How to Convert Samsung Recovery IMG to TAR

In this guide, we will show you the steps to convert the recovery IMG file to TAR format for your Samsung device. The devices from the South Korean conglomerate beholds the Exynos and Snapdragon chipsets, with the latter enjoying a relatively higher degree of support from the custom development. Whether it’s custom ROMs, recoveries, kernels, or tons of custom binaries, there are a plethora of tweaks to look forward to.

With that said, the entire flashing procedure of Samsung devices is completely different from what the other OEMs in the market follow. As opposed to other devices that mostly interact in the Fastboot Mode when it comes to flashing a file, Samsung takes a completely different approach- it requires you to flash the file in the Download Mode.

download mode samsung

Likewise, you will even have to use a dedicated tool named Odin for flashing any and every file type. If we talk about a custom recovery, then you can easily flash it via the tool’s AP slot, however, that slot will only accept a TAR file. Unfortunately, that isn’t always the case as there exist numerous custom ROMs out there that have their recovery in the IMG format, which might be adequate for other OEMs but not Samsung.

So what else could be done? Well, there does exist a nifty method using which you can convert the recovery IMG file to TAR format for your Samsung device and then flash it via Odin. And in this guide, we will show you how to do just that. So without further ado, let’s check it out.

Table of Contents

How to Convert Samsung Recovery IMG to TAR

Convert Samsung Recovery IMG to TAR

First off, download and extract the Android SDK Platform Tools on your PC.
Then download the recovery.img file and transfer it to the platform tools folder.
Now, type in CMD in the platform-tools folder address bar and then hit Enter.
This will launch the Command Prompt window. Now type the below command:
```
tar --format=ustar -cvf recovery.tar recovery.img
```
This will give you the recovery.tar file in the platform-tools folder.
Now download and extract the Odin Tool on your PC.
Then, unlock the bootloader on your Samsung device.
Now boot your device to Download Mode for flashing the recovery.
Launch Odin and make sure your device is listed there.
Now go to its Options tab and uncheck the Auto Reboot.
Then click on AP, navigate to recovery.tar, and select it.
Now hit Start. The recovery will be flashed to your device.
Then reboot your device directly to this flashed Recovery.
You may now flash the ROM via ADB Sideload, ADB Push, or the Install feature of TWRP.
Once done, go to Reboot > System to boot your device to the new OS!

Flashing Recovery IMG via Fastboot on Samsung?

One of the most common queries that many users tend to ask is whether they can flash a custom recovery like TWRP/OrangeFox or an AOSP one like LineageOS directly in the Fastboot Mode using the fastboot flash recovery recovery.img or temporary reboot their device to the recovery via fastboot boot recovery.img command.

Well, the answer to that is in a negative tone. You cannot flash a Recovery IMG via Fastboot Commands in the Fastboot Mode. For flashing a recovery IMG file on your Samsung, you’ll first have to convert it to TAR, then boot your device to Download Mode, and finally flash it via the Odin Tool’s AP Slot.

That’s it. These were the steps to convert the recovery IMG file to TAR format for your Samsung 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 as soon as possible.