Hello, this is the first time posting on this forum and relatively new on the android platform after jumping ship from blackberry. So, i have afew questions i hope you guys can help me with.
1. I heard/read alot regarding rooting to bring out the full potential of an android(s4) phone. What is the full advantage of rooting my phone? How does granting administrative access affect my phone performance?
2. I often see the jargon of bloatware on this forum, what does it exactly mean?
3. What is the function of ROM?
Sorry if these qns are repeated, please direct me to the answer if it is already present in the forum. thanks
1. Ans
2. Ans
3. Ans
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Still confused between Samsung Galaxy S4 and 10 acres of land in London
Rooting your phone gives you access to do anything you want ie (Apps 2 sd) that the phone dosent permit you to do.
A ROM is just a different feel, and its a faster alternative in upgrading your android ios. (S4 has touchwiz, can change it to Htc Sense)
Bloatware is a bunch of unnecessary apps that Carriers know youll never use but have it just cause. Its annoying and it takes up space. Rooting allows you to delete these apps, cause if its not you wont be able to remove it.
I hope this helped, ask again if you have any more questions.
Sent from my SGH-M919 using xda app-developers app
I was wondering if there is a sort of rooting guide for dummies out there. I want to root my phone to get rid of some of the bloatware that I will never use, and also to delete the annoying start up and shut down sounds. Other than that, I'm happy with Touchwiz so far, but I suppose adding custom themes would be fun.
I rooted my last phone (Samsung Vibrant) over 2yrs ago and don't remember how I did it. I know I installed a custom ROM, but don't remember how to do that either. I remember following a really good guide with pictures and step by step instructions though. It's early days yet with the S4, but I really hope someone will do the same kind of guide because it's very helpful for those of us who like to customize but don't have the time or knowledge to seriously get into it. When I look at some of the threads on rooting it just seems like a foreign language to me!
Sent from my SGH-M919 using xda app-developers app
mahgnillig said:
I was wondering if there is a sort of rooting guide for dummies out there. I want to root my phone to get rid of some of the bloatware that I will never use, and also to delete the annoying start up and shut down sounds. Other than that, I'm happy with Touchwiz so far, but I suppose adding custom themes would be fun.
I rooted my last phone (Samsung Vibrant) over 2yrs ago and don't remember how I did it. I know I installed a custom ROM, but don't remember how to do that either. I remember following a really good guide with pictures and step by step instructions though. It's early days yet with the S4, but I really hope someone will do the same kind of guide because it's very helpful for those of us who like to customize but don't have the time or knowledge to seriously get into it.
Sent from my SGH-M919 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try the motochopper method - the guide is pretty simple and self explanatory however if you're on latest kernel then rooting is a no go as of now
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Still confused between Samsung Galaxy S4 and 10 acres of land in London
nikufellow said:
Try the motochopper method - the guide is pretty simple and self explanatory however if you're on latest kernel then rooting is a no go as of now
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks I looked at that and it seems straightforward, but I'm concerned about what to do after the actual root. Things like how to back the phone up in case I mess it up, how to delete things, how to add things. Also I find a lot of the terminology confusing... not quite sure what all the acronyms stand for either, like ODIN or CWM, or what each thing does exactly. This is the kind of thread which would be totally useful: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=849028 (this one is for the Vibrant though, so I think a lot of it would be different on a different device?)
As far as the kernel... as far as I know nothing has been updated. I got the phone on the first day it came out so I'm assuming it doesn't have the latest kernel. How would you find out? Not even sure what the kernel is or what it does :\ I would like to find out though!
^^^then you might be on an earlier kernel version anyway trying to root by motochopper method won't brick your device even if it doesn't go successful so no worries.
ODIN is the same software that service centres use to revive your bricked device - as a matter of fact with Samsung drivers, a usb cable and stock rom downloaded from online sources like sammobile, you can revert almost any instances of soft brick. Simply saying ODIN will flash back factory/stock rom anfd make your device as it was when you bought it. And yeah flashing via ODIN and all are more or less same procedure for all Samsung devices
Cwm is a custom recovery. If you don't know what recovery means it might be worth googling for better understanding the concept as even my knowledge is limited and my explanations might fall short of your expectations
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" Maximus Decimus Meridius, commander of the Armies of the North, General of the Felix Legions and loyal servant to the TRUE emperor"
with regards to rooting my s4 which is running on 4.2.2 jellybean, does motochopper actually brick my phone? In addition, can i root my phone to remove the bloatwares and afterwhich, unroot my phone again, with all the bloatwares already permanently removed? Is it possible to download the full list of softwares of the s4 online such that if i accidentally remove an important software, i will be able to restore it. As I am someone who is not into very much customization and over-clocking, i believe i dont need my phone rooted for custom ROM right? I can use stock ROM when my phone is unrooted and clear of bloatware?
Mami-dalous said:
with regards to rooting my s4 which is running on 4.2.2 jellybean, does motochopper actually brick my phone? In addition, can i root my phone to remove the bloatwares and afterwhich, unroot my phone again, with all the bloatwares already permanently removed? Is it possible to download the full list of softwares of the s4 online such that if i accidentally remove an important software, i will be able to restore it. As I am someone who is not into very much customization and over-clocking, i believe i dont need my phone rooted for custom ROM right? I can use stock ROM when my phone is unrooted and clear of bloatware?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Steps
#1. Locate GS4 box, place phone inside box.
#2. Return to store and get iPhone.
Serious tho. Best thing you can do is READ. SEARCH and READ. SEARCH and READ.
If you are unsure about something, READ again. Most questions have already been asked and answered.
If you find yourself lost......SEARCH and READ. Believe me this is this most useful advice you will ever get here.
Stuff is so easy now compared to when android 1st started. I remember rooting my G1 on a terminal prompt and installing recovery with wicked long commands. Now everything is automated and the hardest (NOT) part is reading the step by step instructions provided on almost every mod and tweak.
Welcome and goodluck !
Related
Hey guys! I'm picking up an Xperia Play in a couple of days and was looking for some general advice about the phone. This will be my first Android device, I've been on WebOS/Garnet for my last two phones. I'm just a little overwhelmed with the options presented by the Play and Android in general. For instance, I'm not sure if I should root my phone or not - what are the advantages?
Any other general guides to Android/the Play would be wonderful if any such guides exist. I'm looking to deck this thing out with every emulator on the market as well as get the PSXperia hack up and running (I've downloaded the program, but can't figure out how to use it).
You can sense my overall noobishness in general, I'm sure. Any advice or tips about this device would be great. I'm really excited about the Play and getting comfortable with Android. Thanks everybody!
kershner25 said:
Hey guys! I'm picking up an Xperia Play in a couple of days and was looking for some general advice about the phone. This will be my first Android device, I've been on WebOS/Garnet for my last two phones. I'm just a little overwhelmed with the options presented by the Play and Android in general. For instance, I'm not sure if I should root my phone or not - what are the advantages?
Any other general guides to Android/the Play would be wonderful if any such guides exist. I'm looking to deck this thing out with every emulator on the market as well as get the PSXperia hack up and running (I've downloaded the program, but can't figure out how to use it).
You can sense my overall noobishness in general, I'm sure. Any advice or tips about this device would be great. I'm really excited about the Play and getting comfortable with Android. Thanks everybody!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
congratz im waiting for mine is the mail right now lol
rooting allows you to have full access to the file system sorta like a administrator
on a windows machine since out the box you cant edit files or remove bloatware without root you cant install certain programs from the market without root
also having root and unlocked bootloader allows you to flash a custom recovery image which will allow you to flash customs roms(a custom version of android dev by a user here on xda or anywhere in general)
yes i highly recommend but if you ever plan on returning the phone to verzion for example you will have to revert it back to stock
and for the program psxperia you need to install the latest version of java from java.com
and if your on a windows machine you double click the psxperiatool.JAR file
and it should run not sure on OSX
in the end you made a good choice on choosing android as mainstream as it became its still a powerful system way better IMO than ios or even webos
since android has so many developers theres gonna be an endless amount of programs
will post new finds myself etc
edokassiah said:
and unlocked bootloader allows you to flash a custom recovery image which will allow you to flash customs roms(a custom version of android dev by a user here on xda or anywhere in general)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You cannot flash the recovery image directly or you will mess up boot partition, you need to flash a kernel with embedded recovery built in
Thanks for the info. I'm confused about the locked/unlocked bootloaders. How do I know which one I'll have? And how "easy" of a process is rooting the phone if I don't plan to install any custom roms or anything?
Also, how does transferring .apk files from my PC to the device work?
kershner25 said:
Thanks for the info. I'm confused about the locked/unlocked bootloaders. How do I know which one I'll have? And how "easy" of a process is rooting the phone if I don't plan to install any custom roms or anything?
Also, how does transferring .apk files from my PC to the device work?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you havent unlocked your bootloader yourself it is locked there are many risks and advantages to unlocking your bootloader, but if you dont intend to flash custom roms there really is no need, just like with root, if you dont know what it is, you probably wont need it
transfering .apk's from your pc is easy, just copy the .apk to your sd card, then use a file manager to find the .apk, tap on it and the installer will pop up , you need to tick unknown sources in settings though
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1176367
AndroHero said:
You cannot flash the recovery image directly or you will mess up boot partition, you need to flash a kernel with embedded recovery built in
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hes asking about android in general not aiming specifically at the xperia play
If I root my phone, do I have to switch everything back in order to get updates? All I really want to root my phone for would be to remove bloatware/speed it up a bit, is there a better way than rooting?
There is plenty of tutorials here, I suggest that you read, read, and then......read some more
_terror_ said:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1176367
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks so much for this link, it's seriously going to help me while rooting my phone. This might be a dumb question, but bear with me - better safe than a bricked phone. The guide to rooting in that link says that I need to flash my Play to the .184 Generic UK firmware...am I understanding it correctly that I need flash this firmware onto my American Verizon Play? I want to make sure nothing is going to get screwed up regionally, as I'm going to want to keep getting OTA updates and all that.
Just to share my own experiences since I'm new to the Xperia Play (previously had an Acer Liquid.. crappy hardware but great community of devs.. anyways..)
I'd recommend rooting your phone off the bat - the simple reason is rooting will involve wiping your phone's data, so if you already have a few months of use that means having to restore everything which is tiresome. First thing when my phone arrived was follow the rooting guide here - http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1116090
After that however I wouldn't recommend messing around TOO much with custom firmwares and such etc.. get used to the phone as it is and figure out what you like, don't like. if your like me within a few weeks or months you'll want something new - this is when you might want to start looking at messing around with the phone - new home launchers or even a new ROM (if your phone can have it's boot loader unlocked, from what I understand mine can't). The games and Emulators should keep you busy as is
The only customizing I've done to my phone is rooting it with Gingerbreak and using the leaked Sony Launcher.
I realize this is a pretty nooby thing to do that annoys all the veterans, but I consider this to be a fairly crucial piece of information I need before I attempt to root my phone, so I'm just gonna go ahead and bump this thing before it gets lost in the shuffle.
In order to root with a locked bootloader on an American Verizon XPlay, I need to flash to the .184 generic UK firmware, then root, then OTA update, correct?
kershner25 said:
I realize this is a pretty nooby thing to do that annoys all the veterans, but I consider this to be a fairly crucial piece of information I need before I attempt to root my phone, so I'm just gonna go ahead and bump this thing before it gets lost in the shuffle.
In order to root with a locked bootloader on an American Verizon XPlay, I need to flash to the .184 generic UK firmware, then root, then OTA update, correct?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No. That method will not work on the r800x (verizon xplay) to root yours you will need to see [How-to] R800x Root
Dont worry about annoying people lol . Who cares what others think? Everyone has to start somewhere.
But it would be better with a stickied thread for new users to look @.
So now, instead of the 3 step process linked previously in this thread, I have to unlock the bootloader and do a whole bunch of other stuff? This method is like 100x more complicated. Is there no other way? I don't intend to install any custom roms, I strictly want to root solely for freezing bloatware.
No i dont think so. You would be better asking for help from other r800x owners in that thread.
The exploit gingerbreak uses on 2.3.2 was patched in 2.3.3 (worldwide) and was also patched by verizon before they released the handset on 2.3.2. Up untill the bootloader was unlocked on the r800x rooting was not possible.
Ask in that thread and you should recieve the help/info you are after.
hiya mate right ive rooted and put on custom recovery but now its screwed up my cam , wifi , and the market so be warned im trying to fix this problem as we speak
---------- Post added at 10:32 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:27 PM ----------
im new to this to really but having a play with no cam and no wifi and no market. the market is there but cant dwnload nothing is taking the piss can anyone help me please
Mozza2k11 said:
But it would be better with a stickied thread for new users to look @.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is one already stickied in the Q&A section.That it has gone practically unnoticed counters this statement.
kershner25 said:
Thanks so much for this link, it's seriously going to help me while rooting my phone. This might be a dumb question, but bear with me - better safe than a bricked phone. The guide to rooting in that link says that I need to flash my Play to the .184 Generic UK firmware...am I understanding it correctly that I need flash this firmware onto my American Verizon Play? I want to make sure nothing is going to get screwed up regionally, as I'm going to want to keep getting OTA updates and all that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Their is not such thing as a bricked phone
always is a way to fix it and usually its as simple as flashing a FTF
or whatever stock rom your device uses takes like 5 minutes tops lol
and logsemans guides will tell you anything you need to know
just use them for refrence
Xperia Play Super Compilation (Q&A Sticky)
and if you head down the path of rooting and stuff
messing with files
you wont be able to get ota updates lol.
it will "brick you"
I recentally made a quick video with tips for android users/beginners if you want to watch it. Thought it would help people. http://youtu.be/Pd5DerUoEcY
hello all. I've rooted my past phones, and used custom ROMS.
I'm wondering if it's possible to just root my S3, but keep the stock Rom on it? i think it's fast, and I'm quite happy with it!
I'd like to be able to remove some of the bloat programs, and be able to do backups via titanium.
Is this possible?
Would i be able to do samsung ROM updates with ease?
would this void my warranty?
Could someone guide me to the right guide to accomplish this task?
Thanks for your time, and assistance!
xtacybyme said:
hello all. I've rooted my past phones, and used custom ROMS.
I'm wondering if it's possible to just root my S3, but keep the stock Rom on it? i think it's fast, and I'm quite happy with it!
I'd like to be able to remove some of the bloat programs, and be able to do backups via titanium.
Is this possible?
Would i be able to do samsung ROM updates with ease?
would this void my warranty?
Could someone guide me to the right guide to accomplish this task?
Thanks for your time, and assistance!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Of course you can root your phone and stay on the stock rom, that's where your at after every root! Just don't flash a rom, your not forced to. You will probably have to unroot to apply updates, but I think there's an app in the play store to temporarily unroot the phone, or disable super user & busy box? Your correct on using TB to remove bloat, and there's a thread somewhere in general about what's safe to remove, and it's also best to make a back up before you remove anything just in case. There are guides in the development section on how to root, or for a video tutorial go to galaxys3root.com. It's a site created by user zedomax where he makes videos on how to root & install custom roms/reviews that can be very helpful to less advanced users. I hope I've helped, and if you have any questions, issues, or are just looking for an opinion on something feel free to PM me and if I can't help you I'll point you to someone that can! Best of luck, and be careful!
Hey guys,
Im a recent android convert after having bought an iPhone on the first day it was available, and almost all revisions since. I bought my Note II just before Xmas and cannot believe how satisfied I am with the new OS and the hardware.
Now in the android world, I'm lookign to gain the full functionality of multi-view by rooting and installing CLEANRom. However after reading all the guides I still have a couple questions.
1) By using the root injected roms (Im on Rogers), will the phone be ready to accept CleanRom? Im just unclear if root injected methods allow a custom ROM to be installed without any issue. If not, is there an alternative or easier rooting method that will allow cleanrom to be installed?
2) finally, due to my noobness, Im just wondering if there exists a very clear guide (perhaps with a video or picture step by step) that uses as few acronyms as possible (im still getting the hang of the jargon) for first root injecting/rooting a note II/similar phone and also installing a custom ROM?
Also, as Im a mac user, any tips on being able to carry on this on a mac would be appreciated. As it stands, Im boot-camping windows XP using a virtualizing software with windows 7 to be able to do this.
Thanks in advance guys, looking forward to being a part of the community.
It sounds to me like you are looking for a "laymans terms" description on the physical mechanics of installing a custom ROM. Here is a link to a post where I gave the best instruction I could to install a custom ROM (in this example the jedi rom) for someone on att. Most of the steps will be exactly the same for Cleanrom and I think there will be seperate instructions for Rogers in the actual Cleanrom thread.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2058320
4th post in the thread I believe.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317 using xda app-developers app
Thanks topshelf. That thread clarifies things big time.
as a fellow Mac user, you are pretty much going to be frustrated and pissed off when trying most Mac methods to root. I dual booted mine with Windows 7 just for the purpose of screwing around with my phone(s).
I don't know about root injection or whatever. I know I used Odin on Windows to flash a single .tar file and that gave me superuser, and my cleanrom 4.05
There are several ways to root and it seems there are different methods here and there. It is quite frustrating at first.
http://galaxynote2root.com/ is a good site and I believe it is the same guy that has made like 60 videos for the Note 2.
There are different Roms and people sometimes try different ones. I like the cleanroms by scott. Just search for scotts roms on google and it will take you to his site.
You will have to do a factory reset on your phone first. It will erase everything and bring it back to how you got it out of the box. Reset won't touch your external sdcard.
I don't know how anything works with virtual windows. You may also have to download Samsung drivers to get the computer to recognize your phone.
hi all I'm trying to root my phone but there is so many different ways to tour. I would like the simplest way to root but I want it to do everything that all rooting software would do. I've come across one click options and would like to do those since I don't have to use my computer. Please help! Thanks
you are so going to get bashed in here for asking that question. The expectation is that everybody reads everything they can and then if they are hung up on something they can post a question. I am a relative noob although I have lurked on this site for a few years. I don't bash anybody though.
I understand your frustration.
I simply flashed a single .tar file to my phone while my phone was in download mode. I felt it was very simple using windows on my Mac. There is the very simple Exynos exploit file somewhere here where you download it and basically install it. I thought that this Exynos installation did something to the camera app.
Hopefully, somebody here will help you determine what is best for you. I really haven't tried many methods of root. I like to stick with one I am familiar with since a lot things might go wrong if not done right.
I am not sure what you mean by having the root method do everything that all rooting software would do. When you root you are just gaining access to portions of your phones files that are locked when you buy it. If you want more 'stuff' then you would flash a custom rom after rooting
Thanks for not bashing me. I'm def a noob and I'm new to the android community. I moved from an iPhone to galaxy n2 so I'm learning as I go. Thanks for your help!
mitz85 said:
Thanks for not bashing me. I'm def a noob and I'm new to the android community. I moved from an iPhone to galaxy n2 so I'm learning as I go. Thanks for your help!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Check out Chainfire's method for rooting. It's very simple, there is even a video instruction going step by step. It took me 5 minutes and I came from an Iphone. Head on over to the Original android development subforum, you'll see it there. Good luck!
Google "exynos abuse" if you have not already taken the ota update.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317 using xda app-developers app
Ceasare said:
Google "exynos abuse" if you have not already taken the ota update.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I used the exynos abuse because I didn't need to use my computer to do it and it worked fine. But once I did the latest OTA update from AT&T, I lost root. So I did the Chainfire method. (See http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1980644 )
t's really easy and took about 5 min.
You might find a few helpful things on the page I made here.. Samsung Galaxy Note 2 ROMs & Community Links
First, take a breath...
mitz85 said:
hi all I'm trying to root my phone but there is so many different ways to tour. I would like the simplest way to root but I want it to do everything that all rooting software would do. I've come across one click options and would like to do those since I don't have to use my computer. Please help! Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just got my Note 2 about 3 weeks ago and haven't ventured into rooting it yet, BUT I did research here on XDA about rooting before doing it to my Galaxy S2 (AT&T) and the one thing I want to mention is to take your time are read to confirm whether or not the procedures you're looking at are for the Note 2 AND for the variant you have. Using the wrong process (rooting, kerneling, installing custom rom) can cause all sorts of problems, so don't be impatient if you don't know what you're doing. And by all means DO A COMPLETE BACKUP before you do any rooting.
That said, when I did root my S2, it was a very easy process...took all of about 15 minutes to backup, root, install custom rom, etc.
Good luck...and let us know how you do!
Judi
I am new to Android, I was a iPhone user before and I am loving my Samsung Galaxy so far. And I want to learn more about customizing my android phone. So I heard about rooting, but when I did the research about rooting it is so complicated because there's lot of ways to root it. I just want to know the easiest way and I want to know what can I do after I root it.
ejhay25 said:
I am new to Android, I was a iPhone user before and I am loving my Samsung Galaxy so far. And I want to learn more about customizing my android phone. So I heard about rooting, but when I did the research about rooting it is so complicated because there's lot of ways to root it. I just want to know the easiest way and I want to know what can I do after I root it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Cant tell you whats easiest since I havent tried them all, but i used chainfires root method here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2294005
and then used the goomanager app to install TWRP recovery.
after rooting you basically have full access to your phone and get to flash custom roms which all have different benefits, along with being able to use powerful apps that need root access. Titanium backup is a must have also.
using the above method I got everything including a rom installed in under 20 min on my first try..
ejhay25 said:
I am new to Android, I was a iPhone user before and I am loving my Samsung Galaxy so far. And I want to learn more about customizing my android phone. So I heard about rooting, but when I did the research about rooting it is so complicated because there's lot of ways to root it. I just want to know the easiest way and I want to know what can I do after I root it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Find what baseband you are using.. Settings->About Phone... It will either be M919UVUAMDB or M919UVUAMDL. Once you have determined which baseband version you are running, try typing the last 3 letters of the baseband version (MDB or MDL) and the word "root" into the search box in the Q&A section. Read the 1st page or two of a few of the posts until you ascertain which rooting method is the correct one to use. Once you determine what method to use, you can browse/search the General section and/or Development sections for whichever rooting method you decide. Read the first post to get an idea of how to do it, then root. It is not complicated as, aside from the downloading part, each of the what... 4 root methods for the S4 are pretty much point and click..
As far as the "why," I'm fairly confident that in the fairly detailed search outline I laid out will be answers to why people root and things you can do once rooted. May not be listed as "You can do this, this, this, and this." In fact, probably be more like "I want to do *something*. Do I need root?" -> Answer: "Yes."
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2356590
Sent from my SGH-M919 using xda premium
Go here and check out my post