/extended rom/ - 8125, K-JAM, P4300, MDA Vario General

how do i get to the extended rom directory? i have a t-mobile mda and have total commander (reg editor) installed. I can't find the /extended rom/ directory and also don't really understand what is or what it is there for. i know this might sound like a remedial question to HTC Wizard experts, but if someone could help me I'd greatly appreciate it. Also, if it matters, I'm running xelecin's custom 2.26 ROM.
Thanks.

You won't see it by browsing.. just type in "/extended_rom" and TC will open it. Don't forget the underscore (_) character..
Gee - my first post!

thanks. i entered "/extended_rom" and it brought me to the directory. now that i know how to find it, what is it exactly there for? What is it's purpose. Also, can you access it from activesync? Thanks again for answering these questions.. i'm a beginner with PPCs, but I'm curious about how they work.
Thanks again.

Use the advanced search feature (under the search option tab) to look within the wizard updating forum for the term "extended rom", and you can start to understand how some of the rom developers utilize it (There are 12 pages of entries). These guys are the real 'wizards' - I could not begin to explain the way they do (I'm too new myself).

Your extended ROM contains all of your customizations. If it is a stock ROM it will have all of your carrier customizations. If you have a cooked Ext ROM it could have lots of things. One of the benefits is that if you have to completely clear out the storage it would re-install all the customizations that were in the ext rom.

barrydavisjr said:
...One of the benefits is that if you have to completely clear out the storage it would re-install all the customizations that were in the ext rom.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
so, in simple terms, if you were doing a hard reset (or clear storage in settings), the extended rom directory retains the files, and installs them if they are .cab files.. am I getting warm? Thanks for the info.

you got it. The carriers put it there so that one wouldn't have to call into tech support if you had to do a hard reset.

ok. i get this now. just a couple more questions..
-Do the .CAB files have to be in the main directory (/extended_rom/) or can they be in any subfolder?
-I was reading somewhere that it's a read-only directory.. is there a way to delete files, if so, can you delete the files one at a time or all once?
-finally, can you access the directory from active sync?
Thanks for all the help. I appreciate it.

As far as I know it is unable to be accessed through Active sync. And yes you can delete them off one by one. I would reccomend reading up on it. Faria has produced a wondrful guide on how to cook your extended ROM. When you delete a cab you also have to change the config settings in the notepad file. I have dabbled a little but Faria's guide will help you more.

!!!WARNING!!! if you delete the files from your ext rom and do a hard reset none of the carrier customizations will be installed.. furthermore.. you will not gain any extra space by deleting the cabs, it is a read only partition.. also with that being said, if you try to delete a file from there or add one you take a great risk of corrupting the ext rom and you will be forced to reflash the rom in order to get them back.

just one more question.. I have xelecin's 2.26 custom rom on my MDA. I'm thinking of switching over to either molski's or faria's latest rom. when i flash those roms, the extended rom from the current rom i'm using gets replaced with the custom rom's extended rom, right? does that make sense? Thanks for putting up with my dumb questions and actually answering them! Oh yeah, when i installed the rom i'm using now it did a CID unlock before flashing, so i assume my phone is still unlocked, right?
Thanks again for all the help. i really appreciate it.

thats right. - you'll get the new extended rom.

Extended Rom Contents
I only install a portion of the T-Mobile customization, which I accomplish by preventing the install of the extended rom. I have copied onto my miniSD the files I want to install, and then I just manually run the cabs from there. (Actually, that would erase them, so I copy them first.)
Then you can experiment with other ROMs, still getting the customizations that you need. Here is my thread on this topic:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=272613
I no longer install MP-Shorcut-MMS1-Voice-CV-TMUS-060404.CAB because that just adds MMS to the Messaging app and a shortcut for making voice tags and I don't use MMS.
By the way, it is really useful to install things like Total Commander, Memmaid, weather programs, RSS readers, Zagat, and so on to the miniSD, because then they don't need to be reinstalled after a hard reset. The only thing I have to do is add the shortcuts back, because shortcuts are erased after a hard reset. These programs will no longer auto-update, since nothing can run automatically from the miniSD, but with memmaid you can create automatic updates if you like.
Your backup program should always run from main memory! Also, programs that affect the today screen should also be run from main memory for increased speed. Pretty much everything else can go on the miniSD.

Related

Unlock Extended ROM

I just discoverd that I cannot modify the extended rom (using Total Commander, etc.) How does one unlock it so tht it may be modified?
Thanks,
Frank
fmcgirt said:
I just discoverd that I cannot modify the extended rom (using Total Commander, etc.) How does one unlock it so tht it may be modified?
Thanks,
Frank
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It can, just try again anad again, i did it on my 4th attemps
Cheers!
Thanks for the response but I haven't had any success after several tries. I tried installing the Wizard unlock cab file and afterwards with Total Commander, I can reset the Read Only bit on all the files and copy the files to my SD card. However, I am unable to delete any files. They appear to be deleted but come back after a soft reset. I would like to especially get rid of all the operator settings files. The rest of the stuff like Skype, Anti Virus and Backgammon I can get rid of using Settings>Remove Programs.
Frank
Isn't "ROM" short for "read only memory"?
hi, I am using Buzz's unlocker for Wizard... it made the ExtROM visible but still it is read only
I need to find how can I delete and add files to it.
Any challenging minds out there?
Total commander does not work with the jamin in my case anyway.
Tried several time with no results.
shahzadkhan15nov said:
hi, I am using Buzz's unlocker for Wizard... it made the ExtROM visible but still it is read only
I need to find how can I delete and add files to it.
Any challenging minds out there?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hi,
unlocker for wizard is not mine...
buzz
...well, if anyone can give me a dump of Prophet's bootloader + clean registry export, i can take a look at it..
buzz
Buzz,
Thanks for the great offer.
I can give you the clean reg but how can i get you the first part, bootloader thingie?
Regards
I have used the Wizard Extended ROM unlock program to unlock the ROM on my Prophet. I now have a copy of the Extended ROM on my SD Card. I'm not concerned about erasing the Extended ROM files, I just don't wan them installed, so I did a Hard Reset and just when it says that it will start installing the additional prorams in 3 seconds, I did a soft reset.
OK, now I have a Prophet without extended ROM. I can now install the stuff that I want.
Most of the cab files I've figured out, Does anyone know what the following extended ROM cabs do? This is from the latest Imate Jamin ROM.
Default_CAAVPPC_IMEI_2.6.77_range.CAB
Default_Imate_PPC_SA_V5.5.03.cab
Default_MP_Shortcut_MMS1_JAVA_VOICE_CV_051213.CAB
Default_PP_TSK.CAB
Default_PP_UAString.CAB
Default_PT_Signed_IconDll.sa.CAB
Default_PT_Signed_Patch_SD.sa.CAB
Thanks heaps,
Matterhorn
Default_CAAVPPC_IMEI_2.6.77_range.CAB is the anti-virus app which used to play havoc in slowing down the KJAM. Maybe this version is better but I uninstalled it using Remove Programs. About the rest I am not sure. At least you don't have Skype, backgammon and the Operator Settings files so I expect you will gain a fair amount.
Frank
you can use wince cab manager to see the content of the cab file.
Still nothing? Guess I will go the way of Matterhorn when I need to do a hard reset. Several others have not installed the Extended ROM at all and have reported significant speedup in the JAMin.
Frank
That would be me. I haven't installed one thing off the extended rom and my speed is really pretty good. You can see a video review at the link below to compare the m600 and the jamin (with no extended rom). Keep in mind I don't use mms, skype, antivirus anyway....so no big deal to leave off the ext rom. I also use adobe and don't need the clearview .pdf. Hope the video helps
http://www.howardforums.com/showthread.php?t=849592
Thanks, Mike. I don't use the stuff either except MMS once in a while but can just as easily use email for that. I presume Voice Dial is in the Extended Rom but rather have MS VC anyway and things like Connection Manager, Messaging, etc., that I want are not in the Extended ROM so I should be fine.
Now to find time to do a hard reset and re-install my apps.
Frank
Everyone has diffrent issues, I was able to delete the files from there (verified by refreshing the dir, and I recieved no read only error) but I was unable to write files to it, which I thought was very strange, I am using APA_ext_rom_unlock.exe and it does NOT give me the success msg it acts like it hasnt even ran. I updated my ROM to teh test one that was floating auround 2.8.7 whatever, and I realized too late that aWizard has no way to reflash teh extended ROM so I am without all my Cingular apps and I have all the 2.8.7 Extended rom stuff with the 1.8 Cingular OS ROM which I reverted back to. Any suggestions how I can replace my extended ROM ?
any luck so far?
Hi guys,
Are we getting any hope/luck to unlock Ext ROM for JAMin/Prophet?
I don't know how you guys are doing it. I have tried several times to delete items in my extended rom using total commander, at least 10 times and the result is the same. After the hard reset all that was deleted was re-installed after the reset.
I have contacted TC a while ago, and have not heard anything, maybe they are working on it.
Just curious....as I'm new to this ext rom stuff....but why don't you just "not install" the ext rom. Then use gsfinder to install whichever .cabs you want? If any? Just curious as I may be missing something. :roll:
mikewchandler said:
Just curious....as I'm new to this ext rom stuff....but why don't you just "not install" the ext rom. Then use gsfinder to install whichever .cabs you want? If any? Just curious as I may be missing something. :roll:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, I think the end result would be pretty much the same. For me I would like an Extended ROM for the JAMin that includes exacty what I want installed - no Backgammon, AntiVirus, Smart Dialing, Skype and a single Operator Settings file for TMO USA. Then when I hard reset I don't have to mess with anything else, just let it go. I had my KJAM setup that way and I would like the JAMin to be the same. I would also be as close to an OEM install as I can get (without the junk) so I don't have to worry about proper default settings not being there because of some file I didn't install or installed in the wrong order. Having said all this and thinking about it more I am sure you would get to the same point doing your procedure and then installing the required .cab files in the proper order.
Now I have a question:
Wonder what would happen if I did a hard reset, then did the soft reset to stop the Ext ROM install, installed the required .cab files in order, soft reset and then restored from a Sprite BU file. Wonder would I be restoring any files that could cause problems due to an imcomplete ROM install? I guess I will have to try that first since I do hate to re-install a bunch of apps and especially have to re-enter all the reg codes.
Frank

How to use the space in the Extended ROM?

Hi all,
I know that the Extended ROM for the HTC Universal can be "unlocked" so we can move files in and out and delete files in the Extended ROM, but can we actually convert the Extended ROM space in usable space?
Either by:
1) Resizing the Extended ROM and increasing the default ROM size.
OR
2) Installing programs directly into the Extended ROM itself and running it off from there without any problems.
Many thanks!
Hi there,
1.) nope, is not possible - size is fix for default ROM and extended ROM
2.) yup, works fine - instead of just installing to main memory or storage card you then have a third option usually called 'storage', so you have 10 MB more to install programs to.
Happy installing
Pat
Thought I read somewhere in this forum about the extended rom would slow the Jasjar down.
Is it true? I would love to get the 10Mb but hate to see it slow down again...
Based on what I know, it is TRUE that we can unlock the ExtROM, BUT we cannot use that free memory yet, as of now. That is why even if you delete the ExtROM you would not see an increase in your UNIVERSAL's memory. The only good thing with unlocking the Ext ROM in the UNIVERSAL is so we can customize the Ext ROM to our liking. It will not act the same as the built-in memory. You can't store and run applications from them. This is in the UNIVERSAL, please correct me if I am wrong. BUZZ and the others are still working on how to merge the freed-up memory on the Ext ROM so that we can use it.
i have apps installed into my extended rom and it works fine, i have some games and tcpmp in there, no issues whatso ever.
Carnivor said:
i have apps installed into my extended rom and it works fine, i have some games and tcpmp in there, no issues whatso ever.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
WOW, how did you do it? How did you install apps in there?
copy cabs to sd, run them, choose extendedrom as the location, job done,
using buzz ext rom unlock and the reg keys to make it visible in the file system,
I agree with Carnivor - everything I installed on Extended ROM works fine.
I only faced performance issues when installing applications on storage card.
If Stanip read somewhere, 'extended rom would slow down Jasjar' -> Maybe the meaning was, that your Jasjar might be slow IF you did not install the software which came in the extended rom.
In my case I installed the software from extended rom (which is done automatically when first time staring the device), then moved all extended memory content to my storage card and enjoyed the 10 MB extra space to install programs.
Carnivor said:
copy cabs to sd, run them, choose extendedrom as the location, job done,
using buzz ext rom unlock and the reg keys to make it visible in the file system,
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, I guess I can try it the next time I perform a hard reset. What are your apps installed in the extension ROM. You mentioned that not all of them run smoothly from there?
Another question please, if I do install apps in the Ext ROM after running BUZZ unlocker and the registry tweak, does this mean the installed application survives a hard reset because it is now installed in the Ext ROM?
that is a good question, i imagine all will stay resident, but be hidden only needing the reg changes to make it visible again,
i dont really know, just assuming
Carnivor said:
that is a good question, i imagine all will stay resident, but be hidden only needing the reg changes to make it visible again,
i dont really know, just assuming
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks. I guess I'll try it now. This is the only thing I hate, another hard reset. Why didn't I read this thread sooner. AHhhhhhhhh!
I'm running in Extended_Rom all pluiggins that used "today". I'm running this for weeks and goes perfectly.
If you want see applications, goes to my blog (in my sign) to see it. (Sorry, only in spanish)
Regards.
Sagit said:
I'm running in Extended_Rom all pluiggins that used "today". I'm running this for weeks and goes perfectly.
If you want see applications, goes to my blog (in my sign) to see it. (Sorry, only in spanish)
Regards.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't see clear advantages installing on the extended rom except if you try to install more programs that the limit of the memory for programs, is it ok?
Thanks for quick help guys. Just a few more quick questions.
- Where did I find the registry hack to make the Extended ROM visible? I take it that it will make it visible even on the normal File Explorer and Resco Explorer?
- Will existing backup programs backup/image the data on the Extended ROM?
beginner said:
Sagit said:
I'm running in Extended_Rom all pluiggins that used "today". I'm running this for weeks and goes perfectly.
If you want see applications, goes to my blog (in my sign) to see it. (Sorry, only in spanish)
Regards.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't see clear advantages installing on the extended rom except if you try to install more programs that the limit of the memory for programs, is it ok?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Also to leave more memory for exec programs and leave it running in background.
Regards
Can anyone confirm whether ext Rom is still available when battery becomes low?
Hey Ever1
just a quick question when you make the extended rom visible and install a software to run from the extended rom do you hidden the extended rom again or leave it visible.
If you leave it visible can you tell me how does the pda see the storage card has storage card or as storage card2.
Thank you
Gigino
i called my extended_rom ExtendedRom, else if you dont rename it you end up messy,
I leave it visible, it shows up in system stats that way
it shows up in resco as a chip based storage similar icon to the storage memory, but instead of the pda in the background behind the chip it has a folder behind the chip
I don't know how many times I wrote to this forum:
"DON'T INSTALL AND RUN APPLICATIONS FROM EXTENDED ROM"
because you can damage it. use storage card if you need more space.

Extended ROM; How can it be made useful?

Hi there,
I made visible the extended ROM of M600 with registry tweaks seen in this forum. I dont use any of the programs on the extended ROM, coz I dont like my phone to be customised for my service provider. (I soft reseted while it was trying to customize after the hard reset).
Now I have a 10MB of Ext ROM on "My Device". My qustions are;
1) Is this Ext ROM just like another 10MB SD Card?
2) WOuld this space make the my handheld run faster? or can this be made available fot programme memory?
3) Is there any advantage of installing programmes on it compared to on th SD Card?
Currently I have about 3MB of Orange CAB files on it. None of them I use.
How can I use this space efficiently?
Thanks in advance for any comments
ps: Another thing I just remembered is that, after I made this Ext ROM visible, I cant save the camera pics to SD card. The options on the camera settings are to save it on Main Memory or Ext ROM! it doesnt recognise SD card! funny! Any way around?
Anyone please..?
I order:
1) Yes it is exactly like a 10MB SD card, you just can't remove it from the device. If you need to hard reset it will become hidden again but the data will not be lost.
2) No. Program memory is RAM and this is FLASH. You can only use it for storage.
3) It is mounted before the SD, so if you have an app that needs to run on start up, you can put it on the ext ROM but not the SD.
4) I suggest you move the Orange cabs to your PC. Having the i-mate variant I had 9MB filled with stuff out of which all I needed were Skype and Voice speed dial. Then use this space for the basic and most needed apps. Also some apps like TCPMP can be used with content from different SD cards so ext ROM would be a good place for them. I try to keep main memory free for outlook stuff.
5) Yea, the camera app only seems to recognize the first storage card it sees. Don't know about a fix for that.
levenum said:
[...]
5) Yea, the camera app only seems to recognize the first storage card it sees. Don't know about a fix for that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you very much, Levenum!
I finally understood a bunch of things about the ExtROM.
About this 5th point, I would add something.
The same identical problem raises when the \Network path created by Resco Explorer is shown on the main memory root.
The internal camera seems able to access only to the first two objects in the mountpoint list (you can see this list when installing some apps, as the dest options radio button)
So, question comes out: what about hiding ExtROM again after installing startup apps on it ?
I mean: are those apps still runnable, when staying on a hidden mountpoint ?
Thanks for any answer
..._
Sorry to butt in on this topic, but I have also been thinking of doing this.
I would just like to know though once the Extended Rom has been unlocked as described in many past posts, can you lock it again?
I am just asking this because, what happens if I have to return the phone? Surely messing with it would void any warranty?
I would need to restore the CABS back to Extended Rom, and then lock it before returning it.
Thanks
Val3r10 said:
So, question comes out: what about hiding ExtROM again after installing startup apps on it ?
I mean: are those apps still runnable, when staying on a hidden mountpoint ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Interesting, I never tried it. Perhaps if you don't change the MountHidden flag, but only the MountOrder.
NewSPV said:
I would just like to know though once the Extended Rom has been unlocked as described in many past posts, can you lock it again?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't know about other devices, but in case of the Prophet it's just a matter of changing back the registry values and soft resetting.
Thanks for that.
I have already backed up my Extended Rom, as Total Commander let me copy the CABS without unlocking the Extended Rom.
Orange has only added 1.95 MB which seems such a waste of vital memory.
I have heard that approx 10 MB is set aside for this. Is this set physically in manufacture by HTC? Can the extended Rom be merged into main memory like partitions can be merged on a PC?
Thanks
I read somwhere that removing things from the extended rom gives the device more storage available and shown int he memory part of settings. This however is not true, the extended rom is a seperate partition, full or empty the device will work the same.
I use mine to store the cabs of installs I use when I hard reset. Saves me copying them over each time.
Thanks very much Levenum and others who contributed. That was very informative and I am glad many others have benefited with this thread.
Cheers
One note:
I made a little experiment this Friday, which require a me to restore my Jamin to it's original state. (Hard reset + restore ext ROM).
I didn't check the CAB attributes when I copied them so even though the ext ROM was in it's original state all cabs that were used after first hard rest were deleted and didn't install after second hard reset.
So when restoring your ext ROM make sure you mark all CABs 'read only'.
I unlock ExtRom and put mein cab, edit config.txt.
But after HardReset mein cab didn't installiert.
I think, dieses cab need to signen.
Help me please signen mein cab or any cab theoretically.
you also need the modified autorun.exe, the config file isnt read by the default one.
dannyoneill said:
you also need the modified autorun.exe, the config file isnt read by the default one.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
dannyoneill, wie kann man das machen? :shock:
..Sorry, how kan das make?
See this thread for more info
http://forum.xda-developers.com/viewtopic.php?t=38957&highlight=autorun
dannyoneill said:
See this thread for more info
http://forum.xda-developers.com/viewtopic.php?t=38957&highlight=autorun
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have renamed the file so:
my_file.cab -> Default_my_file.cab
All the same it is not installed!
There it is spoken about Wizard, i have O2 Xda Neo.
Where it is possible to take patched file Autorun.exe?
Can somebody to lay out it if it´s have?
Please, help me.
as the thread says, you cant just rename the file as it needs to be signed and designed for wm5 for it to isntall. To do your own cabs you need to have a special autorun.exe that reads a config file.

Automating Program Installs

Hey all,
I have a question.
I have been playing with my 8125 a lot lately and am constantly resetting my device. What I want to know is I have one main machine that I do all my application installs via active sync that way when I hard reset my device I just have to go to add remove programs in active sync and re-check all the programs I want to put back on my phone.
Here is what I want.
I don’t want to have to tell the phone where to install the applications (I want it to default to storage card without any prompts.) and.. I don’t want any confirmation prompts ie: security unsigned, approve this application to be installed, this application was installed properly… etc.. I want to streamline the process so I can just tick the check boxes for my apps, let them download and that’s it. Currently after refreshing I have to spend quite a bit of time clicking “ok” … storage card…. Ok… storage card… ok… I think you get it.
Thanks much!
I've seen a lot of different reg keys out there that may accomplis this. Is there a way to disable the notifications and pre-set the install path peramaters?
sledwrecker said:
I've seen a lot of different reg keys out there that may accomplis this. Is there a way to disable the notifications and pre-set the install path peramaters?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can do this with WinCE Cab manager
If you really reset your device that often why don't you use SPB BACKUP? A reinstallation of all your apps wouldn't be necessary - just load your backup and you're ready to go!
Ya I did think of that but here is my issue.
the reason I am constantly hard reseting is because I am changing and playing with roms pretty much on a daily basis. I've been cooking my own roms trying to come up with what works best for me and what is closest to RTM. Thus why I am always re-installing apps.
So if I use SPB backup (which I have) it saves system settings and such right? So if I am switching roms all the time will it break my device?
Thanks guys! I'm new to the forum here I just got my first PPC phone a couple weeks ago but I've been an avid windows mobile (smartphone) user for years and have worked on WM platforms as beta tester.
Gotta love this stuff!!!
sledwrecker said:
So if I use SPB backup (which I have) it saves system settings and such right? So if I am switching roms all the time will it break my device?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes you are exactly right, and so many people seem to miss this... Spb Backup, Sprite Backup, etc are full backups that backup and restore the registry and all. If you restore this from one rom to a different rom you are likely to break something (may not be obvious at first, but you have a very good chance of things being broken inside the registry that you will trip up on at some point).
So yeah, the only way around this (without building your own extended rom and such) is to create a folder (or set of folders) on your SD card with all the cabs, files, and settings that you need for when your flash a new rom. Then run through that to set things up. You can also use ActiveSync to reinstall apps (just check them all and it will put them all back on) but you have to remember which ones (if any) require a reset of your device as that can cause probs with the others that are installing (if all done together).
Yep,
but at least you can import contacts, email and pim data that way quite easy!
Since you continiously flash your device: there will be no other solution but reinstalling your applications again and again. You might want to look around for a CAB extractor and then create your own CABs with all the progs you would like to have in one large CAB ???
One such CAB Installer Creator is: WinCE CAB Manager
Take a closer look at MolskiBiz_DevPack and you will find a utility to extract CAB files. It will be a bit work to add all the registry values to the Installer you're going to create but finally you might save a lot of time since you only run 1 installation instead of xxx ...
This is good, I have been playing with wince cab and it is a solution.
Now I'm going to work on making my extended roms.. will this work? I did a full recover of my apps through active sync just an hour or two ago and it reported total size of all cabs as just over 112megs. That means I'd be flashing a MONSTER rom and would it even be possible?
2gig mini SD card.
thanks
I tried before to add some apps (cab installers) to a personalized extended rom but it never worked the way I wanted it to. You might have seen that you always have to give some inputs when ever you install programs, sometimes you get ask if you really want to install the app, sometimes you need to choose a location. So, if you add CAB installers UNCHANGED to the extended ROM it just won't install because during extended rom installation you have no way of providing that information.

[Q] Solution to delete cabs/other files that are part of (original) ROM?

Hello,
I am currently using an xda touch diamond that I have been configuring and
maintaining etc. with much devotion over the last ~two years... For that reason, I understandably fear flashing. However, I am running into the hardly-any-space-on-internal-storage-left-problem, and subsequently have been heavily searching for solutions that might enable the deletion of individual rom-files. I think I read twenty times, no, it's not possible. So my question is: Would it be possible to clone the complete device without any data/config loss whatsoever into a file (simililar to what sprite backup does), and in advance of flashing/whatever you will call the complete restore process actually DELETE certain files that used to be undeletable on the device itself.
Thanks for answering this....
Matthias
me1235 said:
Hello,
I am currently using an xda touch diamond that I have been configuring and
maintaining etc. with much devotion over the last ~two years... For that reason, I understandably fear flashing. However, I am running into the hardly-any-space-on-internal-storage-left-problem, and subsequently have been heavily searching for solutions that might enable the deletion of individual rom-files. I think I read twenty times, no, it's not possible. So my question is: Would it be possible to clone the complete device without any data/config loss whatsoever into a file (simililar to what sprite backup does), and in advance of flashing/whatever you will call the complete restore process actually DELETE certain files that used to be undeletable on the device itself.
Thanks for answering this....
Matthias
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You yourself are describing a 'playful' method of building a new ROM!
This is what ROM cooks do when a ROM is made. They remove or edit - files or folders that are inbuilt and add their custom folders to it and 'cook' it. So in a sense the answer is 'YES' you can remove what you don't like in your ROM. But NO you can't do it by your suggested method. You can cook a ROM yourself or ask a cook on forum to do you a favour and delete unwanted files from your ROM and you can flash custom ROM with better space on it - Flashing is not that bad to be honest! I have done it on my WinMo - uncountable times! More than the number of times you might have changed your wallpaper!
So just make sure you read instructions on how to do it. Back up all your data on storage card and contacts too! - there you are ready to go!
After first flash of new ROM you won't take more than 2 hours making your phone as it is! (and you get faster with each flash!)
yes, drupad2drupad is right,
what I would add, I know what you mean, been facing the same decision. Spend year customizing and didn't want to loose it, on the other hand phone become slow and full. Well if there was a simple solution to this, this forum would be 95% smaller. there isn't any universal solution.
you will loose something. some settings, (registry or config files), some customizing. etc.
by using different backup programs or by setting them differently, you can trigger how much to backup, and how much to revert. BUT if you backup everything, (all registry and all files) after flashing you are right where you was. no big change.
what I do is I copy all int.memory to SD card, export all registry, backup only messages (contacts and calendar are in file pim.vol, if you end all programs and disable today plugins, you should be able to copy there and back this too, not loosing nothing by backup converting)
then flashing new rom, restore messages, copy pim.vol back and then slowly, restoring setting for each program I care to do so.
it's either a file in \program files or in \windows or a part of registry. there you open your big exported reg file, search for a name of program and cut,paste to empty reg file and import.
I made a backup script to do this automatically, but it's not possible to make it universal, it will backup only those programs it's set to backup.
back to you question about deleting rom files. you can, after a fashion, but deleting such will only add info to ignore this rom file. which means, rom file stays, but is not visible. thought, you can clean your int memory. removing temp and accumulated useless files, moving programs you use rarely to SD, but this is very time consuming and advance thing to do.
thanks
first of all, thanks to the two of you for such devoted answers! thanks a lot , really.
My guess is it will take me (I'm quite obsessive) 6-10 hours -- research etc. to make sure everything will definitely go fine and finally restore everything to the prior state. Never having messed around with flashing etc., I think it's too much effort to gain some lousy 20 mb.
I still really appreciate your answers. It's a shame there is no universal method to do this is a few steps, with some utility, for everyone...
So I was wondering, what do you think, on a system like the touch diamond, running windows mobile 6.1, with I think ~100 mb internal storage, how many mb should in your opinion at any point in time be free space, to ensure things are running smooth? (And, I suppose/hope flash memory deterioration due to little space left is not that much of an issue...)
Else I'd go as far as "donating" some chrismas bucks to some kindred spirit in guiding me through the process, I just don't have the nerve to do this, for 10 mb... never again will I buy a device that has too small internal storage!
thanks to everyone...
matthias
(edit) ps.: I find it funny that the files in rom can store data (like the 16 MB mxip initdb.vol which is said to carry contacs I believe) - for the novice, like myself, it's kind of difficult to understand why files can be written to, but not decreased in size to free up memory somehow - or do they have a "size limit" / "fixed size"?) but anyway, you need not comment on this.
There is a way that you can reduce your file storage size quite easily....
Thanks to AnDim, see here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=377514.
Do the following steps:
1. Use a back-up tool such as Resco Backup and make a back-up on your storage card.
2. Use Total Commander and copy all of the files in your Windows directory that are NOT part of the ROM. You can do this quite easily by chosing the "Hide files in Rom" part. Then copy and save these files on your desktop.
3. Use AnDim's HTC ROM Image Editor. Open your original rom with this (I hope you have it).
4. Add the files you copied from your desktop to the rom you opened with AnDim's tool.
5. Delete any duplicate files that were in the original rom from the ones you just copied.
6. Save the new rom and flash it.
7. Use Resco Back-up to restore your original rom.
8. Use Total Commander to delete the files created by Resco Back-Up in your Windows folder that you had previously added to the rom.
After all of this, you will find you have much more storage space and a quicker rom because all of the files you added that overwrote a rom file will no longer have duplicate files and also rom files take up less storage space.
Good luck!
hi mitsi,
thanks for that post, highly appreciated! this looks like a solution to the problem I described -- After doing some time-consuming cleanup, I now have some ~10 MB free, so I think I'll wait for this to decrease down to let's say 5MB in the future, and then follow your steps -- which seem to be advanced, but feasible. This is really a great hint. Hope others who run into the same problem will find this thread helpful too. I'm really impressed with quality and helpfulness in this forum, outstanding. Will have to go out and help others where I can now to compensate for my bad conscience
Grüße nach Berlin aus dem Schwarzwald!
M.
I recommend using SPB backup.
I used that program to do what you wanted to do ever since I used Axim x5 (currently TP2).
I have it set up so it automatically make a backup every week on Sunday, so just in case if something goes wrong (bad cab or driver) I can have most of important changes and not LOSE a thing.
So, good luck : )

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