Using RCS with Google Messages on GrapheneOS

After 2 weeks mine just disconnected, so I guess compatibility mode doesn't resolve it. I was obsessively checking the RCS connection state, so I know the exact moment I was de-registered. It happened when I connected to a public wifi network that had restrictive settings and ports blocked, which prevented my VPN from connecting easily (had to use obfuscation). My guess is this wouldn't have been a problem if we could verify our numbers the way Google intends us to, but whatever is getting blocked by GrapheneOS caused it to get de-registered in this moment.

I've gone through the process again and reconnected. This time the RCS connection state has reverted back to "Transport: Chat API w/ RCS", instead of "Tachygram". I'm still curious to know the difference.

Do developers look into these chats?

bluesl33ves Yes. But the issue is with Google's app. Not sure what GrapheneOS developers can do if a Google app doesn't work the way it's expected to.

other8026 If the app registers effortlessly on stock Pixel OS, several Samsung devices, Xiaomi devices, etc., from what I have witnessed personally, does this still mean that the Google Messages app doesn't work properly? Couldn't it be a case where GrapheneOS is blocking the request for the ACS URL due to the sandbox simulation?

bluesl33ves I haven't personally tried to set up RCS. My guess is that Google Play Services, Google Play, or Google Phone expect to have access to some permission and/or they expect another app is installed, such as the Google app, or Assistant, or something. Maybe the app expects to be run from the owner profile. There are lots of reasons I can think of that the app will refuse to work.

As of right now, there's nothing to go on except "it doesn't work most of the time". Somebody needs to sit down and dig through logs and try permissions or installing apps to get to the bottom of why it doesn't work.

Still rocking stock Pixel7. No issues. Leads me to believe something about GrapheneOS' build is interfering with RCS

other8026 Permission wise, I believe a few persons have tried enabling all the possible permissions, on the primary account, and have even reset the device with no resolution. If you have other reasons, you can list them out. For me, being stuck at setting up, when I am not registered, just means that the device is not receiving the setup info. Furthermore, when trying to send the code from the Google Message deregister page, I may or may not receive the SMS message. I have never tried changing the Internet connectivity checks, Attestation key provisioning, and Widevine provisioning servers and turning off the Private DNS.

For what it's worth the only recent reports I've found of this happening outside of GrapheneOS are from people with other non-stock/rooted devices and their solution seems to be spoofing device integrity.

https://xdaforums.com/t/rcs-chat-gone-in-latest-update.4653947/#post-89312709

https://www.reddit.com/r/GoogleMessages/comments/1agsjh0/rcs_issues_on_devices_that_have_unlocked/

Posichronic How can we go about doing this?

So, this probably won't be helpful but I'll add it on anyway, just in case. If this has already been said, I apologize, there is more than 200 answers here. RCS was working fine and effortlessly for me when I had my Pixel 4a. I had to upgrade it, due to it being end of life. I got a Pixel 7a and ever since I got it, it's been impossible to get RCS running on it. It seems to me that a lot of people struggling are using 6 and 7 series. I'm wondering if this somehow could be Tensor related? As before the 6 series, Pixels were using Snapdragons processors and not Google's Tensor.

This could be completely unrelated though.

CryptOwlie RCS was working fine and effortlessly for me when I had my Pixel 4a. I had to upgrade it, due to it being end of life. I got a Pixel 7a and ever since I got it, it's been impossible to get RCS running on it. It seems to me that a lot of people struggling are using 6 and 7 series.

If Google has been making changes to RCS, which I believe they have, then RCS having worked before on an older phone may not be relevant.

Note that most GrapheneOS users are probably 6-series and 7-series users because:

• the 5 series is just about EOL;
• the 8 and 8 Pro are new and expensive;
• unlike the 6 series and 7 series, which have three models, there isn't an 8a yet(?).

Also, I think I saw Reddit complaints about Verizon RCS by non-GrapheneOS users on non-Pixel phones.

I would really like a developer to initiate a step-by-step process of providing them with information and logs, if it is something that they can resolve; even providing a little app in their App repository to allow users to manually add their RCS information, would be helpful. If it falls out of their scope, I would also like to know this as well. For me on a P8P, the issue is not registering the device but actually receiving the carrier settings. If it stays in the “Connecting…” stage for too long, it will unregister and stay in the “Setting up…” stage, where there is no ACS URL set according to the debugging menu. I only see “Connecting…” if there is no data or Wi-Fi present, or I am on a network that is blocking the connection. Otherwise, I will remain connected.

de0u No, no P8a until there is a P9 and P9P.

bluesl33ves I would really like a developer to initiate a step-by-step process of providing them with information and logs [...]

While various of the developers occasionally scan the forum, the standard protocol is to seek help via one of the real-time chat rooms, see https://grapheneos.org/contact#community-chat. The chat rooms also make it possible for you to provide telemetry from your device via a non-public channel.

This may well not be quickly resolvable. RCS is a moving target -- the standard isn't really settled, carrier implementations are evolving, and carriers are not completely settled in terms of which implementations to deploy. I don't know if Google's standard client is changing too, but it probably is. Personally I won't be surprised if reliable solutions are months away.

irrenarzt
Compat mode didn't make a difference on my end either. I also had wifi disabled the entire time, and my RCS stayed connected for about 3.5 days. I had gotten so hopeful when I saw that I had made it past the 72 hr mark, but by that evening it had disconnected. I want to keep troubleshooting this because, especially with Apple on board and google Messages being the stock messaging app on all droids, I do think RCS is the future.

Note to others: I also tried installing Carrier Services, and that didn't seem to make a difference. And there had been some talk earlier in this thread about sniffing the traffic to see if Google was phoning home with a bunch of telemetry; well, once I got RCS connected I did start logging my traffic, and I was happy to see that the only URLs it connected to were m.talk.google.com and my carrier's PCSCF url. In other words, I don't think it was sending more than the bare minimum data required to maintain the connection.

CryptOwlie
I could never get it to work on my 4a 5G.

FlipSid I'm confused as to how you managed to get this to work. All I see is that you downloaded the app from the Play Store. Are you running the latest version of Google Messages?