Pixel 8 Pro on Black Friday sale now!

BIRDIE Nice to know I am not alone in this first time scare to change the OS on this expensive device.

I was nervous my first time too.

These days the installers are really good about not bricking devices -- if something goes wrong, the device is very likely to be recoverable by just fixing some detail and starting over. Use the web installer if you can, and follow all of the directions carefully. If you don't know what some step means, ask for help (instead of skipping).

Most likely it will work the first time.

[deleted]

Not all texts with 4 paragraphs is from ChatGPT. Please don't reply with childish claims like that. Espesially when the post only had reasonable explanations about the tech-world we live in functions.

spring-onion

spring-onion Read the whole page, follow it precisely to the letter, you'll have it installed in no time.

Which one of the 13,856 letters :) or 2,228 words :)
Why oh Why can’t we have an official video or official confirmation of one web video?
Way back I used techlore installation video as a guide on one Linux laptop whilst using another Linux laptop for the flash with the Pixel 3a. Quite stressful but I succeeded :) 71 years old then!
Now I find that I can’t use my FireFox-ESR and don’t want to use any of the recommended browsers. Oh dear :(
Can I use my Pixel 3a GOS to web install onto new 7a or 8?

Andy Can I use my Pixel 3a GOS to web install onto new 7a or 8?

In theory, yes. But around a year ago I was unable to install a 6a from a 3a - I tried three times, but it gave me some non-specific failure each time. I gave up and did a command-line install (which was how I had installed the 3a, so I was familiar with doing it).

I know of no reason not to try from your 3a, but personally I wouldn't try many times.

akc3n

akc3n My dad's 82 and was able to follow the official written guide and was successful with installing it on his device last year. He is blind in one eye and English is his third language. It was difficult for him too. He did ask about videos but since they are most inaccurate and out dated, he wanted to do it right.

Firstly: I am mightily impressed with your Dad at 82 years old – you must be so proud of him. It will give hope and some confidence to the thousands of people pondering installing Graphene OS. Hope I will still be savvy enough if I get to 82 from present 73 :)

akc3n I'm not sure what you question is here:

I simply copied and pasted GOS instructions into LibreOffice Word to highlight the complexity :( A picture says a thousand words :) A video says ten thousand words :) A classic Red Herring:- Hey Guys, instructions can get outdated just as easily as videos :)

Don’t want any of the supported browsers on my computers. Not sure if there is an associated security risk? Plenty of noise on the web without listing many to substantiate risks.
Strange idea to compromise a computer to install a safe Graphene OS – still, afterwards I could wipe computer and do a fresh install – Hey Guys; not so crazy action as only once every five years :) and would force you to do backup :) win win :)

Andy Hey Guys, instructions can get outdated just as easily as videos :)

Editing text instructions on a web site takes a lot less time and effort than getting out a camera, re-shooting part of a video, and splicing the new video into the old one. Also, every Android release changes how many things look on the screen, so it would be necessary to completely re-shoot an installation video yearly.

To be fair, if an installation site had lots pictures then it would be a pain to re-do all of those yearly... perhaps that's why the current GrapheneOS site doesn't have lots of pictures...

Andy Don’t want any of the supported browsers on my computers.

If the browser you prefer doesn't support WebUSB, or has bugs in the WebUSB implementation, then there is no way for the GrapheneOS web installer to work on that browser. You can give it a try if you want, but the reason why the installation guide lists only some browsers is that those browsers can do successful installs.

The other alternative would be a CLI install.

Andy Don’t want any of the supported browsers on my computers. Not sure if there is an associated security risk? Plenty of noise on the web without listing many to substantiate risks.
Strange idea to compromise a computer to install a safe Graphene OS – still, afterwards I could wipe computer and do a fresh install – Hey Guys; not so crazy action as only once every five years :) and would force you to do backup :) win win

I do not believe you're compromising your computer with any of the listed browsers except maybe Chrome. Brave, Chromium, even Vivaldi are reasonable choices. I installed Chromium for the setup, had a very smooth experience and purged it afterwards.

BIRDIE

I started using GrapheneOS over two years ago on a Pixel 6a and had all of the same uncertanties you're expressing. I upgraded to the Pixel 7 and two weeks ago I also picked up a Pixel 8 Pro on sale. Some lessons I learned along the way:

• I found a forum post that suggested Aurora Store which has worked out great. I don't have a Google account and so I use the anonymous login feature (you just push the anonymous button after you open the app).
• Installing GrapheneOS is a breeze with the web installer. I've done it three times now on the Pixel 6a, 7, and 8 Pro and it's worked every time without any problems. Just read the instructions carefully and use the Side of Burrito's YouTube video if you want a demonstration of it.
• Some apps are built to require Google Play Services. The GrapheneOS team includes an "Apps" app and in there you can install a "sandboxed" Google Services Framework. Many apps will function fine without Google Services but they won't be able to provide alerts. By the way, all of the Proton apps work fine without Google. Brave works without Google as well.
• I highly recommend ProtonMail, ProtonPass, ProtonCalendar, etc.

joeconny
It's good to always have a backup device available, though.

yes thats right

[deleted]
yes thats right