CyanogenMod rotating circles – Fix

 

Symptoms:

Your device is stuck with a rotating circle of CyanogenMod (CM) during boot.

Cause:

Ambiguous: Full flash drive, corrupt file(s) or setting(s), etc. can generate such behavior. See below.

Resolutions:

Note: the resolutions are ordered from least to complete data loss. Use with caution. All operations are executed in TeamWin (TWRP) environment. To boot in it, hold down power and the far volume button; release power after 3-4 seconds; release volume after the vendor splash screen appears.

1: Fix permissions; delete superfluous files if data partition is full

This keeps all your settings and the files that are not manually deleted.

  • Start in TWRP mode
  • Select Advanced / Fix Permissions
  • Restart (if the problem still persists proceed)
  • Select Advanced / Terminal Command
  • Select the root folder "/"
  • Run df -k and see if some partition is full; use du -h to see what folders are using most space
  • If applicable go back to Advanced / File Manager and delete unused files from the full partition
  • Restart

2: Reset your CM

This resets your CM installation without wiping the system files. All your user data, settings and apps are deleted though – you will have to go through the initial setup and download anything needed from Play Store / My apps as soon as you’ve logged in with your gmail account. Be sure to back up the current system image before performing this.

  • Start in TWRP mode
  • Select Wipe / Format Data (for some TWRP versions it is under Wipe / Advanced Wipe)
  • Restart

3: Wipe all and reinstall CM

This wipes the whole internal flash drive and reinstalls CM and customized google apps (GAPPS) from an image you saved on external SD. Be sure to back up the current system image before performing this.

  • Start in TWRP mode
  • Select Wipe / Factory Reset
  • Press back and choose Install; select the downloaded CM image and confirm operation
  • Press back and choose Install; select the downloaded GAPPS image and confirm operation
  • Restart

References:

http://androidforums.com/nookcolor-all-things-root/801938-stuck-cyanogenmod-rotating-circles.html

http://www.droidviews.com/twrp-recovery-explored-and-explained/