OESF Portables Forum
Model Specific Forums => Gemini PDA => Gemini PDA - Android => Topic started by: smapmap on June 14, 2018, 04:57:48 am
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Anyone know what's included in the latest firmware? Installing now....
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Observations so far
- comes in at around 116 Meg
- you can keep the app bar 'always on now' without it intercepting every keystroke - yay!
- Bluetooth seems to be a lot more robust. Automatically turns on when you boot up your Gemini.
- Google Assistant appears to be working when the device is closed - I will reboot a few times just to test it more thoroughly - so far so good
- No new apps as far as i can see
- No new issues to report so far
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All went well here, but after the update the date here is 1206, not 13 as they said: Gemini-7.1-Planet-12062018-V2.
Battery returns still 93% 3h remain after 35min, strange... However at 39min it returns 92% 1day2h, perhaps a recalibration...
Ledison now has "Caller-id animations", but it closes clicking on this option (here with Nova Launcher)...
No other issues noted.
Salvo
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Bluetooth headset interactions (next track, previous track etc) still not working when device closed
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I reflashed my Gemini with the rooted Android. Now it's offering the new firmware.
Does anyone know if it's safe to install on a rooted Gemini? If so, will it ‘un-root’?
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i got an update notification with
Version: Gemini-7.1-Planet-10052018-V2.<2018-05-1015:09>
Size; 60.41M
Date: 2018-06-13
if i load, want to install it, my gemini reboots and the bootloader says:
E3005 EMMC:".... boot ...." has unexpected contents"
Update.zip is not correct.
installation aborted.
i think since it mentioned my boot partition the update i think it don't work for rooted devices.
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Can confirm.. for rooted/dual-boot linux, I get "error: partition table not match".
I know it's still early stages, but I do hope an update path becomes available for rooted or dual-boot phones. Even a manual process would be fine, as long as we don't have have to "factory reset" each time.
For now, I'll "wait and see".
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Can confirm.. for rooted/dual-boot linux, I get "error: partition table not match".
I know it's still early stages, but I do hope an update path becomes available for rooted or dual-boot phones. Even a manual process would be fine, as long as we don't have have to "factory reset" each time.
For now, I'll "wait and see".
Yes.
I have dual boot Android/Linux (not rooted), and that is the message I got.
If dual boot was an unauthorized hack, this would be understandable, but as it was a major selling point, it does not reflect well upon them that their Android Firmware Update does not allow for a dual boot partition table.
Since the installation software for the dual boot system requires you to set the size of the Android/Linux partitions on-the-fly a firmware update that requires a specific partition size rather than a properly identified partition of at least X size is not going to work.
Since I don't believe that you have to reinstall your various apps after applying an update, it can't be a complete overwrite of the partition. That would argue that it modifies the partition contents selectively, since it wouldn't be possible to retain already installed third party apps otherwise. If it can selectively modify the partition contents, it should not require a set partition size, just a partition that is sufficiently large and properly labelled such that it knows it is the appropriate partition.
"Should" and "actually possible", of course, may not be the same thing at all. Given that firmware updates are manufacturer specific, I suspect that the standard practice of validating a device for a firmware upgrade is to check it against a template physically describing the device. Such a description would include where the firmware resides. If there is a dedicated chip for the firmware, this would not be a problem. But, if the firmware resides on the same physical media as the OS, it is possible that it would actually require a specific partition table structure for the OS to confirm that it is a compatible device. Given that the installation process for the dual boot Android/Linux allows you to set your partitions to pretty much whatever size you desire so long as they are large enough for the respective OSes to install, there is no "standard" partition table for a dual boot system when you include size of the partitions as part of the description, and thus if the Android OS actually requires a defined partition table, including size of partitions, for a firmware upgrade, and it isn't possible to provide that interactively during the firmware upgrade process, we're SOL. Unless there is a means to apply the firmware update via another OS which would allow for a variable partition structure in the target device.
Um, is that a logical analysis? Am I off-base in my chain of reasoning? And does it reflect reality? I have to admit to working in a vacuum in regard to how the Android OS operates, and how firmware updates are vetted prior to installation, and how they are actually installed after passing that vetting process.
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As somebody that has my device dual booting I was unable to update, I contacted Planet Computers support and was told:
You will be able to correct this later today once we update the download links for firmware on our website. You will, unfortunately, have to re-flash again, but you can untick the user partition in order to avoid data loss.
I have asked a follow up question to see if those of us with root and/or dual boot will ever to perform an OTA update - I will post whatever response I receive. I am not overly happy having to manually update Android each time, but I can live with it (for now) - one thing I AM happy about though, Planet Computers got back to me within 1 1/2 hours - not bad for a small company.
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Reluctant to update just yet. Like to leave firmware updates a few weeks for reported bugs to appear and then see if its worth the update.
There is a report on indeigogo below which I believe hasn't been mentioned above, can anyone confirm this is the case?
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Jon Crawford
3 hours ago
Be a bit careful about the firmware announced in update #58. It also rolls the security patch level back to Nov 2017 from Feb 2018; that’s EIGHT months of security updates missing. All for VoLTE. Not good, Planet.
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you can untick the user partition in order to avoid data loss.
Is there any detail on how to do that? (It's not something I want to try without being sure!)
And yes, Planet do seem pretty responsive considering their circumstances. (Their heart's clearly in the right place.)
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Is there any detail on how to do that? (It's not something I want to try without being sure!)
As I understand it, in the flash tool (note I am on Windows, should be the same for Linux) all we need to do it untick the line called "userdata" once a scatter file has been selected - then flash as normal. However, I have not yet tried this and the instructions that have been suplied are not what I would call detailed. The update hasn't been published to the support site yet either, and we are rapidly approaching end of business day in the UK so we might not see it till tomorrow now.
Does anybody have detailed instructions on using the flash tool? I had to find a post on Redit about pressing flash then rebooting the Gemini for it to be detected - that snippet wasn't on the official instruction page.
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
On the plus side, I asked Planet "Is there any chance that in the future OTA updates will work for those of us with rooted and/or dual boot based devices?" and the response I just received was:
Yes, this update actually corrects those issues. It should no longer be a problem with our future updates.
So if manually flashing this release is a one off I will be very happy indeed!
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Those (edited) f**k up my Gemini again... again !!!
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Does anyone know if it's safe to install on a rooted Gemini?
Well it has not worked on my rooted Gemini. One hour after starting the install I am still on the screen with the droid having his abdomen opened.
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Does anybody have detailed instructions on using the flash tool?
I posted some details here (https://developer.planetcom.co.uk/showthread.php?tid=39&pid=323#pid323) after (finally) getting it to work.
Highlights: I only have Macs, and didn't want to dual-boot, so I set up a Linux live USB and booted from that. It failed completely with Ubuntu, but worked with Debian 9. (However, wifi didn't work on the official one; it needs the unofficial Debian 9 with non-free additions.) It also needed an extra library to be installed, but I found a source for that. (All the details are in the linked post.)
Once it's running, you set up the Flash Tool as described on Planet's pages, power down the Gemini, set the Flash Tool going, and then connect the Gemini — I didn't need to boot the Gemini at all.
HTH…
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I only have Macs
Do we know if there's going to be a Mac version of the flash tool? It's pretty frustrating to me that there isn't Mac support at present, since it's also my choice of platform and I don't own a PC.
I guess I could try using either the Windows or the Linux tool in a VM under Parallels Desktop... but frankly I'd MUCH rather have a native Mac version of the tool for obvious reasons.
So, is it known whether Planet (or anyone else) is working on a Mac version of the tool?
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Just a warning for anyone who has TWRP installed, after this firmware update I couldn't even get into Android again and it had me in a bootloop into recovery with no errors (apparently). Not even flashing the system image file alone works, as a firmware upgrade was the only thing that got my device working again, so that meant losing userdata. Oh well.
Is there a way to install .zip files without TWRP? Last time I checked, the standard recovery system doesn't let you do that, or am I mistaken?
-RSS
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Can anyone confirm if stereo audio playing on the speakers is now functional?
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Just a warning for anyone who has TWRP installed, after this firmware update I couldn't even get into Android again and it had me in a bootloop into recovery with no errors (apparently). Not even flashing the system image file alone works, as a firmware upgrade was the only thing that got my device working again, so that meant losing userdata. Oh well.
Is there a way to install .zip files without TWRP? Last time I checked, the standard recovery system doesn't let you do that, or am I mistaken?
-RSS
You can try flashfire or flashify. They were both staples of the rooting community years ago. Just require root. Both should be on the play store, you may also find them on XDA for those who are google paranoid (which seems to be a surprisingly large demographic within the community)
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Do we know if there's going to be a Mac version of the flash tool?
The impression from Planet is that that's very unlikely, unfortunately.
Still, even though very awkward, it is at least possible to flash from a Mac, by booting into Linux. Having done it once, I've kept the Debian 9 USB stick, and another stick with the Flash Tool &c, for precisely this eventuality — so although it's a pain shutting everything down and rebooting, the flashing shouldn't take too long.
And it shouldn't be needed very often. If comments above are accurate, this is the last time it'll be needed for a simple firmware update; after this, we'll only need it to change the OS.
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Anyone have battery issues since this upgrade?
8 hours on battery and it is saying 8 hours left! I usually have 8 hours life left right at the end of the day. It is midday now.....
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Hey guys, I just chased Planet Computers as the updated firmware for manual install still isn't available. The response was not what I wanted
Apologies for the confusion yesterday. It appears that the full image of the updated firmware still hasn't been compiled. The official response I've received from a developer earlier today stated that we will have the links updated within a week once the full compilation is ready.
Of course I'm not including the full email as that has names etc - still, I guess this means that by the time we rooted/dual boot users get the update any extra fixes and updates will be ready and others will have already found all the problems
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Can't even upgrade firmware... it downloads and aborts on reboot...Message I see with my microscope is something about invalid zip file.
Anyone have a clue....
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Can't even upgrade firmware... it downloads and aborts on reboot...Message I see with my microscope is something about invalid zip file.
Anyone have a clue....
Yeah, if you have root and/or dual boot it currently will NOT work - we have to wait for the manual flashing site (http://support.planetcom.co.uk/index.php/Gemini_Firmware (http://support.planetcom.co.uk/index.php/Gemini_Firmware)) to be updated
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To update a dual-booted or rooter Gemini, you can do 3 things, one of which made possible by me having done one of these.
1. Wait for Planet Computers to release the new firmware and only flash the system.img.
2. For dual-booted Gemini: Back up everything (instructions on Github wiki), flash fresh non-rooted firmware and install update official way. Then back up again and only select system.img in WWR tool.
For rooted Gemini: flash back unrooted boot.img, update official way, then install rooted boot.img again. (I have not done or tested this method.)
3. Download and flash my system.img that I made with step 2. You can download it here: https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=1q_H...DZvOHYHBcWZQx0C (https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=1q_HVBD9tbg4Liz32uDZvOHYHBcWZQx0C)
I did step 2. It costs some time but works perfectly.
I'm not responsible for anything you do with this information however.
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I've got a completely stock Wifi-only Gemini (never refreshed) and version:
Gemini-7.1-Planet-09052018-WIFI-V1.<2018-05-09 19:08>... yet tapping the 'Detection of update' button just results in the message "is the latest version".
Is the updated firmware also available for the Wifi model?
Do I need to do something to pick-up the OTA update, or is there a way to force an update from the device (without having to re-flash from a host computer)?