Feb 24, 2013

Instructions to install Ubuntu on Android



A couple days removed from offering a first look at Ubunutu Touch for tablets, Canonical has launched a developer preview of the new mobile OS. Designed to play nice with Android development phones, the linux-based Ubuntu Touch features support for the Galaxy Nexus, Nexus 4, Nexus 7, and Nexus 10. But if you are thinking about moving to the operating system as a daily driver, take note of the “developer preview” tag.
As the build is being released with development for the platform in mind, it does not support the full range of functions  you would get from a fully-baked smartphone experience. The software is described as “very new and unfinished.”
Still, if you are tempted to take a look, take heed. Installing Ubuntu Touch will wipe your device of all data. You will want to be sure to make a proper backup in advance.

Step 1 - Desktop Setup


The following steps are required on your desktop system that you'll need in order to flash and communicate with the device.

Setup the Touch Developer Preview Tools PPA


The PPA has the tools and dependencies to support Precise, Quantal and Raring. Add the Ubuntu Touch PPA by adding the following custom source list entry to your /etc/apt/sources.list file.
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:phablet-team/tools

or if add-apt-repository is not available, append the following to your sources.list:
deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/phablet-team/tools/ubuntu [dist-codename] main
deb-src http://ppa.launchpad.net/phablet-team/tools/ubuntu [dist-codename] main

*Note: replace [dist-codename] with precise, quantal or raring
Then do the following:
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install phablet-tools android-tools-adb android-tools-fastboot

Step 2 - Device unlock


If the device is already unlocked, skip to Step 3. These steps will wipe all personal data from the device.
  1. With the device powered off, power on the device by holding the Power button + volume up + volume down.
  2. The device will boot into the bootloader.
  3. Plug the device into the computer via the USB cable.
  4. On your computer, press Ctrl+Alt+T to start a terminal. Type sudo fastboot oem unlock, followed by Enter
  5. On the device screen, accept the terms of unlocking.
  6. Boot the device by pressing the power button (pointed by an arrow with Start on the screen).

Step 3 - Initial Device Setup


Follow these initial steps on your device:
  1. If not booted, boot the device into Android
  2. Enable USB debugging on the device
    • on Ice Cream Sandwich (version 4.0) go to Settings and turn on USB Debugging (Settings > System > Developer options > USB debugging).
    • on Jelly Bean (versions 4.1 and 4.2) you need to enter Settings, About [Phone|Tablet] and tap the Build number 7 times to see the Developer Options, activate USB Debugging via Settings > Developer options > USB debugging.
    • on 4.2.2 you will need to accept a host key on the device, if you already had adb installed, do the following
      • On the workstation-> adb kill-server; adb start-server
  3. Plug the device into the computer via the USB cable.
    • Depending on the installed Android version, a popup will show up on the device with the host key that needs to be accepted for the device to communicate with the workstation.
  4. Save the version of the current image on the device, if on Android, to use as a reference to revert back to. The version can be found by going to Settings > About Phone > Build Number.

Step 4 - Deploying Image to Device


To install the Ubuntu Touch Developer Preview on your device, you will need to execute the command below. Please note, this will wipe the contents of the device so ensure you have made a back-up. To install and get updates, run the following command:
phablet-flash -b

The -b performs a full bootstrap on the device. If the device is already unlocked it will carry on. If you have already bootstrapped once and want to install a daily just do:
phablet-flash

This will deploy the latest build onto your device. Your device should reboot into the Ubuntu Unity shell.
Notes:
  • the files are saved in Downloads/phablet-flash.
  • If the deploy fails(ex boots to black screen), try wiping the /data partition on your device and redeploy

Restoring Android


The Ubuntu Touch Preview image is not for everyone and may not suit your current needs (yet). If you wish to roll back to an Android factory image, follow these steps:
  1. Recall the version that was installed before flashing.
  2. Download the factory image corresponding to your device's model and version (initial table has links).
  3. Ensure the device is connected and powered on.
  4. Extract the downloaded file and cd into the extracted directory.
  5. run adb reboot-bootloader
  6. run ./flash-all.sh (use sudo if lack of permissions on the workstation don't allow you to talk to the device).
Your device should boot into Android after the process is finished

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