Post #2075665

2026-05-04 19:52 UTC

@oddtail @aoanla Of course, there is a way to unlock it. You simply have to: 1. Go to Settings > About device 2. Tap 7 times on the field called "Build number" to open the secret Developer Options menu. 3. Go to said Developer Options menu, and enable "OEM Unlock". (This option is deceptively named Unlock, as it does not unlock the bootloader, but it unlocks the ability to unlock the bootloader :3) 4. Reboot your phone 5. Reboot your phone again into Fastboot mode, by holding down a specific set of keys during powerup (which differ by manufacturer) 6. Connect your phone to a PC using a USB cable 7. Download the adb tool on your PC 8. Run the adb command to unlock your phone. Simple, isn't it? And yet, this is still not enough. This is the standard way in the AOSP (Android Open Source Project), which is the base OS for all Android phones. But, many manufacturers change that OS to add extra protections. Some require you to enter an extra code to unlock the bootloader, (which you might have to pay) 2/?

Replies (1)

@flafflar@tech.lgbt 2026-05-04 20:01

@oddtail @aoanla Others, simply disable the option to unlock the bootloader. And if you can't unlock the bootloader, don't even think about running any other OS, be it a regular OS or a recovery OS, on your phone. If you're a bit experienced with computers, you might say: "Well, can't I just wipe the hard drive and install a new OS with a new bootloader that's not locked?". That's something you can do very easily on a computer, because it is very easy to access the hard drive of it. But on a phone, don't even think about it. I would say that there is simply no access to a hard drive's phone, but that's not exactly true. All phone processors include a very low-level mode which can be used to access the hard drive of the phone in case it is bricked and unable to boot. This mode is how phone manufacturers are able to repair bricked phones when you send it to their labs. So, can't you use that to access your hard drive? Nope, it's also locked. It requires a key* from the manufacturer to be able to work. 3/?

Open ##2075666