What does OTA package checks for ? - Moto G4 Plus Questions & Answers

Hi guys,
It may be a silly Question for this Device , let me tell you my device specs :
Device : G4 Plus XT1643(India)
Rom : Stock (Soak NPJ75.25.2)
NON-Root and Locked Bootloader
What does the OTA.zip checks for ?
Boot image version (may b bootloader version) or recovery version ?
If its all about bootloader, then it needs to b unlocked voiding warranty.
But If its about Recovery..........Changing the Recovery to older version might help updating from Old Soak to New Official Build.
So, Did any one try flashing an older recovery thru fastboot on locked bootloader ? or Can we if its possible ?
ex: Replacing 7.0 recovery with last 6.0 build recovery. I do this for my ZenFone 5 just to avoid updating from very old builds.
Is this possible on G4 Plus ? without warranty Void issues....if possible.
p.s: NPJ93-11 gives Status 7 error on NPJ.75-2.

I tried to flash old recovery but it fails due to higher bootloader version.

Same question. Experts please advise and find a solution to get official update without unlocking the bootloader.

praveenbda said:
Same question. Experts please advise and find a solution to get official update without unlocking the bootloader.
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Click to collapse
You don't need to unlock your bootloader to get an OTA. Its only to let you mess with your recovery and enable flashing henceforth.
However, you'll need to unlock your bootloader to flash/boot a custom recovery and subsequently flash a ROM.
But if you want an OTA, your system (including bootloader, recovery, system, etc) needs to be untouched.
If you've already upgraded to a soak test, remember - you would've overwritten your MM bootloader and recovery with an N version one (from the Soak you sideloaded)
Again, all major official updates (except small incremental one like patches maybe) look for a previous version of the OS (in our case - Stock MM)
And yes, as long you're on MM and not upgraded to N soak ever, once you unlock your BL, you can relock it using methods stated in the guide thread. Just that it voids your warranty (as the request code is generated by Lenovo/Moto, essentially letting you unlock) But if you've flashed the N Soak - you can't downgrade your bootloader just yet ( you'll get a Preflash Validation error)
Because a system update looks the stock, untouched firmware (Stock MM)
That's why you won't be able to sideload the Official N update if you're already on a soak test update - because it doesn't have the MM bootloader and recovery etc files it's looking for.
Sent from my Moto G4 Plus using Tapatalk

Related

Bootloader question

Hello Zenfone2 community,
I'm still a little bit noob in the android world, so there are a few things that are a bit abstract to me, so, let me start to explain why i'm here.
Earlier this month i rooted my device, unlock BL (unofficially) and installed Cm13, but i found a dead pixel, so i want to send i'm to warranty.
So, today i started the proccess backwards, first i reverted to stock, then i flashed blacksplashscreen, then i "uninstalled" twrp, and finally i flashed raw (with asus flash tool) then flashed recovery, droidboot and boot and adb sideload .97.
My question is, did i really relock bootloader ?? How do i test if my bootloader is unlocked ?
I already updated, (placed the zip into internal storage) and it showed that i had a new update ? Does this mean i have ota working ?
Cumps
Bootloader once unlocked remains unlocked unless u decide to update to MM Beta
Unofficial bootloader unlock = will get ota updates
Official bootloader unlock = ota not allowed(u can update manually)
To check if ur bootloader is locked or not, just flash a custom recovery & boot into it, if it boots ur bootloader is unlocked if not its locked simple
Plz move ur thread to Q&A Section or ask a Mod to do it for u
so i heard that when you flash raw file , your bootloader will locked. you can try that then take your phone to asus service center to claim warranty.
Send ior to repair, they will not notice that you unlocked
yakub234go said:
Bootloader once unlocked remains unlocked unless u decide to update to MM Beta
Unofficial bootloader unlock = will get ota updates
Official bootloader unlock = ota not allowed(u can update manually)
To check if ur bootloader is locked or not, just flash a custom recovery & boot into it, if it boots ur bootloader is unlocked if not its locked simple
Plz move ur thread to Q&A Section or ask a Mod to do it for u
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If I used the official unlocker and update to MM beta will I get OTA updates?
Nope they will have ur serial no & u will be barred from getting ota

[Q] Downgrade to MM from official N

Hi!
I have got two G4, one with Marshmallow and one with Nougat.
The one on N (offical N, updated by OTA and did a full wipe) has lots of problems with BT, and I want to downgrade it to MM.
I have read lots of posts, here and everywhere else, and saw some vids about the procedure. But I still have some doubts about the proccess:
* Most of the procedures I have read relate to downgrade from N leak to MM in order to upgrade to official N. I have seen someone ask if the same procedure could be used to downgrade from offical N, but no answer. Can I use the same procedure to downgrade from official N?
* Some say you have to unlock the bootloader, others make no mention of it. Some say you should not write gpt.bin and bootloader from the MM ROM as N udated them and it is not possible to downgrade them. Do I have to unlock the bootloader before using fastboot to write the MM ROM? Should I avoid writing gpt.bin and bootloader?
I don't mind voiding the phone warranty, and I don't mind not being able to OTA update future versions.
Thank you very much.
Regards.
If you have bootloader locked, you can't overwritte nothing including system, boot, bootloader and gpt. I tried with my Moto G4 and i can't go back from official N to official MM through fastboot
Thank you.
So I understand I have to unlock the bootloader.
Now I just need to make sure if I should overwrite gpt and bootloader with MM versions (coming from stock N) or not.
Regards.
CalvinH said:
Thank you.
So I understand I have to unlock the bootloader.
Now I just need to make sure if I should overwrite gpt and bootloader with MM versions (coming from stock N) or not.
Regards.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
A couple of weeks ago, I read something about it. I think you should not overwrite the bootloader and recovery but I do not remember very well.
But if you have your bootloader unlocked just flash (or boot into) a custom recovery and make a backup of everything and after play along a while
lerg96 said:
A couple of weeks ago, I read something about it. I think you should not overwrite the bootloader and recovery but I do not remember very well.
But if you have your bootloader unlocked just flash (or boot into) a custom recovery and make a backup of everything and after play along a while
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you.
Based on the overwhelming popularity of this thread (thanks lerg96!) I have decided to come back and tell how it went.
I had a Moto G4 with official Nougat. I wanted to downgrade it to MM.
The first problem is that I didn't find the .63 ROM (last MM one) for my device (XT1622). I found the 23.5 version (previous one), and the .63 version for the XT1624. Since 22 and 24 differ on LTE bands and so, I decided to use the older but right ROM.
First attempt: downgrade without unlocking bootloader... NO WAY.
Second attempt: unlock bootloader + downgrade without overwriting bootloader and gpt.bin. :good::good:
I got the boot warning message, but everything went ok and my BT problems are gone. I got the .63 OTA notification, but didn't installed it as I read scary histories about doing it.
Regards!
now that your bootloader is unlocked, install TWRP and make a backup of your system. I used TWRP to restore my OS. I went from Nougat back to MM, I am sure you can go the other way around too.
also, the fastboot method for reload the os seems to work well on phones with unlocked bootloaders.

Not receiving system updates

Hello everyone, I stumbled upon this problem but I can't find much useful information to solve this: I rooted my Moto G4 Plus and after some time I decided to unroot and I flashed stock rom in it with unlocked bootloader. After that I'm stuck at Marshmallow and can't receive Nougat update. Everything was fine before I rooted and flashed stock rom in it with unlocked bootloader but now it doesn't seem to update. My model number is XT1642. How can I solve this problem and receive OTA updates? I also want to relock my bootloader. So to sum it all up: I want my device to be just as after I bought so to speak.
Depending on what Marshmallow ROM you flashed, it might have not been the correct version for your software channel, and thus your device won't have received an OTA (since the server is expecting a different build to the one you have).
If you wish to update to Nougat and re-lock your bootloader, you may wish to flash the June 2017 fastboot ROM, which should also re-lock your bootloader if you use the commands mentioned. Be aware that re-locking your device may wipe your data, back up and keep your data off your device until you're done.
https://forum.xda-developers.com/moto-g4-plus/how-to/stock-rom-npjs25-93-14-4-march-1-t3608138 for the June fastboot ROM. If at a later date you choose to unlock your bootloader again, do not downgrade your device to an older stock ROM from the June update.

Help regarding flashing stock and ota

Hello!
I've the Indian variant of the Moto G5 Plus (XT1686), software channel: Retin. I have unlocked the device and flashed a custom ROM. I want to return to stock now but I have a few questions.
1) Where can I get the latest factory image for my XT1686?
2) Which one should I flash on my device amongst AMZ, RETLA & RETAIL?
3) I was on the November security patch before I unlocked and rooted. Should I flash stock, will my device continue receiving ota updates that are released for India?
4) If I flash the firmware that you guys will link me to here, will it hard brick my device when I try for ota update in the future? I read somewhere about mismatch in the partition table will lead to 9008/ some error and device won't go in bootloader mode and that you'll need blankfiles to revive your device and stuff.
Please tell me what to do to return to my complete stock image and to continue receiving ota updates safely on my XT1686, RETIN Software Channel?
1) To the best of my knowledge, this NPN25.137-92, Nov 2017 stock Motorola firmware, is the latest for retIN (retail India) devices, amongst other regions. https://forum.xda-developers.com/g5-plus/how-to/moto-g5-plus-patch-november-npn25-137-92-t3718976 It's been received by OTA to users, indicating it's been formally deployed in India and other regions too. Please verify this before flashing
Flash using the flashing instructions provided in this post: https://forum.xda-developers.com/g5-plus/how-to/solution-to-flash-stock-romfactory-t3691396 but using the above NPN25.137-92 ROM - the flashing instructions should apply to this ROM.
2)As you're on retail India, you want retail stock ROMs. AMZ are only for Amazon Prime devices (bootloader locked to Amazon, adverts on the lockscreen) and whilst you could flash retla (retail Latin America), it may cause problems for your device later down the line.
3)Provided you flash the correct stock firmware for your region, you should continue to receive OTA updates.
4)As this should be the same firmware as you had previously, you should not hard brick when receiving OTA updates in the future. Users appeared to commonly hard brick when they attempted to flash stock Motorola firmware older than the stock firmware they had (custom ROMs don't appear to matter here), then attempted to use OTA updates. You cannot downgrade bootloaders, thus you have a mismatched bootloader and system - your new bootloader and your downgraded system - so using an OTA update would flash older bootloader files. As OTA updates do not have the same checks as fastboot for bootloaders, that would corrupt your newer bootloader and hard brick your device. The OTA updates don't appear designed to consider downgraded devices, i.e. newer bootloaders but older stock systems, hence why Motorola likely warns you that whatever happens when unlocking the bootloader is the user's responsibility. If you were in that situation, then flashing fastboot ROMs would be the safest way to update.
However, as you're being conscientious enough to flash the same or latest firmware, then this should not occur. To summarise, hard bricks only appear to occur when downgrading/cross flashing stock firmware and then taking OTA updates when you previously had newer/different stock firmware on your device.
If you want to be truly sure this is the right firmware to revert back to stock to, then I would like to see your getvar info before proceeding:
1)Boot your device to the bootloader, connect to your computer via USB.
2)In the ADB terminal, type 'fastboot getvar all' without quotes and press Enter.
3)Copy the output to a post here. This output contains device variables including what the last stock firmware was on your device, which will be helpful in verifying the correct firmware for you. You may wish to remove IMEI from the output before posting.
Guys i unlocked the bootloader of NPN 25.137-92 indian retin variant with nov 1 patch. I unlocked the bootloader and rooted the phone with SU, only problem is that cam stops working. Then i installed Elemental X kernel 2.02 as a workround to get the cam working which went ok . But i want to go back to the stock kernel, i dont want to flash whole rom . Is their a way i get info or download link for the stock kernel, please reply. Is it possible that i can just flash the kernel.
Stifmeister11 said:
Guys i unlocked the bootloader of NPN 25.137-92 indian retin variant with nov 1 patch. I unlocked the bootloader and rooted the phone with SU, only problem is that cam stops working. Then i installed Elemental X kernel 2.02 as a workround to get the cam working which went ok . But i want to go back to the stock kernel, i dont want to flash whole rom . Is their a way i get info or download link for the stock kernel, please reply. Is it possible that i can just flash the kernel.
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Answered on your post, please check

Unlocked bootloader and OTA updates

Will i recive OTA update if i unlock the bootloader?
Androidtroll said:
Will i recive OTA update if i unlock the bootloader?
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Click to collapse
Yes. Just unlocking the bootloader still allows everything to work normally, though you can't install otas if you mounted or modified /system and /oem partitions, or have twrp recovery.
Otherwise your phone should still function as if it weren't unlocked.
In addition to the above reply - if you do modify your system and want to flash back to stock firmware, please check if you can download the correct firmware for your device. I see from your history you have a retEU device, so the latest series of firmwares would be the NPNS25.137-93 series (with NPNS25.137-93-10 being the April 2018 security patch). I'd suggest checking to see if there is a stock ROM matching your current build before you unlock the bootloader (either at https://mirrors.lolinet.com/firmware/moto/potter/official/RETAIL/ or https://firmware.center/firmware/Motorola/Moto G5 Plus/Stock/ or https://androidfilehost.com/?a=show&w=files&flid=171014 ) though it seems the latest firmware that's been leaked is NPNS25.137-93-4 (the Jan 2018 security patch build). Just as a headsup, firmware.center has a cryptominer that could keep your CPU at 100 % if you have their page open.
If you download and flash the NPNS25.137-92-10 firmware, which is the April 2018 security patch for Brazil/India devices, you may be able to re-lock your bootloader and get back to full stock, but you may not be able to receive OTA updates (as the NPNS25.137-92 series of updates do not appear to be deployed to the retEU channel), so be careful which firmware you flash.
You can still unlock your bootloader without having the latest firmware to hand, but until the firmware matching your stock firmware before you unlocked or newer is available, you may not be able to re-lock your device. You may be able to flash older stock firmware for EU devices, but please do not use OTA updates if you flash older stock firmware, else you may hard brick your device.
Good luck whichever way you decide.
bazinga137 said:
Yes. Just unlocking the bootloader still allows everything to work normally, though you can't install otas if you mounted or modified /system and /oem partitions, or have twrp recovery.
Otherwise, your phone should still function as if it weren't unlocked.
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Click to collapse
Yes the Same thing Happened
I had TWRP recovery and I installed the Security Patch
my Phone Stuck at TWRP
but it has One solution
First, take the data backup of all in twrp at your sd card
now install any custom Rom
Reboot your device and check the rom is working or not
do reboot and go back to your Twrp and Restore the backup
I tested it and It worked perfectly
echo92 said:
In addition to the above reply - if you do modify your system and want to flash back to stock firmware, please check if you can download the correct firmware for your device. I see from your history you have a retEU device, so the latest series of firmwares would be the NPNS25.137-93 series (with NPNS25.137-93-10 being the April 2018 security patch). I'd suggest checking to see if there is a stock ROM matching your current build before you unlock the bootloader (either at https://mirrors.lolinet.com/firmware/moto/potter/official/RETAIL/ or https://firmware.center/firmware/Motorola/Moto G5 Plus/Stock/ or https://androidfilehost.com/?a=show&w=files&flid=171014 ) though it seems the latest firmware that's been leaked is NPNS25.137-93-4 (the Jan 2018 security patch build). Just as a headsup, firmware.center has a cryptominer that could keep your CPU at 100 % if you have their page open.
If you download and flash the NPNS25.137-92-10 firmware, which is the April 2018 security patch for Brazil/India devices, you may be able to re-lock your bootloader and get back to full stock, but you may not be able to receive OTA updates (as the NPNS25.137-92 series of updates do not appear to be deployed to the retEU channel), so be careful which firmware you flash.
You can still unlock your bootloader without having the latest firmware to hand, but until the firmware matching your stock firmware before you unlocked or newer is available, you may not be able to re-lock your device. You may be able to flash older stock firmware for EU devices, but please do not use OTA updates if you flash older stock firmware, else you may hard brick your device.
Good luck whichever way you decide.
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I would unlock the bootloader just to try to fix the camera (then edit the system files), not for flash twrp / custom rom
Androidtroll said:
I would unlock the bootloader just to try to fix the camera (then edit the system files), not for flash twrp / custom rom
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just unlocking the BL wouldn't be enough to edit system files. You'll need root privileges to do so and for that you will have to flash/boot TWRP to install a root app like magisk.
So all the useful information @echo92 posted above is significant for you.
Sent from my Moto G5 Plus using XDA Labs
Is there a way to take TWRP off or disable to still grab the security patches? Or is clean install/backup (like Rutambh mentioned) the only option? The reason I ask I needed TWRP to install camera mod, so it would be nice to still get those OTA's. I tried to just fastboot boot TWRP but it would just hang at it's logo. Flash was only option.
Frawgg said:
Is there a way to take TWRP off or disable to still grab the security patches? Or is clean install/backup (like Rutambh mentioned) the only option? The reason I ask I needed TWRP to install camera mod, so it would be nice to still get those OTA's. I tried to just fastboot boot TWRP but it would just hang at it's logo. Flash was only option.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If anything in /system or /oem is tampered like installing a camera mod (or just mounting system r/w) the only way to receive future OTA updates is flashing your current ROM incl. stock recovery via fastboot.
Sent from my Moto G5 Plus using XDA Labs

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