Sony Ericsson DB2020 Filesystem Modifications --------------------------------------------- Access to the internal filesystem of a Sony Ericsson DB2020 based cellular phone yields a seemingly endless array of possibilities for modifications and enhancements adding to the overall experience of the end user. The ability to perform such modifications allows one to use their phone in a way or manner that was never intended or expected by the phone manufacturer or service provider. FAR Manager + SEFP ------------------ Filesystem exploration and manipulation is very simple and straight forward using the FAR Manager and Sony Ericsson Flash Plugin. The FAR Manager + SEFP plugin combination also has the ability to apply custom .vkp patches to the phones firmware. Raw Filesystem Extraction ------------------------- Using the applications main2raw.exe and SEFStool4.exe it is possible to extract the entire filesystem from an unencrypted filesystem image to disk. This is a useful method for exploring the filesystem and getting a feel for where files and settings are located within the filesystem and minimizing the risk of accidental damage to your phones current operative filesystem. The extraction of the filesystem from the image file is done using the main2raw.exe application: main2raw K790_R6BC002_FS_AMERICA_2_RED52.fbn 2020 SEFStool4.exe is now used to convert the raw filesystem image into a directory structure that can be explored just as it would be on phone itself: sefstool4 K790_R6BC002_FS_AMERICA_2_RED52.raw 2020 MENU.ML ------- Location: FS/TPA/PRESET/SYSTEM/MENU Function: The MENU.ML file is simply a customizable .xml file that stores settings and values for the phones main menu and navigation functions. LAYOUT.XML ---------- Location: FS/TPA/SYSTEM/LAYOUT Function: The LAYOUT.XML file is again simply a customizable .xml file that stores setting and values relating to the visual layout of the phones menu. The Modifications ----------------- The modifications outlined below have only been tested and verified working on the Sony Ericsson K790 and should only be applied to this phone model. Information and modification techniques for alternate Sony Ericsson models can be found all over, listed below are sites with endless resources and information pertaining to various cellular phones as well Sony Ericsson phones: http://www.se-nse.net/ http://www.topsony.com/ http://www.howardforums.com/ Network Operator Logo Removal ----------------------------- Initially phones are shipped programmed to display the cellular network operator logo, I find them to be obtrusive and somewhat offensive. It is usually my primary objective to rid my phone of this unwanted nuisance immediately after possession. Thankfully, removing this logo on a Sony Ericsson DB2020 based phone is as easy as adding a small snippet of code to the phones layout.xml file. Scrollbar Removal ----------------- Purely for esthetic purposes one can remove the appearance of unsightly scrollbars from their phones internal menus. By simply altering the default value of "2" to "0" for each instance of this code within the phones layout.xml file: Custom Menu Icons ----------------- Within the menu.ml file, there will be twelve instances of this code (one for each function within the menu): In order to apply a custom icon set to the phones menu one needs to change the "unselected" and "selected" icon sources from "internal" to "file" and provide the location to the custom icon source. Custom icons should be located in the same directory as the MENU.ML file to maintain simplicity (FS/TPA/PRESETS/SYSTEM/MENU). The modified code should look like this: A custom icon file set consists of twelve or twenty four individual .png images representing a specific function of the phones menu. Each function can have a "unselected" and "selected" icon representing the status of each menu function. Custom Startup and Shutdown Animations -------------------------------------- Again, purely for esthetic purposes. To apply a custom startup and or shutdown animation to your phone, simply replace the existing content with your custom content. Both startup and shutdown animation files reside in the TPA\PRESET\SYSTEM\SETTINGS folder and are labeled as follows: STARTUP_IMAGE_SEMC SHUTDOWN_IMAGE_SEMC Both files are 176x220 pixels and can be in either .gif, .bmp or .png format. Remove the SMS storage limit ---------------------------- By altering the default storage location of SMS messages it is possible to store upwards of 1000 SMS messages. Navigate to the directory FS/IFS/SETTINGs/MESSAGING and modify the file pref_store.txt to store SMS messages in the TPA folder instead of the smsdata folder: /smsdata/messaging /smsdata/messaging/sms /smsdata/messaging/sms/msg /smsdata/messaging/sms/FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF /smsdata/messaging/sms/FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF/pending /smsdata/messaging/sms/FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF/sm /smsdata/messaging/sms/FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF/sr /smsdata/system/messaging/sms To this: /tpa/messaging /tpa/messaging/sms /tpa/messaging/sms/msg /tpa/messaging/sms/FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF /tpa/messaging/sms/FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF/pending /tpa/messaging/sms/FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF/sm /tpa/messaging/sms/FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF/sr /tpa/system/messaging/sms You will now need to create the directory structure within the TPA folder to reflect the changes made to the pref_store.txt file. Remove pre-installed content ---------------------------- Pre-installed content such as ringtones, games and themes can not be deleted from the phone itself. With access to the phones internal filesystem any pre-installed content can be deleted without restriction. Listed below are the locations to various pre-installed content: Games: /tpa/preset/system/ams. Games: /tpa/preset/default/java Sounds: /tpa/user/audio Sounds: /tpa/preset/default/audio Images: /tpa/user/image Images: /tpa/preset/default/image Themes: /tpa/user/theme Themes: /tpa/preset/default/theme Video: /tpa/user/video Frames: /tpa/preset/system/multimedia/pe/frames Frames: /tpa/preset/system/multimedia/pe/funlayer Clipart: /tpa/preset/system/multimedia/pe/clipart Conclusion ---------- The above customizations are only a very brief example of what can be accomplished through the manipulation of the phones internal filesystem. There are virtually endless modifications that can be applied to most Sony Ericsson phones. As long as you ensure that you have made the appropriate backups you need not worry about permanently fucking up your phone through improper modification or manipulation. Experimentation will open up new possibilities never imagined, don't let apprehension get the best of you. - highjacked (01/27/08)