[TOUCHCOVERY] 4EXT Recovery Touch v1.0.0.5 RC3 | 1.0.0.5 with SmartFlash for s-on

brand new user interface: "4EXT UI"
touchscreen only
extremely fast
much more useful features than the already feature-packed 4EXT Recovery Classic v2.2.7 RC5 (see 2nd post)
4EXT SmartFlash for s-on devices
optionally save space by configuring recovery to exclude /cache from backups
you can configure recovery to save even more space by excluding dalvik-cache from backups
calculates real space needed to complete a backup to save you from troubles
detects your local time zone
-> correct time is used for backups you start from within recovery
allows you to change md5sum check behaviour
displays and updates your current battery level in real time
scrollable texthistory (drag down the statusbar)
built-in interactivity (yes/no questions) for updater-scripts
built-in screenshot functionality
extensive theming capabilities!
nearly ALL YOU SEE is changeable.
"worker bar": create your own custom animations, there are (nearly) no limits! Use any shapes/sizes/animations et.c.
extra low cpu needed for that: absolutely no negative impact on backup/restore speed.
async UI rendering for optimal performance for the "heavy tasks" like backup/restore
backups even faster than with usual recoveries.
.. explore the new interface to see more
includes all features of 4EXT Recovery Classic

About 4EXT SmartFlash



This is a new feature that allows recovery to flash your boot partition just like as if you were s-off.

Credits and thanks to Team Win and Dees_Troy for their commitment to the community, for their amazing idea with the Dumlock and for extra contacting me only to offer that I may use it.
You guys really rock!

SmartFlash is a different approach to Team Win's HTC Dumlock

Just use your recovery like you would if your device were s-off
No preparations needed, other than telling the recovery that your device is actually s-on
This is done when you install recovery and answer the question that you are s-on with "yes"
You can also change that setting later on via RecoveryControl -> Recovery settings, or by editing 4ext.prop manually
Recovery will autodetect any changes done to "boot" and only attempt to flash your boot partition if it was really changed
This even reduces unnecessary writes to "boot" when for example a new rom uses the same kernel as your previous one
Before updating your boot partition, recovery will always backup your boot partition to your sdcard just for the case something goes wrong
Only the 4 latest boot images are stored, older ones will be removed automatically to prevent taking up too much space.
In case you want to enable or disable that feature temporarily, you can use a switch inside the tools menu in recovery



How it works:

Recovery will detect any requested changes for your boot partition
When you reboot out of recovery, it will prepare updating your boot partition on next rom start
This means that your boot partition will be updated when you see the HTC Splash screen, followed by 1 reboot
So basically the only visible difference to when you are s-off is one additional reboot, which takes only a few seconds.
Recovery is NOT flashed to boot and boot is also only flashed once/update
Recovery will only attempt to flash your boot partition if it was really changed



Limitations:

Radio and firmware:
Usually those are flashed via bootloader flashable zips or fastboot even on devices that are s-off.
But in case you wondered: this does not enable you to flash new firmwares or radio images via recovery.
NOTE: You cannot use SmartFlash to SWITCH between Gingerbread and ICS roms/firmware. You must do that manually.
SmartFlash needs a working kernel to be able to upgrade your boot partition.
It cannot work in case your current kernel is incompatible with your device/hboot or has been wiped outside of recovery.
For example you cannot erase boot via fastboot and then start up recovery to update your kernel.
However you don't need a working rom to use it.
The only requirement is that your current kernel is able to start (this happens before you see the boot animation) and that your system partition is mountable.

Download


All downloads are available through 4EXT Recovery Updater.
It's free, no ads, no tracking, no nothing, don't worry
..and of course via 4EXT Recovery Control


This ensures that your downloads are ok by automatically verifying md5sums and that known issues and changelogs are easily accessible
When you install or download a recovery via the app it makes sure that your recovery config is correctly set up.
It allows to automatically setup your time zone for recovery.
You can use it to get notified about updates regarding your recovery version
You can configure it to get notified in case any critical bugs have been discovered of the recovery version you currently have installed.
It allows me to update known issues/changelogs immediately and to quickly pull a newly released version if there were reports about critical bugs
You can also use it to just download a recovery.zip containing the image. The download will be automatically verified for correct md5sums!

rzr86 wrote:very nice but you forgot to insert the link for a recovery.img to use by using the fastboot command

emmetthines wrote:I see "You cannot use SmartFlash to SWITCH between Gingerbread and ICS roms/firmware. You must do that manually." Does the same apply to switching from ICS to Jellybean?