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| name = Nexus 7 (2012)
| name = Nexus 7 (2012)
| codename = asus-grouper
| codename = asus-grouper
| image = File:Nexus 7 2012 weston.jpg
| image = File:Nexus7_grouper_gnome_maps.jpeg
| imagecaption = Galaxy Nexus 7
| imagecaption = Google Nexus 7
| releaseyear = 2012
| releaseyear = 2012
| originalsoftware = Android 4.1.2 on Linux 3.0
| category = community
| chipset = Nvidia Tegra 3
| originalsoftware = Android
| originalversion = 4.1.2 on Linux 3.0
| chipset = Nvidia Tegra 3 (T30L)
| cpu = Quad-core 1.2 GHz Cortex-A9
| cpu = Quad-core 1.2 GHz Cortex-A9
| gpu = ULP GeForce
| gpu = ULP GeForce
Line 13: Line 15:
| display = 800x1280 IPS
| display = 800x1280 IPS
| memory = 1 GB
| memory = 1 GB
| architecture = armhf
| architecture = armv7
| whet_dhry = 1364.3
| type = tablet
| genericdevice=Nvidia Tegra armv7 (nvidia-tegra-armv7)
| status_usbnet = Y
| status_usbnet = Y
| status_flashing = Y
| status_flashing = Y
Line 19: Line 24:
| status_screen = Y
| status_screen = Y
| status_wifi = Y
| status_wifi = Y
| status_xwayland =  
| status_xwayland = Y
| status_fde =  
| status_fde = Y
| status_mainline =  
| status_mainline = Y
| status_battery =
| status_battery = Y
| status_3d =  
| status_3d = P
| status_accel =
| status_audio = Y
| status_audio =  
| status_bluetooth = Y
| status_bluetooth =
| status_camera =
| status_camera =
| status_gps =  
| status_gps = P
| status_mobiledata = -
| status_mobiledata = -
| status_sms = -
| status_sms = -
| status_calls = -
| status_calls = -
| status_otg = Y
| status_nfc = Y
<!-- Sensors -->
| status_accel = Y
| status_magnet = Y
| status_light = Y
| status_proximity = -
| status_hall = Y
<!-- Misc -->
| status_irtx = -
| status_trustzone = Y
| status_fossbootloader = Y
| status_keyboard = -
<!-- U-Boot -->
| status_uboot = yes
| status_uboot_primary = Y
| status_uboot_secondary = N
| status_uboot_mainline = Y
| status_uboot_internalstorage = Y
| status_uboot_sd = -
| status_uboot_usbhost = N
| status_uboot_usbperipheral = Y
| status_uboot_screen = Y
| status_uboot_keyboard = -
| status_uboot_buttons = Y
| booting = yes
| booting = yes
}}
}}{{Based on SoC|Nvidia_Tegra_3_(tegra30)|Tegra 3}}
=== Contributors ===
 
* antonok
This page documents the status of mainline Linux on the Nexus 7. This document should cover all tablets from first generation (codenamed grouper and tilapia).
* pangelo
 
Currently all supported features should work as they're supposed to, no known bugs except few not-yet supported features (3D, GPS, cameras and modem).
 
 
== Hardware revisions ==
 
* grouper rev. PM269 - without GSM (older, less frequent)
* grouper rev. E1565 - without GSM (modern)
* tilapia rev. E1565 - with GSM
 
 
==== Do I have grouper or tilapia? ====
<syntaxhighlight lang="shell">
TWRP (adb shell) $ grep androidboot.baseband=unknown /proc/cmdline && echo grouper || echo tilapia
</syntaxhighlight>
 
==== Which hardware revision of grouper do I have? ====
<syntaxhighlight lang="shell">
TWRP (adb shell) $ find /sys/devices/ | grep -c max776 && echo You have E1565
TWRP (adb shell) $ find /sys/devices/ | grep -c tps6591 && echo You have PM269
</syntaxhighlight>
 
== Flashing ==
When flashing (flashing the kernel or rootfs) the target device must be in flash mode.


=== How to enter flash mode ===
=== How to enter flash mode ===
* Connect a USB cable
* Connect a USB cable
* Power the device off
* Power the device off
* Hold power + volume down
* Hold {{Button|Power}} + {{Button|Volume Down}}
* <code>fastboot</code> should work when the green android appears on the screen
* <code>fastboot</code> should work when the green android appears on the screen


=== Installation process ===
== Hardware status (mainline) ==
<syntaxhighlight lang="shell" line='line'>
There is '''multiple hardware revisions''', so this status may not apply to all of them. This status apply for tilapia (Bach revision).
$ git clone https://gitlab.com/postmarketOS/pmbootstrap.git
{|class="wikitable feature-colors"
$ cd pmbootstrap
! Status
$ ./pmbootstrap.py init
! Hardware
$ ./pmbootstrap.py install
! Info
$ ./pmbootstrap.py flasher flash_kernel
|-
$ ./pmbootstrap.py flasher flash_rootfs
| Y
</syntaxhighlight>
|Booting
|... but when is kernel larger than approx 4MB, initfs must be packed directly inside kernel (not into boot.img as usual), otherwise kernel won't boot. Older downstream kernels was smaller, so no issue there.
|-
| Y
|Touchscreen
|Works.
|-
| Y
|USB & USB OTG
|Works.
|-
| Y
|SDHCI
|Works.
|-
| Y
|NFC
|wired, not tested yet. Please update if it'll work for you.
|-
| P
|GPS
|[[Broadcom BCM4751 GPS]] is unsupported by the kernel and gpsd. Pangelo works on it.
|-
| Y
|WiFi and Bluetooth
|Wi-Fi works (best with IWD daemon: apk add iwd; rc-update del wpa_supplicant; rc-update add iwd; and [https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/NetworkManager#Using_iwd_as_the_Wi-Fi_backend HOWTO]) but 802.11w (management frame protection) must be completely disabled, Bluetooth does work as well (tested with BT 4.2 and 5.0 devices).
|-
| Y
| GPIO keys
|There is 3 keys on GPIO: Power, Volume up, Volume down.
|-
| Y
| Battery and Charger
|Battery status and charging works as expected.
|-
| Y
|Sound
|Works, ALSA UCM configs are included into alsa-ucm-conf package
|-
| Y
|Temperature sensor
|temperature sensor works
|-
| Y
|Proximity sensor
|(tilapia only) Disabled, but works (boolean state, on/off). Would be nice to have this driver work with [https://01.org/linuxgraphics/gfx-docs/drm/driver-api/iio/index.html IIO framework] (TODO)
|-
| Y
|Light sensor
|Driver Dyna-Image AL3010. Brightness regulation [https://floss.social/@okias/103371284828595026 works], install iio-sensor-proxy . It's slightly [https://gitlab.com/alpine-mobile/pmaports/issues/3 oversensitive].
|-
| N
|Front camera
|
|-
| N
|3D support
| See [[Nvidia_Tegra_2_(tegra20)#Graphics]]
|-
| N
|Modem
|(tilapia only) contribution welcome, no work done yet.
|-
|}
 
== User Interfaces ==
Multiple, but due to not yet implemented HW acceleration, some of them are currently unavailable (like Phosh)
 
Recommended [https://wiki.postmarketos.org/wiki/Category:Interface interfaces]:
* <span style="color:#777777">Phosh: Purism Librem 5 compositor and GNOME based environment, needs performance optimization, but works.</span>
* Xfce4: GTK-based desktop environment aiming to be fast and lightweight. Follow the guide at https://wiki.postmarketos.org/wiki/XFCE4 for adjustments.


=== UI options ===
== Development Notes ==
* Weston: Boots, but also occasionally reboots on its own.
* Hildon: Boots into a black screen. Poking some <code>/sys/</code> variables might make the screen flash or turn on, but it remains unusable
* XFCE4: Boots into a black screen.
* Mate: Can't flash. This is due to the <code>.img</code> file being bigger than the system partition size.
* Luna: Can't flash. Same as Mate.
* KDE (Plasma-Mobile): Can't flash. Same as Mate. Which in turn wrecks your device partitions. This has happened even with <code>flasher flash_rootfs --partition userdata</code>


=== Development Notes ===
==== Bootloader ====
* There is some progress on u-boot for Tegra devices. Check [https://github.com/clamor-s/u-boot u-boot repository]
* The default images for android provided by google have the bootloader broken, meaning it can't be flashed. It does not seem to affect the install process of postmarketOS, but is something to take into account. If you need a working bootloader image version 4.23 can be found [[https://drive.google.com/file/d/1eVEQJtrByuAYRmS924-BAMGQcRXuBj7C/view?usp=sharing| here]], or can be 4.18 can be grabbed from the factory images for KitKat


==== Kernel ====
==== Kernel ====


* The port is using the LineageOS kernel found [https://github.com/LineageOS/android_kernel_asus_grouper here]
Currently used mainline kernel:
* The kernel cannot be compiled on versions of gcc newer than 4.9 without the appropriate patch
* [https://github.com/grate-driver/linux Grate kernel], where tegra development ongoing. It does follow official linux-next branch.
* UART debugging through the headphone jack doesn't seem to work - apparently the 2012 version of the Nexus 7 does not have this feature.
 
* [https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Nexus7/Kernel This page] includes a list of changes to the Android kernel that are not present in mainline Linux.
References to older kernels:
* A newer kernel, that should work, can be found here (thanks to Jasper in IRC): https://github.com/Unlegacy-Android
* <span style="color:#777777">Old Android kernels: [https://github.com/LineageOS/android_kernel_asus_grouper LineageOS kernel sources] [https://github.com/Unlegacy-Android Unlegacy kernel sources]</span>
* The default images for android provided by google have the bootloader broken, meaning it can't be flashed. It does not seem to affect the install process of PostmarketOS, but is something to take into account.
* <span style="color:#777777">[https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Nexus7/Kernel Ubuntu Nexus 7 Kernel wiki] (old, last updated 2012)</span>


==== Graphics ====
==== Graphics ====


* CONFIG_VT had to be enabled for graphics to work. In menuconfig this is located under Device Drivers -&gt; Character devices -&gt; Virtual terminal.
* <s>/sys/class/graphics/fb0/mode is empty on boot, it must have U:800x1280p-0. This uses the same initfs hook as many other devices.</s> '''Update:''' Seems to be correctly set now
* xwayland does not work.
* weston with fbdev-backend.so uses pixman-type=3 (PIXMAN_TYPE_ABGR), which now does not require configuration.
* The touchscreen input device is named <code>elan-touchscreen</code>.
* The touchscreen input device is named <code>elan-touchscreen</code>.
* <span style="color:#777777">(legacy) CONFIG_VT had to be enabled for graphics to work. In menuconfig this is located under Device Drivers -&gt; Character devices -&gt; Virtual terminal.</span>
* <span style="color:#777777">(legacy) <s>/sys/class/graphics/fb0/mode is empty on boot, it must have U:800x1280p-0. This uses the same initfs hook as many other devices.</s> '''Update:''' Seems to be correctly set now</span>
* <span style="color:#777777">(legacy) weston with fbdev-backend.so uses pixman-type=3 (PIXMAN_TYPE_ABGR), which now does not require configuration.</span>


==== Wifi ====
==== Wifi ====


* The wifi chip is the Broadcom 4330.
* There's a proper firmware subpackage now, wifi device should work out-of-the box.  
* This device was once officially supported on Ubuntu, so it has a firmware package in the [https://packages.ubuntu.com/trusty/linux-firmware-nexus7 Ubuntu repositories]
* "Desktop" Linux firmware are outdated. Check [https://android.googlesource.com/platform/hardware/broadcom/wlan/+/master/bcmdhd/firmware/bcm4330/ here] for latest one.
* "Desktop" Linux firmware are outdated. Check [https://android.googlesource.com/platform/hardware/broadcom/wlan/+/master/bcmdhd/firmware/bcm4330/ here] for latest one.
* It is possible to manually get wifi working by manually copying fw_bcmdhd.bin and nvram.txt to their kernel-specified locations and configuring <code>/etc/network/interfaces</code>. At this point, running <code>/etc/init.d/networking restart</code>, gave an error about being unable to get a MAC address. After restarting the device to find that wifi Just Worked™, it was possible to successfully scan for wireless networks and establish a connection to secured wireless APs.
* To connect follow the instructions on [[WiFi#Using_NetworkManager|this page.]]
* There's a proper firmware subpackage now, wifi device should work out-of-the box.
* <span style="color:#777777">(legacy)It is possible to manually get wifi working by manually copying fw_bcmdhd.bin and nvram.txt to their kernel-specified locations and configuring <code>/etc/network/interfaces</code>. At this point, running <code>/etc/init.d/networking restart</code>, gave an error about being unable to get a MAC address. After restarting the device to find that wifi Just Worked™, it was possible to successfully scan for wireless networks and establish a connection to secured wireless APs.</span>
 
==== USB networking ====
 
* <s>I was able to get networking over USB with an RTL8150 ethernet USB adapter by enabling the RTL8150 kernel config and following the [https://wiki.alpinelinux.org/wiki/Configure_Networking network setup guide on the Alpine Linux wiki].</s> '''Update:''' Nothing special required anymore. Just boot up and use the [https://wiki.postmarketos.org/wiki/USB_Network#Assigning_an_IP_address DHCP networking process for USB networks]


=== Pending Issues ===
=== Pending Issues ===


* {{issue|201|pmaports}}: device seems to reboot spontaneously under heavy load (could be a hardware problem though, needs more testing).
* {{issue|60|pmbootstrap}}: Use the system and userdata partition on Android with LVM
* {{issue|1422|pmbootstrap}}: The <code>system</code> partition is too small to hold rootfs images over 650Mb (e.g. Plasma Mobile is about 1.1Gb). Flashing to <code>userdata</code> partition fails.
* {{issue|1422|pmbootstrap}}: The <code>system</code> partition is too small to hold rootfs images over 650Mb (e.g. Plasma Mobile is about 1.1Gb). Flashing to <code>userdata</code> partition fails.
* <span style="color:#777777">{{issue|201|pmaports}}: With legacy kernel, device seems to reboot spontaneously under heavy load. For better experience, please use mainline kernel.</span>


==== See also ====
= Community Info =


These are other pending issues that are related to this device:
== Users owning this device ==
{{ Device owners }}


* {{issue|60|pmbootstrap}}: Use the system and userdata partition on Android with LVM
== Maintainers ==
* {{github|1199}}: Unfinished pull request to use "unlegacy's kernel"
 
* [[User:okias|David Heidelberg]]
== Fun Fact ==


=== Fun Fact ===
''<code>grouper</code> was the first tablet to run postmarketOS!''


''<code>grouper</code> was the first tablet to run pmOS!''
== See also ==
- dmesg logs from various tegra devices https://paste.sr.ht/%7Eokias

Latest revision as of 02:51, 9 January 2025

Note This device is supported as part of a generic port. Refer to Nvidia Tegra armv7 (nvidia-tegra-armv7) for installation instructions and more information.
Google (ASUS) Nexus 7 (2012)
Google Nexus 7
Google Nexus 7
Manufacturer Google (ASUS)
Name Nexus 7 (2012)
Codename asus-grouper
Released 2012
Type tablet
Hardware
Chipset Nvidia Tegra 3 (T30L)
CPU Quad-core 1.2 GHz Cortex-A9
GPU ULP GeForce
Display 800x1280 IPS
Storage 8/16/32 GB
Memory 1 GB
Architecture armv7
Software
Original software Android
Original version 4.1.2 on Linux 3.0
FOSS bootloader yes
postmarketOS
Category community
Pre-built images yes
Unixbench Whet/Dhry score 1364.3
Generic port Nvidia Tegra armv7 (nvidia-tegra-armv7)
Features
Flashing
Works
USB Networking
Works
Internal storage
No data
SD card
No data
Battery
Works
Screen
Works
Touchscreen
Works
Multimedia
3D Acceleration
Partial
Audio
Works
Camera
No data
Camera Flash
No data
Connectivity
WiFi
Works
Bluetooth
Works
GPS
Partial
NFC
Works
Miscellaneous
FDE
Works
USB OTG
Works
HDMI/DP
No data
Sensors
Accelerometer
Works
Magnetometer
Works
Ambient Light
Works
Hall Effect
Works
Haptics
No data
Barometer
No data
U-Boot
Primary Bootloader
Works
Secondary Bootloader
Broken
Mainline
Works
Internal Storage
Works
USB Host
Broken
USB Peripheral
Works
Display
Works
Buttons
Works

This page documents the status of mainline Linux on the Nexus 7. This document should cover all tablets from first generation (codenamed grouper and tilapia).

Currently all supported features should work as they're supposed to, no known bugs except few not-yet supported features (3D, GPS, cameras and modem).


Hardware revisions

  • grouper rev. PM269 - without GSM (older, less frequent)
  • grouper rev. E1565 - without GSM (modern)
  • tilapia rev. E1565 - with GSM


Do I have grouper or tilapia?

TWRP (adb shell) $ grep androidboot.baseband=unknown /proc/cmdline && echo grouper || echo tilapia

Which hardware revision of grouper do I have?

TWRP (adb shell) $ find /sys/devices/ | grep -c max776 && echo You have E1565
TWRP (adb shell) $ find /sys/devices/ | grep -c tps6591 && echo You have PM269

Flashing

When flashing (flashing the kernel or rootfs) the target device must be in flash mode.

How to enter flash mode

  • Connect a USB cable
  • Power the device off
  • Hold Power + Volume Down
  • fastboot should work when the green android appears on the screen

Hardware status (mainline)

There is multiple hardware revisions, so this status may not apply to all of them. This status apply for tilapia (Bach revision).

Status Hardware Info
Y Booting ... but when is kernel larger than approx 4MB, initfs must be packed directly inside kernel (not into boot.img as usual), otherwise kernel won't boot. Older downstream kernels was smaller, so no issue there.
Y Touchscreen Works.
Y USB & USB OTG Works.
Y SDHCI Works.
Y NFC wired, not tested yet. Please update if it'll work for you.
P GPS Broadcom BCM4751 GPS is unsupported by the kernel and gpsd. Pangelo works on it.
Y WiFi and Bluetooth Wi-Fi works (best with IWD daemon: apk add iwd; rc-update del wpa_supplicant; rc-update add iwd; and HOWTO) but 802.11w (management frame protection) must be completely disabled, Bluetooth does work as well (tested with BT 4.2 and 5.0 devices).
Y GPIO keys There is 3 keys on GPIO: Power, Volume up, Volume down.
Y Battery and Charger Battery status and charging works as expected.
Y Sound Works, ALSA UCM configs are included into alsa-ucm-conf package
Y Temperature sensor temperature sensor works
Y Proximity sensor (tilapia only) Disabled, but works (boolean state, on/off). Would be nice to have this driver work with IIO framework (TODO)
Y Light sensor Driver Dyna-Image AL3010. Brightness regulation works, install iio-sensor-proxy . It's slightly oversensitive.
N Front camera
N 3D support See Nvidia_Tegra_2_(tegra20)#Graphics
N Modem (tilapia only) contribution welcome, no work done yet.

User Interfaces

Multiple, but due to not yet implemented HW acceleration, some of them are currently unavailable (like Phosh)

Recommended interfaces:

  • Phosh: Purism Librem 5 compositor and GNOME based environment, needs performance optimization, but works.
  • Xfce4: GTK-based desktop environment aiming to be fast and lightweight. Follow the guide at https://wiki.postmarketos.org/wiki/XFCE4 for adjustments.

Development Notes

Bootloader

  • There is some progress on u-boot for Tegra devices. Check u-boot repository
  • The default images for android provided by google have the bootloader broken, meaning it can't be flashed. It does not seem to affect the install process of postmarketOS, but is something to take into account. If you need a working bootloader image version 4.23 can be found [here], or can be 4.18 can be grabbed from the factory images for KitKat

Kernel

Currently used mainline kernel:

  • Grate kernel, where tegra development ongoing. It does follow official linux-next branch.

References to older kernels:

Graphics

  • The touchscreen input device is named elan-touchscreen.
  • (legacy) CONFIG_VT had to be enabled for graphics to work. In menuconfig this is located under Device Drivers -> Character devices -> Virtual terminal.
  • (legacy) /sys/class/graphics/fb0/mode is empty on boot, it must have U:800x1280p-0. This uses the same initfs hook as many other devices. Update: Seems to be correctly set now
  • (legacy) weston with fbdev-backend.so uses pixman-type=3 (PIXMAN_TYPE_ABGR), which now does not require configuration.

Wifi

  • There's a proper firmware subpackage now, wifi device should work out-of-the box.
  • "Desktop" Linux firmware are outdated. Check here for latest one.
  • To connect follow the instructions on this page.
  • (legacy)It is possible to manually get wifi working by manually copying fw_bcmdhd.bin and nvram.txt to their kernel-specified locations and configuring /etc/network/interfaces. At this point, running /etc/init.d/networking restart, gave an error about being unable to get a MAC address. After restarting the device to find that wifi Just Worked™, it was possible to successfully scan for wireless networks and establish a connection to secured wireless APs.

Pending Issues

  • pmbootstrap#60: Use the system and userdata partition on Android with LVM
  • pmbootstrap#1422: The system partition is too small to hold rootfs images over 650Mb (e.g. Plasma Mobile is about 1.1Gb). Flashing to userdata partition fails.
  • pmaports#201: With legacy kernel, device seems to reboot spontaneously under heavy load. For better experience, please use mainline kernel.

Community Info

Users owning this device

  • 00p513
  • Antonok
  • Baonks81 (Notes: Hw rev.E1565 no GSM - 6 tablets software 3d accelerate on ALARM with grate-driver LLVMpipe built)
  • Bczeman
  • Blitztide
  • BogdanTheGeek (Notes: E1565 no GSM)
  • Clamor (Notes: pmOS with Grate kernel and U-Boot)
  • Ecloud
  • Eloy
  • GloomyJD (Notes: Works, very weak battery)
  • Gull Code (Notes: OK,daily use with XFCE4. See my profile if you want to have automatic rotation and light with Asus grouper sensor daemon or jump to https://gitlab.com/gullradriel/asus-grouper-nexus-7-sensor-daemon)
  • Hilledkinged (Notes: Revived from corrupt bootloader)
  • Isot42 (Notes: OK PM269 version)
  • Joshaspinall (Notes: PM269)
  • LongnoseRob (Notes: 2x E1565 type, pmOS (edge) w/ u-boot, UI: mate)
  • Maff (Notes: Multiple)
  • Mattdaha
  • Misopog (Notes: Like new, unlocked, stock)
  • Nergzd723 (Notes: emmc dead, bct partition intact, possible to fusee-gelee)
  • Okias (Notes: OK, HW rev.E1565 (asus-tilapia))
  • Pangelo (Notes: original grouper (non-GSM) model)
  • Pojntfx
  • Progressnoize (Notes: Screen broken)
  • Roboe (Notes: (borrowed) variant: grouper, version-hardware: ER3; HW rev. E1565; running pmOS edge with U-Boot bootloader)
  • Roboe (Notes: (borrowed) variant: grouper; version-hardware: ER3; HW rev. E1565; broken battery)
  • Russanandres (Notes: Cyanogenmod 11, using for old gaiming)
  • Segfault (Notes: x3 - 2 16GB and 1 32GB)
  • The Arjdroid (Notes: Impressive! Works with phosh & xfce4, but not daily driveable yet. It needs 3D acceleration for smoother UI, & firefox fix crashes. Great for running it as a no display server like a raspberry pi. Running with xfce4 can make it usable as a smart display like a calendar or something.)
  • Yifei (Notes: bad battery)


Maintainers

Fun Fact

grouper was the first tablet to run postmarketOS!

See also

- dmesg logs from various tegra devices https://paste.sr.ht/%7Eokias