Database Users

[Q] Best *non-root* backup for Nexus S?

I used to have a Vibrant, and had rooted it and running the various excellent Team Whiskey ROMs. I paid for the full version of Titanium Backup, and it was a great tool.
But I don't want to root my Nexus S.
Call me silly, call me paranoid, I dunno. I just don't feel the need to root it. I'm very happy with it stock.
But I'd still like to back up my phone, in case of catastrophic failure. I'd also like to do the same for my wife's phone, in case she drops this one down the toilet accidentally like she did her iPhone....
So, is there any decent backup tool out there for those of us who DON'T want to root our phones?

My backup pro
IDtheTarget said:
I used to have a Vibrant, and had rooted it and running the various excellent Team Whiskey ROMs. I paid for the full version of Titanium Backup, and it was a great tool.
But I don't want to root my Nexus S.
Call me silly, call me paranoid, I dunno. I just don't feel the need to root it. I'm very happy with it stock.
But I'd still like to back up my phone, in case of catastrophic failure. I'd also like to do the same for my wife's phone, in case she drops this one down the toilet accidentally like she did her iPhone....
So, is there any decent backup tool out there for those of us who DON'T want to root our phones?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sent from my Nexus S using Tapatalk

I understand not wanting to root the N1 but the NS bootloader re-lock is as trivial as the bootloader unlock and if you know what rooting is then you probably already have adb installed. I don't see why you wouldn't. There are not cons at all...

MyBackup Pro, pay for it, you can back up phone settings, calendar, contacts, sms, mms, etc..etc. both to the internal storage OR auto upload to free cloud storage!

anstosa said:
I understand not wanting to root the N1 but the NS bootloader re-lock is as trivial as the bootloader unlock and if you know what rooting is then you probably already have adb installed. I don't see why you wouldn't. There are not cons at all...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep, I have ADB already installed, because I want to write software for the phone.
That being said, there are a few downsides that I can see:
1) Rooting the phone leaves it open to malware attack. Yes, I know that SuperUser requests access from the user prior to granting elevated privileges, but the possibility remains. One reason I like Ubuntu: sudo.
2) I'm leaving the country for a year, and need to support my wife and her Nexus S via email during that time. I want to keep my environment essentially the same as hers. I could root both of our phones, but she's not a geek like I am, and is much more likely to download a program that would take advantage of root.
3) From what little I've read, unlocking the bootloader erases everything. Not a huge deal, but a nuisance I'd like to avoid.
So I'd like to get a backup program that my wife and I could both use, that doesn't require root (to protect her), and I have absolutely no problem paying for it.
Thanks!

nxt said:
MyBackup Pro, pay for it, you can back up phone settings, calendar, contacts, sms, mms, etc..etc. both to the internal storage OR auto upload to free cloud storage!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't know that I trust the "free cloud storage". Is there a way to backup to my personal server? I'm running Ubuntu with sftp...

Can't decide if I should root my atrix or not

Hi there,
I am debating if I should root my Atrix or not. I checked out few posts and they seem a bit complecated. Also, I found this article saying carriers will track down rooted devices and restricted services.
By the way, can I still install some of Motorola o/s for dock stations? I have a multimedia and a car dock.
http://www.mydroidworld.com/forums/...rooting-manufacturers-carriers.html#post65013
Any thoughts?

No one will track you down and restrict you. And it's very safe to root.
Just for apps like Adfree which kills advertisements, this is reason enough for me to root! Not to mention super helpful things like customer recovery to back things up, the ability to sideload (install non-market apps if you're on AT&T), etc.
Android is quite open source but rooting opens up another amazing realm of extremely essential apps.

bongd said:
No one will track you down and restrict you. And it's very safe to root.
Just for apps like Adfree which kills advertisements, this is reason enough for me to root! Not to mention super helpful things like customer recovery to back things up, the ability to sideload (install non-market apps if you're on AT&T), etc.
Android is quite open source but rooting opens up another amazing realm of extremely essential apps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I will take your word for it then! Just kidding. Would you be able recommend any good root techniques on the forum? I think there are few methods and am not sure which one is the best.
Thank you!

I say root it. I rooted mine and i love it this way. I had mine for only two days before I rooted it. I was a little nervous at first and felt that i really didnt want to do it, but the benefits were too great with a rooted phone than without a rooted phone. I am on the AT&T network and i hate it when someone tries to tell me what I can't do with something I purchased. Trust me when i say that you are going to want software that is not in the market as well.
And... I really, really love the fact that I don't need to be docked to use my WebTop.
Again... i say root it.

janggu said:
I will take your word for it then! Just kidding. Would you be able recommend any good root techniques on the forum? I think there are few methods and am not sure which one is the best.
Thank you!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Gladroot. It's the easiest and can enable tethering and sideloading as well.
You must be on 1.2.6 to root. You can run their first script which will root it. You can then do AT&T's download and run their second script which will root that too. BOOM!
It shouldn't take any longer than 10 minutes.

Well... there was that one thing where AT&T is supposedly locking out, or might be locking out phones that have been determined to be rooted. But the fact of the matter is, if they do that with absolutely no reason other than the phone being rooted, i'm sure you'll see a class action lawsuit about it since rooting/jailbreaking a cell phone is legal now according to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. The only reason i can see them disabling service is if you root it, and use one of the alternate methods of tethering, and wind up using a TON of bandwidth.... well over what anyone would even remotely do on just the phone if they didn't have any tethering package or way to tether. Then you'd basically be using their networks in a way that could be deemed illegal. But there's no issue with just rooting it to use applications not approved by the carrier or phone manufacturer.

Would you want to be admin on your own computer?

I think rooting is a must. The use of sideloading alone is worth it. I would hate to not be able to use the Amazon Appstore, Ive really come to like it.
One thing to mention though. The Blockbuster app detects root and wont allow content to be purchased because of DRM concerns. I dont know if this will be a problem with future apps.

Yeah, I did!
I rooted my Atrix with "gladroot" last night. Can't wait to customize it now.
Thank you very much for your valid inputs everyone!!!

Where are these non market apps that everyone speaks of
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App

JohnnyDanger said:
One thing to mention though. The Blockbuster app detects root....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What's Blockbuster? ;-)
Sent from my MB860 using XDA Premium App

I know right. I was just using that as an example. Never know what might be blocked next.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA Premium App

[Q] Turn off OTA updates

Is it possible to turn off OTA updates? If so, how?
Thanks.

Falen said:
Is it possible to turn off OTA updates? If so, how?
Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry, but why would you want to turn it off?
Sent from my Incredible S using xda app-developers app

kattara said:
Sorry, but why would you want to turn it off?
Sent from my Incredible S using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would like to decide when and if I want to update instead of constantly getting reminders.

Falen said:
I would like to decide when and if I want to update instead of constantly getting reminders.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah ok. Sorry, I don't know the answer to your question. I was just wondering why you'd wanna turn it off. It's probably under Settings/About phone or something.
Sent from my Incredible S using xda app-developers app

If you root, you can freeze the updater. I don't know any other way.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using xda premium

just lou said:
If you root, you can freeze the updater. I don't know any other way.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The updater being DMClient right?
One thing to keep an eye on (I plan to disable OTA's on my two tablets) is battery life.
There are supposedly some instances where the system may think the OTA update is corrupt and will continuously try to re-download it in the bg affecting battery life. It's still worth attempting IMHO, just a tip though to keep an eye on your battery, if disabling the OTA affects it for you, you could unfreeze the dmclient service and use a different workaround to stop the OTAs
-For freezing, after looking around, these three apps seem to be best suited - Titanium Backup pro (obviously), AntTek & Gemini App managers (free)
I'll be Rooting then freezing OTAs on my Prime (ww .15) and rebooting it to ensure it doesn't softbrick. If unsuccessful I can flash a blob/format no probs, if successful, I'll root my Nxs7 JB, rinse repeat and report back
--
Successfully performed all tasks on the Prime (hooray no OTAs!!), it's rooted with frozen DMClient, no firmware download prompts since the service was stopped and frozen.
I have rebooted a few times to ensure it is not soft bricked and the App remains frozen
I will be doing my Nexus next since I do not foresee any brick issues, all I need to do is simply look into rooting it.
edit: seeing the several methods all require unlocking to exploit root capability, I'm going to wait out my DOA period (since Ive only had this tablet for 2 days lol) before I unlock the bootloader.
The methods discussed though work perfect for ICS, if you've unlocked and root then turning OTA's off is a sinch, with very minimal risk of a softbrick IMO

Thanks, I will try freezing with TB.
qwertylesh said:
The updater being DMClient right?
One thing to keep an eye on (I plan to disable OTA's on my two tablets) is battery life.
There are supposedly some instances where the system may think the OTA update is corrupt and will continuously try to re-download it in the bg affecting battery life. It's still worth attempting IMHO, just a tip though to keep an eye on your battery, if disabling the OTA affects it for you, you could unfreeze the dmclient service and use a different workaround to stop the OTAs
-For freezing, after looking around, these three apps seem to be best suited - Titanium Backup pro (obviously), AntTek & Gemini App managers (free)
I'll be Rooting then freezing OTAs on my Prime (ww .15) and rebooting it to ensure it doesn't softbrick. If unsuccessful I can flash a blob/format no probs, if successful, I'll root my Nxs7 JB, rinse repeat and report back
--
Successfully performed all tasks on the Prime (hooray no OTAs!!), it's rooted with frozen DMClient, no firmware download prompts since the service was stopped and frozen.
I have rebooted a few times to ensure it is not soft bricked and the App remains frozen
I will be doing my Nexus next since I do not foresee any brick issues, all I need to do is simply look into rooting it.
edit: seeing the several methods all require unlocking to exploit root capability, I'm going to wait out my DOA period (since Ive only had this tablet for 2 days lol) before I unlock the bootloader.
The methods discussed though work perfect for ICS, if you've unlocked and root then turning OTA's off is a sinch, with very minimal risk of a softbrick IMO
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

Just to let you know, everything's going awesome with my Prime, initially when I downgraded it, the OTA tried to download (i stopped it at 66 percent) and I just kept the wifi off while I rooted and disabled DMClient.
The bonus of freezing the process/service is when another update occurs ours should continue to block the FOTA, some other methods like modifying the build prop only work until a new update is out.
I'll definitely be unlocking and rooting my nexus to stop ota's

qwertylesh said:
Just to let you know, everything's going awesome with my Prime, initially when I downgraded it, the OTA tried to download (i stopped it at 66 percent) and I just kept the wifi off while I rooted and disabled DMClient.
The bonus of freezing the process/service is when another update occurs ours should continue to block the FOTA, some other methods like modifying the build prop only work until a new update is out.
I'll definitely be unlocking and rooting my nexus to stop ota's
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I finally have a minute to try to freeze the update with TB but I do not see a DMClient. Am I missing something here? I not sure which one(s) of the system apps to freeze.

just lou said:
If you root, you can freeze the updater. I don't know any other way.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And what would that file be? Where is it located?

Disable using autostarts works...
I had my nexus 7 nagging me constantly to update too... rooted and heavily customized stock rom, different kernel, a lot of system files I altered... I really am not overly concerned about doing an update that might screw with any one of those components and having to go through the whole process of getting it where I want again.
I couldn't find this DMClient you guys are speaking of.
Here's how I did it:
Install Autostarts app.
Go to "After Startup"
Scroll down until you see "Google Services Framework"
There should be several of them. For me it was the third one. Touch it and read the bottom of the popup to find out. It will say "Receiver com.google.android.gsf.update.SystemUpdateService.....(you get the point)
Disable it. Done...
I don't know if there are any other repercussions to disabling this.. I just know it's not nagging me, and everything works still.

DMclient is a service, it's the most ideal thing to freeze since when stopped the OS will not even attempt to check of OTAs or attempt to download anything, plus it does not modify the OS in any significant way (i.e, editing build.props) so you can undo it with ease if you want. All you need is Root to be able to freeze the service.

I'm not arguing about how to do it... I just couldn't find dmclient , as one of the others stated as well. Just sharing what worked for me.
I don't know if it matters, but it's stock jb 4.1.1 on the nexus 7. If somebody knows where I can locate this dmclient in it, I'd probably feel better about doing that as well. Don't like the idea of it downloading or doing anything in the background if I don't need it to. I'm rather anal about background processes.. at least I have been in my other OS's so far... getting more familiar with the innards of android now... lol
Are we sure it's in this version? I don't even see it in ps in terminal. Unless the process I disabled with autostarts stopped it.
I might enable it again tomorrow and reboot and check ps again.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using XDA Premium HD app

You're right, I checked my nexus 4.1.2 and the service isn't there, the All area doesnt show everything but even using apps that show all apps/services it doesnt show up. :/
I checked my TF Prime which is 4.1.1 now (sigs outdated) and the service is there, it mustn't exist in AOSP builds or something

It seems as if Google has done a lot of little different things to the OS on the nexus 7. Some of the system components I've messed with relating to sound don't have any effect... I think they left some files in place but are utilizing something different for configuration of sound.
I see every mobile OS now is taking proprietary steps... I still gotta stick with Google though, because they are so heavily involved in the open source community and do a great deal to help the development community.
Next tablet is going to have top have more options for me... better usb support, hdmi out.. the ability to use a headset with Mic connection.. sd card... I am, however, extremely happy with my nexus 7 purchase. For the price and the performance.. can't go wrong there. They are practically giving away the 8 gb models.. barely more than cost of construction. The 16 gb ones aren't exactly a ripoff either..
Sent from my Nexus 7 using XDA Premium HD app

My nexus 7 rooted , don't have this service DMClient , doesn´t show in the titanium backup ... any one have another suggestion ? because this constant notice to actualize the firmware , is very inconvenience .
Thanks in advance

davieslacker said:
I had my nexus 7 nagging me constantly to update too... rooted and heavily customized stock rom, different kernel, a lot of system files I altered... I really am not overly concerned about doing an update that might screw with any one of those components and having to go through the whole process of getting it where I want again.
I couldn't find this DMClient you guys are speaking of.
Here's how I did it:
Install Autostarts app.
Go to "After Startup"
Scroll down until you see "Google Services Framework"
There should be several of them. For me it was the third one. Touch it and read the bottom of the popup to find out. It will say "Receiver com.google.android.gsf.update.SystemUpdateService.....(you get the point)
Disable it. Done...
I don't know if there are any other repercussions to disabling this.. I just know it's not nagging me, and everything works still.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
davieslacker posted it like 3 posts above yours....follow that method..and read previous posts before asking an already answered question..especially when it was JUST answered
escalhavardo said:
My nexus 7 rooted , don't have this service DMClient , doesn´t show in the titanium backup ... any one have another suggestion ? because this constant notice to actualize the firmware , is very inconvenience .
Thanks in advance
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

That solution uses a paid app. Any free solution?
Sent from my Nexus 7 using xda app-developers app

frank35 said:
That solution uses a paid app. Any free solution?
Sent from my Nexus 7 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.rs.autorun
Same features,free app
Enable show system apps in settings
Sent from my SGH-T889 using xda app-developers app

harpocrates said:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.rs.autorun
Same features,free app
Enable show system apps in settings
Sent from my SGH-T889 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I used this and it stopped the nag, but for some reason, it removes my email app (standard nexus 7 app) it says app not installed . Luckily. I had a titanium backup of it , but putting it back would not work. I reenabled the service, and put the app back and all is well now, but obviously the nag is back. Any ideas?

Root or not to root

I'm no computer whiz so what are the advantages of rooting this phone as it seems plenty fast as is.

Well, with rooting, it's pretty much like being the Admin of your computer. So for starters, you have control over many more phone functions, especially when it comes to something like tethering. There are more apps and themes and ROMs available for you to use, which will cut down on battery usage, give you a better looking set of themes, and allow you to overclock not only your processor but also your GPU.
It's definitely something that isn't terribly essential, but it does make the phone more.....yours, so to speak.

Looks like I'm rooting and is there a way to unroot in case you need to send it back to Sprint so restoring to factory settings.

Yea you can flash back to stock and they'll never even know you had it rooted or had a custom rom
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda app-developers app

Yup, unrooting is easy. Here's one such app that allows you to temporarily unroot or unroot completely: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.projectvoodoo.otarootkeeper&hl=en
There's several other apps like this and a lot of guides on how to do it.

3 main reasons why I root all my devices:
1. Add app data backup (mainly games) to my new device
2. Tether
3. Flash custom roms

Root.
As previously stated, more performance, battery gains, and free tethering are only a few of the advantages....
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using Tapatalk 2

Curious about the bootloader and S-OFF unlocking possibilities on each carrier... Anyone know any info?

it is necessary
you can be the admin of your phone. you control it , not the phone control you.

Besides all the reasons some folks have mentioned, I also root to use ad-blockers..
So I do not have to put up with ads is some apps.

Hoggles said:
Curious about the bootloader and S-OFF unlocking possibilities on each carrier... Anyone know any info?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Samsung devices doesn't have "S OFF". It's only htc devices. Bootloader maybe locked, depending on your carrier
Sent from my supercharged :tank:

Well I want root asap on mine, going to have to uninstall all those S-lag apps Samsung added. Ones no one really needs and jsut slow the phone down. S heath and S Apps etc

The main reasons I'm going to root ASAP are because I want to enable an ad-blocker, wifi tether, restore some apps and disable some of the bloatware on the AT&T model. I'm going to try and stick with the stock ROM at least for a couple months. I've been using AOKP for a good 6 months on the GS3, it will be a nice change to go back to Touchwiz for a bit. (hopefully)

I will also be rooting mine as soon as I get it, so that I can restore everything from my s3 to it. I won't worry about custom roms for this phone for a while, although I'm sure that thread will explode in a few weeks.

I think I am leaving this one stocks for once. At least for a little while
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk 2

root because there will be massive amounts of mods available. i know because i'll be working on quite a few
cheers!

I'm starting to think I'll get my 9500 this week and there won't be root for it. If I can't restore with Ti then it will sit in the box for a bit.

Sarcron said:
Yup, unrooting is easy. Here's one such app that allows you to temporarily unroot or unroot completely: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.projectvoodoo.otarootkeeper&hl=en
There's several other apps like this and a lot of guides on how to do it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Must be rooted in order to use OTA RootKeeper from Play!
This application makes a backup or a protected backup of your device's root.
This device must already be rooted: OTA RootKeeper doesn't have the ability to root devices.
Link to thread from Chainfire about getting i9505 root
---------- Post added at 07:11 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:06 PM ----------
AmesCell said:
I'm starting to think I'll get my 9500 this week and there won't be root for it. If I can't restore with Ti then it will sit in the box for a bit.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
"sit in the box for a bit" ... like 2-3 minutes :laugh:

Mine may as well be shipped prerooted. I'm going to make sure my 'life companion' will really be my life companion lol.

I have decided to root if nothing else so I can tether. I also like to change the boot animation and shutdown animation. Looks like I'll be doing a lot of learning from you XDA guys.

The benefits of rooting?

I know some people will wonder why I'm asking but this would be the first time I'm thinking of rooting and I wouldn't mind getting an idea of what it allows me to do with the phone. Thanks!
Sent from my GT-I9505 using XDA Premium HD app

This is the development thread ask it in q & a thread.
Sent from my GT-I9505 using xda app-developers app

Pros:
"Free" Wifi Tethering (Allows you to use phone as a Hotspot for internet)
Delete Carrier Bloatware
Eliminate Banner Ads
Backup Everything on Your Phone
Make Your Phone Run Faster (By overclocking CPU etc)
Increase Your Battery Life (By installing custom and/or underclocking CPU)
Run Any App You Like
Move/Run Apps for SD-Card (with apps like Foldermount)
Cons:
Voids Your Warranty
Overclocking Can Cause Damage
Some apps wont work with root (EG: Banking apps, Sky Go etc)
Easy to Brick your Phone (If not done correctly)
Will Make Your Phone Less Stable (If not done correctly)
Rooting Could Become Illegal
May Prevent You from Getting Updates
There all loads more reason but these are the main ones.

Titanium Pro backup All the reason I need to root

crimptool said:
Titanium Pro backup All the reason I need to root
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1

Zultrax-UK said:
Pros:
"Free" Wifi Tethering (Allows you to use phone as a Hotspot for internet)
Delete Carrier Bloatware
Eliminate Banner Ads
Backup Everything on Your Phone
Make Your Phone Run Faster (By overclocking CPU etc)
Increase Your Battery Life (By installing custom and/or underclocking CPU)
Run Any App You Like
Move/Run Apps for SD-Card (with apps like Foldermount)
Cons:
Voids Your Warranty
Overclocking Can Cause Damage
Some apps wont work with root (EG: Banking apps, Sky Go etc)
Easy to Brick your Phone (If not done correctly)
Will Make Your Phone Less Stable (If not done correctly)
Rooting Could Become Illegal
May Prevent You from Getting Updates
There all loads more reason but these are the main ones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is a very good list. I would just add one more PRO: rooting lets you buy a new phone more often (because you brick your old ones more often)
Seriously, one of the main reasons to root for me personally is to get rid of the banner ads for phones I prepare for older people who are prone to clicking on the banners and installing spam as the result.
Basically rooting is for people who like tinkering with their hardware.
OP, since you asked the question, I assume you have not rooted before, you should read up more about this, and maybe wait a few more days, to make sure rooting methods are stable, and you are fully familiar with the procedure. Believe me you do not want your phone accidentally bricked.

If you want some of the benefits of rooting such as the blocking banner ads you can unroot after changing the hosts file.

ill hold on rooting for now due to the cons. I dont want to break my first Droid :silly:

agree, and right now there is no full rooting toolkit for the s4 so I'll probably wait as well

Zymesh said:
ill hold on rooting for now due to the cons. I dont want to break my first Droid :silly:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i personally plan to wait 4-6 months before rooting... i can download stuff straight to my phone now cause of my huge sd card whereas before i would need to tether to my pc... also 9 gigs is enough for all the apps i run... i tend to be more minimalistic when it comes to downloading games etc...
so, for now i'll be fine without rooting just in case something goes wrong with it & i need to use the manufacturers warranty.

kreoXDA said:
This is a very good list. I would just add one more PRO: rooting lets you buy a new phone more often (because you brick your old ones more often)
Seriously, one of the main reasons to root for me personally is to get rid of the banner ads for phones I prepare for older people who are prone to clicking on the banners and installing spam as the result.
Basically rooting is for people who like tinkering with their hardware.
OP, since you asked the question, I assume you have not rooted before, you should read up more about this, and maybe wait a few more days, to make sure rooting methods are stable, and you are fully familiar with the procedure. Believe me you do not want your phone accidentally bricked.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
haha...nice words.

AventEx said:
agree, and right now there is no full rooting toolkit for the s4 so I'll probably wait as well
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I an waiting for tool kit because I'm not confident enough to do it with the current methods
How long before we can expect tool kits?
Sent from my GT-I9505 using xda app-developers app
---------- Post added at 04:14 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:12 PM ----------
I feel as though unless your experienced the current root methods are not noob friendly at all
Sent from my GT-I9505 using xda app-developers app

crimptool said:
Titanium Pro backup All the reason I need to root
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah me too. But as far as i can say, I have old Galaxy S rooted, my banking apps work fine. Dont know which banking app does that root check. Remind me not to open an account, apply for credit card, take loans from that bank! :silly:

Apps no longer able to enable/disable the cellular radio without root
Rooting S4 (and all others phones) with JB 4.2.x IMHO is absolutely necessary as Google has removed the possibility for profile-manager apps to control the ON/OFF state of the cellular radio.
Unfortunately many serious users relying on time or location based profile switch are now out of luck!
http://code.google.com/p/android/issues/detail?id=40497

It is not easy to brick your phone. You have to not pay attention, not follow directions, and use no common sense to get there. By that last I mean you should avoid unproven root methods unless you are willing to take the risks involved that such trail blazers face.
I'm not saying that rooting is right for anyone but those with a functional brain and the ability to read and follow simple directions should have a problem free experience. A couple basics, read the directions, all of them. Make absolutely sure that this procedure is the correct procedure for your specific handset. Do not be brave, it's no fun looking at a phone that won't boot when you lack the experience to deal with it so stick with what's proven. If you are not sure after reading up on the procedure, ask. No one wants to spoon feed the lazy but learning means asking questions sometimes so having read the material do not hesitate to ask if a part of the process is unclear.