Install Lineage OS on Lenovo Tab 2 (TB2-X30F)

Install Lineage OS on Lenovo Tab 2 (TB2-X30F)

In our last tutorial we described the process to install TWRP on Lenovo tablets. In this article we will describe how to install Lineage OS (Android 7.1) on the Lenovo TAB tablets using TWRP.

Install Lineage OS on Lenovo Tab 2. Attention! This operating system can be installed only using TWRP and it doesn’t work to be installed as an update.

These are the steps to follow in order to install Lineage OS:

  1. Install TWRP Recovery. You can find here a step-by-step tutorial;
  2. Download the Lineage OS (Android 7.1) image from here;
  3. Download Gapps from here;
  4. Extract the downloaded archive at step 2 and transfer the image on the tablet’s SD card or in its internal memory;
  5. Do the same thing (as in step 4) with the Gapps archive, without unarchiving it;
  6. Access TWRP mode. To access recovery mode, turn off the tablet, press and hold the keys Volume UP + Power button. After the display turns on, stop pressing the power button and after 4 seconds stop pressing also the volume button. The TWRP recovery mode will automatically open.
  7. Before installing, we must make sure the tablet is connected to the charger, to avoid the risk of a sudden crash which would turn off the tablet during the install.
  8. In TWRP we select Install, select the SD card (if the image is on the SD card) and we glide the arrow to start;
  9. The installing takes pretty long (somewhere around 20-30 minutes). We must be patient and do not interrupt the process;
  10. After the operating system install is finished, select the Gapps archive and we install this too;
  11. Restart the tablet and wait for the operating system to boot (it will take longer than usual, being the first time);

These are the steps required to install Lineage OS on Lenovo Tab 2. It is important to mention that the tablet can be irreversibly damaged (bricked) if the steps above are not followed accordingly. Also, we are not responsible for possible problems which can occur during this process. All these operations are made on your own risk.

For any problem or question, don’t hesitate to write us a message using the comment section below.

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72 COMMENTS

  1. I tried this guide and unfortunately something went wrong in the process. For some reason my tablet is now left with no OS (TWRP is telling me this when I want to reboot, rebooting stays stuck in the Lenovo screen for +24 hrs.. I am not a techie (although I have rooted a Samsung A3 before and I use Ubuntu so I thought (!) this would be OK to try) and I need help with this. I read on the internet that there is rescue but I am not able to do this on my own.

    • Try to follow again the tutorial mentioned in the article above and it should re-write the operating system. Also, please make sure the model of your tablet matches the OS you are trying to install.

  2. I am sorry to say, but this guide is wrong, things are missing, and some of the responses below to issues that I and others had are also wrong.

    I followed the guide linked below instead and then all the flashing etc worked like a charm first time, using the Lineage install file mentioned above, and OpenGAPPS 7.1 for ARM 32 bit. I installed everything from an external SD-Card, that worked excellent. I did not flash TWRP, I just booted it from fastboot.

    However, the Lineage OS file mentioned above IS INDEED for X30L (not X30F as mentioned). It even says Welcome to TB2-X30L when you boot the tablet. (though some say there are no practical differences in F and L versions, just design) The problem is that the installation app keeps crashing when connecting to Wifi/Searching for updates. If skipping to connect to Wifi, it starts up, but there are no apps at all, just a Lineage splash screen. Nothing more.

    Rebooting the tablet starts the setup process over again. I enter the WiFi and continued. It crashed again, went back and selected No wifi. The previously entered info worked anyway apparently. When the option to select email came up, I selected google email and entered my credentials. That got things working and home screen with apps pops up.

    It seems really buggy though. When the screen goes black and power button is pressed to bring it back up, it just stays black. After a while and number of tries it suddenly works. My main app for navigation that I just downloaded is not running stable and is really slow and unresponsive. It worked fine on stock Android 5.1
    It’s in general frequently very unresponsive and apps keeps crashing. I’ll give it try for a day or two but initially it does not impress, unfortunately.

    androidauthority.com/lineageos-install-guide-893303/

    • Hi Tom,
      We followed the described guide step by step using the files linked to the article and it worked fine. However, there isn’t much we can help as we don’t have this tablet anymore.

      • That’s not possible. Following the guide, Lineage OS never gets installed. That’s a fact.
        Following or comparing the guide I linked, will show clearly the issues with the guide here.

        Anyone upgrading TB2-X30F or L to Lineage OS should follow the official Lineage OS installation procedure, using the rom file for the TB2-X30L. THere’s no difference in the procedure.

        Also, like I said, the rom file linked in this guide IS for X30L not F. I used it and my tablet now reports it is a X30L, which it isn’t.

        Also, the difference, I have learnt now, between F and L, is that L has LTE, F does not. So installing this rom on an F, will include functionality and apps for phone, which the F does not support. Perhaps that’s the root cause for the setup app crashing all the time when trying to connect to the internet. It’s possible to work around as I mentioned. But again, the info in this guide is incorrect. Once again, it’s a fact, it’s in the rom files.

  3. Ok, so now I stumbled on GAPPS instead. It say’s it’s the wrong version. This gapps is for 7.1, and my tablet is (was) 5.1.1. So that makes sense, in a way.

    I understand gapps is google apps, applications to be run in the os. So I should have gapps 7.1, not 5.1.1. since 7.1 is what I am installing, right.

    So I will take a wild guess here:
    The 7.1 OS hasn’t really been installed yet, it’s just the boot.img that has been flashed. And it will be installed upon first boot. So, naturally, the GAPPS won’t install because it sees the 5.1.1 version. If I install 5.1.1, it will be the wrong gapps once 7.1 is installed. So, I assume, I need to reboot the tablet to get it into 7.1 and then after that, go back into TWRP and install gapps.
    Right?

  4. Ok, so I have downloaded the OS, unzipped it and copied the whole unzipped folder to the Tab2 internal memory, and the GAPPS zip file too as described.

    The unzipped OS folder contains three .img files aboot.img, boot.img and modem.img

    I am not certain which image to flash, or all three?

    In any case I tried the boot and aboot and they both flashed in a second, returning Successfull.
    However, the guide above says it should take 20-30 minutes.

    So, since it took a second instead of 20-30 minutes, I wonder what I did wrong or missed?

    Thanks, Tom

    • Ok, so I found the exact same question and answer at the very beginning of the comments. Seems it is ok with only a second for img install, and it’s just the boot.img that should be installed, and then carry on.
      So now I try to carry on 🙂

  5. Still works fine, but the fastboot command unlock-go doesnt work, I used fastboot -s flashing unlock and fastboot oem unblock; Before install lineage zip and gapps, wipe or format SD. Finally I had to wait nearly eight minutes with the lenovo logo freezed, to access lineage OS assistant configuration

  6. Hello,
    i have a problem, when i want to install SiOS it will end up with a erorrs like:
    E:Unable to stat ´/data/data/com.android.browser.overlay.swe´
    E:Unable to stat ´/data/data/com.android.backupconfirm´
    E:Unable to stat ´/data/data/com.android.providers.calendar´
    E:Unable to stat ´/data/data/com.android.cellbroadcastreceiver´
    E:Unable to stat ´/data/data/com.wdstechnology.android.kryten´
    …….
    I want SiOS because frp lock, so i can use that tablet.

  7. Hello Alex, i just wanted to say that there person called Ak is not right because with this tablet tou couldn’t call anytime, this tablet have SIM slot for SMS receiving and sending. Also hotspot won’t be able to share when you won’t allow data and thats on many many devices we know about existence.

    • Hello,
      I’m not following you to be hones, what are you refering to? Indeed, you can call with this tablet as it has a SIM slot.
      And yes, in order to use it as a hotspot you need to enable mobile data and the hotspot option.

  8. There are bugs ,hotspot not working (showing error) untill mobile data is on and phone dialer is also not working i cant call with it

  9. I did this and I cannot get it to work. I had no problems installing TWRP, but installing the zip fails. It runs for some time (half a minute or so), then barfs out with “Error executing updater binary in zip”.
    I also tried to flash just boot.img. It does give no errors. However, in none of the situations the tablet will boot. It hangs around with the Lenovo logo for a minute or so and the reboots into TWRP. I can see that it actually installed some files before failing, so it seems it was running but never finished.
    The tablet is essentially briked. I can’t seem to install stock ROM agaiun with QFIL either, as it does not show up in devices. I assume it must have USB debugging enabled, but as it cannot start, I cannot enable it.
    Any tips? Did I miss something?

    • Make sure the image is for your exact model. From what I remember the stock image was flashed in Fastboot so you don’t need to enable USB debugging. Or try to write it with TWRP. When I first booted the tablet it got stuck on the Lenovo logo for around 20 minutes, did you wait this long? Maybe you could try to wait 20-30 minutes when booting to see if it goes past the logo.

  10. Hi. I tried it several times on my TB2 X30F but doesn’t work. TWRP is well installed. When I start on it if I try to install boot.img, it takes less than 1 second and doesn’t make nothing. If I try to install the ZIP archive, it doesn’t work neither.
    And for GAPPS, there isn’t img in it to install, and if I try to install ZIP, doesn’t work.
    Please what can I do ?
    Thanks.

  11. Hi. I have a new problem. I do not know why, but i had lost my mac direction for wifi conection. So i do tried to install once again the Rom from TWRP and now i have a boot looper to twrp. Somebody can help me?. I have tried to fix it with ADB but doesn’t detect any device, not windows nor linux mint.
    I tried to reinstall the rom with other Gapps, but failed. It Doesn’t reboot on fastboot or system. Always Recovery.
    Sorry i reposted this, but i commited a mistake before.

  12. It says that there is no such file in the directory. How do i solve this?
    P.S: I tried navigating to the adb folder itself and the twrp file and the file that im running on cmd have the same name

  13. Doesn’t work for me either.

    Instaled TWRP fine then tried to install the LiOS14-UNOFFICIAL-TB2-X30L.zipfile rom and it brings up loads of errors and says failed.

  14. Angelvoust: I also get this when I try to flash room e:unable to find partition size for ‘/recovery and the flash seem not to be working either. I also tested to install as I did on my other plate and on the phone. To install the entire zip file. and it worked. But because i getting this every time e:unable to find partition size for ‘/recovery . I think it is wrong on both the zip file and the TWR file.
    So i keep my so I keep my original on the plate.

  15. No nothing worked. installed back stock rooms instead.
    And as someone wrote to not install Gapp’s yes then custom rom becomes worthless to me as I use Google play to download my apps. And have bought some apps there.
    So I have to keep the original it is in any case 6.01

    • I’m the one who had those problems with gapps. I solved it sliding the upper bar, entering settings and adding my google account there. Then, i came back to the configuration app and everything worked.

  16. Hi I’m writing here instead.
    I look at the back of my plate that’s the F version I have. But it was still not possible to install the room. I flash boot.img as it says. But then nothing happens. I let it last for at least 40 minutes. So is there any solution?
    Mv Steve (Mats)

  17. first of all, this rom is not for the Lenovo Tab 2 (TB2-X30F). Is for the tb2-x30L. It doesn’t work properly. The gapps have the same problem.

    • It doesn’t work either. I have tried. one should not just flash boot image. Without the entire zip file should be included. Now I managed to install back stock rom after a lot of trouble.

      • For TB2-X30F should work, as the tutorial was done by us after testing it.
        If it didn’t work in your case, what are the steps that you managed to follow, where did you encounter problems and what was the exact problem encountered?

        • ok. I get the os initialize but the configuration manager always crashes. It always make me return to the language selection page.

      • I have done the installation trough zip files. Either lineage and gapps. I always get the same problem with it. The configuration app crashes at the update search and send me to the language page.

          • Yes. I did it. But i have done it even with gapps. I slided the upper bar and added an account of google through settings and then i had no failure as i use to have.
            Now i have a new problem with wifi. But i am trying to solve it

  18. Install Lineage successfully but Gapps failed. It says Gapps pkg is for Android 7.1.x version and advises me to download the correct version for your ROM: 6.0.1 (SDK 23).

    • Hi Sophal,
      Try installing Gapps for other Android version. I can’t remember exactly which Gapps version I installed but I managed to install it succesfully.

        • Try reinstalling Lineage and other Gapps version, unfortunately this would be the only suggestion I can think of. I didn’t had these kind of problems when trying on my tablet.

  19. Hi Alex

    i am very glad for your tutorial, but for me there is a little leak in description. In step four you describe to extract the archive and transfer the image from step 2. But in the linked file in archive are 3 different images. There is aboot, boot and modem. All .img files and i dont know which to use. And in TWRP i can install image and can check for install to boot.

    So can you please explain which file i should use?

    Thank you very much.
    Best regards
    Bastian

      • Hi Alex, i installed the boot.img, but it took only a few seconds? Is that everything to flash? Sorry for the very rooky questions. I cant find much about flashing the x30f in internet.

        Thank ou for your help.

        • There are no rooky questions, we are trying to help and are glad to do it. 🙂
          That should be everything, follow the rest of the steps and it should be ok.
          Please let me know if you encounter problems.

      • Hi. I have a new problem. I do not know why, but i had lost my mac direction for wifi conection. So i do tried to install once again the Rom from TWRP and now i have a boot looper to twrp. Somebody can help me?. I have tried to fix it with ADB but doesn’t detect any device, not windows nor linux mint.
        I tried to reinstall the rom with other Gapps, but failed. It Doesn’t reboot on fastboot or system. Always Recovery.