FYI: webOS 2.0 Doctor erases USB partition [Note: Updated with response from Palm] 29
The early reports from Pre 2 users (including those who received them during the "Oprah moment" at webOS Developer Day in New York) have been largely positive. There is, though, one potentially problematic new development, or maybe it's better to describe it as a blast from the past: webOS Doctor for webOS 2.0 not only restores webOS to its default configuration, but also wipes the USB partition. This is a return to the behavior of webOS Doctor prior to webOS version 1.3.1, released approximately one year ago.
The webOS Doctor, if you're not familiar, is the last-ditch way to clear your webOS device by restoring it to the factory ROM image by downloading it to your computer and loading it onto your phone via USB. Learn more about how to use it in our "How to fix a seriously ill Pre" article.
What does this mean? First, Doctoring is no longer quite as hassle-free a process, since users must remember (and take the time) to fully back up the USB partition before running the Doctor, if they don't want to lose everything. This is especially important for those of us who depend on webOS Internals' SaveRestore to preserve application data, system settings, etc.; those files are stored in the USB partition, so they must be backed up as well before running the Doctor. Previously, all that was necessary after Doctoring was to reinstall Preware via webOS Quick Install as described here, use Preware to install SaveRestore, and in turn use SaveRestore to restore information from the untouched USB partition. Now, a full USB restore must also be part of the process.
It isn't clear why Palm has made this change, or whether it will be permanent.
UPDATE: In response to a question on this, Shane (aka HardBeatZ) from Palm provided the following additional information:
The only thing we can currently go on the record and state is that the 2.0 doctor under normal circumstances does not wipe the USB drive, however if it does happen, it's likely caused by something we need to further investigate. The important thing is no matter where your data is at though you should always have it backed up in multiple places if it's important to you. The rule of thumb is three!
Source: PreCentral Forums (Thanks to pastorrich1 for finding this!)
29 Comments
Hopefully this was just an oversight and not done by design.
Couldn't this have something to do with the changes in where apps are stored and where PDK apps have to save files?
whew! Glad this only affects the 5 Pre 2 owners out there! :-)
Yea... make that at least over 200 for all the folks at dev day ;-)
I did a rough headcount during the last session when they discussed Enyo. I estimated around 400.
Love my Pre2. Now I just tether it to my Sprint Pre when out on the town. Bring on the batteries!
hahaha nice.
But seriously ... where's the new hardware for Sprint already?
Enough with the sprint crying.. It will get here when they release the thing!!
Well, it's a good thing webOS internals & Jason Have made it possible for us to retrieve and fix things otherwise in some cases.
This actually makes the most sense from a support perspective. Now they can make sure everything is reset when running the doctor. Though, if this is a mistake I hope they add a checkbox to format/erase the usb drive.
I agree, if the problem that's causing you to Doctor your phone is something on the USB drive, the previous iteration might not have solved the problem. Doctoring is a last ditch effort and not something users should be doing with any regularity, a full wipe/rewrite seems like the right path if you need to Doctor your phone.
PAAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLLLLMMMMM !!!!!!!
You have the fix this change.
Does the saying "Two steps forward, one step back" sound familiar?
I think the saying is, "One step forward, Two steps back.". Example: The Pre 2.
Fellows,
I am after information on the pending release of 2.0 on o2uk and how this will affect my phone and any homebrew apps installed on my pre. your advice will be appreciated.
Thanks.
Perhaps done to discourage those that have older Pre's and Pixi's from using the Doctor to update their equipment?
oops... replied to wrong post...
This weekend I doctored my Pre 2 with the 2.0.1 doctor and it didn't delete my USB partition. All of my files stayed intact. Perhaps this was a bug in the earlier 2.0.x doctors?
Interesting. When did you download the 2.0.1 version you used? I downloaded the one I used Saturday morning from Palm.com/rom and it wiped my USB partition cleaner than a whistle. It also would not work until I put the Pre 2 in recovery mode.
Since I am not using this as my primary WebOS device I would be willing to try it again this week to see if I get the same results. Are you up for that as well?
I believe it was on Saturday. I got it from the same place you did. I also had to put my Pre 2 into recovery mode.
Right now I'm doing some Music Player (Remix) testing, so I'd prefer not to re-doctor if I didn't have to. The only reason I doctored in the first place was to get the latest and greatest OS on there. I wanted to see if certain webOS bugs have been fixed in 2.0.1.
are you telling me there is a web is 2.0.1 and US still has no 2.0. WTF
This raises the question - will the 2.0 OTA update also erase the USB partition?
No. Two seperat things, OTA update is different from WebOS Doctor.
What a bunch of jackamos at HP/Palm. If you keep repeating your mistakes, there is no hope, no future.
Actually the future has come already. Palm is already losing customers because of the way they makde the pixi. It could've been an upgraded pre but it's not. Then they make a pre 2 with little changes to the original pre. iOS has a 4G phone (atleased that's what I've been told), Android has a 4G phone. But Palm's still at 3G. Why don't you guys tell us why we're getting delayed on 2.0????
LOL WUT.
Protip: There is no such thing as 4G brainiac, at least in current and near future technologies. besides, this is a disscussion on recovery tools and whether or not they should clear the entire drive or leave non-system files intact. antenna technology has zero bearing on this discussion.
It doesn't matter to me at all. I usually don't keep anything of extreme importance on the usb partition of my phone.
I'm sure this was an oversight by palm, and will be fix in an upcoming update.
Members who are having issues with this - should contact palm immediately about the matter. :p
Re: "It doesn't matter to me at all. I usually don't keep anything of extreme importance on the usb partition of my phone."
Not even the photos you've taken with the device?
Could be intentional. Best practices for "software restoration" also recommend reformatting the media the software will reside on (has to do with FAT tables and storage read/write sectors.) Anyone who supports Win_x platforms knows that deleting all files and folders is not enough for a "clean reinstall" of the OS. You want to get all the buggers out of the system, you gotta format the disk first.
Since the apps now reside on the NAND flash, deleting the contents of the apps partition may not be enough and could be why some still experience stability issues after doctoring their phone. When we doctor our dev units, we always "full erase" then doctor to make 100% sure. So far no reoccurring anomalies.
so you have any information if the doctor is formatting or "only" deleting all files?
It would be nice if webOS Doctor offered to back up the USB partition.