N7 Ubuntu
Here is a manual method of installing Ubuntu on the Nexus 7. This does exactly the same thing as the official installer, and is outlined for for your information, or porting purposes.
Your Nexus 7's bootloader must be unlocked, and set to USB Debugging mode. (Settings->Developer Options). If you don't see Developer Options, go into About Phone
After that, you'll need to install these dependencies from a package manager:
android-tools-fastbootwget
You also need to open up a terminal window, where we will run commands from.
Create a folder where you can work from, and then navigate to it in the terminal. For example:
# create an `ubuntu-n7` folder in your home folder
mkdir ~/ubuntu-n7
# navigate to it
cd ~/ubuntu-n7
Here we will retrieve the boot and root filesystem images for Ubuntu on Nexus 7.
Notice that there are variants for each Nexus 7 variant. Replace <VARIANT> with 8GB, 16GB, or 32GB, depending on the stated size of your tablet.
# get checksum
wget http://hwe.ubuntu.com/uds-r/nexus7/<VARIANT>/ubuntu-nexus7-sha256sum.txt
# get boot image
wget http://hwe.ubuntu.com/uds-r/nexus7/<VARIANT>/boot.img
# get root file system
wget http://hwe.ubuntu.com/uds-r/nexus7/<VARIANT>/rootfs.img
We need to make sure that we don't install a corrupt system, so image checksums are used to ensure that the files have not been damaged or modified along the way.
sha256sum --check ubuntu-nexus7-sha256sum.txt
-
Send your Nexus 7 into fastboot mode. If you have ADB installed, enable USB Debugging on your tablet and use the command
adb reboot fastboot. -
Plug in your Nexus 7.
-
Type in this command (as root), and it will display the serial number of your tablet if detected.
fastboot devices
After your tablet is detected, run these commands in the same directory to flash.
# erase and flash boot image
fastboot erase boot
fastboot flash boot ./boot.img
# erase and flash root filesystem
fastboot erase userdata
fastboot flash userdata ./rootfs.img
fastboot reboot
After that, you now have Ubuntu Linux on the Nexus 7!
If you want to go back to normal ol' Android or don't have a custom recovery image installed, you can restore your device to Android with this method.
If you screw up your Nexus for any reason, you can always reflash\ and life will be back to normal.
Rejoice! If you use a custom recovery (perhaps for installing custom ROMs), you can just wipe the system and flash a backup or a new ROM like normal.
See the custom recovery guides for more details.
It remains to be seen whether the custom recovery can back up Ubuntu, however...
Yes, it's possible.
Note: All non-Android projects have moved to the BASLQC Wiki.
- Introduction - A quick intro to the rationale and ideals of this guide, and smartphone modding in general.
- General Setup - Learn how to install and run the tools you need to succeed.
- Device Guides - Customized, fully decked out guides for rooting each and every device we could find.
- General OS Customizations - General customizations that work on all devices of a specific OS.
- General Guidelines - The ideals that you should uphold while working with and editing this guide.
- Device Guide Templates - Templates and general guidelines for creating customized guides for a device.
- Linux - Run a full desktop OS on your little mobile device; research is being made to make it comfortable to use in the mobile space.
- Glossary - Contains all the crazy acronyms and word soup that you'll need to wade through when using this guide.
- Android Buying Guide for Modders - While modding can fix up an outdated device, it will make your life easier to buy the right device from the start.