Help! Gear VR software will not install on Galaxy S6

rexyvr

Device: Galaxy S6 (SM-G920P)
Android Version: 5.1.1
Carrier: Sprint (But not activated/Wi-Fi only)
Details: Fresh, Factory-reset device. 24GB available.

I received my Gear VR this week, but I've had no luck in getting it to run. I put my Galaxy S6 in, and it completes the initial install, lets me login to my Oculus account, but will not install any of the Oculus apps or update "Oculus System Activities" once I reach that step.

Once it gets to the "Oculus 360 Photos" app, etc, it just starts erroring out. When I tap "Update Now" for the "Oculus System Activities" update, it appears to download something but it never actually updates. So, I'm stuck in a loop of nothing working. Plugging the phone into the Gear VR just shows me a message that it needs software installation to finish on the device.

I've tried everything I can think of: I've done an on-device factory reset, I've restored the device with Samsung Smart Switch, I've uninstalled the Oculus apps and tried again after restarting- nothing.

The only anomaly I can think of is that I do not have an active plan assigned to the S6 and it's wi-fi only (it's a work/dev device and does not have a carrier plan, although it is a Sprint device). The only thing I can imagine is there is a specific carrier setting that would require an OTA update to support the Gear VR... but that's a stretch IMO.

Overall I'm really disappointed and sad I haven't been able to get anything to work, or find anything online about fixing it.

Can ANYONE help me figure out how to get this working? Is there a way to adb the "Oculus System Activities" update onto the device? Or a way to update that doesn't rely on the system that isn't currently working?

Thank you.

DOgi

Maybe app requires access to SIM card and/or phone number which are not present as the phone has no SIM card inserted?

teamgt19

make sure you are not using any speed boosting programs that block ads or stuff because oculus is owned by facebook they use facebook servers so some cleaners block certain calls to facebook

nodpaw9000

I'm just about to buy a Note 5 without a cell service plan either and am curious if that is a requirement as well. Can anyone confirm being able to use the consumer GearVR on a S6 or Note 5 without it ever connecting to cell service?

Have you tried plugging your S6 into your computer after the Update Required message shows up to do an adb logcat to see if there are any interesting messages saying why it won't work?

scottsquires

I have an S6 with no phone plan and have never used cell service. Both it full price att s6 so need for contract.
All updates via wifi.
Connection to Mac only to download videos and built apks for testing.

rimb23

hello guys,

after a while i tried to connect my gear vr innovator edition to my note 4 again.

it does not recognize the phone at all.

i am using the carrier free german firmware 5.1.1 and made sure the phone isnt muted
i tried to connect the micro usb as good as possible but it wont make any connection.

what else could i try?

teamgt19

i would back your phone up and try hardware reset on it with a fresh install, then try gear vr. this is a last resort though because it requires redownloading your apps and games and if you don't back up you will lose your videos and pictures

Jenkins43

Mine worked okay, just got it today... Try starting over, and delete the oculus software etc

sweetdeal

I made it with a Shortcut app while I unplugged the GearVR

rexyvr

I appreciate all of your responses, but as stated in my initial post- this is a FRESH, FACTORY RESET device. There is no software that blocks services or activities, etc.

I've also uninstalled/reinstalled/factory reset several times with no success. It is also running the latest firmware/software (Android 5.1.1)

teamgt19

if its fresh and factory reset I would try that gear vr at a local cell phone store it might be faulty. see if you know anyone who has a compatible phone. try plugging it in see if it works if it does then you know its the phone, or you could try calling Samsung maybe they have a service mode they can try.

rexyvr

Can anyone here check their "oculus_downloaded_apks" folder on their SDCard (Located in Download/oculus_downloaded_apks)

At this point Oculus Home is just failing every install, but I managed to get "Oculus System Activities" and "Oculus Cinema" installed by installing the APKs manually.

If anyone has the APKs for Oculus360Photos, The Cirque de Soilel, VR Intro and Strangers with Patrick Watson...I might be able to brute force this stupid thing to work.

cybereality

If you're having problems, can you PM me with the email address you used on your Oculus account?

You don't have to message me, I know what the problem is not (see below).

Thanks.

rimb23

Is it possible to delete anything special u need to get it to run?
I might have deleted some services but flashed a full image and did wipe everything afterwards.
I will try checking it with other phones. Maybe it is the gear vr. I doubt it somehow cause there is not much that can get broken IMHO.. .

rlburg

I'm in the same boat, unactivated fresh Sprint Galaxy S6 and can't get apps to install. Did you ever get a resolution?

Nighteyes

Same issue here with my factory reset Note 5. It actually worked fine with Gear VR before the factory reset when it wasn't connected to a carrier, but after the reset and now on RingPlus (Sprint MVNO), this same issue won't let me use my Gear VR anymore.

Were you able to fix your issue?

mattsonic1

I'm having the same problem. I've tried completely removing all the Oculus Apps per the instructions here:

https://support.oculus.com/hc/en-us/art ... -software-

Still, upon full reinstall, when I launch the Oculus App it immediately transitions to a screen titled "Update Required", with a description "Your Oculus software needs to be updated to the most recent version". "Oculus System Activities" needs to be updated.

When I click "Update Now", the update downloads in the background. There is a download spinner visible on the Update Button. When it finishes, the spinner goes away, but no confirmation is displayed at all. My only option is to try Updating again.

Since I can't use Gear VR without updating, this has effectively bricked my device.

Hardware specs:
Galaxy S6
Gear VR Innovator Edition

The Gear VR and S6 were working perfectly a few days ago.

mattsonic1

Solved it. I was using Package Disabler and removed some necessary Android service for this update. Turning off Package Disabler fixed the problem.

I'm glad it's working, but it would have been really nice to have been able to skip the mandatory update prompt.

jtiscione

I ran into the exact same problem, but I didn't have any packages blocked.

cybereality

Sadly the Sprint version of the phone (SM-G920P) has a bug which causes the Oculus software to be unable to install. Sadly, I don't believe there is a solution. This is an issue for Sprint customers, and also any 3rd party carriers that use the Sprint network. If you are affected by this, you may want to consider swapping the phone for another carrier like AT&T or Verizon.

jtiscione

I don't get it. It did install correctly with no problems (this is SM-G20P) when I first set it up. And it was installing apps successfully for a couple weeks. This "could not install" crap only started a few days ago.

cybereality

That's strange to me. I'm not sure how it ever worked.

Do you recall anything that happened a few days ago (software update, new app installations, etc.)?

jtiscione

I seem to remember seeing notifications a few days ago for a bunch of application updates, but I can't remember what they were. I don't know where to look for application update histories.

In Settings -> System Update, it said the last system update was on December 21 (before I had the Gear VR). I just checked to see if any updates are available, but there aren't any. (The "Auto-Update" switch has been off the whole time.)

jtiscione

Actually, I'm 90% sure that I did see something from Oculus got updated. But since it's been uninstalled now, I guess there's no way to know.

csimmerling

I'm having this same problem. Brand new Note 5, Sprint model, not activated since I don't need cell service on this one. I bought it just for the Gear. The Gear VR works just fine with my other Note 5 that does have service, and I've been using it a while so I don't think the Gear is defective. On the new one, Oculus installs but then when I try to setup the VR apps they download but install fails (360 photos, etc). I get a message saying the Oculus system activities needs to update. Like OP, it downloads the update but as soon at it finishes, it doesn't install and goes right back to saying I need to update.

Does the Gear VR require that you have cell service, not just functioning wifi? I can't find that documented anywhere, and it doesn't really seem logical.

cybereality

You do need cell service to get the update. However, your problem is that it's a Sprint phone, so it won't work.

csimmerling

cybereality wrote:

You do need cell service to get the update. However, your problem is that it's a Sprint phone, so it won't work.

that's not my experience since I have exactly the same model phone with service and it works just fine despite being a Sprint phone.

why would it need cell service to function? isn't wifi sufficient?

cybereality

There is a special firmware needed to VR to work, and this only comes from the carrier.

csimmerling

are you saying that this can only be downloaded via the cell service? if so, is there a way I can copy it from my Note 5 that has service to the one that does not?

jtiscione

Mine was working fine, no problems at all. I was able to install apps with no problems from December 31 to January 16 (the end of last week). Something happened this week that cratered it. Did any updates get rolled out?

cybereality

@csimmerling: The only other way is finding the firmware online and flashing it yourself.