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Hey guys, I have been using smart phones for a while and usually get around great without rooting. I had the HTC Dream back in the day and couldnt use it without rooting, lol. I am upgrading from the G1 which has met the end of the road for me. What are the benefits of rooting? With the Vibrant which I will finally have on Tuesday, is it necessary? And if it is HIGHLY recommended, how do I go about rooting it?
i would say root it cause its really easy takes not even 5 minutes seriously lol but i would also root it cause there is lots of bloatware on this thing so many apps that arent needed
I am not generally a rooter but this one seemed so easy (and it is) that I did it.
I didn't root the phone to dig into the files, I did it just so I could install stuff that I couldn't otherwise install. It bugged me to see a cool app and then read "YOU MUST HAVE ROOT ACCESS". That's not a problem anymore.
You certainly don't lose anything by rooting so I would say go for it.
Any other disadvantages/advantages
really there are no disadvantages accept maybe warranty but i think theres a way to unroot so no probs but once everything starts picking up there will be way more advantages than disadvantages
Besides the fact of removing awful apps (Bloatware), you can use your phone to tether. Also you can use an app called SetCPU to overclock your processor to actaully use your 1GHZ processor which speeds your phone up, along with a ton of other root apps. Youll be able to flash custom ROMS, flash themes, etc. Not sure if there is a volume hack for the vibrant yet, but that has been a reason for past rooted phones as well.
I highly recommend it...
AdFree Android removes nearly all ads from websites and apps
reasons to root
1. Use apps that require root access (such as Titanium Backup and Drocap2)
2. Remove preloaded bloatware (who needs TeleNav when Google Maps Navigation is totally free?)
3. Full access to filesystem (useful for developers and general tinkerers)
reasons not to root
1. Always involves some risk (however small) of irreversibly damaging your device
2. Could void warranty or official support
3. Makes it easier for you to accidentally mess up your system.
I only rooted my mytouch and g1 phones so i can get apps2sd, wi-tethering, and overclockcpu.
however, since the upcoming froyo update will allow most of that, i chose not to root for the time being. the phone is very fast and stable for my current needs and has an ample amount of internal memory. the only other reason to root for me would be to flash roms/themes because of my dislike for Samsung's TouchWiz.
it depends on what you ultimately want to get out of your phone.
ryan562 said:
I only rooted my mytouch and g1 phones so i can get apps2sd, wi-tethering, and overclockcpu.
however, since the upcoming froyo update will allow most of that, i chose not to root for the time being. the phone is very fast and stable for my current needs and has an ample amount of internal memory. the only other reason to root for me would be to flash roms/themes because of my dislike for Samsung's TouchWiz.
it depends on what you ultimately want to get out of your phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same for me i had the g1 loved to root however i switched to unlocked iphone and now im back with the vibrant , the vibrant does everything i want now and the ease of the rooting might have me root if froyo is delayed by Tmobile or something.
Understood, also from reading I dont think there is a way to unroot the phone at all is it? And another ? since you all are being so helpful, is there already an app to at least see what speed your processor is running at. i know that task managers arent really needed, but some of them showed ur cpu speed as well as the load on it. is that something that anyone had an interest in and found. thanks for all of you all's help
Hmm, still debating on rooting. Waiting for my Froyo update. Plus I want to port my Harley-Davidson theme I made for my G1 to Vibrant. Hopefully they don't use those CRAMS files on Vibrant, cause that is when I had to stop themeing my G1. CRAMS was too difficult to mess with. Is the signing file method gonna be the same as G1, or is there a different testsign file? Plus I hope to see my stock file, plus a thinned down, less bloatware file, and themeing templates. So many factors to consider.
I say ROOT! I've never rooted a phone till this one. I just couldn't stand all the bloatware that was in this phone. They just had to be removed. Now all I'm waiting for are some sick ass ROMs I've seen done for other devices to hit this one. I'm sure I'll need help doing so, but this community has been fantastic when help is needed.
Plus side for me is that I also have a 3 week old New still in the box Nexus One as a backup phone in case I screw this one up.
I rooted mine because people kept saying you could tether, but none of the tethering apps actually WORK. They install fine, and Wireless-Tethering says it's working, but the access point never shows up. And Wired-Tethering says the kernel isn't compatible.
So I'd like to hear from any rooted users who actually got them working AND successfully tethered a laptop with it.
talltexan said:
Same for me i had the g1 loved to root however i switched to unlocked iphone and now im back with the vibrant , the vibrant does everything i want now and the ease of the rooting might have me root if froyo is delayed by Tmobile or something.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
if there's any delay on the froyo update, i'd blame it on samsung
I was hoping not to have to root the phone so soon - especially until I could reset it back and a recover like Amon's is available, but after a glorious couple of days of honeymoon, the lags are just killing the experience for me. And I don't think I have a choice now, but to root. I'll try a general reset and see if it works. I have another Vibrant that seems to be only slightly laggy. But I have to return that one and keep the problematic one :-(
Even moving icons on the desktop now takes almost 2 second. Linpack still clocks at 8.5. No problem at all playing a video - just OS operations. The camera froze for 5 minutes and I finally had to just restart the phone. Restarting the phone is not painful on this device though. Very fast.
At this time so early in Vibrant development.. it honestly doesn't really make much of a difference if you root early or root later. Just enjoy the phone for what it is as of right now until the modding community becomes settled in. Just be aware if there are any incoming OTAs if you are unrooted to make sure that the OTA didn't do anything that would change the rooting process.
- Recovery (ability to flash custom ROMs) is in the making
- Custom ROM developers -- in the makes soon
So here's the question. Should I go ahead and invest on a Vibrant (but work for it will begin when I get the Slide done) cont... about 7 hours ago via HTC Peep
If I keep getting the donations I am now, I can get the laptop along with the Vibrant, just considering the Vibrant first ...cont about 7 hours ago via HTC Peep -WesGarner
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would personally go ahead and root it to unlock some essential applications and it takes <1 minute to do and its pretty simple. But there isn't any rush to root it now or later.. not at least CyanogenMod6 (Android 2.2) gets released for this beastly phone to have JIT.
nm found it
N8QDogg said:
Understood, also from reading I dont think there is a way to unroot the phone at all is it? And another ? since you all are being so helpful, is there already an app to at least see what speed your processor is running at. i know that task managers arent really needed, but some of them showed ur cpu speed as well as the load on it. is that something that anyone had an interest in and found. thanks for all of you all's help
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
With the root method given so far, I think the only thing you have to do to unroot it is to remove Superuser Permissions. That's the only thing that the root procedure added to the phone.
I'm rooting my phone when I get it, just because to me (at least) it is a part of the true android experience. I'm just geek enough to like to play with my equipment! Hurry up T-Mobile!!!
I guess the droid X now has a little app that lets a person root and unroot with a simple click. I know the vibrant root is about as easy as it gets, but I am curious to know if someone would want to create something like the Droid X guys have done?
I can do the graphics and design for any project, but my coding skills end at "Hello World!"
Anyone interested?
When all you have to do is download a tiny file from your phones browser, rename it, and flash it.... I doubt there is going to be much interest in putting so much effort into this. I mean, it literally took less than 2 minutes to root (I know you know this too... just saying).
Would be cool... doubt anyone is that bored?
The Droid X root method takes ADB commands (what I briefly read) that can be setup in a script in an app. Ours you're required to flash from the recovery.
Sent from my SGH-T959
Like it was said before the Droid X doesn't take a Recovery Flash to get Root, and although I think technically it would be possible, I believe its better that people that can't figure it out don't mess with the phone, everyone knows someone who could do it, so people who don't understand should start making friends
HI everyone, I currently own a droid eris, I have an upgrade coming up next month and my two main options are the fascinate and the droid x, I am highly leaning towards the fascinate because motorola rubbed me the wrong way.
My main issue is, that I dont think I want to install a custom rom on the fascinate, I did do it on the eris, but the only reason I did it was because the HTC sense UI was so incredibly laggy and slow. I have tried other galaxy S phones and this appears to not be the case, it looks like the galaxy s UI is pretty solid and fast.
There are a few things I would like to do however, my main priorities for this phone are to get the wireless tether running, the same that I have for my droid eris, and to be able to replace all that bing crap with everything that is google and good. SetCPU is not a big priority yet, maybe later. I realize that this means getting root privilege on the phone. What I am wondering is, is it as easy as just using the one click root and then installing wireless tether and setCPU? or is it more involved than that? I have read so far that the fascinates roming methods are quite a bit different than the eris, so I may stay away from roming for a while. Just need to get the priorities done (wireless tether and bing replacements)
everything you need to know is found here.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=790004
sdwinder said:
HI everyone, I currently own a droid eris, I have an upgrade coming up next month and my two main options are the fascinate and the droid x, I am highly leaning towards the fascinate because motorola rubbed me the wrong way.
My main issue is, that I dont think I want to install a custom rom on the fascinate, I did do it on the eris, but the only reason I did it was because the HTC sense UI was so incredibly laggy and slow. I have tried other galaxy S phones and this appears to not be the case, it looks like the galaxy s UI is pretty solid and fast.
There are a few things I would like to do however, my main priorities for this phone are to get the wireless tether running, the same that I have for my droid eris, and to be able to replace all that bing crap with everything that is google and good. SetCPU is not a big priority yet, maybe later. I realize that this means getting root privilege on the phone. What I am wondering is, is it as easy as just using the one click root and then installing wireless tether and setCPU? or is it more involved than that? I have read so far that the fascinates roming methods are quite a bit different than the eris, so I may stay away from roming for a while. Just need to get the priorities done (wireless tether and bing replacements)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
One click root.
Wireless tether is possible
Bing is replaceable, see that link! You need a different launcher though! (LP?)
Send me a message if you need help doing any of this.
Links:
Google Search Fix (non-root)
Root
Wireless Tether
thanks for the links guys,
I just have one question, after i install the samsung drivers on my windows 7 machine and enable debugging mode on the phone and connect the phone to the machine. The actual file itself that has the one click root, I extract that file to my computer and click the install root correct? or do i extract it to the sd card on phone?
Also, does it matter what directory the file is extracted to on my computer or does it run from anywhere.
Hey everybody, I'm switching to an iPhone 4 to the Droid X within a matter of weeks now. That being said, I am a VERY experience user of iOS and even got Android on my old iTouch. Every iDevice I have owned has been jailbroken and heavily used. However, I believe it is time to switch to the Droid X. It has a much bigger screen, much more speed, and a more reliable network. Now to the good stuff - I have been following several threads on the Droid X about the "ROMS" . I do love the Vanilla Android look and would definetely want to put that on my upcoming Droid X. Does anyone know of a good instruction guide to get that properly set-up and working for noobies? Thanks to everybody, looking forward to making the big switch!
there is a good tutorial over on droidxforums.com for root/roms/backup in the hacks section
Welcome aboard. I too dumped my iPhone 4 after six months and now have the Droid X. I cleared some good resale value, and couldn't be happier. If you haven't sold it yet I would suggest checking out www.wennecorp.com, they were easy to deal with and a legit buyer.
Z4root will get you rooted (free in market) and Rom Manager will get you familiar with roms. You will also need bootstrap recovery to get started flashing. Google it. Steer clear of the leaked 2.2.1 flash for now. There is no full SBF to recover if things go wrong. Once the full SBF is available, it's no big deal. Use Rom Manager to back up before each and every flash. This will save you alot of headache.You will always have something stable to go back to if things go bad, unless you upgrade bootloader. Once you upgrade bootloader, old backups are useless. Another reason to stay away from the leak for now.
thanks for the suggestion bro
Barkleyfan said:
Z4root will get you rooted (free in market) and Rom Manager will get you familiar with roms. You will also need bootstrap recovery to get started flashing. Google it. Steer clear of the leaked 2.2.1 flash for now. There is no full SBF to recover if things go wrong. Once the full SBF is available, it's no big deal. Use Rom Manager to back up before each and every flash. This will save you alot of headache.You will always have something stable to go back to if things go bad, unless you upgrade bootloader. Once you upgrade bootloader, old backups are useless. Another reason to stay away from the leak for now.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thanks so much for the explanation man. the iphone 4 is pretty simple to hack with the new jailbreaks and such ahah. it will be fun playing witht he droid x tho. thanks again . i will search a bit more
Hi everyone,
Recently, a friend gave me my first Droid phone. It is a Droid2 A955 which had 2.3.20, and a cracked digitizer. My intentions were to get this device functional and rooted before replacing the digitizer. Well, like a tard, I let the device update to 2.3.4, and like an even bigger tard, I attempted to load the 2.3.3 SBF without doing my research first. Oops. Wait, scratch that. Big oops.
Now I am sure all of you know what the end result of that was, and you don't have to rub my head in the sand over it because I've been doing that for about a day now myself!!!
Either way, I have found someone who is willing to sell me their "went to collections" Droid2, with accessories, extra battery, and whatnot for around $50.. Their Droid2 already has Gingerbread 2.3.3 on it. I got him to give me the MEID, and I changed the MEID through VZW site on my "spare phone", and had him *22899 to OTA. All was successful, so it is free and clear for me to immediately activate and start using.
Here is what I need to know before I go messing with this phone, because I definitely can't afford to FF the bits on this phone up, especially when I'm having to pay for it, if you know what I mean!
1. From research, Droid 2 Gingerbread 2.3.3 can be rooted. How complex of a task is it? In fact, exactly what does "root" allow one to do? About the only real goal I have is to sparingly tether my laptop via wifi without having to sacrifice my soul to Verizon each month.
2. I understand that this phone will "nag" you to 2.3.4 and will automagically do the update if you don't stop it in 30 seconds, very much like my Droid2 did. What can I do to permanently disable the 2.3.4 update check once I have this functioning 2.3.3?
3. There is supposedly an "X" button that you push with the power button to enter RECOVERY MODE... Just what, exactly, is the "X" key?
I don't want another repeat of the D2.3.7 MEM_BLANK screen.
Actually, playing around, I was able to take the D2.3.7 down to D2.3.5, but unfortunately it still refused to take the stock Froyo flash or the 2.3.3. Is there earlier "bootloaders" SBF's out there that can be loaded into the Droid that *maybe* will allow us to unbrick them? When the memory is blank (according to MEM_BLANK), what is preventing the phone from committing the flash?? Mine stops at 99% and cries about something dealing with "BP". As if the bootloader is refusing to commit the flash to ROM after being uploaded into the phone's RAM.
Either way the Bootloader Screen displays Battery Low, so I'm spent trying to revive this device until I get the other one from my friend tomorrow.
I don't understand what is part of this Bootloader that is preventing us from fixing this. Better yet, I can't understand how Motorola would do such a shameful act of sabotage against their customers. I've been a hardcore Motorola fan since the StarTac/TimePort days, and Motorola has always been my #1 phone of choice. Not just because of its stability and reliability, but how easy they are to "monster flash" back to factory when things go crazy. Maybe I should just stick with my Razr MAXX and be a happy little boy.
I have noticed the 2.3.4 Gingerbread has been leaked for the Droid2 Global. It is not compatible with the regular Droid 2, unfortunately, and I hope that enough people are interested in restoring these bricks that some solution is released to bring them back to life.
I am reading that people are taking "backup repair" ROM's and storing them to the MicroSD card, and successfully wiping .621 from the device and reverting to a previous version. What is the odds of getting a "backup rom" from a 2.3.3 Gingerbread, or whatever device, and using that backup to unbrick the bricked pones because of .621? I don't know, because my experience with the Droid involved about 3 hours before I was at the Bootloader error screen. LMAO!
I am just trying to throw some ideas out there, because, the last time I flashed firmware on a phone, it was the Motorola V710, E815, RAZR, RAZR MAXX, v325(i), and a slew of LG's. The last "Smartphone" I flashed was the XV6700 (that WM5 phone was hilarious with the Apache WM6.0 code on it). So, as you can tell, I'm a little behind on the times, but I'm not too far behind you guys.
I thought about calling and complaining that this update "screwed my phone up" but I am also concerned if I have to return the core of this phone, and they see how bad the digitizer is in, I'm going to get a heaping bill. Either way it worked fine with the cracked digitizer, it was ultimately their software that crashed the device. Guess I could order and replace the digitizer and get them to replace it, but I'm not 100% positive they would still replace the device since it's technically not "under warranty." May be one of those "I'm out of contract you make this right or US Cellular is opening us with open arms"....
PS-- I used to be a VZW Customer Support/Service Techican. Back in my day we could get whatever firmware we needed through NetAce from "InfoCenter", not just for Moto phones, but LG and all the other devices as well. On some "returns" we had no choice but to do a factory "Monster Flash" in order to rid of the previous customer's data and bring the phone back to virgin status. I don't know how things are inside the Tech's office these days, though. Maybe I should call my Service Techs who still have jobs and see what they can do (I prefer not to get them involved because I don't want them risking their job).
I've also replaced many of the digitizers in these Droid 2's for my friends. They're a pain in the @$$, but retail on these puppies aren't exactly cheap, either.
Any advice you guys can give me would be greatly appreciated. Also, please be honest with me. Don't sugarcoat ****. If you guys don't think this phone is going to work right under "root" conditions with 2.3.3, or the phone simply isn't worth $50, please let me know!
Thank all of you!
Droid Root 2.3.3
Thanks for your help guys.
I have the Droid, same Bootloader 2.3.7 as my bricked one, but it is at Gingerbread 2.3.3.
I was able to get "MotorolaOneClick" to load Superuser to the device.
Now there are two things I need to accomplish
1. Unlock tethering
2. Disable device from taking 2.3.4 OTA
I think if I can get these two things taken care of, I'm golden.
You can find everything you need to do both if you search the site. Shouldn't be a problem.
Reading
I am pretty sure I have taken care of preventing update to 2.3.4.
But I am still having trouble getting tethering to properly work.
Downloaded the Wifi Tether.
Still get paywall screen.
Close Wifi Tether.
Get paywall screen through the phone!!!
Have to reboot.
Also out of curiosity, does the speaker (not speakerphone) sound like you need a hearing aid??? The speaker in this Droid 2 is absolutely horrendous, sounds like I'm trying to listen to an XV6700.
Soft Speaker!
OK, I think the speaker is ok in this phone, but I am determined this mesh screen covering it is completely clogged. Time to get a fresh box cutter (closest thing I have to an xacto knife at the moment) and carefully cut this thing out. I don't have a T3 at the moment, and quite frankly, I don't want to tear 5 or 6 layers apart to tear this clogged screen out!! Either way, if things go sinister, I still have the busted up Droid 2 to take the speaker out of (Or the entire ribbon from what my research reveals).
I can tell you this much. I wish I had the previous owners set of ears. I bet he could hear a pin drop a mile away if he was able to hear the sound out of this thing. Then again, I am used to volume levels from REAL Motorola phones, I was swapping between the v325i and Razr MAXX previous to this Droid 2, and was truly expecting the same sound quality with this phone.
Done
So I finally got tethering enabled without having to sell my soul to Verizon. There really wasn't a clear-cut way of doing it. But here is what it took.
1. Install Droid 2 Recovery Bootstrap v1.0.0.3.apk
2. Place TBH_D2_Tether_Patch_1.0.zip in root of SD Card.
3. Run the Recovery Bootstrap, then reboot (through the Recovery Boot program).
4. Install the ZIP from SD Card.
a. It makes 4 NV changes.
5. Reboot and exit from the Recovery Bootstrap.
Now I can tether through the built-in 3G Hotspot app, and the "Wifi Tether" app I downloaded also works and doesn't send the cellphone to the paywall.
PS---How do you guys communicate through these forums??? Just trying to get the captcha right takes like 45 minutes.