Installed TWRP but can't enter recovery

[codezer0]

As the title says... guides can't seem to make up their minds on what to press to enter recovery and get TWRP to boot.

Neither holding vol-up or vol-down with power are working. What am I doing wrong?

 

[Mikestony]

Are you starting that button press combo with the device turned off I assume?

 

[codezer0]

Are you starting that button press combo with the device turned off I assume?

Yep... volume up + power on booting gets me nothing.
Volume down + power it wants to factory reset. which is not what I want right now.

And attempting to use the adb to reboot to recovery (I presume adb reboot recovery ), and... all that gets me is a little android fella and a "no command" error.

 

[Mikestony]

Yep... volume up + power on booting gets me nothing.
Volume down + power it wants to factory reset. which is not what I want right now.

And attempting to use the adb to reboot to recovery (I presume adb reboot recovery ), and... all that gets me is a little android fella and a "no command" error.

don't forget the "-" in the command.

adb reboot-recovery

Edit: shit, maybe no dash....thinking here......

 

[codezer0]

Never needed a dash for any of the commands I was able to find to get up to this point. Was already able to successfully unlock the bootloader.

And yeah, just tells me "command not found" when doing adb reboot-recovery

 

[Mikestony]

I assume adb "sees" your device?
"adb devices"

...and that command, "adb reboot recovery" is made with your device booted up right?

Sorry if these sound like silly questions, I'm just confirming.

 

[codezer0]

I assume adb "sees" your device?
"adb devices"

...and that command, "adb reboot recovery" is made with your device booted up right?

Sorry if these sound like silly questions, I'm just confirming.

The phone certainly sees the computer, since while I had it directly plugged to the PC, it did see and enable USB debugging. And didn't even have to re-do "adb devices" and it accepted the command.

As for adb reboot recovery, it seems to take, and it would start the reboot, but either it just reboots back to the main OS or gives me the little broken droid guy with a "no command" error, forcing me to take out the battery and restart the process again.

Just letting the phone charge while presently turned off at the moment.

 

[Mikestony]

The phone certainly sees the computer, since while I had it directly plugged to the PC, it did see and enable USB debugging. And didn't even have to re-do "adb devices" and it accepted the command.

As for adb reboot recovery, it seems to take, and it would start the reboot, but either it just reboots back to the main OS or gives me the little broken droid guy with a "no command" error, forcing me to take out the battery and restart the process again.

Just letting the phone charge while presently turned off at the moment.

Hmmm, odd indeed.

Does a simple command of "adb reboot" work?

I'd have to think about this issue you're having as I'm running out of ideas

 

[codezer0]

Adb reboot just reboots the phone again. And no sign of TWRP loading.

What the heck? Go through all this trouble to get the right model, and being flummoxed to get it properly rooted and customized. That's basically all that's keeping it from being the pinnacle of Android goodness to me.

 

[Mikestony]

Adb reboot just reboots the phone again. And no sign of TWRP loading.

What the heck? Go through all this trouble to get the right model, and being flummoxed to get it properly rooted and customized. That's basically all that's keeping it from being the pinnacle of Android goodness to me.

Do you have a link to the root, install TWRP instructions? Maybe I can take a read-through of it and see if I see something. A fresh pair of eyes sometimes helps

 

[codezer0]

Do you have a link to the root, install TWRP instructions? Maybe I can take a read-through of it and see if I see something. A fresh pair of eyes sometimes helps

Here's one of the search results that I attempted to follow: https://www.skyneel.com/root-lg-v20-us996-twrp-recovery

 

[bcrichster]

Are you using Windows? Windows is a mega pain in the arse to do anything to Android.. Scratch Windows and try a Linux liveboot disk/USB (they'll leave your Windows OS alone unless you prompt a total installation).. Those don't require drivers or anything for Android, which might make troubleshooting easier

 

[Father Guido]

Yep... volume up + power on booting gets me nothing.
Volume down + power it wants to factory reset. which is not what I want right now.

And attempting to use the adb to reboot to recovery (I presume adb reboot recovery ), and... all that gets me is a little android fella and a "no command" error.

Yes, adb reboot recovery is the proper command.

"Volume down + power it wants to factory reset. which is not what I want right now."

That's how you get into TWRP via button press on this (if TWRP is properly flashed). If not, then yes, it will wipe the phone. Are you 100% sure you flashed the recovery correctly? You should have seen it happen (I'm suspecting not). If not, reboot to bootloader and reflash TWRP.

 

[codezer0]

Yes, adb reboot recovery is the proper command.

"Volume down + power it wants to factory reset. which is not what I want right now."

That's how you get into TWRP via button press on this (if TWRP is properly flashed). If not, then yes, it will wipe the phone. Are you 100% sure you flashed the recovery correctly? You should have seen it happen (I'm suspecting not). If not, reboot to bootloader and reflash TWRP.

It says it flashes successfully in the command line dialog, but when i attempt to reboot to it, i either have it just reboot the phone, or it gives me that "no command" error. It has never launched twrp no matter how many times i redo it.

 

[Father Guido]

It says it flashes successfully in the command line dialog, but when i attempt to reboot to it, i either have it just reboot the phone, or it gives me that "no command" error. It has never launched twrp no matter how many times i redo it.

OK, I went back a few posts of yours and it appears you have the US996 - lucky you! OEM bootloader unlock is much easier than the Dirty Santa kludge I had to use on my VS995.

From my observations:

I "assume" you have drivers, abd & fastboot setup correctly or you wouldn't have been able to unlock the bootloader - correct?

USB debugging enabled, adb reboot bootloader gets you into fastboot - correct?

If the above isn't true, back up the bus and start from scratch...
============================================================
Here's what *I* would do, but the usual disclaimers apply: I take no responsibility for any ill effects, data loss, you brick your phone, set off a nuclear blast, whatever. Too many things can go wrong - normally a loose nut on the keyboard. Do look over everything, be sure this makes sense, and you understand what we're doing before starting. It's possible for me to make a mistake, so double check - I'm human...

Back up important data and other things prior to ANY phone mods. Common sense there that many don't have/use.

============================================================
<deleted inaccurate info - sorry>

 

[Father Guido]

Are you using Windows? Windows is a mega pain in the arse to do anything to Android.. Scratch Windows and try a Linux liveboot disk/USB (they'll leave your Windows OS alone unless you prompt a total installation).. Those don't require drivers or anything for Android, which might make troubleshooting easier

I agree Linux is much better, but I "think" you are referring to a *special* LIVE Distro. Common distros don't include adb and fastboot "Out of the box," and one still needs to setup "Android Rules" once those packages are installed. Pretty sure I know of the one you refer to, but I'm too lazy to look for it at the moment

EDIT: A link to the speciality ISO would be cool if you have it handy. And if you have a few minutes, please look over my post (#15) above to concur it makes sense. "Brain Farts" are messing with me a bit today - Thanks!

 

[bcrichster]

I agree Linux is much better, but I 'think' you are referring to a *special* LIVE Distro. Common distros don't include adb and fastboot 'Out of the box,' and one still needs to setup 'Android Rules' once those packages are installed. Pretty sure I know of the one you refer to, but I'm too lazy to look for it at the moment

EDIT: A link to the speciality ISO would be cool if you have it handy. And if you have a few minutes, please look over my post (#15) above to concur it makes sense. 'Brain Farts' are messing with me a bit today - Thanks!

Umm, I talked SuperR into adding ADB &amp; fastboot to his Kitchen .iso's called Mint4Kitchen and Ubuntu4Kitchen.. You can choose your flavor as he posted one for Linux Mint (v18.3 or v19) &amp; Ubuntu (16.04 or 18.04). My fave is Mint because it's really closely setup similar to Windows, making it easier to navigate for ppl normally used to Windows. I am partial to v18.3 until I feel Mint 19 is ready but some ppl prefer Ubuntu anyways.

https://forum.xda-developers.com/apps/superr-kitchen

 

[Father Guido]

Umm, I talked SuperR into adding ADB &amp;amp; fastboot to his Kitchen .iso's called Mint4Kitchen and Ubuntu4Kitchen.. You can choose your flavor as he posted one for Linux Mint (v18.3 or v19) &amp;amp; Ubuntu (16.04 or 18.04). My fave is Mint because it's really closely setup similar to Windows, making it easier to navigate for ppl normally used to Windows. I am partial to v18.3 until I feel Mint 19 is ready but some ppl prefer Ubuntu anyways.

https://forum.xda-developers.com/apps/superr-kitchen

Very nice - thank you! Point the Winders people to this and it's GOOD!

I was die-hard on Mint 18.x until my primary SSD went tits up (no backup image - DOH!). Luckily /home was on a separate disk, and my 4TB raid array was fine. Decided that being a fresh install, may as well go with the latest. Mint 19 it is now, and am quite content. Very nice and does everything I toss at this older hardware.

 

[codezer0]

Are you using Windows? Windows is a mega pain in the arse to do anything to Android.. Scratch Windows and try a Linux liveboot disk/USB (they'll leave your Windows OS alone unless you prompt a total installation).. Those don't require drivers or anything for Android, which might make troubleshooting easier

Can we please not get into this OS shenanigans? I will save you the time and tell you that I would rather take a hot poker to the eye than deal with Linux for any longer than necessary.

I'm not kidding when I say the only *nix I've ever had any serious use of, that didn't make me want to smash the computer or tear my hair out in frustration, was OS X. every flavor of Linux went out of its way to just be as stupid and refusing to work correctly as possible; the only notable exception is that boot one for partitioning hard drives as part of the UBCD package. Even then, that's all I expect it to do, so of course it better work correctly. I'd really rather not get into it than that.

 

[Father Guido]

Can we please not get into this OS shenanigans? I will save you the time and tell you that I would rather take a hot poker to the eye than deal with Linux for any longer than necessary.

I'm not kidding when I say the only *nix I've ever had any serious use of, that didn't make me want to smash the computer or tear my hair out in frustration, was OS X. every flavor of Linux went out of its way to just be as stupid and refusing to work correctly as possible; the only notable exception is that boot one for partitioning hard drives as part of the UBCD package. Even then, that's all I expect it to do, so of course it better work correctly. I'd really rather not get into it than that.

PMFJI as this reply wasn't to me, but bcrichster was making a valid suggestion. Your statement "the only *nix I've ever had any serious use of," is quite frankly incorrect TBH. If you're using an Andriod phone, you ARE using *nix (on a daily basis). Android *IS* Linux.

It's not my "intent" to bash Windows. I've used every version since Dos 6 w/Windows 3.1 (skipping Windows ME, and Vista for personal reasons as I considered them both crap). There are valid reasons to use M$, I just prefer to use it only when necessary. I only want to point out that Linux "speaks" to Android natively, without all of the driver (and other) issues of Windows. Once configured properly, Linux "just works" for all Android devices.

Fully 50% of problems for Windows users trying to work with Andriod fail to setup adb, fastboot, and VARIOUS drivers correctly. A secondary ("basic" installation of Linux Mint alongside Windows) saves a lot of grief. A dual boot system is quite easy to configure, takes up relatively little disk space, and is as smooth as any version of Windows. A little bit of Googling to set things up is all it takes when having certain configuration issues. Sure it's not as "plug & play" as Windows (especially printers), but that's mostly due to the manufacturers' failure to support the platform. That's why I do my research prior to purchasing hardware/peripherals. If they don't support Linux (or support is in the distro), I pass...

Perhaps it's been awhile since you've played with it? Mint Cinnamon is very much like win7, works quite well on older hardware, and runs circles around Windows resource wise. Never a need to reboot unless switching your kernel. I'll just hope you not bash Linux anymore than I will Windows. Give it a thorough chance and you might be surprised with these modern distros. Other than the Linux "only" box in my man-cave, all my other boxen (> 4) dual boot a stripped down copy of Win10 Enterprise LTSB(C) with Linux as the default. I very rarely get online with Win10 due to their telemetry among other things, as Linux is inherently more secure. Not to mention having to "buy" Anti-Virus programs etc. to be 'safe' <sic> online. I "need" Windows for only a few things: Remote access to work "requires" IE11 (due to our inept IT department) and most (if not all) of the Android vendors (in their infinite "wisdom") write their programs for flashing (a full *.KDZ restore of an LG device for one example) for Windows only. - Sad IMHO. Why many (most?) Android developers here and elsewhere write things for Windows users vs Linux seems counter productive to me, but it is what it is.

Might I "suggest" a secondary installation of Mint Cinnamon that you can boot into on occasion and play with it some? You might be surprised how far things have progressed, and with a bit of getting used to, you my find it as good or better. "Options" are always good - explore your horizons!

Just my $.02, and no offence...

 

[codezer0]

I've never had anythibg resembling a positive experience with linux on the desktop. Or even setting a pc aside for it. Even now on said ubcd, it will attempt to use the sound capabilities of the video card and fail to do so, and completely ignore the sound card i prefer using by default. Yet even when it recognizes the audio chip on the video card, it never initializes it properly. None of the sound outputs work.

Same story for the desktop pc's. For the longest time, especially with anything that was made when it was still ati, a radeon + linux was an expressway to misery. Most of the time, it just gave a black screen until i was forced to use a command line. I hated command line even back in the DOS days. The terse and esoteric (by comparison) nature of *nix commands just make it worse for me. I wouldn't be surprised if i developed a pathological fear of command line stuff because of it. It's probably why I'm not enthused about any further back than Windows xp for retro gaming, since at least that OS seems to handle the legacy stuff i care enough to want to run, well enough to not ever need to muck about with a command line prompt from Windows 98 or DOS. Even now, XP proves itself by letting me handle console repairs with specific controllers.

Another gripe i had with *nix on desktop was that everything seemed to depend on everything else, but would never tell you that. Update one thing, it tells you it needs something else updated. Update that, three or four others need updating. It goes on and on. And either it seems to wreck my free space or just corrupt everything it touches. Lost month's worth of homework while in school as i tried to keep things backed up on an external drive and then just one time of it refusing to "eject the drive safely" even though i know for certain that it isn't writing anything, then i come back and all the data is ruined. This happened so many times with linux, the professor finally afforded us a space we could upload our files to because it kept happening. That's not to say Windows isn't obnoxious about this either... But the most it usually did in practice was just demand that the drive be scanned for errors. In linux, it would just force murder all the data.

 

[codezer0]

Now that I actually have some time off of work, I'm trying your directions there. I get to the part where it's asking to boot from the image, but I get the following error...

 

[bcrichster]

Now that I actually have some time off of work, I'm trying your directions there. I get to the part where it's asking to boot from the image, but I get the following error... View attachment 136987

Is that TWRP image in your fastboot folder? If not, try adding that to the fastboot folder and retry the cmd

 

[codezer0]

Is that TWRP image in your fastboot folder? If not, try adding that to the fastboot folder and retry the cmd

Yes, they're all in the same directory. But that's all I keep getting.

 

[bcrichster]

Yes, they're all in the same directory. But that's all I keep getting.

Here's a slim chance possibility, may be worth checking out..
I've heard of some ppl having issues flashing stuff with really long filenames.. Possibly rename file.. to 'lgk30_twrp.img'.. And use like:

fastboot flash recovery lgk30_twrp.img

fastboot boot lgk30_twrp.img

Hopefully that helps..