I have a 12 week old mastiff puppy that I just got and I need some good tips on how to housebreak him. Any advice will be appreciated.

my puppy is 2 months old, in one week i have 70% established in his mind his sleep area and his eating area. however everything i read about housebreaking says i need a crate to place the dog in to train him. is a crate or cage necessary?

I am housebreaking a 12 week old puppy using the crate training method. He hates the crate and immediately starts whining, worrying, clawing at the door, etc. He is normally a very calm and contented puppy. What can I do to make this more acceptable to him, both for housebreaking and for other times he needs to be crated? We have not put him in the crate for more than a few minutes at this point, because he is so incensed about it! If it has any bearing on your answer, he's a cockapoo.