4 ms·

Why is it not possible to compile and install a complete clean Android directly from the sources on your phone? What are the things that prevent that?

kelnos 3y ago
In general it is possible to do that (assuming the phone has an unlockable bootloader), but you can't do that for the exact same image from the manufacturer, because they don't provide the source for a lot of it. You might be able to install a third-party, community-maintained OS, like LineageOS, though, if your hardware is supported. The downside is that I believe apps like Google Pay won't work anymore, since they require Google's SafetyNet attestation system to pass. Sometimes there are ways around that, but they always seemed like unreliable hacks to me.
- secGally 3y ago
  Since when play has been unusable with Lineage? It worked 3 months ago. I cant check that because i got new phone. One and only problem i see with Lineage is that VoLTE wont work and as we dont have 3G anymore it is must have.
  - knutzui 3y ago
    Google Pay, not Google Play.
bonki 3y ago
Hardware support.
- hughesjj 3y ago
  Lazy vendors single handedly keeping windows and android going with their lack of cross platform drivers, so frustrating....
  - brookst 3y ago
    True if you replace “lazy” with “ROI-driven”
    - hughesjj 3y ago
      Eh, depends on the time frame for ROI. Long term I think it's better ROI to go Linux native, but short term it's not, hence my labelling of 'lazy'.
numpad0 3y ago
That works on x86 PC platform because boot process and hardware discovery are well standardized, and Kernel is overwritable while the OS is running. Those are not guaranteed on non-PC computers.
nolist_policy 3y ago
AFAIK you can just do that with Google Pixel phones. I'm not saying its easy but the source code is all there.
Almondsetat 3y ago
Closed source device drivers. The mobile phone market is like the desktop market in the 90s
- rchaud 3y ago
  Didn't use to be that way. Android phones with Qualcomm SoCs used to be incredibly easy to modify with alternative versions of Android. That changed around 2014-15, can't remember why. Now it seems only Google's own Pixel phone is the only one that's hackable enough to run LineageOS or /e/ or other de-Googled distros.
  - deleted 3y ago
    [deleted]
  - npteljes 3y ago
    LineageOS has active support for 200 devices, and many more if you're up for some hacking, and download the ROM from the XDA forums. /e/ sells phones preinstalled with /e/OS, Pixels, Samsungs, and the Fairphone [0]. CalyxOS can also go on a bunch of phones. [0] https://murena.com/products/smartphones/ https://murena.com/products/smartphones/

kelnos 3y ago

In general it is possible to do that (assuming the phone has an unlockable bootloader), but you can't do that for the exact same image from the manufacturer, because they don't provide the source for a lot of it. You might be able to install a third-party, community-maintained OS, like LineageOS, though, if your hardware is supported. The downside is that I believe apps like Google Pay won't work anymore, since they require Google's SafetyNet attestation system to pass. Sometimes there are ways around that, but they always seemed like unreliable hacks to me.

secGally 3y ago
Since when play has been unusable with Lineage? It worked 3 months ago. I cant check that because i got new phone. One and only problem i see with Lineage is that VoLTE wont work and as we dont have 3G anymore it is must have.
- knutzui 3y ago
  Google Pay, not Google Play.

bonki 3y ago

Hardware support.

hughesjj 3y ago
Lazy vendors single handedly keeping windows and android going with their lack of cross platform drivers, so frustrating....
- brookst 3y ago
  True if you replace “lazy” with “ROI-driven”
  - hughesjj 3y ago
    Eh, depends on the time frame for ROI. Long term I think it's better ROI to go Linux native, but short term it's not, hence my labelling of 'lazy'.

numpad0 3y ago

That works on x86 PC platform because boot process and hardware discovery are well standardized, and Kernel is overwritable while the OS is running. Those are not guaranteed on non-PC computers.

nolist_policy 3y ago

AFAIK you can just do that with Google Pixel phones. I'm not saying its easy but the source code is all there.

Almondsetat 3y ago

Closed source device drivers. The mobile phone market is like the desktop market in the 90s

rchaud 3y ago
Didn't use to be that way. Android phones with Qualcomm SoCs used to be incredibly easy to modify with alternative versions of Android. That changed around 2014-15, can't remember why. Now it seems only Google's own Pixel phone is the only one that's hackable enough to run LineageOS or /e/ or other de-Googled distros.
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
- npteljes 3y ago
  LineageOS has active support for 200 devices, and many more if you're up for some hacking, and download the ROM from the XDA forums. /e/ sells phones preinstalled with /e/OS, Pixels, Samsungs, and the Fairphone [0]. CalyxOS can also go on a bunch of phones. [0] https://murena.com/products/smartphones/ https://murena.com/products/smartphones/