i'm confused about recovery images and bricking. please explain

[tktouch12]

sorry i'm a noob when it comes to the droid. what does a recovery image do?
i understand it that if you delete any system file the os wont let you update or something like that?, so if you screw up, it wont let you put a new image on. is that kind of how it is?
so this recovery image just patches your firmware, so if you delete a system file it will just let you install anything onto your device? is that right?
what kind of thing would brick a device or cause it to need to be 'restored' anyway.
thanks for explaining

(p.s.- i'm pretty advanced with iphones and ipod touches)

[tktouch12]

i usually get answers so quick, but can anyone help me with this?

[tktouch12]

and does a recovery image permanently keep your phone safe from mess ups? or just until you update or flash a new rom?
thanks

[jinx10000]

The G1 was virtually unbrickable. There was one thing that a bunch of people did that bricked it but I think that was about it. Flashing radio and custom spl in the wrong order.

The Droid is not there yet, but I'm sure one day it will be.

My suggestion is this. Root it and leave it alone until it gets there. If you are adventurous and don't mind shelling out for the new phone is the only way I would experiment right now.

[tdawg5480]

Custom recovery is a special recovery console that has been tweaked where as the oem would let you recover with a oem update.zip
if you mess with the os things wont match up and the flash will fail.
With the custom recovery we get access with adb via usb and bunch of other things and will allow us to install custom roms that the oem would reject. Custom recovery is not permanent unless you do a few tweaks to disable the revert to old recovery on reboot in 2.0.1 firmware.

someone correct me if im wrong...just trying to soak up all the info I can and help out

[tktouch12]

thanks, maybe someone who really understands this stuff (mostly the custom recovery images and bricking, etc.) could make a thread that explains it all

[tdawg5480]

thanks, maybe someone who really understands this stuff (mostly the custom recovery images and bricking, etc.) could make a thread that explains it all

look in the hacks forum on here boostnscoobs sig has one and a few others made some just be like me n lurk n read all the threads if you got time like me

[jinx10000]

Currently no custom roms have been made or tested.

There is a thread called Custom Recovery Image with a lot of good information in it as well as good instructions to install it successfully. After you get it installed (as protection only for now). Just sit back and wait for the good stuff to come.

[tktouch12]

thanks, maybe someone who really understands this stuff (mostly the custom recovery images and bricking, etc.) could make a thread that explains it all

look in the hacks forum on here boostnscoobs sig has one and a few others made some just be like me n lurk n read all the threads if you got time like me

ya, i've been lurking and reading, and i understand most things (rooting, flashing, etc) but this thread: Custom Recovery Image confused me about stuff. and i'm coming from an itouch so i dont quite understand bricking an android device
thanks for pointing me in the right direction

Currently no custom roms have been made or tested.

There is a thread called Custom Recovery Image with a lot of good information in it as well as good instructions to install it successfully. After you get it installed (as protection only for now). Just sit back and wait for the good stuff to come.

ya, that is the thread that confused me. What exactly does that do?? protect you from bricking somehow?

[jinx10000]

The current customized recovery supposedly allows you to flash any update.zip file whether it is signed by Motorola or not (it has not been tested to flash custom roms). The Motorola image requires that certain files be present or it will not flash. If you removed one of these files accidentaly or on purpose and then your phone would not boot, and a few crazy things happen so that you lose root priviledges, and you could not reinstall that file then the phone would be a brick.
The recovery image has two possible ways of saving your phone at this point. When a custom rom comes out then you could theoretically just flash it over your current bricked image or since the recovery has adb you can push that file back where it belongs and reflash the signed Motorola rom.
By the way, if you use adb another safety step is to set it to allow root and remember. That way if you could not see the allow button on startup you can still have root access.
Hope this answers your question.