yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] draiko913:
Could be wrong, but doesn't that cause the DRM keys to be lost and then causes issues with the camera? I would consider doing the same but don't want to cause any bigger issues by doing it. I was rooted a while ago as well, but went back to stock and restored my TA partition. Didn't have any issues with OTA updates until this one, but I'm guessing it's somehow related to being rooted previously.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] fzurita:
Yeah. If you unlock, the camera doesn't work right in the GPE ROM. The only way to get camera functionality back after unlocking is to install a custom ROM. That defeats the whole purpose of unlocking to be able to install the 5.1 GPE ROM. I guess the best hope is to wait for Sony to release a fix. My best guess is that for some reason the 5.0 update didn't install FOTAKernel partition correctly.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] draiko913:
Is there anyway to flash the FOTAKernel directly to correct the issue?
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] fzurita:
Only if bootloader is unlocked.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] MrSewerPickle:
That won't work and they reason why I know this is because I modified the installation script to accept 4.4.4 (KTU84P, which it thinks it is in ONLY the bootload like the rest of the folks have posted) and it failed with wrong footer format because the package no longer matches from the mods. If you know how to disable signature verification, that might work then but I'm not sure how to do that.

Basically the Bootloader is a big raving tard because the actual system knows its the correct build version once it boots.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] fzurita:
Once unlocked, you can disable signature verification using the CM kernel recovery.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] Visa Declined:
My 5.1 OTA ended with an error message as well. My GPe is completely stock, not rooted or unlocked.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] egzthunder1:
eh? The bootloader state will not prevent you from doing an OTA update so as long as the device isn't rooted.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] MrSewerPickle:
So to recap: For some reason the late last year OTA 5.0 update doesn't appear to have successfully updated the boot and FOTAKernel partition on *some* peoples device (me included) leading to the failed release keys check in the factory recovery (recovery still thinks the device is 4.4.4).

Reflashing the 5.0 OTA still doesn't update those partitions to indicate 5.0 release keys.

The biggest question for me is how some folks got a successfully updated boot/FOTAKernel partition when the 5.0 OTA rolled out and some did not.

The even stranger thing is that I had way more problems with the 4.4.4 update (first the SDCard write fix removal required, then root) but I don't recall any issues with the 5.0 OTA.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] fzurita:
I wonder how this can be brought up to Sony, there are a lot of people with the issue. Do they have some sort of forum we can post to? Do we have to call them?
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] adfurgerson:
[MENTION=359497]jerpelea[/MENTION]
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] Visa Declined:
I already contacted them, and told them the OTA is broken. They sent me back a reply this morning that had nothing to do with my message.

Dear Craig,

Thank you for contacting Sony Xperia™ Online Support.

We apologize for the delay in this response. In regards to your inquiry,

We have now also started our Android™ 5.0, Lollipop, upgrade for Xperia™ Z2, Xperia™ Z2 Tablet and Xperia™ Z3 Tablet Compact.

You’ll see the upgrade hit first devices in the Nordics and Baltics, continuing to further markets, for more Xperia™ Z Series products, starting in around two weeks time - we’ll share the latest Sonymobile.com, as it happens. However we don't have any information abouth a 5.1 upgrade.

Note! Software rollouts are a phased process – timings & availability may vary by market/carrier.

As part of Sony Mobile's commitment to excellent customer service, we offer a wide variety of mobile products to suit your lifestyle. If you require more information, or have any other questions, please visit www.sonymobile.com or call us at 1-866-766-9374.

Kind Regards,

Benny
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] egzthunder1:
[MENTION=4060395]KalleD[/MENTION] ... This is something that you guys may want to take a look at.

There are two rules in life for being successful:

1. Never reveal everything you know;

2.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] jdh1947:
OTA upgrade to 5.1 fails with error 7 (see screenshot)

stock Sony Z Ultra GPe, never unlocked BL, has OTA upgrade to 5.0 currently
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] draiko913:
So I called Sony Mobile support only to have them insist that GPe is controlled by Google only, although Google's support site says that GPe updates are issued by the manufacturer but that Google partners closely with them to ensure quick updates. Haven't had a chance to call Google yet but thought I would share my fun with talking to Sony.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] fzurita:
Someone just asked me for the system partition on 5.1 in zip format. Here it is:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B57Ioy26LWegU3hyUmY5Uk1GWjA/view?usp=sharing
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] egzthunder1:
Simply put, they will tell you to call Sony... :p

Endless loop :p

There are two rules in life for being successful:

1. Never reveal everything you know;

2.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] mtuckman:
Looks exactly like mine :crying:
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] draiko913:
Actually, I just was on chatting with Lizzy M from Google for about 45 minutes. Nothing earth shattering yet, explain the issue, reboot into recovery, clear cache, download OTA again. Since the OTA will take a bit to download, we are now going back and forth in email. It's generally all the basics right now, but at least she understands the issue. If (when) it fails again, she's going to get some other resources involved as well. So it may not be a quick process, but at least I feel like I've got a line into the right group anyway.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] mtuckman:
Rooting for you! :fingers-crossed:
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] draiko913:
So I'm still going to attempt to keep working through this with Google, but in case they aren't able to provide a fix, I'm trying to determine my backup plan. If there is no solution from Google, it appears that the FOTAkernel partition is stuck on 4.4.4 instead of being updated during the 5.0 update. So my first thought is could there be a different OTA floating out there somewhere that some people received that works correctly, and another that the rest of us received that left us with the old partition? That's probably very much a long shot, so I'm not counting on that.

That leads me to having to unlock the bootloader, which will destroy my DRM keys, cause camera issues, possibly softer audio, bravia engine not working, and maybe a few other things? I thought I had read that it's the stock camera that has issues but other replacement cameras still work ok. If that is correct, then not the end of the world but someone please feel free to correct me if that is wrong. Bravia engine isn't much of a loss for me, audio is questionable.

I actually unlocked my bootloader a while ago, but that was when it was possible to backup the TA partition. After trying a few custom roms, I decided to revert entirely back to stock and restored my TA partition (which I wonder if that may be part of my problem in general trying to get 5.1 to work now).

If I unlock the bootloader to remove the fingerprint check, it looks like I would need a custom recovery to do so. Will a custome recovery (phil, cmw, twrp) be able to flash the stock OTA? Are there any other possible issues that I'm missing? And, if I still happen to have my TA backup (praying I didn't delete it by accident), would I be able downgrade and restore my TA if necessary?

Sadly, I've unlocked and rooted quite a few other phones, but this has been my only Sony phone and it seems to be a lot more touchy about consequences for unlocking compared to other devices so I'm still more hesitant about the process with my Ultra.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] egzthunder1:
Unlocking the bootloader kills autofocus AFAIK. Other apps that don't use this work but it is a rather lousy workaround as it adds a lot of lag between the moment you press the button and when the thing actually takes the picture.

There are two rules in life for being successful:

1. Never reveal everything you know;

2.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] Visa Declined:
I got another email from Sony with regards to the broken OTA...

Dear Craig,

Thank you for contacting Sony Xperia™ Online Support.

We truly apologize for the delay in our response. In regard to your inquiry, as your Xperia™ Z ultra is specifically branded to Google play edition, please keep in mind the software of your device is customized to them. In this case we suggest for you to contact them for the correct software update further information. We apologize for the inconvenience this may cause you.

As part of Sony Mobile's commitment to excellent customer service, we offer a wide variety of mobile products to suit your lifestyle. If you require more information, or have any other questions, please visit www.sonymobile.com or call us at 1-866-766-9374.

Kind Regards,

Queensy

Sony Xperia US Customer Services
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] MrSewerPickle:
Autofocus technically works on mine but I had to put together an app to work around it. Basically calling autofocus before taking the picture (typically implemented in apps with touching on the screen or looping and updating the preview screen) is busted after the unlock.

You can set focus parameters on the camera object before you actually take the snapshot (picture) but the downside of this is you have a fuzzy/non focused preview screen before you press the take picture button. After the picture the preview screen updates with the focused preview. Stupid, I know....

For what its worth, I'll attach the app just to play with (gonna to upload to drive and link shortly.

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B3CzriRZ2yJYOUxmVDNxenZIdVE/edit?usp=docslist_api

My two cents:

If you still have a locked boot loader and TA then I would just wait and see how your thread goes with Google.

You are right, this specific device is much more "picky" than at least Samsung and LG in my humble opinion, of course :)
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] Visa Declined:
I have an open case and direct email connection with Google over a previous problem with this phone, so I just shot them another email asking for help.

On Tue, Dec 30, 2014 at 7:41 PM, <googleplay-support@google.com> wrote:

Hello Craig,

I understand. Please don't hesitate to respond to this email in the future should you want to explore this option again. I'll be more than happy to help.

Thanks,

Sarah

The Google Support Team

....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Craig M <@gmail.com>

12:01 PM (40 minutes ago)

to googleplay-sup.

Hello again. I was corresponding with you over the Android 5.0 update on my Sony Z Ultra Google Play edition. The GPS and SD card functionality was broken after the update, but I decided to live with it. Some time has passed now, and Sony has released the Android 5.1 update to this device. This new release is not working, and gives an error message when you try to install it. I have other friends with this device, and the update is failing for them as well. I wish I could simply ignore the update, but every time it fails, my phone downloads it again, and constantly notifies me that it needs to update. It it a never ending cycle. I contacted Sony about this error, and they sent me an email saying that I needed to contact you folks.

Dear Craig,

Thank you for contacting Sony Xperia™ Online Support.

We truly apologize for the delay in our response. In regard to your inquiry, as your Xperia™ Z ultra is specifically branded to Google play edition, please keep in mind the software of your device is customized to them. In this case we suggest for you to contact them for the correct software update further information. We apologize for the inconvenience this may cause you.

As part of Sony Mobile's commitment to excellent customer service, we offer a wide variety of mobile products to suit your lifestyle. If you require more information, or have any other questions, please visit www.sonymobile.com or call us at 1-866-766-9374.

Kind Regards,

Queensy

Sony Xperia US Customer Services

Like I mentioned previously, the update is failing for nearly everyone on the internet as well, and we don't know what to do.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] Saatvik Shukla:
Can someone pull the boot.img from the 5.1 gpe and post it here please? :)
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] draiko913:
So after another chat with Google tonight, I have hit a dead end. The support rep was pleasant to deal with, but since the basics (wipe cache and try update, factory reset and try update) continued to fail, they would only offer to replace the phone if still under warranty, which of course expired about 4 months ago. They then referred me to Sony for a possible out of warranty repair. So that's obviously not going to happen since I could probably buy another phone for the same price :)

So it looks like I may have to resort to more drastic measures, or wait until someone much smarter than myself can find a better solution.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] tsiros:
I wouldn't push it if I were you...
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] fzurita:
At last it's not as bad as that. Or devices are not getting bricked. This can be fixed if the device is unlocked... At the cost of the camera...
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] tsiros:
The point i am trying to make is, since our devices are out of warranty (i'd guess most of our z ultras are out of warranty anymore) if the update fails, we're **** out of luck... and for those of us who use their devices to do actual work, we can not risk ****ing everything up with botched updates... Which in short means that

This update is as if it never happened. We're stuck with 4.4 (edit: or 5.0, take your pick)
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] draiko913:
So what does everyone think is the best way to go about getting the 5.1 update installed after unlocking the bootloader? Flashing the proper 5.0 FOTAkernel partition then updating or using a custom recovery, or something else? I think I'm probably just going to pull the trigger tonight or tomorrow and unlock my bootloader. Just want to save myself so headaches and use the most reliable method for updating thereafter.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] egzthunder1:
Back your ta partition beforehand. Other than that, fire away...

There are two rules in life for being successful:

1. Never reveal everything you know;

2.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] fzurita:
Also, to backup the TA partition, you need root. Since with 5.0 and 5.1 there is no way to root without unlocking first, there is no way to backup the TA partition.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] tonictonic:
I just got a replacement z ultra in and being that this is my uncle's phone he doesn't need root or unlocked BL so I tried to take it straight to 5.1. Nope, get the freaking error during the 5.1 update. My own z ultra has the same issue, but I've messed a lot with it so I had thought that had something to do with it but I'm guessing it's just some flawed update path. I like the phone but this has got to be some of the worst experiences I've ever had with a GPE device.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] draiko913:
Out of curiosity, have you reached back out to Google to let them know the replacement didn't work either?
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] zchen:
Add me to the list of failed 5.1 updates. Thought it bricked my phone for a moment but thank god it booted it up again. Update then disappeared, only to reappear two days later. Have not tried it again.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] tonictonic:
Not yet, the phone was warrantied for hardware issues so aside from not taking any updates it works fine. I'll probably sit on this until a fix comes out.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] MrSewerPickle:
So, you can do this if your bootloader is already unlocked (like me):

1. Download the Lollipop 5.0 FOTAKernel here: http://xdaforums.com/xperia-z-ultra/xperia-z-ultra-gpe/lollipop-5-0-boot-fotakernel-images-t2960269 (Thanks again [MENTION=2784807]DooMLoRD[/MENTION])

2. Boot your phone into fastboot mode (Power it off, unplug USB cable from PC, Turn on phone while holding up volume key and plugging in USB Cable). And scratch your head while hold a glass of wine and speed dial your best friend. That part I made up but is me poking fun at why this was agreed upon for the fastboot sequence.

3. Validate your phone is listed in fastboot

E:\Software\SonyXperiaZUltra>fastboot devices

4. Flash the 5.0 FOTAKernel:

E:\Software\SonyXperiaZUltra>fastboot flash FOTAKernel FOTAKernel_5.0.img
sending 'FOTAKernel' (16384 KB)...
OKAY [ 0.637s]
writing 'FOTAKernel'...
OKAY [ 1.082s]
finished. total time: 1.729s

NOTE: Only flash the FOTAKernel, not the boot or system. Apparently the boot flash doesn't work on the S1 Bootloader version. Others can cover the details as to why. http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=2799423

5. Boot your device back up, select the "Install Android 5.1 Update" we all know and love by now and it should reboot into the FOTAKernel, apply the update (which takes longer than expected) and then should reboot back into the normal system partition with 5.1! :)
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] draiko913:
This worked perfectly. So I'm wondering if when I unlocked my bootloader initially, if my ta restore never actually worked? The camera is still acting the same as it was before. It focuses while I'm pointing at this but the when I click to take a picture, it goes out of focus and the refocuses to take the photo. Probably take about 1/2 a second to do so, but that is how it's been for as long as I can remember, so I'm happy with that not getting any worse after unlocking.

Since unlocking wiped my data, I've been resetting everything back up, 5.1 feels quicker overall. Very smooth transitions from screen to screen. No tiny jitters or lag when opening the app drawer like I had seen on 5.0 (which wasn't bad, just slightly noticeable now that there isn't any lag opening it).

One person mentioned that they had issues connecting to their 5ghz wifi and could only connect to 2.4ghz. I am not having any issues connecting to 5.0ghz or 2.4ghz. Both work and speed tests ran smoothly.

Still breaking everything in but all seems good in the first few hours of heavy use.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] VanNostrand:
What's described there is a so-called soft brick and not a hard brick. It's incredible hard to hard brick a device, and this isn't close to being a serious issue. Will the 5.1 update soft brick our Ultras? Nope. What if it does happen. How do you restore it to a functional state again?

As long as the device boots or you can enter Fastboot/Flashmode, it's not bricked. You can either:

- Boot into fastboot (VOL UP + Power), hotboot a custom kernel with recovery and restore a backup if you've done that, or flash a functioning ROM.

- Boot into Flashmode (VOL DOWN + Power), open Flashtool and then just flash a stock Sony ROM.

The former needs an unlocked bootloader, the latter does not.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] MrSewerPickle:
Yeah It looks like they really did fix the system based memory leak as well (which may be why its so smooth during transitions) because system usage is around 556-580 MB.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] egzthunder1:
Hold on a sec.... You are able to take pics with stock camera, with an unlocked bl, on 5.1?

There are two rules in life for being successful:

1. Never reveal everything you know;

2.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] VanNostrand:
Yeah, Google patched like 40+ leaks in 5.1, but there is one left that they patched a couple of weeks back that will be included in a future update. Still, 5.1 is very usable unlike 5.0 and 5.0.2. You can actually keep Chrome open for days without it closing, which is freakin' magical. That doesn't even happen on KitKat.

Also, I want to recommend Chainfire's "Recently" app if you find the Lollipop "recent apps" to be too chaotic and want it to for example only show actual running apps, instead of all the apps that have been used and currently running.

Well, you are a couple of Android versions behind, and the broken camera on the earlier version(s) was a bug and not a feature, so Sony/Google has most certainly fixed the issue since then. I would definitelly update :o
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] draiko913:
Yes, I'm specifically using the most current version of the Google Camera app from the play store and can take pictures without any issues so far.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] fzurita:
Well, if the camera still works after unlocking, I'm definitely will unlock my wife's bootloader to apply the update.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] Saatvik Shukla:
Why would it not work after unlocking? :rolleyes: :eek: There is no probable reason for it not to work
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] adfurgerson:
A stock Sony Rom CANNOT be flashed to a GPe device it will BRICK it.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] VanNostrand:
I'm thinking that some people might think that a broken camera is due to the unlocking and loss of DRM keys. 4.4.2 was released in December 2013, and nothing should break from a bootloader unlock today. The Z1 and Z3 also had the same issue as the GPe, but as mentioned, it's a bug and not a feature. Sony doesn't break the camera on purpose.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] adfurgerson:
If bootloader was unlocked on 4.4.2 the camera was ruined after the 4.4.3 update. I contacted Google hardware support and offered to get logs or anything they would need to fix the issue but they weren't interested.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] VanNostrand:
OMG, I totally forgot about the model version we talked about here. Totally my fault! You are of course 100% correct. Since I (weirdly enough) thought that we were talking about the regular Ultra for a minute, the other point doesn't either apply since the GPe version has a recovery as default, so there is no need to flash a custom kernel if the bootloader is unlocked.

Either way, my point in the other comment still stand. It is really hard to hard brick a device. Really.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] Saatvik Shukla:
Only thing that can effect camera on BL unlock is the quality of the camera, and that too only on non GPE versions, because of the DRM keys, but that is not checking on ZU atleast on kitkat anymore, so a Unlocked BL on a ZU int, gives the same quality as the locked BL might give.

This definitely isnt applicable to GPE as it doesnt use Sony Camera instead its AOSP camera which wont change anything, and even if there is something there is a wonderful thread about bypassing checking of DRM keys on Sony in the Sony Cross-Device forum. :)

Prolly that was something that happened on that particular update and was fixed later?
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] adfurgerson:
Camera was unusable on 4.4.3 and 4.4.4 after that I bailed out and took the replacement device Google offered, which I mailed to a friend in New Zealand to use for development.

http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=2792768
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] xdause:
I also did not unlock bootloader when I read several people's camera became unusable after trying to update the rom or flash a new one with a GPE device. Not going to try searching for those threads now. It was all moot when I updated to 5 and lost root and wanted to give it a friend but realized I didn't have anyone. :crying:
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] VanNostrand:
But... why would you unlock the bootloader anyway? I assume that you've received an OTA notification? You can update to 5.1 without any issues.
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] Saatvik Shukla:
[MENTION=2187424]lexdad86[/MENTION] you had your BL unlocked too. Right? :rolleyes:
[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] xdause:
That's like me asking you why would you update to 5.1 or why root. Everyone makes their own choices but honestly unlocking the bootloader is not a big deal. If you didn't buy the GPE direct from google play store there are already reports they won't honor warranty on it. Honestly I would probably boot loader unlock than do an ota update to 5.1 anytime soon but than I was lucky enough to do a TA backup.