Possible to install UT 20 over UT 16 on Google Pixel 3a XL using UBports Installer without first flashing Android back onto the phone?

RayCulp

UPDATE

I just discovered that if I reset the system (basically what amounts to a "factory reset"), the Camera app comes back. The Barcode Reader app is also back, but now when I start it the first time, it asks permission to use the camera. Maybe I had given the app permission to use the camera a long time ago and forgotten about it. Nevertheless, my original question still stands.

Short version:

Is it possible to do a "fresh install" of UT 20 over UT 16 using the UBports Installer, without first flashing Android back onto the phone?

Long version:

I updated my Google Pixel 3a XL from 16.04 to 20.04 a few days ago without starting over fresh, and at first everything seemed to be working fine.

Then I noticed that some apps were marked as "not found in the Open Store", so I decided to re-install all apps just to make sure.

One of the apps I uninstalled was the Camera app. I mainly decided to do this is because I saw a Barcode Reader app in the list of installed app, but every time I tried to start it, the Camera app would start instead, so I figured something was not working right.

Now I can't re-install the Camera app. Every time I try, it gets about half-way, then rolls back.

Instead of trying to repair the existing installation, I think now might be the right time to start over with a fresh install.

So the question is: Is it possible to do a "fresh install" of UT 20 over UT 16 using the UBports Installer, without first flashing Android back onto the phone?

Keneda

@WQ6Z8X4U said in Possible to install UT 20 over UT 16 on Google Pixel 3a XL using UBports Installer without first flashing Android back onto the phone?:

Is it possible to do a "fresh install" of UT 20 over UT 16 using the UBports Installer, without first flashing Android back onto the phone?

If the android version needed for a device to run UT 20.04 is the same than for UT 16.04, i guess it's a yes.

MrT10001

@WQ6Z8X4U Yes, I would use the installer rather than the update channel and tick the "wipe data" option to start afresh. This will remove all your data so back up first. This will remove all apps as well so you won't have incompatible ones left.

I would only ever reinstall Android back on my UT devices if they "soft bricked" and even then I have found it is not always necessary.

RayCulp

@Keneda said in Possible to install UT 20 over UT 16 on Google Pixel 3a XL using UBports Installer without first flashing Android back onto the phone?:

If the android version needed for a device to run UT 20.04 is the same than for UT 16.04, i guess it's a yes.

Thank you for this info, but it actually resurrects an old question of mine from a long time ago: When I install UT, do I need to be concerned that there is some vestige of Android left on the phone that might spy on me, i.e. does UT somehow run on top of Android? The answer I received back then was "no",

However, if UT replaces Android completely, then how does the version of Android needed to install UT 16 vs. 20 on a phone that is not yet running UT affect whether I can install it on a phone that already is running UT, unless there is some remnant of that previous Android OS still lurking on my phone?

RayCulp

@MrT10001 said in Possible to install UT 20 over UT 16 on Google Pixel 3a XL using UBports Installer without first flashing Android back onto the phone?:

Yes, I would use the installer rather than the update channel and tick the "wipe data" option to start afresh. This will remove all your data so back up first. This will remove all apps as well so you won't have incompatible ones left.

Thanks! It appears that I may have achieved a similar result by first installing UT 20 over 16 via OTA, then resetting the device using Erase & Reset All. Certainly, all of my installed apps, all personal files and all configurations were wiped.

@MrT10001 said in Possible to install UT 20 over UT 16 on Google Pixel 3a XL using UBports Installer without first flashing Android back onto the phone?:

I would only ever reinstall Android back on my UT devices if they "soft bricked" and even then I have found it is not always necessary.

Yes, that seems to fit a scenario where either the "correct" version of Android or some functioning version of UT would be a prerequisite to install UT via Installer.

RayCulp

@WQ6Z8X4U said in Possible to install UT 20 over UT 16 on Google Pixel 3a XL using UBports Installer without first flashing Android back onto the phone?:

Thank you for this info, but it actually resurrects an old question of mine from a long time ago: When I install UT, do I need to be concerned that there is some vestige of Android left on the phone that might spy on me, i.e. does UT somehow run on top of Android? The answer I received back then was "no",

Here is another piece of this puzzle:

I was just now trying to enable SSH using the instructions for UT 16, but when I typed the command

sudo android-gadget-service enable ssh

I got the following error message

sudo: android-gadget-service: command not found

This error message was previously discussed in this thread, where one person said:

@kugiigi said in [Pinephone] android-gadget-service: command not found:

That guide is for the android-based UT devices which the pinephone isn't. You should use the normal SSH commands you use in linux desktop.

Also, in this thread, I read that you can use the following commands to start and enable SSH

$sudo service ssh start
$sudo systemctl enable ssh

I tried this and it works perfectly. I can now log in remotely using PuTTY after reboot without manually starting SSH service.

Does this mean that UT 20 has eliminated the need for "residual elements" of Android that UT 16 still relied on?

BTW, in my view this is a huge step forward, like everything else I have seen so far in UT 20. I mean, UT 16 was already fantastic, but it just keeps getting better. This means I don't need to remember different bash commands for Ubuntu and UT.