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crowdsourced firmware repository effort request

paler71623
Star I

As shown in several posts ¹ Asus took the (distasteful) decision to deprive the community from the long-term Zenfone support it deserved. Not only did it stopped providing support *but* also unpublished files which used to be available (!)

Hosting didn't incurred any cost for the company and was the only way for many of us to keep their phone working, to benefit from Android upgrades, to fight against obsolescence and electronic waste. This broke a promise for all who thought buying Asus would get them a working hardware as long as it's not mechanically broken.

This year, Android 7 will start showing many problem (especially regarding SSL) and many users will look more seriously in  Android 8 upgrades: So bad this is the year Asus choosed to obstruct this move.

 

While some may hope the company revert, it'd be desirable for the community to start sharing the public files collected here and there over the years for the various models: It may not guarantee file integrity  but in most cases it'll better than nothing.

 

We may start with individual requests or listing / public-sharing repository according to what fits best the forum/moderators guidelines.

I think such an effort, responding to such an important problem of Zenfone users would deserve to be pinned but if not, I kindly requesting moderators to keep this post open instead of quickly marking it read-only.

 

thx

 

NB: I'm looking for the (two) [WW] firmwares needed for the upgrade of a ZC520TL and a ZC553KL from Android 7.0 to Android 8

 

¹

- https://zentalk.asus.com/t5/zenfone-8/firmware-missing-on-website/m-p/380677

- https://zentalk.asus.com/t5/zenfone-9/cannot-download-firmware-33-0804-2060-165/m-p/386765

- https://zentalk.asus.com/t5/zenfone-7/cannot-find-any-firmware-download-link/m-p/381003

- https://zentalk.asus.com/t5/zenfone-8/where-are-firmware-updates-where-is-bootloader-unlock/m-p/3959...

 

 

2 REPLIES 2

Falcon_ASUS
Moderator
Moderator

@paler71623
We would like to inform you that we no longer provide previous firmware versions or downgraded software packages on ASUS official website. This is to ensure that the security updates on your phone remain up-to-date with the latest firmware versions. We appreciate your understanding and patience. If you have any question or need assistance, please feel free to visit our service center or call the service hot line, we will do our best to provide help for your questions. 

If you have a need for a system upgrade across versions, we recommend visiting a service center where our staff can assist you. 
You can find service center locations at the following link: 
https://www.asus.com/support/service-center-location
Sorry for any inconvenience it may be caused.

paler71623
Star I

I'm sorry to say it's not an acceptable solution from a user (and consumer) perspective: My nearest "service center" is 600+ km away.
Outdated devices and more generally restricted/limited-access firmwares/upgrades never favored users' security (as 30+ years of computing history has shown, from OS, bios or smartphones down to routers) and the precise example given (ZC520TL/ZC553KL) actually contradicts the invoked argument since firmware restriction actually decrease device's usability, security and my ability to benefit from an "up-to-date" device.