Hi all,
It is always a big problem to upgrade to a new ROM without having a backup of your old one or flash a different language to your Ipaq.
My situation was a german Ipaq 5550 .
So what I wanted was a way to backup my entire german ROM and then replace it with an english ROM and have the opportunity to restore and switch vice versa.
Ok here we go!
Prerequisites:
a ROM Update from HP e.g. the HP iPAQ Pocket PC h5500 Series ROM Update V1.10 (7 Apr 04) available in nearly all languages. (e.g. the english one SP27674.exe 18.2MB)
a copy of enabler.exe (is attached to this article)
You use it by clicking an empry gray area in the enabler tool with the right mouse button and drag the upcoming cross to the target area and release the button. Then in the enabler utility change the setting from hidden to visible or disabled to enabled. Also a screenshot with enabled buttons.
Extract the ROM Update (e.g. SP27674.exe) using WinRAR Program or any other way you can do it.
You should have a folder with the following files:
FUU.bin
FUU.exe
KERNEL_SKUB128_1_10_10.nbf <--- Remember that filename
msvbvm60.dll
ReadMe.exe
ReadMe.txt
Readme_h5500.rtf
riched20.dll
riched32.dll
Richtx32.ocx
RUU.exe
Setup_RUU.exe
updebt.dll
Go now and run "RUU.exe" - check "I understand the caution indicated above and have reviewed the Readme".
Press NEXT
Read everything and do what Step 1-4 say to you.
Check "I completed the steps indicated above"
Press NEXT
A screen appears, "Verifying the information on your IPAQ Pocket PC...Please wait"
Then there will be a screen showing you some current information about the ROM installed on your Ipaq and you have a button with caption "Upgrade".
Now run enabler.exe and make the hidden button with caption "Backup" visible which lies exactly below the already visible "Upgrade" Button. If you have enabled the "Backup" button, press it and you will be able to backup your existing ROM. - wonderful!
After the backup you will see a screen where you can press "NEXT" and then
you will go back to the screen where we started showing the "Upgrade" Button. Because we want to upgrade press that button now to upgrade.
If you try to upgrade to a different language an error message will appear on screen telling that the ROM-Versions are not compatible and the NEXT-Button is grayed out. - no problem with the enabler.exe tool
Just enable that grayed out NEXT button using enabler and go ahead!
The next screen will tell you that it will take approx. 10 minutes.
Press NEXT.
Now your ROM will be flashed.
The next screen will tell you that you have to reset your Ipaq. Do that
Press NEXT.
Then you get a "Congratulations Screen" and the update from german to english or whatever language has completed!
So now the big question, how can we restore the backup we made to our
device?
After a succesfull upgrade the filename of the ROM inside the update package e.g. "KERNEL_SKUB128_1_10_10.nbf" gets renamed to the same name but with a leading "_" e.g. "_KERNEL_SKUB128_1_10_10.nbf".
To restore your backup just copy the backup you made into the folder where RUU.exe is located and rename it to the same name as the original one e.g. "KERNEL_SKUB128_1_10_10.nbf".
Then start RUU.exe and do a "normal" upgrade. If there will be any unavailable or grayed out buttons you need - you know now how to fix that.
I hope you find that trick as cool as I do.
Due to the attachment limitations here I created a page containing a video
showing an upgrade from english to german. Take a look at it
here:
Tutorial upgrading from english to german
It would be nice if some of you find that tutorial good that an administrator
can put that on the tutorials sections so I don't have to host it by myself.
Best regards
HfX
