AT&T XT1097 Absolutely Refuses To Mount /system Read-Write Under Any Circumstances - X 2014 Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

AT&T XT1097 Absolutely Refuses To Mount /system Read-Write Under Any Circumstances
Yes, I'm rooted (specifically using KingRoot - it's not a permanent root, but at the moment it works)
Yes, I double checked, su works.
No, SELinux was not in Enforcing mode. (getenforce returned "Permissive")
No, I can't just flash a custom recovery, my bootloader's locked.
The problem is every time I try to run a mount command - any mount command - to mount /system read-write, I get the error "Read Only File System". This is reproducible in both adb shell and the terminal emulator on the Play Store. The main reason I want to root is to get rid of all of the reinventions of the wheel AT&T put in my system partition (for instance, I have the standard Contacts app and an "AT&T Address Book"), and install busybox. I want a solution to remount /system read-write, I don't give a damn about potential consequences at the moment.
I consider myself a relatively advanced user in theory, so you probably don't need to dumb down your answer. If I don't know something, I'll ask.

What is the exact syntax of the mount command you're running to attempt to remount /system in read/write mode?

Related

remove stock apps

I am willing to pay someone if someone can figure out how to remove factory apps like
facebook
footprints
peep
quickoffice
stock
visual vm
stock massages
i never use them for some reason they run in the background
Just take a look at this thread from the android forums
http://androidforums.com/all-things-root-eris/53646-unwanted-apps.html
NOTE: you MUST have ROOT in order to remove those apps.
If the instructions in that thread about "adb" are too complicated for you, then go buy the Root Explorer app, navigate to the folders you were told to in the thread, click the "r/w" button at the top of the app, then long press on the files you are told to delete.
Deleting system apps is risky if you delete the wrong ones. As usual, you are responsible if anything happens.
As I see it, you must have root to modify system files on your ROM (anyone correct me if I'm wrong)
But I was able to use Titanium Back up (downloaded from the Android market, free) to see all installed programs and I successfully deleted Visual VM, Peep, and stock messages... I use the others...
now so far, my ROM that is installed [2.1 version .3] hasn't had any problems with the removal of these system programs, So I think it is a safe method.
I believe this is a good alternative to adb commands... since you know what you are deleting.
and of course, I am not responsible if you do happen to mess your phone up.
C:\Users\admin\Desktop>cd android-sdk-windows
C:\Users\admin\Desktop\android-sdk-windows>cd tools
C:\Users\admin\Desktop\android-sdk-windows\tools>adb shell
$ mount -0 rw,remoun /dev/block/mtdblock3 /system
mount -0 rw,remoun /dev/block/mtdblock3 /system
mount: invalid option -- '0'
BusyBox v1.15.0 (2009-08-25 15:17:43 BST) multi-call binary
Usage: mount [flags] DEVICE NODE [-o OPT,OPT]
Mount a filesystem. Filesystem autodetection requires /proc be mounted.
Options:
-a Mount all filesystems in fstab
-f Dry run
-r Read-only mount
-w Read-write mount (default)
-t FSTYPE Filesystem type
-O OPT Mount only filesystems with option OPT (-a only)
-o OPT:
loop Ignored (loop devices are autodetected)
[a]sync Writes are [a]synchronous
[no]atime Disable/enable updates to inode access times
[no]diratime Disable/enable atime updates to directories
[no]relatime Disable/enable atime updates relative to modification ti
me
[no]dev (Dis)allow use of special device files
[no]exec (Dis)allow use of executable files
[no]suid (Dis)allow set-user-id-root programs
[r]shared Convert [recursively] to a shared subtree
[r]slave Convert [recursively] to a slave subtree
[r]private Convert [recursively] to a private subtree
[un]bindable Make mount point [un]able to be bind mounted
bind Bind a directory to an additional location
move Relocate an existing mount point
remount Remount a mounted filesystem, changing its flags
ro/rw Read-only/read-write mount
There are EVEN MORE flags that are specific to each filesystem
You'll have to see the written documentation for those filesystems
$ cd /system/app
cd /system/app
$ 1s
1s
1s: permission denied
$
this is what i get am i doing something wrong here
Type adb shell than su and tell me what happens.
binny1007 said:
Type adb shell than su and tell me what happens.[/QUOTE
never mind i got it to work i used different method i bought the titanium backup. show all the installed apps easy to uninstall it works great now my phone is running much faster thanks for all the help
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
FYI, you were typing the commands wrong.
Right after you do "adb shell" you'll need to type "su" and the $ prompt should change to a # prompt. Check your phone as well after typing "su" as you should see a popup asking for permission.
$ mount -0 rw,remoun /dev/block/mtdblock3 /system
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
should be: mount -o rw,remoun /dev/block/mtdblock3 /system
The -o is the letter o, not a zero.
$ 1s
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Should be: ls
That's the letter l (lowercase L), not a one.
grdlock, I believe there is a "t" missing in your post:
mount -o rw,remount /dev/block/mtdblock3 /system
Ahh, ya, you're right. I just copied/pasted what he wrote and didn't catch that.
ampinc said:
binny1007 said:
Type adb shell than su and tell me what happens.[/QUOTE
never mind i got it to work i used different method i bought the titanium backup. show all the installed apps easy to uninstall it works great now my phone is running much faster thanks for all the help
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Glad to know it works for someone else as well
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just downloaded Titanium Backup and deleted the "worldclock.apk" and I have to say it's a nice app, (Titanium that is)
So far, from the VanillaDroid ROM, I've deleted the following with no ill effects:
Stocks
Weather ( I use WBug)
Visual Voicemail
Browser ( I use Dolphin)
Quickoffice
MMS
Talk
Mail
Deskclock
I would like to delete the following but am having some difficulty finding the correct "apk"
Camcorder (I think it's built into the camera?)
Call History
People Search
Settings (just the app in the drawer, another NAND before I do this I guess)
Voice Dialer
Voice Search
Voice Record
NaviPanel ***Anyone know if this will mess with Maps?***
FACEBOOK !!!! I deleted the "Facebook.apk" but the FB app is still in the drawer and it still works fine. If anyone could help me with deleting this one I would be forever greatful! Trying to delete it using Titanium, it says: "cannot find Facebook.apk" But it's still friggin there......argh!
Edit: Woohoo! Facebook is gone.
Titanium tells me it needs root acess and that's out of question. Then again, I'm on the lg ally and it might be different... idk. Any other suggestions?

Messed up my superuser whitelist, help

Hi, I am on Darchdroid 2.7 and while I was trying to push Camera.apk to my phone I kept getting the "read only file system" message. I did not know at the time that the first thing I should've done was "adb shell" followed by "su" to make sure adb got onto the superuser whitelist.
Well, i proceeded to read around the net (here)and I used this command I saw around to get root:
mount -o remount,rw -t yaffs2 /dev/block/mtdblock3 /system
cd /system/bin
cat sh > su
chmod 4775 su
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And it worked, I was able to push the Camera.apk.
Now i have a problem though, when I use an app that requires root, it no longer brings up the superuser whitelist app even if I've chosen to forget them from the whitelist.
Titanium backup gives the following message:
Warning -
BusyBox works but the "su" command does not elevate to root: "whoami" reports "app_47" instead of root/uid 0. I think your "Superuser Whitelist" system app does not work. Please check with your ROM provider.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I searched around the net and I actually found a post regarding this from the dev behind Titanium Backup saying that if this message shows up, it means that the app is not properly communicating with the superuser whitelist....
Now, I believe that the commands I put in adb previously did away with the superuser whitelist and just gave root to whatever app asks for it, I don't know if I am correct.
Can anyone verify this? If so, is there a way to undo what I did? ..or will reflashing Darchdroid be my best option?
I really dont want to flash, I just got this rom settled in :\
Thanks in advance!

Custom Recovery without Root?

I had previously unlocked my bootloader and was running CM6.1, but I had to go back to stock because my company's email app (Good for Enterprise) refuses access on rooted devices.
I would like to monkey around with different configurations to see if I can find a way to run Good on CM6.1. I don't want to do this if I have to reinstall everything if it doesn't work however.
So my question is this. I just want to get the Clockwork recovery on my N1 so I can back up the non-rooted OS and monkey around a little. Can this be done with ABD on a non-rooted device?
Gave it a shot, worked fine.
"fastboot flash recovery clockwork-image-name.img"
Good for Enterprise still runs, so it isn't looking at the recovery to determine rooted status.
Nevermind, clockwork didn't survive a reboot. Good news is I was able to get a backup first.
After installing recovery via fastboot, try removing the following files via adb:
/system/etc/install-recovery.sh
/system/recovery-from-boot.p
Sent from my Nexus One using XDA App
danger-rat said:
After installing recovery via fastboot, try removing the following files via adb:
/system/etc/install-recovery.sh
/system/recovery-from-boot.p
Sent from my Nexus One using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When I try to do this from the recovery, these files are not found, and adb can't see the device from the bootloader. If I boot into the OS, it will be too late - the recovery would be wiped by then and I am back to square one. I must be missing something.
Is there any way to pull the System partition and mount the .img file on my PC to do this? That sounds a little dangerous though
Just thought, you need root to delete the files.
You'd probably have to root, install recovery, then install a non-rooted ROM, but keep custom recovery...
Sent from my Nexus One using XDA App
This is what you need to do:
1) boot your device into the OS
2) download the rageagainstthecage binary and save it as rageagainstthecage in the /tools folder (in the android SDK)
3) plug your device to your computer
4) open a command prompt in the /tools directory
5) type adb devices to make sure your computer sees your device
6) push the rageagainstthecage binary to /data/local/tmp/ by typing adb push rageagainstthecage /data/local/tmp/rageagainstthecage
7) type adb shell to open a shell
8) change the permissions on the binary to allow it to run by typing chmod 700 /data/local/tmp/rageagainstthecage
9) navigate to the directory (cd /data/local/tmp) and execute the binary by typing ./rageagainstthecage
10) wait for it to run, and it will exit the shell
enter the following command at the prompt: adb kill-server
11) enter the following command at the prompt: adb start-server
12) open an adb shell again: adb shell
13) now you should have a temporary root shell. You should see a # instead of a $. if you still see the $, go back to step 9. You may have to do this a few times (I had to do it 3 times before I got root access)
14) now, mount the /system partition as r/w by typing mount -o remount,rw -t yaffs2 /dev/block/mtdblock3 /system
15) delete the two files: rm /system/etc/install-recovery.sh and rm /system/recovery-from-boot.p
16) mount the partition as r/o by typing mount -o remount,ro -t yaffs2 /dev/block/mtdblock3 /system
17) exit the shell
18) now flash your custom recovery
Awesome, thanks. I'll give it a shot later!
This worked flawlessly, thanks for the great writeup!
Santoro said:
This worked flawlessly, thanks for the great writeup!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Two things: First, don't forget that any update from Google always has those two files in it, so they will reappear after every update.
Second, I just reread your first post again. I think you should still be able to kepp root and have your company's email working. I think the problem was that you were using an AOSP-based ROM instead of a stock-based one. Follow the directions for rooting in my signature (the first part is essentially the same as what you just did to gain r/w access to the system partition via adb, the second part is copying su and Superuser.apk to the right directories). Root is essentially one additional file copied to your /system directory, so I believe your company's email will still work with root.
efrant said:
This is what you need to do:
1) boot your device into the OS
2) download the rageagainstthecage binary and save it as rageagainstthecage in the /tools folder (in the android SDK)
3) plug your device to your computer
4) open a command prompt in the /tools directory
5) type adb devices to make sure your computer sees your device
6) push the rageagainstthecage binary to /data/local/tmp/ by typing adb push rageagainstthecage /data/local/tmp/rageagainstthecage
7) type adb shell to open a shell
8) change the permissions on the binary to allow it to run by typing chmod 700 /data/local/tmp/rageagainstthecage
9) navigate to the directory (cd /data/local/tmp) and execute the binary by typing ./rageagainstthecage
10) wait for it to run, and it will exit the shell
enter the following command at the prompt: adb kill-server
11) enter the following command at the prompt: adb start-server
12) open an adb shell again: adb shell
13) now you should have a temporary root shell. You should see a # instead of a $. if you still see the $, go back to step 9. You may have to do this a few times (I had to do it 3 times before I got root access)
14) now, mount the /system partition as r/w by typing mount -o remount,rw -t yaffs2 /dev/block/mtdblock3 /system
15) delete the two files: rm /system/etc/install-recovery.sh and rm /system/recovery-from-boot.p
16) mount the partition as r/o by typing mount -o remount,ro -t yaffs2 /dev/block/mtdblock3 /system
17) exit the shell
18) now flash your custom recovery
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Without unlock recovery i can install Amon RA?(‘fastboot oem unlock‘)In this way as u typed.
W3ber said:
Without unlock recovery i can install Amon RA?(‘fastboot oem unlock‘)In this way as u typed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not sure what you are asking.
If your bootloader is unlocked, you can use fastboot. Download the recovery image you want into the /tools directory of your SDK and rename it recovery.img. Open a command prompt in the same directory. Type fastboot devices to make sure fastboot sees you device. Then type fastboot flash recovery recovery.img and you are done.
If your bootloader is not unlocked, you can use flash_image, but you need root access. See attachments on how to get root if your bootloader is locked, and how to flash a custom recovery with a locked bootloader.
efrant said:
Two things: First, don't forget that any update from Google always has those two files in it, so they will reappear after every update.
Second, I just reread your first post again. I think you should still be able to kepp root and have your company's email working. I think the problem was that you were using an AOSP-based ROM instead of a stock-based one. Follow the directions for rooting in my signature (the first part is essentially the same as what you just did to gain r/w access to the system partition via adb, the second part is copying su and Superuser.apk to the right directories). Root is essentially one additional file copied to your /system directory, so I believe your company's email will still work with root.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was using the Nexus One 2.2.1 stock image directly from Google. My problem is that the Good for Enterprise actively checks for root. Specifically if the Superuser.apk exists, it refuses to let me in and cites corporate policy.
Since getting my stock backup, I was free to experiment and I had some success getting Good running on CM 6.1. Taking clues from your earlier instructions, I used adb shell to rename su to su.bak and Superuser.apk to Superuserapk.bak on the phone, then rebooted. After the reboot, I don't have root anymore.
This is a compromise, but at least I don't have to give up that CM6 goodness just to use my corporate email. So far I have not seen any issues in CM6 resulting from not having root. In an emergency I can rename them the superuser files back using rageagainsthecage as you outlined but I probably won't do it often.
Thanks for the help!
Santoro said:
I was using the Nexus One 2.2.1 stock image directly from Google. My problem is that the Good for Enterprise actively checks for root. Specifically if the Superuser.apk exists, it refuses to let me in and cites corporate policy.
Since getting my stock backup, I was free to experiment and I had some success getting Good running on CM 6.1. Taking clues from your earlier instructions, I used adb shell to rename su to su.bak and Superuser.apk to Superuserapk.bak on the phone, then rebooted. After the reboot, I don't have root anymore.
This is a compromise, but at least I don't have to give up that CM6 goodness just to use my corporate email. So far I have not seen any issues in CM6 resulting from not having root. In an emergency I can rename them the superuser files back using rageagainsthecage as you outlined but I probably won't do it often.
Thanks for the help!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just for your info, Superuser.apk does not give you root, it only manages the root permissions. If your corporate email application checks only for Superuser.apk, you could technically delete Superuser.apk and keep the su binary. Your would still have root, and your corporate email app would work. The su binary is what actually gives you root access. All that the Superuser.apk file does is manages the permissions for root access, i.e., it allows or denies applications from using the su binary. Everything would work fine (including all apps that require root) without Superuser.apk. HOWEVER, just as a warning, without Superuser.apk, you would have no control over which apps have root access...
I will have to put su back and see what happens. I may be recalling wrong, maybe it checks for su also...
I experimented a bit more and it looks for both files. Sorry for the confusion.

[Q] ADB "No space left on device"

Hey guys
So I am currently running 2.3.3 on my N1. I manually flashed the update from Here. I used the "Modified GRI40".
So after update, I noticed that my adfree wasn't working. Running the app, it tells me my host file is up to date. However, no ads are being blocked. Same after uninstalling and re-installing the app. So then I decided to try to copy the host file over manually using adb.
I run adb and get root prompt. Then I mount /system as rw using
Code:
mount -o remount,rw -t yaffs2 /dev/block/mtdblock3 /system
It appears to work. So then I try copying the host file to /system/etc using
Code:
cp hosts /system/etc
Then I get the following error.
"write error: No space left on device"
But i do, over 30mb of free space.
So I don't know what the issue is. Im thinking that maybe /system isn't being mounted as RW so it is giving the error??
Any help would be much appreciated.
Thanks!
Did you check the /system free space, or /data?
Try doing a df -h from the terminal to verify that you do, indeed, have free space on /system as well as /data, as Jack_R1 mentioned.
codesplice said:
Try doing a df -h from the terminal to verify that you do, indeed, have free space on /system as well as /data, as Jack_R1 mentioned.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well looks like somehow I don't have any space left. I went to go download a terminal application from the market but it errored saying no space left.
So now I can't even install new apps.
However, under settings->storage it says I have 28MB of free space left.
Any ideas?
Sent from my Nexus One using XDA App
Reboot, wipe Dalvik cache.
Go to Manage Applications, clear browser cache.
If it restores you some space - great, proceed with what codesplice suggested above.
If it doesn't - backup, wipe and reflash.
If no backup installed - you're out of luck.
Since you seem to have adb functioning, you can run adb shell df -h to get a readout of your available space on your different file systems. This could help troubleshoot the issue.
Additionally, rather than doing a long manual "mount" command, you could simply do an adb remount to automagically remount all file systems in read/write mode.
The indication under Settings --> Storage indicates free space on /data, I believe, and gives no indication of /system (where you're trying to copy the hosts file).
Another thought (sorry this isn't really coherent at this point...): What if you were to remove your default hosts file and then push the new one?
Code:
> adb remount
Remount succeeded
> adb shell rm /system/etc/hosts
> adb push hosts /system/etc/hosts
> adb shell chmod 644 /system/etc/hosts
codesplice said:
Another thought (sorry this isn't really coherent at this point...): What if you were to remove your default hosts file and then push the new one?
Code:
> adb remount
Remount succeeded
> adb shell rm /system/etc/hosts
> adb push hosts /system/etc/hosts
> adb shell chmod 644 /system/etc/hosts
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well that's thing, that is why I started this thread because I was trying to use ADB to push a new hosts file but got the no space error. So I already tried that.
Sent from my Nexus One using XDA App
I was asking if you had specifically tried removing the old one and replacing it rather than just overwriting.
Oh I see what you mean. But no I have not, let me give it a shot.
**Nope didn't work. I still got the same error, no space left on device.
Have you had the opportunity to do adb shell df -h yet?
codesplice said:
Since you seem to have adb functioning, you can run adb shell df -h to get a readout of your available space on your different file systems. This could help troubleshoot the issue.
Additionally, rather than doing a long manual "mount" command, you could simply do an adb remount to automagically remount all file systems in read/write mode.
The indication under Settings --> Storage indicates free space on /data, I believe, and gives no indication of /system (where you're trying to copy the hosts file).
Another thought (sorry this isn't really coherent at this point...): What if you were to remove your default hosts file and then push the new one?
Code:
> adb remount
Remount succeeded
> adb shell rm /system/etc/hosts
> adb push hosts /system/etc/hosts
> adb shell chmod 644 /system/etc/hosts
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No to hijack this thread, but I just wanted to ask, does "adb remount" require root?
Brownbay said:
No to hijack this thread, but I just wanted to ask, does "adb remount" require root?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yes, without root access to the filesystem, adb remount will fail.
So when I try adb shell df -h, I get:
"-h: No such filesystem or directory"
You don't have busybox. Try running "adb shell df", maybe it'll still give some info.
Ok when I ran adb shell df I got a listing of filesystems. /system says size 145M and used 145M. So apparently it is full.
How could that be though?
It could be that you have some bad blocks on your /system partition (you can generally only check by doing a wipe operation in recovery and then viewing the log). These bad blocks could take up space that would otherwise store your system data, and could push you over capacity.
Or you could just have some extra bloat related to that ROM. You could drive to remove some of the applications on /system that you don't have use for (the Amazon MP3 thing, for instance). I'd suggest using Titanium Backup to do this, but you can also do it by manually using the adb shell.
Alternatively, a full wipe and clean reinstall may help make sure you don't have anything left over taking up space.
I'm thinking about just flashing a new ROM altogether as I am also having issues with the battery. Under usage, Android OS now shows somewhere around 35% of the usage. This only started happening after updating to 2.3.3.
I've always ran stock ROMs, so I haven't played with any of the custom ROMs out there. Are there any ROMs you recommend for a first timer?
*Sidenote* So a nandroid backup is a complete backup of the system state correct?
So after flashing a ROM, I can just restore the nandroid backup and my phone will be exactly as it was with the old ROM and user data?
decoyjoe said:
I'm thinking about just flashing a new ROM altogether as I am also having issues with the battery. Under usage, Android OS now shows somewhere around 35% of the usage. This only started happening after updating to 2.3.3.
I've always ran stock ROMs, so I haven't played with any of the custom ROMs out there. Are there any ROMs you recommend for a first timer?
*Sidenote* So a nandroid backup is a complete backup of the system state correct?
So after flashing a ROM, I can just restore the nandroid backup and my phone will be exactly as it was with the old ROM and user data?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've been really impressed with the Kang-o-rama ROMs. Basically prettied-up versions of Cyanogen. The latest release is a beta based on CM7, so still has a few issues. The prior release (KOR 1.1Final) is still quite solid.
And yes, a nandroid backup creates a copy of your current disk image, which can then be restored at any time to revert back to a previously-working configuration (great for when you break stuff!).
decoyjoe said:
I'm thinking about just flashing a new ROM altogether as I am also having issues with the battery. Under usage, Android OS now shows somewhere around 35% of the usage. This only started happening after updating to 2.3.3.
I've always ran stock ROMs, so I haven't played with any of the custom ROMs out there. Are there any ROMs you recommend for a first timer?
*Sidenote* So a nandroid backup is a complete backup of the system state correct?
So after flashing a ROM, I can just restore the nandroid backup and my phone will be exactly as it was with the old ROM and user data?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Exactly Remember to wipe before restoring
Oh and that brings up another thought.
So if before I flash a new ROM, I do a Titanium Backup and then flash the ROM...
Would I then be able to restore that Titanium Backup made on the previous stock ROM to restore all my apps and user data?

[Q] adb push permissions

Okay, I hate to ask, because I just know it's been asked before.
I've done a search and also read the adb how to here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=723596
So I'm going to ask anyway, and I apologise profusely.
I am trying to push a file back to my Samsung Galaxy I9000.
I have it rooted using 'Super one click', and have managed to pull the file from the phone.
When I try to push it says 'Failed to copy, file is a read-only system'
The suggestions so far have included 'Adb remount', which gives me an additional error.
remount failed: No such file or directory
Also when I jump in shell apparently I am supposed to see a $, which indicates ADB is ready, instead I am seeing a #. I assume this means I'm not in super user mode, but unsure how to get there.
Any assistance appreciated. Basically I'm trying to upload a glass task bar just to get an idea of how to play around with this. But I get stuck at the first hurdle.
Yes, I have created backups of the files I am pulling and pushing
Thanks.
The easiest way if you're rooted is to use root explorer. Just go in the directory where you want to put the file, click in the upper right corner below the clock on R/W to change the system from read-only (R/O) to read & write and you're good to go to do whatever yoy want with the files on your phone.
edit: Also, you get in super user mode when you write su
is that adb su insert command here ?
Well, you asked how to get in super user mode - just write su. But I think # is what you should be getting in super user mode and not the dollar sign. Also, did you try using root explorer
Yeah, went and purchased root explorer. Does the job well, (cheers for that) I was just hoping to understand the computer system also.
there is a free program alternative to root explorer and i use it .it's supermanager.
I think this might help (for understanding)
adb shell
su
mount -rw,remount /dev/block/stl9 /system. (u can know u r /system complete path by typing "mount" in the shell).
after ur work
mount -ro
exit
exit
hope this helps.(The part i got stuck was after mounting as rw i could not get it back to ro )

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