Gingerbread 2.3.4 Captivate needs to be rooted

kbolt876

Well-known member
Oct 26, 2011
59
1
0
Hello all. I've been trying to root my Samsung for a while now but I've only failed. I've been on xda forums looking at the SuperOneClick method but it doesn't seem to work for Capivates running 2.3.4. Is there any other method that's known to work for my phone and OS version?
 
Are you attached to the stock ROM? The only way I know how to do it, would be to flash boog's kernel with Odin, and then flash a KH3 custom ROM like Pinnacle. Or any other custom ROM that includes root. These guys often clean up the bugs from the leaked builds too, so it is not just for root that you would want the custom ROM. In most cases, there is a reason these leaked builds are not final... bugs!

If you are 2.3.4 you are probably on a KH3 build? If so, go here-

[Stock ROMs (All OneClicks at one place)] + [Kernels (Stock & w/ CWM)] + [Modems] - xda-developers

Find the boog kernel link for KH3 kernel with CWM. Flash that with Odin and download mode. Copy over the Pinnacle 1.2 ROM or whatever other ROM you want, and flash it with CWM. They all include root, but I cannot answer how they rooted it. But there is only good reasons to get off the purely stock leaked ROM.
 
  • Like
Reactions: kbolt876
Ah, thank you for the quick reply. First off, I got the phone with 2.3.4 so I'm not very exposed to rooting/flashing/modding. Put it simply, I'm in lobe with Android OS but I am a noob when it comes to these processes.

However, from your instructions and the link I've found the KH3 link with CWM injected, but there are two of them. Shall I get the one with bootloader, or without?

Also, you said copy over the Pinnacle ROM. Where would I find this ROM and where would I copy it to? I also have no idea what CWM is :-[ or how to use it. Could you help me out, please?
 
Well, whomever gave you the phone loaded up a leaked version of Gingerbread. Not a big deal, but it does put you into the self-service line whether you wanted to be there or not :).

First, it would be good to know a little more detail about what you are actually running right now. Hit MENU-SETTINGS-ABOUT PHONE and list back what is listed for BUILD NUMBER and BASEBAND VERSION. That will let us know better what your starting point is.

Meanwhile, back at the Hall of Justice, go here-

[ROM][2.3.4][Gingerbread KH3]♦ Pinnacle 1.3 ♦ 09/24 - xda-developers

Download the 1.2 full ROM and the 1.3 update. Copy both to your phone. Also, on the original link I sent you, under the list of all the kernels and ROMs is a link for Odin. Get that too.

The top sticky in this forum is on rooting and ROMs and whatnot, good for reference... but you will need to brush up on a couple basics. There are button codes to push to get your phone into special service menus. these modes are Download Mode and Recovery Mode. There is no risk in simply getting to these modes, and before we proceed, you should practice it a few times each.

Recovery Mode- Start with the phone OFF. Press-hold the middle of the volume rocker so both VOLUP and VOLDWN are depressed. Press the power button, so you are holding all three down at the same time, until the screen lights up and let go of everything. You should boot to a screen with blue text on it. Use the volume rocker to move the selector and the power button to actually select. Choose to reboot or pull the battery. Do it again a few times until you can do it without fail. CWM stands for Clockwork Mod Recovery. It replaces the stock Recovery Mode with one that lets you do cool stuff.

- Depending on what your phone has loaded, you may already have CWM which makes this easier. Take note of the version across the top of Recovery Mode and include that in your reply. It may save a step.

Download Mode- Download mode is like the 10lb sledgehammer of fixes. You should only need to get here once in a while, and it is correspondingly more annoying to get to. For this one, you need a computer and when you actually want to do something instead of just test if you can get here, you will need Odin (I mentioned it above) running on a Windows computer and a USB cable.

Power the phone OFF.
Remove the battery.
Open Odin on the PC and connect the cord to the phone (already connected to the PC)
Press-hold the volume rocker so both VOLUP and VOLDWN are depressed
While holding those buttons in, stick in the battery. (this can take practice)

You should get a yellow triangle digger bot on the phone screen, and Odin should show that it can see the phone. Pull the battery to shut off, and try it again a few times for familiarity. So long as you do not run Odin while doing this, you are in no risk.

Depending on what you have, will dictate the next steps :)
 
  • Like
Reactions: kbolt876
Build Number: GINGERBREAD.UCKH3
Baseband version: I897UCKH3

I have downloaded the following:
Odin3v1.85
Pinnacle_1.2
Pinnacle_1.3_Update
Should I get anything else?

I did get into Recovery mode but it was blue writing instead of green so I'm guessing CWM isn't on the phone. At the top of the screen I saw "Android system recovery <3e>".

When I went into Download mode, I realised after I pulled the battery the yellow digging Android was still on the screen. Was this because the phone was still plugged into the computer?
Also, I attached a screenshot of Odin after the phone was in Download mode. Is that how it should look?

Hope I haven't missed anything.
 
Also, how will I backup my files when I root? Ti Backup seems to need root access to backup anything, so how will I retain my apps for after the rooting process?
 
Yes, that is how Odin should look. Since you are already on KH3, you only need to flash the kernel with CWM for KH3-

[Kernel][KH3][KI1/KI2]Boog Kernel[Updated 9/29/11]w/Clockwork Recovery init.d support - xda-developers

Scroll down just a tad and download the ODIN flashable KH3. Should be in the form of a tar. You put that TAR file in the PHONE section on ODIN and would hit the button to flash. This would only replace the kernel, which should still leave you with a working phone. Then you would shut the phone down, start into Recovery, install ZIP from file, choose the Pinnacle 1.2zip and away you go.

As to your question about your apps... yeah, that is the stickler. I do not see a way to avoid doing the rebuild the long way this time. Any apps you paid for, the market will of course remember. But you are going to have to humpty dumpty your phone the long way, sans Titanium, this time. The folders for your apps will still be there, so hopefully your data will still be there... but it might not. Sucks. You can either make a list, or if you look at the MY FILES and browse your sdcard, you can usually see what apps you had from the folders those apps created, and install them one at a time from the Market.

Remember, it is to fix that suckiness that you are going through all this. Hopefully just this once.

If you do it, I would flash the kernel, go into recovery and flash Pinnacle. Go advanced menu in Recovery and Reboot into Recovery. Do a Factory wipe/reset and then reboot into Pinnacle. After going though initial setup, use the extended power menu (long press power button) to reboot into Recovery again and flash the 1.3 upgrade. Then enjoy.
 
  • Like
Reactions: kbolt876
Ok, I've downloaded boog_kh3_kernel3.TAR. That's the correct download, right?

I've attached a screenshot of Odin with the TAR file in the phone section. After I do that, I should just put the phone in Download mode, see that Odin has recognized my phone by the yellow bar coming up, and then click the Start button, right?

Also, I'm doing this with a Blackberry USB cable. My Captivate's USB cable is rather loose at the port on the phone so I don't use it much. Could the BB cable cause problems?

I apologize for the many questions, but as I'm new to this I'm very paranoid about possibly bricking my phone.
 
So long as it is a data micro-USB cable, which yours probably is, you are fine. If it works to transfer files when the phone is on, you are good. And you are absolutely correct in using your "best" cable for Odin. You do not want it to jiggle loose in the middle :).

I do not think it is possible to brick you phone with flashing a kernel. You might mess it up requiring more work with Odin to fix, but no bricks. Bootloaders is the only way I know to brick things, and you already have the GB ones, so you can avoid them.
 
Ok, this is good to know. Btw was that a yes to all the questions from my previous post? Hehe :-[ *tries to shake rooting fear*
 
So I flashed it, I think. See attachment please. Is that how it should look? After it was done the rebooted by itself.
 
CM is pretty easy. Here is a link to their wiki-
Samsung Captivate: Full Update Guide - CyanogenMod Wiki

A little ways down, under the heading FLASHING CYANOGENMOD- METHOD VIA RECOVERY is the easiest... once you get CWM going. Do the steps there, there are links to get the latest CM zip file and do not forget to get the gapps.zip as well, otherwise you will have no Market, etc. Flash these and do the cache format stuff in your new CWM when you flash that kernel.

Coming back FROM CM will require a one-click package via Odin, so keep that link from above handy.
 
  • Like
Reactions: kbolt876
Oh, so instead of Pinnacle I'd be installing CM?

Wow, so many questions now. May I bother you a bit more?
 
I've been told CM is great, so why don't you use it? Is Pinnacle really good too?

And I'm about to install CWM by following the instructions on the wiki page, but I realised it says "This guide assumes the Samsung Captivate already has Android 2.2 build UCKB1 (AT&T) or UXJL1 (Rogers) already installed on it."

So, I was wondering if there'd be any problems with me having 2.3.4 on my phone.
 
My phone is saying Mobile Network not available after the flashing I did awhile ago. :S It says Insert SIM card to access network services.
 
Last edited:
Go back into Recovery and flash CM or Pinnacle. The kernel flash was just to get you CWM :).

I had Bluetooth Audio trouble on CM, and the camera is not as good for quick point and shoots. I have three kids, two of them still pretty new... I need something to snap pics fast, and the hacked camera on roms like Pinnacle are much superior. Call quality is slightly worse on CM too, but that was not a deciding factor for me. The audio issue and the camera keep me on Samsung Captivate ROMs. And the battery life. Pinnacle is significantly better for battery life than CM.

EDIT- The CM instructions do still say to start from 2.1 or 2.2... but I do not think that is actually required now that it is known to work correctly with the Gingerbread bootloaders. If for some reason you cannot get CM to flash, that STOCK ROM page has a JF6 one-click package from WAY back. That would return your phone to 2.1 stock, which fits with the instructions... and also leaves you to have to root yourself again. Superoneclick root WILL work on 2.1.

But I think you are probably fine going from where you are.
 
So that's why I'm having the Mobile Network problem then?

And I haven't installed CWM yet, I was waiting on a reply. Flashing the kernel earlier was just to prepare the phone for CWM installation, or was it supposed to install CWM?