Database Users

Considering stock roms are getting better, does anyone see rooting a phone an option

What I mean is that, at least with myself, and a few other users, that stock is good enough to not warrant a custom ROM. Many just want root to customize their experience a little farther than stock. For myself, it's just enabling unlocked wireless tether, adblocking and getting rid of bloatware. I seriously don't think companies would make the process easier. But I thought I'd throw the question out there. I know that the completely stock experience is made to best protect the average consumer from malware and mucking up their phone. I realize that locking down a lot of things keeps the average technically uninformed user from breaking their phone. What are your thoughts on this subject?

I agree with your observation that stock ROMs are getting better and better and it'll most likely be more than good enough or perfectly adequate for the non-techy average user.
However, based on the industry practice of carriers still loading up phones with their own apps, customizations, and other bloatware, I think root will be desirable and necessary still for a long time to come.
After getting my S4, I immediately rooted it to uninstall many Sprint and Samsung apps that I couldn't otherwise. Root was also necessary to add adblocking software, a firewall, and to customize what I didn't like about TW through the Xposed framework.

I agree that custom ROMs may not be as necessary as they used to be but they are still a relatively easy way for people to get a different look with little effort.
I had mine rooted within 30 minutes of getting home with it. Still need root for Titanium Backup. Custom Recovery for Nandroids and flashing Mods and a Custom kernel just because. Using Xposed and Notach and Viper4Android and of course the Tether unlock.

Hey total noob question. If I root my S4 and leave the stock rom on the phone, will I still get all the firmware updates?

mr_mojorisen said:
Hey total noob question. If I root my S4 and leave the stock rom on the phone, will I still get all the firmware updates?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes.

mr_mojorisen said:
Hey total noob question. If I root my S4 and leave the stock rom on the phone, will I still get all the firmware updates?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I believe so as long as you have the stock recovery.
Sent from my SPH-L720 using xda app-developers app

optimummind said:
I agree with your observation that stock ROMs are getting better and better and it'll most likely be more than good enough or perfectly adequate for the non-techy average user.
However, based on the industry practice of carriers still loading up phones with their own apps, customizations, and other bloatware, I think root will be desirable and necessary still for a long time to come.
After getting my S4, I immediately rooted it to uninstall many Sprint and Samsung apps that I couldn't otherwise. Root was also necessary to add adblocking software, a firewall, and to customize what I didn't like about TW through the Xposed framework.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Whats the best way to remove the bloatware? I'm rooted already.

A way that would would still get updates, disable programs in the application manager. You will still lose root though.

ashton4life said:
Whats the best way to remove the bloatware? I'm rooted already.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I like Root App Delete, which is here:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=zsj.android.uninstall
and also Titanium Backup.

[Q] (Q) Root why not to?

I know that root your S5 will trip knox.
I know that some have been saying that, if you root, that you can cant get connection to the update sever.
But what other issuse is there.
Sorry for the spelling, but im dyslexic.

Paland49 said:
I know that root your S5 will trip knox.
I know that some have been saying that, if you root, that you can cant get connection to the update sever.
But what other issuse is there.
Sorry for the spelling, but im dyslexic.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Regarding KNOX there is a massive grey area around it, will Samsung carry out warranty work if it's tripped. Some report yes, some report no, some just don't know but guess.
It's all down to you really, if you feel rooting is a benefit to you then it might be worth losing OTA/Knox(warranty) etc. I rooted my Note 3 and tripped KNOX the day I got it, and tbh I never had issues.

radicalisto said:
Regarding KNOX there is a massive grey area around it, will Samsung carry out warranty work if it's tripped. Some report yes, some report no, some just don't know but guess.
It's all down to you really, if you feel rooting is a benefit to you then it might be worth losing OTA/Knox(warranty) etc. I rooted my Note 3 and tripped KNOX the day I got it, and tbh I never had issues.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I got a Note 10.1 2014 and I have root it. i really like to options root gives me, like frezzing app's i dont need or use and ADAway. But im not sure to root my S5 or not to.

Ask yourself if you really need root right now, if not then don't risk it, if you do then go ahead and do what you need etc.

hmm, I think the real question is about the risk versus benefits...
Thing is I refuse to share my device with my compagny, if I own the hardware then all software limits are unacceptable.period.
Now, getting root is not for all and every user, so unless you know what you do then don't go for it...
I think that since most of our digital life happen on mobile device nowadays, empowerment is mandatory.
We can't let big company decide for us, too much is at stake.
For example, I use Xposed module with Xprivacy in order to have control over what data of mine are shared with internet.
Root only brings you control, not only choices, and that's what matter!

vorta251 said:
hmm, I think the real question is about the risk versus benefits...
Thing is I refuse to share my device with my compagny, if I own the hardware then all software limits are unacceptable.period.
Now, getting root is not for all and every user, so unless you know what you do then don't go for it...
I think that since most of our digital life happen on mobile device nowadays, empowerment is mandatory.
We can't let big company decide for us, too much is at stake.
For example, I use Xposed module with Xprivacy in order to have control over what data of mine are shared with internet.
Root only brings you control, not only choices, and that's what matter!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am very interested in the privacy point you make was just wondering if you could expand on what Xposed module and xprivacy do. Sorry fairly new to rooting and mods. I have a stock Telus s5 900w8 thanks in advance

Ffinger said:
I am very interested in the privacy point you make was just wondering if you could expand on what Xposed module and xprivacy do. Sorry fairly new to rooting and mods. I have a stock Telus s5 900w8 thanks in advance
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Xposed is a framework that allow module to run at a system level WITHOUT to have to modify your rom (it's very much alike to what winterboard is to jailbreaked Iphone).
Modules are very different from added functionality to cosmetic changes.
Xprivacy is not blocking any permissions for the apps, instead you can generate random informations and choose to give it to the apps.
The apps never crash because of Xprivacy, for example, Facebook thing I live in finland (i'm located in Asia)
So you can decide app by app what you allow and what you don't.
You'll find plenty of info about these topics here on xda!

Sell me on root

I haven't updated and I have plenty of devices that are rooted, but it's always usually a hassle, usually stuff breaks and not everything works. The main reason I like to root. Is to remove bloatware and change some main features. What for you guys is the selling point to root your phone?

I haven't done it yet, but I like to have it to increase battery life to the max and remove ads.

GigaSPX said:
I haven't done it yet, but I like to have it to increase battery life to the max and remove ads.
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Click to collapse
it's root... If that doesn't sell you... then buy an iPhone.

RBThompsonV said:
it's root... If that doesn't sell you... then buy an iPhone.
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Click to collapse
Are you referring to me or TC? I'm just telling him what I like root for and what its selling point for me is.
Even then, an iPhone still can't do as much as stock Android phones. I just haven't the time to do root on my S7 Edge because I'm still speculating on whether the bugs will be fixed and all (such as making Samsung Pay work).

GigaSPX said:
Are you referring to me or TC? I'm just telling him what I like root for and what its selling point for me is.
Even then, an iPhone still can't do as much as stock Android phones. I just haven't the time to do root on my S7 Edge because I'm still speculating on whether the bugs will be fixed and all (such as making Samsung Pay work).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry, I was just being a douche to the OP....

I'm on apd2 just got the phone today. Is that version rootable?
Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk

alsgarage said:
I'm on apd2 just got the phone today. Is that version rootable?
Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yup and PE1 is also.

Doesn't look like anyone is selling this person on root. I'll try.
I have rooted my phones in the past but going to stay away from it for now on the S7 Edge because of Samsung Pay.
Best reasons to root from my perspective, off the top of my head:
Titanium backup! This is one of the things I miss the most.
Xposed Modules: GravityBox (love playing and tweaking the settings), YouTube Adaway (if you don't have a Red account, use this)
Viper4Android (best audio tweaking/enhancing mod for any phone)
Liveboot (changes boot animation, love this one)
There's this thing called Lucky Patcher but you can research that on your own

xocomaox said:
Doesn't look like anyone is selling this person on root. I'll try.
I have rooted my phones in the past but going to stay away from it for now on the S7 Edge because of Samsung Pay.
Best reasons to root from my perspective, off the top of my head:
Titanium backup! This is one of the things I miss the most.
Xposed Modules: GravityBox (love playing and tweaking the settings), YouTube Adaway (if you don't have a Red account, use this)
Viper4Android (best audio tweaking/enhancing mod for any phone)
Liveboot (changes boot animation, love this one)
There's this thing called Lucky Patcher but you can research that on your own
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
See, that's why I'm swaying my mind about root. Samsung Pay is extraordinarily versatile and it actually accepted one of my credit cards for use. I have NEVER used Samsung Pay in a real life situation yet since I haven't a need to, but I would like to keep my options opened in case I do forget my wallet and all.
Whyyyyyyy? >_<

GigaSPX said:
See, that's why I'm swaying my mind about root. Samsung Pay is extraordinarily versatile and it actually accepted one of my credit cards for use. I have NEVER used Samsung Pay in a real life situation yet since I haven't a need to, but I would like to keep my options opened in case I do forget my wallet and all.
Whyyyyyyy? >_<
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You should really try it out sooner rather than later. There are such great things with root and you currently have nothing keeping you from doing it. You can always go back to stock to use SPay, but at least decide if you would like it or not.
Actually, if you live in the US, make three small purchases between now and August 2nd to get a free $10 Amazon gift card. It's the current promo going on right now. Although you may want to waif for another "First use" Samsung Pay promo where you can sometimes get decent stuff. I got a $30 eBay gift card for my first SPay use back in April.

And Qualcomm S7 root is reversible so you can try it and, if you don't like it, restore the non-rooted state with Samsung Pay.
Other thoughts (on how I use root):
App settings: this allows you to set DPI (and other settings) per app. This way, I can run the phone at 400 dpi but have the camera and other apps run at their native DPI full screen
Amplify/Greenify can do wonders to your battery by controlling how often certain programs call home.

Anyone know if update that came out today kills root?
Sent from my SM-G935V using XDA-Developers mobile app

mdonnelly1127 said:
Anyone know if update that came out today kills root?
Sent from my SM-G935V using XDA-Developers mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm pretty sure it does not as the idea behind this root method is that you are not rooting the kernel that this firmware update comes with, but the engineering one. Since you are only allowed to flash "official" firmwares, this update would not block it.
You're not exploiting the carrier's stuff, but an engineering kernel that is legal to flash tot he phone without rejection. If that makes sense.

xocomaox said:
I'm pretty sure it does not as the idea behind this root method is that you are not rooting the kernel that this firmware update comes with, but the engineering one. Since you are only allowed to flash "official" firmwares, this update would not block it.
You're not exploiting the carrier's stuff, but an engineering kernel that is legal to flash tot he phone without rejection. If that makes sense.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It does lol thank you
Sent from my SM-G935V using XDA-Developers mobile app

i love having root but I actually use SamPay allot so unfortunately root doesn't give me anything i want more than SamPay. Hopefully something like rootcloak will allow SamPay to work soon??

Is Samsung Pay more useful than Android Pay, which I believe works with root? I don't really care about either app because my bank is always behind the times and still can't be used in Apple Pay or Android Pay (I just tried again and still not supported by my bank).
You guys pretty much hit all the reasons that I like root, especially all the Xposed modules to do things like keep YouTube playing with screen off and recording phone calls, and just having control over the operating system in general. I couldn't imagine if Windows was locked down like Android, yet 99% of people just accept being restricted on their mobile devices. I've always tinkered with computers though so having less than root or admin access to stuff is maddening. I'm glad that I'm a domain admin at work and not just another pleeb user, haha.
I wouldn't necessarily count on root helping your battery life a ton, though. I've done lots of crap to try and help, yet it still consumes 2 or 3% an hour in standby, just as it did when it was full of bloat with tons of wake locks. That's with AOD on and Bluetooth enabled and connected to my Gear S2 though, which are bigger battery hogs than the little tweaks that I've done with Greenify, Amplify, and Titanium app-freezing.
A couple other things I want root for are Tasker & FolderMount, though the latter has caused me to Odin my phone back to life twice in an attempt to make it work.

snake2332 said:
Is Samsung Pay more useful than Android Pay, which I believe works with root? I don't really care about either app because my bank is always behind the times and still can't be used in Apple Pay or Android Pay (I just tried again and still not supported by my bank).
You guys pretty much hit all the reasons that I like root, especially all the Xposed modules to do things like keep YouTube playing with screen off and recording phone calls, and just having control over the operating system in general. I couldn't imagine if Windows was locked down like Android, yet 99% of people just accept being restricted on their mobile devices. I've always tinkered with computers though so having less than root or admin access to stuff is maddening. I'm glad that I'm a domain admin at work and not just another pleeb user, haha.
I wouldn't necessarily count on root helping your battery life a ton, though. I've done lots of crap to try and help, yet it still consumes 2 or 3% an hour in standby, just as it did when it was full of bloat with tons of wake locks. That's with AOD on and Bluetooth enabled and connected to my Gear S2 though, which are bigger battery hogs than the little tweaks that I've done with Greenify, Amplify, and Titanium app-freezing.
A couple other things I want root for are Tasker & FolderMount, though the latter has caused me to Odin my phone back to life twice in an attempt to make it work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Android Pay does not work with root iirc.

snake2332 said:
Is Samsung Pay more useful than Android Pay, which I believe works with root? I don't really care about either app because my bank is always behind the times and still can't be used in Apple Pay or Android Pay (I just tried again and still not supported by my bank).
You guys pretty much hit all the reasons that I like root, especially all the Xposed modules to do things like keep YouTube playing with screen off and recording phone calls, and just having control over the operating system in general. I couldn't imagine if Windows was locked down like Android, yet 99% of people just accept being restricted on their mobile devices. I've always tinkered with computers though so having less than root or admin access to stuff is maddening. I'm glad that I'm a domain admin at work and not just another pleeb user, haha.
I wouldn't necessarily count on root helping your battery life a ton, though. I've done lots of crap to try and help, yet it still consumes 2 or 3% an hour in standby, just as it did when it was full of bloat with tons of wake locks. That's with AOD on and Bluetooth enabled and connected to my Gear S2 though, which are bigger battery hogs than the little tweaks that I've done with Greenify, Amplify, and Titanium app-freezing.
A couple other things I want root for are Tasker & FolderMount, though the latter has caused me to Odin my phone back to life twice in an attempt to make it work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
IMO, I feel like I have faster battery drainage with root than without, and I'm on the U firmware right now.

I would say that if you don't know if/why you want root, then you probably don't want it. Particularly in the case of the s7e for VZ. There really isn't anything in the way of custom ROMs or mods yet. I also don't think battery life and performance are any better with root, and in fact I believe it could be the opposite. One of the most common things I hear is people wanting to remove bloat, although the effect of that can mostly be accomplished through an app like package disabler.
Having said that I rooted simply because I wanted to. I like knowing that I can do whatever I'd like on my device. While I have yet to find any critical functionality that being rooted on the S7E gives me that I didn't have without it...I like playing around with things like tasker, and editing the build.prop file.
I've had Titanium backup for a long time, and I certainly like being able to use that again.
I'd like to see a native tethering mod, but since I have Foxfi that's simply a matter of convenience.

I used to be all about root until the Note 5. That phone was fast enough and good enough battery that I didn't need to break samsung pay forever to get root. Then I had a Nexus 6p, rooted immediately but no ROMS were as dependable as stock so I stayed stock and used Android Pay. Now I jump ship to VZW where we seem to get the lock down more often than not, and I really don't care.
Keep it stock, enjoy monthly security updates and Samsung Pay. Just use Samsung browser adaway for Internet ads, and Package Disabler Pro if you'd care to slim down any apps that aren't easily disabled without it. Root causes more headache than its worth for me.

system less xposed/root pokemongo.

So I know more s7 owners than I play Pokémon go. Hell, half of the world plays. Do we have any way of running system less xposed yet to get the app to work? Play store hasn't updated yet, but I want a play before it does...

doubtful. from what i understand magic mask needs an unlocked bootloader. and im pretty sure we need a custom SU and xposed just to run the phone with the ENGboot. i could be way off the mark though lol

I'm wondering if suhide can do the same thing...

not sure. i know rootcloak doesnt work which hides root. from what i understand the SafetyNet checks if anything even the slightest changes are in the /system area every 30 mins. even the slightest variation to system is counted as root and kicks you off. i dont know anything about SUhide but if its in system i doubt it will work at all. i did read that if you run cyanogenmod13 rename the su to .bin i believe and toggle off root in the options you can play. i dont think the att version has CM13 unfortunately. ATT and Samsung hate us root users lol so doubt we ever will. isnt ENGboot still the only way to root the s7?

Yes... I unrooted, but quickly rerooted after a day without adaway and xposed. It's terrible that when purchasing a new device you need to consider it's unlock ability as a factor... back to the nexus I go I suppose

twizt3d said:
Yes... I unrooted, but quickly rerooted after a day without adaway and xposed. It's terrible that when purchasing a new device you need to consider it's unlock ability as a factor... back to the nexus I go I suppose
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Right? For the past couple months I've pondered if I should sell my S7 for an unlockable device. I thought about maybe a OnePlus but really don't know. I like Samsung devices because they're always packed full of features compared to others in the same price range, from my experience anyways

[Open discussion] what to do with root?

So I just rooted my tmobile gs7 running 7.0 and I have no idea what to do. I've been looking and looking. searching and searching and I can't find anything useful as far as apps or mods or even roms. I'm just wondering if rooting was a waste of time or if there is actually stuff out there? What's everyone else woth American models doing with their rooted s7? Should I just unroot and go ahead and upgrade to the s8?

It depends of you, if you root and don't need root, then why root?
I personnaly rooted it to have full control over my phone, install some mods and do some theming over system apps.
Good luck

...it is really simple, one app will make a big difference now that you are root: AdAway (goodby ads)
And if you despice bloatware, go for Titanium Backup and get rid of all those stupid carrier and maker apps.
And if you need a little more performance and keep apps off your RAM, try Greenfy.
?

This is why I root:
1. AdAway
2. Titanium Backup - uninstall and freeze any app, including system apps and bloatware.
3. Greenify - force close apps at any moment, might be useful for battery drainers like the facebook app or any other app that causes battery issues.

Thanks for the responses. I rooted simply for the fun of it. I remember back when I had my gs3 and rooted there was a bunch of roms and cool mods and apps to do pretty much anything u could think of. I thout it would be the same thing this time around but I ended up stumped when I couldn't find anything.

I rooted my phone so I could use an ad blocker, replace Samsung's emoji, and to properly install the Pixel Launcher. I was very disappointed that there's no TWRP or much in the way of custom ROMs.

Just out of curiousness. I am looking into rooting and now with this thread I have an idea of what I want to do. What method was the most efficient to root for you?

holmes901 said:
Just out of curiousness. I am looking into rooting and now with this thread I have an idea of what I want to do. What method was the most efficient to root for you?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I used max lees method on YouTube. He has a site called high on android and another called galaxys7root.com (forgive me devs if him or his methods are banned) just make sure rooting is really what u wanna do. I say that because your phones performance will decrease. Even after tweaking the cpu and all that good stuff my phone still runs inefficiently compared to pre root. Best of luck

Root and download and install superman rom

vibealite said:
Root and download and install superman rom
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'll look into that. Thanks

Ur welcome i havent rooted yet my self but i have been thinking about it just to install superman rom looks really good
Just not 100% on how to root yet

vibealite said:
Ur welcome i havent rooted yet my self but i have been thinking about it just to install superman rom looks really good
Just not 100% on how to root yet
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In my honest opinion it'd probably be better to wait. So far it's done more damage to my phone than it has helped and to make things worse I have yet to find a solid unroot method so now I'm stuck with a slow phone that force closes and lags all the time

Roni P. said:
In my honest opinion it'd probably be better to wait. So far it's done more damage to my phone than it has helped and to make things worse I have yet to find a solid unroot method so now I'm stuck with a slow phone that force closes and lags all the time
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you'd like to unroot just simply flash a stock odin tar. If you don't want to wipe I'd uninstall any root applications and flash the csc_home.

Roni P. said:
I used max lees method on YouTube. He has a site called high on android and another called galaxys7root.com (forgive me devs if him or his methods are banned) just make sure rooting is really what u wanna do. I say that because your phones performance will decrease. Even after tweaking the cpu and all that good stuff my phone still runs inefficiently compared to pre root. Best of luck
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's the method I was,looking at. If you rooted already how's it holding up?

I rooted today and installed superman rom only problem i have is with my vr is jittery when i move my head

Roni P. said:
So I just rooted my tmobile gs7 running 7.0 and I have no idea what to do. I've been looking and looking. searching and searching and I can't find anything useful as far as apps or mods or even roms. I'm just wondering if rooting was a waste of time or if there is actually stuff out there? What's everyone else woth American models doing with their rooted s7? Should I just unroot and go ahead and upgrade to the s8?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
After rooting my phone for a couple of weeks I came to the conclusion that it's not worth it. Here's why.. the biggest issue I had was my phone was constantly over heating and the battery was draining much faster than when on stock. Yes I tried things like greenify and other apps that are supposed to help battery life and several cooling apps for the over heating issues, but none really fixed the problem completely nor even that much at all. Rooting also made my phone lag and run very glitchy. I was very disappointed because I really like using Xposed to customize my phone, switching emojis to iPhone style, and getting rid of ads but all in all, those things just didn't outweigh the issues that came with rooting. I think the root for snapdragon models is just very sloppy and isn't as good as it can be and until then, I would not recommend.
---------- Post added 9th May 2017 at 12:01 AM ---------- Previous post was 8th May 2017 at 11:57 PM ----------
Roni P. said:
In my honest opinion it'd probably be better to wait. So far it's done more damage to my phone than it has helped and to make things worse I have yet to find a solid unroot method so now I'm stuck with a slow phone that force closes and lags all the time
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What carrier do you have for your s7? I've had to unroot several times and have not had any issues what so ever.

How about S-Health
Hi, everyone,
I have a question, I had a SM-G930F, I rooted it and after, I wasn't able to use S-Health anymore. So I sold it and buy a new SM-G930V.
Will I have the same problem if I root it? or there is a trick to make S-Health work with rooted S7(snapdragon of courses)?
Thank's for your reply.

rooting used to be a way to hide tethering from your carrier. i have 14 gigs of hotspot plus unlimited data on tmobile so i dont need to hide it.
my main reason for wanting root is to debloat the phone. i would also love to install vanilla android but i doubt that will happen.

arorakotoary said:
Hi, everyone,
I have a question, I had a SM-G930F, I rooted it and after, I wasn't able to use S-Health anymore. So I sold it and buy a new SM-G930V.
Will I have the same problem if I root it? or there is a trick to make S-Health work with rooted S7(snapdragon of courses)?
Thank's for your reply.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
edit build.prop
search ro.config.tima.
switch from 0 to1 or 1to0
done

thegreatkazoo said:
rooting used to be a way to hide tethering from your carrier. i have 14 gigs of hotspot plus unlimited data on tmobile so i dont need to hide it.
my main reason for wanting root is to debloat the phone. i would also love to install vanilla android but i doubt that will happen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you dont need root really to debloat it you can flash the unlocked s7 variant rom thru odin theres also an app called package disabler pro which really helps as well.