The aftermarket Android community has been pretty active recently, making Android 12 ports for various new and old devices. The devs have also released custom Android 12 Generic System Image (GSI) packages to facilitate any Project Treble-supported device to boot the latest version of Android. Owing to Project Treble, the four-year-old Google Pixel 2 received its first unofficial Android 12 based custom ROM, the ProtonAOSP.
For those unfamiliar with the custom Android community, ProtonAOSP project is a custom ROM created by Danny Lin also known on the XDA forums as kdrag0n. This time however the XDA members Lunarixus, RealOkabe, RallySnow, and Dollscythe take the credit for bringing a functional build of the Android 12 based ProtonAOSP to Google Pixel 2 XL (via XDA). As of now, a separate build for the regular Pixel 2 is in the works and should be available soon.
Primary functions such as the cellular radio interface layer (RIL), camera, GPS, Bluetooth, and fingerprint reader are working well in this version. With regard to bugs and things now working, encryption isn’t functional yet, and the SELinux is set to permissive mode, which raises serious security concerns. Despite that, the devs have still achieved an impressive feat, as it can be a real hassle trying to get a ROM fully functional without radio or camera issues.
To flash this ROM, ProtonAOSP has provided a factory image that enables you to directly flash the OS via Fastboot. But be careful and back your data up before flashing, as you might need to re-partition and eventually wipe the internal storage of your Pixel device. As it is an unofficial ROM, it is strongly advised to be careful about your sensitive information.
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