Some questions before I install
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Hi all! I recently got a hold of a second-hand FP4 for the sole purpose of testing out Linux-distros, and I'm starting out with Ubuntu Touch. I hope to first play around with it as a secondary phone (without a permanent SIM installed), but if it seems I would be able to daily drive it, I will attempt to do so for some weeks.
I have a couple of questions before I get started though, and was hoping these would be easy for you answer and help me get going:
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It is stated I need to be on the Android 11-version of Fairphone OS in order to install it. The phone I got came with Android 15 installed, and before I proceed with downgrading to 11, I just wanted to confirm that this is in fact a requirement, and that it is not just a case of the instructions not having been updated since Fairphone has updated their OS.
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On Fairphone's website, it is stated that I will brick my device if the security patch of the OS is behind whatever I have installed now (with Fairphone OS 15). Would going from Android 15 -> Android 11 -> Ubuntu Touch allow me to relock the bootloader?
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There's a lot of emphasis on proper data cables, and I've had issues with this before when installing custom ROMs. Is there a way to test the cable beforehand? Am I at risk of bricking the device if I use a bad cable? When I previously had issues, the flashing would just be unable to finish properly, but no harm was done, and I could retry with another cable.
Looking forward to trying this out.
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It is stated I need to be on the Android 11-version of Fairphone OS in order to install it.
yes it's the case. A port needs resources and updating it to accommodate any kind of Android version installed on the phone would be too much at the moment, so there is only one supported.
Would going from Android 15 -> Android 11 -> Ubuntu Touch allow me to relock the bootloader?
no you need to keep it unlocked. There are only a few phones where relocking is supported and Fairphone ones are not among these devices.
There's a lot of emphasis on proper data cables, and I've had issues with this before when installing custom ROMs. Is there a way to test the cable beforehand? Am I at risk of bricking the device if I use a bad cable? When I previously had issues, the flashing would just be unable to finish properly, but no harm was done, and I could retry with another cable.
I have done just that (using a bad cable) and I was able to restart it with a better one. As far as I know there is no sure way to test for that, most I can say is you get what you pay for, if you grab an old cable from the bottom of a drawer you are risking more than if you buy a certified cable from a known seller. From my previous bad experience, the seller had 2 qualities and I bought the more expensive one, that looked more 'qualitative' (less slim). This said more expensive meant actually 10 euros for 50cm instead of 5 euros for the less expensive one so I did not break the bank.
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@gpatel-fr Cheers! I'll stop by an electronics store tomorrow to get a proper cable that will be my dedicated flashing cable. Guess there is no need risking anything.
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