[HOW-TO] Download and Install CM7 to Run Off SD Card

[koopakid08]

This thread has been superseded by this one:
http://forums.androidcentral.com/showthread.php?t=105519[\URL]

The original post will be kept here as an archive.



Grab the installer image here:
[URL]http://crimea.edu/~green/nook/generic-sdcard-v1.3.img.gz
it's a ~9M image that would unpack into ~130M disk image.

Write the image on your SD card. I tested with 2G, 4G and 8G cards and all worked.
Any uSD card of 1G or bigger in size should work if it is recognized by your nook.
Write on Windows by using WinImage (Make sure to run as administrator) or Win32 disk imager and on Linux/MacOS X by using dd (to the entire device, not one of the partitions. The device name should not have any numbers at the end. The command is something like dd if=/somewhere/generic-sdcard.img of=/dev/sdX bs=1024k)

After done with writing, eject and then re-insert the uSD card into your computer.

Download a CM build from here if you want to use a nightly (It is recommended to choose -87 nightly or later) or the newest RC 7.1. from here (This is recommended) or from here if you want the latest stable version ( I would not recommend this as people are having issues with the recovery when using 7.0.3 or below when using the 1.3 installer image if you really want to use the stable use installer image 1.2.1 available here)

Put the file to the SD card (there is only one partition). Don't change the name of the file and DO NOT unzip.

unmount the uSD card and insert it into the nook.
Boot from this SD card. It'll boot and will update you on progress.
When it's done, it'll power off.

That's it, you now have CM7 on your SD card.

How to install market and gapps:
After you have booted into the CM7 on SD card for the first time and set up wifi access (important!)
Go to Latest Version - CyanogenMod Wiki and at the end there is a table with various google apps versions. Get the one suitable for your cyanogen version (CM7 is the latest for now). The file is named gapps-....zip
shutdown your nook and take the SD card out, insert it into your computer.
Copy the gapps-... file to the SD card on the first partition (titled boot) without changing the file name.
Insert the uSD card back into the NOOK and boot into "Recovery mode" by booting normally into Android, then from desktop hold the power key until a poweroff menu appears, In the poweroff menu choose "reboot", in the next menu choose "recovery" and press "OK". The nook would reboot straight into recovery.

Easy method to install gapps
Install samuelhalff's Nook Color UMS http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=952456
Open Nook Color UMS (Select mount sd (1) first partition) Click Confirm Use USB cable to connect NC to PC Your NC should show up as a hard drive with the boot directory visible Download gapps and place the .zip file into the boot directory Select unmount in Nook Color UMS Click confirm Remove NC from cable Hold power button down and select reboot, then recovery gapps will install after reboot and then NC will shut down Hold power button to reboot and gapps will be installed"][APP][02/26] Nook Color USB Mass Storage utility - Mount any partition to your PC - xda-developers[/URL])
Open Nook Color UMS (Select mount sd (1) first partition)
Click Confirm
Use USB cable to connect NC to PC
Your NC should show up as a hard drive with the boot directory visible
Download gapps and place the .zip file into the boot directory
Select unmount in Nook Color UMS
Click confirm
Remove NC from cable
Hold power button down and select reboot, then recovery
gapps will install after reboot and then NC will shut down
Hold power button to reboot and gapps will be installed


How to update CM7 without taking out SD card.

Install samuelhalff's Nook Color UMS (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=952456)
Open Nook Color UMS (Select mount sd (1) first partition)
Click Confirm
Use USB cable to connect NC to PC
Your NC should show up as a hard drive with the boot directory visible
Download nightly and place the .zip file into the boot directory
Select unmount in Nook Color UMS
Click confirm
Remove NC from cable
Hold power button down and select reboot, then recovery
Nightly will install after reboot and then NC will shut down
Hold power button to reboot and nightly will be installed

How to update to a new build:
put the new build you want to try on the first partition. (the name must be update-cm-*.zip or cm_encore_full*.zip or just update-*.zip)
Boot from the SDcard in the recovery mode (see above) and the new snapshot would be installed.
The partition layout would be preserved, filesystems are NOT reformatted, so your data should be safe.

If you have a problem
Try Formating the SD card and instead of using the writing option in winimage (make sure to run winimage as administrator) use the restore virtual hard disk image on physical drive option. Also try using Win32 Disk Imager.

Best SD card for the job
The best SD card for running android is a class 4 sandisk micoSD. To learn more about why it is MUCH better than other SD cards read here
Edited from a thread at XDA.

Installer Image Mirrors
http://www.mediafire.com/?zo6jr2iu7dco15y
https://spideroak.com/browse/share/cd_share/nook_color


If you get stuck you can read over the original thread here

 

[curt marsh]

Hello
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN Write on Windows by using WinImage and on Linux/MacOS X by using dd (to the entire device, not one of the partitions. The device name should not have any numbers at the end. The command is something like dd if=/somewhere/generic-sdcard.img of=/dev/sdX bs=1024k). Been trying to do this download and keep getting errors on the nook, using a Scan disk 8gb class 4 card

 

[koopakid08]

Are you using windows?

 

[b.roid]

i keep getting a blank screen after installing sd card? ive tried a nightly and a rc. after i take the card out and put in pc i see there files that got installed. is there any special buttons i need to hit on boot? any suggestions?

im using windows in a virtualbox.

solved! i used win32 disk imager and ran it as admin. make sure you put the image file in the same folder as win32 disk imager. doing this thru a virtualbox worked great.

 

[ruger141]

I'm surprised they didnt give an details on how to do the Winimage process. I found a step by step on youtube, just serach for winimage nook and its broken into a few short vids.

 

[b.roid]

I'm surprised they didnt give an details on how to do the Winimage process. I found a step by step on youtube, just serach for winimage nook and its broken into a few short vids.

ya i should have checked out youtube 1st.

 

[ruger141]

Sweet Win32 disk imager worked!! WAAY easier to use than WinImage(which wasnt working). I am downloading the Stable Build of CM to my card right now but am kinda confused because above he says to download the file as is, but its a zip file which I think needs to be unzipped first

Edit: okay according to the youtube videos I have been referencing (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=reHFJUkCELM&feature=fvsr) @ 1:15 she says that the zip file gets dragged over to the SD card and DOESNT get unzipped. Apparently this happens on the nook which she shows in video 3. Also just another fyi, I found Win32 Disk Imager worked, but I had the (unzipped) Image file on my PC and selected it on my PC in the Win32 program because putting it on the SD Card and then trying to write it to the SD Card didnt work.

 

[koozi]

Great instructions! I followed them last night and easily made a tab out of my brand new NC.

Now I have a newbie question.
I want to download apps from the app market. I signed in with my exisiting user name and everything goes to my phone instead of the NC. So I created a new user ID and nothing will download because it says it is not associated with a device. What the heck?

 

[HM34me]

I tried down load cm7 to 16 gig class 10 sdcard worked ok but stuck in loop upon start up any solutions? I am NB so any help isgteat

 

[koopakid08]

Great instructions! I followed them last night and easily made a tab out of my brand new NC.

Now I have a newbie question.
I want to download apps from the app market. I signed in with my exisiting user name and everything goes to my phone instead of the NC. So I created a new user ID and nothing will download because it says it is not associated with a device. What the heck?

Are you using the market app on the nook or are you using the online market?

 

[koopakid08]

I tried down load cm7 to 16 gig class 10 sdcard worked ok but stuck in loop upon start up any solutions? I am NB so any help isgteat

Can you turn the nook off? If it goes into a bootloop again it might have been a bad flash or you SD card could be unable to handle it.

 

[patruns]

Can you turn the nook off? You might have to do a battery pull. If it goes into a bootloop again it might have been a bad flash or you SD card could be unable to handle it.

There is no such thing as a battery pull in the Nook Color. The battery is not a user replaceable unit.

 

[koozi]

Are you using the market app on the nook or are you using the online market?

The google online market.

 

[koopakid08]

I am uploading a video on how to use winimage right now

 

[koopakid08]

The google online market.

You might have to just get apps from the market app.

 

[koopakid08]

There is no such thing as a battery pull in the Nook Color. The battery is not a user replaceable unit.

oops, wow. My brain has failed me...

 

[koozi]

You might have to just get apps from the market app.

Aren't those the same thing?

I did get amazon apps to work so all is not lost.

Still I would like to know why app market won't do anything except send apps to my phone when I try to download them from the NC.

 

[koopakid08]

Aren't those the same thing?

I did get amazon apps to work so all is not lost.

Still I would like to know why app market won't do anything except send apps to my phone when I try to download them from the NC.

Are you using the new market app?

 

[koozi]

Yep, I have tried the new market apps.

It is a PITA because you can't get the nook reader app from amazon. So I cannot read my book on my book reader unless I pull the SD card and boot stock.

 

[Kronko]

Yep, I have tried the new market apps.

It is a PITA because you can't get the nook reader app from amazon. So I cannot read my book on my book reader unless I pull the SD card and boot stock.

You should be able to download the nook application from the market (free) an use it to read your books. Not the ones you bought from Barnes and Noble, but the ones you got somewhere else.