/e/-Oreo-unofficial testrun on LeEco Le2

Today I experimented with /e/ Oreo v0.2 for S2.

I built it the image with this command:

root@server:~# docker run \
-v "/mnt/src:/srv/src:delegated" \
-v "/mnt/zips:/srv/zips:delegated" \
-v "/mnt/logs:/srv/logs:delegated" \
-v "/mnt/ccache:/srv/ccache:delegated" \
-e "BRANCH_NAME=eelo-0.2" \
-e "DEVICE_LIST=s2" \
-e "CUSTOM_PACKAGES='MuPDF Notes Tasks GmsCore GsfProxy FakeStore Telegram Signal AnySoftKeyboard Mail BlissLauncher BlissIconPack MozillaNlpBackend OpenWeatherMapWeatherProvider AccountManager MagicEarth OpenCamera eDrive Weather NominatimNlpBackend Light'" \
-e "SIGNATURE_SPOOFING=restricted" \
-e "OTA_URL=https://ota.ecloud.global/api" \
-e "REPO=https://gitlab.e.foundation/e/os/android.git" \
registry.gitlab.e.foundation:5000/e/os/docker-lineage-cicd:latest
Set cache size limit to 50.0 GB
>> [Mon Dec 24 11:02:13 UTC 2018] Branch:  eelo-0.2
>> [Mon Dec 24 11:02:13 UTC 2018] Devices: s2,
>> [Mon Dec 24 11:02:13 UTC 2018] (Re)initializing branch repository
>> [Mon Dec 24 11:02:14 UTC 2018] Copying '/srv/local_manifests/*.xml' to '.repo/local_manifests/'
>> [Mon Dec 24 11:02:14 UTC 2018] eelo v0.2 use branch lineage-15.1 on github.com/TheMuppets
>> [Mon Dec 24 11:02:14 UTC 2018] Syncing branch repository
>> [Mon Dec 24 11:02:58 UTC 2018] Applying the restricted signature spoofing patch (based on android_frameworks_base-O.patch) to frameworks/base
>> [Mon Dec 24 11:02:58 UTC 2018] Setting "UNOFFICIAL" as release type
>> [Mon Dec 24 11:02:58 UTC 2018] Adding OTA URL overlay (for custom URL https://ota.ecloud.global/api)
>> [Mon Dec 24 11:02:58 UTC 2018] Adding custom packages ('MuPDF Notes Tasks GmsCore GsfProxy FakeStore Telegram Signal AnySoftKeyboard Mail BlissLauncher BlissIconPack MozillaNlpBackend OpenWeatherMapWeatherProvider AccountManager MagicEarth OpenCamera eDrive Weather NominatimNlpBackend Light')
>> [Mon Dec 24 11:02:58 UTC 2018] Using OpenJDK 8
>> [Mon Dec 24 11:02:58 UTC 2018] Preparing build environment
>> [Mon Dec 24 11:03:00 UTC 2018] Starting build for s2, eelo-0.2 branch
>> [Mon Dec 24 12:28:11 UTC 2018] Moving build artifacts for s2 to '/srv/zips/s2'
>> [Mon Dec 24 12:28:14 UTC 2018] Finishing build for s2
>> [Mon Dec 24 12:28:14 UTC 2018] Cleaning source dir for device s2

I installed it on my device for testing purposes. Before you try them for yourself, I recommend to read until the end, because I had some problems with recovering the original /E/-Nougat. (I lost ringtones and pictures)

I followed this procedure in TWRP:

  1. Follow the steps of this tutorial in order create a backup of the phone.
  2. (should be left out) Install the V0.2-image on the phone.
  3. (should be left out) Rebooting into system fails
  4. Wipe Data and Cache as stated on https://gitlab.e.foundation/e/wiki/en/wikis/device/s2/install (Section “Installing /e/ from custom recovery” steps 5-7)
  5. Install the V0.2-image on the phone. (in my case probably not necessary but for safety reasons)
  6. Reboot into system succeeds

Fresh /e/ install:

  • Language: English (US)
  • Time: leave as it is
  • Network: add WLAN
  • Location Services: disable selections
  • Fingerprint setup: Skip
  • Protect your phone: PIN
  • /e/ account: skip

Successes first:

  • I can make phonecalls
  • I can receive SMS
  • I took five pictures and did not get the well-known “Serious Camera Error”.

Now for a few issues, that I ran into.

I am greeted with a notification “Discover Trust” that I have no knowledge about. Moms and Dads might not know what to do with the options that can be accessed from the linked site. -> Here the usability could be improved.

Signal downloads SMS messages even before I entered the Signal verification code. They are visible as notification, but I can not access them within the app, because I have to apply the verification code first. -> Strange behavior.

Signal showed me an SMS, that I did receive in 2009 -> probably some kind of freak accident.

MicroG has “Google device registration” and “Google SafetyNet” enabled. -> This is not privacy friendly.

Testing the Tasks app:
If I don’t give the Tasks app the requested access permissions, then the app gets into a loop without exit. -> Usability improvement possible

Testing the Calendar app:
When using the Calendar app withount any account, then it is impossible to create a calendar-entry just locally on the device. -> This behavior is probably intended

And now for my biggest complaint about Oreo: The Telegram push-notification notification.
From Telegram I am greeted with a notification “Push Notification” that when clicked it opens a Github Website about technical infos regarding push notifications. This might be something Moms and Dads do not want to read - Also that text is probably only available in English language but not in other languages, that are supported by /e/.
Based on that note it looks like Android Oreo restricts push messaging even more as explained in the Telegram-documentation. It would be great, if the e.foundation could install and run a privacy friendly separate push-notification service.
The documentation for disabling this notification is quite technical and not suitable for Moms and Dads. The /e/-team should find a solution for this prominently visible notification.
-> This is a complex issue and I hope that the e-team finds a reasonable solution.

I will likely add some of my findings on Gitlab.

Going back to the officially supported Nougat version, that I previously took a backup off, I followed the tutorial mentioned in the beginning of this post.

2 Likes

Agree on this point entirely. Had raised an issue regarding this as well. https://gitlab.e.foundation/e/management/issues/131 Not sure if it has any thing to do with the point that I am based out of India but there is a delay in getting the registration sms back from signal for me. The fact that I have never used a sms app which asks for my phone number is one of the reasons why I prefer QKSMS :slight_smile:

I had no delay in the registration SMS: I got it within a minute after I requested it.
For me the strange detail was, that Signal received a private SMS even before I initiated the registration SMS.

I noticed this too. While waiting for the registration code to come in any incoming SMS would show up in the notification area. Now if I clear the notification then it is lost. Also if I try to read the SMS it asks for the code!!!