Part of POCO guides, 2025 guides.

You want SuperiorOS on the Poco X7 Pro and you want the whole path in one place, not five forum posts stitched together. Here it is. There is nothing complicated about the process — get into fastboot, push the vendor image, boot the recovery that ships with the ROM, wipe, then sideload the ROM zip. If you have flashed any other Poco X7 Pro build, this rhythm will feel familiar and you will move fast.

The one thing to accept up front: clean flash is the only supported path. No dirty flashing, no keeping your data. That is not a scare tactic, it is just how this build is meant to be installed.

What you need

• The SuperiorOS ROM and its vendor image, both linked below.
• The ADB fastboot tool and the matching driver on your PC.
• A phone that is already unlocked, and a USB cable that holds a connection.
• A backup, IMEI included, because the clean flash wipes everything.

I will say the IMEI part again because it matters. Back it up. I do not make backups and I still tell you to. If something goes sideways and your IMEI is gone, no tutorial will bring it back for you.

Step 1 — fastboot, and confirm the PC sees the phone

Power the phone off and hold Volume Down and Power until the fastboot screen appears. Plug it in and run:

fastboot devices

You need the long serial number and the word fastboot. No serial means the driver is missing. Fix that before you go any further, because every step after this depends on it.

Step 2 — flash the vendor image to both slots

Flash the vendor_boot image that comes with the ROM:

fastboot flash vendor_boot --slot=all

The --slot=all part is not optional. This phone uses two slots, and if you flash only one, the phone can fall back to the slot you skipped. Recovery then refuses to boot, and you will spend an hour thinking the ROM is broken when it is just the other slot sitting empty.

If your model's instructions say boot instead of vendor_boot, follow the ROM's own guide. The idea is the same: the recovery image goes to both slots.

Step 3 — reboot into the Superior recovery

Now reboot into the recovery that comes with the ROM. You can do it from fastboot:

fastboot reboot recovery

Give it a moment. If it boots to recovery, you are exactly where you should be. If it drops you into the system instead, go back and check Step 2 — that is the one-slot problem showing itself.

Step 4 — factory reset first

This is the step people reverse, and it is the one that causes bootloops. Do a factory reset inside recovery and wipe the data. Do it now, before the sideload.

Sideloading the ROM onto old data is how you get a bootloop that looks like the ROM's fault. It is not. It is order of operations.

Step 5 — sideload the ROM zip

In recovery, choose Apply update, then Apply from ADB. On your PC, run:

adb sideload <the ROM zip>

The progress bar will look stuck near the end. That is normal — sideload finishes quietly. Let it run all the way through and do not touch the cable.

Step 6 — reboot and set it up

When the sideload is done, reboot to the system. First boot takes a while, so give it time. Finish the setup wizard before you restore anything, so any problem shows up on a clean phone.

Where people get stuck

• Flashing only one slot. Recovery refuses to boot because the other slot is empty. Use --slot=all.
• Sideloading before the factory reset. This usually ends in a bootloop. Wipe first, sideload second.
• USB debugging off. The device never shows up in the tool, so nothing you type will land anywhere.

Notes on this build

This is a Gapps build, signed, with SELinux enforcing. That means Google apps are in from the start and the security model is intact, which is a good sign on a custom ROM. The changelog is basically the initial build plus a gaming-focused tweak pass.

On known issues: the maintainer's list is mostly "you tell me, bring logs with your report." There is an Aperture fix shown in the video. And FP jiiov is likely still not working, so test your fingerprint yourself before you rely on it.

If the driver and fastboot side is the annoying part, the free Rom Flasher tool on GitHub bundles the driver install into a couple of clicks. It is free, and the link is in the downloads section.

Full description from the video

SuperiorOS is now running on the Poco X7 Pro on an Android 16 base, and this one is the whole clean flash from fastboot to first setup, plus the two spots where people usually get it wrong.

There's no need to invent a complicated process here. You get into fastboot, push the vendor image, boot the recovery that comes with the ROM, wipe, and then sideload the ROM zip. Same rhythm as the other Poco X7 Pro builds, and if you've done one of those you'll fly through this.

🛠️ What You Need

• The SuperiorOS ROM and its vendor image (both linked below).
• The ADB fastboot tool and the matching driver on your PC.
• A phone that's already unlocked, and a good USB cable.
• A backup — IMEI included — because clean flash is the only supported path.

📝 Steps

1. Boot the phone into fastboot and confirm the PC can see it.
2. Flash vendor_boot to both slots.
3. Reboot into the Superior recovery.
4. Do a factory reset, then choose apply update over ADB.
5. Sideload the ROM file and let it finish.
6. Reboot to the system and set it up.

Notes On This Build

• This is a Gapps build, signed, with SELinux enforcing.
• Changelog is basically the initial build, plus a gaming-focused tweak pass.
• Keep your IMEI backed up — I never make backups and I still tell you to.

⚠️ Where People Get Stuck

• Flashing only one slot and wondering why recovery refuses to boot.
• Sideloading before the factory reset — that usually ends in a bootloop.
• Forgetting USB debugging, so the device never shows in the tool.

🗒 Known Issues

• You tell me — bring logs if you report something.
• The Aperture in-video fix, shown in the video.
• FP jiiov is likely still not working, so test your own fingerprint first.

❓ Common Questions

• Do I need to wipe? Yes. Clean flash is mandatory for this build.
• Is root required? No. The ROM boots without it, and you can add it later.
• Gapps included? Yes, this is a Gapps build.
• Can I dirty flash from another ROM? You can try, but don't expect me to say it's a good idea.

🤝 Thanks To

• @rthedream for the device tree — repo linked in the ROM thread.

Common questions

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