Root What should I know about updating ROMs?

[omniuni]

Hello all,

I know, the information is probably out there if I spent more time trying to cajole the information out of my good friend Google, but he's been feeling unhelpful today, so I figured I would ask here.

I am currently running Bugless Beast .4, and of course, I may want to change or upgrade in the future. I know that most of my settings and information is saved to the SD card, and that in theory I could move SOME apps there. That said, I want to understand what a "nandroid backup" is, and how changing ROMs affects your otherwise installed applications.

Is there a good app anyone can recommend to back up and restore applications if they are lost?

Thank you for taking the time to let me know, and helping me understand.

 

[messenger13]

Is there a good app anyone can recommend to back up and restore applications if they are lost?

Titanium Backup is the only app you really need. Donate for the paid version and you get batch operations that allows you to backup/restore all apps at once. I use it daily to backup new versions and/or associated data. Priceless!

 

[omniuni]

Thanks for the recommendation;

I am currently on a low (no?) budget, so a free solution would make me more comfortable.

Once again, though, in what cases would I lose my installed apps?

 

[emdmao]

When switching ROM's it is generally recommended to at least wipe your data and cache. Though if you are going from BB .04 to a newer version of BB you could try without wiping anything. There is no situation where you would completely lose your apps, especially purchased apps (they will always show in the market).

After going through the setup wizard of the newer ROM all of your paid and previously installed apps will normally automatically redownload and install. But this way you will lose all of the apps data. The free version of titanium backup would work fine to backup your apps and data.

Just think of a nandroid backup as an exact copy of everything currently running on your phone, ROM, kernel, apps, everything. If you were to screw up anything (or a ROM or kernel doesn't work well on your phone after installing) you can always reboot into recovery and restore the phone to the exact state of when you made a backup.

 

[tom108]

Thanks for the recommendation;

I am currently on a low (no?) budget, so a free solution would make me more comfortable.

Once again, though, in what cases would I lose my installed apps?

dood its $5, but anyways as long as you log into your market the apps should auto download or at least be in your download section.

 

[vincentp]

With 2.2, your apps will automatically download from the Market once you install a new ROM on the phone, so there's no longer a need to back them up. Unfortunately, saved data from those apps is not backed up, so you would need to back it up with something like Titanium if you wanted to restore, say, your call log or SMS messages.

Here's a simple list...

Things you will lose when wiping and installing a new ROM
- Customization (Widgets, layouts, settings)
- Call logs and SMS/MMS messages
- Apps that were not from the Market

Things you will not lose
- Anything on the SD card
- Apps from the market (automatically re-downloaded)
- Contacts and anything that is in the Google Cloud


As others said, I would recommend Titanium to backup your app data if you want to restore settings, messages, calls, etc. Otherwise you will not lose too much.

 

[omniuni]

That's great guys! Thanks!

The only settings I am much worried about is ADW, and it has a backup to sd option. I can be patient while apps re-download.

I guess it just flags the app when you install it, and un-flags it when you remove it?

Thanks again!

 

[omniuni]

dood its $5, but anyways as long as you log into your market the apps should auto download or at least be in your download section.

By the way, just to mention "dood", I'm a college student. My data plan is paid for from work, but $5 is how much I'm going to spend on a desk for my apartment; which is more important to me than an app to track my apps. In other words, never assume how much money someone is willing to spend.

Also, thanks again to everyone for helping answer my question.