[S8+] Purchased a stock AT&T S8+ in a lot. It has latest bootloader and bad IMEI....
First off, I'm an engineering scientist with years of development experience developing both hardware and software for all sorts of phones and companies. So I feel I'm pretty familiar with Android and every conceivable (and off-the-wall) way to get this phone unlocked, rooted, and/or just flat out usable. And I have failed which is why I am finally giving this to the multiverse in hopes there is someone with some solution I have yet to attempt.
I have been searching and trying every possible option for a week and counting. I'm also aware of how close to impossible it is to work with locked Snapdragon CPUs. But not entirely impossible. There has to be a way of reviving this phone!
So I recently purchased a lot full of untested and "for parts" electronics. In there was an AT&T S8+ with a cracked screen. It was also stuck in a boot loop, so I can safely hazard a guess that someone tried to update the ROM, bricked it, and didn't realize they could reflash stock firmware and fix it. Well, upon further examination, I discovered they had attempted flashing a V7 bootloader. Yes, version 7. So that basically robbed me of any options I may have had, as well as all the bugs I could have used to root the device. All I could do was install Pie with a V7 bootloader. Voila! The phone boots up. But it gets better....
Now that the phone was working, I did some examining, one part of which was the IMEI as I wanted to unlock it if possible. I check the IMEI, and it is frakking blacklisted! So that blew ever being able to use this phone on a network. I even sat on hold for 46 minutes to speak with someone at AT&T to see if they could remove it off the blacklist. They promptly said "sure!", then transferred me to someone else to fix it and the guy said "no".. So it's stuck locked to AT&T, which sucks because I checked with several other networks who all said the phone could be used on their networks. But that's not an option if it is carrier locked and impossible to unlock. :silly:
Furthermore, OEM Unlock is 110% unavailable, and no bugs work or exist to force it to appear on Android 9 Pie like you can with 8 Oreo and 7 Nougat; and I tried for days. So the bootloader is permanently locked. If it wasn't, I could root the phone, fix the IMEI, unlock it, and get the phone functional again. Alas, I cannot, at least any time soon, if ever.
I've tried every possible thing out there to root this, unlock the bootloader, and/or try to roll back Pie to Oreo, Nougat, or some stock ROM with bugs that are still active. At the very least just to change the IMEI and get the phone working again. But there is no version of Oreo/Nougat that can be installed with a V7 bootloader.
Also, there is absolutely no Engineering Mode (NOT Developer Mode) available under this stock Android 9 Pie, either by code or by app/settings. Does anybody know of an exact Android 9 Pie stock ROM with an accessible no-root Engineering Mode?
And I've tried every way out there to force OEM Unlock to appear, but the bugs that work in Oreo and Nougat have all been patched and none of them work on Android 9 Pie. So I'm stuck with this ROM and bootloader
So I'm here today with these issues in hopes someone may have solutions for:
A way to force OEM Unlock to appear under Android 9 Pie (as no Oreo/Nougat hacks work under Pie)
A way to bypass KG state under stock Android 9 Pie (as no Oreo/Nougat hacks work under Pie)
A way to install Android 8 Oreo or Android 7 Nougat with a V7 bootloader
A stock ROM with Engineering Mode available
A way to change the IMEI without root
A way to modify the V7 stock ROM so it installs a Nougat/Oreo ROM instead of Pie
Another option to keep this phone from just being a fancy, pretty paperweight
Any solution we or I may discover, I will clean it up and make a guide to help others with these same issues as there is not much info yet V7 on bootloaders. So this is a group activity that could help many, many people; help me help us all!
Thank you all in advance for anything you can offer to help!
-DL
EDIT 1: I forgot to mention that the KG State is stuck on "Checking...." so I couldn't get "OEM Unlock" even by waiting
I used this video to figure out how to get the OEM Unlock option.
(input this after youtube url) watch?v=zhNhyT4F3e8&t=133s
Hopefully this helps.
domiluci said:
First off, I'm an engineering scientist with years of development experience developing both hardware and software for all sorts of phones and companies. So I feel I'm pretty familiar with Android and every conceivable (and off-the-wall) way to get this phone unlocked, rooted, and/or just flat out usable. And I have failed which is why I am finally giving this to the multiverse in hopes there is someone with some solution I have yet to attempt.
I have been searching and trying every possible option for a week and counting. I'm also aware of how close to impossible it is to work with locked Snapdragon CPUs. But not entirely impossible. There has to be a way of reviving this phone!
So I recently purchased a lot full of untested and "for parts" electronics. In there was an AT&T S8+ with a cracked screen. It was also stuck in a boot loop, so I can safely hazard a guess that someone tried to update the ROM, bricked it, and didn't realize they could reflash stock firmware and fix it. Well, upon further examination, I discovered they had attempted flashing a V7 bootloader. Yes, version 7. So that basically robbed me of any options I may have had, as well as all the bugs I could have used to root the device. All I could do was install Pie with a V7 bootloader. Voila! The phone boots up. But it gets better....
Now that the phone was working, I did some examining, one part of which was the IMEI as I wanted to unlock it if possible. I check the IMEI, and it is frakking blacklisted! So that blew ever being able to use this phone on a network. I even sat on hold for 46 minutes to speak with someone at AT&T to see if they could remove it off the blacklist. They promptly said "sure!", then transferred me to someone else to fix it and the guy said "no".. So it's stuck locked to AT&T, which sucks because I checked with several other networks who all said the phone could be used on their networks. But that's not an option if it is carrier locked and impossible to unlock. :silly:
Furthermore, OEM Unlock is 110% unavailable, and no bugs work or exist to force it to appear on Android 9 Pie like you can with 8 Oreo and 7 Nougat; and I tried for days. So the bootloader is permanently locked. If it wasn't, I could root the phone, fix the IMEI, unlock it, and get the phone functional again. Alas, I cannot, at least any time soon, if ever.
I've tried every possible thing out there to root this, unlock the bootloader, and/or try to roll back Pie to Oreo, Nougat, or some stock ROM with bugs that are still active. At the very least just to change the IMEI and get the phone working again. But there is no version of Oreo/Nougat that can be installed with a V7 bootloader.
Also, there is absolutely no Engineering Mode (NOT Developer Mode) available under this stock Android 9 Pie, either by code or by app/settings. Does anybody know of an exact Android 9 Pie stock ROM with an accessible no-root Engineering Mode?
And I've tried every way out there to force OEM Unlock to appear, but the bugs that work in Oreo and Nougat have all been patched and none of them work on Android 9 Pie. So I'm stuck with this ROM and bootloader
So I'm here today with these issues in hopes someone may have solutions for:
A way to force OEM Unlock to appear under Android 9 Pie (as no Oreo/Nougat hacks work under Pie)
A way to bypass KG state under stock Android 9 Pie (as no Oreo/Nougat hacks work under Pie)
A way to install Android 8 Oreo or Android 7 Nougat with a V7 bootloader
A stock ROM with Engineering Mode available
A way to change the IMEI without root
A way to modify the V7 stock ROM so it installs a Nougat/Oreo ROM instead of Pie
Another option to keep this phone from just being a fancy, pretty paperweight
Any solution we or I may discover, I will clean it up and make a guide to help others with these same issues as there is not much info yet V7 on bootloaders. So this is a group activity that could help many, many people; help me help us all!
Thank you all in advance for anything you can offer to help!
-DL
EDIT 1: I forgot to mention that the KG State is stuck on "Checking...." so I couldn't get "OEM Unlock" even by waiting
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is no OEM unlock on us snap dragon devices. Locked boot loader. Closest you will get is the combination firmware. But the OEM unlock in that does not work trust me on this. The imei is cert coded to the hardware. And can't be discussed on xda how to change. It's possible. But not by just anyone. The combination files are nougat. But their not going to help you out in this situation
Related
Hello Guys,
long i searched for a method of unlocking the bootloader of eml-l29 Huawei P20. No i didnt find any, and qu1ckr00t didnt prove to be useful either.
it is not relevant anymore. since i did use testpoint too often in research of what is possible and what not, the device died just a few minutes ago. it always enters now only the usb huawei com mode. probably i used to much pressure on the testpoints or what or i accidentally short circuited other points with the screwdrivers.. but as a matter of fact, it is hardware bricked and the board is done for i think. so i dont search for a solution anymore.
people, see this thread as a resource what is possible without unlocking the bootloader and what not. i figured out following things are fact without unlocking the bootloader, so that you all doesn't have to try instead of me:
- you can flash with the testpoint short circuited and the software dc-phoenix and the right chipset/cpu bootloader chosen in temporary bootloader the twrp to erecovery_ramdisk and recovery_ramdisk, it will be permanently available after the process
- you cannot install magisk on it, since xloader seems to block the bootup and always sends you to recovery-mode (which means twrp if you flashed this)
- you cannot install a custom rom like OpenKirin with the testpoint recovery mode, as it - like with magisk, always will send you to recovery mode - i tried it exactly how it is explained on openkirin.net and it always turned out the same
- there is no bootloader unlock code in the nvme partition, i checked it - it seems there is encryption going on there
- the exploit qu1ckr00t is not usable, since the kernel is compiled with spinlock_debug
- and i forgot first: if you have the idea of soldering a cable for testpoint short circuit - no, letit be. you will only hang forever in huawei usb com 1.0 mode - it wont boot normally as long as you're in tp mode
so basically, there is way to get root, it is a way to get to direct data from the partitions. but at the end, the question that arises is - how much profit are you gaining from root or custom roms on this device at the end? in my case, the many tries costed my time, my nerves and now the device itself. it is gone for good. maybe this is for the best, as i never treated it right since i bought it (it had to be repaired two times in 2 years, which is a lot for a normal device at this amount of time) and i only have bad memories in my life with it (lots of things happened, but this is not the right place for such tellings).
my final message for this part of this board (not the board i damaged thou) - leave it alone, don't waste your time anymore on this. move on, there are cheap devices that are better, faster and unlockable too at this day and time. i moved on to my new Nokia 7.2, which is awesome.
so stay healthy guyz.
my journey of exploring the depths of huaweis device huawei p20 eml-l29 ends here. its sad, but at the same time i'm happy that the "horror" of an unlockable bootloader is finally over.
Thanks for your effort and sharing the info. Good luck with new phone
Note: my next phone won't be Huawei, for sure, due to bootloader locking, I am fed up with them
Yes,
I even have no sorry with them if they go down because of the Google lockout. Their strategy is to pull people away from Google PlayStore? Yes, sure. Good luck.
Unlock bootloader and promise to keep it open for P10 upwards and we are happy. Otherwise... byebye and fcku.
FearFac said:
Thanks for your effort and sharing the info. Good luck with new phone
Note: my next phone won't be Huawei, for sure, due to bootloader locking, I am fed up with them
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What if I have my unlock code? Can I still unlock it or it's impossible now? I requested my code before they stop the bootloader unlocking, but never did anything with it.
ElChe said:
What if I have my unlock code? Can I still unlock it or it's impossible now? I requested my code before they stop the bootloader unlocking, but never did anything with it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You are the lucky one who can root your phone.
FearFac said:
You are the lucky one who can root your phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah I guess haha. I haven't got around doing it yet. But now I know it's a possibility! So I'll eventually do it!
FearFac said:
You are the lucky one who can root your phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How do you root it? AFAIK anything newer than EMUI8 is no longer rootable.
I'm on EMUI 10, with an unlocked bootloader, please tell me how to root.
zgomot said:
How do you root it? AFAIK anything newer than EMUI8 is no longer rootable.
I'm on EMUI 10, with an unlocked bootloader, please tell me how to root.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I do a query you have emui 10 with bootloader open?how did you do it ?it was not the problem that emui 10 closed the bootloader?can't root with magisk?
zgomot said:
How do you root it? AFAIK anything newer than EMUI8 is no longer rootable.
I'm on EMUI 10, with an unlocked bootloader, please tell me how to root.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Where did you get this info from?
I was just thinking of rooting my CLT L09 Emui 9.1.0
First of all:
I'm no Dev...just someone who likes to play lego.
From this point of view everything I post here is taken from somewhere else in the Internet and used by your own risk.
I've read a good startup here.
Hopefully this makes this thread clear enough so that i dont need to describe the whole procedure step by step.
(https://www.naldotech.com/root-samsung-galaxy-z-flip-3-5g-magisk/)
(1.OEM-Unlock,2.BL-Unlock,3.extract boot.img,4.patch boot.img via magisk on the unrooted mobile,5.patch boot.img.tar to AP&BL via Odin, 6.pray)
Anyways...here are maybe small hints to avoid a few traps.
a) Just do the oem-unlock in the dev-options (enabled by tapping buildnumber 5 times) is just half of the rent.
Afterwards i had to go in Download-mode (switch of mobile, press volUp+volDown and connect PC-cable.)
There appears a possibility of choice.
Press VolUp short: get the mobile on standby to flash the rom via odin.
Press VolUp LOONG: get the mobile to the menu where the bootloader can finally get unlocked. (Otherwhise every try to patch a rooted img will be blocked by bootloader-protection.)
Of course this can possibly be done via adb/fastboot commands.
Funny side note: OEM-Unlock-option will completely disappear from Dev-options and waranty is lost. Also the mobile stops to get Updates OTA which means that you have to update manually whenever a new version will appear in the net.
b) patching boot.img via magisk should work as described in many other magisk-rooting-manuals.
Flashing the tar back to the mobile via odin was little bit tricky.
It doesnt reach out just to provide the magisk_patched.tar to Odin just on the AB-line.
I had to patch it to BL too.
Cheers
MikGx
When you boot into bootloader after unlocking, is the message something about "a custom OS can cause critical problems"?
As it stands now, the only reason I have to believe the US bootloader can't be unlocked (or isn't already) was the lack of an OEM unlock button and some cranky kid on the internet saying it hasn't been possible since the S7.
It doesn't make sense why I would have a warning about a custom OS if there is no possible way to install one, though.
@boot into bootloader after unlocking it...:
Yess you are right. Thats exactly the message.
Then you can enter the Device unlock mode again (long press VolUp) to lock bootloader again (then it resets automaticaly to factory-defaults and all work is gone.)
or
continue to flash something (short press VolUp).
Dont know about the US versions. Could be that there is a difference to my EU-models.
But either i rooted nearly every every mobile since the S2
MikGx said:
@boot into bootloader after unlocking it...:
Yess you are right. Thats exactly the message.
Then you can enter the Device unlock mode again (long press VolUp) to lock bootloader again (then it resets automaticaly to factory-defaults and all work is gone.)
or
continue to flash something (short press VolUp).
Dont know about the US versions. Could be that there is a difference to my EU-models.
But either i rooted nearly every every mobile since the S2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think you misunderstood what I was asking, but ended up answering it anyway.
It seems the message about installing custom OS versions may be a boilerplate for the bootloader, not any indication that it's possible.
naldotech.com, the link you provide is pretty clear about the process. What it doesnt say is what to do at the end. When you untick "reboot" in odin, and you finish flashing, your phone will stay in download mode. Then what to do?. Press power and volume down to leave and restart the phone? or, power and volume down, screen goes black imediately power and volume up, enter recovery and restart from there.? please someone ?
Press the power and volume down buttons for about 7 seconds and it will reboot
beanbean50 said:
Press the power and volume down buttons for about 7 seconds and it will reboot
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I did as you mention but it didnt work. It made me reset the system. But I Fallowed the naldotech.com guide. At the end, being in dawnload mode, I pressed power and volume down, when the screen got black I pressed power and volumen up, I entered recovery mod, cleared cache and re- started the system: Voila my phone is rooted
Hello.
Can someone pleas provide a working link for frija download? The one referring from naldotech seems to be broken (https://www.naldotech.com/download-samsung-galaxy-stock-firmware-frija-tool/)
Update: Found a link via google -> https://technastic.com/odin-download-samsung-latest-all-versions/
twistedumbrella said:
When you boot into bootloader after unlocking, is the message something about "a custom OS can cause critical problems"?
As it stands now, the only reason I have to believe the US bootloader can't be unlocked (or isn't already) was the lack of an OEM unlock button and some cranky kid on the internet saying it hasn't been possible since the S7.
It doesn't make sense why I would have a warning about a custom OS if there is no possible way to install one, though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The USA version (snapdragon soc) can't be rooted as far as I know. There is no way to unlock the bootloader in dev options, at least on Verizon and that holds true even if you bought a unlocked phone. As soon as you insert a Verizon sim and the phone updates it's all over.
I had the same issue with the original Pixel. I bought it unlocked but before rooting it I allowed it to update like a fool. Luckily my son wanted the same phone so I gave him mine then rooted and installed TWRP before putting a Verizon sim in.
Back to Samsung...as far as I know you haven't been able to root the USA version since the note 8. The rest of the planet gets the Exynos SOC but we get the snapdragon and no root method works. My note 9, 10+ and z Flip3 didn't have an unlock bootloader option even before putting a sim in it.
d0x360 said:
The USA version (snapdragon soc) can't be rooted as far as I know. There is no way to unlock the bootloader in dev options, at least on Verizon and that holds true even if you bought a unlocked phone. As soon as you insert a Verizon sim and the phone updates it's all over.
I had the same issue with the original Pixel. I bought it unlocked but before rooting it I allowed it to update like a fool. Luckily my son wanted the same phone so I gave him mine then rooted and installed TWRP before putting a Verizon sim in.
Back to Samsung...as far as I know you haven't been able to root the USA version since the note 8. The rest of the planet gets the Exynos SOC but we get the snapdragon and no root method works. My note 9, 10+ and z Flip3 didn't have an unlock bootloader option even before putting a sim in it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
twistedumbrella said:
I think you misunderstood what I was asking, but ended up answering it anyway.
It seems the message about installing custom OS versions may be a boilerplate for the bootloader, not any indication that it's possible.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have to be a little skeptical when my rooted Note 8 came out a year after the S7. There are other reasons, but they tend to make the trolls restless. We'll skip them.
twistedumbrella said:
I have to be a little skeptical when my rooted Note 8 came out a year after the S7. There are other reasons, but they tend to make the trolls restless. We'll skip them.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok I might be off by a year or 2 but I can say with 100% certainty that the note 9, 10, 10+ and flip3 don't have an unlock bootloader option.
I bought all 4 from Samsung all unlocked and not tied to any carrier. First boot with no sim I checked dev options and there was no option to unlock the bootloader. My note 9 might have had the option in the menu but it was grayed out and I couldn't find anyway to make it work.
A quick Google search for rooting the snapdragon version of any of these devices essentially says "NOPE".
The only way to root one is to buy a non US version. If it has a snapdragon soc you're out of luck.
d0x360 said:
Ok I might be off by a year or 2 but I can say with 100% certainty that the note 9, 10, 10+ and flip3 don't have an unlock bootloader option.
I bought all 4 from Samsung all unlocked and not tied to any carrier. First boot with no sim I checked dev options and there was no option to unlock the bootloader. My note 9 might have had the option in the menu but it was grayed out and I couldn't find anyway to make it work.
A quick Google search for rooting the snapdragon version of any of these devices essentially says "NOPE".
The only way to root one is to buy a non US version. If it has a snapdragon soc you're out of luck.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You got where I said "I guess the disclaimer is misleading" right?
twistedumbrella said:
You got where I said "I guess the disclaimer is misleading" right?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I didn't see that sentence in any of the posts but perhaps I just missed it.
It doesn't change anything either way. Anything is possible, even you somehow getting a device with this setting. That being said you also seem to be the only person ever to receive a USA device with said option.
It's hard to believe because it would mean the wrong firmware was installed (which makes no sense in itself) but with that firmware the device should have been a brick. The soc is completely different. It would be somewhat like trying to use Nvidia drivers on an AMD GPU... It just wouldn't work.
I dunno... I don't disbelieve you but I don't believe you either. It's just so far fetched for many reasons
d0x360 said:
I didn't see that sentence in any of the posts but perhaps I just missed it.
It doesn't change anything either way. Anything is possible, even you somehow getting a device with this setting. That being said you also seem to be the only person ever to receive a USA device with said option.
It's hard to believe because it would mean the wrong firmware was installed (which makes no sense in itself) but with that firmware the device should have been a brick. The soc is completely different. It would be somewhat like trying to use Nvidia drivers on an AMD GPU... It just wouldn't work.
I dunno... I don't disbelieve you but I don't believe you either. It's just so far fetched for many reasons
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lucky? I dunno. Had I known it would cause this much trolling, I wouldn't have bothered to mention it.
I have a general question. I am unfamiliar with rooting/unlocking bootloader on Samsung devices. Is it possible to revert unlocking the bootloader and going back to stock traceless?
david.siebauer said:
I have a general question. I am unfamiliar with rooting/unlocking bootloader on Samsung devices. Is it possible to revert unlocking the bootloader and going back to stock traceless?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Partially. I just did that: I have AfWall running on my old phone, tried to unlock the Flip with this manual here in order to use the firewall there, did something wrong - and stumbled upon Netguard while searching what might have happened and decided to give it a try first. (Unless there is a custom ROM for the phone available, I have no other need for root or an unlocked bootloader.)
From what I could find on my Flip 3, you can unlock and relock the bootloader as you like - but as soon as you install a non-genuine bootloader (i.e. one chnaged by Magisk) you will trip Knox - and this cannot be reverted.
In such a case you can still re-lock your bootloader and unlock it later (on my phone, that "7-day-no-switch-indeveloper-options" routine kicked in, but you can circumvent that) - but Knox will stay in its state. From what I read this means some things will not work such as Samsung Pay, but I do not know the details (yet) apart from that it does not bother me ;-), and the nag screen during boot is gone.
Thanks for your reply. Kinda sucks. Never had problems with my former mobiles to get back totally to stock without traces. Guess I disregard rooting for now
david.siebauer said:
Thanks for your reply. Kinda sucks. Never had problems with my former mobiles to get back totally to stock without traces. Guess I disregard rooting for now
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, it's better than my Sony - there it is "once unlocked, always unlocked" with no way back at all
But I have to admit I understand the logic why the manufacturers do that, at least to the degree that they trip a fuse as Samsung does.
By rooting the phone, you shift the responsibility for the software state of the phone from the manufacturer to the user, so I think it is okay to implement something to make it clear to possible future buyers that it is or has been in that state.
(This does not include however all the other stones they put in the way of people wanting to develop or use custom ROMs!)
I remember I also had a Xperia Z3 compact.
Main reason for me for rooting, is the ability to use tools like tasker without non root restrictions or just trying customs roms without bloat, but usefull features. Guess u shouldn't have bought a Samsung lol.
david.siebauer said:
I remember I also had a Xperia Z3 compact.
Main reason for me for rooting, is the ability to use tools like tasker without non root restrictions or just trying customs roms without bloat, but usefull features.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh, trust me - as soon as I hear there is a custom ROM that works as a daily driver I will root mine as well. I really hope that there will be one for this phone
david.siebauer said:
Guess u shouldn't have bought a Samsung lol.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sadly there is no Fairphone mini or Fairphone Flip - or would it be Fairfliphone? ... Flipfairphone?... - yet (if ever), so the only current alternative would be Motorola. And the price tag for the Razr is simply too much, even if I personally think it looks better than the Samsung. Additionally, I do not know if they are in any way better when it comes to rooting or loading custom ROMs.
Hi,
After almost 2 years of owning this awesome device, not even once i stumbled upon any rom or root solution for it. Now after all that time being desperate for any development on this device, I come here for an opinion, answer or any idea how to get anything written above on this device.
So, I read some things about GSI roms being able to work on any device without porting and all that. I immediately downloaded the app called Treble Check and it said P30 is supported. So it got me thinking, in THEORY if somehow i got mine P30s bootloader unlocked, or if someone unlocked it before Huawei stopped unlocking bootloader, IS IT POSSIBLE TO GET GSI ROM WORKING, AND HOW?
If it is, is there any, even shady source to get the bootloader unlocked?
Bonus question if all this isn't possible: How to get EMUI 12 Beta Project in Serbia thru Beta app? Carrier locked model. ELE-L29.
Thanks.
I actually tried it, but stopped using it due to problems such as FOD coordinates and Volte.
Also, if you install GSI, your PC will not be able to recognize your device.
The boot loader was unlocked using DC Phoenix and hcu-client.
After further testing (well actually I mean bricking my device a few times) it turned out that rebranding is not needed for the update from mm to nougat, although your device will boot into a "test" system instead (This is likely due to the vendor information being mismatched). Your p9 would still work with HWOTA7.
The original post has not been changed.
I got hold of an EVA-AL10 model from China. However it was still stuck on emui 4.1 Android 6.
Spoiler
After some research, I found out that Chinese internet was ridiculously unreliable and riddled with useless information, and the fact that most Chinese are tech-illiterate does not help either. Then I turned to good old XDA and found out a few (pretty obsolete posts) that had similar problems and got them solved. However, they all (unsurprisingly) involved the European model (EVA-L0X), which had different firmware.
I then got in contact with a former Chinese colleague. With his help, I managed to send an email to Huawei China and get a representative. After giving him his phone number and all information in the about section of the phone (IMEI and stuff) they took an entire day only to phone him back saying he needs to go to a repair shop. They told him that the oldest version of EMUI available for update was for emui 8 (Android 8) so that was a dead end.
After more searching, I stumbled across a thread about rebranding an European model into the one I got to get to, ironically, emui 8.
Spoiler
According to a Chinese nationalist blogger, it turns out that Huawei severely displeased our international community due to halting the provision of bootloader unlock codes, and they dicided to get us back by not updating us to emui 8. Although there might be more reasons than that, the fact is clear that they had to change their model.
Luckily, XDA is the perfect platform to find help.
Spoiler
Although the in-house search engine is relatively good at dealing with the Chinese e-thefts which take the hard work of this community and sell it shamelessly in China,
a fair amount of time was taken to Google search, however it was definitely worth the effort. Soon, I drew out a simple flowchart to update my p9:
1. Unlock bootloader
2. Rebrand the phone to European model
3. Update to Android 7
4. Rebrand back
5. update to Android 8
(6. Do cool stuff)
Unlocking the bootloader is now a hard part for some. (make sure you have backed up your data on the phone because it will do a factory reset)
Spoiler
While unlocking services here are mostly genuine, it is 75% scam in China. My friend maaged to get my bootloader unlocked from a (crazy) shopping site in China named Taobao, which is well-known for selling fake sneakers and even Uranium. It only costed me two dollars.
Make sure to keep the unlock code. You need it later. If you forgot your unlock code but have it unlocked, no worriess. You can root your phone (I used good old supersu) follow this guide (the commands are the important part, I personally have not verified this method though)
You can also try this tool:
Huawei Nova 2 Plus Bootloader Unlock (Solution)
Hello Developers! I have found an easy way to unlock the bootloader of our Huawei Nova 2 Plus. No need to use Testpoint or pay for software to unlock. it is an Python Script which would brute force the code through the IMEI number you have...
forum.xda-developers.com
However it was intended for another device so your luck may vary.
After that, I used SRKtool to rebrand the phone, although the software of the phone itself has not changed. Keep in mind after the rebrand not to reboot into the system, as it will cause an error. (see below post) If you do manage to get into the system unfortunately, it will ask you for your password (bootloader unlock code) Do not enter the code, shut down your phone and get into fastboot by holding down power and volume down WHILE cable is attached to computer.
After trying hard to get into TWRP, I used this guide to boot into it (turns out I was not quick enough)
I then used this file to update it to the European android 7, which worked perfectly. You do need to enter the unlock code again though, and you need an SDcard or an USB disk that supports OTG(so the device can recognise it in twrp).
After that, you can follow this guide to get it to Android 7 Chinese version(399). I got my friend to set up a vpn connecting to China, where the Chinese system recognized that it could update to android 8. If yours does not, follow the guide to update it to android 8. It already contains the firmware, so do not download other firmware (unless you prefer). If you already got the firmware, use the androidfilehost link he provided and find in the older versions V1.1, which did not have the firmware to save time (and possibly bandwidth)
You will have your bootloader locked at this stage. If you want to stay on the Chinese firmware (Which has a lot of bloatware and needs you to manually sideload playstore apk) do not unlock it. If you do want to go further and install a custom treble GSI, go ahead and unlock the bootloader, and follow the instructions,
Error after force rebranding location with SRKtool:
After using SRKtool to rebrand, your system boot warning will turn from unlocked to unverified (text color orange to red)
If you continue to boot, it will go to a screen where you have to enter a password (the bootloader unlock code) you should not enter the code.
If you still proceed to enter the code, you will be "greeted" with a message telling you that the data on your phone is corrupt and you have to factory reset. after you boot into the OS, you will see this "mix" of the classic nexus 2012 style wallpaper with some android app icons (such as settings) in the aosp style, with everything else that are Huawei-branded seen in 2012-style icons. This has to do with a theme engine bug.
In the about page you might also notice that the system version has been slightly changed. the "al10" part has been deleted but the c00 still remains. The page where the CE and FCC stuff are displayed (forgot precise wording) now lists the phone as "eva-l09"
Go into settings and developer options as usual. You should now see that there is an oem unlock opion that has been toggled off. turn it on.
Reboot into fastboot again. You would see that most commands you would usually use such as flash recovery and erase would not work anymore(returns command not allowed) This has to do with the bootloader locked although it technically unlocked. Unlock it as you would normally do. If this does not work, reboot and turn off oem unlock, go to fastboot and enter the unlock command (it would obviously not work but it registers that wants to be unlocked), reboot and turn on oem unlock again and reboot into fastboot, then you should unlock the bootloader and flash recovery again.
Hi,
Just grabbed an Xperia 5 II on a great deal and I'm loving this device. It's an A002SO. I have noticed in other threads that there is some loss with original functionality of the phone (maybe Dolby or some other features are broken even if phone is restored to stock). Is it true? And if so what features are broken.
I noticed that Xperia camera software are available for other roms too which is great but what about device fingerprint and BL unlock sensing protection for banking apps? (I am not interested in rooting the phone after flashing lineage/AOSP roms but more concerned about the broken safety net in-case I go custom ROM route)
Also, is there a risk of losing IMEI with all this process? Not talking about crossflashing here but would love an AIO guide about BL unlock > recovery > ROM and the Back to stock locked bootloader guides if there are any.
Thank you!
dark_prince said:
Hi,
Just grabbed an Xperia 5 II on a great deal and I'm loving this device. It's an A002SO. I have noticed in other threads that there is some loss with original functionality of the phone (maybe Dolby or some other features are broken even if phone is restored to stock). Is it true? And if so what features are broken.
I noticed that Xperia camera software are available for other roms too which is great but what about device fingerprint and BL unlock sensing protection for banking apps? (I am not interested in rooting the phone after flashing lineage/AOSP roms but more concerned about the broken safety net in-case I go custom ROM route)
Also, is there a risk of losing IMEI with all this process? Not talking about crossflashing here but would love an AIO guide about BL unlock > recovery > ROM and the Back to stock locked bootloader guides if there are any.
Thank you!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have a different model, but I recently went from stock to Lineage OS, then back to stock. I haven't had any issues. Dolby works, my data/LTE works, and I can still use my banking app just fine. Fingerprint detection was a bit more finnicky with Lineage OS, though.
I should also note, I'm currently rooted with my bootloader unlocked, and still no issues.
SomeRandomGuy212 said:
I have a different model, but I recently went from stock to Lineage OS, then back to stock. I haven't had any issues. Dolby works, my data/LTE works, and I can still use my banking app just fine. Fingerprint detection was a bit more finnicky with Lineage OS, though.
I should also note, I'm currently rooted with my bootloader unlocked, and still no issues.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I gave up in the end because my device is Japan Softbank with bootloader unlocking not allowed. Crossflashing instructions have alot of "you can", "I think" but no definite root-to-fruit guide so I may convert it to global model and BL unlock without losing imei / 4G. Thank you for taking time to write the clarification.
dark_prince said:
I gave up in the end because my device is Japan Softbank with bootloader unlocking not allowed. Crossflashing instructions have alot of "you can", "I think" but no definite root-to-fruit guide so I may convert it to global model and BL unlock without losing imei / 4G. Thank you for taking time to write the clarification.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't actually know if that would work... I don't mean to give you another indefinite answer, but I tried that once on a Japanese Xperia 10 II. I know it's a different device, but it may still apply in your situation. I would still try it, though. Worse case scenario, you have to use Sony's repair tool to get back to stock.
(Also, if you're interested in a non Japanese model, I am currently selling my 5 II.)
SomeRandomGuy212 said:
I don't actually know if that would work... I don't mean to give you another indefinite answer, but I tried that once on a Japanese Xperia 10 II. I know it's a different device, but it may still apply in your situation. I would still try it, though. Worse case scenario, you have to use Sony's repair tool to get back to stock.
(Also, if you're interested in a non Japanese model, I am currently selling my 5 II.)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am from Pakistan so it's gonna cost me double the actual price to pay customs taxes and get it cleared for use in-country. Our country has a rule about only the devices which are approved after paying hefty taxes, are permitted on Pakistan's cellular operators.
This was discussed before, in short you seem to lose out certain manufacturer keys and your phone remembers you have unlocked its bootloader before. As for functionality, iirc they seem to come back after relocking.
More info: https://forum.xda-developers.com/t/closed-delete.4177209/post-87242833