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Install LineageOS on
Sony Xperia 5 II

pdx206

Basic requirements

  1. Read through the instructions at least once before actually following them, so as to avoid any problems due to any missed steps!
  2. Make sure your computer has adb and fastboot. Setup instructions can be found here.
  3. Enable USB debugging on your device.
  4. Make sure that your model is actually listed in the “Supported models” section here (exact match required!)
  5. Boot your device with the stock OS at least once and check every functionality.
  6. LineageOS is provided as-is with no warranty. While we attempt to verify everything works you are installing this at your own risk!

Checking the correct firmware

Installation on your device requires a specific firmware version to be installed before you continue.

  • Firmware refers to a device-specific set of images that are included in, and updated by the stock OS
  • LineageOS builds for this device require an Android 12 version of the stock OS to be installed prior to following the installation guide
  • Please ensure that you are checking the Android version, and not the vendor OS version
  • Being on another custom ROM, including unofficial builds of the same version of LineageOS, does not ensure that this requirement has been fulfilled
  • Please re-read this section as many times as necessary to fully understand the requirements

Failing to install the correct firmware version prior to installation may result in failure to install LineageOS, unexpected crashes post-installation, or permanent damage to your device!

Unlocking the bootloader

  1. On the device, dial *#*#7378423#*#* (*#*#SERVICE#*#*) to launch the service menu.
  2. Go to service info > configuration and check rooting status - you can only continue if it says Bootloader unlock allowed: Yes.
  3. Connect the device to your PC via USB.
  4. On the computer, open a command prompt (on Windows) or terminal (on Linux or macOS) window, and type:
    adb -d reboot bootloader
    

    You can also boot into fastboot mode via a key combination:

    • With the device powered off, hold Volume Up and connect the USB cable. The notification light should turn blue.
  5. Once the device is in fastboot mode, verify your PC finds it by typing:
    fastboot devices
    
  6. Follow the instructions on Sony’s official unlocking website to generate an unlock code for your bootloader.
  7. Use your code to unlock the bootloader of your device:
    fastboot oem unlock <your_unlock_code>
    
  8. Since the device resets completely, you will need to re-enable USB debugging to continue.

Flashing additional partitions

  1. Download the following files from here.
    • dtbo.img
    • vbmeta.img
  2. Power off the device, and boot it into bootloader mode:
    • With the device powered off, hold Volume Up and connect the USB cable. The notification light should turn blue.
  3. Flash the downloaded image files to your device by typing:
    fastboot flash dtbo dtbo.img
    fastboot flash vbmeta vbmeta.img
    

Installing Lineage Recovery using fastboot

  1. Download Lineage Recovery. Simply download the latest recovery file, named recovery.img.
  2. Connect your device to your PC via USB if it isn’t already.
  3. If your device isn’t already in fastboot mode, on the computer, open a command prompt (on Windows) or terminal (on Linux or macOS) window, and type:
    adb -d reboot bootloader
    

    You can also boot into fastboot mode via a key combination:

    • With the device powered off, hold Volume Up and connect the USB cable. The notification light should turn blue.
  4. Once the device is in fastboot mode, verify your PC finds it by typing:
    fastboot devices
    

    If you don’t get any output or an error:

    • on Windows: make sure the device appears in the device manager without a triangle. Try other drivers until the command above works!
    • on Linux or macOS: If you see no permissions fastboot try running fastboot as root. When the output is empty, check your USB cable (preferably use a USB Type-A 2.0 one or a USB hub) and port!
  5. Flash recovery onto your device:
    fastboot flash recovery recovery.img
    
  6. Now reboot into recovery to verify the installation. Do not reboot into the existing OS, since it will overwrite the recovery you just installed!
    • With the device powered off, hold Volume Down + Power.

Ensuring all firmware partitions are consistent

In some cases, the inactive slot can be unpopulated or contain much older firmware than the active slot, leading to various issues including a potential hard-brick. We can ensure none of that will happen by copying the contents of the active slot to the inactive slot.

To do this, sideload the copy-partitions-20220613-signed.zip package by doing the following:

  1. Download the copy-partitions-20220613-signed.zip file from here.
  2. Sideload the copy-partitions-20220613-signed.zip package:
    • On the device, select “Apply Update”, then “Apply from ADB” to begin sideload.
    • On the host machine, sideload the package using: adb -d sideload copy-partitions-20220613-signed.zip
  3. Now reboot to recovery by tapping “Advanced”, then “Reboot to recovery”.

Installing LineageOS from recovery

  1. Download the LineageOS zip file that you would like to install or build the package yourself.
  2. If you are not in recovery, reboot into recovery:
    • With the device powered off, hold Volume Down + Power.
  3. Now tap Factory Reset, then Format data / factory reset and continue with the formatting process. This will remove encryption and delete all files stored in the internal storage, as well as format your cache partition (if you have one).
  4. Return to the main menu.
  5. Sideload the LineageOS .zip package but do not reboot before you read/followed the rest of the instructions!
    • On the device, select “Apply Update”, then “Apply from ADB” to begin sideload.
    • On the host machine, sideload the package using: adb -d sideload filename.zip.

Installing Add-Ons

  1. Click Apply Update, then Apply from ADB, then adb -d sideload filename.zip for all desired packages in sequence.
    When presented with a screen that says Signature verification failed, click Continue. It is expected as add-ons aren’t signed with LineageOS’s official key!

All set!

Once you have installed everything successfully, you can now reboot your device into the OS for the first time!

  • Click the back arrow in the top left of the screen, then “Reboot system now”.

Get assistance

After you’ve double checked that you followed the steps precisely, didn’t skip any and still have questions or got stuck, feel free to ask on our subreddit or in #LineageOS on Libera.Chat.