Hi guys. I've rooted and flashed my s2 countless times and never had any problems, but i've now upgraded to my s4 and every time i've tried to flash a rom on it something has gone wrong. The first time i tried flashing fox hound and my 3G wouldn't work. I then tried flashing my backup and ended up bricking my device. After many long hours I managed to get my phone back to factory setting. A few weeks later I tried again with the google edition Kit Kat Rom, but then the play store wouldn't work. So I tried flashing my back up and yet again bricked my device and spent even longer fixing it. I don't know what I'm doing wrong.. I'm doing everything exactly as I'm told. So I thought I would give it one last try. So I've had to root my phone again, but now after I rooted it I'm not getting Superuser, SU or BusyBox... I'm running Root Checker and it;s not coming off the "Checking for root access" display. As you can probably tell I'm not the best when it comes to technology. If there's someone you can help get me on the right track I would be very grateful.
Oh and also, I've been hearing the words (Verizon and AT&T) etc and I don't know what type of phone i Have. All i know is it is an S4
UPDATE...
nvm, delete this thread i guess. redid entire process second time, maybe got impatient first time. now, installing cf/SU and ti backup seem to work as they should, ti backup asking for root access and happily doing its thing now, which would have to mean the phone is rooted, yeah? heh.. whats what i get for brainlessly taking the OTA update recently without thinking before acting.
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stock (i guess) galaxy S5, ATT, ANG3 update recently.
total brainfart. wasnt thinking about root which id kinda forgot about and wasnt super concerned about, even though its always been on the to do list.
im using this method...
http://forum.xda-developers.com/att-galaxy-s5/general/g900and3tong3keeprootota-zip-t2862299
and the process of flashing seems to work fine BUT after going back to the older firmware, it still shows NG3.
why is that? i cant even tell if its actually rooting the phone, even though towelroot (when used like the guide says) doesnt return an error or reboot the phone.
phone isnt bricked, still works fine.. calls email wifi etc. its just not DOING anything. NG3 preventing going backwards, perhaps?
The other night my gs4 running OC3 decided it didn't want to live anymore and randomly rebooted and hung at the ATT splash screen. Took the phone to best buy and had them reflash it. The phone would then boot but ran incredibly slow and certain apps just wouldn't open. Fast forward to last night and the network died. My IMEI is gone and everything having to do with the phones identification was wiped out.
I'd like to downgrade the phone from 5.0.1 to 4.2.2 and possibly get twrp onto it. I don't care about tripping knox or bricking the phone as I've already gone and got a new one. Worst case scenario I have a brick, best case I can install custom roms and use it as a multimedia device. Can anyone point in the right direction for experimental methods people are too afraid to test or guides that might help out? I did some searching and found a few relevant posts but nothing concrete relating to this situation. Any help is appreciated!
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2370699
Could try hear to get imei back
I have a Verizon GS5 that has been towelrooted on 4.4.4 for close to 2 years. It's worked ok, but I've started seeing various issues that required a factory reset. Since I'm back to no settings, I was thinking updating the OS would be a good idea. I would like to move to either Lollipop or Mashmallow but it looks like the latter may be a problem with my phone (CID 11 and Verizon) while keeping Knox 0x0.
I'm having a problem following the guide that I've found here:
https://www.androidinfotech.com/2016/07/root-samsung-galaxy-s5-sm-g900v-verizon.html
The issue is that I can't get the phone to connect to my PC for Kies or ODIN. It fails to load the MTP driver for my GS5 but works fine with my wife's GS5. Hers is stock Lollipop or Marshmallow and mine is still on JB but is rooted.
I guess what I'm wondering is what my options are. Should I remove root so that I can hopefully connect to the PC to transfer the files over and updating? Or, is there something else I should try first? I haven't worked on many phones and I'm a little nervous about doing something irreversible at this point. I don't know that I need Knox at 0x0, but since I can't get back if I trip it, I'd rather not trip it.
bkenobi69 said:
The issue is that I can't get the phone to connect to my PC for Kies or ODIN. It fails to load the MTP driver for my GS5 but works fine with my wife's GS5. Hers is stock Lollipop or Marshmallow and mine is still on JB but is rooted.
I guess what I'm wondering is what my options are. Should I remove root so that I can hopefully connect to the PC to transfer the files over and updating? Or, is there something else I should try first? I haven't worked on many phones and I'm a little nervous about doing something irreversible at this point. I don't know that I need Knox at 0x0, but since I can't get back if I trip it, I'd rather not trip it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try to dial *#0808# in the stock phone application.
You should see a menu with several options.
Select "MTP+ADB" under USB settings and press "OK".
Then you'll be able to connect your phone via MTP or ADB to your PC.
If there's no menu, then (assuming you're rooted) open a good file browser (ES, Root Explorer or something) and open the file /efs/carrier/HiddenMenu (it's a simple text file) and replace OFF with ON there.
Save the changes and reboot the phone.
Now the menu should be operational.
Unfortunately, I already tried to update to 6.0.1 so this very helpful info is a little to late.
I followed all directions on the linked page above but didn't get things working. I repeated 2 or 3 times now and I'm clearly missing something. I can get through installing busybox, but then when I reset, it hangs at the samsung screen and just vibrates 3 times repeatedly. I'm going to have to figure this out tonight as I don't really have a backup phone.
bkenobi69 said:
Unfortunately, I already tried to update to 6.0.1 so this very helpful info is a little to late.
I followed all directions on the linked page above but didn't get things working. I repeated 2 or 3 times now and I'm clearly missing something. I can get through installing busybox, but then when I reset, it hangs at the samsung screen and just vibrates 3 times repeatedly. I'm going to have to figure this out tonight as I don't really have a backup phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Currently root is impossible for MM on G900V CID11.
Impossible means you cannot gain it now, most likely it's forever.
There's no internet site which can help.
You must choose: root on LP or unrooted MM.
You must decide if you want a stock ROM or something (TW-based) else too.
It's a good idea to flash and use a stock firmware for the time while you're thinking.
Interesting... I guess I must have been reading things wrong because I thought I could go to MM with root. I'll try going to Lollipop then but first I'm going to just flash back to JB 4.4.4.
I downloaded 4.4.4 from Samsung and was going to write it with Odin, but it says FAIL when I try to flash. I suspect I just tripped Knox...
SW REV CHECK FAIL : [aboot]Fused 2 > Binary 1
I'll look around to find a guide, but if you have a suggestion, I'd certainly listen!
bkenobi69 said:
SW REV CHECK FAIL : [aboot]Fused 2 > Binary 1
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This means that you've upgraded your phone's firmware while experimenting.
Now you cannot directly flash 4.4.4 with Odin, you're limited to 5.0 (BOK3) and above.
Ok. I'll read the guides on the head of this list and see if I can find the right information.
FWIW, I was following the same how-to that most of the stickies point to and say is safe. I wonder how I got to a position that I'm in now when I did the same as recommended. Painiac's thread points to the same thing I did:
https://forum.xda-developers.com/ve...al/guide-painiacs-essential-guide-to-t3319848
I think I may have tried to flash a MM stock rom though when it got into a boot loop. I suspect that would be the issue.
Bootloop is not a problem in this case.
Just reboot to the recovery and perform a factory reset from there.
The phone will boot but the first boot will take 10-15 min.
bkenobi69 said:
I have a Verizon GS5 that has been towelrooted on 4.4.4 for close to 2 years. It's worked ok, but I've started seeing various issues that required a factory reset. Since I'm back to no settings, I was thinking updating the OS would be a good idea. I would like to move to either Lollipop or Mashmallow but it looks like the latter may be a problem with my phone (CID 11 and Verizon) while keeping Knox 0x0.
I'm having a problem following the guide that I've found here:
https://www.androidinfotech.com/2016/07/root-samsung-galaxy-s5-sm-g900v-verizon.html
The issue is that I can't get the phone to connect to my PC for Kies or ODIN. It fails to load the MTP driver for my GS5 but works fine with my wife's GS5. Hers is stock Lollipop or Marshmallow and mine is still on JB but is rooted.
I guess what I'm wondering is what my options are. Should I remove root so that I can hopefully connect to the PC to transfer the files over and updating? Or, is there something else I should try first? I haven't worked on many phones and I'm a little nervous about doing something irreversible at this point. I don't know that I need Knox at 0x0, but since I can't get back if I trip it, I'd rather not trip it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Marshmallow can not be rooted on CID 11 devices. The Samsung drivers are found here: https://www.samsung.com/us/support/owners/product/galaxy-s5-verizon You can follow the 5.0 root guide here: https://forum.xda-developers.com/ve.../testers-required-easier-root-method-t3561529 to downgrade to 5.0. If you want to downgrade past that to a version lower than 5.0, you will still have to follow that guide then follow the instructions here (I recommend you to follow the root guide for 5.0 above then skip steps 1 and 2 on this page): https://forum.xda-developers.com/ve.../guide-downgrade-to-kk-nk2-ncg-mm-lp-t3686858 . You can find stock firmwares here: https://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2784880 (stock firmware, kernel, and modem files) and if you get bootlooped or bricked, just reflash the combination file from the root guide. If you want to root 4.4.4, follow the downgrade method using all of the NK2 files but the flash the NGC kernel, run through the setup, then use towelroot and flash the NK2 kernel after that. If you ever get stuck on the red Verizon screen, just pop the battery out and reboot.
That's about all anyone can do and a run down of everything.
Thank you for posting specific guides. I'll go back to step 1 and try again. The primary issue I have at this point isn't reading the guide and following directions, its finding the right guide to reduce the number of images I need to download. I'm on 1.5mbps DSL so d/l a 2GB file takes most of a day. I have several that don't appear useful at this point which means I've lost several days.
bkenobi69 said:
Thank you for posting specific guides. I'll go back to step 1 and try again. The primary issue I have at this point isn't reading the guide and following directions, its finding the right guide to reduce the number of images I need to download. I'm on 1.5mbps DSL so d/l a 2GB file takes most of a day. I have several that don't appear useful at this point which means I've lost several days.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Understandable, I can't believe it is 2018 and we still haven't invented a way to compress 1.7GB into 1.7MB archives to make life easy on low connections. How is battery life on 4.4.4 and which update of 4.4.4 are you on? I've been having an issue with my phone dropping a percent every 2 minutes on 5.0/6.0. It would be nice find a version to root along with excellent battery life.
The reason I was looking at updating was due to battery issues. I had the phone for around a week before I rooted it (a couple years ago). After rooting, I started seeing immediate battery issues. My wife has the same unrooted phone (currently on MM) and has never had the type of issues I have. I figured the issue was likely a bad kernel and was thinking I'd just update to something newer (LL or MM) to help. I assume a new battery would help since mine is 1-2 years old, but I swapped with my wife's phone and she still gets lots better performance. Once I get this back up, I'll probably buy a new battery for each phone.
So it appears that I must have upgraded the bootloader to a point where towelroot no longer works as was previously suggested. I believe then that I need to follow the second guide to be able to downgrade to a rootable Lollipop version:
https://forum.xda-developers.com/ve.../guide-downgrade-to-kk-nk2-ncg-mm-lp-t3686858
I am downloading the PB1 rom and lolliroot and need to also get a system restore, kernel, and modem. As I said, my connection is terrible so it would be great if someone could suggest which version of restore I should go with. I was going to install Lollipop in the end (that was the original goal). I figured I'd just get OC4 since it's likely to have the least bugs and best performance. If that is a mistake and I should go with an earlier version of LL PLEASE throw it out there!
Ok, I tethered to my wife's phone and am burning her data (shhhh, don't tell her).
I grabbed all of the OC4 files, the PB1 rom, and lolliroot. I think I have everything I need so long as OC4 is a good place to end up.
bkenobi69 said:
The reason I was looking at updating was due to battery issues. I had the phone for around a week before I rooted it (a couple years ago). After rooting, I started seeing immediate battery issues. My wife has the same unrooted phone (currently on MM) and has never had the type of issues I have. I figured the issue was likely a bad kernel and was thinking I'd just update to something newer (LL or MM) to help. I assume a new battery would help since mine is 1-2 years old, but I swapped with my wife's phone and she still gets lots better performance. Once I get this back up, I'll probably buy a new battery for each phone.
So it appears that I must have upgraded the bootloader to a point where towelroot no longer works as was previously suggested. I believe then that I need to follow the second guide to be able to downgrade to a rootable Lollipop version:
https://forum.xda-developers.com/ve.../guide-downgrade-to-kk-nk2-ncg-mm-lp-t3686858
I am downloading the PB1 rom and lolliroot and need to also get a system restore, kernel, and modem. As I said, my connection is terrible so it would be great if someone could suggest which version of restore I should go with. I was going to install Lollipop in the end (that was the original goal). I figured I'd just get OC4 since it's likely to have the least bugs and best performance. If that is a mistake and I should go with an earlier version of LL PLEASE throw it out there!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Here are some files (that I been hunting for about an hour for). Just gonna reference this for future use and anyone who comes across this thread. http://rootjunkysdl.com/files/?dir=Galaxy S5
Nice find!
I have the phone up and running on stock PB1 currently. I'm going to let it sit to see what the battery is like prior to rooting. While I haven't gotten it hooked back up to my account yet nor do I have it rooted, I feel pretty confident now that I'm on the right track. Thanks!
Just to finish out this topic, I have not successfully completed attaining root on 5.0. I flashed PB1 to the phone and then followed this guide for installing KingRoot:
https://androidforums.com/threads/root-question.1120150/
I got the lolliroot files from here:
https://www.androidfilehost.com/?fid=312968873555011514
Thanks to all who offered help!
Qyuck question... I've got my phone working well bow, but there's one issue with apps I'm not sure how to address. I want to use Verizon Visual Voicemail but I can't find it on the Play store. I disabled updates so I wouldn't get the marshmallow update and break root. but, with updates turned off, VVM won't get pushed. Any suggestions?
Hello, this is my first post on here, but I have always been such a big fan of all the work that you guys do. I mean, this is just a phenomenal resource. I have recently rooted my Samsung Galaxy S8 (SM-G950U) through the PartCyborgRom method, and it actually went very well with me. I got into a bit of a problem when my root was easily recognized and I couldn't do things, like get into my Snapchat. I saw everyone ranting and raving about how Magisk had a built in feature to hide the root from apps. I then download the Magisk apk and it prompts me to flash it on my phone. If it meant I could keep my streak going with my girlfriend, I figured "Why the Hell not?" So I try to flash it, and it doesn't work the first time. The second time, it goes right through with no problem. When I got the option to reboot, I took it, and instead of getting a new bootloader, I am prompted with the message from Samsung that says "Security Error: This phone has been flashed with unauthorized software & is locked. Call your mobile operator for additional support. Please note that repair/return for this issue may have additional cost." Now I'm left with what appears to be some soft bricked phone. I have tried flashing the stock firmware, even on Comsy, but all to no avail. I am just trying to figure out how to get this phone back in operation, since I am in the military and it is paramount that I am able to communicate with my Marines again.
jrlong97 said:
Hello, this is my first post on here, but I have always been such a big fan of all the work that you guys do. I mean, this is just a phenomenal resource. I have recently rooted my Samsung Galaxy S8 (SM-G950U) through the PartCyborgRom method, and it actually went very well with me. I got into a bit of a problem when my root was easily recognized and I couldn't do things, like get into my Snapchat. I saw everyone ranting and raving about how Magisk had a built in feature to hide the root from apps. I then download the Magisk apk and it prompts me to flash it on my phone. If it meant I could keep my streak going with my girlfriend, I figured "Why the Hell not?" So I try to flash it, and it doesn't work the first time. The second time, it goes right through with no problem. When I got the option to reboot, I took it, and instead of getting a new bootloader, I am prompted with the message from Samsung that says "Security Error: This phone has been flashed with unauthorized software & is locked. Call your mobile operator for additional support. Please note that repair/return for this issue may have additional cost." Now I'm left with what appears to be some soft bricked phone. I have tried flashing the stock firmware, even on Comsy, but all to no avail. I am just trying to figure out how to get this phone back in operation, since I am in the military and it is paramount that I am able to communicate with my Marines again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Okay, so here is the update: I went to the Sprint store, and they can't do ****. I went to every resource I could find, and they all give me the same advice. Get Samsung to fix it. I really don't want to concede defeat though, so any help would be greatly appreciated.
By the sounds of it it is a soft brick been in a simular situation have you tried putting it into download mode and reflashed the first ever firmware that came with it
Madnedroj said:
By the sounds of it it is a soft brick been in a simular situation have you tried putting it into download mode and reflashed the first ever firmware that came with it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I did. I'm not sure what they did, but I took it to Cell Phone Repair (so if they mess it up further, they pay for it), and they fixed it. They put it on T-Mobile's network though, and so I am dealing with that now.
jrlong97 said:
I did. I'm not sure what they did, but I took it to Cell Phone Repair (so if they mess it up further, they pay for it), and they fixed it. They put it on T-Mobile's network though, and so I am dealing with that now.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You should take it back to them and explain that they have locked it to T-mobile and they shpuld unlock it for free
Madnedroj said:
You should take it back to them and explain that they have locked it to T-mobile and they shpuld unlock it for free
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Already been having it worked on. For some reason, they are having trouble with it.