VoLTE Implementation For Google Pixel 3a/3a XL

Eric H

@mr_growl said in VoLTE Implementation For Google Pixel 3a/3a XL:

nothing ususual in dmesg

pstore (console + ram) and last_kmsg should be enabled in your kernel config, then you will be able after a boot attempt, to get logs from either console-ramoops or last_kmsg in recovery mode.

mr_growl

@Eric-H The recovery doesn't work after flashing. That's one of the things that concerns me about this build. With the old style halium build the boot.img contains the ubports recovery, so there is a recovery to retrieve logs from. The boot loader shows the reason for being in bootloader mode as "error boot prepare" which I was led to believe indicates a problem with recovery (it couldn't get in to recovery so just settled for bootloader).

pstore is enabled in that kernel.

@atarilinux if you're still keen to do some research, one thing that would be handy to know is if anyone has actually successfully made a halium port for any device for ubports or halium... I see lots of attempts but not sure if any of them actually were successful.

I got a successful build of droidian using their build process and the result was the same as with the new style ubports build.

I'm going back to the idea that I should try building a halium 9 build... if I can't make that work then I don't see how I could make a halium 12 build work.

Eric H

@mr_growl said in VoLTE Implementation For Google Pixel 3a/3a XL:

The recovery doesn't work after flashing.

To make sure to understand

is there a recovery partition on the android 12 pixel 3a ?
or can't you boot in recovery mode with something like that : fastboot boot recovery.img

(building ubports recovery.img has to be enabled in device info)

Eric H

If there is no recovery partition on your phone, you probably need a recovery ramdisk.
See ramdisk-overlay directory on Volla X23 for example:
https://gitlab.com/ubports/porting/reference-device-ports/halium12/volla-x23/volla-vidofnir/-/tree/main

mr_growl

@Eric-H Thanks! I'll check that tomorrow. It seems to me with stock android I can't boot into a build in recovery but that fastbootd does most of what's needed. So I have been using "fastboot boot twrp.img" if I need features that twrp offers.

Flashing twrp.img directly on to the pixel 3a doesn't work. To get it to install I usually do "fastboot boot twrp.img" and then go to "Advanced" and then "flash currently twrp".

Eric H

@mr_growl
Iirc, an android 12 phone must have a recovery partition unless it is a slot A/B device.

for example on my device

to check recovery partition

$ fastboot getvar all |& grep -i recovery
(bootloader) partition-type:recovery:raw
(bootloader) partition-size:recovery: 0x8000000

to flash recovery partition
```
fastboot flash recovery recovery.img
```

to check slots, in fastbootD mode

$ fastboot getvar slot-count
slot-count: 0

atarilinux

@mr_growl

I'll see what I can find out!

atarilinux

@Eric-H

Thanks! I will check this out too!

mr_growl

@Eric-H the pixel 3a is a slot a/b device. Just at work but will investigate the things you mentioned this evening. Thanks!

mr_growl

@atarilinux much appreciated. Thanks!

atarilinux

@mr_growl

I've been searching, but finding a successful port is bit hard to find. I did come across these things if they may be helpful! If I find anything else, I will let you know.

Same Issue (But Unresolved):
https://xdaforums.com/t/halium-12-build-for-sm-t290-need-help.4605123/

Old Porting Method (Unfortunately):
https://forums.ubports.com/topic/11131/halium-12.0-lineageos-19.1-ubuntu-touch-focal-20.04-for-samsung-galaxy-s10-beyond1lte-build-rootfs-from-scratch

Another Halium Build with some Troubleshooting:
https://dev.to/ar2rworld/how-i-installed-ubuntu-touch-halium-on-the-xiaomi-redmi-4a-rolex-full-step-by-step-ubuntu-3l4m

Halium 12 Upgrades and Ubuntu Touch on Q&A
https://ubports.com/blog/ubports-news-1/ubuntu-touch-q-a-161-3956

atarilinux

@mr_growl

I also found this and thought it was interesting. It is regarding Mobian, but does mention the Google Pixel 3a working and receiving calls.

https://blog.mobian.org/posts/2025/02/early-2025-news/

Also, Droidian has a Halium 12 port for Volla Phone.

https://github.com/droidian-images/droidian/releases/tag/droidian%2F101.20250906

rocket2nfinity

@atarilinux That (VoLTE on P3a w/ Mobian) is with q6voiced and 81Voltd. Last I read it is broken again. Although, P3a is almost complete with mainline linux (especially with PostmarketOS - has patches not yet upstreamed). Might want to talk to Oren (maintainer of the Pinephone) if you want to try making a mainline port of UT for the P3a. OP6 is functional with VoLTE with mainline (with occasional hiccups) and OP6T can also call, but still has audio issues w/VoLTE last I read. Considering the OP6/6T is unmaintained with UT, it could benefit from a new maintainer - halium or mainline.

mr_growl

@atarilinux thanks for all the links! I just got back from vacation so will have a read through them soon and see if a way forward jumps out.

atarilinux

@rocket2nfinity

Thanks for the information!

atarilinux

@mr_growl

Hope you had a great vacation!

atarilinux

Just an update. I haven't really been able to find that much on Halium 12 and the Google Pixel 3a. Perhaps a mainline Linux build would be better? However, it looks like we may have some bad news on the way again. 4G may shut down in a couple of years or less, or at least T-Mobile plans on dropping it soon.

https://www.phonearena.com/news/t-mobile-4g-lte-shutdown_id174676

Overall, there is a lot to love about Ubuntu Touch...especially the Google Pixel 3a port. However, it increasingly seems more like a form of "Pocket PC" than an actual daily driver phone capable of making and receiving calls...mainly due to things outside of the work the Linux community has been doing, such as T-Mobile's decisions.

I'd hate to waste development time on something that might not last more than a year if we get everything up and running. Also, I'm not entirely sure "new phones" without an existing Ubuntu Touch partnership would always be a permanent solution either if the hardware is not replaceable and if development happens after the release date.

Supporting a phone with upgradable software and easily upgradeable hardware (modem, etc.) might be ideal for the Linux phone community to get behind. It seems we keep hitting a long development time and a short reward time as far as phone support unfortunately.

In this sense, Ubuntu Touch's partnership with Fairphone seems like a good match if it can be expanded upon and if development can happen on a phone before release. That way it works out of the box for the longest amount of time without many issues. It will also unite the community around similar hardware.

I'm unsure of Ubuntu Touch's plans for the US. With Volla and Fairphone, it seems European users will get the most support. If Fairphone and Volla decide the US is a good market for an "Ubuntu Edition" phone, I'm sure many users would be happy. However, as if currently stands with import fees, etc. I can't say this is a viable option for most US users. For those in the US, we may have to look at alternative phone providers that will have phones supported long enough for the development time to be worth it if we are looking for a daily driver.

Again, I appreciate everyone's hard work, creativity, thoughtfulness, and experimentation. I love Ubuntu Touch and still plan on using the Google Pixel 3a. I have learned a lot during this process and hope to continue learning more. With the recent news, it just seems like to me that the opportunity window for this device to be a daily driver or main phone has already passed. Instead, based on factors outside of the Linux community, I will use this as a Pocket PC/Media Player. I have decided that it might not become a viable daily driver or "main phone."

zakafx

@atarilinux I agree with a lot of your points. I tried to daily drive it for a couple of weeks but there are a lot of things that are unpolished and require workarounds, workarounds that I don't feel like doing as a user TBH. I am not a dev.

I keep my eye on the project every couple of days to see what is new, as well as the live q&A videos every second Saturday.

With the announcement of the "smooth edges" initiative, I'm hoping that it does get some polish in the 20 week time frame that is being proposed. Until then, I am back to my S24.

rocket2nfinity

A couple of thoughts:

The OP6/T was one of the successful models in the original VoLTE experiment. It did not receive the final version because the porter is in Ukraine and the port is effectively abandoned. The OP Nord N10 now has VoLTE (24.04-2 daily) and the N100 likely will (same porter). Perhaps an updated port for the 6/6T would be worth your effort, or one for the OP Nord N20/30 or 200/300 as they are 5G models

There is renewed effort to get SIP completely functioning and integrated into the dialer. If that effort is successful, the existing port of the P3a could still be useful as a VoIP phone.

Which brings me to heresy - use Droidian with SIP, or Mobian or PostmarketOS (patches needed with Mobian to match PMOS) as VoLTE is somewhat functional (a work in progress) with P3a and OP6/T.

And since Mobian/PostmarketOS is mainline, you could confer with Oren (Pinephone/tab porter) to see how to build a mainline UT port for either of those two models

atarilinux

@zakafx

To be honest and perhaps more specific, a Linux phone can be a daily driver that can make and receive calls. I actually do have one that is a daily driver at the moment. However, the Google Pixel 3a with Ubuntu Touch can't be my daily driver as the phone system is too unreliable. As a Pocket PC/Media Player it is great! It is just not a great "phone."

Ubuntu Touch as a system is A LOT more user friendly than other systems I've tried so far. I can see where they are going with it, and I really like the direction for the entry-level Linux user. Similarly, it is good enough for a developer too...though some choices can be controversial to some. If I would recommend a normal user a Linux phone, Ubuntu Touch would probably be the first one I would go with.

The main focus right now would be to get the phone part reliable, not in the short term, but in the long term. If 4G goes down and 5G isn't working, we are back to where we were a couple of years ago with a Pocket PC and not a true smartphone alternative. I'd hate to see that happen again.

I think that is the main reason why I wrote what I did. I'd hate to see all the time, effort, and development go to waste simply because someone else decided to pull the plug. A Pocket PC is a fine thing on its own, and I love the idea with convergence, etc. However, I think most are going to judge it as a smartphone instead of a Pocket PC. They will look at it and say "It's a phone. Why can't I call, etc.?" A number of people will complain abut having 2 devices, etc. They will rate the operating system as a whole unfairly.

I'm definitely going to use the Google Pixel 3a. I'm going to test things out and see what what I can do with it. I'm still going to support Ubuntu Touch. However, development towards making it a daily driver seems like it would be a lot of cost for only a very short term gain. That is the most unfortunate part of this. If 4G was left running for a while or if the phone's hardware could be updated in some manner, we wouldn't have this issue.