Custom Rom / rooting Options vor TB-125FU (Lenovo Tab M10 Plus 3rd Gen)

[GuyInDogSuit]

Can I downgrade android 12 to 11 in tb125fu, mb someone have ROW??

If it's even possible, I don't know. It might not be safe to do so so considering the issues some of us have had with it just updating.

 

[xd4d3v]

We discussed copiously how broken their "smart" assistant is. They seem to have prioritized security, oddly as we can root it fairly easily, over end users being able to restore software problems.

I have no idea why the process of having root even after reflashing the unmodified bootloader doesn't let updating work without a factory reset, but with Swift Backup I'm able to use root to backup around 95% of everything, put the clean bootloader, factory reset, update, root again and restore nearly everything in around an hour (mostly spent waiting).

After doing it twice inside a month or so... I'm almost at the point of trying some GSI ROMs instead.

I installed a GSI and worked perfectly. Had to go back to stock to get higher res Netflix. Check my previous post. I think I mention which one it was.

Edit: GSI is called Elixir

 

[GuyInDogSuit]

I installed a GSI and worked perfectly. Had to go back to stock to get higher res Netflix. Check my previous post. I think I mention which one it was.

Edit: GSI is called Elixir

There might be a way to re-enable HDR and higher resolutions for Netflix and whatnot, if I remember right.

 

[klutzyT]

I installed a GSI and worked perfectly. Had to go back to stock to get higher res Netflix. Check my previous post. I think I mention which one it was.

Edit: GSI is called Elixir

How did you go about installing this gsi?

 

[xd4d3v]

How did you go about installing this gsi?

Just unlock the bootloader and flash the partitions with fastboot.
GSIs are usually distributed in img, so there is no recovery needed.

 

[xd4d3v]

Just unlock the bootloader and flash the partitions with fastboot.
GSIs are usually distributed in img, so there is no recovery needed.

GitHub - fu8765/Lenovo-Tab-M10-Plug-Gen-3-FlashiGSI-roms

Contribute to fu8765/Lenovo-Tab-M10-Plug-Gen-3-FlashiGSI-roms development by creating an account on GitHub.

github.com

 

[Guzmanus]

GitHub - fu8765/Lenovo-Tab-M10-Plug-Gen-3-FlashiGSI-roms

Contribute to fu8765/Lenovo-Tab-M10-Plug-Gen-3-FlashiGSI-roms development by creating an account on GitHub.

github.com

As a note, i've flashed the AOSP GSI and booted fine, but to make it work in my device i had to download the latest rom from lenovo also and do:

fastboot --disable-verity --disable-verification flash vbmeta vbmeta.img

fastboot --disable-verity --disable-verification flash boot boot.img

Otherwise it would just get stuck in the boot sequence with "Orange state blablabla"

 

[xd4d3v]

As a note, i've flashed the AOSP GSI and booted fine, but to make it work in my device i had to download the latest rom from lenovo also and do:

fastboot --disable-verity --disable-verification flash vbmeta vbmeta.img

fastboot --disable-verity --disable-verification flash boot boot.img

Otherwise it would just get stuck in the boot sequence with "Orange state blablabla"

Interesting. I saw the vbmeta in sone of the custom GSI instructions but I didn't need to include it. Wouldn't have thought you could flash boot as it should be a different kernel?

Since I wrote that I went back to stock, then tried to reinstall a custom rom and I keep getting stuck in the initial setup where it asks me to setup face unlock.

It fails to detect my face, and there is no button to skip so I can't complete the setup.

This should be easy to fix by changing the img and editing the build.prop to disable setup or possibly add biometrics APK in /system, but I don't have a setup to edit imgs

I found CBR kitchen but it seems pricey just to play around

PS: android 14 beta GSI from Google is available. While a bit buggy still, it'd be cool to have

 

[xd4d3v]

Also. I found a tool designed for MTK chipsets that apparently attempts compiling TWRP for your device automatically. If anyone wants to have a go and post the results.

Mediatek (MTK) Auto TWRP recovery porter by Team Hovatek

If you wish to root your Mediatek Android phone, we'd dropped a guide on rooting using Magisk and stock boot.img at https://www.hovatek.com/forum/thread-21427.html , no custom recovery is required. Se

www.hovatek.com

 

[Guzmanus]

Interesting. I saw the vbmeta in sone of the custom GSI instructions but I didn't need to include it. Wouldn't have thought you could flash boot as it should be a different kernel?

Since I wrote that I went back to stock, then tried to reinstall a custom rom and I keep getting stuck in the initial setup where it asks me to setup face unlock.

It fails to detect my face, and there is no button to skip so I can't complete the setup.

This should be easy to fix by changing the img and editing the build.prop to disable setup or possibly add biometrics APK in /system, but I don't have a setup to edit imgs

I found CBR kitchen but it seems pricey just to play around

PS: android 14 beta GSI from Google is available. While a bit buggy still, it'd be cool to have

Hm maybe the boot.img flashing was not neccesary but for sure flashing the vbmeta.img was neccesary for my tablet to boot. I also did not expect to do it as on the guide you linked there's no mention of it but idk why.

I'm on a lineageOS 19 GSI and working fine too, i think i'll keep this one or maybe try the lineageos 20. Thanks for mentioning it, i had no idea of project treble before today and looks like it gave another life to this kind of devices that are easily forgotten by the manufacturers.

 

[BadRsT]

Hi Guys! Where i can finde Patched vbmeta.img for TB125FU? i just unlocked the bootloader but i couldn't find that file!

 

[aboulafia1901]

Hi Guys! Where i can finde Patched vbmeta.img for TB125FU? i just unlocked the bootloader but i couldn't find that file!

Hello ,
If you download the official rom with RSA ,it is in C:\ProgramData\RSA\Download\RomFiles\TB125FU_S000160_230227_ROW
2330227 is the date of the rom .

 

[Tigrin]

Also. I found a tool designed for MTK chipsets that apparently attempts compiling TWRP for your device automatically. If anyone wants to have a go and post the results.

Mediatek (MTK) Auto TWRP recovery porter by Team Hovatek

If you wish to root your Mediatek Android phone, we'd dropped a guide on rooting using Magisk and stock boot.img at https://www.hovatek.com/forum/thread-21427.html , no custom recovery is required. Se

www.hovatek.com

I've been lokking at guides on porting TWRP, does anyone know where to find recovery.img? I've downloaded the recovery files from RSA but I don't see any obvious recovery.img

 

[xd4d3v]

I've been lokking at guides on porting TWRP, does anyone know where to find recovery.img? I've downloaded the recovery files from RSA but I don't see any obvious recovery.img

The recovery.img should be packed inside the boot.img.

try to unpack the boot.img with this and post the results.

GitHub - cfig/Android_boot_image_editor: Parsing and re-packing Android boot.img/vbmeta.img/payload.bin, supporting Android 13

Parsing and re-packing Android boot.img/vbmeta.img/payload.bin, supporting Android 13 - GitHub - cfig/Android_boot_image_editor: Parsing and re-packing Android boot.img/vbmeta.img/payload.bin, supp...

github.com

 

[Tigrin]

The recovery.img should be packed inside the boot.img.

try to unpack the boot.img with this and post the results.

GitHub - cfig/Android_boot_image_editor: Parsing and re-packing Android boot.img/vbmeta.img/payload.bin, supporting Android 13

Parsing and re-packing Android boot.img/vbmeta.img/payload.bin, supporting Android 13 - GitHub - cfig/Android_boot_image_editor: Parsing and re-packing Android boot.img/vbmeta.img/payload.bin, supp...

github.com

I unpacked boot.img but didn't find recovery.img, is there anywhere else I should look?

EDIT: I've tried using MTKdroid to extract the rom/recovery but ran into the error " --- Unknown ROM structure, backup NOT possible! " both on GSI and stock ROM

 

[JonW434]

I recently got a Motorola Edge 30, and I've read on here that unlocking the bootloader will result in losing Widevine L1 and the phone will be stuck with L3 forever. It's just the price to pay if you want root or custom ROM on this phone.

I'm looking at getting TB125FU, just to confirm.. unlocking the bootloader on this doesn't have same problem and will maintain L1 Widevine and HD playback on stuff like Netflix? I mean with unlocking and using stock ROM?

Also, once unlocked, it's best not to relock it as it can cause problems or even brick the phone if the wrong versions are installed? I've been doing a lot of reading in the last few days but just wanted to confirm that I haven't mixed these things up with another brand or model. I will reread the 7 pages before asking any more questions.

 

[Tigrin]

I got a root adb shell on stock ROM and listed all the partions (in /dev/block/platform/bootdevice/by-name) and no obvious recovery partion.

anyone know what partion might be the recovery?

 

[GuyInDogSuit]

Also, once unlocked, it's best not to relock it as it can cause problems or even brick the phone if the wrong versions are installed? I've been doing a lot of reading in the last few days but just wanted to confirm that I haven't mixed these things up with another brand or model. I will reread the 7 pages before asking any more questions.

Relocking is generally should never be done UNLESS you don't want to be rooted or going back to stock.

 

[JonW434]

Just to clarify my previous post.. I have one phone (Motorola), and one tablet (this one) and I'm trying to research in advance because I haven't done stuff like this in a while. What makes these two similar is that they can both use RSA to update/restore official ROM. They are part of the same family but also different.

Motorola Edge 30 - Once oem unlocked, Widevine L1 is lost and can never return. The DRM keys are lost and can never be recovered. Otherwise there are plenty of custom ROMS available, some with SafetyNet passing by default, and reverting back to official rom seems quite easy or simple. Or getting root etc. So far, it's still locked but I've been able to flash via cmd batch commands and restore older or newer versions updates without problems. When updating forwards, no data reset required. When going backwards, factory reset required. I hate how RSA forces you to a always use latest version. I can't remember the reason why but relocking oem bootloader on this one is really risky and can cause hard brick. Usually the reason stated for relock is for claiming/restoring warranty.

Lenovo Tab M10 Plus 3rd Gen - Having read many pages here, it seems getting root and dealing with boot.img has caused big problems and recovering official roms doesn't work very well. Does using the full image from here work ok? With SP Flash Tool? However with this one, no problems with Widevine L1 unless using a custom ROM (only GSI available). Is that because SafetyNet doesn't pass? Based on post #122, it would appear that restoring Widevine L1 is no problem when going back to stock ROM. Face lock problems on some GSIs but two work.. LineageOS and Elixir. Relocking the phone seems possible without any serious risks.

Someone please correct me if I have said anything that is wrong.

 

[JonW434]

I had a custom rom installed, and went back to stock in the hopes the latest update was the promised Android 13, that was supposed to come out in march.

It wasn't.
however, my tablet has always been a bit stuttery, which is one of the reasons I went to a custom rom (although this did not improve)
With the latest firmware, it's finally smooth after the initial install!!

Not sure how this happened, as it happened after a while, but it did..
I can recommend stock, for that reason, made a huge improvement to the enjoyment of the tablet (previously, I couldn't wait to sell it)

On Motorola Edge 30, I have family members who have the same phone. Mine has been used for experiments but others are stock and fully updated. The last patch was Android 13 update. It was disappointing. It works ok, but the performance scores were slightly slower, no real advantages to speak of except some small quick settings menu or UI tweaks. New bugs arrived.. the color gamut of the display changed and it's now more faded and washed out while watching videos. And the brightness slider is weird now.. it's super sensitive and already super bright at 50%. The middle of the range is at 25% where as it used to be at 60 or 70% at stock. It makes me want to try a custom ROM and not rely on official updates anymore, but maybe new updates can fix it. Or maybe new updates can make the phone even slower.

For this tablet, I'm hoping the same bugs don't arrive with Android 13 update. The CPU is the weakpoint on this one, and in the case of the Edge 30, Android 12 was faster than 13. General user experience when using regular phone tasks was slightly slower. I have two phones side by side, one with 12 and one with 13 so it's easy to notice the differences in speed or display brightness. For this tablet, I'm curious if any custom or GSI roms can make a difference, but maybe Elixir or ArrowOS would be worth trying. I don't know if ArrowOS has GSI available but I assume so. I'm curious if there are any big advantages to any custom roms or if it's just customization or small ui differences.

Do you mind mentioning which version for official firmware fixed your stutters? I haven't had a chance to update yet, since the tablet hasn't arrived yet. Is it TB125FU_S000160_230227_ROW?