in this thread i am going to outline the method i used to restore my device to may security patch after completely botching my current install after trying to root, on august security patch.
a major hand to PsYk0n4uT for the suggestions he's posted in response to my problems, giving me the ability to figure out what's really going on here amongst other things.
(this is compatible with metropcs branded devices, therefore is compatible with t-mobile branded devices and so on)
anyways.
protip: after getting everything installed and set up, install the systemless debloater module in magisk and download de-bloater from f-droid. "remove" the update service application (com.oplus.romupdate) and the software update tab in settings will now think you're on the latest security patch and will prevent your device from accidentally being updated. unless you want that to happen.
(6/30/2023) - because i'm waiting for someone to chime in about this being android 11, or it being outdated, etc. even if you start from this OTA version, once you're rooted you can use magisk to install an OTA and patch the inactive slot before reboot. if i still had this phone, i would update this guide, but i can only work from what i remember now.
a major hand to PsYk0n4uT for the suggestions he's posted in response to my problems, giving me the ability to figure out what's really going on here amongst other things.
(this is compatible with metropcs branded devices, therefore is compatible with t-mobile branded devices and so on)
anyways.
- download this may OTA i discovered somewhere online. (hint: if download quota is exceeded. make a copy to your gdrive, then put it in a folder. download the folder and you will bypass the quota)
- the OTA will contain msmdownloadtool, but it is unusable in it's current form because it's an internal tool. you're gonna want to download this tool off github to help assist in decrypting the .ofp file and flashing it's complete contents over automatically.
- extract the OTA zip, and place the tool from github in the same folder. if using linux, install the python requirements and if you're on windows, i would suggest replacing the adb/fastboot executables with current versions. probably shouldn't matter, but i did in this case.
- put your phone into fastboot and run the tool. further instructions depending on OS, are on the repository's page.
- after flashing i had to switch my active slot over to the prior inactive slot before i could boot.
- now that you've got your device downgraded, get through the initial setup, set it up offline, and put your phone into power saving mode so it can't automatically update (just in case)
- instead of using DSU sideloader to extract the files we need, we can use the same .ofp file that our images came from and extract its contents with this tool
- install magisk, copy your boot image over, patch the boot image, return it back to your computer, and enter fastboot mode.
- proceed to flash the boot image, and all 3 vbmeta images. (important: be sure to disable verification and disable verity when flashing your vbmetas)
- ???
- profit
protip: after getting everything installed and set up, install the systemless debloater module in magisk and download de-bloater from f-droid. "remove" the update service application (com.oplus.romupdate) and the software update tab in settings will now think you're on the latest security patch and will prevent your device from accidentally being updated. unless you want that to happen.
(6/30/2023) - because i'm waiting for someone to chime in about this being android 11, or it being outdated, etc. even if you start from this OTA version, once you're rooted you can use magisk to install an OTA and patch the inactive slot before reboot. if i still had this phone, i would update this guide, but i can only work from what i remember now.
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