Database Info

Still no DRM backup for XZP?

I'm to flash aosp 8.1 in order to use Google Camera HDR+, but it seems like there's still no complete TA or DRM backup for XZP
I googled for this, and there was one post that says to be DRM backup for XZP, but participants of that post say it's just a partial backup of TA partition, and not a complete backup.
Does anyone know if DRM backup for XZP released?
I know there's DRM patch for XZP, but not having to bypass DRM and get full backup of DRM might be way better.

im not sure there is but most likely not.
its not about better or worse,the patch works the same as restoring original backed up DRM. but then again if you want to relock/unroot you dont have the original DRM and you will not have a working camera, so in my opinion once rooted youre stuck...
but there are stock roms that have drm fixed and you will not notice any difference than official sony fw if you do its probably an advantage over the official fw as it is more optimized and smoother (thats why they made them XD)
another disappointment by sony....
having 120hz screen that we have no access to, neither perfectly working native 4k at all time, camera has potential that is not fully used in stock camera app.
all these features are there but we cant access them I dont know whats the point then, root could be the option to use such splendid features but then again, warranty is gone
so thanks to sony if we want to use the full potential of their creation we have to compromise to warranty and stock functionality.
only one type of people would create such features that are usless - money hungry advertisers who only care about money rather than customer's happiness
I mean if I ever create a device, I would never release it out there without its full potential functioning in the best way possible, like HTC. ( maybe HTC is not the best in some point of views of people but you get what they promise).

Oneplus 6 rooting disadvantages

Hello,
I'm buying a oneplus 6 very soon and I'm probably going to root it. Now I obviously know the advantages but what exactly are the disadvantages?
As far as I know, oneplus doesnt void warranty, right?
Will I still get updates for the phone? With Magisk that should still work or am I wrong?
EFS can be lost?
Are there any other negative sides?
Thanks for the infos and a good day.
Elekted

There are no disadvantages of rooting if you know what you are doing.
Worse you can end up having a 560$ brick if you mess up big time.
Some minor risks are :-
I) Bootloops : If you flash wrong boot.img or wrong kernel . Anything which is half baked or not for op6 can cause this problem. It can be custom font, substratum themes, Wrong or half baked ROM which is not tested properly.
II) warranty:- although one plus claims that unlocking bootloader doesn't voids your warranty but if you read the statement carefully then you will find a loop hole on the statement.
"The technical process of rooting or unlocking the bootloader does not void the warranty of a OnePlus device. However, we strongly suggest for you to only root or unlock the bootloader of your OnePlus device if you are confident in your understanding of the risks involved.
By accessing resources regularly unavailable to the software, you may damage your hardware during or after the procedure. Such damage is not covered under warranty. In warranty handling, we will first need to verify that any faulty behavior is unrelated to rooting / unlocking."
So basically they can deny your claim if you over clock your cpu and they can prove it.
Other than these 2 I don't think there are any risks involved

There is one considerable disadvantage to rooting the OnePlus 6 specifically.
Stock ROM, locked bootloader = Widevine L1.
But if you unlock the bootloader, Widevine changes to L3, which means Netflix/Amazon Prime Video/Google Movies will all play at no higher than 480p.
And no, Magisk does not fix this. Magisk allows you to download and use Netflix, but Widevine will still prevent the quality from going above 480p.

does this only affect streaming or also if you download the videos to watch offline?
both Amazon prime and Netflix let you download content to view offline. will those files also only be 480p?

vercetti said:
does this only affect streaming or also if you download the videos to watch offline?
both Amazon prime and Netflix let you download content to view offline. will those files also only be 480p?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not rooted so i can't check that sadly, but I assume it affects streaming and downloads. The idea behind Widevine is to limit the ability to screen record or rip videos, so offline watching is very likely to be affected too.

maybe someone who's already rooted can test this!
I hardly stream Netflix and Amazon prime videos. but I download them and watch them on the go sometimes. would be cool to know if it affects downloaded videos too.

vercetti said:
maybe someone who's already rooted can test this!
I hardly stream Netflix and Amazon prime videos. but I download them and watch them on the go sometimes. would be cool to know if it affects downloaded videos too.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am rooted please tell steps so that I can test

hmm, just did a quick search and came up with the following:
"...Netflix videos are stored in a proprietary format and are only visible to the app"
they are stored in:
Device Storage > Android > data > com.netflix.mediaclient > files > Download >.of. If you get to the "Download" folder and don't see anything, you need to enable the ability to see hidden files
each movie is on its own folder which is titled with numbers.
in there are a couple files, but unfortunately you can't open these with a video player app like "VLC".
so I don't know how to actually figure out what the quality and resolution of the downloaded video is. the only simple way to check is to switch the download quality in the Netflix app to "high", then download a movie. in high quality an hour should be around 500mb. while you're downloading something in the Netflix app you can see how big the download is once the download starts.
so I'd recommend to just try out this simple verification.

gulshanstrider said:
There are no disadvantages of rooting if you know what you are doing.
Worse you can end up having a 560$ brick if you mess up big time.
Some minor risks are :-
I) Bootloops : If you flash wrong boot.img or wrong kernel . Anything which is half baked or not for op6 can cause this problem. It can be custom font, substratum themes, Wrong or half baked ROM which is not tested properly.
II) warranty:- although one plus claims that unlocking bootloader doesn't voids your warranty but if you read the statement carefully then you will find a loop hole on the statement.
"The technical process of rooting or unlocking the bootloader does not void the warranty of a OnePlus device. However, we strongly suggest for you to only root or unlock the bootloader of your OnePlus device if you are confident in your understanding of the risks involved.
By accessing resources regularly unavailable to the software, you may damage your hardware during or after the procedure. Such damage is not covered under warranty. In warranty handling, we will first need to verify that any faulty behavior is unrelated to rooting / unlocking."
So basically they can deny your claim if you over clock your cpu and they can prove it.
Other than these 2 I don't think there are any risks involved
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Cool thanks for the infos. But what about updates? Will I still get update and be able to install them?

Advantages of unlocking bootloader

Hi,
I am curious what you guys think about it ?
What is the advantages? Why you unlocking ? Which kernel are you using etc..thx

I haven't unlocked mine yet but probably will. Main reason is to root and ability to run custom roms and kernels. Once you have custom kernel and magdisk the possibilities are almost endless as far as tweaking and optimization goes!

Basically what @oneandroidnut said. I have mine rooted and get about 7hrs of SOT over 40hr periods when using certain kernels. Its well worth it IMO.

I'm unlocked, and appreciate the level of access (read "root" ) that this affords me to run custom ROMs and kernels, get better sound, etc.
What you should know is a pretty significant drawback of bootloader unlocking according to some reports here on XDA. Namely, your Widevine level will go to L1 to L3.
What is Widevine?
"Widevine

marko94 said:
Hi,
I am curious what you guys think about it ?
What is the advantages? Why you unlocking ? Which kernel are you using etc..thx
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Many reasons. To me, the best advantage is having customizable black/dark themes for hundreds of appes like Instagram, Snapchat, Outlook, all google apps, for the system*, etc. This requires root/magisk, which in turn requires an unlocked bootloader.
You can have many gestures and remap keys to do a myriad of functions as well. I used Xposed Edge Pro- I can have over 30+ gestures and remap keys.. You can also get expanded volume slider back, which pie removed for some dumb reason. You have to be aware that some apps try to check for root/unlocked bootloader. Magisk Hide is able to hide root detection for the most part. You might need developer options to be disabled for additional checking too (dev settings only useful if using -Always on Data -Disable Absolute Volume -USB debugging)

reaper000 said:
I'm unlocked, and appreciate the level of access (read "root" ) that this affords me to run custom ROMs and kernels, get better sound, etc.
What you should know is a pretty significant drawback of bootloader unlocking according to some reports here on XDA. Namely, your Widevine level will go to L1 to L3.
What is Widevine?
"Widevine
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah,I heard about that. But screen on this phone is so beautiful , so watching Netflix for example in non hd mode is awesome. Hehe
Maybe there will be some fix soon for that ,who knows

Netflix looks just fine on my rooted phone. I would rather have themes and all the other tweaks other than Netflix. Can watch that crap in my huge tv.

marko94 said:
Hi,
I am curious what you guys think about it ?
What is the advantages? Why you unlocking ? Which kernel are you using etc..thx
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What everyone said about getting custom roms, root, etc is correct. Magisk modules are also amazing.
With magisk, you will pass saftynet and can use google pay too.
But sadly after unlocking bootloader, widevine goes from L1 to L3 so you can't stream HD HDR content on netflix and amazon prime. Another drawback to unlocking bootloader and custom roms is that usually stock camera takes a hit (you can use Gcam), and the FP unlock speed is usually also effected. This is all my prior experience from Oneplus 3T and 5T, both of which I unlocked and rooted within a few days of getting them.
But the 7pro has this amazing HDR compliant screen, so I'm probably going to enjoy it as long as I can, I'll eventually get fed up with OOS and then go to custom roms.
Overall, there are more advantages than disadvantages to unlocking boot loader IMO.
---------- Post added at 04:35 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:33 PM ----------
reaper000 said:
I'm unlocked, and appreciate the level of access (read "root" ) that this affords me to run custom ROMs and kernels, get better sound, etc.
What you should know is a pretty significant drawback of bootloader unlocking according to some reports here on XDA. Namely, your Widevine level will go to L1 to L3.
What is Widevine?
"Widevine
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
On my oneplus 5T, I have L1 even after unlocking bootloader but Netflix won't play higher than 960x540.
Is there no possibility that we can somehow bypass that like saftynet?

Pie Root

Hi,
i have read here in Forum about android pie and i cant find my answer for myself.
Is it possible to Flash rooted pie on xzp with restore the drm keys?
i know the camera is workin on pie's root, but what is with the other Issues?
Is there any Solution out there?
Best Regards

Sc0rp1on said:
Is it possible to Flash rooted pie on xzp with restore the drm keys?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, you can't do anything to resotre lost keys, not unless you made a backup of them first. You can fool the phone that the DRM is in place, but that's different to restoring them.
You can unlock you phone and put a custom rom on there, there are some Pie threads here on XDA, eXistenZ Pie, or LineageOS. But getting these to work isn't a simple download the rom and install it. You need to follow the instructions on the Sony unlock, then install TWRP, which will give you the ability to flash roms and recoverys.
It might be worth sticking to a stock rom and using janjan's kernel, wich will fix any DRM problems and give you compatability with Magisk
Yes, the camera does work on Pie, even with bootloader uinlocked, but there are some other features that remain disabled, but nothing important.

Thx for Reply. My Old XZP has unlocked Bootloader, Oreo Rooted within DRM Patch from XperiFix. But now, the Display is broken and the Phone is dead.
I have buy the Same Model (Locked & Fresh) and want to remove System Apps , have Root and eventually Pie. But i want to have all functions like unrooted and hoped that the time brings out new Methods for that.
I have read here, that the camera Quality gets down on pie root.
Now my Hope / Question:
Pie + Root within DRM Features (Fooled DRM is ok also) or should i Flash Oreo and use Xperi Fix again, like my old one?

Sc0rp1on said:
Thx for Reply. My Old XZP has unlocked Bootloader, Oreo Rooted within DRM Patch from XperiFix. But now, the Display is broken and the Phone is dead.
I have buy the Same Model (Locked & Fresh) and want to remove System Apps , have Root and eventually Pie. But i want to have all functions like unrooted and hoped that the time brings out new Methods for that.
I have read here, that the camera Quality gets down on pie root.
Now my Hope / Question:
Pie + Root within DRM Features (Fooled DRM is ok also) or should i Flash Oreo and use Xperi Fix again, like my old one?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Pie or Oreo is a personal choice and you'll get people batting for both sides on the forum here.
You can stick with what you know, or go with stock Pie and use janjan's kernel, that will get you Pie build with DRM fix.

Didgesteve said:
Pie or Oreo is a personal choice and you'll get people batting for both sides on the forum here.
You can stick with what you know, or go with stock Pie and use janjan's kernel, that will get you Pie build with DRM fix.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thx for Answer.
I have read the thread about the kernel and pie and i cant find Information for camera Quality (i have read pie root make camera Quality bad) and about the Screen-Modus (Superlebendig / Professional/ Standard). My old Oreo Rooted One was running perfect, but i would try pie, only if i can get sure, that cam and Display works like stock Rom.
I hope you understand my english and my wishes

Sc0rp1on said:
Thx for Answer.
I have read the thread about the kernel and pie and i cant find Information for camera Quality (i have read pie root make camera Quality bad) and about the Screen-Modus (Superlebendig / Professional/ Standard). My old Oreo Rooted One was running perfect, but i would try pie, only if i can get sure, that cam and Display works like stock Rom.
I hope you understand my english and my wishes
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The camera on the Sony works perfect or it doesn't (takes green pictures), it's a myth that there is some sort of half way 'poor' quality.
There is no degradation of camera quality with rooted Pie no DRM, if you think that might be a problem then use a 'fixed' rom or kernel.
Try Pie and if you think that the camera is broken, then go back to Oreo

Didgesteve said:
The camera on the Sony works perfect or it doesn't (takes green pictures), it's a myth that there is some sort of half way 'poor' quality.
There is no degradation of camera quality with rooted Pie no DRM, if you think that might be a problem then use a 'fixed' rom or kernel.
Try Pie and if you think that the camera is broken, then go back to Oreo
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
@Sc0rp1on, @Didgesteve, in my opinion, it is totally worth to backup and restore locked TA to preserve drm keys, if just only in order to be on the safe side.
The unlock procedure erases all userdata anyway, similarly as when you do downgrade to exploitable oreo...
Anyway, I am not sure about the camera quality - is it really a myth? Please see here for few pictures comparisons where differences are visible. You may visit the linked posts too for more opinions / previous discussions.

j4nn said:
@Sc0rp1on, @Didgesteve, in my opinion, it is totally worth to backup and restore locked TA to preserve drm keys, if just only in order to be on the safe side.
The unlock procedure erases all userdata anyway, similarly as when you do downgrade to exploitable oreo...
Anyway, I am not sure about the camera quality - is it really a myth? Please see here for few pictures comparisons where differences are visible. You may visit the linked posts too for more opinions / previous discussions.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I wouldn't advocate anyone unlock thier phone without backing up the TA partition. but I was replying to a question.
I can't see any difference in the pictures myself and I think if there were a difference more would have been said about it.
Myself I was an early jumper and unlocked my phone before backup and restore of the DRM keys was possible, so that rather shaped which version of firmware I use. I didn't step to Pie, I stuck with Oreo and a 'fix' that keeps everything sweet.

@Didgesteve, it's not easy to do a good comparison - only those who have two phones or at least have a locked _and_ unlocked TA backup of one phone could try. Although many complain about camera quality in general.
But as you could see in the linked "xz1c locked oreo vs unlocked pie comparison" post I tried to compare having two xz1 compact phones side by side, one still locked and one with lost drm keys.
And comparing the not downsized original photo images you can clearly see some differences - which are cut to attached pictures so you can find them easier in the original files available for download.
It could have been a coincidence, but it's have been done two times in a row switching the order of the phones getting very similar results of quality difference in each trial.
So in my opinion, it might be a myth or may not.

j4nn said:
[MENTION=4354390]So in my opinion, it might be a myth or may not.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It may or may not, but no one else seems to have noticed.
If you think it makes a difference then use Janjan's kernel with built in 'fix'

@Didgesteve, that "no one else seems to have noticed" - a rather big assumption of yours. There are many users complaining about xzp/xz1/xz1c camera quality in general.
But just with regard to oreo vs pie, read the xzp thread from here: post#27, particularly post#30 contains very interesting internal stuff.
I would like to believe sony stopped conditioning camera with keeping bootloader locked with pie but somehow I am not sure about that at all considering all the circumstances and my linked camera quality comparison test.
Thanks for your advice, luckily I do not need janjan's kernels as I've implemented the TA backup exploit, so both my phones can have drm keys restored (in fact one of them is still locked on purpose).
I (and anybody who saved TA-unlocked.img together with TA-locked.img) can switch easily between "drm keys restored" and "drm keys lost" states for testing/comparisons.

j4nn said:
@Didgesteve, that "no one else seems to have noticed" - a rather big assumption of yours. There are many users complaining about xzp/xz1/xz1c camera quality in general......
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have 3 xz premiums running pie in my household. My wifes - never unlocked. Mine - unlocked with no ta backup. And a third one which I acquired cheaply recently - unlocked with restored original ta backup running a kernel with @j4nn's commits which hides bootloader unlock status.
The photo quality appears similar on all three devices. Maybe closer scrutiny on a pc will reveal differences.
However restoring original ta with blu hide kernel will always be the optimal solution regardless of camera quality due to the fact that it also restores widevine L1 functions (eg: screen mirroring etc.)

@shoey63, that's right, on phone's display, differences are probably not visible.
But if not zoomed out images are compared on PC, you may see some differences as my test showed.
Most people just take a quick shot to post it on a social network, there you cannot see a difference at all, as the image gets downscaled automatically - so majority may not complain.
Anyway that "restoring original ta with blu hide kernel will always be the optimal solution" is right - should behave as much as in still locked state as we can get.
Mentioning screen mirroring - does it depend on drm too in case of pie?
I tested it with oreo and it needed TA-locked restored with bootloader unlock hidden to get it working - running just kernel hiding BL unlock with lost drm keys is not enough with oreo.
I cannot test it anymore and I wonder if it still depends on drm keys with pie too or if sony dropped that dependency similarly as making camera somehow working instead of green pictures with pie.

@j4nn
Screen mirroring still is reliant on drm keys on Pie.
It won't connect with unlocked bootloader and stock kernel.
However with restored TA backup and blu hide kernel it connects without issue.

The problem with screen mirroring is just the use of HDCP.
You can disable it with persist.debug.wfd.enable=1 or persist.debug.wfd.appmonitoring=1

Using custom ROMs without sacrificing security.

I was always a fan of customizing and hacking around systems. I like to have root, I like to be in control of my device.
I do not like google or proprietary (especially Chinese but not only) firmware/os. One is spyware the other almost certainly also is.
However, using a custom ROM comes with other issues. One of them is possibility that the maintainer packaged malware. This ofc depends on your trust for the author, or if you use a fully open-source ROM your own ability to verify the code. This is not an issue for me here, but it is a big issue in general where custom ROMs come in, which most just ignore.
What I am talking about is the security of devices.I haven't messed around a lot with custom ROMs etc for some time as I had other things on my mind, but I see the only things that changed, changed for the worse. Virtually everywhere you need an unlocked bootloader. Once you do that you cannot re-lock it with custom recovery or system image. From what I've seen there is not even attempts to try and override the bootloader itself, probably because vendors veryify those with additional unchangable keys.
Are there any devices / vendors that allow for custom OS with a locked bootloader?
I would like to be protected against evil-maid attacks as well as prank-wiping, or tbh in the case of theft I'd love to see the hardware unusable. I know that this is not even Android developers fault, as the documentation clearly states ( https://source.android.com/security/verifiedboot/boot-flow ) mechanisms for running custom code on locked devices using "custom user set root of trust" which I assume to be "overridden" keys for validating partition signatures. But even a modded bootloader would be enough, an unlocked but password protected bootloader.. One can dream.
Or is using custom software on Android always a complete security disaster?