Using RCS with Google Messages on GrapheneOS

New user here / first post, installed GOS upon purchasing a new 7a a few days ago - was following this thread since RCS chats wasn't working for me (would be stuck at Verifying), which was a feature that was working with my provider (Mint) on my previous phone.

Just now I was going through Permissions Manager under Privacy since it was a menu I haven't gone through yet. I scrolled down to SMS and saw that Google (installed for Google Lens / Translate), Google Play services, and Google Play Store was under "Not Allowed". I gave all three permissions, and now I have "Status: Connected" for the first time ever.

Forgive me if this is not relevant to this current discussion with using beta versions and things, but I wanted to share. I'll keep an eye on it for now, and would be curious to know if this is even a desirable solution.

Messages for me will be a tertiary messaging app since most of my day-to-day messaging happens on other apps, so I wasn't too bothered about the permissions.

luxcomm i don't understand your post ?

luxcomm Did you just activate SMS for service play?

Doesn't anyone know why rcs doesn't work?

Nobody knows anything, but this is a forum for specialists, isn't it?

[deleted]
Go to: Settings > Privacy > Permission Manager > SMS:
Set for Allowed:
Google App (added from Play Store), Google Play Service, Google Play Store, Google Messages App (from Play Store), Messaging, Phone, Google Phone App (from Play Store)

I didn't install Carrier Services

For me, this changed RCS Chats setup from being stuck at Verifying Number to Connected in green text followed by my number.

p0well34 wtf, why did this just work. thanks!

luxcomm could you clarify the apps you have installed? You said Messages and Google Messages? Was that a typo?

thed0ctor Not a typo, just the default Messaging app + Google Messages, so the only non-default apps are Google, Google Messages, and Google Phone.

hemlockiv

I'm with Rogers

p0well34 Try turning RCS in Messages settings then, untick SMS in GPS then check it.

Do you mean try turning RCS on in Messages settings? And when you write "GPS," do you mean Google Play Store or Google Play Services?

Just registered to say I've been following this thread for a while hoping for a solution, because I've been having the exact same issue with RCS chat.

I'm running GrapheneOS on a Pixel 6 Pro (Verizon), and tried every guide out there I can find to resolve the issue of being stuck "trying to verify". The above solutions for installing an old beta APK does work, but only temporarily for a three day period before having to restart the process. I've tried a few things like VPN split-tunneling and using various DNS options to see if that will keep a stable connection, but so far no luck. I'm not sure what the underlying problem is, but I do believe the issue is specifically between GrapheneOS and google that hasn't been identified yet.

Syberkonda This worked for me as well using the ATT web address

hemlockiv

1. Yes
2. Play services
   After the last update RCS disconnected. I repeated this process and it worked again.

bushraptor

I was surprised others didn't try it.

I am still having trouble with the concept that this is somehow a GOS issue. RCS has worked for me pretty much since installing Google messages app, and has for many other users also.

There are users on stock pixel OS that are reporting issues maintaining RCS connection as well.

Syberkonda This worked perfectly for me! (Granted, I only did it last night, and it took overnight for it to go from "Verifying" to "Connected," and it's possible that it may disconnect in a few days, as that's an issue others have reported here...)
Your comment needs to be pinned or something so folks can find it in the future. In fact, I'm going to copy the steps here just in case the reddit thread ever got deleted:

download the beta app version of Google Messages:
https://www.apkmirror.com/apk/google-inc/messenger-google-inc/messenger-google-inc-5-2-051-release/
From there, follow the next set of steps:

1. Turn off Wi-Fi (it can interfere with the setup).

NOTE: If you have a VPN, either disable it or whitelist (aka split-tunnel) Google Messages, Play Store, Play Services, and GSF.

2. Open the Activity Launcher app.
3. Tap the drop-down menu at the top of the screen, select "All activities."
4. Scroll down to "Messages," tap it.
5. In the Messages sub-list, scroll to "Set RCS Flags," tap it.

NOTE: Activity launcher apps include Nova Launcher and Shortcut Maker.
If you have ADB access thru a PC or an app like LADB, Ashell, Termux, or Tasker, you can directly launch the activity by running
am start -n com.google.android.apps.messaging/.ui.appsettings.rcs.overrides.OverrideFlagsActivity

6. In the screen that opens, tap the drop-down menu below "ACS Url" so we can input the address for the Jibe/RCS server to use.
7. a) If you want to try Google's sandbox server, tap the option named "http://rcs-acs-prod-us.sandbox.google.com" in the drop-down menu.
8. b) If you'd prefer to use a server for your carrier, then manually enter your details into the "ACS Url" box based on the list here. Also, note that this will probably fail if you tried the sandbox server first without wiping Google Messages' app data before trying again. (You can attempt one or the other, if one doesn't work).

NOTE: Use acs-vzw.jibe.google.com for Verizon.

8. Tap the drop-down menu for "OTP Pattern" and set it to "Your\sMessenger\sverification\scode\sis\sG-(\d{6})" which should be an option already present in the list.
9. Tap "Apply" at the bottom of the list.
10. Force close the Messages app. (Lots of ways to access this: via Settings -> Apps -> All apps -> Messages -> Force stop in Android Q, sometimes long-holding the app or tapping the app icon in the multitasking/recents menu will show an "App info" option that takes you to the same screen.)
11. Re-open Messages, you should have a banner at the bottom of the screen — something along the lines of "New! See when friends are typing" — prompting you to set up RCS/Chat for Messages.
12. Tap "Upgrade Now" in that banner and follow the setup process, it should complete within a few minutes

Other notes from me: You should be able to revoke SMS permissions from Google Play Store and Play services after setup is complete. The Carrier Services app does not appear to be necessary, although this may depend on your carrier. I have Verizon. The APK to download from ApkMirror is safe and legitimate. The "Pegasus" in the name predates the Pegasus hacking software; it's just the internal development name for that version of Messages (other versions have names like Unicorn and Minotaur). If your phone were hacked by Pegasus—and it's unclear whether Graphene phones are even vulnerable to it—there certainly wouldn't be an apk with "pegasus" in the file name.

N3rdTek By the way, did you ever do some DNS filtering to figure out if there are any telemetry domains that can be safely blocked without disrupting RCS?