How to Unlock Bootloader on OnePlus 9 and 9 Pro

OnePlus is known as a developer friendly OEM. OnePlus provides all the support needed to a developer to test their new apps and custom UIs. The first and foremost step for modifying any Android smartphone is to unlock its bootloader. We are going to do the same for the newly launched OnePlus 9 and 9 Pro.

In this article, we are going to discuss and learn all the basic as well as important steps that are required to Unlock Bootloader on OnePlus 9 and 9 Pro smartphone using very straightforward steps.

What is Bootloader and Bootloader Unlocking?

The bootloader is the piece of software on your phone that boots up the system recovery and the operating system. When you boot up the phone, this is the first piece of software that runs. Or simply bootloader is Lowest level software on your phone that starts up recoveries and then the main operating system.

And unlocking bootloader means you are opening the only way to temper the core operating system, the functions varies from rooting the system and providing the main system access and replacing the default operating system with any other stock Android OS or any other custom UI based on Android.

Setup Fastboot and ADB

What is ADB

ADB stands for Android Debug Bridge, it is a command-line tool, and by using ADB you can access each part of your Android through the command line. It is a tool used to flash TWRP recovery and also to unlock Bootloaders.

What is Fastboot

Fastboot is a protocol that is used to re-flash the system partition on your Android device. It is a small yet powerful tool that comes up with the Android SDK (Software Developer Kit) which is an alternative to all the recovery mode installations and updates. While re-flashing the system partition Fastboot requires a device with an unlocked bootloader.

According to Android Central, Fastboot is three different things within the same name, it is

• A protocol for communication between your phone hardware and a computer.
• Software that runs on the phone when in Fastboot/bootloader mode.
• The executable file on the computer you use to make them talk to each other.

All Android devices don’t have a user-accessible Fastboot mode, it is possible just after Nexus devices have enabled the fastboot mode by default. Some independent Android developers and tech enthusiasts make the Fastboot mode possible on some different phones.

We have written a comprehensive guide to setup fastboot and ADB in any operating system like Windows, Linux and macOS, check that out to set it up properly,

How to Install ADB and Fastboot?

Enable USB Debugging and OEM Unlocking

One of the common themes or criteria to use ADB and Fastboot is enabling USB Debugging on your Android device and to enable USB debugging, you will need access to ‘Developer options’. Here is how to do it:

Step 1: Go to your smartphone’s settings and navigate to ‘System’ where all the details are present about your smartphone (details like Build number, IMEI number, Android version, etc).

Step 2: Tap on ‘About phone’.

Step 3: Simultaneously tap 4-5 times on the ‘Build number’. You will be asked to enter your phone’s security lock. Now you will see a message reading, “You are now a developer”.

Step 4: Now will see the ‘Developer options’ under the ‘System’ settings. Tap on it.

Step 5: Go down and you will find the option for ‘USB debugging’ and ‘OEM Unlocking’ under the ‘Debugging’ tab. Now you can easily enable it.

Unlock Bootloader on OnePlus 9 and 9 Pro

• Now, connect your device to the PC where you setup the fastboot and ADB.
• Then, open the terminal. make sure that your Terminal is in the exact same folder your ADB tools are in, and then you can run the following command to launch the ADB daemon,

adb devices

• After executing the above command, the device (serial number) will be listed in the terminal window.
• Now, type and execute the following command to open the bootloader (fastboot mode).

adb reboot bootloader

• Now, execute the following command to verify the fastboot mode.

fastboot devices

• If you get the same serial number followed by the fastboot keyword that we got in the ABD mode, then the connection stands successful.
• Finally, execute the following command to unlock bootloader on OnePlus 9 and 9 Pro.

fastboot flashing unlock

• After that, a warning will be shown on your smartphone with a option to unlock the bootloader.

• Use the Volume keys to select the ‘Unlock the Bootloader’ option and hit the Power key to confirm it.
• On clicking the Power button, the device will reboot automatically and open the system after unlocking the bootloader and in the process the data will also be wiped.

Relock OnePlus 9/9 Pro Bootloader

Coming Soon…

General FAQs

Final Verdict

This was it. We tried to cover all the basic things which will be required to unlock bootloader of OnePlus 9 and 9 Pro. In case you didn’t understand any step, or you can any other query regarding this article, then feel free to comment down below, we will be more than happy to assist you.

Peace 😉