How to fix 99.99% of all rom problems.
(I.E. Basic Android Troubleshooting)
Rom developers often get the same questions over and over, most have the same answer.
The biggest cause of problems regarding roms are due to a bad install, this can be due to the flash not taking, incomplete wipe, bad download and more. The second biggest cause of problems is restoring bad data.
Your LAST resort, not your first, should be to contact the developer and make sure your problem is not a rom problem. These things are the first things they are going to ask to do before they take your bug report seriously. This is for a variety of reasons, but the biggest reason we want you to go through all of this is because hundreds run our roms, if there was a major issue, more than just one person will find it. if the rom is popular, it's usually found within the first 20 minutes of release. Minor hidden things may take a bit longer but not too long. As soon as a problem is known, almost every dev will either remove a rom until it is fixed or at least warn people of the problem, depending on severity. If they don't you need to find a new rom.
Before starting...
Try and determine if the rom and recovery is compatible with your phone.
Older phones can use all of the roms and recoveries, newer phones are quite limited. Newer phones should stick to Harmonia 1x or IHO based Cyanogenmod roms such as Backside, Bobzhome, Mirage and Harmonia 2. For recoveries, I recommend using Bobzhome IHO recovery simply because I know it works on all phones, but there are others. A link to Bobzhome recovery is at the end. Try not to replace your rom and recovery at the same time. So long as one works, fixing any problems is easy.
If you take only one thing from all of this, ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS make a Nandroid backup before you install a rom. For recoveries, do one before and another after, this way you still have one that works with either recovery. A Nandroid can fix most mistakes.
If you do all of this, and you still have a problem, then contact the dev.
(I.E. Basic Android Troubleshooting)
Rom developers often get the same questions over and over, most have the same answer.
The biggest cause of problems regarding roms are due to a bad install, this can be due to the flash not taking, incomplete wipe, bad download and more. The second biggest cause of problems is restoring bad data.
Your LAST resort, not your first, should be to contact the developer and make sure your problem is not a rom problem. These things are the first things they are going to ask to do before they take your bug report seriously. This is for a variety of reasons, but the biggest reason we want you to go through all of this is because hundreds run our roms, if there was a major issue, more than just one person will find it. if the rom is popular, it's usually found within the first 20 minutes of release. Minor hidden things may take a bit longer but not too long. As soon as a problem is known, almost every dev will either remove a rom until it is fixed or at least warn people of the problem, depending on severity. If they don't you need to find a new rom.
Before starting...
Try and determine if the rom and recovery is compatible with your phone.
Older phones can use all of the roms and recoveries, newer phones are quite limited. Newer phones should stick to Harmonia 1x or IHO based Cyanogenmod roms such as Backside, Bobzhome, Mirage and Harmonia 2. For recoveries, I recommend using Bobzhome IHO recovery simply because I know it works on all phones, but there are others. A link to Bobzhome recovery is at the end. Try not to replace your rom and recovery at the same time. So long as one works, fixing any problems is easy.
If you take only one thing from all of this, ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS make a Nandroid backup before you install a rom. For recoveries, do one before and another after, this way you still have one that works with either recovery. A Nandroid can fix most mistakes.
Installing your rom
Disable any overclock you may be using.
Backup everything (link to guide at the end of this post)
Backup your sdcard to your computer.
Insert the card into the phone, boot into recovery and format the sdcard.
Download a fresh copy of the rom you want to use.
Put the rom.zip on your sdcard and run an md5 check, as it is sitting on the sdcard. (link to guide at the end of this post)
Properly, completely wipe the phone. (link to guide at the end of this post)
Install the rom
Important steps after you have installed your rom and have rebooted:
DO NOT restore anything except contacts through sync.
Download only a few programs fresh from the market and do not restore any data (except contacts). This is especially important for system settings. If things seem stable, you can try restoring some apps, and again see how things run. Again, no data! If things are stable you can then start restoring some of your data/setting.
The only system data I recommend restoring is MMS and SMS messages.
Leave your overclock at stock speed until you determine everything else is stable. Then set it manually, don't restore it with an app.
If you do all of this, and you still have a problem, then contact the dev.
Notes
Bad/improper formatting of the sdcard has been known to cause reboots. Always format cards with the device it will be used in. Computers are more forgiving than devices.
Transferring data, especially through usb (which has little to no error correction) is particularly prone to corrupting data. This includes USB cables and card readers. This is why you have to do an MD5 check on the zip after it is put onto the sdcard. Many only do this if they are having problems.
Recoveries, guides and tutorials
Bobzhome Recovery
Link
Using MD5 to verify your rom
What is md5 and how to use it to verify your download.
Properly wipe your phone
http://forums.androidcentral.com/op...pe-your-android-update-clear-new-rom-etc.html
Guide to backing up
http://forum.androidcentral.com/opt...tore-mybackup-pro-fast-easy-reliable-way.html
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