Hi,
First allow me to apologize if I asked some basic-knowledge questions as I'm new to this flashing business.
I got the following steps from livgadget website in order to downgrade to 4.1.2.
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Download and Install Odin v3.09.
Install necessary USB drivers for your Galaxy Note 2 from Samsung Official Support website.
Enable USB Debugging in Developer Options of your Galaxy Note 2. (SETTINGS > DEVELOPER OPTIONS > Check USB debugging mode)
Download Android 4.1.2 firmware for your particular Galaxy Note 2 device model (eg. GT-N7100) from Sam Mobile?s Firmware Page.
Extract the Galaxy Note 2 .zip firmware file you have downloaded from Sam Mobile. You will find .tar.md5 files inside the .zip file.
Power Off your Galaxy Note 2.
Restart your Galaxy Note 2 in download mode by pressing Volume Down, Power and Home Button simultaneously.
Open Odin and connect your Galaxy Note 2 to PC via USB cable.
Wait till Odin recognizes your Galaxy Note 2 ( A blue box will appear when your Galaxy Note 2 is recognized).
In Odin File Selection (Download) Section, select the .tar.md5 files you have extracted from Sam Mobile Firmware .zip archive.
If there is only one file in Sam Mobile Firmware, then select it in download box. If there are multiple .tar.md5 files, then select all files in Odin?s file selection boxes.
Check the repartition box in Odin and make sure it is unchecked.
Click Start and wait for your Galaxy Note 2 to restart.
If your Galaxy Note 2 doesn?t reboot on its own, then enter Recovery Mode by pressing Volume Up, Power and Home buttons simultaneously.
Perform Data Wipe (or Factory Reset) and wipe Cache Partition.
Reboot your device again to the Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean.
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I'm based at Cairo, Egypt but I bought my mobile from Saudi Arabia. I downloaded "N7100XXDMC3_N7100OJVDMC1_KSA" from Sam Mobile and I tried all the above steps using Odin v3.09 and Odin3 v3.07 to download the file on the device but the process failed on both instead it gave me the message that software upgrade failed and I need to restore it using Kies. I managed to get back the device to work by flashing Philz recovery via Odin.
My question now, am I using the right file to download on my device? Is there anything else I need to do first before trying to downgrade?
I read in some articles that KNOX prevents the downgrading process. I pressed the icon and it wanted me to install it but I didn't anyway but I couldn't remove the app completely as it is a system app.