[GUIDE][ROOT] Onn Surf 7 (Model 100005206) Bootloader Unlocking & Rooting Guide

[garyww39]

Anytime friend. Keep in touch and Happy Holidays to you and yours.

thank you happy holidays too you and family as well.

 

[fire_mane]

does it work for the

100026191​

bc Im looking for that one​

i am also looking for this one

 

[Viva La Android]

i am also looking for this one

That firmware appears to be very obscure online, and available only on those shady firmware repos that require a paid membership. I will take another look on some of the repos I sometimes use to locate hard-to-find firmware.

 

[Jfuchs2007]

Those are linked in the OP of my firmware restoration thread here

[GUIDE] Onn Surf 7 (1st Gen) Unbricking & Factory Firmware Restoration Guide

Onn Surf 7 (1st Gen) Model No. 100005206 7" WiFi Android Tablet Unbricking & Factory Firmware Restoration Guide OVERVIEW: The 1st Gen Onn Surf 7 is a 7" budget Android tablet manufactured by the Walmart owned electronics brand Onn (styled...

forum.xda-developers.com

I'm researching your driver issue

I'm looking for the stock firmware for the

ONN 7 GEN 3 100071481​

 

[Viva La Android]

M

I'm looking for the stock firmware for the

ONN 7 GEN 3 100071481​

My friend, I'll search in some firmware repos that I often use, but I can't promise you anything.

 

[Dismal.]

Can you build lollipop for this device I think it would run much better

 

[Viva La Android]

Can you build lollipop for this device I think it would run much better

Downgrading the firmware isn't a conventional procedure, especially from Android 9 Pie to Android 5.x.x. The Android 9 Pie (Go Edition) stock OS has been compiled specifically for devices -- such as the Onn Surf 7 -- with limited hardware capabilities and low RAM. Nonetheless, I fully agree that the stock OS leaves much to be desired. With root access, some moderate debloating, and a few kernel tweaks, the Android 9 Go Edition OS can be improved upon in terms of responsiveness and overall performance. This Surf 7 is also Project Treble supported, allowing for simplified installation of custom GSI ROMs.
In theory, the OS could be downgraded without too much difficulty. However, the real issue would be downgrading the corresponding firmware such as the kernel, bootloader stack, hardware blobs, etc. Since Onn has not released kernel source code for this tablet, such a task would be daunting to say the least, and certainly unorthodox in application.

 

[Dismal.]

Downgrading the firmware isn't a conventional procedure, especially from Android 9 Pie to Android 5.x.x. The Android 9 Pie (Go Edition) stock OS has been compiled specifically for devices -- such as the Onn Surf 7 -- with limited hardware capabilities and low RAM. Nonetheless, I fully agree that the stock OS leaves much to be desired. With root access, some moderate debloating, and a few kernel tweaks, the Android 9 Go Edition OS can be improved upon in terms of responsiveness and overall performance. This Surf 7 is also Project Treble supported, allowing for simplified installation of custom GSI ROMs.
In theory, the OS could be downgraded without too much difficulty. However, the real issue would be downgrading the corresponding firmware such as the kernel, bootloader stack, hardware blobs, etc. Since Onn has not released kernel source code for this tablet, such a task would be daunting to say the least, and certainly unorthodox in application.

What other tweaks could be done I already removed all of the Walmart apps

 

[Viva La Android]

What other tweaks could be done I already removed all of the Walmart apps

Set the default CPU governor to Performance. It'll cost you a bit in terms of battery power, but its worth the boost. Next set your I/O Scheduler for internal storage to a 512 Kb readahead on the Kyber preset. Set external storage I/O Scheduler to 1024Kb readahead, also on the Kyber preset. Set your Low Memory Killer preset to Very Aggressive. This will optimize your RAM efficiency. Under the Virtual Memory parameters, enable Laptop Mode (boosts performance by optimizing the writeback of file system bits cached in RAM). Ensure Swappiness is set to 100%, and that the Overcommit Ratio is set to 50%. Finally, in Entropy, set read to 64 and write to 128. On all of the referenced parameters, ensure that Apply On Boot is enabled for each heading.
You can use virtually any kernel tweaking app to change these settings. I use Kernel Adiutor-Mod (available here on XDA). Although outdated and deprecated, it will suffice for these changes.
There are also a few tweaks you can make to the CPU governor tunables. But unless you are fairly well versed in the workings of the Android kernel, you probably shouldn't alter those. It is possible to brick your device if you have a mishap. It can be recovered by firmware restoration, but it's nevertheless a pain in the ass to end up bricked. There are also a few build.prop edits you can make to boost performance. As long as you back up your stock /system/build.prop beforehand, these edits are fairly safe. I'll get you a list if you're interested.
Kernel Adiutor-Mod Thread

 

[Dismal.]

Set the default CPU governor to Performance. It'll cost you a bit in terms of battery power, but its worth the boost. Next set your I/O Scheduler for internal storage to a 512 Kb readahead on the Kyber preset. Set external storage I/O Scheduler to 1024Kb readahead, also on the Kyber preset. Set your Low Memory Killer preset to Very Aggressive. This will optimize your RAM efficiency. Under the Virtual Memory parameters, enable Laptop Mode (boosts performance by optimizing the writeback of file system bits cached in RAM). Ensure Swappiness is set to 100%, and that the Overcommit Ratio is set to 50%. Finally, in Entropy, set read to 64 and write to 128. On all of the referenced parameters, ensure that Apply On Boot is enabled for each heading.
You can use virtually any kernel tweaking app to change these settings. I use Kernel Adiutor-Mod (available here on XDA). Although outdated and deprecated, it will suffice for these changes.
There are also a few tweaks you can make to the CPU governor tunables. But unless you are fairly well versed in the workings of the Android kernel, you probably shouldn't alter those. It is possible to brick your device if you have a mishap. It can be recovered by firmware restoration, but it's nevertheless a pain in the ass to end up bricked. There are also a few build.prop edits you can make to boost performance. As long as you back up your stock /system/build.prop beforehand, these edits are fairly safe. I'll get you a list if you're interested.
Kernel Adiutor-Mod Thread

Id says I'm intermediate with Linux at best but when it comes to fiddling with grub and the kernel that isnt my strong hand

 

[Viva La Android]

Id says I'm intermediate with Linux at best but when it comes to fiddling with grub and the kernel that isnt my strong hand

Well, if you know the fundamentals of Linux, you should be fine. It's more about paying close attention to detail than anything. Simply back up your current boot.img before you tweak anything. Then, if you get caught in a boot loop, simply initiate fastboot mode and restore the backup boot.img. Have you done any of the tweaks I listed yet?

 

[PokeyManatee4]

i was able to patch the boot image for magisk and it works, want me to send ot here?

 

[Viva La Android]

i was able to patch the boot image for magisk and it works, want me to send ot here?

Sure. How did you get around the boot image being devoid of a ramdisk?

 

[PokeyManatee4]

It for some reason just worked

 

[Viva La Android]

It for some reason just worked

That's perplexing. So you used the stock boot image and the latest Magisk v26.1?
In any event, share your patched boot image if you would be so inclined. Thank you.

 

[PokeyManatee4]

It for some reason just worked

Yes and it crashes my broswer

 

[Viva La Android]

Yes and it crashes my broswer

I would like to check out the the boot image you patched. It wouid make root access more seamless than the current recovery hijacking method.

 

[PokeyManatee4]

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1109237234021978122/1109237912920395946/boot.img Here you go!

 

[PokeyManatee4]

it work?

 

[Viva La Android]

it work?

I'll get a chance later tonight to try it. Thank you for sharing.