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Have any of you guys gone though the process of getting source code for a device in order to make custom roms? (lemmy.zip)

submitted 10 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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I recently bought a Onn 4k TV box and am trying to get the GPL source code. Wish me luck as it may be a battle if I'm unlucky.

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[–] [email protected] 12 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (1 children)

Getting the source code is only one piece of the puzzle, before you do that, have you checked if the bootloader is unlockable? Because if you can't unlock the bootloader then there's no point trying to get the kernel sources.

You should also bear in mind that if you unlock the bootloader, you'd be degrading Widevine to L3, which means the video quality of Netflix and other streaming services would be downgraded to SD. One of the main reasons why people buy these TV boxes (instead of using a Raspberry Pior something) is to watch streaming services - but unlocking the bootloader breaks the DRM, which would defeat the whole point (IMO) - unless you don't plan on using those services?

[–] [email protected] 0 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (1 children)

The ability to unlock the bootloader is actually irrelevant in this case. I want the source code because it is my right. I might find away to boot custom code or I may not. Either way I still want the sources to study at least.

As for streaming services I use Jellyfin so its not a big deal.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (1 children)

The ability to unlock the bootloader is actually irrelevant in this case. I want the source code because it is my right. I might find away to boot custom code or I may not.

And what will you do with it exactly? Without unlocking the bootloader, it's basically useless. You should concentrate your efforts on seeing if you can unlock the bootloader first.

Either way I still want the sources to study at least.

There wouldn't be anything interesting about those sources, except the binary blobs/DTB. Unless you're expecting to find some malware or something. If you're really interested in studying the kernel/Android sources, you can always head to https://source.android.com/ or https://kernel.org/. There are also more interesting sources over at LineageOS and GrapheneOS.

As for streaming services I use Jellyfin so its not a big deal.

Then why did you even bother buying this box? You'd have been better off using a Raspberry Pi or some HTPC, where you could load any opensource distro or even easily compile your own, and have a far greater deal of flexibility and freedom.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 9 months ago

I want the source code because it is my right. If you don't use your rights you will lose them. As for the boot loader unlocking I will need to study the device for vulnerabilities to see if I can get around the normal hardware security. With any luck I might just be able to find a security hole.