OTA updates, or over-the-air updates, are one of the best ways to enhance the functionality of our Android phones. However, it does not affect the applications you downloaded from Google Play. But it also saves a lot of operational costs needed to apply new functionality. Even though everyone knows about OTA updates, they still need help to sideload them.
The reason is that OTA updates vary from device to device and require rigid steps to install them. On that note, we came up with possible ways to install OTA updates on any Android device. Fortunately, there is something that we would like to explain here. In other words, today, we will explain how to install OTA updates.
How to install OTA Update on Any Android Device
Since OTA updates are all about customizing the default settings on your phone. And somewhere connected to unlocking your phone. Once your device has been rooted, OTA updates will install perfectly and will not show any errors. So, being a frequent reader, we hope you have jailbroken your device; if not, do it here. So, after rooting it, follow the below steps to install OTA updates.
- On your Android, open settings >> About phone >> build number.
- Then restore the untouched boot image corresponding to the installed build number.
- Download the fastboot-compatible factory image corresponding to the current Android build number on your PC. For example, It should be named as <device codename>-<build number>-factory-<hash value snippet>.zip.
- Using any archive manager, open the factory image and locate the image-<device codename>-<build number>.zip file.
- Then extract the boot.img file from it.
- Now enable USB debugging and reboot your phone to bootloader mode.
- Flash the stock boot image and reboot your device.
- After that, head to settings >> system >> system updates >> check for updates.
- Now patch the boot image with Magisk and restart your phone.
- That’s it, and you are on the latest OTA update.
Alternatively, there is a quick way to install OTA updates on any Android device. There are some steps, however, that you must follow. The alternative method is suitable for those who have a dedicated factory image for corresponding updates. If so, please follow the instructions below.
- Just download the factory image that corresponds to the latest update for your Android device.
- Using any archive manager, locate the image-<device codename>-<build number>.zip file, and extract the boot.img file from it.
- Now patch the stock boot image using magisk.
- Next, copy the Magisk-patched boot image from your phone to your PC and rename it to boot.img.
- Open the file as mentioned in step 2 and replace it with the stock boot image file.
- Next, remove the data wipe routine like Windows. Open the Flash-all.bat file in notepad and remove the “-w” parameter.
- Reboot your phone to bootloader mode and perform the flash operation using fastboot.
- After doing this, your phone will be updated to the latest OS version.
Furthermore, you can do the same thing using stock recovery mode. Here you need to follow a few steps, and the new OTA update will be on your phone. However, it has some requirements but works perfectly. So, To install OTA updates using stock recovery then, follow the instructions below.
- Download and move the OTA updates .zip file to your phone.
- Then reboot your phone into recovery mode.
- After that, press the volume up button to navigate and select apply the update using the power button.
- Now select the .zip file from your phone and install it.
- Once the installation is complete, reboot your phone, and you are done.
A direct way to do this is through the ADB command if you love doing things manually. Despite the fact that it is some kind of technical part, few people pay attention to it because it helps them to know if a function does not work. So, to install OTA updates using ADB commands, follow the steps below.
- First, setup ADB and Fastboot on your PC.
- Download the OTA update .zip file and rename it to ota.zip.
- Enable USB debugging through settings >> about phone >> tap the build number 7 times >> developer option.
- Now connect your PC to your phone.
- Head to the folder where you downloaded the OTA zip file and open a command prompt there.
- Next, run this “adb reboot recovery” command to get your phone into recovery mode.
- Using the power button, select Apply update from the ADB option on your phone.
- Now use “adb sideload ota.zip” with this command to run the installation.
- That’s it; in a few seconds, you will be on the latest OS update.
Conclusively, OTA updates can be accessed in different ways. As we mentioned here, there are different roadmaps to upgrading to the latest OS update. And I hope you get my point that you can use any method to accomplish what you want. Even though we have covered all the relevant things for installing OTA updates, in case any user has any questions, please feel free to ask them below.
Frequently Asked Questions
Ans. You can do that through the ADB command.
Ans. You can do that through stock recovery mode.
Ans. The best way to install an OTA update is the ADB command.
Ans. There is no need to root, and it depends on your preference.
