Backup and re-install ?

[jimbo]

OK chaps, be gentle with me, I'm a complete novice with Android, so..

Whenever I get a new PC, I make sure I can create/obtain the 'recovery' disc, so that when windows performance eventually decays, I can reinstall Windows and then put my apps and data back on and rediscover that its not that slow a PC and I don't need to buy a new one.

Does the same concept apply to my new favourite toy?

[moaxial]

Yeah it does,

I've done it with my Android phones a few times, but never on this tablet. However I am thinking of doing the same thing soon on that, due to random reboots.

Had a lot of success with a popular app called Titanium Backup. You can back everything with that, including your apps,games system state. Unlike windows, you can return it to its ORIGINAL state well within an hour using that. Its like a windows system restore but you choose which bits you put back.

You could also just manually copy off your files onto a USB drive, just plug in that adapter cable that came with it and a USB flash drive then use the built in File Manager. It won't keep your settings/apps but if you want a "Clean" build you might want to ditch them anyway!

You can use Settings -> Privacy to Factory Reset and also backup your stuff to Google from this page.

You can also do a "proper" factory reset from a hidden recovery menu, you make sure the device is plugged in, turn it off. Then turn it on by keeping the power and the settings key pressed until a menu appears where you can then reset everything from there. You use the volume keys to navigate and the power button to select an option.

First of all, I haven't done this, YET! Clearly you need to make sure you back up stuff, and there's always a small risk it could make it worse/brick it. Other people on the forums have done this, with some noteable improvments following a reset.

Hope that helps, I'll let you know how it goes when I get round to doing it in the next couple of days.

[Charlie]

I don't have an Excel - so not sure if the system/apps are odex or de-odexed - (The Apollo phone is odex - ie a lot of the system apps have 2 files - 1 for example, Phone.apk & Phone.odex) - So you have to be careful as Titanium Backup only backs up the .apk and not the other needed .odex file (so without both you can not put the system app back) - Yep I learn't that the hard way 6 months back.

[moaxial]

I had no idea that odexing was a concern with individual apps, I'd always seen it with respect to entire custom ROMs etc. Shows how much I know I suppose, makes sense when you think about it for more than 5 secs

Would I be able to see the odex files alongside the apk files somewhere? I wonder how I could tell if the Excel is odexed, as I've not got really deep in Android before?

Thanks for the tip, does anything out there backup the odex files too? Or is it some horrible adb command line affair?

[Charlie]

I had no idea that odexing was a concern with individual apps, I'd always seen it with respect to entire custom ROMs etc. Shows how much I know I suppose, makes sense when you think about it for more than 5 secs

Would I be able to see the odex files alongside the apk files somewhere? I wonder how I could tell if the Excel is odexed, as I've not got really deep in Android before?

Thanks for the tip, does anything out there backup the odex files too? Or is it some horrible adb command line affair?

You are right devs do re-compile roms and make their own custom roms and they usually deodex them, for the ease of modding and styling.

If you have rooted the scroll - use an explorer and go into /system/app and you can see if they have .odex files for the .apks -

you can use adb command to just pull all the files from /system/app

That's what I have used before - my mind has just gone blank and I can't remember the command (it was a while back I did it, and adb is not my strong point)

you can also use an explorer and copy n paste them to an SD card - or if you use Dropbox and have the Android Dropbox app - copy them straight to your dropbox a/c (by long pressing on the file and then select 'send to dropbox) - that's how it works in Root Explorer (Highly recommended paid app, I use it all the time)

[moaxial]

Thanks mate,

I didn't really understand what odexing was, as you say custom ROMs are usually de-odexed anyway.

I went in /system/app with ES Explorer (Root) on the Scroll Excel, NO odex files, ONLY APKs I read somewhere that the newer pro versions of Titanium Backup CAN handle the odex files, luckily not a concern here as I just backed up the lot ready for a wipe!

I'll post back here on how it goes!

Thanks Again!

[Charlie]

Thanks mate,

I didn't really understand what odexing was, as you say custom ROMs are usually de-odexed anyway.

I went in /system/app with ES Explorer (Root) on the Scroll Excel, NO odex files, ONLY APKs I read somewhere that the newer pro versions of Titanium Backup CAN handle the odex files, luckily not a concern here as I just backed up the lot ready for a wipe!

I'll post back here on how it goes!

Thanks Again!

Great news that make it easier for you and others. Good luck.

So it seems that the Excel is deodexed. Below is some info for you on a deodexed Andoird OS:

Pros: (For deodexed)
Enables for more UI customizations(themes, fonts, title bar icons, like battery icons)

Cons: (For deodexed)
Slower to boot

This is a good explanation of deodexed that i found:

"Apk files have respective odexes that devs use to supposedly save space. Deodexing means you convert it back to a .dex file and put it back inside the apk. This allows you to easily replace files (not having to worry about odexes), but the main point was to deodex services.jar so that you can change all text to different colours (such as the clock color to white) and to deodex services.jar, you need to deodex everything. "

[moaxial]

Thanks for the deodex info,

I have reset my Excel using the boot recovery menu, and it took a couple of minutes and booted back up fine. I had a full backup using Titanium backup but then I realised I didn't WANT to put it back exactly as before incase rogue apps/settings were causing the issues!

I have manually put back google account syncing, the Market, and most the apps I was using, it didn't take long. I also chose to keep Advanced Task Killer over the ES Task Manager I'd used previously. I am sure you shouldn't need a task killer on Gingerbread but anyway it does seem to help.

Overall more responsive and more reliable since the reset, but as expected, still have video sync and wifi crashing issue. These two issues I have emailed Paul at Storage Options about directly.

Fingers crossed.