[ALI] postmarketOS (full GNU/Linux distro based on alpine linux) - Moto G6 ROMs, Kernels, Recoveries, & Other Develop

Hi everyone, I recently ported postmarketOS to the Moto G6.
I do not recommend installing this if the device is your daily driver. Not much works besides the screen. This is more of a proof-of-concept.
https://wiki.postmarketos.org/wiki/Motorola_Moto_G6_(motorola-ali)
If you would like to try it, you can follow the instructions here for "motorola" and "ali" : https://wiki.postmarketos.org/wiki/Installation_guide
Kernel source: https://github.com/msm8953-mainline/linux
Updates
6/3/2020:
64-bit support has been added, thanks to the work of the the RevengeOS project.
11/21/2022:
Firmware has been added (meaning things like wifi and GPU acceleration are now working)
The RevengeOS kernel has been replaced by a recent Linux fork (version 5.18.3)
A patch has been submitted to upstream Linux to add initial support for our device (only the PVT2 variant)

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Uclydde said:
Hi everyone, I recently ported postmarketOS to the Moto G6.
I do not recommend installing this if the device is your daily driver. Not much works besides the screen. This is more of a proof-of-concept.
https://wiki.postmarketos.org/wiki/Motorola_Moto_G6_(motorola-ali)
If you would like to try it, you can follow the instructions here for "motorola" and "ali" : https://wiki.postmarketos.org/wiki/Installation_guide
Kernel source: https://github.com/Uclydde/kernel-msm/tree/lineage-16.0
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Does wifi work?

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vibraniumdroid said:
Does wifi work?
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Click to collapse
no

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MarlonBrZ said:
no
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Click to collapse
It's still pretty cool though! We're seeing some development on a device I though was dead.

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On the wiki it states:
"As of 8/10/2021, the Moto G6 is able to boot the msm8953 mainline kernel fork. It works fairly well, with features like display, touchscreen, and wifi working."
Where do I find that kernel and how do I install it. If I could get wifi to work this could actually be quite useful.

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JPutz said:
On the wiki it states:
"As of 8/10/2021, the Moto G6 is able to boot the msm8953 mainline kernel fork. It works fairly well, with features like display, touchscreen, and wifi working."
Where do I find that kernel and how do I install it. If I could get wifi to work this could actually be quite useful.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have you found a way yet?
I've seen many repos named msm8953, but had no clue it was for this device, I'll look up my browser history and post back here if I find any helpful instructions.

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adhamnasr said:
Have you found a way yet?
I've seen many repos named msm8953, but had no clue it was for this device, I'll look up my browser history and post back here if I find any helpful instructions.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
GitHub - brunorolak/kernel_motorola_msm8953
Contribute to brunorolak/kernel_motorola_msm8953 development by creating an account on GitHub.
github.com
This is the most up to date kernel we use, I have no Idea how you can implement it for postmarketos tho.

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I remember seeing that blurb mentioning how it was working better on the mainline kernel and assumed they literally meant the mainline Linux kernel.
I assume that is the case, or maybe their own tree they are calling "close to mainline":
(Close to) Mainline - postmarketOS
wiki.postmarketos.org
In any case, I haven't tried installing PostmarketOS in a while, so I've no idea the actual status.

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Any progress on this? Would love to have another mobile Linux device besides my Pinephone!

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J-Mizzle said:
Any progress on this? Would love to have another mobile Linux device besides my Pinephone!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, I've submitted an update to postmarketOS to use a close-to-mainline fork of the Linux kernel for our device.
Also, firmware support has been added, meaning that things like wifi and GPU acceleration are now working.
However, the display backlight isn't working, as well as several other things like audio, battery data, and camera.
adhamnasr said:
Have you found a way yet?
I've seen many repos named msm8953, but had no clue it was for this device, I'll look up my browser history and post back here if I find any helpful instructions.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Mainline kernel development for all devices with this SoC is happening here: https://github.com/msm8953-mainline/linux
vibraniumdroid said:
Does wifi work?
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Click to collapse
With the most recent update, now it does. You'll need to enable firmware when installing postmarketOS.

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Uclydde said:
Yes, I've submitted an update to postmarketOS to use a close-to-mainline fork of the Linux kernel for our device.
Also, firmware support has been added, meaning that things like wifi and GPU acceleration are now working.
However, the display backlight isn't working, as well as several other things like audio, battery data, and camera.
Mainline kernel development for all devices with this SoC is happening here: https://github.com/msm8953-mainline/linux
With the most recent update, now it does. You'll need to enable firmware when installing postmarketOS.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I thought this was for the Moto G6 Play. I'm far less excited now. Good progress for those with the normal G6.

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J-Mizzle said:
I thought this was for the Moto G6 Play. I'm far less excited now. Good progress for those with the normal G6.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can find the Moto G6 Play's forum here: https://forum.xda-developers.com/c/moto-g6-play.8553/
By the way, the G6 Play has some postmarketOS support - but not from me. Here's the wiki page for it: https://wiki.postmarketos.org/wiki/Motorola_Moto_G6_Play_(motorola-aljeter)

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Uclydde said:
You can find the Moto G6 Play's forum here: https://forum.xda-developers.com/c/moto-g6-play.8553/
By the way, the G6 Play has some postmarketOS support - but not from me. Here's the wiki page for it: https://wiki.postmarketos.org/wiki/Motorola_Moto_G6_Play_(motorola-aljeter)
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Click to collapse
Yes, I've got both those pages bookmarked. For some reason I failed to notice I ended up in the G6 forum vs the G6 Play. The Play variant doesnct seem to get much attention Android development. I follow PostmarketOS' Mastodon account as well as a handful of device maintainers and the G6 Play doesn't seem very active. I've got a Pinephone and have been considering picking up a OnePlus 6(T) as a more powerful alternative.

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Hello, I tried to install this using
pmbootstrap init and pmbootstrap install to setup the installation with xfce4 and the commands from the wiki
it installs /system successfully but i can't boot to it and booting to boot.img fails, what can I do?
Code:
[20:49:45] DONE!
[email protected]:~$ pmbootstrap flasher flash_rootfs
[20:50:02] (native) flash rootfs image
[20:50:07] (native) install android-tools
< waiting for any device >
(bootloader) is-logical:system: not found
Sending sparse 'system' 1/2 (519524 KB)
OKAY [129.331s]
Writing 'system' OKAY [ 6.951s]
Sending sparse 'system' 2/2 (456977 KB) OKAY [114.314s]
Writing 'system' OKAY [ 6.170s]
Finished. Total time: 264.514s
[20:54:53] NOTE: chroot is still active (use 'pmbootstrap shutdown' as necessary)
[20:54:53] DONE!
[email protected]:~$ pmbootstrap flasher boot
[20:55:29] (rootfs_motorola-ali) install device-motorola-ali
[20:55:37] (rootfs_motorola-ali) install postmarketos-mkinitfs
[20:55:41] (rootfs_motorola-ali) mkinitfs postmarketos-qcom-msm8953
[20:55:51] (native) boot postmarketos-qcom-msm8953 kernel
[20:55:51] (native) install android-tools
Sending 'boot.img' (10858 KB) OKAY [ 2.589s]
Booting FAILED (remote: '')
fastboot: error: Command failed
[20:55:56] NOTE: The failed command's output is above the ^^^ line in the log file: /home/t/.local/var/pmbootstrap/log.txt
[20:55:56] ERROR: Command failed (exit code 1): (native) % fastboot --cmdline boot /mnt/rootfs_motorola-ali/boot/boot.img
[20:55:56] See also: <https://postmarketos.org/troubleshooting>
now i can't even mount '/system' through twrp (invalid argument) xd, please help
to the lack of information i got, i've thought i could install it overwriting a android custom rom i was using (Lineage 19.1, arm64)

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gabriela-fazoli said:
Hello, I tried to install this using
pmbootstrap init and pmbootstrap install to setup the installation with xfce4 and the commands from the wiki
it installs /system successfully but i can't boot to it and booting to boot.img fails, what can I do?
Code:
[20:49:45] DONE!
[email protected]:~$ pmbootstrap flasher flash_rootfs
[20:50:02] (native) flash rootfs image
[20:50:07] (native) install android-tools
< waiting for any device >
(bootloader) is-logical:system: not found
Sending sparse 'system' 1/2 (519524 KB)
OKAY [129.331s]
Writing 'system' OKAY [ 6.951s]
Sending sparse 'system' 2/2 (456977 KB) OKAY [114.314s]
Writing 'system' OKAY [ 6.170s]
Finished. Total time: 264.514s
[20:54:53] NOTE: chroot is still active (use 'pmbootstrap shutdown' as necessary)
[20:54:53] DONE!
[email protected]:~$ pmbootstrap flasher boot
[20:55:29] (rootfs_motorola-ali) install device-motorola-ali
[20:55:37] (rootfs_motorola-ali) install postmarketos-mkinitfs
[20:55:41] (rootfs_motorola-ali) mkinitfs postmarketos-qcom-msm8953
[20:55:51] (native) boot postmarketos-qcom-msm8953 kernel
[20:55:51] (native) install android-tools
Sending 'boot.img' (10858 KB) OKAY [ 2.589s]
Booting FAILED (remote: '')
fastboot: error: Command failed
[20:55:56] NOTE: The failed command's output is above the ^^^ line in the log file: /home/t/.local/var/pmbootstrap/log.txt
[20:55:56] ERROR: Command failed (exit code 1): (native) % fastboot --cmdline boot /mnt/rootfs_motorola-ali/boot/boot.img
[20:55:56] See also: <https://postmarketos.org/troubleshooting>
now i can't even mount '/system' through twrp (invalid argument) xd, please help
to the lack of information i got, i've thought i could install it overwriting a android custom rom i was using (Lineage 19.1, arm64)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Reinstall stock with partitons commands

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Hello.
I have the same problem as @gabriela-fazoli .
I have reinstalled stock as advised by @brunogroa but even after this I get the same error as shown above.
Do I need to install lk2nd maybe?
If I do then can someone please advise as to how I compile it.
I am using debian 11 and have installed the required dependencies including:
gcc-arm-none-eabi
device-tree-compiler
build-essential
I do not know what is meant by "Replace TOOLCHAIN_PREFIX with the path to your tool chain." when issuing the make command ie: make TOOLCHAIN_PREFIX=arm-none-eabi- <SoC>-secondary
Also is <SOC> meant to be replaced with sdm450-motorola-ali
I am a major newb when it comes to cross compiling.
Thank you for any assistance. I am very excited to give PostmarketOS a whirl on the G6.
Cheers
Bill

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For any one else who might have issues compiling lk2nd I can highly recommend this website:
GCC Cross-Compiler - OSDev Wiki
wiki.osdev.org
Have compiled successfully using above instructions and the following make command:
make TOOLCHAIN_PREFIX=~/opt/cross/bin/arm-none-eabi- msm8953-secondary
Haven't tried it yet but fingers crossed.

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No good.
I installed lk2nd with the following response:
fastboot flash boot lk2nd.img
(bootloader) is-logical:boot: not found
Sending 'boot' (288 KB) OKAY [ 0.178s]
Writing 'boot' (bootloader) Image not signed or corrupt
OKAY [ 0.028s]
Finished. Total time: 0.208s
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Couldn't get lk2nd to boot though with Volume-Down pressed at varying intervals.
Then did the following:
[email protected]:~/pmbootstrap$ pmbootstrap flasher flash_rootfs
[10:33:14] (native) flash rootfs image
[10:33:16] (native) install android-tools
(bootloader) is-logical:system: not found
Sending sparse 'system' 1/3 (522136 KB) OKAY [ 19.229s]
Writing 'system' OKAY [ 5.087s]
Sending sparse 'system' 2/3 (517848 KB) OKAY [ 18.848s]
Writing 'system' OKAY [ 4.920s]
Sending sparse 'system' 3/3 (135789 KB) OKAY [ 4.943s]
Writing 'system' OKAY [ 1.128s]
Finished. Total time: 54.896s
[10:34:11] NOTE: chroot is still active (use 'pmbootstrap shutdown' as necessary)
[10:34:11] DONE!
[email protected]:~/pmbootstrap$ pmbootstrap flasher boot
[10:34:23] (rootfs_motorola-ali) install device-motorola-ali
[10:34:28] (rootfs_motorola-ali) install postmarketos-mkinitfs
[10:34:30] (rootfs_motorola-ali) mkinitfs postmarketos-qcom-msm8953
[10:34:38] (native) boot postmarketos-qcom-msm8953 kernel
[10:34:38] (native) install android-tools
Sending 'boot.img' (10858 KB) OKAY [ 0.397s]
Booting OKAY [ 0.587s]
Finished. Total time: 0.993s
[10:34:39] You will get an IP automatically assigned to your USB interface shortly.
[10:34:39] Then you can connect to your device using ssh after pmOS has booted:
[10:34:39] ssh [email protected]
[10:34:39] NOTE: If you enabled full disk encryption, you should make sure that osk-sdl has been properly configured for your device
[10:34:39] NOTE: chroot is still active (use 'pmbootstrap shutdown' as necessary)
[10:34:39] DONE!
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Click to collapse
It then reboots and shows the blue screen with the yellow Motorola 'M' and Powered By Android in white at the bottom.
Then it does nothing else.
I hold the power button in and it does the reboot loop thing but without the blue Motorola screen.
I can get into fastboot and TWRP without problem.
Any ideas?