Recently, Cyanogenmod released CM13 (Marshmallow) for 2011 Sony Xperia devices. The custom rom shared in this article is specifically meant for Xperia Arc and Arc S (anzu). The ROM is based on Android 6.0 Marshmallow. This rom has been tested to be fully working on Xperia Arc S (LT18i) by me. So far, it runs smoothly. The only bug in this ROM is with the Bluetooth. It sometimes refuse to enable.
Since the internal storage of this device is small, a fast SDcard is required to be used as the data partition. If you wish to install this rom on your device, read and follow the three easy steps below carefully.
Downloads
- Cyanogenmod 13.0 for Arc and Arc S – Download
- Recommended Gapps – Download (Updated)
- Adb/Fastboot package (Important) – Download – Mirror
- MiniTool Partition Wizard – Download
Note: LT15i (Arc) users need to flash LT18i (Arc S) ftf flash file (ICS 4.1.B.0.587).
HOW TO INSTALL CM13 ON XPERIA ARC & ARC S
Step One: Partitioning and Formatting sdcard to ext4 or F2FS
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- Connect sdcard to PC via card reader or insert in your device and mount as mass storage
- Install and launch MiniTool Partition Wizard on pc
- From the listed drives, select your sdcard and click on Delete
- Now click on Create
- From the displayed New Partition Options, configure as below –
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Create As
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- : Primary
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- –
File System
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- : Unformatted
- Leave every other option as is, then click Ok
- Now click on Apply, and select Yes from the popup.
- Wait for the process to complete.
- Done.
You can also watch this brief video guide on how to format your sdcard to F2FS for CM13 installation:
Step Two: Preparing To Flash CM13
- Extract the download fastboot/adb package to desktop. Should look like this C:…Desktopadb
- Now, extract boot.img from CM13 rom package to the the adb folder on your desktop. That is: copy boot.img to C:…Desktopadb
- Rename the downloaded CM13 package to update.zip
- Rename also the download Gapps package to gapps.zip
- Renaming the downloaded packages helps you avoid making mistakes when typing the file names in cmd.
- Copy both files (update.zip and gapps.zip) to C:…Desktopadb, or wherever you adb files are located.
Step Three (Final step): Flashing CM13
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- Insert the formatted sdcard to your device and power off
- Connect to PC in fastboot mode (hold menu button and connect USB cable)
- Launch cmd from your fastboot/adb folder (Hold Shift button while right-clicking on the adb/fastboot folder, then select Open Command Window here)
- Type in these commands:
fastboot flash boot boot.img
fastboot reboot
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- While the device is booting up, disconnect from pc and press the Volume down button repeatedly to boot into recovery mode.
- Once in recovery, perform the following
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Factory reset > full factory reset
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Wipe cache
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- –
Advanced > wipe system partition
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- Now select Apply Update > Apply from ADB
- Connect the device back to PC via USB cable and type the following commands:
adb sideload update.zip
Wait for the loading process to complete. If it stops at 47% don’t panic, just go ahead with the remaining step.
adb sideload gapps.zip
- Once this completes loading, disconnect from PC and reboot device to system.
- Done.
See some of my screenshots below…
91 Comments
This comment has been removed by the author.
I've already have CM11 installed on my LT18i, but want to install this one.
I tried to find 64-bit USB driver for LT18i it, but I couldn't find one. I then installed Sony PC Companion, but it would not recognize the phone. I installed Google USB driver from Android Sdk.
I entered the fastboot mode on my phone and blue LED was lighting. When entering the commands, it always gets stuck on:
. I'm using Windows 10.
What am I doing wrong?
Where do you get stuck? Like the command or error response you get.
Google USB Driver should fix the driver problem if it's actually driver related.
But then, just tell me the exact response you get from fastboot so I can know how to assist you fix it.
c:Users…Desktopadb>fastboot flash boot boot.img
< waiting for any devices >
c:Users…Desktopadb> adb devices
List of devices attached
c:Users…Desktopadb> fastboot devices
c:Users…Desktopadb>
In the device manager:
> Other devices
S1Boot Fastboot
It's driver related.
Download Xperia USB Driver Pack here, run and install the drivers. When you arrive where you have to select the drivers to install, select flashtool, fastboot, and Sony Xperia Arc/Arc S.
Once installation is complete, reboot PC. Connect your device once the pc is fully booted and allow your device driver to install properly.
Now you can start running the commands.
Note: It is recommended that you use the fastboot/adb package provided in this article to flash cm13 on your device. This is because using any adb version lower than 1.0.32 will result in errors.
It worked! Just that you had to repeat the Apply update -> Update from ADB for the gapps.zip, too.
Thank you !!!
yes this is true
Nice to know it worked fine for you 🙂
Well, good to know you finally got it to work. Let me know if there's any other thing I can help you with.
What am i missing here?
After i type "Fastboot reboot", wipe partition etc.
In step 8, i got result "Error: device not found"
You got that error because you skipped 7:
Now select Apply Update > Apply from ADB
After completing that step, you can then sideload the rom and gapps.
No i'm not skipped it.
I've completed step 1 to 7, without problems.
But in step 8, when i plugged my phone in pc (yes, with Apply from ADB in my cyanogenmod recovery active) then type the command, the result is : "Error: device not found".
I don't think its because driver problems, bcoz when i flash the boot.img , and do fastboot reboot, my phone interact as it should be.
Vashta, I think you should consider reinstalling the drivers. Use this.
Besides, what version of Windows is your computer running?
it still not found and this link not works
Hello!!. I followed every single step and got everything right but I get stuck with a boot loop. Any ideas for the cause of this.
Thank you!
Hello!!. I followed every single step and got everything right but I get stuck with a boot loop. Any ideas for the cause of this.
Thank you!
Hi Tejala!
It seems you would have to flash stock ICS 4.1.B.0.587 firmware on your device. That is, if actually you followed the steps above accurately and carefully before your device got stuck in a boot loop.
I flashed lt18i ftf on my lt15i as mentioned in the instructions. Could it be something wrong with SD card?. Its a class 10 32gb sd card but I bought it from eBay and its unbranded.
Thanks a lot!!
A class 10 sdcard should run this CM13 ROM perfectly on your device. If you suspect this issue to be from the sd, try installing the firmware using a different sdcard.
The ROM cannot load properly if the data files are fully installed. I think that's why the decive is stuck in a bootloop. Try a different sdcard, then let me know if it works!
hi, I've successfully installed CM13 as your instruction above, but after installation, the play store and play services stopped working. do you have any idea how to fix it?
Reset the device. If resetting doesn't fix it, flash gapps again.
hi, Ibeen stock in Apply Update > Apply from ADB after this I can not conect the phone with PC for instaling the update zip where am doing wrong
What error message do you see?
fail to read command
For me to assist you properly, you need to clearly explain how you came about that error response.
Which of the steps did you encounter that?
download link not working
Not Found
The requested URL /1Xsal6 was not found on this server.
Apache/2.2.3 (Red Hat) Server at adf.ly Port 80
https://scontent-vie1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xlf1/v/t34.0-12/13020431_10204220490191723_756195026_n.png?oh=e83a00d55abb16f564951175e6676482&oe=5715A39F
Recommended gapps link is not found. Can you please help. Thank you
Sorry about the broken link. Links updated!
Fixed!
Fixed!
Hi Ramce! I think there's a problem with your Adb/fastboot. Follow this link to install adb systemwide on your laptop.
Then download the fastboot package I shared in this guide and run the commands from the directory you placed the package.
Sorry for my late reply!
hi I have a problem
when I try to update I get an error message that says cannot read update.zip
Are you certain that the rom zip package downloaded properly without breaking?
Hi, first thanks for such a clear post!
Unfortunately CM13 is slow and if I install GAPPS on top of CM13 phone is extremley slow, to the point where I need to wait a whole minute sometimes more to make a call.
Question is is there a way to downgrade?
Thanks
Yes!
You can easily downgrade to any other Rom of your choice. But first, backup the data on your sdcard- if you have important files in it.
Download the rom you wish to flash or downgrade to, extract the boot.img and flash via fastboot. Wipe cache, data, and dalvik. Then flash the rom. Your device should boot just fine to the new rom.
Thanks for the compliment. Let me know if there's anything else I can help you with.
its says cannot read
and I cant do the last step to install
its says can not read update zip
in the comand window
I got the same problem.
Are you sure the file you downloaded is not broken? I think you should redownload the file.
I thing that the files are ok give me link where I can downloaded again but I thing that its ok the file
Download from the link in this post- above.
Hello, I'm willing to try your tutorial, but before I want to ask if its updated and most important how can I backup my Arc (not Arc S) DRM keys (TA partition) before unlocking the bootloader?
Follow this guide on xda-developers forum to backup your TA Partition.
I found that when I searched but it says its for "Sony Xperia" and
all Sony Ericsson Xperia models are not supported.
I tried and "No compatible TA partition found on your device" I guess its not supported as I mentioned above. Any idea?
The TA Partition backup tool doesn't seem to work on Sony Ericsson Xperia devices, but Sony Xperia.
So the tool won't work on your Xperia Arc. I also doubt the availability of an alternative backup method / tool.
OK thanx I unlocked it anyway. Now I'm on the final step! On Step Three (Final step): Flashing CM13, i'm on step 7 "select Apply Update > Apply from ADB", when I connect the device again there is no cmd window to type the final commands. What did I wrong?
OK done, I restarted cmd. Both update and gapps stopped at 47% but I proceeded. Thanx for the tutorial. Now if I want to update the rom or try another, should I just go to Step Three (Final step)? How about changing only kernel?
Yeah! You will have to change kernel too. The kernel used here is only compatible with Cyanogenmod 13 or 6.0 ROMs.
Hello, I followed up your instructions but I am stuck after 'adb sideload update.zip' command. It stops on 47%. What should I do?
Thanks in advance!
Might be because i have my sdcard partition in ext4 format instead of unformatted?
If you read and followed all the instructions correctly, you could've noticed this line…
Wait for the loading process to complete. If it stops at 47% don’t panic, just go ahead with the remaining step.
😉
This comment has been removed by the author.
Dammit, I'm sorry.
Thank you for the fast response!
I didn't scroll down to see it and didn't notice when scrolling through comments. Gonna try it tomorrow because 5am isn't really helping me with this hah.
Thanks again and sorry to bother ya!
Hey, no problems bro. Just get it to work! 🙂
Hey that's me again.
So I did what you said. When it got stuck on 47% at update.zip i closed CMD and sideloaded gapps.zip (update.zip got stuck on 47% on CMD and on the phone screen aka it did not complete but gapps.zip got stuck on 47% but finished and went back to recovery).
Then I disconnected my phone from the PC and rebooted. Although now I'm stuck with LegacyXperia logo showing all the time (some kind of a boot loop?)
I must say I didn't follow this step "Note: LT15i (Arc) users need to flash LT18i (Arc S) ftf flash file (ICS 4.1.B.0.587)." simply because it's quite impossible (at least I think so) to flash LT18i ftf on LT15i. I tried and got system.sin error. Can you please tell me how to do it?
Thanks again.
Ephixi4, Did you use flashtool? Use the older version 0.9.18.6. The latest version does not work with xperia arc S. I got the same error as you got. But with 0.9.18.6 it worked.
Flash all partitions listed in flashtool except system.sin. Now extract system.sin from the ftf firmware using 7zip.
Flash it via fastboot, then continue with the steps here.
Okay will try, thank you.
how to turn again stock rom?
To revert to stock firmware you have to flash your phone\’s stock .ftf firmware package.
Alternatively, if you previouly made a backup before flashing custom ROM, just restore the backup.
Hi, first of all thanks for the tutorial.
My problem is that the device is stuck in a bootloop(cm logo) when I try to reboot the system. What could be the cause for that?
Did you flash Gapps?
The download link for gapps did not seem to work, so I downloaded this version https://opengapps.org/?download=true&arch=arm&api=6.0&variant=mini
I tried to flash gapps, but the installation was aborted midway through. Then I flashed the ROM again without gapps.
The ROM requires Gapps in order to run properly, but the Gapps you flashed seems to be incompatible with the ROM.
We will re-upload the recommended Gapps for this ROM and update it\’s download link in a few hours.
That would be helpful, thanks.
Recommended Gapps package uploaded, and link in post updated!
Thanks for being patient!
I get the answer that fastboot is not a command.
You need to launch command window from the folder where your adb/fastboot files are located. Else you will keep getting this error response.
after writing “adb sideload update.zip” I get this answer: cannot read “update.zip”
What is wrong?
This instruction does not tell me how to install S1Boot Fastboot.
This instruction is not correct.
\”Advanced > wipe system partition\” does not exist in recovery mode.
And there are no place where I can do this: \”1.Now select Apply Update > Apply from ADB\”
after writing \”adb sideload update.zip\” I get this answer: cannot read \”update.zip\”
What is wrong?
Ephixi4, Did you use flashtool? Use the older version 0.9.18.6. The latest version does not work with xperia arc S. I got the same error as you got. But with 0.9.18.6 it worked.
Now \”sideload\” worked.
I had to write \”adb sideload update.zip.zip\” I guess it because I am using Windows 7, and windows 7 hides the endings.
But I got another problem. It sais \”Total Xfer: 0.98x\” and not \”1.00x\” as it should.
But I did the same thing with gapps, and then it said \”1.00x\”
Then i restarted the phone, but it seems to be in some bootloop, or is that normal first time you start it?
What can be wrong?
Can i repeat the last step with sideload only, or do I have to averything from the beginning, including flashing the original 4.1.B.0.587 ?
hey first off thanks for the tutorial but i have a small problem here as soon as i type in the first given command it says waitig for device but i connected the device and even if i wait for a long time nothing happens ^^\’\’ do you know where the problem is ? ^^\’
sorry for the double comment ^^\’
The problem is concerned with device drivers. Download and install ADB USB Drivers on your computer. If it\’s already installed, uninstall then reinstall it.
If this doesn\’t resolve the issue, let me know.
Thanks man ^^\’
Sorry it\’s me again ehm thanks fo the info but you see i\’m a newbie for this and it still doesn\’t work i installed the usb driver through the android sdk and yeah i think i did something wrong there cuz u said it should solve the problem ^^\’
hey, my phone is stuck at serving: \’gapps.zip\’ 18%
what do you suggest bro?
Sorry Bro, I pressed enter at command line and it continued
why do you think this happened?
If all other steps completed successfully, perform factory reset and reflash gapps.
# Sometimes, it can get stuck at some point but it has actually flashed completely and correctly.
Hi, I have same problem with gapps, cannot finalize the installation.
I have Lt18 and I followed exactly the instructions…
I have also tryed with cyanogenmod 14 e gapps 7.1 same problem…
arggggghhhhhhh
Try doing doing factory reset, flash ROM the gapps again. Make sure you flash matching gapps.
hi thanks because of your tutorials
i did them and i installed cm13 and gapps (total xfer: 0.98x) it starts up but i have lots of problem that i cant figure out
first of its soooooooooooo slow on my lt18i
second when i want to update some apps like \”play services, google ,etc it crashs and i can just take of the battery and start again
can you help me?
Just backup important data and erase/wipe data from the ROM.
hola