yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] 562TOKER:
All ports are 3.0, do I need to manually update the USB drivers in device manager or just by installing the Samsung drivers should do it. Should I switch carrier brand before flashing firmware? If is not needed I rather skip that. I will give it a try to sprint U1 see if that makes a difference. I might just keep it that way if it works with no bloatware. 1 last question, canI just install oreo over nougat or do I need to install nougat then update to oreo when switching, or update to oreo then switch. Does it matter how the process is done while doing this?
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] mobbdeep:
Use https://samfrew.com/ to get your firmware. SamMobile and Updato have super slow download servers.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] mobbdeep:
Since AT&T only has U1 firmware, can I flash it to AT&T still as my preferred carrier? I am asking because they have a later update than T-Mobile.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] jcsww:
Installing the Samsung drivers. Have you tried the rear USB ports on your computer? What is your device running now? The version of the Android OS doesn't matter but the bootloader version your device is running does. What firmware is your device running?

AT&T does not have any official U1 firmware at all. None of the carriers do! The U1 firmware comes on devices sold by Samsung as unlocked devices only! Any carrier U1 firmware is a combination firmware. All carrier firmware versions are U.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] jcsww:
Compatibility settings will not work. You need the current driver for your OS. Which OS are you using?

Without a corectly imstalled driver fpr ypur device on Download, ypu will not be able to flash successfully.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] 562TOKER:
windows 10. now i got the drivers working properly but still no luck. i tried flashing N950U1UEU3BRA5, N950USQU3BRB4, N950USQU3BRA6 but doesnt go thru. ive used all odin too
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] jcsww:
You need the modded or patched ODIN 3.13.3. Do you have USB Debugging enabled in the Developer Options? If you have tried all of your USB 3 ports and don't have any USB 2.0 ports. Perhaps try on a differemt computer.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] 562TOKER:
can i use live linux, that would be my last option since i dont have another pc around. is there any difference in v5 bootloader then v3? should i just update to v5 device and go from there see if that makes a difference
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] 562TOKER:
Anything wrong with bootloader that might not make it work?
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] jcsww:
I have never used Linux for flashing so I have no clue there. You can update your device to a newer bootloader when flashing a newer firmware but you can not flash a firmware with an earlier version of the bootloader. If you update your device to the v5 bootloader, then you are limited to flashing firmware with the v5 bootloader or newer. Not v4, v3, v2, or v1 firmware versions.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] 562TOKER:
are there any limitations, will i miss out on stuff if i update to v5, i can still root and flash other roms if i ever wanted to?
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] 562TOKER:
So here's an update to all I did. I just updated the phones firmware through OTA update and it automatically switched carriers on its own. I did not had to do anything.??? [emoji848][emoji23][emoji23][emoji23] Glad it did but still confused about why it doesn't pick up on odin [emoji848]

Thanks for everyone's help on here as you guys did helped me in every way you could. Thanks yall [emoji16][emoji16][emoji16]
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] mobbdeep:
Do you have any recommendation for unlock service?
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] jcsww:
The online ones all pretty much work and cost about the same. You will probably get it done cheaper though in your local mall at those cell repair kiosks.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] babartheking:
Been reading a lot here, though not all, but [MENTION=3116388]jcsww[/MENTION] would this be pretty much the same method as the Note 9 you helped me with? Am I able to use the patched odin for this?
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] jcsww:
Yes. The Note 8, S9, S9+, and Note 9 all flaah the same way with the same method and the same Modded or Patched ODIN.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] babartheking:
Wow, that makes it really easy then!

Would you know the correct file to flash to get XAA/Unlocked on the Note 8? I downloaded the one from the first page: N950U1UEU3CRC1_N950U1OYM3CRC1_XAA.

The VZW Note 8 is currently on the latest software patch from VZW, March update with a security patch of Feb 1. Should I use that one or this firmware: N950U1UES5CSB1?
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] jcsww:
You need a XAA firmware with the v5 bootloader. Just like with other Samsung firmware, you can not flash a firmware with a biotloader older than what the device currently has. 5CSA1 has the v5 bootloader, hence the 5 in 5CSA1.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] daviddiazayuso:
This is verizon? N950USQU4CRF3

Couse it say at&t on bootload and i havent get.the update to pie..

And how i can be a at&t rom to my phone? So i can have the pie version.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] Heafust:
So if I flash U1 software on my VZW Note 8, I understand some features will be lost. Will they be restored if I use this firmware from Updato? (Screenshot attached). Otherwise, what would be the point of this file?

On the one hand I keep reading there is no such thing as carrier U1 firmware, which I understand and makes sense. But then I keep coming across mention of this file, and I see others have too. What I cannot find is a definitive answer.

Edit 4-1-2019 I still can't find the answer, and no replies here.

Any takers? [MENTION=3116388]jcsww[/MENTION]
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] tube517:
I just bought a used Note 8 on Ebay. It appears to me that it was originally a Verizon Phone that was flashed with Tmobile firmware. But I am not really sure. How can you tell?

It has the Tmobile splash screen

Some Tmobile bloatware

Wifi calling works

RCS in stock Tmobile messaging app works

HD Voice appears in the call

Video calling works

Currently on Oreo 8.0

January 1 security patch

I saw in the "Service provider" section of Software Information

3rd line: TMB/TMB/VZW

Am I correct that this used to be orginally a VZW phone
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] jcsww:
Yes. The last of the 3 tags is the carrier purchased from.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] tube517:
So would I get pie update from Tmobile or Verizon?
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] jcsww:
You should get the Pie update for the T-Mobile firmware. The hardware fornevery North American Note 8 is the same. The firmware installed is thenonly difference. If the person who originally flashed it did it correctly, it is no different than a device bought from T-Mobile outside of it being bought from Verizon.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] Vasu D:
Can you please tell me weather I can get updates or not? I am new to it and purchased Note 8 recently in one of the shopping app.These are the details. What this XAA stands?.

Service provider SW ver.

SAOMC_SM-N950U_OYN_TMB_OO_0023

ce091719240d28170c7e

TMB/XAA/TMB
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] jcsww:
XAA is the Samsung non-carrier specific firmware. Because you are on T-Mobile, that firmware will work fine for you. Think if those 3 tags as the following: SIM carrier / firmware CSC version / purchased from
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] Vasu D:
Thank you for your reply.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] wgraz:
First off, this is an amazing thread and I appreciate all of the work put into it. As a newb, I had to read the first 4 posts a few times to start to comprehend.

If I purchase an AT&T branded SM-N950U to use with a Tracfone SIM (carrier AT&T) and I want to remove bloat by first flashing XAA, and then the carrier locked CSC and Userdata, which would work better: ATT or TFN? If I flash N950U1UES5CSB1 XAA (March 5), which version of locked ATT (or TFN) would I flash CSC and Userdata? Because I don't see unlocked ATT firmware available on iupdato. Thx.

EDIT: That was a stupid question because there is no LOCKED TFN firmware that I can see.

I guess I can use the latest Oreo locked ATT firmware available in the OP and DL the same version of XAA. Because they would OTA anyway to the latest.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] jcsww:
Yes. The firmware are interchangeable. You will lose VoLTE and WiFi Calling at the very least. If you do decide to flash a U1 firmware though. Flash the XAA official firmware that comes on devices sold directly from Samsung. It is a fairly bloat-free experience. If you use Verizon though and your device has the Verizon firmware, I would recommend sticking to that.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] NickS5:
Flashed AT&T Stock Firmware 5CRF6 (SM-N950U) with no success

1. I add all the files to ODIN (after factory resetting from recovery menu and then going back in and enabling USB Debugging).

2. Hit Start

3. Once ODIN finishes it says that it was a success.

4. Phone Reboots and says it is installing updates

5. It gets to 32% and then says erasing

6. The phone reboots but the AT&T bootsplash does not appear and none of the AT&T bloatware is on the phone.

Can someone please tell me why this is happening? The phone originally had AT&T firmware on it when I received it.

Any help would be much appreciated. Thanks in advance.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] wgraz:
Which version of Odin did you use?

Also, hopefully the bootloader on the phone before you flashed was vers. 5 because the one you flashed was vers. 5 and you can't flash a version lower than what you have.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] Akio_horri:
What did you do? I got the XAA to flash but everything else fails within seconds (trying to put VZW on AT&T) The phone has an un-dismissable notification for Sprint OMADM (I have never used Sprint in my life or ant firmware for it) and my sim is VZW yet I can't add any APN settings

EDIT: Had that wrong, flashed Verizon unlocked and can't get XAA to flash
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] wgraz:
Are you allowed to mix builds as long as they're both the same version bootloader? In other words, can I flash the XAA (BL, AP, CP and CSC) of one build of 8.0 and the locked carrier firmware(CSC and Userdata) of another build of 8.0? What are the rules on that? Thanks.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] mobbdeep:
These are the steps I took:

Downloaded stock Sprint (SM-N950U) firmware from here (https://samfrew.com/model/SM-N950U/region/SPR/) - latest one.

Flashed the stock Sprint firmware to the phone using normal Odin from here (https://mega.nz/#!88s1BAzA!UbmjuzCK9zquQ5FgMeXctnMZ4rX1c_a6Qd7sk0O1Rp0).

You do not need to go through the Android setup to go onto the next step.

Placed my Sprint SIM card in the phone.

Downloaded XAA (SM-N950U1) firmware from here (https://samfrew.com/model/SM-N950U1/region/XAA/) - latest one.

Flashed the XAA firmware to the phone using Patched Odin from here (https://mega.nz/#!88s1BAzA!UbmjuzCK9zquQ5FgMeXctnMZ4rX1c_a6Qd7sk0O1Rp0).

After you flash the XAA firmware to the phone, go through the Android setup but DO NOT enter your Gmail information and disable any screen locks (swipe, password, PIN, etc).

Enable Developer Options and then go into Developer Options and enable USB Debugging.

Finally, flash the desired SM-N950U carrier firmware you're intending on using from here (https://samfrew.com/model/SM-N950U/) and now you can go through the Android Setup as normal.

* Keep in mind, this does not unlock your SIM. If you get the error to contact Sprint to unlock your device, you will need to find an unlock service or make sure it's paid off at Sprint.

* For Steps 1 and 2, I did those because I was receiving a corrupt partition error in the bootloader menu.

* If some flashing fails, be sure to wipe cache via bootloader menu before flashing.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] Akio_horri:
I dont have a sprint Sim, thats part of the reason why I'm confused
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] mobbdeep:
If I'm not mistaking, it's with the SIM for the carrier you want the Sprint phone to work with. ie If you want it to be able to work with T-Mobile, you flash it with a T-Mobile SIM in it.

Your best bet is to confirm with [MENTION=3116388]jcsww[/MENTION] though since he's really good with this stuff.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] jcsww:
SIM lock is independent of the flashable firmware. Flashing the TMB or U1 firmware will not remove the SIM lock or change the SIM lock to the carrier of the fiware flashed to.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] NickS5:
[Solved] No AT&T bootsplash or bloatware

I needed an active AT&T Sim card to make the bootsplash and AT&T bloatware install. A guy at work had an AT&T sim and as soon as I put it in the phone the phone rebooted, the splash showed up and the bloatware installed.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] amy91:
Since, samfrew links tend to be slow. I'm sharing some alternates for everyone

Model	SM-N950U1

Model name	Galaxy Note8

Country: Unknown - XAA

Version	Android 9

Changelist	15499375

Build date	Tue, 05 Mar 2019 10:13:30 +0000

Security Patch Level	2019-03-01

Product code	XAA

PDA	N950U1UEU5DSC1

CSC	N950U1OYM5DSC1

Filename: XAA-N950U1UEU5DSC1-20190408160610.zip

Size: 3.6 GB

http://nitroflare.com/view/CBF09608F73505B/XAA-N950U1UEU5DSC1-20190408160610.zip

or

https://ufile.io/0bhcc

or

https://dropapk.com/zkz8gdld6pw5

More Mirrors: https://mirrorace.com/m/4dEch
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] Tonyy1206:
Looking the ota update zip. Haven't recieved update yet.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] NickS5:
Found 5ARG2 Combination File for Carrier Switching - Need Canadian XAC Home

I was wondering if someone could please point me in the right direction. I am assuming that I can find the XAC Home_CSC in a firmware download from Updato or Samfirm. I am just unsure of which one to get. Could someone help me out with this please. Thanks in advance.

-Nick

The full file name of the Combination file is COMBINATION_FA71_N950USQU5ARG2_CL13942288_QB18872424_REV00_user_mid_noship_MULTI_CERT.tar

Will this Home File Work?

HOME_CSC_OYV_N950WOYV5CRG9_CL13949550_QB19108142_REV00_user_low_ship_MULTI_CERT.tar
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] khaldz94:
Is any of these methods above involve tripping Knox?
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] BluePhnx:
You can't trip Knox on sm-n950U/U1/W snapdragon because of the locked boot loader!

All these are official firmwares for sm-n950U/U1 so it won't trip Knox.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] khaldz94:
Thanks man
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] khaldz94:
After flashing U1 onto U, will I be getting future security updates?
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] wgraz:
I'm pretty sure it's mentioned somewhere in this thread that if you have UI (XAA) firmware, the OTA updates come from Samsung.

EDIT: Yup. It's mentioned HERE on post 967.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] khaldz94:
Thanks buddy
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] wgraz:
No problem. But if you flash XAA and then flash AT&T Locked CSC and UserData only, you then get OTA's from AT&T.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] khaldz94:
Followed the guide step by step but I keep getting "FAIL" in Odin. Any help guys?

PS: I'm on bootloader 5
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] jcsww:
You will not get any updates if you mix firmware components from different firmware. Stick to full and complete firmware versions and always fully wipe when cross-flashing.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] wgraz:
Thanks for the correction.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] kenennaoyeka:
Use patched odin
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] khaldz94:
I used patched odin 3.13.1_3B_PatcheD
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] amy91:
Same problem, have wasted 2 hours in getting around, but no solution yet. Anyone knows what's going on here?

I have used Odin 3.13.1_3B_PatcheD, 3.11 and 3.10 too but none works.

EDIT: All good now. I had a chosen a wrong firmware file from another N9 repository for Note 8. Silly mistake!
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] amy91:
See this pic, your setup should be the same
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] khaldz94:
Which phone is this? N950U or N950U1?
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] khaldz94:
And which android version did you have before flashing the pie?
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] khaldz94:
So I managed to flash XAA U1 Rom onto my U, but I'm getting one problem:

"Sprint OMADM

Checking device status..."View attachment 4742016
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] Darrylbeck:
I haven't flashed anything shouldn't it say att/att/att and my volte isn't working how would I fix this
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] jcsww:
You might not have but someone has to your device. It has the XAA U1 firmware but was purchased from AT&T and has an AT&T SIM in it. You will only get VoLTE to work if you install the AT&T U firmware.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] enginuity2:
Can you downgrade from Pie back to Oreo using this method?
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] yijinsa:
So after step by setup follow switching carrier guide then flash tmb firmware ,I will get same band support like original T-Mobile brand note 8 ?

Thanks
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] bogdi1988:
Correct.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] BlueFox721:
For voice mail use Google Voice for visual read and audio...to use the Sprint app you need to root or flash Sprint firmware
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] BlueFox721:
If there is any way...the S8 and S8+ forums may offer more help, they have had more time in hand
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] BlueFox721:
Hey thanks for this...I am going to update the guide to be a little more friendly...and I plan on including pics eventually...this helps others...thanks
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] kbonnel:
Of course, your guide really makes it easy! The only other item I think others may find useful, at least as it related to my flash activity, was that I removed my Verizon SIM card before I started any of my activities. I also deleted my google account and samsung account prior to the reflash. Not sure the account removals matter, but it didn't hurt either.

I didn't place in the new t-mobile SIM card until after I flashed the t-mobile software and it booted up the first time. (maybe this is why I got a 2nd pop up screen during step 23, who knows...)

I wish I would have grabbed some times for each task, as that might help others in determining if something isn't going right.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] borijess:
What happens with updates when you have the carrier unlocked running AT&T firmware? Who provides me with the over the air updates?
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] gottria:
Was just wondering the same thing. I'm thinking it comes from ATT.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] borijess:
I tried to update through ATT and still nothing
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] gottria:
Yea me too and nothing.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] Krayziepop:
Thank you again for your help. I went ahead and flashed the XAA software package over my ATT install and it worked out pretty well. I did run into the SHA256 error snag when trying to use the standard Odin, it said there was a hash mismatch. I switched over to Princecomsy's Odin and had immediate success. It does appear that all USERDATA was replaced by the AP file in the XAA software distribution. All is well here, thank you for your great guidance!
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] bambam126:
Can someone please send me the Verizon firmware everytime I click the links it stops at 40 percent thank you
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] bambam126:
Ok I got the Verizon fw on the phone now but I still can't activate video calling so I want to go back to unlocked fw with Verizon what fw is that thank you
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] borijess:
If we take the latest update. Are we not able to flash the firmwares on the first page? We can roll back anymore?
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] prican25:
From what I read, it does update the bootloader so I'd say it may block flashing older firmware if you update.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] black96ss:
Question.....if you flash/switch carriers....will you get OTA updates from the carrier you switched to? Example if you flash T Mobile firmware on a unlocked XAA device, will you receive OTA updates from T Mobile??????
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] borijess:
I want to know this too. I guess we will find out soon. I have and unlocked note 8 running ATT software. No update from ATT yet. I think it's coming from Samsung. I am just wondering what happens to our firmware once we flash the unlocked update over ATT firmware.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] bogdi1988:
I flashed my Verizon phone with the full T-Mobile software and not the unlocked one with T-Mobile CSC. I just got update from T-Mobile a few hours ago.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] black96ss:
Did you go to settings and check software updates? My t mobile s7 edge with unlocked firmware, it would force close on me when I clicked on check for updates. Just wondering if it's the same case here.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] borijess:
No it checks and says you are up to date.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] Darrylbeck:
Do you know where I could download the the right firmware
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] jcsww:
The AT&T U versions are hard to find. Check SamFirm, Updato, or Samfrew. It has to have the same bootloader that your device currently has or newer to be able to flash it successfully. The number before the last 4 characters of the firmware, is the bootloader version.
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] CaptianGVP:
Cannot get this to work.

I can not get this to work what so ever :/ Can someone tell me what i'm doing wrong?

It either gets stuck at SetupConnection or Initialization.

And if not that its Failing (see attached pic)

It just updated to Android Pie. Trying to flash unlocked 8.0 firmware..

[IMG="Fail"]https://imgur.com/a/sRnhzN1[/IMG]
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] jcsww:
Do you have USB Debugging enabled in Developer Options? Are you using the cable that came with your device? Have you tried a different USB port?
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] CaptianGVP:
Yes to everything. :(
[Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Guides, News, & Discussion] aditya.jain02:
I have a Note 8 N950U which i bought from china,

I live in india so i was looking for a combination firmware with bootloader v5 and Pie which also includes csc for Jio VoLte to work. Currently I am on N950U1UEU5DSC1. I got no sprint OMDM issues what so ever after updating to U1 firmware. My note 8 was verizon before. It is unlocked.