Debranding? - Samsung Galaxy S10 Questions & Answers

So, i'm getting a exynos s10 from a mobile carrier and its most likely to be branded and loaded with some bloat.
I've debranded my s7 edge but since rooting is slightly different in this model, i wonder if i need extra steps on debranding or if i can just download odin and flash the whole rom just like the s7?

You can just download a non carrier based firmware and flash that.

I debranded my O2 S10 just a few days ago. No rooting needed, just download the noncarrier version of firmware and flash it. Easily done in a while with no skill whatsoever.

Related

Non T-Mobile SM-920T ?

I've just purchased a new S6 with the same model number as the T-Mobile version but it's unlocked and unbranded. Does anyone else have this phone and when do you think it may get marshmallow?
www.bestbuy.com/site/samsung-galaxy-s6-4g-with-32gb-memory-cell-phone-unlocked-black/4667100.p?id=1219794340074&skuId=4667100
You will get the update anyday now. It would be awsome if you could get a system dump for that firmware youre running. we could reallydo some development witg that and be able to get marshmallow along with you.
I have the same phone, also purchased unlocked though Best Buy. Will we be getting a separate software update from T-Mobile? Once released, how can I get that system dump? I can see how it would be usefull for development. Haven't rooted because I don't want to trip knox and loose warranty. Impatiently waiting on the update. Didn't know if I had to wait for the T-Mobile update to roll out first.
To my knowledge our phone is just a different CSC under the G920T variant... For G920F, which is the international version, mostly European, different CSCs mean different regions and/or carriers. Likewise, for G920T, there are two CSCs: TMO (which is T-Mobile) and XAR (which is our bloatware-free version). That said, if the TMO firmware comes out first, we'll be able to flash it manually with Odin but we'll not receive OTA. The downside is that we'll have to bear with the bloatware until we flash back to the XAR Marshmallow after it's released. As for Knox, as long as we're flashing official stock firmwares from Samsung Knox won't be tripped.

Unlocked Samsung Stock Firmware on AT&T Note 8 Questions

Hey All -
As a newbie I'd like to get some clarity as it's a little unclear to me still....I almost purchased a Note 8 from my carrier (AT&T) and
prefer to remove all the bloat so I wanted to get more details before finalizing my purchase. So the phone would be a Snapdragon CPU and carrier locked - which isn't a big deal for me. My goal would be to install pure Samsung firmware and be able to receive updates from Samsung without waiting for the carrier and remove the bloat.
Btw, I did a forum search and found something close but it was a Verizon related topic.
So my questions:
1) Is this possible without tripping knox?
2) What is lost between stock firmware and carrier firmware other than bloat? I'm assuming all the bands and network features keep working as before.
I'm also assuming since the IMEI number is an ATT branded phone Wi-Fi Calling and VoLTE is not lost or is CSC uploading still required with stock firmware?
Thanks!
mark1210a said:
Hey All -
As a newbie I'd like to get some clarity as it's a little unclear to me still....I almost purchased a Note 8 from my carrier (AT&T) and
prefer to remove all the bloat so I wanted to get more details before finalizing my purchase. So the phone would be a Snapdragon CPU and carrier locked - which isn't a big deal for me. My goal would be to install pure Samsung firmware and be able to receive updates from Samsung without waiting for the carrier and remove the bloat.
Btw, I did a forum search and found something close but it was a Verizon related topic.
So my questions:
1) Is this possible without tripping knox?
2) What is lost between stock firmware and carrier firmware other than bloat? I'm assuming all the bands and network features keep working as before.
I'm also assuming since the IMEI number is an ATT branded phone Wi-Fi Calling and VoLTE is not lost or is CSC uploading still required with stock firmware?
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There isn't much bloat on them anymore these days. Yes, anything you do will prompt Knox. You can disable almost any app now without rooting the phone, so no root is needed at all for that purpose. Just disable it in settings, or if not allowed on a specific app to do that, just install "BK Disabler" from the play store.
- R. Kruse Ludington
Galaxy Note 8
I've flashed the stock rom through Odin and fairly certain it didn't trip Knox or any issues that aspect since my company verifies Knox compliance.
With the stock rom I get my hotspot through AT&T which I couldn't on the AT&T rom, I just used the tutorial on here to flash it with no problems. I will get the updates for the U1 when it gets pushed down and have got security updates just fine. You can disable a lot of apps already though on AT&T stock
Oh and you don't lose anything other than the AT&T pre installed garbage that nobody really uses
**edit just checked and yes I'm 0x0 on Knox so it didn't trip it
Sent from my SM-N950U1 using Tapatalk
Yes you absolutely can install the unlocked 950U1 firmware on your ATT device. All the 950U devices are identical and the firmware is 100% interchangeable and will NOT trip KNOX. I'm running for T-Mobile firmware on a Verizon Note8 right now. KNOX is only tripped when you flash unofficial firmware, such as custom recovery and ROM.
There's really not much of a reason to do it though. Theres very little bloat on these, and you will lose VoLTE and WiFi calling by flashing the unlocked firmware.
But if you still want to flash the unlocked firmware, follow this post:
https://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-note-8/how-to/guide-sm-n950u-u1-t3685884
Did you guys who flashed stock firmware get stuck with the 80% battery issue? Cause I thought about it just to get Oreo early but I don't want to lose 20% of my battery. Also have any of you tried to flash a regular update to a carrier note 8 using the update from SD card option?
ZerosMadness said:
Did you guys who flashed stock firmware get stuck with the 80% battery issue? Cause I thought about it just to get Oreo early but I don't want to lose 20% of my battery. Also have any of you tried to flash a regular update to a carrier note 8 using the update from SD card option?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You only lose battery capacity if your root a snapdragon. Not just by flashing official firmwares.
Gizmoe said:
You only lose battery capacity if your root a snapdragon. Not just by flashing official firmwares.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Okay I was confused. Thanks for clearing that up for me. I hope they find a fix for that eventually.
Don't hold your breath!

Note 9 T-mobile possible to get rid of bootlogo?

Well i have a Note 9 128gb T-mobile unlocked N960U that is carrier unlocked
Is it possible to reflash it with clean firmware from samsung for n960u so i can get rid of The T-mobile logo every time i start the mobile ?
i don't want to try to root i know it's not possible just want original firmware if it works hope someone can answer
LennartL said:
Well i have a Note 9 128gb T-mobile unlocked N960U that is carrier unlocked
Is it possible to reflash it with clean firmware from samsung for n960u so i can get rid of The T-mobile logo every time i start the mobile ?
i don't want to try to root i know it's not possible just want original firmware if it works hope someone can answer
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can flash it using modded or patched ODIN to the U1 non-carrier firmware to get rid of the T-Mobile boot animation. It will also remove the T-Mobile video calling dialer though but WiFi Calling will still work.
What he said^^^ flash the U1 firmware. Note your device will be wiped.
Sent from my SM-N960F using Tapatalk
Well that doesn't matter to me. Have never used it yet so it doesn't matter if I wipe it. But will I get regular updates if I flash it with u1 firmware ?
And which firmware should I select it exists a few on this page or do I need to take the tmb one for T-Mobile but I'm not using T-Mobile and will probably never do
Here is the page samsung-updates.com/device/?id=SM-N960U1
LennartL said:
Well that doesn't matter to me. Have never used it yet so it doesn't matter if I wipe it. But will I get regular updates if I flash it with u1 firmware ?
And which firmware should I select it exists a few on this page or do I need to take the tmb one for T-Mobile but I'm not using T-Mobile and will probably never do
Here is the page samsung-updates.com/device/?id=SM-N960U1
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do not use the one labeled TMB U1. That firmware isn't official and could potentially break OTA's. You want to use the U1 XAA with the same version or newer bootloader than what your device currently has. The the first character of the last five characters of the build number contains your bootloader version. I don't believe the Note 9 has a v2 bootloader yet, but I have only really followed ATT U firmware, U1 firmware, and TMB U firmware. When you flash, do not use the HOME_CSC! remember your device will be wiped and factor reset so back up what you want before starting.
I'm running the TMB U1 firmware. No bloat or boot screens and I get OTAs around the same time as the U t mobile devices. I honestly dont see a real difference from the XAA u1 vs the TMB U1 firmware to be honest
Well that's it's not a problem haven't started to use the device yet. But it's not any risk that I'm brick my phone when flashing with u1 firmware.
One thing I noticed it exists unbranded firmware what I can see on Samsung's page for n960U can I not use that firmware ?
But I should not flash home_csc ? I'm guessing that contains special files for u1 ?
LennartL said:
Well that's it's not a problem haven't started to use the device yet. But it's not any risk that I'm brick my phone when flashing with u1 firmware.
One thing I noticed it exists unbranded firmware what I can see on Samsung's page for n960U can I not use that firmware ?
But I should not flash home_csc ? I'm guessing that contains special files for u1 ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The non-branded firmware is the U1. The reason the modded or patched ODIN is needed is to skip the check that you are flashing the same carrier firmware. The hardware for the US and Canadian models are exactly the same. The firmware on Sansung's page isn't meant for flashing in ODIN.
Although I have only seen one user experience issues with the TMB U1, which for some reason, gave him a modded software warning when they tried to check for updates. I would stick to using the actual non-carrier specific firmware, which has T-Mobile's WiFi Calling and still has band 71 enabled.
ok so the SM-N960U is carrier branded and the SM-N960U version ubranded i thought it was some more technical difference between the different models.
Well the phone i have is new just carrierd unlocked but it's coming from t-mobile but i'm not going to use it in usa right now. So unless i need to have t-mobile's software i gladly skip it and use unbranded and that is the "U1 XAA" i need to use ?
LennartL said:
ok so the SM-N960U is carrier branded and the SM-N960U version ubranded i thought it was some more technical difference between the different models.
Well the phone i have is new just carrierd unlocked but it's coming from t-mobile but i'm not going to use it in usa right now. So unless i need to have t-mobile's software i gladly skip it and use unbranded and that is the "U1 XAA" i need to use ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The U is carrier specific, the U1 is a generic non-carrier specific firmware that should work with most US carriers, and the W is the Canadian equivalent of the U1. The hardware for all three is exactly the same.
The unbranded and non-carrier specific firmware does have its advantages. No carrier bloat, it works well with T-Mobile, and if you switch carriers, the phone will reconfigure for the SIM inserted. The only time the U firmware is recommended is if you need a specific feature for a particular carrier that isn't available in the U1 firmware. Video Calling for T-Mobile, WiFi Calling on AT&T, and so on.
jcsww said:
The U is carrier specific, the U1 is a generic non-carrier specific firmware that should work with most US carriers, and the W is the Canadian equivalent of the U1. The hardware for all three is exactly the same.
The unbranded and non-carrier specific firmware does have its advantages. No carrier bloat, it works well with T-Mobile, and if you switch carriers, the phone will reconfigure for the SIM inserted. The only time the U firmware is recommended is if you need a specific feature for a particular carrier that isn't available in the U1 firmware. Video Calling for T-Mobile, WiFi Calling on AT&T, and so on.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok so with other words i can use the unbranded XAA firmware and keep OTA now. But if i ever want to use T-mobile or AT&T further on i just install corresponding firmware for that carrier right ?
LennartL said:
Ok so with other words i can use the unbranded XAA firmware and keep OTA now. But if i ever want to use T-mobile or AT&T further on i just install corresponding firmware for that carrier right ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's correct! The U1 non-carrier firmware is like a stepping stone, If you want to move from one U firmware to one from a different carrier, you need to flash to U1 first and always make sure you never use the HOME_CSC. The HOME_CSC doesn't wipe the device, which can cause a number of issues when converting. Being on the U1 though, makes it very easy to go back to any U firmware because you are already at the point where you could just straight flash to any U or W firmware as long as the bootloader version is the same or newer than what your device has at that time.
ok thanks for all advice
just to be curious because i don't know but wish to learn. Why should u never flash hone_csc and what does that file do?
LennartL said:
ok thanks for all advice
just to be curious because i don't know but wish to learn. Why should u never flash hone_csc and what does that file do?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The HOME_CSC prevents wiping while flashing. If you skip the wiping part, you risk having no data, no potential cellular connectivity, no different unlocked bands for the firmware you are flashing to, etc. You pretty much put yourself in a position where you have to flash again, but actually use the other CSC to ensure your device works properly.
Any unlocked USA note 9s willing to upload there modem files somewhere wanna try and make a sim unlock
Help on Flashing Tmobile firmware on Unlocked Note 9
jcsww said:
The U is carrier specific, the U1 is a generic non-carrier specific firmware that should work with most US carriers, and the W is the Canadian equivalent of the U1. The hardware for all three is exactly the same.
The unbranded and non-carrier specific firmware does have its advantages. No carrier bloat, it works well with T-Mobile, and if you switch carriers, the phone will reconfigure for the SIM inserted. The only time the U firmware is recommended is if you need a specific feature for a particular carrier that isn't available in the U1 firmware. Video Calling for T-Mobile, WiFi Calling on AT&T, and so on.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello all. I am new to this community. I have read several of the posts that mention that the US Snapdragon variant of the Note 9 cannot be flashed with TWRP or custom roms. However I see that based on this post regarding T-Mobile that the U1/ublocked variant can be flashed with any of the other U variants as long as the bootloader is the same. Does this mean that I can flash the T-Mobile firmware on my unlocked note 9? If so can anybody guide me on how to do this? I am trying to go back to having T-Mobile's built in multiline and voicemail functionality which I lost after going from the T-Mobile branded Note 8 to the unlocked Note 9. Thanks!
lguti46 said:
Hello all. I am new to this community. I have read several of the posts that mention that the US Snapdragon variant of the Note 9 cannot be flashed with TWRP or custom roms. However I see that based on this post regarding T-Mobile that the U1/ublocked variant can be flashed with any of the other U variants as long as the bootloader is the same. Does this mean that I can flash the T-Mobile firmware on my unlocked note 9? If so can anybody guide me on how to do this? I am trying to go back to having T-Mobile's built in multiline and voicemail functionality which I lost after going from the T-Mobile branded Note 8 to the unlocked Note 9. Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes you can. Use ODIN to flash the T-Mobile firmware. It's that simple. You don't need an unlocked bootloader or root. No it won't trigger Knox.
If you need detailed instructions, they have been posted in some of the firmware threads here, o you can go to the Note 8 forums and read through the carrier switching thread. Just follow the steps for flashing carrier firmware. The steps are all the same, you just make sure you're using the right firmware for your device.
Thank you so much! I was able to successfully flash to T-Mobile using the forum threads.
Hi there again i have Little bit trouble to locate the exat firm i need. The baseband my phone is using seems to be N960USQS1ARH6 i do understand i should use xaa but i dont find any baseband N960USQS1ARH6 xaa im litte bit lost can someone help please ?
LennartL said:
Hi there again i have Little bit trouble to locate the exat firm i need. The baseband my phone is using seems to be N960USQS1ARH6 i do understand i should use xaa but i dont find any baseband N960USQS1ARH6 xaa im litte bit lost can someone help please ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's because U1 XAA is on ARJ9. There won't be a U1 Firmware with an ARH6 build number.

How to get firmware to flash a Samsung SM-G973U1 (unlocked) to T-Mobile

I've seen a couple of threads about this here, but I'm confused about where I can get the firmware to flash an unlocked S10 (SM-G973U1) to T-Mobile firmware, and they've not really told me where to download the firmware that I need. One thread pointed at S10+ firmware, not useful to me, and the other didn't give any URL for downloading firmware.
Can anyone help me find the right firmware? I've used Odin before, and am fine with that. I also know that I have to have the right firmware for this to work *smile*.
Also, the firmware to flash back from T-Mobile to unlocked would be very useful, since I may want to change back to unlocked at some point. The reason that I want to flash T-Mobile firmware is since I'm still on the May 1 "monthly" Android security update on my unlocked S10. That doesn't make me happy, more than a quarter behind by this point...very disappointed.
Thanks!
There's a firmware thread here:
https://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s10/how-to/s10e-g973u-g973u1-firmware-links-t3905852
RogerSC said:
I've seen a couple of threads about this here, but I'm confused about where I can get the firmware to flash an unlocked S10 (SM-G973U1) to T-Mobile firmware, and they've not really told me where to download the firmware that I need. One thread pointed at S10+ firmware, not useful to me, and the other didn't give any URL for downloading firmware.
Can anyone help me find the right firmware? I've used Odin before, and am fine with that. I also know that I have to have the right firmware for this to work *smile*.
Also, the firmware to flash back from T-Mobile to unlocked would be very useful, since I may want to change back to unlocked at some point. The reason that I want to flash T-Mobile firmware is since I'm still on the May 1 "monthly" Android security update on my unlocked S10. That doesn't make me happy, more than a quarter behind by this point...very disappointed.
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If the phone is SIM unlocked, the Firmware you want is the USC or XAA firmware... That way it will switch carriers apps and bloatware when you change sim cards...
Search for samfirm on google....
Have Fun!!

Questions about flashing unlocked firmware to my G973U

Please excuse any mistakes I make as this was my first time flashing firmware. So anyway, I have a Verizon S10. I got tired of Verizon’s bloat and all the missing stock features so I flashed the Unlocked Firmware from Sammobile. As I had no prior experience, I did research and came to download the latest U1 firmware with the XAA CSC. I know there’s a U1 version with the Verizon CSC, but I decided to use the XAA version because I knew it was universal. Now I could be totally wrong on this, but isn’t at least one of the three CSCs supposed to be XAA? All mine are still VZW, just like it was on the original carrier fw. I even tried taking the Sim out and reflashing, but no luck. The phone is still locked to Verizon, could that be why? The problem is, can I still get OTA updates? How can I stay on unlocked firmware and get them? Did I mess up and should’ve flashed the VZW U1 fw? Is this fw all vzw cscs too and I just messed up somewhere else? I have the pda of the xaa version with the csc of the vzw version. I don’t know what to do. I would’ve loved to install the one ui beta now that I’m in unlocked fw, but I can’t because my active csc is version, who blocked it
cggamer1 said:
Please excuse any mistakes I make as this was my first time flashing firmware. So anyway, I have a Verizon S10. I got tired of Verizon’s bloat and all the missing stock features so I flashed the Unlocked Firmware from Sammobile. As I had no prior experience, I did research and came to download the latest U1 firmware with the XAA CSC. I know there’s a U1 version with the Verizon CSC, but I decided to use the XAA version because I knew it was universal. Now I could be totally wrong on this, but isn’t at least one of the three CSCs supposed to be XAA? All mine are still VZW, just like it was on the original carrier fw. I even tried taking the Sim out and reflashing, but no luck. The phone is still locked to Verizon, could that be why? The problem is, can I still get OTA updates? How can I stay on unlocked firmware and get them? Did I mess up and should’ve flashed the VZW U1 fw? Is this fw all vzw cscs too and I just messed up somewhere else? I have the pda of the xaa version with the csc of the vzw version. I don’t know what to do. I would’ve loved to install the one ui beta now that I’m in unlocked fw, but I can’t because my active csc is version, who blocked it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Some answers to your questions:
1. I don't know, it should flash a data partition that's for the unlocked firmware. I remember reading that somewhere here in the forums.
2. I think Verizon phones are more locked than the others, but I could be wrong.
3. You can get the OTA updates on the unlocked firmware, you just have to have a SIM inserted.
4. You may have, do a factory reset in recovery and try flashing this with that special version of ODIN:
https://www.androidfilehost.com/?fid=1899786940962609128
5. U and U1 firmware are different, sort of. U is carrier and U1 is unlocked.

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