PRS 600 Uninstall PRS+

Sicom · 12-29-2011, 08:36 PM

Hello everybody!

I was using my PRS-600 for couple months and figured out that
I need something back-lighted, with better documents/books handling.
Thus, I am going for iPad (jailbroken, of course

), the PRS-600 goes to eBay for sale.
The problem I faced is that I had PRS+ installed on my device.
I did the installation, it was successful and I enjoyed it. Now, when the
device goes for sale, the PRS+ has to be removed.

Removal Problems:
I tried to use the original Sony Updater and it didn't work because the
version of my PRS hardware is the same (1.0.01.08040) as the latest version of the updater itself. It basically says: "Your device is up to date" and doesn't do anything.

I searched for "Uninstall, remove, delete PRS+" (in different combinations) through google, this forum, and PRS+ support group at google-groups. Everybody says just reflash it with original. Nobody mentions that reflash doesn't work (by default) due to the same version (including PRS+) being already installed.

Also I didn't find a way to modify (decrement) the version number of the device firmware, looks like it is not accessible.

Solution of the Problem:
In order to re-flash the firmware with the same version, the Updater must pass the versions check. This is how to do it.
1) Download an official Firmware Updater from Sony web-site (http://esupport.sony.com/perl/swu-do...=4799&os_id=99)
2) The Updater is an archive with exe-extension. Change the extension to zip and unzip the content into separate folder.
3) In that folder go to:
..\eBookUpdater\scripts\
4) Open with Notepad the file "updater.xml"
5) There will be some mess (Notepad doesn't handle properly the next line symbols) it is ok. Search (ctrl-F) for the string "return updateVersion <= version" (without citation marks, of course) - it will be somewhere closer to the end of the file.
6) This line compares the version of the Updater and version of the Device. If Device version is equal or greater than Updater, the update process will not start.
7) Change this line to "return updateVersion < version"
The "=" is removed in this line.
This would allow Updater with THE SAME version to update your device
Save the file and close Notepad.
8) Go back to the folder where the content was unzipped.
Run "PRS-600 Updater.exe" and follow the instructions.

In my case there was no problem. I've got the device back to the original firmware, with everything working as it supposed to.

Another thing you can play with is the version of the Device that you would have after Update. If you want to lower the Updater version you can edit it in "..\eBookUpdater\assets\updaterAssets\PRSVersion.d at"
Then you need to change the string "return updateVersion <= version"
to "return updateVersion >= version" in the "updater.xml" this should allow Updater with smaller versions to update the Device. I didn't try it but, based on general logic, it should work.

Good Luck with your readers.

BenChen · 12-30-2011, 01:18 AM

Hi Sicom,

I have not tried it, but I think there is an easier way to remove PRS+ from the 600. If the PRSPInstaller folder is still on the reader, connect it to a PC, open the PRSPInstaller folder and open "installer.sh" in a text editor.

There is a comment in this file telling you how to uninstall PRS+: simply comment out line 5 by putting a '#' symbol at the start of the line. Save the file.

Now disconnect the reader from the PC and restart your reader. You should find that PRS+ no longer starts up. So connect the reader to the PC again and remove the PRSPInstaller folder and PRS+ will be gone for good.

Sincerely,
Ben.

Sicom · 01-04-2012, 10:49 PM

Ben, thanks for this information.
The reader is already sold and it is on its way to a new owner, so I would not play with it anymore. Your advise could work (I cannot check it), I just did not know about this option when I was looking for solution.
Also I do not remember any folder similar to PRSPInstaller on the reader (I was going through the reader's content looking for the way to change the firmware version)... maybe it was there...
Thanks anyway, it could help other people facing same problem.

BenChen · 01-06-2012, 12:49 AM

It is possible that the PRSPInstaller folder gets deleted after PRS+ has been installed. It should be located in the root directory of the Internal Memory. It is also possible to copy it there from the PRS+ installation zip file.

But one thing to note, which I didn't mention in my earlier post, is that while this method does remove PRS+, it doesn't reflash the reader. So if you were trying to completely clean up the reader, you would still need to reflash the reader with the latest Sony firmware.

12-29-2011, 08:36 PM	#1
Sicom Junior Member Posts: 2 Karma: 10 Join Date: Dec 2011 Device: Sony PRS-600	PRS 600 Uninstall PRS+ Hello everybody! I was using my PRS-600 for couple months and figured out that I need something back-lighted, with better documents/books handling. Thus, I am going for iPad (jailbroken, of course ), the PRS-600 goes to eBay for sale. The problem I faced is that I had PRS+ installed on my device. I did the installation, it was successful and I enjoyed it. Now, when the device goes for sale, the PRS+ has to be removed. Removal Problems: I tried to use the original Sony Updater and it didn't work because the version of my PRS hardware is the same (1.0.01.08040) as the latest version of the updater itself. It basically says: "Your device is up to date" and doesn't do anything. I searched for "Uninstall, remove, delete PRS+" (in different combinations) through google, this forum, and PRS+ support group at google-groups. Everybody says just reflash it with original. Nobody mentions that reflash doesn't work (by default) due to the same version (including PRS+) being already installed. Also I didn't find a way to modify (decrement) the version number of the device firmware, looks like it is not accessible. Solution of the Problem: In order to re-flash the firmware with the same version, the Updater must pass the versions check. This is how to do it. 1) Download an official Firmware Updater from Sony web-site (http://esupport.sony.com/perl/swu-do...=4799&os_id=99) 2) The Updater is an archive with exe-extension. Change the extension to zip and unzip the content into separate folder. 3) In that folder go to: ..\eBookUpdater\scripts\ 4) Open with Notepad the file "updater.xml" 5) There will be some mess (Notepad doesn't handle properly the next line symbols) it is ok. Search (ctrl-F) for the string "return updateVersion <= version" (without citation marks, of course) - it will be somewhere closer to the end of the file. 6) This line compares the version of the Updater and version of the Device. If Device version is equal or greater than Updater, the update process will not start. 7) Change this line to "return updateVersion < version" The "=" is removed in this line. This would allow Updater with THE SAME version to update your device Save the file and close Notepad. 8) Go back to the folder where the content was unzipped. Run "PRS-600 Updater.exe" and follow the instructions. In my case there was no problem. I've got the device back to the original firmware, with everything working as it supposed to. Another thing you can play with is the version of the Device that you would have after Update. If you want to lower the Updater version you can edit it in "..\eBookUpdater\assets\updaterAssets\PRSVersion.d at" Then you need to change the string "return updateVersion <= version" to "return updateVersion >= version" in the "updater.xml" this should allow Updater with smaller versions to update the Device. I didn't try it but, based on general logic, it should work. Good Luck with your readers.

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12-30-2011, 01:18 AM	#2
BenChen EPUB Metadata ****** Posts: 525 Karma: 26874 Join Date: Dec 2010 Device: Kobo Glo HD	Hi Sicom, I have not tried it, but I think there is an easier way to remove PRS+ from the 600. If the PRSPInstaller folder is still on the reader, connect it to a PC, open the PRSPInstaller folder and open "installer.sh" in a text editor. There is a comment in this file telling you how to uninstall PRS+: simply comment out line 5 by putting a '#' symbol at the start of the line. Save the file. Now disconnect the reader from the PC and restart your reader. You should find that PRS+ no longer starts up. So connect the reader to the PC again and remove the PRSPInstaller folder and PRS+ will be gone for good. Sincerely, Ben.

01-04-2012, 10:49 PM	#3
Sicom Junior Member Posts: 2 Karma: 10 Join Date: Dec 2011 Device: Sony PRS-600	Ben, thanks for this information. The reader is already sold and it is on its way to a new owner, so I would not play with it anymore. Your advise could work (I cannot check it), I just did not know about this option when I was looking for solution. Also I do not remember any folder similar to PRSPInstaller on the reader (I was going through the reader's content looking for the way to change the firmware version)... maybe it was there... Thanks anyway, it could help other people facing same problem.

01-06-2012, 12:49 AM	#4
BenChen EPUB Metadata ****** Posts: 525 Karma: 26874 Join Date: Dec 2010 Device: Kobo Glo HD	It is possible that the PRSPInstaller folder gets deleted after PRS+ has been installed. It should be located in the root directory of the Internal Memory. It is also possible to copy it there from the PRS+ installation zip file. But one thing to note, which I didn't mention in my earlier post, is that while this method does remove PRS+, it doesn't reflash the reader. So if you were trying to completely clean up the reader, you would still need to reflash the reader with the latest Sony firmware.

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