Disclaimer: I know this could be a bit OT here, but these experiences could help my Z friends to avoid to brick their phones... so MODs, be patient... and read!
Yesterday afternoon I made my first "soft brick" of my "long" career... on an Oukitel C4!
(...*great* phone for the price! )
I after fixed it in less than an hour (including download time... ), BUT the interesting is *how* this happened.
I haven't done anything wrong BUT trust my TWRP... or, better, my twrp...
When I first time tested my new Moto Z I liked a lot the TWRP officially realized for it... now I'll explain better why.
There are some wide spreaded statements about TWRP (and recovery in general...):
- TWRP/recovery is not involved with normal system booting (e.g.: a not working one for-whatever-reason can't interfere with standard system boot);
- Kernel (boot.img) & system are not involved with TWRP (e.g.: you can even have formatted boot/system partitions and you can still boot to TWRP;
- boot.img & recovery.img are two partition where boot from in indipendent way. Normally of the same size. In some emergency cases, it is even possible to (with intention...) flash a recovery on boot.img to try to fix some soft bricks...
- more...
All these statement are often true *but* not ever, as I teach myself... the hard way! :silly:
If I should base my knowledge on what I've directly experienced on some LG (p880, d802...), Sony (X10 mini, Xperia U) and, *probably* on Moto Z, I will say they are right. Ever.
BUT then I've had some opposite experiences with other devices that I'll list with no comment for now:
- Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 3G: CWM recovery "hardly flicker" with some ROM versions become unusable. Fixed with successive update anyway...
- Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.1 4G: both stock & TWRP recovery suffer of "black screen bug until timeout" only with Lollipop+ installed ROMs...
- Oneplus X: first version of TWRP available is able to boot and/or can be flashed only to phones with Lollipop until a xx release. After that release a new TWRP version is mandatory, otherwise it doesn't boot (and will be substituted by stock one if just flashed at first system boot) and system is booted instead...
- and now yesterday, Oukitel C4: double!
1. flashing TWRP interferes with normal system boot, giving a continuous bootloop. Only way to fix it is by flashing SuperSU, then the system boots up fine again!
This weird behaviour is reported/confirmed on a thread on 4pda forum too (if you know russian... )
2. flashing Magisk v.9 (that, as developer says "it modifies only boot.img"...) produces a bootloop too (different from the above). Ok, this can happens...
No problem I said "...I've my stock TWRP full backup just in case... ". Yes.... problem is that this time bootloop affects TWRP too!
Only way to fix: flash again stock boot.img by PC... (recovery don't even needed..!)
This last one is the one which worried me most, since this could be happen on Moto Z too, during my "hacking experiences"...
How all this could happen?
I don't know for sure... but I've some theories...
One is that while some TWRPs are developed to be "fully indipendent" from boot/system firmware (LG d802, Moto Z??) other (let's call them twrps...) are developed not only "based" on a specific system software version (and this is often "declared" too, but it wouldn't be a problem...) but probably "call" some boot.img parts too, becoming "system (kernel) dependent" to work...
My knowledge is not so deep to give a "certain" answer (and if somebody with the needed knowledge wants to correct me/explaim better is the welcome!), BUT on the meanwhile, try to use needed cautions... :fingers-crossed:
@erfanoabdi, @janjan, any thoughts on this?
I know what you meant. In my moto X I flashed a boot of a Chinese version that was completely incompatible with the American model. And I have to wait until the boot of the Moto X pure version was updated. I think that the problem is when you mess with a "newer" bootloader that makes the system incompatible with older versions. In my experience by itself the TWRP doesn't mess with the boot unless you request it.
That's the reason when you make a full backup you include boot and system, to avoid incompatible things.
What are your thoughts?
Sent from my XT1650 using XDA-Developers mobile app
juliospinoza said:
I know what you meant. In my moto X I flashed a boot of a Chinese version that was completely incompatible with the American model. And I have to wait until the boot of the Moto X pure version was updated. I think that the problem is when you mess with a "newer" bootloader that makes the system incompatible with older versions. In my experience by itself the TWRP doesn't mess with the boot unless you request it.
That's the reason when you make a full backup you include boot and system, to avoid incompatible things.
What are your thoughts?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This (probably true anyway...), would explain only a minimal part of the above issues...
Even I, in my "previous experiences", would have said for sure that "twrp doesn't mess with boot" too, BUT after what happened on C4 to me (AND confirmed on 4pda by another user too!), this is not true anymore too.
After a single TWRP flash C4 goes to bootloop on normal boot and only flashing SuperSU is able to fix it (how is still a mistery!). So recovery and boot are connected and not indipendent.
More, bootloop created by Magisk (that by what developer says, it touches only boot.img), affected TWRP too and remains even after reflashing it! Only a flash of boot.img is able to fix it!
So, again, recovery and boot are (both ways...) connected and not indipendent.
At least on that device/recovery combination...
On Moto Z I don't know, but some bricks occurred on Nougat are a bit suspect in that way too...
Just found that on C4 SuperSU v.2.78 installs in systemless (on boot.img) mode...
So, what flashing TWRP apparently breaks, SuperSU is then able to fix...
Definitely they are connected on (at least...) that device!
Strange is that SuperSU fixes it and instead Magisk breaks it totally (neither TWRP is still able to boot after flashing it!!)
Quite the opposite than on Moto Z where Magisk seems to have "good influence" even on SuperSU (in system mode!) installation too
tl;dr - TWRP touch screen won't work after installing custom ROM, much hassle to unbrick, looking for a "bumped" (still not actually sure what that term means) or otherwise modified version of TWRP that won't go haywire when installing a custom ROM.
tl;dr 2 - Also interested in the LATEST "stock-based" ROM recommendations anyone may have... G3 backports or whatever. She needs her Camera to work well but older 4.4.x and 5.0.x OS is missing a lot of new functionality and compatibility with new apps.
I'll just start out by saying that I've figured out just about every way to brick and subsequently un-brick this device that is feasibly possible, and am considering starting a thread specific to those various methods... but that's not what this is for.
This is an issue I've encountered a few times now, definitely on my girlfriend's T-Mobile LG G2 D801 with Lollipop (30B and now again on D801 30C), and iirc, also on KitKat.
I'll explain what I can remember, most of this has been done in the middle of the night after many frustrating hours of attempting various methods... I have to say, this phone has been much more difficult to mod compared to my previous experiences with Samsung and Nexus devices.
I had gotten this device all the way through to CM12 or 13 a year or so ago but recent issues made us decide to attempt to revert back to a Stock-based ROM.
Steps:
1. Root (ioroot / Autorec, can't remember which or for what reason, I have multiple versions of each)
2. Install TWRP Custom Recovery (most recently and successfully using a modified version of the "30B Freedom Tool", although I haven't tried that on 30C - yet.
3. Transfer custom ROM & Kernel to SDCard.
4. Boot into TWRP and install custom ROM & Kernel - most recently GoogleEdition 1.5 and then DorimanX 12.0 Kernel
5. Clear Cache / DALVIK Cache.
6. Reboot device. This is where the trouble begins...
Results: Won't boot into OS at all, instead I end up at the text-based "fastboot" screen, which after multiple tries I can eventually get back into TWRP or into Download Mode.
Once in TWRP after installing custom ROM, the bottom ~1" of the screen won't respond and all other touches aren't accurate... playing with it, I can usually eventually get into some of the TWRP screens, but for most purposes it's about useless.
I managed to restore a backup of the original 30B system image via command line over MTP using ADP TWRP commands, but that bricked the phone in an entirely separate manner where I couldn't access Recovery anymore and the system wouldn't boot at all... I ended up using the LG Update tool to get it up to 30C, and was surprised to find that it still had the restored backup data (apps, pictures, settings, etc), and the phone is now working again, albeit back to stock recovery.
Now, as I mentioned, this isn't the first time I've run into this "phantom touch" issue in TWRP on this device, although the circumstances seem to be a little backwards this time vs when I was taking the device over to CM12/13. I think I remember something about a "bumped" or otherwise modified version of TWRP being out there, but I can't find it now or put my finger on what the changes were.
Has anyone else run into this? I am hoping I've just overlooked something, but days of digging through threads hasn't turned up much.
/edit/ To give you an idea, attached is the folder I've got files stored in... with tons more in Archive and Stock-Based... I've used them ALL at some point. I'd like to get enough info in here to write a Step by Step guide for new owners who are picking these devices up on the cheap, and would appreciate if anyone wants to help out with this!
C:
#include <std/disclaimer.h>
/*
* I am not responsible for bricked devices, dead SD cards, thermonuclear
* war, or the current economic crisis caused by you following these
* directions. YOU are choosing to make these modifications, and
* if you point your finger at me for messing up your device, I will
* laugh at you.
*/
I bought the new tablet and unlocked it as soon as I was able to. After some fiddling I eventually got GSI up and running.
Originally I planned to post this when an actual forum for P12 becomes available, but given some known issues with the stock FW at the time of writing, I think I'll just post it here now.
What you need
1. Unlocked bootloader
Go to ZUI official unlock page to request an unlock (the page is in Chinese). For this tablet, you need to use the 4th option (Lenovo Tablet), which only requires you to enter the device's SN (can be found in the Settings screen, or from bootloader). Once you obtained the file needed to be flashed for unlocking, follow the official instructions to unlock the device.
NOTE: You need to wait for at least 8 hours since the device's initial connection to Internet to get your device's SN recognized by the official unlock service. If it complains about "incorrect SN" but you've verified that your input is correct, simply wait a few more hours and try again.
!!! WARNING: Like any other Android device, unlocking bootloader will wipe your data so BACKUP FIRST !!!
2. fastboot
The process utilizes fastboot exclusively, so make sure you have fastboot installed. No other tools are needed.
3. Magisk-patched boot.img, or a patched vbmeta
As there's currently no available PRC ROM dump for this tablet, the currently only known ROW dump will do.
Although you should be able to use GSI without Magisk, you'll probably need to patch vbmeta so the stock kernel won't refuse to boot the GSI in this case. This guide does not cover non-Magisk scenario for now, as I'm not entirely sure. With Magisk, patching vbmeta is not needed. Optionally you may consider patching and flashing vbmeta_system (it's most likely not needed).
!!! WARNING: Flashing images with fastboot/fastbootd can invalidate existing encryption signature so the device will no longer be able to decrypt userdata, requiring you to format and start over. As a result, BACKUP EVERYTHING FIRST IN CASE OF CLEAN FLASHING OR UPDATING OTHER COMPONENTS. !!!
4. Additional stuffs to flash
WARNING: This tablet happens to be very picky about the kernel and vendor image you use when running GSI. While a mismatched kernel (Magisk patched) worked fine on stock as far as I could remember, on GSI, it'll result in the device's Wi-Fi and Audio not working, unless additional components (vendor, maybe also odm) of the same FW version are also used.
If you're going to use the boot.img from the ROW dump (and patched it with Magisk), note about these images from the dump. I think at least vendor is needed. You may also try flashing odm if you're having issues.
- super_5.img (vendor.img)
- super_6.img (odm.img)
FOR EXPERTS: The boot.img and vendor.img (as well as additional files like dtbo and vbmeta) from Android 12L developer preview might also be usable for running GSIs. I haven't tested this yet and it's possible the binaries may carry known or unknown issues.
Steps to flash GSI
1. Enter fastboot
Use the following adb command to enter fastboot.
Bash:
adb reboot bootloader
2. Enter fastbootd
Enter the following command to enter fastbootd, where you can actually access the system partitions, as this tablet uses Dynamic Paritions.
Bash:
fastboot reboot fastboot
WARNING: The following steps will actually modify your system partitions and may leave your tablet unbootable. Make sure you have backed up everything before proceeding.
3. Flash Magisk patched boot.img
Assume you have the Magisk patched boot.img as boot_magisk.img, enter the following command.
Bash:
fastboot flash boot boot_magisk.img
Note that you can also flash boot.img directly from fastboot, before entering fastbootd.
4. Flash the GSI
Enter the following commands, assuming your GSI is called gsi.img.
Bash:
fastboot erase system
fastboot flash system gsi.img
Note that the erase command is optional. Replace gsi.img with the actual GSI image file of your choice.
5. Flash additional stuffs
You need to flash the vendor.img (or also odm.img) from the same FW dump as your boot.img. Assuming your vendor image is vendor.img, and odm image is odm.img, use the following command.
Bash:
fastboot flash vendor vendor.img
fastboot flash odm odm.img
NOTE: For which image files in the ROW dump correspond to vendor and odm, read above.
FOR EXPERTS: If you could somehow obtain a dump of the running boot.img and patch it with Magisk, you may skip this step, but you can always flash those stuffs in case Wi-Fi and Audio are not working. As there's no known PRC ROM dumps at the time of writing, I'm not entirely sure.
6. Wipe userdata if needed
You don't need to wipe userdata if you are dirty flashing newer build of a same GSI over the existing one.
In case you need to do so (such as flashing a different GSI, or factory reset), enter the following commands.
WARNING: These commands will erase everything in the internal storage, not just app data! Make sure you have everything in the internal storage backed up before doing this.
Bash:
fastboot erase userdata
fastboot erase metadata
7. Reboot
Enter the following command to reboot.
Bash:
fastboot reboot
If nothing goes wrong and the GSI doesn't have any major issue that might prevent it from successfully booting, you should be able to boot the GSI and further configure it yourself.
Current Status for GSIs
So far everything I could test works on Android 11 and 12 GSIs.
- Wi-Fi (needs matching vendor and maybe odm images, read above)
- Camera (both sides)
- Fingerprint Sensor (may occasionally not work)
- 120Hz refresh rate
- Bluetooth (Lenovo Precision Pen works)
- Physical Keyboard Case
I'm currently running DotOS 5.2 GSI on this tablet and am yet to encounter any serious issue. Even some demanding games work just fine. Just that when using the boot.img, vendor.img (as well as odm.img) from the ROW dump, the system would use a smaller font size by default.
The latest phh-AOSP A12 (v400) as well as some other unofficial A12 GSIs can work with this tablet. I'm currently running SuperiorOS-12. Everything works fine after some tweaking, just that I noticed some touch related issues which might have something to do with similar reports on official Android 12L beta.
NOTE: Like any other Qualcomm devices, "Use alternate audio policy" option may be needed to ensure audio works the same as on stock ROM. However, it seems audio can work without enabling this option on Android 12 GSIs.
Still, I'm not sure about how to get features specific to ZUI, like Desktop Mode, to work on GSIs.
Wow you seem to know your stuff.
Currently i'm stuck with a 12.6 tablet which is stuck in the boot loader due to flashing the ROW ROM and tripping the region lock check. The boot loader wont let me activate any other modes (i.e. Recovery). Am I stuck this way until I can get a bootable Chinese ROM?
I don't suppose you made a backup of your original chinese ROM did you? If so if you could share with my I definitely owe you a few drinks!
mardon85 said:
Wow you seem to know your stuff.
Currently i'm stuck with a 12.6 tablet which is stuck in the boot loader due to flashing the ROW ROM and tripping the region lock check. The boot loader wont let me activate any other modes (i.e. Recovery). Am I stuck this way until I can get a bootable Chinese ROM?
I don't suppose you made a backup of your original chinese ROM did you? If so if you could share with my I definitely owe you a few drinks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry, I don't have a full backup of the ROM my device had (I even let the device took an OTA, but all I got is a useless incremental package).
It certainly wasn't possible for me to dump partitions without being rooted first. So far I haven't seen anyone released a dumped a PRC FW for this device at a place that's easy to find.
I didn't flash everything from ROW. I only flashed some of the files (boot, vendor, odm, vbmeta, vbmeta_system) from ROW when I was trying to get GSI working. Some of the stuffs I flashed (namely vbmeta and vbmeta_system) may be optional, though.
@LSS4181 are we able to load the stock global P12 rom onto the Chinese Xiaoxin devices?
pdscoelho said:
@LSS4181 are we able to load the stock global P12 rom onto the Chinese Xiaoxin devices?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I didn't try it myself. mardon85 flashed the ROW FW before and the device got stuck at bootloader with virtually no way to recover.
Personally I'm against doing anything reckless when your bootloader is locked, as I don't know what can happen. The device may at worst end up hard-bricked.
It may be safe to flash these things when you're unlocked. When flashing, DON'T flash anything more than necessary. In fastbootd mode, just flash boot, system, vendor and vbmeta should be sufficient.
Assuming you're unlocked, you may consider patching boot with Magisk if you like. If not, you probably need to patch vbmeta to prevent bootloader from freaking out.
EDIT: I've updated the OP a bit to reflect the existence of an official Android 12 developer preview which is for our device, in case you might be interested. The package contained just these stuffs: boot, dtbo, system, vendor and vbmeta. Not sure if dtbo is also needed, though.
LSS4181 said:
I didn't try it myself. mardon85 flashed the ROW FW before and the device got stuck at bootloader with virtually no way to recover.
Personally I'm against doing anything reckless when your bootloader is locked, as I don't know what can happen. The device may at worst end up hard-bricked.
It may be safe to flash these things when you're unlocked. When flashing, DON'T flash anything more than necessary. In fastbootd mode, just flash boot, system, vendor and vbmeta should be sufficient.
Assuming you're unlocked, you may consider patching boot with Magisk if you like. If not, you probably need to patch vbmeta to prevent bootloader from freaking out.
EDIT: I've updated the OP a bit to reflect the existence of an official Android 12 developer preview which is for our device, in case you might be interested. The package contained just these stuffs: boot, dtbo, system, vendor and vbmeta. Not sure if dtbo is also needed, though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah I'm interested in trying out the Android 12L beta lenovo have released for the P12 but not sure if I can try it on the Chinese Xiaoxin?
Hence I want to load the global rom. I'm not in a hurry though. Will wait for more support. Don't want to brick my device.
pdscoelho said:
Yeah I'm interested in trying out the Android 12L beta lenovo have released for the P12 but not sure if I can try it on the Chinese Xiaoxin?
Hence I want to load the global rom. I'm not in a hurry though. Will wait for more support. Don't want to brick my device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lenovo have been pretty ****ty with this tbh. There's no recovery image for the Chinese ROM but if you flash anything including the New Android Preview which Lenovo actively promote you are at real risk of bricking your device.
I would leave well alone until one becomes available.
I've got 12L running on my Xiaoxin Pad Pro 12.6. I couldn't stand the original stuff that was on there. Its pretty janky and has a lot of features disabled. I didn't make a backup of my original ROM b/c there was no way I was going back, but I should have. Today, I tried to go back to an official ROM via the Lenovo Rescue and Smart Assistant app which wasn't successful. Well, it was successful as far as tool was concerned, but the tablet said the software wasn't compatible once it booted and then just powered off. It downloaded TB_Q706F_USR_S211043_2111300010_Q00243_ROW. Probably didn't like the 8 GB or the 256 GB flash. No idea. I was able to get it into fastboot mode and re-flash it w/ 12L so no worse off than before.
As far as 12L on this, it works, but as mentioned, lots of features not present. It is buggy in detecting finger presses and scrolling. Once I'm in an app, it works pretty well other than I have trouble getting touches to register properly. I hope this unit becomes supported once 12L goes legit. The Chinese ROM was horrible, all kind of garbage on it, weird modes, setting not even close to normal, and lots of Chinese language regardless of the language settings. I had to use Google Translate on my phone to read some of the pop-ups. Very annoying, but, hey, I bought a Chinese unit. Me wanting that 8GB and 256 GB flash may end up biting me in the butt.
Slimerang said:
I've got 12L running on my Xiaoxin Pad Pro 12.6. I couldn't stand the original stuff that was on there. Its pretty janky and has a lot of features disabled. I didn't make a backup of my original ROM b/c there was no way I was going back, but I should have. Today, I tried to go back to an official ROM via the Lenovo Rescue and Smart Assistant app which wasn't successful. Well, it was successful as far as tool was concerned, but the tablet said the software wasn't compatible once it booted and then just powered off. It downloaded TB_Q706F_USR_S211043_2111300010_Q00243_ROW. Probably didn't like the 8 GB or the 256 GB flash. No idea. I was able to get it into fastboot mode and re-flash it w/ 12L so no worse off than before.
As far as 12L on this, it works, but as mentioned, lots of features not present. It is buggy in detecting finger presses and scrolling. Once I'm in an app, it works pretty well other than I have trouble getting touches to register properly. I hope this unit becomes supported once 12L goes legit. The Chinese ROM was horrible, all kind of garbage on it, weird modes, setting not even close to normal, and lots of Chinese language regardless of the language settings. I had to use Google Translate on my phone to read some of the pop-ups. Very annoying, but, hey, I bought a Chinese unit. Me wanting that 8GB and 256 GB flash may end up biting me in the butt.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree the Chinese rom is absolutely terrible and very buggy.
For a number of reasons this will be my last Lenovo product. Unless they release some significant fixes this will be getting traded out for a Samsung Tablet ASAP.
Slimerang said:
I've got 12L running on my Xiaoxin Pad Pro 12.6. I couldn't stand the original stuff that was on there. Its pretty janky and has a lot of features disabled. I didn't make a backup of my original ROM b/c there was no way I was going back, but I should have. Today, I tried to go back to an official ROM via the Lenovo Rescue and Smart Assistant app which wasn't successful. Well, it was successful as far as tool was concerned, but the tablet said the software wasn't compatible once it booted and then just powered off. It downloaded TB_Q706F_USR_S211043_2111300010_Q00243_ROW. Probably didn't like the 8 GB or the 256 GB flash. No idea. I was able to get it into fastboot mode and re-flash it w/ 12L so no worse off than before.
As far as 12L on this, it works, but as mentioned, lots of features not present. It is buggy in detecting finger presses and scrolling. Once I'm in an app, it works pretty well other than I have trouble getting touches to register properly. I hope this unit becomes supported once 12L goes legit. The Chinese ROM was horrible, all kind of garbage on it, weird modes, setting not even close to normal, and lots of Chinese language regardless of the language settings. I had to use Google Translate on my phone to read some of the pop-ups. Very annoying, but, hey, I bought a Chinese unit. Me wanting that 8GB and 256 GB flash may end up biting me in the butt.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good to hear that 12L preview can work on PRC models without a hard brick. As for the incompatible software issue, it was some kind of region lock implemented since around ZUI version 12.6. Xiaoxin Pad Pro 2021 users are probably more familiar about this phenomenon than us.
According to official information regarding the 12L preview, they already knew some features are not in a usable state yet, and probably disabled them artificially.
By the way, I'm not sure about your touchscreen issues. Did it happen on stock A11? On my device with GSI the touchscreen works almost flawless. Every single tap is being correctly registered, just that it's a bit oversensitive with swipes (not a major issue, though).
PS: I'm new to Lenovo Rescue and Smart Assistant app, but from your experience, it seems to be able to download a more recent ROW ROM image, although it won't be useful for PRC devices other than getting GSIs running.
mardon85 said:
I agree the Chinese rom is absolutely terrible and very buggy.
For a number of reasons this will be my last Lenovo product. Unless they release some significant fixes this will be getting traded out for a Samsung Tablet ASAP.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Personally I would recommend against any Samsung devices from now on. My previous Samsung Galaxy Tab S7+ is plagued by all kinds of touchscreen issues that I don't think it was mere hardware issue. Not to mention some new Samsung devices (like Z Fold 3) disables camera upon unlock to completely deter people from rooting (oh, and there's the so-called DefEx).
While the stock FW sucks, of all devices I've owned, unlocked and customized, Lenovo/Motorola ones are among the easiest to bring up.
Nice to see some progress on this part. I really enjoy the tablet in terms of hardware and looks but the SW is just ugh. Seems like it's just a waiting game now then for 12L. Is there no ROW variant with 8/256?
LSS4181 said:
Good to hear that 12L preview can work on PRC models without a hard brick. As for the incompatible software issue, it was some kind of region lock implemented since around ZUI version 12.6. Xiaoxin Pad Pro 2021 users are probably more familiar about this phenomenon than us.
According to official information regarding the 12L preview, they already knew some features are not in a usable state yet, and probably disabled them artificially.
By the way, I'm not sure about your touchscreen issues. Did it happen on stock A11? On my device with GSI the touchscreen works almost flawless. Every single tap is being correctly registered, just that it's a bit oversensitive with swipes (not a major issue, though).
PS: I'm new to Lenovo Rescue and Smart Assistant app, but from your experience, it seems to be able to download a more recent ROW ROM image, although it won't be useful for PRC devices other than getting GSIs running.
Personally I would recommend against any Samsung devices from now on. My previous Samsung Galaxy Tab S7+ is plagued by all kinds of touchscreen issues that I don't think it was mere hardware issue. Not to mention some new Samsung devices (like Z Fold 3) disables camera upon unlock to completely deter people from rooting (oh, and there's the so-called DefEx).
While the stock FW sucks, of all devices I've owned, unlocked and customized, Lenovo/Motorola ones are among the easiest to bring up.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As far as the touchscreen, I was so frustrated by the Chinese ROM that I didn't mess w/ it very much until I got 12L up. I think it is the S/W and not H/W b/c the RSA (Lenovo App) asks to install an app called Mobile Assistant on the tablet that becomes active when RSA is running. It probably runs by itself also. When it is active it has some tests and all the tests pass, like dragging a circle across the screen in ~15 different areas and also a touch test that tracks all 10 fingers very well. I wish I had my old ROM to try that out just for knowing that screen is good.
Maybe I'll give the GSI a try.
Hello friends,
I ran into the very same problem you had with region lock. The Rescue and Smart Assistant tool ruined the device and I can't boot it anymore. Having this error message "The current system is not compatible …"
I tried going back to at least the 12L Preview but every time I run the script, it doesn't work. The device is not authorized
List of devices attached
HA**** unauthorized
How can I get it authorized from the recovery screen? There is no message in the device to ask me to grant the adb connection. By the weay, the device is already unlocked.
When I tried the manual instructions to flash 12L, during the below command, I get this error message
fastboot flash vendor vendor.img
target reported max download size of 805306368 bytes
sending 'vendor' (650920 KB)...
OKAY [ 16.256s]
writing 'vendor'...
FAILED (remote: Partition not found)
finished. total time: 16.261s"
Also:
fastboot flash system TB-Q706F-DPP_USR_S100039_2111232000_V4.5_DEV_system.img
Invalid sparse file format at header magic
Sending sparse 'system' 1/3 (786344 KB) OKAY [ 19.666s]
Writing 'system' FAILED (remote: 'Partition not found')
fastboot: error: Command failed
I even tried another image from GSI but all have this error message.
Many thanks in advance
famaTV said:
Hello friends,
I ran into the very same problem you had with region lock. The Rescue and Smart Assistant tool ruined the device and I can't boot it anymore. Having this error message "The current system is not compatible …"
I tried going back to at least the 12L Preview but every time I run the script, it doesn't work. The device is not authorized
List of devices attached
HA**** unauthorized
How can I get it authorized from the recovery screen? There is no message in the device to ask me to grant the adb connection. By the weay, the device is already unlocked.
When I tried the manual instructions to flash 12L, during the below command, I get this error message
fastboot flash vendor vendor.img
target reported max download size of 805306368 bytes
sending 'vendor' (650920 KB)...
OKAY [ 16.256s]
writing 'vendor'...
FAILED (remote: Partition not found)
finished. total time: 16.261s"
Also:
fastboot flash system TB-Q706F-DPP_USR_S100039_2111232000_V4.5_DEV_system.img
Invalid sparse file format at header magic
Sending sparse 'system' 1/3 (786344 KB) OKAY [ 19.666s]
Writing 'system' FAILED (remote: 'Partition not found')
fastboot: error: Command failed
I even tried another image from GSI but all have this error message.
Many thanks in advance
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I hate to break this to you but I couldn't find any way out of this mess. I couldn't find a Chinese ROM to flash back to. I had to send it back to China for repair. Got it back and it was someone else's broken Tablet and had to ship it off again. Its turned into a right old saga. Where did you purchase yours?
mardon85 said:
I hate to break this to you but I couldn't find any way out of this mess. I couldn't find a Chinese ROM to flash back to. I had to send it back to China for repair. Got it back and it was someone else's broken Tablet and had to ship it off again. Its turned into a right old saga. Where did you purchase yours?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I bought it from Lenovo Global Store in Aliexpress. I already contacted the seller and they mentioned that they will check best solution and get back to me. I will update everyone accordingly.
Still wondering how come I can't flash the 12L or any GSI roms because of the vendor.img strange partition error. Anyone else with more guidance is truly appreciated.
Here is the store I bought it from:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005003607767936.html?spm=a2g0s.12269583.0.0.e0e96cdfCpFMz5
UPDATE: Two new things I learned. When things seems not working, open a new CMD window and start working. Sometimes fastbootd won't activate. Make sure you have "fastbootd" text showing on the top of the screen to be able to proceed with vendor.img and system.img without the partition issues. Also, 12L system.img didn't work. I tried a couple of them and was so successful to flash lineage-19.0-20211216-UNOFFICIAL-treble_arm64_bgS.img image. Finally I got the tab running with LoS image. At least it's not bricked hopefully. Will update everyone once the tab retailer answers me (I hope he will manage to get a CN backup rom to use). Thanks
UPDATE2: There is an annoying continuous notification stating "The device isn't Play Protect certified" Not sure how to get this solved, but I slienced it anyway. However, can't get it to work. Playstore won't open.
UPDATE3: I managed to install PixelExperience_arm64-ab-12.0-20211226-UNOFFICIAL.img without any problems with Magisk. I am exploring it now and shall share my feedback later on. So far, no major issues.
famaTV said:
I bought it from Lenovo Global Store in Aliexpress. I already contacted the seller and they mentioned that they will check best solution and get back to me. I will update everyone accordingly.
Still wondering how come I can't flash the 12L or any GSI roms because of the vendor.img strange partition error. Anyone else with more guidance is truly appreciated.
Here is the store I bought it from:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005003607767936.html?spm=a2g0s.12269583.0.0.e0e96cdfCpFMz5
UPDATE: Two new things I learned. When things seems not working, open a new CMD window and start working. Sometimes fastbootd won't activate. Make sure you have "fastbootd" text showing on the top of the screen to be able to proceed with vendor.img and system.img without the partition issues. Also, 12L system.img didn't work. I tried a couple of them and was so successful to flash lineage-19.0-20211216-UNOFFICIAL-treble_arm64_bgS.img image. Finally I got the tab running with LoS image. At least it's not bricked hopefully. Will update everyone once the tab retailer answers me (I hope he will manage to get a CN backup rom to use). Thanks
UPDATE2: There is an annoying continuous notification stating "The device isn't Play Protect certified" Not sure how to get this solved, but I slienced it anyway.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good luck getting a Chinese ROM. If you manage it there will be many happy people.
I'm going to ask reseller to flash Global rom on mine. I wish someone would make a guide or share the exact process on how to do it correctly.
famaTV said:
I bought it from Lenovo Global Store in Aliexpress. I already contacted the seller and they mentioned that they will check best solution and get back to me. I will update everyone accordingly.
Still wondering how come I can't flash the 12L or any GSI roms because of the vendor.img strange partition error. Anyone else with more guidance is truly appreciated.
Here is the store I bought it from:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005003607767936.html?spm=a2g0s.12269583.0.0.e0e96cdfCpFMz5
UPDATE: Two new things I learned. When things seems not working, open a new CMD window and start working. Sometimes fastbootd won't activate. Make sure you have "fastbootd" text showing on the top of the screen to be able to proceed with vendor.img and system.img without the partition issues. Also, 12L system.img didn't work. I tried a couple of them and was so successful to flash lineage-19.0-20211216-UNOFFICIAL-treble_arm64_bgS.img image. Finally I got the tab running with LoS image. At least it's not bricked hopefully. Will update everyone once the tab retailer answers me (I hope he will manage to get a CN backup rom to use). Thanks
UPDATE2: There is an annoying continuous notification stating "The device isn't Play Protect certified" Not sure how to get this solved, but I slienced it anyway. However, can't get it to work. Playstore won't open.
UPDATE3: I managed to install PixelExperience_arm64-ab-12.0-20211226-UNOFFICIAL.img without any problems with Magisk. I am exploring it now and shall share my feedback later on. So far, no major issues.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As for "The device isn't Play Protect certified" aka uncertified device, you need to manually register the device with Google otherwise you won't be able to log in your Google account.
However, that didn't work for me so I used NanoDroid (for microG and modded IAP-capable Play Store) instead. Maybe you need to wait much longer for device registration to take effect so you could log in.
LSS4181 said:
As for "The device isn't Play Protect certified" aka uncertified device, you need to manually register the device with Google otherwise you won't be able to log in your Google account.
However, that didn't work for me so I used NanoDroid (for microG and modded IAP-capable Play Store) instead. Maybe you need to wait much longer for device registration to take effect so you could log in.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello!
Thanks … Good to know.
The PixelExperience Android 12 works without any issues so far and I am happy with the experience of the rom.
famaTV said:
Hello!
Thanks … Good to know.
The PixelExperience Android 12 works without any issues so far and I am happy with the experience of the rom.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nice to know. Does anything not work?
mardon85 said:
Nice to know. Does anything not work?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I haven't noticed anything not working (yet). Overall the performance is so smooth, camera, gps, fingerprint, gestures, gaming, videos are all working fine. Pen is working however, buttons are not functioning (registered) due to missing app. I wish desktop mode is included. Split screen / flexible screen experience could be improved compared to the stock version.
I have two devices, one with PixelExperience installed and another with stock Chinese ROM. The GSI seems to be smoother as Chinese ROM tends to lag sometimes (not sure why). The them of the stock rom is so refreshing and polished compared the GSI version. But I won't mind it. I am giving it a couple more weeks before changing the 2nd device to PixelExperience (and hopefully by then, the Aliexpress seller comes back with a backup solution to revert back to Global Rom / Chinese Rom).
Thanks again for your valuable help.
Cant flash twrp nor the patched magisk boot img to both slot a and b.
Bootloader is unlocked.
Flashing scripts via .bat files for stock zips of both android 10 and 12 results in "FAILED (remote: Partition product not found)" or "FAILED (remote: variable not found)" respectively.
I have no recovery.
When I had twrp, I've made the mistake of wiping my whole android 12 data, storage, and system and flashing an android 10 rom without reading up of the separate a and b boot slots nor the effects of my actions leading to bootlooping. (I've done with this other devices before with no problems). This in turn wiped the twrp recovery I had flashed and left me only fastboot commands and a twrp version up to 3.3 and 3.2 with no hope of getting usb otg to work as it was only available with the later versions of twrp and since I and now technically on an android 10 bootloader, any attempt at that time to flash twrp 3.6 was met with a (remote: Error calling AvbLoadAndVerifyBootImages Load Error) or some kind of other error I have no logs for. Now I cant even tetherboot to twrp 3.2 nor 3.3 and I get that error regardless.
[Boots to bootloader no matter what. Shows as UFS:Micron, Error reason - reboot bootloader - bootloader version is b1c1-0-4-7617406]
I believe I can get access to internal storage to flash these updates once I get a recovery tethered from the bootloader. I do not know if its possible to boot to fastbootd or whatever its called (used for write permissions/sideload update zips) even if I hadn't gotten into this predicament. I will be buying another Pixel 3 in the meantime as I have money to burn and like to hurt myself financially, and emotionally to get to my goal with this device. ( Didn't buy another one, I was committed to the cause!)
I am not a noob nor a pro, but somewhere in between. My biggest point of failure is not reading up on how the partitions are set up and the various issues others had when flashing android 10 and 11 roms. Any suggestions other than "uPdAtE tHe fAsTbOoT aNd AdB dRiVeRs" are not welcomed. Thank you. I will update once I find a soluton to my problem Which I Will.
Again, my main concern right now is getting tethered twrp to work again and need suggestions. I have older versions of platform tools and the latest so please non of those comments I see on literally every other thread.
Edit: I didn't mention this before, but I did have the ability yo sideload when I had twrp at the time before crapping everything out the window, but nothing would work and gave up. Just wanted to add if anyone was wondering.
First update, I used the propriatary "Tool All In One Tool" and I was able to boot to fastbootd, and wipe my data and storage, while updating my stock zip to android 12. Now I can tetherboot twrp 3.6.1_11-0 with the option for usb otg, wish me luck boys. I'm in.
Second update. Still stuck on first update, but weighing my options in the meantime. I flashed twrp via the flash current twrp option, but when I boot to it, touch is disabled so thats great... I can fast boot to only the twrp versions after 3.6+, so not so bad. I have no os installed, but I will try my hand again at that tool all in one tool again. I'll update tomorrow if anything comes of it.
3rd update. FROM THE BRINK OF DEATH!!! WHOOOOOOOOOO!!!!! I got the pixeldust rom flashed and working like a BOSS!!!!! You won't believe the 2 days I've had trying to get this thing to work. All in all 1 out of my 3 flashdrives finally worked with otg. I had a windows recovery drive premade on it so I just copied and pasted the files there without a hitch! Thank you Google for having to make me miss work and actually do research to get this thing working again! Thank you for the guys at Tool All In One Tool for making this recovery possible, I will shout out your thread. If anyone who's in a similar situation needs any help from me or any info, I'll be glad to help. This will be the second to last update. I can also make phone calls and use data so Pixel Dust rom is good to go if that was one of your concerns. See ya!
Final update, I got crdroid flashed with root and safetynet passed, I just found out that google Pay was imbedded in gapps so now I don't need the pay app anymore to do transactions! My banking app also works, got vanced finally installed (couldn't do it on regular stock ROM) some glitches with the ROM here and there but no worries. For who ever reads this. There's hope. I fd up as bad as you can get shy of a hard brick. I still don't know too much but learned near twice as much as I knew just a few days ago. If you need help just DM me and I'll work my hardest to bring the light. This phone is absolutely amazing and on god wished google was a better company to praise. I have more plans for these phones and hope more Roms come out to support it.
I have one question however, how do I make a backup of my system/system_ext partitions? I can make a back up of everything else but that with these two Roms... I have a backup of it with my stock ROM, but it resumed to mount when I used otg... Didn't try internal yet but I'll assume the same, is it a glitch with current twrp?