Over the last few days, anyone still running Android 2.0.1 on their Motorola Droid should have received another 2.1 OTA update notification. And why is that significant? Because the users that are receiving this new notification had previously blocked it using SPRecovery.
We’re still not 100% sure what this new update does to your device, but if you are running a 2.0.1 ROM, continue to have SPRecovery or Clockworkmod Recovery installed as your recovery image or you may see your root access taken away without an easy return method.
Some are speculating that this new 2.1 update includes a new baseband for phones whose did not update initially and possibly blocks the method we used to flash the SPRecovery SBF to change the recovery image on a stock 2.1 Droid. Like I said, we’re not 100% sure.
It should also be noted that this 2.1 update is 69MB while the originaly update sent a month ago was only about 15MB. This definitely looks like an entire system image rather than a simple patch.
Update 5/5 8:02AM: Vulcan1600Rider over at DroidForums.net has tested the new update and was able to gain root access. Definitely not locked down. (Yay!)
You can download the file here.
The word from DroidMod earlier today…
Another OTA update has appeared. Users who have rooted, but are not using SPRecovery should take extreme care, as this update contains a complete /system image, which means that it will not break the way the previous one did; it will simply erase /system and flash a complete image. If you already have SPRecovery flashed, you can safely accept the update as you did with the ESE81 update.
Let’s just say that it would be a great disappointment to hear that Motorola or Google would be attempting to lock down this device. A big sector of their users are committed to this device simply because it is easy to customize and I would hate to see them lose it.
Anyone receive this notification?
Cheers OldNuc!
Comments
69 responses to “New Android 2.1 Updates Locking Down Droids?”
Hey guys this doesn't have much to do with the update but someting really wired happend to my droid today. I left my phone on the charger and left for awhile but when i came back to use it my home key, search key, lock screen and none of my root apps would work, also i could not send/receive calls when i tried to call it rang for about a second and went to vm texts still worked though. I noticed in the system menu it had restarted about an hour before i got back and when i tried to power cycle it only had power off option and i lost the airplane/silent options. when the phone was restarting i noticed the boot animation was back to stock and power cycle did not help . I ended up doing a wipe cash and reinstalled the rom(which was bugless beast v1.0 with 7 slot 1.1ghz LV kernel btw) after i did back up through ASTRO. That fixed the issues but i was just wanting to know if anybody else has seen this happen? When i did a little digging through google there have been a few people with the same issue but most of them weren't rooted just stock usually after the update from 2.0.2 to 2.1. There were alot of suggestions about 3rd party apps messing with the phone…any ideas??
how do I know if I need this update or not?
I actually unrooted yesterday evening (not knowing this was released), updated to the latest 2.1 and then rooted from there using RSDLite. It was pretty flawless… Didn't find any hiccups..
One thing I do differently than most – I downgrade to 2.0.1, then download DMUPDATER and gain root access from there, install ROM MANAGER and then load whatever rom I want. I think this is the easiest method to gain SUPERUSER access.. But both ways worked just fine for me yesterday.
That's the same thing that happen to me when I went back to stock 2.01, as soon as I did I got the OTA message, my phone went through the process with no problems, however it did wipe my phone clean.
After this update hit several people have installed it and then been able to flash the 2.0.1 sbf to revert to a rooted state. It appears that this is just the full update and not an update patch to 2.0.1 as the OTA of last month was. The concern is that the mbm error that allowed rooting was corrected for the Milestone v.2.0.1 to lock it down. Anytime an update shows up that is a complete system update the question will come up as to why push the entire system file when a small patch would be adequate.
One of the selling points for me of the Moto Droid is the ability to access the root account of the OS. I would not be happy if it suddenly became locked.
has anyone istalled the 69mb update yet?
has anyone installed this new 69mb update on there phone
The difference between the 2 files is ones a patch and one is full image with baseband. Update o have rooted since doing the ota update with no problems even if rsd lite gets to 100 and says fail don't touch anything your phone will reboot itself and be fine it takes awhile to load the image sometimes as I have run into this before
i updated with this new file just for shitz-n-giggles, it worked just fine. i'm stock 2.1, just wanted to see what would happen i suppose :-p there were no hiccups or problems whatsoever. this could be all in my head, but my initial impression is my home screen is running faster/smoother.
do you have to rename the zip update.zip then use the manual upgrade instructions to do this?
yep, sure do
My only concern is what if this OTA update resolves some major issues…like constant wif dropping? I love being rooted mostly for overclocking and custom roms, but not even these have resolved my wifi issues. I dont want to be left out of a major overhaul that resolves these issues and possibly more…
I have never experienced such problems….
Yea…I seem like the only one on droid-life with this problem. I am one of several hundred on Motorola support forums experiencing this problem though :-/
If rooted users only make up the minority, why would verizon, or whoever, put out an update to target us? Maybe this just to be a “catch all” for any f'd up droids or something?
I just changed my wifes phone yesterday. She had the 2.0.1 and I reset it using RSD Lite and Hacked it with SPRecovery using RSD Lite. I got her rooted and a Custom ROM too. For Mothers Day. : )
i would just like to say that i pointed this out to kellex like a week ago……. i feel good
how do I know if i am safe to accept it if I get it? I am loving this new bugless beast it is so fast,but i just dont want to accept it and ruin all that.
For the past couple days, I been installing and reinstalling Android 2.1, because I was compiling my own kernel for Motorola Droid. So far so good, I haven't receive any problem nor I haven't notice the new update of a sort. After reinstall Android 2.1, I rooted my Motorola Droid again, and everything seem to be working.
Im kind of on the “its a bogus rumor” boat
I'm currently running droidmod on my phone. I've received two different updates in the past few days (attempted to install it both times to block it). The first time my phone locked up in the recovery mode and I had to do a battery pull. The second time (today) it attempted to install and failed just like it previously did when 2.1 first came out. I am now still running droidmod without any problems or lingering effects thus far.
Yesterday I tried to change my rom from Blackdroid to anything else. I ran into problems changing. I ended up getting a Update to 2.1 with “root” access. But it was weird I couldn't do anything with it. So I had to hit recovery and to use Droidmod then go to Rom Manager.
I think someone provided incorrect information… Check this thread out… http://www.droidforums.net/forum/droid-general-…
I purchased my phone about 3 weeks ago and have the 2.1 -update 1 ESE81 build which I think is the 15 MB patch. Should I redownload the full 67MB 2.1 version? Sorry I am new with the droid phone so I do not know much about it. I just want to know if the full 2.1 verson vs. the 2.1 patch that came out last month will benefit me and my phone more? Please answer.
No, leave it alone. The 2.1 patch as you call it got your phone to 2.1; all is good in Droid-land. 🙂
We really need a Droid-Life chat room
while the original(y) update***
This is Vulcan1600Rider from DF. I was returning my Moto Droid on Wednesday because I'm getting a certified like new phone delivering to my house on Wednesday. I needed to unroot anyway, so I went to stock, did the mandatory 2.1 update and then installed this so called OTA update. I then went back to RSD Lite and was able to install the 2.0.1 .sbf file successfully. So, this has not blocked anything, and will still be able to root my replacement Droid on Wednesday. I just wanted to report my findings and confirm that this did not succeed in locking down our devices.
so we can still root our droids?
That is correct, I personally did it tonight and was still able to go back to root if I wanted.
kewl, i'm still stock, but definitely like having the option
Sweet. You mind dropping back by when you give your new phone a shot and let us know if it only does it with the stock recovery? Thanks for your work on testing it! I'm already rooted with 2.1, so I have no problem with it, but lots of people appreciate all the help they get! 😀
Sure, I will let you know how the install goes tomorrow. I wanted to come and share with members of Droid-Life that the answer was this doesn't block the ability to root. If it wasn't for the fact I was getting a “certified like new” phone tomorrow, I'd have never dared to test this out for the masses.
do you know if its coming with 2.0.1 or 2.1?
When I unrooted, I used a sbf that took me to 2.0.1 and then my droid gave me no choice but to install the 2.1. Then I got that file that came out today and renamed it to update.zip and booted to recovery and installed it. Then I attempted to go back to 2.0.1 with the sbf file and it allowed me to do it. That's how I know you can still root. The word out there was this OTA would block the ability to use sbf files.
There's got to be an insider on the forum who “can neither confirm or deny” what this update is doing to our phones…anyone??
My Phone has locked up and i have no clue how to fix it
I know this is off topic, sorry for that, but I tried to install Bugless Beast v1.0 and I have to say… it's FULL OF BUGS. I installed several times to try different kernels as well. Mostly because my phone was cought in a boot up loop with most of the kernels. As far as the problems once I was able to boot up? Well, 1. NexusMod wallpaper force closes frequently. 2. I can't hang up after a phone call. I have to shut my phone down to hang up. 3. My widgets frequently have a problem loading. 4. The market rarely works. 5. My web surfing is VERY slow over my 3g now.
I have NEVER had so many problems with a ROM. Disappointing since I loved his previous ROM. Anybody else have any of the problems I have had?
Nope been using it for 3 days now and it is the best rom I have used yet. Idk why you are running into those problems. What ROM are you coming from?
I'm coming from Team Chaos' Red Rum v1.2. Which, by the way, using the home launcher with 9 screens may be the fastest ROM I've ever used. It keeps up with my friends incredible. I was hoping Bugless was better tho.
I was having some of the same issues until I reinstalled and wiped data and cache…try that
sounds like you didn't wipe cache etc.. you need to clean install it and wipe the old stuff. if you try to install a completely new rom… for example Jrummy to bugless beast, they are completely different roms.. it's like going from OS X to Windows 7… now I may be wrong.. but Bugless Beast is pro…. if you use the quick bugless beast boot script, it sometimes loops a few times.. but rarely.
Falcon, I have been running Pete's new 1.0 for a few days now and it is flawless. The smoothest, fastest rom I've ever used. It would be worth starting over with a fresh install. Once you re-install check back and let us know how much you LOVE it! It is not full of bugs….
I've been using bugless beast with the completely stock option for 2 days. I love it. It makes my Droid NOTICEABLY faster. It truely is bugless for me. Also, the docked nightstand clock is a lot better.
No Rooting phone?
Pretty much…if you're rooted with a non-stock recovery (ie sprecovery or clockworkmod), you're fine.
Thanks for the confirmation.
I have received these annoying update requests twice now in the past few days. Both succesfully “installed” and rejected.
kellex- droidmod says if we flashed with sprecovery we are fine, but what if we are now flashed thru rom manager with clockworkmod recovery?
So if I keep Clockwork Mod as my recovery image, I'm fine? I'm not unrooting for a number of reasons.
Yeah. You're fine with Clockwork Mod recovery.
They are trying to rule with an iron fist and stop us from the custom goodness. I guess this doesn't suprise me but it is disappointing to see them try to lock down the Droid. I'm glad I didn't wait to root. Glad you posted this. Interested to see if its true.
Milestone has never been open… from 2.0 it always had an locked bootloader, and now on 2.1 it still is COMPLETELY locked down. You can only root it ( like i did ) but you don't got many advantages… This is definitely my last Motorola phone, byebyeMOTO
kellex, please help me. is there any way that i can unroot my 2.1 droid, AND go back to the stock recovery? basically, unvoid my warranty?
Flash the 2.0.1 SBF and then allow the 2.1 OTA update to be installed.
Just Google “unroot unbrick droid” and you'll find the instructions. 🙂
Hey Kellex,
I received the 2.1 update before ever rooting. I then went on and used your following videos: Video: Flashing SPRecovery SBF to Stock 2.1 and Installing a Custom ROM in SPRecovery with No Root. I also downloaded the premium version of ROM Manager and am currently on clockwork recovery. I can always go back to sprecovery if needed. Does something like this affect me, if at all? Thanks
Easiest way is to use DroidModUpdater to get back to stock 2.0.1.
so clockwordmod recovery wont help me then?
So as long as we have a custom recovery were all good right.
Exactly.
That's whzt I thought but wanted to be sure.
sounds good. VZW locking down the Droid would be a damn rotten thing to do. It'd almost garentuee my eventual iPhone purchase
I would never go that far.
Whoa, lets not say things we cant take back 😛
hey kellex please help me i install bugless beast 1.0 just now and my phone is super hot and it wont charge !!
whats wrong need help fast !?!?!?!?
I wouldn't be surprised if Verizon has had, at least, a hand in this. On the flip side, I'd be just shy of shocked if Google were to blame (seeing as so many people that love Android, love it because of it's customizability); relatedly, that ability to really make the phone one's own is one of the key cards in Google's hand with regards to the battle against Apple.
I wouldn't be surprised if Verizon has had, at least, a hand in this. On the flip side, I'd be just shy of shocked if Google were to blame (seeing as so many people that love Android, love it because of it's customizability); relatedly, that ability to really make the phone one's own is one of the key cards in Google's hand with regards to the battle against Apple.