Troubleshooting your EVO
I'm attempting to make this guide in order to put all the information I've learned in my few months here into an easily accessible sort of guide that people can use to troubleshoot their phones in that panicked moment they have where something goes wrong. I've noticed that there are many common problems and most problems people are having can be grouped. This is going to be a living document and added to/edited as the community sees fit. This guide assumes you have already achieved root. For problems with the rooting process itself, view the appropriate rooting for dummies guide based on your H-Boot version.
This guide is not meant to be and end all be all guide to fix every problem. It is meant to give you a headstart on solving your issue before making a thread or while waiting for responses from members. This is for basic problems people are having and very well might not fix your specific problem. Thats why we have the forum..... Make a thread!
Flashing/Wiping:
Activation
Bootloops:
Force Closes:
Slow/Laggy Performance:
Kernel Problems:
Nandroids:
Sd Card Issues
No 4G
Unrooting:
If this guide didnt help solve your problems....... Make a thread!
We are always happy to help!
When making a thread:
Stay calm! The calmer you are the easier it is for us to understand you
Use a descriptive title...... Ambiguous titles like "need help" make it really hard for other people with that problem to find the solution and for someone to find that thread to reference it at a later time.
State your H-Boot
State whether you have S-ON or OFF
State what recovery you are using
State what ROM you are using
Finally........State your problem
Personally, I'd also rather have people start a new thread with an issue than tack theirs onto someone elses thread. I'm much more likely to see and read a new problem in a new thread than in a thread where we've already solved the OP's problem.
This guide is not meant to be and end all be all guide to fix every problem. It is meant to give you a headstart on solving your issue before making a thread or while waiting for responses from members. This is for basic problems people are having and very well might not fix your specific problem. Thats why we have the forum..... Make a thread!
Flashing/Wiping:
Most problems that people are having when trying to flash a ROM result from not properly wiping the device. To properly wipe you want to do a manual wipe and not rely on programs such as ROM manager. Reboot into recovery, select wipe, and wipe EVERYTHING except SD card 2-3 times. If you are in clockworkmod recovery(first off it is recommended to switch recoveries), make sure to wipe Dalvik Cache which is found under the advanced menu option. Follow this manual wipe by flashing Superwipe found here. Once superwipe completes, you are ready to flash your ROM. If issues persist, use Caulkins Format All as well
Activation
If you are having problems activating your phone you need to make sure you are on a sense-based ROM. This problem typically arises when people buy their phone off of ebay or craigslist and find that their phone is already rooted and running cm7. Simply make a nandroid by rebooting into recovery and flash a sense-based ROM. Activate your phone and then restore your nandroid if you want to stay on cm7
Bootloops:
Wiping:
Bootloops are commonly caused by not flashing properly. If you are experiencing a bootloop make sure that you have properly wiped using the steps above in the flashing section. If you have, move on to the next steps
SetCPU:
Bootloops may also be caused by having SetCPU set with a MAX that is more than your phone can handle. Always make sure to play with your phone with normal use before hitting the set on boot box. If you have recently installed or made changes to SetCPU make sure you haven't accidentally overclocked too much. Check out this thread for more information SETCPU bootloops
To get out of the bootloop:
Pull the battery and insert it back in. Get to your bootloader screen by holding power and volume down. Go to recovery and wipe dalvik cache & cache. Reboot. If the bootloops continue move on.
Flashing the ROM on itself:
Pull the battery and get back into recovery using the method above. Wipe only Dalvik Cache & Cache and flash the ROM overtop of itself. Reboot. If bootloops continue, move on
If your phone is still bootlooping, consider nandroiding back to a prior stable ROM or flashing another ROM.
If you cannot get into recovery:
Recently there have been problems with people (who happen to be running cm7) getting stuck in a bootloop without the ability of getting into recovery to get out of it. If this happens, there may still be ways of getting your phone working, but it is going to require expertise that is currently above the knowledge of the author of this guide
Make a thread and someone will be happy to try and help.
Bootloops are commonly caused by not flashing properly. If you are experiencing a bootloop make sure that you have properly wiped using the steps above in the flashing section. If you have, move on to the next steps
SetCPU:
Bootloops may also be caused by having SetCPU set with a MAX that is more than your phone can handle. Always make sure to play with your phone with normal use before hitting the set on boot box. If you have recently installed or made changes to SetCPU make sure you haven't accidentally overclocked too much. Check out this thread for more information SETCPU bootloops
To get out of the bootloop:
Pull the battery and insert it back in. Get to your bootloader screen by holding power and volume down. Go to recovery and wipe dalvik cache & cache. Reboot. If the bootloops continue move on.
Flashing the ROM on itself:
Pull the battery and get back into recovery using the method above. Wipe only Dalvik Cache & Cache and flash the ROM overtop of itself. Reboot. If bootloops continue, move on
If your phone is still bootlooping, consider nandroiding back to a prior stable ROM or flashing another ROM.
If you cannot get into recovery:
Recently there have been problems with people (who happen to be running cm7) getting stuck in a bootloop without the ability of getting into recovery to get out of it. If this happens, there may still be ways of getting your phone working, but it is going to require expertise that is currently above the knowledge of the author of this guide
Make a thread and someone will be happy to try and help.Force Closes:
Wiping:
Once again, not properly wiping can cause force closes. First make sure you have followed the directions in the wiping area of this and many other guides. If you have properly wiped, move on.
Wipe Dalvik Cache & Cache:
Reboot into recovery and wipe only dalvik cache & cache. Then reboot the phone. If force closes continue, move on.
Permissions Fix:
If that doesn't fix the force close issues, run a permissions fix either from recovery or from ROM manager. To do it from recovery reboot into recovery and select "other", then "fix permissions" Upon Completion Reboot. If force closes continue, then move on.
Flash Rom Over Itself:
Reboot into recovery. Wipe only Dalvik cache & cache and reflash the ROM over itself. Reboot. If force closes continue, move on.
If that still doesnt fix it, consider nandroiding back to a stable ROM, flashing a new one, or making a thread
Once again, not properly wiping can cause force closes. First make sure you have followed the directions in the wiping area of this and many other guides. If you have properly wiped, move on.
Wipe Dalvik Cache & Cache:
Reboot into recovery and wipe only dalvik cache & cache. Then reboot the phone. If force closes continue, move on.
Permissions Fix:
If that doesn't fix the force close issues, run a permissions fix either from recovery or from ROM manager. To do it from recovery reboot into recovery and select "other", then "fix permissions" Upon Completion Reboot. If force closes continue, then move on.
Flash Rom Over Itself:
Reboot into recovery. Wipe only Dalvik cache & cache and reflash the ROM over itself. Reboot. If force closes continue, move on.
If that still doesnt fix it, consider nandroiding back to a stable ROM, flashing a new one, or making a thread
Slow/Laggy Performance:
Laggyness on the phone can be the result of a few things. One of the easiest ways to fix a lot of peoples lag problems are just wiping Dalvik Cache & Cache in recovery and rebooting the phone.
If that doesn't fix your lag problems consider your setCPU settings. If your max is too low on the main SetCPU screen or the min is too low in a profile such as your screen off profile the phone will have a considerable amount of lag. Bump up your max and see if that fixes your problems.
Another thing to consider is internal memory. Many of the new Sense 3.5 ROMS are huge. If your not partitioned your phone can have lag as a result of running low on memory. The easiest way to fix this is to partition your SD card. Class 6 or higher recommended.
If that doesn't fix your lag problems consider your setCPU settings. If your max is too low on the main SetCPU screen or the min is too low in a profile such as your screen off profile the phone will have a considerable amount of lag. Bump up your max and see if that fixes your problems.
Another thing to consider is internal memory. Many of the new Sense 3.5 ROMS are huge. If your not partitioned your phone can have lag as a result of running low on memory. The easiest way to fix this is to partition your SD card. Class 6 or higher recommended.
Make sure your using the right type of kernel. AOSP Roms require AOSP kernels and sense ROMS require sense kernels. Also, kernels that were made for Froyo wont work on gingerbread, and when ICS hits gingerbread kernels arent going to work for it either.
Make sure your flashing the right version of the kernel. Godmode and synergy versions are only for ROMS with godmode or synergy included. If you dont know what this means, you probably dont have either and you need the UNIVERSAL version.
Make sure your wiping Dalvik Cache & Cache before flashing a kernel. Wiping of data or anything else is not required.
For more information, check out Kernels for Dummies
Make sure your flashing the right version of the kernel. Godmode and synergy versions are only for ROMS with godmode or synergy included. If you dont know what this means, you probably dont have either and you need the UNIVERSAL version.
Make sure your wiping Dalvik Cache & Cache before flashing a kernel. Wiping of data or anything else is not required.
For more information, check out Kernels for Dummies
Nandroids:
Nandroids arent restoring
First of all make sure your nandroid is compatible with your recovery. Nandroids made in clockwork recovery arent able to be restored in Amon Ra and vice versa. It is strongly recommended that everyone use the new Amon Ra style recovery that can restore both clockwork and amon ra nandroids. Information about it can be found here
If your nandroid is compatible with your recovery, its entirely possible that something went wrong in the backup or restore process. Try restoring it again, if that still doesn't work, then the nandroid is probably bad. This happens from time to time. This is why it is important to have a nandroid that you know works backed up somewhere safe.
Naming
If you rename your nandroids to help you identify what is on them, the nandroids cannot have spaces or symbols in them
First of all make sure your nandroid is compatible with your recovery. Nandroids made in clockwork recovery arent able to be restored in Amon Ra and vice versa. It is strongly recommended that everyone use the new Amon Ra style recovery that can restore both clockwork and amon ra nandroids. Information about it can be found here
If your nandroid is compatible with your recovery, its entirely possible that something went wrong in the backup or restore process. Try restoring it again, if that still doesn't work, then the nandroid is probably bad. This happens from time to time. This is why it is important to have a nandroid that you know works backed up somewhere safe.
Naming
If you rename your nandroids to help you identify what is on them, the nandroids cannot have spaces or symbols in them
Sd Card Issues
Help! I erased my SD Card:
This happens from time to time on the forum. Someone wipes their SD card and comes here for help. Unfortunately, theres not a whole lot that can be done about this. There are applications both on thr computer and for the phone that can attempt to recover deleted data, but they do not work 100% of the time. The most important thing if you've accidently wiped your SD card is to try and recover it quickly. If the system writes over the areas that you've deleted it becomes much harder to recover. An app to check out is Undelete, which is currently in beta and will attempt to recover your files.
A good way to prevent accidently deleting your SD card contents is to use the AmonRa Style Recovery listed here. It puts SD card wiping away from everything else so you ahve to go out of your way to actually do it.
SD card Errors:
If your having problems with the phone being able to read the SD card, its a good idea to have your computer check it for errors. Place the SD card in a card reader and in a command prompt on your computer type chkdsk x: /f (thanks argedion
)
Another thing you can do is just reformat the card altogether.
This happens from time to time on the forum. Someone wipes their SD card and comes here for help. Unfortunately, theres not a whole lot that can be done about this. There are applications both on thr computer and for the phone that can attempt to recover deleted data, but they do not work 100% of the time. The most important thing if you've accidently wiped your SD card is to try and recover it quickly. If the system writes over the areas that you've deleted it becomes much harder to recover. An app to check out is Undelete, which is currently in beta and will attempt to recover your files.
A good way to prevent accidently deleting your SD card contents is to use the AmonRa Style Recovery listed here. It puts SD card wiping away from everything else so you ahve to go out of your way to actually do it.
SD card Errors:
If your having problems with the phone being able to read the SD card, its a good idea to have your computer check it for errors. Place the SD card in a card reader and in a command prompt on your computer type chkdsk x: /f (thanks argedion
)Another thing you can do is just reformat the card altogether.
No 4G
Losing you 4G Wimax keys is a problem that can happen. This is why it is SO important to make sure you have a working nandroid with your wimax saved. Back it on your computer or on the cloud to ensure you will always have access to it.
Checking for your keys
If you think you may have lost your Wimax keys there are apps out there that will check to see if you still have them. Check out Wimax Keys Checker in the market
If your keys are still present and 4G is still not working check to make sure your ROM has 4G working. Many of the sense 3.5 ROMS currently do not support 4G because they were ported from phones that werent on the Sprint network.
Finally, check to make sure you installed kernels correctly by wiping dalvik cache & cache before flashing them
Checking for your keys
If you think you may have lost your Wimax keys there are apps out there that will check to see if you still have them. Check out Wimax Keys Checker in the market
If your keys are still present and 4G is still not working check to make sure your ROM has 4G working. Many of the sense 3.5 ROMS currently do not support 4G because they were ported from phones that werent on the Sprint network.
Finally, check to make sure you installed kernels correctly by wiping dalvik cache & cache before flashing them
Unrooting:
Know which Method to use:
Check your H-Boot.
If you are 2.10 or below you need to follow the Rooting For Dummies Guide Unrooting Section
If you are 2.15-2.16 you need to follow the Rooting For Dummies Gingerbread Edition Guide Unrooting Section
I'm trying to get my stock recovery and ROM back but the Bootloader screen isnt recognizing the PC36IMG file:
First off, are you sure you named the file correctly? It needs to be "PC36IMG.zip". Be careful that you dont have "PC36IMG.zip.zip" if windows hides your file extensions.
Is it on the root of your SD card? This means not in any subfolders. On the topmost layer of the SD card. Bootloader won't find it if its in a folder within your SD card.
If the two above conditions have been met, the bootloader screen should detect the PC36IMG file and load it. There is a problem with many people not getting an option to update. If that happens, you need to run the RUU.exe from your computer found here. Connect your phone to the computer via USB with debug mode on and run the executable.
Check your H-Boot.
If you are 2.10 or below you need to follow the Rooting For Dummies Guide Unrooting Section
If you are 2.15-2.16 you need to follow the Rooting For Dummies Gingerbread Edition Guide Unrooting Section
I'm trying to get my stock recovery and ROM back but the Bootloader screen isnt recognizing the PC36IMG file:
First off, are you sure you named the file correctly? It needs to be "PC36IMG.zip". Be careful that you dont have "PC36IMG.zip.zip" if windows hides your file extensions.
Is it on the root of your SD card? This means not in any subfolders. On the topmost layer of the SD card. Bootloader won't find it if its in a folder within your SD card.
If the two above conditions have been met, the bootloader screen should detect the PC36IMG file and load it. There is a problem with many people not getting an option to update. If that happens, you need to run the RUU.exe from your computer found here. Connect your phone to the computer via USB with debug mode on and run the executable.
If this guide didnt help solve your problems....... Make a thread!
We are always happy to help!
When making a thread:
Stay calm! The calmer you are the easier it is for us to understand you
Use a descriptive title...... Ambiguous titles like "need help" make it really hard for other people with that problem to find the solution and for someone to find that thread to reference it at a later time.
State your H-Boot
State whether you have S-ON or OFF
State what recovery you are using
State what ROM you are using
Finally........State your problem
Personally, I'd also rather have people start a new thread with an issue than tack theirs onto someone elses thread. I'm much more likely to see and read a new problem in a new thread than in a thread where we've already solved the OP's problem.
