Fastboot is a

communication protocol A communication protocol is a system of rules that allows two or more entities of a communications system to transmit information via any variation of a physical quantity. The protocol defines the rules, syntax, semantics (computer science), sem ...

used primarily with Android devices. It is implemented in a

command-line interface A command-line interface (CLI) is a means of interacting with software via command (computing), commands each formatted as a line of text. Command-line interfaces emerged in the mid-1960s, on computer terminals, as an interactive and more user ...

tool of the same name and as a mode of the

bootloader A bootloader, also spelled as boot loader or called bootstrap loader, is a computer program that is responsible for booting a computer and booting an operating system. If it also provides an interactive menu with multiple boot choices then it's o ...

of Android devices. The tool is included with the Android SDK package and used primarily to modify the

flash Flash, flashes, or FLASH may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional aliases * The Flash, several DC Comics superheroes with super speed: ** Flash (Jay Garrick) ** Barry Allen ** Wally West, the first Kid Flash and third adult Flash ...

filesystem via a

USB Universal Serial Bus (USB) is an industry standard, developed by USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF), for digital data transmission and power delivery between many types of electronics. It specifies the architecture, in particular the physical ...

connection from a host computer. It requires that the device be started in Fastboot mode. If the mode is enabled, it will accept a specific set of commands, sent through USB bulk transfers. Fastboot on some devices allows unlocking the bootloader, and subsequently, enables installing custom recovery image and custom ROM on the device. Fastboot does not require USB debugging to be enabled on the device. To use fastboot, a specific combination of keys must be held during boot. Not all Android devices have fastboot enabled, and Android device manufacturers are allowed to choose if they want to implement fastboot or some other protocol.

Keys pressed

The keys that have to be pressed for fastboot differ for various vendors. * HTC, Google Pixel, Motorola, and Xiaomi: Power and volume down * Zebra and symbol devices: Right scan/action button * Sony: Power and volume up * Google Nexus: Power, volume up and volume down On Samsung devices, (excluding the Nexus S and Galaxy Nexus devices), power, volume down and home has to be pressed for entering

ODIN Odin (; from ) is a widely revered god in Norse mythology and Germanic paganism. Most surviving information on Odin comes from Norse mythology, but he figures prominently in the recorded history of Northern Europe. This includes the Roman Em ...

mode. This is a proprietary protocol, and tool, as an alternative to fastboot. The tool has a partial

alternative Alternative or alternate may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Alternative (Kamen Rider), Alternative (''Kamen Rider''), a character in the Japanese TV series ''Kamen Rider Ryuki'' * Alternative comics, or independent comics are an altern ...

Commands

Some of the most commonly used fastboot commands include: * flash rewrites a partition with a binary image stored on the host computer. * flashing unlock/oem unlock DEVICE_SPECIFIC_UNLOCK_KEY unlocks an OEM locked bootloader for flashing custom/unsigned ROMs. * flashing lock/oem lock DEVICE_SPECIFIC_LOCK_KEY locks an OEM unlocked bootloader. * erase erases a specific partition. * reboot reboots the device into either the main operating system, the system recovery partition or back into its boot loader. * devices displays a list of all devices (with the serial number) connected to the host computer. * format formats a specific partition; the file system of the partition must be recognized by the device. * oem device-info checks the bootloader state. * getvar all displays all information about device (

IMEI The International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) is a numeric identifier, usually Unique identifier, unique, for 3GPP and iDEN mobile phones, as well as some satellite phones. It is usually found printed inside the battery compartment of the ph ...

, bootloader version, battery state etc.).

Implementations

The fastboot protocol has been implemented in the Android bootloader called ABOOT, the Little Kernel fork of Qualcomm,

TianoCore EDK II TianoCore EDK II (formerly Tiano) is the reference implementation of UEFI by Intel. EDK is the abbreviation for EFI Development Kit and is developed by the TianoCore community. TianoCore EDK II is the de facto standard generic UEFI services imple ...

, and

Das U-Boot Das U-Boot (subtitled "the Universal Boot Loader" and often shortened to U-Boot; see ''#History, History'' for more about the name) is an open-source software, open-source Bootloader, boot loader used in Embedded system, embedded devices to per ...

References

External links

Flashing Devices - Android.comFastboot protocol specification

{{Firmware and booting Android (operating system) Communications protocols Android (operating system) development software Booting

Keys pressed

Commands

Implementations

See also

References

External links