Finally Unlocked, Rooted and Flashed my first ROM

[dsuppa]

Wasnt really sure which ROM was the best since there seems to be about 1000 different threads saying x is better than y, etc..... So I went with this, which seemed to be the stock official update with nothing added.

4.0.4 Unofficial Changelog *Update2 02/05* - xda-developers

Am I missing out on anything by using this ROM? Is there any advantage to other 4.0.4 roms? I did this by simply downloading the zip file, copying it to my gnex root and installing rom from SDCard through Clockwork.....

 

[anon(596177)]

Wasnt really sure which ROM was the best since there seems to be about 1000 different threads saying x is better than y, etc..... So I went with this, which seemed to be the stock official update with nothing added.

4.0.4 Unofficial Changelog *Update2 02/05* - xda-developers

Am I missing out on anything by using this ROM? Is there any advantage to other 4.0.4 roms? I did this by simply downloading the zip file, copying it to my gnex root and installing rom from SDCard through Clockwork.....

Thats the same rom I am running. It's really just preference. i prefer my phone stock for the most part, so I only unlocked my phone to receive updates in a more timely fashion. However other roms look good (AOKP, Codename...) it just depends on how much you want to mod your phone to your liking.

 

[mclarryjr]

If you want to try something other then stock I would recommend CND or AOKP they are very close in the extra added features. If you took the time to unlock and root I would think you should use one of these custom ROM because of the nice added features and IMO they run faster, smoother, and have better battery life. You can always flash back to stock in minutes and IMO if you want a slower phone that has worse battery life stay with stock otherwise start flashing. If you need any help let us know

 

[dsuppa]

yeah AOKP seems to be popping up a lot in everything im browsing, if i go and flash to that, does it wipe everything again to where I have to reinstall all my apps and settings all over?

 

[2defmouze]

yeah AOKP seems to be popping up a lot in everything im browsing, if i go and flash to that, does it wipe everything again to where I have to reinstall all my apps and settings all over?

Any time you flash a ROM you should wipe data, format /system (aosp based rom's should do this automatically), etc.. Unless the flashing instructions specifically say you do not need to wipe data, which they may if you are coming from an earlier version of the same ROM. Yes you have to restore your apps and redo your settings, accounts, etc. Price you pay to play with new things.

 

[dsuppa]

damn ok, lol....just spent 3 hours last night resetting it all up after the unlock and root process....guess Ill have to do it all over again :'(

 

[ScooberJake]

damn ok, lol....just spent 3 hours last night resetting it all up after the unlock and root process....guess Ill have to do it all over again :'(

I assume you are using something like Titanium or Backdrop to backup your user apps and data? Those make setting up after a new ROM much faster, more like half an hour. And a lot of that time is just letting the phone install apps either from the market or from the backup app. Use Nova launcher to restore home screens. Then there are all of those little settings that you have to do yourself. My biggest problem is re-merging contacts.

 

[mclarryjr]

You may want to invest and purchase a backup application like Titanium Backup which will beck up all your applications and their data, this will save a ton of time.
Also if you use Nova Launcher which is just like the stock launcher with some added settings your able to back up your homes screens which again makes the wiping process a little easier.

 

[dsuppa]

Yeah, I'm using Nova Launcher and use backups and restore for that, unfortunately I cant use Titanium Backup because I dont have Root ATM, I'll have to reroot, install Titanium run that backup then install AOKP. Although I am a bit confused on the instructions....

1.Make sure you're on the latest CWM - I assume I am since I downloaded it from market and there are no updates listed
2.MAKE A NANDROID - a backup?
3.wipe data/factory reset in recovery - Is this the "Flash ClockworkMod Recovery" option in ROM Manager? or "Reboot into Recovery" ?
4.flash ROM - by copying it to sdcard and running install from SD through ROM Manager?
5.flash Gapps - No Idea what this means
6.reboot - the only step I can confidently say I understand

 

[digitalslacker]

It really depends on what you are looking to get out of the ROM. If you are new to flashing then you probably don't know the answer to that question yet.

ROM preferences are a lot like sports team preferences. Some people seem to develop an affinity to one in particular and that ROM is the "best" no matter what. Others seem to flock to the popular ROM that has a critical mass of users and that's the "best" because it's popular.

At the end of the day the best ROM is the one *you* like the best, so try a few and use the suggestions you see as a guide.

Personally, I'm not a fan of AKOP or Codemane because they are a bit too feature heavy for me. I want something as close to stock as possible and I don't want to risk a performance hit from a feature I don't need or want.

Right now Bugless Beast is my go to because it's quick and lite and I've followed the dev for a while from 3 different devices.

 

[dsuppa]

My main reason for unlocking and rooting was because I wanted 4.0.4 and was tired of waiting for Google to decide to push it out to us....and because I just felt like I should do it, lol

 

[Nechasin]

The two main features that I wanted from a rom are the additional options when you hold down the power button and the quickbuttons for wifi, bluetooth, etc that are in the notification area. I got used to those on my OG Droid and was really missing them in stock.

If you do use titanium backup, make sure that you only restore user apps and data and not any system data. Restoring system data will really hose up your install and in my opinion is probably one of the top reasons people get upset with a custom rom.

 

[dsuppa]

The two main features that I wanted from a rom are the additional options when you hold down the power button and the quickbuttons for wifi, bluetooth, etc that are in the notification area. I got used to those on my OG Droid and was really missing them in stock.

If you do use titanium backup, make sure that you only restore user apps and data and not any system data. Restoring system data will really hose up your install and in my opinion is probably one of the top reasons people get upset with a custom rom.

got it, thanks for the heads up.

 

[ScooberJake]

1.Make sure you're on the latest CWM - I assume I am since I downloaded it from market and there are no updates listed
2.MAKE A NANDROID - a backup?
3.wipe data/factory reset in recovery - Is this the "Flash ClockworkMod Recovery" option in ROM Manager? or "Reboot into Recovery" ?
4.flash ROM - by copying it to sdcard and running install from SD through ROM Manager?
5.flash Gapps - No Idea what this means
6.reboot - the only step I can confidently say I understand

1) Yes, you should be good. ROM Manager will tell you when a newer version CWM Recovery is available.

2) A Nandroid is a backup made in recovery. Backs up pretty much everything. This is a backup you make in case something gets screwed up. You cannot use this to reload your app data/settings/home screens once the new ROM is running. You do that with Nova and Titanium (or Backdrop).

3) You seem to be a little confused. ROM Manager is an app that is useful for root users. The most useful thing is the ability to flash a custom recovery, known as ClockworkMod Recovery. So you need to first flash CWM just so you can do things (like the backup in step 2). But from there most things are best done in CWM even though ROM Manager has some shortcuts. Also, I don't know about the 4.04 ROM, but stock 4.02 would automatically overwrite CWM with the stock recovery after your first reboot. You have to delete or rename a file to make CWM stay put. The details can be found somewhere around here.

4) It is best to flash through CWM (install zip from sdcard) rather than ROM Manager.

5) Due to some legal issues, the ROM does not contain the Google Apps (Gapps). So you have to flash those in addition to the ROM. You can do it right after without a reboot in the middle. So you need the ROM zip file and the Gapps zip file that goes with that ROM.

6) If you make it here you are good to go.

7) Once rebooted, you will log in to the phone. You can either download your apps from the market (by signing in to Google) or by hand with Titanium. You use Titanium either way. If apps installed from market, you only need to restore data. If you choose to do it manually, you restore apps + data at the same time. As mentioned above, only restore user apps and data, not system apps.

 

[xratede]

I'm glad I stumbled in this thread I wanted to ask all of the same ?'s Thanks guys!

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk

 

[dsuppa]

Yeah, was defintely a lot of useful info for noobs like me, I am now all setup and running the newest AOKP since Thursday!

 

[dmmarck]

Yeah, was defintely a lot of useful info for noobs like me, I am now all setup and running the newest AOKP since Thursday!

How's it running?

 

[jbomb11]

Thats the same rom I am running. It's really just preference. i prefer my phone stock for the most part, so I only unlocked my phone to receive updates in a more timely fashion. However other roms look good (AOKP, Codename...) it just depends on how much you want to mod your phone to your liking.

Where's the best guide on how to unlock?

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk

 

[2defmouze]

Where's the best guide on how to unlock?

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk

|HOW TO|ROOT AND UNLOCK BOOTLOADER - droidHIVE Forums

 

[SuperChargedJ]

Yeah, was defintely a lot of useful info for noobs like me, I am now all setup and running the newest AOKP since Thursday!

Glad everything went well. Remember that if you're not sure about something, always ask questions to prevent something from going wrong.