All the users who had bought the Google Pixel 6 or Pixel 6 Pro via Verizon were slated to receive the day-one update with the software version day 1 update (SD1A.210817.036). The update was scheduled to start rolling out by 28th October and by 30th October all the devices should have been blessed with that update. Unfortunately, that was far from the case. Most of the users having an unlocked Pixel 6/Pro on Verizon didn’t receive any update as such, even to this day.
Why Unlocked Verizon Pixel 6/6 Pro users Are Not Receiving OTA Updates
This issue has affected two sets of users- who are using an unlocked phone on Verizon Wireless or a Verizon Wireless phone on another carrier and the builds are different. So both these sets of users would be having a different build number than their global counterparts. As for this issue, the Pixel 6/Pro unlocked variant is on the Global build (SD1A.210817.019.C2), and when on VZW, it would check for the Verizon Wireless build (SD1A.210817.036.A8).
But since one is a Global Build and the other one is the Verizon Wireless, you cannot simply flash one build on top of the other. In other words, there’s no upgrade path that would allow you to upgrade from the Global SD1A.210817.019.C2 to Verizon Wireless SD1A.210817.036.A8. In order to have a proper working path, your device needs to be on the proper build for that carrier. So if you are on Verizon and are looking to get OTA updates for the month of November (SD1A.210817.036.A8), then you will first need to be on the October build. However, you wouldn’t be getting the October OTA in the first place due to the difference in the builds. All in all, users are stuck in a vicious cycle with no fault of their own. The only silver lining is the fact that you could still ‘manually’ install the OTA updates onto your Unlocked Verizon Pixel 6/6 Pro device. And this guide shall show you how to do just that. Follow along.
How to Manually Install OTA Updates on Unlocked Verizon Pixel 6/6 Pro
To manually apply the updates, we would be taking the ADB Sideload method. Although this is still an official method and doesn’t result in data loss, yet it is highly recommended to take a backup beforehand. Moreover, there are two different approaches that you take. The first one is to install the October update via the ADB Sideload and wait for the November update to arrive which you could then install from the Settings menu. Or opt for the second method and directly flash the November update via the ADB Sideload. As for this guide, we will be going ahead with the latter method (November). This is because there’s no point in installing the October update and then waiting for the November one to arrive, when you could directly hold of the latest one. So with that in mind, let’s proceed ahead with the steps to install the November OTA update onto your Unlocked Verizon Pixel 6/6 Pro device.
Install November OTA update on Unlocked Verizon Pixel 6/6 Pro
The below instructions are listed under separate sections for ease of understanding. Make sure to follow in the exact same sequence as mentioned. Droidwin and its members wouldn’t be held responsible in case of a thermonuclear war, your alarm doesn’t wake you up, or if anything happens to your device and data by performing the below steps.
STEP 1: Install Android SDK
First and foremost, you will have to install the Android SDK Platform Tools on your PC. This is the official ADB and Fastboot binary provided by Google and is the only recommended one. So download it and then extract it to any convenient location on your PC. Doing so will give you the platform-tools folder, which will be used throughout this guide.
STEP 2: Enable USB Debugging on Pixel 6/6 Pro
Next up, you will also have to enable USB Debugging so that your device is recognizable by the PC in ADB mode. This will then allow you to boot your device to the Recovery Mode for the ADB Sideload process. So head over to Settings > About Phone > Tap on Build Number 7 times > Go back to Settings > System > Advanced > Developer Options > Enable USB Debugging.
STEP 3: Download Pixel 6/Pro OTA File
STEP 4: Boot your Device to Recovery Mode
STEP 5: Install OTA via ADB Sideload
Concluding Remarks
So with this, we round off the guide on how you could install the OTA updates onto your Unlocked Verizon Pixel 6/6 Pro device. It’s really not a good site to see when a general user has to dig so deep down into the custom development and execute a bunch of codes just for the sake of installing an OTA update. But this is how things stand as of now, and we don’t have much say in this either. On that note, we round off this guide. All your queries are welcomed in the comments section below.
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