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Installing CM11.M11 on Nexus 5

Hi,
I'm about to install CM11 (cm-11-20141008-SNAPSHOT-M11-hammerhead.zip) on my Nexus 5, but wanted to be sure I'm not about do something obviously stupid. I tried using the CM Installer, but it said 'firmware not supported'.
I have
- Minimal experience.
- LG Nexus 5, hammerhead
- unlocked and rooted. (it did a factory reset on unlocking)
- Fresh Android 5.1.1 with bootloader version HHZ12h.
- TWRP 2.8.7.1 (took a backup and copied the whole TWRP folder to my laptop), flashed manually using fastboot flash recovery twrp.img.
- Latest TWRP manager installed from Play Store.
- standalone adb and fastboot installed on my Windows 7 laptop. No SDK. 'adb devices' lists the phone when connected.
- cm-11-20141008-SNAPSHOT-M11-hammerhead.zip downloaded to my phone under /sdcard/.
- cm-11-20141008-SNAPSHOT-M11-hammerhead.zip is also present in same folder as adb.exe and fastboot.exe.
Questions are:
- Hope this build of CM is compatible with my Nexus 5 & the bootloader version and whatever else there might be compatibility issues.
- How should I do this: According to "official CM installation on Nexus 5 guide" on wiki.cyanogenmod.org it seems like I'm supposed to push the zip file to /sdcard/0, but /sdcard seems to be a link to /sdcard/emulated/legacy, which contains no folder named '0'. Should I create it and put it there?
If you're coming from a ROM with Android 4.2 or newer to CyanogenMod 10.1 or newer: adb push update.zip /sdcard/0/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OR
Given that "cm-11-20141008-SNAPSHOT-M11-hammerhead.zip downloaded to my phone under /sdcard/", can I just: boot to recovery, click on Install, select the zip file and swipe to flash?
Finally a general query: Is there any reason I have to connect the phone to my laptop and run any adb, fastboot commands except to transfer the zip file from laptop to phone and to boot into bootloader or recovery with fastboot command? I already have TWRP running.
Thanks
Kashyap

Edit - before you flash, create a backup in twrp, including your efs, and copy it to your laptop for peace of mind.
I don't use cm, but that sounds like the right file. It doesn't matter which location the zip file is on your sdcard as far as I know, I think they've just said /sdcard/0 to make it easy to find from within twrp. Sounds to me like you've covered all your bases, nice to see someone manually flashing a nexus as a start. I'd go ahead and flash the zip, don't forget to factory reset if you're coming from stock. Also, you may want to find a gapps package if you haven't already. Since you seem to have taught yourself the right way, and your PC is setup for fastboot already, it should be easy to flash back to stock/restore under twrp. You don't even need adb to push files to your phone, you can just download them straight to the device. I generally only use my PC for fastboot flashing to stock,or transferring large amounts of data. Good luck, enjoy your nexus - first boot will generally take just long enough that you'll start wondering if its broken.

Thanks for the quick response.
scissors_cut_paper said:
don't forget to factory reset if you're coming from stock.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just curious why?
If i do a factory reset, will it not delete /sdcard/cm-11-20141008-SNAPSHOT-M11-hammerhead.zip? Do I just copy it from laptop to phone after reset and proceed to flashing? Or there is some way to not wipe 'sdcard' during factory reset?
scissors_cut_paper said:
Edit - before you flash, create a backup in twrp, including your efs, and copy it to your laptop for peace of mind.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I did do a TWRP backup, but selected what to backup in the TWRP manager app, there is no option called EFS. Anyway, I'm creating a new using the recovery UI, where there is a check box called EFS. Thanks!
scissors_cut_paper said:
nice to see someone manually flashing a nexus as a start.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Didn't know there was any other more automated option/way. , is there? Only thing I knew was the CM Installer, which said the firmware isn't supported. .
scissors_cut_paper said:
Also, you may want to find a gapps package if you haven't already.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, I was planning to, but taking it step at a time. .
I was planning to get gapps-kk-20140606-signed.zip from cyanogenmod.org, but lets see. I'll probably post another question here asking which is the compatible one.

Factory reset just wipes data/cache/dalvik, it should leave your sdcard storage intact. Just out of interest,why cm11? KitKat is pretty long in the tooth, and I've always found aosp based ROMs to perform better than cm on nexus 5. The problem with having no gapps will be no access to play store/google account services, so you'll have to get apps from less trustworthy sources.

Worked
Thanks.
It worked fine. Though it was totally useless without either the play store or basic CM apps. Couple of notes:
- After wipe/factory-reset (from TWRP Recovery UI) /sdcard was untouched.
- Installed the ROM using TWRP Recovery UI -> Install -> Select the zip file from /sdcard and swipe.
- CM Installer on Windows 7 laptop worked fine once the CM was installed. But it downgraded the build from Nov to Aug-2014.
- Also CM Installer removed my TWRP and replaced it with CWM. Not happy.
So actually all that's needed is:
- Unlock the bootloader and root.
- Install TWRP Manager
- Try to use the TWRP Manager's "Install TWRP" to install the TWRP Custom Recovery. If that doesn't work then do it manually. Download twrp.img
- Install ADB and fastboot, you don't need the whole 1GB Android SDK. Just search for "ADB Fastboot without SDK".​- Enable USB debug, connect the phone and ensure that 'adb.exe devices' prints a device.​- fastboot flash recovery twrp.img​- Download the ROM zip file you wanna install on the phone itself, no need to involve the laptop.
- Boot into recovery (e.g. using TWRP Manager -> Reboot options) and do what I did above.
Once you've installed Cyanogenmod, DO NOT use CM Installer. This is written in July'2015. May be things would improve in future.

Best Method to Re-flash & Re-root Plus Have Internal Storage Working

Hey Guys -
I have had my A9 for about 2 months and love it. When I first purchased it, I rooted it using the method pinned to this forum which seemed to work well. Soon afterwards, I found out that when I inserted and tried to format an SD card as "internal", it wouldn't work and result in it showing as "corrupted." I soon found out that this seemed to be due to the root replacing the original boot.img which messes with encryption. Since the root was posted, SuperSU has been updated and that step has changed supposedly.
Now that I have some time, I want to fix this issue. Before doing so, I've read through many posts and think I have a plan. I wanted to post the steps I need to follow as I understood them to make sure my plan is correct and will result in not only being able to format an SD internally and be rooted, but also a working phone Below are the specs of my phone, the steps I think it may take to resolve, and a few questions I have after reading through numerous posts. Any help is appreciated!
Phone Specs
Some as currently listed in Settings
- HTC One A9
- AT&T USA
- Rooted / s-off
- Android 6.0 / Sense 7.0g
Software Number: 1.10.502.3
Kernel: 3.10.73-perf-g28d66e0
Baseband: [email protected]_29.05_F
Build: 1.10.502.3 CL635081 release keys
Android Security Patch Level: 2015-10-01
Steps to Fix
1. Backup any data desired (I have a nightly Titanium backup)
2. Download RUU for same version (1.10.502.3) from http://forum.xda-developers.com/one-a9/general/wip-ruu-htc-one-a9-t3240344
Should I use newer version or are those for different carriers?
3. Apply RUU (via embedded EXE or try to extract and apply using adb/fastboot)
4. Once phone is restored, make a backup of boot.img from phone just in case it's needed later
5. Install TWRP via adb/fastboot
6. Install SuperSU via TWRP
At this point (if I can make it to this point), test and see if the phone's rooted and I can format the SD internally. If so, great. If not, continue with the following steps...
7. Download & flash modded boot.img from A9 Root post
8. Install TWRP via adb / fastboot
9. Install SuperSU via TWRP
10. Flash original boot.img backed up in step #4 to my phone (since modded one was only needed initially to install SuperSU) So that encryption keys match and I may successfully format sd cards for internal use
My Questions
1. Are the steps above basically the process i need to perform or is there a better / easier way? I don't know if I could flash a common boot.img from an RUU or if it needs to be flashed to phone first for encryption purposes. Even if I can, I've tried to extract it from ruu.zip before and could not
2. Should I use an RUU for a newer version (over 1.10.502.3) or are those for different carriers and not work with my AT&T phone?
3. Does it make a difference if I install the RUU via embedded EXE or extract and apply using adb/fastboot?
4. What versions of TWRP & SuperSU should I use?
Any additional suggestions would be appreciated - I just want to get this resolved once and for all! - Thanks!

bzowk said:
Hey Guys -
I have had my A9 for about 2 months and love it. When I first purchased it, I rooted it using the method pinned to this forum which seemed to work well. Soon afterwards, I found out that when I inserted and tried to format an SD card as "internal", it wouldn't work and result in it showing as "corrupted." I soon found out that this seemed to be due to the root replacing the original boot.img which messes with encryption. Since the root was posted, SuperSU has been updated and that step has changed supposedly.
Now that I have some time, I want to fix this issue. Before doing so, I've read through many posts and think I have a plan. I wanted to post the steps I need to follow as I understood them to make sure my plan is correct and will result in not only being able to format an SD internally and be rooted, but also a working phone Below are the specs of my phone, the steps I think it may take to resolve, and a few questions I have after reading through numerous posts. Any help is appreciated!
Phone Specs
Some as currently listed in Settings
- HTC One A9
- AT&T USA
- Rooted / s-off
- Android 6.0 / Sense 7.0g
Software Number: 1.10.502.3
Kernel: 3.10.73-perf-g28d66e0
Baseband: [email protected]_29.05_F
Build: 1.10.502.3 CL635081 release keys
Android Security Patch Level: 2015-10-01
Steps to Fix
1. Backup any data desired (I have a nightly Titanium backup)
2. Download RUU for same version (1.10.502.3) from http://forum.xda-developers.com/one-a9/general/wip-ruu-htc-one-a9-t3240344
Should I use newer version or are those for different carriers?
3. Apply RUU (via embedded EXE or try to extract and apply using adb/fastboot)
4. Once phone is restored, make a backup of boot.img from phone just in case it's needed later
5. Install TWRP via adb/fastboot
6. Install SuperSU via TWRP
At this point (if I can make it to this point), test and see if the phone's rooted and I can format the SD internally. If so, great. If not, continue with the following steps...
7. Download & flash modded boot.img from A9 Root post
8. Install TWRP via adb / fastboot
9. Install SuperSU via TWRP
10. Flash original boot.img backed up in step #4 to my phone (since modded one was only needed initially to install SuperSU) So that encryption keys match and I may successfully format sd cards for internal use
My Questions
1. Are the steps above basically the process i need to perform or is there a better / easier way? I don't know if I could flash a common boot.img from an RUU or if it needs to be flashed to phone first for encryption purposes. Even if I can, I've tried to extract it from ruu.zip before and could not
2. Should I use an RUU for a newer version (over 1.10.502.3) or are those for different carriers and not work with my AT&T phone?
3. Does it make a difference if I install the RUU via embedded EXE or extract and apply using adb/fastboot?
4. What versions of TWRP & SuperSU should I use?
Any additional suggestions would be appreciated - I just want to get this resolved once and for all! - Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
First off, this isn't Development.
Secondly, I explained to you how to fix this in the very root thread you linked several times.
Thirdly, there's a newer, official RUU from HTC right on their ROM Downloads website. I'd start by installing that (though I also have a recovery-flashable version of that ROM in my Base ROM thread).
Fourthly, with access to an official RUU, and my ROM decrypt script, you have access to the stock boot.img (which is also in the firmware zip in my Base ROM thread), which you can use as your baseline for restoring the verity key to the ramdisk, thereby allowing you to use adopted storage without any issues. Note however that I was only able to use adopted storage with the "forceencrypt" flag enabled.
Fifthly, you can't just restore the stock boot image (at least not if you want to stay rooted). You can be both rooted and encrypted, but you have to first make sure SuperSU is flashed and set up prior to allowing the device to be encrypted again (adopted storage only works with an encrypted device, and then you won't be able to access your storage with TWRP).

OK, OK - sorry.... It had been a while since posting and honestly forgot about that thread - my fault.
I decided to start fresh so have already restored the phone to HTC's latest RUU (1.27.502.5 ATT) as I already had it downloaded. I've also flashed TWRP 2.8.8.1 to the phone, but am obviously prompted to enter a password when I try to enter recovery. Based off what I've read, the steps below seem to be what I need to do so that I may be rooted + still have encryption for internal sd formatting. Is it correct (or close to it)
Using an Ubuntu 14.04 x86 VM...
1. Download & extract your decrypt script to a temp folder in linux vm
2. In Windows, run same RUU I applied and copy out rom.zip from %temp%
3. Rename "rom.zip" to "rom_a9.zip"
4. Copy rom_a9.zip to the ""place_rom_zip_here" folder of your extracted script in the vm
5. Run ./decrypt-htc and wait for script to complete to get img files
On Phone (Currently has same RUU installed + TWRP but not rooted)
6. Root phone using original method of flashing modded boot.img, install SuperSU, and get rooted
7. Once done and rooted, flash boot.img I extracted using your script above to phone via adb
Once that's done, it should be rooted + have encryption thus allowing me to use internal sd card, right? Sorry to be such a bother - just want to get this fixed and done with
Thanks!

bzowk said:
OK, OK - sorry.... It had been a while since posting and honestly forgot about that thread - my fault.
I decided to start fresh so have already restored the phone to HTC's latest RUU (1.27.502.5 ATT) as I already had it downloaded. I've also flashed TWRP 2.8.8.1 to the phone, but am obviously prompted to enter a password when I try to enter recovery. Based off what I've read, the steps below seem to be what I need to do so that I may be rooted + still have encryption for internal sd formatting. Is it correct (or close to it)
Using an Ubuntu 14.04 x86 VM...
1. Download & extract your decrypt script to a temp folder in linux vm
2. In Windows, run same RUU I applied and copy out rom.zip from %temp%
3. Rename "rom.zip" to "rom_a9.zip"
4. Copy rom_a9.zip to the ""place_rom_zip_here" folder of your extracted script in the vm
5. Run ./decrypt-htc and wait for script to complete to get img files
On Phone (Currently has same RUU installed + TWRP but not rooted)
6. Root phone using original method of flashing modded boot.img, install SuperSU, and get rooted
7. Once done and rooted, flash boot.img I extracted using your script above to phone via adb
Once that's done, it should be rooted + have encryption thus allowing me to use internal sd card, right? Sorry to be such a bother - just want to get this fixed and done with
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Re-read my post. If you flash the stock boot.img, you will no longer be rooted.
And as I said in the original thread, you need to pull the rooted boot.img and add the verity key from the stock one to it. Also you'll need to add the forceencrypt and verify flag back.
P.S. You also need to re-read the instructions in the decrypt thread. You don't have to rename anything anymore.

Good Afternoon -
OK - sorry to frustrate you, but I think I finally have it figured out. I started from scratch, re-read many posts, and took notes. I was a little confused on the last part so wanted to verify, please...
I've already unpacked the boot.img from the latest HTC A9 (AT&T) RUU and have the two folders. I restored the same RUU to my phone, flashed TWRP 2.8.8.1, backed up the boot.img, and unpacked it before realizing that I should have probably rooted it first.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but here's all I need to do to finish....
1. Download modified A9 boot.img from top of root thread
2. Flash modded boot.img using fastboot
3. Verify TWRP is still installed then use it to install SuperSU 2.67 (latest)
4. Back up boot partition just like I did before in TWRP
5. Unpack it on PC to create ramdisk and split_img folders
6. Copy verity_key from unpack of the actual RUU and overwrite one in rooted unpack
7. Edit the file fstab.qcom in the ramdisk folder of the rooted unpack in Notepad++ and add the "verify" flag after the wait flag on the fist uncommented line - save
8. Repack rooted boot.img
9. Flash phone with repacked boot.img using fastboot
10. Reboot & enjoy a rooted phone + encryption allowing sd internal formatting
Promise not to bug anymore if I can just get this resolved.
Thanks again for your assistance!
UPDATE
Hmm - was just prepping and went to download modded file from root thread's first post. Doesn't seem to have one that matches newest build of RUU I flashed - if I'm interpreting it correctly. Researching further, but if know of alternate method or another solution to get through steps 1 & 2 about (assuming they are correct), I'd appreciate it. Thanks

bzowk said:
Good Afternoon -
OK - sorry to frustrate you, but I think I finally have it figured out. I started from scratch, re-read many posts, and took notes. I was a little confused on the last part so wanted to verify, please...
I've already unpacked the boot.img from the latest HTC A9 (AT&T) RUU and have the two folders. I restored the same RUU to my phone, flashed TWRP 2.8.8.1, backed up the boot.img, and unpacked it before realizing that I should have probably rooted it first.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but here's all I need to do to finish....
1. Download modified A9 boot.img from top of root thread
2. Flash modded boot.img using fastboot
3. Verify TWRP is still installed then use it to install SuperSU 2.67 (latest)
4. Back up boot partition just like I did before in TWRP
5. Unpack it on PC to create ramdisk and split_img folders
6. Copy verity_key from unpack of the actual RUU and overwrite one in rooted unpack
7. Edit the file fstab.qcom in the ramdisk folder of the rooted unpack in Notepad++ and add the "verify" flag after the wait flag on the fist uncommented line - save
8. Repack rooted boot.img
9. Flash phone with repacked boot.img using fastboot
10. Reboot & enjoy a rooted phone + encryption allowing sd internal formatting
Promise not to bug anymore if I can just get this resolved.
Thanks again for your assistance!
UPDATE
Hmm - was just prepping and went to download modded file from root thread's first post. Doesn't seem to have one that matches newest build of RUU I flashed - if I'm interpreting it correctly. Researching further, but if know of alternate method or another solution to get through steps 1 & 2 about (assuming they are correct), I'd appreciate it. Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You don't need anything from that root thread. Everything there is deprecated (which I've said several times).
If you already have the stock boot.img unpacked and ready to go, all you have to do is flash SuperSU, then back up the rooted boot.img that you now have on your device thanks to SuperSU. Unpack that boot.emmc.win and add the verity_key from the stock ramdisk and replace the fstab.qcom with the one from the stock ramdisk. Repack, flash to your device via fastboot or TWRP, and your device will encrypt on that first boot and you'll be good to go.
Just to make sure - you did a Format Data in TWRP prior to flashing SuperSU, correct?

Captain_Throwback said:
You don't need anything from that root thread. Everything there is deprecated (which I've said several times).
If you already have the stock boot.img unpacked and ready to go, all you have to do is flash SuperSU, then back up the rooted boot.img that you now have on your device thanks to SuperSU. Unpack that boot.emmc.win and add the verity_key from the stock ramdisk and replace the fstab.qcom with the one from the stock ramdisk. Repack, flash to your device via fastboot or TWRP, and your device will encrypt on that first boot and you'll be good to go.
Just to make sure - you did a Format Data in TWRP prior to flashing SuperSU, correct?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks -
Well, that's the thing... One of the two unpacked boot.img I have currently is wrong. The two I have are:
- One unpacked boot.img extracted from latest RUU using your script in linux
- One unpacked boot.img backed up from unrooted phone which only had TWRP flashed
That was part of my question. I know that the 2nd unpacked boot.img above is worthless as the phone needed to be rooted prior to me backing it up. The question for me is how to flash superSU onto the phone (which currently has the same latest RUU + TWRP 2.8.8.1 installed) if I can only access TWRP is a read-only mode as I'm prompted for password upon booting to recovery. That's why I brought up the legacy root method as I don't know of an alternative... unless SuperSU doesn't require write permissions to whatever TWRP has locked down currently.
Once I can root it, backup it's boot, and unpack it; I just need to literally copy & overwrite the "verity_key" and "fstab.qcom" files (assuming the only difference is the fstab.qcom I'm overwriting doesn't have the verify flag), repack, then flash back to phone via fastboot, right?
Thanks for your patience!

bzowk said:
Thanks -
Well, that's the thing... One of the two unpacked boot.img I have currently is wrong. The two I have are:
- One unpacked boot.img extracted from latest RUU using your script in linux
- One unpacked boot.img backed up from unrooted phone which only had TWRP flashed
That was part of my question. I know that the 2nd unpacked boot.img above is worthless as the phone needed to be rooted prior to me backing it up. The question for me is how to flash superSU onto the phone (which currently has the same latest RUU + TWRP 2.8.8.1 installed) if I can only access TWRP is a read-only mode as I'm prompted for password upon booting to recovery. That's why I brought up the legacy root method as I don't know of an alternative... unless SuperSU doesn't require write permissions to whatever TWRP has locked down currently.
Once I can root it, backup it's boot, and unpack it; I just need to literally copy & overwrite the "verity_key" and "fstab.qcom" files (assuming the only difference is the fstab.qcom I'm overwriting doesn't have the verify flag), repack, then flash back to phone via fastboot, right?
Thanks for your patience!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Once you Format Data in TWRP and reboot recovery, you can flash SuperSU and you will be rooted. You just have to back up the boot.img after flashing SuperSU on the unencrypted device to re-enable verity so that adopted storage will work.
P.S. And no, the verify flag isn't the only difference. As I also said earlier (I'm constantly repeating myself), the device must be encrypted for Adopted Storage to work, so the forceencrypt flag from the stock fstab must also be present. That's why it's easier just to replace the whole file. The problem you have at the end of the day is that, while you'll be rooted and be able to use adopted storage in Android, you still won't be able to access said storage (or /data) in TWRP.

Captain_Throwback said:
Once you Format Data in TWRP and reboot recovery, you can flash SuperSU and you will be rooted. You just have to back up the boot.img after flashing SuperSU on the unencrypted device to re-enable verity so that adopted storage will work.
P.S. And no, the verify flag isn't the only difference. As I also said earlier (I'm constantly repeating myself), the device must be encrypted for Adopted Storage to work, so the forceencrypt flag from the stock fstab must also be present. That's why it's easier just to replace the whole file. The problem you have at the end of the day is that, while you'll be rooted and be able to use adopted storage in Android, you still won't be able to access said storage (or /data) in TWRP.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Great - Thanks!!
Just to make sure, below's my plan with a small question @ step #5. Does it get your stamp of approval?
Phone (A9) already had latest RUU restored (same RUU I ran against your script to pull boot.img from) and TWRP 2.8.8.1 flashed
1. Boot into TWRP & bypass initial screen prompting for password
2. Format Data
3. Reboot back into TWRP
4. Flash SuperSU 2.76 zip
5. Reboot to system then back to TWRP and backup boot partition? / Stay in TWRP and backup boot partition? / Reboot back into TWRP and backup boot partition?
6. Unpack backed up boot partition from phone
7. Copy "verity_key" & "fstab.qcom" files from ramdisk folder in unpacked RUU boot and paste into & overwrite same files in ramdisk folder of unpacked boot from rooted phone
8. Repack rooted phone boot (which includes both new files)
9. Flash newly packed boot.img to phone using fastboot
10. Enjoy
I really appreciate your help and patience with me!

bzowk said:
Great - Thanks!!
Just to make sure, below's my plan with a small question @ step #5. Does it get your stamp of approval?
Phone (A9) already had latest RUU restored (same RUU I ran against your script to pull boot.img from) and TWRP 2.8.8.1 flashed
1. Boot into TWRP & bypass initial screen prompting for password
2. Format Data
3. Reboot back into TWRP
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good so far . . .
bzowk said:
4. Flash SuperSU 2.76 zip
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm sure this is just a typo, but that should be 2.67, not 76 (there is no 2.76).
bzowk said:
5. Reboot to system then back to TWRP and backup boot partition? / Stay in TWRP and backup boot partition? / Reboot back into TWRP and backup boot partition?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Bolded the correct one above (no need to leave TWRP as the necessary modifications have already been made).
bzowk said:
6. Unpack backed up boot partition from phone
7. Copy "verity_key" & "fstab.qcom" files from ramdisk folder in unpacked RUU boot and paste into & overwrite same files in ramdisk folder of unpacked boot from rooted phone
8. Repack rooted phone boot (which includes both new files)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Looks good . . .
bzowk said:
9. Flash newly packed boot.img to phone using fastboot
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
TWRP can also flash the new image, but fastboot is probably the most reliable way to do it.
bzowk said:
10. Enjoy
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hopefully . . . You'll likely get a reboot on the first boot (possible multiple reboots), as SuperSU needs a reboot to install the necessary files. Since your device will also encrypt on that initial boot, I'm not sure whether there will be a conflict or not.
bzowk said:
I really appreciate your help and patience with me!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Guess we'll see if it all works out . . .

Thanks!
I proceeded by formatting data, booting directly back intoTWRP, flashing SuperSU, backing up the boot partition, then mounting and copying it over to my PC. The boot.img size was 65,536kb - the same size as the one I unpacked from the RUU. Once unpacked, it was missing the verity_key file and the fstab.qcom file was different + missing the verify flag.
I replaced those two files, then ran repackimg.bat which created image-new.img which I renamed to boot.img. Interesting, though, that this file was only 45,890kb. If it's a repack, shouldn't it be the same or similar? Anyways, the phone was still in TWRP (hadn't booted to system since before the format data) so booted it into bootloader directly and tried flashing boot using my new 45mb boot.img.
If failed - but - my phone was only at 17% power. Don't know if that's why it failed or not so it's charging right now while still in the bootloader. Below is what was echoed when I tried flashing it:
Code:
c:\adb>fastboot flash boot boot.img
target reported max download size of 800000000 bytes
sending 'boot' (45890 KB)...
OKAY [ 3.488s]
writing 'boot'...
(bootloader) HOSD CL#656287
FAILED (remote: 4 RU_BATTERY_LOW please connect charger (17% < 30%))
finished. total time: 4.506s
The reason I didn't boot to system is that I thought that was when the encryption might take place. Going to wait until above 30% power then try flashing again. Powered down to charge, but plan to boot straight back into bootloader to flash. If you see anything that stands out or that I need to do otherwise, please let me know. Otherwise, I'll report back what the result was after getting above 30%.
Thanks again!

bzowk said:
Thanks!
I proceeded by formatting data, booting directly back intoTWRP, flashing SuperSU, backing up the boot partition, then mounting and copying it over to my PC. The boot.img size was 65,536kb - the same size as the one I unpacked from the RUU. Once unpacked, it was missing the verity_key file and the fstab.qcom file was different + missing the verify flag.
I replaced those two files, then ran repackimg.bat which created image-new.img which I renamed to boot.img. Interesting, though, that this file was only 45,890kb. If it's a repack, shouldn't it be the same or similar? Anyways, the phone was still in TWRP (hadn't booted to system since before the format data) so booted it into bootloader directly and tried flashing boot using my new 45mb boot.img.
If failed - but - my phone was only at 17% power. Don't know if that's why it failed or not so it's charging right now while still in the bootloader. Below is what was echoed when I tried flashing it:
Code:
c:\adb>fastboot flash boot boot.img
target reported max download size of 800000000 bytes
sending 'boot' (45890 KB)...
OKAY [ 3.488s]
writing 'boot'...
(bootloader) HOSD CL#656287
FAILED (remote: 4 RU_BATTERY_LOW please connect charger (17% < 30%))
finished. total time: 4.506s
The reason I didn't boot to system is that I thought that was when the encryption might take place. Going to wait until above 30% power then try flashing again. Powered down to charge, but plan to boot straight back into bootloader to flash. If you see anything that stands out or that I need to do otherwise, please let me know. Otherwise, I'll report back what the result was after getting above 30%.
Thanks again!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The repack is smaller because the backup uses "dd" to copy the entire block device. Not all that space is actually used after compression. That's nothing to worry about.
And these devices are very picky about flashing only when there's sufficient battery, so I'm sure that's the only reason it failed. TWRP, however, doesn't care how much battery you have, so you could always flash the new boot.img in recovery.

Captain_Throwback said:
The repack is smaller because the backup uses "dd" to copy the entire block device. Not all that space is actually used after compression. That's nothing to worry about.
And these devices are very picky about flashing only when there's sufficient battery, so I'm sure that's the only reason it failed. TWRP, however, doesn't care how much battery you have, so you could always flash the new boot.img in recovery.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey, hey, hey - think it worked!!
Once I got above 30%, I flashed without issue. I rebooted and was able to format an sd internally successfully, too. Now, I just need to verify it's rooted, but think it is. Thank you so much for your help! I'm going to write a guide for newbs like me to use in the future soon.
Thanks again!

bzowk said:
Hey, hey, hey - think it worked!!
Once I got above 30%, I flashed without issue. I rebooted and was able to format an sd internally successfully, too. Now, I just need to verify it's rooted, but think it is. Thank you so much for your help! I'm going to write a guide for newbs like me to use in the future soon.
Thanks again!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If your adopted storage doesn't show as corrupted, and you're able to open the SuperSU app in your app drawer and not get a message that no su binary is installed, you should be good to go .

bad topic

How to update OOS 5.1.6, Install official TWRP and magisk - tested working!

Hi guys,
Here is my complete foolproof guide on how to update your system. Please note that there may be other maybe easier ways that cut-out some steps but this worked for me. It is intended for Noobies so I apologise to more advanced users if it seems tedious and long-winded. But that's how Noobies like it with everything explained in detail.
IMPORTANT NOTE: If you have previously used parallel apps then before doing any of this process you must delete user 999 from the system, otherwise you backups will not work!!!
From a terminal window (I use terminal emulator from play store ) type su and enter. Now type the command pm remove-user 999 and enter. Now you shouldn't have to worry about parallel apps messing up your backups.
Thanks to @dgunn for this :good:
https://forum.xda-developers.com/on...estore-999-t3801632/post76760812#post76760812
Also, please note that I have NEVER previously installed an un-official twrp on my device (wanted to wait for official ), however, I was unlocked, and rooted with magisk v16.0 and on stock oos 5.1.5 before beginning this upgrade process.
If you already have an un-official twrp installed, then I cannot guarantee that this guide will work for you. It might, it might not
Disclaimer: This is a guide for helping others. It is your choice to follow it and I take no responsibility for any problems you encounter as a result of following this guide. You do it at your own risk
Ok, lets get started......................
Actually, before we do let's get one thing clear that is confusing a lot of people regarding fastboot and twrp. There are 2 ways of putting twrp recovery onto your phone. A temporary way (disappears after rebooting and goes back to stock recovery) and a permanent way (the best way that stays put - what we all want right?). This guide assumes that you don't currently have twrp on your phone.
In order to put a permanent official twrp on your phone, first we have to boot (NOT flash!) into a temporary version of twrp. The fastboot command for this is "fastboot boot path_to_temporary_twrp.img" (without the quotes of course )
The difference between temporary twrp and permanent twrp is in whether we either fastboot boot or fastboot flash.
Ok, let's begin
First of all, as a precaution, disable all security on your device like pin, pattern, password, fingerprint. Make sure that when you wake your phone it goes straight to the homescreen without any prompts for pins etc etc. May not be needed but it's what I did
1. Download the following files to the following locations....
a. Official oxygen OS 5.1.6 zip file (full zip) > to root of sdcard .
b. Official twrp installer ZIP file > to root of sdcard. (This is our permanent twrp file)
c. Magisk root zip file (I used v 16.0 but v16.4 zip file should be okay too) > to root of sdcard.
d. Official twrp installer IMG file > to your PC in the same folder as your fastboot files. (This is our temporary twrp file)
These files are available for download in other threads on XDA just search for them.
Once that is done proceed as follows.....
2. Go to settings>system updates and click the gear icon in the top right and choose "local upgrade" and then select the Oxygen 5.1.6 zip file from your sdcard. The system will now begin to update itself. Once finished it will prompt you to reboot, do this, and the system will boot back up into Oxygen OS 5.1.6 :good:
3. Now, long press your power button and select reboot and select bootloader option and your phone will reboot into bootloader (fastboot) mode.
4. On your PC go to your fastboot folder and open a command prompt in that folder (don't forget you previously put the temporary twrp image file in here)
5. Now plug your phone into the PC
6. At the command prompt enter following command fastboot devices
and your phone should show up as connected and recognised.
7. We are now going to boot the phone into the temporary twrp. Type the following command fastboot boot <name of temporary twrp file (from your fastboot folder)>.img
8. Your phone will now boot into the temporary twrp recovery and from here we can now flash the permanent version of twrp that we previously put on our sdcard.
9. On your phone, select Install, then find the twrp zip file on the root of your sdcard, select it and swipe to flash.
10. Once this has flashed successfully, we now need to reboot into this new permanent recovery. DO NOT REBOOT TO SYSTEM AT THIS POINT! Now, select "Reboot" option and select "Recovery". Your phone will now reboot into the new permanent twrp. You can now forget about the other temporary twrp from earlier
11. Once the phone goes back into recovery select Install option and find the Magisk root zip file on your sdcard and select it. Now swipe to flash it. After successfully flashing Magisk, you are now ready to enjoy the fruits of your labours
Go back to the twrp homepage and select Reboot>system.
The system will now boot normally and if you have followed these steps to a Tee you will be on OOS 5.1.6 and rooted!
I have also done a successful twrp backup without any error messages. Your previous data will be untouched and you can now set-up your security again.
One final thing to note - because the boot and recovery partitions are now combined, this means that everytime you flash something to your boot partition, your new permanent twrp recovery will be lost and you will have to re-install twrp again from scratch initially through fastboot.
Enjoy

carlos67 said:
From a terminal window (I use terminal emulator from play store ) type su and enter. Now type the command pm remove_user 999 and enter. Now you shouldn't have to worry about parallel apps messing up your backups.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I bet the terminal command should be:
pm remove-user 999

I've made almost the same without problem

After many years of being actively involved in unlocking, flashing, and tinkering. I feel I'm starting from scratch. This quick guide is exactly what I've been waiting for as I'm in the same situation with being simply unlocked and rooted lol. I'll be replicating these steps shortly ?.
Only thing I'm wondering, once everything is done and running... If I flash a rom with the official "permanent" twrp, it's gone gone? Let's just say, renovate ice ROM?
Maybe it's the 16 hour day I worked and lack of sleep... But having it replaced upon a single rom flash and carrying the name "permanent" seems like 2 opposing ideas lol

Kiddman said:
I bet the terminal command should be:
pm remove-user 999
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, well spotted and corrected :good:
InflatedTitan said:
After many years of being actively involved in unlocking, flashing, and tinkering. I feel I'm starting from scratch. This quick guide is exactly what I've been waiting for as I'm in the same situation with being simply unlocked and rooted lol. I'll be replicating these steps shortly ?.
Only thing I'm wondering, once everything is done and running... If I flash a rom with the official "permanent" twrp, it's gone gone? Let's just say, renovate ice ROM?
Maybe it's the 16 hour day I worked and lack of sleep... But having it replaced upon a single rom flash and carrying the name "permanent" seems like 2 opposing ideas lol
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you were to flash a full OTA official update then yes, your "permanent" twrp will be gone because the boot partition gets flashed to stock and you'd need to re-install twrp starting in fastboot. However, for custom rom flashes, it depends if their is a kernel bundled in with the rom. If not then twrp should remain, if yes then as with official update, re-install twrp.
It's more normal for a custom rom to simply overwrite system partition without touching boot partition and twrp, but, sometimes custom rom's like Renovate come bundled with a kernel (TBalden's) and wipe out twrp.
If I'm wrong on this I stand to be corrected.

Kiddman said:
I bet the terminal command should be:
pm remove-user 999
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes you are correct because this was my finding and thank you OP for not giving credit
My findings of the 255 error (999)
https://forum.xda-developers.com/oneplus-6/how-to/255-error-twrp-backup-restore-999-t3801632

dgunn said:
Yes you are correct because this was my finding and thank you OP for not giving credit
My findings of the 255 error (999)
https://forum.xda-developers.com/oneplus-6/how-to/255-error-twrp-backup-restore-999-t3801632
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My apologies, an oversight, corrected

carlos67 said:
My apologies, an oversight, corrected
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you sir. And great write up btw

Something to note is the Renovate ICE 1.0 magisk module messed with the text in settings on OOS 5.1.6. It went back to normal when I disabled that module.
I thought it was the VoEnabler module initially but I wasnt correct.

I put the zip in the root folder (Not the actual folder named root) but the local upgrade isn't showing anything in there.
I'm on 5.1.5 rooted with Magisk 16.0 and have 5.7 magisk manager installed along with xposed and gravity box.
Any idea why my local upgrade isn't detecting the upgrade zip? I downloaded it from Funk Wizards post. I got clicked the "official" link for OOS 5.1.6

I have a custom kernel and magisk installed, can I still follow this guide?

surface13 said:
I put the zip in the root folder (Not the actual folder named root) but the local upgrade isn't showing anything in there.
I'm on 5.1.5 rooted with Magisk 16.0 and have 5.7 magisk manager installed along with xposed and gravity box.
Any idea why my local upgrade isn't detecting the upgrade zip? I downloaded it from Funk Wizards post. I got clicked the "official" link for OOS 5.1.6
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Figured it out, it was because the ro.product.device=OnePlus 6 instead of OnePlus6 in the build.prop file.
I had originally changed it to sailfish to see if I can get Daydream working. When I changed it back I accidentally added a space =/

Anyone done this on a phone with unofficial TWRP to start out yet?

Lownita said:
I have a custom kernel and magisk installed, can I still follow this guide?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes you can.

Considering that many of us have been rooted with patched boot image and no custom recovery, this guide is very well written.

Simple Guide is Already available | No Root | No Rom
youtube.com/watch?v=a7rh4NpYD7E
I followed the above youtube guide . Very simple .
Steps :
Install VPN app like Surf Easy Android VPN
Change Region to Canada or Germany
Again try to update the Oxygen OS
It will show in update available .

"
2. Go to settings>system updates and click the gear icon in the top right and choose "local upgrade" and then select the Oxygen 5.1.6 zip file from your sdcard. The system will now begin to update itself. Once finished it will prompt you to reboot, do this, and the system will boot back up into Oxygen OS 5.1.6
"
After that I got constant reboot with the message " System UI has stopped"

x111 said:
"
2. Go to settings>system updates and click the gear icon in the top right and choose "local upgrade" and then select the Oxygen 5.1.6 zip file from your sdcard. The system will now begin to update itself. Once finished it will prompt you to reboot, do this, and the system will boot back up into Oxygen OS 5.1.6
"
After that I got constant reboot with the message " System UI has stopped"
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Could be a corrupt download file. I suggest you do the following.....
Re-download the file and check it's good using an MD5 checker app/tool. Then, boot your phone into bootloader (fastboot) mode by powering off first and then pressing and holding the vol up button.
Then follow steps 4-to-10 in my guide for installing (1st) temporary twrp and then (2nd) permanent twrp. Once you have permanent twrp and are booted into it you should then copy the "new" download zip for the OTA that you md5 checked from your PC onto the root of your sdcard and install it by flashing the zip file in twrp. Now you should reboot to system which will change the active slot to the updated OOS you just flashed and then if you want boot back into recovery to flash a custom kernel (if you so wish) and Magisk root zip (again if you so wish).

carlos67 said:
Could be a corrupt download file. I suggest you do the following.....
Re-download the file and check it's good using an MD5 checker app/tool. Then, boot your phone into bootloader (fastboot) mode by powering off first and then pressing and holding the vol up button.
Then follow steps 4-to-10 in my guide for installing (1st) temporary twrp and then (2nd) permanent twrp. Once you have permanent twrp and are booted into it you should then copy the "new" download zip for the OTA that you md5 checked from your PC onto the root of your sdcard and install it by flashing the zip file in twrp. Now you should reboot to system which will change the active slot to the updated OOS you just flashed and then if you want boot back into recovery to flash a custom kernel (if you so wish) and Magisk root zip (again if you so wish).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for response.
https://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=76773727&postcount=153

Followed the procedure: Installed EX Kernel as well. Now I'm getting a popup message after every reboot: There's an internal problem with your device. Contact your manufacturer for details.
No issues as such but I'm getting this message everytime I reboot. Any suggestions?

warning dont upgrade new version of magisk 20.2

came out today. bricked my lg v20 h918
come up showing red text with number of times bootloader is unlocked and will not boot further..
tried direct install.
had to hold button down like going into recovery then select yes twice then getg into twrp then restore boot and lafs etc.
then when all working i tried to install the same version via twrp install same issue. apparently installing to wrong partition..
reinstalling the older 20.1 (hopefully you have it downloaded) from twrp worked fine.

Thanks for the info! Little late for me. Just wanted to post the last known good Magisk for anyone that needs it.
Search for download-magisk-20-1-stable

What did you do after booting into TWRP?

same issue, unfortunately, saw this post too late

same and now im screwed how can we recover this?
it says warranty void !!
number of times bootloader unlocked : 2 (in red
*Welcome to Fastboot mode:
* HOW TO EXIT fastboot mode
use 'fastboot reboot' command if the fastboot is available
i tried to install magisk 18 and then 20.1. they install but im still bricked at this same issue above.
HELP
h918

I was able to get up and running again by flashing H91820h.zip in TWRP, then flash Magisk-v20.1.zip and finally TWRP 3.3.1-0 2019-05-17 .img
Phone booted normally after this process. Hope this helps!

Similar situation. Fortunately, I did a nandroid backup first, so I restored it to get the phone up and running again.

My Success Story
For those of you who, like me, didn't have a known good backup to work with, here's what I did:
Determine ROM version installed if you don't know what it is (I was able to check the /system/build.prop file from TWRP under ro.lge.swversion)
Grab the appropriate ROM .zip file (I got my h910-10r zip file from the H910 Root Post)
Unzip the ROM file
Grab the "boot" file from the ROM and place on an SD card as boot.img
Flash boot.img to the boot partition using the TWRP install function (you'll have to toggle it to show Images in the install screen)
Reflash Magisk v20.1 (you can download it from github)
Wipe Dalvik and Cache
Reboot
Wait for the LONG boot process which will go through the nerve-wracking android is staring screen with the percentage bar as it rebuilds the Dalvik cache (I think that's what it's doing)
As a note, this did not clear any of my data.
Good luck, YMMV.

For anyone with this issue run the latest magisk uninstaller in twrp and restart the phone. If that doesn't work boot back into twrp and install magisk 20.1

---------- Post added at 08:47 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:45 PM ----------
James.ptrsn said:
For those of you who, like me, didn't have a known good backup to work with, here's what I did:
Determine ROM version installed if you don't know what it is (I was able to check the /system/build.prop file from TWRP under ro.lge.swversion)
Grab the appropriate ROM .zip file (I got my h910-10r zip file from the H910 Root Post)
Unzip the ROM file
Grab the "boot" file from the ROM and place on an SD card as boot.img
Flash boot.img to the boot partition using the TWRP install function (you'll have to toggle it to show Images in the install screen)
Reflash Magisk v20.1 (you can download it from github)
Wipe Dalvik and Cache
Reboot
Wait for the LONG boot process which will go through the nerve-wracking android is staring screen with the percentage bar as it rebuilds the Dalvik cache (I think that's what it's doing)
As a note, this did not clear any of my data.
Good luck, YMMV.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks so much, you really saved me. I was panicking for sure. These directions need to be stickied!
---------- Post added at 08:49 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:47 PM ----------
BadToThePhone said:
For anyone with this issue run the latest magisk uninstaller in twrp and restart the phone. If that doesn't work boot back into twrp and install magisk 20.1
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Tried didn't work, but thanks, the one above worked for sure, no lost data

lgkahn said:
came out today. bricked my lg v20 h918
come up showing red text with number of times bootloader is unlocked and will not boot further..
tried direct install.
had to hold button down like going into recovery then select yes twice then getg into twrp then restore boot and lafs etc.
then when all working i tried to install the same version via twrp install same issue. apparently installing to wrong partition..
reinstalling the older 20.1 (hopefully you have it downloaded) from twrp worked fine.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unfortunately i wasn't lucky with this.. got stuck in fastboot, my sd and internal storage are both wiped, Rip years of data on that sd.. Can't get a system on the SD or internal storage, Fastboot isn't helping, ADB sideload won't load in twrp, LG Bridge won't detect my phone Am i screwed with this? I can boot to twrp but thats about it

texas7412 said:
Unfortunately i wasn't lucky with this.. got stuck in fastboot, my sd and internal storage are both wiped, Rip years of data on that sd.. Can't get a system on the SD or internal storage, Fastboot isn't helping, ADB sideload won't load in twrp, LG Bridge won't detect my phone Am i screwed with this? I can boot to twrp but thats about it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
TWRP on my US996 automatically made the phone a usb drive when it got plugged in. Have you looked for it as a usb drive? also have you checked your usb drivers?

James.ptrsn said:
For those of you who, like me, didn't have a known good backup to work with, here's what I did:.......................
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Fortunately there is even more easy way to recover.
My H990DS has been also affected by Magisk update. Luckily I discovered that Magisk itself makes a backup of the boot image during update from previous Magisk version. It is located in the /data/magisk_backup_<very long sequence of characters and digits>. The name of the backup archive file is boot.img.gz
So I booted to TWRP, unziped the file boot.img from the above archive and flashed it to the boot partition using TWRP. Then rebooted to system.
And that's all folks! No data loss, no need to look for original ROM.zip, no need to look for and re-flash Magisk 20.1 (the system has been restored automatically to Magisk 20.1), no need to wipe Dalvik and Cache!
I think that this solution is the most simple and easy, so need to be in sticky post.

I'm in the TWRP Recovery file manager and I can't see magisk backup folder.

pendgy said:
Fortunately there is even more easy way to recover.
My H990DS has been also affected by Magisk update. Luckily I discovered that Magisk itself makes a backup of the boot image during update from previous Magisk version. It is located in the /data/magisk_backup_<very long sequence of characters and digits>. The name of the backup archive file is boot.img.gz
So I booted to TWRP, unziped the file boot.img from he above archive and flashed it to the boot partition using TWRP. Then rebooted to system.
And that's all folks! No data loss, no need to look for original ROM.zip, no need to look for and re-flash Magisk 20.1 (the system has been restored automatically to Magisk 20.1), no need to wipe Dalvik and Cache!
I think that this solution is the most simple and easy, so need to be in sticky post.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you. This helped a lot. Can't remember ever being without my phone for this long. Very stressful. This worked for my LG V20. Few things to add. I was super nervous to boot into twrp using the hardware "factory reset" option. Normally it just asks to wipe data once before booting into TWRP but after this happened, it asked two times. Was worried the magisk "update" wiped out my twrp and I was going to actually wipe all of my data using the recovery option. After unsuccessfully trying multiple ways to install twrp via fastboot as a safety net, I bit the bullet and did the double factory reset. Thankfully, it brought me to TWRP. Those of you worried, hope this helps ease your mind that twrp is intact after this debacle.
Next, using @pendgy help, I found the boot.img.gz but was unable to unzip in twrp. I copied the file to the internal sd so I could view on my pc. Connected to pc while in twrp and unzipped the boot.img.gz folder. Then extracted the boot.img into the internal sd. Was then able to install image to boot partition. Rebooted and everything was exactly as it was 17 hours ago when my heart sank. Yay!

Thanks to everyone for the reports and warnings. I saw the update to Magisk Manager yesterday on my Shield K1 and allowed that to update. I didn't update Magisk itself because I don't trust the direct install method through Manager. I saw the notification on my sandbox V20 this morning and dismissed it. My daily V20 hasn't received an update notification yet, but I think I disabled status bar notifications for Magisk on my daily. I'll be sure to not install 20.2 on either phone.
Magisk Manager's update notifications are pretty annoying to be honest. My devices are already rooted. An updated version of Magisk isn't going to make them rooted better.

Oh boy. Learning a lot of hard lessons this morning.
Apparently my TWRP install has been broken/corrupted for who knows how long. I'm now several hours into restoring my phone from basically scratch (had to retry a bunch of times because I'm a dumbdumb and haven't poked around at Android recoveries in ages).
Moral of the story: BACK UP EARLY and BACK UP OFTEN. If you don't have a backup (any kind of backup), the day will inevitably come when you wish you did. Sigh.
Oh well, maybe my phone will run a bit smoother now. Good luck everyone.

pendgy said:
Fortunately there is even more easy way to recover.
My H990DS has been also affected by Magisk update. Luckily I discovered that Magisk itself makes a backup of the boot image during update from previous Magisk version. It is located in the /data/magisk_backup_<very long sequence of characters and digits>. The name of the backup archive file is boot.img.gz
So I booted to TWRP, unziped the file boot.img from the above archive and flashed it to the boot partition using TWRP. Then rebooted to system.
And that's all folks! No data loss, no need to look for original ROM.zip, no need to look for and re-flash Magisk 20.1 (the system has been restored automatically to Magisk 20.1), no need to wipe Dalvik and Cache!
I think that this solution is the most simple and easy, so need to be in sticky post.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How did you unzip the archive with TWRP?
Edit: Nevermind, copied the archive to external SD und unzipped it with 7z on my computer.

fatappel said:
...............................
Next, using @pendgy help, I found the boot.img.gz but was unable to unzip in twrp. I copied the file to the internal sd so I could view on my pc. Connected to pc while in twrp and unzipped the boot.img.gz folder. Then extracted the boot.img into the internal sd. Was then able to install image to boot partition. Rebooted and everything was exactly as it was 17 hours ago when my heart sank. Yay!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In fact I did the same I didn't menioned all the stuff with connecting to PC, copying files to PC, extracting archives and copying back to the phone the boot.img file for subsequent flashing via TWRP. This is because I know the forum members here are experienced guys
The lesson learned is that TWRP is rock solid and we shall trust to it
---------- Post added at 23:37 ---------- Previous post was at 23:36 ----------
Attila17 said:
How did you unzip the archive with TWRP?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
See my last post. I didn't. I used a PC to do that.

I got really ****ed by magisk.
Did the recommended update and now I`m stuck at the fastboot screen
I can fastboot reboot but nothing else
how do I boot into twrp (power vol button down only brings fastboot)
I tried flashing twrp via fastboot but i get failed remote (unknow command)
any help please ?

[Samsung S8+] Unable to bypass FRP

I would like to install TWRP and after that Lineage OS on my Samsung S8+ (Exynos). So i tried flashing TWRP with Odin (Dream2lte version 3.3.1.0). But i ran into a FRP lock so i googled and try to solve this, but so far i am unable to.
I have the password to my Google account, so i removed the Google account from the phone and removed the phone from my Google account. After factory reset i am still getting an error FRP lock when flashing.
Shouldn't the FRP lock be gone after removing google account and doing a factory reset? I have tried a couple of YT Howto's but they don't seem to work.
How do i remove the FRP lock so that i am able to install TWRP and Lineage OS?
Like i said i know the password to my Google account and i 100% own the phone
(Bypass probably isn't the correct word, i am simply trying to turn it off )

Got exactly the same problem, hence like you, ended up here for help.

Well i fixed my problem (Disable USB debug and OEM unlock, couple of reboots and enabled them and it worked). But after that i broke my phone
I am stuck at the screen saying: An error has occurred while updating the device software. Use the Emergency recovery function in the Smart Switch PC software.
I know this is meant to scare me (is kinda working...), but i also know that Odin is still working. So as far as i know i have to flash the original firmware now to fix this. But i keep getting the error: Invalid magic string. When i try to also flash a BL file i get the error: ""Secure CHECK FAIL: (BOOTLOADER)" The option Re-Partition in Odin is switched OFF, as far as i know this is okee... right?
I have tried 3 different versions (Android 9/8/7):
https://www.sammobile.com/samsung/galaxy-s8/firmware/SM-G950F/TNL/download/G950FXXU1AQC9/128974/
https://www.sammobile.com/samsung/galaxy-s8/firmware/SM-G950F/TNL/download/G950FXXU4DSBA/259612/
https://www.sammobile.com/samsung/galaxy-s8/firmware/SM-G950F/TNL/download/G950FXXS4CSA4/256485/
This zip files contain a BL/AP/CP/CSC file, i have tried them all at the same time in Odin as well as the AP and BL files seperate. (from one zip file, NOT different version files together of course)
I tried using Smart Switch 4.1 to do the emergency procedure using model nummer SM-G955F with my serial number but before it does anything it tells me this is not possible with an SM-G955F.
They all give me the same result.
Does anybody know how to fix this?

TheGeneral said:
Well i fixed my problem (Disable USB debug and OEM unlock, couple of reboots and enabled them and it worked). But after that i broke my phone
I am stuck at the screen saying: An error has occurred while updating the device software. Use the Emergency recovery function in the Smart Switch PC software.
I know this is meant to scare me (is kinda working...), but i also know that Odin is still working. So as far as i know i have to flash the original firmware now to fix this. But i keep getting the error: Invalid magic string. When i try to also flash a BL file i get the error: ""Secure CHECK FAIL: (BOOTLOADER)" The option Re-Partition in Odin is switched OFF, as far as i know this is okee... right?
I have tried 3 different versions (Android 9/8/7):
https://www.sammobile.com/samsung/galaxy-s8/firmware/SM-G950F/TNL/download/G950FXXU1AQC9/128974/
https://www.sammobile.com/samsung/galaxy-s8/firmware/SM-G950F/TNL/download/G950FXXU4DSBA/259612/
https://www.sammobile.com/samsung/galaxy-s8/firmware/SM-G950F/TNL/download/G950FXXS4CSA4/256485/
This zip files contain a BL/AP/CP/CSC file, i have tried them all at the same time in Odin as well as the AP and BL files seperate. (from one zip file, NOT different version files together of course)
I tried using Smart Switch 4.1 to do the emergency procedure using model nummer SM-G955F with my serial number but before it does anything it tells me this is not possible with an SM-G955F.
They all give me the same result.
Does anybody know how to fix this?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Secure check fail on bootloader is your flashing a older firmware than on the device. Look at the builds 5th from last digit. You need to flash that equal or greater than.
The error screen you see for emergency recovery is ok. It's like a modified version of download mode. Kind of. You can still flash Odin files from said screen. Ii see you've flashed a bit 1. And two bit 4 firmwares. So you must be on a 5 or greater. I don't know the exy bit number but like snapdragon is at or near 7 or 8. I can explain better if you need. But not an exynos expert

TheMadScientist said:
Secure check fail on bootloader is your flashing a older firmware than on the device. Look at the builds 5th from last digit. You need to flash that equal or greater than.
The error screen you see for emergency recovery is ok. It's like a modified version of download mode. Kind of. You can still flash Odin files from said screen. Ii see you've flashed a bit 1. And two bit 4 firmwares. So you must be on a 5 or greater. I don't know the exy bit number but like snapdragon is at or near 7 or 8. I can explain better if you need. But not an exynos expert
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for your reply! I am in the normal "Downloading...." screen is there anywhere i can check which number i am at?
But i have just tried this one: G950FXXS7DTA6_G950FOXM7DTA6_PHN and it is not working. But this is the newest one available on sammobile. Still the same bootloader error.
I have tried TWRP 3.3.1.0 and that worked, now i am in the TWRP menu but i don't have the LineageOS 17 + GoApps copied to the root. So i cannot install LineageOS now. What do i do now? My computer sees a SM-G955F but it is not showing any storage, if i can fix this i could copy the LineageOS files to the root...right?

TheGeneral said:
Thanks for your reply! I am in the normal "Downloading...." screen is there anywhere i can check which number i am at?
But i have just tried this one: G950FXXS7DTA6_G950FOXM7DTA6_PHN and it is not working. But this is the newest one available on sammobile. Still the same bootloader error.
I have tried TWRP 3.3.1.0 and that worked, now i am in the TWRP menu but i don't have the LineageOS 17 + GoApps copied to the root. So i cannot install LineageOS now. What do i do now? My computer sees a SM-G955F but it is not showing any storage, if i can fix this i could copy the LineageOS files to the root...right?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. If you are on an S8+ flashing firmware for the S8 will cause you issues. Download firmware for the S8+ only. ie: 955f not 950f.
2. If you can't get into the system but can get into download mode there should be a line saying
AP SWREV: B:? K:? S:?
The B:? Is your bootloader version number. You will need to flash the same or higher.
3. How did you install TWRP?
If you don't have an SD card to store files on then after the Format Data stage you can then copy files from pc to phones internal storage.

spawnlives said:
1. If you are on an S8+ flashing firmware for the S8 will cause you issues. Download firmware for the S8+ only. ie: 955f not 950f.
2. If you can't get into the system but can get into download mode there should be a line saying
AP SWREV: B:? K:? S:?
The B:? Is your bootloader version number. You will need to flash the same or higher.
3. How did you install TWTP?
If you don't have an SD card to store files on then after the Format Data stage you can then copy files from pc to phones internal storage.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am a bit embarrassed, it looks like i have been trying to flash the wrong ROMs last night 950 instead of 955, i am downloading the correct files now and wil try again. Sorry for this dumb mistake!
Just to be sure, i am trying to do this:
https://www.getdroidtips.com/lineage-os-17-samsung-galaxy-s8/
(I do know that this site says S8, but i picked the right files this time and thought the process would be the same)
But i first Flash TWRP with Odin, otherwise i cannot reach the TWRP recovery menu right?
But when i look bullet 5 (not number 5) it looks like i need to flash TWRP from within the TWRP menu. But that is not correct right?
I have placed these zip files on the phone:
lineage-17.1-20200211-UNOFFICIAL-dreamlte.zip
open_gapps-arm64-10.0-pico-20200303.zip
As a zip and unpacked, but when i am in the TWRP menu and i go to install, i cannot find the zip files. I placed them in the highest folder level possible. Why can't i find them now?

TheGeneral said:
I am a bit embarrassed, it looks like i have been trying to flash the wrong ROMs last night 950 instead of 955, i am downloading the correct files now and wil try again. Sorry for this dumb mistake!
Just to be sure, i am trying to do this:
https://www.getdroidtips.com/lineage-os-17-samsung-galaxy-s8/
(I do know that this site says S8, but i picked the right files this time and thought the process would be the same)
But i first Flash TWRP with Odin, otherwise i cannot reach the TWRP recovery menu right?
But when i look bullet 5 (not number 5) it looks like i need to flash TWRP from within the TWRP menu. But that is not correct right?
I have placed these zip files on the phone:
lineage-17.1-20200211-UNOFFICIAL-dreamlte.zip
open_gapps-arm64-10.0-pico-20200303.zip
As a zip and unpacked, but when i am in the TWRP menu and i go to install, i cannot find the zip files. I placed them in the highest folder level possible. Why can't i find them now?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't use custom roms yet.
Try searching for you device S8+ for installation instructions. Had a quick look the firmware is for S8 only not S8+. Need dream2lit for S8+
Try in separate stages instead of all at once.
I would sort out your stock firmware first get it up and running.
Then install TWRP. Install for S8+ from
http://twrp.me/Devices/Samsung/
They are many guides for this
https://forum.xda-developers.com/ga...pment/recovery-twrp-galaxy-s8-exynos-t3595102
If you need rmm bypass zip
https://forum.xda-developers.com/sa...w-to/guide-root-install-twrp-samsung-t3747535
Get that up and running properly.
Then you can install custom roms,root etc.
In regards to transferring files to phone they need to be a zip file ( .zip ) or an image ( .img ) files to flash in TWRP.
Maybe select internal storage then from menu select sdcard folder check if file is there.

spawnlives said:
I don't use custom roms yet.
Try searching for you device S8+ for installation instructions. Had a quick look the firmware is for S8 only not S8+. Need dream2lit for S8+
Try in separate stages instead of all at once.
I would sort out your stock firmware first get it up and running.
Then install TWRP. Install for S8+ from
http://twrp.me/Devices/Samsung/
They are many guides for this
https://forum.xda-developers.com/ga...pment/recovery-twrp-galaxy-s8-exynos-t3595102
If you need rmm bypass zip
https://forum.xda-developers.com/sa...w-to/guide-root-install-twrp-samsung-t3747535
Get that up and running properly.
Then you can install custom roms,root etc.
In regards to transferring files to phone they need to be a zip file ( .zip ) or an image ( .img ) files to flash in TWRP.
Maybe select internal storage then from menu select sdcard folder check if file is there.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am using dream2lit.
I have the correct factory stock ROM (now), so i can always go back now. But i agree, my preparation wasn't good enough.
I will look at the links, but for now like i said my problem is that i cannot see my files in TWRP. But maybe that will be addressed in one of your links
With regards to your first link, i used the "Odin Method" so as far as i can tell i did this the right way(https://twrp.me/samsung/samsunggalaxys8plus.html):
Odin Install Method (No Root Required):
You will need to download and install Odin on your PC. Once you have Odin installed, download the proper .tar file for your device from the download link above. Power off your device. Turn on your device using the proper key combo to get into download mode and attach the device to your computer via a USB cable. Use the PDA tab or button to browse to and select the tar file that you downloaded and flash the device.
Note many devices will replace your custom recovery automatically during first boot. To prevent this, use Google to find the proper key combo to enter recovery. After typing fastboot reboot, hold the key combo and boot to TWRP. Once TWRP is booted, TWRP will patch the stock ROM to prevent the stock ROM from replacing TWRP. If you don't follow this step, you will have to repeat the install.

TheGeneral said:
I am using dream2lit.
I have the correct factory stock ROM (now), so i can always go back now. But i agree, my preparation wasn't good enough.
I will look at the links, but for now like i said my problem is that i cannot see my files in TWRP. But maybe that will be addressed in one of your links
With regards to your first link, i used the "Odin Method" so as far as i can tell i did this the right way(https://twrp.me/samsung/samsunggalaxys8plus.html):
Odin Install Method (No Root Required):
You will need to download and install Odin on your PC. Once you have Odin installed, download the proper .tar file for your device from the download link above. Power off your device. Turn on your device using the proper key combo to get into download mode and attach the device to your computer via a USB cable. Use the PDA tab or button to browse to and select the tar file that you downloaded and flash the device.
Note many devices will replace your custom recovery automatically during first boot. To prevent this, use Google to find the proper key combo to enter recovery. After typing fastboot reboot, hold the key combo and boot to TWRP. Once TWRP is booted, TWRP will patch the stock ROM to prevent the stock ROM from replacing TWRP. If you don't follow this step, you will have to repeat the install.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Note: Samsung don't have fastboot commands. Have to use button configurations to enter recovery or download modes.
What stage are you at?
It will give me a better idea to be able to help more.

spawnlives said:
Note: Samsung don't have fastboot commands. Have to use button configurations to enter recovery or download modes.
What stage are you at?
It will give me a better idea to be able to help more.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well i installed Lineage OS 17.1 and Open Apps (lineage-17.1-20200211-UNOFFICIAL-dream2lte and open_gapps-arm64-10.0-pico-20200303) with an OTG plug and an USB stick. After installing i removed the USB Stick. But now i am having a new problem...
When the phone boots it asks: "To start Android, enter your password"
Which password is this? When i enter a password i often use it works but then:
"Decryption unsuccessful
The password you entered is correct, but unfortunately your data is corrupt. (Which is no problem)
To resume using your phone, you need to perform a factory reset. When you set up your phone after the reset, you'll have an opportunity to restore any data that was backed up to your Google account.
(Button) Erase ALL DATA"
Of course i erase the data. Look at the attachment to see what happens then.
I will not give up, will get Lineage OS on this phone, and after that on my Tablet S2 and maybe even on my primairy phone (S10+)
What should i do now? Many thanks for all the help so far, and for help finishing this proces

TheGeneral said:
Well i installed Lineage OS 17.1 and Open Apps (lineage-17.1-20200211-UNOFFICIAL-dream2lte and open_gapps-arm64-10.0-pico-20200303) with an OTG plug and an USB stick. After installing i removed the USB Stick. But now i am having a new problem...
When the phone boots it asks: "To start Android, enter your password"
Which password is this? When i enter a password i often use it works but then:
"Decryption unsuccessful
The password you entered is correct, but unfortunately your data is corrupt. (Which is no problem)
To resume using your phone, you need to perform a factory reset. When you set up your phone after the reset, you'll have an opportunity to restore any data that was backed up to your Google account.
(Button) Erase ALL DATA"
Of course i erase the data. Look at the attachment to see what happens then.
I will not give up, will get Lineage OS on this phone, and after that on my Tablet S2 and maybe even on my primairy phone (S10+)
What should i do now? Many thanks for all the help so far, and for help finishing this proces
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Mounting data errors in twrp generally ( but not always ) means your device is encrypted/re-encrypted when booting into system. Twrp has issues with encrypted devices.
What version twrp are you using?
Have you flashed the no-verity-opt-encypt zip in twrp. This zip file will prevent device from re-encrypting when booting phone back into the system ( after the Format Data stage / reboot back into twrp)
https://build.nethunter.com/android-tools/no-verity-opt-encrypt/
What is your process of installing twrp?
If you have any passwords etc. installed delete them until after setting up you phone.

spawnlives said:
Mounting data errors in twrp generally ( but not always ) means your device is encrypted/re-encrypted when booting into system. Twrp has issues with encrypted devices.
What version twrp are you using?
Have you flashed the no-verity-opt-encypt zip in twrp. This zip file will prevent device from re-encrypting when booting phone back into the system ( after the Format Data stage / reboot back into twrp)
https://build.nethunter.com/android-tools/no-verity-opt-encrypt/
What is your process of installing twrp?
If you have any passwords etc. installed delete them until after setting up you phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am using version twrp-3.3.1-1-dream2lte and no i have not flashed that no-verity-opt-encypt zip. I assume i should flash this one the same way flash the Lineage ROM right?
No passwords used on the phone.
My process:
i put the phone in download mode (POWER+BIXBY+VOL DOWN)
I use ODIN to flash twrp-3.3.1-1-dream2lte, and when the phone reboot i press POWER+BIXBY+VOL UP to enter TWRP menu,
Then i go to WIPE and Advanced Wipe and i select the data, system and davlik cache. Then swipe to wipe it.
Then i go to INSTALL and flash lineage-17.1-20200211-UNOFFICIAL-dream2lte and open_gapps-arm64-10.0-pico-20200303

TheGeneral said:
I am using version twrp-3.3.1-1-dream2lte and no i have not flashed that no-verity-opt-encypt zip. I assume i should flash this one the same way flash the Lineage ROM right?
No passwords used on the phone.
My process:
i put the phone in download mode (POWER+BIXBY+VOL DOWN)
I use ODIN to flash twrp-3.3.1-1-dream2lte, and when the phone reboot i press POWER+BIXBY+VOL UP to enter TWRP menu,
Then i go to WIPE and Advanced Wipe and i select the data, system and davlik cache. Then swipe to wipe it.
Then i go to INSTALL and flash lineage-17.1-20200211-UNOFFICIAL-dream2lte and open_gapps-arm64-10.0-pico-20200303
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To install TWRP
1. Flash twrp with odin - reboot straight into twrp
2. In wipe menu select Format Data ( bottom right )
Type yes to format
3. Reboot back into twrp ( use twrp menu )
4. Flash no-verity-opt zip and if needed rmm bypass zip ( using install button in twrp ).
5. Reboot back into twrp then reboot to system using twrp menu.
6. From system reboot back into twrp.
To check if device is un-encrypted use backup menu - check data storage size ( If reading 0mb then device is still encrypted ).
Note: If all ok I would do a complete twrp backup at this stage ( keep backup on a separate storage device ).
Then you can install custom Rom's as per the installation guide of that Rom.

spawnlives said:
To install TWRP
1. Flash twrp with odin - reboot straight into twrp
2. In wipe menu select Format Data ( bottom right )
Type yes to format
3. Reboot back into twrp ( use twrp menu )
4. Flash no-verity-opt zip and if needed rmm bypass zip ( using install button in twrp ).
5. Reboot back into twrp then reboot to system using twrp menu.
6. From system reboot back into twrp.
To check if device is un-encrypted use backup menu - check data storage size ( If reading 0mb then device is still encrypted ).
Note: If all ok I would do a complete twrp backup at this stage ( keep backup on a separate storage device ).
Then you can install custom Rom's as per the installation guide of that Rom.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
how do i make a complete TWRP backup? and what is rmm bypass and how do i know if it is neccessary to install this zip file?

TheGeneral said:
how do i make a complete TWRP backup? and what is rmm bypass and how do i know if it is neccessary to install this zip file?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In twrp main menu
Select backup menu - select ( all ) partitions - select storage location ( bottom left of screen ) - then swipe to backup.
Note:
1. If backing up to internal storage copy/move backup to an external storage ie: PC, sd card.etc.
2. Since you want a custom rom backup of the EFS partition is important.
Rmm state can be found in download mode. It will have a line ( near the top ) saying RMM state. It will either say prenormal or normal /disappeared.
It won't hurt to flash it just in case.
See OP in the thread I sent before:
https://forum.xda-developers.com/sa...w-to/guide-root-install-twrp-samsung-t3747535

spawnlives said:
To install TWRP
1. Flash twrp with odin - reboot straight into twrp
2. In wipe menu select Format Data ( bottom right )
Type yes to format
3. Reboot back into twrp ( use twrp menu )
4. Flash no-verity-opt zip and if needed rmm bypass zip ( using install button in twrp ).
5. Reboot back into twrp then reboot to system using twrp menu.
6. From system reboot back into twrp.
To check if device is un-encrypted use backup menu - check data storage size ( If reading 0mb then device is still encrypted ).
Note: If all ok I would do a complete twrp backup at this stage ( keep backup on a separate storage device ).
Then you can install custom Rom's as per the installation guide of that Rom.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am really trying to do what you are saying...but when i try to "Format Data" (Step 2) it shows an error "Failed to mount '/preload' (Invalid argument). When i try to install no-verity-opt zip (step 4) at the end it shows the same error "Failed to mount '/preload' (Invalid argument). Which is probably because format data failed?
I am installing the zip from an USB stick with an USB-C to USB-A Converter. I don't think that could be the problem?
As Expected the "Data (excl. storage) is still showing 0MB.

TheGeneral said:
I am really trying to do what you are saying...but when i try to "Format Data" (Step 2) it shows an error "Failed to mount '/preload' (Invalid argument). When i try to install no-verity-opt zip (step 4) at the end it shows the same error "Failed to mount '/preload' (Invalid argument). Which is probably because format data failed?
I am installing the zip from an USB stick with an USB-C to USB-A Converter. I don't think that could be the problem?
As Expected the "Data (excl. storage) is still showing 0MB.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Failed to mount preload seems to affect some users.
You could try after the format data and reboot back into twrp ( using twrp 3.3.1.1 ):
Select wipe menu
Select advanced wipe
Select Preload
Swipe to wipe
Reboot back into twrp
Then try flashing no-verity/rmm zips files - reboot back into twrp.
Normally, for me , after this stage If i still get 0mb I will reboot into the Android system and then back into twrp. Then check in backup menu storage. If ok then try to flash custom rom.

spawnlives said:
Failed to mount preload seems to affect some users.
You could try after the format data and reboot back into twrp ( using twrp 3.3.1.1 ):
Select wipe menu
Select advanced wipe
Select Preload
Swipe to wipe
Reboot back into twrp
Then try flashing no-verity/rmm zips files - reboot back into twrp.
Normally, for me , after this stage If i still get 0mb I will reboot into the Android system and then back into twrp. Then check in backup menu storage. If ok then try to flash custom rom.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes Yes!! After doing the Preload i am able to flash no-verity/rmm zips file.
But Data is still showing 0MB.....
I thought why not give the lineage OS rom flashing another try. That worked, but now the phone seems to hang on a Lineage OS logo with a small circle moving around not straight line.
So i wiped everything again and flashed no-verity/rmm zip file, and will wait what for some advice and what do to next.

TheGeneral said:
Yes Yes!! After doing the Preload i am able to flash no-verity/rmm zips file.
But Data is still showing 0MB.....
I thought why not give the lineage OS rom flashing another try. That worked, but now the phone seems to hang on a Lineage OS logo with a small circle moving around not straight line.
So i wiped everything again and flashed no-verity/rmm zip file, and will wait what for some advice and what do to next.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have you tried to reboot into system through twrp ie: reboot menu - system. Let it start normally, reboot into twrp, then check storage size. ( This is after the flashing of the no-verity/rmm zip and rebooting back into twrp ).
As I said I' m not familiar with custom ROMs. I do know that some custom ROMs do take some time to boot up on installation.
But out of curiosity I have a spare S8 and will give it a go.