Google Pixel 6a getting stuck in "restarting..." Part of the install process

mexcool

Background:
-computer OS is ubuntu 22.04.1 LTS
-pixel is running the latest update as of yesterday available from google in the system software updater (not in any opt on betas like android 13)
-The bootloader is unlocked, that part did manage to work from the web installer
-I am using google chrome as the browser, settings are all default, not in incognito
-The phone is connected to the PC via usb C to usb C with the default cable that came with the phone
-device is an unlocked carrier agnostic model ordered directly from google
-I already had android-sdk-platform-tools-common installed, thinking this old install may have been an issue after the first attempt failed, I did an apt-get remove on it and reinstalled, however this did not fix the problem

Hi everyone, after putting in some effort and trying to follow the install guide as best as possible, it appears my device for whatever reason will not install. It gets stuck on the "flashing factory images" part, saying it is "restarting..." Without the pixel ever actually restarting. The phone just stays in the bootloader interface, and when I have disrupted it in past attempts and hit start on my own after it stalled for hours, it just booted into the stock os.

If anybody has any tips on how to fix this I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks!

MetropleX

mexcool Its a cable or port issue USB C on laptops is usually implemented via a daughterboard breaking the low level communication element of the standard as do most front IO implementations on desktop.

Advise using a fully USB standard compliant A-C cable. Brand recommendations are usually Anker Aukey and Belkin.

Or Android to Android using USB C.

mexcool

MetropleX thanks for the suggestion, however I confirmed whatever the issue is would not be hardware related, as I managed to do it on the same configuration but booted into windows.

I suppose the solution was just a matter of "just use windows".

mexcool

Update: Seemingly Solved (for myself at least) by simply doing it on a windows install again on the same computer. However, it is interesting this did not work on Ubuntu for some reason. I'll leave this thread here for anybody else in the future who encounters a similar issue. If somebody knows of a solution other than just using windows, feel free to post it, as this seems like a bit of a workaround given Ubuntu is officially supported.

MetropleX

mexcool you weren't using the Chrome snap package were you?

Officially supported browsers for the web install method:

Chromium (outside Ubuntu, since they ship a broken Snap package without working WebUSB)
Vanadium (GrapheneOS)
Google Chrome
Microsoft Edge
Brave

smallbison

Hi,
here is my experience with the same problem.

Manjaro linux installed on a Lenovo T470, I followed the web install method instructions exactly using chromium and the USB-C cable given with the pixel 6a.

I encountered the errors "unable to claim interface" or an error to transfer out/in via USB (tried more times), when the smartphone was rebooted to fastbootd.

Then I tried with the same setup via CLI using fastboot from the distro and the one downloaded, and had the same problem with a different error message. I used the following grapheneos releases: 20221018, 20221016 and 20221015

Then I tried to install android 13 from the google website and it worked!! I was puzzled...

Then I took another cable, USB-A to USB-C from Anker, and put it in a different port and the web installer didn't work. Then I tried via CLI and it worked perfectly!!!

I'm even more puzzled then before, but very happy at the same time! :D

Cheers

opsaaaaa

ubuntu 22.04.1
Google Pixel 5
Tired with both factory cable and another third party cable.
Tried all the ports on the web interface with no luck.

The same message each time:

Error: Failed to execute 'claimInterface' on 'USBDevice': Unable to claim interface.

On the mac laptop, it isn't even showing the device.

I'll try the CLI route.

opsaaaaa

It appears that I can't edit the comment.

The CLI route did work.
Tho it said waiting for device multiple times.
each time it said that I unplugged and re-plugged in the device.
I assume it was something to do with rebooting and ubuntu not recognizing the device until you re-plug it in.

fab_graphene

This can also help if someone else get stuck in the same error:

Error: Failed to execute 'claimInterface' on 'USBDevice': Unable to claim interface

"Working around fwupd bug on Linux distributions
Debian stable and Ubuntu have an outdated fwupd package with a bug breaking connecting to Android's bootloader interface (fastboot) while fwupd is running since it tries to connect to arbitrary devices. This section can be skipped on Arch Linux and other distributions with fwupd 1.9.10 or later since we reported the bug and it was fixed. This never impacted Android or ChromeOS.

You can stop fwupd with the following command:

sudo systemctl stop fwupd.service"

[https://grapheneos.org/install/cli#cli-install]