yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[General Questions and Answers] Viva La Android R.I.P.:
Like most TracFone branded mobile devices, this TCL A3 variant is not supported for bootloader unlocking. To date, no exploit has been discovered to circumvent the perma-locked bootloader. Therefore, root is not possible, since Magisk systemless root would require flashing the /boot partition with a Magisk patched boot image. With the bootloader locked, the /boot partition is fully.write protected.
[General Questions and Answers] :
Fastboot is crippled on these devices so please, everyone stop talking about fastboot. Move on, the way to unlock bootloader is to use MTK Client. I have unlocked bootloader on both of these devices and made twrp for A501DL
[General Questions and Answers] :
You have no clue what you are talking about good sir, I suggest some research
[General Questions and Answers] Viva La Android R.I.P.:
Perhaps, good sir, I am incorrect on this point. If that is the case, I have no problem admitting I'm wrong and apologizing for the misinformation. So, for what i have been able to gather, device owners are using an MTK-based utility to dump the partition images. In turn, the boot image can be patched for Magisk systemless root and flashed back to the /boot partition using the same MTK tool. I'm also hearing about a Hydra tool that can unlock the bootloader. @PizzaG does this sound accurate? After all, good sir, since you called me out for being wrong, please clarify these points. Thanks
[General Questions and Answers] :
You are correct good sir on MTK Client. Hydra is a Paid solution people usually use to network unlock their devices and I know little to nothing about that aspect. I know for a fact that MTK Client will Bootloader Unlock Both the A501DL(device I own) as well as the A502DL(a user in my telegram group had one).

The process looks like this for MTK Client.

-Make a dump of the whole device

-Magisk Patch the boot.img(boot.bin)

-Use MTK Clienbt to Flash patched boot.img

-Enjoy!!

I have twrp and custom stock for A501DL. Since I don't have the A502DL, I personally have done nothing with it.

here is the github link for MTK Client

https://github.com/bkerler/mtkclient
[General Questions and Answers] Viva La Android R.I.P.:
@PizzaG thank you much for the information and the link. This is splendid news that a TracFone branded TCL device can at last be exploited..I look forward to unlocking mine.

Again, I stand corrected for my misstatement and truly appreciate your guidance.
[General Questions and Answers] :
no worries bud, happy to help whenever I can. I can also dump and build twrp. If you need a hand, join my Telegram and I'll see what I can do. Best of luck on your journey
[General Questions and Answers] PrivyetCyka:
Thank god you saved the day from us joining a telegram group that we wanted to join to discuss this topic further in depth... Smh.
[General Questions and Answers] PrivyetCyka:
Here is the A502DL stock recovery and boot img/bin files and magisk patched boot bin/img and TWRP recovery also

TCL_LX_A502DL_Files.zip | by Privyetcyka for Generic Device/Other

Download GApps, Roms, Kernels, Themes, Firmware, and more. Free file hosting for all Android developers.

www.androidfilehost.com
[General Questions and Answers] :
Nicely put, don't you enjoy when others decide things for you....
[General Questions and Answers] Viva La Android R.I.P.:
Yeah @PizzaG I really don't understand that either. Most devs and contributors on T-Gram are fron XDA. The two platforms have long supported each other as you know. Seems like a very arbitrary rule.

I did have a question for you good sir if you might have a moment. Which partition images need to be flashed to the A509DL in order to initiate a network unlock? Thanks
[General Questions and Answers] 971shep:
I corresponded with TCL about unlocking the bootloader. The email contains no content claimed as priviledged by TCL:

There are probably better, inexpensive devices to purchase as a learning tool for Android development.

Which brings up an idea; a thread on inexpensive devices for android development.
[General Questions and Answers] Viva La Android R.I.P.:
As @PizzaG and many other members have recently brought to light, devices like the TracFone TCL A3 have long been unsupported for rooting, due to the perma-locked state of the bootloaders. Newer development projects like MTK Client have provided a long-awaited exploit for unofficially unlocking the bootloaders on many of these MediaTek-powered phones and tablets. For many years past, this simply was not a possibility. TCL/Alcatel is among the ever growing list of device makers that do not support official bootloader unlocking support. Now, thanks to the genius and determination of the development community, we no longer need the official support of the manufacturers. Have you been able to get your TCL bootloader unlocked?

Regarding your ideology for inexpensive device development support, the Android General forums here on XDA provide a ton of resources for cheap phones and tablets.
[General Questions and Answers] 971shep:
I applaude the resourcefulness of the developers but to me the fundlemental issue is that Android at it's core, is an opensource, linux based project. Plus it is my phone I should be able to use it as I see fit. Maintaining a list of unfriendly phones will apply some economic pressure to those manufacturers.

I also do not think the blame falls squarely on mediatek. The Cudy AC2100 is a MT7621 based router that comes with an older version of OpenWRT out of the box. The company also provides more recent OpenWRT releases on it website for download. People buy this router specifically because of it's open OpenWRT roots and Cudy seems to know it.

Mediatek also supplies development boards with their new chips which bundle OpenWRT source code. If you review linux kernel changelogs, developers with mediatek.com email addresses make frequent code contributions.

I think the barriers are demanded by the vendors who are trying to milk the subscriptions for as long as they can. TCL has been legaly obliged to supply source code under the GPL. They appear to do so grudginly and wait as long as legally possible before publishing the code.

TCL Mobile source code
[General Questions and Answers] PhobosAnomaly:
I flashed TWRP and it appears to be working fine, however flashing the modified boot.bin made it ask for a password upon launching the bootloader. After factory resetting and going through setup, Magisk does indeed show up, but Wi-Fi and Bluetooth stopped working, and an error keeps popping up saying that Bluetooth has stopped. Is there a way around this? Sorry if the answer is obvious, this is my first time rooting a phone.

Edit: I used the boot.bin from the backup I made and the Magisk app to create a new boot.bin and now it's working perfectly fine. Either there are some slight differences between our phones that caused it to not work or I simply just botched the first install.
[General Questions and Answers] Viva La Android R.I.P.:
I couldn't agree with you more. It amazes me at the number of OEMs who brazenly disregard or refuse to comply with the GNU GPL on releasing source code. I have been in a back-and-forth email war with both Nokia and NUU for the past two months over this very topic. Both device makers concede that they are not obliged under GPL 2.0 to provide source code. In a fortunate manner for timing, I recently earned my Juris Doctorate from UK, so I'm planning on bringing suit against both companies if the requested source code is not made accessible to me by the first of July. Having researched the applicable caselaw recently, I was encouraged in learning that US courts have been consistent in issuing injunctions to enforce the GPU mandates under which device makers are bound. Litigation is time consuming and tedious, so I hope that I do not have to file suit; unfortunately, however, it appears that neither OEM will freely provide the requested source code. As a courtesy, I am submitting an email/letter of intent to the CEOs of both device makers later tonight, placing them both under notice that I'll be bringing suit in 14 days in the event the noncompliance persists. Perhaps this will be the catalyst for a fruitful resolution.

Ironic that you mentioned a Cudy router. I've got the Cudy LT500 4G/LTE router (MediaTek MT7621) and love it. Not only does it allow me to circumvent my carrier's data throttling, it also appears do be compatible with any Verizon or GSM-based SIM card.

Anyway, regarding the a502dl, I have a question that I'm hoping that you, or other members, may be able to answer. When using MTK Client to unlock the phone, I am unsure of how to boot the device into BROM mode, so that the software client can recognize and communicate with my phone. Thanks in advance for your feedback.
[General Questions and Answers] 971shep:
I have not done anything beyond dumping the OEM rom using mtkclient and starting to educate myself on building vaious components. The phone will be carrier unlocked in about 3 weeks at which point I will be more agreesive.

As far as the GNU/GPL code. In the U.S., a pivotal case was won against Linksys. They had a series of wrt54 routers and a hacker discovered that one of them was running Linux. Linksys resisted but lost in court and did eventually release the Broadcom based source. This spawned the LEDE and Openwrt projects. Another project DD-wrt, benefited. Broadcom kept some aspects like firmware propriatary and the DD-wrt developers signed an NDA and set up a business model developing high end broadcom based images.
[General Questions and Answers] Viva La Android R.I.P.:
Yes indeed. Free Software Foundation, Inc. v. Cisco Systems, Inc., (SDNY, 2009), although settled out of court by Cisco/Linksys, set an informal precedent with regard to the GNU GPL obligation of mobile device manufacturers who utilize and distribute open source software. Cisco was wise to settle. It is inevitable they would have lost at trial, which would have resulted in an even more costly outcome.
[General Questions and Answers] 971shep:
Using the latest mtkclient live cd I have the following dump from a TCL A30. This is every file except the virtual super.bin and user_data.bin.

boot.bin gpt.bin nvcfg.bin protect1.bin sspm_2.bin
boot_para.bin gz1.bin nvdata.bin protect2.bin swversion.bin
cache.bin gz2.bin nvram.bin recovery.bin tee1.bin
dtbo.bin lk2.bin oembin.bin scp1.bin tee2.bin
efuse.bin lk.bin oempersist.bin scp2.bin vbmeta.bin
expdb.bin logo.bin otp.bin sec1.bin vbmeta_system.bin
flashinfo.bin md1img.bin para.bin seccfg.bin vbmeta_vendor.bin
frp.bin md_udc.bin persist.bin spmfw.bin vendor_boot.bin
gpt_backup.bin metadata.bin proinfo.bin sspm_1.bin

My ultimate goal is to upgrade Andriod 11 to 12 with minimal bloat and predominately FOSS/F-Droid apps.

To start I'm going to be less ambitious and try to enable Bromite system web according to this guide:

Install Bromite system web view

My "aapt d xmltree framework-res.apk res/xml/config_webview_packages.xml"

E: webviewproviders (line=17)
E: webviewprovider (line=19)
A: availableByDefault=(type 0x12)0xffffffff
A: description="Android WebView" (Raw: "Android WebView")
A: packageName="com.android.webview" (Raw: "com.android.webview")

Not sure where config_webview_packages.xml resides in the above dump? My understanding, correct me if wrong, is that I need to open the appropriate file in a hex editor. I typically use gvim but am open to alternative hex editors.
[General Questions and Answers] Viva La Android R.I.P.:
The file will be in /system/etc. If this device uses the dynamic partition scheme, there will be no logical /system partition. Rather, /system, /product and /vendor are encompassed within the /super partition.
[General Questions and Answers] 971shep:
With the live mtkclient cd, I used the gui to read the super.bin file. Then, I used imjtool to extract the super.bin file and have the following.

product.img system.img vendor.img

I tried to open system.img in gvim but it appeared to hang, waited about 60 seconds and gvim still reported a running process when I closed it. system.img appears to be about 1.9GB.

I'd like to open the system.img file with the intent of editing it and reassembling the super.bin. Recommended tools? Does one usually need to edit file signatures?
[General Questions and Answers] Viva La Android R.I.P.:
There are some community-built tools and extractors made specifically for unpacking the super.img (or .bin) of system.img, vendor.img and product.img (both the _a and _b slots on A/B formatted devices), and repacking the super image once you have modified the logical partitions within.

Here is a link to the CRB Android Kitchen, undoubtedly the most comprehensive set of tools for unpacking & repacking image archives I've ever used. This tool is for the Windows platform. The free version will perform pretty much all of the unpacking & repacking functions that you will need.

https://xdaforums.com/t/tool-windows-kitchen-crb-v3-0-0-beta15.3947779/
[General Questions and Answers] 971shep:
My problem was with gvim; it appeared to be a buffering issue with large files. They open fine with ghex.

Using the ghex search function, I searched vendor.img, system.img and product.img for the string

"config_webview_packages.xml" and found it in system.img

I could not find the content of "config_webview_packages.xml" though. Used search term

"com.android.webview" in vendor, system and product img's without a match.

I did find a Russian page that I ran through Google Translate that suggests renaming the bromite webview apk and replacing the stock apk.

Zmiana implementacji WebView z Google/AOSP na Bromite w Androidzie

Przeglądając ostatnio opcje deweloperskie w swoim telefonie z Androidem 11, wpadła mi w oczy pozycja WebView implementation . Nie ukrywam, że trochę mnie ona zainteresowała i zacząłem się zastanawiać czym tak naprawdę jest ten cały WebView. Mój smartfon działa aktualnie pod kontrolą crDroid (ROM...

morfikov-github-io.translate.goog

I'm waiting for fastboot and adb shell root access. USCellular support (Philippine call center) told me that both network unlocking and fastboot would unlock after I fullfilled my 4 month contract. I'm skeptical but will wait out remaing time. It would be alot easier to use adb shell than build and flash a new super.img.
[General Questions and Answers] Viva La Android R.I.P.:
US Cellular can certainly provide you with the code needed to network unlock the device so that it can be used with other carriers. However, they cannot unlock your bootloader. TCL devices generally ship with perma-locked bootloaders. Until just recently, no exploits or tools existed to circumvent these locked down devices. Newer tools like MTK Client and others are able to exploit a vulnerability specific to MediaTek devices, and unlock the bootloaders of previously locked down smartphones and tablets. Take a moment and read this thread more in its entirety and you'll see these topics explained in grater detail. Rest assured on this: if you're waiting on US Cellular to provide you with bootloader unlocking support, don't hold your breath. Again, they have nothing to do with OEM unlocking, which is a feature implemented and governed by the manufacturer. In the case of the TCL smartphones referenced in this thread, only tools such as MTK Client and others like it are capable of unlocking the bootloaders.
[General Questions and Answers] 971shep:
I can find Mediatek Helio P22 phones that appear to have fastboot on the Internet.

For example the Realme C2:

https://www.gsmarena.com/realme_c2-9670.php

https://xdaforums.com/t/aio-guide-realme-c2-bootloader-unlocking-root-twrp-stock-firmware.3970447/

Quote from this thread

Also found Mediatek github site

Of interest is the boot.base.img in the Mediatek Kernel 4.19 source:

https://github.com/MediaTek-Labs/common-kernel-4.19

My suspision is that USCellular/TCL are the culprits in the lack of fastboot
[General Questions and Answers] Viva La Android R.I.P.:
TCL is definitely the culprit. Always has been. LG was the same with the majority of their budget devices. No fastboot mode and no way to unlock the bootloader. At least an exploit has now been found for many MediaTek devices.
[General Questions and Answers] karl615:
Well, I've got a TCL A3 A509DL, bangkok version. A foodstamp phone.

I was able to use a bootmode utility on linux to get into fastboot mode and successfully unlocked the phone! If anyone needs help give me a shout..

linuxkarl
[General Questions and Answers] luridphantom:
you used mtkclient or some other utility? my brom got patched by an update
[General Questions and Answers] karl615:
i have not been able to get mtkclient to reach brom, so all i was able to do without bypass or mtkclient working was to unlock the bootloader through fastoboot flashing unlock, I was able to flawlessly boot fastboot at will using this attached utility.
[General Questions and Answers] luridphantom:
mind sharing your output and screenshots? my a509dl is on the feb 2022 patch and it still reboots to system instead of fastboot
[General Questions and Answers] karl615:
Sure, I'll get some screenshots in a bit, but you can use this python script to boot your a509dl to fastboot and litterally all i did was fastboot flashing unlock and it worked like a charm!

Example

$ sudo python3 mtk-booseq.py FASTBOOT /dev/ttyACM0

Then plug in the phone while turned off or mid-reboot and quickly tap the power button over and over until BAM, you're in fastboot.. Quite nice and elegantly simple. Works every time.
[General Questions and Answers] luridphantom:
for some reason my ubuntu setup doesn't show /dev/ttyACM0 unless i plug in the device but once it did everything booted successfully

user@livedvd:/opt/mtkclient$ python3 mtk-bootseq.py FASTBOOT /dev/ttyACM0
...........................................................................
b'READYTOO'
Boot sequence sent

final results:

you got my thanks!! now i'm trying this on other mtk tracfones with their broms patched
[General Questions and Answers] luridphantom:
so nokia c100s have a gimped fastboot aka no flashing unlock/unlock_critical/oem unlock implemented in their bootloader

but this method seems to work for tcl phones so far. just bl unlocked a brom patched tcl 30z on android 12 thanks to this
[General Questions and Answers] karl615:
Screenshits.
[General Questions and Answers] karl615:
Any files you want copies of or screenshots you'd like to see I will post at reuest.

I've been using the "workingish-twrp" from previous post for recovery and it is definitely "workingish" as advertised. I am working on building a proper twrp for the last couple days (as well as cutom kernels), I am sure I will have both shortly.

You can view on my github already the mtk-common source for 4.19 kernel and the device tree for the Bangkok_TF, which I have been porting over from Bangkok_USCC which is pretty much the same hardware (afaik, not verified with proper-working twrp yet). I think the issue with the workingish copy is because of the fstab not being in proper format. There may be other problems as well but those remain to be seen currently.

my github - https://github.com/KarlHaines82

Thanks for the interest and I apologize for my lagged response!!

Karl Haines

karlhaines615@yahoo.com

telegram: @linuxkarl
[General Questions and Answers] karl615:
I un

I unlocked mine with fastboot, just use a bootmode tool
[General Questions and Answers] karl615:
BTW, I've finally gotten twrp to compile for me, so now that I've got the build system worked out and the proper device setup, i'll have the kinks worked out of our twrp in the next few days! Once I get a normal twp compiled, then I'll compile us an orangefox or something too....
[General Questions and Answers] cglas36:
Hi there...is brom-to-fastboot via the python mtk script you provide achievable using Windows 10/11? Debian (MX Linux) or only Ubuntu? Windows is so finicky with this stuff in my experience. I tried to find the TWRP build in the GitHub provided above but couldn't find it? Is that where it's at still?

If anyone has any advice or help thank you in advance, thank you very very much!

Sincerely,

Clint
[General Questions and Answers] cglas36:
Does anyone know if this will likely work on the TCL a602DL? The devices look almost identical but I know that doesn't apply to software...it's also mtk I think Helio 6761. I'm willing to try to boot the TWRP image for the a502dl but I figured just in case I should make a post and ask if that's a really bad idea/likely to work/no worries as long as it's not flashed without a backup of stock's recovery. I'm having trouble getting it into brom. I've tried the key combinations and it shows, briefly, in Windows 10/11 as MTxxxx Preloader. When I go to update the driver to the provided USBDK driver directory, it uninstalls before I can get it done. I probably need to allow unsigned drivers? The USBdk driver/msi package is for the mtk preloaders, right? To anyone that can reply, THANK YOU. And as always, thank you to all of the developers and their efforts in sharing their hard work with newbs like me. 😁
[General Questions and Answers] cglasener:
Does this root method work for the T602DL? Does anyone happen to know the correct model for the above mentioned device?
[General Questions and Answers] luridphantom:
just follow what karl says above, i already rooted my 30z with his suggestions
[General Questions and Answers] cglasener:
Would you mind sharing your TWRP image for the TCL T602DL/30 Z? I followed your link to GitHub but I don't understand how to go about obtaining root without a working TWRP to boot to...since I am assuming that there's no separate recovery img for this device then I am assuming that I would unlock using the guide/info here, (from fastboot) then boot the TWRP img and install or sideload Magisk? If I'm missing a particular post that has all of this info please let me know and I really appreciate the support and help you guys!

Is it weird that my device, when I'm in the shell (for the TCL T602DL / 30 Z) shows it's codename as Jetta_TF/Jetta?

I could have sworn it said Bangkok at one time but...I guess not... 🤔
[General Questions and Answers] luridphantom:
there is no twrp for this device, you need to find the python script karl is talking about, follow the instructions then force it to fastboot and run fastboot flashing unlock

its really easy to unlock the bootloader, rooting is the complicated part because you need to pull partitions with dsu loader and root them with magisk
[General Questions and Answers] cglasener:
Ohhhh okay. So there's no patched boot/vendor boot/vbmetas/etc that can be shared like other devices. I don't know much about dsu loading..I know I've never been successful at getting any DSU to install because it's always failed since day one... That's from developer options though, not sure if that's even the same thing. I appreciate the explanation very much.
[General Questions and Answers] luridphantom:
you can share patched boots but only if the versions are the same else youre gonna brick

vbmetas should be flashed with an empty one once you unlock bl
[General Questions and Answers] Slim2none4u:
So this needs to be done in Linux/ubuntu or can this be done in windows? I just got a TCL 30z T6002DL and was looking to root it. I have a P7P that is my daily driver. This is just a toy. So would like to have root.
[General Questions and Answers] deweydb:
Would fastloading and using a bootloader unlock the network on a TCL 30z T6002DL? I've been looking for days and there doesn't seem to be a way to unlock it unless I pay. I'm not paying. lol If there is a way to unlock the network with some brain power, that's the method I'd like to attempt. The woman drops her phone alot. lol I need a cheaper alternative then buying an expensive one. Let me know please. Thanks!!!
[General Questions and Answers] smiley9000:
is there any method to unlock tcl qualcomm bootloader?
[General Questions and Answers] luridphantom:
no
[General Questions and Answers] smiley9000:
maybe only with tcl token