Monday, May 23, 2011

Clean 1.2 Install

If you're reading this, you probably have a nook that seems completely unbootable and need to rebuild it. You want to have it boot to OS 1.2 when you are finished.

To reset to stock you will need:

- a microSD card
- a copy of the Clockwork Recovery disk image
- a copy of the flashable 1.2 zip file.
- a disk imaging tool such as diskimag (or use dd for mac/linux)
- a good zip tool - I recommend 7zip.

With the flashable 1.2 installer available, a one-step install of 1.2 can be done.

The Clockwork Recovery disk image is available here

http://legacyschool.us.to/nookdev/clockwork/0.7/

Download the file that matches the size of your SD card.

The 1.2 one-step install image is available by registering with xda-devs and going to this post:

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1050520

Leave this file zipped after you download it.

Step 1: Make a bootable CWR disk.

Completely unpack the CWR file you downloaded. You must use a file whose name ends in .img. as your source for making the disk. The files I am pointing to for downloading end in .tar.gz, and are essentially "double compressed."

gz = gzip. 7Zip, an excellent cross-platform compression utility, can decompress these, leaving you with a file whose extenion is .tar

.tar = unix tape archive. 7Zip, an excellent cross-platform compression utility, can extract files from these.

Once you've unzipped and untarred the file, you should have an .img file an .img file (sized appropriately for your SD card. You will need at least a 256 M card, but I prefer to use larger cards so I can also store backups on them.)

Use an imaging program (diskimag or dd for mac or linux) to make a bootable SD card by "writing" the .img file to your SD card.

This erases all the data on that card.

The card is analogous to a bootable disk for your PC (remember boot floppies?) The program formats the card and write a very few files to it. Those files tell the Nook Color "you can boot from me. Once booted, run Clockwork Recovery."

After you make the disk, leave it mounted on your computer.

Once You've Made The Disk...

Copy in the 1.2 zip file to the CWR disk. Leave it zipped. There are two choices of firmware. One of them installs 1.2 and also installs Clockwork Recovery directly on your Nook Color. That's a super-handy addition, as it means that later you can copy zip files to your main memory, boot into recovery, and install them without hunting down a card.

The truly stock disk is good if you want to be 100% that you are testing 1.2 as BN intended.

Now, you unmount your CWR card from your PC.

Power down your Nook Color, put your new disk in, and start it up.

It will boot into Clockwork Recovery, which is controlled using the volume and power buttons to go up and down in menus (volume) or back (power.) An action is chosen using the N button on your NC.

You can use CWR to make a full backup of your NC. Restoring this backup will put you back in time. If you have reregistered your device after you've made this backup, the device will reset after you boot, so don't reregister until you're sure you are happy.

You also use CWR to install the 1.2 zip file you copied to your card.

First, go to mounts and storage and format /system and /data and /cache. Do not format /boot!

Then, go to "Install Zip from SDcard. " Use the "manually select" option and install the 1.2 file you copied onto the card.

When it is done, power off the device and remove the card.

Power on, and you are running 1.2!

You can skip the "out of box experience" here to "test drive" 1.2 and be sure it can (or can't) connect to your access point.

If you want more cowbell, you can now root your 1.2 install.

6 comments:

  1. thank you SO much for this walk-thru! Your steps were very easy to follow and work beautifully!

    And for those who are wondering if you can update to the latest B&N stock update (1.4.2 as of 4/25/2012) -- I followed the "restore to perfect stock" line ((i didn't want to chance CWM interfering with future updates)) and the update worked as it should. I was worried for a second when, after usb-transferring the update file onto the nook and putting it to sleep, it showed the "NookColor is powering off" message; but after it restarted, the update kicked right in. No box with 'Andy, just the stock NC-update graphic.

    Hopefully my semi-ramble makes a little sense :D

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  2. I have literally been sitting here for 6 hours trying to find a way to go back stock! This is LEGIT people, use it! Easy to understand too. Thx

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  3. I am fairly savvy with technology but after rooting my Nook I realized I liked it better as a Nook but failed to fully rid the device from my tinkering. I only missed a few steps that this post was generous enough to list for users like me who are not fully up on Android rooting. Thank you for the help, now the Nook updates and runs like it should.

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  4. I can't seem to find the CWR file. The link doesn't seem to work anymore. And bead on where to find it? Please and thank you.

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  5. You can find the CWR file here: http://code.google.com/p/monster-rootpack/downloads/list

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