Develop Bugs

[Guide] How to Root, Unroot, S-OFF, and Flash ROMs your G2!

I've been getting a lot of requests from people, simply asking how I went about Rooting and Flashing new ROMs to my lovely G2 Vision. Well, I'm gonna make a guide with step by step instructions on how to do so. This Guide will teach you how to Root, Unroot, S-OFF (security off, to enable development), and how to Flash a new ROM to your G2.
NOTE!: I am NOT a developer, and i will only accept thanks for putting this information together, I did not create these instructions. Thank the individual developers/posters for their information!
WARNING!!: These procedures are not only dangerous if you don't follow them to the point, but also void the warranty on your phone!! Following these steps incorrectly can brick or otherwise damage your phone!! XDA-DEVELOPERS as well as MYSELF accept NO RESPONSIBILITY to what happens to your phone!!
Just in case you didn't get the message.. WE AREN'T RESPONSIBLE. HACK AT YOUR OWN RISK!!
I will do my best to help anyone along their way, but you've been warned. We aren't here to take the blame for a mistake, we're here to help you do what you're seeking to do.
Got it? Let's proceed, shall we?
First off? The Rooting!
ROOTING: Allowing the phone and it's softwares to have access to the "Root", or complete control, of the phone itself.
This procedure includes two major steps. Temporary Root and Permanent Root. The rooting process for the Temp Root will revoke itself after a reboot. The Perm Root method will not. The rooting process is not complete until the Perm Root process has been finished and the Root is still active after a reboot!
Temp Root the G2:
1. On your phone, go to Settings > Applications > Development > and make sure USB Debugging is ON (it MUST be ON) and make sure Fastboot is checked OFF (it MUST be OFF).
2. Visionary was removed from the Market, please download it from Here instead. Save it to your phone's memory card, then simply open it on your phone with any file manager app. (like Linda File Manager for free from the Market, for example) Find the visionary .apk file in the file manager and click it and follow the prompts to install it.
3. Install Visionary from Modaco.
4. Once installed, open Visionary and check ON Temp Root After Reboot, and check ON System R/W After Root. Then click TempRoot Now, and wait for it to finish. DO NOT CLICK ATTEMPT PERMROOT NOW! We'll get to that momentarily.
5. Once it is done, you have temp root and can use rooted apps without rebooting, OR continue to the next procedure to gain persistent root access.
Perm Root & S-OFF the G2:
An explanation of what S-OFF is and why you might want it - S Off means security off for your HBoot mode (aka Bootloader). The bootloader is what allows you to flash updates and write to the file system of your phone. By turning the Security OFF, we can flash any updates/ROMs we want without the phone checking to see if it is an official update or not.
Let's continue.
1. Download the rooting files: Right here.
2. Extract the files somewhere to your computer.
3. Plug your phone in via USB cable and mount the SD card so we can transfer files to it.
4. Copy the .ko and .img files from inside the extracted folder from step 2 to the root of your sd card on your phone (NOT in any folders, just on the SD card itself).
5. Unplug the phone.
6. Go to the Market on your phone and download/install Android Terminal Emulator (free).
7. Open the Terminal Emulator app and type the following with hitting enter at the end of each line (to get the touch screen keyboard to come up hit the menu button then toggle soft keyboard):
Code:
su
cd /sdcard
insmod /sdcard/wpthis.ko
*After typing the last line, you should see an error saying failed:
(function not implemented). If you DO see that, you have done it correctly
and can continue.
8. Now, type the following line in the terminal emulator hitting enter at the end of the line.
Code:
dd if=/sdcard/hboot-eng.img of=/dev/block/mmcblk0p18
[the last part is mmcblk(zero)p(one)(eight)]
9. After you have typed the dd line for your specific phone, it should say something was written etc. Now, type the following into the command prompt with hitting enter at the end of each line:
Code:
sync
10. After that is done, reboot the phone. When it boots back up, turn it off and back on holding down Volume Down and Power until the HBoot screen comes up. Confirm it says S-OFF at the top. If so, you have S-OFF.
11. Now, to get permanent root, turn the phone back on to get to the normal home screen.
12. Open Visionary and Uncheck TempRoot on Boot and click Temproot Now.
13. Then select Attempt Perm Root Now and the phone should reboot.
14. Once the phone reboots, open Terminal Emulator on the phone and type su and hit enter. If you get the # symbol, you have permanent root access and S-OFF!
Next? The ROM Flashing!
Alright, guys. If you've made it this far, You're golden. Grade A directions taker, In my opinion. Let's get to the last step, yeah?
Getting Recovery:
1. Once you have done the above to procedures, open the Market on your phone and search for ROM Manager (Free).
2. Install it.
3. Open the ROM Manager app and click Menu, then Settings and turn ON Delete Recovery.
4. Click Back and then select Flash Recovery.
5. Choose your phone model and then let it flash the recovery.
6. Click Reboot Recovery and you should be put into the custom recovery image screen. If so, you are all set.
Now, to Flash a Custom ROM:
1. Head over to theunlockr.com's ROM page here and choose your preferred ROM. Download it and save it to your computer.
2. Once it is saved, plug in your phone via USB cable and mount the SD card so we can save files to the sd card.
3. Copy the ROM's .zip file over to the root of the sd card (NOT in any folders on the sd card, just on the root of the card) (do NOT extract it, leave it as a .zip).
4. In the custom recovery screen, Backup/Restore and backup your current ROM.
5. Then select Wipe Data.
6. Then select Apply .zip from sd card and choose the ROM you downloaded earlier.
7. Once it is done flashing, click reboot system. Once it reboots, you are all set!
Congrats! You've flashed a new ROM to your G2! Hopefully..
There are some known issues out there, that prevent mostly the Rooting process. I'll touch on one of them real quickly.
The main issue I experienced was that I accepted and flashed the update that T-Mobile released to prevent Rooting. I've found an article on how to downgrade your firmware to pre-OTA, so that you can Root. Try this if you have severe issues trying to complete the Rooting process. Thanks to Apache14 for this info!
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=831398
There's now also a process to UNROOT your phone! Here's the link. Thanks to David Cogen from theunlockr for all this information!!
http://theunlockr.com/2010/12/01/how-to-unroot-the-t-mobile-g2-htc-vision/
Thanks for reading, XDA friendlies, and Happy Rooting!!

Thnx for the link to the unroot man
Sent from my HTC Vision

No problem!
Sent from my HTC G2 using XDA App

Thanks for the effort. But I'm not sure what this is achieving other than duplicating the existing rooting guides in the dev forum.
Also this isn't a very up-to-date guide, it only seems to use one version of "wpthis.ko" and it isn't clear if this is for pre-OTA or post-OTA G2s. And it doesn't cover the DZ either, so it's not a "Vision" guide, just a G2 one.
The existing wpthis.ko was found by scotty not really to work properly anyway, and the newer gfree method of rooting (fully documented in the Wiki) is more reliable (though still does not work with all kernels). And you know Visionary hasn't been updated for months now, right ?
Sorry if this seems like I'm just trashing your guide, but I don't see how posting old information is going to help people ?

steviewevie said:
Thanks for the effort. But I'm not sure what this is achieving other than duplicating the existing rooting guides in the dev forum.
Also this isn't a very up-to-date guide, it only seems to use one version of "wpthis.ko" and it isn't clear if this is for pre-OTA or post-OTA G2s. And it doesn't cover the DZ either, so it's not a "Vision" guide, just a G2 one.
The existing wpthis.ko was found by scotty not really to work properly anyway, and the newer gfree method of rooting (fully documented in the Wiki) is more reliable (though still does not work with all kernels). And you know Visionary hasn't been updated for months now, right ?
Sorry if this seems like I'm just trashing your guide, but I don't see how posting old information is going to help people ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It may be old, but I had yet to see a collective guide on xda developers' website about rooting, s-off, and flashing the 'G2' vision. In which I clearly stated this was for the G2. Not the Desire Z. This is the only method I knew about, and this guide was for a few select friends, and whomever else felt the need to use it. Its okay if you don't agree this post was helpful. But come on. This was the surefire way I used to root my G2, so I'm spreading the knowledge. Let not hate.

So visionary still works right?
Just checking before I go threw with this.

ijoshv2 said:
It may be old, but I had yet to see a collective guide on xda developers' website about rooting, s-off, and flashing the 'G2' vision. In which I clearly stated this was for the G2. Not the Desire Z. This is the only method I knew about, and this guide was for a few select friends, and whomever else felt the need to use it. Its okay if you don't agree this post was helpful. But come on. This was the surefire way I used to root my G2, so I'm spreading the knowledge. Let not hate.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Exactly, it's old. If you're writing a new guide, why use very old, out-of-date info, when you could easily provide the latest info (e.g. from the Wiki).
Yes, it's a collective guide, but one with old info in, so I don't see how that's helpful.
Your guide uses wpthis.ko, but makes no reference to G2s that might be running the original shipped ROM, or the OTA update. So this will only work on some of those phones.
Your article talks about something that T-Mobile did "to prevent rooting". I don't know where you got that information from, but it's not correct. T-Mobile did nothing to prevent rooting, because the OTA came out before root was fully achieved. It's just that the way of disabling NAND write protection needed to be done differently on the OTA (more as an accident than anything that T-Mobile did).
You refer to Visionary as a "sure-fire" way of rooting. Are you sure ? Have you seen how many phones have ended up stuck in a boot loop after using Visionary ?
Also, I find it kind of weird/interesting how your guide points people to another website to choose their list of custom ROMs. Why not point them to the dev forum on this site ?
Sorry but your guide is full of mistakes and out of date. You haven't even posted it in the right forum, this is the Q&A forum.

It worked for me. Bottom line, That's because i did it step by step and actually followed directions.
Old or not, IT WORKS.
If you want to make something better, then do so. Otherwise, silence your lout. Thank you.

Thank you for this write up. I was having problems getting my root to stick even though it was showing s-off but I followed your steps
10. After that is done, reboot the phone. When it boots back up, turn it off and back on holding down Volume Down and Power until the HBoot screen comes up. Confirm it says S-OFF at the top. If so, you have S-OFF.
11. Now, to get permanent root, turn the phone back on to get to the normal home screen.
12. Open Visionary and Uncheck TempRoot on Boot and click Temproot Now.
13. Then select Attempt Perm Root Now and the phone should reboot.
14. Once the phone reboots, open Terminal Emulator on the phone and type su and hit enter. If you get the # symbol, you have permanent root access and S-OFF
AND IT WORKS!!!!

You're welcome, fellow G2 owner.
Why don't you join my group, for those who love their G2? just check my groups in my profile, hopefully we can get a good set of owners together. You never kno what a mass of similar thinking people could accomplish!
Plus, i'm going to start posting some cool guide on how to further customize / enhance your device! Good stuff to kno.

Can i use this tutorial for HTC Desire Z?

Dimitri1992 said:
Can i use this tutorial for HTC Desire Z?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This tutorial was create for THE G2. I would NOT recommend you trying this method. Go around and search google for a tutorial MADE FOR YOUR PHONE. Although the phones are almost exactly alike, they don't necessarily mean they are exactly the same.
Find a different method.

Need help
This is not working for me. I temprooted my phone using visionary but when i try to use terminal to permroot, whenever i type "su" it say permission denied. Please help. I've been trying to do this all night and have been unsuccessful.

steviewevie said:
Exactly, it's old. If you're writing a new guide, why use very old, out-of-date info, when you could easily provide the latest info (e.g. from the Wiki).
Yes, it's a collective guide, but one with old info in, so I don't see how that's helpful.
Your guide uses wpthis.ko, but makes no reference to G2s that might be running the original shipped ROM, or the OTA update. So this will only work on some of those phones.
Your article talks about something that T-Mobile did "to prevent rooting". I don't know where you got that information from, but it's not correct. T-Mobile did nothing to prevent rooting, because the OTA came out before root was fully achieved. It's just that the way of disabling NAND write protection needed to be done differently on the OTA (more as an accident than anything that T-Mobile did).
You refer to Visionary as a "sure-fire" way of rooting. Are you sure ? Have you seen how many phones have ended up stuck in a boot loop after using Visionary ?
Also, I find it kind of weird/interesting how your guide points people to another website to choose their list of custom ROMs. Why not point them to the dev forum on this site ?
Sorry but your guide is full of mistakes and out of date. You haven't even posted it in the right forum, this is the Q&A forum.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmm...It is true that it is out of date but for me it works fine. I didn't use the wiki way cause it was to confusing for me and Unfrogivens method was working fine on me. Not saying this method is better or anything and I know this method is unsafe "if" you do not fallow what it says. Like always people try Gfree method 1st before trying this one...(Only for G2)
Sent from my HTC Desire Z/G2 Using XDA Premium App

lainvalenajr said:
Hmm...It is true that it is out of date but for me it works fine. I didn't use the wiki way cause it was to confusing for me and Unfrogivens method was working fine on me. Not saying this method is better or anything and I know this method is unsafe "if" you do not fallow what it says. Like always people try Gfree method 1st before trying this one...(Only for G2)
Sent from my HTC Desire Z/G2 Using XDA Premium App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When I rooted my DZ, I combined all referrences and guides
It was very hard at the beginning to understand the instruction, but after read and tried, it become easier to understand.. and I finally could root my DZ...
Cheers

Hello
Hello all totally new to android and was trying to root my g2. I followed instructions thourghly ( so i thought at least) and the s is still on after i exit the emulator and reboot. The last part about typing sync threw me off, how many times am i supposed to type sync while hitting enter after each line? Which lines, im sure overanaylzing something but didnt seem to work and tried multiple times. Thanks for your time..

Temp-Rooting?

since my first thread got close so fast;
as the other thread says, i tried Visionary+ and z4root, and now also Rage(or "gFree" as 3rd poster called it);
when i come to the 2nd stage of this thread ( [GUIDE] Instructions to Root G2 [Temp Root]) i close the terminal emulator, and when i start it again, it tells me i need to force close it, i do that, try to launch it again, nothing happends, the phone hangs, it becomes uber-slow and wont start anything, the only thing to fix that is rebooting, it seems, but then i have to rage it again
so, anyone wants to explain what to do?
(Mods; please don't close the thread until i got it working >_<)

Like the other poster said using the gfree method worked for me but I did use visionary for temp root to get the files I needed to where they had to go.
I hate to tell you to go to a different site but I used the new unlockr.com method which is the same gfree method with a mix of some of the true s-off guides.
because some file pushing commands where annoying so once you get a video guide on what to download and a writen guide over here just put the 2 together.
I moved the gfree file,busybox,data file to your data/local/tmp directory and moved the superuser apk on to the root of the sdcard and then followed the commands that actually use the file that you placed into your data/local/tmp directory.
you will need visionary just to get temp root to access the data privalge you will also need a app called rootexplorer you'll need this to get into your data/local/tmp but after you've read the directions a thousand times you'll know what I had directed you to do and why its easyier to move them manually.
I know that was a lot to read but that is plain an simple ways to manually move the files to the spot you need them without commands to move them you can do it your self but read this and the true root directions and the unlockr.com guide for this phone 3 times before attempting.
Sent from my Liquid Metal using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

Quick use the little steps I gave and run run away fast as you can lol
Sent from my Liquid Metal using Tapatalk

prittyboy203 said:
Quick use the little steps I gave and run run away fast as you can lol
Sent from my Liquid Metal using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i didnt understand that post at all
could you clearify what you mean?

Haha sorry it was a joke at the end cuz they took down the other post for no reason that I could think of you where asking for help. so I was playing around and say take the info I just reposted and run lol
Sent from my Liquid Metal using Tapatalk

But your trying to get temp root and that's it and nothing else like your goal is to get garbage apps off your phone and to wifi tether or your aiming to flash roms and kernels?
Sent from my Liquid Metal using Tapatalk

prittyboy203 said:
Haha sorry it was a joke at the end cuz they took down the other post for no reason that I could think of you where asking for help. so I was playing around and say take the info I just reposted and run lol
Sent from my Liquid Metal using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
FYI...They locked down his other thread because you are not suppose to post a Q and A thread in the Dev section. The Dev. section is only for posting ROMS, GUIDES, REF, RADIOS, KERNELS and the alike, Questions belong either in the Q and A section which he has now posted in or the Dev. Q and A thread started by Mod Captainkrtek HERE.

Ohhh hey well thanks for the fyi well he still asking for help and not getting far just in a new spot good luck my friend on rooting and like they all say use google or the search button in the corner there's a bunch of people that have posted the same question but look at the datas or youll get a huge brick
Sent from my Liquid Metal using Tapatalk

comoba said:
since my first thread got close so fast;
as the other thread says, i tried Visionary+ and z4root, and now also Rage(or "gFree" as 3rd poster called it);
when i come to the 2nd stage of this thread ( [GUIDE] Instructions to Root G2 [Temp Root]) i close the terminal emulator, and when i start it again, it tells me i need to force close it, i do that, try to launch it again, nothing happends, the phone hangs, it becomes uber-slow and wont start anything, the only thing to fix that is rebooting, it seems, but then i have to rage it again
so, anyone wants to explain what to do?
(Mods; please don't close the thread until i got it working >_<)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Which phone do you have, G2 or Desire Z? If Desire Z, which rom version is the phone running?

joemm said:
FYI...They locked down his other thread because you are not suppose to post a Q and A thread in the Dev section. The Dev. section is only for posting ROMS, GUIDES, REF, RADIOS, KERNELS and the alike, Questions belong either in the Q and A section which he has now posted in or the Dev. Q and A thread started by Mod Captainkrtek HERE.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
oh, i thought i posted it in the Q&A, my bad then.
prittyboy203 said:
But your trying to get temp root and that's it and nothing else like your goal is to get garbage apps off your phone and to wifi tether or your aiming to flash roms and kernels?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
well, yeah, i want to get rid of garbage apps and tweak some files, such as gaining my own shortcut key as it was removed to fit Scandinavian language keys.
also, wifi-tethering exist under the name "portable wifi hotspot" in Desire Z
joemm said:
Which phone do you have, G2 or Desire Z? If Desire Z, which rom version is the phone running?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Desire Z, i'm running the rom that came with it.
Android 2.2
build number 1.82.405.1 (<- rom?)

Ahh now I know what your goal is then I could try and help a little more. but the rooting part if you read one part and execute it it won't take long. how far have you gotten did you download all the files need to root the phone from any guides yet?
Sent from my Liquid Metal using Tapatalk

Edit: I'm pretty sure we need a lot more reading done before attempting root or anything.

prittyboy203 said:
did you download all the files need to root the phone from any guides yet?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
did you even read the first post in both of my threads?
yes i have, from this one ([GUIDE] Instructions to Root G2 [Temp Root]).

comoba said:
did you even read the first post in both of my threads?
yes i have, from this one ([GUIDE] Instructions to Root G2 [Temp Root]).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
comoba said:
since my first thread got close so fast;
as the other thread says, i tried Visionary+ and z4root, and now also Rage(or "gFree" as 3rd poster called it);
when i come to the 2nd stage of this thread ( [GUIDE] Instructions to Root G2 [Temp Root]) i close the terminal emulator, and when i start it again, it tells me i need to force close it, i do that, try to launch it again, nothing happends, the phone hangs, it becomes uber-slow and wont start anything, the only thing to fix that is rebooting, it seems, but then i have to rage it again
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
prittyboy203 said:
big fat post copied from another thread that includes how to perm root, but most of it is copied from the link in the above quote
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
................

Edit: forget about the info posted didn't know they have 2 phones that hardware wise the same and that to root is different for each phone sorry for the wrong info

Sent from my Liquid Metal using Tapatalk

pittyboy, i'm sorry but, can you start typing on a computer instead?
you lack of dots, commas and question marks makes it really hard to understand what you are typing.
and i have no problems with using adb at all.
not to mention that your "guide" is almost the same as the one i used in the temp-root part.
the only difference i can see is how chmod is done and if u do /data/local/tmp/root after it .

@ comoba The problem is you have to downgrade your desire Z rom to 1.34 in order to temp root and root. Heres the downgrading instructions. You have the 1.82 rom and Im not sure if the downgrading will work for that rom, others have asked this same question on downgrading the 1.82 rom to 1.34 but I have yet to see confirmation of this.
@prittyboy203 you are giving wrong advice on rooting, you are telling him to push a file specifically for the G2 to his desire Z, you might want to do some research before giving advice.
Specifically this: The following is only for the Tmobile G2...
prittyboy203 said:
[/url]
PERM ROOT
=================================================
ON YOUR PC:
unzip the vision-perm-root.zip and navigate to that folder. There will be four files. You will need to push two of these to your phone- hboot-eng.img, and one of the wpthis-[..].ko files.
If you HAVE applied the OTA update, push wpthis-OTA.ko.
If you HAVE NOT applied the OTA update, push wpthis-pre-OTA.ko.
Code:
$ adb push hboot-eng.img /data/local
$ adb push wpthis-OTA.ko /data/local
ON YOUR PHONE:
You should still have terminal emulator up, at a root prompt. Now run:
Code:
# insmod /data/local/wpthis-OTA.ko
You should see:
Code:
init_module 'wpthis-OTA.ko' failed (Function not implemented)
That means it worked. This next step is CRUCIAL. You must make sure that you are writing to the proper partition here or you could brick your phone. To be absolutely clear- the partition is mmcblk(zero)p(one)(eight)
dd if=/data/local/hboot-eng.img of=/dev/block/mmcblk0p18
You should see some messages indicating that it was written. Next, run:
# /data/local/tmp/root
This will lock in root, and give you 'su' access in the future. Next, run:
# sync
Now wait at least a minute, just to be safe. After waiting, reboot your phone using the power button. After it finishes starting up, launch the terminal emulator, and type 'su'. You should get the prompt asking you to grant permissions. If you got the prompt, congratulations! You have permanent root!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

Sorry for the double post but I wanted you to see this,
The method I gave you above to Downgrade your ROM HERE is confirmed to work with 1.82 rom even though the instructions were written to downgrade from 1.72 to 1.34. Heres the post confirming this.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=11855369&postcount=177

joemm said:
@ comoba The problem is you have to downgrade your desire Z rom to 1.34 in order to temp root and root. Heres the downgrading instructions. You have the 1.82 rom and Im not sure if the downgrading will work for that rom, others have asked this same question on downgrading the 1.82 rom to 1.34 but I have yet to see confirmation of this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
if i was doing that; temp-rooting the first time, to get everything installed etc, would i still be able to temproot if i upgrade the rom back to 1.82? or should i do perm root because it would be better?

[Q] [ROOT] Newest/Best way to root my LG Nitro HD (P930)

Hi,
I am new to this site and I came here after reading several (complicated) posts/topics on how to root my LG Nitro HD (P930).
However, I saw there are many methods so I want to know which is the best and the newest method to root my device that I updated to the latest version ICS 4.0.4 (since there is no official Jellybean update on it :crying: ).
Please, if you will give me some links or instructions, please consider I am a newbie in rooting or in the special language you use for doing it.
Thanks for help.

Truepeace said:
Hi,
I am new to this site and I came here after reading several (complicated) posts/topics on how to root my LG Nitro HD (P930).
However, I saw there are many methods so I want to know which is the best and the newest method to root my device that I updated to the latest version ICS 4.0.4 (since there is no official Jellybean update on it :crying: ).
Please, if you will give me some links or instructions, please consider I am a newbie in rooting or in the special language you use for doing it.
Thanks for help.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can root your phone with the update you have right now, but if you uninstall certain apps you will brick your phone.
To root it use TPSparkyRoot - http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1439429
This will not help you to install custom ROM's.
If you want Jellybean, you'll have to follow the guide in my signature.
Once you've done that you can install any of the many roms posted here in the Android Development section, anything CM10 based is Jellybean.

hereric said:
You can root your phone with the update you have right now, but if you uninstall certain apps you will brick your phone.
To root it use TPSparkyRoot - http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1439429
This will not help you to install custom ROM's.
If you want Jellybean, you'll have to follow the guide in my signature.
Once you've done that you can install any of the many roms posted here in the Android Development section, anything CM10 based is Jellybean.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
First, I don't want to upgrade to jellybean using roms or what you call CM10.
For root, this seems complicated, I'll give it a try later on but are you sure it will work because I saw many warnings and remarks (I'll read them carefully later on, now I'm a little bit busy).
And what about this site I saw before for rooting my LG P930 http://www.androidegis.com/how-to/how-to-root-lg-nitro-hd-with-superoneclick-tool/
They seem 2 different methods for rooting.
Thanks for clarification.

Superoneclick would have worked if you hadn't upgraded to ICS. It doesn't work on v20c.
Sent from my LG-P930 using XDA Premium HD app

hereric said:
Superoneclick would have worked if you hadn't upgraded to ICS. It doesn't work on v20c.
Sent from my LG-P930 using XDA Premium HD app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2052321
I can't confirm that it works, but there are success stories there.

This is what I meant: you gave me now two different links, so which one to choose?? I want the most convenient rooting method for my case.
For TPSparkyRoot, I couldn't understand anything in these lines:
"**UPDATE** As jchase stated "If your device "bootloops" don't stress, just follow through with the commands as it "loops" ro.kernel.qemu can do funky stuff." I did notice this in my rooting but just assumed it was normal as this is my first use of adb.
**UPDATE2**
If you get a permissions error on the call
adb shell "echo \"ro.kernel.qemu=1\" > /data/local.prop"
then you may try
adb shell rm /data/local.prop
And then try the echo command again. This may be due to having rooted prior without cleaning up properly. Thanks to Franky_402 for this piece of info.
I have updated the batch file to include this step, it should still be fine for those who are not having the issue as well."
+ they said "does not currently work for the latest ICS update released (v9.4.2.11 on 1/18/2012)" but it should with my 4.0.4 right?

hereric said:
Superoneclick would have worked if you hadn't upgraded to ICS. It doesn't work on v20c.
Sent from my LG-P930 using XDA Premium HD app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I asked someone who told me to follow like you the TPSparkyRoot method on this thread http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2044645 However, I would have tried to do it even if it is a little bit complicated but the problem is that I don't want to reset everything in it and I don't want to lose any data or thing.
I can only wait and see if there will ever be a root that doesn't require to Factory reset the phone.
Thanks anyway.

Try bin4ry on v20c. TPSparkyRoot is based on an old exploit and works on v18f(4.0.3) only.
Thats just for rooting if you want to install CWM, you mush "unbrick" your phone.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2052321&highlight=bin4ry

arda99 said:
Try bin4ry on v20c. TPSparkyRoot is based on an old exploit and works on v18f(4.0.3) only.
Thats just for rooting if you want to install CWM, you mush "unbrick" your phone.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2052321&highlight=bin4ry
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As I've written before, I just don't want to lose everything I have on the phone since we need to factory reset it.

Truepeace said:
As I've written before, I just don't want to lose everything I have on the phone since we need to factory reset it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just rooting, you shouldn't lose your data.... following an unbrick guide on the other hand, you will.
You can backup your text messages and your contacts (even though I believe you can sync them with your google account on ICS and you won't lose them), your pictures/videos/voice recordings are saved on your SD card and can be backed up to a computer before doing anything potentially involving data loss. If you root before attempting the custom recovery install you could use Titanium Backup to backup all your apps and their respective data..

lordcheeto03 said:
Just rooting, you shouldn't lose your data.... following an unbrick guide on the other hand, you will.
You can backup your text messages and your contacts (even though I believe you can sync them with your google account on ICS and you won't lose them), your pictures/videos/voice recordings are saved on your SD card and can be backed up to a computer before doing anything potentially involving data loss. If you root before attempting the custom recovery install you could use Titanium Backup to backup all your apps and their respective data..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My biggest question is: Will i lose saves like saved games ? Contacts(you told me I could sync them)? My whatsapp conversations???
[EDIT] Yes I can backup for contacts with google account. I can also backup whatsapp conversations. I can also backup the gallery. However I don't know for games' progress.

Sorry for late reply
Ok, thanks for telling me I can backup some things.
So is the bin4ry method better than sparkyroot one?
I created a new thread here http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=41639628
Thanks for help.

Truepeace said:
Ok, thanks for telling me I can backup some things.
So is the bin4ry method better than sparkyroot one?
I created a new thread here http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=41639628
Thanks for help.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Without doing some reading on the two, I honestly couldn't tell you which one is best for ics. I haven't used the official ics at all so I've had no need to root it. All the cwm flashable ics roms are already rooted, so I haven't had to root since I performed the unbrick process from gb.
Sent from my LG-P930 using xda premium

Root for LG P930 ON PREPAID 'CONSUMER CELLULAR' network
My friend just bought a prepaid lg p930 phone from consumer cellular, which uses the att network. I was wondering if you can root this phone and install a more efficient rom on the phone. It just came out for this network and so I'm hesitant to try this root method that appears to be for the same model phone but for att and not a prepaid version. Any info on this? Thanks.

LG Nitro HD (P930) 4.0.4 ICS v20c
Hey guys... if you have my device that i listed and you are having problems rooting the phone, it was as simple as turning off my stupid Windows Firewall.
The problem I used to have with Bin4ry (selecting option #1) was it would create a backup, but when it came to restore it would never show up.
If you are receiving an error with a path ending in ric that it cant be located, your device will still root.
Mad love to you developers staying up all night to make stuff like this happen .

StellarRobby said:
Hey guys... if you have my device that i listed and you are having problems rooting the phone, it was as simple as turning off my stupid Windows Firewall.
The problem I used to have with Bin4ry (selecting option #1) was it would create a backup, but when it came to restore it would never show up.
If you are receiving an error with a path ending in ric that it cant be located, your device will still root.
Mad love to you developers staying up all night to make stuff like this happen .
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmmmm.....
Never removed firewall to get it working but installed to root directory ie… c:\
And did not run as administrator ran fine for me until then I got the same error as you did.
Sent from my LG-P930 using xda app-developers app

Swetnes said:
Hmmmm.....
Never removed firewall to get it working but installed to root directory ie… c:\
And did not run as administrator ran fine for me until then I got the same error as you did.
Sent from my LG-P930 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I did root directory, I changed the cable, changed which USB ports I used, took out the SD card.
I also ran cmd as administrator for it to work as well. I don't know if that is what made the difference, because I did everthing the same except my firewall was on and didnt work, the only thing i changed was the firewall.... coincidence, perhaps.. pure noob luck? of course

ZE500CL Rooting and other related stuff

It seems that few ever talk about the ZE500CL variant of the zenfone 2. I've read a whole lot of posts on rooting, unlocking the bootloader, and installing TWRP, but most do not even mention this variant.
I started this thread to collect some information about this device. I would like to know from those who have this device, what has worked for you so far, and what hasn't? I'm especially interested in finding out the 3 things mentioned above.

I've only recently bought the device, and I only rooted it (though I did first get one bootloop already). The method that worked for me is described in this thread: http://forum.xda-developers.com/zenfone2/general/root-ze500cl-z00d-t3116531
The OP of the thread linked above also said that the second method on this thread: http://forum.xda-developers.com/zenfone2/general/root-newbie-root-instructions-zenfone-2-t3114063 works as well.
Btw, make sure the drivers are installed, else the computer won't be able to recognize the device when it is in bootloader mode.

Installing Xposed works as well using the ADB method mentioned in the thread linked below:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/zenfone2/general/guide-to-install-xposed-installer-t3116476

I can add any info you find to the device index in the general section for the 500CL.

Djalaal said:
I've only recently bought the device, and I only rooted it (though I did first get one bootloop already). The method that worked for me is described in this thread: http://forum.xda-developers.com/zenfone2/general/root-ze500cl-z00d-t3116531
The OP of the thread linked above also said that the second method on this thread: http://forum.xda-developers.com/zenfone2/general/root-newbie-root-instructions-zenfone-2-t3114063 works as well.
Btw, make sure the drivers are installed, else the computer won't be able to recognize the device when it is in bootloader mode.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How did you fix/handle the bootloop?
Do you know if it is possible to update the phone after rooting it?

cmendonc2 said:
I can add any info you find to the device index in the general section for the 500CL.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sure, that post is much more likely to be noticed than this one. Although I might not find out much. I'm a lot less daring without custom recovery. Hence this thread.
crisbal said:
How did you fix/handle the bootloop?
Do you know if it is possible to update the phone after rooting it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, seeing that I do not have a custom recovery (bootloader is still locked), I had to do it the hard way, reflash stock rom. Good news is, apparently your userdata (installed apps+settings and internal memory) is not wiped in the process.
First, you gotta download the rom. Get it from http://forum.xda-developers.com/zenfone2/general/index-asus-zenfone-2-wip-t3149748. Although I got mine here: http://www.asus-zenfone.com/2015/03/asus-zenfone-2-stock-rom-ze500cl-ze550ml-ze551ml.html, which is the old version.
Second, go into recovery mode (from bootloader mode), and use adb sideload ("apply update from ADB") to flash the .zip downloaded before. This is described under "Flashing Zenfone 2 via ADB" on this thread: http://forum.xda-developers.com/zenfone2/general/asus-zenfone-2-flashing-recovery-mode-t3096596
Btw, the bootloop was caused by a mistake I made, not the rooting process.

any news update in our bootloader? hope someone could work for that..

How to get rid off couldn't add widget?

crisbal said:
Do you know if it is possible to update the phone after rooting it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
After more than a week of feeling unsure to update mine to WW_12.16.5.118, updating it today after finish uninstalling SuperSU. This is what I have done.
1 - uninstall SuperSU from SuperSU setting - reboot.
2 - update firmware.
3 - re-root using Temporary_CWM method as describe here
Chinaphonearena said:
Method 2: Root through temporary CWM
This is a temporary CWM with the primary purpose of injecting SuperSU onto your Asus Zenfone 2. It doesn't permanently replace recovery. This process looks long, but really is bam 1,2,3 done. Just laid out step by step for the newbie.
link removed due to post count limitation
Unzip the package
Copy SuperSU.zip to the base of your SD card
Enable USB debugging (Settings > Phone info > Tap build 7x > Back button > Developer options > USB debugging)
If you don't already have ADB drivers installed, you may need to [post count restriction] and install them (most PCs have them already, but trying installing these if you're having trouble getting your PC to issue commands to the phone via USB)
With your phone on, attach it to PC via USB
Run 'cai_dat_CWM.bat' from the CWM package
In the black command window that opens, type ACCEPT
Type T4
Phone will reboot into fastboot and you'll see commands being issued from the PC cmd window copying the temporary recovery
You may see some funked up images on your display for a bit. Remove the USB cable and within 30 seconds should then see it booted into CWM
Select install update
Navigate to SuperSU.zip and install
Bam, done.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
4 - Success!!! now my phone are rooted and all rooted apps installed previously are working.
Note: Previously (before updating FOTA) I also root my ZE500CL using Temporary_CWM since One Click root method aren't working for me.

Recover from bootfreeze while fully stock
Well, after getting a bootfreeze being on a fully (old version) stock ze500cl (Z00D), I figured out something useful. How to recover from a bootfreeze with locked bootloader, non rooted stock rom, without loosing what was saved on your internal storage.
Given that you have not messed with system files (since you aren't rooted), I'm assuming you got either corrupted userdata files or your internal storage is so full, the phone fails to even boot. I had the latter. If system files are the problem, this method might (or probably?) not work. The trick is to use tethered TWRP for backing up your internal storage.
1: Download CWM_Zenfone_2_Intel.zip here: https://www.mediafire.com/folder/w70w7r1a65840/Zenfone_2 (gotten from source 1)
2: Download Recovery.zip here: https://drive.google.com/folderview...T0xRMVRkcTg3MHdlc1o0cVFBc3RPeTQ&usp=drive_web (gotten from source 2)
3: Extract the zip from Step 1.
4: Go to the FB_RecoveryLauncher folder you have extracted, and replace the recovery.zip there with the one downloaded in Step 2.
5: Boot into your stock recovery and connect your phone to the computer. Make sure you have adb and the phone's drivers installed (gotten from source 3).
6. Run the cai_dat_CWM.bat script and you should boot into temporary TWRP recovery after a minute or so.
7. Use TWRP to copy your sdcard folder (internal storage) into your ext_sdcard folder (external storage/microsd) for the sake of backing it up.
8a. In the case of having too full internal storage, simply delete some things in there, and you should be able to boot it again.
8b. Not tested, but in case of corrupted userdata, a factory reset is probably necessary, and will solve the bootfreeze issue.
source 1: http://forum.xda-developers.com/zenfone2/general/root-newbie-root-instructions-zenfone-2-t3114063 (method 2)
source 2: http://forum.xda-developers.com/zenfone2/development/alpha-tethered-twrp-asus-zenfone-2-t3123532
source 3: http://forum.xda-developers.com/zenfone2/general/asus-zenfone-2-flashing-recovery-mode-t3096596
@cmendonc2 , if you want, you can add this to your index.

Djalaal said:
It seems that few ever talk about the ZE500CL variant of the zenfone 2. I've read a whole lot of posts on rooting, unlocking the bootloader, and installing TWRP, but most do not even mention this variant.
I started this thread to collect some information about this device. I would like to know from those who have this device, what has worked for you so far, and what hasn't? I'm especially interested in finding out the 3 things mentioned above.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you so much for providing this thread. Found it after hours of scouring the internet in search of help after somehow getting my phone locked in boot-loop. There isn't much support for the ZE500CL, but I will be posting on some blogs while I begin work on mine, and I will reference others to this thread and the few others I've found. Thanks again! :good:

Xanathide said:
Thank you so much for providing this thread. Found it after hours of scouring the internet in search of help after somehow getting my phone locked in boot-loop. There isn't much support for the ZE500CL, but I will be posting on some blogs while I begin work on mine, and I will reference others to this thread and the few others I've found. Thanks again! :good:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry, was out of town for 3 months. Glad to be of help. You know where the thanks button is .
I should note that the this phone is now the daily driver of both my parents so I stopped tinkering with it, although I left one of them rooted (and the other not lol). So don't expect more updates from me sadly.

Djalaal said:
Sorry, was out of town for 3 months. Glad to be of help. You know where the thanks button is .
I should note that the this phone is now the daily driver of both my parents so I stopped tinkering with it, although I left one of them rooted (and the other not lol). So don't expect more updates from me sadly.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's quite alright, I've had my fun with Z00D, got myself a LG V10 to break now

I dont ask for directions...
This is my first time asking questions as I have always been able to reverse-engineer (R-E) or as the hacker in swordfish would say "the code just comes to me". Ive been around computers since my dad took me to work at UT and commands were issued with punch out cards....I've been a long time android self taught enthusiast turned professional. ITT Alum etc. I research, I surf, I R-E, and I try every possible option etc...only this has me stumped. And this is the first android that has stumped me. I double checked everything but I keep getting this error in BBQLinux: I followed all pre-update instructions to the T.
fw: ATT_12.16.10.92
adb sideload
This package is not for ATT (WW)
E: Error in /sideload/package.zip
(Status 7)
yes I did with root cmd line, yes cd to zip file location, yes I verified correct fw, even tried different fw zips ZE500CL downloaded officially and from here.
I greatly appreciate any help and I do apologize for "asking for directions"
Computer John dba Austin Computer Techs

cuervo233 said:
This is my first time asking questions as I have always been able to reverse-engineer (R-E) or as the hacker in swordfish would say "the code just comes to me". Ive been around computers since my dad took me to work at UT and commands were issued with punch out cards....I've been a long time android self taught enthusiast turned professional. ITT Alum etc. I research, I surf, I R-E, and I try every possible option etc...only this has me stumped. And this is the first android that has stumped me. I double checked everything but I keep getting this error in BBQLinux: I followed all pre-update instructions to the T.
fw: ATT_12.16.10.92
adb sideload
This package is not for ATT (WW)
E: Error in /sideload/package.zip
(Status 7)
yes I did with root cmd line, yes cd to zip file location, yes I verified correct fw, even tried different fw zips ZE500CL downloaded officially and from here.
I greatly appreciate any help and I do apologize for "asking for directions"
Computer John dba Austin Computer Techs
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
?? Is that att ota youre trying to sideload? Att doesn't have fw, ze500cl does. But just unlock your bootloader, flash twrp, then install whatever, cm, aicp, custom stock or straight stock. http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=64991762
Sent from my MotoG3 using Tapatalk

Cool, I didn't read anywhere about unlocking BL first otherwise Ida made that "turn at the first light". We will ULO thru Asus and continue on our journey. These little Asus trinkets are little buggers being Intel based. Only line of Android devices that have ever stumped me. I am much obliged, fellow XDA brethren. Much obliged.
After pondering a little I came to this conclusion:
UL BL is basically the first step one should take when doing any kind of flashing of internal partitions be it a boot.img, recovery.img, FW etc... at least for the higher end devices. I don't recall having to do that for my sm-n900t recently. Does it only apply for flashing back to stock and not custom roms? Although I didn't have to UL BL first when I heim-dall/Odin flashed my note3 back to stock rom after being boot-looped. Cause once I did that I was able to try out a majority of custom roms available for it whether flashed thru HD/fastboot, Odin, via twrp update zip, or adb sideload. Hmmm, I might understand once I think it thru and look at all the different variables.
Good day gentlemen.
Be vewy vewy quiet, I'm hunting androids...
:good:

@cuervo233 Yes most devices you have to unlock the bootloader first. But there are some devices that already come unlocked. And then there are even some that have bootloaders that cannot be unlocked due to carrier restrictions. In order to get custom recovery to boot you must unlock the bootloader or it must come unlocked. With a custom recovery you can Flash the stock zip file from the Asus website or a custom ROM have fun
Sent from my MotoG3 using Tapatalk

Thank you. I was able to ULBL, flash TWRP, flash to ww 118, root, and now its time to explore the neat wonderful world of custom ROMs. This was by far the hardest yet. Next in line is the cricket Stylo which was also giving me hell, but now I dont think I should have any problem getting it done. I'll keep ya'll posted.:good:

Lg stylo should have way more development, have fun brother. Remember tmobile phones( cricket, walmart family mobile, and metro pcs) you can easily unlock the bootloader . att on the other hand usually has locked down bl.
Sent from my MotoG3 using Tapatalk

LG G4 Root?

Hello XDA community,
I recently traded in my old iPhone for this new LG G4, and am so glad to be converted from iOS to Android! Anyways, one of the main reasons I switched is because root access would enable me to maximize the potential of my phone. The only problem is...I have looked vastly throughout XDA and other Android developer havens for root guides and have gotten so confused as to where to start. Can somebody direct me to the right place, or even better, guide me through the process?
Thanks!
(I am using the Verizon G4 (VS986) with Android 5.1.)

DId you have a good look through this thread?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/g4/orig-development/root-tmo-vzw-intl-variants-soon-root-lg-t3164765
It seems daunting but the first things you can do prior to the flashing are
-Get the software you need installed and tested
-Learn how to put your phone into download mode
-test to make sure your phone can communicate with your computer the way it should
-Download all the files you need (stock kdz and matching rooted image version)
Take the time to read each step, and if you have any questions, ask before you proceed, not after you have completed the step.
Good luck! The group here is very helpful so do not hesitate to ask.

goofball2k said:
It seems daunting but the first things you can do prior to the flashing are
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I will definitely look into that thread! Quick question, what exactly is flashing? I know it has to do with modifying the operating system..but I honestly do not understand the purpose and benefit. Could you explain that to me?

Flashing is basically copying OS onto your phone and installing it.

Okay. So in this root you copy an OS with root permission?

cl_miller said:
Okay. So in this root you copy an OS with root permission?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes. With this method, you are basically putting a portion of the OS on that is already rooted. That is why it is important to make sure you have the correct versions.

Done?
I followed all of the steps provided in the link you shared, and believe that my device is now rooted! At least, I think and hope. How can I be sure? And if it was successful, what should I do next to make use of my root access?
Thanks again

You should see the SuperSU app. Open it, it may/should prompt you to update.
Otherwise, download root checker from the play store

Done! Now, are there any resources for what I can do next?