OnePlus phones are known for their hackability and the newly released OnePlus Nord is certainly not an exception. The classy mid-ranger has already received a somewhat working build of TWRP as well as an unofficial build of Pixel Experience ROM, thus we are pretty much confident that there's more to come. However, sometimes you may end up with a "brick" while tinkering with your shiny new OnePlus Nord, a state where you can't even access the Fastboot interface to restore the stock firmware. While you can contact OnePlus support in such scenarios to let them remotely perform a low-level flash on your device, our veteran OnePlus tipster Some_Random_Username has managed to grab the appropriate unbrick package for this device so that you can revive your bricked OnePlus Nord all by yourself.

OnePlus Nord XDA Forums

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Dubbed as ‘MsmDownloadTool’, the tool utilizes Qualcomm’s Emergency Download Mode (EDL) for the flashing task. You need a PC running Microsoft Windows 7 or newer in order to use this flasher, as it isn't compatible with Linux and macOS. You also need a compatible Qualcomm driver, which can be downloaded straight from Microsoft's update server.

If your OnePlus Nord is already bricked, connecting the device to a USB port on your computer should expose it as "QDLOADER 9008" (or "QHUSB_BULK", if the driver isn't properly installed) under Device Manager. End users can also manually trigger the EDL mode on the OnePlus Nord, which is particularly useful if you want to downgrade the installed version of OxygenOS in it. All you need to do is turn off the Nord, then hold down both volume up and volume down buttons and plug the phone into your PC.

Unbrick your OnePlus Nord with MSMDownloadTool

Keep in mind that there are 3 different regional variants of the OnePlus Nord: Indian (AC01DA), Global (AC01AA), and European (AC01BA). You need to pick the correct EDL flasher for your model, although cross-flashing is very much possible. Do create a backup of the ‘persist’ partition before attempting such cross-flashing to avoid fingerprint enrollment issues.

MsmDownloadTool for the OnePlus Nord — XDA Thread

Note that the currently discovered EDL flashers for the OnePlus Nord are based on OxygenOS 10.5.2, not the latest OxygenOS 10.5.4. Once you have the correct flasher corresponding to the variant you have, follow the steps below to unbrick:

  • Launch MsmDownloadTool V4.0.exe.
  • On the login prompt select "Other" in the dropdown menu and click on Next.
    oneplus_msmdownloadtool_user_type
  • Wait a few seconds until main window shows up.
  • Click on Target button and select O2 while using global tool or India while using indian tool or EU when using european tool.
  • Press Start button (this is done so that device will be "captured" automatically by tool instead of going back to normal boot after 10 seconds)
  • While the phone is in Qualcomm EDL mode, plug it to your computer using stock OnePlus cable.
  • Wait ~300 seconds.

And that's it! The phone will automatically reboot into the stock OxygenOS that you just restored.