General PSA: Pixel 6 Pro Bootloader Anti-Rollback

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Hand76

Senior Member
Jul 1, 2010
942
172
Long Island N.Y.
Just got my new Pixel 6 Pro off swappa. On Android 13 October build.

Both slots (A&B) show the same: slider-1.2-8895132

So Im good to go? I can go ahead and root now?
 
Juuuuune

Juuuuune

Senior Member
May 23, 2021
62
8
Google Pixel 3
Google Pixel 4
V0latyle said:
This is not a root guide. The link for the guide is at the top of the OP.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry, I replied to the wrong post, actually I want to ask: currently my pixel6Pro works in slot A is android 13, I don't know if slot B is android 12 (older bootloader version？), can I Prevent the pixel6Pro from dying by doing a full ota update on the 13 system to cover slot B?(translate form Google) appreciate！
 
V0latyle

V0latyle

Forum Moderator
Staff member
Feb 20, 2011
10,283
5
18,182
The Heartland of America
Google Pixel 5
Google Pixel 5a
Juuuuune said:
Sorry, I replied to the wrong post, actually I want to ask: currently my pixel6Pro works in slot A is android 13, I don't know if slot B is android 12 (older bootloader version？), can I Prevent the pixel6Pro from dying by doing a full ota update on the 13 system to cover slot B?(translate form Google) appreciate！
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The instructions to check the other slot are in the OP as well.
 
G

Guzzlor

New member
Nov 4, 2022
4
6
Sorry guys, I am back to the rooting world after many years. I have a magisk Android 12 - is there a way to go up to 13 without losing my data? Or should I start from scratch?

Thanks if you can help.

AnyNameYouWish said:
Updated from A12 to A13 with PixelFlasher with "Flash both slots" option.

Worked like a charm (y)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you point me to a guide? Did you lose your data?
Thanks.
 
Barrel Titor

Barrel Titor

Member
Jul 21, 2015
40
15
Vienna
OnePlus X
Huawei P20 Lite
Sorry.. But i'm a bit confused.. Normally i know my way around rooting and stuff but i honestly don't know what to do in this situation right now.

I just bought a brand new google pixel 6 pro.. It is still on android 12 and i have only toggled the "enable OEM unlocking" switch in the settings, not yet unlocked it via fastboot.

Should i unlock the bootloader now on A12, then upgrade to A13 (i believe not but i'm not sure)
Should i upgrade to A13, then unlock the bootloader
Or something completely different?

I'm a bit confused here, sorry..
 
V0latyle

V0latyle

Forum Moderator
Staff member
Feb 20, 2011
10,283
5
18,182
The Heartland of America
Google Pixel 5
Google Pixel 5a
Barrel Titor said:
Sorry.. But i'm a bit confused.. Normally i know my way around rooting and stuff but i honestly don't know what to do in this situation right now.

I just bought a brand new google pixel 6 pro.. It is still on android 12 and i have only toggled the "enable OEM unlocking" switch in the settings, not yet unlocked it via fastboot.

Should i unlock the bootloader now on A12, then upgrade to A13 (i believe not but i'm not sure)
Should i upgrade to A13, then unlock the bootloader
Or something completely different?

I'm a bit confused here, sorry..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unlock the bootloader, then flash the latest bootloader version to both slots before you do anything else.

  1. Reboot to bootloader
  2. Unlock bootloader
  3. Reboot to bootloader again
  4. Download latest factory image for your device (this one for Pixel 6 Pro)
  5. Unzip the factory image package
  6. Flash the new bootloader to both slots: fastboot flash bootloader --slot=all <bootloader image path or drag and drop file>
    Bootloader is bootloader-raven-slider-1.2-9465321
  7. Verify the flash was successful in the CMD print
  8. Reboot to bootloader again, then continue updating everything else
 
Last edited:
Nergal di Cuthah

Nergal di Cuthah

Senior Member
Sep 20, 2013
2,756
1,991
Google Pixel 6 Pro
Barrel Titor said:
Sorry.. But i'm a bit confused.. Normally i know my way around rooting and stuff but i honestly don't know what to do in this situation right now.

I just bought a brand new google pixel 6 pro.. It is still on android 12 and i have only toggled the "enable OEM unlocking" switch in the settings, not yet unlocked it via fastboot.

Should i unlock the bootloader now on A12, then upgrade to A13 (i believe not but i'm not sure)
Should i upgrade to A13, then unlock the bootloader
Or something completely different?

I'm a bit confused here, sorry..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

V0latyle said:
Unlock the bootloader, then flash the latest bootloader version to both slots before you do anything else.

  1. Reboot to bootloader
  2. Unlock bootloader
  3. Reboot to bootloader again
  4. Download latest factory image for your device (this one for Pixel 6a)
  5. Unzip the factory image package
  6. Flash the new bootloader to both slots: fastboot flash bootloader --slot=all <bootloader image path or drag and drop file>
    Bootloader is bootloader-bluejay-bluejay-1.2-9465321
  7. Verify the flash was successful in the CMD print
  8. Reboot to bootloader again, then continue updating everything else
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
All correct (of course) except they have a p6p not 6a ;)
 
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  • 29
    V0latyle
    V0latyle
    ***Note: THIS IS NOT A ROOT GUIDE. For updating and root instructions, check out my guide here.***

    From the Pixel Images page:
    P6 AntiRollBack.png


    This applies to ALL Pixel 6 devices, regardless of whether or not you're rooted!

    This does NOT affect other Pixel generations, and the Android 14 update did not increment the bootloader anti-rollback.

    What this means:
    Once Android 13 Stable boots after the FIRST update to Android 13, it updates an anti-rollback counter in the device hardware to prevent rolling back the bootloader. This will prevent previous versions of the bootloader from starting.

    Why this is a problem:
    The OTA only updates one slot, then reboots into that slot. It does not update both slots at once. If there is a boot failure after updating to Android 13, the device may attempt to "recycle" back to the old slot. If this other slot has a previous version of the bootloader, the bootloader will not start, rendering the device a brick.

    How do I make sure this doesn't happen to me?
    If you updated via OTA, simply sideload the OTA again. Since you are currently on the Android 13 slot, this will overwrite your old Android 12 slot with the new bootloader.
    If you have an unlocked bootloader and prefer to update using the factory image, you can flash the bootloader to both slots:
    fastboot flash bootloader --slot=all <bootloader image> It's highly recommended you do this BEFORE updating, but if you didn't, do it as soon as possible.

    I've updated several times since the August 2022 update, am I still at risk?
    If you've updated via OTA at least once since you first updated to Android 13, you should be fine. Instructions to check bootloader versions are further down this post.

    The initial Android 13 release bootloader version is slider-1.2-8739948. As long as your bootloader is equal to or higher than this, you should be fine.

    What if I was on the Android 13 Beta?
    Same as above - the beta did not incorporate the anti-rollback, and the beta bootloaders are still considered "old".

    Will the new bootloader prevent me from flashing and running Android 12?
    The short answer is YES. Android 12 will not run properly on the Android 13 bootloader. Contrary to what the warning above says, you CAN flash Android 12 on the Android 13 bootloader, and though it will boot, it will not run properly. See this post.

    If you MUST use Android 12, you can use a Developer Support Image.

    How do I check my current bootloader version?
    Code: 
    adb reboot bootloader #Reboots device to bootloader.

fastboot getvar current-slot #Outputs current slot, should also be visible on the device screen: "Boot slot"

fastboot getvar version-bootloader #Outputs current slot's bootloader version, should also be visible on device screen "Bootloader version"

fastboot --set-active=a or b #Use this to switch to the inactive slot - if current slot is A, set to B or vice versa.

fastboot getvar current-slot

fastboot getvar version-bootloader

fastboot --set-active=b or a (set to original slot) #Set active slot back to what it was before.  If you started on slot A, make sure you switch back to slot A.

fastboot getvar current-slot

fastboot continue #Commands device to resume boot, same function as selecting "Start" in the bootloader menu.

#So as an example:
fastboot getvar current-sot
>current-slot: a

fastboot getvar version-bootloader
>version-bootloader: slider-1.2-8739948

fastboot --set-active=b
>Setting current slot to 'b'

fastboot getvar version-bootloader
>version-bootloader: slider-1.2-8739948

fastboot --set-active=a
>Setting current slot to 'a'

fastboot continue
    View
    8
    Namelesswonder
    Namelesswonder
    Android 12 party is over, DRM APEX isn't functional when the Android 13 bootloader is installed.

    You won't be able to use WebView or browsers, and anything that wants to check DRM like streaming applications are going to crash.

    Maybe at some point a developer can look into cooking up a custom Android 12 ROM with Android 13 APEXs or patched ones.
    View
    7
    fil3s
    fil3s
    V0latyle said:
    Source? This would be nice. I still think Pixel Flasher is superior in most ways
    Click to expand...
    Click to collapse

    Google posts additional instructions for Pixel 6 owners that flashed Android 13

    In addressing that Pixel 6 vulnerability...
    9to5google.com 9to5google.com

    Screenshot_20220821-005234.png
    View
    5
    Lughnasadh
    Lughnasadh
    FYI: Even though Android Flash Tool does not flash the whole image to both slots, they have added an option to flash the A13 bootloader to the inactive slot. This may be the easiest option when updating to A13 from A12.

    Just to be clear, when updating to A13 from A12 a prompt will show up asking whether you want to also flash the bootloader to the inactive slot as well. It doesn't show up in the regular tick boxes.


    Screenshot from 2022-08-24 14-39-11.png
    View
    3
    Lughnasadh
    Lughnasadh
    KHANrad_SIN said:
    So the OP says to flash the new bootloader to both slots BEFORE updating. The thing is, I already updated to A13 and I didn't flash to both slots. Everything is working fine for me but my question is will this affect me later on? possible when I flash the next monthly update?

    Also, can I simply flash the new bootloader to both slots right now without it affecting anything?
    Click to expand...
    Click to collapse
    You should flash the bootloader to the inactive slot now.
    View

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