which specific version.

[maikii]

I've read that the new version of Sprite Backup has a feature for doing this--a backup-restore in conjunction with a ROM upgrade. Has anyone here tried that feature?

I have SPB Backup, am otherwise happy with it, and wouldn't consider paying $30 to get Sprite Backup as well. However, if that feature really works well, it might be worth paying $30 to save many hours of re-installation and tweaking.

I wonder how the program decides which files and registry settings to ignore, in restoring after a ROM upgrade?

If anyone has tried this feature of Sprite, or knows anything about it, please respond. Thank you.

[maikii]

Following is a quote from a post I read on xda-developers:
(my comments after quote)

---quote follows-------------
prestonmcafee wrote:

I was using xelencin's 2.24 version. I backed up with SPB backup, used the installer above, and installed 2.26. Then, when the installation was complete, I prevented the customization (after the screen align, etc., when the 'customization will begin in 3 seconds' popup appears, perform a soft reset with the stylus), and restored the backup.

This seems to work fine.

I then used total commander to copy the /extended_rom/ T-Mobile customizations to the miniSD and installed a few of them -- smart dialing, phone_light, PP_Extversion (not sure what that does), and the updated Hotspot login.

Of course, I didn't get the advantage of cleaning up the system, but since I did a start-from-scratch build a month ago, that wasn't necessary.

-------------------end quote------------------

My comments---Preston says it worked for him to backup with SPB, do the ROM upgrade, but interrupt it when it is about to install the customizations, so that they don't install. Then he did the restore from SPB, then manually installed some of the customizations from extended ROM, after the restore.

My question is--should that work for any ROM upgrade? Or did it perhaps work for him because he was upgrading from a near number (2.24) (whereas I would be upgrading from an older version)?

Still trying to investigate the possibilities, before upgrading.

[Nurhisham Hussein]

My comments---Preston says it worked for him to backup with SPB, do the ROM upgrade, but interrupt it when it is about to install the customizations, so that they don't install. Then he did the restore from SPB, then manually installed some of the customizations from extended ROM, after the restore.


No problems with this - the customisations don't really impact on the system files.


My question is--should that work for any ROM upgrade? Or did it perhaps work for him because he was upgrading from a near number (2.24) (whereas I would be upgrading from an older version)?


You should be aware that the ROMs they use at XDA-Developers are 'home-made' - they know what changes were made in between versions. The version numbering themselves don't make a difference, it's the actual content. You can follow what Preston has done, if you know that no major changes have been made to the system files, particularly the registry.

You're looking at upgrading with an official ROM, which is a different matter entirely. To be fair, I once did what you did - and completely screwed up my wifi networking capability.

Let me give you a couple of examples of the kind of problems you can run into:

Example 1: Driver changes
Let's say in the original ROM, your wifi is controlled by wlanctrl.exe. In the new ROM, it's called wifictrl.exe. Once you restore your backup, your registry will point to the original wlanctrl.exe, which is no longer there - result: no wifi function.

Example 2: Registry changes
Let's say T-Mo found a bug in a registry entry, and fixed it in the new ROM. Restoring the backup just restores the bug again.

Sorry if this wasn't really helpful, but let me put it this way - supposing you do use the backup over the ROM upgrade, whenever your MDA runs into problems you'll be forever wondering if that was the cause.

[Menneisyys]

Does someone know how to do with the MDA ROM upgrade something similar to what is suggested iin the quoted thread for an older IPAQ model, a way to do the ROM upgrade and restore from a backup, without having to start over from scratch?

As the others have already pointed out, just restoring an older, full backup (along with the Registry) is pretty risky and, in most cases, just elminates a lot of changes and may lead to other problems too.

That is, you either compare the two ROM versions (this is how I've created my hx4700 or PL720 scripts) to find out what MY be restored and what must be not, or use Sprite Backup's device upgrade mode to upgrade. The latter is probably the best way,but it certainly costs money.

Cureently, I don't know of any hand-created ROM upgrade script that would it make possible to restore old backups under the new ROM version. I surely won't create scripts like these for new Wizard ROM's (there are always so many of them and creating/testing a script like this takes a LOT of time.)

[maikii]

, or use Sprite Backup's device upgrade mode to upgrade. The latter is probably the best way,but it certainly costs money.


Thanks for the reply, Menneisys.

Are you saying that the device upgrade restore in the new Sprite Backup works well? Have you tried it? If I upgraded and restored with that mode of Sprite, would I not need much re-installation and re-tweaking afterwards?

Yes, I otherwise would not pay $30 for Sprite, when I already have and am satisfied with SPB Backup for normal backup/restores, but in this case, if that really works well, it might be worth spending $30 on, to save hours of work.

[maikii]

You should be aware that the ROMs they use at XDA-Developers are 'home-made' - they know what changes were made in between versions. The version numbering themselves don't make a difference, it's the actual content. You can follow what Preston has done, if you know that no major changes have been made to the system files, particularly the registry.

You're looking at upgrading with an official ROM, which is a different matter entirely. To be fair, I once did what you did - and completely screwed up my wifi networking capability.



From the context of the thread it was posted in, I believe that although Preston had upgraded from Xelencin's 2.24 custom ROM, he was upgrading to the official T-Mo USA 2.26 ROM, the same one I was discussing. However, he was upgrading from a different ROM than I. I don't know if he knew the differences between his old and new ROMs, or just tried it and was lucky.

But, in other words, you are saying that what he did, although it worked for him (either by luck or by his knowledge), cannot be assumed to work for every ROM upgrade. That, although I am upgrading to the same ROM, the fact that I am upgrading from a different and older one, could make it not work, right?

It looks like the Sprite procedure, if it works well, might be the only way to upgrade and avoid all the reinstallation and re-tweaking hassle.

[maikii]

I'd still like to hear from someone who has used the Sprite 5.1 Device Upgrade Mode in conjunction with a ROM upgrade, to hear whether it worked well for them.

I'd only consider shelling out the $30 for that, if I have some idea that using this procedure works well, and would save me the time of reinstallation and re-tweaking.

Anyone here tried that?

[tufif]

I just installed the new rom update to my mda and I hate it! I can't get any software to install, I can't download zip files through internet explorer anymore, I can't save unknown attachments from emails anymore, I might as well switch back to my old sidekick at this point. Can somebody please help me to get it working again? Should I just call t-mobile and get them to swap it for a refurb that still has the old rom on it? What should I do? My phone sucks now!

[maikii]

I just installed the new rom update to my mda and I hate it! I can't get any software to install, I can't download zip files through internet explorer anymore, I can't save unknown attachments from emails anymore, I might as well switch back to my old sidekick at this point. Can somebody please help me to get it working again? Should I just call t-mobile and get them to swap it for a refurb that still has the old rom on it? What should I do? My phone sucks now!

If you look at the posts about it on the Howard Forums MDA board, most writers say that the new ROM is much better. Possibly something went wrong in your installation process. Take a look there--www.howardforums.com choose US carriers/T-Mobile, then you'll see the MDA/SDA forum.

Did you by any chance try to restore a backup after upgrading the ROM? As discussed in this thread, that is not advisable, except if one uses the Sprite device upgrade function discussed here.

I would suggest, before trying to revert to the old ROM (I think it is downloadable somewhere), that you re-download the new ROM (just in case your first download was corrupted), and re-install it, making sure that you follow the directions exactly.

---------

I still hope to hear from some who tried the Sprite Backup 5.1 device upgrade function!

[tufif]

Thank, I reinstalled and it works fine now! I'd never seen that forum before, thanks for pointing me towards it

[freemans]

I have done the upgrade mode restoring using Sprite, it worked fine, no signing issue and data loss found, seems cool. It worth every penny I spend. :mrgreen:

The hicup is you need to request for a tool before you do the upgrade to capture a snapshot of the old Rom, for the use of the restoring after the ROM change. :twisted:

[freemans]

Yep, Sprite Backup did the upgrade mode restore job flawlessly. and as far as I know, it is the only backup solution does this properly. :lol: