osm0sis' Odds and Ends -- Misc./Batch Tools, Flashable Zips, Scripts, etc.
General Information
In a nutshell, I just wanted a single thread to gather links to some of my other, larger projects, but also serve as a spot I could put some smaller scripts and zips I've created that I don't think merit their own separate threads. This is partially for my own sanity and will hopefully make it easier for others to find some things as well. A lot of the stuff here was developed with the GN, N4, N5, N7s or N5X, OP5/T, OP6/T, OP7Pro/T, OP8Pro/T or OP9Pro (my devices) and Windows in mind, but could generally be applicable to most devices either out-of-the-box or with some slight modification. If you see something that inspires you, go ahead and mod it, just let me know and give me some credit somewhere. If anyone would like to know the specifics of what's in a particular script that I haven't already linked to more information on, just let me know and I'll post that in here as well.
Note: Older zips with a "cwm-" prefix are NOT only for the now-defunct ClockworkMod Recovery, the prefix was used to denote a flashable zip before I adopted Chainfire's "UPDATE-" prefix. Please use a currently maintained recovery, like TWRP, for all zips to ensure the best compatibility/results.
My development work on my many projects comes out of my free time, so if you enjoy this project or anything else I've done on xda, please consider sponsoring my ongoing work using my GitHub Sponsors profile. For a one-time donation you can hit the donate link from my profile. Thank you for your support!
Misc./Batch Tools
AnyKernel3 (many devices) - link
AnyKernel was a simple template for an update.zip that could apply any kernel to any ROM, regardless of ramdisk to reduce the chance of any issues arising from the custom kernel pairing. The drawback to this is that some kernels require modifications to the ramdisk to enable/set up kernel features, and in the old AnyKernel format there was no way to do this. AnyKernel3 pushes the format even further by allowing kernel developers to modify the underlying ramdisk for kernel feature support easily using a number of included command methods along with properties and variables to customize the install experience.
APK-Patcher (many devices) - link
A proof-of-concept, simplifies APK modification to make it easier for modification creators to keep creating. Using JesusFreke's brilliant bak/smali and iBotPeaches' excellent apktool, modified to run on-device along with the various binaries required, allows on-the-fly APK modifications to be applied via recovery, to whatever ROM APK is present, taking the constant update burden off of the modification creator. The zip is smart and automated, using the APK name to run all the various parts involved for complicated patches and is extensible to any number of APKs in a single zip.
Android Image Kitchen (many devices) - link
A collection of Windows/Android ports of the necessary Linux utilities for Android image (kernel+recovery) mod work, and my own automation script to unpack, edit and repack the ramdisk. Other guides/scripts exist but none of them are universal for target device, compression and/or developed for Windows/Android. Now also Linux builds to bring my improved featureset back to where it came from, recently extended to macOS as well. Has been extremely useful for me in my messing around with kernel ramdisks.
ADB Screenshot (many devices) - attached
Take screenshots while in recovery. Useful for development of recovery apps or error reporting. Original method had lots of different threads around with the general method for various devices but I figured out a couple tricks required for getting it working on the Galaxy Nexus and then automated the process. Tested and confirmed working with both pixel formats of CWM and TWRP. More information in this GN Q&A FFmpeg thread. New method uses fb2png and should work on all ARM devices.
ADBsync sdcard Backup (many devices) - attached
Backs up the entire sdcard so that you can have a complete snapshot of your device when you make periodic backups, and be able to restore things exactly as they were. Automates the sync process of Renate NST's great adbsync utility which makes only newer files get pulled, significantly decreasing backup time for the sdcard compared to "adb pull". Original version posted in the old adbsync thread. Defaults for devices with /data/media/ internal sdcards (Nexus devices, etc.), but is easily customizable to backup other mountpoints or backup via ADB over WiFI.
Flashable Script Zips
TWRP A/B Retention Module script (many devices) - link
We need an interoperable root ecosystem again. A/B and system-as-root were a big setback to the root community in this respect. To help alleviate this issue, this atypical Magisk script zip "module" will keep TWRP installed to both slots when flashed from Magisk Manager after an A/B OTA has installed in the background, but before you use Manager to install Magisk to inactive slot.
Nexus BootUnlocker script (GN, N4, N5, N7 '13, N10) - attached
I don't know about everyone else but sometimes I find I've rebooted into the bootloader only to realize I've forgotten to unlock it in segv11's excellent BootUnlocker App beforehand. Well, I decided to make a BootUnlocker Script for my Galaxy Nexus so I could just boot to recovery quickly, unlock, then adb reboot-bootloader (or use my Reboot To Bootloader script below) to get back without having to fully boot the OS to make the change. Also extremely useful in the case you aren't able to boot. As with the app there is no data loss like there would be with fastboot, allowing you to relock for safety. Originally posted in the GN EDIFY Scripting thread. Modified for the newer Nexus devices and combined into a single Nexus BootUnlocker zip with tamperbit reset support added using information from the BootUnlocker App Dev thread. For newer devices using Factory Reset Protection (N6 and later), the BootUnlocker Script can't directly toggle the lockstate due to new security tokens, but it does now toggle the ability to use "fastboot oem unlock" without needing a booted device.
N7 BootUnlocker script (N7 '12) [creation guide] - link
The Nexus 7 2012 is a special case. Per-device encryption of an entire partition makes it impossible to support the N7 '12 in a simple root app, or flashable zip as above, however using my guide and included script you can now create a working BootUnlocker Script Zip for your specific device. As with the above scripts there is no data loss like there would be with fastboot, allowing you to relock for safety.
sdcard Fix Permissions script (many devices) - attached
A little flashable zip script to fix ownership and permissions of files and directories on the sdcard to what they would be if Android OS had put them there itself, since some apps can't access pushed files that have root.root as owner/group. This is useful when restoring to your sdcard backup, as with my ADBsync sdcard Backup batch script above, since generally, pushed files get root.root from adb shell and higher permissions than usual. Also a solution for a bug where sdcard files get lower permissions somehow, resulting in similar access problems. Currently written for devices with /data/media/ internal sdcards (Nexus devices, etc.), but could easily be modified for other mountpoints. No longer required on Oreo since it fixes these itself at boot.
Recovery SLAM script (many devices) - link
Recovery "Simple Legacy Auto-Mount" (SLAM!) is for devices that have been updated to SAR, but there are older zips that break in TWRP because they rely on the mounts occuring a certain way, especially during a ROM OTA. Recovery SLAM mounts them more as the zips would expect, generally allowing them to proceed. Most useful for premounting /system before a legacy zip with my FlashAfterUpdate addon.d script.
SUmount script (many devices) - attached
Another tool for the toolkit of anyone using Chainfire's SuperSU or topjohnwu's Magisk systemless root, this simple flashable zip script toggles the mounting of the su.img, magisk.img and magisk_merge.img while in recovery to allow easier access to the /su, /magisk and /magisk_merge filesystems, simplifying manipulating it via ADB shell, AROMA Filemanager or TWRP's terminal/file manager. Especially useful to anyone who uses su.d/post-fs-data.d scripts or can't boot due to some issue with a user addition in /su/su.d, /su/bin or a Magisk module.
unSU script (many devices) - link
While experimenting with Chainfire's brilliant SuperSU systemless root, I discovered that uninstalling the older style system-modifying root through his app (<2.60) didn't restore all of the modified system files correctly, so I wrote this script to do so and aid in people wanting to unroot from recovery. Expanded to support uninstallation of Koush's SuperUser, phh's Superuser, SuperSU Systemless (su.img and BINDSBIN), Magisk, LineageOS addonsu and custom ROM su binaries.
Adreno Systemless Installer script (N5, N6, N7 '13) - link
For use with Qualcomm's official updated preview GPU drivers packages for Adreno 3xx/4xx-powered Nexus stock images. This is a different frontend to take whatever device zip from Qualcomm is in the same directory as it (also searching /sdcard), then unpack and install it as a Magisk module or into the SuperSU systemless root /su filesystem, instead of the usual /system.
Kernel MultiROM Injector script (many devices) - attached
Intended for use in Chainfire's excellent FlashFire app to automate re-injecting the current boot image ramdisk with Tasssadar's brilliant MultiROM's trampoline bootmenu; this avoids having to do this as an extra step in MR-TWRP following an OTA, ROM Delta or SuperSU update. Should work for all EMMC devices with MultiROM installed.
GN PIT Editor script (GN) - link
Dumps and alters the Galaxy Nexus' Partition Information Table (PIT) to reclaim unneeded space from the /cache partition and add it to /system to allow for larger ROMs and GApps packages to make continued support for Lollipop+ easier. The resulting file is byte-for-byte identical to those created by external tools like PIT Magic, so that it may be flashed back to the device in Odin Mode to complete the repartitioning.
Kernel Emergency Reset script (many devices) - link
Basically a go-to cure-all for custom kernel users experiencing issues after an upgrade due to old settings left over in a kernel control app (eg. franco.Kernel updater, Trickster, etc.), or problematic init.d/userinit.d scripts. It's also useful if you just want to make sure you're running clean defaults without conflicts.
Reboot To Bootloader script (all devices) - attached
Those who preferred using CWM may have noticed a couple of things missing that the other popular custom recovery, TWRP, has built-in. One of these is a file explorer/manager, which is answered by amarullz' brilliant AROMA Filemanager. Another thing I found myself wanting was a way to reboot back to the bootloader once I'm in recovery, so I created this very very simple flashable zip script. (No longer required on CWM >=6.0.3.5). Note: Once in the bootloader, "Start" will boot you back to recovery. Not sure why, but it's not a big deal, just reboot normally from recovery at that point.
Flashable Installer Zips
Flashlt Installer (many devices) - attached
Installs my Flashlt script to allow easy flash and dump of boot, recovery and radio/modem (possibly others) EMMC or MTD partitions while booted, and trimming of null characters from files. Also installs a script zip that makes flashing boot.img (kernel), recovery.img, and radio.img/modem.img (baseband) files via recovery simple. It aims to save the average user the hassle of repacking their own image zip, or using the command-line or fastboot to flash it. Place an appropriately named file in the same directory as the zip and flash away! Should work on all devices with normal partition naming ("boot", "recovery" and "radio" or "modem") which accept Android standards-compliant images (including a/b slot devices like Pixel). Extremely handy when used with amarullz' brilliant AROMA Filemanager, and/or my Android Image Kitchen: Mobile Edition (linked above).
Busybox Installer (all devices) - attached
A byproduct of building my own static busybox compiles in all Android architectures for my AIK-mobile package, I figured I might as well offer them up separately as well since there weren't any providers making Android x64 builds when I was researching. Detects device (ARM/64, x86/_64, MIPS/64) to install the busybox binary, cleans up symlinks from any previous install and generates new ones. Detects and supports SuperSU/Magisk systemless installs. Please read the release post about applet inclusion and special features.
nano Terminal Editor Installer (many devices) - attached
An installer to push my own static Android ARM build of the nano editor and required files to /system/xbin and /system/etc/terminfo, with a wrapper adding a --term option to try terminfo profiles more easily. Detects and supports SuperSU/Magisk systemless installs. Can then be used from Terminal while booted. When flashed in recovery also allows temporary recovery use by pushing a script to /sbin/nano with the required setup, so you can trigger it from adb shell or TWRP Terminal. Makes it extremely easy and worry-free to tweak and mod on the go, knowing you can edit the faulty build.prop or startup script if something goes wrong.
adb + fastboot Installer (many devices) - attached
Marshmallow removed adb from the /system/bin directory. For those wanting this functionality back, here's an installer to push static compiles of adb and fastboot to /system/xbin, with a wrapper to point adb to the correct HOME directory and set TMPDIR for compatibility. Detects and supports SuperSU/Magisk systemless installs. Can then be used from Terminal while booted.
Nexus Media Installer (many devices) - attached
Custom ROMs usually don't include Google ringtones/notifications/system sounds and bootanimation, instead including numerous terrible sounds and often less-than-desirable visuals. This installs the media from old Nexus devices systemlessly (SuperSU and Magisk supported), or to system with an addon.d script to survive a ROM update or dirty flash, and using the zip name (also reading from /data/.nexusmedia) to allow user choice.
mtd-utils Installer (many devices) - attached
mtd-utils (flash_erase, nanddump, nandwrite) are necessary for mod work on a number of Android devices using mtd/char devices instead of the more standard emmc/block devices, and where the busybox versions have been less reliable in the past (especially where it doesn't include flash_erase), using the official suite is preferable. The older ARM builds available on XDA were about a decade old, so I worked out how to configure and cross-compile from the latest source. Detects and supports SuperSU/Magisk systemless installs. Can then be used from Terminal while booted
ZipSigner + Zip Installer (many devices) - attached
Signing zips and APKs on-device has always been a tricky proposition due to memory requirements of the old SignApk.jar, running a jar on an Android device, and other complications for script-based zips. Android has always been missing a zip binary (for unzip see my Busybox Installer). ZipAlign is also handy if you do APK work. To remedy this once and for all, here's an installer to push my dexed version of topjohnwu's brilliant zipsigner.jar and static ARM compiles of zip and zipalign to /system/xbin, with a wrapper to run zipsigner with Android's dalvikvm. Detects and supports SuperSU/Magisk systemless installs. Can then be used from Terminal while booted.
odex Script Installer (all devices) - attached
Based on the great work and binaries from this thread, a simple installer to push my odex script along with the required dexopt-wrapper and zip binaries to /system/xbin and set the appropriate permissions. Automates the procedure to odex any apk or jar from the commandline to potentially improve performance. Dalvik runtime (KitKat and below) only. Also uses cut from busybox.
N5X/6P BLOD Workaround Injector (N5X, N6P) - link
When, unfortunately, my Nexus 5X was recently stricken with the abominable Bootloop of Death, I looked into the well-publicized workaround and turns out it was all contained in the ramdisk and cmdline of a Android image. This is the perfect application of AnyKernel2, so I made an AK2 add-on zip to patch both the current boot and recovery partitions with all the current workarounds to help others afflicted by this issue to hopefully regain their data/device as easily as possible. Linked is the Nexus 5X thread, the Nexus 6P thread may be found here.
N7'13 TWRP flo2flox Injector (N7 '13) - link
The Nexus 7 2013 (flo) has seen a bit of a resurgence with official Lineage 18.1 support repartitioned as "flox". Since official TWRP is still automatically being built only for flo and this isn't compatible with flox, and the minor changes required for flox support were a great application of AnyKernel3, this zip automates the patching process so making official TWRP from flo2flox is easy for all going forward.
GN Synapse Support Injector (GN) - link
This AK2 kernel add-on for the Galaxy Nexus injects support for the Synapse tweaking app into the current boot partition ramdisk, including all the Synapse interfaces for the GN I've maintained since the Franco Kernel and DirtyV Kernel days.
GN Recovery Color Correction Injector (GN) - link
The aging screen on the Galaxy Nexus was looking pretty rough in recovery until I discovered the recently added new OMAP kernel color correction was also present in the most recent TWRP recovery versions. So this add-on zip uses AK2 to patch the current recovery partition ramdisk to add the command to reduce that green/yellow SAMOLED nastiness.
Kernel init.d Support Injector (many devices) - attached
An experimental proof-of-concept. Following from great ideas by Captain_Throwback in my AnyKernel2 thread and using script from my Flashlt script above, this AK2 zip will inject basic init.d bootscript support into any kernel ramdisk on any emmc device with normal partition naming and using the Android bootable image standard, without having to bloat a ramdisk using a busybox binary. This zip is also signed, so could potentially be used with non-Nexus stock recovery on a locked bootloader.
CMSetup Fix for GApps Installer (many devices) - attached
Installs a su.d script fix to work around the CyanogenMod/LineageOS 13 ROM issue of a broken Quick Settings pull-down when CMSetupWizard is removed as part of a GApps installation. Removing CMSetupWizard is useful because it allows Google's SetupWizard to grant apps default permissions, so the workaround automatically executes the only required command at the appropriate time following first boot. Requires a SuperSU/Magisk installation (for su.d/post-fs-data.d support). Flash after the SuperSU/Magisk zip and your GApps.
Dev Team init.d Pack Installer (all devices) [see "950iosettings, etc." below] - link
A simple installer I wrote to create the /system/etc/init.d/ directory, extract the latest init.d scripts as published by the "Franco's Dev Team" tuning collective (of which I was a member), then set correct owner, group and permissions to the entire init.d directory. If you are a developer and would like to include these tunables/scripts in your kernel or ROM please provide credit. A lot of time and effort has gone into this project and that's all we ask.
Scripts
950iosettings + 875mntsettings + 925vmsettings + 975experimental init.d scripts (all devices) [with Franco's Dev Team] - links
Also available bundled in an installer. The scheduler tunables have already gained a bit of attention/adoption on various devices and kernels, but this is the init.d script I wrote to set the new custom scheduler tunables values as "default" by an independent loop, sleeping in the background and detecting each time the scheduler is changed. There is no effect on idle drain or deep sleep. The settings included are the complete work of the "Franco's Dev Team" (or "Team Franco") tuning collective, of which I was a member. We strove to perfect the scheduler, vm and various other settings for the smoothest and fastest experience available. The collective was: malaroth, osm0sis, joaquinf, The Gingerbread Man, pkgnex, Khrushy, shreddintyres. If you are a developer and would like to include these tunables/scripts in your kernel or ROM please provide credit. A lot of time and effort has gone into this project and that's all we ask. Lollipop(+) updated versions now also available through the continued excellent work of pkgnex.
999-flashafterupdate.sh addon.d+addon.d-v2 script (many devices) - attached
For ROMs that don't have "Flash After Update" support built into their delta/update process. During an upgrade, this script will flash zips from an sdcard directory, with several options (listed in the script header) for displayed output, after all other addon.d backup/restore actions have completed. This can be used to flash SuperSU and then an AnyKernel2 kernel on LineageOS, for example. Only zips that specifically support addon.d-v2 can be supported on A/B devices. See this how to for instructions for use with A/B devices. Unzip once downloaded and place in /system/addon.d/ with rwxr-xr-x (755) permissions.
98-twrp_ab.sh addon.d-v2 script (many devices) - attached
Allows you to keep TWRP installed in a boot partition through A/B OTAs with Magisk installed by copying the TWRP ramdisk from the current slot to the updated one, before Magisk's addon.d-v2 script patches it. Requires a current Magisk installation since we need the tools and Magisk's the only way to ensure a working addon.d-v2 environment across ROMs at the moment. Unzip once downloaded and place in /system/addon.d/ with rwxr-xr-x (755) permissions.
97-dumpimages.sh addon.d+addon.d-v2 script (many devices) - attached
For ROMs with boot.img, etc. inside an OTA payload.bin or otherwise inaccessible, it dumps the updated chosen partitions before further modifications (TWRP, Magisk, etc.), saving it to /sdcard/Download/boot.img or to/from other customizable locations at the top of the script. Unzip once downloaded and place in /system/addon.d/ with rwxr-xr-x (755) permissions.
00-omnirootfix.sh addon.d-v2 scipt (many devices) - attached
OmniROM appears to include 69-gapps.sh automatically in its /system/addon.d directory despite not shipping with any GApps; when not rooted this doesn't appear to present a problem, but really this is only because the script doesn't have enough permissions to run how it's supposed to since Omni's sepolicy doesn't let addon.d-v2 work correctly. Once Magisk is installed, providing more privileges to the addon.d-v2 update_engine, Omni's 69-gapps.sh would remove important system files during an A/B OTA when no GApps were installed, so this script will simply prevent that for those wanting to run Omni minimally and with root. Remove the .txt extension once downloaded and place in /system/addon.d/ with rwxr-xr-x (755) permissions.
00-resizesystem.sh addon.d script (many devices) - attached
One common solution for aging devices is to resize the /system partition so that it can hold newer, larger ROMs and, of course, GApps packages. On devices where the /system partition has been resized to hold larger GApps packages, but the ROM in use has system.dat format zips with no resizing functionality, the extra space would get lost in a ROM delta flash, breaking things when GApps attempted to restore. This script will resize the system partition to its maximum before the GApps restore occurs on EMMC-based devices with standard partition naming. Remove the .txt extension once downloaded and place in /system/addon.d/ with rwxr-xr-x (755) permissions.
10-extract-lineage-kernel.sh addon.d script (many devices) - attached
Nowadays with systemless root and other boot.img mods out there, it's good to have a backup of your ROM's unmodified boot.img handy in case you want to do a clean flash of your boot partition. Since LineageOS moved their update zips to a /data/data subdirectory that made this harder to get to, I automated the procedure as an addon.d script so that the newest gets extracted on each update. The output directory may be changed by editing the script. Remove the .txt extension once downloaded and place in /system/addon.d/ with rwxr-xr-x (755) permissions.
999-customkernel.sh addon.d script (many devices) - attached
Addon.d is awesome at restoring your GApps, root app, and other things after a ROM Delta, update, or dirty flash, but of course this can leave a lot of stuff out that you'd also have to re-flash (see below for a personal addon.d script you can modify to cover anything else you want to save). This script aims to help remedy the issue for custom kernel users on EMMC-based devices with standard partition naming by dumping the current kernel as part of the addon.d backup process, and then restoring it after the ROM has flashed its included kernel. Remove the .txt extension once downloaded and place in /system/addon.d/ with rwxr-xr-x (755) permissions. This is deprecated by my FlashAfterUpdate addon.d script, above.
logohack.sh (GN) - link
Galaxy Nexus bootloader image replacement hack script. Inspired by bitdomo's brilliant imgdata tool and replicating the functionality of Ezekeel's abandoned, broken paid Logo Me app, this script improves upon the app version by working on all Galaxy Nexus bootloaders and on-the-fly, to allow replacement of the Google logo and lock images within the sbl partition. Remove the .txt extension once downloaded and place in /system/bin/ or /su/bin/ with rwxr-xr-x (755) permissions. It can then be run from the Terminal.
flash_image (many devices) - attached
MTD devices require a little extra finesse when flashing partitions from the command prompt and multiple commands, versus MMC devices, for which we can just use the dd command both ways. I wrote this little script to simplify the process for myself in my MX Box tinkering. It parses /proc/mtd so you only need to enter the partition name. It requires _n0p_'s excellent MTD-Utils compiled for Android, and uses grep and cut from busybox. Remove the .txt extension once downloaded and place in /system/xbin/ with rwxr-xr-x (755) permissions. It can then be run from the Terminal.
getprio (all devices) - attached
Android doesn't allow you to check the priority (or "niceness") of a process with the getpriority command as you would with normal Linux, and busybox doesn't provide this functionality either, so I wrote this reasonably simple script to allow you to check the niceness of a process. Some kernels have been experimenting with increasing the priority of com.android.systemui for smoothness, so this command can be used for testing different levels and whether the renice command set it correctly. Remove the .txt extension once downloaded and place in /system/xbin/ with rwxr-xr-x (755) permissions. It can then be run from Terminal with either the pid (default), class or a class name search string. Uses pidof and pgrep from busybox.
gappsintegrator init.d script (many devices) - link
ROM GApps Auto-Integration of /data/app GApps into /system, complete with libs (unlike Titanium Backup), for Jelly Bean through Marshmallow. It should process things early enough in the boot that afterwards Dalvik will immediately do the cleanup ("Android is upgrading..."), much like following an OTA. An initial GApps installation is one requirement and there are some important notes for support of Lollipop and above. Intended for ROMs with a busybox installation. Can also remove libs from and zipalign the integrated APKs if those binaries are present in the ROM.
lmkwhitelist init.d script (all devices) - link
Users running ROMs or kernels with extremely aggressive custom lowmemorykiller (lmk) driver settings may notice their launcher redrawing frequently. Some kernels/ROMs also include an exclusion for this by making stock (or the included) launcher unkillable, however that still leaves all the 3rd party launchers out there that people use. I wrote this init.d script with a community created list of the most common launchers to make whichever one is installed unkillable. This also has instructions for how to set up init.d scripts. If your launcher isn't included in the list, you can modifiy it by adding the application class name (from the Play Store URL) to the list within quotes, separated by spaces. Also part of the 975experimental Franco's Dev Team init.d script, linked above.
dalvik2cache init.d script (all devices) - link
Bind mounts the dalvik-cache directory to the cache partition. Useful on devices where the cache is sizable and unlikely to be used for OTAs (custom ROM, etc.), and the data partition is not. Every little bit counts!
settingsdump.sh (all devices) - attached
In comparing vm settings from various kernels and ROMs to see what's out there, I wrote this script to generate a list of the values of all the relevant sysfs files and directories. Now expanded to cover cpu and governor as well. Remove the .txt extension once downloaded. To run it, assuming you just put it in /sdcard/, open Terminal Emulator and type: "sh /sdcard/settingsdump.sh" (without quotes). It will output the file to /sdcard/r*-output.txt where * is the revision of the kernel you're running. This makes it easier to compare what's changed between different nightlies, for example.
Other
BootUnlocker app (many devices) [with segv11] - link
With a number of users researching and contributing the bootloader lockbit and tamperbit offsets in threads around xda and to the development thread for seg11's excellent BootUnlocker app, I have begun making beta builds with these new devices added. With hopes of adding any/all that can be, it now supports all the older Nexus devices, OnePlus devices and several others. We are accepting Pull Requests and collaborators for further device/design updates. Check my original revival post for more details.
G-Box Midnight MX2 g18ref ROM, recovery and kernel osmods (MX Box) [with BenniBenassi & relol] - link
I bought one of these unbranded Android TV boxes and was immediately determined to tweak it as much as possible following my work on the Galaxy Nexus. Flashing the official Matricom stock ROM over the generic included one I also discovered the recovery didn't have any A/V output to my old CRT TV. I set out to dump the kernel and recovery images, fix the recovery images and tweak the kernel defaults for the most performance.
Holo Stock Notification Icons for Notification Toggle (many devices) - link
This was likely my first post ever on xda. It is a "Notificon" pack for j4velin's fantastic Notification Toggle App, bringing a seamless stock look to this indespensibly useful app. Also a great way to get back to Settings easily from the notification shade since Android 4.2, and add shutdown/reboot menu functionality to stock/vanilla ROMs.
My GN Kernel Settings + 900colorsettings init.d script (GN) - link
I was being asked a fair amount for my kernel settings over in the GN f.K thread where I helped out, so I posted them up. I also put up an init.d script for setting color values on boot, which can drastically change the outcome on older panels, and at least makes custom values seamless. Instructions for how to set up init.d scripts are included.
Galaxy Nexus Baseband Collection: maguro - i9250 / M420 / SC-04D Radios (GN) [with josteink] - link
Original thread author josteink moved on to other devices and asked me to take over the thread. Lots of great information on the GN radios, posted alphabetically by region and chronologically by the build string date I found embedded in the images. Huge respect and massive thanks to josteink for seeing the need for a baseband thread almost as soon as the Galaxy Nexus was launched, way back in December 2011, and maintaining it diligently.
TK GApps (many devices) [with TKruzze] - link
After helping TKruzze with some of the concept and script work for his famous Paranoid Android Google Apps packages (PA GApps 2.0), we decided to collaborate again for his return to XDA after a much-needed hiatus, with me doing the thread setup and management with DevDB, and a Q&A section so things don't get overwhelming for those trying to follow along. The main thread remains locked and can be subscribed-to for those wanting notification only when there's a new GApps release, and the Q&A functioned as the main discussion thread where people can help each other. Much of the script is the same from PA GApps but TKruzze has added some impressive new features, made many fixes and revamped a large portion of the documentation. I also continued as an adviser and submitted script when needed.
Nexus Louder Audio Improvement Patch (GN, N4, N5, N7 '12, N7 '13) [with Misledz] - link
One of my earliest forays into EDIFY scripting, I wrote the flashable zip install/revert scheme for this great volume boost mod by Misledz. The scripts check to see if the mod is already installed and if so recommends you flash the version-specific revert that goes with it. More on that in the Intelligent EDIFY thread. During install the script also backs up the ROM files it replaces so that you don't need to reflash your whole ROM if something goes wrong, just use the revert to restore the backups. I eventually rewrote this completely in shell script with a Universal install/revert, that detects which files to backup and leaves a list for itself to revert. I also wrote automation batch scripts for Misledz as the "Louder Build Farm" to simplify his work for all the versions of the mod he maintains for various devices, linked in the knowledge base below. GN/Dev thread linked; Other links can be found there.
Payload-Dumper-Go for Android Magisk Module (many devices) [with ssssut] - link
payload-dumper-go arm compile and wrapper for use extracting from payload.bin on-device.
Git for Android Magisk Module (many devices) [with Termux] - link
Hacked arm64 git commands for use on booted Android.
Google Experience XML Magisk Module (many devices) [with Google] - link
Hacked Google Nexus/Pixel/Android One sysconfig feature xml entries for use on non-Google devices.
Digital Wellbeing Add-on Magisk Module (many devices) [with Google & Open GApps] - link
Digital Wellbeing for Android 12L and 13 GApps that don't properly support it (like MindTheGapps).
Model Mod Magisk Module (many devices) - link
Experiment to append _SN to the existing device model to get CTS passing again after the September 2021 server-side SafetyNet changes, (superceded by kdrag0n's excellent Universal SafetyNet Fix module).
Xposed Framework Installer Zip (many devices) [with rovo89 & Tungstwenty] - link
When JB4.3 broke all previous root methods I made this simple frontend script to install rovo89's brilliant Xposed Framework for modding ROMs until they could release a new version themselves. Xposed Framework files and the install.sh used are the work of rovo89 and Tungstwenty; I have only created a recovery flashable zip and shell script to function as an alternative frontend for the framework installation process. Then updated to mimic the APK installation and allow devices with /system write protection like HTC's S-ON to install the framework. (Deprecated as of Xposed 2.5).
BBCode for my xda Signature (n/a) - link
Last and definitely least. A number of people have asked me about the formatting of my signature, so here are some simple BBCode tricks and workarounds I thought others might like too. Keep in mind that my signature can be significantly larger because of my RC status.
Enjoy!
Questions, comments and feedback welcome.
Credits & Thanks: All authors of any included binaries and libraries for their amazing work. Anyone who's helped me with these projects along the way.
Disclaimer: Naturally, you take all the responsibility for what happens to your device when you start messing around with things.
Knowledge Base
Links to information/research posts I've made and other experiments.
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avbtool-arm (zip package) - link
AOSP's BootSignature.jar for AVB v1 was relatively simple to run on-device for boot.img modifying flashable zips like SuperSU and AnyKernel2 but avbtool for AVB v2 is written in Python, so that makes things a bit trickier. For experimentation I whipped up a little wrapper script to run avbtool on-device with an actual Python interpreter.
Omni SoundPacks (and Nexus Stock pack) - link
My suggested expansion to the Omni SoundPacks feature to allow it to cover all SystemUI sounds.
OnePlus FingerPrint Material Icons (Information) - link
My preferred fingerprint icon for the in-screen OP6T sensor using Zacharee1's excellent OPFPControl app.
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Complete Shell Script Flashable Zip Replacement + Signing Documentation (Reference) - link
Using a shell script instead of an update-binary in flashable zips can make them universal for architecture and put a lot more power in the hands of the developer. This reference documents all of the analogous functions myself and others have written to make this easy.
Booted Zip Flashing Shell Setup Script (Reference/How-To) - link
My implementation of booted zip flashing, originally for AnyKernel2 in Franco Kernel Updater (now Franco Kernel Manager) and since expanded to support AK3's ability to be flashed from anywhere and support most other flashable zips on devices that allow remounting /.
Unified ext4/f2fs ramdisk + ROM installer (Reference) - link
Supporting multiple filesystems like ext4 and f2fs in a custom kernel boot.img ramdisk required some work before custom ROMs were updated to do this themselves and use fallback fstabs. This is the roll-up post gathering all the changes necessary for someone to add this pre-official support to their ramdisk, kernel and ROM installers.
FlashFire Recipe Book (Reference/How-To) - link
Just a quick reference of common tasks (OTA flashing, etc.) for people figuring out how to use Chainfire's brilliant flashing app.
personal addon.d (How-To/Template) - link
I was tired of having to redo a number of tasks (remove files, backup Nexus sounds and replace the AOSP ones, etc.) to get my device back to where I wanted it after flashing a newer nightly, so I wrote an addon.d script to do it all for me. Provided if anyone wants to modify it for their own personal setups.
KBox2: Set Up A Build Environment On Android (How-To) - link
Very cool Linux-like command prompt environment on Android. I originally had it set up as a native build environment with rudimentary git support. You can follow my steps to do the same.
Keeping SafetyNet Passing With Incremental Google OTA on Virtual A/B Devices (How-To) - link
Post-reboot checks added to the incremental OTA process for Virtual A/B devices using Google's servers made it impossible to remain rooted throughout the OTA process, but following these instructions you can complete the OTA then re-root without SafetyNet catching you.
Cygwin-Linux Cross-Compiler (How-To) - link
Compiling from Cygwin with a Linux target required some fixes to the toolchain, so I detailed them for future reference.
N4/N5/N7 '13 Qualcomm Optimized Bionic/Dalvik Patch Comparisons (updated zips) - link
Using Qualcomm optimized files on Snapdragon devices improves performance greatly on KitKat. Especially good on Nexus devices or AOSP ROMs. I took the time to dissect the required files and see what worked best.
AIK Build Farm (desktop shell script) - link
The Cygwin shell script "build farm" I wrote for my Android Image Kitchen project to perform all of the cross-compiles required for the mobile and Linux versions. Allows someone to setup the repos from scratch and build.
Louder Farm (zip packages) - link
The Nexus Louder project was a pretty massive system file modifcation undertaking. This details my work to make building the patch zips easy for co-dev Misledz, and includes the farm packages at various stages.
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N7 '13 Bootloader cracking (Information) - link
Sat down with my parents' Nexus 7 2013 (before I got my own) over Christmas and cracked the bootloader for unlock support via my Nexus BootUnlocker Script zip and later the official BootUnlocker App.
N7 '13 Unbricking (Information) - link
Instructions I put together for recovering from a hard brick (bad bootloader flash usually), via the exposed Qualcomm/Marshall London "HS-USB Diagnostics 9006" mode.
Default System Alarm Setting Script (Information) - link
A script snippet function to allow easily changing the default alarm sound on ROMs that hide this ability, like OnePlus' OxygenOS.
SELinux Audit2Allow Script (Information) - link
A script snippet for turning SELinux audits in a logcat into allow statements ready for supolicy or magiskpolicy.
Partition Dumping Script (Information) - link
A script snippet for dumping all non-userland partitions from any eMMC device, useful for bootloader lockstate hacking.
GN Partition Information Table (PIT) Research (Information) - link
Wanting to push the GN as far as possible, several remaining users came together to discuss how it could be repartitioned to add more space to /system to better support Lollipop+ and I contributed a large amount of R&D over several posts throughout the thread which resulted in the PIT Editor script zip (posted above). Could be useful for other devices using PITs as well.
GN/N7 '12 tunables post (deprecated) (Reference) - link
The list of supported basic tunables on franco.Kernel for the Galaxy Nexus and Nexus 7 2012 back when those were my primary supported devices.
GN scheduler tunables HZ scale (Information) - link
The Galaxy Nexus scheduler (and other) tunables opperate on an odd scale due to the the device's HZ value in the source being weird. This post experiments with that and finding the method/equation behind it.
LMK boot timing (Information) - link
The Android lowmemorykiller module default tunables go through a bizarre sequence during boot, so I experimented and came up with a script to allow setting alternates as soon as possible.
LMK Launcher Whitelist/Niceness settings reversion (Information) - link
Setting oom_adj values and changing the niceness on launchers and systemui improved responsiveness and helped avoid these important processes being killed by LMK. Then I noticed sometimes they spontaneously reset; experimentation followed.
MTD partition flashing (Reference) - link
My MTD-based MX Box set-top device gave me a few hours of headaches until I figured out how to dump and flash the boot (kernel) partition correctly. This details my experiments and the correct procedure I discovered.
nano Android static build instructions (Reference) - link
A little documentation of all the dirty tricks I used to get the nano terminal editor utility to build for Android from the official git repo source.
mtd-utils Android static build instructions (Reference) - link
A little documentation of all the dirty tricks I used to get mtd-utils to build for Android from the official git repo source.
Pixel Launcher bind mount instructions (Reference) - link
I was annoyed that on stock Nexus 5X and 6P Pixel Launcher wasn't available and when sideloaded lost the Google Feed pane, so I replaced Google Now Launcher with Pixel Launcher using bind mounts.
Netflix broken DRM workaround instructions (Reference) - link
Custom Nexus 7 2013 ROMs Nougat+ have all had issues with Netflix due to some peculiarities of the DRM libraries the ROMs use, but some found that intentionally semi-breaking DRM using files from other devices allows Netflix to work again, but this broke Google Play Movies. I did some more testing, resolved the Play Movies issue and wrote up how to install the single needed replacement library either to system or with a systemless bind mount.
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Thanks for the interest! More to come, I'm sure!
What can I say...
SUBSCRIBED
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus
Far superior
thanks
Franco Team always made a great work .... Keep it up.
Thanks for these great useful infos!
Bookmarked, subscribed and rated a well deserved 5 stars :good:
Thanks for sharing. Very useful.
Nice...
Envoyé depuis mon Galaxy Nexus avec Tapatalk
Nice collection osmosis
Many thanks osm0sis, to you and all the team for all your contributions Almost feel as though I know you since I've been hanging round GNex and N7 franco.Kernel threads for so long and if you pop up on the N4 thread it's like seeing an old friend I'm mostly quiet, but really appreciate all you do :thumbup:
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2
Subscribed... Thanks dude...
-3StarsAndaSun
Subscribed. Thanks
Thanks back to you, everyone! I've learned a hell of a lot about Linux and Android in the year since I got my GN, and I mostly have xda to thank for that, even though I've always been the type to tinker and Google things. Still lots more to learn though! But, at the very least I guess nobody can say I haven't been busy since becoming a RC, huh?
Nice to see all these settings are adopted by others, also the interactive tuneables are used in ak kernel now.
Verstuurd van mijn Nexus 7 met Tapatalk
Subscribed :good: !
New version of testvalue.sh up. I added the input value to the output.txt file to make it easier to read since it starts at 0. Right now we're trying to work out the equation for the scale of certain cfq and deadline tunables on the GN, which is a bizarre one:
7, 15, 23, 31, 39, 46, 54, 62
Increases by 8s but occasionally (on the 5th jump, though sometimes 6th) it increases by 7.
Edit: Every 3rd increase of 7 occurs on the 6th instead of the 5th.
Edit 2: Stats genius of the group, @pkgnex worked out what the trick was; dropping the decimals once calculated.
So in Excel: y=TRUNC(x*7.8125,0)
:good:
The "why" of the GN tunables working this way, with a value of 125/16 is a very good question. No ideas there, personally. Something to do with the GN having a HZ value of 128 (where on others it's 100 or even 200) I'd assume, but I don't see the direct connection.
This was very handy to know though, because the cfq+deadline source requires the number of jumps (x) to hardcode the values, not the actual desired numbers like you'd expect.
Perfect!!!
Very interesting
Created a getprio script last night for use in /system/xbin as a runnable script to check the niceness of a process. It's up in the 2nd post now. It attempts to make up for Android not having "getpriority", and not displaying the niceness in "top" or "ps" like it would on mainstream Linux.
Code:
usage: getprio [-p] <pid> | -c <class> | -s <search string>
note - class name search will only use the top result
So you can either -p the numeric pid of a process if you know it (this is the default so the -p argument is optional), -c the class name of the process (eg. com.android.systemui), or -s a search string using part of the class name (eg. systemui). If there is more than one result for the search only the top result will be returned so if you are trying something like "-s mms", you'll only see the system mms process and not com.android.mms until you get more specific with "android.mms" or something. It's likely you've got a lower level process if you get the response "Warning: empty class name!" so that's your tip your search was too broad. Naturally, processes must be running in order to return info as well. :good:
Edit: ps -p will display niceness on Android, but it's not ideal if you want it only for a specific process like with getpriority. Thanks boype.
I don't have my device yet, but here's what someone with the device can do once you have unlocked your bootloader:
Update: This method will work once MagiskManager is patched to support the P3XL:
https://twitter.com/topjohnwu/status/1052993970303889418
1) Download the latest factory image from here:
https://developers.google.com/android/images#crosshatch
2) Extract the file to your pc somewhere. Inside the archive, there is a boot.img
3) Upload boot.img to /sdcard
4) Install Magisk Manager from the link below. You can use adb install from the command line, or upload to your phone and sideload it with some file manager app (Root explorer for example).
https://github.com/topjohnwu/Magisk/releases/download/manager-v6.0.0/MagiskManager-v6.0.0.apk
5) Open Magisk Manager app and choose install. Select the boot.img file you uploaded in step 3
6) Copy the patched_boot.img file generated from Magisk Manager in step 5 to your pc.
7) Reboot to bootloader (adb reboot bootloader) or Power off the phone completely, and hold volume down while you power it up.
8) fastboot flash boot patched_boot.img
9) Reboot and check to see if you have root in Magisk Manager.
If this does not work or you get into a boot loop or it freezes, simply reboot to bootloader and flash stock boot.img from the factory image.
We need twrp
TheUndertaker21 said:
We need twrp
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I believe this method would bypass the requirement for twrp. I won't be able to test until I get home tonight but I will try and update later.
Apparently Topjohnwu has confirmed that MagiskManager does not patch the boot image correctly, so this does not work as of yet. Will most likely need a new version of MagiskManager to get this working. I will modify the first post accordingly.
TheUndertaker21 said:
We need twrp
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No we do not.
Today is the day
From his Twitter. Should be any day now. Excited
https://twitter.com/topjohnwu/status/1053488124389720064?s=19
Welcome to the Magisk family, Pixel 3!
I originally planned to do more changes to Magisk Manager before a new public release, but I think people can't wait to root their shiny new Pixel 3, so here we go!
Up-to-date Documentations
Some subtle details, design choices, developer guides are all added to the documentations!
For most average users though, the most interesting part would be the tutorial: Best Practices for MagiskHide, please take some time and check it out!
Magisk Documentations
Boot Image Header v1
Google updated the boot image header format from v0 to v1 and was first used on the Pixel 3. The new header supports recovery DTBOs, which won't be used on any A/B devices, including Pixel 3 so that isn't the main issue here. The new format stores its version number to an originally unused entry in the header to determine whether the extended header entries is used. However in some freaking devices like Samsung's, they have been using the supposedly "unused" entry as the size of an non-AOSP "extra section" for quite a long time. magiskboot is designed to support extracting these extra sections (because people use Samsung), but with the introduction of header v1, the tool couldn't interpret the image properly, and thus generating invalid boot images.
magiskboot's boot image parsing, unpacking and repacking code was rewritten with C++ to utilize the more powerful language features due to the complexity (because I still need to support freaking PXA format headers used by old Samsung devices...)
MagiskSU Rewrite
Both the daemon and client side of MagiskSU is completely rewritten with improvements and optimizations, for example: simplified `su_info` caches, early ACK between daemon and client to prevent process freezing when denied, sending parsed command-line options instead of full arguments, and many more!
Samsung Defex Patches
A hexpatch for removing Samsung's new KNOX feature: Defex Safeplace was actually already introduced in previous releases, but that solution wasn't ideal since each new kernel release would generate different patterns. A more general patch (which is only a single CPU instruction!) was discovered and included into this new release.
Magisk-Modules-Repo Moderation
If you aren't aware, a team of zealous volunteer moderators were already starting to review new submission manually, being the gate keeper of our beloved Magisk-Modules-Repo. Hopefully this will prevent pointless/spam modules polluting the download section in Magisk Manager!
Thread closed as per OP request.
Thanks
SacredDeviL666
Forum Moderator.
Firmware & ROMFirmware is the skeleton of ROM, kinda tells ROM what to do, when to do, how to do. So, they refer to the firmware of the phone as ROM, because in theory you, as a normal user, can't alter the area where the firmware is (it's in the Read Only Memory). On older phone, this was true, it wasn't easy to alter a phone software without special equipment. In nowadays, the firmware is not stored in real ROM, it's stored in the internal flash memory of the phone, which is not Read Only, so you can flash another firmware. The 2 terms are interchangeable. In general, people refer to modified firmware's as ROMs.
Again the ROM on the phone contains the phone's firmware. By replacing the firmware, the ROM of the phone is useless and if you flash a new firmware, the new firmware has complete control over it, which is why the two terms are seen as synonymous.
DRM & WIDEVINE SECURITY:DRM = Digital Rights Management, googles security for paid streaming service, divided into L1,L2,L3 SECURITY LEVEL. If your device has widevine security level L1, you can stream netflix, amazon tv etc in full HD, if L3, you can only in 480p or 540p.
Widevine CDM (content decryption module)
Widevine Media Optimizer (typically when Widevine is both the protection and content player)
if you want to check widevine security of your phone, download DRM INFO APP.
WHERE WIDEVINE SECURITY IS STORED:
PERSIST.IMG contains widevine security information. Once widevine L1 security is lost, there is little possibility of getting it back. You might get it back if you have taken your persist.img backup, that's why, in my MIUI Unlocking Bootloader, Flashing Recovery & Rooting Process thread, I put utter importance taking the persist.img partition backup. Persist also contains your sensor information, like bluetooth, wifi etc.
How do you loose it: By rolling back your android version. Never do it. If you do it, you may break your sensors, in that case, you may fix them by flashing the persist.img of your device, hope you took the backup of it, if you don't , you may flash the persist.img of same device model of other person's device but you will loose your WIDEVINE SECURITY LEVEL L1 forever. My suggestion, never roll back.
TERMINOLOGIES:gApps = Google Apps
SuperSU = another rooting app like Magisk. With simpler interface & no root hiding opportunity.
DTO = Device Tree Overlays (DTOs)
OEM = Original Equipment Manufacturer. (such as, MIUI is a OEM skin/ROM)
OEM Skin = like MIUI luncher, notification toggle like this. Custom OEM skin: customizing them using others skin.
Slot Services = it refers to partition related services in recovery mood.
Treble ROM = Treble supported rom supports ota(over the air) (in simple terms : System Updates)
non-Treble ROM = While non treble roms doesnt support ota.
BB = most probably BASEBAND
GMS, API, AOSP & PRE-LOADED APPS:GOOGLE MOBILE SERVICES (GMS) is a collection of proprietary applications and APPLICATION PROGRAMMING INTERFACES (APIs) services from Google. GMS is used by manufacturers of Android devices, such as smartphones, tablets, and smart TVs. GMS are the Android Applications developed by Google for manufacturers of Android that often come pre−installed on Android devices. GMS is not a part of the ANDROID OPEN SOURCE PROJECT(AOSP), which means an Android manufacturer needs to obtain a license from Google in order to legally pre−install GMS on an Android device. This license is provided by Google without any license fees. GMS consists of two parts; a popular bundle package and an other bundle package. In order to gain a license for GMS, the popular bundle package needs to be pre−installed by Android device manufactures, which are usually called PRE-LOADED APPS.
What is force encryption?Encryption is the process of encoding all user data on an Android device using symmetric encryption keys. Encryption ensures that even if an unauthorized party tries to access the data, they won't be able to read it. Android has two methods for device encryption: file-based encryption and full-disk encryption.
What is Dmverify?Android verified boot: As dm-verity is a kernel feature, in order for the integrity protection it provides to be effective, the kernel which the device boots needs to be trusted. On Android, this means verifying the boot partition, which also includes the root file system RAM disk and the verity public key.
What is DM-Verity?Android 4.4 and higher supports Verified Boot through the optional DEVICE-MAPPER-VERITY (dm-verity) kernel feature, which provides transparent integrity checking of block devices. dm-verity helps prevent persistent rootkits that can hold onto root privileges and compromise devices.
What is DM-verity and force encryption disabler?Many Android ROMs have become more and more secure. Many devices have been equipped with new system security mechanism to protect any advanced modification to the system itself. One of the known mechanism is Device Mapper Verity, also known as dm-verity. This security mechanism is basically developed to help prevent persistent rootkits that can hold onto root privileges and compromise devices. Most of the recent Android devices need to do a verified boot through the optional dm-verity kernel. This is sure can prevent malware to hide from detection programs and otherwise mask themselves. Unfortunately, for advanced Android users, it can be troublesome to a certain extent because it prevents the device to boot properly once custom recovery like TWRP is flashed. Previously, in order to flash TWRP on a device protected with dm-verity feature, you’ll need to first cook your own ROM modifying original ROM to disable dm-verity in its kernel. This could be so arduous for novice users. Luckily, there is a patch-like package allows you to disable dm-verity and forced encryption feature. Download the package from the link below and flash it from TWRP. (Force disabler may not be different for every phone, maybe same) Article Link
What does Vbmeta do?
The vbmeta image is cryptographically signed and contains verification data (e.g. cryptographic digests) for verifying boot. The vbmeta image can also contain references to other partitions where verification data is stored as well as a public key indicating who should sign the verification data. Also Check this link you are interested.
Dirty flashing v/s clean flashing | What's the difference, also what is OTA Update: (CLEAN FLASH AFTER ERROR)Almost every android geek has heard about "flashing" a custom ROM on their device. And digging a bit deeper reveals that flashing also has two types. "clean" flashing and "dirty flashing" But what's the difference and which one should you choose? To find out, read ahead.
The difference
A clean flash is what you do when, you install a ROM after wiping all your device partitions (System, data, ART/Davlik, and cache)
A dirty flash is done when you flash a ROM over an existing one, without erasing the system partition. (at times, only the ART partition is erased). A dirty flash keeps system data from the previous ROM. If the ROMs are not compatible with each other, you'll run into problems. A flash of rom over existing rom without wipe is known as dirty flash, generally followed for nightly or daily builds. You also need a set of gapps with backup script to survive dirty flash.
Dirty Flash = Flashing over current ROM
Clean Flash = Wiping EVERYTHING to make way for a new ROM.
Dirty flash - wipe cache and dalvik, flash ROM and gapps
Clean flash - wipe cache, dalvik, data and system, flash ROM and gapps
What should you choose?
It isn't quite difficult to choose. It depends on the similarity between the ROM you have and the ROM you want to install. If you're installing a completely different one than the one you have (like Touchwiz to Cyanogenmod or Lineage to AOSP) you better go for a clean flash.If you're updating your ROM (from the source provided by the developer of the original ROM), a dirty flash would work, although you should check what the developers says about changing and updating.
Risks
Although flashing comes with it's own risks, going dirty is a lot more unsafe than doing a clean flash. A clean flash removes everything giving the ROM enough room to be installed, minimizing chances of bricking. Whereas, a dirty flash is a lot more likely to brick your device, and if it gets hard bricked.. you don't have any option other than going to the nearest authorized service center and getting your phone fixed. Basically, if you do a clean flash where you can go dirty, nothing will go wrong. But if you go dirty where you're supposed to do a clean flash, you'll end up with a non functional device.
OTA UPDATE:
OTA = OVER THE AIR UPDATE. For example, you are updating from eu rom 12.5 to 12.6. It may not require clean flash, you just dirty flash the rom because it's basically a version update of the same ROM. Your phones auto update or MIUI update is an OTA update. An over-the-air (OTA) update is the wireless delivery of new software, firmware, or other data to mobile devices. Wireless carriers and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) typically use over-the-air updates to deploy firmware and configure phones for use on their networks over Wi-Fi or mobile broadband. The initialization of a newly purchased phone, for example, requires an over-the-air update. With the rise of smartphones, tablets and internet of things (IoT) devices, carriers and manufacturers have turned to different over-the-air update architecture methods for deploying new operating systems (OSes) to these devices.
Clean Flash : if your device has problem, is not booting, rom is not opening, passward is asking but after entering password, it's not working, all this problem has this clean flash solution. Go to wipe, do a "Fomat Data". advance wipe of system & others is not necessary. Then , flash your new rom. (may use backup rom of your previous working/stable rom).
Disk Quota:A disk quota is a limit set by a system administrator that restricts certain aspects of file system usage on modern operating systems. The function of using disk quotas is to allocate limited disk space in a reasonable way. "This quota feature also improves system stability by preventing any single app from using more than 90% of disk space or 50% of inodes."
fstab:In Android 9 and lower, devices can specify fstab entries for early mounted partitions using device tree overlays (DTOs). In Android 10 and higher, devices must specify fstab entries for early mounted partitions using an fstab file in the first stage ramdisk. logical indicates that this is a dynamic partition.
STILL THIRSTY? WANT TO KNOW MORE ? READ THIS THREAD IN XDA
My Other Threads according to "how should you read them" serial:
1. MIUI 12.5 Chinese ROM Google PlayStore Stopped Working
2. MIUI Unlocking Bootloader, Flashing Recovery & Rooting Process
3. Android Terminology You Must Know Before Toying with Your Android (This Thread)
4. ROM Naming & CUSTOM ROM, AOSP ROM, TREBLE ROM, GSI ROM, PORTED ROM
@shafi1885 Thanks very much for your great terminology guide that is really appreciated. However, I've removed the link to Telegram from your OP.
As an excemption from the last bullet of rule no. 5 of the XDA Forum Rules, we grant only developers the privilege to provide links to their social media in their own development threads. These conditions obviously don't apply to you or your thread.
Stay safe and stay healthy!
Regards
Oswald Boelcke
Senior Moderator