Well, we just knew it. Like every time for every Samsung high-end android device, it would be Chainfire who would bring the clockworkmod recovery, also called cwm recovery, first of all. This time, it’s the company’s current flagship device, the Galaxy S3, i9300. And this is an excellent addition to the Galaxy S3 Root we received only some days before, courtesy of none other than Chainfire — you guessed it already, right?

To install clockworkmod recovery on Galaxy S3, you’ll need to flash it on your phone using the Odin software on Windows PC, just like we’ve been doing it on our Galaxy S1 and Galaxy S2 devices. We’ve got a detailed guide ready for you below, so if you are new or need assistance flashing it, just look below. Feel free to ask us in comments if you need to regarding anything. But first let’s hear out some comments by the awesome developer of the CWM recovery for Galaxy S3, the Chainfire.

Since it’s the very first recovery, we cannot say it’s fully working and any bug of any sorts cannot be expected. But, to ease your worries, the developer did confirm that he had no troubles taking full rom backups to internal and external sd cards, as also restoring them. Flashing zips from recovery worked just fine too.

The only concern is that, we don’t know yet whether the Galaxy S3 suffers from the same eMMC bug which recent firmwares of Galaxy Note and Galaxy S2 suffer with — it did brick some of these devices, mid you. One can only blame Samsung for that, because it’s tied to firmware Samsung has been releasing. But for what it’s worth, you’ll be happy to hear that Chainfire has patched up the relevant code already, even though that doesn’t result in any guarantee of any sorts.

How to Install Clockworkmod Recovery on Galaxy S3 i9300

If this is the very first time you are using Odin, then do check out this video in which I have used Odin to root and install Chainfire’s cwm recovery on my Galaxy S2. The procedure is exactly same, only files and the phone has changed. The process is one of the easiest things to do on Android hacking scene, but watch the video anyway to get idea of what you are going to do for next 2, 5 or 10 mins (depending on you) or so, which will soon come down to around 30 seconds, once you’ve done it a few times. Yep, it’s that easy, thanks to developer.

  1. It’s important you’ve the proper drivers for the phone installed. If you have installed Samsung’s Kies software, you already have the drivers, so download them only if you haven’t installed Kies.
    Download Drivers  |  Alternate Link for Drivers
  2. Download Clockworkmod Recovery for Galaxy S3, a zip file, from the official development page. See the Attached files section on that page to get download links. Download the latest file by the name: CF-SGS3-CWM-v5.5-v1.0.zip. (The filename will of course change based on the latest version available.)
  3. Extract the cwm recovery’s zip file you just downloaded, to get a .tar file — CF-SGS3-CWM-v5.5-v1.0.tar . If you do not get a .tar file, use 7-zip (free) software and use its Extract to <folder> option. Don’t use Extract here option. You need .tar file to be flashed with Odin, so it’s important you get that only.
  4. Download the Odin software, which will be used to flash the CWM recovery’s .tar file you obtained in step 3 above.
    Download Odin  |  Filename: Odin3-v1.85.zip
  5. Extract Odin’s zip file to get this file: Odin3 v1.85.exe . Run it when asked in step 8 below.
  6. Disconnect your Galaxy S3 if it’s connected to PC, then switch it off.
  7. Now, put the Galaxy S3 in Download Mode — press and hold these keys together: Volume Down + Home + Power. A Warning! screen will come up; press Volume Up key to continue to enter Download Mode.
  8. Open Odin — double-click the Odin3 v1.85.exe that you got after extracting the file Odin 1.85.zip in step 5 above.
  9. Connect your phone to PC now. You should get the message “Added!” under Odin’s message box in the bottom left. You cannot go to next step before getting Added message in Odin. So, if Odin fails to recognize your Galaxy S3 i9300, then it won’t work and nothing will be flashed. So, try again, and get device Added/recognized in Odin first before continuing to next step.
    If you don’t get this “Added! !” message, then probably there is a problem with drivers. Make sure you’ve proper drivers installed (check step 2). Also, uninstall Kies from the Control Panel as well (this will leave the drivers on the computer but remove Kies which can interfere with the procedure).
  10. On ODIN, click on the PDA button, then select the .tar file you obtained in step 3 above — CF-SGS3-CWM-v5.5-v1.0.tar.
    Your Odin’s screen should look like this now:
    Clockworkmod Recovery Galaxy S3
  11. Important! Now, do not make any other changes in Odin except as asked in step 9 above. Leave all other boxes and everything as they are. And make sure Re-Partition checkbox is not selected. Double check it.
  12. Now, hit the START button to start flashing the clockworkmod recovery on Galaxy S3. When the flashing is complete, your phone will automatically reboot — and when you see the Samsung logo, you can safely unplug the cable. Plus, you’ll get a PASS message (with green background) in the left-most box at the very top of Odin.What to do if Odin gets stuck and doesn’t seem to be flashing anything? It may happen sometimes, but don’t worry. If ODIN gets stuck and doesn’t seem to be doing anything, or if you get a FAIL message (with red background) in ODIN, simply try again: disconnect the phone from the PC, close ODIN, remove battery for 4-5 seconds, re-insert it, turn phone on in Download mode again, and do the procedure again from Step 8.
  13. After the phone boots up, you’ll have Clockworkmod recovery ready for you. Check out the CWM app, or to see it in real, simply boot to recovery mode. For that, power off the Galaxy S3 first, and then press and hold 3 keys together: Volume Up + Home + Power, until you see a Samsung logo. Soon, you’ll be in cwm recovery, from where you take full rom/firmware backups, restore existing backups, flash a zip file (of rom, themes, etc. when available) and do other crazy stuff. (In recovery, use volume keys to navigate up and down and the power button to select items.)
  14. Once you are done, select reboot system now to reboot the phone.

Congratulations, you’ve successfully installed ClockworkMod recovery on your new and lovely Galaxy S3 phone. Enjoy! And don’t forget to say thanks – and donate if you want to – to Chainfire for his very timely incredible work, and support development to.

If there is anything you wanna ask, feel free to say in comments below.