Database Users

Lenovo ideaTab S2109 ROOT?!

Is there a possibility for getting root and CWM recovery on this device? i have achieved to get into E3 Recovery, Bootloader mode, and some other test screen.. i posted pics and a description on how to do it. i would really like to get root on this device, i can can help anyone in all ways possible.. p.m. me.
Link to video is in a text file..

I wait for S2109 root too...
I want buy this devise, but without root its difficult use it...
I wait for S2109 root too...
you can find on support.lenovo.com Open Source Code:
fih_uboot_0618.tar.gz 10.7MB
kernel_s2109.tar 445MB

how to obtain these files
Hey how do I find the files u are talking about? Like a link?

nevermind got em
Maybe someone can start developing on the uboot.bin and the system image to obtain some root access

Hi, I own Medion Lifetab S9512, which is a branded version of the Lenovo S2109. I am not sure what Android version is the S2109 shipped with. If it is 4.0.3 you can root it using the method from http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1439429, as the method is confirmed to work with S9512. The other possibility, which works also for 4.0.4 version is to use CWM recovery. I have compiled a provisional version for S9512 and it should work also for S2109. Installation instructions and the download links are available at German site (don't worry, my posts are in English, posted under the nick of el_fuego ): http://www.android-hilfe.de/medion-lifetab-s9512-forum/278439-clockworkmod.html

WOO!!!
polakko said:
Hi, I own Medion Lifetab S9512, which is a branded version of the Lenovo S2109. I am not sure what Android version is the S2109 shipped with. If it is 4.0.3 you can root it using the method from http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1439429, as the method is confirmed to work with S9512. The other possibility, which works also for 4.0.4 version is to use CWM recovery. I have compiled a provisional version for S9512 and it should work also for S2109. Installation instructions and the download links are available at German site (don't worry, my posts are in English, posted under the nick of el_fuego ): http://www.android-hilfe.de/medion-lifetab-s9512-forum/278439-clockworkmod.html
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Awesome! thank you so much! the CWM root worked perfectly. However, the driver from the SDK folder wasn't recognized so I just used the Lenovo ADB driver that came shipped with the device and that worked just fine. Took me about 20 minutes to complete - that includes resolving the driver issue.

Niiice
OK, so the CWM method worked great on my S2109. I had the 4.0.4 update.
Two things:
1) The Lenovo drivers are at Lenovo's support website. Just search for "adb interface driver"
2) In step 3 of el_fuego's instructions, he says "add following to both the [Google.NTx86] and [Google.NTamd64] sections:", add this instead:
Code:
;Lenovo S2109
%SingleBootLoaderInterface% = USB_Install, USB\VID_17EF&PID_748B&REV_0100
%SingleAdbInterface% = USB_Install, USB\VID_17EF&PID_748C&MI_02
%CompositeAdbInterface% = USB_Install, USB\VID_17EF&PID_748C&REV_0216&MI_02
%SingleAdbInterface% = USB_Install, USB\VID_17EF&PID_748C&MI_00
%CompositeAdbInterface% = USB_Install, USB\VID_17EF&PID_748C&REV_0216&MI_00
%CompositeAdbInterface% = USB_Install, USB\VID_17EF&PID_74CC&REV_0216

How easy is this root? I'm not really familiar with the process and don't want to brick the device, which I'm concerned about as I don't quite understand the directions.

Lenovo s2109 rooted
@Jittery Jim: Rooting following polakko's (or el_fuego's) guide is straightforward. I did it yesterday and found no problems, you should only consider luckyjay's post regarding the adb driver.
@all: As I imply above the rooting process was free of problems and I have successfully installed CWM. However, after rooting I've run into some other problems:
First:
I rooted before performing a Software update (i.e. I still have the original version 4.0.3). I was planning to make a backup of the system after CWM installation and then update to 4.0.4.
When I try to backup the system using CWM everything works fine until the step "Backing up data..." I get the following messages:
- No /sdcard/.android_secure found. Skipping backup of applications on external storage.
- Backing up cache...
- No sd-ext found. Skipping backup of sd-ext.
- Generating md5 sum...
- Backup complete!
After backing up, I find in the internal sd card 4 files (in total 500K) and a directory called "blobs" with several subdirectories. In total about 2000 files. Is that the backup?
Furthermore, when I try to update to 4.0.4 using CWM, I get the following:
- Finding update package...
- Opening update package...
- Installing update...
- Mount partition
- Verifying current system...
- assert failed: apply_patch_check("/system/app/Launcher2.apk", .....
- E:Error in /sdcard/update.zip
- (Status 7)
- Installation aborted.
If I try to update from the normal system (i.e. outside CWM), CWM stops the update upon reboot.
Any ideas of how to update to 4.0.4 after CWM has been installed?
Second:
I have installed Super Manager from the market. When I try to enable ROOT, I get a message telling that ROOT functions are nor supported in my device. As it could be expected, Superuser does not inform that there is an app trying to get root priviliges, and Super Manager does not appear listed in the superuser's app list.
Third:
It appears that in newer Android builds, it is not possible for third party apps (apps that were not preloaded on the device, but you manually installed or downloaded from Android Market / Google Play) to gain write access to the external SD card. This was not an issue on Android 2.x but it became a problem on Android 3.x.
The implications of this (at least in my cse) is that I can not create folders, copy files or move apps to the external sd card. That even happens with the preinstalled ES Explorer. The solution to this problem is easy if root access is available. One just needs to add the line <group gid="media_rw" /> within the WRITE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE section of the file /system/etc/permissions/platform.xml.
I have pulled the file platform.xml with adb and updated it accordingly. However, I can not push it back because the directory /system/etc/permissions is read only. Any ideas of how to circumvent this problem?
Cheers,
Pisuke

pisuke2012 said:
@Jittery Jim: Rooting following polakko's (or el_fuego's) guide is straightforward. I did it yesterday and found no problems, you should only consider luckyjay's post regarding the adb driver.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, I'll see about giving it a shot.
The main reason I am interested is I would like to install a mod of Jelly Bean on the thing, but now I am not sure there is a build that the tablet will support. Anyone know?

Jittery Jim said:
Thanks, I'll see about giving it a shot.
The main reason I am interested is I would like to install a mod of Jelly Bean on the thing, but now I am not sure there is a build that the tablet will support. Anyone know?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well...Rooting seemed to go ok, but I got a little too ambitious and attempted to install a JB build that turns out wouldn't work. So I had to restore to factory as CWM wouldn't load my recent back-up. Not sure if I now need to re-root or not.
If there is no JB that will work on this I really have no point in rooting, I guess.

Jittery Jim said:
Well...Rooting seemed to go ok, but I got a little too ambitious and attempted to install a JB build that turns out wouldn't work. So I had to restore to factory as CWM wouldn't load my recent back-up. Not sure if I now need to re-root or not.
If there is no JB that will work on this I really have no point in rooting, I guess.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, one of the points of rooting would be being able to write the external SD card with apps which are not preinstalled. Or even move apps from internal to external SD card. The problem is that you need to modify the file platforms.xml (see my post above). Unfortunately, I haven't manage to do so yet. I can not remount the system directory with write permission.
Did the tab with JB boot at all? or you had to restore factory defaults with CWM?
Did you update to 4.0.4 before rooting?
Where did you found the JB mod? is there a project porting JB to the Medion s9215/ Lenovo S2109?
Cheers,
Pisuke

pisuke2012 said:
Well, one of the points of rooting would be being able to write the external SD card with apps which are not preinstalled. Or even move apps from internal to external SD card. The problem is that you need to modify the file platforms.xml (see my post above). Unfortunately, I haven't manage to do so yet. I can not remount the system directory with write permission.
Did the tab with JB boot at all? or you had to restore factory defaults with CWM?
Did you update to 4.0.4 before rooting?
Where did you found the JB mod? is there a project porting JB to the Medion s9215/ Lenovo S2109?
Cheers,
Pisuke
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was/am on 4.0.4 and was there before attempting root. Despite following the directions a root checker app continues to tell me I do not have root access.
The JB mod was a mistake on my part, not paying attention I grabbed one that was built for the Kindle Fire. I could not get it to install at all; not sure now if it was due to the mod or due to actually not having root.

Bricked my s2109
Jittery Jim said:
I was/am on 4.0.4 and was there before attempting root. Despite following the directions a root checker app continues to tell me I do not have root access.
The JB mod was a mistake on my part, not paying attention I grabbed one that was built for the Kindle Fire. I could not get it to install at all; not sure now if it was due to the mod or due to actually not having root.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, me like the previous people and Jittery Jim above, being too ambitius after rooting s2109 tried JB customs rom's. I did try to flash JB because I have installe CWM V.6.0.1.0 and did make a back up. I used that back-up to restore my ideatab s2109 and it worked fine!
Now after trying to flash JB, which failed :crying:, I can not make a succesfull nandroid back up using CWM . I tried advanced restore and I can restore succesfully : boot , system, cashe, sd-ext, but I can not restore data.
Now my S2109 just boot loop :crying:
Also, I did try the factory reset and it is not working. The same result as boot loop...
Any help available?:angel:

Jeje I have a reboot-loop too.
I've installed CWM and gained root access with this useful guide.
However, recently the s2109a tablet showed me a message about "Encryption Unsuccessful", and with a button to do a factory reset. The factory reset process fails everytime it starts.
I've read some guides regarding this problem, and in all of them mentions that I need the latest build of ICS for my device. Where can I find that build for the IdeaTab s2109? Or maybe we need to compile our own ICS?
At least CWM works, but I don't have a backup :S. Any help, too? Thank you in advance.
--
Nevermind, I solved the problem.
The /data partition was corrupted, and any attempt to format it via CWM wouldn't work (maybe it uses mkfs.ext2 which fails sometimes). So I've formatted the partition via ADB with mke2fs and then modified the filesystem with tune2fs to add ext4 support. Then the reboot worked.
In short I will upload my IdeaTab s2109a /system and NANDROID backup.

luckyjay said:
OK, so the CWM method worked great on my S2109. I had the 4.0.4 update.
Two things:
1) The Lenovo drivers are at Lenovo's support website. Just search for "adb interface driver"
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
All I can find is the adb interface driver for the thinkpad tablet, is that the same as the ideapad?
Also, I downloaded the SDK tools but there wasn't an option for Android 4.04 , just 4.0 (API 14) and 4.03 (API 15). Will it go ahead and install the revision for 4.04? (I assume that I'm supposed to install the SDK tools on my Windows 7 Pro 64bit device, though the instructions just say to download them.)
Thanks.
---------- Post added at 02:55 AM ---------- Previous post was at 02:05 AM ----------
polakko said:
Hi, I own Medion Lifetab S9512, which is a branded version of the Lenovo S2109. I am not sure what Android version is the S2109 shipped with. If it is 4.0.3 you can root it using the method from http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1439429, as the method is confirmed to work with S9512. The other possibility, which works also for 4.0.4 version is to use CWM recovery. I have compiled a provisional version for S9512 and it should work also for S2109. Installation instructions and the download links are available at German site (don't worry, my posts are in English, posted under the nick of el_fuego ): http://www.android-hilfe.de/medion-lifetab-s9512-forum/278439-clockworkmod.html
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I downloaded the Android-SDK that was on their site and installed it, but I'll be darned if I can find the files that your instructions say to modify. There's no such directory anywhere on my system. I finally used the exe to install SDK tools thinking that would place the files in the appropriate place but there aren't any. Perhaps the instructions are for downloading the German version? Could you provide a link to the appropriate download site?
Update: I have now downloaded and installed the ADT package and have run the SDK installation standalone (not sure why I need to do both of these steps, but what the heck). I found the correct inf file and did the modifications. However, I did get an error when installing the adb driver so assume I have to install a different fdriver. I have a win7Pro x64 box and am trying to root an S2109 with Android 4.04 installed. I've set the developer tools to enable debugging mode when connected to usb. But is there another adb driver I should download? Is there a driver located on the device itself that might be more appropriate? Again, couldn't find a lenovo s2109 tabet driver, just the thinkpad tablet driver, and it's files don't look right.
Update2: Took a few educated guesses and it worked! I installed the thinkpad tablet adb files after modifying them, by just overwriting the files that were already there. Worked perfectly when it came time to define the drivers and after that it even identified the right device name (rather than Blaze). The rest of it went pretty smoothly. Thanks for updating the instructions on the German site, that was helpful.

Anyone Making progress with CM on S2109?
Or happen to know where there is an active forum discussing the S2109. I also have an HP touchpad running CM9 and it performs much better than my 2109. I'd really love to get CM working on the 2109.

Did this get uploaded?
Otamay said:
Jeje I have a reboot-loop too.
I've installed CWM and gained root access with this useful guide.
However, recently the s2109a tablet showed me a message about "Encryption Unsuccessful", and with a button to do a factory reset. The factory reset process fails everytime it starts.
I've read some guides regarding this problem, and in all of them mentions that I need the latest build of ICS for my device. Where can I find that build for the IdeaTab s2109? Or maybe we need to compile our own ICS?
At least CWM works, but I don't have a backup :S. Any help, too? Thank you in advance.
--
Nevermind, I solved the problem.
The /data partition was corrupted, and any attempt to format it via CWM wouldn't work (maybe it uses mkfs.ext2 which fails sometimes). So I've formatted the partition via ADB with mke2fs and then modified the filesystem with tune2fs to add ext4 support. Then the reboot worked.
In short I will upload my IdeaTab s2109a /system and NANDROID backup.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm needing a clean copy of this. I bought a display unit that was monkeyed with and the rom is corrupt on it.
If you would be willing to share it with me please contact me at [email protected].
Thanks.

Has there been any work on getting a Jelly Bean Rom for this tablet? Would be nice if we could get CM10.2.

I am having the "Encryption Unsuccessful" message and cannot break through to a solution. I saw the post above where the user seems to have gotten past the error by formatting the data partition via ADB. Can someone tell me how that was done exactly? I am getting a device not found error when I try to use ADB (from the screen entitled (Encryption Unsuccessful) and I cannot for the of me (or google) figure out how to issue the mke2fs and tune2fs commands!
Thanks to anyone who can help!!!
<<<Nevermind, I solved the problem.
The /data partition was corrupted, and any attempt to format it via CWM wouldn't work (maybe it uses mkfs.ext2 which fails sometimes). So I've formatted the partition via ADB with mke2fs and then modified the filesystem with tune2fs to add ext4 support. Then the reboot worked.
In short I will upload my IdeaTab s2109a /system and NANDROID backup.

Root for ICS TPT! This time the REAL thing!

Hey guys, I have good news for you all. I sat down these days and tried all kinds of exploits and one, normally for the Asus Transformer Prime really works!
Debugfs automated root from sparkym3 provided me full root access to my device. Its simple to use and does all stuff automatic
So it enables Users of the Lenovo ThinkPad Tablet to finally root their device, even if you had it updated to ICS. As you all know, this was not possible before, but after I ran through almost all exploits running anywhere for ICS, I found this one working like a charm.
Have fun!
WARNING!
If you dont know the slightest bit of Windows or Linux shell and never did more than USE the device, be warned... If you kill it, its dead!

emuandco said:
Hey guys, I have good news for you all. I sat down these days and tried all kinds of exploits and one, normally for the Asus Transformer Prime really works!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I confirm it works perfectly. ICS TPT _A400_03_0070_0132_US :good:

God, this is so wonderful. CWM works, Koshu's CM10 JB Firmware, too. I LOVE THE DEVICE AGAIN!

Great news! Who might have thought that a working exploit is already out there?

This is wonderful news, a friend of mine recently lost root after he had to send his TPT in for repair and got a new board already updated to ICS.

FANTASTIC - worked on UK running OTA 3.5
Booyah! Thanks Emuandco for your diligence!

Thank you. Had lost hope of root for ICS. My TPT may finally be the tablet I paid for.

22 hours and 5 badly needed factory resets were worth it ^^

Thanks a lot :good: :good: :good:
I just rooted my ThinkPad (WE version). Works like a charm.

emuandco said:
Hey guys, I have good news for you all. I sat down these days and tried all kinds of exploits and one, normally for the Asus Transformer Prime really works!
Debugfs automated root from sparkym3 provided me full root access to my device. Its simple to use and does all stuff automatic
So it enables Users of the Lenovo ThinkPad Tablet to finally root their device, even if you had it updated to ICS. As you all know, this was not possible before, but after I ran through almost all exploits running anywhere for ICS, I found this one working like a charm.
Have fun!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
wonderful!!!
Thanks a lot!!!
Just tried and it worked!!!

after some trouble installing the adb drivers it worked fine on my WE tablet..finally, awesome, thanks

Amazing how much of a difference having root on this tablet makes.:good:

Stylus and Pressure Sensitivity
Been waiting a long time for this. I had one question that I can't seem to find the answer to. I use my TPT for sketching, allot, it's why I bought the tablet. I was wondering, if I root and then upgrade to Jelly Bean, will I lose stylus and pressure sensitivity?

Can someone post the steps to get this working starting from a clean OTA 4.0.3 rom? I just started messing with the TPT. What boot options are there? I see the hold-down-rotate-and-power boot which looks like what is needed for nvflash, but I can't seem to get any other bootloaders booting here. The debugfs script seems to want to talk to a recovery boot, yes? How do I boot into recovery mode?
Sorry for the TPT newbie questions. Is there a wiki someplace with all the boot modes and other info?

First, load this one: LINK
Its the Driver needed for the TPT to communicate with the PC over ADB protocol.
Go to your TPT Settings below inside Developer Options and check USB Debugging. Attach to your PC and hand the new unknown Device in Device manager the loaded ADB Driver. Then download and unzip everything from the Exploit into a directory; then run RootDebugfs.bat from that directory. This should do it for the rooting of the Stock Firmware. You can verify it by getting "Root Checker" from Play Store. If its green, next load this one: LINK and this one LINK. Its the ClockWorkMod aka modded Recovery Mode making it possible to flash unsigned Updates and making nice Full Backups and the JB Firmware itself.
Install this way from a windows console bein inside the folder where the adb.exe from the exploit is, Step one is making a backup of your previous Recovery Mode for future reverting if you want to do so. Step two is the actual install. You need to copy the loaded recovery.img from the CWM thread to the SD in your TPT, same goes for the JB ZIP File and maybe the 3G Patch for the 3G Card you might have.
BE SURE ALL FILES ARE COPIED ON THE SD AND ITS INSIDE THE TPT AGAIN!
Code:
adb shell
su
dd if=/dev/block/mmcblk0p1 of=/mnt/external_sd/orig_recovery.img
mount -o rw,remount /system
mv /system/etc/install-recovery.sh /system/etc/install-recovery.sh.backup
dd if=/mnt/external_sd/recovery.img of=/dev/block/mmcblk0p1
exit
exit
This should be enough. Now reboot and while the Lenovo mini Logo shows up, push Vol UP rapidly. This should boot up CWM6, our modded recover Mode. Here Vol UP is upwards, Vol DOWN is downwards and ON/OFF is Enter. First thing, DO A FULL BACKUP TO EXTERNAL SD in "backup and restore", "backup" !!! Then let it do a "wipe data/factory reset", then select "install zip from sdcard" and in there "choose zip from external sdcard". Choose the CM10 JB ZIP first, then the 3G Patch for your Card.
Reboot and youre done.

i have updated to the latest ota and i am not rooted.. A400_03_0070_0132_US
when i run it and choose option 1 the window automatically closes after like 2 seconds
am i supposed to use the asus drivers or what? if anyone can please help...

Somebody buy that man a beer.!!!!!!

Yankies77 - right click on RootDebugfs.bat and choose 'Run as Administrator'
You may get a different result.

pwstein said:
Yankies77 - right click on RootDebugfs.bat and choose 'Run as Administrator'
You may get a different result.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have already tried that doesn't work. when in cmd i write adb devices it shows the device is connected
i have put it to transfer files and MTP settings with unknown sources and debugging on ..when i run the .bat file
after the *demon started successfully* it suddenly closes after which nothing happens..what do you think is wrong?

Open a CMD prompt and run the bat file from there. then show us the output of the script please.
AAND be sure that theres not any adb.exe coming from the system path variable, like in system32 or syswow64. kill these

[Q] how to update yoga 1380f lollipop??

my tablet doesn't have ota update.
now android version is kitkat 4.4.2
what is how to update lollipop manually not system ota??
in bellow thread, lollipop update file is for yoga 10.
is there someone has file for yoga 13??
please help me..
have a nice day^^

I use this tablet and I think the short answer is...We wait.
While waiting you can root it and you can add exFAT drivers so the tablet will do more and be able to take large files and larger SD cards. Mines rooted and running a 128GB exFAT Micro SD with no issues. Yeah I'd like Lollipop but if no files on offer there's not much we can do. The 8" & 10" file may work but it's not something I'd be willing to try and no projector on those so chances are that would not work... not that I use it. The root I used is already having some success on Lollipop so as and when the ROM comes out, root shouldn't be a problem.

Confused and lost
zach181 said:
I use this tablet and I think the short answer is...We wait.
While waiting you can root it and you can add exFAT drivers so the tablet will do more and be able to take large files and larger SD cards. Mines rooted and running a 128GB exFAT Micro SD with no issues. Yeah I'd like Lollipop but if no files on offer there's not much we can do. The 8" & 10" file may work but it's not something I'd be willing to try and no projector on those so chances are that would not work... not that I use it. The root I used is already having some success on Lollipop so as and when the ROM comes out, root shouldn't be a problem.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you tell me what root exploit you used? I cant download most of the files that are spoken of here for the 1380F. (links no longer working) I could use the exFAT drivers.

willallen5 said:
Can you tell me what root exploit you used? I cant download most of the files that are spoken of here for the 1380F. (links no longer working) I could use the exFAT drivers.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I used the Temp CWM method covered here: I had to get other drivers from Intel.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/thi...guide-cwm-root-lenovo-yoga-2-8-10-13-t2998498
If your on Kitkat use the T3 trigger. It might be worth waiting though as Lollipop is due for release this week. From what I've read, you will need to remove root to upgrade then re-root the tablet.

Its out
http://forum.xda-developers.com/thinkpad-tablet/general/finally-lenovo-yoga-tab-2-pro-13-3-t3238823

[Discontinued] Linux on the Acer Iconia Tab A500, 2022 edition

UPDATE: I discontinued work for this tablet model, due to the lack of NEON support for the Nvidia Tegra 2 CPU used in this model. Any existing work I uploaded will remain online, but I won't be uploading anything new. I'm also considering selling my tablet to anyone interested.
I have become successful with getting postmarketOS to run on this tablet for the past 2 months, running mainline Linux (5.8.0 as of this writing). This allows us to use this tablet model for a little longer, without getting stuck on older Linux kernel versions.
postmarketOS is an experimental, touch-optimized and pre-configured Alpine Linux. It can be installed on smartphones and other devices.
About postmarketOS, from their homepage:
We are sick of not receiving updates shortly after buying new phones. Sick of the walled gardens deeply integrated into Android and iOS. That's why we are developing a sustainable, privacy and security focused free software mobile OS that is modeled after traditional Linux distributions. With privilege separation in mind. Let's keep our devices useful and safe until they physically break!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wiki page for this tablet: https://wiki.postmarketos.org/wiki/Acer_Iconia_Tab_A500_(acer-picasso)
Most features should work, except for the camera and 3D acceleration. Wi-Fi and Bluetooth work only if the non-free firmware is chosen to be installed.
How to install:
Follow the installation guide at https://wiki.postmarketos.org/wiki/Installation_guide, where theses specifics have to be specified when requested (this device is now in upstream pmaports):
Vendor: acer
Device code-name: picasso
Install non-free Wi-Fi + Bluetooth firmware: y
Only the mainline kernel is available for installation now, as downstream kernels no longer successfully compile. The user interface may be freely selected, as long as it is not one that requires 3D acceleration. To use KDE Plasma 5, add these lines to /etc/security/pam_env.conf:
Code:
QT_IM_MODULE=qtvirtualkeyboard
QT_QUICK_BACKEND=software
LIBGL_ALWAYS_SOFTWARE=1
Next, run the following commands in succession, after each one finishes, assuming the working directory contains the pmbootstrap.py script:
Code:
> ./pmbootstrap.py build device-acer-picasso
> ./pmbootstrap.py build firmware-acer-picasso
> ./pmbootstrap.py build linux-postmarketos-grate
From here on out, the generated chroot can be either installed to the eMMC, or a microSD card that must be inserted at or before boot time (the latter method allows for dual-booting Android already installed to the eMMC, although it can be directly accessed from the Linux system). The boot partition always has to be flashed to the eMMC in fastboot mode, as it is not possible to boot directly off of a microSD card.
If installing to the eMMC, run
Code:
> ./pmbootstrap.py install
> ./pmbootstrap.py flasher flash_kernel --partition secboot
> ./pmbootstrap.py flasher flash_rootfs
(optional) > ./pmbootstrap.py flasher boot
If installing to a microSD card, run
Code:
> ./pmbootstrap.py install --sdcard [path to the device for installation]
> ./pmbootstrap.py flasher flash_kernel --partition secboot
Depending on what user interface was chosen earlier in the installation process, there may not be enough packages installed to get a fully-loaded GUI. Besides the built-in Wi-Fi, it is also possible to use a USB ethernet adapter, or connect to another computer with a micro-USB cable and get RNDIS access that enables using SSH to the tablet.

Using another distro in place of postmarketOS
Advanced: Using another distro in place of postmarketOS
It is possible, if using the microSD card method, to use a different distro instead of postmarketOS, for those who want more software OOTB. I use the Ubuntu MATE rootfs from https://ubuntu-mate.org/ports/raspberry-pi/ as my daily driver, but other distros may take more effort to get working. Glibc limitations no longer apply, as the kernel version is no longer stuck at 3.1.0 (unlike with my earlier attempts). Carefully follow the instructions listed below, or the resulting system will become unbootable:
Use losetup or GNOME Disks (Utility) to mount the image in read-write mode.
Run GParted with the loop image and the target microSD card as the arguments.
Copy only the larger rootfs partition to the microSD card. Resize as necessary to get it to fit on the target microSD card.
Make sure on the target microSD card the boot partition is named 'pmOS_boot' and the rootfs 'pmOS_root'. The initramfs is hard-coded to search for partitions with these names by default for microSD cards. The loop image is not needed after this point, and can be safely detached.
On the copied rootfs, edit /etc/fstab to reflect the partition layout. To get access to Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, copy the kernel modules and firmware from the pmOS rootfs on the host system to the microSD rootfs.
Let me know if something wasn't understood from my instructions, or more clarification is needed. The instructions here can be somewhat overwhelming for those who have less Linux experience, but at least we're not forced to stay on old distro versions anymore.

Premade Linux images
I finally have managed to create a premade image to make the installation process easier for other people, especially for those who don't want to go through the hassle of compiling software. Every image I make can be found at https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1pMqaS5GaM6N9TAKlNGQZWCG8UTiRn4pK?usp=sharing.
For all images:
Kernel version: 5.15.0-rc4
Includes all compiled kernel modules from postmarketOS builds, plus nonfree firmware enabled.
The postmarketOS splash screen will appear, although the underlying OS differs based the image used.
Images available:
Ubuntu MATE 20.04.1 (ubuntu-mate-20.04.1-desktop-armhf+acer-picasso.img.xz) (size: 1.3 GiB):
Based on 'ubuntu-mate-20.04.1-desktop-armhf+raspi.img.xz', available from https://ubuntu-mate.org/ports/raspberry-pi/
Underlying OS is Ubuntu 20.04.1, which is supported for 5 years until April 2025. However, Ubuntu MATE officially has support only until April 2023.
Requires at least an 8 GB or greater size microSD card (the image is 5.6 GiB decompressed).
The setup screen will open upon the first successful boot, where a username and password have to be set.
Most extra packages for the Raspberry Pi family of computers have been removed, including the kernels.
The battery icon in MATE cannot be enabled graphically, as the preferences window has been patched to permanently hide such an option (as the Raspberry Pis lack native battery support); instead run the command
Code:
gsettings set org.mate.power-manager icon-policy 'always'
to manually enable it.
The PPA at https://launchpad.net/~grate-driver/+archive/ubuntu/ppa is pre-configured to be accessed. Most packages from this repository, including the opentegra driver, come preinstalled. They currently are enough to get 2D acceleration working, but not for 3D acceleration.
Except for what has been mentioned above, any packages shipped may have to be updated once an internet connection is established.
Arch Linux ARM (ArchLinuxARM-armv7-latest+acer-picasso.img.xz) (size: 576.6 MiB):
Based on 'ArchLinuxARM-armv7-latest.tar.gz', available from https://archlinuxarm.org/about/downloads
Rolling release distro often with the latest versions of most packages. More recent software can be acquired at a small expense of instability.
Requires at least an 2 GB or greater size microSD card (the image is 1.9 GiB decompressed). Larger size is recommended for installing more packages.
To login into system:
Login as the default user alarm with the password alarm.
The default root password is root.
Initially command-line only; contains no desktop environment installed.
Use any image writing program with these images. If such a program does not support XZ compression, the image needs to be extracted instead, and that has to be used.
I hope the images will proves useful to some people. Let me know if any issue pops up during usage of this image!

hey Worldblender,
I have flashed the premade file you shared to an sdcard but I'm unsure as to how to boot into it?

tehno said:
hey Worldblender,
I have flashed the premade file you shared to an sdcard but I'm unsure as to how to boot into it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The instructions were written assuming that the user has already flashed the custom bootloader as described here: https://forum.xda-developers.com/iconia-a500/a500-2019-2020-t4039271. Sorry for not making this clear anywhere, but that custom bootloader, along with flashing the boot image found in the first partition named "pmOS_boot" to either boot or secboot using fastboot, should get you set up to boot the SD card image.

Hi Worldblender,
Nice to see you work on this legacy device.
I definitely don't want to use android or can use it anymore on this tablet.
Nice to see some linux flavor being ported to it.
I had a look a the dedicated page on postmarketos.
Can you confirm the only GUI availbale as for now is the one called "Weston" ?
Or is MATE also working (from the screenshot) ?
Weston seem very basic, MATE more friendly.
How about performance ?
I'm considering reusing it to display a grafana dashboard in firefox for instance, maybe more if performance isn't too bad.

Worldblender said:
The instructions were written assuming that the user has already flashed the custom bootloader as described here: https://forum.xda-developers.com/iconia-a500/a500-2019-2020-t4039271. Sorry for not making this clear anywhere, but that custom bootloader, along with flashing the boot image found in the first partition named "pmOS_boot" to either boot or secboot using fastboot, should get you set up to boot the SD card image.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you Worldblender for your work in writing up instructions and compiling the image too.
However, I'm still a bit lost as to what to do with your Ubuntu Mate image.
I've gotten the TWRP bootloader installed onto my Acer A500 tablet, but whether I use Rufus to expand your image onto an SD card, or just copy the compressed image onto the SD card, the [ Install ] does not see any images inside of the drive. Am I supposed to decompress your image in Windows and use the 0.img and 1.img in place of the nvflash's boot.img and recovery.img?
While I can see the two partitions in Ubuntu, I'm equally lost as to what to do with them, and how to get it onto the tablet.

coluwyvurne said:
Thank you Worldblender for your work in writing up instructions and compiling the image too.
However, I'm still a bit lost as to what to do with your Ubuntu Mate image.
I've gotten the TWRP bootloader installed onto my Acer A500 tablet, but whether I use Rufus to expand your image onto an SD card, or just copy the compressed image onto the SD card, the [ Install ] does not see any images inside of the drive. Am I supposed to decompress your image in Windows and use the 0.img and 1.img in place of the nvflash's boot.img and recovery.img?
While I can see the two partitions in Ubuntu, I'm equally lost as to what to do with them, and how to get it onto the tablet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wait for me to give out an update to the image, as there likely has been a new kernel version released that I would like to have updated first.
TWRP will not be used at all for this installation process, as the image is too big to flash with fastboot. Just flash the image to a microSD card, as the boot image that will be flashed will automatically pick it up shortly after booting. The only thing that does have to be flashed is the boot.img, which can be found in the first partition, and you will be only using fastboot for this process, not anything else.

I released a new version of the premade Ubuntu MATE image just now, named 'ubuntu-mate-20.04.1-desktop-armhf+acer-picasso.img.xz'. The following changes have been made since the last image:
Kernel version upgraded to 5.10.1-rc1
Based on Ubuntu MATE 20.04.1
Everything that changed since the beta1 image
Other than these changes, there are no other differences that can be noticed right away.
Direct link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1mr-7e29KJYeagJju0Yo1qUpT2YRb61AR/view?usp=sharing

Many thanks for your work. I've entered today this forum just curious about something new and found this!
Second life for this old machine!
For those with problems installing, I've flashed precompiled image using balenaEtcher into the sdcard.
Then, extracted .xz image, extracted .img, then extracted 0.img and copied boot file from there. After that, renamed the file to boot.img and flashed it with fastboot.
As I've the old modified skrillex bootloader, the command is fastboot flash secboot boot.img.
It boots and works well for now!

Worldblender said:
[*] Add the PPA at https://launchpad.net/~grate-driver/+archive/ubuntu/ppa to get access to updated video drivers. They currently are enough to get 2D acceleration working, but not for 3D acceleration.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
@Worldblender
Hi, i apt updated after adding grate-driver ppa, it seems it broken xorg because X don't start anymore
Can you detail how to proceed ?

pheex79 said:
@Worldblender
Hi, i apt updated after adding grate-driver ppa, it seems it broken xorg because X don't start anymore
Can you detail how to proceed ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you still switch to a virtual terminal with Ctrl-Alt-[F1-F7]? You will need a USB keyboard to do this. Then try, after logging in with your username and password:
Code:
systemctl stop lightdm
startx
If startx does not bring something up, could you try running journalctl, and show me any log entries relating to lightdm?
If that still fails, you can try (if ppa-purge is not installed, install that first)
Code:
ppa-purge ppa:grate-driver/ppa

@Worldblender
one binary missing but i think this error is present before adding ppa
"/sbin/prime-switch: 22: /usr/bin/gpu-manager: not found"
Xorg log:
Require OpenGL version 2.1 or later
modeset(0): Failed to initialize glamor at ScreenInit() time

pheex79 said:
@Worldblender
one binary missing but i think this error is present before adding ppa
"/sbin/prime-switch: 22: /usr/bin/gpu-manager: not found"
Xorg log:
Require OpenGL version 2.1 or later
modeset(0): Failed to initialize glamor at ScreenInit() time
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I never received such an error, but the specific package you must install is xserver-xorg-video-opentegra. No other Nvidia driver is going to work.

Worldblender said:
I never received such an error, but the specific package you must install is xserver-xorg-video-opentegra. No other Nvidia driver is going to work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It works ! Thank you
xserver-xorg-video-opentegra was not installed
when adding ppa grate i only did an "apt upgrade" cmd i thought all grate items were installed (a few are installed when upgrading apt)

Nice work thank you so much.
Is there any chance for Manjaro arm? Or is it limited to debian based distros?

Note that after following the instructions for installing the Ubuntu MATE image from @Worldblender from a starting point of just the stock image, I have Ubuntu MATE installed on the external SD card and no OS installed on the eMMC because it was wiped during the bootloader replacement. Reading back through the posts suggests this is by design.

@Worldblender, so I'm very new at rooting devices, and have a little experience with Ubuntu but feel pretty lost. Any chance you could hook me up with a step by step install of the Nov2 image (unless you've put together another new version) from a stock(not rooted or anything) A500? I apologize if I overlooked something.
Edit: I got it working after doing this thing called reading, I definitely overlooked some things after reading closer. For someone else that might find themselves in my shoes here's what I did.
I followed this link: https://forum.xda-developers.com/iconia-a500/a500-2019-2020-t4039271 to get the bootloader installed
and then followed @whylly 's instructions:
whylly said:
For those with problems installing, I've flashed precompiled image using balenaEtcher into the sdcard.
Then, extracted .xz image, extracted .img, then extracted 0.img and copied boot file from there. After that, renamed the file to boot.img and flashed it with fastboot.
As I've the old modified skrillex bootloader, the command is fastboot flash secboot boot.img.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

Hi there ! I have an iconia a500, rooted with lightspeed 4.8. Can I install this and then make it switch to Khali linux ? My ultimate objective is to get Khali on this tablet. I've worked my way down from ver 2.5x linuxdeploy all the way down to 2.0 lol So I'm thinking maybe if I apply your OS it will update the Kernal from 4.0.3 to 5 yes ? (That's a big jump for linuxdeploy) then I can apt-get khalifull ? Am I off base would this work ? Unless you have an image already of course in which case pleaaaaaaaaaaaaaase I'll pay for the bloody thing if I have to I've been pulling my hair out for days. Tried frikkin everything.
Unless anybody has a better method of course in which case feel free to suggest. If I have to make the image from scratch so be it
EDIT: UGhhhhhh after days of troubleshooting, I got to linuxdeploy2.0-1.16 installed kali (the native one on the app not from the repository as that gives kernel too old once you get the install working). Managed to term in and tried to start lxde, failed because lxde doesn't exist (sigh) tried to apt-get... kernel too old. game over sigh
Unless someone has a workaround I don't think it's possible to get Khali on a500.

Sound work?

HELP! Recommendations for Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1" SM-P580?

I have a Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1" SM-P580 and started working to root it so I could install more apps using a micro SD card. It was a long time ago with Android 7 or so and a while back I thought I would upgrade so I tried upgrading it to Android 11 and Lineage 18.1 and bare bones Google apps. This has been only partially successfully as the system runs but I cannot install any apps at all and have been unable to make any further progress. So I am looking to go back to the drawing board here. What recommendations do you have with regard to what to use that will allow me to install more apps? Thank you very much!

JR1979 said:
I have a Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1" SM-P580 and started working to root it so I could install more apps using a micro SD card. It was a long time ago with Android 7 or so and a while back I thought I would upgrade so I tried upgrading it to Android 11 and Lineage 18.1 and bare bones Google apps. This has been only partially successfully as the system runs but I cannot install any apps at all and have been unable to make any further progress. So I am looking to go back to the drawing board here. What recommendations do you have with regard to what to use that will allow me to install more apps? Thank you very much!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I assume you got the basic stuff out of the way - unlocked bootloader, installed TWRP, etc.
Did you install a Gapps package?
If you prefer something more vanilla, without the LineageOS customizations, you can try an Android GSI, which is like turning your device into a Pixel tablet. Check out my guide here.

JR1979 said:
I have a Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1" SM-P580 and started working to root it so I could install more apps using a micro SD card. It was a long time ago with Android 7 or so and a while back I thought I would upgrade so I tried upgrading it to Android 11 and Lineage 18.1 and bare bones Google apps. This has been only partially successfully as the system runs but I cannot install any apps at all and have been unable to make any further progress. So I am looking to go back to the drawing board here. What recommendations do you have with regard to what to use that will allow me to install more apps? Thank you very much!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are differences between Android 7,8,9 and now, especially eg.the use of sd-cards and permissions for users in general. Maybe you have to check such things as "Allow Installing apps from unknown ressources" in Settings, or you ckeck magisk modules that could help.

abagm said:
There are differences between Android 7,8,9 and now, especially eg.the use of sd-cards and permissions for users in general. Maybe you have to check such things as "Allow Installing apps from unknown ressources" in Settings, or you ckeck magisk modules that could help.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the input. I have it upgraded to Android 11. Yhe unknown resources shouldn't matter AFAIK, in this case, as I am only trying to install via Play Store. I was trying to work with Magisk - I have it installed. I was going to try the ExSD module but I haven't been able to add it.

V0latyle said:
I assume you got the basic stuff out of the way - unlocked bootloader, installed TWRP, etc.
Did you install a Gapps package?
If you prefer something more vanilla, without the LineageOS customizations, you can try an Android GSI, which is like turning your device into a Pixel tablet. Check out my guide here.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you. I will look into that. I will look into what the differences are between that and LineageOS. Question: will the pen/stylus work under this configuration? Thank you again.

JR1979 said:
Thank you. I will look into that. I will look into what the differences are between that and LineageOS. Question: will the pen/stylus work under this configuration? Thank you again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In theory, yes - because GSIs are meant to be used with the stock kernel, and the system image doesn't have to have any specific hardware support.
LineageOS is built from AOSP, with added tweaks and customizations. I used it for a while, but grew tired of the Magisk issues I was having (PHH builds have built in SuperSU) so I just went straight vanilla with GMS.

So I looked at your guide and decided to give it a shot. With Multidisabler, when I tried pushing that to the tablet with sideload, it failed. I have also been unable to move system.img to the tablet. I'm at a loss. I know I am missing something here but just can't figure out what I am doing wrong. I just want to get this tablet up and running with Android and being able to use the 400GB SD card.
Thanks.

JR1979 said:
So I looked at your guide and decided to give it a shot. With Multidisabler, when I tried pushing that to the tablet with sideload, it failed. I have also been unable to move system.img to the tablet. I'm at a loss. I know I am missing something here but just can't figure out what I am doing wrong. I just want to get this tablet up and running with Android and being able to use the 400GB SD card.
Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Does MTP work for you in TWRP? ADB sideload is only for installing zips from your computer; the correct command to send files to device storage is adb push. Still, if you're able to get storage access over USB in TWRP just move the files that way because it's simpler.
I'm honestly not sure if the multidisabler is necessary when using custom firmware or GSIs. I think most likely not.

V0latyle said:
Does MTP work for you in TWRP? ADB sideload is only for installing zips from your computer; the correct command to send files to device storage is adb push. Still, if you're able to get storage access over USB in TWRP just move the files that way because it's simpler.
I'm honestly not sure if the multidisabler is necessary when using custom firmware or GSIs. I think most likely not.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry - I just saw this response from you. So MTP is enabled but my laptop was unable to see the tablet. I connected the SD card to my laptop and placed the system.img file on it and then dropped the SD card back into the tablet. I was able to see it in the File Manager. As you said to, I wiped /system and flashed the system.img file. It showed "[IMAGE FLASH COMPLETED]". But when I went to reboot from the main TWRP menu, it said there was no OS installed and asked if I was sure if I wanted to reboot. So I took a gamble and selected Reboot and System again. And I guess I lost on the gamble. It now just loops on the "Samsung Galaxy Tab A with S Pen" splash screen. Well, game over... for tonight.

JR1979 said:
Sorry - I just saw this response from you. So MTP is enabled but my laptop was unable to see the tablet. I connected the SD card to my laptop and placed the system.img file on it and then dropped the SD card back into the tablet. I was able to see it in the File Manager. As you said to, I wiped /system and flashed the system.img file. It showed "[IMAGE FLASH COMPLETED]". But when I went to reboot from the main TWRP menu, it said there was no OS installed and asked if I was sure if I wanted to reboot. So I took a gamble and selected Reboot and System again. And I guess I lost on the gamble. It now just loops on the "Samsung Galaxy Tab A with S Pen" splash screen. Well, game over... for tonight.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don't worry about the No OS warning, I get the same thing on my Tab A after installing a GSI.
You formatted data, yes?
You did NOT wipe /boot or /product I hope?
Something I noticed with the LineageOS GSIs is that the securized ones bootlooped, and I had to flash one of the pre-rooted builds. Can you link the image you tried to flash?
As a test to ensure a GSI runs properly, download one of the Android Developer Preview GSIs and try installing that. Let me know how it goes.

I didn't wipe /boot or /product.
I did format data.
I used the system.img from the aosp_arm64-exp-T2B2.221216.006-9443277-e508d63f.zip file on this page, from the Android Developer Preview GSIs: https://developer.android.com/topic/generic-system-image/releases
I'm guessing I didn't select the right build ?
Thanks again!

JR1979 said:
I didn't wipe /boot or /product.
I did format data.
I used the system.img from the aosp_arm64-exp-T2B2.221216.006-9443277-e508d63f.zip file on this page, from the Android Developer Preview GSIs: https://developer.android.com/topic/generic-system-image/releases
I'm guessing I didn't select the right build ?
Thanks again!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I also just tried the system.img from gsi_gms_arm64-exp-T2B2.221216.006-9443277-12a8e193.zip file. I get the same results - the splash screen loop.

JR1979 said:
I also just tried the system.img from gsi_gms_arm64-exp-T2B2.221216.006-9443277-12a8e193.zip file. I get the same results - the splash screen loop.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And so I tried the system.img files from the 2 zip files that are in the Android 13 (stable) folder:
aosp_arm64-exp-TP1A.220624.014-8819323-996da050.zip
gsi_gms_arm64-exp-TP1A.220624.014-8819323-8a77fef1.zip
Neither of these work. I still get the splash screen boot loop.
One thing I noticed is when I wipe system, it shows:
========================================
Updating partition details...
...done
Full SELinux support is present.
MTP Enabled
Failed to mount '/system_root' (Invalid argument)
Formatting system using mke2fs...
Done.
Updating partition details...
...done
=========================================
It's almost tablet frisbee time.