How to Extract Android OTA Payload.bin File using Payload Dumper Tool on a PC or Android Device
Introduction:
Extracting the Android OTA (Over-The-Air) payload file, known as payload.bin, can be useful for various purposes such as creating custom ROMs or analyzing firmware updates. The Payload Dumper tool provides an easy way to extract the contents of the payload.bin file. This article will guide you through the extraction process on both a PC and an Android device.
Extraction on a PC:
1. Install Python: Payload Dumper Tool is a Python program, so you'll need to have Python 3 or higher installed on your PC. Download and install Python from the official website.
2. Download Payload Dumper Tool: Get the latest version of the Payload Dumper Tool from the provided link and extract its contents to a suitable location. You should have a folder named "payload_dumper."
3. Obtain the OTA Package: Download the complete ZIP OTA package for your specific Android device. Extract the downloaded ZIP file using an archive tool like WinRAR or 7Zip. Inside the extracted content, you'll find the "Payload.bin" file. Copy this file into the "payload_dumper" folder.
4. Open Command Line: On your PC, navigate to the "payload_dumper" folder. To open the command line window in this folder:
- Windows: Hold SHIFT and right-click on an empty space inside the folder, then select "Open PowerShell window here."
- macOS/Linux: Launch Terminal and use the 'cd' command to change your directory to the "payload_dumper" folder.
5. Install Protobuf: Before using the tool, you need to install 'Protobuf' (Google Data Exchange Format), which is a dependency. Enter the following command in the command line window:
```
pip install protobuf
```
6. Run the Payload Dumper Tool: Use the following command to extract the payload.bin file:
```
python payload_dumper.py payload.bin
```
Extraction on an Android Device:
1. Download Payload Dumper Tool: Download the Payload Dumper Tool and extract the contents of the downloaded 'payload_dumper_tool_by_ius.zip' file to the root directory of your device's internal storage.
2. Obtain the OTA Package: Download the OTA package from which you want to extract the firmware images. Extract the OTA package on your device to get the "payload.bin" file. Copy the extracted payload.bin file to the "payload_dumper" folder that you extracted in the previous step.
3. Install Termux: Install the 'Termux' app, a terminal emulator, from the Google Play Store.
4. Install Python and Dependencies: Launch Termux and enter the following commands one by one to install and configure Python and its dependencies:
```
pkg install python -y
pip install --upgrade pip
pip install protobuf
apt update && apt upgrade -y
```
5. Grant Storage Permissions: Allow storage permissions to Termux by entering the following command:
```
termux-setup-storage
```
6. Change Directory and Extract Payload: Navigate to the "payload_dumper" folder using the following command:
```
cd storage/shared/payload_dumper
```
Note: Adjust the path according to the location where you extracted the "payload_dumper" folder.
7. Run the Payload Dumper Tool: Finally, use the following command in Termux to extract the Android OTA payload.bin file:
```
python payload_dumper.py payload.bin
```
Conclusion:
By following the steps outlined above, you can easily extract the Android OTA payload.bin file using the Payload Dumper Tool on both a PC and an Android device. This allows you to access and analyze the firmware images contained within the payload.bin file for various purposes.