morphe-cli-guide.md

Morphe CLI Guide

Note

This guide is written for beginners, no prior CLI experience needed, just follow the steps in order. For the full official documentation, see: link.

The official Morphe Manager app tends to fail on lower-end phones. If that's happened to you, this guide walks you through patching APKs on your PC instead, using only official sources.

Warning

Please don't install pre-patched APKs from random websites. Some sources might be fine today, but you genuinely can't tell who built that APK, what's in it, or what a future update might quietly add to it. The risk isn't worth it, patching it yourself takes maybe 10 extra minutes, and you'll know exactly what you're installing.

Prerequisites

You'll need a few things set up on your PC (or any device that supports JRE) before starting:

• Java Runtime Environment (JRE), the CLI tool runs on Java, so this is required

Tip

Check if Java is already installed before doing anything else. Open PowerShell (Windows) or your terminal (Linux/macOS) and run:

java -version

If you see an OpenJDK version printed out, you're good to skip Step 0, most Linux distros come with Java pre-installed.

Step 0: Install Java

Windows

Download and install Eclipse Temurin. During installation, check the box for "Add to PATH" so your terminal can find it.

Linux:

Ubuntu / Debian / Mint / Pop!_OS / Elementary / Zorin:

sudo apt install openjdk-21-jre

Fedora:

sudo dnf install java-21-openjdk

Arch / CachyOS / EndeavourOS / Manjaro:

sudo pacman -S jre-openjdk

Step 1: Download the Morphe CLI

Head over to the Morphe CLI releases page and grab the $\large\textcolor{orange}{\textsf{latest}}$ .jar file.

Create a new folder somewhere easy to find (morphe on your Desktop works fine), drop the file in there, and rename it to: morphe-cli.jar

Step 2: Download the Patch Bundle

The patch bundle is a .mpp file that tells the CLI what patches are available and which apps they support.

Download the $\large\textcolor{orange}{\textsf{latest}}$ file from the Morphe patches releases page and save it as patches.mpp in the same folder as morphe-cli.jar.

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Now open a terminal inside that folder:

• Linux / macOS: Right-click the folder and choose Open Terminal Here, or just cd into it
• Windows: Open the folder in File Explorer, right-click on an empty spot, and select Open in PowerShell

To confirm you're in the right place, run the command for your OS:

Linux / macOS

pwd && ls

Windows PowerShell

pwd; dir

The path it shows should match your folder, and you should see morphe-cli.jar and patches.mpp listed. If you do, you're in the right place and ready to continue.

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Step 3: Find the Right APK Version

You can't patch just any version of an app, patches are built for specific versions, so you need to find out which one to download. Run the relevant command below and note down the latest version supported.

Note

Windows PowerShell users: Use .\morphe-cli.jar instead of morphe-cli.jar in all commands. PowerShell requires the explicit .\ prefix to find files in the current folder.

YouTube

Linux / macOS:

java -jar morphe-cli.jar list-versions --patches patches.mpp --filter-package-names com.google.android.youtube

Windows PowerShell:

java -jar .\morphe-cli.jar list-versions --patches .\patches.mpp --filter-package-names com.google.android.youtube

YouTube Music

Linux / macOS:

java -jar morphe-cli.jar list-versions --patches patches.mpp --filter-package-names com.google.android.apps.youtube.music

Windows PowerShell:

java -jar .\morphe-cli.jar list-versions --patches .\patches.mpp --filter-package-names com.google.android.apps.youtube.music

Reddit

Linux / macOS:

java -jar morphe-cli.jar list-versions --patches patches.mpp --filter-package-names com.reddit.frontpage

Windows PowerShell:

java -jar .\morphe-cli.jar list-versions --patches .\patches.mpp --filter-package-names com.reddit.frontpage

Step 4: Download the APK

Go to APKMirror or any other trustworthy APK source and search for the app along with the version number you just noted, for example: YouTube 20.14.43.

Before downloading, pick the right file for your phone's CPU architecture:

Architecture	Who it's for
armeabi-v7a (32-bit)	Older and budget phones, usually with 4 GB RAM or less
arm64-v8a (64-bit)	Most phones made in the last few years

Tip

Not sure which architecture your phone uses? Install the CPU-Z app from the Play Store.

Warning

You might see an option to download an "APK bundle" on APKMirror or similar platforms. Skip that, stick to the plain .apk file for your architecture.

Once downloaded, move the APK into the folder you've been working in and rename it:

App	Rename to
YouTube	youtube.apk
YouTube Music	yt-music.apk
Reddit	reddit.apk

Step 5: Patch the APKs

YouTube

Linux / macOS:

java -jar morphe-cli.jar patch --patches patches.mpp --out Patched-YouTube.apk youtube.apk

Windows PowerShell:

java -jar .\morphe-cli.jar patch --patches .\patches.mpp --out Patched-YouTube.apk .\youtube.apk

YouTube Music

Linux / macOS:

java -jar morphe-cli.jar patch --patches patches.mpp --out Patched-YTMusic.apk yt-music.apk

Windows PowerShell:

java -jar .\morphe-cli.jar patch --patches .\patches.mpp --out Patched-YTMusic.apk .\yt-music.apk

Reddit

Linux / macOS:

java -jar morphe-cli.jar patch --patches patches.mpp --out Patched-Reddit.apk reddit.apk

Windows PowerShell:

java -jar .\morphe-cli.jar patch --patches .\patches.mpp --out Patched-Reddit.apk .\reddit.apk

Step 6: Install GmsCore (MicroG)

GmsCore is a free, open-source replacement for Google Play Services. It's required for any Google-related app patches to work, including YouTube and YouTube Music. Without it, the patched apps simply won't function properly.

Tip

We're using the version maintained by the Morphe team themselves, so you know it's legit.

1. Download the latest release from the Morphe GmsCore releases
2. Transfer it to your phone and install it (see Step 7 below if you hit an "Install blocked" error)
3. Open GmsCore and sign in with your Google account
4. Go through the self-check options, disable battery optimizations, and grant any other permissions it asks for

Step 7: Install the Patched APK

Transfer the patched APK (for example, Patched-YouTube.apk) to your phone however you like, then open it with a file manager and tap Install.

Important

Getting an "Install blocked" or "Unknown source" message? This just means your phone needs permission to install apps from outside the Play Store:

1. In the error dialog, tap Settings or Allow from this source
2. Turn on the "Install unknown apps" permission for whichever app you used to open the APK (your file manager, browser, etc.)
3. Go back and tap Install again

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Written for beginners. If something's unclear or out of date, feel free to contribute.

Everything is cleared thanks for this guide.