🚀 Breathing New Life into My Galaxy Tab A with LineageOS 19.1: A Tekflu Rebuild

Old Android tablets usually end up in drawers, forgotten and collecting digital dust. But that’s not how we roll at Tekflu.

I recently found an old Samsung Galaxy Tab A (SM-T580)—a 10.1" slab of tech from a time when bloatware was king and performance felt like punishment. It was slow, stuck on outdated software, and bloated beyond belief. But the hardware? Still solid. That’s when I decided:

Let’s nuke this thing and give it a fresh purpose—clean, bloat-free, and ready to serve in Tekflu’s lab.

This read documents exactly how I transformed that laggy Samsung tablet into a clean, functional, snappy machine running LineageOS 19.1 (Android 12L)—using Heimdall, TWRP, and absolutely no Google apps.

No alternate methods, no distractions—just the exact steps I took.

🧱 Why Do This?

• 💀 Stock firmware was outdated, slow, and bloated

• 🧠 I needed a portable, Linux-friendly tablet for dev tools and cybersecurity work

• 📲 Wanted full control—no GApps, no Samsung spyware, no BS

• 🤪 i love hacking hardware and making sure it lives to its full potential

🔍 The Hardware

• Model: Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.1" (Wi-Fi only)

• Model #: SM-T580

• year: 2016

• Codename: gtaxlwifi

• Processor: Exynos 7870

• RAM: 2GB

• Original OS: Android 8.x (yuck)

• Goal: LineageOS 19.1 (Android 12L) with no GApps, optimized for performance and dev

🛠️ Tools & Files Used

• Linux PC (I used Ubuntu-based distro)

• Heimdall (to flash recovery)

• TWRP (custom recovery)

• LineageOS 19.1 UNOFFICIAL for gtaxlwifi (no GApps)

• SD Card (for flashing zip files)

I’ll drop download links and images at the bottom of the post.

🔁 The Step-by-Step Process

1. Enable Developer Options + OEM Unlock

On the stock tablet:

• Go to Settings > About tablet > Software Info

• Tap Build Number 7 times to unlock dev mode

• Back out → Developer Options

• Enable OEM Unlocking and USB DebuggingWrite your text here...

2. Reboot into Download Mode

With the tablet powered on:

The tablet drops into Download (Odin) Mode. You’ll see the classic “Do not turn off target” screen.

3. Flash TWRP Recovery Using Heimdall

Linux:

Immediately after the flash:

ONCE YOU SEE IT BLINK, IMMEDIATELY :::

Hold Volume Up + Home + Power to boot directly into TWRP

DO NOT let it boot into Android or stock recovery will overwrite TWRP

✅ Make sure the .img is in your current directory. Use ls to verify.

4. Wipe Everything in TWRP

In TWRP:

• Tap Wipe > Advanced Wipe

• ✅ Select:

  • Dalvik / ART Cache

  • System

  • Data

  • Cache

Then swipe to wipe.

5. Flash LineageOS 19.1 from SD Card

Since my computer wasn’t recognizing the tablet consistently over USB, I transferred the ROM to an SD card, inserted it, and flashed from there.

In TWRP:

• Tap Install

• Tap Select Storage > MicroSD

• Select the lineage-19.1-xxxxx-gtaxlwifi.zip

• Swipe to flash

Note: I skipped GApps intentionally to keep the system lean and Google-free.

6. Post-Flash Wipe + Reboot

• After flashing the ROM, wipe Dalvik/ART Cache + Cache again

• Reboot → System

• First boot took ~7–10 minutes. Patience is key.

⚠️ Common Pitfalls I Hit (So You Don’t)

• LineageOS 20.0 = Bootloop Hell
  I originally tried LineageOS 20—don’t. It bootlooped every time.
  Stick with LineageOS 19.1 for the SM-T580. Solid, stable, and fully supported.

• Wrong Device Build Error
  I accidentally downloaded a ROM for ha3gxx instead of gtaxlwifi.
  TWRP refused to flash it (thankfully). Always check the device codename.

• Lineage wants to overwrite recovery?
  Say NO when LineageOS offers to “update recovery.”
  If you accept, it replaces TWRP with Lineage Recovery, which has none of the good stuff.

🧠 Final Thoughts

My SM-T580 is now:

• 🧼 Clean and responsive

• 🧪 Ready for development, Termux, and pen-testing

• 🔋 Running cooler and longer

• ✨ Free of Samsung bloat and Google creepiness