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Install Stock Firmware via Nokia OST Tool | Unbrick Nokia

In this guide, we will show you the steps to install stock firmware via Nokia OST Tool and unbrick your device. Since the rebirth of this brand, the OEM has adopted the Android One OS. Hence you are guaranteed a fresh and clean stock OS experience bereft of any bloatware. Along the same lines, Android One also guarantees faster OS upgrades, something that remains debatable up to this date. Anyways, most of the offerings from this company have caught the eyes of the masses.

Be it the budget Nokia 2 series, the ever-popular 6 series, the demanding 7 and 8, and the flagship 9 variants, all have their own niche category of fan following. For an everyday user, it manages to tick mark most of the requirements. However the same cannot be said for tech enthusiasts. This is because you can no longer simply execute the fastboot oem unlock or fastboot flashing unlock command to unlock the device’s bootloader.

You will have to spend some bucks and opt for unofficial methods to carry out this task. This method is quite risky in so many aspects without even the guarantee of the process is successfully completed. So apart from Nokia 8 users, things are rather looking bleak. with that said, many users have taken the risk and some have attained success as well. And for them, this guide will come in handy. Given here are the detailed instructions to install stock firmware via Nokia OST Tool and unbrick your device.



Install Stock Firmware via Nokia OST Tool | Unbrick Nokia

There are a couple of points worth keeping in mind before you start off with the process. First and foremost, the below steps are only applicable for Nokia devices running the Qualcomm Snapdragon chipset. MediaTek chipsets aren’t supported with the OST Tool. With that said, let’s start off with the guide. 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: Unlock Bootloader

Since we are flashing the firmware files to their respective partitions, you need to have an unlocked bootloader. As already mentioned, there is no official method to do so, and you might have to empty your pockets and take the unofficial route to carry out this process. With that said, once the bootloader is unlocked, move over to the next step to install stock firmware via Nokia OST Tool and unbrick your device.

STEP 2: Download Nokia Stock Firmware

Next up, you will have to download the firmware for your device. As opposed to other OEMs, Nokia doesn’t host the firmware files on their website. Rather you will have to download it from a third-party site. I Googled it and came across this site: FIHSW Factory Images – FIH Firmware. You may refer to it if you wish or try downloading from any of your preferred sites.

nokia stock firmware

Once you have downloaded the firmware, extract it to a convenient location on your PC. You may take the help of WinRAR or 7ZIP to extract this firmware. Once the extraction is complete, go to the firmware folder and you should see the firmware file with .nb0 or .mlf. extension. This file is treated as the stock firmware which will be installed via Nokia OST Tool and help you to unbrick the device.



STEP 3: Install Nokia OST Tool

nokia online service tool windows

You will now have to install the Nokia Online Service Tool on your PC. This tool will be used to flash the stock firmware onto your Nokia device. So refer to this guide and install it onto your PC right away: Download and Install Nokia Online Service Tool (OST).

STEP 4: Boot Nokia Device to Download Mode

You will now have to boot your Nokia device to Download Mode as the tool will only be able to interact in this mode. There are two different methods for the same, you may try both these approaches and see which works out in your favor.

nokia download mode

First Method to Boot any Nokia Phone to Download Mode

  1. To begin with, power off your device and connect it to the PC via USB cable.
  2. Now press and hold the Power and Volume Down button for a few seconds until it gets booted to the Download Mode.
  3. To verify the same, you should see the Download Mode text situated at the top left of the screen while the rest of the screen will be white.

Second Method to Boot Nokia Phone to Download Mode

  1. Connect your device to PC via USB cable.
  2. As soon as you connect it, press and hold Power and Volume Down for around 2-3 seconds and then release the Power key but keep on holding the Volume Down Key.
  3. You should then see the Download Mode text written at the bottom left of your screen. When this happens, you may release the Volume Down key as well.

Once booted to the Download Mode, proceed to the next step to install stock firmware via Nokia OST Tool and unbrick your device.

STEP 5: Flash Stock Firmware on Nokia via Online Service Tool (OST)

It is now time to flash the firmware file onto your device, follow along for the detailed steps. Make sure that OST Tool has been installed on your PC and your device is booted to Download Mode and connected to PC via USB cable. Furthermore, if you are able to access your device, then make sure to take a complete device backup beforehand as the below steps might wipe off all the data.

  1. Head over to the C:\Program Files (x86)\OST LA folder and double click on the OnlineUpdateTool.exe file.
  2. You will now get a popup asking for Account Name, Password, and Domain. Leave all the three as they are and hit OK.
    login id password nokia online update tool
  3. The Nokia OST Tool shall now open on your PC. Click on Next to proceed ahead.
    install nokia online service tool ost windows
  4. It’s time to load the extracted firmware file (.nb0 or .mlf). So click on the three horizontal dots, navigate to the firmware file and select it.
    flash nokia nbo elf firmware ost tool
  5. Then click on Open and the file will be loaded. Then hit Next to start the flashing process.
    start flash nokia nbo firmware online service tool
  6. The entire process will take some time and once it’s done, you should get the “Download is success” message.
    firmware flash success
  7. Click on the Finish button to close the tool. You may now unplug the device from the PC and boot it up (if it doesn’t happen automatically).

That’s it. With this, we conclude the guide on install stock firmware via Nokia OST Tool and unbrick your device. If you have any queries concerning the aforementioned steps, do let us know in the comments. We will get back to you with a solution at the earliest.


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