lineageos-galaxy-watch

Enable Galaxy Watch on LineageOS/crDroid with Samsung Galaxy S10

If you attempt to install the Galaxy Wear app from the App Store, it will likely exit due to LineageOS detection. This OS check appears to be more lenient on non-Samsung phones. The goal is to install a Magisk/Lygisk module to pass this OS check.

Github repo lineageos-galaxy-watch for any issues or comments.

 

Prerequisites

  1. Ensure you are running the latest LineageOS/crDroid on your phone. In this example, it is a one-day-old build, updated weekly via OTA.
  2. I have switched to crDroidAndroid-15.0-20250416-beyond1lte-v11.4
  3. Have your PC ready with all required drivers and ADB set up, used initially for the LineageOS installation. Follow the official guide if not already set.
  4. Do NOT install Samsung Wear app yet.

Side note

Transferring my Watch to a different OS/phone never worked. For instance after wiping out my phone. I always had to perform Watch reset. Which is not a big problem, if you have backed up your Watch settings using Samsung Smart Switch. During Watch transfer it just asks you to sign in with your Google account and restores majority of your Watch settings and apps. The downside is that you need to grant Smart Switch pretty much full access to your phone.

Make sure you have an existing backup in Settings - Account and backup on your Watch or Samsung Wear!

 

Lygisk Installation

Lygisk repo

Do not install Magisk, it will NOT survive the first OTA update.

 

Follow the official Lygisk Installation guide:

  1. Download Lygisk:
    • Download the latest APK to your PC. Do not install it on your phone.
  2. Rename the APK to ZIP
    • Change the file extension from APK to ZIP. For example change the file to “app-release.zip”.
  3. Reboot to Recovery:
    • Hold the power button on your phone, select “Reboot,” then “Recovery.”
    • In the Recovery mode, select “Apply update” followed by “Apply from ADB.”
  4. Install Magisk via ADB:
    • On your PC, navigate to the folder where you downloaded the Magisk installation file.
    • Use the command: 
      adb sideload app-release.zip

      (Replace app-release.zip with the actual filename if different).

  5. Handle Signature Verification:
    • When prompted with “Signature verification failed. Install anyway?” select Yes.
  6. Reboot:
    • Restart your phone. Open the Lygisk app to complete the installation.
    • Another reboot.
  7. App Requires Additional Setup
    • Open Lygisk again.
    • App Requires Additional Setup
    • Hit OK
    • “Direct install”, let’s go!
    • Third reboot

 

Install Lygisk Module

  1. Download Module:
  2. Load Module in Lygisk:
    • Open the Lygisk app, go to Modules, and load the downloaded ZIP file.
    • Reboot your phone.
  3. crDroid
    • There looks to be some additional security on crDroid/Android 15, so I was unable to select the module from the phone Download directory in Lygisk. I had to move the downloaded file to Documents and then I was able to select and install it.

 

Install Samsung Wear

  1. Download and Install:
    • Install the Samsung Wear app and start the setup for your Samsung Watch.
  2. Pairing Process:
    • Perform the following steps:
      • Pair your Watch with the phone.
      • Confirm the code on both devices.
      • Agree to Samsung terms, including sending diagnostic data and enabling automatic updates.
  3. Application Crash:
    • If the app crashes (repeatedly):
      • Follow with the next step Fix Galaxy Watch5 Manager Permissions.
      • Applicable to Android 13 and earlier.

 

Fix Galaxy Watch5 Manager permissions

I was suspicious of permissions, so I granted everything to “Galaxy Wearable” and “Galaxy Watch5 Manager”. I did not help with the crash.

However during the Wear crash, I noticed there was a “missing permissions” notification. I tapped it and it opened a different Android dialog saying “This setting can’t be changed unless you allow restricted settings” for Watch5 Manager.

  1. Adjust Settings:
    • Go to Android settings: 
      Settings > Apps > Galaxy Watch5 Manager
    • Do not open “Permissions”!
    • Tap the three dots in the top right corner and select “Allow restricted settings.”
    • Allow notifications.

 

Final Steps

Complete Setup:

Good job!

 

References

 

Credits

Special thanks to Samsung.