Stuck in download mode when installing any ROM... except /e/ - Samsung Galaxy S9 Questions & Answers

Hello,
I can't install any custom ROM on my Samsung S9: once the ROM is installed and the /data, /cache etc. partitions are formatted, it goes back to the greenish download mode screen… But when I use the Windows /e/ installer (which apparently runs some additional scripts), I can successfully install the /e/ OS on my phone. There must be something I'm missing but I can't figure out what, can someone help me with this please?
Here's some context:
I bought this Samsung S9 from the /e/ phone store and I realized I can't run my bank app or any app that needs Google Apps, which is a problem for me. Therefore, I tried installing Lineage, Sakura, dotOS, etc. on my phone, but every time, after flashing and rebooting, I get back to this "Downloading… Do not turn off target" screen.

icoste said:
Hello,
I can't install any custom ROM on my Samsung S9: once the ROM is installed and the /data, /cache etc. partitions are formatted, it goes back to the greenish download mode screen… But when I use the Windows /e/ installer (which apparently runs some additional scripts), I can successfully install the /e/ OS on my phone. There must be something I'm missing but I can't figure out what, can someone help me with this please?
Here's some context:
I bought this Samsung S9 from the /e/ phone store and I realized I can't run my bank app or any app that needs Google Apps, which is a problem for me. Therefore, I tried installing Lineage, Sakura, dotOS, etc. on my phone, but every time, after flashing and rebooting, I get back to this "Downloading… Do not turn off target" screen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They dont want you to install any roms on your e phone

hainguyenthao gave me a lot of help yesterday and I could install a stock rom using Odin This seems to have done the trick, since now I can install custom roms! I was apparently missing that intermediate step…
This is really a wonderful community!

Related

Installed Lineage 14.1, get messages Hello, I've been trying to install Lineage 14.1

Hello,
[Sorry: can't edit title]
I've been trying to install Lineage 14.1 on my Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro (SM-T520), and haven't been successful.
I keep getting the message "Google Services Framework keeps stopping", sometimes alternating with the message "android.process.media has stopped".
I've used the following installation procedure:
1. Starting with the stock Samsung Android v4.4.2, I used Odin v3.1.2, to root the device, by installing
CF-Auto-Root-picassowifi-picassowifixx-smt520.tar.md
2. I used Odin to install picassowifi TWRP v2.8.7.0. I didn't use the latest v3.1.1-0, because it reboots the
device while making Nandroid backups. Available here
https://eu.dl.twrp.me/picassowifi/
3. I copied several versions of Lineage OS amd Gapps (see below) to the device's SD card
4. I used TWRP to wipe the cache/dalvic/data/system each time, using the Wipe->Advanced option
5. I used TWRP to install the Lineage OS amd Gapps as an atomic operation on the device
6. After installation, I rebooted from TWRP:
- without rooting: I get the message "Google Services Framework keeps stopping"
- with rooting, by installing SuperSU: The device enters into a boot loop, displaying the sliding Lineage logo
I followed the same procedure to update my Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini, and it worked flawlessly.
I tried the following Lineage OS versions, available here:
https://download.exynos5420.com/LineageOS-14.1/n2awifi/
lineage-14.1-20170506-UNOFFICIAL-n2awifi.zip
lineage-14.1-20170715-UNOFFICIAL-n2awifi.zip
I also tried the folowing Lineage OS versions, available here:
https://download.lineageos.org/n2awifi
lineage-14.1-20170608-nightly-n2awifi-signed.zip
lineage-14.1-20170713-nightly-n2awifi-signed.zip
I tried the following versions of Gapps, available here (32-bit arm, Android v7.1, stock variant):
http://opengapps.org/?api=7.1&variant=stock
open_gapps-arm-7.1-stock-20170505.ziip
open_gapps-arm-7.1-stock-20170711
I tried several combinations of these 2 packages. With all the combinations I tried, I got the results summarised above.
This post suggests installing Lineage OS alone without Gapps, and then install Webview Implementation, if not installed:
http://www.lineageosrom.com/2017/02/how-to-fix-google-play-services-error.html
When I tried this and reboot, I get the messages "android.process.media" has stopped, followed by the message "clock has stopped". When I click away these messages, and click on next on the Lineage OS screen, the device enters into a boot loop displaying the sliding Lineage logo. This agrees with the Lineage recommendation, that both packages need to be installed at the same time:
https://wiki.lineageos.org/devices/n2awifi/install
Can anyone please help? I really don't want to go back to Android v4.4.2 on my SM-T520.
Hello so to get rid of the error I would suggest downloading samsung kies 1 not 2 or 3 and flashing completely back to stock then try rooting and flashing rom should get rid of system errors and force closes. Kies will ask you for model and serial number. Serial is found on back of the tablet. As another suggestion I would try resurrection remix by cosmox. It is very stable everything works. I just posted a link in that thread with a link to download samsung kies for a 64 bit windows and other relevant files if you need. Let me know if you need any other help. Also closer inspection of your links. I think for sm-t520 u should be using twrp Picassowifi, not n2awifi so idk if that will work or not. Not sure about that part though because they may have made it work on Picasso.
Thanks paintball.
I confirm that I had used picassowifi TWRP. I've edited the original post to indicate this.
I've also tried what you suggested - I reinstalled the original stock Samsung firmware using Odin, and used TWRP to again install Lineage. Same result, still displaying the same Google Service errors.
I'll look at the Resurrection remix.
Paul
paintball,
I've found a solution, that I thought I'd post here in case anyone else has the same problem.
I wiped the cache/dalvic after each step of the installation:
Wipe-> Advanced -> wipe cache / data / dalvic / system
Install -> flash Lineage -> wipe cache/dalvic
Install -> flash Gapps -> wipe cache/dalvic
Reboot -> don't install SuRoot
I got a Music closed error during the first boot, which hasn't appeared since.
Afterwards, I used Odin to install CF-Auto-Root. The device rebooted twice after this step, but now appears to be OK.
A final problem I had was that it couldn't find my wifi SSID. I solved this by setting wifi region to Europe.
ppmoore said:
Thanks paintball.
I confirm that I had used picassowifi TWRP. I've edited the original post to indicate this.
I've also tried what you suggested - I reinstalled the original stock Samsung firmware using Odin, and used TWRP to again install Lineage. Same result, still displaying the same Google Service errors.
I'll look at the Resurrection remix.
Paul
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I suggested using Samsung kies which I'm positive works, not Odin, but I'm glad you got it fixed.
ppmoore said:
Hello,
[Sorry: can't edit title]
I've been trying to install Lineage 14.1 on my Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro (SM-T520), and haven't been successful.
I keep getting the message "Google Services Framework keeps stopping", sometimes alternating with the message
<snip>
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm having a similar issue. Mine differs in the following ways.
I was able to successfully install and run LineageOS with OpenGApps full, but reverted to a nandroid backup because I needed some information from the original install. Since then, I have been unable to get past the initial couple of screens for setting things up--and this with the constant "Google Services Framework keeps stopping" error.
I have tried most of the "fixes" I've found but to no avail. I notice that, (1) when I go to the drop-down menu and setup WiFi, as soon as the device connects to the Internet, I go to the Lineage bootup animation and get stuck there. If I hard boot from there, I can get in up to the point where I connect to the Internet (not just router, but actually get through to the Internet) and (2) I cannot enable Developer options--when I try, no matter how many times I click on the Build number, I get no indication of the options being enabled.
I have tried several permutations of Lineage OS nightlies along with various flavors of OpenGApps, with and without root, wiping cache/dalvik/data/system, wiping only some, wiping none.
I also cannot restore the backup of the running LOS that I had up (I did take a backup before going back to the original setup). When I try, I get the same results as above--as if I had backed-up an un-instantiated setup.
Any thoughts?
eckster said:
I'm having a similar issue. Mine differs in the following ways.
I was able to successfully install and run LineageOS with OpenGApps full, but reverted to a nandroid backup because I needed some information from the original install. Since then, I have been unable to get past the initial couple of screens for setting things up--and this with the constant "Google Services Framework keeps stopping" error.
I have tried most of the "fixes" I've found but to no avail. I notice that, (1) when I go to the drop-down menu and setup WiFi, as soon as the device connects to the Internet, I go to the Lineage bootup animation and get stuck there. If I hard boot from there, I can get in up to the point where I connect to the Internet (not just router, but actually get through to the Internet) and (2) I cannot enable Developer options--when I try, no matter how many times I click on the Build number, I get no indication of the options being enabled.
Any thoughts?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi Eckster,
I have exactly the same problem on a LG G2 with LOS 14.1. It ran July version perfectly but I didn't make a backup and now I'm stuck. Did you ever manage to fix this?
Thanks,
Kevin
Managed to solve it. I formatted all partitions _including_ data (which means you'll also loose all zips you wanted to install so make sure that adb is working). Then rebooted into the recovery. Installed as usual, worked.
detlef25 said:
Managed to solve it. I formatted all partitions _including_ data (which means you'll also loose all zips you wanted to install so make sure that adb is working). Then rebooted into the recovery. Installed as usual, worked.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
how did you format the partitions? I can only find "format data".. thx
detlef25 said:
Managed to solve it. I formatted all partitions _including_ data (which means you'll also loose all zips you wanted to install so make sure that adb is working). Then rebooted into the recovery. Installed as usual, worked.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
:thumbsup: I was on lineage 14, all was well. I tried an old stock rom NK2, that was fine. I tried to restore lineage backup via twrp, got this problem with the framework crashing. No amount of re-flashing twrp nor lineage, gapps, modem, bootloader, etc nothing worked; always crashed right after boot to lock screen. Finally twrp "format data" - yes. Now lineage boots to welcome, no crash; restore backup - after copying it back to internal - and all is good.
I'm glad it works but why is it needed in this case to remake the filesystem on data - does it work by removing some bad file or does it work by rebuilding the ext4 and security context? this is with latest twrp twrp-3.2.1-0-klte.
Hi,
don't know if you solved it eventually, or maybe helpful for other people with the same problem. I had the same problem, spent 6 days digging around on the internet why the framework keeps stopping and crashing.
I eventually found out that:
- TWRP 3.0.2.0 is WAY more stable than 3.1.1.0 (which never succeeded in installing gapps without crashing)
- Wiping system, data, dalvik recovery and internal storage is not the only thing that needs to be done. You also need to use the 'FORMAT DATA" button (everything will be wiped from your tablet, so, as always, backups )
- After that, install the lineageOS binary, after the installation, wipe dalvik/cache, go back and install the appropriate GApps package, wipe dalvik/cache and reboot
Say whatever you need to whatever deity you prefer and wait for the tablet to boot.
I hope to be of some help to other people having the same problem
Code:
Sent from my SM-S920L using Tapatalk
grammar
detlef25 said:
Managed to solve it. I formatted all partitions _including_ data (which means you'll also loose all zips you wanted to install so make sure that adb is working). Then rebooted into the recovery. Installed as usual, worked.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Was going crazy trying to figure out why LineageOS was encountering so many ANRs. The first time I flashed Lineage it worked beautifully but every time after that it just went nuts. This fixed it for me, thanks dude!
Note to others who may end up here, after formating data I had to install a stock ROM, then wipe and install Lineage. Lineage wouldn't install due to Updater process ended with ERROR: 7 which was because there was some bit of information that was on the data partition that showed the install script that the phone was actually a Note II. Formating data blows that info away but installing stock puts it back on.
LievenVanh said:
I eventually found out that:
- TWRP 3.0.2.0 is WAY more stable than 3.1.1.0 (which never succeeded in installing gapps without crashing)
- Wiping system, data, dalvik recovery and internal storage is not the only thing that needs to be done. You also need to use the 'FORMAT DATA" button (everything will be wiped from your tablet, so, as always, backups )
- After that, install the lineageOS binary, after the installation, wipe dalvik/cache, go back and install the appropriate GApps package, wipe dalvik/cache and reboot
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Coming into this thread after a few hours of struggle with an old GS4 I can say that this method instantly worked for me as well.
Thanks!
Thanks for the help to resolve my issue of installation. Do you have a solution for Zoom , where my audio (cannot hear other speakers) and video is missing. Did enable access for Mic, Camera etc in App permission.
Look at this thread: https://forum.xda-developers.com/ga...-t520-unofficial-lineage-14-1-t3538770/page86 -- last two posts
hamudistan said:
Look at this thread: https://forum.xda-developers.com/ga...-t520-unofficial-lineage-14-1-t3538770/page86 -- last two posts
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That solution didn't work. My Zoom audio still not working.

Help: None of the ROMs I tried installing are booting. (SM-A720F)

Hello,
I'm really new to all this android thing, but I decided to root my Samsung Galaxy A7 2017 using magisk, for which I used this guide.
After some time of enjoying some root features I decided to try a custom ROM, the first one I tried was this one, since I heard that resurrection remix is one of the most feature rich ROMs. After flashing the zip file with TWRP I booted into system, I read that the first boot after flashing a ROM usually takes up to 10 minutes, but after just 1 to 2 minutes of showing the boot animation the device restarted and sent me back to TWRP. After this I did some searching here on XDA and watched some youtube videos that claimed to solve the problem, but none of them worked for me, as they mostly just said to reinstall the ROM and wipe dalvik cache and normal cache.
Since my phone came with stock android 8.0 I thought of installing LineageOS which was only official ROM based on android 8.0 that I could find for my device, but the same thing happened, boot animation for 1-2 minutes and then it sends me to TWRP.
In both of these attempts I downloaded everything to my pc and then moved it to my phone's internal storage.
I noticed that people were donwloading the files direcly from the phone itself, so I did that with LineageOS and after tring to boot it gave me the error "Encryption unsuccesful" with the option to reset my phone, I search in google about this problem but I'm doubtful of what to do now.
I would apreciate if someone told me what this error is, what could be the cause of it and how to fix it, and most important of all why won't my phone boot into a custom ROM and how can I get it to do so.
Thanks in advance!

Installing GSI ROMs on Mi8 Pro

The below is a guide to installing GSI images on the Mi 8 Pro. I specifically have experience with the PixelExperience 9.0 (Unofficial) but have had other GSI ROMs booting and working. I hope this is useful for some.
GSI (Generic System Image) ROMS can be flashed to any Project Treble enabled device. These devices have either an A/B partition layout (these allow for seamless updating as the system can boot from A or B partition) or just an A only partition layout. The Mi 8 Pro is an arm64 a only device and support project treble ROMs. You can choose from suitable ROMs listed here and here.
The instructions given below are for Android Pie (9.0). The same basic setup can be used for Android Oreo (8.0, 8.1) ROMs, but the Mi 8 Pro should be flashed with the appropriate Xiaomi base ROM first before flashing any 8 based GSI ROM
As the ROM development for the Mi 8 Pro is basically dead, I decided to buy a OnePlus 6T and sell my Mi 8 Pro. However, due to having my new OnePlus 6T stolen, and due to a lack of funds to buy a new device, I have revived my Mi 8 Pro to try to get something other than MIUI working on it. I now have The PixelExperience (Unofficial) GSI ROM running very smoothly on my Mi 8 Pro.
As the PixelExperience team has stated they will be delivering GSI images again, if there are enough of us asking, we could get better support for things like the fingerprint sensor, for a more complete experience.
Some of the below steps may be unnecessary, but are there for a complete beginner's guide to doing this and getting the right results.
Working:
WiFi
Bluetooth (with APTX)
NFC (Including Google Pay)
RIL
Mobile data (LTE / HSPDA / 3G / EDGE)
GPS
Camera (with camera built in to ROM, as well as some GCAM implementations)
Video Camera (not working on GCAM implementations tested so far - only working on Camer built in to ROM)
Flashlight
Sound / Vibrations
Face Unlock
Hotspot
Not Working:
VoLTE (I have had it working, but unable to end phone calls and problems receiving SMS messages, so reverted)
Fingerprint (There is some support. The fingerprint area of the screen lights up when trying to enrol a new fingerprint. The screen dims when a finger is placed on the sensor, and a green light us emitted from the sensor area, but it does not register the fingerprint and this is not currently working.)
Notification LED
You Tell Me
How to install
Flash the latest Fastboot Global Stable Android PIE (9.0) ROM for the Mi 8 Pro. (eg. equuleus_global_images_V10.3.4.0.PECMIXM_20190712.0000.00_9.0_global_9a181f79c1.tgz) using the Xiaomi Tool.
Update: Use the latest MIUI system. The contents of the vendor partition are important. The most compatible vendor partition as of 2019-08-19 is from equuleus_global_V10.3.5.0.PECMIXM. You can download and flash that vendor independantly, if you have already set up your GSI image.
Reboot and finish basic MIUI setup.
Reboot to recovery.
[*]Format data (Wipe - Advanced - format data - confirm by typing yes)
DO NOT FORMAT DATA. Just perform a factory reset. Formatting data can cause issues and prevent booting.
Wipe Cache - Dalvik Cache and System
Reboot recovery
Use adb to push PixelExperience GSI image (img file extracted from download) and latest version of Magisk to root of SDCard. (Empty due to formatting data).
("adb push c:\path\system.img /sdcard/" and then "adb push c:\path\Magiskv19.3.apk /sdcard/")
Flash the image to system partition by taping INSTALL and then on the "Install Image" button (to toggle between flashing zip and img files). Do not reboot yet.
Flash magisk zip in the normal way (hit the same button as in previous step to show zip files to flash. (This is necessary to avoid bootloops)
Reboot, and enjoy.
You can now set up your "PixelExperience" device with your apps and settings, including registering a face for face unlock.
To pass cts validation for the safetynet and to allow service such as Google Pay to work
In Magisk, under settings - Find “Magisk Hide” and toggle the switch on
Magisk restarts. Go to Magisk Hide from the Magisk menu and ensure that...
Google Pay
Google Play
Google Play Services
Google Service Framework
Any Banking Apps
...are checked so that they cannot see Magisk (canont see phone as rooted).
Now go to downloads and install the SafetyPatch v3 module (created by hackintosh5).
Reboot.
Open settings - go to apps and notifications - and find the above apps to clear all data.
Enjoy your rooted safetynet compliant, as close to stock as possible Xiaomi Mi 8 Pro.
nice work thanks for this great notice, i will test PixelExperience, how work the face unlock? i use the finger print very much, all day, but not work i will use the facial unlock. Then i wanna know how work this.
thanks!!
axelgrox said:
nice work thanks for this great notice, i will test PixelExperience, how work the face unlock? i use the finger print very much, all day, but not work i will use the facial unlock. Then i wanna know how work this.
thanks!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Face unlock works fine. I have it paired with Pick to wake phone - so when I pick it up it wakes up to allow face unlock.
However, be prepared for some investment of time (not for face unlock).... I am a bit stuck now and cannot reproduce the above to get this working. Sometimes the results are different depending on base ROM etc.
Share how you get on and anything you may need to do to get this working.
Thanks
Nice work, i will try it .
The mi8 pro 's fingerprint is so bad which can be ignored, and the face unlock is the mostly used, hahahah
thank you very much for your work
Hi, I am waiting to unlock bootloader. Need 148hrs. Will install this. Thanks for sharing.
Quick update: There are some issues with GSI ROMs and the Mi 8 Pro. SOe of these relate to the SIMcard settings - and selection of preferred SIM for data, calls etc.
My experience shows that the vendor image from equuleus_global_V10.3.5.0.PECMIXM fixes many of these. The vendor image from the original MIUI ROM is used with the GSI system image to make the whole Project treble stuff work. I advise flashing this latest vendor image for maximum compatibility.
Do you know what issues remain after flashing the latest vendor image?
Does the face unlock on Pixel Experience work with IR camera or front cam?
I tried installing this and it got stuck on the loading screen with the Google logo. I tried following your instructions and a few other ways and couldn't get it to work at all i'm also not able to root my phone at all. When ever I try rooting my phone just reboots to twrp until I reflash the ram or flash the magisk uninstaller.
Do you have any tips, tricks, or suggestions I might try?
Thanks!
eremeya said:
I tried installing this and it got stuck on the loading screen with the Google logo. I tried following your instructions and a few other ways and couldn't get it to work at all i'm also not able to root my phone at all. When ever I try rooting my phone just reboots to twrp until I reflash the ram or flash the magisk uninstaller.
Do you have any tips, tricks, or suggestions I might try?
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have experienced this on occasion also.
What GSI image have you tried? after my multiple efforts, I would recommend... in this order: Omni. HavocOS, Descendant(no future updates), PIxelExperience. I am hopeful about the PixelExperience team who have made an announcement that as of August they will no longer produce CAF versions of PixelExperience, and that they will maintain regular GSI builds also. PE official GSI - I am full of hope.
Anyway, back on topic: Try this.
Follow the instructions - a few precisions:
Use XiaoMiFlash to flash the equuleus_global_images_V10.3.4.0 as a base. You can update the vendor partition once you have GSI up and running, but don't let the MIUI update to 10.3.5. Ensure you define a PIN to make sure that data partition is encrypted. (everyone should use encryption nowadays, and besides, I have had bad experiences whn using a xiaomi eu or mi-globe ROM (unencrypted) as the base
Reboot and finish basic MIUI setup. - What I mean here is to let the ROM boot, don't have to sign in to Google or Mi, but get to the home screen after the initial setup.
Then reboot fastboot and flash TWRP 3.3.0. Search for TWRP-3.3.0-0504-XIAOMI8UD-CN-wzsx150.zip.
Boot to TWRP. Make sure that you are able to decrypt the data partition with the PIN you set earlier. If TWRP does not ask you for the passcode / PIN - something is wrong. Try again. ONce all is OK in TWRP, perform factory reset. (DO NOT FORMAT DATA for the aforementioned encryption reason).
adb push the img file.
adb push the Magisk 19.3 zip.
Flash both in TWRP
Reboot TWRP
Reboot system. If it appears to hang, after 5 minutes you can force restart with the power button. I have had the ROM boot OK after second boot only?
Pretty sure that if you strictly follow the above you should get a working GSI image on Mi 8 Pro. Let me know...
It's a bit flaky to set up, but once set up, apart from fingerprint sensor not working, very stable and lovely to have the stock ish android system on a MIUI phone!
Be careful with preferred network type for mobile network as some selections have messed up incoming SMS messages for me... a dealbreaker.
What happens when you flash Magisk? What does TWRP say? Have you tried flashing Magisk, rebooting TWRP, and flahing Magisk again? It may be a TWRP version issue?
Thanks for your reply!
The version of twrp you mention is what I have used. I have not tried installing then rebooting to twrp so I try that.
When flashing magisk it usually flashes fine (I have had a couple times where it just throws an error) then when I reboot the phone will boot past the Mi logo the the Android boot logo then after 10-15 sec. it just reboots to twrp.
I was finally able to get the twrp to stick across boots by flashing twrp, signing boot image, removing twrp then reboot to Miui.
Do I need to adb push the GSI image or should it be fine to install from a USB drive?
The SMS issue isn't really a big deal for me as I use Google Fi routed through hangouts for one sim and a local sim where I'm living for mostly data and a few phone calls for the second one
Thanks so much for this post. I was completely oblivious to the fact that the Mi 8 Pro would actually be different to the Mi 8 when it comes to custom roms. When I decided on my next phone, I read the positive reviews and saw enough Mi 8 roms to be willing to make a switch to Xiaomi. Until I read your post I was close to despairing as I don't want a Xiaomi rom on my phone for various reasons (among them is the fact that I don't trust them and the way they have decided to collect user data).
I've tried to follow your guide in every step (I've also flashed the updated vendor.img), but unfortunately I have not been able to install the Pixel Experience rom on my device. I do see the boot animation but it never stops, I'm forever stuck with the Google-G and the progress bar below it. Has anyone else managed to install the Pixel Experience rom on the Mi 8 Pro? If yes, did you follow the guide here or did you do something else?
Also, in your initial post you write that we should wipe the system in TWRP but as far as I can tell GSI roms need you to wipe data, cache and dalvik cache but not the system partition (if you do it, you also don't get asked for your PIN code in TWRP any more, which - as you said - indicates that something went wrong).
Did you install a particular version of the Pixel Experience rom? Maybe that might be part of my issue?
I have try many times installing it. Didn't manage to boot it up.
Finally, tested with Miroom ROM as base then flash the system.img manage to boot up.
Don't know why it didn't boot but at lease any one who have issue booting may want to try using Miroom rom as base.
tllim73 said:
I have try many times installing it. Didn't manage to boot it up.
Finally, tested with Miroom ROM as base then flash the system.img manage to boot up.
Don't know why it didn't boot but at lease any one who have issue booting may want to try using Miroom rom as base.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What did you do to install miroom? I've been trying to install it and it just stays on the boot screen. The only non-official from I've been able to install and boot is the unofficial LineageOS rom by fenix-UK.
eremeya said:
What did you do to install miroom? I've been trying to install it and it just stays on the boot screen. The only non-official from I've been able to install and boot is the unofficial LineageOS rom by fenix-UK.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I install it using twrp 3.3.0 version. Build 0503. But before that I have install the stock rom goble stable version 10.3.5.0. update FW & Vendor using the same twrp.
tllim73 said:
I install it using twrp 3.3.0 version. Build 0503. But before that I have install the stock rom goble stable version 10.3.5.0. update FW & Vendor using the same twrp.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks.
Is your phone a Chinese version or EU version? Were you able to root global stock rom?
eremeya said:
Thanks.
Is your phone a Chinese version or EU version? Were you able to root global stock rom?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi, I am using a Chinese version. But once you unlock it you will be able to flash any version with the twrp.
I try rooting it with magisk but unable to boot up. That's why I turn to Miroom Rom. They have done something which can boot it up.
tllim73 said:
Hi, I am using a Chinese version. But once you unlock it you will be able to flash any version with the twrp.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm also using the Chinese version but no matter what I try I cannot root the global version of the rom. I can root the Chinese version fine.
eremeya said:
I'm also using the Chinese version but no matter what I try I cannot root the global version of the rom. I can root the Chinese version fine.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Might be the developer version is only for the Chinese Rom. Anyway I am happy now running with GSI Rom.
eremeya said:
I'm also using the Chinese version but no matter what I try I cannot root the global version of the rom. I can root the Chinese version fine.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What version of TWRP are you using?

A comprehensive guide to installing custom GSI ROMs on the Mi 8 Pro

As so many others have pointed out, it is pretty hard to get any custom GSI ROMs running on the Mi 8 Pro / Explorer Edition (Equuleus). I was also absolutely oblivious to the fact that the Mi 8 Pro would require different ROMs than the Mi 8 when I bought my handset as I always check if there are custom ROMs available before I buy a new phone and there are some for the Mi 8. As far as I can tell there are no custom ROMs specifically adapted to run on our phones, but luckily enough, it is GSI-compatible or "treble-enabled". So as sad as it is that there are no real custom ROMs you can install, there is a major upside to our situation - theoretically any GSI ROM might run on it, which offers far more options than are available for the phones I have been using before I got my Mi 8 Pro. The big question is: How on earth do you get them to run on the Mi 8 Pro? If this is as puzzling for you as it was for me at first, you have come to the right place - After days and days of trial and error and growing despair, I have found a way to get both Oreo and Pie ROMs to boot and function up to a level that I'm comfortable working with and as this site has helped me so much over the years, I thought I could at least share my findings, hoping that others would be able to benefit a bit as well.
Having said that, I'll start with a list of features that won't work, so if you need them, feel free to move on (or maybe even help me find a way to get them working?). I would love for other forum members to help us expand and refine this guide (especially when it comes to the list of working ROMs) as I plan to keep this thread updated for some time.
A big shout-out goes to nealed , whose post on GSI ROMs got me started and who was OK with me laying out my information in a separate post. :good:
Not working (as of now):
In-Screen fingerprint sensor
IR face unlock ("normal" face unlock works fine)
VoLTE
Many stock Xiaomi / Mi apps won't work - you will have to find modded apks if you want to use Xiaomi's stock apps (such as the Compass app, which I rather liked but haven't found a working version for yet)
Fixed in newer Pie ROMs:
Note that Pie GSI ROMs based on earlier Phh-Treble Vanilla (AOSP 9.0) versions come with a weird ambient display bug (at least on our device). If you decide to have your ambient display set to "always on" it will flicker on and off all the time (which is why I have disabled it, it's driving me crazy when the phone is just lying on my desk and constantly stealing my attention - what does work though are the options "New notifications" / "Show when charging", so that's what I ended up with.)
Another problem with Pie ROMs I ran into was that the Android phone service would simply crash whenever I tried to manually select my network provider. I could see all available cell phone companies in my area but as soon as I would try to switch to a different provider than the one automatically chosen, the Android phone service would immediately crash.]
If none of this is an issue for you, you can expect a smooth and stable Android on our extremely powerful handset. You will be working with a ROM that can be highly customized and will also probably refrain from sending all your data to Xiaomi (which is one of the major reasons I wanted to have a rooted custom ROM and decided to accept that that also means I can't have all the features the phone normally offers - such as the very flashy fingerprint sensor).
Step-by-step instructions on how to install a custom GSI ROM
As a matter of fact, you should be aware that all data that is currently stored on your phone is lost when following this guide, so make sure you have a backup and don't ask me what you can do if you didn't create one! (short answer: nothing)
This guide also assumes you have already waited long enough and successfully unlocked your bootloader using a working Mi Account. If not, have a look here.
Step 1: Flashing an official ROM
Flashing tool - MiFlash
The easiest way to flash an official ROM that doesn't come with loads of system hogs or other "features" you don't want to have, is using MiFlash 2017.4.25.
Official ROM
Next, you will need to download a flashable global MIUI ROM. A list of all available ROMS can be found here.
Depending on which Android version you are going to install later, you want to download
Android 8.1 / Oreo: V10.0.1.0.OECMIFH (fastboot link / .tgz-file)
Android 9.0 / Pie: Try this more recent version first: V11.0.5.0.PECMIXM (fastboot link / .tgz-file). Note, however, that most of the ROMs in the GSI list have been installed on top of V10.2.2.0.PECMIXM (fastboot link / .tgz-file), so give that a try if V11.0.5.0.PECMIXM isn't working out for you.
Android 10.0 / Q: So far, we haven't been able to get any Android Q GSI ROM running on the MI 8 Pro, but there is an official MIUI Android 10 ROM available if you want a stock Android Q device:V11.0.3.0.QECMIXM (fastboot link / .tgz-file). Any ideas on how to get Android 10 GSI ROMs running on the Mi 8 Pro are much appreciated.
Once you have downloaded your ROM, extract it into a directory - I found that MiFlash was having some troubles working with directories whose directory names contained spaces, so I'd recommend simply extracting everything that is contained in the .zip-file into a directory such as "C:\flash", this way I had no trouble flashing any ROMs.
When that is done, you can start MiFlash and select the directory that contains your ROM files.
The next step is important if you want to make sure your bootloader stays unlocked (which you do): you need to select "clean all" at the bottom right of MiFlash so that flash_all.bat is selected. The default option is "clean all and lock" which is not what we want.
Should you have forgotten to change the option you simply have to unlock the phone again afterwards but as that requires a connection to the Xiaomi servers and a Mi Account that lets you do so, it's anything but ideal.
To make your phone talk to MiFlash, put your powered-off phone into bootloader mode by simultaneously pressing the power button and the volume down button and connecting it to your PC via a USB-C cable (preferably the one that came with the phone, but others should work too).
You're good to go - click on "flash" in the MiTool and watch it do its magic. It will take some time - just be patient - after 5 - 10 minutes the phone should automatically boot into MIUI and you're one step closer to installing the ROM you actually want to have on your phone.
Step 2: Installing TWRP recovery
Finding a working TWRP recovery for our phone (ideally in English) is like trying to find a miniature-size needle broken into three parts in a giant haystack. Unfortunately, our phone isn't officially supported by TWRP (yet?) so you won't find anything on their website.
What can be found, is a mixed bag, but after many many attempts of locating a proper source for TWRP image files, I finally came across this forum post.
To cut a long story short, for Android Oreo (Android 8) and Android Pie (Android 9) you want to download
TWRP 3.3.1-0607 (Firedance Edition)
as it is one of the very few versions for our device that are actually able to decrypt your data once you have set a PIN in your Android system. There seems to be a bug with some current TWRP versions that keep you from accessing your data once you have set a screen-lock PIN in your system (which is a requirement to use such features as face unlock).
So if you use a version that can't decrypt your phone (even when entering the correct PIN to enter TWRP) and you encounter a bootloop, you're out of luck: You can't access your system either from recovery or from within the system (If you have come across this post because you're in exactly this situation, you should be able to solve the problem by flashing TWRP 3.3.1-0607 on your phone to regain access).
For Android Q (Android 10) / MIUI 11, this version seems to be working:
TWRP-3.3.2B-0301 (Chinese Version)
Once you have downloaded the .img-file, the best thing is to put it into a directory that already has adb.exe and fastboot.exe in it. If you don't have such a directory, you can very easily create it by downloading and installing Minimal ADB and Fastboot.
Choose any install location you like, you will have to place your TWRP image file in your install location folder afterwards.
To prepare your phone, power it off and then put your powered-off phone into bootloader mode by simultaneously pressing the power button and the volume down button and connecting it to your PC via a USB-C cable.
Next, either start Minimal ADB and Fastboot or manually open a command prompt (cmd.exe) in the directory you have just created and enter the following two commands:
Code:
fastboot flash recovery equuleus-331-607.img
Code:
fastboot boot equuleus-331-607.img
Note that sometimes after flashing TWRP, the phone will boot into recovery twice - don't worry if you only see the TWRP screen and your phone starts rebooting straight afterwards. This is only an issue on first boot.
Congrats, you have now installed a working version of TWRP for the Mi 8 Pro. You can now also manually boot into TWRP by simultaneously pressing the power button and the volume up button on your powered-off phone.
Step 3: Installing a custom GSI ROM of your choice
Once you have a working TWRP recovery, you can install any GSI ROM that might run on our device (scroll down to my second post on this page for a list of working ROMs or click here to jump to it instead) - Prerequisite: Your ROM needs to be an ARM64 / A-Only ROM as this is the only kind of ROM our device can run.
Here's how to go about it:
Boot into TWRP, connect your phone to your PC via USB and transfer the ROM img.-file you want to install
Wipe > Factory Reset
Wipe > Advanced Wipe > System (This will prompt TWRP to ask you later if you really want to reboot - "No OS Installed! Are you sure you wish to reboot?" - which you can simply ignore, TWRP doesn't recognize that a new OS is installed after a system wipe)
Install > Install Image, select your chosen image, choose "System Image" as target partition and swipe right.
If you just want to test the image and not use any Google functionality, you can reboot now (Ignore "No OS installed") - However, this will mean that on most ROMs that don't already come with Google Apps included you won't have any Google functionality (i.e. no face unlock, no Play Store, ...) and you won't get it either if you try to install it after having already booted into your new system - so you probably want to move on to Step 4 before you reboot (unless your ROM already comes with Google Apps).
Step 4: Flashing Google Apps / Enabling Google functionality (Optional)
I'm assuming that since you're reading a guide on installing custom ROMs on an Android smartphone that it will be absolutely no news to you that instantly after installing a custom ROM and BEFORE booting into it for the first time you HAVE to install the Google functionality you want to have as there is no way of adding it afterwards. You simply have to do it right after flashing your ROM.
To flash Google Apps, you have to download them first on https://opengapps.org/.
Select the ARM64 option for the Android version you have just installed (either 9.0 (Pie) or 8.1 (Oreo)) and choose the package that best suits your need. I always go for the "Nano" package as it includes everything you can't install by yourself from the Play Store later on. This means you can also uninstall any Google App that isn't included in this package if you don't need it any longer. The bigger packages come with many more apps but if you install them now before you boot into your OS for the first time, they get turned into system apps and can't be easily uninstalled later.
Once you have downloaded the Google Apps package of your choice, you can transfer it to your phone via Windows Explorer if it's still connected via USB and in TWRP (which it should be in anyway ). Now just go to Install, select the .zip-file you have just transferred to your phone and swipe right.
Problems you might run into when installing your Google Apps:
This message or similar messages might appear in TWRP when you try to install your Google Apps package, even though you are using the correct version for your ROM (Pie ROM and Pie Google Apps, for example):
This Gapps pkg is for Android 9.0.x ONLY
Please download the correct version for your ROM: 8.1.0 (SDK 27)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If this happens, go to the Reboot Menu in TWRP and select Recovery to reboot into TWRP. Once you've done that, Google Apps should install without problems and recognize that you do indeed have the right Android version installed.
Many times, the System partition will also be too small to also accommodate the Google Apps package, so you will be greeted with the following message:
Insufficient storage space available in System partition.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If this happens to you, here's the fix:
Go back to the main menu in TWRP
Wipe > Advanced Wipe
Select System
Tap on Repair or Change File System
Tap on Resize File System
Swipe to Resize
Go back to the main menu, installing Google Apps should work without problems now
Voilà. You have just successfully gapp'ed your phone .
Step 5: Rooting your ROM (Optional)
Thanks to Magisk, rooting is incredibly easy these days. All you have to do is head over to the Magisk releases page on Github and download the latest .zip-file.
Once it's downloaded, install the .zip-file via TWRP and reboot into your OS.
For Magisk to work, you also need to have the latest Magisk Manager apk installed, which you also find on the above Github page, however I found that all GSI ROMs already have this included anyway (It appears to be included in Phh-Treble AOSP) - so all you need to do is really install Magisk in TWRP.
The preinstalled Magisk Manager will probably be outdated and ask you to update, which it can do itself. So most times, you won't even have to download the Magisk Manager apk yourself.
Step 6: Installing a working Xposed Framework (Optional)
As easy as it has become to root a phone these days, it is becoming increasingly harder to get Xposed to work as active development has been rather stalled lately. Luckily enough, someone was kind enough to unofficially get Xposed to work on Android Pie, however, this time it's a Magisk module.
Getting it to work on the Mi 8 Pro is a different matter. I have found that only certain versions do actually work and offer the Xposed functionality I have gotten so used to. If you install the specific versions I'm mentioning here, Xposed should work without problems (But as always, not all Xposed modules are still under active development and therefore won't work with Android Pie or this new unofficial version of Xposed).
To get Xposed up and running, you need to have Magisk installed already (see Step 5).
I'm currently running AOSP 9.0 (v123) and these more recent Riru package versions run fine (If you have trouble with these, check the links below) - I could only install them directly via Magisk but not in TWRP:
Riru - Core (19.7)
Riru - Ed Xposed 0.4.6.2.4529 (YAHFA)
You will also need this app installed to manage your Xposed framework and to activate Xposed modules:
The latest Ed Xposed Manager which you can download here.
For older custom Android Pie ROMs, these Riru packages were the only versions that I could successfully get working:
Riru - Core (17.1)
Riru - Ed Xposed 0.4.1.2_beta (YAHFA)
The older Riru packages can be installed directly via TWRP or in Magisk, but since you have to reboot afterwards if you install it from inside your OS, you might as well just install the two .zip-Files from TWRP directly after installing Magisk in TWRP.
The latest Ed Xposed Manager is simply an apk, so you will have to install it after booting into your system. Easy as Pie. Have fun EdXposing your system to new functionality .
Step 7: Special fixes
As I've layed out before, custom ROMs are prone to come with certain functionality missing or malfunctioning. This is especially the case with GSI ROMs that weren't developed with our specific device in mind. Nevertheless most functions will work without bigger problems right away. Some problems might still arise, but luckily there are solutions.
Sending and receiving SMS messages
After I had installed my GSI ROMs, it took me a while to realize I wasn't getting any text messages (they're not that frequent any more anyway). This is because I had to change my preferred network setting (for whatever reason). If you set it like this, everything should work as expected:
Preferred network type
4G (Recommended)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Bluetooth Media Streaming
I also didn't realize right away that there was a Bluetooth problem. Calls were working fine, people could hear me talking, I could hear them talking. Things got a bit weirder, when I tried to listen to music streaming from my phone to my Bluetooth speaker - it simply wouldn't work. Nada - no matter what I tried. Luckily I came across a .zip-file that worked wonders. If you install the FixGsiBTSound.zip file in TWRP that I was able to find in this XDA thread, Bluetooth media is streaming without any problems and calls continue to work.
Unfortunately, I still have to change Bluetooth Audio Codec to AAC in the Developer options every time I connect my speaker if I want to listen to music and get driving instructions via Google Maps at the same time. It automatically reverts back to SBC but after I've made the change I can have several apps stream audio at the same time, which might be a problem with my speaker that only supports SBC but I didn't have this problem with my old phone.
By the way, none of the other fixes in the thread mentioned above (specifically the VoLTE fix) were working for our phone when I tried them.
List of working GSI ROMs
This post is meant to give an overview of ROMs that can be installed and booted into on the Mi 8 Pro as long as you follow my installation guide.
To give a more complete picture, I have also included the ROMs I couldn't get to boot into a working OS.
The Mi 8 Pro is an ARM64 - A Only device, so make sure you only try to install ARM64 - A Only GSI images.
I first ended up using AOSiP (August 19, 2019 version) after having given MSM Xtended a try. However, after half a year my screen started flickering, so I reflashed a stock MIUI to send my phone back for repairs, which is when I discovered that the screen still seemed to be working. This might have been just a coincidence and the screen may still have some issues that are just not showing, but it is, of course, also possible that a custom GSI ROM could mess with your hardware.
I'm now using AOSP 9.0 (v123) with Magisk, Substratum and EdXposed and I'm really happy with it. If you're interested in why, you can read more about it here.
Please help me expand this list - feel free to test other or newer ROMs you can find via these lists on Github and on XDA .
Android 9.0 (Pie)
AOSP 9.0 / Phh-Treble
v123 - reported working with MIUI 11.0.5.0.PECMIXM by Laurisss :good:
Image file 1: system-arm64-aonly-vanilla-nosu.img.xz (11.12.2019 / without Google Apps preinstalled)
Image file 2: system-arm64-aonly-gapps-su.img.xz (11.12.2019 / Including Google Apps)
v119
Image file 1: system-arm64-aonly-vanilla-nosu.img.xz (23.08.2019 / without Google Apps preinstalled)
Image file 2: system-arm64-aonly-gapps-su.img.xz (23.08.2019 / Including Google Apps)
XDA page
All releases: See this page
AOSiP
Image file: AOSiP-9.0-GSI-arm64_aonly-20190819.img (19.08.2019)
All releases: See this page
ArrowOS
Discovered by PCrazee :good:
Image file: system_arm64_a.zip (27.01.2020)
XDA page
All releases: See this page
Bliss OS
Image file 1: Bliss-2019-04-11-arm64-a-stock.img.xz (11.04.2019 - without Google Apps)
Image file 2: Bliss-2019-04-05-arm64-a-gapps.img (05.04.2019 - Google Apps preinstalled)
This OS only started on second boot (boot animation loop on first boot); the camera app was not functional and it seemed a bit unstable on the Mi 8 Pro
XDA page
Release page: Check it out here
Descendant
Image file: Descendant_4.0.1_arm64_aonly (06.08.2019)
This image file can be "dirty-flashed", i.e. if you follow my installation guide, don't wipe the system partition as you normally would when installing a GSI ROM
XDA page
All releases: See this page
FlokoROM
Image file: system-arm64-aonly-vanilla-nosu.img.zip (09.06.2019)
All releases: See this page
Lineage OS 16.0 (AndyYan)
Image file: lineage-16.0-20190811-UNOFFICIAL-treble_arm64_avN.img.xz (11.08.2019)
Newer images available - if they work for you, let me know and I will update this section
XDA page
All releases: See this page
MSM Xtended
Image file: MSM_Xtended-20190820-arm64_a.img.xz (20.08.2019)
There are newer versions, if they work on the Mi 8 Pro, please let me know
XDA page
All releases: See this page
Pixel Experience (Unofficial)
Image file: PixelExperienceP-arm64-aonly.zip (24.03.2019)
This is an older version, but unfortunately the only version I could get to boot - if you find a newer one that works on the Mi 8 Pro, please let me know
XDA page
All releases: See this page
Zirconium AOSP
Image file: ZirconiumAosp-9.0-IGNITE-arm64-a-20190319.rar (19.03.2019)
Release page: Check out this page
/e/
Reported working by PCrazee :good:
Image file: e-pie-20190827-UNOFFICIAL-treble_arm64_aeN.img.zip (27.08.2019)
XDA page
More releases: See this page
Android 8.1 (Oreo)
Please note that I only tested three ROMs to see if I could get Oreo ROMs working as well. As there is no support to hide the Mi 8 Pro notch in Oreo ROMs and as I managed to get Xposed working on Pie, I quickly abandoned Oreo again .
Nevertheless, please let me know if there are any other Oreo GSI ROMs out there that you got working on the Mi 8 Pro so I can expand this section.
AOSP 8.1 / Phh-Treble
Image file 1: system-arm64-aonly-vanilla-nosu.img.xz (06.07.2019 / without Google Apps preinstalled)
Image file 2: system-arm64-aonly-gapps-su.img.xz (06.07.2019 / Including Google Apps)
XDA page
Release Page: Check it out
Resurrection Remix (phhuson)
Image file: system-arm64-aonly.img (20.05.2018)
XDA page
Android 9.0 (Pie) (Non-working)
I couldn't find a working version Pie version for:
AOSP Extended
HavocOS
nitrOS
Resurrection Remix
Android 8.1 (Oreo) (Non-working)
I couldn't find a working Oreo version for:
Treskmod
Special apps and functionality
Google Camera with Night Sight
Installing a modded Google Camera app helps you get the most out of your camera, especially when using Night Sight or the Playground that aren't available to most non-Pixel devices out of the box.
In order to enable the special Google Camera features, the Camera2Api needs to be enabled. This can be done by going into Magisk and downloading and installing Pix3lify which enables some other Pixel features (I found that running my phone with AOSiP and Pix3lify also gave me a much nicer Pixel-like experience to the one that Pixel Experience offered (this applies at least to the version of Pixel Experience I could get to work on the Mi 8 Pro).
To get a working modded Google camera
Open Magisk Manager and download and activate the module Pix3lify, then restart
Download a modded Google Camera apk such as BSG's MI9SE V4_P2 which can be found on this page.
There are many Google Camera mods out there and you can find a pretty extensive list here.
However, BSG's MI9SE V4_P2 was the only mod that had both the camera (including Night Sight) and the video camera working correctly, even though it doesn't seem to offer all the functionality that other Google Camera mods seem to provide.
Should you find any other modded version that might be working even better on the Mi 8 Pro, I'd be happy to hear from you.
Augmented Reality / Playground support
Even if you have Google's ARCore (Google Play Services for AR) installed on your device, it doesn't mean it's up and running. There's a built-in check that makes sure your device is officially supported and - you guessed it - the Mi 8 Pro isn't (whereas the Mi 8 is).
I'm assuming here that you've already have ARCore installed, but if you haven't, you can download and install this version: ARCore_1.12.19082605.apk.
The important steps to getting it to work, are:
Go into your Magisk Manager and install the module MagiskHide Props Config
Make sure you have a terminal app installed, I've had some good experience with Termux
Open your terminal app and enter the following commands
Code:
su
props
1 [COLOR="Silver"](Edit device fingerprint)[/COLOR]
f [COLOR="Silver"](Pick a certified fingerprint)[/COLOR]
22 [COLOR="silver"](Xiaomi)[/COLOR]
7 [COLOR="silver"](Xiaomi Mi 8)[/COLOR]
1 [COLOR="silver"](Android version 8.1.0)[/COLOR]
y [COLOR="silver"](change fingerprint)[/COLOR]
y [COLOR="silver"](reboot)[/COLOR]
From now on, your Mi 8 Pro will identify itself as a Mi 8, enabling ARCore and thus any Augmented Reality app.
You probably also want to enable your Google Camera AR feature:
If you're on Android Pie, download and install Playground_2.5build-2.6.190725076.apk
If you're on Android Oreo, download and install ARStickers_All_Pack_V1.5build-1.3.180720036.apk
Afterwards you are able to download "Playmojis" from within your Google Camera (More > Playground). However, sometimes you're out of luck and Google Play will stubbornly tell you that your device is not compatible with a selected package (e.g. Avengers: Endgame or Childish Gambino).
In this case, simply download the corresponding apk package directly from apkmirror.com and you should be all set.
More information on the Google Cam AR support can be found here.
Reserved
This looks great! I'll have to try it and see if I can get it to work.
yo-less said:
List of working GSI ROMs
Android 9.0 (Pie) (Non-working)
I couldn't find a working version Pie version for:
AOSP Extended
HavocOS
nitrOS
Resurrection Remix
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have had HavocOS (My favourite GSI ROM that I have tried) working n the Mi 8 Pro, as well as nitrOS. Never got RR to boot (bootanimation? didn't try to delete it) and never tried AOSP Extended.
nealed said:
I have had HavocOS (My favourite GSI ROM that I have tried) working n the Mi 8 Pro, as well as nitrOS. Never got RR to boot (bootanimation? didn't try to delete it) and never tried AOSP Extended.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for your reply!
Are you saying you have had it boot using the steps I have outlined here? If yes, please let me know the exact version you got to boot, preferably with a link, and I will add it to the list of working ROMs. After I had finally figured out how to install GSI ROMs successfully in a way that can be reproduced, I went through the same motions every time I tried a GSI ROM and all the ROMs in my list were booting into the system, however, no version of HavocOS that I could find was booting up after going through the above steps and I tried several times and different versions, too, because some people seem to think it's a great ROM.
yo-less said:
Thanks for your reply!
Are you saying you have had it boot using the steps I have outlined here? If yes, please let me know the exact version you got to boot, preferably with a link, and I will add it to the list of working ROMs. After I had finally figured out how to install GSI ROMs successfully in a way that can be reproduced, I went through the same motions every time I tried a GSI ROM and all the ROMs in my list were booting into the system, however, no version of HavocOS that I could find was booting up after going through the above steps and I tried several times and different versions, too, because some people seem to think it's a great ROM.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Havoc-OS-v2.8-20190811-phhgsi_arm64_a-Official.img was the one I had working. I have yet to find a consistent way of installing GSI ROMs. Havoc was the same. I had boot loops and also managed to boot the ROM, could not be sure that there were any differences in approach. I have tried with the latest september release of Havoc and could not get it working..
Back to LineageOS for me... Too many issues with GSI ROMs.. until I can get VoLTE OR Fingerprint working, I shall stay with LineageOS - it's really OK with MAgisk XPosed and Faceunlock... with VoLTE working well.
nealed said:
Havoc-OS-v2.8-20190811-phhgsi_arm64_a-Official.img was the one I had working.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for letting me know the version you got to boot. I'll give it a try to see if I can get it to work using the method I've described here - if yes, I'll add HavocOS to the list of working ROMs.
I really liked the privacy features LineageOS offers but as far as OS customization is concerned I always felt it was lacking. And as I can live without VoLTE (Didn't even know what it was until I read that my new phone supports it ) and face unlock is working fine, I'm very happy with AOSiP for now, everything I use on a daily basis is working without any hitches and the system is super responsive.
yo-less said:
Thanks for letting me know the version you got to boot. I'll give it a try to see if I can get it to work using the method I've described here - if yes, I'll add HavocOS to the list of working ROMs.
I really liked the privacy features LineageOS offers but as far as OS customization is concerned I always felt it was lacking. And as I can live without VoLTE (Didn't even know what it was until I read that my new phone supports it ) and face unlock is working fine, I'm very happy with AOSiP for now, everything I use on a daily basis is working without any hitches and the system is super responsive.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You list VoLTE as not working in your OP, but say you can'r live without it. Could you please detail how you got VoLTE working on your Mi 8 Pro with AOSiP please? OR any other GSI ROMs for that matter. Thanks.
Haven't had time to try it yet, but there is another dev version of HavocOS GSI: https://sourceforge.net/projects/ha...90914-phhgsi_arm64_a-Official.img.xz/download Unfortunately, it takes me a lot of time to get my phone back to the state I want it (encrypted, decryptable by TWRP, all SD Card content present, working) when testing as I often lose the encryption and have to copy all SDcard content back to TWRP restore.... if it was just as simple as that I woudl have no prroblem, but it's not. Anyway, for those willing to try, another HavocOS GSI that may or may not work on the Mi 8 Pro.
Also, I think it important to list the vendor image and firmware images used with GSI ROMs as these can have an impact on how things work .
nealed said:
You list VoLTE as not working in your OP, but say you can'r live without it. Could you please detail how you got VoLTE working on your Mi 8 Pro with AOSiP please? OR any other GSI ROMs for that matter. Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Here's what I wrote:
And as I can live without VoLTE
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So as I've outlined, I know of no way to get it to work at this stage but if anyone does, please let us know
Haven't had time to try it yet, but there is another dev version of HavocOS GSI: https://sourceforge.net/projects/ha...90914-phhgsi_arm64_a-Official.img.xz/download
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I will test the ROMs you have mentioned to see if they work using the method I've described here.
Also, I think it important to list the vendor image and firmware images used with GSI ROMs as these can have an impact on how things work .
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've tried to streamline the ROM installation process as much as possible, if you follow Step 1 of my guide, you should be all set and don't have to worry about flashing additional vendor or firmware images. It is, of course, possible to start experimenting with vendor images as well, but the process I've outlined here seems to work fine for all the ROMs I've listed.
Thanks for your clarifications Jens. I appreciate it.
yo-less said:
Here's what I wrote:
So as I've outlined, I know of no way to get it to work at this stage but if anyone does, please let us know
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My bad, I need to learn to read English :laugh:
yo-less said:
I've tried to streamline the ROM installation process as much as possible, if you follow Step 1 of my guide, you should be all set and don't have to worry about flashing additional vendor or firmware images. It is, of course, possible to start experimenting with vendor images as well, but the process I've outlined here seems to work fine for all the ROMs I've listed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So all of these test results are with the 10.2.2 vendor. As the vendor partition plays a big role with GSI images, other vendor images may break / improve some functionality. It is important that this is understood and eventually documented with regards results of working / non working GSI images.
I have a question, why can't we just port Mi 8 (dipper) Roms? Is there anything hardware differences besides the fingerprint reader and front camera?
nealed said:
So all of these test results are with the 10.2.2 vendor. As the vendor partition plays a big role with GSI images, other vendor images may break / improve some functionality. It is important that this is understood and eventually documented with regards results of working / non working GSI images.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would love for more users to report back their findings - the more community data we can gather, the better this guide will become over time. As it stands, I'm pretty happy that I've found a way of reliably getting all the ROMs I have listed to fully boot. When I started out, it was all trial-and-error, trying different firmware versions and GSI ROMs, also flashing different vendor images on top, and nothing seemed to work. Feel free to experiment with me and see if you can find different methods (including firmware / vendor images) of getting GSI ROMs to boot reliably.
eremeya said:
I have a question, why can't we just port Mi 8 (dipper) Roms? Is there anything hardware differences besides the fingerprint reader and front camera?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not a ROM developer but I look at it that way: As much as it's not possible to install a Mi 9 ROM on the Mi 8 Pro, it's also not possible to install a Mi 8 ROM on a Mi 8 Lite or Mi 8 Pro. You can't even install a dipper TWRP image on an equuleus device, give it a try - you will see it won't work.
Ideally a ROM would detect what kind of device you have and adjust its code accordingly. But as of now, every device needs its own specifically tailored ROM. But GSI ROMs seem to try and give us a way out of this situation.
The question I'm asking myself is why there is virtually no custom ROM development happening for the Mi 8 Pro - this is the first time I own an Android device that can't be easily customized (or unlocked - but that's a different matter).
yo-less said:
I'm not a ROM developer but I look at it that way: As much as it's not possible to install a Mi 9 ROM on the Mi 8 Pro, it's also not possible to install a Mi 8 ROM on a Mi 8 Lite or Mi 8 Pro. You can't even install a dipper TWRP image on an equuleus device, give it a try - you will see it won't work.
Ideally a ROM would detect what kind of device you have and adjust its code accordingly. But as of now, every device needs its own specifically tailored ROM. But GSI ROMs seem to try and give us a way out of this situation.
The question I'm asking myself is why there is virtually no custom ROM development happening for the Mi 8 Pro - this is the first time I own an Android device that can't be easily customized (or unlocked - but that's a different matter).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I might normally agree with your idea but the hardware is almost exactly the same except for the finger print reader and the front camera so in theory it should be fine except for those. A different example might be installing Poco phone roms on a Mi 8 or Mi 8 roms on a Mi 8 Ursa.
eremeya said:
I might normally agree with your idea but the hardware is almost exactly the same except for the finger print reader and the front camera so in theory it should be fine except for those. A different example might be installing Poco phone roms on a Mi 8 or Mi 8 roms on a Mi 8 Ursa.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not saying it's beyond possible to make it happen, all I'm saying is that it doesn't seem to work as the hardware is not the same - or have you been able to install a Mi 8 ROM on a Mi 8 Pro? I couldn't even get a Mi 8 TWRP running on a Mi 8 Pro, so I'm guessing the difference does matter.
yo-less said:
I'm not saying it's beyond possible to make it happen, all I'm saying is that it doesn't seem to work as the hardware is not the same - or have you been able to install a Mi 8 ROM on a Mi 8 Pro? I couldn't even get a Mi 8 TWRP running on a Mi 8 Pro, so I'm guessing the difference does matter.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried with one rom and it failed to install. It gave an error about the zip not being signed or signed wrong. I modified a file in to ROM zip to remove references to dipper. (This is the process that is done to install Poco phone Roms on a Mi 8). I'm not sure how to modify the rom zip and re-sign it so it installs. Unfortunately I don't have much time right now to experiment as I'm busy with school.
eremeya said:
I tried with one rom and it failed to install. It gave an error about the zip not being signed or signed wrong. I modified a file in to ROM zip to remove references to dipper. (This is the process that is done to install Poco phone Roms on a Mi 8). I'm not sure how to modify the rom zip and re-sign it so it installs. Unfortunately I don't have much time right now to experiment as I'm busy with school.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sounds like an interesting route, so if you follow it through and get it to work, please let us know how you made it happen.
Testing day yesterday, I am currently running HavocOS, with the just released chinese Xiaomi V11.0.2.0.PECCNXM vendor.
I believe that to get it working, SELinux needs to be set to permissive.
Steps taken to boot:
1. Flash 10.3.4 ROM using Xiaomi Flash tool - wiping and cleaning everything, including data and SDCard.
2. Boot and set passcode.
3. Reboot to Bootloader
4. Flash recovery-TWRP-3.3.0-0504-XIAOMI8UD-CN-wzsx150 TWRP.img to recovery partition
5. Boot recovery-TWRP-3.3.0-0504-XIAOMI8UD-CN-wzsx150
6. Factory Reset
5. Flash Havoc-OS-v2.9-20190914 (thread, download
6. Flash permissiver-v4 by erfanoabdi for GSI images
7. Boot
8. Upon reboot to recovery - wipe cahche / dalvik, reboot recovery, then reboot system
9. If you are sent back to recovery. Just reboot - it will boot eventually.
10 Subsequently, from TWRP, resize system partition and flash gapps (yes, you can do this and everything works fine. I have done this on plenty of occasions. It is also possible to invoke the android one time setup wizard if you need that to restore from a backup etc.).
11. Flash Magisk 20.0
12. Flash PolarKernel (see this section for download and details)
HavocOS allows:
Using gesture navigation (I use OnePlus gestures) - native feature
Using Face unlock with the option of dismissing the lock screen automatically - native feature
Hide the clock (great for our notched devices (for me anyway as I have a clock widget on the home screen anyway)) to gain valuable screen real estate - native feature
Battery circle icon - native feature
Great theme options built in
Many more features.
I am reaching out to some devs to see if I cannot cook this for our Mi 8 Pro. I would dearly love to get the under screen fingerprint working. On one hand others have tried and failed. On the other, I'm not sure how much effort has gone in to the trials - as this is not exactly the most popular device on the planet. Not many devs have it.
However, with fanix-uk working on LineageOS - and possibly the FP sensor - as well as the possibility of having VoLTE and infrared face unlock (as is present in LineageOS for Mi 8 Pro) working - this would be my perfect setup.
Despite not having VoLTE (I may do some tests today) I am considering staying with this setup as it really is great. Time will tell...

Lineage OS 17.1 (official) on Xiaomi Redmi Note 8T suddenly stopped working - stuck on boot screen

For almost a month now I have been happily using LOS 17.1 on my Xiaomi Redmi Note 8T (flashed via LOS recovery, everything working great), until yesterday all of a sudden the OS crashed (I actually don't know what happend, I put the phone away and when I wanted to use it again I just saw the boot screen). Now the phone wont boot to OS no matter what I do (restart, turn off and on, fastboot and back), but I can still enter recovery.
What the hell happened??
What I can do to fix it - e.g. reinstall LOS/install last update?
Will any of the steps to fix it remove the data on my phone?
lueromat said:
For almost a month now I have been happily using LOS 17.1 on my Xiaomi Redmi Note 8T (flashed via LOS recovery, everything working great), until yesterday all of a sudden the OS crashed (I actually don't know what happend, I put the phone away and when I wanted to use it again I just saw the boot screen). Now the phone wont boot to OS no matter what I do (restart, turn off and on, fastboot and back), but I can still enter recovery.
What the hell happened??
What I can do to fix it - e.g. reinstall LOS/install last update?
Will any of the steps to fix it remove the data on my phone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1-delete the folder : data/system/dropbox
reboot,and when the system restarts , read logs in that folder to know what is happening
2-if you didn't remove any important system file, reinstall will fix nothing
3-in most cases,wiping data will fix the problem, just be prepared to it
your best shot would be making a twrp backup of data and explore it with 7z and try to restore your app + data when the system boots
thanks !
how can I access the dropbox folder if the system isn't booting? not finding the device in fastboot...
I don't have twrp, but lineage recovery - is that an issue? there are also some logs here, but probably not related to the system, I assume?
lueromat said:
how can I access the dropbox folder if the system isn't booting?
I don't have twrp, but lineage recovery - is that an issue? there are also some logs here, but probably not related to the system, I assume?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
next time use "quote" or "reply" so i get a notification
i don't know if lineage recovery has a file manager or not, but i strongly recomand using orangefox recovery for multiple reasons ...
when you make a backup of data, browse to that folder and do what i said
and when your system is on you can restore your app + data using that backup and titanium backup app or copy paste if you know the path ...
so I ended up flashing LOS and pic GApps again, as per a suggestion on reddit, which didn't wipe my data:
https://www.reddit.com/r/LineageOS/comments/lotixs
it was suggested that the crash could have originated from some GApps error, but since those logs were overwritten with the reinstall I'll never find out
loopypalm said:
i don't know if lineage recovery has a file manager or not, but i strongly recomand using orangefox recovery for multiple reasons ...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't have a ton of experience with different recoveries, so far I have used TWRP and LOS recovery and have been moderately happy - orange fox looks like a great project, I'll make sure to give it a try next time
lueromat said:
so I ended up flashing LOS and pic GApps again, as per a suggestion on reddit, which didn't wipe my data:
https://www.reddit.com/r/LineageOS/comments/lotixs
it was suggested that the crash could have originated from some GApps error, but since those logs were overwritten with the reinstall I'll never find out
lueromat said:
so I ended up flashing LOS and pic GApps again, as per a suggestion on reddit, which didn't wipe my data:
https://www.reddit.com/r/LineageOS/comments/lotixs
it was suggested that the crash could have originated from some GApps error, but since those logs were overwritten with the reinstall I'll never find out
I don't have a ton of experience with different recoveries, so far I have used TWRP and LOS recovery and have been moderately happy - orange fox looks like a great project, I'll make sure to give it a try next time
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't have a ton of experience with different recoveries, so far I have used TWRP and LOS recovery and have been moderately happy - orange fox looks like a great project, I'll make sure to give it a try next time
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You shouldn't have flashed pic GApps coz of that it will go to same issue when the rom gets updated. Instead flash OpenGapps one of the best GApps for LineageOS. There was same issue with my Moto G3 Turbo(Merlin) when I flashed BitGapps, always use Trusted GApps by LineageOS. It is also available on the LineageOS Forum

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