Develop Bugs

[Q] Root and OTA updates

Hi,
What are experiences of current owners of Nexus phones ? My Desire Z is rooted ( only rooted, don't have a custom ROM), and I never got Gingerbread update so I'd hate the same thing happening to G Nexus.
Thanks.

zljk said:
Hi,
What are experiences of current owners of Nexus phones ? My Desire Z is rooted ( only rooted, don't have a custom ROM), and I never got Gingerbread update so I'd hate the same thing happening to G Nexus.
Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That will never happen with the GN. When you own this phone you're first in line for the updates until the next is coming out then you're second but still faster than the others.
Sent from my HTC Desire using XDA App

When you're rooted you can't get the OTA updates. You have to unroot to apply them. That's true for all Android phones.

You cant get them at all?
Not even: get update and apply it, loose root because of the update, reroot?
Sent from my A500 using Tapatalk

TulpiX said:
You cant get them at all?
Not even: get update and apply it, loose root because of the update, reroot?
Sent from my A500 using Tapatalk
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Click to collapse
you could do that, but chances are someone will get the OTA before you and pre root it for everyones pleasure and you can just flash that via recovery

TulpiX said:
You cant get them at all?
Not even: get update and apply it, loose root because of the update, reroot?
Sent from my A500 using Tapatalk
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Click to collapse
If my experiences with my OG Droid match up with the Nexus line, if you've only rooted and haven't actually installed another ROM, you should be able to apply the OTA update and lose root because of it. Then just root again.

martonikaj said:
When you're rooted you can't get the OTA updates. You have to unroot to apply them. That's true for all Android phones.
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Click to collapse
I've seen some threads claiming that root itself doesn't affect updates, but changing of data on system partition.... Was kind of hoping there is a way to have my cake and eat it too - don't mind having to root the phone all over again after the OTA....
Anyhow - as an alternative, is there a way to get official Nexus updates ( stock ) using other channels except OTA ? What was happening with old Nexus phones ?

zljk said:
I've seen some threads claiming that root itself doesn't affect updates, but changing of data on system partition.... Was kind of hoping there is a way to have my cake and eat it too - don't mind having to root the phone all over again after the OTA....
Anyhow - as an alternative, is there a way to get official Nexus updates ( stock ) using other channels except OTA ? What was happening with old Nexus phones ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The alternate way to get official Nexus updates is to download the update zip file once someone copies it off their device and uploads it, and install it in whatever fashion works.

I rooted my Nexus One without unlocking the bootloader or using custom recovery. I definitely still got OTA updates and they worked fine, but would unroot the phone.
The solution is to use a custom recovery and apply the update .zip manually, then reflash superuser before rebooting. Whenever an OTA update comes out, someone eventually uses logcat to get the URL to the zip and posts it so anyone can download it.
I was rooted on Froyo and got the OTA update to Gingerbread no problem, but I lost root. I eventually got root again (Gingerbreak) and when the 2.3.4 update came out, I did it manually in custom recovery to keep root.
Now I run CM7.1 so I definitely don't get OTA updates from Google

TulpiX said:
You cant get them at all?
Not even: get update and apply it, loose root because of the update, reroot?
Sent from my A500 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It will often download and you can try but it will either fail, unroot you, or cause troubles.
You're best off applying the pre-rooted update, or unrooting and taking the OTA.

martonikaj said:
When you're rooted you can't get the OTA updates. You have to unroot to apply them. That's true for all Android phones.
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Click to collapse
True. However it's trivial to repackage an OTA update to a rooted update and since it's very compatible with the source in AOSP and you get working drivers very early you can start messing around with it straight away.

blunden said:
True. However it's trivial to repackage an OTA update to a rooted update and since it's very compatible with the source in AOSP and you get working drivers very early you can start messing around with it straight away.
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Click to collapse
Of course, as is often the case for most phones supported here on XDA. the rooted OTA comes in the form of a .zip soon after it comes out.

slowz3r said:
you could do that, but chances are someone will get the OTA before you and pre root it for everyones pleasure and you can just flash that via recovery
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Click to collapse
When flashing the rooted OTA via recovery, does it wipe the phone (apps and all)?
Also for the other method, when unrooting >> applying OTA >> rooting again, does it wipe the phone at any point during this process?
Help would be appreciated and rewarded!

I just received my OTA update notification and found the update zip itself in the cache of my phone. I can post that update zip here if a mod can come along and tell me where to put it. I am going to wait till I'm home so I can have my rooting facilities handy before starting.

phazerorg said:
I rooted my Nexus One without unlocking the bootloader or using custom recovery. I definitely still got OTA updates and they worked fine, but would unroot the phone.
The solution is to use a custom recovery and apply the update .zip manually, then reflash superuser before rebooting. Whenever an OTA update comes out, someone eventually uses logcat to get the URL to the zip and posts it so anyone can download it.
I was rooted on Froyo and got the OTA update to Gingerbread no problem, but I lost root. I eventually got root again (Gingerbreak) and when the 2.3.4 update came out, I did it manually in custom recovery to keep root.
Now I run CM7.1 so I definitely don't get OTA updates from Google
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Click to collapse
+1. Exactly.
There is a lot of wrong (or slightly incorrect) information in this thread.
Have root has no impact whatsoever in your ability to receive or apply the OTA update. This has been the case on every Android device. However, if you have a custom recovery flashed, you will not be able to automatically apply the update - you will have to find the zip file in the cache and use your custom recovery to apply it.
On a slightly separate note, once you apply the update either automatically or manually via custom recovery, you will lose root. However, if you do have a custom recovery, as long as you flash ChainsDD's superuser package immediately after applying the update, but before rebooting, you will retain root.
On another separate not, if you flash the update as is from Google, it includes a file (/system/recovery-from-boot.p) that re-flashes the stock recovery on every boot, so you will lose your custom recovery. Either remove the file before flashing the update, or just re-flash your custom recovery.

[Q] Help about rooting and other stuff

Sorry if this question has been asked before, but i could not find any.
So i got the Nexus beast yesterday, and it's already blazing me off with it's greatness. But i got a few problems though:
1. I got the jakjuxw, not the jakju, will i get the same updates as the jakju OTA, but only a week later or so?
2. I did not root the phone before starting using it, but i regret that now. Is there any way i can root it and NOT lose all of my apps and data? I have spent so many hours to customize this device and i dont want to start all over (yes i know about app backup's, but they are slow)
3. If i root but stay with the stock rom, will i still be getting the original OTA updates or does i have to flash the roms manually and wipe the phone every time?
I'd appreciate it if anyone could answer all the questions =)

Baguett said:
Sorry if this question has been asked before, but i could not find any.
So i got the Nexus beast yesterday, and it's already blazing me off with it's greatness. But i got a few problems though:
1. I got the jakjuxw, not the jakju, will i get the same updates as the jakju OTA, but only a week later or so?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not sure about this, it probably depends on what they want to release. I don't think there's any kind of guarantee they'll get the same updates, but there's also probably no reason why they wouldn't.
2. I did not root the phone before starting using it, but i regret that now. Is there any way i can root it and NOT lose all of my apps and data? I have spent so many hours to customize this device and i dont want to start all over (yes i know about app backup's, but they are slow)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You need to unlock the bootloader to root, and unlocking the bootloader wipes the device. Sorry. Someday an exploit might be found for ICS that allows you to root without unlocking.
3. If i root but stay with the stock rom, will i still be getting the original OTA updates or does i have to flash the roms manually and wipe the phone every time?
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Click to collapse
If you keep stock recovery, you'll still get OTA updates when rooted. If you use custom recovery like ClockworkMod, you'll have to do them manually (but you won't need to wipe). In both cases, applying the update will probably cause you to lose root and you'll have to re-root. This is easy if you've unlocked the bootloader.
If you root by using some future exploit, you might find that the update you just installed removed root and closed the hole that allowed you to gain it without unlocking the bootloader, and now you're left stuck without root. I'd say just unlock the bootloader now and be done with it. It'll be a pain, but then you don't need to worry about it again.

phazerorg said:
If you keep stock recovery, you'll still get OTA updates when rooted. If you use custom recovery like ClockworkMod, you'll have to do them manually (but you won't need to wipe). In both cases, applying the update will probably cause you to lose root and you'll have to re-root. This is easy if you've unlocked the bootloader.
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Click to collapse
ok thanks
Just unlocked it and rooted it, but i think im gonna install the official google 4.0.2 rom, i wil get the OTA updates then too right?
edit: how am i able to flash a rom without CWM? Also do i really not need to wipe my phone if i use CWM? i had to do it on my Desire.

Baguett said:
ok thanks
Just unlocked it and rooted it, but i think im gonna install the official google 4.0.2 rom, i wil get the OTA updates then too right?
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Click to collapse
Yes, but the updates will probably unroot you. You should be able to just re-root after. If using CWM you can probably flash superuser right after flashing the update and not lose root at all. This is what I always did with my Nexus One when I still had the rooted stock ROM.
edit: how am i able to flash a rom without CWM?
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Click to collapse
If the ROM comes as images (like the Google factory images) you can flash with fastboot. The Google ones come with a script that uses fastboot to do it for you.
Also do i really not need to wipe my phone if i use CWM? i had to do it on my Desire.
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Click to collapse
I meant installing updates here... you don't usually need to wipe if you are installing updates to your current ROM, such as OTA updates to the stock ROM. You need to wipe if you're changing ROMs. It's probably no different than your Desire.

Downgrade GSM Gnex to 4.0.2

Hello
Today i recieved the jellybean ota update. its not working. i searched for a while and found out that ill have to update it with something called cwm and this requires root, but i dont want to root my phone. so i thought it would be possible to downgrade my device but apparently this also requires root. I have an unlocked bootloader but is there no way to update/downgrade my device without using root?

Cubassss said:
Hello
Today i recieved the jellybean ota update. its not working. i searched for a while and found out that ill have to update it with something called cwm and this requires root, but i dont want to root my phone. so i thought it would be possible to downgrade my device but apparently this also requires root. I have an unlocked bootloader but is there no way to update/downgrade my device without using root?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
cwm does not require root, just an unlocked bootloader.

Zepius said:
cwm does not require root, just an unlocked bootloader.
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Click to collapse
dafuq? it was written everywhere so can please someone delete this thread?

[Q] OTA updates run automatically?

This is my first Nexus. If I unlock the bootloader and root, and stay with rooted stock, would a future OTA update relock the bootloader and undo root?
Also, are the OTA updates automatic, or can I choose not to install the update?

Ectoplasmic said:
This is my first Nexus. If I unlock the bootloader and root, and stay with rooted stock, would a future OTA update relock the bootloader and undo root?
Also, are the OTA updates automatic, or can I choose not to install the update?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Once you are unlocked, you won't become locked unless you manually lock it. This is the case even if you accept an OTA or factory restore.
Some OTAs are mandatory like the one most people got when they turned on the unit, however most are optional and won't install unless you choose to, either on purpose or by accident.

sfhub said:
Once you are unlocked, you won't become locked unless you manually lock it. This is the case even if you accept an OTA or factory restore.
Some OTAs are mandatory like the one most people got when they turned on the unit, however most are optional and won't install unless you choose to, either on purpose or by accident.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
However, to be fair, the DEB JLS36I update out there right now will cause you to lose root. It does not lock the bootloader, but it does whack root and custom recoveries. Unless you choose the option in TWRP to recover root after the install, in which case it rolls back the update and keeps both TWRP and root, meaning you are as you were as before. A few days later, you get the prompt to install the update again, and the circle of life continues.

Does that mean rooted and unlocked on JSS15R I can get the next OTA update but I loose root? I dont have any custom stuff like recovery or rom, just unlocked and rooted for a few apps like titanium backup, cpu Z and gemeni app manager

AndroidGreg said:
Does that mean rooted and unlocked on JSS15R I can get the next OTA update but I loose root? I dont have any custom stuff like recovery or rom, just unlocked and rooted for a few apps like titanium backup, cpu Z and gemeni app manager
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Click to collapse
You can get the update and just re-root.
However if you have modified or removed any files, ota will very likely fail. Removing stock app would be an example of removing a file. On the other hand disabling stock app would be fine.

What if I just bought a nexus 7 LTE and already updated to to JLS36I? How would I get root then? Hypothetically of course...
Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

lastdeadmouse said:
What if I just bought a nexus 7 LTE and already updated to to JLS36I? How would I get root then? Hypothetically of course...
Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk
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Click to collapse
Same way you would if you hadn't installed JLS36I
Unlock bootloader
Boot into custom recovery
Install root

Can You Remove Root Yet?

Hey folks
I'm on Verizon and I'm on day 1 of my 14 day return policy for my G3. I'd like to root it (seems like ioroot is compatible with Verizon) and tweak things, but just in case I find something broken with the phone, I need to be able to remove root in case I need to return it. Is this possible yet? Will a factory reset remove root? If not, how is it done (if it can be done)?
Bonus question: If I root it with ioroot and install xposed to perform tweaks on the stock rom, will ota updates still work?
Thanks

MSmithXDA said:
Hey folks
I'm on Verizon and I'm on day 1 of my 14 day return policy for my G3. I'd like to root it (seems like ioroot is compatible with Verizon) and tweak things, but just in case I find something broken with the phone, I need to be able to remove root in case I need to return it. Is this possible yet? Will a factory reset remove root? If not, how is it done (if it can be done)?
Bonus question: If I root it with ioroot and install xposed to perform tweaks on the stock rom, will ota updates still work?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can unroot it by flashing stock rom LINK and ota updates will be able and you can download them but you can't acctualy update do to phone detecting root

suljo94 said:
You can unroot it by flashing stock rom LINK and ota updates will be able and you can download them but you can't acctualy update do to phone detecting root
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Sorry but i am going to borrow this post. I have the D855 and i am rooted via towelroot. Currently on V10a and i received an OTA notification. Obviously i could not install it so how do i get updates? TWRP did not list the G3 on supported devices.

suljo94 said:
You can unroot it by flashing stock rom LINK and ota updates will be able and you can download them but you can't acctualy update do to phone detecting root
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Click to collapse
Don't think that works on Verizon.
This does
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2799647