Sep 23

NVFlash for Tegra3 – Transformer TF700T

TF700 has finally succumbed to our beatings and have surrendered nvflash!

This release allows unlocked devices to create a set of device-specific files that lets you access nvflash. Once the procedure is done, you will always be able to recover any software brick (even bootloader!) as long as you keep your files safe!

We have made a seperate page for the guide: Guide

Before you get too excited, there are a few details you need to know before starting:

  1. It will only work on UNLOCKED devices
  2. It requires access to Fastboot to prepare device first time
  3. It won’t work on fully bricked devices (See 2.)
  4. You need to keep files safe!
  5. It won’t work if you’ve upgraded to 9.4.5.30 or TF300 JB.
  6. On TF700, fastboot flash will still only be able to flash blobs -- direct flashing is not possible sadly.

Point 2 and 3 only applies when running our tool. Once you have a set of files (See guide), you are fully unbrickable (We tested it -- wiping out bootloaders on our devices!).

We recommend backing up a number of partitions with nvflash as soon as you have it running. In particular, the device-specific sensor calibration/serial number partition as well as the unlock token partition. Running a full recovery if you brick your device will require these partitions to get fully back to a working tablet!

 

Important note: We kind of forgot to clarify what the license for wheelie was so here goes. Due to the nature of wheelie and the importance of people always using the latest version, Wheelie is NOT redistributable! You are allowed to download it and use it, but you are not allowed to redistribute it in any way -- this means no GUI’s including it, no reposting zips/tar.gz’s and similar! At a later date, we will be releasing our source code and relicense it as GPL.

 

Permanent link to this article: http://androidroot.mobi/2012/09/23/nvflash-for-tegra3-transformer-tf700t/

Sep 19

NVFlash for Tegra3 – Transformer TF300T

Finally, we’ve finished battling TF300 and are proud to release NVFLASH for TF300!

This release allows unlocked devices to create a set of device-specific files that lets you access nvflash. Once the procedure is done, you will always be able to recover any software brick (even bootloader!) as long as you keep your files safe!

We have made a seperate page for the guide: Guide

Before you get too excited, there are a few details you need to know before starting:

  1. It will only work on UNLOCKED devices
  2. It requires access to Fastboot to prepare device first time
  3. It won’t work on fully bricked devices (See 2.)
  4. You need to keep files safe!
  5. If you upgraded to Offiical JB it *won’t* work!

Point 2 and 3 only applies when running our tool. Once you have a set of files (See guide), you are fully unbrickable (We tested it -- wiping out bootloaders on our devices!).

We recommend backing up a number of partitions with nvflash as soon as you have it running. In particular, the device-specific sensor calibration/serial number partition as well as the unlock token partition. Running a full recovery if you brick your device will require these partitions to get fully back to a working tablet!

 

Important note: We kind of forgot to clarify what the license for wheelie was so here goes. Due to the nature of wheelie and the importance of people always using the latest version, Wheelie is NOT redistributable! You are allowed to download it and use it, but you are not allowed to redistribute it in any way -- this means no GUI’s including it, no reposting zips/tar.gz’s and similar! At a later date, we will be releasing our source code and relicense it as GPL.

 

Permanent link to this article: http://androidroot.mobi/2012/09/19/nvflash-for-tegra3-transformer-tf300t/

Jul 18

CyanogenMod 10 Preview edition!

So, it’s been over a week since JellyBean source dropped and we figured it was time for some fun news!

As I’m sure everyone knows, CM10 has been progression at blazing speeds and we (on the AndroidRoot) team felt that it was time to show it off on transformers :)

It’s still early and CM10 has a good way to go, but it’s certainly usable!

What works:

  1. Wifi
  2. Bluetooth
  3. Sound
  4. Camera (Photos + recording + panorama)
  5. Video Acceleration (720p youtube ftw!)
  6. Basic dock functionality (keyboard works -- second battery doesn’t show up)
  7. 3D Games
  8. Sensors

What doesn’t work:

  1. GPS
  2. Lightsensor is funky

There is a lot of stuff we haven’t tested, including HDMI output and similar -- maybe it works, maybe it doesn’t. Post a comment here and we’ll put it on the list :)

Now for the good part -- the links:

TF101

TF201

All credit goes to AndroidRoot team and CyanogenMod! :)

Thanks to Koush/ClockworkMod.com for hosting!

Permanent link to this article: http://androidroot.mobi/2012/07/18/cyanogenmod-10-preview-edition/

Jul 15

NVFlash for Tegra3 – Transformer Prime [Updated 21. July - Windows version!]

Update: 18. July -- Windows version has been released!  See the Guide page for download link.

After much hard work and scary semi-bricks, we are proud to finally provide nvflash to the masses!

This release allows unlocked devices to create a set of device-specific files that lets you access nvflash. Once the procedure is done, you will always be able to recover any software brick (even bootloader!) as long as you keep your files safe!

We have made a seperate page for the guide: Guide

Before you get too excited, there are a few details you need to know before starting:

  1. It will only work on UNLOCKED devices
  2. It requires access to Fastboot to prepare device first time
  3. It won’t work on fully bricked devices (See 2.)
  4. You need to keep files safe!

Point 2 and 3 only applies when running our tool. Once you have a set of files (See guide), you are fully unbrickable (We tested it -- wiping out bootloaders on our devices!).

We recommend backing up a number of partitions with nvflash as soon as you have it running. In particular, the device-specific sensor calibration/serial number partition as well as the unlock token partition. Running a full recovery if you brick your device will require these partitions to get fully back to a working tablet!

 

Important note: We kind of forgot to clarify what the license for wheelie was so here goes. Due to the nature of wheelie and the importance of people always using the latest version, Wheelie is NOT redistributable! You are allowed to download it and use it, but you are not allowed to redistribute it in any way -- this means no GUI’s including it, no reposting zips/tar.gz’s and similar! At a later date, we will be releasing our source code and relicense it as GPL.

 

Permanent link to this article: http://androidroot.mobi/2012/07/15/nvflash-for-tegra3-transformer-prime/

Jun 17

Ubuntu on the Transformer Prime Preview

It has been a while since the last post about ubuntu on the Transformer Prime. This post is going to explain a few of the new changes, and show a video preview of the system in action.

 

There have been a few changes since the last update:

 

3.1.10 Kernel -- Asus don’t update the kernel while remaining on the same android major release, so they won’t update the kernel until at least Jellybean, but we have worked really hard to bring us up to the latest kernel. This has given us the ability to use the latest Tegra ULP GeForce binary from nvidia and maintain acceleration with the latest releases.

Linux as a bootloader -- With some work to the process we have managed to get kexecboot working to give us a boot menu that will boot not only multiple kernels from eMMC, but also to allow booting from USB, SD, and MicroSD.  At this point in time the guest kernel also requires two patches, one for speed (it is really slow to boot without this patch, 30sec-5minutes) and the second to copy ATAGS, this second patch is important so that the new initrd and command line get used.

Ubuntu 12.04 LTS -- The last image was 11.10 which is a little less stable. 12.04 has a new gpower applet which can read the battery levels. 12.04 also includes the mtrack driver allowing the trackpad to work. The biggest change with the new image is the use of armhf over armel.

LVM -- Turning mmcblk0p8 (/data under android) to an lvm volume group has allowed both android and ubuntu to coexist on the eMMC without needing nvflash for reformatting. This however does require a modification to the android initrd to reflect the change and for the lvm binary to be included so it can mount /data. Ubuntu natively supports booting from logical volumes.

 

Here is a video of this system in action. The video is a little bit rough cause I was trying to operate the camera and control the TF201 at the same time and I couldn’t keep it steady. I have also trimmed out booting CM9 for size reasons. If anyone would like to see both booting I can do a video just of dual booting.

 

I do not have an installer, or the files packed into an installable package yet, this is the next step that we are working on.

Permanent link to this article: http://androidroot.mobi/2012/06/17/ubuntu-on-the-transformer-prime-preview/

May 31

Wheelie for Windows [Beta]

I had some extra spare time and decided to whip up a quick windows port. It’s fairly rough, but it does the job and seems to work.

 

It has only been tested on Windows 7 64-bit, but it’s compiled as 32-bit code, against XP-compatible WinUSB drivers so it should work on any windows version nvflash works on!

I have included reflash_sbkv1.bat and reflash_sbkv2.bat files -- Be aware that these don’t verify that you have placed files correctly like the linux version, so doublecheck before running anything!

Keep in mind this is beta -- and that I’ll be going on holiday so don’t expect any support ;)

Url: Wheelie.zip

Note this requires APX-mode drivers, which are NOT included (partly due to size, partly due to legal issues). I’m sure you can find these on your favourite forum! If not, they are in the Nvidia Android 4.0 pack for Ventana from Nvidia’s site!

 

Permanent link to this article: http://androidroot.mobi/2012/05/31/wheelie-for-windows-beta/

May 27

Introducing Wheelie: Nvflash for ASUS Transformer TF101 B70+ [Linux only]

Wheelie - I'm back

After lots of blood, sweat and tears, we are proud to present Wheelie -- a full nvflash solution for B70+ models and beyond.

As previously mentioned, we had some major issues to overcome. These issues are finally out of the way!

DISCLAIMER: All use of this program is your own responsibility! We will in no way be held accountable if you somehow manage to perm-brick, set on fire or blow up yourself, your tablet or your house!

So what do we have?

  • Partitial Nvflash re-implementation
  • Regular nvflash takes over after tablet is prepared
  • Allows for unbrick B70+ devices!
  • Allows all nvflash commands, including --read and --download for easy forever-root.
  • For consistency, we also support pre-B70 devices, but needs manual selection.
  • Linux only for now

We are planning a GPL release of sourcecode (Currently released binaries are NOT under GPL.) at a later date! The code is made so it is relatively easy to extend wheelie with new nvflash commands, so the plan is to eventually have a full open-source reimplementation of nvflash!

What does it mean?

  1. Full recovery from any software brick! (including broken bootloader!)
  2. Root & custom ROMs will always be possible, no matter what ASUS do!

How to use

Both nvflash and wheelie require access to the usb device with Vendor ID 0×955 and Product ID 0×7820. If you are unable to set this up yourself, it’s recommend to run the tools with “sudo” or as the root user.

All usage requires booting your tablet into APX mode by connecting it to USB, turning it off and turn it back on while holding Volume Up!

Included scripts (full reflash)

SBKv1

./reflash_sbkv1.sh

SBKv2

./reflash_sbkv2.sh

In order to use this, you will need to download a full update from ASUS for your SKU and unpack the “blob” file from within the zip using the provided blobunpack tool. We recommend sticking to 100% stock blobs for this step and then root afterwards!

Manual (other nvflash commands)

SBKv1 :-

./wheelie -1 -o 0x300d8011 --bl bootloader.bin -c transformer.bct

SBKv2 :-

./wheelie -2 -o 0x300d8011 --bl bootloader.bin -c transformer.bct

After wheelie has finished any nvflash command can be executed in resume mode, for example

  • ./nvflash -r --getpartitiontable partition_table.txt (Get list of partitions on tablet)
  • ./nvflash -r --read 6 boot.img (Read partition 6 (LNX/boot.img) and store it in local file boot.img)
  • ./nvflash -r --download 6 boot.img (Write LNX/boot.img to tablet partition 6 (LNX/boot.img))
  • ./nvflash -r --download 5 cwm.img (Write SOS/recovery.img to tablet partition 5 (SOS/recovery.img))
The last command can be used to flash a Custom recovery, e.g. CWM or TWRP and hence allow installing custom ROMs.

Mini-guide to installing custom recovery:

  1. Download latest recovery for ASUS Transformer from http://www.clockworkmod.com/rommanager & save in Wheelie directory
  2. run “./blobunpack recovery-clockwork-5.8.2.1-tf101.img” (Replace “recovery-clockwork-5.8.2.1-tf101.img” with the name of your downloaded file”)
  3. Boot up wheelie as explained in previous section.
  4. Run “./nvflash -r --download 5 recovery-clockwork-5.8.2.1-tf101.img.SOS
  5. Run “./nvflash -r --go
  6. Reboot into recovery by turning tablet off, then turning on while holding VolDown and follow instructions on screen.

Download links

 All-in-one package

This work has been brought to you by the following people:

Bumble-Bee, IEF, kmdm, lilstevie & RaYmAn

Permanent link to this article: http://androidroot.mobi/2012/05/27/introducing-wheelie-nvflash-for-asus-transformer-tf101-b70/

May 15

TF201 CM9 External GPS Support Testing [Updated 17/05/2012]

In an effort to support the newly released external GPS expansion in CM9, we are happy to present our GPS Wrapper!

Once this has been tested, it will be merged into CM9!

On our small-scale tests this seems to work fine, however we would like to get the widest range of test data possible!

This is not guaranteed to work as it is Work-in-progress,  however there are instructions below on how to restore!

How to use:

  • Install the update.zip below from CWM recovery
  • To switch between internal and external GPS, you need to attach or detach the GPS Dongle, then turn GPS on/off in settings. The GPS wrapper will make sure to take care of the rest.

Updated 17/05/2012 -- New wrapper that should allow the change of device without GPS settings toggle

update.zip Install (CM9 Only)

  • Install this update.zip

Manual Install Instructions (CM9 Only)

  • extract zip file bellow
  • navigate to the /system/ directory within that folder
  • adb root
  • adb remount
  • adb push lib/hw/gps.tegra.so /system/lib/hw/
  • adb push lib/hw/gpsdongle.tegra.so /system/lib/hw/
  • adb push lib/hw/gpsinternal.tegra.so /system/lib/hw/
  • adb push etc/u-blox.conf /system/etc/
  • adb push etc/gps.conf /system/etc/
  • adb shell reboot

To switch between GPS devices

  • Just switch GPS off/on in settings while the dock is either connected or disconnected

Manual Uninstall Instructions (CM9 Only)

  • adb root
  • adb remount
  • adb shell cp system/lib/hw/gpsinternal.tegra.so system/lib/hw/gps.tegra.so
  • adb push lib/etc/gps.conf.old /system/etc/gps.conf
  • adb shell reboot

Links

Permanent link to this article: http://androidroot.mobi/2012/05/15/tf201-cm9-external-gps-support-testing/

Apr 01

SBKDump v1.0 (April fools!)

Update: This was obviously an april fools. This tool won’t dump your SBK. 

 

After much persistence androidroot.mobi has FINALLY BROKEN the security around the Tegra AES Engine and we are able to dump your SBK.

We know it’s a Sunday and this isn’t a good time for a release but we’re so excited to be able to share this everyone that this post will not be a teaser -- WE ARE RELEASING OUR SBK DUMPING TOOL- RIGHT NOW!

Note that this requires a rooted device! It needs to access low-level hardware that just isn’t possible as a regular user!

To get the tool download it here: sbkdump v1.0

The tool is a command line utility so you’ll need to run the following commands:-

adb push sbkdump.bin /data/local/
adb shell
$ cd /data/local/
$ su
# chmod 755 sbkdump.bin
# ./sbkdump.bin

Please note that this tool is rather rough and ready and we hope to provide a nicer tool in the future but for now we just want to get it out there!

Permanent link to this article: http://androidroot.mobi/2012/04/01/sbkdump-v1-0/

Feb 24

Aaaaaand, we’re back. CM9 for ASUS Transformer (TF101) back on track

Right on the heels of CM9 for TF Prime, we have CM9 for original TF coming soon!

Don’t quite have a video or a screenshot yet, but rest assured that our work on CM9 for TF prime has resumed now that ICS is out for it :)

Stuff that now works compared to our previous (unreleased) versions:

  1. No more green overlays!
  2. Full hardware acceleration, including video playback
  3. Sound
  4. Camera

We are working on getting this and the TF201 tree merged into official CM, but until then our device & vendor trees are available on the AndroidRoot github: https://github.com/AndroidRoot/

Images will be out as soon as possible!

 

Permanent link to this article: http://androidroot.mobi/2012/02/24/aaaaaand-were-back-cm9-for-asus-transformer-tf101-back-on-track/

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