Database Users

[Q] Returning Galaxy S4 (rooted) for a new one. Please help. (or unroot help)

So yesterday when AT&T announced 50% off of smartphones I was pretty dumbfounded since I got a brand new S4 the day before. But the day I got it I rooted it and did all the other stuff. I will return my S4 for a new one but it's impossible for me to unroot. Everything I've done doesn't seem to work. I used Odin but it stops at the "Get PIT for mapping" stage. I tried deleting SuperSU but that didn't work. It made things worse because it said I'm not rooted but I still am. Now I can't even go to recovery. And I can't even connect to Kies. Can anyone help me unroot my device or help me be able to return my device when it's rooted?

joecereal said:
So yesterday when AT&T announced 50% off of smartphones I was pretty dumbfounded since I got a brand new S4 the day before. But the day I got it I rooted it and did all the other stuff. I will return my S4 for a new one but it's impossible for me to unroot. Everything I've done doesn't seem to work. I used Odin but it stops at the "Get PIT for mapping" stage. I tried deleting SuperSU but that didn't work. It made things worse because it said I'm not rooted but I still am. Now I can't even go to recovery. And I can't even connect to Kies. Can anyone help me unroot my device or help me be able to return my device when it's rooted?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would think the tools section of Kies will have an option that will work. Connection trouble shoot first then emergency recovery. If your phone boots, you should be able to reset it to out of the box state.
If it's still rooted, try triangle away app.
If you go to settings, more, about device, build number, then tap on build number repeatedly it will restore developer options, if it's not shown now. From there you can enable or disable USB debugging. That might help with Odin. Wish I had more answers for ya.
Also try settings, accounts, backup and reset, factory data reset.

fast96 said:
I would think the tools section of Kies will have an option that will work. Connection trouble shoot first then emergency recovery. If your phone boots, you should be able to reset it to out of the box state.
If you go to settings, more, about device, build number, then tap on build number repeatedly it will restore developer options, if it's not shown now. From there you can enable or disable USB debugging. That might help with Odin. Wish I had more answers for ya.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for your answer. I will try it out now. Little more information is that I'm using the Pacman ROM.

joecereal said:
Thank you for your answer. I will try it out now. Little more information is that I'm using the Pacman ROM.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you know how to enter the download mode? If so then odin should recognize it. I think it's "hold the power button, down volume, and home button" till it instructs you to let got and hit the up volume button. The connect it to the pc for odin.

fast96 said:
Do you know how to enter the download mode? If so then odin should recognize it. I think it's "hold the power button, down volume, and home button" till it instructs you to let got and hit the up volume button. The connect it to the pc for odin.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes I'm trying the Odin process. It's working so far except it stops at "Get PIT for mapping..." which is here i.imgur.com/z8fnjRd (add png to the end)
Kies is not recognizing my device after troubleshoot. It is stuck at "Connecting..." which prevents me from emergency firmware recovery.
There are two options that will help me the most:
Connecting to Kies and getting a PIT file for Odin

joecereal said:
Yes I'm trying the Odin process. It's working so far except it stops at "Get PIT for mapping..." which is here i.imgur.com/z8fnjRd (add png to the end)
Kies is not recognizing my device. It is stuck at "Connecting..." which prevents me from emergency firmware recovery.
There are two options that will help me the most:
Connecting to Kies and getting a PIT file for Odin
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is your phone a US AT&T model I337? There is a stock recovery rom in this forum somewhere, it's a zip file when extracted it will have a tar.MD5 file for use with odin. Or maybe you should use the PDA selection in odin, and uncheck the reboot box.

fast96 said:
Is your phone a US AT&T model I377? There is a stock recovery rom in this forum somewhere, it's a zip file when extracted it will have a tar.MD5 file for use with odin. Or maybe you should use the PDA selection in odin, and uncheck the reboot box.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you see the imgur picture I posted? I have the tar file and did everything from instruction, but I only need the PIT file.

OK here it is , read the first three posts..... http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=42108461
:fingers-crossed:

fast96 said:
OK here it is , read the first three posts..... http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=42108461
:fingers-crossed:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm trying something with SuperSu. Thank you for your time.

Did you try going into super su and tried the full unroot option??
Sent from my SGH-I337M using xda premium

thatsupnow said:
Did you try going into super su and tried the full unroot option??
Sent from my SGH-I337M using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm going to do it right now. Will this ensure "full" unroot?

thatsupnow said:
Did you try going into super su and tried the full unroot option??
Sent from my SGH-I337M using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm following forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=33949289&postcount=51 this process but before I unroot I cannot access my recovery. If I unroot will I be able to?
I just don't want anymore problems

Why don't you just call cs and get credit for the difference instead of returning it. You're going to get another s4 anyways.

getbuzzin said:
Why don't you just call cs and get credit for the difference instead of returning it. You're going to get another s4 anyways.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah I might do that now, but I want to fix everything first then start new.

Everyone I now know what I really want to do. I want to flash the stock ROM. But this is impossible with http://i.imgur.com/z8fnjRd.png "Get PIT for mapping" is stopping me, which is very frustrating.

Just throwing out some ideas. Try a different cable if you got another one. Try plugging into a usb port in back of computer. You could try to re download the file again using a different mirror. Could just be a bad download. Anyways good luck.

getbuzzin said:
Just throwing out some ideas. Try a different cable if you got another one. Try plugging into a usb port in back of computer. You could try to re download the file again using a different mirror. Could just be a bad download. Anyways good luck.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Okay, thank you

If it were me (which it's not) I would try kies for factory recovery .
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk 2

getbuzzin said:
Just throwing out some ideas. Try a different cable if you got another one. Try plugging into a usb port in back of computer. You could try to re download the file again using a different mirror. Could just be a bad download. Anyways good luck.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is there a faster file to download? One link says it will download for 4 hours

fast96 said:
If it were me (which it's not) I would try kies for factory recovery .
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But Kies cannot connect to my device

[Q] Odin Keeps Failing

Hello. I have been searching for hours like a mad man on Google for a solution to my problem, but i'm having no luck. Excuse the nooby nature of this post please. So I rooted my Galaxy S4 and I am trying to get it back to stock by flashing the AT&T md5 onto my phone (Galaxy S4 SGH-I337) through ODIN and it fails every single time. Initially, with ODIN 3.07, it would return something like fail (auth). Then I tried with ODIN 1.85, but that version returns "Complete(Write) operation failed." In addition, I attempted Kies but it too failed (no specific error code), and now the phone wont boot. It says that the firmware upgrade encountered an issue. I am not able to access stock recovery or TWRP because it will automatically go to Download Mode with "Could not do normal boot" in the top left corner if I in any way attempt to access it. I am using the stock cable with USB Debugging enabled. I also tried two different computers, two different cables (one being stock of course), and tried every single usb port on both computers. What went wrong? I will give you my upmost respect if you can solve this. I also am absolutely willing to supply any information you may need. Just ask. (Please don't be bricked. Please don't be bricked)
-With kind regards, Branden.

Let me guess you had the att mf3 firmware and tried retoring by flashing the MDL firmware via odin? You said md5 so I assume mdl? You might at this point still be able to fix it visiting a best buy near you if it has a samsung center. Also att store can reflash mf3.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk 2

Click Here throw this thread in the MF3 pile... guys we got another noob here, take a trip to your closest best buy and hope the samsung experience will flash the mf3 update for u

You mention md5, which as febby assumed I'll assume to be mdl, and twrp. Do you have mdl firmware on your phone and did you have twrp installed. Assuming you had twrp you were probably on mdl firmware. If so, I would re-download the firmware and try again. It would help if you could explain where Odin is failing too.

jd1639 said:
You mention md5, which as febby assumed I'll assume to be mdl, and twrp. Do you have mdl firmware on your phone and did you have twrp installed. Assuming you had twrp you were probably on mdl firmware. If so, I would re-download the firmware and try again. It would help if you could explain where Odin is failing too.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I never actually got TWRP working. I flashed it through Goo Manger and I was never able access it (It went to download mode with "Could not do normal boot" in the corner). Does this change the type of firmware I was on? In both cases of ODIN, the newer version (3.07) fails immediately after you start the process at around NAND Write start. It returns Fail (auth). In the older version (1.8.5), it reports that the write operation failed. I attached screenshots of both cases.

If you never got twrp to work then I'm almost positive you have mf3 firmware. You're best bet is best buy and have them re-flash the firmware.

Astrophysicist789 said:
I never actually got TWRP working. I flashed it through Goo Manger and I was never able access it (It went to download mode with "Could not do normal boot" in the corner). Does this change the type of firmware I was on? In both cases of ODIN, the newer version (3.07) fails immediately after you start the process at around NAND Write start. It returns Fail (auth). In the older version (1.8.5), it reports that the write operation failed. I attached screenshots of both cases.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is no way to fix your problem currently so like jd1639 said, take it to best buy to the Samsung Experience area and tell them Samsung Kies firmware update fail and it did this to your phone. Thats what I did yesterday, they flashed it and I have my phone working again.

gandes said:
There is no way to fix your problem currently so like jd1639 said, take it to best buy to the Samsung Experience area and tell them Samsung Kies firmware update fail and it did this to your phone. Thats what I did yesterday, they flashed it and I have my phone working again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Okay. I thank everybody for their assistance. You are very helpful people. I will head down to best buy and see what they can do for me.

Astrophysicist789 said:
Okay. I thank everybody for their assistance. You are very helpful people. I will head down to best buy and see what they can do for me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Your welcome

And just so everyone knows...md5 is part of the package name I believe... (.tar.md5) or could be referring to md5 checksum...anyways as was mentioned and you acknowledged, best buy is your best bet
Sent from my SGH-I337 using Tapatalk 4

Hey guys I used oden to flash back to stock amdl and then a att update keep trying ro come threw durring the night I noticed.it downloadwd went into recovery and was on flash update I hit no instead and rebooted now I noticed my baseband changed to amdb . update is back again and I now hit remind me later is this the update witch will lockbootloader
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using xda app-developers app

ralphie1267 said:
Hey guys I used oden to flash back to stock amdl and then a att update keep trying ro come threw durring the night I noticed.it downloadwd went into recovery and was on flash update I hit no instead and rebooted now I noticed my baseband changed to amdb . update is back again and I now hit remind me later is this the update witch will lockbootloader
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah it is the dreaded one! Root your device and flash a custom ROM or use titanium backup to freeze the update apps.
Sent from my SGH-I337 using Tapatalk 2

What did I do wrong? I think I bricked my phone. So upset.

Traded my Mega for a S4 today
Love it
I rooted it, installed TWRP. I have i337m from Rogers. All was well.
I downloaded a Google Edition 4.3 Rom and went into TWRP, Wiped Cache/Dalvik/Data, and Formatted Data
I then went back, installed the Rom.zip
Wiped cache/dalvik
Rebooted.
My phone now goes directly to Odin Mood. Seems as if something partition wise happened.
UPDATE:
I attempted to flash via odin everything back to stock, it made it 1/2 way and got an error. Now I can't do anything, phone just boots to the screen attached. Odin doesnt detect phone, Kies doesn't detect phone.
Am I screwed? I can't believe this, I want to cry. Never have I had issues like this before!!!

Which TWRP version
Did you do the "Format Data" button where you had to select "Yes". If so you lost everything
Get twrp 2.5.0.2 if you get the chance
I never used Odin, so not much help there
Also, I always wipe only Data/System/Caches 2x and have no issues. I do it before flashing any rom/version update etc
I know not much help here. But, maybe an idea on what went wrong--
Good Luck

Yes - Shoot
I see the issue. I was following the guide and it states to do this with CWM, I was thinking I was reading the instructions for TWRP. I had 2.6.3.0 (whatever the newest one is)
I'm downloading the firmware now - will try Odin

You gotta use Odin to restore the firmware, but you can't use kies if you're going custom. You can also use Philz recovery for that. That's what I had and it worked great. It's based off CWM and has touch.

agent929 said:
You gotta use Odin to restore the firmware, but you can't use kies if you're going custom. You can also use Philz recovery for that. That's what I had and it worked great. It's based off CWM and has touch.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When attempting to flash with Odin, I'm getting the following error. Any help?
Stuck here right now if anyone has a second.

Edit
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using Tapatalk 5

Got it from here
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2269304
Its the Virgin Mobile Canada 4.2.2 firmware from July
My phone is Rogers but is unlocked and I'm using it with Virgin. Can I flash the virgin file rather than Rogers to avoid all the Rogers bloat?
What is the Pit error I'm getting? Did I delete a partition or anything here?
Man that stupid format is a major pain. Won't do that again. I flipped back at the guide page and read the CWM instructions by error.

agent929 said:
I don't think you're using the right firmware. You should be doing the MDL firmware.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using Tapatalk 5
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why would he put MDL on a Canadian phone?

scott14719 said:
Why would he put MDL on a Canadian phone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh good gosh I'm very sorry I missed that part.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I467 using Tapatalk 4

agent929 said:
Oh good gosh I'm very sorry I missed that part.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I467 using Tapatalk 4
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So I attempted to flash Via Odin 3.0.7 (rogers firmware) and about 1/2 way through something Error'd and now my phone will not do anything but load the following screen attached.
Download mode or recovery does not load. Kies does not detect it. I can't get Odin to detect it either.
Did I screw myself over?
So depressed over this. I just got the phone.

That screen is another form of download mode. If you plug it into Odin at this point will Odin recognize it?

jd1639 said:
That screen is another form of download mode. If you plug it into Odin at this point will Odin recognize it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'll try again tonight after work.
Last night I could no longer get ODIN to recognize the device.

bigystyle84 said:
I'll try again tonight after work.
Last night I could no longer get ODIN to recognize the device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you are on MF3, this has worked to get me out of that screen http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2360859 there is always some risk with flashing anything from Odin, so read through the thread and make sure you are comfortable with it first...
I'm on AT&T U.S. but it worked for me. You should also be able to boot in download mode (with the phone off hold vol down and home, then press power until your phone vibrates and continue holding home and vol down until you see Download mode)...
I hope this helps.

dustyhughes said:
If you are on MF3, this has worked to get me out of that screen http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2360859 there is always some risk with flashing anything from Odin, so read through the thread and make sure you are comfortable with it first...
I'm on AT&T U.S. but it worked for me. You should also be able to boot in download mode (with the phone off hold vol down and home, then press power until your phone vibrates and continue holding home and vol down until you see Download mode)...
I hope this helps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have a i337M Canadian phone
And as mentioned, phone will not go into Download mode. I've tried a dozen times to get it into the regular download mode as always, does not work. It just boots to this screenshot almost instantly after hitting the power button.
I've flashed with Odin a dozen times previously with S3 and Note 2 in the past, never any issues.
How could TWRP Format Data cause all this to happen?
I just had my previous phone stolen - I bought this phone yesterday and now this happens. What a great week.

jd1639 said:
That screen is another form of download mode. If you plug it into Odin at this point will Odin recognize it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
jd1639 is right, I think the first line of small text says Odin, if I remember correctly.

dustyhughes said:
jd1639 is right, I think the first line of small text says Odin, if I remember correctly.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I couldn't get Odin to detect the phone on this screen though.
Odin detected the phone fine when I could get the to regular download mode screen before. Now I can't get to this screen, only what's attached in the screenshot, and I couldn't get Odin to detect it any longer last night.
Can a cable cause this? I am not using the Cable that came with the phone - That wasn't included when I bought it. I'm using a Sony Cable from a Xperia T I used to own.
Why did the Odin flash fail to begin with?
With did Format Data in TWRP cause all this to happen?

bigystyle84 said:
I couldn't get Odin to detect the phone on this screen though.
Odin detected the phone fine when I could get the to regular download mode screen before. Now I can't get to this screen, only what's attached in the screenshot, and I couldn't get Odin to detect it any longer last night.
Can a cable cause this? I am not using the Cable that came with the phone - That wasn't included when I bought it. I'm using a Sony Cable from a Xperia T I used to own.
Why did the Odin flash fail to begin with?
With did Format Data in TWRP cause all this to happen?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's very possible it's the cable. Odin is very finicky on the cable, usb ports, and even computer you use. It works great on my lap top but I can't get it to work on my pc. Do you know anyone who has an s4 and you could borrow their cable. If you can boot into download you are not bricked and can get Odin to fix your phone. It may just take some trial and error. I've also had Odin fail a number of times and then decide to finally work for whatever reason so keep working at it.

jd1639 said:
It's very possible it's the cable. Odin is very finicky on the cable, usb ports, and even computer you use. It works great on my lap top but I can't get it to work on my pc. Do you know anyone who has an s4 and you could borrow their cable. If you can boot into download you are not bricked and can get Odin to fix your phone. It may just take some trial and error. I've also had Odin fail a number of times and then decide to finally work for whatever reason so keep working at it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm going to get a Samsung Cable from a friend today and try it again when I get home.

jd1639 said:
It's very possible it's the cable. Odin is very finicky on the cable, usb ports, and even computer you use. It works great on my lap top but I can't get it to work on my pc. Do you know anyone who has an s4 and you could borrow their cable. If you can boot into download you are not bricked and can get Odin to fix your phone. It may just take some trial and error. I've also had Odin fail a number of times and then decide to finally work for whatever reason so keep working at it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Here's some more thoughts:
I've always used firmware from sammobile.com
I've had best luck with odin ver 1.85
One other, use the usb ports in the back of your computer, not the front and no usb hub.

jd1639 said:
Here's some more thoughts:
I've always used firmware from sammobile.com
I've had best luck with odin ver 1.85
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Cool Thanks
I downloaded the firmware from SamMobile - the latest Rogers firmware.
I will try 1.85

[Q] Hard-Bicked S4? Options?

Gentlemen/Ladies,
I was putting custom roms on my phone last night, trying a few different out. Obviously I misread (or didn't read) some instruction somewhere and ended up with this lovely message when turning my phone on:
"System software not authorized by Verizon Wireless has been found on your phone. Please turn off your phone and go to the nearest Verizon Wireless store for help."
So, what are my options? Can I use Odin or ADB or something to at least get the phone back to stock or am I completely effed and have to walk into a Verizon store? I'm open to suggestions and will probably try all of them.
Please advise,
phoyce

Flash a stock ROM via odin

DSA said:
Flash a stock ROM via odin
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I did (tried) as you suggested. Obviously I'm doing something wrong.
I downloaded the stock Verizon Galaxy S4 SCH-i545 VRUAMDK md5 from [galaxys4root.com/galaxy-s4-stock-firmware]. I boot the phone into download mode, open up Odin (3.09) and flashed using the file above. Odin still fails on the first block.
Is this because what I downloaded was for Android 4.2.2 and my phone was/is 4.4? Or am I downloading the wrong file or simply going about this the wrong way?
Thanks a lot for the help, as you can see I'm still learning.
- phoyce

phoyce said:
I did (tried) as you suggested. Obviously I'm doing something wrong.
I downloaded the stock Verizon Galaxy S4 SCH-i545 VRUAMDK md5 from [galaxys4root.com/galaxy-s4-stock-firmware]. I boot the phone into download mode, open up Odin (3.09) and flashed using the file above. Odin still fails on the first block.
Is this because what I downloaded was for Android 4.2.2 and my phone was/is 4.4? Or am I downloading the wrong file or simply going about this the wrong way?
Thanks a lot for the help, as you can see I'm still learning.
- phoyce
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you need to post in your relevant forum, this is for the international s4's
http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s4-verizon
but no, once you have got kitkat on your phone, you cant downgrade just like that
flash a kitkat stock rom via odin

can't boot phone

Hi, I started a thread needing help with my wifi but it has developed into not even being able to boot at all; it stops at the galaxy logo and either freezes or keeps booting. I have gone to the Odin page with all the different things to do and flashed the file to get back to the original rom but that is really where the trouble began. right now the only thing I can do with my phone is get into download mode, I can't even get into recovery. I have flashed a pit file that worked the first time but I don't know if that is part of the problem or not. Can someone please give me some directions, thanks
Also the phone won't boot at all unless hooked up to a power supply, the battery alone doesn't do anything.

nate39 said:
Hi, I started a thread needing help with my wifi but it has developed into not even being able to boot at all; it stops at the galaxy logo and either freezes or keeps booting. I have gone to the Odin page with all the different things to do and flashed the file to get back to the original rom but that is really where the trouble began. right now the only thing I can do with my phone is get into download mode, I can't even get into recovery. I have flashed a pit file that worked the first time but I don't know if that is part of the problem or not. Can someone please give me some directions, thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
More info is needed. What firmware / bootloader are you on? Was it rooted? Did you have a custom recovery installed? What version of ODIN are you using?

StoneyJSG said:
More info is needed. Which GS3 do you have? What firmware / bootloader are you on? Was it rooted? Did you have a custom recovery installed? What version of ODIN are you using?
Right now, it sounds like you might need to use enewman17's ODIN debrick file.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is the AT&T s4. To be honest I don't know what firmware I am on, it is the one the Odin page said to use if you want to go back to stock. I never rooted it. The bootloader would be whatever the latest update was for this phone. I can't get into it to tell you anymore. I am using ODIN 10, the latest one. thanks

Well I finally got into recovery and did a factory reset, now it boots into the AT&T white splash screen before it just turns off. I am also wondering if my battery just died for some reason?

nate39 said:
It is the AT&T s4. To be honest I don't know what firmware I am on, it is the one the Odin page said to use if you want to go back to stock. I never rooted it. The bootloader would be whatever the latest update was for this phone. I can't get into it to tell you anymore. I am using ODIN 10, the latest one. thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ODIN 10? Try using ODIN 3.09 and see if that helps. The latest update would be Android 4.4.4 NJ4 firmware. This link should help you, it will give you root with safe strap recovery though: http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s4-att/general/guide-odin-to-stock-updating-rooting-t2926642

I meant 3.10, I will try the older version. What file should I flash?

nate39 said:
I meant 3.10, I will try the older version. What file should I flash?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Check out the link I posted in my last post. It should help you get your phone fixed.

I have been there. I went to the very last option which seems to be what I need unless I am missing something.

Neither odin 3.09 or 3.10 will even flash any file now. it either says invalid md5 or fails when it attempts it.

Well, I finally got it to boot into android but it is flaky at best. It is android 4.3 instead of 4.4 where it was initially. The wifi still doesn't work and now the keyboard keeps crashing everytime I do something. The build is jss15j1337ucuemk2 which I know is older than I had before. Does this give anyone a better idea of what I need to do? If I can get a stable flash then can I flash a modem file to fix the wifi? I really need some direction, thanks
Turns out the battery was completely drained which was causing some of the boot problems, I don't now how that happened but I am charging it now.

Well after using odin 3.8* I got it to install some older firmware ending in mk2 rather than the nc1 or nf4 that I had before the trouble. After I got it to boot, I went back into download mode and flashed the modem file and now everything works execpt I had to force stop Samsung keyboard and use swype. I would like to upgrade my firmware but since for a couple of more weeks it won't have a sim card I can't upgrade OTA. For some reason Kies says that firmware upgrade and initialization isn't supported with this model which makes no sense to me. It also says my firmware is up to date
Does anyone know how to flash to the latest firmware without me going through this nightmare again? thanks

nate39 said:
Well after using odin 3.8* I got it to install some older firmware ending in mk2 rather than the nc1 or nf4 that I had before the trouble. After I got it to boot, I went back into download mode and flashed the modem file and now everything works execpt I had to force stop Samsung keyboard and use swype. I would like to upgrade my firmware but since for a couple of more weeks it won't have a sim card I can't upgrade OTA. For some reason Kies says that firmware upgrade and initialization isn't supported with this model which makes no sense to me. It also says my firmware is up to date
Does anyone know how to flash to the latest firmware without me going through this nightmare again? thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If I were in your shoes I'd flash the nb1 tar file in Odin, any vein should work. See this for the tar file http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=56453100. You can then ota to the latest firmware which is 4.4.4, nj4
Sent from my Nexus 9 using XDA Free mobile app

thanks, and as far as you know this doesn't mess wifi up?

nate39 said:
thanks, and as far as you know this doesn't mess wife up?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I assume you ment WiFi and not wife? Can't help you with the wife but Wi-Fi should work fine
Sent from my Nexus 9 using XDA Free mobile app

nate39 said:
Well after using odin 3.8* I got it to install some older firmware ending in mk2 rather than the nc1 or nf4 that I had before the trouble. After I got it to boot, I went back into download mode and flashed the modem file and now everything works execpt I had to force stop Samsung keyboard and use swype. I would like to upgrade my firmware but since for a couple of more weeks it won't have a sim card I can't upgrade OTA. For some reason Kies says that firmware upgrade and initialization isn't supported with this model which makes no sense to me. It also says my firmware is up to date
Does anyone know how to flash to the latest firmware without me going through this nightmare again? thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Download a firmaware for your region from sammobile and flash it via odin 3.10. It will solve most of your problems

Muthumbi said:
Download a firmaware for your region from sammobile and flash it via odin 3.10. It will solve most of your problems
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sammobile isn't going to have anything for the i337 unless you're on mdl
Sent from my Nexus 9 using XDA Free mobile app

jd1639 said:
Sammobile isn't going to have anything for the i337 unless you're on mdl
Sent from my Nexus 9 using XDA Free mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree. But google has basically all he needs. More so rapidgator

I haven't found anything from Samsung to download. If I flash a newer build, do I also need to flash a modem file and a bootloader or can I just flash the PDA? thanks for explaining this to me.
And can I do a dirty flash so I don't have to lose everything again?

well, now I see that there is no sound. so I guess I will have to flash again.

nate39 said:
well, now I see that there is no sound. so I guess I will have to flash again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There's. Something I'm yet to understand. Did you finally manage to boot into recovery? If so, flash a custom recovery (I recommend philz touch recovery) then use it to make complete wipe.
Then boot into download mode and flash latest pda firmware in the compressed file you downloaded. Ps: make sure it's from your region.
May be if you provided me with your region I'd get you all the files required