I'm very happy with all of the KitKat ROM's I've done so far for the Pipo tablets I own. I like the increased performance and don't really care about the missing features that much. But occasionally, I've needed to flash back to Jellybean to test something. Other users aren't quite satisfied with the early versions of KitKat and after a few hours or days, want to return to a more stable Jellybean ROM for everyday use.
If you try the KitKat ROM for your tablet and decide it isn't quite what you want to continue working with, you CAN go back to Jellybean, but you risk bricking your tablet in the process. I've worked through several brick situations, myself...by accident and on purpose in order to work out the process of reviving your tablet.
Thanks to Finless, who has done quite a bit more testing than I have...we've discovered a process that will keep you from bricking your tablet if you decide to revert back to Jellybean from a KitKat ROM.
As I've mentioned exhaustively throughout these threads, the LOADER is a very important component that makes everything work correctly in both versions of Android. The KitKat loader includes support for the new metadata partition. Because of this, the KitKat loader isn't compatible with the Jellybean loader, and I've repeated several times that you MUST FLASH THE LOADER for both versions unless you are flashing a ROM of the same Android version you currently have installed on your device. For example, if you upgrade to a KitKat ROM, you only need to flash the loader the first time. Future KitKat updates will use the same loader, so you don't need to flash it every time (unless I tell you to do so on a particular ROM...because the loader versions also change between ROM's sometimes).
The loader isn't the only component that is important. Also, the parameter is VERY important, because it tells the loader.bin what partitions to create and their sizes. The flash tool actually reads the parameter file to guide it through the process of erasing IDB from the very beginning.
Finless has discovered that we must use the parameter file from the CURRENTLY INSTALLED ROM to ERASE IDB. If you use the Flash Tool from the Jellybean ROM to erase IDB (NAND) before you flash back to Jellybean from KitKat, the Flash Tool will use the parameter file from the Jellybean ROM to low level format the partitions. This causes an incomplete format, because the Jellybean parameter file doesn't include the Metadata partition on the list. Doing it this way can cause your tablet to brick. YOU MUST do the ERASE IDB (NAND) step with the KitKat ROM Flash Tool with the parameter file for the KitKat ROM checked.
So, here are the steps necessary to prevent you from bricking your tablet when going back to Jellybean from KitKat:
EDIT: I've revised these steps to make them clear
1) Run the flash tool on the 4.4.2 ROM (KitKat). The same ROM you have installed on your device that you want to get rid of.
2) Boot to Flash Mode and Erase NAND. (Make sure you are erasing from the KK Flash Tool...this is VERY IMPORTANT)
3) Close the KitKat Flash Tool and now run the Flash Tool from the 4.2.2 (Jellybean) or 4.1 whatever ROM.
4) Make sure you have the loader.bin file checked on the JB ROM. It's usually unchecked by default.
5.)DO NOT erase NAND again. Just flash the whole JB ROM.
6.) It may hang on first boot. That's OK. Just get your tablet back into flash mode and follow the whole flashing procedure again with the JB ROM...including erasing IDB.
I'm putting this notification in the Pipo section, because that's the majority of ROM's that I've done with KitKat, but it will also work with any Rockchip device you currently have KitKat installed and you want to switch back to Jellybean.
Thanks to Finless for making this discovery and sharing it with the Freaktab Development Team.
Every day I read posts from people going back and forth between KitKat and Jellybean. You may not have bricked your tablet, but you may have encountered some odd results with your Jellybean ROM afterwards. This is because you didn't completely erase IDB. I recommend that you go back and perform this process and see if it solves some of your problems.
If you try the KitKat ROM for your tablet and decide it isn't quite what you want to continue working with, you CAN go back to Jellybean, but you risk bricking your tablet in the process. I've worked through several brick situations, myself...by accident and on purpose in order to work out the process of reviving your tablet.
Thanks to Finless, who has done quite a bit more testing than I have...we've discovered a process that will keep you from bricking your tablet if you decide to revert back to Jellybean from a KitKat ROM.
As I've mentioned exhaustively throughout these threads, the LOADER is a very important component that makes everything work correctly in both versions of Android. The KitKat loader includes support for the new metadata partition. Because of this, the KitKat loader isn't compatible with the Jellybean loader, and I've repeated several times that you MUST FLASH THE LOADER for both versions unless you are flashing a ROM of the same Android version you currently have installed on your device. For example, if you upgrade to a KitKat ROM, you only need to flash the loader the first time. Future KitKat updates will use the same loader, so you don't need to flash it every time (unless I tell you to do so on a particular ROM...because the loader versions also change between ROM's sometimes).
The loader isn't the only component that is important. Also, the parameter is VERY important, because it tells the loader.bin what partitions to create and their sizes. The flash tool actually reads the parameter file to guide it through the process of erasing IDB from the very beginning.
Finless has discovered that we must use the parameter file from the CURRENTLY INSTALLED ROM to ERASE IDB. If you use the Flash Tool from the Jellybean ROM to erase IDB (NAND) before you flash back to Jellybean from KitKat, the Flash Tool will use the parameter file from the Jellybean ROM to low level format the partitions. This causes an incomplete format, because the Jellybean parameter file doesn't include the Metadata partition on the list. Doing it this way can cause your tablet to brick. YOU MUST do the ERASE IDB (NAND) step with the KitKat ROM Flash Tool with the parameter file for the KitKat ROM checked.
So, here are the steps necessary to prevent you from bricking your tablet when going back to Jellybean from KitKat:
EDIT: I've revised these steps to make them clear
1) Run the flash tool on the 4.4.2 ROM (KitKat). The same ROM you have installed on your device that you want to get rid of.
2) Boot to Flash Mode and Erase NAND. (Make sure you are erasing from the KK Flash Tool...this is VERY IMPORTANT)
3) Close the KitKat Flash Tool and now run the Flash Tool from the 4.2.2 (Jellybean) or 4.1 whatever ROM.
4) Make sure you have the loader.bin file checked on the JB ROM. It's usually unchecked by default.
5.)DO NOT erase NAND again. Just flash the whole JB ROM.
6.) It may hang on first boot. That's OK. Just get your tablet back into flash mode and follow the whole flashing procedure again with the JB ROM...including erasing IDB.
I'm putting this notification in the Pipo section, because that's the majority of ROM's that I've done with KitKat, but it will also work with any Rockchip device you currently have KitKat installed and you want to switch back to Jellybean.
Thanks to Finless for making this discovery and sharing it with the Freaktab Development Team.
Every day I read posts from people going back and forth between KitKat and Jellybean. You may not have bricked your tablet, but you may have encountered some odd results with your Jellybean ROM afterwards. This is because you didn't completely erase IDB. I recommend that you go back and perform this process and see if it solves some of your problems.
.gif "HELL YEA!!")
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