[HACKS] Root Droid 1 - regardless of OS version

[gibby540]

Just rooted FRG22D with no problems on the first try. Windows Vista. Sweet. dancedroid

 

[MotoCache1]

I'm going to be tied up for a little while as I'm re-reading all 39 pages of this topic to write the new "Frequently Encountered Issues" section in the OP. I may not finish before I decide I have to go to bed, we'll see how it goes...

OK, the "Frequently Encountered Issues" and "Frequently Asked Questions" sections are now in the OP. I think they cover all of the problems and issues that have come up in the topic that are actually related to the topic. I got it done in right about 3 hours, which is about what I expected it would take. Since it's almost 6:30a (ET) I think it would be a good idea if I went to bed now. I really need to start sleeping for more than 2 hours a night, or so my wife tells me.

 

[DoctorDeDroid]

At this point...

This how-to was wonderful at the get-go. Now it's simply stupendous... a brilliant technical tour-de-force and a standard against which all other procedures will be measured. NOTHING else comes close. Not only how, but also what and why are answered. The tons of questions I had to know the answers to before I'd even consider rooting are now answered. Without a doubt, the greatest work since DaVinci.

Thank you, MotoCache1 and everyone else that contributed.

 

[MotoCache1]

This how-to was wonderful at the get-go. Now it's simply stupendous... a brilliant technical tour-de-force and a standard against which all other procedures will be measured. NOTHING else comes close. Not only how, but also what and why are answered. The tons of questions I had to know the answers to before I'd even consider rooting are now answered. Without a doubt, the greatest work since DaVinci.

Thank you, MotoCache1 and everyone else that contributed.

Wow. That was a heckuva compliment and I appreciate it immensely. I especially appreciate that you recognized the many people that have contributed their experience and knowledge to this topic -- especially in the area of resolution of odd problems on disparate systems.

 

[DroidGerry]

Thanks MotoCache1

I couldn't agree more with DoctorDeDroid. Your detailed steps were fantastic. Until I ready your post, I could not get the process of using RSD Lite correctly to get the sbf file to flash on my phone. I couldn't even get it to see/recognize my phone. I made the mistake of posting the FRG22D OTA update on my phone and lost root. Now I have root back and the FRG22D running. I think my next step will be to put the new ROM Cyanogenmod on my phone and get away from the stock ROM. You're the best. Thanks.

 

[chico]

You probably need to do "Umount /sdcard" if you mounted your SD card to ADB the file to it. Let me know if that fixes it.

Well, I never used ADB. I transferred the update.zip to the sdcard using my Mac to avoid any confusion over any redundant .zip extensions. I did this only after putting update.zip on the sdcard using the XP machine previously and getting the same abort condition. So I still don't know what to do next.

Hey, Motocache, you really work late!

Yeah - I've got myself into a pretty stupid sleep schedule right now. Mess with this stuff until 5, 6, 7 am, sleep for a couple hours, and then get back up. I must be insane.

Your error [E:Can't mount /dev/block/mmcblk0p1 (or /dev/block/mmcblk0)] means that SPRecovery couldn't get to your SD card.

I'd suggest the following:

1. Make sure the phone is not connected to your computer when you're trying to do the SPRecovery part. The file should already be on your SD card, so no need to have it connected to the computer at this point.
2. Make sure that under "mount options" (in SPRecovery, off the main menu) you see "Mount /sdcard". If you see "Umount /sdcard" that means your SD card is mounted and you should hit that option to unmount it.
3. Also in "mount options", make sure you see "Enable USB Mass Storage". If you see "Disable USB Mass Storage" that means your SD card is set to be controlled by your computer and won't be available to SPRecovery.
4. After #1, #2, and #3, then go back to the main menu (use the power button to back up menu levels) and try "install", "Allow...", "Install...".

Let me know if this fixes it.

Well, I've followed your advice, but there is no change in the behavior or error message. Installation is still aborted.

When I go to the "mount options" screen, I see the following:

Mounted partitions: /cache

Mount /system
Mount /data
Umount /cache
Mount /sdcard
Enable USB Mass Storage

So everything seems to be as it should be. As long as I don't reboot, I've still got SPRecovery, so I''ll try a few things:

1. From main menu "wipe cache partition":

-- Wiping cache...
Formattting CACHE:...
Cache wipe complete.

Then I try the install again. Problem persists.

2. Back in mount options, when I "Mount /system", it appears to work normally reporting Mounted /system. Mount and Umount for /system, /data, and /cache all appear to work normally without error messages. "Enable(&Disable) USB Mass Storage" works without error

3. However, when I attempt "Mount /sdcard":

E:Can't mount /dev/block/mmcblk0p1 (or /dev/block/mmcblk0)
(No such file or directory)
Mounted /sdcard

So it tells me that it can't mount those directories, but still tells me it has mounted the sdcard, and gives me status at the top that the sdcard is mounted, currently:

Mounted partitions: /cache /sdcard

Umount /sdcard works without error message

Mount /sdcard always gives me the same behaviour regardless of what other partitions are mounted or whether USB Mass Storage is enabled or not. (Not that those should affect anything, but I just want to let you know everything I'm trying).

I've Googled around a bit and come across other forums where people have had the same error messages, and so far I haven't found a definite solution. There are several reports that if you just reboot or restart SPRecovery a bunch of times (it's not clear to me which), eventually it works. But those folks seem to be rooted already, so I think their SPRecovery doesn't get wiped in a reboot I guess. It's also not clear if reformatting the sdcard has any effect. Some seem to get it to work, but most report no change after reformatting or trying different sd cards.

I'm trying to think of any other info that might have got me to this state. When I first got the phone, I rooted using RSDLite from a Windows 7 machine and I didn't have this problem. I lost my root when I installed the OTA FRG22D Verizon update. I really just wanted to get rid of the nag screen constantly telling me to update. I thought Clockworkmod recovery would block the install, but it didn't.

When the phone is booted normally, I move Google Earth to the sdcard and can run perfectly fine with it there, so the sdcard seems to be working with the phone.

Anything else you might suggest I try? Again, all your help is greatly apprecitated.

 

[guidot]

Haha. As I suspected I flashed the sbf file correctly and caught the reboot, but my grubby mitts hit the camera button while trying to close the keyboard so it rebooted into FRS!

I may try again later, but for now I'm spent.

 

[chico]

Well, I never used ADB. I transferred the update.zip to the sdcard using my Mac to avoid any confusion over any redundant .zip extensions. I did this only after putting update.zip on the sdcard using the XP machine previously and getting the same abort condition. So I still don't know what to do next.

Hey, Motocache, you really work late!

Yeah - I've got myself into a pretty stupid sleep schedule right now. Mess with this stuff until 5, 6, 7 am, sleep for a couple hours, and then get back up. I must be insane.

Your error [E:Can't mount /dev/block/mmcblk0p1 (or /dev/block/mmcblk0)] means that SPRecovery couldn't get to your SD card.

I'd suggest the following:

1. Make sure the phone is not connected to your computer when you're trying to do the SPRecovery part. The file should already be on your SD card, so no need to have it connected to the computer at this point.
2. Make sure that under "mount options" (in SPRecovery, off the main menu) you see "Mount /sdcard". If you see "Umount /sdcard" that means your SD card is mounted and you should hit that option to unmount it.
3. Also in "mount options", make sure you see "Enable USB Mass Storage". If you see "Disable USB Mass Storage" that means your SD card is set to be controlled by your computer and won't be available to SPRecovery.
4. After #1, #2, and #3, then go back to the main menu (use the power button to back up menu levels) and try "install", "Allow...", "Install...".

Let me know if this fixes it.

Well, I've followed your advice, but there is no change in the behavior or error message. Installation is still aborted.

When I go to the "mount options" screen, I see the following:

Mounted partitions: /cache

Mount /system
Mount /data
Umount /cache
Mount /sdcard
Enable USB Mass Storage

So everything seems to be as it should be. As long as I don't reboot, I've still got SPRecovery, so I''ll try a few things:

1. From main menu "wipe cache partition":

-- Wiping cache...
Formattting CACHE:...
Cache wipe complete.

Then I try the install again. Problem persists.

2. Back in mount options, when I "Mount /system", it appears to work normally reporting Mounted /system. Mount and Umount for /system, /data, and /cache all appear to work normally without error messages. "Enable(&Disable) USB Mass Storage" works without error

3. However, when I attempt "Mount /sdcard":

E:Can't mount /dev/block/mmcblk0p1 (or /dev/block/mmcblk0)
(No such file or directory)
Mounted /sdcard

So it tells me that it can't mount those directories, but still tells me it has mounted the sdcard, and gives me status at the top that the sdcard is mounted, currently:

Mounted partitions: /cache /sdcard

Umount /sdcard works without error message

Mount /sdcard always gives me the same behaviour regardless of what other partitions are mounted or whether USB Mass Storage is enabled or not. (Not that those should affect anything, but I just want to let you know everything I'm trying).

I've Googled around a bit and come across other forums where people have had the same error messages, and so far I haven't found a definite solution. There are several reports that if you just reboot or restart SPRecovery a bunch of times (it's not clear to me which), eventually it works. But those folks seem to be rooted already, so I think their SPRecovery doesn't get wiped in a reboot I guess. It's also not clear if reformatting the sdcard has any effect. Some seem to get it to work, but most report no change after reformatting or trying different sd cards.

I'm trying to think of any other info that might have got me to this state. When I first got the phone, I rooted using RSDLite from a Windows 7 machine and I didn't have this problem. I lost my root when I installed the OTA FRG22D Verizon update. I really just wanted to get rid of the nag screen constantly telling me to update. I thought Clockworkmod recovery would block the install, but it didn't.

When the phone is booted normally, I move Google Earth to the sdcard and can run perfectly fine with it there, so the sdcard seems to be working with the phone.

Anything else you might suggest I try? Again, all your help is greatly apprecitated.

One more thought: could I have messed up permissions by not properly unmounting from the XP machine before disconnecting the phone? The sdcard shows up as the E: drive under my computer. I ejected from there and then double-click the E: drive icon to confirm that it can't be read anymore before turning off USB mount on the phone and disconnecting the cable. I have very little knowledge of how XP handles the mounting and unmounting.

 

[MotoCache1]

Just a little tweak to the OP -- I added a screen shot of what "stock recovery" looks like. You pretty much never see screen shots of the stock recovery screen because there's no decent way to get one (since ADB isn't running and of course you can't run something like Drocap). For folks that are new, I think having the picture will be helpful. Lots of folks think their phone is broken if they get that screen.

 

[Rastin]

Hello everyone, new to rooting here. First off I want to say I read all the instructions posted here in this thread and it was incredibly easy to follow and understand so thank you very very much for all the hardwork that went into it. I do have one problem that keeps reoccurring however and I cannot seem to find out why. I renamed the file "MotoCache1_Complete_Root_v1.1-update.zip" to just "update.zip" followed all steps fine, but when it comes time to install the update.zip file I keep getting an this:

-- Install from sdcard...
Finding update package...
Opening update package...
Verifying update package...
E:update.zip install blocked
Installation aborted.

Can someone please help me out with a fix for this? Much appreciated.
Oh and my battery is at 100% right now

 

[guidot]

Possibly because you didn't select "allow update.zip" before you tried to install it...

 

[Rastin]

Ok so apparently "read every step" wasn't quite accurate. Thanks...totally skipped over that. Brain fart 1 Rastin 0

 

[guidot]

No problem! Did you read my previous post? Haha.

 

[Disabled]

Well, I never used ADB. I transferred the update.zip to the sdcard using my Mac to avoid any confusion over any redundant .zip extensions. I did this only after putting update.zip on the sdcard using the XP machine previously and getting the same abort condition. So I still don't know what to do next.

Hey, Motocache, you really work late!

Yeah - I've got myself into a pretty stupid sleep schedule right now. Mess with this stuff until 5, 6, 7 am, sleep for a couple hours, and then get back up. I must be insane.

Your error [E:Can't mount /dev/block/mmcblk0p1 (or /dev/block/mmcblk0)] means that SPRecovery couldn't get to your SD card.

I'd suggest the following:

1. Make sure the phone is not connected to your computer when you're trying to do the SPRecovery part. The file should already be on your SD card, so no need to have it connected to the computer at this point.
2. Make sure that under "mount options" (in SPRecovery, off the main menu) you see "Mount /sdcard". If you see "Umount /sdcard" that means your SD card is mounted and you should hit that option to unmount it.
3. Also in "mount options", make sure you see "Enable USB Mass Storage". If you see "Disable USB Mass Storage" that means your SD card is set to be controlled by your computer and won't be available to SPRecovery.
4. After #1, #2, and #3, then go back to the main menu (use the power button to back up menu levels) and try "install", "Allow...", "Install...".

Let me know if this fixes it.

Well, I've followed your advice, but there is no change in the behavior or error message. Installation is still aborted.

When I go to the "mount options" screen, I see the following:

Mounted partitions: /cache

Mount /system
Mount /data
Umount /cache
Mount /sdcard
Enable USB Mass Storage

So everything seems to be as it should be. As long as I don't reboot, I've still got SPRecovery, so I''ll try a few things:

1. From main menu "wipe cache partition":

-- Wiping cache...
Formattting CACHE:...
Cache wipe complete.

Then I try the install again. Problem persists.

2. Back in mount options, when I "Mount /system", it appears to work normally reporting Mounted /system. Mount and Umount for /system, /data, and /cache all appear to work normally without error messages. "Enable(&Disable) USB Mass Storage" works without error

3. However, when I attempt "Mount /sdcard":

E:Can't mount /dev/block/mmcblk0p1 (or /dev/block/mmcblk0)
(No such file or directory)
Mounted /sdcard

So it tells me that it can't mount those directories, but still tells me it has mounted the sdcard, and gives me status at the top that the sdcard is mounted, currently:

Mounted partitions: /cache /sdcard

Umount /sdcard works without error message

Mount /sdcard always gives me the same behaviour regardless of what other partitions are mounted or whether USB Mass Storage is enabled or not. (Not that those should affect anything, but I just want to let you know everything I'm trying).

I've Googled around a bit and come across other forums where people have had the same error messages, and so far I haven't found a definite solution. There are several reports that if you just reboot or restart SPRecovery a bunch of times (it's not clear to me which), eventually it works. But those folks seem to be rooted already, so I think their SPRecovery doesn't get wiped in a reboot I guess. It's also not clear if reformatting the sdcard has any effect. Some seem to get it to work, but most report no change after reformatting or trying different sd cards.

I'm trying to think of any other info that might have got me to this state. When I first got the phone, I rooted using RSDLite from a Windows 7 machine and I didn't have this problem. I lost my root when I installed the OTA FRG22D Verizon update. I really just wanted to get rid of the nag screen constantly telling me to update. I thought Clockworkmod recovery would block the install, but it didn't.

When the phone is booted normally, I move Google Earth to the sdcard and can run perfectly fine with it there, so the sdcard seems to be working with the phone.

Anything else you might suggest I try? Again, all your help is greatly apprecitated.

I have the exact same problem and also could not find a definite solution either. It seems like this issue is the only thing in my way to rooting my phone as I have everything else working fine.

As stated, any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[M@rshy]

So I'm getting kinda nervous... I followed all of the instructions.
Now my phone is trying to boot. It does the Droid thing then looks like its going to go to the red eye but stops part of the way in then goes back to the Droid.
Its been like this for a few minutes now..