ICS 4.0.4 this morning, lost USB Mass Storage??!!

[mute1]

So I just got the ICS update this morning and have lost USB Mass Storage!! Is there any way to get it back? If not is there a way to revert back to EL29 Gingerbread?

 

[atl10pnr]

Have you tried a battery pull yet? That fixed a lot of issues I had.

 

[mute1]

Tried a battery pull but no go. The problem is that the option is not even available. How is it that this has not been noticed yet? I'm talking about the ability to use the phone as a usb flash drive.

 

[ackthbbft]

I don't know if this is the same in ICS (I don't have the update yet, and frankly I'm scared to install it once it becomes available to me after the stories I've been hearing), but did you check whether USB Debugging was still enabled after the update? (Settings->Applications->Development->USB Debugging)

I recently had to turn that on before I could use my phone as a USB drive and download a couple large video files off my phone that were too big to send directly to Google Drive.

 

[mute1]

Tried Debug as well but no go. That only forces the connection to always be as Mass Storage versus MTP. With Gingerbread I was able to go to "settings", "Wireless and Network" and then Select USB which would then allow me to select the Mass storage option. This does not appear to exist in ICS and I am now looking for a way to go back to GB. This sux.

 

[JayWill]

Samsung removed the USB mass storage option in the ICS update, instead moving entirely to MTP (Media Transfer Protocol) for file transfers. Checking USB debugging will not change this unfortunately. There were some ICS builds during developement where there was an option to enable USB Mass Storage, then plug your phone in which would list internal and external storage as physical drives. However, this was removed at some point.

In order to have USB mass storage on a Touchwiz based ICS ROM for this phone, you would need to run a custom ROM that includes the functionality. For example, I currently have this ROM [ROM][TN] MIJJz ICS {GOODNESS 7/9}{MINI 6/30}{LTD 6/25}{NO-NAME}{SLIM} - xda-developers on my phone, and USB Mass Storage is the default. I know not everyone wants a custom ROM on their phone though.

I also know sfhub had created a simple flashable file that would toggle on USB Mass Storage on the stock Samsung Touchwiz ICS ROM, but it's been awhile since I saw it and I don't know if it still works.

It is possible to get back to Gingerbread, but it requires you to hook your phone up to a PC and manually flash firmware to it via Odin. There seems to be a good number of people that are interested in going back to Gingerbread, so I may post up a guide on how to do it.

 

[mute1]

Sign me up! GB was awesome compared to this mess. I was running GB stock with root and was very happy with it. Though I would not mind trying a custom ROM to see how it performs. I've just read that a lot of the custom ROMS had trouble with the GPS.

In any case if you do write I guide I would be happy to give it a shot.

In regards to a custom ROM, I imagine I would need to be root first yes? So I root my OTA ICS and then back up critical info then??

 

[JayWill]

Okay, you should be able to use sfhub's Utility Program (called Auto Root Package but don't mind the name) to enable USB Mass storage on your stock ICS Touchwiz ROM.

Here's his post for reference: xda-developers - View Single Post - [ROOT][NCIQ][EG30/EG31/EK02] Auto root your existing stock ROM (w/o ODIN/ROM Flash)

So here's what you would do. Go here and download sfhub's utility [ROOT][NCIQ][EG30/EG31/EK02] Auto root your existing stock ROM (w/o ODIN/ROM Flash) - xda-developers. Enable USB Debugging on your phone, follow sfhub's instructions to load the utility and plug in your phone to your PC.

Then from the menu, you would select Option E, then the option to enable USB Mass Storage.

I've never done this myself, but I've used sfhub's configuration utility program many times for other things and it's excellent. It should work for you.

Let us know if you decide to try it!

 

[JayWill]

If you want the most recent version of Gingerbread (EL29) again, stock and rooted, it's very simple. Run sfhub's EL29 Odin One-Click and you're all set.

[ODIN][TAR] SPH-D710.EL29_CL852097 (EL29 Modem/Kernel/ROM - Full Restore - Rooted) - xda-developers

One comment. You can try the "Preserve User Data" version, but you may run into application data problems on the downgrade. If you do, you will have to use the full wipe restore version, and reinstall your apps. You may as well try the "preserve user data version" first though if you decide to go this route.

Okay, I think you have all the tools to make a decision now. Let us know if you run into any issues.

 

[mute1]

Is the process for installing the Custom ROM you showed me the same or is it vastly different? I went to the site and read the feature list and it seems like a good build, I've just never run a custom ROM before. (Always been afraid of bricking my phone).

 

[JayWill]

Is the process for installing the Custom ROM you showed me the same or is it vastly different? I went to the site and read the feature list and it seems like a good build, I've just never run a custom ROM before. (Always been afraid of bricking my phone).

It's different. The custom ROM I linked is flashed via CWM recovery rather than Odin. THis complicates matters a bit because there is an issue with the Samsung ICS kernel that can corrupt the internal EMMC and brick the phone when performing a partition format in recovery. So you have to flash using a recovery on a Gingerbread kernel (most people use the EL26+CWM kernel) or use a "safe" ICS kernel where the offending function has been removed. In other words, you have to know a bit more about what you're doing than running a simple Odin One-Click.

To get USB Mass Storage for now, I'd recommend you use sfhub's auto-root utility program, unless you really hate ICS, in which case you can flash back to EL29 using his Odin One-Click package. Then read up on flashing custom ROMs and get to know the process. This will also give more time to where there are more "safe" ICS kernel + recovery options and less chance for unknowingly being on a kernel that has a chance to brick you phone on a partition format.

 

[mute1]

I would be rolling back to Gingerbread, rooting, backing up my data, doing a fresh install of Gingerbread and then trying the ROM you showed me. I have been experiencing app lock ups since I "upgraded".

Truth be told I'm only worried about my contacts, everything else is totally expendable ass I have moved my pics to the SD card etc....

 

[ubermatty]

I would be rolling back to Gingerbread, rooting, backing up my data, doing a fresh install of Gingerbread and then trying the ROM you showed me. I have been experiencing app lock ups since I "upgraded".

Truth be told I'm only worried about my contacts, everything else is totally expendable ass I have moved my pics to the SD card etc....

Easy fix on that... The Contacts list in ICS gives you the option to "Merge with Google" under the menu button pop up. If you have a Google account connected, the phone will back up your contacts automatically to your Gmail account. Then they will should automatically re-sync with your device (or any other Android device you sign into that account with) after you've done your changes.

 

[fetterjohn]

I don't know if someone deleted my post form this morning...

So I just got the ICS update this morning and have lost USB Mass Storage!! Is there any way to get it back? If not is there a way to revert back to EL29 Gingerbread?

but this works just fine. I DL'd the 4.0.4 file from the Sprint forum and so far no issues...in fact it is flawless. I plug the phone into my computer and I see both phone and memory card. I can drag and drop files into either area. When I plug it in I see "connected as a media device" in the notification bar.

Samsung removed the USB mass storage option in the ICS update, instead moving entirely to MTP (Media Transfer Protocol) for file transfers. Checking USB debugging will not change this unfortunately. There were some ICS builds during developement where there was an option to enable USB Mass Storage, then plug your phone in which would list internal and external storage as physical drives. However, this was removed at some point.

Assuming that the DL'd version is authentic and the same as the OTA...why do I still have mass storage capabilities and you don't, Jay?

John

 

[JayWill]

Assuming that the DL'd version is authentic and the same as the OTA...why do I still have mass storage capabilities and you don't, Jay?

John

The downloaded manual update is the same as the OTA. What you're experiencing when you plug your phone into your PC, is actually MTP. Windows recognizes the device, then lists the internal storage components as "phone" and "card". You also see the "synchronizing" message on your phone when performing file transfers. With USB Mass Storage, Windows mounts the storage components as individual drives, and assigns driver letters to them. Thus the need to "eject" your phone before unplugging to avoid data corruption, like you would with a USB thumb drive.

Some people simply prefer USB Mass Storage. Some say they experience slower transfer speeds with MTP, and some simply don't like it because it's different. Regardless of the reason, some feel pretty strongly about not being to mount their phone storage as a physical drive.

 

[mute1]

So I rooted FF18 and then DL'd an app called "USB Switcher" off the Play store and everything is working great! Now I have to figure out how to use Nandroid to backup my phone and then I want to try the ROM JayWill72 mentioned....Sounds like I have some reading to do!

 

[dj ozone]

ok my computer (windows 7) couldnt see my phone when connected to usb...this is what i did to force it to access my phone as a drive:

• 
  connect the phone thru usb
  go to Device Manager in windows 7
  look in Portable Devices for SPH-D710
  click SPH-D710
  Go to Driver
  click Update Driver
  click Browse my computer for driver software
  click Let me pick from a list of device drivers on my computer
  click SAMSUNG Mobile MTP Device
  click Next
  That did the trick for me!

Good Luck getting everything sorted out...

 

[LS14EVR]

I know in the past using MTP and not as Mass storage did not work correctly for me. I transfered a ton of music on to the sd card but only some actually transfered. So i connected as a mass storage, and worked perfect. I'm getting more and more upset about this whole upgrade.

 

[atl10pnr]

Plug your phone in to the computer. When the usb icon pops up at the top, flick down to bring up the notification screen. Tap where it says "connected as a media device. Tap camera (ptp). Should show on the computer now.

 

[bncrpt]

Hi fellas I'm in same boat..i liked the fact i could access USB storage as a physical drive and stored movies on it as sd card was full..now i find it has simply disappeared completely..another issue is the fact that its showing me the internal USB is full almost although there should be less than 5 GB on it..is this just showing me the external sd storage as part of USB? And how do i clear it without knowing what's actually on there now its not visible?
I'm new to all this so any advice would be great...cheers