Earlier this month, Google rolled out Android 6.0 Marshmallow for Nexus Players as well as the Google Nexus 5, 6, 7 and 9. A lot were disappointed that the Nexus 4 from LG wasn't one of those that got listed for the update.
On Oct. 8, Dmitry Grinberg, a software engineer who is currently part of Google's Android Wear team, released a guide on how to build Marshmallow for Nexus 4, along with his pre-built AOSP (Android Open Source Project) Marshmallow image. Many of the recent tutorials and uploaded builds circulating all over the Internet involve the kernels he built. One of these is the image compiled by vocoderism, a senior member of the XDA Developers community.
Grinberg wasn't the only one who was working on bringing Marshmallow to the Nexus 4, codenamed Mako. Aside from him, another Android developer, Aldrin Holmes, also released his own Marshmallow build for Mako recently.
Based on user feedback, the ROMs — the one uploaded by vocoderism, which involves a kernel based on what Grinberg built, and the one from Holmes, which was released on Oct. 13 — are working. Both can be used with the tutorial detailed below.
Note that if you decide to use the tutorial, along with the suggested files, neither Tech Times nor the author will be held liable for any damages incurred due to the installation. Do so at your own risk.
First off, download the files listed below. Bear in mind that to avoid issues, the suggested GApps file should be downloaded and installed with its paired ROM.
Vocoderism's ROM
Vocoderism's suggested GApps
Holmes' ROM
Holmes' suggested GApps
1. Transfer the TWRP file to the Nexus 4.
2. Update or Install TWRP (TeamWin Recovery Project) 2.8.7.0.
3. Boot into Recovery Mode. The Quick Boot app should easily do this for you if the phone is rooted. If you don't have it, turn off the phone and boot it while holding down the volume up, volume down and power button at the same time. Once the TWRP loading screen pops up, let go of the buttons.
4. Reset to Factory Settings. Once the TWRP UI loads up, tap on wipe and select Factory Reset. You can also choose Advance Wipe but make sure the tick the boxes next to System, Data, Cache and Dalvik Cache. Swipe to commence.
5. After the Factory Reset, transfer one of the two ROM-GApps combo to the phone.
6. Reboot into Recovery Mode once again and once the TWRP UI loads up, choose Install.
7. Locate the ROM and select it. Swipe and it should begin installing. The whole process will take just a few minutes. Note that when the installation is successful, it will indicate that the process is done.
8. Install GApps once the ROM is installed. The procedure is the same as the ROM installation. For vocoderism's ROM-GApps combo, a fix is provided for when it poses problems.
9. Reboot once done and enjoy Android Marshmallow on your Nexus 4.
10. At this stage, you can also root with SuperSU if you want.
If everything sounds confusing, YouTuber Max Lee's tutorial should help provide the much-needed visual demonstration.
