Week 03, 2026: Development and Testing Updates

Manoj · January 11, 2026, 10:26pm

/e/OS Weekly Development and Testing Activities

Summary of weekly development and testing activities by /e/OS developers and volunteers.
Updated content is marked with the emoji.

Release Information

Upcoming Release v3.4

ETA 19 Jan onwards
Release notes will show up here once the release is initiated
Sharing the release date in advance as some users have requested for an advance notice of a release.
Tentative list of issues and optimization to come with v3.4
- The link points to a tentative list of builds that will form a part of v3.4. You may see multiple builds with various label beta, rc. The above list of issues is what we expect to test as part of each build. The list will change and get updated based on the QA clearance of each fix.

/e/OS - A15 - /e/OS V

Status: Released

A15 new additions released with v3.3

A15 builds released with v3.2

A15 builds released with v3.1

Supported devices to get A15 builds

View the complete list of supported devices

If a device build fails during compilation due to last-minute upstream code changes, we either try to rebuild these devices during the same release cycle or accommodate them in the next release cycle.

Migrate your data from Google to Murena Cloud

Migrate your data from google cloud to your Murena account. Follow the instructions in this guide.

Security Information

Security Patch Release Process explained here

Previous Releases & User Feedback

Feedback Threads

Support Dropped

These devices will no longer get /e/OS builds. We are dropping them from our release system. We tried to build v3.3 for them but the builds failed. Efforts to build with the Minimal Apps configuration did not succeed.

Vendor	Device Name	CodeName
Google	Pixel XL 2	taimen
Google	Pixel 2	walleye
Motorola	Moto G7 Power	ocean
Motorola	Moto G6 Plus	evert

Community builds dropped for these devices

We will be moving to supporting one build type for devices which have an official build.
Which means we will not be linking the community builds in our documentation. While the community builds will continue to be built, they will not be linked in our documentation. They will be available for OTA updates.
We plan to eventually have only official builds for these devices. Where devices have the same OS version in community and official we would recommend users to migrate to the official builds. Take a backup before proceeding. Also, it would be a manual install process.
Where the official builds are on a lower level compared to the community builds, we plan to migrate them to the higher OS level for official builds as well.
This change in the community builds links not showing up in the documentation for these devices can be expected from the upcoming v3.4

Devices which will be impacted:

Vendor	Device Name	CodeName	Official OS version	Community OS version
Gigaset	GS290	GS290	A12	A12
Samsung	Galaxy S7	herolte	A12	A12
Samsung	Galaxy S7 edge	hero2lte	A12	A12
Samsung	Galaxy S8	dreamlte	A12	A12
Samsung	Galaxy S8+	dream2lte	A12	A12
Teracube	Teracube 2e	zirconia	A12	A12
Teracube	Teracube 2e	emerald	A12	A12
Samsung	Galaxy S9	starlte	A12	A13
Samsung	Galaxy S9+	star2lte	A12	A13
Fairphone	FP3/FP3+	FP3/FP3+	A13	A15
Google	Pixel 5	redfin	A13	A15
Nothing	CMF phone 1	tetris	A14	A14
OnePlus	nord	avicii	A14	A14
SHIFT	SHIFTPhone 8	otter	A14	A14
Teracube	Teracube 2s	saphire	A14	A14
Volla	Volla tablet	mimir	A14	A14
Fairphone	FP4	FP4	A14	A15
Google	Pixel Tablet	tangorpro	A14	A15
Fairphone	FP5	FP5	A15	A15
Fairphone	The Fairphone	FP6	A15	A15
Google	Pixel 7	panther	A15	A15
Google	Pixel 8	shiba	A15	A15

Murena Cloud and Self-Hosting

Murena Cloud

Current Version: 31.0.10.11

Resources:

Release Notes

Self-Hosting

Current Version: v26.0.8.23

Resources:

Release Notes

Upgrade Guide

Status:

Self-hosting guide update pending

🔍 How to Check NextCloud Version

Method 1: Murena Settings

Go to Murena Settings

Look for “NextCloud xx user documentation”

Method 2: NextCloud Scan

Visit NextCloud scan link

Input https://murena.io

Note: If MurenaCloud patch number differs from NC patch number, the rating may appear as bad. This is normal - patches are tested before deployment.

GSI (Generic System Image)

Current Version: /e/OS A10 v1.17

Resources:

Download

Sources

Next Version: /e/OS T (A13) - skipping A11 and A12

Release dates to be announced

OS OTA Information

✅ Completed

FP5 -  Fairphone: S (A13) →  V (A15)  

FP5 - Fairphone: U (A14) → V(A15)

FP4 - Fairphone : S (A12) → T (A13)

S9/9+ - Samsung : R (A11) → S (A12)

GS290 - Gigaset : R (A11) → S (A12)

GS290 - Gigaset : Q (A10) → R (A11)

avicii - OnePlus : A12

FP3 - Fairphone : S (A12) → T (A13)

S7/7+ - Samsung : R (A11) → S (A12)

FP4 - Fairphone : T (A13) → U (A14)

S8/8+ - Samsung : R (A11) → S (A12)

Note: OTA upgrades are for official or stable builds only

Under Development and Testing

zirconia - Teracube : S(A12) → V(A15) (v3.4)
emerald - Teracube : S(A12) → V(A15) (v3.4)
avicii - OnePlus : S (A12) → U (A14)
FP4 - Early 2026

To Be Planned

FP3
tangorpro - Google Pixel tablet 7
Murena One - A12 - A15
GS290* - A12 - A15
Galaxy S9* - A12 - A15
Galaxy S8* - A12 - A15
Galaxy S7* - A12 - A15

(Devices marked with an ‘*’ have an issue with FDE encryption which requires format before the OS can be upgraded. This essential means there would be data loss. If we are able to build a A15 build for these devices, the user will have to manual install it and that would require first taking a backup of all data.)

Check the section titled A16 Updates below

📖 What is OS OTA Upgrade?

Traditional Process:

Download correct OS build from supported device list

Download stock ROM from vendor site (for some devices)

Back up your data

Install stock ROM, then /e/OS ROM

Restore backups if needed

OTA Benefits:

Simplifies the entire process

Requires significant development and testing

A16 Updates

We plan to update all devices currently on A12, A13, A14 and A15 to A16
In case any device is not able of handling the A16 builds we will share that information.
The team expects that A16 would not be buildable or installable on some of the older gen devices like the Samsung S7 or S8. There could be more.
- For such devices we we will work on getting them to the highest OS version possible.
As you may be aware A12 does not receive security patches anymore. This will next impact A13 and so on. This is a standard Google policy to end of life (EOL) older Android versions.
All devices we sell in our shop, with official builds are priority candidates for OTA OS upgrades. The difference is the official builds get OTA OS upgrades. Community devices will require manual upgrade.
Will share dates and ETA once I get them from the team.

Miscellaneous Information

Real-Time Service Status

eCloud Real-Time Status

/e/OS Real-Time Status

New Gitlab account creation

If you are trying to create a new /e/OS Gitlab ID and facing issues with the email ID, you can try and create a Murena Workspace ID and use it to log into Gitlab. Check the updated documentation here

🎫 Helpdesk Services

For Paying Murena Customers

Murena device purchasers

Paid Murena cloud account holders

Active donors from the past year

Response Time

5-10 day response wait period due to high volume of requests.

Contact

Murena Helpdesk Contact Form

For Free Users

Forum

GitLab Issues

Telegram Channels

Warning: Old helpdesk email IDs are no longer monitored.

📱 Device and Vendor Announcements

Gigaset GS290

Sales stopped (vendor ceased production)

Support continues for existing users

Murena One

Sales stopped

Support continues for existing users

Murena Two

Sales stopped

Support continues for existing users

Pre-Flashed Devices

Available in EU, US, Canada, and Australia. Check the complete list on the Murena shop

Purchase via Murena Shop

🌐 /e/OS Website and Social Media Links

Official Websites

Telegram Channels

Social Media

Newsletters

Important Notice

Do Not Post Test Build Information on the Forum

Why this is important:

Test builds are untested and may cause device issues

These builds can potentially soft brick user devices

Such information can confuse other users who don’t see these builds in the updater

Not all forum users are experts in custom ROM installation

For Interested Testers:

If you understand custom ROMs and can perform basic testing

Join the testing team

Share feedback on the dedicated Telegram channel

Regain your privacy! Adopt /e/OS the deGoogled mobile OS and online services

elrond · January 12, 2026, 4:13pm

PLEASE!

Please don’t drop community builds entirely.

This is quite counter-intuitive…

The official docs say this about adb root:

As a side effect, it disabled the adb root option, available under Developer Options. In order to recover it, we advise our users to move on a /dev build.
(see: https://doc.e.foundation/support-topics/root-e-os#why-cant-i-root-from-developer-options-on-official-builds)

How should I move to /dev (Community), when Community is going to be dropped?!

Well, TWRP will allow full access, right. But this is not the same as adb root. adb root gives you proper access to a decrypted /data, which is essential for proper backup / restore (especially across devices).

Manoj · January 12, 2026, 10:25pm

Just to clarify rooting is not required on /e/OS. If users still prefer to root the devices which have official builds they will have to install the community build. The community build link are being removed. Not the builds themselves. They would still be available for direct download from the images server.
For example :

Also note for now there is no timeline on how long community builds will be made for the official devices. The options for users is to switch to the official builds or build unofficial builds for these devices. 'adb root` will not be enabled on official builds for security reasons.

elrond · January 17, 2026, 11:25am

This is fully understood. Everyone is aware that we have a grace period. And we’re using that grace period (for example to convince the team to keep community builds as long as you keep official builds).

adb root and “rooting” are two different things, really. They’re NOT the same. adb (Android Debug Bridge) is for Debugging and other advanced use cases. And adb root is for example needed during developments.

So please don’t talk about “rooting” here!

(I need adb root, really)
So you basically tell me to build my own unofficial build, right?
I can probably handle that (just need to invest some time/money into my developer box). It’s mostly a matter of changing user to userdebug in some config setting during build and that’s probably about it. (I’d need to read up on some details).

(Obviously I am already considering other options.)

Tentos · January 17, 2026, 11:38am

Maybe we should open a GitLab ticket or the like to raise the adb root issue to the development team?

piero · January 17, 2026, 12:19pm

right,
my 16GB of RAM machine that was able to build android 11 is no more capable to build android 15, i am thinking about buying a new PC just to continue building /e/, but i can’t dedicate 200€ for that in the period…

Manoj · January 17, 2026, 1:10pm

There are no plans to add adb root to official builds.

tcecyk · January 17, 2026, 2:34pm

even if constrained to adb, it technically still is very much system root and allow you to alter the publisher partitions. Just not the type that hands it to apps persistently. Ofc I get that the verb “rooting” colloquially describes the permanent-for-apps type, but adb root sure is root.

I think it’s a sensible idea to abandon the userdebug build (when there is an official build, but I think also for all /e/os builds) - even with /e/OS users, in the context of the forum I’ve never seen there’s more than a few percent that are 1. aware of it or 2. make use of it. While I do often (for debugging) - the cons outweigh the pros for the majority. It gives LineageOS derivates actively a bad rep in mainstream discourse.

No bank or regulator will take alternative OSes seriously when they’re in the business of risk aversity. I’d wish there to be more user agency (forfeiting unwanted “protection”), but once Android offers that feature (attestation), industry expects it. You want everbody but developers on relocked, non debuggable phones - then you can ask Banks and Gov to do their part: to not gatekeep.