OTA updates for rooted android phone

2021-12-10 ยท 2 min read

EDIT(2022-04-06): clearly needs updating b/c it didn't work...

Make sure automatic OTA updates are set OFF in the developer settings. We need to do the right steps in order to update successfully.

When you finally get an OTA update, make sure you don't run it yet. Instead:

  1. Make sure Magisk is up-to-date. That means update the (1) App and (2) Magisk install. To update the Magisk install, open the updated app and hit Update next to "Magisk". Of the available install methods, choose Direct Install, wait for it to complete, then hit the Reboot button.
  2. Next, we want to temporarily uninstall Magisk. In Magisk Manager, hit the red "Uninstall Magisk" button. There are two options, Complete Uninstall and something called "Restore Images". Choose the restore images one.
  3. Plug in your device and actually run the OTA update. DO NOT REBOOT YET.
  4. Go back into Magisk Manager and hit Install > Install to inactive slot. It should automatically detect the updated images in the inactive slot and patch magisk into it.
  5. Finally, reboot the phone. You should now have a successfully updated phone that still has root and Magisk Manager in it.

Unrooting? #

Download latest OTA update image: https://developers.google.com/android/ota#barbet

Reboot into recovery + sideload

$ adb reboot sideload

Sideload OTA update

$ adb sideload ota.zip

Select Reboot