[FAQ] Giant FAQ!!!! Read this first! Last Upated: 20/11/10

[snapper.fishes]

The following contents are taken from XDA developers. The original author is Darkstriker. All credits go to him.

Source: [REF] BIG FAQ! {Flash/Root HOWTO} {ADB&Tutorials} {T&T} {FW-Guide} [MUST READ!] - xda-developers

If you are planning to root, flash, or do anything to your phone that is out of the ordinary, please READ this thread before trying anything else. Failure to do so will result in an unsatisfactory mark on your official testing record, followed by death. Thank you.

General Note: There are now three official models of the Samsung Galaxy S outside the US: the GT-I9000 (International), GT-I9000M (Canada), GT-I9000B (Brazil). All information in this FAQ is based on the GT-I9000 International version. Most of them also apply to the GT-I9000M and the GT-I9000B. There are some important differences: The GT-I9000M can be rooted with the root update.zip for GT-I9000, the GT-I9000B cannot but there is a separate update.zip available for that phone. Additionally, the GT-I9000M is compatible with most GT-I9000 firmwares. This is NOT confirmed on the GT-I9000B.

Disclaimer: This FAQ is provided as-is without any warranties to completeness/correctness. I will take no responsibility if you break/brick/damage your phone.

FAQ Sections:
A. General
B. Software
C. Firmware
D. Modding
E. Applications
F. Recovery

(A) General:

1. How can I reset my phone?
2. I have flashed a new firmware and now my phone won't connect to 3G. What's wrong?
3. Can I disable 2G broadband like on the Desire/N1?
4. I flashed a new firmware and now I cannot download protected apps and Market-enabler doesn't work. How can I still install protected apps?
5. My phone takes forever to get a GPS-fix? Is there a solution to this problem?
6. I am experiencing long loading times when opening apps/intermittent lags when switching screens. What is the problem?
7. My G-sensor seems to be off. How can I calibrate it?
8. I have a SIM-Locked phone. Is there anything I need to look out for?
9. When will Gingerbread be released for my shiny new phone?
10. I'm running Linux. Can I still flash my firmware? Do I need to install Windows?
11. Most phones have a bunch of codes that can be entered in the dialer for special functions. What are they on the SGS?
12. My phone cannot enter download mode or recovery mode using the buttons combos. What can I do?

1.How can I reset my phone?
On the Galaxy S the soft-reset is achieved by pressing and holding the power button. A hard-reset can executed by pressing and holding VolumeUP+Home+Power. There you will find the options "reboot", "apply sdcard:update.zip", "wipe data/factory reset" and "wipe cache partition".
The "wipe data/factory reset" option will restore your phone to the original configuration of the firmware YOU LAST INSTALLED (including any updates made via update.zip). This will NOT bring your phone back to the firmware installed when you originally bought it unless you haven't flashed your phone.
You can navigate the recovery screen using VolumeUp & VolumeDown and use the Home button to select.

2.I have flashed a new firmware and now my phone won't connect to 3G. What's wrong?
The CSC you used is most likely not intended for your area. This means that the broadband provider settings are not included and need to be configured manually. To do this, go to Settings->Wireless and Networks->Mobile Networks->Access Point Names, press the settings-button and select "New APN". You will then need to enter the respective data as provided by you mobile operator. APN settings can usually be found on the operators website.

3.Can I disable 2G broadband like on the Desire/N1?
As of firmware XWJM1 (July 2010), this function is available in the wireless settings. All current firmwares now have this feature.

4.I flashed a new firmware and now I cannot download protected apps and Market-enabler doesn't work. How can I still install protected apps?
This is done by google to protect commercial applications from piracy. This usually only happens on internal beta firmwares. Use Eris Market Fix from the Market or the tutorial in P#4,T#1. Both fixes require root priviledges (See FAQ#C1)

5.My phone takes forever to get a GPS-fix? Is there a solution to this problem?
It appears that the XWJM1 and XWJM2 firmwares have mostly fixed the major GPS issues and the general consensus is that these firmwares deliver consistently better GPS results than previous firmwares. The usability, however, still varies per location and sometimes the software gets no fix despite seeing plenty of satellites.
To date, there appear to be no better fixes available. There are still many reports that GPS is flaky and it appears as if Samsung is no longer working on improvements in this area.

6.I am experiencing long loading times when opening apps/intermittent lags when switching screens. What is the problem?
The Samsung Galaxy S uses the internal SD to store cache data by default. This storage uses the severely outdated RFS (FAT-related) file system. Next the to poor performance in a good state, RFS appears to rapidly manifest massive amounts of file system errors which cause the experience on the SGS to degrade over time.
There are several fixes as of now (most of them require your phone to be rooted):
- Voodoo Lagfix by supercurio (Android 2.1; 2.2; 2.2.1): This fix reformats all partitions except the /efs partition to ext4.
- Universal LagFix by sztupy (Android 2.2; 2.2.1): This fix can perform a large number of lagfix variations including converting all partitions to ext4 or JFS, just converting the /data partition or for extreme tweakers a full conversion to ext4 with ext2 loopmounts. This lagfix does not change the filesystem on the /efs partitions.

7.My G-sensor seems to be off. How can I calibrate it?
The G-sensor calibration appears to be off in a lot of shipped devices. A fix can be found here. It does, however, require your device to be rooted.

8.I have a SIM-Locked phone. Is there anything I need to look out for?
As of now there are several reports of successfully flashed SIM-locked phones and no reports of any (related) problems.
This means that as of now (there seem) to be no specific restrictions for SIM-locked phone except the lock itself. However, the lock on the Galaxy S can be easily removed. Please refer to T&T#20 for unlocking your phone.

9.When will Gingerbread be released for my shiny new phone?
With Android 2.2 and 2.2.1 officially released for the SGS and Gingerbread released on the closely related Nexus S, Samsung has annouced that the Galaxy S will in fact be getting an upgrade to 2.3 in March. There is already a beta firmware from Samsung and there is an alpha-release of CyanogenMod 7.

10.I'm running Linux/OSX. Can I still flash my firmware? Do I need to install windows?
If you are running Linux you do not need to install Windows. You can either run Odin in a virtual machine or alternatively use Heimdall by Benjamin Dobell. Heimdall runs natively on Linux and has reached a well tested release state.
Note: MacOSX has a bug in the recognition of the phone in download mode (in fact, any mode) in firmwares previous to the official Froyo release. The Froyo updates change the usb connection on the device making recognition on in OSX possible.

11.Most phones have a bunch of codes that can be entered in the dialer for special functions. What are they on the SGS?
There is a list of "secret codes" here.

12.My phone cannot enter download mode or recovery mode using the buttons combos. What can I do?
Some batches in various countries seem to not have this feature. However, Samsung Canada has released a fix via Kies (for the I9000M) and it has been adopted to suit a larger audience (I9000 and I9000M). Instructions on how to update your phone to get the three-button-combo can be found here. Note: Follow the instructions in that post CAREFULLY and read it completely BEFORE attempting to do anything on your phone. If done improperly, this can still brick your device!!!


(B) Software:

1. I'm running Windows 7(Vista) x64 and have installed Samsung Kies, but I cannot get my phone to connect. What can I do?

1.I'm running Windows 7(Vista) x64 and have installed Samsung Kies, but I cannot get my phone to connect. What can I do?
This issue is largely solved by updated versions of Kies. If you still encounter problems, you may want to only install the drivers out of the Kies package (see Post#4 Tutorial#3).
Note that you do not need your phone to be completely recognize when connected to Samsung Kies in order to flash with Odin or Heimdall. In order to flash, the USB driver for you phone must be correctly installed when you connect it in "download-mode".


(C) Firmware:

1. What is a ROM/firmware?
2. Can I update my firmware?
3. Why are there multiple files in the firmware archive/folder?/Why do I get three different versions when using *#1234#?
4. Can I mix PDA/Modem/CSC files from different firmwares without bricking my phone?
5. My phones software version says I9000XXJF3/XXJF5/xxxxx. What does this mean?
6. I want to install new firmware but I want to have a backup of my original firmware to go back to in case I need to go back for warranty reasons. Can I backup my original firmware somehow?
7. Can I flash an Asian ROM on my European device or vice versa?
8. Can I get Asian language support in the European firmwares?
9. What is the .pit file? Why are there different versions?
10. I flashed a new firmware using Odin (or Kies) and now my phone is acting weird (force closes etc)? Also, my settings are also still there.

1.What is a ROM/firmware?
The firmware/ROM is the software that runs on the phone. In case of the Galaxy S this is (currently) Android 2.1 Eclair (with some alpha-quality Android 2.2 versions)

2.Can I update my firmware?
Most likely: Yes. You can find firmwares made by Samsung for phones all over the world, here. You will also find a guide to the installation in HOWTO#1 in the second post of this thread.
Note: Please also keep in mind that not all firmwares that come with phones are available. Reflashing to stock may not be possible because the specific firmware isn't available!

3.Why are there multiple files in the firmware archive/folder?/Why do I get three different versions when using *#1234#?
Galaxy S firmware updates come in three parts:
-The CODE itself (called PDA). This is android and all the applications that come with it. (The archives/folders will be named after the version of this file)
-The MODEM (called Phone). This is the firmware of the wireless chipset of the device and will operate you WiFi, Blutooth and 3G/2G/GSM connections. (ie Radio ROM)
-The CSC (short for Customer Specific Customization). This includes connection data for the broadband networks as well as apps that are only available in certain languages/intended for a specific area.
If we ask for your firmware, we want to know all three!
Since not all of these require updates simultaneously, often then CSC and MODEM files will have lower version numbers.

4.Can I mix PDA/Modem/CSC files from different firmwares without bricking my phone?
Yes. Most Modem/CSC files will work with any PDA. However, there may be compatibility issues which may force you to reflash your phone. Note also that newer CSCs usually include newer versions of the software that comes with them.

5.My phones software version says I9000XXJF3/XXJF5/xxxxx. What does this mean?
The first two letters describe the country while the third gives the year, the fourth gives the month and the last number/letter is the version of the firmware (from that specific month. Numbering starts at 1-9 and then uses letters from A-Z). For an extensive list of the country codes, see this thread.

6.I want to install new firmware but I want to have a backup of my original firmware to go back to in case I need to go back for warranty reasons. Can I backup my original firmware somehow?
As of now, there is no way of backing up firmware that doesn't first require you to root your device. The application RomManager (from the market) does provide for a backup feature but requires root-access (and there have been no confirmations on whether this works so far).

7.Can I flash an Asian ROM on my European device or vice versa?
Flashing should work without any problems. There are no known compatibility issues as of now. If any should arise, flashing back to Asian firmware is always possible.
Check your current ROM by dialing *#1234# to make sure you do not have a Korean variant of the phone (which is NOT compatible!).

8.Can I get Asian language support in the European firmwares?
There is (as of now) no way to reintegrate Asian language support in the European firmwares. The possibility may exist in the future, however, there are currently no devs working on it. There is of course always the possibility to flash back to an Asian firmware. Note that this means that you cannot set the interface to Asian languages (except Korean). You can still receive and send text messages in chinese/japanes etc (you will only need a new keyboard that supports inputting characters)

9.What is the .pit file? Why are there different versions?
There are now three different versions of the .pit file. 513.pit, 512.pit and 803.pit. 513.pit only works for early firmwares and should not be used anymore. The 512.pit file is used for all Android 2.1 Eclair firmwares and the Android 2.2 Froyo firmwares up to and including the I9000XXJP3 firmware. There are several beta Froyo releases that require the 803.pit file to function properly, however, official 2.2 and 2.2.1 firmwares again work with the 512.pit file.
The .pit file maps partitions on the NAND storage. The code has been cracked by the Cyanogen developers working on the SGS and it will siginificantly accelerate work on fully featured Gingerbread ports.

10.I flashed a new firmware using Odin (or Kies) and now my phone is acting weird (force closes etc)? Also, my settings are also still there.
Some firmwares that can be flashed via Odin and the firmwares that are flashed using Kies, do not touch your settings and they do not empty your cache and appdata partitions. As a results, there is data there from previous firmwares which may lead to unforseen complications. Especially so, if your previous firmware was based on a different android version (i.e. flashing from XWJM6(android 2.1) to XXJPC(android 2.2)). To resolve this, you have to do a factory reset according to FAQ#A1


(D) Modding:

1. What is root/rooting?
2. What are customROMs? How do I get them?
3. How do I install custom ROMs? (& common mistakes)

1.What is root/rooting?
root is the user account in Linux with all privileges. The root user can edit anything on the system. For safety reasons, users do not have all those privileges. When you root your phone, you will gain write access to areas of the phone you couldn't previously access and are allowed to run more commands in the terminal. Because applications do not get a lot of priviledges, some of them require you to root the device in order for them to function properly (or fully). There is a tutorial for rooting in the Post #2 and there is a OneClickUtility that supposedly works on all firmwares here.
If all of this means nothing to you then you are probably wise to NOT root your phone. Mistakes using root can break your phone very easily. (Usually, but not always, these can be solved with a reflash)
Note: At the time of writing, the newer Froyo firmwares cannot be easily rooted according to the update.zip method described in HOWTO#2. Please use Chainfire's tool for easy rooting.

2.What are customROMs? How do I get them?
As of now, the following CustomROMs are are available (not necessarily exhaustive):
Android 2.2.1 Froyo:
Spike Speedy Edition
Darky's Gingerbread Edition
Doc's ROM Mod (aided by stefunel)
Zeroblaster ROM
Insanity
Jim_Panse's Rom
dena994's DeNaVil
velenoso84's Black Voodoo
webstar1's Ultimate
seeARMS' ROM
SDeba's DebusROM
velenoso84 (aka sconcau84)'s ROM
texture (aka Lucap)'s GalaxyROM
Android 2.3 Gingerbread:
CyanogenMod 7
MIUI
There is a frequently updated list here

3.How do I install custom ROMs?
Most ROM chefs provide detailed instructions with their ROM.
Common mistakes are:
-Using the wrong firmware underneath the update. (Check your firmware by dialing *#1234# to see your firmware version)
-Putting update.zip on the external SDcard. (The file needs to be in the folder "/sdcard/" and NOT in "/sdcard/sd/"!)
-Naming the update "update.zip.zip" instead of "update.zip". (Windows does not show the .zip ending by default. You will have to enable it by going to Tools->Folder Options->View->Uncheck "Hide extensions for known filetypes" in Windows Explorer.)

(E) Applications:

1. I tried using Allshare/DLNA but it will not recognize my device/play any files?
2. Can I change the default homescreen of the Touchwiz Launcher?

1.I tried using Allshare/DLNA but it will not recognize my device/play any files?
As of now a lot of DLNA certified devices/software do not work with Allshare. However, Samsung TVs should work and Windows Media Player 12 as well as Samsung's PC Share Manager work in most cases.

2.Can I change the default homescreen of the Touchwiz Launcher?
You cannot change the default Homescreen in the settings. However, if you are rooted, there is a way to change the default homescreen. See Tips&Tricks#5 for more info.


(F) Recovery:

1. 1.WHAAAA! I think I bricked my phone. My flash was unsuccessful/My device boots to a black screen/similar scenarios. Can I still save my device?

1.WHAAAA! I think I bricked my phone. My flash was unsuccessful/My device boots to a black screen/similar scenarios. Can I still save my device?
Most likely: YES! In almost any case, you should still be able to turn off the device (if necessary by removing the battery) and start into download-mode (VolumeDown+Home+Power) or recovery-mode (VolumeUp+Home+Power). After (for example) an unsuccessful flash, you can retry the flash in download-mode (same steps as when flashing a functioning device). If a flash to a functioning f/w (without applying any update.zip) doesn't help or you cannot get your PC to flash at all, you can ask for help here. (Please try to reboot your PC as well if you cannot flash and try FAQ#B1 if you have trouble with getting the phone recognized on Windows 7/Vista x64)
If you see a symbol asking you to connect to the PC, depending on how you arrived at this point, it may be sufficient to connect to the PC and run Odin (i.e. press "start" when the phone is recognized) without adding any files. This may, however, leave some residual issues if (for example) had an incorrect/incomplete flash so you may want to do a normal flash after this! If you have this issue and your download mode is not functional, please try the suggestion from this post and report back here or whether it worked for you.

-----------------------------------------------------------

Changelog:
[12th July] FAQ created.
[12th July] Added Flash HOWTOs in Post#2
[13th July] Added list of CustomROMs in FAQ#10
[16th July] Added notification for US phone users
[18th July] Added rooting to HOWTOs
[18th July] Added ADB tutorial in Post#2
[19th July] Moved ADB tutorial to Post#3
[19th July] Added Tutorial/Fix section in Post#4
[19th July] Added "Protected Apps Market Fix" in Post#4, Tutorial#1
[24th July] Removed SIM-Unlocked as a requirement from flash HOWTO (Post#2, HOWTO#1).
[24th July] Added Tags for categorizing the FAQ
[26th July] Added Tip&Tricks section in Post#5
[20th August] Added a ROM-Selection Guide in Post#6
[30th August] Major Rework of the FAQ section
[8th October] Added "Installing any official firmware using Kies" in Post#4, Tutorial#2
[17th October] Added "Extracting Samsung Phone Drivers from Kies Installer" in Post#4, Tutorial#3
[2nd March '11] Began Major Update

 

[snapper.fishes]

!!!READ THE GUIDES AND NOTES COMPLETELY!!!

General Note:Flashing may refer to both methods. However, Method 2 requires files to already be on the phone. Therefore if you semi-bricked your phone, method 1 is usually the preferred way to fix it.

General Note 2: Flashing firmware and/or factory resets will WIPE your APN settings. Make sure you are using the right APN if that is a possible issue with your provider.

Important General Note: Several batches of phones that were sold have the download-mode button combo disabled (VolumeDown+Home+Power or alternatively Home+Power on some phones). Check if the download-mode combo works BEFORE flashing! Please refer to FAQ#A12 and T&T#23 for a fix for the download mode if it doesn't work on your phone!

HOW TO:


1.Flash Firmware and kernels using Odin.

Note: This will in (almost) all cases erase all your data and applications (includind root!). It will NOT touch the internal or external SD card.

Requirements:
-Odin3 version 1.7 (Note: Odin should be on the system partition (the partition where windows is installed) to avoid possible issues)
-".PIT" file for the Samsung Galaxy S (See FAQ#B9 or the source of the FW for the version to use! Not needed for kernel flashes)
-USB cable
-Desired firmware package or desired kernel package
All of the above packages (except for the cable) can be downloaded from Samfirmware.com

Procedure:

1. Open ODIN. (And close Kies, if you have it open. It is important to have ODIN open BEFORE connection the phone via USB!)
2. Select the PDA/Modem/CSC/.PIT files in Odin. (.PIT and PDA are required. CSC and Modem are HIGHLY recommended. They may be necessary depending on the PDA! Try flashing all three BEFORE reporting bugs, if you only used one initially!)
3. Check the "Re-Partition" checkbox.
4. Turn the phone into the download mode by pressing and holding VolumeDown+Home+Power.
5. Connect your phone with your computer and wait until the drivers are installed.
6. When the drivers are installed, click Start.
7. The phone will be flashed and once it

 

[snapper.fishes]

[HOW-TO] ADB for Dummies(How-To Learner's Guide)

This guide was written for G1, but it will work just as well for the I9000. The important bit is to activate USB debugging on your phone. Go to Setting->Applications->Development

 

[snapper.fishes]

Note: This section is strictly a work in progress and new tutorials will be added when they become available and have been confirmed as working!

Content:
1.Market Protected Application Fix
2.Installing any official firmware using Kies
3.Extracting Samsung Phone Drivers from Kies Installer
4.Backing up the /efs folder


1.Market Protected Applications Fix

Background: In order to prevent the illegal copying of copyrighted applications google has integrated what are called protected apps. These applications have some copying protection which means they cannot be backup-ed without root. In order to prevent rooted/modified phones from getting those applications, google market checks the build.prop file in the /system/ folder against a verified list to see if the version of your firmware is an official release. This tutorial will show you the steps to replacing the build.prop of the firmware you installed with that of a firmware that is verifiedand accepted by google.
Note: MoDaCo's r2 and the derivatives thereof have a fix included for this in the ROM (can be found in "MCR Scripts").

NOTE: As of now, "Eris Market Fix" from the android market seems to work on the SGS. It uses a similar procedure and should achieve identical results (for now). The app itself can be uninstalled after the fix is working.

Requirements:
-Rooted Samsung Galaxy S
-ADB (from the Android Software Development Kit)
-build.prop from a recognized official firmware


Procedure:
1.Download and extract "build.prop".
2.Copy the "build.prop" to the root of your internal SD card (to the folder "/sdcard")
3.Make sure the phone is rooted (find the application "Superuser Permission")/has the latest version of busybox installed (Run "BusyBox installer" and make sure it says, that the latest version is installed). If not, root your phone according to the HOWTO in Post#2 and install busybox from the market (and follow the instructions in the description) respectively.
4.Run the following commands in ADB (for a tutorial on ADB, see Post#3):

adb shell
su
mount -o remount,rw -t yaffs2 /dev/block/mtdblock3 /system
busybox mv /sdcard/build.prop /system/build.prop
reboot

5.Wait for the phone to reboot. Check if can see protected apps (for example the paid version of tapatalk)
6.If you cannot see protected apps, you may have to wait a while in order for market to recheck the build.prop. This process can be helped bu setting the system time (manually) to 23:59 (i.e. 11:59PM) and wait for it to pass the 0:00 (i.e. 12:00AM) mark. Then return the time to the correct time setting and reboot. (You may still need to wait a few minutes before you can actually see protected applications)
7.If you still can't see protected applications, restart in recovery mode ("Volume Up"+"Home"+"Start") and wipe the cache of your phone. (You may still need to wait a few minutes before you can actually see protected applications)

For the interested, here a explanation of the code:
mount -o remount,rw -t yaffs2 /dev/block/mtdblock3 /system
mount is the linux routine to mount a device to a specific path
-o will allow you to issue several commands to the mount routine, separated by commas
remount will unmount and then mount the filesystem again
rw will cause the filesystem to be mounted with read/write permissions
-t is the parameter used to define the filesystem
yaffs2 is "yet another flash file system 2"
/dev/block/mtdblock3 is the hardware-location of the system path
/system is the path to which you want to remount the hardware location
busybox mv /sdcard/build.prop /system/build.prop
busybox causes the following commands to be executed by busybox instead of default android
mv moves files from one location to another
/sdcard/build.prop is the path to the file that is being moved
/system/build.prop is the path where the file gets moved to

3.Extracting Samsung Phone Drivers from Kies Installer

Background: Not all users are interested in installing the full software package Kies in order to get to flash their phone via Odin or Heimdall. The Kies installer turns out to be extractable using 7-zip and the phone drivers have a separate installer. This allows for installing only the phone USB drivers and lets you avoid installing Kies and the included bloatware.

Requirements:
-Samsung Kies installer package
-7-zip (found here)

Procedure:
1.Install 7-zip
2.Right click the Kies installer and Find 7-zip->Extract to "Kies_x.x.x.xxxxx_xx\"
3.Navigate to "Kies_x.x.x.xxxxx_xx-->CabFile-->USB Driver"
4.Right click the "SAMSUNG_USB_Driver_for_Mobile_Phones.exe.cab" file and 7-zip->Extract to "SAMSUNG_USB_Driver_for_Mobile_Phones.exe\"
5.Open the folder SAMSUNG_USB_Driver_for_Mobile_Phones.exe\ and execute SAMSUNG_USB_Driver_for_Mobile_Phones.exe and follow the installer instructions.
6.Enjoy connecting your phone without the full Kies install.


4.Backing up the /efs folder

Background: Some experimental firmwares modify the /efs folder. This can cause IMEI corruption and/or change the product code your phone reports.

Requirements:
-Rooted Phone
Either (A):
-ADB (from the Android Software Development Kit)
Or (B):
-Root Explorer (from market)

Procedure:
1.Make sure your phone is rooted (and busybox is installed for ADB procedure)

A:
1A.Enable USB debugging mode (Settings-->Application-->Development-->USB debugging)
2A.Connect the phone to USB
3A.Open a command prompt and enter adb (see tutorial)
4A.Acquire root privileges (type "su"). (Make sure you accept the root-prompt on the phone)
5A.Execute "busybox cp -a /efs /sdcard/"
6A.Disconnect the phone, deactivate USB debugging, reconnect the phone and backup the copy of the efs folder to your PC


B:
1B.Use root explorer and navigate to the root of the filesystem /
2B.Press "Mount R/W"
3B.Copy the efs folder to your sdcard
4B.Connect the phone to the PC and backup the copy of the efs folder to your PC.

2. Restore the backup if your IMEI gets corrupted or your product code is changed by a firmware.

 

[snapper.fishes]

Too tired to copy everything over at the moment..... Go read this yourself.

xda-developers - View Single Post - [HOWTO] [REF] [FAQ] [Guides] [Tutorials] Flash/Root/ADB/ROM [MUST READ!]

 

[snapper.fishes]

Firmware and LagFix Selection Guide
Last Updated: November 16, 2010. Up-to-date as of November 16, 2010 13:21 CEST

As you may have noticed, there are a lot of firmwares on samfirmware.com and it's not very clear which ones are best/least buggy etc.

In this section, I will give a general guide to which firmware to use depending on your preferences:

If you like the stock Samsung Galaxy S experience and are looking for the most stable/bugfree version:
-Flash I9000XXJPX according to HOWTO#1.
-Install the one of the kernels below or one of the lagfixes from FAQ#A6.

If you would like have the latest firmware and are willing to tolerate some bugs:
-Flash I9000XWJV1 according to HOWTO#1.

Lagfixes and Kernels:
In FAQ#A6 the currently used methods for lagfixes are described. There are a number of enhanced kernels (most of which use at least one of the lagfixes) that add features such as more accessible RAM, enhanced compiling, Clockwork Recovery, Blacklight Notification and several various features depending on the Kernel. Here is a list of the popular, well tested, optimized kernels (Note: Some of them include an overclock):
-hardcore's speedmod Froyo
-laststufo's Super Optimized Kernel
-supercurio's Voodoo Lagfix
-DamianGto's Ultimate Kernel
-tegrak's lagfix build Kernel
There is a frequently updated list here



General Note:
If you want to take the modding further, look at FAQ#D2 in Post#1 for a list of Custom ROMs and chose one you like. Depending on whether or not there is a lagfix integrated, you should then apply one of the lagfixes from the first suggestion. I would also suggest avoiding loop-mount fixes like OCLF and CFLF (see FAQ#A6) because performance rapidly declines over time.

Note: I9000XXJPM is a firmware for the general European region, I9000XWJP6 is for the Nordic region and I9000JPJPA is for the Asian region.

Note2: None of the available ROMs completely fix the poor GPS. Most of the ROMs noted above are provide roughly the same GPS performance. Samsung is hoping to release a full GPS fix in september (hopefully with the froyo release) It is not clear if or when Samsung will release a full fix for the GPS issues. However, it is doubtful since there is an apparently final Froyo release and it apparently doesn't completely fix the GPS.

 

[snapper.fishes]

Seems like quite a few of the questions asked lately are already answered in this FAQ, so I will try making this a sticky and see how well it works. Mods, guides, feel free to unsticky this if you want to.

Corrections or suggestions are welcome.

PLEASE DON'T POST QUESTIONS IN THIS THREAD!

 

[Tony30]

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[snapper.fishes]

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