Database Users

[Q] Just bought an S4 and did the 4.3 OTA and have Knox, should I return the phone?

Hi everyone, I have about 7 days left on my "14 day return policy" from the Sprint store. I love XDA and it's been a HUGE help to me in the last few years. I like the phone, it's pretty snappy, and the camera is great. But I can't use a phone without root (who can??) and eventually Samsung will stop pushing updates to this phone so I'm going to need to flash custom ROMs (cyanogenmod did wonders on my last phone, the Galaxy S1). I also know that I can't mount SMB or CFS shares without flashing a kernel that supports it and I'm not sure if the S4's official firmware supports the ability to do so (which I believe requires root anyway, so I guess I answered my own question.
I have a couple of questions about the S4 that I'm hoping someone who has experience can tell me about this.
1) Can I root using VRoot and NOT trip the Knox warranty bit?
2) After rooting, can I install a recovery (I've read that Philz CWM recovery works but can't find definitive answers on this).
3) Should I even care about the Knox software?
I don't need to use the phone in an enterprise environment, but I also don't want the phone's bootloader locked to Samsung firmwares if it means I won't be able to install custom FW's or kernels.
Should I return the phone? I'll pay the $35 restocking fee just to save myself from having to deal with Samsung's (and this my opinion) bonehead move of abandoning its developer userbase.
Any and all responses would be appreciated. Thanks for reading and helping!

epi4gtn said:
Hi everyone, I have about 7 days left on my "14 day return policy" from the Sprint store. I love XDA and it's been a HUGE help to me in the last few years. I like the phone, it's pretty snappy, and the camera is great. But I can't use a phone without root (who can??) and eventually Samsung will stop pushing updates to this phone so I'm going to need to flash custom ROMs (cyanogenmod did wonders on my last phone, the Galaxy S1). I also know that I can't mount SMB or CFS shares without flashing a kernel that supports it and I'm not sure if the S4's official firmware supports the ability to do so (which I believe requires root anyway, so I guess I answered my own question.
I have a couple of questions about the S4 that I'm hoping someone who has experience can tell me about this.
1) Can I root using VRoot and NOT trip the Knox warranty bit?
2) After rooting, can I install a recovery (I've read that Philz CWM recovery works but can't find definitive answers on this).
3) Should I even care about the Knox software?
I don't need to use the phone in an enterprise environment, but I also don't want the phone's bootloader locked to Samsung firmwares if it means I won't be able to install custom FW's or kernels.
Should I return the phone? I'll pay the $35 restocking fee just to save myself from having to deal with Samsung's (and this my opinion) bonehead move of abandoning its developer userbase.
Any and all responses would be appreciated. Thanks for reading and helping!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am not worried about the Knox bit. Mine is tripped and it's not preventing anything, AFAIK. I can still install Sammy firmwares, ROM's that are at the correct version/level, mods, apps, etc. It seems it's really only a flag for enterprise users. I agree it kind of sucks, and I'm not a fan of it, but it doesn't seem to be causing any real harm at this point warranty or service wise. Some say it may prevent Samsung from honoring the warranty, but I'm not sure that's true, based on reading the forums.
As far as Samsung stopping pushing firmwares to this phone, that should be a long way off since this is their flagship smartphone at this point. It's a great phone and I've been very happy with mine, which I got the weekend they were released. Rooted, stock rom, hotspot mod. So much better phone than my old HTC Androids!

jejb said:
I am not worried about the Knox bit. Mine is tripped and it's not preventing anything, AFAIK. I can still install Sammy firmwares, ROM's that are at the correct version/level, mods, apps, etc. It seems it's really only a flag for enterprise users. I agree it kind of sucks, and I'm not a fan of it, but it doesn't seem to be causing any real harm at this point warranty or service wise. Some say it may prevent Samsung from honoring the warranty, but I'm not sure that's true, based on reading the forums.
As far as Samsung stopping pushing firmwares to this phone, that should be a long way off since this is their flagship smartphone at this point. It's a great phone and I've been very happy with mine, which I got the weekend they were released. Rooted, stock rom, hotspot mod. So much better phone than my old HTC Androids!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is just a thought... but... check your phone, when I got mine not too long back it still came with 4.2 on it. If yours still has 4.2 you wouldn't have to worry about knox as long as you didn't take the OTA. You could root it and rom it all you wanted.

Yes you should return the phone. That way you **** all the people who return their phones for legitimate warranty/insurance reasons with higher costs.
Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk

frostedunit said:
Yes you should return the phone. That way you **** all the people who return their phones for legitimate warranty/insurance reasons with higher costs.
Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I haven't done any type of rooting or modification to the phone yet. That's the reason I'm asking, I haven't tripped the counter. I'm just aggravated by not having root and being able to remove this crapware. I wouldn't be ****ing anyone. Please don't be a ****.
jejb said:
I am not worried about the Knox bit. Mine is tripped and it's not preventing anything, AFAIK. I can still install Sammy firmwares, ROM's that are at the correct version/level, mods, apps, etc. It seems it's really only a flag for enterprise users. I agree it kind of sucks, and I'm not a fan of it, but it doesn't seem to be causing any real harm at this point warranty or service wise. Some say it may prevent Samsung from honoring the warranty, but I'm not sure that's true, based on reading the forums.
As far as Samsung stopping pushing firmwares to this phone, that should be a long way off since this is their flagship smartphone at this point. It's a great phone and I've been very happy with mine, which I got the weekend they were released. Rooted, stock rom, hotspot mod. So much better phone than my old HTC Androids!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is great news, can you point me to the tool you used to root the phone? I've read the Chinese VRoot method doesn't trip the counter, but installs "Superuser" which can subsequently be removed and replaced with SuperSU. I think using SuperSU and something like DroidWall to monitor the device to make sure nothing fishy is going on will help us determine whether or not VRoot is really malware (I've read comments saying that it's some kind of spyware but I'm not sure of the technical prowess of those commenters).
What recovery are you using to flash custom ROMs?
And as asked in a previous post-- Did you root before taking the OTA? Or did you take the OTA and do you see the Knox Warranty Bit marked as 0x1 in the stock recovery?
Thanks for the replies, appreciate all the info guys!

epi4gtn said:
I haven't done any type of rooting or modification to the phone yet. That's the reason I'm asking, I haven't tripped the counter. I'm just aggravated by not having root and being able to remove this crapware. I wouldn't be ****ing anyone. Please don't be a ****.
This is great news, can you point me to the tool you used to root the phone? I've read the Chinese VRoot method doesn't trip the counter, but installs "Superuser" which can subsequently be removed and replaced with SuperSU. I think using SuperSU and something like DroidWall to monitor the device to make sure nothing fishy is going on will help us determine whether or not VRoot is really malware (I've read comments saying that it's some kind of spyware but I'm not sure of the technical prowess of those commenters).
What recovery are you using to flash custom ROMs?
And as asked in a previous post-- Did you root before taking the OTA? Or did you take the OTA and do you see the Knox Warranty Bit marked as 0x1 in the stock recovery?
Thanks for the replies, appreciate all the info guys![/QUOTE
I used an app from thePlayStore called Triangle Away to reset the counter. You have to be rooted, but it works perfectly. Just an FYI.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

epi4gtn said:
I haven't done any type of rooting or modification to the phone yet. That's the reason I'm asking, I haven't tripped the counter. I'm just aggravated by not having root and being able to remove this crapware. I wouldn't be ****ing anyone. Please don't be a ****.
This is great news, can you point me to the tool you used to root the phone? I've read the Chinese VRoot method doesn't trip the counter, but installs "Superuser" which can subsequently be removed and replaced with SuperSU. I think using SuperSU and something like DroidWall to monitor the device to make sure nothing fishy is going on will help us determine whether or not VRoot is really malware (I've read comments saying that it's some kind of spyware but I'm not sure of the technical prowess of those commenters).
What recovery are you using to flash custom ROMs?
And as asked in a previous post-- Did you root before taking the OTA? Or did you take the OTA and do you see the Knox Warranty Bit marked as 0x1 in the stock recovery?
Thanks for the replies, appreciate all the info guys!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Dont use vroot. Until some dev can pin point what the chinese root method actually does. And if your on 4.2.2 your ok but once ota to 4.3 then you have knox bootloader meaning you cant downgrade firmwares. It wont stop you from changing kernels and roms. Knox flag just voids your warranty with samsung but if you have insurance with sprint they can care less about it tripped. I updated to 4.3 and tripped the knox amd I havent seen no problems really. Btw please make research this has been talked about lately too much.
SoFaKiNgStOkeD said:
epi4gtn said:
I haven't done any type of rooting or modification to the phone yet. That's the reason I'm asking, I haven't tripped the counter. I'm just aggravated by not having root and being able to remove this crapware. I wouldn't be ****ing anyone. Please don't be a ****.
This is great news, can you point me to the tool you used to root the phone? I've read the Chinese VRoot method doesn't trip the counter, but installs "Superuser" which can subsequently be removed and replaced with SuperSU. I think using SuperSU and something like DroidWall to monitor the device to make sure nothing fishy is going on will help us determine whether or not VRoot is really malware (I've read comments saying that it's some kind of spyware but I'm not sure of the technical prowess of those commenters).
What recovery are you using to flash custom ROMs?
And as asked in a previous post-- Did you root before taking the OTA? Or did you take the OTA and do you see the Knox Warranty Bit marked as 0x1 in the stock recovery?
Thanks for the replies, appreciate all the info guys![/QUOTE
I used an app from thePlayStore called Triangle Away to reset the counter. You have to be rooted, but it works perfectly. Just an FYI.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That only works if your on 4.2. It wont reset the knox bootloader counter.
Sent from my SPH-L720 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

epi4gtn said:
This is great news, can you point me to the tool you used to root the phone? I've read the Chinese VRoot method doesn't trip the counter, but installs "Superuser" which can subsequently be removed and replaced with SuperSU. I think using SuperSU and something like DroidWall to monitor the device to make sure nothing fishy is going on will help us determine whether or not VRoot is really malware (I've read comments saying that it's some kind of spyware but I'm not sure of the technical prowess of those commenters).
What recovery are you using to flash custom ROMs?
And as asked in a previous post-- Did you root before taking the OTA? Or did you take the OTA and do you see the Knox Warranty Bit marked as 0x1 in the stock recovery?
Thanks for the replies, appreciate all the info guys!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, my Knox bit it tripped/set. It is 0x1 on the download screen. Can't view it in recovery. I just used CF Auto Root after going to 4.3. Should be easy to search and find that thread. I'm on the stock rom with tweaks.
Using TWRP recovery, but I've tried several, including Philz and OUDHS. It seems Philz is the flavor of the month, so you might want to go with that just to be safe.
I did not root before taking the OTA. I don't think I'd try it that way. I was rooted, but went back to stock to take the update. If you get back to stock, reset the custom bits on your download screen (triangle away and RTN's seem to do that, but might have to do more than one), recover your apps/data and then take the OTA, it should be the most sure fire method. Then root, custom recovery, nandroid backup and play from there.

jejb said:
Yes, my Knox bit it tripped/set. It is 0x1 on the download screen. Can't view it in recovery. I just used CF Auto Root after going to 4.3. Should be easy to search and find that thread. I'm on the stock rom with tweaks.
Using TWRP recovery, but I've tried several, including Philz and OUDHS. It seems Philz is the flavor of the month, so you might want to go with that just to be safe.
I did not root before taking the OTA. I don't think I'd try it that way. I was rooted, but went back to stock to take the update. If you get back to stock, reset the custom bits on your download screen (triangle away and RTN's seem to do that, but might have to do more than one), recover your apps/data and then take the OTA, it should be the most sure fire method. Then root, custom recovery, nandroid backup and play from there.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you, I plan to just use CF-Auto-Root to root the phone. I'm starting to care less about the Knox bit getting tripped.
I came across this post by rawintellect that seems to have everything I'd need out of the phone, rooted/deodexed MK2 with all the bloat removed, BUT it says in the description that the Knox Bootloader is removed *EDIT: After thinking about the statement some more, I think he means the Knox bootloader is NOT included in the rom, but this raises another question, can I install it on a phone WITH the knox bootloader?), so I'm afraid of attempting to flash it because as I understand it, it's impossible to replace the knox bootloader.
Here's the post: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=48516106
This individual seems to have gotten everything working: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=48516106&postcount=88
Do you know if anyone is able to flash Philz through Odin successfully on the MJA/knox bootloader?

I took mine back after I took the OTA. I was honest about why I was returning it, that the firmware introduces restrictions and annoying features (I cited the multiple WiFi security warnings in particular) I was not willing to accept, and the independent store I was dealing with gave me an exchange to a new phone with 4.2. I first asked if they could downgrade the phone to 4.2, including the bootloader, they researched that option, finding it impossible.
If they had not given me the exchange, I would have picked a different color and done it that way.

Try this Guide
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2572000
MrTasselhof

[Q] Rooting and disabling knox

Checked old threads, and even made a thread a couple months ago about this question, but it goes a bit further.
I've finally rooted using this method: http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s4-tmobile/general/root-nb4-knox-0x0-t2802185
I didn't trip knox, that's great right?! Well, I went further, installed xposed, then gravity box and started playing around with my newly rooted device.
I then installed supersu (I haven't really needed it but I wanted to test something out from another thread, here: http://forums.androidcentral.com/samsung-safe-knox/366118-solution-how-permanently-remove-knox.html)
Well I've removed Knox!
Not quite: because knox is located in the bootloader, it's a little more complicated to remove. My question (finally) is that even though I've disabled knox as a pesky security feature, if I were to finally enable a custom recovery, or flash to a different rom (I wanna go aosp, and go to lolipop) would I have issues with knox again, and trip the counter? I still want to upgrade my phone using JUMP but I don't want to have problems with T-Mobile.
Thanks guys!

devilsmarch said:
Checked old threads, and even made a thread a couple months ago about this question, but it goes a bit further.
I've finally rooted using this method: http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s4-tmobile/general/root-nb4-knox-0x0-t2802185
I didn't trip knox, that's great right?! Well, I went further, installed xposed, then gravity box and started playing around with my newly rooted device.
I then installed supersu (I haven't really needed it but I wanted to test something out from another thread, here: http://forums.androidcentral.com/samsung-safe-knox/366118-solution-how-permanently-remove-knox.html)
Well I've removed Knox!
Not quite: because knox is located in the bootloader, it's a little more complicated to remove. My question (finally) is that even though I've disabled knox as a pesky security feature, if I were to finally enable a custom recovery, or flash to a different rom (I wanna go aosp, and go to lolipop) would I have issues with knox again, and trip the counter? I still want to upgrade my phone using JUMP but I don't want to have problems with T-Mobile.
Thanks guys!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As soon as you flash custom recovery knox will be tripped

1eyedmonster said:
As soon as you flash custom recovery knox will be tripped
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Kinda what I thought would happen unless you changed the bootloader.
You can't change it unless it has the same certificate from Samsung right? Even if you copied it over to a different bootloader?

devilsmarch said:
Kinda what I thought would happen unless you changed the bootloader.
You can't change it unless it has the same certificate from Samsung right? Even if you copied it over to a different bootloader?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I know once you have the latest bootloader you can't go back and with the forthcoming android L you will need the latest bootloader so I would just update to the latest version and root and flash away aosp or whatever I know it invalidates your warranty but for me it's worth the risk however the cm12 alpha is full of bugs so I would wait for a beta at least to avoid disappointment

[Q] Several questions before rooting SM-N910G

Hello, I'm not completely new to rooting but the last device I have rooted is the first Samsung Note. So, I'm not sure if anything has changed thus, I'm here to ask the experts some questions before I move on. My current device is, SM-N910G with stock Lollipop.
I'll be installing TWRP as the custom recovery and will be doing a backup immediately. My plan is to run CM12 as daily driver. So, I would like to know is CM12 ready as a daily driver use and if anything goes wrong, can I restore to my backup like the way is it with everything intact and application settings all in place? (I understand that CM12 is still a nightly thing but I don't intend to flash it every night for the update, maybe once per week.)
I researched and found out that Xposed isn't quite steady yet but how limited am I in terms of customizations using the good old xposed modules?
Any other good roms to recommend besides CM12? Been reading in XDA about SimpleROM, CMRemix, etc but only CM12 seems the nicest to me, IMO. Although, I understand the limit in S-Pen functions and multi-windows stuffs.
Is there any other way to un-root and go back completely stock besides using Odin to flash back the firmware? (KNOX will always be tripped, ye? Sammobile is giving me a hard time to download the stock firmware but they're still awesome nevertheless so is there any other site that I can download from?)
TBH, I'm still deciding whether to stick to stock or going away. It'll trip KNOX however my warranty isn't done till Oct and I'm not sure if my local store does care about KNOX or not. Is there any way that you can convince me further to go away and root my Note 4? (I'm into backing up my entire OS, use Greenify and Amplify to increase battery life, AcDisplay modules to remove the home button unlock, customizations that Nova can't do, etc. So are they worth it to root?)
Lastly, pardon me for the long post and hyper paranoid questions.
Thank you for any replies.

First time foray into rooting and roms....

Hi all.
I am really intrigued by some roms i see here especially Kingrom. I have never rooted a phone or anything past that but i am pretty tech savvy and have done some crazy stuff like downgrading and installing custom bootroms and OS's on nintendo 3ds which was a harrowing multi hour experience.
Anyway, before i root and install a custom recovery like TWRP, what are the dangers and downsides of starting this journey? Is it possible to un-root and go back to fully factory like-new? Does rooting and custom romming trip knox? Can i still get OTA updates from samsung?

what are the dangers and downsides of starting this journey?
You can brick your Device
Is it possible to un-root and go back to fully factory like-new?
yes, make a Full Backup
Does rooting and custom romming trip knox?
With Root trip KNOX
Can i still get OTA updates from samsung?
No, dont need it
if you use Kingrom
prepare use Phoenix Rom

dayl1ght said:
what are the dangers and downsides of starting this journey?
You can brick your Device
Is it possible to un-root and go back to fully factory like-new?
yes, make a Full Backup
Does rooting and custom romming trip knox?
With Root trip KNOX
Can i still get OTA updates from samsung?
No, dont need it
if you use Kingrom
prepare use Phoenix Rom
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How do i make a backup before i start root?
What is the downside of tripping knox? I dont have carrier, and no US warranty because of international phone, i have insurance from B&H but they dont check knox i think

Once Knox is tripped you will never ever be able to use Samsung Pay and find it difficult, if not impossible, to use Android Pay.

liquidguru said:
Once Knox is tripped you will never ever be able to use Samsung Pay and find it difficult, if not impossible, to use Android Pay.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
never use and never will use those, so i guess ill go with root!

In the S7 you can not brick brick your phone you can always boot in recovery and install everything, the KNOX counter once it gets reset nothing can be done. Rooting opens up the possibilities on the phone and its insane

utkarsh_86 said:
In the S7 you can not brick brick your phone you can always boot in recovery and install everything, the KNOX counter once it gets reset nothing can be done. Rooting opens up the possibilities on the phone and its insane
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
what is benefit of keeping knox? i dont have samsung warranty and i never will use samsung/android pay? does it protect against viruses or something?

kofman13 said:
what is benefit of keeping knox? i dont have samsung warranty and i never will use samsung/android pay? does it protect against viruses or something?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
KNOX is more towards enterprise, if you dont have warranty then what are you waiting for go ahead Root it, its not difficult just look at the you tube videos and hear what they explain carefully also have a look here
forum.xda-developers.com/s7-edge/development/recovery-official-twrp-hero2lte-3-0-0-0-t3334084

kofman13 said:
what is benefit of keeping knox? i dont have samsung warranty and i never will use samsung/android pay? does it protect against viruses or something?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you plan on selling your phone in the future, it's price maybe be affected, as the new owner will not be able to use the pay services.
Ultimately it's your choice. This is the first phone I haven't rooted. Every day I think I might, but I find it hard to actually go through with it. It works completely well without rooting. The main reason I used to root was to change the DPI, but you can do that without rooting on this phone.

liquidguru said:
If you plan on selling your phone in the future, it's price maybe be affected, as the new owner will not be able to use the pay services.
Ultimately it's your choice. This is the first phone I haven't rooted. Every day I think I might, but I find it hard to actually go through with it. It works completely well without rooting. The main reason I used to root was to change the DPI, but you can do that without rooting on this phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i was mainly interested in kingrom because i hear it boosts performance and lets you block ads with mega ad blocker... is it not worth it?

It really is up to you. Rooting and tinkering is a lot of fun, which is why XDA exists. Following the rooting and flashing guides you shouldn't have any problems with your device. Custom ROMs and Xposed modules can add a lot of additional features and customization to your phone. This time, for this phone, I just feel it's not needed, but that's just me.
I use Adguard to block ads. It works really well on non-rooted phones.
I think I'd get a Nexus device now, if I wanted to start rooting and flashing ROMs. A lot of the real innovation is done with CM-based ROMs, which are extremely unlikely on new Sammy Exynos devices.

Help: What software can fix issues with Safetynet?

I tried using Google Pay yesterday, but apparently my S7 Edge doesn't pass the Safetynet tests. Running stock is not an option because my tripped Knox breaks Samsung Health and I can't use my Gear S3. Safetynet is currently failing at CTSProfile.
Is there an app, kernel or rom that can fix these issues? I don't really need Knox to work (though SPay would be nice to have), I just want my Gear and GPay to work. Im running GalaxyRom, which is TouchWiz with some modifications to fix some Knox issues. Magisk is only used for root browser. Would rather not flash another ROM, but if there is one that fixes these issues its better than nothing.
Thanks

Magisk + Custom ROM

magisk v17.1
I'm using stock ROM with Magisk v17.1, and passing all safetynet checks. have you tried safetynet bypass apps?
vinegarr said:
I tried using Google Pay yesterday, but apparently my S7 Edge doesn't pass the Safetynet tests. Running stock is not an option because my tripped Knox breaks Samsung Health and I can't use my Gear S3. Safetynet is currently failing at CTSProfile.
Is there an app, kernel or rom that can fix these issues? I don't really need Knox to work (though SPay would be nice to have), I just want my Gear and GPay to work. Im running GalaxyRom, which is TouchWiz with some modifications to fix some Knox issues. Magisk is only used for root browser. Would rather not flash another ROM, but if there is one that fixes these issues its better than nothing.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

painx said:
Magisk + Custom ROM
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
"Custom ROM" is pretty vague. I have a custom TouchWiz ROM that doesn't work.

Try ' SecurityLogAgent Disable' on the Google Play store. I am using a stock ROM with the latest version of Magisk and passing all safety checks. I'm also using android pay and banking apps without an issue.

I was having the same problem. Bounced from one ROM to the next, but ultimately found my solution back where I started. I got SafetyNet passing with Samsung Health working on Sac23's s9 port. Unfortunately, he took down the rom so you can't download it from his thread. If you still wanna try it though, you can PM me and I'll share more info.

Rehvix said:
I was having the same problem. Bounced from one ROM to the next, but ultimately found my solution back where I started. I got SafetyNet passing with Samsung Health working on Sac23's s9 port. Unfortunately, he took down the rom so you can't download it from his thread. If you still wanna try it though, you can PM me and I'll share more info.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the suggestion. I used Sac´s ROM before so I think I still have the ROM on my PC. I did flash back to stock, though. If I recall correctly, it had some weird issues (since its a port). Thanks, tho.

Rehvix said:
I was having the same problem. Bounced from one ROM to the next, but ultimately found my solution back where I started. I got SafetyNet passing with Samsung Health working on Sac23's s9 port. Unfortunately, he took down the rom so you can't download it from his thread. If you still wanna try it though, you can PM me and I'll share more info.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the suggestion. I ended up flashing the BlackPearl S9 Port and Safetynet passes just fine. No issues with Knox either.