How To: Convert Your HTC One M8 into a Google Play Edition

Does this coversion include OTA updates or not?

Yup! You will be able to download and install OTAs as long as you keep the stock recovery.

Okay so this article conflicts itself. It says I have to do S-off in order to unlock the bootloader... the S-off article says I need to have an unlocked bootloader first. Which one is correct?

I have previously installed the twrp recovery software. How do I still get the updates?

You will need to install the stock recovery in order to install OTAs.

so I get a 41 model ID check fail. I have the HTC One M8 on verizon and was trying the rooted version. I have all the prereqs that were mentioned above.

Thanks Andrew

Is there a way to revert back to HTC Sense 6?

Definitely! Its not as as easy as flashing a RUU, but if you go to this XDA thread they have a detailed list of everything you need to do.

I tried following the instructions in that thread, and ended up without sense and with bootloop. I'm bad at understanding written instruction . Any chance of you making a video tutorial for it?

If you were able to flash the Sense firmware you can use this guide to revert back to Sense.

Wait,if I use TWRP, I can't receive GPE updates?

If you are running a custom recovery you would not be able to install OTA updates.

Will this version have the GPE with M8 features (e.g. dual camera, zoe, etc.)?

Nope, sorry. GPE M8s don't come with those features since they rely heavily on the Sense framework.

Will the rooted ROM be able to receive OTA's like the unrooted?

As long as you keep the stock recovery you will be able to install OTAs.

After following your instructions successfully and rebooting, my m8 stays on the green htc logo on white background!!!
What's wrong?

After which step are you getting stuck? Also, which M8 are you using?

Hey! I'm back! I was able to successfully follow your instructions and got the GPE on my m8 with OTA!! Thanks :)

I have one problem, I'm not sure it's entirely related to the conversion, but with the update 4.4.3 from 4.4.2, my wifi won't work anymore. The only things that's changed since my wifi working is the update. Any ideas? Thanks!

Edit
The camera won't work either. I'm looking up the problem and found this:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2771966

I already updated so is there any way to still change CID to GOOGL001 or do you have any other solution? Thanks

Glad to see you're still checking back! To change your CID place your phone in fastboot mode and then enter the following command:

fastboot oem writecid GOOGL001
fastboot reboot-bootloader

Then just check to make sure the CID has changed on your bootloader menu.

If that does't fix it you may want to update the kernel as well. There currently isn't a link for it, but if you manually install the OTA from the stock recovery you can get the kernel update. Here is the OTA link.

I had the same issues, except the camera would still work. The WiFi did not how ever. Changing the CID to GOOGL001 fixed the wifi when upgrading Via OTA.

thanks andrew i had the same prob that d bang had. can confirm changing the CID fixed the camera and wifi

Happy to hear!

Thanks Andrew. I was in a bit of a bind so I reinstalled the GPE 4.4.2 (the instructions above) now I'm just waiting for my phone to receive an update notification on my phone (which hasn't gotten in).

Would you happen to know how I might be able to go about and flash this manually? Thanks

You have to name the OTA update.zip, place it on the main folder of your internal storage, and then flash it in your stock recovery. In recovery, wait until you see the android on its back with an exclamation point, and then hold down the volume up button and then press the power button. Select apply from phone storage and then select the update.zip.

Hey Andrew. I'm unsure how to do the following:

Placing the file in the main folder (I've manually downloaded it into my phone--does this work?)

"Flash it in stock recovery" - This is where I'm confused (unless it's the following instructions).

I got the android on its back with the ! but when I hold down the Volume up button & Power button it just restarts and sends me to my home screen.

I just put up a guide on how to do it. Check it out!

Hello, I followed everything but hit a snag during the upload of the RUU. "42 custom ID check fail" - I changed my CID to superCID and was able to install but forgot to take note of my original CID.

So my questions:

1. Is it ok that I changed my superCID? The step was not in your guide so I just wanted to double check. Looks like everything is working fine - do I need to check anything?

2. Since I forgot my original CID number, would that cause me any issues in case I revert back to stock sense? #Newb

Thanks in advance.

1. After you finish you can change your CID to GOOGL001. That would make it easier to get OTAs from Google.

2. I'm not sure what CID you had originally, but you can use this reference list on XDA to find it.

Thank you so much Andrew! appreciate your response. Cheers

I keep on getting: FAILED (remote: 42 custom id check fail)
I have international M8.

Also, is there a way to convert directly yo GPE 4.4.3 instead of doing above then updating it?

That means you need to change your CID.
There is a 4.4.3 RUU on XDA.

Ok I converted my ATT HTC One M8 to gpe when i bought it, I dunno maybe 2 months ago. I don't remember which process i used (because i'm a retard) but regardless, with furthered stupidity i attempted to download and install the OTA... well over the air. needless to say i have had issues (like others i've found, no wifi/camera) however they all seem to be able to change CID and then either flash the RUU or download the update and update from the recovery (which i made sure to have the gpe recovery) will someone please hold my hand and point something out to me so i can have a functional phone again?

I take it you are S-Off so you should have no issue changing your CID.

1. Reboot into fastboot mode adb reboot bootloader
2. Change CID fastboot oem writecid GOOGL001
3. Erase cache fastboot erase cache
4. Reboot and enjoy fastboot reboot

I tried doing this with my Verizon M8, and even changed the CID and MID so it would work, and after all that I FINALLY got to the green status bar that was loading. I did the fastboot erase cache and the fastboot reboot and saw the Google logo for half a second, then was stuck at the Fastboot USB screen thing, and every time I reboot it, it goes right back to that same screen. Help??

This is only for GSM models. If you have a Verizon M8 the RUU won't work. You would have to flash a GPE ROM to get the same effect.

Hey so I followed all the steps and flashed the RUU sucessfully. Everything was going fine until I got the OTA for 4.4.3 and installed it. after being prompted to restart to install the google logo flashed then the screen went dark and wont respond to hardware button input or console commands. Any suggestions

If you don't mind redoing the process over I would recommend flashing the 4.4.4 RUU.

• 4.4.4 RUU Rooted
• 4.4.4 RUU Stock

As for your original issue, did you flash anything before installing the OTA?

Hi Andrew

Thank you for the great tutorial it's been very helpful!

However, when I tell Fastboot to flash (by entering "RUU-HTCOneM8GE-1.16.1700.16rooted.zip" into the terminal - I am using the rooted ROM), I get this message:

"error: cannot open 'RUU-HTCOneM8GE-1.16.1700.16rooted.zip' "

I have downloaded the ROM properly and placed it on the Desktop as instructed. I have also tried placing it in the same directory as Fastboot, and also tried with the unrooted version of the zip file, but no luck.

Any idea?

Thank you in advance!

Can you post a screenshot of the commands you are entering

Hi Andrew, thanks for getting back to me.

Here is a screenshot (it is the last command entered).

I have double checked the file name and extension, there is no issue there. I have also tried renaming the zip file, to no luck.

Any idea?

Thank you again

Kevin

You have to direct adb to the RUU file, meaning you need to put its full path. So if you place the RUU in the parent folder of your C drive it would look something like this:

fastboot flash zip C:\RUU.zip

I have the same problem.

hey Andrew, Everything is going great with this tutorial until i get to the flashing of the RUU, I get the failed message but it says remote:99 unknown fail, any idea what it could be

You are S-Off and are in RUU mode correct?

Ruu mode yes, but s off no, I ran firewater and after the first chugging it says something about me taking an ota and that I can do it

You're device needs to be S-Off for this to work.

is there anyother way to get s off other than firewater, because i dont think its any good due to the htc ota

What is your Hboot version. You can find that on your bootloader menu.

its version 3.16

If you didn't figure out how to do it, all you have to do is go through all the steps of s-off tutorial and then just install CM11. Retry firewater and it works perfect. Rocking 4.4.3 GPE HTC One M8 now :D

The alternative would be sunshine. theroot.ninja is the website for it. It's 25 bucks but works. I couldn't get it to work with insertcoin though and needed to flash Maximus HD instead.

Help!!!

sending 'zip' (522633 KB)... OKAY
writing 'zip'... INFOzip header checking...
INFOzip info parsing...
FAILED (remote: 99 unknown fail)

MICHAELs-MacBook-Pro:GPE Update mbadgett$ ./fastboot-mac flash zip /Users/mbadgett/Desktop/GPE\ Update/RUU-HTCOneM8GE-1.16.1700.16rooted.zip

sending 'zip' (522633 KB)... OKAY
writing 'zip'... INFOzip header checking...
INFOzip info parsing...
FAILED (remote: 99 unknown fail)

That usually happens from a corrupted RUU. Redownload it and try again.

Problem solved..... I was not S-Off.

You say the GSM edition of the M8. Which versions will that encompass? I'm currently on Wind which uses the T-Mobile version. I have a NanoSIM if that makes a difference, and when I leave the Wind network I "roam" on the Rogers network. I'd really like to convert to a GPE M8.

If you have the T Mobile version then you have a GSM version.

Awesome. Thank you.

Hi Andrew. I just bought a rooted At&t htc one m8. Is there any quick way for me to check if it is S-OFF?

Reboot into bootloader mode (hold power and volume down) and it will say either S-On or S-Off.

thanks! I have another question. The first two lines on the fastboot screen say Tampered, Relocked. Is there a quick way to re-unlock the bootloader considering that its been unlocked once before.

If you are s-off you can run a unlock command, but if not just make a new unlock_code.bin and flash it in fastboot mode.

How do I go about running that unlock command? Also, I'm using a Mac and when I do adb devices with the phone running Android OS, I see the phone being displayed.

However, when it is in fastboot/recovery mode, and I type adb devices I see nothing. I have installed HTC sync manager, so the device drivers are present. Can you help fix this?

EDIT: i also added the device ID in ~/.android/adb_usb.ini.

Hi Andrew. Excellent step-by-step conversion process. I followed it down to the word and it worked like a charm first time around.

I was successful with the GPE 4.4.4 Unrooted Conversion on my HTC One m8. I am with an Australian Mobile Network (Optus). I changed the MID and CID on the android-info.txt to match mine. The original CID was OPTUS001 but I change it to GOOGL001 for OTA updates. But now my SIM card won't work at all. Not sure if it is because I went for 4.4.4 straight instead of 4.4.2 and then update.

After reading up many forums, I was directed to this site:

http://www.sieempi.eu/blog/2011/09/22/universal-sim-unlock-for-s-offed-htc-devices-536 to have my SIM Unlocked. But not sure if I had to do it before or after the GPE Conversion.

How do I resolve this issue? i need my phone working again.

Thanks in Advance.

Raj

You may want to try flash a new radio first. This XDA thread has a few linked, but I am not sure what radio you have. What was your original CID/MID?

Here are my original CID/MID:

CID: OPTUS001
MID: 0P6B65000

I changed the CID to GOOGL001 and included my MID in the txt file.

Thanks Andrew.

I have the Verizon version. Will this still work?

Sorry, this only works for GSM models. You could flash a GPE ROM though.

Thanks for the reply!

What would be the difference?

In the instructions it says that all you have to do it put it in a sd card, wipe data, and install.
I am new to modding my android and feel like this is more complicated then it sounds.
Any tips on becoming more savvy before I attempt to do this?
Thanks alot btw

No problem. Flashing ROMs is crazy easy wants you get the hang of it. When flashing a completely new ROM do the following:

• Wipe Cache, Dalvik, System, and Data from the TWRP Wipe menu.
• Install the ROM you downloaded
• Reboot

When upgrading to a newer version of the same ROM (aka dirty flash):

• Wipe Cache and Dalvik...unless the developer tells you otherwise
• Install ROM update

And you should always backup your app data because that always gets deleted when flashing a new ROM.

Hi All,

I am very OCD about these things so please bare with me.

If I convert my HTC One M8 using the RUU..

Would this make my sense device a full GPE device.

I mean like for like, byte for byte, completely, fully, unconditionally GPE.

Or would this still be a sense device pretending to be a GPE device.

Thanks for any feedback

If you flash the RUU and change the CID it will be 100% GPE and able to receive OTAs directly from Google.

Thanks Andrew

Does the RUU also flash the stock recovery etc.

Yup

Hi All, So I am following the above instructions and get..

target reported max download size of 1830711296 bytes
error: cannot load 'RUU-HTCOneM8GPE4.4.4-2.12.1700.1.ziprooted.zip

You are in RUU mode have an S-Off device right? If you are redownload the RUU because something may have gone wrong with the download

Thanks for the info.

I'm wondering if it will still have the m8 special stuff (3d picture,zoe, flip to mute etc)

Those features are specific to the Sense framework, so they would not be compatible with the GPE ROM.

Great article Andrew. I've ordered an HTC One M8 at&t that will be here in a few days. I feel good about doing this except I'm a little confused on what S-Off is. Can you clarify for me?

S-Off allows you to change the firmware and other core system files that rooting alone doesn't allow you to touch.

Hi Andrew. Awesome How to!

I was just wondering if this will work with my European Variant of the HTC One M8?

Thanks! As long as it is a GSM model it will work.

How do I change mt MID to match the one needed for GPE? I have the international version.

Check out this XDA guide.

Great article! I'm trying the firewater method for S-Off but getting stuck on the "whelp" error people are complaining about.

So here are my questions:

1. S-Off is truly needed for your process, correct?
2. Are there any other options if the firewater method doesn't work?
3. I'm successfully using another method for GPE that didn't require S-Off (link), but I don't think its OTA updates work. For that ROM, I would have to wait for the developer's updates rather than Google's updates, right?

Thanks in advance.

1. Yes, S-Off is a must.
2. The only other method for the M8 is sunshine.
3. OTAs will not work with that ROM, so you will have to wait for the developer to release updates.

Thanks for the good info. So it sounds like S-Off is needed to get Google OTA updates, but I'm not sure how to get S-Off working on my phone.

The sunshine method seems to require the stock HTC Sense build, which I no longer have.

The firewater method seems to be incompatible with my specific phone, due to the "whelp" error.

Am I missing something?

You can always reflash a stock Sense ROM and try out sunshine again.

I finally got around to doing what you suggested.

1. Stock HTC Sense
2. Pre-reqs using Sunshine for S-Off
3. GPE and then root

Thanks for the great article and even better hand-holding.

Hi i flashed this RUU. i had changed my cid and mid as well for the update. after flashing the 4.4.2 RUU the radio is not working and then i tried flashing 4.4.4 RUU the same issue is there. Please help me out . I am literally stuck !

What version of the M8 did you have originally? Did you flash the regular or rooted RUU?

i had the international version (i am from india CID HTC_038). i canged my cid to GOOGL001 & mid for the google play edition. at first i tried the rooted one but when i found that the radio was not working i tried the unrooted and the 4.4.4 as well.

If you backed up your original system you can extract the original radio and flash that in fastboot.

ok so i should be flashing it withe the super cid and then change it back to googl001 to recive OTA updates ?

Thank you so much andrew it worked. I unzipped the RUU and replaced the radio.img file then compressed it again. its working fine .

Glad it worked! And yes, you will need to change CID back to GOOGL001.

I have an Australia Telstra branded M8. I have rooted, s-off, bootloader unlocked it and philz recovery.

(bootloader) modelid: 0P6B11000
(bootloader) cidnum: TELST001

I know that I have to change my cidnum. Is GOOGL001 is enough or i need 11111111 to flash the GPe.

also, what MID should I use?

Thanks.

I would stick with the GOOGL001 cid because OTAs have issues applying correctly with supercid.

Also, there are reports of the GPE radios not working with the Australian M8. If you run into any issues you can use the radios linked in this XDA post.

Try either of these stock or rooted 4.4.4 RUU.zips since the one linked in the guide is only for 4.4.

what abt the MID, do i have to change it? so the rom that you have linked, that will give me the stock GPe recovery, right?

Your MID should be fine. The RUUs will give you stock recovery as well.

Thanks.

Hi Andrew,

I converted my phone to a GPE and I'm having some issues with the power button so I'd like to revert back to stock to be legible for my warranty.

Yesterday I found a nandroid from xda with the correct CID and I went into TWRP wiped and went to install the ROM. The install failed and the dialogue ended with an error saying: Skipping MD5 file check... No MD5 file found. (Paraphrased). So I was stuck without an OS, I tried installing the same GPE ROM I used before, same error, I tried installing an insertcoin ROM I had used before, same error. I am about to try cyanogenmod nightly which I had briefly. If I can get an OS back could you please help me with getting back to stock? Or a way to resolve this MD5 issue? Thank you very much.

Btw CID is CWS_001

I just went to do Cyanogenmod, I plugged into my laptop and I can't get the phone on. Charging symbol appears and the notification light is flashing red. When I'm not plugged in pressing power, power and volume down, power and volume up doesn't change anything.

Please tell me I didn't brick my device.

I somehow managed to get into recovery. Gonna try out cm now

Got CM going, still have to do GAPPS, I might just stick with this to avoid anymore close calls

This XDA thread has a link to a AT&T RUU that you can use to get back to stock. The reason the other ROM flashes were failing was because the GPE firmware is completely different from Sense.

I saw that RUU, will it definitely work?
Even from Cyanogenmod?

Thanks for the link, could you please give me directions on how to use it? I'd realllly like to avoid a brick.

Run the exe and plug your device in. As long as you have HTC Sync installed you will be able to run the RUU without at problem.

Thank you so much!

I managed to follow all steps and it worked fine, apart from needing to use SunShine. I flashed the unrooted ROM from above, then it did an OTA update to 4.4.4, and have been using it a week now. Just a couple of minor points, firstly I don't seem to have the Gallery app, it doesn't show on any list, and secondly the battery always displays as 'not charging' instead of 'discharging'. This stops my Dashclock battery extension from displaying time remaining etc. It shows charging status correctly. Any ideas?

You can download the HTC Gallery app from the play store. Which dashclock extension are you using ?

Its just called DashClock battery extension. However I've been emailing the Dev and and they have diagnosed that its the phone giving the app that information, as that's what it sees under settings/battery. Its no big deal, just wondered if it was unusual. Turns out my wife's One M7 gpe is the same.

For future reference, a day into my CM 11 use I started to experience Play Store issues. When I open the Play Store its says No Connection Retry. This occurs over WiFi and cellular. So I did some research and turns out a lot of people are having this problem. I tried reflashing the GAPPS and wiping the cache/Dalvik, I tried flashing other GAPPS files but all this only succeeded in making it worse. Now I can't open certain apps including (but not limited to) kik, stock messaging, weather channel, some games such as Swing Copters and a stocks app. When I try to open them the app closes and a prompt appears saying "Unfortunately, (app name) has stopped" with a choice to report or ok, selecting the report option results in another prompt saying "Unfortunately, Market Feedback Agent has stopped". Yes I'm aware that nightly is expected to have bugs but most people have been able to get by this issue. I will be using the RUU tomorrow to get back to stock but if you had any ideas for when I go back with my new phone please let me know. Sorry for bothering you so much.

Thanks

Did you wipe all your old partitions before flashing CM11?

Just Dalvik, System, Cache and Data

That is strange. I would stick with Stable or Snapshot builds from now on.

Why is this is happening?

Something may havegone wrong with the RUU download. Retry it and see if the error persists.

Been using a Snapshot that I found, works great. Thanks. Tried to run the RUU and during the beginning of the install got an error 159, I tried to run as administrator, I relocked my bootloader, I rewrote my CID to CWS_001. Any ideas?

Edit: I haven't tried it without rewriting CID. That probably won't help but I guess it's worth a try. I also didn't try doing it with an unlocked bootloader.

Can you please help me?

When you ran the RUU did it flash properly? Since the GPE firmware is different than Sense you need to revert back before flashing any other ROM. You can also flash the firmware file by itself and then factory reset everything from TWRP. Check out this XDA thread.

I don't think I did anything wrong with the exe. I tried multiple times to flash a nandroid but each time it fails. I've changed my CID back to CWS_001 but it still does nothing. I'll try again and post a picture of the dialogue.

So after you ran the RUU did you start up your device as normal? You will also need to re unlock your bootloader and flash TWRP to install a nandroid.

The .exe? What do you mean? During the install, I believe it was part 2 of 7, the process stopped with the error 159.

Yep, I still have twrp. Is there any chance that the .exe will work better with my bootloader unlocked? When I tried before it was after I relocked it.

If the RUU.exe did not complete that means you still have the GPE firmware on your device which is preventing nandroids from being applied properly. Follow all of the steps in the XDA thread I linked earlier instead of trying to use the RUU again.

The RUU thread or the nandroid thread?

This thread.

I just want to make sure, should that work from CM?

Once you restore to Sense you will be able to reflash TWRP and install CM.

Crap, just booted my phone. No service, no WiFi. Any more ideas?

thank god, thought it might be a CID issue so I wiped and reflashed CM and GAPPS, solid connection now

Hey Andrew I wonder since I'm fortunate enough to be living in Asia (where HTC One M8 clocked 2.5Ghz compared to 2.3Ghz)can i successfully convert it into 100% GPE device?

What is your CID/MID?

does it work with the mini 2?

Sorry, this only works with the M8.

Do you think my bootloader needs to be unlocked to perform the return to stock thread you mentioned above? My status is currently relocked and whenever I try to unlock through htc dev I get this:

Any ideas?

Did you generate a new token? If you are S-Off you can use this XDA thread to unlock your bootloader without HTCdev.

Hey. Well converting my phone to GPE software was perfectly fine. I tried installing 4.4.3 to see if OTAs worked but i still have no luck. Ive been pressing "check now" for a million times but still nothing. No. 4.4.4 update coming. And yes my CID is GOOGL001

That can happen sometimes, but don't worry there is always a way to get up to date.

Oh well, just gonna update manually. Thanks.

worked like a charm...thanks a lot :)

Will this allow me to keep harman/kardon features like Clari-FI and LiveStage?

Those features rely on the Sense framework so they will be lost if you convert to GPE.

Hey!so i Found your guides looking for help,I am studiying in China and I use to have a nexus 5,long story short it died,so I bought an HTC m8(m8w) but is a Chinese version,meaning it smdoesnt have anything with gogle,so what do I have to do to use my phone as it was bought in USA and how can I unlock it?thanks for everything!

To get started you are going to want to root and unlock your bootlaoder. After that you will need to S-Off your device. Once you have both of those done you can continue with this guide to get the GPE version of the M8 or you can use my other guide to get the Sense Developer Edition.

hi andrew
you have done an amazing work...
i live in australia and i know few aussie people have already asked you regarding radio img problem....
can we also delete the radio img from the zip file and then flash it ?
will that workout 2 ?
and
all the australian htc one m8s are with 2.5 ghz .. will that matter if i wanna convert ?
thanks in advance

I'm a little confused. In the post it says the dual camera will still work with stock Android, but in the comments, you say it won't. Can you clear that up before I do something dumb? :)

If you find a third party camera that supports dual capture mode it will work, but if you want to continue using the Sense camera it will not work on GPE devices.

Hey Andrew,

I just want to make sure my phone is compatible before I try this. I have a sprint htc one m8. If that's not enough to know, then how do I know?

Also, would the OTA updates work?

Thanks!

This won't work with a Sprint M8. The only way to get GPE on it would be to use a custom ROM.

I was afraid of that, but thought since mine is "internationally capable" that maybe it would still work. Thanks!

Hey Andrew!Im the Mexican dude in china!So far i am Rooted, S-OFF and even i changed my CID to googl001,and im triying this!well the only problem i had is when i reach the step of actually flashing the RUU it says error cannot load,and then the name of the file,i already placed it in the desktop,and almost everywhere and still no luck,also i tried flashing from the actual phone (in Hboot changing the file to 0P6BIMG.zip,and still no luck,any help would be appreciated,thanks!

Post a screenshot of the error you receive. Also, download the 4.4.4 RUU from this site before trying again.

Here it is,tried with the 4.4.4 version.

i have to place the RUU zip in the platform tools folder?

I would place it in the parent folder of your harddrive and change the command to fastboot flash zip C:\RUU.zip

Done!but then this come up...

thank you for your help.

I DID IT!well almost,it doesnt recognise the carrier network...or any network haha,any advice?

What is your original MID/CID?

Hey man! My CID was HTC CN703...my MID,I didn't write it down :/ sorry.its possible to fix it?(in any case I have with me ,Model,Imei,Serial and something called IMSI)

By any chance do you have the Dual Sim M8? IF you do that is your problem. THE GPE RUU won't work properly on that model, so you would have to reset back to stock.

Sadly is not :/.single sim htc one.maybe if i flash a radio.img?

Did you get any errors when doing the original RUU flash? You could totally flash a radio.img if you found a GPE compatible radio for your CID.

Thank you for all the help!im gonna try to find a gpe radio compatible...i have a friend with a nexus 5 that works with china unicom.It would be possible to copy his radio.img and flash it?in any case you know any page where i can find like twrp recovery zip for China unicom?(I did mine but twrp doesn't recognize it...but I know its there,because its like 5 GB)

When you copied over the restore file did you format it with the proper serial number and folder structure? And just to clarify you are using an M8, not a E8 or other variant right? What MID did you change your device to?

Hey Andrew!I found this webpage. www.htcdev.com/devcenter/downloads/P00 and I saw they have files for HTC one m8 in China... But I don't know what they are, they seem like an update or something, you think I can do something with that? If not is OK, in accepting the idea of having a android mp3 player hahaha.Thank you for all your help and all your patience!

So...just a last question.when I flashed the RUU it flashed the radio IMG according to the USA gpe right?so I can later use a chip with that baseband?meaning I can use it in america?thanks!

The basebands all depend on the M8 model you are using. You should be able to use it in the US but the signal might not be as strong.

Hi Andrew,

Thanks for posting these instructions. It worked great on the first go. I have one question though. I used the rooted RUU file but when I try to install SuperUser the phone tells me it's not rooted. Do I need to re-root?

Thanks!!

Elio

That is weird. Try flashing the SuperSU zip through TWRP. It should fix your issue.

hello andrew, how much would you charge me to install ? i have att m8, i can overnight the phone with a return overnight envelope...

thanks
art

Sorry, but I don't offer any service like what you're asking. If you want I could help you do this yourself.

Andrew, I'm a bit lost.

I went through these procedures only to learn I wasn't S-off compatible with firewater, I then turned to sunshine and was given the error and knowledge that I did not save my original stock rom correctly.

I began looking through my TRWP and changing SD cards looking for my backup that I 'thought' I created and I accidentally performed a factory reset. Now my Version of insertcoin does not have Google play store and other apps and will not connect to Sync with programs like Weather,Gmail.

At this point im between a rock and a hard place. Insertcoin was a decent rom however my wi-fi didn't work due to S-on. I feel like I should just go back to a stock AT&T rom and wait for any real OTA update (just so I can be able to use my wi-fi and other features i didn't notice) could you guide me how to do this properly before I end up bricking my phone?

How far into the procedure did you get? If you only have an unlocked bootloader and haven't changed your CID/MID you can use my other guide to convert your M8 to a developer edition to get the fastest OTAs.

I'm interested. my device is S-on currently. and now with no google play store showing on phone I cannot download apps.(thinking of sunshine app) this is probably going to make it a bit tougher.

I want to remind you I did not properly save my original stock recovery, all that is on the M8 now is Insertcoin.

No worries THIS GUIDE will get you back to a completely stock experience. All of the files you will need are in there.

Will i be able to get the Lollipop update when it is rolled out for htc one m8 if i set my CID as GOOGL001 ?

Yup!

How can I use adb and fastboot command without using "./" in the Mac OS X terminal? I have to write "./fastboot". As i can see you don't need to.

You will need to place the fastboot and adb files in /usr/bin/

Thanks! It's working

i've set my CID as GOOGL001 ,but i've not received an OTA for lollipop. HTC has started rolling the update.

I've tried installing using bootloader recovery from the zip here http://r5---sn-cu-h5os.c.android.clients.google.com/packages/data/ota/gpedogfood_htc_m8_generic/f8f2c3d027d30a96573d22bc5deb09e70dc38810.OTA_M8_UL_L50_STOCK_UI_MR_Google_WWE_3.11.1700.5-2.12.1700.1_release_403384.zip

and that didnt work too .
any updates on this ?

Is your device completely stock, including recovery, file system, and firmware?

how do i check whether it is completely stock or not ?

Hello, great guide and excellent advice. im stuck at the flashing RUU stage, my phone is 'S off', cid changed. whenever I try flashing i get the following message. Any help would be appreciated

Did you place the RUU zip in the root folder of your C: drive?

Hello, thanks for reply. Yep placed it directly in c:/. Doesn't matter where I place it I always get same error.

Redownload it. The original might have been corrupted.

Hey Andrew, I followed the process and stuck at this point - It does not install 4.4.4 update on my m8. It is Tmobile GSm unlocked phone. I changed the CID but not the MID. Is that the problem ? Should i flash the 4.4.4 RUU ?

Yes, change your MID to the google mid.

Will things like the dot view case still work like on a regular htc one m8 gpe?

Yup. Just be sure you have the dot view app installed as well.

Hi Andrew,

I'd appreciate your help with installing the 5.0.1 OTA update for my converted rooted GPE HTC One M8. I have the stock recovery and tried to install it manually. However after initiating the install, I get the message within recovery that there are "unexpected files" and the installation aborts.

i have changed my CID and have s-off and everything. I even tried just pressing the "download" button for the OTA notification that I received from Google but this ended up with the phone rebooting and showing "error" on the boot screen

Could you please help me with this?

If you are rooted or have altered the file system in any way the OTA will not install. You will need to used the lollipop RUU to update.

Oh OK thank you for replying! Is this different than the manual install where I tried to install the OTA using stock recovery? If so, where can I find the lollipop RUU?

You can find the link at the bottom of this guide. It completely restores your device so be sure to back up everything beforehand.

Okay perfect, thanks for your help!

I just want to mention, though (not being accusatory or anything), that you had answered multiple times in this thread that people could still install the OTAs with the rooted version of the GPE rom as long as you had the stock recovery. That was one of the reasons I got it, but it seems that isn't true anymore. Is it because there were unexpected changes with the released OTA that didn't allow this to happen?

Again, not being accusatory, just wondering why there was this dissonance. Thanks again!

Rooting alone doesn't prevent OTA installs since you can just uninstall the binary and be fine, but most people remove system apps or other mods which will prevent them from installing.

what is it ??

writing 'zip'...
(bootloader) zip header checking...
(bootloader) zip info parsing...
(bootloader) checking model ID...
(bootloader) checking custom ID...
FAILED (remote: 42 custom id check fail)
finished. total time: 22.351s

You need to change your CID to GOOGL001

Okay, so I live in Sweden and because of that I have an swedish phone(?). I wonder if I could still turn my phone into an GPE. Also is there a simple way to turn it back to sense if i don't like stock at all? Any sort of complete backup i could do of the phone. I just don't want to lose the guarantee of having the phone repaired if it breaks and it isn't my fault (highly unlikely).

You best bet would be to use TWRP to back up your device and then copying that backup over to your computer for safe keeping. If you decide to ever switch back you'd just flash over the sense firmware and then restore the backup from TWRP after wiping the old GPE ROM.

As long as you have a GSM version of the HTC One this conversion will work. Make sure you write down your original CID/MID to avoid any compatibility issues if you ever choose to revert back.

is this process going to void my warranty

Yes, but you can always go back to 100% stock if you are S-Off

Hi, I can use Gpe Edition 5.0.1 (thanks to you) but TWRP and Rooted my phone and I learned later not OTA updates.. Can i clean reinstall 5.0.1? How?

If you flash the RUU again it will do a clean install.

Andrew,

Thanks you, this has been an experience indeed.

I am trying to convert my HTC M8 into the google play edition with OTA.
I am a new.

I have followed your awesome guides. Here is where I am at.

I have S-Off.
I have rooted the phone.
I have Debugging on.
I have unlocked the Phone.
I have TWRP installed.
I have ADB and Fastboot

I am stuck, nervous to flash the RUU ?
I would use the rooted version of course?
Will the version update to the latest Lollipop and Material Design ?
I'm near the end but slightly lost.

The point for me is to run and always updated native android on my HTC M8 with no Sense skin.

I'm confused if what I have done so far will allow me to have the latest updates. If I flash the above RUU file, will that load Android 5.0.1?

Wow, thanks.

Where is your donation button ?

Rich

Also, I changed my CID to GOOGL001

I'm getting close...

Is my next step to flash an RUU from Terminal ?

You can use this rooted lollipop RUU.

Ok !

Dude. Thank you.

All is good. Running great, smooth and gorgeous UI.

1) Should I change the CID back to something else or leave it at GOOGl001 ?

2) Will I get OTA ? I thought perhaps that when I loaded the custom recovery (TWRP) ?? that I wouldn't receive OTA updates ?

3) Although I succeeded, I wouldn't recommend these processes to a novice. eeeek. Scary. I'm surprised I came out.

Thanks Andrew

No problem! Glad everything worked out for you!
1) Keep the Google CID
2) As long as you remove root and have not modified the system in anyway you can install OTAs.

This is very nice and really appreciating.

2) As long as you remove root and have not modified the system in anyway you can install OTAs. ???

How can i check if I have modified the system / How do I remove Root?

The phone is great. Loving it.

If you have flashed anything through TWRP you have modified your system and have to install an RUU again to get back to stock in order to install OTAs.

I followed this as per the instructions above;

https://htc-one.wonderhowto.com/how-to/unlock-bootloader-root-your-htc-one-m8-0154444/

Also,

Super SU binary needs to be updated ? Oh oh :( ?

When you say install RUU again, do you mean to just flash the file you linked in your previous message one more time ?

Sorry :) but I'm learning.

Here is a link to the newest SuperSU. Yes, I meant that RUU file. Don't worry I understand how confusing this can be for a newbie.

I download 4.4.4. Stock Recovery and work recovery mode.. I use 5.0.1 Stock GPE but recovery 4.4.4
Is it a problem OTA update?

My recovery number : KTU84P.H1 is that true?

Problem solved, reinstall 3.11.1700.5.firmware.zip and try again recovery mode (first press and hold volume up+power) but not work.. And I try hold power button, press two+three times volume up button.. Recovery mode open :)

Andrew - Not sure if you'll be able to help before I get impatient and do something dumb, but my phone has been stuck for 20 minutes at the second "fastboot flash zip" stage. The first one happened just as you said the withe "FAILED" message. I even thought to myself, "Wow, this is going smoothly."

Now here I am, 20 minutes later and it looks like no progress. Any ideas? I've been afraid to touch anything thus far.

Thanks!

Do you remember what the original failed message said? On the second flash, does the green progress bar move or is it stuck in the middle?

There was no message. The second flash never had a progress bar show up.

Short version of what happened after: Got impatient, soft bricked the phone (apparently this process killed/corrupted the /data portion of the system). After trying to flash some roms unseccessfully with TWRP, I was able to reformat/partition /data through TWRP, which then allowed me to sideload CM12. So, for now I'm going to try that running nightlies. I'll probably try this again this weekend or something. At least now I know I can get out of the jam.

Glad to hear you got your phone up and running again. If you need any clarifications before trying again let me know.

Hi Andrew Godinez

Thank you for your help with this very detailed article. I was pretty much nubile to the whole android scene, and I managed to change my M8 to GPE about 2 months ago. But after using the GPE for about 2 months, I have to say that I am quite disappointed with it because it feels like a downgrade from the HTC with stock sense. Don't like the fact that I loose the HTC browser, camera app and blink feed. Especially the google camera it is particularly boring and not optimised for this beautifully made device. And also the swipe to unlock is not only not very responsive,but it doesn't have as much use

What I would like to know is if there is a way to switch back to Stock HTC with sense fom the GPE, such that I would still be able to receive OTA updates from HTC. And if so, could you please direct me to it?

Thanks alot in advance

Thanks for the kind words! Check out this XDA thread to install the Developer Edition RUU. This will allow you to get OTAs directly from HTC so you don't have to wait for carriers.

Thanks for the quick response. I'll be sure to check that out. One more thing, do you have any idea as to how to boot the HTC One M8 GPE running Lollipop 5.0.1 into recovery. Because it seems I might need to do that at some point. And I tried it a while back by holding the volume down button when you see the android and red triangle, but it didn't respond. Tried the up button and power too, nada. Can you please tell me what I'm doing wrong?

Thanks

When you see the screen with the exclamation pint you need to hold the volume up button and then press the power button.

Ok. Sorry for asking alot of questions, but i dont want to mess up my phone. You suggested that i follow that XDA thread to install the developer edition RUU. Do i have to switch back to sense by installing a stock rom before i run the RUU on my PC to install the new developer edition? And if i do, what ROM can i use to go back to sense, as this linked guide did not specify http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2733523

Thanks

You don't need to flash a ROM before. Just follow those directions.

I tried to run the adb shell command from the article and i keep getting "Error: More than one device and emulator". Any ideas on how to fix this? :(

Update Fastboot/ADB, restart your computer and then try again.

Hi all, have been hunting for official M8 GPE but failed to get one. Eventually bought M8 developer edition, which I guess comes with unlocked boot loader. Am desperate to convert it to GPE, will the procedure be the same? It hasn't been used yet, no custom data stored either. Please advise as really feel hopeless due to lack of Android knowledge. Will much appreciate your guidance, many thanks. Alex

You will need to S-Off your device using Sunshine (http://theroot.ninja/ ) and then you can use this guide to convert.

Thanks for your rapid answer Andrew. To summarise:

1. USB de-bugging should be enabled in Developer Edition, don't have to do that;
2. Need to S-off the phone as per your suggested Sunshine routine;
3. Bootloader should be unlocked, don't have to do that;
4. Download ADB & Fastboot and install on a PC (your link above refers to Mac, but there should be a link to a PC version somewhere, I guess);
5. Download rooted or unrooted ROM and flash following steps 1 to 3 described above.

Do I interpret your conversion procedure correctly?
Would you not recommend to make a backup of the native ROM installed on the original phone just in case?
If further mods are required, shall I rather go for rooted ROM?
Thanks.

You got the right steps and always back up.

Hi Andrew, thanks for your confirmation. Now since my phone has eventually arrived am trying to assemble all the tools required for conversion to GPE. Have located your link to ADB application for Windows, but it does not say anything about Fastboot. Is it so critical? Also, which ROM will be better for the OTA updates, rooted or unrooted? Many thanks

The adb install tool will also install fastboot. You will need to remain unrooted to receive OTA updates.

Thanks, Andrew. Either I misunderstand something or was sold not a Developer edition but an ordinary carrier-unlocked phone. When I boot into Hboot, it shows * Locked * in the top, does it mean the bootloader is locked? So I have to go through the whole process starting from unlocking bootloader and rooting. The seller did confirm it was a genuine Developer edition... Will appreciate your clarification, thanks in advance.

The developer edition is SIM unlocked, not bootlaoder unlocked. Go through the normal unlocking process and then use Sunshine to S-Off.

Hi Andrew, thanks for your explanation and sorry to bother you again. Have successfully unlocked the bootloader. Then downloaded latest twrp and flashed it, then wiped cache. Then entered into recovery mode to install Update-SuperSU-v2.46 and this is where the phone got stuck. It never loaded TWRP. On while screen it said Entering into Recovery mode... and the only way to get out was to hit Volume up and Power buttons at once. In the bootloader it says Tempered in the top. Thank you in advance.

Flash TWRP again and reboot.

Hi Andrew, the only trick that worked out was flashing exactly the TWRP version that you specified, maybe the latest is not compatible with KitKat 4.4.2. But any files that I transfer from my PC to Download folder are invisible, I had to download SuperSU from the Play Store. But in the end I do have SuperSU installed now. Am battling to get the Sunshine to become accessible, the phone simply shows empty folder, however when I go to Storage, it does show content in the folder. Checked all the permissions, nothing that would point to accessing the folder. Funny enough, pics transferred to downloads are not visible, but the very same pics in Pictures folder are visible. Searched the forums, found nothing. My existing HTC One M7 Google Play also does not see files in Download folder transferred from the PC. Please help, am only 2 steps away from conversion.

Hi Andrew, please neglect my question, for whatever reason could not edit it. Installed file manager and everything else. The only one comment is that in order to make the WiFi and camera work, the CID must be changed to GGOGL001 PRIOR to downloading 4.4.3, as in my case it did not help once I installed the update, had to re-flash the ROM. Now am busy with 5.0.1 download, everything works fine so far, this thread is indeed a useful tutorial, thank you very much indeed!

Do you know if your step by step works with an HTC one mini 2?

This won't work for the mini models.

Hi Andrew, Thank you for this article. Will these instructions work with my HTC One M8 Windows phone? I got the Windows phone to try it out but it is terrible. I want to remove Windows and install Android onto it.

Sorry, that is not possible due to how different the two systems are.

How to you restore it ??

Which device do you have and what carrier are you planning to restore to?

I have an HTC ONE m8 that I converted to GPE using this guide. And now I want to go back to Android Revolution HD

Hi.

Does this process applies to HTC One E8, a younger sister to HTC One M8 with almost exactly the same specifications except for the camera, IR blaster and aluminum vs PC body? Has anyone tried the proces on HTC One E8?

Second question is, supposing if this process works on HTC One E8, is the device going to receive android updates like any Play edition device?

Thank you

This will not work with the E8. Only the M8 is supported as a GPE device.

Would the process be different if I used a 6.0 GPE RUU? If not, can you link me with a 6.0 unrooted RUU?

The process is the same. A list of M8 RUUs can be found here.

I can`t get over the flashing process, the command window always shows FAIL, please help

Which M8 are you using? Also, send me a screenshot of your command window

Saludos,
Andrew Godinez,
Sabrá si es posible convertir mi M8 Tmobile a EMEA o ASIA? Necesito que mi aparato trabaje con la banda 900mhz.
Podría sustituir el recovery Stock de Tmobile con uno stock de EMEA para flashear una RUU EMEA?
O convertir a GPE y luego a EMEA?

Puedes orientarme por favor si lo que pido es posible?

Hi Andrew,

I've recently entered the world of voiding my warranty, and I love tinkering with my m8. I tried CM12 and I was not impressed. I didn't like having to install GAPPS, and I couldn't get it installed correctly anyway. I came over to your post and followed the directions, and MAN, so far so good! My phone is automatically updating to android 6.0 as we speak. I love google, and would name my next child after them. I'm glad to be rid of all the HTC and ATT bloatware, and I think your ROM is going to work great for me.

I just wanted to say what a great job you have done on this guide and thread. I can't believe you are still replying to questions years later. Thanks again!

One other question: It looks like I lost TWRP upon installing this RUU. Can I reinstall TWRP so that I can backup my phone? Or is there a better way to backup my phone now? Will I still get OTA?

Help I successfully installed the GPE after i apply the OTA update it boot into Google Logo and stuck
i tried to power off and enter recovery but it keeps me enter Google Logo

Hi guys, the process and tutorial is great! everything works fine, I received a lot of OTA updates and now when I received the last update MRA58K.H10 an security update, which makes my phone stock kinda BSOD. Screen attached. Does anybody knows how to get rid with that?

Thanks