> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://wiki.switchroot.org/wiki/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://wiki.switchroot.org/wiki/android/android-14-15/14-15-emmc-boot-guide.md).

# 14, 15 eMMC Boot Guide

### Prerequisites <a href="#pre-requisite" id="pre-requisite"></a>

* Full eMMC Backup (boot0/1 and rawnand.bin)
* (Partition Manager) PC
* (Partition Manager) hekate v6.4.0 or later
* (Manual) PC running Linux
* (Manual) GParted, gdisk

### WARNINGS

* Repartitioning, resizing, and flashing your eMMC will destroy your HOS (stock Switch OS) install; you MUST have a backup if you ever intend to use HOS again (this can be achieved with hekate (Tools -> Backup eMMC -> eMMC BOOT0 & BOOT1, eMMC RAW GP)
* You currently cannot dual boot Android installs on SD and eMMC due to a `super` partition lookup bug in Android
* We recommend this to advanced users only--the gain is marginal and not worth accidentally nuking your Switch

### Installation (Partition Manager) <a href="#installation" id="installation"></a>

This approach uses hekate's built-in eMMC partition manager, added in hekate v6.4.0. We recommend this solution as it is easy, robust, and officially supported.

1. Follow installation instructions ([nx](https://wiki.lineageos.org/devices/nx/), [nx\_tab](https://wiki.lineageos.org/devices/nx_tab/)) up until SD partitioning step (files should be in `switchroot/install` and `switchroot/android`)
2. Adjust `bootloader/android.ini` from installation instructions to include `emmc=1`.
3. Enter hekate's eMMC partition manager by pressing and holding the "Partition SD Card "button (Tools -> Partition SD Card) for 5 seconds
4. Adjust partitions to your liking (we recommend 16GB for Android, though it should be usable with >=8GB)
5. Press Flash Android to flash the files in `switchroot/install/` (the files will be erased after flash)
6. Press "Continue" to reboot into Android recovery

### Installation (Manual) <a href="#installation" id="installation"></a>

This approach does not utilize hekate's built-in eMMC partition manager and is mostly here for legacy documentation and support. We recommend using the above method.

#### eMMC preparation <a href="#emmc-preparation-for-android-and-linux-alongside-hos-on-a-larger-emmc" id="emmc-preparation-for-android-and-linux-alongside-hos-on-a-larger-emmc"></a>

1. Erase your eMMC or shrink the USER partition
2. In hekate go to USB Tools -> Set Read-Only to OFF -> Mount eMMC RAW GPP
3. In a new Terminal run `sudo gdisk /dev/<disk>` (where \`\<disk>\` is your the mounted eMMC)
4. x (enter expert mode) -> s (resize partition table) -> 128 (set max entries to 128) -> w (write changes to disk) -> y (confirm write)
5. In GParted open your disk and create the following partition in the same order

| Partition Name | Size    | File system |
| -------------- | ------- | ----------- |
| boot           | 64MiB   | unformatted |
| recovery       | 64MiB   | unformatted |
| dtb            | 1MiB    | unformatted |
| misc           | 3MiB    | unformatted |
| cache          | 60MiB   | unformatted |
| super          | 5922MiB | unformatted |
| userdata       | Custom  | ext4        |

#### Flashing the eMMC <a href="#flashing-the-emmc" id="flashing-the-emmc"></a>

1. In a terminal use dd to flash the following partition accordingly e.g. `sudo dd if=boot.img of=/dev/<disk><boot_partition_number> bs=32M`

| File            | GPT Name |
| --------------- | -------- |
| `boot.img`      | boot     |
| `recovery.img`  | recovery |
| `nx-plat.dtimg` | dtb      |

2. Create the following file on your SD Card in `bootloader/ini/android.ini`

```
[LineageOS]
l4t=1
boot_prefixes=switchroot/android/
id=SWANDR
icon=switchroot/android/icon_android_hue.bmp
logopath=switchroot/android/bootlogo_android.bmp
r2p_action=self
usb3_enable=1
emmc=1
```

3. The rest of the guide can be followed as-is