A step-by-step guide for installing the Android OS on your Raspberry Pi 4

Learn how to install the Android operating system on your Raspberry Pi 4 with this easy-to-follow tutorial. Follow these steps and turn your Raspberry Pi into a powerful Android device! …


Updated August 7, 2023

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Learn how to install the Android operating system on your Raspberry Pi 4 with this easy-to-follow tutorial. Follow these steps and turn your Raspberry Pi into a powerful Android device!

Note: This guide is for advanced users who are comfortable with command line operations and are willing to accept the risks involved in installing an experimental operating system on their device. Proceed at your own risk.

Step 1: Prepare Your Raspberry Pi 4

Before you begin, make sure that your Raspberry Pi 4 is properly set up with the latest software and hardware updates. Follow these steps to prepare your device:

  1. Update your Raspberry Pi OS:
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade
  1. Enable SSH for remote access (optional but recommended):
sudo systemctl enable ssh
sudo systemctl start ssh
  1. Install required dependencies:
sudo apt install git device-tree-compiler gcc-aarch64-linux-gnu bison flex libssl-dev make python3-dev qemu-user-static debootstrap zerofree parted

Step 2: Download the Android Image for Raspberry Pi

You’ll need to download a custom image of the Android operating system designed for Raspberry Pi. The Android on Raspberry Pi project provides ready-made images that you can use:

  1. Go to https://github.com/rpi-os/manifest and download the latest rpi-android manifest file.
  2. Clone the repository using the downloaded manifest file:
git clone --depth=1 -b rpi-android git@github.com:LineageOS/lineage_manifests.git
  1. Enter the cloned directory and download the image:
cd lineage_manifests
./scripts/download-aosp.sh android-10.0.0_rpi

This will take some time to complete, depending on your internet connection speed.

Step 3: Flash the Android Image onto Your Raspberry Pi

Once you have downloaded the Android image for Raspberry Pi, it’s time to flash it onto your device. Make sure to back up any important data before proceeding.

  1. Insert a microSD card into your computer and find its device name using lsblk. For example, it might be /dev/mmcblk0.
  2. Unmount the SD card if it’s mounted:
sudo umount /dev/mmcblk0p1 && sudo umount /dev/mmcblk0p2
  1. Flash the image onto the SD card using dd:
sudo dd bs=4M if=lineage-17.1-202108229-UNOFFICIAL-beryllium-rpi4.img of=/dev/mmcblk0 && sync

This command will take a while to complete, depending on your SD card’s size and write speed.

Step 4: Configure the Boot Partition

After flashing the image, you need to configure the boot partition to enable USB OTG support. Follow these steps:

  1. Create a new folder for the boot files:
mkdir boot
  1. Mount the boot partition of your SD card:
sudo mount /dev/mmcblk0p1 boot
  1. Copy the necessary boot files from the downloaded image to the boot partition:
cp lineage-17.1-202108229-UNOFFICIAL-beryllium-rpi4.img.boot/* boot/
  1. Edit the config.txt file in the boot partition to enable USB OTG support:
sudo nano boot/config.txt

Add the following line at the end of the file:

dtoverlay=dwc2

Save and exit the editor. 5. Unmount the SD card:

sudo umount boot

Step 5: Boot Your Raspberry Pi with Android OS

Insert the microSD card into your Raspberry Pi, connect a display and a keyboard, and power it on. You should see the Android boot animation followed by the home screen.

Troubleshooting

If you encounter any issues during the installation process, try these solutions:

  • Make sure that your Raspberry Pi 4 has at least 4GB of RAM to support the Android OS.
  • If your device freezes during the boot sequence, try adding console=tty1 to the config.txt file in the boot partition and rebooting. This will give you access to the command line for troubleshooting purposes.
  • If you experience WiFi issues, install a supported USB WiFi dongle and configure it using nmtui or wpa_supplicant.

Congratulations! You have successfully installed Android on your Raspberry Pi 4. Now you can enjoy the full capabilities of Android on this powerful device.