To flash or not to Flash - Moto G5 Plus Questions & Answers

Hi everyone, I'm a huge fan of rooting and installing custom roms, but the way motorola makes you void your warranty scares me. I'm normally very careful with my devices but I always like to have the option to flash back to stock and send it in if I have to. That being said, I was thinking of switching over to Resurrection Remix, and I was wondering everybody's thoughts on whether its worth voiding the warranty as the stock software is pretty good as is.

I am newly over from being a long time Nexus user so have flashed a fair few Roms in my time. But, even on the Nexus I was getting to the point that Stock was doing the job and was only rooting to install adaway. Then I found dns66 and so went back to stock.
Since getting my G5Plus all I have done is updated to the latest version and am purely stock. Personally I dont see the benefit of rooting at the moment.

Resurrection Remix is so heavily modified it's basically a skin. I would recommend Lineage; you won't know how you lived with stock after you get it. Plus, it'll take Lenovorola months to roll out Oreo, and custom ROMs will have it sooner.

Jrhotrod said:
Resurrection Remix is so heavily modified it's basically a skin. I would recommend Lineage; you won't know how you lived with stock after you get it. Plus, it'll take Lenovorola months to roll out Oreo, and custom ROMs will have it sooner.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've tried lineage before on a Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 8.0, and it was great(the tablet was super slow though). My main reason for wanting to go with RR is because of the customization as well as the fact the G5+ build contains all of the moto-exclusive features so i'm not giving anything up except my warranty.

I'm in your same situation. Just like user divvykev I don't need root after discovering DNS66, but my brain want to hack every device I get in my hands...
Very occasionally my G5+ lags for some seconds, almost freezes. I don't know what's the cause, but now I have to try another ROM to check if the problem persists.
And I want more customization than the stock ROM can offer.
And thinking that we're on Android 7.0 when there is 7.1.2 available won't let me sleep at night
And consider also the security updates, that are almost real-time in some custom ROM, while on stock we're still on May 2017 (at least me with "reteu").
And I don't know when Lenovo will deploy Android 8 for G5+, but with a custom ROM we can do it by ourselves in a month or so.
And I miss so much the LED notification...
My first smartphone was Moto G 2013. I unlocked the bootloader and rooted after a week and I didn't regret it for a single second (it's still alive and working fine thanks to custom ROM's developers). The G5+ is already two weeks old and still it's on stock ROM, but it's only a matter of days for bootloader unlocking.
And the warranty? I'm in Europe and many people say that here unlocking the bootloader won't void the warranty, despite what the manufacturers say.
I still haven't had the pleasure to find if that's true, and I hope to continue like this.

SirPeriwinkle said:
I've tried lineage before on a Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 8.0, and it was great(the tablet was super slow though). My main reason for wanting to go with RR is because of the customization as well as the fact the G5+ build contains all of the moto-exclusive features so i'm not giving anything up except my warranty.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So does Lineage

Official Lineage?
I know there is no official support for G5 Plus (Potter) yet, and there is one unofficial build, in fact I am running it right now! But, I wanted to know if there will be official support to it or the unofficial one will get updates.
Thanks!

Jrhotrod said:
Resurrection Remix is so heavily modified it's basically a skin. I would recommend Lineage; you won't know how you lived with stock after you get it. Plus, it'll take Lenovorola months to roll out Oreo, and custom ROMs will have it sooner.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Camera quality? Is there some ROM with stock like camera quality? Have tried 3-4 ROMs just to get back to stock everytime.

Sahilsinghlodhi said:
Camera quality? Is there some ROM with stock like camera quality? Have tried 3-4 ROMs just to get back to stock everytime.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Pretty much every ROM, in my experience, has camera quality just as good as stock. If you really want the full potential make sure to change the aspect ratio to 4:3 and 12.2 megapixels.

Since when does Motorola void warranty for bootloader unlocked devices? My 2014 Moto X and 1st gen Moto X both had warranty repair with an unlocked bootloader.

eleazar6 said:
Since when does Motorola void warranty for bootloader unlocked devices? My 2014 Moto X and 1st gen Moto X both had warranty repair with an unlocked bootloader.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To unlock the bootloader you have to got onto motoroals website and get a code. When you do so they give you all these warnings and make you accept a terms of service that'll make you unable to submit warranty claims

eleazar6 said:
Since when does Motorola void warranty for bootloader unlocked devices? My 2014 Moto X and 1st gen Moto X both had warranty repair with an unlocked bootloader.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Most OEMs state that unlocking the bootloader voids warranty. Every ROM on XDA also says the same thing. More importantly, Motorola makes you go through a signup/generate unique key for your unlock, which means they have the fact that you unlocked your bootloader on record.
From section 5 of Motorola's legal agreement when you go through their unlocking process:
Obtaining an unlock code voids all warranties. Once you get the unlock code, your
device is no longer covered by the Motorola warranty, or any other warranty provided
with the device. Neither Motorola, nor your wireless carrier shall have any duty to
provide warranty or customer support for unlocked devices.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

Looks like if you mess up your software, it's not covered. But if it's a hardware issue, it will be. My issue was hardware related, so I was covered.
https://forums.lenovo.com/t5/Moto-X...-re-Warranty-for-Pure-Style/m-p/3202233#M5570

So I just got off of chatting with a Motorola support rep. I showed them the link and they said to call the support telephone number to clarify further

Related

Open letter to our XT925 developers / users

My phone, the Motorola Razr HD LTE is out already since November 2012, with not as much development options as other phones.
Compare to SG3 or the Nexus 4 (newly released), it leave us with very little options when it comes to custom ROMS or functional improvements.
Some of the uncertainty is coming from the lack of communication, between the developers and the community of users, on ongoing technical issues with no solution insight (example: the Rogers issue versions 492002 vs. 49003)
The best available custom ROM is currently uncompleted, and again no communication or reassurance on the work progression.
The truth to matter is that we are lagging behind other phones when it comes to development & improvements.
Figure out a way to unlock the bootloader and you will probably see more development on this phone.
You are not your iPhone 5
#tylerdurden
I agree. I holding back doing anything because of losing the warranty.
I have to say though my XT925 is one of the first Android phones that came to me stock without the bloat I've found on Sony, LG and Samsung devices. I'm still very happy with my stock Razr HD.
SFG said:
Figure out a way to unlock the bootloader and you will probably see more development on this phone.
You are not your iPhone 5
#tylerdurden
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There already is a bootloader unlock. You can use the motorola bootloader unlock tool. I don't have a developer edition and it worked perfect for me. Other users in the forum also have their bootloaders unlocked.
itzik_man said:
My phone, the Motorola Razr HD LTE is out already since November 2012, with not as much development options as other phones.
Compare to SG3 or the Nexus 4 (newly released), it leave us with very little options when it comes to custom ROMS or functional improvements.
Some of the uncertainty is coming from the lack of communication, between the developers and the community of users, on ongoing technical issues with no solution insight (example: the Rogers issue versions 492002 vs. 49003)
The best available custom ROM is currently uncompleted, and again no communication or reassurance on the work progression.
The truth to matter is that we are lagging behind other phones when it comes to development & improvements.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I understand how frustrated you are itzak_man because of the lack of official Rogers firmware and that you almost felt lied to by the whole XDA community over the Rogers firmware scandal. Please remember, this is a risk that you take by modifying your phone outside of the manufacturers intended usage. This its the reason why this its the first phone that I haven't modified.
That being said, I am working directly with the firmware team to try to procure an official version of the Rogers firmware. There are some server issues with the fastboot servers, so please give us a couple more weeks. I want official firmware for everyone here as well, and the ability to modify my phone in the future with the ability to return to official stock.
Sent from my XT925 using Tapatalk 2
alexv305 said:
There already is a bootloader unlock. You can use the motorola bootloader unlock tool. I don't have a developer edition and it worked perfect for me. Other users in the forum also have their bootloaders unlocked.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think that the bootloader unlock that SFG is referring to is a non-Motorola warranty-voiding unlock. It's nice the Motorola supports the unlocking but it really means that they control who gets unlocked and removes any future warranty claims.
waiting for your update. Thanks for checking with the firmware team.
---------- Post added at 12:51 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:48 PM ----------
danifunker said:
I understand how frustrated you are itzak_man because of the lack of official Rogers firmware and that you almost felt lied to by the whole XDA community over the Rogers firmware scandal. Please remember, this is a risk that you take by modifying your phone outside of the manufacturers intended usage. This its the reason why this its the first phone that I haven't modified.
That being said, I am working directly with the firmware team to try to procure an official version of the Rogers firmware. There are some server issues with the fastboot servers, so please give us a couple more weeks. I want official firmware for everyone here as well, and the ability to modify my phone in the future with the ability to return to official stock.
Sent from my XT925 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
waiting for your update. Thanks for checking with the firmware team.
I think that the bootloader unlock that SFG is referring to is a non-Motorola warranty-voiding unlock. It's nice the Motorola supports the unlocking but it really means that they control who gets unlocked and removes any future warranty claims.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Reporting after a long talk to Motorola Canada services:
The JB upgrade (which is controlled by Motorola) checks your IMEI, android version & the country code.
When I mentioned the 2 versions (492002 & 49003) no body had a clue what I am talking about !
If you bootloader is unlock by Motorola, regardless which version you got, your phone becomes an orphan; No more upgradable !
When I said that there message on line is misleading: Losing the warranty only but nothing about losing any upgrade privileges !
They agree it's wrong & "promise" to fix the worming message (after the fact).
Now I am not sure that there is or was a second version (the 49003) in Motorola arsenal. My guess is that the Boot loader unlock process does more to the phone then just unlock. Possible changing the version system...?
So,our only option is waiting & hopping that we get a full JB version upgradable by RDS.
itzik_man said:
Reporting after a long talk to Motorola Canada services:
The JB upgrade (which is controlled by Motorola) checks your IMEI, android version & the country code.
When I mentioned the 2 versions (492002 & 49003) no body had a clue what I am talking about !
If you bootloader is unlock by Motorola, regardless which version you got, your phone becomes an orphan; No more upgradable !
When I said that there message on line is misleading: Losing the warranty only but nothing about losing any upgrade privileges !
They agree it's wrong & "promise" to fix the worming message (after the fact).
Now I am not sure that there is or was a second version (the 49003) in Motorola arsenal. My guess is that the Boot loader unlock process does more to the phone then just unlock. Possible changing the version system...?
So,our only option is waiting & hopping that we get a full JB version upgradable by RDS.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have a feeling they don't know what they are talking about. There are reports of a number of users who were rooted but still got the upgrade. I've reached out to a couple of them and hopefully we will get a full JB XML restore soon.
Don't forget the date and version differences between 49003 and 492002.
Unlocking the bootloader changes some of the encryption keys used, but definitely not the system version.
Sent from my XT925 using Tapatalk 2
I can understand your frustration but development takes time and requires opportunity. With a locked bootloader & lack of kexec, there simply isn't much developers can do right now. With time, good things may eventually come. But Motorola development will never match that of other popular phones.
I have a feeling they don't know what they are talking about. There are reports of a number of users who were rooted but still got the upgrade. I've reached out to a couple of them and hopefully we will get a full JB XML restore soon.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Rooted will get you the OTA, not bootloader unlocked. Once you unlock using your IMEI, your phone info is deleted from Motorola databank.
We need to consolidate the information & comments on the Rogers ICS to JB upgrade to one topic & one location.
The subject is all over in this forum & it creates a great deal of difficulty to trace & follow the objective which is; how to fix the issue of compatibility of versions..
danifunker said:
That being said, I am working directly with the firmware team to try to procure an official version of the Rogers firmware. There are some server issues with the fastboot servers, so please give us a couple more weeks. I want official firmware for everyone here as well, and the ability to modify my phone in the future with the ability to return to official stock.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi danifunker, for your efforts, thank you.
Out of curiosity:
- what causes the "delay" in you getting official firmware from rogers?
- which version(s) are you planning to get: 2002 and/or JB?
thanks!
I have uploaded Rogers ICS firmware for RAZR HD back in November: http://sbf.droid-developers.org/vanquish_u/list.php
There is no JB for it right now as I'm aware.
Skrilax_CZ said:
I have uploaded Rogers ICS firmware for RAZR HD back in November: http://sbf.droid-developers.org/vanquish_u/list.php
There is no JB for it right now as I'm aware.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The version available doesn't allow for OTA update to JB it's the wrong version
Sent from my XT925

Will flashing LineageOS break my Passport 2.0 Warranty?

I know that a while back this was true. But today I saw a few answers on here saying that ZTE was reviewing their terms related to the warranty, something about voiding the software warranty but not the hardware one.
Anyone knows where we stand regarding to that? On the same note, what about just rooting the phone without unlocking the bootloader?
The official answer from ZTE is that unlocking the bootloader invalidates the entire warranty. Only the US/NA model had the ability to unlock the bootloader, and it was only available on B20 when filling out the Google Docs request form.
Everything else is just speculation. Apparently, people on the Nougat beta seemed to say that the update would have the ability built into the base software load, but it appears to be not true for the official release. Other people (myself included) seemed to think that ZTE was just waiting for the Nougat release to put out the new unlock method, but that appears to not be the case. Everything thinks they should just invalidate the SW part and now the HW part, because that is what makes sense, but that's not the current situation.
I haven't seen any reports of people that unofficially unlocked and then sent their phones back to see if it got covered under warranty (as in, did they check the bootloader status).
Hopefully ZTE does something about this soon.
TeutonJon78 said:
The official answer from ZTE is that unlocking the bootloader invalidates the entire warranty. Only the US/NA model had the ability to unlock the bootloader, and it was only available on B20 when filling out the Google Docs request form.
Everything else is just speculation. Apparently, people on the Nougat beta seemed to say that the update would have the ability built into the base software load, but it appears to be not true for the official release. Other people (myself included) seemed to think that ZTE was just waiting for the Nougat release to put out the new unlock method, but that appears to not be the case. Everything thinks they should just invalidate the SW part and now the HW part, because that is what makes sense, but that's not the current situation.
I haven't seen any reports of people that unofficially unlocked and then sent their phones back to see if it got covered under warranty (as in, did they check the bootloader status).
Hopefully ZTE does something about this soon.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I know of at least one (but probably more) who borked their modem using signed twrp efs backup and sent it in for replacement.
Honestly I do not think warranty should cover user error/abuse but I suppose I would do it as well if it happened to me.
Weather or not they will honor warranty would depend on the issue and if it is obviously unlocked (custom rom/xposed/root clearly visible). If you relock/stock before sending it in they could not tell.

Unlock Bootloader?

Is it even remotely possible to unlock the bootloader? I would love to install a custom recovery and a custom ROM.
Thanks.
Not possible currently, probably never will.
Until someone at Samsung decides to give the keys to the bootloader, it will remain locked.
(Pssst, hey Samsung Developer, there is a fame and fortune for your leak. :angel: )
I vouch 400$ for unlocked bootloader and emotion/lineage os
If S6 is anything to judge by, the chances for an unlocked bootloader are slim at best.
The only reason I would love an unlocked bootloader is to be able to root the stock OS and not have to use an engineering kernel. Otherwise, I tend to run rooted stock on my devices until they get too out of date.
Unfortunately, that means when this S7 Edge becomes obsolete, that will be the end of the line.
No one is even attempting it. With most phones now root / unlocked bootloader is a thing of the past. If you want those feature it'd be best to get a Pixel or a 1+. The rest of the phone will kill all of that in the next year.
The last good for rooting phone from Samsung was the Note 4 and even that was only the Tmobile variant. As Samsung and Android pay roll out internationally it will get killed off over seas too.
Unless a new crop of Android hackers pop-up to replace all the devs who used to roit/unlock the phones rooting and flashing is dying
ShrekOpher said:
No one is even attempting it. With most phones now root / unlocked bootloader is a thing of the past. If you want those feature it'd be best to get a Pixel or a 1+. The rest of the phone will kill all of that in the next year.
The last good for rooting phone from Samsung was the Note 4 and even that was only the Tmobile variant. As Samsung and Android pay roll out internationally it will get killed off over seas too.
Unless a new crop of Android hackers pop-up to replace all the devs who used to roit/unlock the phones rooting and flashing is dying
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not sure I would go that far. Sure, Samsung has locked their phones down like nuts, but there are still plenty of developments on other devices. The Sunshine team has managed to S-off every HTC flagship from the M8 on, along with a reasonably sold list of Moto devices. If you aren't on Verizon/AT&T you can skip the hack by going to HTCDev. Too bad HTC has gone absolutely bonkers on their own devices...
The LG V20 folks got "lucky" with Dirty Santa (though I wouldn't touch that mess with a 10 foot pole since your warranty is going to be void at the same time LG is getting sued over boot looping phones). Still, if you manage to get lucky, you can load custom ROMs on that device, and it's a true flagship.
Other devices seem to either have unlockable (through a web-site) bootloaders or have proven relatively easy to mod/root.
One day root may be a thing of the past unless you can find a dev phone, but I don't think we are quite there yet. That, and there will always likely be leaked dev kernels.
Few things:
-Is there any work still being done to get the bootloader unlocked? This dev thread no longer seems to be only devs, rather a bunch of "+1s", "thanks", and "tweet posts". All great posts, but not dev related.
- All devs on this thread are without a doubt better than I regarding android roms, unlocking, etc, but thought id throw a few ideas it here. (Im new to this type of dev). Maybe i can provide new hope? I just recently got the s7 and found out the hard way the current status woth no way to get custom roms. I know the chain of trust, verity, etc are a major buzzkill, but parts have all been hacked before so we can't Judy throw in the towel, can we?!
- http://newandroidbook.com this has a lot of good material, this guy is a genius, too bag he isn't working on this! (Download the book there & supplements).
Couple of actual ideas:
-He mentions in the book, with root you should be able to modify parts of partitions. Add long as you don't modify the entire partition it wont check for integrity on startup. Now that root exists, is Amy of this possible, to modify three partitions and unlock the bootloader?
- He also talks about how the chain of trust works using signed keys, and where to find these keys in the actual image file; since we know exactly where the keys are, and what's expected, can't we fake it with a custom image using a binary editor? He (in that link) also refers to his free tools to inspect, etc.
Remember when wet push via odin the phone isn't online so had no way to verify via internet if something is in fact legit. Hacks happen all the time with fake digital signatures and keys, certs, etc.
- In other words, now that root exists in the engineering kernel, Im thinking new doors have opened.
Thoughts? Hope?!
It's not happening.
diligent7771 said:
Few things:
-Is there any work still being done to get the bootloader unlocked? This dev thread no longer seems to be only devs, rather a bunch of "+1s", "thanks", and "tweet posts". All great posts, but not dev related.
- All devs on this thread are without a doubt better than I regarding android roms, unlocking, etc, but thought id throw a few ideas it here. (Im new to this type of dev). Maybe i can provide new hope? I just recently got the s7 and found out the hard way the current status woth no way to get custom roms. I know the chain of trust, verity, etc are a major buzzkill, but parts have all been hacked before so we can't Judy throw in the towel, can we?!
- http://newandroidbook.com this has a lot of good material, this guy is a genius, too bag he isn't working on this! (Download the book there & supplements).
Couple of actual ideas:
-He mentions in the book, with root you should be able to modify parts of partitions. Add long as you don't modify the entire partition it wont check for integrity on startup. Now that root exists, is Amy of this possible, to modify three partitions and unlock the bootloader?
- He also talks about how the chain of trust works using signed keys, and where to find these keys in the actual image file; since we know exactly where the keys are, and what's expected, can't we fake it with a custom image using a binary editor? He (in that link) also refers to his free tools to inspect, etc.
Remember when wet push via odin the phone isn't online so had no way to verify via internet if something is in fact legit. Hacks happen all the time with fake digital signatures and keys, certs, etc.
- In other words, now that root exists in the engineering kernel, Im thinking new doors have opened.
Thoughts? Hope?!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have to agree with Kcodya. With the S8 coming out very soon, I am sure the Devs are not really that concerned with the S7 and unlocking the bootloader. I have read a lot of posts about the very issue and anyone and everyone that has been working on this has dropped it or no longer working on it. Look at the S6. It is still without an unlocked bootloader.
I agree with you about the EngImg and I guess at the present time, that is about all we have to work with. I have settled with it and am happy at least to have root privileges.
But we can still hope...
If Samsung ever gets off their hindquarters and updates the unlocked version of the S7/S7 Edge to Nougat, rooted stock will probably be optimal anyway. I know this is XDA, and people love to mod with whole ROMs, but OEM ROMs have improved dramatically over the years. This isn't the era of requiring CM (or LineageOS now) just to have a functional device like it was during the Gingerbread era.
Unfortunately, Samsung isn't likely to ever sell developer friendly phones again, so if you are a developer or like beta testing ROMs, this isn't your device. There are too many options that are trivial to unlock and develop on for anyone to spend too much effort bucking Samsung on their lockdown strategy.
diligent7771 said:
Few things:
-Is there any work still being done to get the bootloader unlocked? This dev thread no longer seems to be only devs, rather a bunch of "+1s", "thanks", and "tweet posts". All great posts, but not dev related.
- All devs on this thread are without a doubt better than I regarding android roms, unlocking, etc, but thought id throw a few ideas it here. (Im new to this type of dev). Maybe i can provide new hope? I just recently got the s7 and found out the hard way the current status woth no way to get custom roms. I know the chain of trust, verity, etc are a major buzzkill, but parts have all been hacked before so we can't Judy throw in the towel, can we?!
- http://newandroidbook.com this has a lot of good material, this guy is a genius, too bag he isn't working on this! (Download the book there & supplements).
Couple of actual ideas:
-He mentions in the book, with root you should be able to modify parts of partitions. Add long as you don't modify the entire partition it wont check for integrity on startup. Now that root exists, is Amy of this possible, to modify three partitions and unlock the bootloader?
- He also talks about how the chain of trust works using signed keys, and where to find these keys in the actual image file; since we know exactly where the keys are, and what's expected, can't we fake it with a custom image using a binary editor? He (in that link) also refers to his free tools to inspect, etc.
Remember when wet push via odin the phone isn't online so had no way to verify via internet if something is in fact legit. Hacks happen all the time with fake digital signatures and keys, certs, etc.
- In other words, now that root exists in the engineering kernel, Im thinking new doors have opened.
Thoughts? Hope?!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
WTF? Did you literally copy and paste my post from another thread?! https://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=71604183 lol I know your intentions are great, but you should probably indicate this is a quote from the original author (me), otherwise it appears you were the one that wrote this post. Carry on...
locked bootloader
jshamlet said:
The only reason I would love an unlocked bootloader is to be able to root the stock OS and not have to use an engineering kernel. Otherwise, I tend to run rooted stock on my devices until they get too out of date.
Unfortunately, that means when this S7 Edge becomes obsolete, that will be the end of the line.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey man,i saw you online and i need help with something.
Is locked bootloader affects radio gsm,on unlocked phone by at&t if i upgraded fw and changed version of bootloader from v2 to v4?
Thank you in advance!
Man, this stinks
TomatoesOnBluRay said:
Is it even remotely possible to unlock the bootloader? I would love to install a custom recovery and a custom ROM.
Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's strange that this device never got a stable root. The type of root I was looking for 7 months ago is never going to exist. Development on the root of this phone was forgotten when the S8 came out. I wish I could say the opposite, but unfortunately we couldn't develop a proper root fast enough for the inevitable growth of interest in the newest device.
TomatoesOnBluRay said:
It's strange that this device never got a stable root. The type of root I was looking for 7 months ago is never going to exist. Development on the root of this phone was forgotten when the S8 came out. I wish I could say the opposite, but unfortunately we couldn't develop a proper root fast enough for the inevitable growth of interest in the newest device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's not just that, Samsung also offers some fairly nice bonuses for not rooting and root just isn't what it used to be. The days of "this phone is completely unusable without root to fix all the broken crap" are gone.
I found that simply switching to the unlocked firmware solved 90% of the things I wanted root for in the first place, and probably another 8% were solved by judicious use of ADB and NetGuard. What little was left just wasn't enticing enough to put up with the irritations and work-arounds required for the eng-boot root. I already run Nova launcher exclusively, but even at that, the stock launcher isn't total crap anymore. On the plus side, the eng-boot root doesn't trip Knox, so you can always go back if you want.
Yeah, it's going to suck when updates for the S7 stop due to age, and it would be nice if Samsung would offer a bootloader unlock when that happens, but I suspect it will live the rest of its life with nothing more than the engineering root method.
jshamlet said:
It's not just that, Samsung also offers some fairly nice bonuses for not rooting and root just isn't what it used to be. The days of "this phone is completely unusable without root to fix all the broken crap" are gone.
I found that simply switching to the unlocked firmware solved 90% of the things I wanted root for in the first place, and probably another 8% were solved by judicious use of ADB and NetGuard. What little was left just wasn't enticing enough to put up with the irritations and work-arounds required for the eng-boot root. I already run Nova launcher exclusively, but even at that, the stock launcher isn't total crap anymore. On the plus side, the eng-boot root doesn't trip Knox, so you can always go back if you want.
Yeah, it's going to suck when updates for the S7 stop due to age, and it would be nice if Samsung would offer a bootloader unlock when that happens, but I suspect it will live the rest of its life with nothing more than the engineering root method.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I entirely agree with you. I haven't rooted my S7 since I tried the engineer boot, and it has been completely and totally usable. I also agree with you about installing the unlocked firmware as it removes most of the bloat that comes with the stock firmware. Root is nice, but not entirely necessary on this device.
TomatoesOnBluRay said:
I entirely agree with you. I haven't rooted my S7 since I tried the engineer boot, and it has been completely and totally usable. I also agree with you about installing the unlocked firmware as it removes most of the bloat that comes with the stock firmware. Root is nice, but not entirely necessary on this device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So, where might one obtain an unlocked firmware for a G930A? I've searched high and low and have found several different f/w but they all seem to be for other versions of the G930, not the A. Tried to flash mine with one of those and got caught in an endless boot cycle, so had to go back to stock - still locked - and AT&T says the IMEI doesn't belong to them even though it plays their little tune and shows their logo and flashes their name on startup. Pretty useless to me without being able to unlock it. Thoughts or ideas?
Many thanks in advance.
Havdaddy said:
So, where might one obtain an unlocked firmware for a G930A? I've searched high and low and have found several different f/w but they all seem to be for other versions of the G930, not the A. Tried to flash mine with one of those and got caught in an endless boot cycle, so had to go back to stock - still locked - and AT&T says the IMEI doesn't belong to them even though it plays their little tune and shows their logo and flashes their name on startup. Pretty useless to me without being able to unlock it. Thoughts or ideas?
Many thanks in advance.
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All US/Snapdragon S7s and S7 Edges are hardware identical. You can run any of the 5 variants on them with zero issue (even going between V/S and A/T). This means you can run the unbranded/unlocked firmware on any US/Snapdragon based device as long as the model number matches.
Now, SIM locks are a separate issue. You still have to go to the carrier that locked it (or one of the paid services) to get the unlock code even if you are running the U firmware because the modem firmware is entirely separate.
Havdaddy said:
So, where might one obtain an unlocked firmware for a G930A? I've searched high and low and have found several different f/w but they all seem to be for other versions of the G930, not the A. Tried to flash mine with one of those and got caught in an endless boot cycle, so had to go back to stock - still locked - and AT&T says the IMEI doesn't belong to them even though it plays their little tune and shows their logo and flashes their name on startup. Pretty useless to me without being able to unlock it. Thoughts or ideas?
Many thanks in advance.
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Click to collapse
The firmware for all G930 and G935 variants are interchangeable. When I refer to the unlocked firmware, I'm referring to G930U and G935U. This version can be found on the AT&T Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge forums on this site. When you install the unlocked firmware, you are not unlocking the device, just the firmware associated with the unlocked version of the phone. This means less bloatware, faster speeds, and no AT&T boot logo. Sorry for the confusion my previous comment may have caused!

What happens to the One Plus 5 if I unlock the bootloader?

Greetings! I have just ordered my new OP5 and now I hat a Sony Z5. If you were Xperia users, you know that after unlock the bootloader, you lost permanently (or you did a backup before) a speial partition where Sony put very important data for the device (like the camera quality for example).
I know myself ad I have fear that if I unlock the bootloader I lose some imoprtant data or something so my question is: which consequences do you have if you unlock the OP5? Do you lose something important like in the Sony devices or not?
Thank you very much and sorry of there's a thread where you must post this questions :crying:
Unlocking the bootloader basically resets your phone and you lose data plus any apps you installed but you don't lose anything like what you are describing --you just need to set up your phone again. The biggest problem you would encounter is that Android Pay probably wouldn't work unless you flash a custom kernel. Default Android behavior is that if you unlock the bootloader you automatically can't pass Safety Net and I don't think OnePlus or any other phone maker that runs Android is officially allowed to change that behavior --which is why you need a custom kernel to still pass Safety Net.
Oh, and you have a screen at boot that pretty much states that the bootloader has been unlocked.
Not sure why we still have to deal with this as this has been masked on a few other model phones, like the Axon 7, and with all the dev's available for the one+ it's surprising this hasn't been sorted for us too...
So far after unlocking my bootloader and rooting with magisk, android pay is unavailable. I didn't use it much anyways as out here in rural country midwest (USA) it isn't very widespread. As far as warranty goes it is still in effect and 1+ also has a guide for restoring your phone to stock too. It's definitely a great phone for customizing and trying new things with. I didn't apply a new ROM though as most ROMs available at this time are still a work in progress and not what I deem entirely stable. I'm sure someone here will contradict me, but I'm doing fine with what I've got so far.
prozo said:
So far after unlocking my bootloader and rooting with magisk, android pay is unavailable. I didn't use it much anyways as out here in rural country midwest (USA) it isn't very widespread. As far as warranty goes it is still in effect and 1+ also has a guide for restoring your phone to stock too. It's definitely a great phone for customizing and trying new things with. I didn't apply a new ROM though as most ROMs available at this time are still a work in progress and not what I deem entirely stable. I'm sure someone here will contradict me, but I'm doing fine with what I've got so far.
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Works for me on stock 7.1.1....
Sent from my OnePlus5 using XDA Labs
Essentially, if you're happy with how your phone is working, there is no need to unlock the boot loader and root. There is no point to unlock the bootloader and then not root .
Unlocking the bootloader allows custom recoveries and roms/kernels to be installed onto the phone.
It also allows such things as substratum, xposed and magisk to be installed as these apps generally require root priveliges that aren't available with a locked bootloader and being unrooted.
Customisation can be easier, Bloat can be removed instead of just frozen and tweaks can be applied BUT there is a downside too as this has effectively breached Googles security and will break certain apps (mostly banking but there has been reports of streaming apps being affected too on other forums).
Luckily as you have the One+5 you can, if you wish, revert to stock and relock the bootloader thus reverting all changes, unlocking most other phones which will destroy any hope of getting warranty or a relocked bootloader.
Just be sure you HAVE got it back to stock 1st however as having anything different, (kernel,rom or recovery) may very well brick your device once you relock the bootloader.
prozo said:
So far after unlocking my bootloader and rooting with magisk, android pay is unavailable. I didn't use it much anyways as out here in rural country midwest (USA) it isn't very widespread. As far as warranty goes it is still in effect and 1+ also has a guide for restoring your phone to stock too. It's definitely a great phone for customizing and trying new things with. I didn't apply a new ROM though as most ROMs available at this time are still a work in progress and not what I deem entirely stable. I'm sure someone here will contradict me, but I'm doing fine with what I've got so far.
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Click to collapse
You need to flash a custom kernel to pass safety net. It won't work with the stock kernel. Blu Spark seems to be the official unofficial kernel and you could easily flash that one and forget it as it is pretty fast and smooth as is. Boeffla kernel is built for stability and is rock solid but if you don't tweak the settings at all you might notice a slight drop in performance from stock. Either one will allow you to pass Safety Net and can improve the speed and performance of the phone over stock. Boeffla also includes a fix for the auto brightness making the phone too dim by allowing you to set a minimum screen brightness that it won't go below.
If I only root the device, will I be able to use Android Pay?
Struziu said:
If I only root the device, will I be able to use Android Pay?
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Click to collapse
You can't root without unlocking the bootloader
Hey,
I'm aware this is thread is pretty old, but I'm wondering how things are now? It's been quite some time since I've touched any bootloaders or custom roms and I'm interested in testing android 11 with my op5. What are the downsides with unlocking your bootloader and installing a custom rom?
Google pay not working?
Banking apps not working?
Netflix not working?
I tried searching this forum and googling around and I really could not find any answers. And none of the custom rom threads I checked mention safetynet.

So, can the SM-G950U1 be rooted or not

pretty much gave up a long while ago but now I'm stuck with this phone since I'm not able to find another one I could flash a custom OS in aside from some xiaomi ones, and those are also a pain to deal with when it comes to modding stuff.
Saw some posts around the internet saying it was possible to root this phone and something about reverting to Nougat but I'm confused as hell. So if there's any actual guide to root this phone that works I'd appreciate the help
Seeing as it's a Snapdragon device, most likely not. Samsung devices with Qualcomm SoCs are typically not bootloader unlockable, and unlocking the bootloader is required for rooting or flashing custom software.
I see.. well that's disappointing
seems all the versions being sold here are the american ones

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