This method is known to cure many ills and woes for ANY rom update.
(I need to update this for Gingerbread steps, but backup/reset/restore cures the same things in Gingerbread that it cured in Froyo.)
This last weekend during the pre-release (7/30/2010) we learned a LOT about Froyo on the EVO by exhaustively searching down every problem.
Here's the simple story for any number of bugs, erratic behavior and incessant up time.
I've been asked many times - is this still a good procedure if I already have Froyo? Yes. This is a good procedure for any upgrade or app-tangling where spurious issues crop up.
This is NOT to going to solve all problems for 100% of you - but - I'm very confident that it will for most of you, as in - OVER 95%.
It will NOT fix these classes or types of defects:
Here's the deal - the updates do not have a lot of defects - aside from the above list - it has essentially one big one.
The cache / data areas are tangled up.
As you run things over time, your cache - the area where lots of things get worked from - has gotten all tangled up. Just like your web browser has a cache, Android has data and cache areas - once tangled up, all sorts of symptoms appear.
The solution is simple:
1. Backup
Backup is important with every phone.
First and foremost, ensure the Google servers are up to date with your contact and calendar data. Menu -> Settings -> Accounts & sync -> Sync all. If you are using any third party apps for this sort of thing, or corporate servers or Exchange accounts - be sure that your contacts and other information is appropriately synced.
Verify that your contacts are on the Google server. Yes - do that!
If your chosen backup method will support it - next go to Menu -> Settings -> Personalize -> Scenes -> Menu and this will save your 7-desktop layout.
If you've got 5 bucks and you're not rooted, get MyBackup Pro, it should backup everything you care about. Another good alternative is Sprite Backup plus ASTRO used at the same time.
If you're rooted, use Titanium Backup - backup your user apps, desktop, Mail, and everything marked with "Titanium."
If you're not comfortable with the above, you can backup your apps for free using ASTRO File Manager, free from the Market. Once you have it, go to Menu-> Tools.
Here's a thread on ASTRO, wish I'd found it earlier!
http://androidforums.com/htc-evo-4g/113593-im-leaving-appbrain.html
If you've never done this before - NOW at this point would be a good time to back up your SD card to your PC. Simple select all, then drag and drop into a clean folder onto your PC via USB should do the trick. This isn't required - but you can never have too much backup protection.
Added - SMS Backup&Restore - free version (Market) will back up texts, paid will do MMS, too.
2. Factory reset
Once you have your backup, goto Menu-> Settings-> SD & phone storage -> Factory reset.
You WILL lose your installed apps.
You WILL lose your local logins and accounts unless you use a better backup than free - but you're likely to not lose much. (If you're synced to the google servers - and you should be - you'll still have your contacts and calendar entries.)
You will NOT lose your SD card contents. (But be safe and back it up to a PC as noted above.)
You will NOT lose your 2.2 update.
Do the factory reset.
3. Restore CORRECT Behavior *and then* Your Stuff
When finished - download the free Network app from the Market. (Network by Philipp Mangelow)
Start it, and scroll down until you see "CDMA auto (PRL)" - change it to "GSM auto (PRL)" - exit Network; re-start Network then change back to "CDMA auto (PRL)" - and finally, go to Menu-> Settings-> System updates-> Update PRL
This sounds like majick snake oil but it's not - it's an idiosyncrasy of the phone's hardware and firmware.
Depending upon your particular apps and backup tool, you may be required to add this step, so now is a good time (if you're uncomfortable with this, you can do it if and when required):
Menu -> Settings -> Applications -> Unknown sources (check on to allow non-Market apps)
Now, go to the Market and download again the tool you used for your backup.
NOW restore your backups by reversing your chosen tool.
DO NOT re-install full Flash 10 for 2.1 if you had that before.
Consider NOT re-installing LED Light, the included Flashlight is really better.
DO NOT re-install any task killers or cleaners.
At least one user has found that if this doesn't work and issues remain, then power up your phone while holding down the volume-down key. This gives a menu that includes an option to Wipe/Clear all data from the phone. Use that by navigating with the volume buttons and selecting it with the power button. Use the menu to reboot when done.
4. Stock Browser Note
When you're done, you may still notice browser slowdowns from before.
This is easily fixed.
5. Et cetera, et cetera
It seems that when you do this, Talk may be set back to auto-login on startup. If you're not a big Talk believer, you might want to shut that off to conserve battery life. You'll find it in your app drawer.
Likewise ou can also turn off Background data under Settings -> Accounts & sync. The cool thing now is there is a widget, available under Shortcut -> Settings for your desktop that'll take you right to that page whenever you want, conveniently, like when you want to go to the Market, for example.
Talk has some controversy as to whether it can impede instant notifications for GMail - and many people are uncomfortable with background data for any number of reasons - I'm just no longer sure, so this is more "customization how-to" rather than strict advice or anything.
By the way - there's a Sync All widget now, under Widgets, for your desktop that does just what the name says. Best of all - you can have background data and auto-sync off, use that new Sync All widget from time to time - and they stay off.
I'd also like to note this specific advice if your Sense launcher is force closing and not letting you get anywhere -
FIX: “The Application HTC Sense (process com.htc.launcher) has stopped unexpectedly”
Note well that the article ends suggesting you may have to follow this post's procedure. Yes, do.
There's also a note at XDA warning to turn off your LED notifications. That's under Settings -> Display. The new default is for all of them to be on - and this is said to cause some process to run, draining some battery life.
Settings -> Wireless & networks -> Mobile networks - ensure that "Enable always-on mobile data" is not enabled (not checked).
Settings -> Wireless & networks -> Mobile networks -> Roaming -> Sprint only
And finally - Sprint Zone - turn off its auto-login and any notifications it wants to send, unless you really have some use for it.
6. Summary
I've started this thread to help out with the many threads for people with problems.
Please keep this thread clean, and only respond if you're having trouble with the procedure.
From the smallest bug to the largest - this is best advice you're likely to ever get with your EVO.
Finally - and this is VERY important:
If you're using a task killer or cleaner, stop for the moment, and uninstall it.
The task-killing protocols for Froyo are NOT the same as they were for 2.1.
And Froyo is so much better at memory management - AFTER you've done a factory reset and cleaned out your cache / data tangles - you're not going to believe.
Try your new Froyo for a few days like this and then and only then if you're still convinced that you need a task killer, go for it. But not because of the number of tasks running - wait and see if you don't already have better performance than before.
Hope this helps, thanks in advance for your help in keeping this thread clean.
PS - This advice is the result of the efforts of too many people to name individually who pulled together in this forum since last Friday's pre-release of Froyo. They know who they are, and without their efforts this knowledge would not have been possible. I thank them, one and all, on my behalf and yours.
PPS - This advice is for the HTC EVO 4G on Sprint and may not apply to all devices.
Definitely do NOT follow this procedure if you're using a Motorola Droid X and are on Verizon.
~~~~~~~~
Totally by coincidence, this thread you're reading came after another good one on the same subject and these have evolved in parallel. See Also:
http://androidforums.com/htc-evo-4g/141047-strange-anomalies-after-ota-solution-hard-reset.html
~~~~~~~~~~~
See also this VERY interesting post regarding your Google account and whether it is contributing to a sleep-time issue!
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=762078
~~~~~~~~~~~
Here's a vid showing contacts backup and factory reset by a fellow Evo owner later in this thread:
http://androidforums.com/evo-4g-support-troubleshooting/141369-how-fix-froyo-4.html#post2659554
(I need to update this for Gingerbread steps, but backup/reset/restore cures the same things in Gingerbread that it cured in Froyo.)
This last weekend during the pre-release (7/30/2010) we learned a LOT about Froyo on the EVO by exhaustively searching down every problem.
Here's the simple story for any number of bugs, erratic behavior and incessant up time.
I've been asked many times - is this still a good procedure if I already have Froyo? Yes. This is a good procedure for any upgrade or app-tangling where spurious issues crop up.
This is NOT to going to solve all problems for 100% of you - but - I'm very confident that it will for most of you, as in - OVER 95%.
It will NOT fix these classes or types of defects:
- http://androidforums.com/android-applications/141536-pandora-slacker-users-please-star-bug.html
- GMail non-primary account not syncing/notifying in real time
- Any apps that are known to have Froyo issues. This is usually the hard step, because it requires you to check the comments against your installed apps - that's not tough per se, but it can be time consuming if you have a lot of apps. Go to Market, your downloads, inspect each apps comments if you continue to have doubts and need to be sure. At least the new Market app gives a Comments tab, making this job easier. The worst case is starting over, installing apps one by one until the culprit is found.
- MANY users found Facebook 1.3 seems to have been the culprit on their machines (Dead Link) - another user found it was a wallpaper app.
- There is one pathological class that is making no sense that we're trying to track down; at least two people are finding a runaway CPU, takes-forever-charging, and no battery staying power EVEN AFTER FOLLOWING THIS METHOD - and in one case at least only using stock apps! This may or may not be limited only to PC-USB charging however.
- We're working together to solve this one.
- My personal latest guess is on the SD card - but - I know this was seen and solved for 2.1 but I cannot find that thread for love nor money. Was it a reformat to FAT32 from a PC?
- If you know the answer, please post it in this thread!!!!
- Found this! I'm not expert as to whether to format on phone or using PC - there's some controversy on this, but using the phone to format the SD card DOES make sense.
- Possible Swype fixes - or anything specific to some app's idiosyncrasies
- A corrupted 2.2 update file.
- This is insanely rare, but not unheard of, and has been reported to have happened at XDA.
- This is insanely rare.
Here's the deal - the updates do not have a lot of defects - aside from the above list - it has essentially one big one.
The cache / data areas are tangled up.
As you run things over time, your cache - the area where lots of things get worked from - has gotten all tangled up. Just like your web browser has a cache, Android has data and cache areas - once tangled up, all sorts of symptoms appear.
The solution is simple:
- Backup
- Factory reset / wipe data
- Restore
1. Backup
Backup is important with every phone.
First and foremost, ensure the Google servers are up to date with your contact and calendar data. Menu -> Settings -> Accounts & sync -> Sync all. If you are using any third party apps for this sort of thing, or corporate servers or Exchange accounts - be sure that your contacts and other information is appropriately synced.
Verify that your contacts are on the Google server. Yes - do that!
If your chosen backup method will support it - next go to Menu -> Settings -> Personalize -> Scenes -> Menu and this will save your 7-desktop layout.
If you've got 5 bucks and you're not rooted, get MyBackup Pro, it should backup everything you care about. Another good alternative is Sprite Backup plus ASTRO used at the same time.
If you're rooted, use Titanium Backup - backup your user apps, desktop, Mail, and everything marked with "Titanium."
If you're not comfortable with the above, you can backup your apps for free using ASTRO File Manager, free from the Market. Once you have it, go to Menu-> Tools.
Here's a thread on ASTRO, wish I'd found it earlier!
http://androidforums.com/htc-evo-4g/113593-im-leaving-appbrain.html
If you've never done this before - NOW at this point would be a good time to back up your SD card to your PC. Simple select all, then drag and drop into a clean folder onto your PC via USB should do the trick. This isn't required - but you can never have too much backup protection.
Added - SMS Backup&Restore - free version (Market) will back up texts, paid will do MMS, too.
2. Factory reset
Once you have your backup, goto Menu-> Settings-> SD & phone storage -> Factory reset.
You WILL lose your installed apps.
You WILL lose your local logins and accounts unless you use a better backup than free - but you're likely to not lose much. (If you're synced to the google servers - and you should be - you'll still have your contacts and calendar entries.)
You will NOT lose your SD card contents. (But be safe and back it up to a PC as noted above.)
You will NOT lose your 2.2 update.
Do the factory reset.
3. Restore CORRECT Behavior *and then* Your Stuff
When finished - download the free Network app from the Market. (Network by Philipp Mangelow)
Start it, and scroll down until you see "CDMA auto (PRL)" - change it to "GSM auto (PRL)" - exit Network; re-start Network then change back to "CDMA auto (PRL)" - and finally, go to Menu-> Settings-> System updates-> Update PRL
This sounds like majick snake oil but it's not - it's an idiosyncrasy of the phone's hardware and firmware.
Depending upon your particular apps and backup tool, you may be required to add this step, so now is a good time (if you're uncomfortable with this, you can do it if and when required):
Menu -> Settings -> Applications -> Unknown sources (check on to allow non-Market apps)
Now, go to the Market and download again the tool you used for your backup.
NOW restore your backups by reversing your chosen tool.
DO NOT re-install full Flash 10 for 2.1 if you had that before.
Consider NOT re-installing LED Light, the included Flashlight is really better.
DO NOT re-install any task killers or cleaners.
At least one user has found that if this doesn't work and issues remain, then power up your phone while holding down the volume-down key. This gives a menu that includes an option to Wipe/Clear all data from the phone. Use that by navigating with the volume buttons and selecting it with the power button. Use the menu to reboot when done.
4. Stock Browser Note
When you're done, you may still notice browser slowdowns from before.
This is easily fixed.
- Menu-> ... More -> Settings -> Clear cache
- Settings -> Enable plugins :: change from always on to just on-demand. This will prevent your browser from caching all of the Flash content it can find. This will also require you to tap on a green icon in flash videos and that sort of thing.
- This is a user-choice for how you want YOUR browser to behave.
5. Et cetera, et cetera
It seems that when you do this, Talk may be set back to auto-login on startup. If you're not a big Talk believer, you might want to shut that off to conserve battery life. You'll find it in your app drawer.
Likewise ou can also turn off Background data under Settings -> Accounts & sync. The cool thing now is there is a widget, available under Shortcut -> Settings for your desktop that'll take you right to that page whenever you want, conveniently, like when you want to go to the Market, for example.
Talk has some controversy as to whether it can impede instant notifications for GMail - and many people are uncomfortable with background data for any number of reasons - I'm just no longer sure, so this is more "customization how-to" rather than strict advice or anything.
By the way - there's a Sync All widget now, under Widgets, for your desktop that does just what the name says. Best of all - you can have background data and auto-sync off, use that new Sync All widget from time to time - and they stay off.
I'd also like to note this specific advice if your Sense launcher is force closing and not letting you get anywhere -
FIX: “The Application HTC Sense (process com.htc.launcher) has stopped unexpectedly”
Note well that the article ends suggesting you may have to follow this post's procedure. Yes, do.
There's also a note at XDA warning to turn off your LED notifications. That's under Settings -> Display. The new default is for all of them to be on - and this is said to cause some process to run, draining some battery life.
Settings -> Wireless & networks -> Mobile networks - ensure that "Enable always-on mobile data" is not enabled (not checked).
Settings -> Wireless & networks -> Mobile networks -> Roaming -> Sprint only
And finally - Sprint Zone - turn off its auto-login and any notifications it wants to send, unless you really have some use for it.
6. Summary
I've started this thread to help out with the many threads for people with problems.
Please keep this thread clean, and only respond if you're having trouble with the procedure.
From the smallest bug to the largest - this is best advice you're likely to ever get with your EVO.
Finally - and this is VERY important:
If you're using a task killer or cleaner, stop for the moment, and uninstall it.
The task-killing protocols for Froyo are NOT the same as they were for 2.1.
And Froyo is so much better at memory management - AFTER you've done a factory reset and cleaned out your cache / data tangles - you're not going to believe.
Try your new Froyo for a few days like this and then and only then if you're still convinced that you need a task killer, go for it. But not because of the number of tasks running - wait and see if you don't already have better performance than before.
Hope this helps, thanks in advance for your help in keeping this thread clean.
PS - This advice is the result of the efforts of too many people to name individually who pulled together in this forum since last Friday's pre-release of Froyo. They know who they are, and without their efforts this knowledge would not have been possible. I thank them, one and all, on my behalf and yours.
PPS - This advice is for the HTC EVO 4G on Sprint and may not apply to all devices.
Definitely do NOT follow this procedure if you're using a Motorola Droid X and are on Verizon.
~~~~~~~~
Totally by coincidence, this thread you're reading came after another good one on the same subject and these have evolved in parallel. See Also:
http://androidforums.com/htc-evo-4g/141047-strange-anomalies-after-ota-solution-hard-reset.html
~~~~~~~~~~~
See also this VERY interesting post regarding your Google account and whether it is contributing to a sleep-time issue!
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=762078
~~~~~~~~~~~
Here's a vid showing contacts backup and factory reset by a fellow Evo owner later in this thread:
http://androidforums.com/evo-4g-support-troubleshooting/141369-how-fix-froyo-4.html#post2659554
