Staying on older versions of SailfishOS

General
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A very good day to all sailors ,

I have discovered SailfishOS about a good year ago I so believe,
and after months of preparation I purchased myself a new Xperia 10 III
and went for the ride. Being a linux fan for two decades now (I also
own a ‘non-daily-driven’ pinephone for a few years) I was hoping for
a decent Linux-daily for a long time. I wish I had discovered SailfishOS
sooner but I’m not going to complain I found it now :smiley:

I am so incredibly happy with this system, it has it all and I am very
aware that the people who created this understand me completely !
So hereby, thank you to the whole SailfishOS community for keeping this
alive !

There is however this feeling of uncertainty that is literally following
me the last few days/weeks : My phone keeps reminding me to update to
Tampella. Just when I found the ultimate daily driver with all the bells
and whistles that suit my needs I also encounter several complaints
and inaquedacies concerning Xperia 10 III and Tampella here on the forums.
I also don’t find any topics related to staying on older versions of SFOS so I
guess this is further away from the most recommended ? Meaning that
no older versions are supported with security pathches and certainly
no feature improvements because Tampella just IS the further development
of security and features ?

Sorry if I am missing things, I just haven’t got the time to delve in
deeper because of busy life. Also sorry for the long read :slight_smile:

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I recommend to upgrade. If it’s really bad you can still reflash original release and restore from backup.

Not all bad experiances with new releases are consistent as it depends on many factors.

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This is normal, for every update.

There isn’t a LTS version of Sailfish OS so no “good” version with only security updates.

You could take a IMG from the system before and if you get problems revert.
I have no clue about the actual fast boot commands to do this but I guess others can help.

Also reverting by reflashing is an option but be sure to do more then the normal backup as it isn’t backing up everything.

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I understand you and I’ve done the same on my daily driver. For experiments I have another phone. (both paid licence)

Preventing updates to newer version is simple: Delete the Jolla account in Settings / Accounts. And keep your system installation file (from flashing time) stored in a safe place, this file that you once downloaded at flashing time from Jolla homepage, because after next version update it’s no more available on Jolla homepage. (in case you want to reflash the device some time)

You can always download and install apps from Storeman and Chum without Jolla account.
The previously installed paid Jolla components (AppSupport, XT9,…) will remain working, but the phone will no more try to update or report that an update is available.

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Hi and welcome.
I have both SFOS 4.6 and SFOS 5.0 up and running.
SFOS 4.6 on Xperia 10 ii is my daily driver since 2022 and I have zero issues.
SFOS 5.0 is smoother and faster (also because it’s on Xperia 10 iii) but lacks OSM, that currently is not yet compatible with 5.x releases.
Give it a try: I can tell that Android support take me the (3) apps that I must have on my smartphone (w.app, EU digital identity app, Coffe app) and work perfectly.

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Thank you so much for all your replies, everyone of them is very useful !
I’m still on the fence about how to proceed but things became much more
clear now and I’m sure I’ll find myself the right thing to do soon.

Since I read in the update info that Xperia 10 IV is now compatible too I
might want to go from there and install SFOS 5.0 straight onto that one.

Thanks again all for your replies so far :+1: :+1:

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Carefully read about current limitations.

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for what it’s worth I have an Xperia 10 III and on OS 4.5

-regularly restart fingerprint service
-regularly refresh media database as latest items not showing up
-regularly lose audio
-unstable android subsystem
-“receive” same SMS sometimes multiple times
-camera application becomes erratic and takes pictures with huge delay

for the rest it just works beautifully

Reason not to update: 4.5.0.25 requires agreement with new end user license. I did not investigate it yet, however the Sailfish subscription model makes me think twice before eagerly pressing update.

Never heard of Tampela. I would doubt it contains something useful for me.

Still on wishlist:

Tab on screen to activate.
Nokia style adressbook centred integrated messenging hub & sharing
Bring back optinal functionality of early Sailfish in terms of cover actions (better usage of multitasking overview buttons by swipe not only press)

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Im still on 4.5 with my 10 III, when the update came it seemed as it had some problems so i wait.
I too have some of the forementioned problems with 4.5 but not so often.
I have active jolla account and nothing forcing me to update, just a reminder sometimes. I will see when the newest stable update arrives, there seemes to be some complaint about it too.

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Just a company name change but do check for yourself.

There is no such thing yet and besides they’ll keep one time payment.

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i still use Jolla Phone 1 as my daily driver (purchased 4 pieces on the beginning and now using third piece with new 2100mAh battery) i still running SF OS 1.1.7.28 because i did not like the updated UI what come in v2

in compare to recent SF all main features (for me) works better on old system and i can count on that phone will do what i want for example: syncing/deleting/updating mails in imap folders, no buffer under-runs while listening streaming radio in car. these two important things are bugged in actual SF for ages and that is why i have Xperia 10, Xperia 10II and Xperia 10V for secondary simcards for sms auth, tests or so…

i do not need to have phone glued to my hand all the time, i do not using web or android (generally) on phone…
i just need in phone: calls, sms, xmpp, alarm, camera, workhours tracker, notes, shopping list, calendar, recorder, calculator, email, wifi analyzer, my weather station app,call recorder, terminal, rarely maps and few more…
for other apps or web … i have PC or iPads, iPhones, Xperias with actual SFOS…

in case i add jolla account and visit store then to remove update notification about new OS version i use this script:

pkill store-client
rm -f /home/nemo/.cache/store-client/os-info
rm -f /home/nemo/.local/share/system/privileged/Notifications/notifications.db
reboot
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A silly reason…

Here is the EULA difference

I threw it in a chatbot to make a summary:

Summary
  1. Update Date : The EULA was last updated on March 1, 2024, instead of October 3, 2017.
  2. Company Name : The company name has changed from “Jolla Ltd” to “Jollyboys Ltd.”
  3. Trademarks : The trademarks “Jolla” and “Sailfish” are now registered under “Jollyboys Ltd.”
  4. Jolla Account and Services : The terms for using Jolla Account and Services now refer to a specific URL for the Jolla Terms of Service.
  5. Dispute Resolution : The process for resolving disputes now directs users to contact Support via a specific URL.
  6. Open Source Components : The description of open source components has been slightly rephrased for clarity.
  7. Third-Party Software : The section on third-party software now includes a specific URL for the Jolla Terms of Service.
  8. Jolla Maps and HERE Services : The detailed terms for using Jolla Maps and HERE Positioning Services have been removed.
  9. Dispute Resolution : The process for resolving disputes now directs users to contact Support via a specific URL.
  10. Patent Notices : The section on patent notices, including details about AVC Video, MP4 Video, and MPEG Layer-3 audio coding technology, has been removed.
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Thanks for help, reading that takes time and effort. Sorry I did not find time to read the text and interprete it in terms of what changes for forever license vs subscription edition (new model). Don’t want to lose privelege / change working team with a hasty slip of the finger.

I don’t want to polute this threat but may I comment about chatbots: whenever I know the subject very well I find them between being incomplete and wrong to outright making things up loving to hear themselves chat in nicely structured way that impresses on the surface but fails scrutiny.

for example: the company is supposed to be come Jollyboys and then they (chatbot) continue to refer to Jolla. I will ask my lawyer about this :-p

  1. Jolla Account and Services : The terms for using Jolla Account and Services now refer to a specific URL for the Jolla Terms of Service.

Terms of Service

Last updated March 4, 2024

# 1. Foreword

This is a legal document (known as " Terms of Service ") which, upon accepting it (by selecting the ‘I agree to the terms of use’ checkbox), imposes binding obligations on you as a user of our services and us (collectively referred to as “Jolla”, “our”, “us” or “we”) as a service provider.

Before you make your decision on whether to accept these Terms of Service or not, we want to ensure that you have an understanding of what Jolla is like as a company, and what to expect when you join our community. We have thus included at the beginning of this document our Navigation Principles, which attempt to summarize what Jolla is all about. The legally binding Terms of Service begin in the section that follows.

As Terms of Service bind you legally, please review its terms carefully. By indicating your acceptance, we trust that you have actually read these terms.

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Respect your self control… Sadly I updated my Jolla 1’s that then lost their some of their initial apeal to me. Sold one, and one in drawer…

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I have reflashed my old Xperia 10 tinkerphone with 5.0.0.62 and then I entered my existing credentials from old purchase. Everything works fine, Appsupport, Docviewer, e-mail app… did install without any problems and I was never asked for any payment.

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I had the Xperia X, XA2 and 10 III ever since Sailfish OS became available as my daily driver. That was in 2017.

I am groing old now and sometimes wait up to 48 hours between an update becoming publicly available and updating my single device.

May main usages are Threema, Signal, Mail, Browsing with Fennec, Tor-Browser, and Navigation with Here Wego and OSMand.
I connect my car’s audio via Bluetooth and I use the 3.5mm headphone jack a lot.
I love Hafenschau, Ned Nieuws, Daily Comics and I rely on my phone for everything not involving payments. I have an Idiot-Phone for that.

I had some issues but exept for three days when I had to use my Idiot-Phone as AP in Austria I had no severe problems in most of Europe.
Restarting the phone after crossing borders is quite commonly necessary. Restarting network, audio or fingerprint is not.uncommon but all in all there is no reason to avoid updates.

My car is 20 years old and I will keep it as long as possible, I had a 48 years old motorcycle which I changed for a 13 years old after an accident and some of my bicycles are from the 1960’s. But I was and I am happy with most of the software updates I did until now.

Just do it. After all there are backups.

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The most frustrating aspect of updating lies in the fact that some non-maintained apps may no longer function unless their developers keep pace with language developments and/or build updated packages for the new version. While automated package building mitigates this issue to some extent, there is still a risk involved.

If you don’t rely on any specific app that’s not properly built for the latest version, my experience suggests that updates generally work without issues.

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AllRadio and LLs vPlayer doesn’t work on 5.0.0.61 + 62 on Xperia 10. But works fine on 4.5.0.24/25.
All other apps + network/VPN working fine. Voice calls + SMS not checked because there’s no SIM in my tinkerphone.

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Screenshot_20250312_103826_001
Screenshot_20250312_103826_0011080×2520 235 KB

With the 10 III allradio works.

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Allradio works fine on SFOS 5*, but you might need to opt out of sailjail.

devel-su
echo -e "[X-Sailjail]\nSandboxing=Disabled" > /etc/sailjail/applications/harbour-allradio.desktop
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