Database Info

[RECOVERY] Reverting to original(STOCK) recovery

WARNING: IN THE EVENT THAT ANYTHING GOES WRONG, I WILL NOT BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE. I CANNOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH!!!
EDIT: I FORGOT, BEFORE CHANGING RECOVERY OR DOING ANYTHING, ALWAYS DO A NANDROID BACKUP!!!
If you have flashed a custom recovery (clockwork, j_r0dd, etc.) but you want to
1) accept OTA updates but cant do so with the custom recovery
2) send your phone for repair and not void your warranty
3) or UNROOT YOUR PHONE,
it should be easy to revert back to your stock recovery that came with your phone.
NOTE: THIS PROCEDURE WILL ONLY WORK IF THERE IS AN AVAILABLE OTA UPDATE FOR YOUR PHONE!!!
YOU WILL HAVE TO RE-ROOT YOUR PHONE IF YOU WANT ROOT ACCESS AFTER UPDATING! DO NOT RE-ROOT IF YOUR PHONE IS TO BE SENT FOR REPAIR!
Step 1) Download the OTA update. (I have a uploaded a sample update zip at
www . sidsoftinc . com / Blur_Version.0.3.9.MB300.Retail.en.03.zip
*remove the spaces)
Step 2) On completion, the phone should reboot and enter recovery mode, using the custom recovery to update. However, this should fail as most custom recoveries prevent original updates. Note the location of the downloaded update (likely at /cache)
Step 3) Power down the phone and enter into recovery mode manually
Step 4) Using ADB, pull the folder containing the update zip to your computer
Code:
adb pull /**storedlocation**/**nameoftheupdate**.zip update.zip
Step 5) Open the update.zip in your adb folder and look for a file called recovery.img (most likely in system folder)
Step 6) Open up the adb shell and flash the new recovery (recommended)
Code:
adb shell
su
flash_image recovery recovery.img
or you can place it in /system and it will be auto-flashed (not recommended)
Code:
adb push recovery.img /system/recovery.img
Step 7 (if possible) Make it permanent by deleting the custom recovery in /system
Code:
adb shell
cd system
su
mount -o rw,remount /dev/block/mtdblock1 /system
rm recovery.img
mount -o ro,remount /dev/block/mtdblock1 /system
exit
exit
Step 8) Reboot the phone and if you see a triangle warning sign, reboot your phone again. You should see your homescreen before it reboots to install the update again. This time, the original recovery will be used.
Once finished, your phone will be upgraded, unrooted and your applications and data will still be retained.
If you wish to install your previously used custom rom again, you must flash the custom recovery and install the rom, again
If I made a mistake, please do inform me. Thank you

I'm trying to do this for the Tmo G2 and I have reverted using another technique but the clockworkmod is still there. I thought it would get removed!
I have no idea how to get rid of it. Can you give me alittle help?

Did your clockworkmod recovery flash itself into your nv ram. If so then no one can help you there. If you have an ota update and pulled it to your pc, send me a coy and I'll see if I can help you. If you can, send me your ota update zip to [email protected].
Sent from my Motorola Backflip using the XDA App

I'm honestly unsure if it flashed to the nv-ram. Possibly, basically if I do a system boot (power +vol down) and select recovery, it will load the HTC green text with white background then go into clockword recovery. I'm not exactly sure why it still does this.
I used the method on this FORUM THREAD to un-root and get back to stock (using the available files there and method 1-a). I'm just unsure why the clockwork recovery is still there. I'm hoping I can still get back to stock recovery. Possibly I just need to flash the stock recovery.img??
Also, I had some troubles initially with ADB, which is why I used the VISIONary method of rooting. I'd love to try out the gfree method since I believe my ADB is working correctly now and test out some other roms to see what I like the most.

I know you are probably in a different time zone that is way ahead of mine........but can't I just reflash the stock or update ota recovery.img in fastboot mode.......OR is this a bad Idea???

Many users have accidently accepted ota updates on custom rims and recoveries. for fastboot, I did mention that flashing stock recovery and update is possible via adb shell.
Sent from my Motorola Backflip using the XDA App

siidheesh said:
Many users have accidently accepted ota updates on custom rims and recoveries. for fastboot, I did mention that flashing stock recovery and update is possible via adb shell.
Sent from my Motorola Backflip using the XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried flashing the stock recovery but I'm not sure why it didn't work, I had hboot and flash_image. I used the adb shell way as well. It gave me error in partitions or whatever. I don't know what to do.

do you have Blur_Version.0.3.10.MB300.Retail.en.03.sbf file?

I dont happen to have that file, but i do have Blur_Version.0.3.9.MB300.Retail.en.03.zip
if you need it.

Cockwork Mod
I'm pretty green so this may sound really dumb, but can you flash sbf files to your phone via Clockwork Mod, or does it have to be done via RSD Lite. I cannot get RSD to recognize my device in 4.7 or 4.8. Please help.

do you have a stock image for the huawei ascend for cricket or does anyone here have it?

Unrooting......
I download the RECOVERY file you supplied (thank you)
"Blur_Version.0.3.9.MB300.Retail.en.03.zip"
If I reboot into Recovery and just flashed that zip file, would it work that way to unroot?

Provided you are flashing on a MOTOROLA BACKFLIP, yes. However, you might want to flash the AT&T 2.1 update for the backflip instead, if you reside in the US. Flashing back any official firmware unroots your phone

I'm looking to root and unlock my AT&F Motorola Backflip (MB300).. Any suggestions?
Sent from my NexusHD2 using Tapatalk

OTA for Samsung Galaxy Ace is a CFG file, not ZIP
Hello,
Just for interest, I received an OTA for my Samsung Galaxy Ace but it didn't come as a ZIP file - it came as a CFG file (which is not a ZIP, but actually a proprietary package - which I can't remember the name right now).
However, I did find the stock recovery elsewhere in this forum, and I installed it. But that wasn't enough for the OTA to be installed - it still fails.

Corrupted?
siidheesh said:
Step 5) Open the update.zip in your adb folder and look for a file called recovery.img (most likely in system folder)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can't find it. I have an Alcatel Pop C1 4015X. Help?

Trying to unroot Xperia Z2
I am trying to unroot using update files from the Sony Xperia Companion. I found the update files (I think). I used Flashtool to decrypt the FILESET, but there is no recovery.img in the decrypted folder. The folder I decrypted is in Xperia Companion/Sony Mobile Update Engine/localstorage/db/13740270 and that is the only folder that has decryptable files. They are named FILE_8977018 and similar before decryption and various .sin .ta files (examples auto-boot.ta, cust-reset.ta, simlock.ta). Am I using the right decryption to get the recovery.img?

[UNLOCK][ROOT][TWRP][UNBRICK] Fire HD 8 2017 (douglas)

Read this whole guide before starting.
This is for the 7th gen Fire HD8 (douglas).
Current version: amonet-douglas-v1.2.zip
NOTE: This process does not require you to open your device, but should something go horribly wrong, be prepared to do so.
NOTE: This process will modify the partition-table (GPT) of your device.
NOTE: Your device will be reset to factory defaults (including internal storage) during this process.
What you need:
A Linux installation or live-system
A micro-USB cable
Install python3, PySerial, adb, fastboot dos2unix. For Debian/Ubuntu something like this should work:
Code:
sudo apt update
sudo add-apt-repository universe
sudo apt install python3 python3-serial adb fastboot dos2unix
1. Extract the attached zip-file "amonet-douglas-v1.1.zip" and open a terminal in that directory.
NOTE: If you are already rooted, continue with the next step, otherwise get mtk-su by @diplomatic from here and place (the unpacked binary) into amonet/bin folder
2. Enable ADB in Developer Settings
3. Start the script:
Code:
sudo ./step-1.sh
Your device will now reboot into recovery and perform a factory reset.
NOTE: If you are on a firmware newer than 5.6.4.0, a downgrade is necessary, this requires bricking the device temporarily. (The screen won't come on at all)
If you chose the brick option, you don't need to run step-2.sh below:
Make sure ModemManager is disabled or uninstalled:
Code:
sudo systemctl stop ModemManager
sudo systemctl disable ModemManager
WARNING: Do not use bootrom-step-minimal.sh if you bricked using brick(-9820).sh!
You will need to use bootrom-step.sh.
After you have confirmed the bricking by typing "YES", you will need disconnect the device and run
Code:
sudo ./bootrom-step-minimal.sh
Then plug the device back in.
It will then boot into "hacked fastboot" mode.
Then run
Code:
sudo ./fastboot-step.sh
NOTE: When you are back at initial setup, you can skip registration by selecting a WiFi-Network, then pressing "Cancel" and then "Not Now"
NOTE: Make sure you re-enable ADB after Factory Reset.
4. Start the script:
Code:
sudo ./step-2.sh
The exploit will now be flashed and your device will reboot into TWRP.
You can now install Magisk from there.
Going back to stock
Extract the attached zip-file "amonet-douglas-return-to-stock.zip" into the same folder where you extracted "amonet-douglas-v1.0.zip" and open a terminal in that directory.
You can go back to stock without restoring the original partition-table, so you can go back to unlocked without wiping data.
Just use hacked fastboot to
Code:
sudo fastboot flash recovery bin/recovery.img
If you want to go back completely (including restoring your GPT):
Code:
sudo ./return-to-stock.sh
Your device should reboot into Amazon Recovery. Use adb sideload to install stock image from there. (Make sure to use FireOS 5.6.4.0 or newer, otherwise you may brick your device)
Important information
In the new partitioning scheme your boot/recovery-images will be in boot_x/recovery_x respectively, while boot/recovery will hold the exploit.
TWRP takes care of remapping these for you, so installing zips/images from TWRP will work as expected.
Don't flash boot/recovery images from FireOS (FlashFire, MagiskManager etc.) (If you do anyway, make sure you flash them to boot_x/recovery_x)
Should you accidentally overwrite the wrong boot, but your TWRP is still working, rebooting into TWRP will fix that automatically.
TWRP will prevent updates from overwriting LK/Preloader/TZ, so generally installing an update should work without issues (only full updates, incremental updates won't work).
For ROM developers there is still an option to overwrite these, which should only be done after thorough testing and if needed (LK should never be updated).
It is still advised to disable OTA.
Very special thanks to @xyz` for making all this possible and putting up with the countless questions I have asked, helping me finish this.
Special thanks also to @diplomatic for his wonderfull mtk-su, allowing you to unlock without opening the device.
Thanks to @t0x1cSH and @breakfastofsecrets for testing.

Reserved #1

Changelog
Version 1.2 (15.10.2019)
Increase boot.hdr size to avoid crashes with leftovers of boot.img
Version 1.1 (02.09.2019)
Add system_image to TWRP
Add serialno to GPT-folder to avoid mixups between 16G and 32G
Add scripts to fix GPT
Features.
Hacked fastboot mode lets you use all fastboot commands (flash etc).
Boots custom/unsigned kernel-images (no patching needed)
TWRP protects from downgrading PL/TZ/LK
NOTE: Hacked fastboot can be reached via TWRP.
NOTE: Hacked fastboot doesn't remap partition names, so you can easily go back to stock

Reserved #3

Awesome!

if you can't get in the recovery by long pressing the volume buttons and power button simultaneously, during the boot keep both the volume buttons and fastly tap the power button
i had some problems getting by long pressing in the recovery and this worked every time
ty k4y0z

Works perfectly. Thank you very very much!

On a rooted device with a locked bootloader, if I back up system and data only with Flashfire, will I be able to restore these partitions with TWRP after unlocking? Presumably I wouldn't restore the boot partition?

MontysEvilTwin said:
On a rooted device with a locked bootloader, if I back up system and data only with Flashfire, will I be able to restore these partitions with TWRP after unlocking? Presumably I wouldn't restore the boot partition?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think that you can. TWRP supports flashfire backups but as you say don't restore boot.img neither recovery.img.

MontysEvilTwin said:
On a rooted device with a locked bootloader, if I back up system and data only with Flashfire, will I be able to restore these partitions with TWRP after unlocking? Presumably I wouldn't restore the boot partition?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Rortiz2 said:
I think that you can. TWRP supports flashfire backups but as you say don't restore boot.img neither recovery.img.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Haven't tested, but should work fine, also boot.img should give no issues when restoring.
Only userdata is erased during unlocking, so it should be enough to restore userdata.

k4y0z said:
Haven't tested, but should work fine, also boot.img should give no issues when restoring.
Only userdata is erased during unlocking, so it should be enough to restore userdata.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Doesn't the unlock procedure include a factory reset which will wipe settings and apps? By 'userdata' do you mean 'data' or data plus internal storage (user files and photos etc.) or just internal storage?

MontysEvilTwin said:
Doesn't the unlock procedure include a factory reset which will wipe settings and apps? By 'userdata' do you mean 'data' or data plus internal storage (user files and photos etc.) or just internal storage?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes it does wipe data/userdata including the internal storage.
But it doesn't touch the system-partition.

Everything went super smooth. Many thanks for this, and all your unlocks.
Also, I was able to flash my flashfire system and usedata backups in TWRP with no issues.

Kctucka said:
Everything went super smooth. Many thanks for this, and all your unlocks.
Also, I was able to flash my flashfire system and usedata backups in TWRP with no issues.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How do you flash Flashfire backups? I now am unlocked and have TWRP installed, but when I try to restore, TWRP can see the backup folders but does not see any backed-up partitions.
---------- Post added at 10:49 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:36 AM ----------
OK. I've got it figured out. You have to install the relevant 'twrp.zip' archives from the Flashfire backups.

dear friends
I make backup with twrp ( just system ) and transfer it to other device but when restore system the device stock on amazon i try to flash system by hacked BL flash success but when reboot also stock on amazon logo

deathlessster said:
dear friends
I make backup with twrp ( just system ) and transfer it to other device but when restore system the device stock on amazon i try to flash system by hacked BL flash success but when reboot also stock on amazon logo
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Maybe you need to do a wipe of userdata and flash the latest boot.img.

thank you Rortiz2 i will try
---------- Post added at 03:36 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:30 PM ----------
k4y0z said:
Read this whole guide before starting.
This is for the 7th gen Fire HD8 (douglas).
Current version: amonet-douglas-v1.0.zip
NOTE: This process does not require you to open your device, but should something go horribly wrong, be prepared to do so.
NOTE: This process will modify the partition-table (GPT) of your device.
NOTE: Your device will be reset to factory defaults (including internal storage) during this process.
What you need:
A Linux installation or live-system
A micro-USB cable
Install python3, PySerial, adb, fastboot dos2unix. For Debian/Ubuntu something like this should work:
Code:
sudo apt update
sudo add-apt-repository universe
sudo apt install python3 python3-serial adb fastboot dos2unix
1. Extract the attached zip-file "amonet-douglas-v1.0.zip" and open a terminal in that directory.
NOTE: If you are already rooted, continue with the next step, otherwise get mtk-su by @diplomatic from here and place (the unpacked binary) into amonet/bin folder
2. Enable ADB in Developer Settings
3. Start the script:
Code:
sudo ./step-1.sh
Your device will now reboot into recovery and perform a factory reset.
NOTE: If you are on a firmware newer than 5.6.4.0, a downgrade is necessary, this requires bricking the device temporarily. (The screen won't come on at all)
If you chose the brick option, you don't need to run step-2.sh below:
Make sure ModemManager is disabled or uninstalled:
Code:
sudo systemctl stop ModemManager
sudo systemctl disable ModemManager
After you have confirmed the bricking by typing "YES", you will need disconnect the device and run
Code:
sudo ./bootrom-step-minimal.sh
Then plug the device back in.
It will then boot into "hacked fastboot" mode.
Then run
Code:
sudo ./fastboot-step.sh
NOTE: When you are back at initial setup, you can skip registration by selecting a WiFi-Network, then pressing "Cancel" and then "Not Now"
NOTE: Make sure you re-enable ADB after Factory Reset.
4. Start the script:
Code:
sudo ./step-2.sh
The exploit will now be flashed and your device will reboot into TWRP.
You can now install Magisk from there.
Going back to stock
Extract the attached zip-file "amonet-douglas-return-to-stock.zip" into the same folder where you extracted "amonet-douglas-v1.0.zip" and open a terminal in that directory.
You can go back to stock without restoring the original partition-table, so you can go back to unlocked without wiping data.
Just use hacked fastboot to
Code:
fastboot flash recovery bin/recovery.img
If you want to go back completely (including restoring your GPT):
Code:
sudo ./return-to-stock.sh
Your device should reboot into Amazon Recovery. Use adb sideload to install stock image from there. (Make sure to use FireOS 5.6.4.0 or newer, otherwise you may brick your device)
Important information
In the new partitioning scheme your boot/recovery-images will be in boot_x/recovery_x respectively, while boot/recovery will hold the exploit.
TWRP takes care of remapping these for you, so installing zips/images from TWRP will work as expected.
Don't flash boot/recovery images from FireOS (FlashFire, MagiskManager etc.) (If you do anyway, make sure you flash them to boot_x/recovery_x)
Should you accidentally overwrite the wrong boot, but your TWRP is still working, rebooting into TWRP will fix that automatically.
TWRP will prevent updates from overwriting LK/Preloader/TZ, so generally installing an update should work without issues (only full updates, incremental updates won't work).
For ROM developers there is still an option to overwrite these, which should only be done after thorough testing and if needed (LK should never be updated).
It is still advised to disable OTA.
Very special thanks to @xyz` for making all this possible and putting up with the countless questions I have asked, helping me finish this.
Special thanks also to @diplomatic for his wonderfull mtk-su, allowing you to unlock without opening the device.
Thanks to @t0x1cSH and @breakfastofsecrets for testing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I do this method on windows 10 with linux shell and i get success thank you very much

I have unlocked three tablets now. It is very easy, thanks @k4y0z for making it that way. The only problem I had was with my first try on step 1, but that was because my adb and fastboot drivers needed updating.
Is a similar unlock planned for the HD 8, 2016/ 6th gen. Giza?

I still have problem in twrp restore my device now stock on amazon logo please help me

[email protected]:/mnt/c/Users/aimya/Downloads/Compressed/amonet-douglas-v1.0_2/amonet$ sudo ./step-1.sh
[sudo] password for aimyafi:
* daemon not running; starting now at tcp:5037
* daemon started successfully
Stuck at there! What's the problem?

Mate9 9.1.0.252 (C432E7R1P8) firmware with patch 3

Hello,
I have Mate9 9.1.0.252 (C432E7R1P8) with Magisk installed via RECOVERY_RAMDIS.img patching method. I tried to download via Firmware Finder the latest version with this number and patched RECOVERY_RAMDIS.img for installation of Magisk.
Since some time, my phone started to ask to install an important patch. When I flash back stoc RECOVERY_RAMDIS.img, system downloads and installs the patch and in software update page I see Mate9 9.1.0.252 (C432E7R1P8) (Patch 3) . When I flash from Firmware Finder after that, the patch goes away and my phone asks me repeatedly to install this patch, at night automatically tries it etc. It's quite annoying.
Is there any way to extract RECOVERY_RAMDIS.img from device or any location of firmware with patch 3 included? I wouldn't like to switch updates off btw.
Thanks in advance.

Some ideas (experiment on your own responsibility):
- Do OTA update (b252 Patch03), then flash your Magisk patched Recovery (made from b252 without Patch03) but to eRecovery, then boot to the rooted system via eRecovery
Then
a) Enable ADB, run the following commands from PC:
Code:
adb shell
su
dd if=/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/recovery_ramdisk of=/sdcard/RECOVERY_RAMDISK.img
After the su command you have to grant root privilege on the phone, to ADB.
It should dump Recovery image to Internal memory
Or
b) From Terminal Emulator app, run the following commands:
Code:
su
dd if=/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/recovery_ramdisk of=/sdcard/RECOVERY_RAMDISK.img
After the su command you have to grant root privilege to the Terminal Emulator.
It should also dump Recovery image to Internal memory
Comments:
(a) and (b) should disk dump Recovery image on the rooted phone (!) but I think the pre-step will fail: Fastboot will fail to flash to eRecovery.
Another option would be to flash TWRP but to eRecovery and then to execute from Advanced/Terminal in TWRP:
Code:
dd if=/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/recovery_ramdisk of=/external_sd/RECOVERY_RAMDISK.img
However, Fastboot will again fail to flash (TWRP) to eRecovery, and TWRP would fail to dump to Internal memory (because of encryption)
So no use, sorry - just ideas, but there is always some catch 22 ;-(
Likewise, you cannot disk dump Recovery image directly either from the not rooted b252 Patch03, because (a) or (b) would require root privileges for ADB or Terminal Emulator, respectively
And if you flash the Magisk patched Recovery to Recovery partition n(as usual), you will have root and you could disk dump - but the OTA Recovery b252 Patch03 would be already gone (flashed over)

Incremental OTA Payload Extractor - Linux Only currently - Op8T 11.0.9.9.KB05AA Posted

FIRST OFF - THIS IS HIGHLY TECHINICAL AND NOT FOR NON-TECH INCLINED PEOPLE. YOU CAN REALLY MESS UP YOUR PHONE IF YOU DO IT WRONG. SO PAY ATTENTION OR FIND SOMEONE SMARTER THAN YOU WITH THIS ANDROID / LINUX STUFF. YOU DO THIS ON YOUR OWN - NO WARRANTIES EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED. IT'S FOR PEOPLE THAT DON'T WANT TO WAIT FOR THEIR VENDOR TO POST A FULL ROM AND UPDATE RIGHT WHEN AN OTA COMES.
So I wanted to update my rooted Op8T OOS version, and you CAN'T (haha) do it if you're rooted. That's kind of a misconception. I knew there had to be a way... so I found a dead repo out there that used to work on Incremental OTAs. And I read the issues - did not actually work. Why? Because you need to extract the prior firmware (full ROM) first with a Payload extraction tool (most are in Python, and most are Linux-only). Well, they got stuck because the original ROM has one signature (encryption), and the OTA update has another signature, so the program would break when they didn't match. So what did I do??? Well I have to give credit to the dev I forked this from, because he mentioned - of course the signatures don't match, they are different releases! So I did something kind of... well... let's put it this way, you aren't verifying any signatures anymore. So if you screw up and put the wrong ROM base (prior full ROM) and Payload extract the payload.bin, then apply the Incremental OTA, well, you're in for trouble. BE POSITIVE YOU ARE USING THE VERSION OF THE ROM THE OTA IS INTENTED TO INCREMENTALLY UPDATE!!!!
In this case, it was quite clear. I was trying to update an A11 Op8T from OnePlus. It was on 11.0.8.3 ROM and an OTA was posted that was for 11.0.9.9. SO I used a Windows tool to extract the first set of files (the full ROM is huge BTW). The incremental update came as a 150mb file zipped up, but it modified the BIG files. Once it finished, I found that system and system_ext are not flashable (grew in size, can't resize super on active slot, not updated), the rest are. And you MUST flash from fastbootd - this is kind of a mysterious new place with modern AB devices. It can be a pain to actually get there. The standard steps if you're on stock recovery are to enable developer options, USB debugging, install the Latest ADB and Fastboot https://github.com/fawazahmed0/Latest-adb-fastboot-installer-for-windows/releases/tag/v1.7 (this script will update it for you). Ignore the God references it's a batch file you can just modify it, and I don't judge. It will pull the latest versions (Minimal ADB and Fastboot are super outdated). Next steps...
Now, getting an incremental update off a rooted phone is not easy. 1) you have to flash a stock boot.img and recovery.img. 2) you have to basically uninstall Magisk, or at least the images 3) then you MAY be able to download with Oxygen Updater or the system app. It won't install though because root is fully exposed. Once it's downloaded, it appears in some very strange location with a random character string.zip I believe. So now you have to reinstall Magisk (to get adb shell SU access). So after I confirmed it downloaded (but wouldn't flash), I had to hook my phone up to the USB cable, go to the PC and Latest ADB and Fastboot folder, adb shell, su, then cd /; find . -name *.zip > /dev/null 2>&1; to cut out some of the garbage output and scroll until I found a logical zip stored somewhere (a folder than sounded like a OnePlus update folder). Then I did a: cp [random characters.zip] /sdcard/Download/OTA_Update.zip, which I could then transfer from my phone to PC with a USB cable. Developer options / default mode USB File Transfer FYI.
Okay that was one of the hard parts. Now next to more hard parts. You need a Linux environment (I used WSL2 Debian Buster). The easiest setup (after spending hours attempting to get the correct packages loaded) was to install the personal version of Anaconda Python x64 for AMD64 processors for Linux. Then I could use conda install [package name] for missing dependencies as the program would throw errors. Yes you have to read the errors or you won't be able to figure out what is actually not installed. Anyhow, the modded forked repo of python files is here: git clone the repo: git clone https://github.com/mrslezak/update_payload_extractor.git - now if git isn't setup on your Linux box, well, you're in for some trouble.
So once it's installed, you need to actually use python3 commands for each step - so anywhere you see "python" put "python3" instead as most machines have both 2.7 and 3.X installed. I used Python 3.8 something, so ignore the 3.6 it's not required. So here I took a payload.bin extracted with a Windows.exe file (available somewhere on XDA, there are severel, one is Go based) and copied them once extracted from the original ROM to the WSL instance on my Win10 PC. Now there come issues here. They need to go into an "old" directory you must create (in update_payload_extractor directory), and copying from Windows will make them root access only, so a: sudo chown user:user old/ is required to get it writable. I believe the program will make the rest of the files on its own. They will end up in "output." You just need to extract the payload.bin and payload.properties files from the incremental update you extracted and place them in the update_payload_extractor directory.
Now there is some strange stuff going on, this was always beta, and never working. So I took the note of the issues and blocked a Google certificate validation routine (just commented it out) so it doesn't verify anything. I say it again BE EXTREMELY CAREFUL THAT YOUR PRIOR FULL ROM AND OTA UPDATE ARE MEANT TO BE USED TOGETHER. Anyhow, run what it says if your system is setup:
Incremental OTA​
Copy original images (from full OTA or dumped from devices) to old folder (with part name without file extension, ex: boot, system) - I put an .sh script here if your files are .img called remove_img_extension_old.sh - note that GitHub sometimes loses the execute permission so you may have to type: sudo chmod +x remove_img_extension_old.sh. It is meant to be run from the root of the project. ./remove_img_extension_old.sh
LD_LIBRARY_PATH=./lib64/ ./extract.py --output_dir output/ --old_dir old/ payload.bin
The above line will start the extract and combine process the OTA usually does on your phone, and output the files to the output directory. Once those are generated, then you can run another helper script I wrote to add back .img to each file called add_img_extension_output.sh again meant to be run from the root folder. Now you need to copy these output files (no guarantee all are updated, it will have all of them - on Op8T system and system_ext couldn't be flashed because they grew in size, and I don't know how to expand the super partition space to enable them to flash, so they aren't in the linked file - it still updates). The files on Op8T ending in lp5 are RAM files for the newest devices that are running LPDDR5 memory, the flash.bat script will need to be modified if you have one of these (2 flashes). The way I made the file will work in 98% of devices.
Okay I run the rest from Windows, so now it gets a little tricky. You need to get into Fastbootd, which means flash boot.img (you just extracted it), flash recovery image (same), using fastboot flash boot boot.img, fastboot flash recovery recovery.img. Now getting to fastbootd can be quite perplexing. You may just have your phone on, type adb reboot bootloader, then type fastboot reboot fastboot, and be in fastbootd (it will look like stock recovery but say fastbootd on top). The other way is to boot to recovery (developer options extended boot menu makes this much easier), then select Fastboot. Sometimes you get Fastboot and sometimes Fastbootd. It seems quite random. DON'T START THE FLASH_ALL.BAT UNTIL YOU KNOW YOU ARE IN FASTBOOTD!!!!
The fastboot command to tell you if you are in fastbootd (it will report yes if so: fastboot getvar is-userspace
Otherwise, those files will NOT be allowed to flash to your device, and you will end up with some random combination of prior and updated files. That could end badly. Once you DO get to Fastbootd, run the flash_all.bat, and DON'T SWITCH SLOTS. Yes, this is an OTA, but you already patched the files. Upon successful flashing, you can reboot to fastboot and flash a patched kernel with Magisk already enabled such as my forked Radioactive here: https://github.com/mrslezak/Radioactive_kernel_oneplus8/releases/tag/v2.2.5-MOD - the .img file is a Magisk patched custom kernel, you can also flash the twrp alpha (that seems to work in my experience, it's just slow, on OOS works fine despite warnings it doesn't). https://forum.xda-developers.com/t/recovery-11-alpha-teamwin-recovery-project-8t-kebab.4302449/ fastboot commands for the kernel: fastboot flash boot image_name.img; recovery fastboot flash recovery twrp_name.img.
I successfully updated while rooted from the prior ROM version. I'm sure it will work on many phones. Best of luck to you!!! I did find out how to install "the full ROM" unreleased on a rooted phone, there is some undocument fastboot stuff I had to figure out (temp system-cow and system_ext-cow files that use up all the space in the super partition) so I added them to my batch file. Now install for whatever device you have, and watch out for those weird temp files that aren't documented anywhere that I could find. Took literally hours to get it working, but it does now!!!

BTW if anyone knows how to resize the super partition, that would complete this project. I.e. you could flash the patched system and system_ext on an Op8T.
Your phone may have no issue or no super partition, then you don't care, it's not needed. I can't recall when dynamic (resizable) partitions came out but I think in Android 10 some devices started to use them. They are developer hell in my opinion.
Some TWRP versions allow you to just resize the partition on the fly, while on my phone, it's not an added feature yet. I'm also not sure if the resize does an auto-wipe either then you could also find yourself in trouble if you couldn't immediately get to Fastbootd. Some ROMs will boot to "Device is corrupt" if things like this change, just a warning, which I tried by switching A/B slots, but I had luckily installed TWRP on the other partition and was able to switch slots there and go back to booting.
UPDATE: I was able to eventually locate why the Super partition was getting full - there are temp files created as dynamic partitions when trying to install an OTA - I had to delete any logical partitions with the extension "-cow" which existed for system and system_ext (on the Op8T I was using), I was on slot A, so they were called system_a-cow and system_ext-cow, I deleted them like this:
fastboot delete-logical-partition system_a-cow
fastboot delete-logical-partition system_ext_a-cow
To see if you have any temp files present, you type:
fastboot getvar-all
And scroll through them and see if any of these mystery -cow files are present.
(bootloader) is-logical:system_a-cow:yes
(bootloader) is-logical:system_ext_a-cow:yes
Whew! That was a pain. But no more waiting for incremental updates to become full ROMs anymore on a rooted phone!
Oh, and I put the update for OOS here: https://forum.xda-developers.com/t/...install-from-fastbootd.4316147/#post-85441161

Xperia XZS Root

I have been trying to root my Xperia XZs G8232. BL unlocked successfully, flashed TWRP 3.1.1 successfully, just that it wouldn't boot up. Can someone enlighten me which step I have missed out ? Managed to flash SuperSU 2.8.2 and Magisk 19 via TWRP recovery. The phone still wouldn't boot up....
Can anyone share proper comprehensive guide of rooting of G8232 ?

Usually when I offer an answer, the reply is something along the lines of "I found an answer already."
This is a quick guide in case you haven't. I suggest you have a micro-sd card inserted.
First, the stock image you are rooting is signed and verification is still active on the device. You will need to resign the boot.img. I suggest you worry about that after performing a boot into recovery to get ahold of the boot.img. Second, the TWRP you are using really isn't an ideal version. You can safely install this to the recovery parition for rooting and backup too even though it was built for the XZ (chip instruction set and partition table are near identical, it works safely with Keyaki). Go ahead and install the recovery, then once you boot into it comes the somewhat more technical approach.
You need to first mount system and the micro-sd card, by tapping Mount on the main menu and then by checking off System and Micro-SD so they can be accessed (loaded/mounted/whateveryouwannacallit). Now, go back to the main menu and tap Advanced and tap Terminal. From here you will need to copy the boot.img which can be achieved by typing:
dd if=/dev/block/by-name/boot of=sdcard1/boot.sin
You may have to search through the /dev/block directory a bit further, as I cannot recall if it is nested under platform/some number junk/etc... You can safely navigate through the directories with: cd or maybe find -name boot 2> /dev/null until you find the directory by-name that has the partitions you need and fill that path into the dd if= path I presented above. Just make sure the if (input file) is the directory you wish to copy and the of (output file) is where you want it to go.
Once you have successfully copied the boot partition (kernel) to an sd-card you can go ahead and run this tool to unsign it , from my experience you will also need to repack and sign it as AOSP with this to get the stock kernel and system running with root access available.
Both tools work similarly, read through the guides where you download each.
You will need to extract AIK and place the boot.img into the first directory that has the scripts with it. Simply type/choose ./unpackimg.sh and when that completes, choose ./repackimg.sh (depending on which OS you use the commands might be somewhat different, but the above suggestions should guide you through it). You should receive a prompt stating it was completed and packed/signed for AOSP. Copy or cut the new-Image.img out of the AIK directory back to the root directory of your sd-card.
Boot into TWRP (or maybe you attempted this with the mobile version through TWRP, idk?). Select Install, tap install .img (bottom right) and tap the new-Image.img you just created and flash it to boot.
From here you can go ahead and reboot and you should be able to access the stock system with your rooted boot.img. BTW, you don't need Magisk v19. You can install the 25.2 app and patch the new-Image through the app and then repeat the previous step above to have your kernel rooted with the latest Magisk.