Sony Xperia Z1 Compact (D5503): Stock Firmware / ROM Flashing Guide

Every time I buy a phone, it's because I want the phone and the software that comes with the phone... WITHOUT the pre-bundled carrier rubbish. I simply just don't trust carriers tinkering with software and adding bugs. Plus it's always better to get it from the manufacturer because you can get updates right away.

The process is sometimes referred to as "debranding", but quite simply all you're doing is flashing the stock firmware back onto the phone.

Sometimes it's easy to get rid of, other times it's not. Fortunately for us, the guys who made Flashtool has made our lives VERY easy (compared to the loops I had to jump through with Samsung Galaxy phones...)

Boot animations of the bastardised branded phone vs the stock firmware (before/after)

What you'll need

What you should NOT use is Sony's "Flash tool for Xperia™ devices". It requires registration and well...

• Flashtool - Xperia device flashing is what you want. The speeds were slow, so I got mine from here. It's a big download (176mb) at slow speeds so leave this downloading while you set up the rest. At time of writing, I used v0.9.18.1.
• You'll need at least 4.3gb of FREE space for the process. (mine took 4.11gb)
• It's useful to know the region ID and carrier branding for your device before-hand. This isn't necessary, but helpful when deciding which firmware to download (carrier specific vs generic without branding). You can find more information about regions on this page.

In my case, for Australia you have Generic (1281-3422) vs Telstra (1281-1039). The Telstra one is the branded one that came with my phone, so I will choose the generic one to remove all the extra crud.

• As always, be sure to make a backup and also back up your DRM keys in case something goes pear shaped.

Setup

• Run the "flashtool-0.9.18.1-windows.exe" installer
• Install it to C:\Flashtool\ (or any folder of your choice, but my instructions will assume this)
• Go to that folder and run flashtool.exe (or flashtool64 if you're on a 64bit o/s)
• Let the program update itself with the latest settings from online

Getting the stock firmware

• Click on the Devices menu > Check updates
• Double click the phone model "D550X Sony Xperia Z1 Compact"
• Double click your region to check for the latest version (v14.4.A.108 at time of writing)

The wording may be a little confusing, but "(1281-3422 Customized AU)" is the stock firmware, also known as generic Australian firmware without carrier branding.

• Right click > Download > Wait. Best tool ever!
• When the "Bundler" window appears, select everything EXCEPT for the .ta files (should be cust-reset.ta and fota-reset.ta, and maybe simlock.ta)
• Click the right arrow button
• Click Create and wait.
• When it's done, you'll have your TFT file!

Flashing the stock firmware

• Turn off your phone
• Click on the flash icon in Flashtool
• Select flashmode
• Select your firmware from before (14.4.A.108 Customized_AU)
• Hold the VOLUME DOWN and plug in the phone to get into flash mode
• Should be a green LED light on the phone (briefly)
• Check the status logs to see that it connected in flash mode properly
• Click Flash (If you wait or take too long, the phone just boots up normally and you'll have to restart the process)

• Now just wait a few minutes until it finishes flashing.
• Unplug
• Turn on phone
• Enjoy your new firmware!

If needed, here's my guide on how to root a Sony Xperia Z1 Compact (D5503) and unlocking your Sony Xperia Z1 Compact (D5503) bootloader.

Sources

• Z1 Compact Resource Thread -|-Rooting-BL Unl… | Xperia Z1 Compact | XDA Forum
• Flashtool | Xperia device flashing
• Unrestrict.li | Flashtool | Unrestricting your links!
• [INFO] Z1 Compact firmware customizations (r… | Xperia Z1 Compact | XDA Forum
• [GUIDE] Download ANY firmware customization … | Xperia ZL | XDA Forum
• (don't use this) Flash tool for Xperia™ devices – Developer World

Sony Xperia Z1 Compact: Unlocking the Bootloader

If needed, the Flashtool package has the capability to unlock your bootloader. Be warned, this process will modify the part of your phone which holds the DRM keys to Sony's Xperia services and you will lose access to them. It is best to first back it up as the keys are unique to your phone.

Here's a link to my guide to backing up your Sony Xperia DRM keys.

Once you've got Flashtool:

• Install and run it.
• Turn off the phone
• Unplug it from the computer
• Click on the "BLU" icon in flashtool
• Hold the VOLUME DOWN button and plug in the phone to get into flash mode
• The indicator LED should be green
• Let flashtool detect and do it's thing
• Unplug the phone
• Hold the VOLUME UP button and plug in the phone to get into fastboot mode
• Indiciator LED should now be blue
• Follow the instructions in the "Bootloader unlock wizard"

Sony Xperia Z1 Compact (D5503): Backing up your DRM keys

Before you unlock the bootloader or flash your phone with any custom software, be sure to back up your unique DRM keys. The primary reason for this is to be able to maintain your warranty and use of official Sony service apps (if you ever needed it for any reason).

Unlocking the bootloader the official way should keep the DRM keys intact though.

Downloads

• Backup TA v9.11 (at time of writing)

Setup

Computer

• Make sure your computer detects your phone with the correct drivers. Test by plugging it in.
• Grab a copy of Backup TA (click on the "source code (zip)" link)
• Extract somewhere for use.

Phone

• Make sure you have root access to your phone. Here's my guide on how to root a Sony Xperia Z1 Compact (D5503).

Process

It's a pretty easy process, but again I remind you that it requires root access.

• Plug in the phone
• Run Backup-TA.bat
• Press any key
• Look at phone and grant root permission
• Look back at the computer and pick "Backup" by pressing "1" then "Y"
• It should take a second or two and be successful
• Press any key
• Press 5 to quit
• Press any key to close
• Your data should now be saved in "backup\TA-backup-<DATE.TIME>.zip".
• Move it somewhere for safe keeping!
• That's it. Now just unplug the phone just to be sure it's disconnected from the script.

Now you can go nuts with the customisation!

Sources:

• [GUIDE] Back up DRM Keys & unlock/relock… | Xperia Z1 Compact | XDA Forum
• [TOOL][LB][ROOT] Backup TA v9.11 for Windows [20140615] - XDA Forum
• Releases · DevShaft/Backup-TA

How to root a Sony Xperia Z1 Compact (D5503)

I love these simple root solutions because it simply saves you time and heartache.

Downloads

The software you need is pretty well named. Go to this page and download "Easy Root Tool for various Xperia devices" (EasyRootTool v12.1.zip at time of writing)

Setting up

Plug your phone into the computer and make sure it detects properly. If needed, install the drivers (look at the screen on the phone) so the computer knows what device is connected.

Once that's all working, unplug the phone from your computer.

On the phone, activate "USB Debug Mode" from the Developer Options menu (To activate dev mode, go to Settings > About Phone > tap build number a few times)

Also on the phone, enable "Unknown sources" from the Security menu.

Unzip the contents of "EasyRootTool v12.1.zip".

Rooting

• Run "install.bat"
• Plug in phone
• Look at the phone and confirm the "RSA key from computer" by ticking "Always allow from this computer" and pressing OK
• Let the script do it's thing
• Once it says "cleaning up", it's done. (I waited for a while there...)
• Open the Play Store and download SuperSU by Chainfire
• Run it and install it in normal mode (unless you know what you're doing)
• Reboot when prompted
• Enjoy, and consider donating to zxz0O0 on the XDA forums for all his hard work!

 

High-5's all round!

Source

• Easy Root Tool for various Xperia devices - XDA Forum