[Moto Z2 Force  Guides, News, & Discussion] johnathanamber:
SPECIAL THANKS

DISCLAIMER

Note: In my case, I had to use the "TMO Moto Z2 Force 27.1.5 Flashall" before to prevent boot looping. I was already on Lineage 16 before doing the below. Which was probably the reason why I got a boot loop after flashing all the below files before going back to stock.

More information on the flashall can be found here:

https://xdaforums.com/z2-force/development/rom-tmo-z2-force-27-1-5-flashall-march-t3917070

The below should work fine if you are already on stock.

With all that being said, and you feel comfortable, let's get down to it.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR WINDOWS

Quick and dirty

You can follow these if you've already done this before and just want the high-level steps:

1. Download RETIN 9.0(XT1789-06_NASH_RETIN_9.0_PPX29.159-24_subsidy-DEFAULT_regulatory-DEFAULT_CFC.xml.zip), and the latest TMO 8.0(XT1789-04_NASH_TMO_C_8.0.0_OCXS27.109-51-14-2_subsidy-TMO_RSU_regulatory-DEFAULT_CFC.xml.zip)

2. Unzip both files, find a copy of mfastboot (or fastboot), a copy of TWRP img (use nash's TWRP)

3. Copy the boot.img from RETIN 9.0 to your phone's sdcard

4. Boot into TWRP and wipe your phone(data + cache)

5. Copy the below RETIN files to a new folder from the RETIN ZIP file, this is the same folder that the Tmo files will also go:

boot.img

system.img_sparsechunk.0

system.img_sparsechunk.1

system.img_sparsechunk.2

system.img_sparsechunk.3

system.img_sparsechunk.4

system.img_sparsechunk.5

system.img_sparsechunk.6

system_other.img

oem.img

6. Copy the below files from the Tmo ZIP file to the same folder where you placed the RETIN files above:

logo.bin

NON-HLOS.bin

fsg.mbn

BTFM.bin

adspso.bin

7. Copy the twrp<version>.img here as well.

8. Use mfastboot (or fastboot) and flash the files from this new folder with both RETIN and Tmo files that you've copied:

fastboot oem fb_mode_set
fastboot flash logo logo.bin
fastboot flash boot boot.img
fastboot flash system system.img_sparsechunk.0
fastboot flash system system.img_sparsechunk.1
fastboot flash system system.img_sparsechunk.2
fastboot flash system system.img_sparsechunk.3
fastboot flash system system.img_sparsechunk.4
fastboot flash system system.img_sparsechunk.5
fastboot flash system system.img_sparsechunk.6
fastboot flash system_b system_other.img
fastboot flash oem oem.img
fastboot flash modem NON-HLOS.bin
fastboot flash fsg fsg.mbn
fastboot flash bluetooth BTFM.bin
fastboot flash dsp adspso.bin
fastboot oem fb_mode_clear

9. Boot into TWRP using mfastboor (or fastboot):

fastboot boot twrp<version>.img

10. Use TWRP to flash the sdcard copy of boot.img (from step 3) to 'boot'

12. Reboot to finish the install and it should boot for the first time into the new hybrid ROM

13. ENJOY!​

More detailed instructions

The reason I posted this was to help prevent some issues with those that have not followed the process before. It should avoid some issues. It is lengthy.

Prerequisites:

1. Unlocking the Booloader

Is your bootloader unlocked? If not, there is no point in doing any of this. If it can't be unlocked, apologies, there isn't anything that can be done from this thread.

Before you go about unlocking the bootloader via the below Motorola website, you need to Unlock the Bootloader witin Developer Tools. To do this, Go to Settings > System > find the Buid Number. Tap the Build Number 8-10 times and it will inform that you are a Developer. Press Back and select developer Tools. Find Unlock the Bootloader, or OEM Bootloader Unlock (You can search for this option.), and tap to enable. Proceed below.

If you need to do this, or find out if it can be unlocked, head to the Motorola "Unlock your Bootloader" site and follow their instructions.

This process WILL VOID your WARRANTY!

Here's the US English link: https://support.motorola.com/us/en/bootloader​

1a. Once unlocked, you can continue.

2. Downloading the Files

Below are the files you need in quotes and the links where you can download them from.

If the below won't work you for, search Google for the file names and acquire them otherwise. There were plenty of links the last I searched.

It might be easier if you placed these on your Desktop.

2a. Download ADB Platform Tools, "adb - platform tools v28.0.0.zip":

from https://androidfilehost.com/?fid=962339331459003166

Note: This already has fastboot.exe

2b. Download the 64bit versions of the Motorola Mobile Drivers if you are running a 64bit OS, "Motorola_Mobile_Drivers_64bit.msi.zip":

from https://androidfilehost.com/?fid=23501681358556235

2c. Download the 32bit versions of the Motorola Mobile Drivers if you are running a 32bit OS, "Motorola_Mobile_Drivers_32bit.msi.zip":

from https://androidfilehost.com/?fid=23501681358556234

2d. Download "XT1789-06_NASH_RETIN_9.0_PPX29.159-24_subsidy-DEFAULT_regulatory-DEFAULT_CFC.xml.zip":

from https://mirrors.lolinet.com/firmware/moto/nash/official/RETIN/

Note: This was tested using RETIN, not RETAIL!

2e. Download "XT1789-04_NASH_TMO_C_8.0.0_OCXS27.109-51-14-7_subsidy-TMO_RSU_regulatory-DEFAULT_CFC.xml.zip":

from https://mirrors.lolinet.com/firmware/moto/nash/official/TMO/

2f. Download "twrp-3.3.1-0-R1-nash.img":

from https://mirrors.lolinet.com/firmware/twrp/nash/

or "twrp-3.2.3-2-nash.img"

from https://dl.twrp.me/nash/

(If you have issues with 3.3.1, use 3.2.3 instead.)

2g. Download fastboot and mfastboot, this link includes both, "Fastboot_all.zip":

from https://androidfilehost.com/?fid=23578570567719065​

3. Preparing the Files and Start the Flashing Process

3a. Unzip the files above in their own folders.

3b. Install the Motorola Drivers based on your OS, 32bit or 64bit.

3c. Connect your phone to a USB 2.0 port. You can use USB 3.0, but you might run into issues running commands. If you don't have a USB 2.0 port, perhaps using a USB 2.0 hub might work.

3d. Go into the platform-tools folder.

3e. Run the following to be sure the phone is detected:

adb devices

You should get some output informing that the ADB daemon isn't running and it will attempt to correct this. Afterwards, you should get something like the following if the phone was found:

<xxxxxxx> device

If you don't and the command shows that the connection is "unauthorized", change the USB Preferences to File Transfer. Rerun the above command and it should show it as "device".​

3f. Using the same platform-tools folder you are running from, copy the following files to the platform-tools folder...

First the RETIN files:

XT1789-06_NASH_RETIN_9.0_PPX29.159-24_subsidy-DEFAULT_regulatory-DEFAULT_CFC.xml\boot.img

XT1789-06_NASH_RETIN_9.0_PPX29.159-24_subsidy-DEFAULT_regulatory-DEFAULT_CFC.xml\system.img_sparsechunk.0

XT1789-06_NASH_RETIN_9.0_PPX29.159-24_subsidy-DEFAULT_regulatory-DEFAULT_CFC.xml\system.img_sparsechunk.1

XT1789-06_NASH_RETIN_9.0_PPX29.159-24_subsidy-DEFAULT_regulatory-DEFAULT_CFC.xml\system.img_sparsechunk.2

XT1789-06_NASH_RETIN_9.0_PPX29.159-24_subsidy-DEFAULT_regulatory-DEFAULT_CFC.xml\system.img_sparsechunk.3

XT1789-06_NASH_RETIN_9.0_PPX29.159-24_subsidy-DEFAULT_regulatory-DEFAULT_CFC.xml\system.img_sparsechunk.4

XT1789-06_NASH_RETIN_9.0_PPX29.159-24_subsidy-DEFAULT_regulatory-DEFAULT_CFC.xml\system.img_sparsechunk.5

XT1789-06_NASH_RETIN_9.0_PPX29.159-24_subsidy-DEFAULT_regulatory-DEFAULT_CFC.xml\system.img_sparsechunk.6

XT1789-06_NASH_RETIN_9.0_PPX29.159-24_subsidy-DEFAULT_regulatory-DEFAULT_CFC.xml\system_other.img

XT1789-06_NASH_RETIN_9.0_PPX29.159-24_subsidy-DEFAULT_regulatory-DEFAULT_CFC.xml\oem.img​

And, the Tmo files:

XT1789-04_NASH_TMO_C_8.0.0_OCXS27.109-51-14-7_subsidy-TMO_RSU_regulatory-DEFAULT_CFC.xml\logo.bin

XT1789-04_NASH_TMO_C_8.0.0_OCXS27.109-51-14-7_subsidy-TMO_RSU_regulatory-DEFAULT_CFC.xml\NON-HLOS.bin

XT1789-04_NASH_TMO_C_8.0.0_OCXS27.109-51-14-7_subsidy-TMO_RSU_regulatory-DEFAULT_CFC.xml\fsg.mbn

XT1789-04_NASH_TMO_C_8.0.0_OCXS27.109-51-14-7_subsidy-TMO_RSU_regulatory-DEFAULT_CFC.xml\BTFM.bin

XT1789-04_NASH_TMO_C_8.0.0_OCXS27.109-51-14-7_subsidy-TMO_RSU_regulatory-DEFAULT_CFC.xml\adspso.bin​

All of the above files should be within the platform-tools folder.

3g. Copy the XT1789-06_NASH_RETIN_9.0_PPX29.159-24_subsidy-DEFAULT_regulatory-DEFAULT_CFC.xml\boot.img file to your phone's SD Card (Moto Z (2)\SD card). You can use Windows Explorer to do this.

3h. Run the following command to boot into the bootloader (Using either fastboot.exe or mfastboot.exe.):

adb reboot bootloader

Your phone will reboot and allow fastboot to be used.

3i. Run the following to be sure fastboot detects the phone:

fastboot devices

3j. Run the following command to boot into TWRP:

fastboot boot twrp<version>.img

The img file will transfer to the phone and reboot.

Stop here if you have not made a backup of your files or if you have any reservations. This CANNOT be undone!

3k. Select Wipe, select Advanced Wipe, select Internal Storage and Dalivk/ART Cache, and swipe to wipe those partitions.

3l. Tap Back, Back again, select Reboot, and select Bootloader.

You should be back where you can use fastboot.

3m. Use fastboot (or mfastboot) and run the following commands in this order:

fastboot oem fb_mode_set
fastboot flash logo logo.bin
fastboot flash boot boot.img
fastboot flash system system.img_sparsechunk.0
fastboot flash system system.img_sparsechunk.1
fastboot flash system system.img_sparsechunk.2
fastboot flash system system.img_sparsechunk.3
fastboot flash system system.img_sparsechunk.4
fastboot flash system system.img_sparsechunk.5
fastboot flash system system.img_sparsechunk.6
fastboot flash system_b system_other.img
fastboot flash oem oem.img
fastboot flash modem NON-HLOS.bin
fastboot flash fsg fsg.mbn
fastboot flash bluetooth BTFM.bin
fastboot flash dsp adspso.bin
fastboot oem fb_mode_clear

Note: I personally only had one file give me an error, that was boot.img. It informed that "verification failed". Continue on step 3n to flash boot.img from the SD card using TWRP.

3n. Boot into TWRP by running the following, as before:

fastboot boot twrp<version>.img

3o. Select Install, select Install Image, and select boot.img from SD card. When asked, select boot.

Once done, go back to reboot to System to finish the install.

:victory:Voila!!:highfive:

You should now be booting into Pie on your Moto Z2 Force with a hybrid Sprint + Tmo Stock ROM.

If you get a boot loop during the boot animation, as mentioned before, you might need to perform the Flashall to Tmo Stock, and try the above instructions again. I had to.

My build number shows as PPX29.159-24, my IMEI shows up, Android Version shows 9, and all other fields seem to be correct. Voice, Data, and device functions are all working. You are on a mostly-stock ROM now. :)

Now, the only caveat that I've seen is that when you attempt to check for an update, it will show that the System integrity is compromised. I assume this is because the bootloader is unlocked, etc.

I hope this works out well for you. :cool:

Also, if you want root, install Magisk, following this thread:

https://www.xda-developers.com/how-to-install-magisk/