Help Galaxy S2 Upgrade from Gingerbread 2.3.4

[marcus33]

New to this, and in fact any, forums; so forgive me if I haven't gone about this correctly.

Having searched through this forum as well as the 'InterWeb' in general; I've only found contradicting and confusing information and dead links (esp. Hotfile.com) so I'm hoping that someone here will take pity on me and point me in the right direction.

My S2 details are as follows:
Model Number: GT-I9100
Android Version: 2.3.4
Baseband Version: I9100XXKG1
Kernal Version: 2.6.35.7-I9100XXKG1-CL349526
se.infra@SEP-39 #2
Build Number: GINGERBREAD.XXKG1
PDA: I9100XXKG1
PHONE: I9100XXKG1
CSC:I9100OXAKG1
Build Info: Tue Jul 5 23:11:24 KST 2011

Tried to update using Kies but just get "your device's current firmware is not supported to update firmware vie kies" and I've tried to establish difinitively the correct firmware (preferably official) to update with but, due mainly to the reasons outlined above, have been unsuccessful.

Phone not locked to any network; I think its an 'Open Europe' version as per the OXA in the CSC but I'm not sure whether the software is stock or has been upgraded.

Ideally I would like to upgrade to Jellybean 4.3 but the ICS 4.0.4 upgrade would suffice as I've heard it's stable, works well, doesn't suck the battery dry and is a great improvement on Gingerbread (Is that right?).

Backing up my data and later restoring it doesn't worry me; there's not that much on there. No warranty to void so that's not an issue.

I'd be happy to do some kind of reset, if possible, so that I can just use Kies to upgrade as far as it lets me, though if I have to do a manual upgrade using this ODIN thingy then so be it.

Prepared to 'root' if really necessary.

Can anybody advise?

Even if somebody could translate my Kernal version coding and build info for me that would be a big help.
{It would seem that the my CSC means Open Europe / July 2011 / Build 1 and that the XXKG1 in the PDA, PHONE, BUILD NUMBER and Baseband Version tally with that (ie Open Europe' and 'July, 2011 / Build 1) is this correct?}

Sorry about the verbose posting but I wanted to be clear; I have read the Jellybean upgrade guide but I need to be really sure of the right firmware before attempting a manual upgrade as I can't afford to buy a new phone!

Thanks in advance.

 

[ironass]

Hello and welcome to Android Forums marcus33!

Right... long story short... your current firmware is for Poland and was a favourite to flash by those who wanted to get the latest firmware first. That means that unless you are actually in Poland and on a Polish network, that your firmware has been changed from the original and explains why Kies will not update it. See #1.5 & #1.6 of the Jelly Bean update - Dummies Guide for the longer explanation.

Personally I would flash the latest Jelly Bean update as there are unlikely to be any further releases for the S2 and you will not need Kies to update any more.

The latest non carrier branded firmware with an English language pack is linked here...

Model: GT-I9100
Country: Nordic countries
Version: Android 4.1.2
Changelist: 1418025
Build date: Wed, 25 Sep 2013 09:08:47 +0000
Product Code: NEE
PDA: I9100XWMS1
CSC: I9100NEELS1
MODEM: I9100XXMS4


This will work fine on all European and Scandiwegian phones. You will need to download and install it using Odin and the instructions and video contained in #1.7 of the first link.

Right... pub! :cheers:

 

[marcus33]

Hello and welcome to Android Forums marcus33!

Thank you

and thanks also for taking the time to answer my query; I've spent a week trawling through site after site but with all the conflicting information I've found I wasn't quite ready to jump in. Now I am.

Got the firmware file you linked to; ODIN next...

Personally I would flash the latest Jelly Bean update as there are unlikely to be any further releases for the S2 and you will not need Kies to update any more.

I take it that if I wanted to upgrade to a later version, say 4.3, I would have to root my phone?

And just one more; if for some reason I decided I wanted to go back from JB 4.1.2 to Gingerbread is it as simple as resetting to factory default or is it a bit more involved than that?

Assuming it's even possible of course.

Are there any major issues with JB 4.1.2 that might give me cause to do this?
(I know that was actually two!)

Thanks again for all your help

 

[ironass]

I take it that if I wanted to upgrade to a later version, say 4.3, I would have to root my phone?

It would mean rooting as per the Rooting Galaxy S2 - Dummies Guide since the stock S2 firmwares stop at Android 4.1.2 and will not go to 4.2.2 or 4.3 so it would mean a custom ROM.

And just one more; if for some reason I decided I wanted to go back from JB 4.1.2 to Gingerbread is it as simple as resetting to factory default or is it a bit more involved than that?

A Factory Data Reset will not change your firmware. You would need to download a stock GB firmware and flash it via Odin.

Are there any major issues with JB 4.1.2 that might give me cause to do this?
(I know that was actually two!)

I rate the JB firmware very highly and is, IMHO, a big improvement on GB.

 

[marcus33]

I think the first thing I'll do is get JB 4.1.2 up and running, familiarise myself with the process and have a good fiddle.

Perhaps later on I'll look into rooting.

Heretofore my experience has mainly been with desktopee type 'puters but I think it's high time I got to know more about these wee telephonee type 'puters.

I'll let you know how I get on.

Thanks again for your speedy and helpful responses, ironass; now go and reward yourself with one of these::beerglass:

 

[marcus33]

Perhaps this will help someone else flash the firmware on their phone from Gingerbread 2.3.4 to Jellybean 4.1.2; these are the steps I took and the results I got:

After gathering the following:

Galaxy SII (Not locked to any carrier; Firmware/CSC/PDA etc. as per 1st posting)
Windows 7 32bit PC and USB lead
ODIN v1.85 which I got from HERE
firmware file dowloaded from Sammobile via the link in Ironass's reply above (Thanks Ironass !)
​

I backed up my data from phone to PC. Not too arduous as it really only amounted to my contacts and a few photos. I used Kies to backup my contacts; saving an .spb file first and then, just in case I had a problem later restoring with Kies, saving them as a .csv file.

For the photos I just dragged and dropped them into a folder on my 'puter manually using Windows Explorer.

As for apps? When I upgrade the OS on a PC I don't try and backup software and then restore it afterwards, so doing it on my phone makes no sense to me; asking for trouble I would have thought. So my next step was to 'wipe' the phone clean, which I did with the instructions that I found HERE

Though with my Gingerbread firmware I had to use the Home button on the front to 'Enter' and not the Power button on the side so I've re-described the procedure below with the changes made:

Wipe Data/Factory Reset

Restores SII to its basic factory settings: erases all applications that were installed by the user & all user data including the contents of your internal SD Card. Whatever firmware was last flashed will be the firmware you get back, but everything else will be wiped.

• Turn your phone off.
• With phone off: press and hold the Volume Up and Home then press and hold the Power Button.
• You'll see the Android recovery screen.
• Scroll to Wipe Data/Factory Reset using Volume Up or Volume Down.
• Select with Home Button.
• Scroll down to Yes, Delete User Data and select it.
• Back on the first screen: scroll down to Wipe Cache Partition and select it.
• Your factory reset is now complete.
• Go to Reboot System Now to restart the phone.

Did what it said on the tin! Nice clean phone

Having already read the Jelly Bean update - Dummies Guide, extracted ODIN and the firmware from their .zip files into convenient empty folders on my 'puter, fully charged my battery and made sure that I had enabled USB Debugging, I was ready to flash!

The above guide contains a link to this How To... which includes a video. I carefully followed the steps (using the JB firmware I had already downloaded and not the ICS firmware that they link to) and about 15 minutes later my phone was up and running on Android Jellybean 4.1.2

I callibrated my battery and gave my phone a few minutes to settle down and find itself and then started setting up and restoring my contacts etc.

Oh! the delight, to see that it had worked and my phone was not bu&#ered!

Oh! my dismay when I realised that I had NO Lock Screen or Power Menu


I piddled around for ages, thinking that perhaps I just needed to enable it somewhere in the settings, before having a look to see if others have had the same problem. Of course lots of other people have; I tried Soft Reset, Hard Reset, Factory Data Reset and Wipe Data/Factory Reset as suggested by many, who said that it would solve the problem, but all to no avail.

Figured that as I was now an 'expert' phone flasher I may as well re-flash the new firmware just in case I had missed something the first time round. Flashed again and it all went just as well as before but still no Lock Screen/Power Menu.

All the other solutions involved 'rooting' my phone, which I hadn't intended to do just yet, but it was looking like that was going to be the only way to sort out the problem.

So using the link that Ironass had thoughfully provided in his last reply:
Rooting Galaxy S2 - Dummies Guide I went ahead and rooted my phone. I managed to do it without any problems and then, following his advice, immediately saved a backup of the '/efs' to my PC before doing anything else.

Once that was done I set about trying to resolve my Lock Screen problem. Starting with what seemed to be the easiest method I followed the instructions I found HERE.

Apparently the reason was a file missing from the '/IMEI' folder.
As per the instructions I created a file called 'KEYSTR' containing the single command 'ON' and saved it in the IMEI folder; gave it FULL permissions and voila! Lockscreen and Power Menu are now working. Simple as that.

Now I get to enjoy my phone with it's new Jellybean firmware, running like a charm, with the added bonus of it being rooted!

Thank you Ironass for all your help. I hope this posting can be of some help to others. I'm new to all this 'posting in forums' lark so let me know if this one is too long and I'll try and edit it down; critisism welcome.

 

[ironass]

Unusual to have that sort of problem.

However, glad you are sorted now and congratulations on a well written and laid out solution. :congrats:

You might want to take a look at the AOSP NeatROM for Samsung Galaxy S2 I9100, Android 4.4.2..

 

[marcus33]

Yeah, Really happy with my phone now.

Gonna spend a few days playing with it and learning what I can; I need to get a feel for it's capabilities before changing anything so I have a baseline for comparison.

Thanks for the link though.

I take it that XWSM2 NeatROM Lite v5.6 Aroma (4.1.2) is based on Jellybean & AOSP NeatROM Slim v2.1 (4.4.2) is based on KitKat and either one could/would replace both my JB 4.1.2 Firmware (the one above) AND the Siyah v6.0 beta5 Kernal that gives me 'root access'??

Is that right?

 

[ironass]

I take it that XWSM2 NeatROM Lite v5.6 Aroma (4.1.2) is based on Jellybean & AOSP NeatROM Slim v2.1 (4.4.2) is based on KitKat and either one could/would replace both my JB 4.1.2 Firmware (the one above) AND the Siyah v6.0 beta5 Kernal that gives me 'root access'??

Is that right?

Affirmative.