First time ROM flashing

[s_franchise]

Im new to the flashing rom game, ive had root for about two months now feel comfortable, was wondering if there were any per say "how to guides" and any general advice you guys could give me!

much appreciated

 

[Smitty_82]

Not sure about a "how to guide" for the Dinc, I'm on the DX so there are some differences and I wouldn't want to give you the wrong info. That being said, the best advice before flashing any ROM is to make sure you have a good backup that you can flash back to for updates or incase something doesn't work right for you. The developers site for the ROM that you are using is usually a good place for info on that specific ROM.

 

[davidnc]

Here is a pretty good guide for the incredible, it may help , and of course if any questions about anything ask before you guess , ha . Also as Smitty_82 mentioned and I will repeat ...Always make a backup before you flash any custom rom , Always.

I even copied my sd card contents onto my computer for if the sd card ever fails I could still get that info back but thats just me , ha

Flashing Roms Tutorial | doug piston

 

[s_franchise]

the only qiestion i have at the moment, is if i get a rom lets say skyraider, does that have its own kernel or will i need to find one?

 

[PvilleComp]

Most ROM's will come with the kernel that the chef feels is the best for their ROM. There are alternative kernels out there as well and some chef's will provide alternate kernels for their ROM's for thigs like better battery usage.

 

[menschmaschine5]

You can also use ROM manager. Some advise against it, but I do it and it works fine.

The most important are that you do a nandroid backup (system image-you can do this through recovery or through ROM manager) and that you wipe the phone before flashing a new ROM. ROM manager can do these things for you after you download the ROM. The only ROM I can think of that doesn't require a wipe is Virtuous.

You'll want to back up your apps if you wipe the system. Titanium Backup will do that for you pretty nicely (you'll probably want the donate version). However, you should still restore your apps one by one in case one can cause a problem.

It can't be emphasized enough - do a nandroid backup before you do anything that will modify the system (flashing ROMs, themes,etc). That way, if whatever you did ends up screwing up your phone, you can go back to the way it was before.

 

[s_franchise]

Thanks guys! Appreciate all the help

 

[PvilleComp]

FYI - Only the updates for Virtious don't need a wipe - the initial load of the ROM does need a wipe.

Good Luck!

 

[menschmaschine5]

FYI - Only the updates for Virtious don't need a wipe - the initial load of the ROM does need a wipe.

Good Luck!

Only if you're flashing from another custom Rom. If you're flashing from stock, you don't need to wipe. A wipe may be advisable for best performance, but Virtuous works just fine without wiping. It was a good introduction to ROM flashing.