How to install CyanogenMod 7.1 Alpha 2 on an HP TouchPad

CyanogenMod 7.1 Android on the HP TouchPad

Update: CyanogenMod 9 Alpha 0 is now available, making it possible to install Android 4.0 on the TouchPad.

There’s a new version of Android available for the HP TouchPad tablet. CyanogenMod 7.1 Alpha 2 includes a number of improvements, but the biggest changes are

You shouldn’t lose your WiFi connection when you put the tablet to sleep anymore.
The battery won’t run down as quickly while the tablet is idle.
The tablet should crash a little less often.
When you plug in headphones the external speaker will shut off.

The CyanogenMod team has also released a new tool that lets you completely uninstall Android and restore the webOS media partition to its original size. Note that this tool will not remove any files you downloaded to the “SD Card” while using Android. You’ll still find books, music, and other data taking up space when you revert to webOS. You’ll have to delete these files manually if you want to get rid of them.

Speaking of webOS, the CyanogenMod team has decided that it will not provide a method for completely removing the TouchPad’s original operating system. That means if you use CyanogenMod’s tools to install Android on HP tablet, it will always be a dual boot tablet. There are a few reasons for this. First, keeping webOS around makes it easier to completely restore your device using HP’s tools if necessary.

Second, HP is continuing to support webOS and the operating system may get better and better over time — so you might want to keep the OS installed in order to keep up to date on HP’s progress.

OK, so how do you go about installing the latest build of Android on the TouchPad?

Fresh install

If you’ve never installed CyanogenMod on the TouchPad yet you can follow our original step-by-step instructions. They’ve been updated to support CM7.1 Alpha 2.

If you want to be able to choose between Android and webOS at boot, make sure to install Moboot. And if you want to be able to use the Android Market, make sure to install gApps.

Upgrading from Alpha 1

In fact, go ahead and open that page anyway. It’ll save me some time if I don’t have to type out the whole thing again and you might need to refer to the original instructions.

OK, so there are two ways to upgrade from Alpha 1 to Alpha 2. Both methods will allow you to update the operating system without erasing your data. If you’d rather get a fresh start, scroll down a bit until you see the instructions for uninstalling Android altogether and then follow our original instructions for installing CyanogenMod from scratch.

Upgrading with ACMEInstaller

In order for the following method to work, you will have to have the Palm Novacom drivers installed on your computer. If you followed my original tutorial for installing Android on the TouchPad you should already have these files.

1. Download the latest version of CyanogenMod 7.1 from the RootzWiki forum. This is currently a file called update-cm-7.1.0-tenderloin-a2.1-fullofbugs.zip.

2. Using Android or webOS connect your TouchPad to your computer by mounting it as a USB storage device.

3. Navigate to your TouchPad using Windows Explorer or the file browser of your choice for Windows, Mac or Linux

4. Create a directory called “cminstall” (without quotes) in the base directory of the TouchPad.

5. Copy the update-cm-7.1.0-tenderloin-a2.1-fullofbugs.zip file to the cminstall directory. Do not unzip it.

6. Eject your HP TouchPad from your PC (unmount the USB storage device).

7. Reboot your TouchPad (Press and hold the Power button in Android for reboot options, or under webOS, go to the Device Info item in Settings, choose Reset Options, and the tap the reset button).

8. As soon as the screen goes black, press and hold the Volume Up button until a large USB icon appears on the display.

9. If you unplugged the tablet, make sure it’s connected to your PC via a USB cable again.

10. Open a terminal on your computer (in Windows, open the Start Menu and type “cmd” in the run box).

11. Navigate to your Palm Novacom directory (Check out step 11 in the original tutorial for a guide to navigating through a Windows terminal window).

12. Enter the following command (without quotes) and hit return: “novacom boot mem:// < ACMEInstaller”.

Your TouchPad should restart, text will fly by, and a few minutes later it should boot into Android.

Upgrading with ClockworkMod Recovery

Assuming you’ve already managed to successfully install CyanogenMod 7.1 Alpha 1 and ClockworkMod recovery on your tablet, there’s another way to update to Alpha 2 — and some folks may find this method simpler. You can also apply this update without using a computer at all if you just download the update file directly on your tablet.

1. Download the latest version of CyanogenMod 7.1 from the RootzWiki forum. This is currently a file called update-cm-7.1.0-tenderloin-a2.1-fullofbugs.zip.

2. You can either place the file in the root directory of your tablet — or make a note of which directory it’s in.

3. From Android, press and hold the HP TouchPad’s power button and choose the “reboot” option.

4. Select the Reboot to Recovery option.

5. Your tablet should reboot to ClockworkMod

6. Use the volume buttons to move down to the “install zip from sdcard” option.

7. Press the Home button to select.

8. Use the Home button to select the “choose zip from sdcard” option.

9. Use the volume keys to navigate to the file you want to apply — in this case it should be called update-cm-7.1.0-tenderloin-a2.1-fullofbugs. If it’s in the root directory it should be easy to find. If it’s in a subdirectory (such as cminstall) use the volume and Home buttons to keep moving around until you find it and then select the appropriate file with the Home button.

10. From the next screen scroll down using the volume buttons until you reach “Yes.”

11. Tap the Home button to apply the update.

12. Once the installation is complete you can either scroll down to the “Go Back” option and keep pressing it until you see the “reboot system now” option — or you can tap the power button to go back.

Once your device reboots you should be using the latest version of Android.

You can also use ClockworkMod recovery to install the latest versions of Moboot, gApps, or other system updates.

ClockworkMod recovery also lets you create complete backups of your Android system and restore from those backups — so before making major changes to your device it’s always a good idea to boot into ClockworkMod and create a new backup.

How to uninstall Android entirely

If you’ve decided you’re done with Android on the HP TouchPad — or if you just want to remove the operating system so you can start over with a clean install — there’s now a way to do it.

The CyanogenMod team has released a tool called ACMEUninstaller which removes Android and repartitions the storage space on the tablet so that all of your space is once again available in webOS. Previously if you wanted to get back the space consumed by Android in webOS you had to manually edit your partitions, which can be a pain in the behind.

While ACMEUninstaller will remove Android, delete your apps, and remove Moboot and ClockworkMod, it will not remove data from the “SD card” storage. Technically there is no SD card in the HP TouchPad, but Android treats your webOS /media partition as an SD card, so you’ll need to manually remove any files saved to that area if you want to recover that disk space.

OK, so here’s how to do it.

1. Grab the latest ACMEUninstaller.zip file from the link provided at the RootzWiki forum.

2. Unzip ACMEUninstaller to the same directory as your Palm Novacom files.

3. Reboot your tablet. From Android, you can do this by pressing and holding the power button and choosing the reboot options. From webOS, navigate to Settings, choose Device Info, then tap the Reset Options button followed by the Reset button.

4. As soon as the screen turns black, press and hold the Volume Up button until a bright white USB icon shows up on your display.

5. Make sure your tablet is connected to your computer via a USB cable.

6. Open a terminal on your computer.

7. Navigate to the Palm Novacom directory (on my computer that’s C:\Program Files\Palm, Inc).

8. Type the following, without quotes: “novacom boot mem:// < ACMEUninstaller”

ACMEUninstaller

That’s it. Your tablet should reboot in a moment and Android will be nothing but a distant memory.

Latest HP TouchPad news and tips:

Posted on Wednesday, October 19th, 2011, 1:00 pm by Brad Linder | 60 Comments

Anonymous

Thanks for the tutorial, will have to give clockwork mod a try this time around.
http://www.liliputing.com Brad Linder

Yeah, honestly I think it’s the easier method… once you know how to use it.
Bob

i used the clockwork to apply the android market fix, it is much quicker and easier i find. They are doing a stunning job with this.
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_YF2TZUY76X3C25IAO545EF5ZMY Grant

Updated using clockwork….simple and quick. Works great….keep up the good work.
Prez

I think the android is working fabulously good work guys keep up the good work
Armenian6000

for some reason it did not let me install zip from sd please help?
A6P

got it nvm thanks anyways lol
Mike Demahy

I installed with Clockwork. The system rebooted and then hung and rebooted again, this happened one more time, then on the 4th time i rebooted to HP web os, rebooted one more time in to cyanagenMod and it worked with no problem
Drravipati

Got it, working Great !! Thanks Guys !!!
cloodle

anyone else have problems with the new netflix update? i only got audio with no video.. so i had to uninstall and manually install the old apk to get it working again.
http://www.liliputing.com Brad Linder

I had the same problem.
Michiel

This is super guys, the install works like clockwork and straight from the start like the man says!
VERY impressive, thanks a lot for this and move up to Beta 1 soon!
Alexandre4540

where can i download the file update-cm-7.1.0-tenderloin-a2.1
Rot

Great post, CM7A2 is great. Minor issues with camera,video. Even a1 was stable for me. One tp was on with wifi, no bricking for 2-3 days. Full day of using tp and still going. I’m typing dis on FTP with music in background. And peep were right, webos keyboard > ANDROID.

All my peps r happy with a2
Lanternlad

Ive tried Alpha2, if the touchpad goes to sleep, or gets turned off, I can’t get it to find the wireless signal again. It works from a fresh install, but not after that.
http://profiles.google.com/josanmd Manohardeep Josan

I was unable to recover the space using the ACME uninstaller. Looking forward for a stable release!
Preet

Whats the best way to remove andoid rom from Hp touchpad.As i have tried to find ACME uninstaller file but unfortunately no luck with ZIP file.
Extratec2001

Hi Brad,

I have a problem I have yet to see from anyone else.

I can’t reboot to WebOS. When I reboot the screen comes up with the different options (reboot to WebOS, boot Cyanogen, reboot clockworks, reboot, ect) but when I try to click on any of them nothing happens. At the end of the list is a timer that clicks down to 0 seconds ( for you to pick your choice of reboot options), then automatically reboots to Cyanogen. It’s like the screen is locked on initial boot up. I’ve tried using the reboot options in Cyanogen (reboot, Recovery, Reboot to webOS) along with rebooting using just the power button and then using a combination of power button and home button at the same time. Nothing will let me boot to WebOS. Help! Any idea what I’m doing wrong? I’ve also re-installed the different files at least 5 times. I’m using the Alpha 2 version of Cyanogen.

Thanks!!
http://www.liliputing.com Brad Linder

That’s Moboot. You need to use the volume buttons to switch between options by scrolling up or down. Then press the Home button to make a selection.

You cannot use the touchscreen to navigate in Moboot, but you can use the volume and home buttons to choose whether to boot into recovery, webOS, or Android.
Extratec2001

Awesome! Works perfectly now. Thank you very much for the help!!
Tyson

I’m not sure what my issue is, but when I call on the ACMEInstaller from CMD, my device does nothing and the USB icon remains on-screen. I’ve tried uninstalling/reinstalling the most current novacom drivers, double checked that I’ve downloaded the correct files and they’re in the right place. What am I missing?
http://www.liliputing.com Brad Linder

Are you absolutely sure the files are in the right place? ACMEInstaller file (not folder, and not ZIP file, but the file just called ACMEInstaller) should be in exactly the same directory as novacom.exe.

My best guess is that you’ve instead placed the ACMEInstaller file in a directory, or placed the zipped version of the file in the novacom directory instead of the unzipped version.

But that’s just a guess. Unfortunately without looking at your computer I can’t really diagnose the problem from the description you’ve given.
Przemeck

when I go to run from start menu cant get into program files just documents and settings dont know how to change it
http://www.liliputing.com Brad Linder

Type “cd ..” (without quotes).
Then type “cd ..” again.
Type “dir” and you should see a list of directories.
Type “cd [name of directory you want to go to]

But I’ll be honest… if you had trouble with this step, then this tutorial might not be for you.
Anonymous

LOL .. are you sure you installed this yourself? If you followed the instructions … this was pretty obvious!
Michiel Verbrugge

Anyone have Faceboo-app crashes too?
Przemeck

another problem wi fi network loosing connection, all fine with my wi fi router hae checked with PC and other devices. Any help why? Android system works great
drroone

how do i reboot from webos to android? I can going from android to webos but I don’t know how to do the opposite does anyone know? thanks in advance.
Gl Brennan

has anyone had a problem with flash or videos playing? everthing else works.. even youtube is scrambled
Drfuzzy1

installed Alpha2,

left it over night. in the morning would wont boot up, had to do
(power+home+volume up) then usb showed up, then had to do reboot and it
worked,

then left it sitting for a few hours and had to do it again.

is there a way to fix the problem so it would work normally, instead of
doing all this. is there a patch that i can download and install.

HELP!!!!
Nicky

I got the same problem. It is really frustrating, but everything else works great
sachin

you have to install set cpu increase the minimum to 432 form 256 or so and then set it to start from boot time and then checkit will be gone for ever
Sparticle

I must be stupid or something. I have multiple android phones but I am stumped by this. Alpha2 Installed perfectly, I have moboot an ClockWorkMod, everything boots perfectly. BUT NO MARKET APP I cannot find it or work out how to install any apps. Can anyone help please.

Cheers
Spart
butter pecanl

Did you d/l the Gapps zip file and move it to cminstall too? Should work. And oh yeah, typing from my HP TP 32G on cyanogen mod 7 alpha 2 right now. Works great!!!!!! Ty development!
Sparticle

That worked, awesome implementation. Feels very polished. Although I cannot get email to work at all. It just says cant connect to server or cannot finish.

WiFi active Internet works but can’t connect to IMAP mail which is what I have,Took less than 30 seconds form Android HTC device with exactly the same settings.

No imap option from settings menu. Using app from desktop or apps brings up the correct options for server, port etc. But cannot get it to connect.

Any help appreciated.

These guys rock.

Cheers
Spart
Larobley

When I try to download apps from android market it says no phone asociated?
Jourdain

If you had Alpha1 installed first -there will still be intermittent wireless issues. There are instructions on how to refresh the wireless at the CyanogenMod HP Touchpad Forums under “How Do I Clear All My Wi-Fi Settings and Start Fresh”. Good luck.
Gssaip

I too got the same problem and could not able to get the market. could you please give me the exact gapp file name i should download. I did the latest one but didn’t work.
http://www.facebook.com/luisnm1 Luis Nelson Ramos Moreno

Buenos dias, tengo un problema no encuentro el archivo alpha 2 hice clic en la obcion descrita, y no hay el archivo sip los busque determinadamente.
http://www.facebook.com/luisnm1 Luis Nelson Ramos Moreno

Buenos dias no encuentro el archivo para actualizar (update-cm-7.1.0-lomo-A2.1-fullofbugs.zip), queria saber q a pasado, ademas en el vinculo no aparece el archivo.
http://www.reviewhorizon.com/ soricon

You should also install Amazon app market as well, they offer one free app per day and a good way to build your collection – tutorial here:
http://reviewhorizon.com/2011/10/how-to-install-cyanogenmod-on-hp-touchpad/
Shreshth Saride

not sure if this helps!! I skipped the gmail setup part in the beginning..activated Wi-Fi…at this time there was no Market App in the launcher, but when I registered my gmail acct, Market Popped-up and opened all the apps…however it force closed the first time though….just an FYI….. the most pleasing part of the entire thing was that I could install and link my Amazon App store….voila all my apps showed up and worked beautifully….
daniel

how to solve that the system show that “SD Card removed. Insert a new one.”
wilbur

I installed the alpha and I am loving it. I have one problem to report though. When I switch wi-fi networks I am unable to connect to any network. eg. I took my touchpad in to work, I was unable to connect to the wi-fi network. Tried everything. All it said was “connecting” but just did not connected. Went home, the wi-fi didn’t connect automatically. Manually, it connected. I am still not able to connect to the wi-fi at work – automatically nor manually. The wi-fi at work is not protected(no password). Please let me know if anyone else has had the same problem and found a fix for it.

Great Job Cyanogen!!!
omzz

hey guys i installed A2 on my touchpad. works pretty amazing. i am having one problem though i have setup my password but the screen wont lock. i tried different approaches but to no avail. it seems like when the tablet goes to sleep the screen does not lock itself. Can any one help me with this problem?? it would be appreciated
http://www.liliputing.com Brad Linder

Go to cyanogenmod settings, choose tablet tweaks and then uncheck the disable lockscreen option.
Gilbert Millwood

I just installed the android on my hp touchpad but cant boot in it can anyone help.Thank you
Gilbert Millwood

Hi guys need some help here, installed Andriod on my tablet but it wont boot up still going to webos. Thank you in advance
Gilbert Millwood

Hi Brad followed all the steps to install Android on my touchpad but not finding android see everyting else, need some help thank you.
Gilbert Millwood

Hi Brad how can i donate.
Lothar Brieger

I’ve been using Alpha 2 for weeks. When I try to install Alpha 3 and I reboot into the large USB symbol, my computer will not recognize the Touchpad. The USB connection works fine in both Android and WebOS but not in this particular circumstance. It just does not show in the Windows Explorer. Consequently, when I try to mount from the CMD prompt it says “Cannot connect to server”.
Jianwu

I was installed successfully for alpha2 one month ago. I used it smoothly everyday.

Today, I tried to install alpha 3 from scratch. I even use Web OS doctor to restore the Touch pad to the original factory setting, the WebOS version is: 3.0.4. But when try to install alpha 3 following above steps, I never get it successfully installed, after run the command line
novacom boot mem:// < ACMEInstaller

I saw the text scrolling on the touchpad screen. but after few seconds, I saw there's error message:

kernel panic not syncing fatal exception android touchpad

Then touch pad just reboot to original Web OS. I have tried also with old version, but with no luck. Could somebody help?
Jianwu

I found I need to run the ACMEUninstaller, even though I have already recovered using WebOS Doctor. Seems that recovery is not true full recovery.

But unfortunately, even now I can install without error, it can’t be boot to Android, It will automatically reboot every time before android animation is displayed.
Jianwu

Finally it booted to android again after one days struggle. I have to run ACMEUninstaller again after a success installation.
Pmfoote52

everything went great android working good but for some reason when i try to download anything from android market it says storage device full but it says i have 25gigs free…im confused
13missscarlett13

i need help apparently lol
i cant for the life of me get the last part to put the market on the touch pad to work
everyhing ive tried clockwork isnt a option to reboot into i even tried a few what to do if clockwork didint instal…i see the clockwork folders…and i have gaaps in cminstall and everything…
SBubbySBubba

How come when I booted it to the screen there was the text and penguins and everything but then it just froze? instead of scrolling down with more text and reboot, it just stayed like that?
Preston White

I have the CM7 HP Touchpad running 3.5. While experimenting with the lockscreeen functions, I have inadvertently locked the tablet. My TP is now stuck on the main screen and offers no response when I touch any of the on-screen icons. I have already tried reinstalling Android but the problem persists. Any advice would be helpful. Thanks!
Shedmond

How I delete WebOS completely? I do not want a dual boot system. I want to delete WebOS and use Android exclusively. Keeping WebOS on an Android system is like keeping a tumour. Waste of space…
Lfloresj

Hi need help anybody knows why when i boot from HP webOS i can connect to my pc with usb cable , but when boot with cyanogenmod i cannot connect to pc with usb cable any suggestions.

How to install CyanogenMod 7.1 Alpha 2 on an HP TouchPad

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