[SM-T505,T500,T507] Samsung Galaxy Tab A7 LTE GSI flashing guide [UPDATED] [Android 13 GSIs]

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Hausemaster

Senior Member
Dec 2, 2020
612
174
Oops I did see ill take a look, oh you added it to your brightness fix my smt500 won't flash that unfortunately, so imma just need to put my big boy pants o. And make something myself lol
You need to install it from magisk, not twrp, are you trying from twrp?
Edit: I downloaded the module from here itself and it flashes on my device...
 
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You need to install it from magisk, not twrp, are you trying from twrp?
Edit: I downloaded the module from here itself and it flashes on my device...
Yes I was ill give that a shot now!!!
update:: Ooffttaa I never said I was the brightest bulb from the bunch but it did flash through magsik and brightness worked at first then I turned but after turning zygist on brightness stopped but removed the module with zygist on and re flashed see how this goes!! No cigar on the SMT500 it the brightness doesn't like zygist but I don't have random reboots and zygist is on so extra dim toggle will doo for mee, thank you 😊
 
Last edited:

Hausemaster

Senior Member
Dec 2, 2020
612
174
Yes I was ill give that a shot now!!!
update:: Ooffttaa I never said I was the brightest bulb from the bunch but it did flash through magsik and brightness worked at first then I turned but after turning zygist on brightness stopped but removed the module with zygist on and re flashed see how this goes!! No cigar on the SMT500 it the brightness doesn't like zygist but I don't have random reboots and zygist is on so extra dim toggle will doo for mee, thank you 😊
Actually, zygisk works on my end, actually, try permissiver_v5 in twrp and then the magisk module...
Also, do not rely on the extra dim toggtoggle, i ruined the edges of my screen due to the panel overheating, what extra dim seems to do is an overlay to make the brightness seem leader...
 

Hausemaster

Senior Member
Dec 2, 2020
612
174
Yes I was ill give that a shot now!!!
update:: Ooffttaa I never said I was the brightest bulb from the bunch but it did flash through magsik and brightness worked at first then I turned but after turning zygist on brightness stopped but removed the module with zygist on and re flashed see how this goes!! No cigar on the SMT500 it the brightness doesn't like zygist but I don't have random reboots and zygist is on so extra dim toggle will doo for mee, thank you 😊
https://androidfilehost.com/?fid=6006931924117940902
This is permissiver, download it and flash in twrp, then install magisk module, both watchdog and brightness fix should work...
 

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  • DynaPatch-V2.1.zip
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Shri, did you try permissiver, and, if yes, is everything working as normal? (Namely zygisk)
Yes yes it is my kind sir, you've helped alot take care of this head ace blahahah now only if I didn't need to flash mulitdisabler everytime I need to flash something that should require a format, boy do I m8ss the old days of rooting and recovery balala
 

Hausemaster

Senior Member
Dec 2, 2020
612
174
Yes yes it is my kind sir, you've helped alot take care of this head ace blahahah now only if I didn't need to flash mulitdisabler everytime I need to flash something that should require a format, boy do I m8ss the old days of rooting and recovery balala
Actually, since you're not running one UI anymore, flashing multidisabler is not needed every time, as long as you flashed the disable dm Verity package in twrp, which entirely disables storage encryption...
 
Actually, since you're not running one UI anymore, flashing multidisabler is not needed every time, as long as you flashed the disable dm Verity package in twrp, which entirely disables storage encryption...
Huh really? But are you talking about the vbmeta disabled r tar? I don't believe I have seen anyone talk about that in the smt500 posts!!
 
Also, if you patch your AP file using magisk, you won't need any vbmeta manual flash as magisk takes care of vbmeta during the patch process...
Huh that's something new I haven't found yet on any posts I just downloaded one is there one that's been updated after disable_dm-vertity_forceEncrypt_20201008?

And yes I found that out pretty quick as well magsik has been updated to have vbmeta disabler built in!!
 

Hausemaster

Senior Member
Dec 2, 2020
612
174
Huh that's something new I haven't found yet on any posts I just downloaded one is there one that's been updated after disable_dm-vertity_forceEncrypt_20201008?

And yes I found that out pretty quick as well magsik has been updated to have vbmeta disabler built in!!
Afaik that should work without issues... (disable_dm-vertity_forceEncrypt_20201008)
 
If possible, and only if you want to, do try as many GSIs of A13 as you can and report whether they work or don't, and which is the most stable, etc... (As I'm on a limited data plan, i can't download more than one GSI per day)
Edit: What I've deduced so far is that
1. Trebledroid GSIs are a no go on this device as magisk won't work
2. Pixel experience GSI is nice and stable and magisk also works on it
3. Google GSIs are way too barebones and lack basic fixes
Sure I'll but for some reason I currently cant expand system partition idk why
edit: nvm i figured out that i need .\ before the command lol
 
Last edited:

Hausemaster

Senior Member
Dec 2, 2020
612
174
Sure I'll but for some reason I currently cant expand system partition idk why
edit: nvm i figured out that i need .\ before the command lol
There's also steps in post #1, to expand system partition...
Edit
If the gsi ROM you're trying to flash doesn't fit on current system partition, then,
*This process will wipe your system partition and will reset your recovery, so, keep the dynapatch zip and gsi image on hand, you will need it!*
Download latest platform tools from AOSP site, link below

a) download the product.img from above link
b)Reboot to recovery from magisk app, then, in twrp, click on 'Reboot' button
c) click 'fastboot'
d) the device will now reboot and then after a few seconds, a twrp ui will appear with the text 'fastboot'
e) connect your device to a pc with the latest version of platform tools and drivers installed
f) run these commands in order
fastboot flash product product.img
fastboot erase system
fastboot resize-logical-partition system 3940000000
fastboot reboot recovery
g) after doing so, again reboot to recovery, flash dynapatch zip first
h) again reboot to recovery and flash your gsi image
i) this time images up to 3.9GB will be flashable
j) no need to format data if you're flashing same rom
And that's it you'll be able to enjoy bigger ROMs on your Galaxy Tab A7!
 
There's also steps in post #1, to expand system partition...
Edit
If the gsi ROM you're trying to flash doesn't fit on current system partition, then,
*This process will wipe your system partition and will reset your recovery, so, keep the dynapatch zip and gsi image on hand, you will need it!*
Download latest platform tools from AOSP site, link below

a) download the product.img from above link
b)Reboot to recovery from magisk app, then, in twrp, click on 'Reboot' button
c) click 'fastboot'
d) the device will now reboot and then after a few seconds, a twrp ui will appear with the text 'fastboot'
e) connect your device to a pc with the latest version of platform tools and drivers installed
f) run these commands in order
fastboot flash product product.img
fastboot erase system
fastboot resize-logical-partition system 3940000000
fastboot reboot recovery
g) after doing so, again reboot to recovery, flash dynapatch zip first
h) again reboot to recovery and flash your gsi image
i) this time images up to 3.9GB will be flashable
j) no need to format data if you're flashing same rom
And that's it you'll be able to enjoy bigger ROMs on your Galaxy Tab A7!
thanks
btw do you have any solution to make this taskbar on PE look a bit... not weird
Screenshot_20221130-210911_Cài_đặt[1].png
 

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  • 1
    I got it working, thanks!
    It seemed that Magisk didn't patched (or did it wrong) vbmeta.img . I extracted manually from the patched AP file, modified under Linux with the nice utility from @hamudistan, zipped with .tar extension. Then with Odin I flashed exactly like described in the OP but unselect "reboot after flashing", so I could reboot the tablet manually on d/l mode a second time and finally (re)flash vbmeta.tar on the AP slot. After that everything worked as expected! Now I'm on Lineage OS 20 and it's like having a mint new tablet :)
    1
    Hi all, I did everything as stated in the updated guide, but I'm stuck in the pixel experience setup (haven't been able to finish it in order to install Magisk and the watchdog fix) because there is no way I can set up the face unlock. I know that it is not supposed to work on A12, but I can't seem to be able to bypass this step in the setup. As such, the tablet (T500) reboots constantly. Tried it with bot A13 & A12 pixel experience images. Any ideas on how to bypass the face unlock setup? Thanks in advance
    Ignore the face unlock. Don't try to set it up.
  • 4
    Just before we get started, I would like to say that you will not brick your device if you follow the steps as is without any, and I mean any deviations.
    Read what works and what doesn't first!
    Okay, enough preface, let's jump right in!
    Firstly, pre-requisites(hardware):-
    1.A micro SD card
    2. A windows PC, windows 7 or later (32 or 64 bit)
    3. A USB Type-C cable
    4. A galaxy tab A7 running the latest one ui 4.x build

    Pre-requisites (software on PC), you'll need:
    1.Stock firmware:
    Download the latest firmware from here

    1.1 After downloading it, extract it on the PC and copy the AP file to your micro SD card, as we need it on the tab later

    2. Samsung USB drivers
    download them from here and install them on your pc, it'll take a while but it's essential for this process
    https://developer.samsung.com/android-usb-driver

    2.1 Reboot your PC after installing the drivers

    3 Download the twrp.img from below
    https://forum.xda-developers.com/t/...axy-tab-a7-10-4-sm-t500.4358595/post-87038713
    (Yes, correct, download the .img as we won't be using Odin to flash custom recovery)
    Copy this to your SD card as well

    4. Download Canary apk of magisk delta from link below
    https://huskydg.github.io/magisk-files/
    Copy the apk to your microSD which has the previously extracted AP file

    5. Download dynapatch from the file attached below credits to @redymedan for developing this!
    Then move it to your micro SD card

    6. Download the GSI image of your choice, and (make sure that it doesn't exceed 3.3GB after extraction) extract it from .img.xz format to .img format and then copy it to the micro SD card
    (also, if it exceeds 3.3 GB, don't worry,follow the steps in important notes on how to expand your system partition to accommodate larger GSIs...)

    7. If your gsi doesn't have gapps or you want to flash a system mod then download a vndklite variant of your gsi, as system is mounted as RW in vndklite gsi, where's system is mounted as read only in normal gsi images

    8. Download Odin and extract it
    https://samsungodin.com/

    9. Download SmartPack kernel manager apk and copy it to the sdcard too
    https://github.com/SmartPack/SmartPack-Kernel-Manager/releases
    (We will be using this to flash twrp in a later step)

    10. Download the brightness and watchdog fix module from below
    Copy it to SD card

    (Optional) 11. If you don't want your install storage encrypted, download the following two zips and move them to SD card,

    https://zackptg5.com/downloads/archive/Disable_Dm-Verity_ForceEncrypt_11.02.2020.zip

    Process to flash GSI:
    1) Unlock the bootloader
    To unlock the bootloader, follow the steps from here...
    https://forum.xda-developers.com/t/...4-unlock-bootloader-root-with-magisk.4185993/

    2) After that patch the AP image we copied to the micro SD card earlier and then copy the patched ap to the micro sd card and then to the pc. Steps of patching can be found here
    https://forum.xda-developers.com/t/...4-unlock-bootloader-root-with-magisk.4185993/

    3) After patching the AP image, copy the patched image from downloads folder to your micro sd card

    4. After that turn your device off

    5. After the device is fully powered off, hold both volume up and volume down buttons simultaneously and connect it to your pc, then click volume up button once during the prompt to enter download mode

    6) After entering download mode, select the BL, CP, and CSC (do not choose HOME_CSC!) files from the extracted firmware, after doing that, for AP, select the patched AP file we copied earlier and then click start on Odin.

    7. After the flash is successfully finished, reboot your device and set it up, after setup install the magisk Canary apk from the micro SD card

    8. After installing the apk, open it, and click 'OK' on additional setup prompt and the device will reboot after a few seconds

    9. After the reboot completes, install the smart pack kernel manager apk we put in the SD card earlier, then open it, then, navigate to
    Tools>Backup>(swipe to the right where it says "boot partition")> it changes to recovery partition> click on the plus symbol> two options show up, select the flash recovery option> select the twrp image from SD card (file manager opens automatically)> click on "select" and then flash it...

    10. Then open magisk delta app, and reboot to recovery

    11. After rebooting to recovery, flash dynapatch

    12. Then reboot to recovery (very important)

    (Optional)12.1 Flash multidisabler we downloaded earlier, along with disable dm Verity to disable FBE on integral storage. Also, if you intend to disable encryption, do flash both the zips not one.

    13. Then select install>Micro SD Card>install image> select GSI image you downloaded> select System Image > swipe to flash, then factory reset and wipe data from within twrp (thank you @shorty9210 for the factory reset part!)

    14. Here, hectic nature of you must be used...

    15. Boot to your GSI, and set it up as fast as possible as a watchdog crash is triggered every 30-50 seconds which causes a reboot

    16. Install magisk apk and reboot for additional setup

    17. After reboot, open magisk and install the brightness and watchdog fix module

    18. Reboot the device after installing module

    19. At this point you won't get random reboots

    20. Now you can enjoy your GSI...

    Now, onto what works and what doesn't...

    Working:
    Boot
    Touchscreen
    Sound
    WiFi
    Bluetooth
    Mobile data
    Camera
    Microphone
    Doze
    OTG
    Power buttons
    Volume buttons
    Charging
    Rotation
    Gyroscope
    Calling(works with VoIP)

    Not working:
    VoLTE
    In call audio (in case of Sims)
    Auto brightness
    Offline charging

    Untested:
    Cast
    USB tethering
    MTP

    Tested roms:
    1. Trebledroid GSIs (don't use, as magisk doesn't work and gapps can't be properly installed for some reason)
    2. Pixel experience ( magisk works and it's stable after running the watchdog command)
    3. Google GSI (vanilla and Gapps, not recommended, due to it being extremely barebones and not having fixes for DT2W, and headsets)
    4. Project Elixir (needs watchdog module, but mostly stable)

    Now credits!
    To team XDA for keeping this forum alive and well,
    @phhusson for developing GSI images that actually made this possible
    @topjohnwu for creating magisk
    @agreenbhm for the TWRP image and for helping me,
    @duyfken for correcting the firmware links, and also, for informing me to add the type of GSI for this device!
    @shorty9210 for a correction
    @huskydg for magisk delta development
    And finally all other members of XDA for taking interest in the modding scene,
    Thank you!
    I'm quite new to the GSIs as a whole, so, I still can't find any workarounds for issues, I can only list them for everyone to know...

    Important notes:
    1. If your GSI has phh settings, do the following...
    1.1 Enable double tap to wake

    Settings>Phh Treble settings>Samsung features >Tick "Enable difficult tap to wake"
    1.2 For making headphones work,
    Settings>Phh Treble settings>Misc features>Tick "Use alternate way to detect headsets"
    Also, Enable developer options>Enable "Disable Bluetooth A2DP hardware offload" and restart when prompted


    2. If the gsi ROM you're trying to flash doesn't fit on current system partition, then,
    *This process will wipe your system partition and will reset your recovery, so, keep the dynapatch zip and gsi image on hand, you will need it!*
    Download latest platform tools from AOSP site, link below
    https://developer.android.com/studio/releases/platform-tools

    https://forum.xda-developers.com/t/...xy-tab-a7-10-4-sm-t500.4371123/#post-86050459
    a) download the product.img from above link
    b)Reboot to recovery from magisk app, then, in twrp, click on 'Reboot' button
    c) click 'fastboot'
    d) the device will now reboot and then after a few seconds, a twrp ui will appear with the text 'fastboot'
    e) connect your device to a pc with the latest version of platform tools and drivers installed
    f) run these commands in order
    fastboot flash product product.img
    fastboot erase system
    fastboot resize-logical-partition system 3940000000
    fastboot reboot recovery
    g) after doing so, again reboot to recovery, flash dynapatch zip first
    h) again reboot to recovery and flash your gsi image
    i) this time images up to 3.9GB will be flashable
    j) no need to format data if you're flashing same rom
    And that's it you'll be able to enjoy bigger ROMs on your Galaxy Tab A7!

    3. follow steps from here to get 4-speaker audio!
    Post in thread '[ROM][SM-T500] Samsung Galaxy Tab A7 10.4 (2020) - LineageOS 19.1 (and TWRP 3.6.1)'

    4. Previously, we had to use either some magisk modules or SmartPack kernel manager to enable swap so that the device won't crash under load, but, now, 2GB of swap is allocated by default, which is plenty sufficient for daily usage, so, i recommend you not to use any modules or services that enable swap....

    5. If zygisk is enabled after module is installed, some users reported that it breaks brightness fix, to remedy that, try flashing permissiver_v5 from below in twrp

    6. Also, please do not rely on extra dim if brightness fix module won't work, try above step , i did this previously and the edges of my screen got ruined(ghost imaging) due to the heat...

    7. Please refrain from using any modules that spoof the device identity as it causes the phh Treble app to not display "Samsung features" at which point you can't use DT2W, so beware...

    8. Recommended settings in magisk delta
    a)magisk delta>settings>hide magisk app, you will be prompted to allow magisk delta to install apps, allow it and start the hiding> now, the magisk app will be under an alias you chose
    b)magisk delta>settings>Zygisk(enable)
    c)magisk delta>settings>Bootloop Protection (enable)
    d)magisk delta>settings>Magisk Hide

    9. Passing safetynet on Gapps GSIs
    a)magisk delta>settings>Configure MagiskHide> now, tap on three dots, elect show system apps>then tick the boxes next to the following apps
    Google Play Store, Google Play Services, Google Services Framework
    b) Install the magisk module "shamiko" version 0.5.2, as later version causes Google services to crash... Download link below(warning, shamiko 0.6 causes all Google services to crash, also, is no longer working with magisk delta, so, use magiskhide present in the delta version)
    https://github.com/LSPosed/LSPosed.github.io/releases/tag/shamiko-120
    (Optional) You can also install this module below after installing shamiko for a higher chance to not fair safetynet randomly...
    c) After installing the module, reboot
    d) clear data and cache for Google Play Store, Google Play Services, Google Services Framework
    e) at this point you should pass safetynet successfully
    10. Just a heads up, be sure to only download GSIs from the list in @phhusson GitHub, i.e, link below,
    https://github.com/phhusson/treble_experimentations/wiki/Generic-System-Image-(GSI)-list
    And, do not spend money on people that claim to give the "best GSIs" or whatever gibberish they use, only spend money as a donation to a developer, if you really enjoy their work, and would like to support them to keep up thier interest!
    I had to mention this to put you on the cautious side of things!

    11. Taskbar height is incorrect on some roms, and the magisk module from below link fixes it, credits to @wEER1234 for mentioning this, and to @Coxxs for delaying developing it!

    12. This is for improving the longevity of your device
    12.1 To prolong the lifespan of your battery, install the "acc" magisk module, reboof, open a root terminal and run the following commands
    acc -s mcc=200
    acc -s mcc=3900
    The first command limits the charging current to 200 mA and charges the battery at a power of 1.8W which greatly reduces the strain and heat evolved by the battery, and the second command only allows your battery to charge up to 3.9v (52%), as according to battery University, maximum cycles can be achieved by maintaining the voltage battery 3.9 and 3.7
    12.2 This is to reduce the Power and heat evolved by the processor
    Install smart pack kernel manager, grant root access, go to cpu section, and do the following

    Big cpu cores:
    Maximum frequency:1056Hz
    Minimum frequency:902Hz

    Little cpu cores:
    Maximum frequency: 1017Hz
    Minimum frequency:864Hz

    At these frequencies the device stays stable and relatively less hot than at higher clocks...
    2
    Screenshot_20221128-145743_Settings.png

    Hey all, it's been a long while, but here's a small peek into what I was ble to run on latest one ui 4.x vendor this weekend, I will update the future soon on how to run A13 GSIs...
    2
    Thank you for the guide. I am running AndyYan's LineageOS 19.1 on my SM-T505. The fixes for the non-working brightness slider proposed in several threads here on XDA did not work for me (maybe it is Android 12, maybe the securize option; it seems that phh-on-boot.sh is not really used, although my partition is RW and the file is patched successfully).

    I therefore made a Magisk module that issues the "echo 100 > ..." command mentioned in the OP after every boot. See attached. Just flash as a Magisk module.
    2
    Hey everyone, I'm going to stop updating this post from now on, as I'm going back to stock soon...
    Add once this device gets its last update, I'll come back to the modding scene again!
    It was a wild ride, and I learnt a lot on the way, but, it's time I bid my farewell, goodbye for now!
    1
    Wow. Thank u very very much..will prepared guide ...every thing is clear

    One thing i might clarify which is found on pazinuss. Guide. Where he put kernell

    Q: Which GSI variant should I choose?
    A: arm64 ab. Use the vndklite variant if you want to flash gapps or fix the brightness

    The brightness fix is there with kernel also .

    Thank you .....🖐️🖐️
    I didn't mention it, as I found out that extra dim intensity control does the job just fine, but I'll add it in either way, thanks!