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Support #241

Installing CyanogenMod on HTC Evo 4G

Added by Daniel Curtis over 10 years ago. Updated almost 10 years ago.

Status:
Closed
Priority:
Normal
Assignee:
Category:
-
Target version:
-
Start date:
11/23/2013
Due date:
% Done:

100%

Estimated time:
3.00 h
Spent time:

Description

I have recently purchased a new phone as an upgrade, my previous phone has CyanogenMod on it and I have become accustomed to the control, performance, and ease of use CyanogenMod offers. I purchased my phone, in acceptable condition, from http://www.glyde.com

After receiving my new phone, I proceeded to research the latest available version of CyanogenMod that will run on the Evo 4G. The original ROM was a stock carrier ROM running Android 2.3.5 Ginger Bread, and the latest version of CyanogenMod that is compiled for the HTC 4G "Supersonic" is version 7, the Ginger Bread version. As of writing this article, the latest version of CyanogenMod is 10, running Android 4.1 Jelly Bean. My previous phone is an older piece of hardware, and it is running CM10. There must be a lazy developer over at Cyanogen, however the forums suggest that EVO is just a low priority because of how old it is
Old is not useless. I managed to find an unofficial CM10 ROM for "Supersonic" to test. However if that does not work , I will need to compile my own unofficial version of CyanogenMod. More info can be found here

To get started I needed a few things:
  • Backup of previous phone's apps + data (I used Titanium Backup)
  • Android Developer Tools
  • An Unlocked Bootloader
  • Adding a better Android recovery tool
  • Install CyanogenMod 10

Android Developer Tools

The download for the ADT package is fairly big, it can be downloaded from the Android Developer page.
Once I downloaded the package I extracted it to /opt/ and created links for the executables I needed in /usr/bin/

cd Downloads
tar xzf adt-bundle*
mv adt-bundle* adt-bundle
mv adt-bundle /opt/
ln -s /opt/adt-bundle/sdk/platform-tools/adb /usr/local/bin/
ln -s /opt/adt-bundle/sdk/platform-tools/fastboot /usr/local/bin/

  • Ubuntu users can instead use:
    sudo apt-get install android-tools-fastboot android-tools-adb
    

An Unlocked Bootloader

I had to create an account with htcdev.com in order to receive an unlocked bootloader, as the version of HBOOT was newer than the method described here

  • Step 1
    After powering down, press Volume Down and while pressing Volume Down, press Power holding both buttons to start the device into Bootloader mode.
    If you have difficulty, power up normally, go to Settings->Battery and deselect Fast boot. Power down and try again.
  • Step 2
    Use the Volume buttons to select up or down. Highlight Fastboot and press the Power button.
  • Step 3
    Connect the device to the computer via a usb cable
  • Step 4
    Install fastboot (provided by ADT or android-tools-fastboot package)
  • Step 5
    Open a terminal session and type:
    fastboot oem get_identifier_token
    

    Copy the contents from
    <<<< Identifier Token Start >>>>
    

    All the way to this line:
    <<<<< Identifier Token End >>>>> 
    

    Note: Only copy the highlighted sections above. Do not copy the INFO or (bootloader) prefix
    Once the information has been entered, click Submit
  • Step 6
    You will receive an email with the attachment: Unlock_code.bin. Save this file in the same folder as your fastboot files.
    If, after a short period of time, you have not yet received the mail, or you have received an email from HTC, but does not contain an attached file, it is possible that more stringent spam filters and anti-virus programs will block this mail or attachment.
  • Step 7
    In the terminal type:
    fastboot flash unlocktoken Unlock_code.bin
    
  • Step 8
    On your phone you will now see the disclaimer. Please read this carefully as this action may void your warranty. Use the Volume buttons to highlight your choice, and the Power button to make your selection. If you select Yes, your phone will be reset to its’ factory default settings, and your bootloader will be unlocked. If you select No, your phone will reboot and no modifications will have been made.

Adding a better Android recovery tool

At this point I could simply add the CyanogenMod zip file and upgrade the stock ROM. However I prefer control down to the finest detail with my devices, so I installed Clockwork Recovery.

fastboot flash recovery recovery-clockwork-touch-5.8.0.1-supersonic.img

Install CyanogenMod 10

Once Clockwork Recovery was installed, I continued on to install CyanogenMod by going into recovery mode, by first powering off the device and then holding the Volume Down button while powering up the device. Once in the HBOOT menu press the Volume Down button until the Recovery option is highlighted then press Power. When the Clockwork Recovery menu has loaded select Install from zip, and then locate and select the CM10_Supersonic.zip. Once this process finishes, do a factory reset and clear the cache partition. Reboot the device and CyanogenMod will load.


Files

recovery-clockwork-touch-5.8.0.1-supersonic.img (3.22 MB) recovery-clockwork-touch-5.8.0.1-supersonic.img Clockwork Recovery for HTC Evo 4G Daniel Curtis, 11/23/2013 06:25 PM
mobi.infolife.app2sd.apk (1.29 MB) mobi.infolife.app2sd.apk App2SD Daniel Curtis, 11/24/2013 05:54 PM
com.buak.Link2SD.apk (1.13 MB) com.buak.Link2SD.apk Link2SD Daniel Curtis, 11/24/2013 05:55 PM
AirDroid.apk (7.06 MB) AirDroid.apk AirDroid Daniel Curtis, 11/24/2013 06:05 PM
Titanium Backup.apk (5.8 MB) Titanium Backup.apk Titanium Backup Daniel Curtis, 11/24/2013 06:08 PM
kr.sira.flash.apk (1.69 MB) kr.sira.flash.apk Smart Flashlight Daniel Curtis, 11/25/2013 01:58 AM
Supersonic_CM-10.1_04212013.zip (155 MB) Supersonic_CM-10.1_04212013.zip CyanogenMod 10 Daniel Curtis, 11/25/2013 01:32 PM
5.07.651.6_stock_rooted_deodexed_CPTB.zip (203 MB) 5.07.651.6_stock_rooted_deodexed_CPTB.zip Rooted Stock Deodexed Sprint Evo 4G ROM Daniel Curtis, 11/25/2013 01:46 PM
#2

Updated by Daniel Curtis over 10 years ago

  • % Done changed from 70 to 100
#3

Updated by Daniel Curtis over 10 years ago

There were a few issues after I upgraded the ROM.
  1. Restore backup of previous phones apps + data
  2. The torch / flashlight app was missing
  3. Limited app storage space
  4. Poor battery life

I use Titanium Backup to backup my apps and the app data of my devices. Also I use AirDroid to manage me apps and their data remotely. I have included copies of these apps.

CyanogenMod allows the user to customize its performance in Settings -> Performance; I changed my I/O Scheduler to BFQ, ZRAM to 26%, and set the Processor performance to Conservative. CyanogenMod also allows quick toggles for things like WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS, Cellular, etc. accesible from the top status bar. This helped with battery life.

I did manage to get the camera torch to work using one app, Smart Flashlight. I have included a copy.

App storage was worked around using a couple of apps, App2SD and Link2SD. I have also included a copy of these apps.

#4

Updated by Daniel Curtis over 10 years ago

Before I could get my phone to activate with Ting.com, I had to reload the stock Sprint ROM and do a carrier wipe. I downloaded a Stock version of the Sprint Evo 4G ROM, and downgraded the ROM using Clockwork Recovery.

The carrier wipe can be done by:
  1. Go to the dialpad
  2. Enter ##72786# (This will prompt for a password)
  3. Enter in the MSL # provided by Ting
  4. Tap the Menu button
  5. Select Reset Carrier
  6. Restart the device

Once the device rebooted, the Hands Free Activation took over configuration and the phone was activated. Once I did this, I went back in to Clockwork Recovery and upgraded back to CyanogenMod 10.

If I have enough time I will look into rolling a version of the Evo 4G ROM with CyanogenMod 11.

#6

Updated by Daniel Curtis almost 10 years ago

I forget to mention installing an APK using adb. I essentially install AirDroid and then install TitaniumBackup using the AirDroid method. Here is how to install an APK using adb:

sudo adb start-server
adb devices

List of devices attached
HT0CKHL02739 device

This verifies that an Android device is connected. Next install the local APK to the Android device:

adb install /path/to/app.apk

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