Installing CyanogenMod Build : Rock Your Ace! Part 4

Now that you have taken backups of all the things that you would like, there is no stopping you from installing the cyanogenMod build. Here we go-

• You have strictly followed all the steps of Part 2 of this series.

• Vo-1cm-7-20120725FULLROM.zip – Latest version by VO-1 (Source)
• Superuser-3.1.3.zip

1. Boot into ClockworkMod Recovery v5 by holding power+home key during boot.
2. Wipe Cache and Dalvik cache from the recovery.
3. Now copy the ‘Vo-1cm-7-20120725FULLROM.zip’ downloaded above in root of sd card. Also copy the ‘Superuser-3.1.3.zip’ to your sd card.
4. In recovery, select ‘Install zip from sd card‘ and then select ‘Vo-1cm-7-20120725FULLROM.zip’ you copied to your sd card.
5. Select install and allow the process to complete.

And you’re done! CyanoenMod v7.2 has been installed to your Ace.
Just one more thing before you start, we need to install the SuperUser app.

1. Reboot into recovery.
2. Select ‘Install zip from sd card-> Toggle script asserts’
3. Now select the ‘Superuser-3.1.3.zip’ you copied to your sd card in step 3 above. Select install.

That’s it. The build we have mentioned already contains all Google Apps preinstalled. So no need to flash the Gapps separately.

Now you just need to restore the backups you made in part 3 of the tutorial series (not the nandroid backup, nandroid backup will give you your old ROM back). So you can keep using your contacts, calendar, memo, SMS , call log etc.

We will be back with the last part of this tutorial series in which we tell you how to make this CM build your own!

Previous: 3. Taking Backups
Next: 5. Customize

Getting Ready : Rock Your Ace! Part 2

With a lot of customizations possible in Android, users feel confused whether they should do something or not and sometimes following some instruction where something was assumed leads to Bricked devices. Not in this guide!

So now lets prepare your device to be applicable for a CyanogenMod upgrade.

Warning: All steps are mandatory. Do not skip steps.

First step:
The very first step requires is to move to a Gingerbread that is Android 2.3.x build. It might be a Stock Rom or Custom Rom, doesn’t matter. A lot of Indian users and other users across the world who have the latest Stock Rom should be already on Android 2.3.x. You can check the version by simply going to Settings -> About Phone. If you are already on 2.3.x, skip ahead to the second step.

What if you are not? Flash a firmware using ODIN. Here is the tutorial in detail (Note: Although the tutorial say upgrade, you can both upgrade/downgrade firmware using this method)-
How to flash firmware using ODIN? (Please note that you want to take a look at part 3 – Taking Backups before flashing to a new firmware)

Second Step:
Root Privileges are required for further actions to take place. We have already covered rooting in details. If you are not rooted, follow the tutorial below otherwise move to step 3.
How to Root ?  (simply follow the section for Gingerbread)

Third Step:
Now we need a way to install the build of CyanogenMod on to your device. For that we need a custom recovery. That’s where ClockworkMod Recovery v5 comes into the picture. But for v5 we need to install v4 first. We have covered the topics in detail in the following articles-
Install ClockworkMod Recovery v4

Now that you have installed CWM v5, go ahead with the installation of v5 using the following article-
Install ClockworkMod Recovery v5

FAQ:
Q. Can I use CWM v4 instead of v5 for upgrading to CyanodenMod. I am feeling lazy.
A. NO.

That’s it, no more fiddling with the phone is necessary. In the next part we will show how to take backups easily so that you can easily move to the new firmware with your precious data intact!

Prev: 1. Introduction
Next: 3. Taking Backups

Rock Your Ace! – Tutorial Series

As promised here we are with our much awaited tutorial series Rock Your Ace!

This tutorials series will help you move from any stock ROM be it Froyo/GB or Custom ROM to the most popular and most stable CyanogenMod build. We will keep it as Noob-friendly as possible and will try to answer as many questions as possible.

Why should I upgrade to CyanogenMod?

CyanogenMod is an open-source feature rich alternative to your stock ROM. The main advantage of using it or the features you will get are-

• Powerful DSP Equalizer
• Lockscreen Gestures
• Phone Goggles – Filter calls and SMS
• Themes support
• Incognito Browsing support
• Open VPN
• ‘Swipe to remove‘ notifications
• Custom Bootanimation (you can create one yourself and use it)
• CRT screen off animation
• App2sd support (you will need to partition your sdcard & install Link2sd)
• All updated Google apps with least phone memory usage
• Riddance to Bloatware
• Customizable Toggles (Gps, wifi, bluetooth, screen brightness, screen timeout, torch etc.)
• Powerful Music App
  • Gestures Support
  • Change Songs with Volume Rocker while phone is locked without waking up the screen (by long pressing the volume rocker)

Sold? No. Here is an official CyanogenMod 7.2 build in action:

What CyanogenMod build are we using?
We are using the latest CyanogenMod build by VO-1 as updated on 25th July.

So moving forward this will be a long tutorial, to keep it simple we will break it into parts. Depending on you build and whatever things you have done with phone (like rooting, CWM recovery), you can join us with that step.

Here is the currently planned structure (which might change slightly)

1. Introduction
2. Getting Ready
   • Moving to a GB build
   • Rooting
   • Installing ClockworkMod Recovery V4
   • Installing ClockworkMod Recovery V5
3. Taking Backups
   • Nandroid Backup
   • Kies Backup Options
   • Google Backup
   • Photos, Music And Videos
   • SMS, MMS, Call Log, Browser Bookmarks
4. Installing latest Cyanogenmod
   • wipe cache/dalvik cache
   • Install CyanogenMod zip through recovery
   • Install Gapps
   • Install SU app
5. Customize
   • Install Link2sd
   • Get rid of unwanted apps
   • Change your bootscreen
   • Install Themes
   • Change your font

You can use either use the above structure to navigate to any page or use the link below to move to the next page. The links will be added as soon as the posts are made.

Next: 2. Getting Ready

Slaid, our knight in shining armour!

Members of various forums rejoiced recently as Slaid480 is taking over as device maintainer for the Samsung Galaxy Ace.

As we featured recently, we questioned whether official builds for Galaxy Ace were worth it. We were quick to judge, however it seems that official Cyanogenmod has been brought back from the grave.
Slaid480 is well-known in the Galaxy Ace community from creating various scripts and sharing them at xda. His most recent project, called SlaidyBoost, was even featured in xda’s news portal.

At the moment, Slaid is only releasing his builds on his xda thread, however when he gets access to CyanogenMod’s buildbot, nightlies should be pouring out.
We wish him all the best, and thank him for taking such a big role in the Ace community.

Was Official Cyanogenmod Worth The Wait? [Opinion]

As you may know, after a lot of speculation, Samsung Galaxy Ace users’ highly anticipated Official release of CyanogenMod 7 is now making its way. The community was so excited that a user even made an autoscript that checked for nightly every five minutes. In march, we got a nightly and a release candidate.

A week later, do we still think it’s the best? Many forum users are annoyed that they flashed the official build, as it isn’t as good as some KANG builds out there on the internet. Why? Here are 3 reasons;

• It isn’t recent!
  The nightly build was compiled a while back, as the BuildBot machine wasn’t running at full capacity
• There aren’t many changes!
  The RC build contained very few changes, and the changes implemented were very minor bug fixes
• The maintainer sold his phone!
  Kolja, the project maintainer for cooper recently announced on his Google+ account that he sold his Galaxy Ace

All in all, most people don’t really think it was really worth the wait and it’s properly better for you stick stick to those KANG builds, such as FrozenAceTeam’s build. Other active development teams, such as GalaxyICS are doing a great job with Ice Cream Sandwich for various low-end Samsung devices.

Did you give the official build a try, let us know what you think!

[Official] CyanogenMod 7 for Samsung Galaxy Ace [Release Candiadate 1]

Not a week has passed by since the first official nightly shockingly! appeared on CM repositories for Samsung Galaxy Ace. This was indeed with compliance with earlier reports that official CM 7.2 was confirmed for Ace & will release with the global schedule.

The Cyanogenmod 7.2 Official is finally making its way to Samsung Galaxy Ace. The final stable version release will coincide with the global official release of CM 7.2 for more than 69 devices.

There might be some bugs, so inexperienced users and those who would like a finished product might want to keep away.
So without further ado.. Here we go:
Download Links:

• CyanogenMod RC1 build: Official | Mirror (Mediafire)
• GAPPS GB 20120116 – Market 3.4.4
• cm-blackhawk-kernel.zip (Overclock Kernel)

1. If you aren’t already on Gingerbread (2.3.x), do so. (Tutorial)
2. Install CWM Recovery 5. (CWM 4 might work) (Tutorial)
3. While in CWM Recovery, do the following:
   • Wipe data/factory reset
   • Wipe cache partition
   • Wipe dalvik cache
4. In CWM Recovery, choose
   Install zip from sdcard > choose zip from sdcard > update-cm-7-20120312 NIGHTLY-cooper-signed.zip > yes. Install.
5. Reboot system!!
   Note: First boot may take 2-5 minutes.
6. Install Google Apps:
   • Choose Install zip from sdcard > choose zip from sdcard > gapps-gb-20120116-237-signed.zip > yes. Install
   • Reboot!
7. Install Kernel with Overclock capability
   • Choose Install zip from sdcard > choose zip from sdcard > cm-blackhawk-kernel.zip > yes. Install
   • Reboot!

And Done! Now you are up and working. Steps 6 & 7 are optional.

Note: Without step 6, you will lack basic google apps on your phone. They cannot be included in CM builds due to google objection.
Without step 7, you won’t be able to change CPU frequency.

Bugs:

• Yet to be reported (Report at code.google.com/p/cyanogenmod/issues/)

This is THE news people have been waiting for. Not only after the final version release, not only the users will have a definite version to install but the devs will also be able to use it as a base for a custom ROM.

7.2.0 CHANGELOG (notable new features or fixes)

New devices: Samsung Galaxy Ace
Common: Updated translations – (everyone)
Common: T9 predictive Phone dialer – Danesh M, Pawit Pornkitprasan
Common: Media player and recorder fixes for a number of corner cases – CAF, Danny Baumann
Common: Profile resets – Ladios Jonquil
Common: Assorted Wifi fixes
OMAP Common: Support for recent OMAP3/OMAP4 devices – omapzoom
Common: Control haptic in quiet hours – Danesh M
Common: Lockscreen updates and new styles – Andrew Sutherland, Danny Baumann, Danesh M, Sven Dawitz, Taichi Nishimura
Common: Bluetooth MAP support – Jonathan Bensen
Common: ICS telephony fix backports – Spencer Oliver
Common: Support for Bluetooth GPS dongles – Cuong Bui
Common: Better support for mouse and usb keyboards – Emilio Lopez, Tanguy Pruvot
Common: Fix timezone detection in Hawaii – Warren Togami
Common: ICS Transition effects backport – Russ Underhill
Common: ICS Rotation effects backport – Tanguy Pruvot
Common: Allow photo storage selection when possible – Greg Kochaniak
Common: Improved Calendar reminder options – Danny Baumann
Common: Fix color banding in Gallery while displaying 32bpp images – Sang Tae Park
Common: ADB over network
Common: Improved AVRCP 1.3 compatibility
Common: Improved external keyboard and mouse behaviour on some corner cases – Tanguy Pruvot
Common: Status bar battery icon configuration – Simon Davie

What do you guys think? Drop your opinions in the comments below.
[via XDA]

[Official] CyanogenMod 7 for Samsung Galaxy Ace [Nightly Apr 6]

So finally, its official! See, what did we tell you! Keeping faith & having patience finally paid up, huh!
The Cyanogenmod 7.2 Official is finally making its way to Samsung Galaxy Ace. A nightly was released on Mar 12 and a final stable version might not be much far away.
UPDATE:
Latest nightly of Apr 6 attached.

There might be some bugs, so inexperienced users and those who would like a finished product might want to keep away.
So without further ado.. Here we go:
Download Links:

• CyanogenMod Nightly build:
  6th April 2012 Build (Mediafire)
  12th March Build:  Official | Mirror (Mediafire)
• GAPPS GB 20120116 – Market 3.4.4
• cm-blackhawk-kernel.zip (Overclock Kernel)

1. If you aren’t already on Gingerbread (2.3.x), do so.
2. Install CWM Recovery 5. (CWM 4 might work)
3. While in CWM Recovery, do the following:
   • Wipe data/factory reset
   • Wipe cache partition
   • Wipe dalvik cache
4. In CWM Recovery, choose
   Install zip from sdcard > choose zip from sdcard > update-cm-7-20120312 NIGHTLY-cooper-signed.zip > yes. Install.
5. Reboot system!!
   Note: First boot may take 2-5 minutes.
6. Install Google Apps:
   • Choose Install zip from sdcard > choose zip from sdcard > gapps-gb-20120116-237-signed.zip > yes. Install
   • Reboot!
7. Install Kernel with Overclock capability
   • Choose Install zip from sdcard > choose zip from sdcard > cm-blackhawk-kernel.zip > yes. Install
   • Reboot!

And Done! Now you are up and working. Steps 6 & 7 are optional.

Bugs:

• Found any?

Fix for link2sd (credit to kansar)

Try moving/deleting init.d script “05mountsd” then reconfigure link2sd, that script interferes with Link2sd’s sd-ext partition mounting script

While installing this build & testing it might leave you unsatisfied, this is definitely very good news. This is THE news people have been waiting for. Not only After the final version release, not only the users will have a definite version to install but the devs will also be able to use it as a base for a custom ROM.

What do you guys think? Drop your opinions in the comments below.
[via XDA]

CyanogenMod 9 RC0 Beta 8 for Samsung Galaxy Ace [Video]

Good news! The work on ICS (unofficial) is going on smoothly. A beta 8 has been released with more bug fixes. You can try it in your phone though we would recommend you to wait for some time for the final version. However this build is quite stable.

Here is the download link.

Installation Guide:

Beta 3 Demo:

Note: Do a full wipe after installation.

Official CyanogenMod 7.2 Confirmed for Samsung Galaxy Ace

UPDATE: CM7.2 official is confirmed for Samsung Galaxy Ace & will roll out with the official 7.2 of all devices. More info

Why no nightlies?
Due to insufficient computing power available, the nightlies haven’t rolled out for SGA.

What about CM9?
If Samsung doesn’t rolls out ICS for Ace, it will be nearly impossible for an official CM9.

ORIGINAL:
Samsung Galaxy Ace has finally pulled it together. Expect official CyanogenMod Nightlies soon at the official website. No more betas by XDA devs. When all the bugs in nightlies will be sorted out, an RC version will follow and then a stable one.

More Information: http://review.cyanogenmod.com/#change,7133

New nightly build for download will be available  here as device name ‘Cooper’ (Within a week maybe): http://download.cyanogenmod.com/?type=nightly

So keep a little more patience. We will keep you updated.

Related Articles:
[Unofficial] Cyanogenmod 9.0 Ice Cream Sandwich 4.0.9 Alpha for Samsung Galaxy Ace [Video]

Gingerbread 2.3.4 DDKQ6 (Kies Update India) & Differences

Yes!! The latest firmware for India region is now DDKQ6 Android 2.3.4.

Method 1: Update using Samsung Kies
Method 2: For flashing with Odin. here is the link to the firmware: DDKQ6 (Pass: sampro.pl)
Then just follow the ODIN tutorial.
We were unable to spot any differences from KQ5 so far. Did you?

Update: One of our reader Ramit has informed that the process of taking screenshots has changed. (by pressing back and home key simultaneously)
Simply press & keep holding the Home key. Task manager will pop up. Press back. Now press lock key to take a screenshot.
This way you can even navigate in the menu (still holding the home key) or some app and take multiple screenshots at a time conveniently.

Related Articles:
How to upgrade Samsung Galaxy Ace through Samsung Kies?