🔧 amazon echo dot
her name is anni, short for annihilation, she runs postmarketOS. currently the root for the echo is tethered, and the postmarket port for it lacks wifi and bluetooth. supposedly audio has recently been added but i don't know how to configure it
biscuit on the postmarketOS wiki
TODO: write about the new untethered root!
rainbow daemon
a featureful script to make controlling the echo's led ring easier
you can run rainbowd after the boot animation in /etc/local.d/led.start to play a custom animation or just turn the led off
reclaiming storage space
by default, the userdata partition postmarketOS boots from only takes up the last 1.2gb of the flash memory. the android system_a/b and cache partitions are unused but take up 800mb each of your echo's meager 4gb of storage space
0. root your echo, installing postmarketOS is "optional" but doing this won't let you boot or install fireOS until you reset your partition table
1. run mtk rl, then plug your echo in to backup all your partitions, this should give you your userdata.img (and everything else you need for unbricking)
2. unplug your echo, and patch mtkclient to use the correct preloader (TODO: submit a pr to mtkclient, add a --preloader argument to fs)
3. run mtk fs, then plug your echo in to mount the echo's flash
4. in a new terminal window, resize the partitions
you can resize the system_a/b and cache partitions to whatever you want, as long they exist the userdata partition will be recognized by the bootloader
type ignore if it tells you the partition is not properly aligned, that only matters for the userdata partition. you should end up with something like this:
5. quit parted, then terminate mtk fs
6. reflash your userdata partition
7. reconnect your echo and run plstage to boot it, rootfs should now be 3.37gb!
unbricking
debrick guide by the creator of echocli
i noticed this guide does not flash the preloader like it says it will, for some reason mtkclient does not detect the preloader parition, you will have to flash that with fastboot
the most important debricking step is to create backups! use mtk rl to dump all your partitions before touching them at all. if you do this you can lose your entire partition table without worry. if you do, you can recreate it by hand in parted and reflash all of your partitions and it will be like nothing ever happened