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I have (or had) an AT&T branded S5 that was previous rooted and running Safestrap (I don't recall the BL version). Due to some EXTREME idiocy on my part, I took an OTA update two days ago, which updated and synched everything to G900AUCU2ANG3.
Naturally, this borked root. But there's some weirdness going on. Even after the OTA update, the phone's device status still says "Custom". And I still see the custom text when the phone boots. Is this Knox related?
Further oddness is that the phone keeps trying to pull down a second OTA update that looks identical to the first based on the filesize (over 400 MB). It goes through the motion, boots into recovery, and starts installing this second update, but stops partway through. Upon rebooting, the phone tells me the update was interrupted and can't be installed.
I realize I may never get root back, but I'm alarmed the phone's status still says "Custom" and that it's trying (and failing) to install this second OTA update.
I've tried factory resetting the phone, both within KitKat and via recovery, but these issues remain. Should I just reapply NG3 via Odin?
Thanks in advance!
fleggett1 said:
I have (or had) an AT&T branded S5 that was previous rooted and running Safestrap (I don't recall the BL version). Due to some EXTREME idiocy on my part, I took an OTA update two days ago, which updated and synched everything to G900AUCU2ANG3.
Naturally, this borked root. But there's some weirdness going on. Even after the OTA update, the phone's device status still says "Custom". And I still see the custom text when the phone boots. Is this Knox related?
Further oddness is that the phone keeps trying to pull down a second OTA update that looks identical to the first based on the filesize (over 400 MB). It goes through the motion, boots into recovery, and starts installing this second update, but stops partway through. Upon rebooting, the phone tells me the update was interrupted and can't be installed.
I realize I may never get root back, but I'm alarmed the phone's status still says "Custom" and that it's trying (and failing) to install this second OTA update.
I've tried factory resetting the phone, both within KitKat and via recovery, but these issues remain. Should I just reapply NG3 via Odin?
Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What does your "android version" say in settings. If your still on 4.4.2 you can downgrade bank to nce and reroot with towel root.
dirtydodge said:
What does your "android version" say in settings. If your still on 4.4.2 you can downgrade bank to nce and reroot with towel root.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, I'm still on 4.4.2. Like I wrote in my OP, though, I'm VERY concerned that this second OTA update keeps failing. I'm also perplexed as to why the device is still in some sort of custom state since I thought taking the OTA update would, in essence, reset everything except user data.
Is my phone borked in some way? I mean, it works just fine otherwise, but the device's inability to install this second OTA update really sticks in my craw.
I might reapply NG3 via Odin and see what happens. Couldn't hurt, right?
fleggett1 said:
Yes, I'm still on 4.4.2. Like I wrote in my OP, though, I'm VERY concerned that this second OTA update keeps failing. I'm also perplexed as to why the device is still in some sort of custom state since I thought taking the OTA update would, in essence, reset everything except user data.
Is my phone borked in some way? I mean, it works just fine otherwise, but the device's inability to install this second OTA update really sticks in my craw.
I might reapply NG3 via Odin and see what happens. Couldn't hurt, right?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=3149146
If you want root, go to the OP in that post, scroll down to step 4 or the notes section and download the "downgrade to nce.zip" flash that in odin "ap" slot. Then root with towel root. After that you can either download titanium backup and fees the ota's or use that same thread to upgrade to the OF2 version and keep root.
Edit:
If you want to just take the OTA's and not root your phone then still download the "downgrade to nce.zip" flash in odin but don't root. The ota's will push through with no problem then. But you won't be able to downgrade and root if you take the OTA's all the way up to oc4 i believe.
I'm currently stuck at the s5 active logo screen and then it boots into recovery. I've tried flashing the full odin.rar (yes I extracted it) and it fails everytime. I get the message "Sw REV CHeck Fail: [aboot]Fused 2> Binary 1. I've already tried wiping the data from the recovery menu. Nothing is working.
We need more info. What were you attempting to do and from what ROM. Are you sure you are using the proper ROM 900 or 870?
I was attempting to downgrade back to stock from 5.0 and hit the stock kernel instead of the firmware accidently when in odin. And yes I am absolutely sure i'm using the 870 rom.
Edit: What if I use a stock img and a PIT file for the phone? OR is it because I need a 5.0 lollipop firmware to flash through odin?
Edit number 2: okay I'm stupid, im on G870AUCU2BOF3. I'm going to have to reflash the of3 zip aren't I?
Okay so I found the OF3 cfg on another thread and was able to load it and flash it and get my phone working! Now, the next question is can I root in my situation or downgrade or am I just stuck?
Edit: Going to wait for a possible root! Mod can close this thread.
if you loaded the 2400258.cfg you probably loaded the OF3 bootloader as well and now you can't go back. No root at this time and it doesn't look good for the future.
Cloudsdabomb said:
Okay so I found the OF3 cfg on another thread and was able to load it and flash it and get my phone working! Now, the next question is can I root in my situation or downgrade or am I just stuck?
Edit: Going to wait for a possible root! Mod can close this thread.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
At command prompt type without the qoutes.
"getprop ro.bootloader"
Then paste output.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G870A using Tapatalk
If you took the of3 ota or are otherwise on the of3 bootloader your stuck there....no downgrade or root as of this time.
Me too
I am in a similar situation. Saturday I was on a rooted 4.4.2, flashed a stock unrooted 4.4.2 with Odin (G870AUCU1ANE4_G870AATT1ANE4_G870AUCU1ANE4_HOME.tar.md5), let AT&T update me to 4.4.4, installed the old kernel with Odin (G870A_NE4_Stock_Kernel.tar.md5), rooted with towelroot, installed the new kernel with Odin (G870A_OA1_Stock_Kernel.tar.md5), updated to 5.0 with Odin and it retained root. However, certain things such as XPosed didn't work and I really really hated the white notification drawer so I just want to go back. I tried flashing the stock 4.4.2 in Odin again and it said success. It restarts and seems to be working but gets stuck on the AT&T logo. Now if I restart it always sticks on the AT&T logo even when I flash again. I don't know what else to try. A different file? Is there a way to go back to KitKat?
Update: I got into recovery mode (I kept trying vol up, vol down, power but it's actually vol up, home, power). I wiped the cache and did a data reset and restarted the phone. It worked! I'm excited to have a black notification screen again
pgross41 said:
I am in a similar situation. Saturday I was on a rooted 4.4.2, flashed a stock unrooted 4.4.2 with Odin (G870AUCU1ANE4_G870AATT1ANE4_G870AUCU1ANE4_HOME.tar.md5), let AT&T update me to 4.4.4, installed the old kernel with Odin (G870A_NE4_Stock_Kernel.tar.md5), rooted with towelroot, installed the new kernel with Odin (G870A_OA1_Stock_Kernel.tar.md5), updated to 5.0 with Odin and it retained root. However, certain things such as XPosed didn't work and I really really hated the white notification drawer so I just want to go back. I tried flashing the stock 4.4.2 in Odin again and it said success. It restarts and seems to be working but gets stuck on the AT&T logo. Now if I restart it always sticks on the AT&T logo even when I flash again. I don't know what else to try. A different file? Is there a way to go back to KitKat?
Update: I got into recovery mode (I kept trying vol up, vol down, power but it's actually vol up, home, power). I wiped the cache and did a data reset and restarted the phone. It worked! I'm excited to have a black notification screen again
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How long did you have to wait for your phone to boot all the way up from the ATT logo? Mine is doing exactly the same thing and I've flashed all kinds of kernels via odin and heimdall with no affect. None of the various fixes I've found have helped, including trying to re-apply the OTA file (system just won't do it). All I wanted was to unroot. Awesome.
The first boot can take a while but if it lasts more than 10 minutes it's probably not going to happen. I've gotten it stuck there twice since my last post and I'm always able to salvage it by going into recovery mode (vol up, home, power while powered off). Wipe the cache and data reset and it should be a fresh start like out of the box new.
Hm. So the only real two options are take it in to AT&T and hope they have the full stock G870AUCU2BOF3 image to flash over (since Samsung locked down their bootloader so hard, so downgrading is impossible :good: ) or hope they release G870AUCU2BOF3 on SamMobile/Kies/Smart Switch. This is like the new hard brick... potentially it's salvageable but the company (I'm guessing AT&T here since this is an AT&T exclusive phone) is just screwing us. Guess I'll try the walk of shame to AT&T. Or maybe putting in a claim like that one person did, get a whole new phone because of a mysterious cut on the rear panel seal...
Alright, took it in to AT&T and sure enough they had the full 5.0 image available so after signing a no-return data waiver (didn't even confirm my AT&T account or ask for any ID) the tech took my phone in the back and flashed it back to stock. First boot still showed the "custom" with unlocked padlock on the boot screen but after I rebooted it, I guess it updated the bootloader because it was back to normal.
No more root and he confirmed there's no way to go back to 4.4 once you go up to 5.0, so if you want root, I'd suggest staying away from 5.0. At least now I can use my phone again. Just thought I'd post this up in case anyone wasn't sure if AT&T would actually be able to reflash stock 5.0 and at the very least get your phone working again... enough to put on ebay and get a Moto or some other brand that doesn't lock down the bootloader so hard.
Edit: note the first boot will take a few minutes but I knew it worked when there was a quick vibe and the notification light went from pulsing blue to off. Maybe 4-5 minutes.
retro486 said:
Alright, took it in to AT&T and sure enough they had the full 5.0 image available so after signing a no-return data waiver (didn't even confirm my AT&T account or ask for any ID) the tech took my phone in the back and flashed it back to stock. First boot still showed the "custom" with unlocked padlock on the boot screen but after I rebooted it, I guess it updated the bootloader because it was back to normal.
No more root and he confirmed there's no way to go back to 4.4 once you go up to 5.0, so if you want root, I'd suggest staying away from 5.0. At least now I can use my phone again. Just thought I'd post this up in case anyone wasn't sure if AT&T would actually be able to reflash stock 5.0 and at the very least get your phone working again... enough to put on ebay and get a Moto or some other brand that doesn't lock down the bootloader so hard.
Edit: note the first boot will take a few minutes but I knew it worked when there was a quick vibe and the notification light went from pulsing blue to off. Maybe 4-5 minutes.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's not Samsung that locks down the bootloader, it's AT&T. the T-Mobile Version doesn't have a locked bootloader and is easily rooted . Just have to SIM unlock it and you can use T-Mobile phone on AT&T network.
Delete
So my L09 p9 is on 190 at the moment and it was rooted with twrp installed.
I finally got the update to Nougat notice today so I returned to stock recovery and also unrooted the phone. I remember having to do this in the past to update.
So I download the update via the prompt (which takes way too long!) and my phone reboots to attempt to install. This is where the problem starts. It gets less than 1%of the way through the install and it fails (without telling me why).
What am I doing wrong?
Do I need to relock the bootloader? Will that wipe my phone?
This feels way too complicated at the moment, rooting and flashing used to be so much easier!!
I've tried to install the update 5 times now and failed every time. Fresh download every time.
Another update, I think I might need to Uninstall xposed then remove twrp and unroot.
Going to try tomorrow.
You need to have your phone returned to stock, as much as possible. So unrooted, with the stock recovery and bootloader locked. I think when you lock your bootloader, it will wipe your phone.
Yeah I'm pretty sure I have to root again and remove xposed then unroot again and then update. I don't think I have to lock the bootloader again.
Hi all. Succesfully rooted my S8 Tab Ultra and was running fine for the past week.
Just rebooted the tablet and its showing "Custom Binary(boot) Blocked due to remaining installment balance" I've read around the forum and apparently its for people who haven't paid for the device fully which I have, paid in full on pre order.
The only way it seems to get it to boot is to flash the original firmware my model is SM-X900NZAFXAR and I can't find the firmware does anyone know how I can get the tablet to boot?
Tried Samsung support but they didn't help
Hello! Get SamFirm at https://samfirmtool.com/ (v0.5.0 is the latest), for model put SM-X900, for Region put XAR. I haven't received mine yet (not until the middle of next month), but this is the closest I could find to what should be the correct firmware. Click "Check Update", then click "Download". It's been too long for me away from Samsung - I don't remember if it matters if you let it decrypt automatically or not. The answer should become apparent, though. At worst, you'll just have to redownload the firmware with the option to decrypt unchecked in SamFIrm.
You can check your CSC (Region) by (copying/pasting someone else's instructions):
go to settings - about - software information - service provider SW ver. The region code (CSC) will be written there.
I don't know if your CSC will match XAR. I don't find anything for XAA or XAS yet in SamFirm.
Good luck! This is concerning since I had planned on rooting mine.
Thanks for the reply. I've downloaded the XAR firmware but now I have another problem getting the USB device not recognised. Device descriptor request failed. Tried locking the bootloader again now its stuck with a Hash fail on boot and wont turn off. Can't unlock the bootloader again. 99% sure its not the laptops fault its the one i rooted on but will try another pc tomorrow. Will have to try Samsung again as although I have rooted which voids warrenty its there mistake on my device thinking it has finance outstanding that has caused the failure.
Cheers
Jono0907 said:
Thanks for the reply. I've downloaded the XAR firmware but now I have another problem getting the USB device not recognised. Device descriptor request failed. Tried locking the bootloader again now its stuck with a Hash fail on boot and wont turn off. Can't unlock the bootloader again. 99% sure its not the laptops fault its the one i rooted on but will try another pc tomorrow. Will have to try Samsung again as although I have rooted which voids warrenty its there mistake on my device thinking it has finance outstanding that has caused the failure.
Cheers
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You got the latest Samsung drivers installed, as linked to in the SamFirm\Samsung Driver subfolder? (link leads to https://samsungusbdriver.com/category/download)
Wait... Is OEM Unlock still enabled in Dev Options? It might be salvageable even though you have locked the bootloader...
Thank you edor for the help the tablet is running again now however it is unrooted now and the OEM unlock option is missing. The USB fault was resloved using a different PC not sure whats going on with my laptop.
Once in download mode i was able to download the XAR version of the Tab S8 Ultra fimrware from SamFirm and reflash with Odin which brought it back.
I'm not sure if running XAR csc will cause problems? I am in the UK I think my csc originally was OXM which is the universal one but cant find an OXM version at the moment.
fkofilee I actually locked the bootloader from the download mode menu which i shouldnt have. I don't have the option now so think I need to wait for the OEM unlock to show in settings.
For anyone else who has the "Custom Binary(boot) Blocked due to remaining installment balance" Need to reflash back to original firmware to boot and apparently it will re-check in 7 days so cannot be rooted in that time.
I have an open ticket with Samsung to try and find out why my tablet thinks it has finance. The confirmed on the phone that it was paid in full.
I wonder if the S7 Bootloader that i rooted had anything to do with it. Will retry with the bootloader when i can and report back.
@Jono0907 I'm glad you got it back working. I apologize if the XAR firmware has anything to do with your OEM unlocking not being available. Thank you for the advice for myself and for others to follow if we encounter the same problem. You had used the S7 bootloader? I would expect that to be the problem but as I said, I'm rusty on Samsung, and totally unexperienced in Samsung tablets - I only know what I've read in this section so far.
My tablet is working because of your advise so I'm happy. Found the EUX firmware which feels like it should be what my tablet should be running so will flash that and see if Unlock comes back. Tried all the tricks with date/time to try and trick it but no luck.
Also was going to add my experience with Samsung support. He agreed that if the tablet was wrongly reporting it was in finance then it wouldn't have been my fault but also said Samsung would not help because I had rooted the device. He didnt talk about reflashing firmware just said that I needed to send it to them for a new motherboard to repair Knox at a cost of at least $400(£300)
I planned to root s8 ultra, now afraid. So, is it safe to root it, and can someone put here whole procedure?
Many thanks
It's pretty much always safe because you can go back to "Download Mode" and reflash the original firmware.
It will however trip Knox which is Samsungs securityh (Done by breaking a physical fuse on the motherboard) which cannot be undone. This voids the warrenty and could cause problems with Google Pay and other things.
The basic process for rooting the S8 is
1. The process requires OEM Unlocking which some carriers in USA seem to be blocking. If you can OEM unlock it will be an option within the developers options in settings. Sometimes it doesn't show up right away.
2. Download SamFirm and get the firmware for your device. The Model for the Non-5G Tab S8 is SM-X900 and put in the CSC code for your region. Samsung simplified CSC codes before the release of the Tab S8 so you can see the list on wikipedia when searching for the tablet it is probably better to look up how to check your CSC code on your tablet to make sure you are getting the right one.
3. Install Magisk Manager on your tablet. Extract the firmware and copy the AP file to your tablet. Open Magisk Manager and point it at the AP file that you copied. Once complete it should give you a Magisk Patched file copy it back to your computer.
4. Install Odin and Samsung USB drivers. In Odin Select the Magisk Patched file for AP then add the BL file that you downloaded from SamFirm and the CSC file. (This will factory reset the tablet). You can leave CP and Userdata blank.
5. Reboot the tablet into Download Mode. This can be done by powering it off connecting it the the PC and when you see the charge symbol hold down Volume up and Volume down till you get to the Download Mode Menu. From here you need to press the option for OEM Unlock and then go to the download screen. Now press start in Odin.
That's pretty much it
ivanox1972 said:
I planned to root s8 ultra, now afraid. So, is it safe to root it, and can someone put here whole procedure?
Many thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I want clearly explanation, I don't know about this.
Jono0907 said:
It's pretty much always safe because you can go back to "Download Mode" and reflash the original firmware.
It will however trip Knox which is Samsungs securityh (Done by breaking a physical fuse on the motherboard) which cannot be undone. This voids the warrenty and could cause problems with Google Pay and other things.
The basic process for rooting the S8 is
1. The process requires OEM Unlocking which some carriers in USA seem to be blocking. If you can OEM unlock it will be an option within the developers options in settings. Sometimes it doesn't show up right away.
2. Download SamFirm and get the firmware for your device. The Model for the Non-5G Tab S8 is SM-X900 and put in the CSC code for your region. Samsung simplified CSC codes before the release of the Tab S8 so you can see the list on wikipedia when searching for the tablet it is probably better to look up how to check your CSC code on your tablet to make sure you are getting the right one.
3. Install Magisk Manager on your tablet. Extract the firmware and copy the AP file to your tablet. Open Magisk Manager and point it at the AP file that you copied. Once complete it should give you a Magisk Patched file copy it back to your computer.
4. Install Odin and Samsung USB drivers. In Odin Select the Magisk Patched file for AP then add the BL file that you downloaded from SamFirm and the CSC file. (This will factory reset the tablet). You can leave CP and Userdata blank.
5. Reboot the tablet into Download Mode. This can be done by powering it off connecting it the the PC and when you see the charge symbol hold down Volume up and Volume down till you get to the Download Mode Menu. From here you need to press the option for OEM Unlock and then go to the download screen. Now press start in Odin.
That's pretty much it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Succesfully rooted a magisk patched AP. Then later I tried to flash another one with an updated firmware, resulting in a soft brick. Does reflashing unpatched stock rom via Odin wipe all my data? Even if I flash HOME_CSC?
emko7 said:
Succesfully rooted a magisk patched AP. Then later I tried to flash another one with an updated firmware, resulting in a soft brick. Does reflashing unpatched stock rom via Odin wipe all my data? Even if I flash HOME_CSC?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry mate never done the HOME CSC flash I've always been happy to wipe the device hopefully someone here knows?
emko7 said:
Succesfully rooted a magisk patched AP. Then later I tried to flash another one with an updated firmware, resulting in a soft brick. Does reflashing unpatched stock rom via Odin wipe all my data? Even if I flash HOME_CSC?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Uh-oh. I was just getting ready to update to the latest firmware, Maybe I'll have to wait, see how this plays out.
lloydsw said:
Uh-oh. I was just getting ready to update to the latest firmware, Maybe I'll have to wait, see how this plays out.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For what it's worth on my S8 Ultra, I updated from rooted April update to rooted May's update perfectly fine without wiping data. Always do backups, though, things happen.
roirraW edor ehT said:
For what it's worth on my S8 Ultra, I updated from rooted April update to rooted May's update perfectly fine without wiping data. Always do backups, though, things happen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yup, worked fine on my S8. Sigh of relief!
I've wondered this ever since my Tab S8+ reported it's device status as official despite me having flashed the tablet with magisk-patched firmware and asked me to update. This same exact scenario has happened with my rooted Tab S7+. However, I rooted that by flashing Magisk in TWRP rather than flashing patched firmware with Odin. I don't think anyone has tried applying an OTA update on their rooted Tab S8 device since the latest firmware isn't available yet, and could result in needed to flash patched firmware again. Then again, most rooted device will have their devices report as custom instead of official, so that may be why.
I'm willing to try this out on my Tab S7+ first as that device has TWRP, and I can easily restore my device to a rooted state afterwards. Since both tablets are relatively similar, I'll assume that if root persists after updating in the Tab S7+ then it should be safe to do so on the S8+ I'm curious of doing this solely for stability and performance updates in combination with everything root access grants.
With any part of the firmware patched, OTAs won't work - they'll fail. You could also wind up with a brick - most likely one you can recover from but I wouldn't bet either way on that. As always, have everything backed up in case the worst happens.
Since I still won't get my Tab S8 Ultra for another 10 days (unless they delay again), I haven't paid too close attention to the rooting instructions specific to this, and have only made note of them, however, the basic rule still applies - if any part of the firmware has been modified from stock, then OTAs will recognize that it's been modified and fail to apply - or as I said, it could possibly try to apply what it can but you could wind up with a mix and match of different firmware versions due to the OTA failing eventually, which would need some manual work to recover from - or very worst, you might need to start over from scratch and lose everything.
When I'm on any rooted device, I go into Developer options and disable Automatic system updates. It's still possible you could get an update prompt if you manually check for an update, but it's not advised to use OTAs when rooted.
I've always been a practitioner on all devices of flashing the full new firmware updates and re-rooting, however, I know that at least with devices with dual system partitions like Google Pixels (as far as I'm aware, Samsung still hasn't adopted dual partitions yet), there have been ways to apply Magisk to a manually sideloaded OTA, although I've observed other users who do this and something inevitably goes wrong with the process from time to time.
Not that full firmware flashes are immune to things going wrong.
Edit: If you try an OTA on yours, by all means, let us know what happens.
Edit 2: Adding TWRP to the mix may, or may not, affect the viability of applying OTAs. I've hardly used TWRP on any device in the last five years, so I'm not sure if it's smart about some things and can take root into account, but since TWRP doesn't exist on the Tab S8 (I don't have any older Tab), it won't matter for me.
roirraW edor ehT said:
With any part of the firmware patched, OTAs won't work - they'll fail. You could also wind up with a brick - most likely one you can recover from but I wouldn't bet either way on that. As always, have everything backed up in case the worst happens.
Since I still won't get my Tab S8 Ultra for another 10 days (unless they delay again), I haven't paid too close attention to the rooting instructions specific to this, and have only made note of them, however, the basic rule still applies - if any part of the firmware has been modified from stock, then OTAs will recognize that it's been modified and fail to apply - or as I said, it could possibly try to apply what it can but you could wind up with a mix and match of different firmware versions due to the OTA failing eventually, which would need some manual work to recover from - or very worst, you might need to start over from scratch and lose everything.
When I'm on any rooted device, I go into Developer options and disable Automatic system updates. It's still possible you could get an update prompt if you manually check for an update, but it's not advised to use OTAs when rooted.
I've always been a practitioner on all devices of flashing the full new firmware updates and re-rooting, however, I know that at least with devices with dual system partitions like Google Pixels (as far as I'm aware, Samsung still hasn't adopted dual partitions yet), there have been ways to apply Magisk to a manually sideloaded OTA, although I've observed other users who do this and something inevitably goes wrong with the process from time to time.
Not that full firmware flashes are immune to things going wrong.
Edit: If you try an OTA on yours, by all means, let us know what happens.
Edit 2: Adding TWRP to the mix may, or may not, affect the viability of applying OTAs. I've hardly used TWRP on any device in the last five years, so I'm not sure if it's smart about some things and can take root into account, but since TWRP doesn't exist on the Tab S8 (I don't have any older Tab), it won't matter for me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just attempted to OTA update on my Tab S7+ after making a backup, and it failed. When it rebooted to start applying the update, it booted into recovery to start flashing, but since I have TWRP installed, it booted to that instead, went straight to the main menu, and didn't apply the update. It's extremely ironic; my tablet says it's running unauthorized software and will no longer receive firmware updates, but it also says my device status is official and allows me to download and install updates if I check for them (it'll even mention there's an update available without having automatic download installed).
I rebooted to system, it said they the update failed, and prompted me to download the update again and try again. I can't tell if anything got affected since it seems like because the update failed, nothing got applied or changed. This makes me slightly less willing to try and OTA update on the Tab S8+. However, since the stock recovery is still in place (no TWRP yet), the update process would probably go a long smoother. Not to mention, if something was to go wrong, and I needed to flash patched firmware again, I could just flash HOME_CSC instead of the regular CSC so I can keep my data. There's no guarantee that will work, as a failed update could require my system to prompt me to factory data reset anyway, but it's definitely an option that's available.
I'll backup whatever I can before attempting this, and I'll post the results later.
Answer would be no, doing OTA requires bootloader to be locked. But since you rooted, then you have unlocked the bootloader. So if your tab s8+ has locked bootloader then OTA will pass without a problem.
Jake.S said:
Answer would be no, doing OTA requires bootloader to be locked. But since you rooted, then you have unlocked the bootloader. So if your tab s8+ has locked bootloader then OTA will pass without a problem.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Really? I thought having an unlocked bootloader would be a non-issue since you can flashing official and unofficial firmware with an unlocked bootloader. Not to mention that the recovery has remained unaffected, and stock recovery needs to be accessed to apply the update.
SavXL said:
Really? I thought having an unlocked bootloader would be a non-issue since you can flashing official and unofficial firmware with an unlocked bootloader. Not to mention that the recovery has remained unaffected, and stock recovery needs to be accessed to apply the update.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
when unlocking bootloader you have to manually flash the stock firmware. Since OTA becomes unavailable when bootloader is unlocked. So if root is done in for example android 12 and you get a monthly patch then it will revoke the root since root usually modifies the OS files and gives you the root access sort off and flashing a update will write over those files and your root privileges will be removed.
Jake.S said:
when unlocking bootloader you have to manually flash the stock firmware. Since OTA becomes unavailable when bootloader is unlocked. So if root is done in for example android 12 and you get a monthly patch then it will revoke the root since root usually modifies the OS files and gives you the root access sort off and flashing a update will write over those files and your root privileges will be removed.
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Huh. I thought that doing an OTA update wouldn't remove anything that was already a part of the system and would just just update whatever needed to be updated and called it a day. With the method of patching the firmware and flashing it, I assume root would just be a regular part of the system, and an OTA update wouldn't affect it. Odd...
SavXL said:
Huh. I thought that doing an OTA update wouldn't remove anything that was already a part of the system and would just just update whatever needed to be updated and called it a day. With the method of patching the firmware and flashing it, I assume root would just be a regular part of the system, and an OTA update wouldn't affect it. Odd...
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That is because your normal access is only admin not root. So it has almost full rights, but when you add root access it is mostlikely a modification that you have to do, either by a command or flashing a file. But updating the OS will revoke the root since method you used becomes unavailable for next update which is why it can reset your changes backwards so your root privileges becomes lost and your access is back to default as before. But I wouldn't touch bootloader since doing that also bricks KNOX so features for KNOX will become permanently disabled since it requires a working Knox chip to work, but since KNOX chip fuse becomes blown when bootloader is unlocked then feature like Samsung pass, samsung secret folder and such will no longer work.
Jake.S said:
That is because your normal access is only admin not root. So it has almost full rights, but when you add root access it is mostlikely a modification that you have to do, either by a command or flashing a file. But updating the OS will revoke the root since method you used becomes unavailable for next update which is why it can reset your changes backwards so your root privileges becomes lost and your access is back to default as before. But I wouldn't touch bootloader since doing that also bricks KNOX so features for KNOX will become permanently disabled since it requires a working Knox chip to work, but since KNOX chip fuse becomes blown when bootloader is unlocked then feature like Samsung pass, samsung secret folder and such will no longer work.
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Turns out you were absolutely correct. I downloaded and attempted to install the update, it booted into the stock recovery and got to 25% before erroring out. It booted back into Android and said that the update failed. Thankfully, nothing ended up getting removed or corrupted, and I still have root access. Guess I gotta stick to finding the latest firmware and patching it. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯