[How to] Factory Restore (or Fix a Bricked Phone)

[Paul627g]

I believe my Epic is done. Just need to know if theres anything else to do... I downloaded odin3 v1.85 opened pit and put this in victory_8G_100528.pit. I opened up the other boxes but nothing was their to open. i left only auto-reboot and on top it says epic4g. I didnt see where to put if need be files fom Deodexed-Rooted-CWM-busybox-EG22-1. I conected my phone, it came up in the odin box. Took around 11 secs or so and read pass on top , all green and at the bottom it said something1/ failed0 .
Ive done it before and all was fine. my phone was acting up when i got home. I was running ACE 2.0 and kept having WiFi issues once aday so today i said i would odin to the new leaked GB. Now my phone wont turn on after all this was done. Anything else to done or is it done for?

Okay first things first...

1. Reboot your computer and restart Odin so its on a fresh boot and ready to go.

2. Pull your battery on your phone and leave it out.

3. Connect your device via USB to your computer and boot into download mode (still leaving the battery out of the device)

4. Hopefully Odin will recognize your device still

5. Place the pit file in the PIT spot

6. Take the tar./md5 file and place it in the PDA slot

7. Check only Auto Reboot

8. Click start and see what happens.

Hopefully it will go as planned and give you a green pass and once completed you can remove the cable and pop your battery back in and boot up into GB or whichever Odin package you are attempting at this point.

 

[sndplace]

Thanks Paul. The problem is that the phone doesn't go on. Not even download mode.
It went from Download mode when i flashed it to a black screen when odin finished and turned green/pass came up in the top box. Thanks for the reply.

 

[Paul627g]

Thanks Paul. The problem is that the phone doesn't go on. Not even download mode.
It went from Download mode when i flashed it to a black screen when odin finished and turned green/pass came up in the top box. Thanks for the reply.

Just wondering, did you run the Odin program originally with just the PIT file and nothing else in place?

 

[sndplace]

I opened odin and put in the pit but I opened the tar and saw there was not file so like last time i used odin there was things that was already incuded i thought it was the same thing. I saw that it said
Epic4G on top i thought i just needed to put the pit only since it was the only file that showed up. It was late and i was not all there lol. Still under warranty so im getting a new/referb phone tomorrow.

I dont see any tar files in any of the 2 downloaded zips i got. The victory pit and deodexed EG22-1 file were the 2 i got from the post at xda forum

 

[c0c0nutsp0rt]

So is this the right thread for me to go back to the stock ROM and un-root?

 

[Paul627g]

So is this the right thread for me to go back to the stock ROM and un-root?

Yes.

Use Procedure #1 to go back to EC05 Froyo (Stock)

User Procedure #2 to go back to EB13 Froyo (Stock)

 

[c0c0nutsp0rt]

I figured it out. All it took was Procedure #1 and everything was stock and CWM was gone too.
Thanks!

 

[ggbballer96]

If i start doing something on odin and something doesnt work, i wait for 5 minutes. Now last time this happened i rebooted my phone and my epic was the way it was before attempting to odin. Does this mean if something goes wrong with odin the old setup still works?
The point of me asking this question is just wondering that if odin recognizes my device I'm basically safe right?

 

[Paul627g]

If i start doing something on odin and something doesnt work, i wait for 5 minutes. Now last time this happened i rebooted my phone and my epic was the way it was before attempting to odin. Does this mean if something goes wrong with odin the old setup still works?
The point of me asking this question is just wondering that if odin recognizes my device I'm basically safe right?

Yes as long as Odin keeps recognizing your device you can always dig yourself out of a hole sorta speak.

Normally all procedures with Odin take about 3 minutes tops to complete for a full ROM to be installed. So if you ever hit the 5 minute mark during a flash then something has gone wrong and you need to try again and always check and try the troubleshooting guide I have at the beginning of this thread to work through problems with Odin.

 

[bjwest]

Thanks Paul. The problem is that the phone doesn't go on. Not even download mode.
It went from Download mode when i flashed it to a black screen when odin finished and turned green/pass came up in the top box. Thanks for the reply.

I tried ODIN to EG22 this weekend... but mine locked up at factoryrfs.rfs - 45 minutes with no progress. I pulled the battery and same thing as sndplace.... Phone didn't respond to ANYTHING.

This was a life saver !!!!!!!... The only thing that worked for my phone..
If you can't get your phone into download mode or Odin to recognize the device, then try removing your battery and plug your phone in and boot into download mode/connect to Odin WITHOUT your battery in the phone. (Credit: Android Central's own DroidXcon)

Yep, tried that too... nothing. It *is* possible to completely brick your Epic. :-[

Per advice on other forums/threads, I popped my SD card into the adapter / computer, erased all evidence of any rooting, recovery, and custom rom folders, then took it into the Sprint store and played stupid. Tech checked it over and declared it a bad phone, replaced for free (well, I pay for the TEP) next business day! *phew* Now back for round two, with a new USB cable in hand

 

[lmjordanjames]

I need some help! Anyone!

I attempted to root a friends phone (i know...stupid) and now it's messed up! It won't turn on to the main launcher or anything....when it turns on...the only thing that pops up is a phone and a computer and in between is a hazard sign w/ an exclamation point....if you want more details just hit me back. I'm desperate b/c it's not my phone and I feel really bad. So anyone who can help....please....i need it.
you can call or text or just reply...which ever is easiest for you. my number is 6618749284

Thanks
-Devon L.

 

[Paul627g]

Re: I need some help! Anyone!

What method were you using to root the device and what steps did you take?

Worst case situation you will have to use our [How to] Factory Restore (or Fix a Bricked Phone) sticky thread in the rooting and hacking section. You would be using procedure #1 to restore to factory EC05.

First give us some more details and let's see where you are.

 

[lmjordanjames]

Re: I need some help! Anyone!

thank you!

so i tried to root it using Odin....so i got my software and i got something else and proceeded start. Next thing you know it failed. Eight after that the phone stopped working. Now i've tried all of the ways to restore it but i can never download anything. all of the links take me somewhere else or don't properly download.

 

[greenfairy4206]

Re: Odin from DG17 to DI18

Yes you would use the same odin steps starting back at your first upgrade, from dg17 to dg27. Let odin complete it will reboot the phone if sucessful and you will appear on dg27. Check your phones version numbers to confirm. All is okay run odin again and do the next upgrade from dg27 to di07. Repeat until your at di18.

I know its a lot of work, downloading is the worst part. The actual odin process only takes about 5 minutes or so. If this all works I will be happy for you and also hapy that I got you threw it and ready for your froyo update which we can tackle when we get to that point.

Good luck, you have Android Central riding shotgun!
Thanks but no need to pay, my reward will be knowing that we tried everything possible regardless of the outcome. I'm confident that this can work. Odin is what Sammy uses to flash phones, the utility was leaked by accident and its been a life saver since.
You can pull the plug if its been that long. Btw what was the last things it was saying in the odin window? Pull the battery and see if you can get it back into download mode and retry.


It does! Success! What is the baseband and version numbers? I take it the install was quick and it rebooted into DI18 ?

Looks like you got it friend. Glad I could help, hope your g/f is a bit happier on the night of official Froyo's release...


The following was a user I helped out, via PM which we normally never do but this was one of those situations where it needed a lot of attention and the user was openly new at all these methods. I applaud him for attempting this and was happy to help him out and for him being honest that he was nervous and needed the extra guidance.

Hi, I really need help I think that I bricked my samsung epic the only thing that happens on the screen is a computer and a usb and a phone. My friend and I tried giving the phone super user access and when we were trying to unroot it he got it to wher eit would only stay in reboot cyle of the new root he put on it. I tried flashing it with the pit but the computer shut down in the middle of the flash, now it will not go into any other mode other than showing that phone and computer connected by the usb.

 

[greenfairy4206]

I think I really bricked my Epic and could really use some help

Hi, I really need help I think that I bricked my samsung epic the only thing that happens on the screen is a computer and a usb and a phone. My friend and I tried giving the phone super user access and when we were trying to unroot it he got it to wher eit would only stay in reboot cyle of the new root he put on it. I tried flashing it with the pit but the computer shut down in the middle of the flash, now it will not go into any other mode other than showing that phone and computer connected by the usb.

 

[ratsttam]

Re: I think I really bricked my Epic and could really use some he

Hi, I really need help I think that I bricked my samsung epic the only thing that happens on the screen is a computer and a usb and a phone. My friend and I tried giving the phone super user access and when we were trying to unroot it he got it to wher eit would only stay in reboot cyle of the new root he put on it. I tried flashing it with the pit but the computer shut down in the middle of the flash, now it will not go into any other mode other than showing that phone and computer connected by the usb.

Good! That means it's not bricked, just formatted. Can't say I've ever heard of a "bricked" Epic that could not be fixed with the proper steps. It's equivalent to having a fully formatted hard drive in a computer. It won't do anything, but isn't necessarily "broken", just needs an OS installed. It's still capable of talking with a computer. The screen you're looking at is telling you exactly what needs to be done. You'll need to fire up ODIN, and let it do it's magic by putting the firmware .tar file (put in pda section), uncheck all but "restart" and let ODIN do it's thing
If ODIN can't see the phone, than you will likely need to uninstall the samsung drivers, and re-install them.
There is a sticky post about "recover your epic from the brink" or something like that. All the files you'll need to download and what to do with them are covered in great detail.

 

[jpfoxey]

Re: I think I really bricked my Epic and could really use some he

ratsttam is correct
I went to that brink tonight trying to flash a new Gingerbread Rom
I recommend following the threads on how to go back to EC05
I then re-rooted, re-added the purple clockwork while doing so, seemed it was necessary as it would only boot into Manual mode
then I reflashed the doedexed EG22 Rom and I am ready to roll again
its really no big deal just takes some patience and if you are fully gripped then just watch QBKings vid's, he is super informative
good luck

 

[Paul627g]

Have you tried to boot into download mode?

Phone completely off.

Open physical keyboard and press and hold 1. Then press and hold power while still holding the 1 key down.

If you can get back into download mode there is hope.

Try doing this with your battery removed and connected to your computer via usb cable.

 

[Paul627g]

Re: I think I really bricked my Epic and could really use some he

Hopefully when they lost it originally while trying to flash it the first time it wasn't during two certain steps in the Odin flash. If it was flashing these two particular files then it could be a true brick.

 

[altimuh]

Re: I need some help! Anyone!

thank you!

....so i got my software and i got something else and proceeded start....

...Next thing you know it failed. Eight after that the phone stopped working....

...Now i've tried all of the ways to restore it but i can never download anything....

...all of the links take me somewhere else or don't properly download...

the more details you provide on all of these items - the better we can help you!! What did you download, where did it fail, what specific ways did you try, and what is the condition of the phone? Can you boot into download mode (when the phone is off, hold 1 on the keyboard and press the side power button)? Can you go into recovery (when the phone is off, volume down, camera and power - hold until you see "Samsung")?

The more you explain to us - the better shot we have of helping you...