Project Treble was announced in 2017 with the release of Android Oreo. It was supposed to bring faster Android updates by separating the hardware layer from the core Android framework. Fast forward to 2020 now and the project seems to have worked in some parts. GSI is one of the products that has succeeded in demonstrating the true potential of Project Treble. The idea of launching a future version of Android on literally any Android device, albeit faulty, is certainly tempting. In this article, we provide a detailed guide on how to install Android 11 GSI on any Project Treble device. We have provided a step-by-step guide, so be sure to review all the points before installing GSI. Now having said all that, let’s start with the requirements first.
Note: As you know, we are testing Android 11 GSI on Poco F1. Other than that make sure you back up all your files most likely, you will have to completely wipe the internal storage due to encryption issues.
Requirements
1. To run Generic System Image (GSI), your Android smartphone must have Treble support. The easiest way to find out is Check if your Android device is booted with Android 8, 9 or 10. If so, your device supports Project Treble and you can continue with the installation. You can also learn the treble support from the Treble Check app (Freeoffers in-app purchases).
2. Second, you bootloader must be unlocked On your smartphone to install the Android 11 GSI image.
Downloads
1. I am using Poco F1 to install Android 11 GSI, so It will need a recovery like TWRP or OrangeFox especially for Poco F1. In this case, I use OrangeFox recovery as it is up to date and supports decryption. Download OrangeFox recovery for Poco F1 from: here. As for your Android device, you can also use TWRP, but make sure the recovery is recently updated.
2. Next, download the GSI snapshot from: here. It is Erfan’s Pixel ported GSI and works on various Android devices. Yes, an EU-division GSI but it works on both A only (eg Poco F1) and AB (eg Mi A3) devices. Other than that, we tried the official GSI released by Google, but it failed to boot.
3. Download Force Encryption Disabler (FED) from: here. will help you protect your internal storage When switching between ROM and GSI. A quick tip, whenever you flash images for testing purposes, be sure to set up the FED to stay away from encryption hassle.
4. Now we come to the Vendor. While Google insists that the GSI images will work with the stock vendor, the reality is quite different. We tried installing the official GSI on the stock vendor on the Mi A3, but it didn’t work. So you will have to either download a ROM with the appropriate vendor app or a separate vendor image created specifically for your device. Only after that we can successfully boot the GSI image. As for the Poco F1, Pixel 4 ROM by Argraur. To put it bluntly, find a Full ROM for your particular device that comes with vendor official or proper vendor app. You can also comment below if you can’t find the right seller picture.
ADB and Fastboot Setup
First of all we have to enable ADB and Fastboot so we can install the recovery and install GSI on any Project Treble device. We’ve written a comprehensive guide on how to set up ADB on Windows, macOS, Linux, and Chrome OS, so check out our guide and get the basics done.
Install Android 11 GSI on any Project Treble Device
Before continuing, I assume you installed ADB, unlocked the bootloader and verified Treble compatibility. Now that we have reviewed the basics and downloaded the necessary files, let’s go ahead and install Android 11 GSI on any Project Treble device.
1. Connect your Android device to your computer and copy all four files you downloaded — recovery ZIP file, GSI image, FED, Full ROM or Vendor image – to your smartphone. After that, execute the following command to enter fastboot/bootloader mode.
adb reboot bootloader
2. Next, extract the OrangeFox ZIP file to your computer and save recovery.img file in the same ADB folder.
3. After entering Fastboot mode, enter the following command to boot the recovery image. Make sure you keep the recovery image in the same ADB folder.. After launching OrangeFox recovery, tap “Install” and swipe right to flash OrangeFox recovery ZIP file. It will automatically install into the recovery and reboot.
Note: This step is specific to OrangeFox recovery installation. If you are using TWRP, you will need to follow TWRP’s installation instructions.
fastboot boot recovery.img
4. Now, go to Delete -> Advanced Delete. Here, Select Dalvik, Cache, System, Vendor and Data and do a clean wipe. Make sure to check the “Vendor” box, as we need to change the vendor first. Also, DO NOT touch “internal storage” as all our files are saved there.
5. Next, go to “Install” and Flash Pixel 4 ROM file with the appropriate vendor app or vendor image.
Note: If you’ve flashed a private seller image, you can immediately skip to step 9.
6. After that, install Force Encryption Disabler. disable hardware encryption on first boot.
7. After that, wipe the cache once and tap on “Reboot System”. The new Pixel 4 will boot into the ROM. if you facing encryption problem then go to next section for solution.
8. Now that you have successfully booted into Pixel 4 ROM, Re-enable ADB from Developer Options and reboot into OrangeFox recovery. You can boot into OrangeFox recovery by running the ADB command below. To make everything clear, we have installed Pixel 4 ROM to get the correct vendor app and now we will install Android 11 GSI on it.
Note: Make sure to copy the GSI image back to your smartphone before rebooting for recovery in case you have to wipe the internal storage due to encryption issues.
adb reboot recovery
9. Now that we are in recovery again, tap Upload -> Upload Image. Here, Select the GSI image and then select “System Image”. After that, swipe to flash the GSI and when done, tap on “Reboot System”. You don’t need to delete anything before or after installation.
10. You will boot directly to Android 11 GSI. Here are some snapshots Android 11 GSI running on Poco F1.
Having Encryption Issues After Installing Android 11 GSI?
1. In recovery, navigate to: Erase -> Format Data and type “yes” to completely wipe your internal storage. It will decrypt the device and you will be able to boot it easily.
2. In case the above method doesn’t work, you need to change the data partition from f2fs to ext4. To do this, open Erase -> Advanced Erase -> Partition Options -> Select. Data -> Partition Options again -> Change FS (File System). Here select “ext4” and then swipe to change. After that, tap on “Reboot system”. This time, you will boot successfully without any encryption issues.
Is Your Smartphone Randomly Restarting After Installing Android 11 GSI?
1. Press button to go back to recovery again. volume up + power button release at the same time and after you see the Android logo. You will directly boot into recovery mode.
2. Here go to “Mount” and enable it “System” and “Vendor”.
3. Next, navigate to: Advanced -> File Manager -> Vendor -> Overlay. Here, tap the folder checkbox at the bottom to select all the files, then tap the “Delete” option. After that, swipe right to complete the process. Finally, tap on “Reboot System” and you will boot into Android 11 GSI without any issues.
Install Android 11 GSI on Your Smartphone Now
So, be it Redmi, Realme, Poco or Nokia devices, you can install Android 11 GSI on your smartphone right now. Of course, the process is quite complex and you need to have some idea about Android modding and flashing. However, if you are an enthusiast and want to test the latest Android 11, you can do so by following the step-by-step guide. Having said that, I would advise users not to install Android 11 GSI at this time and at least wait for the first beta, which will be out in May. Anyway, that’s it for us. If you run into any issues finding the recovery or vendor image, let us know in the comment section below. We will definitely try to help you.
