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[Q] Which root method best for unlocked Dev Ed currently on 4.2.2?

I've read through several root threads (mos by jcase I think) but want to confirm as of today which is best to root an unlocked dev ed maxx that is currently on 4.2.2?
Really appreciate any help -- thanks!
EDIT: My goal is to be rooted on 4.4 / 19.6.3

Since you're unlocked you can root in custom recovery. See second part of this guide
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2645122

hawkswind1 said:
Since you're unlocked you can root in custom recovery. See second part of this guide
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2645122
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the quick reply -- sorry, I forgot to mention that my goal is to be rooted in 4.4.
Do I upgrade to 4.4 first and then root? Or root in 4.2.2 then upgrade to 4.4?
Links appreciated but I'll take any help you can spare...
Thanks!

I'd upgrade first. You can root 4.4 and future updates in twrp. That's the beauty of being unlocked (on this device at least) not having to wait for root exploits.

hawkswind1 said:
I'd upgrade first. You can root 4.4 and future updates in twrp. That's the beauty of being unlocked (on this device at least) not having to wait for root exploits.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Okay one more question please -- took the update and rooted with TWRP everything worked great EXCEPT I just realized it didn't update to 4.4, it just updated to a higher 4.2.2.
Now the update for 4.4. is downloading OTA.
Can I install this OTA, having installed TWRP and rooted? Or will that brick my phone?
I feel like you need to be 100% stock to take OTA's, no?
If so, how do I get back stock?

reyxlp said:
Okay one more question please -- took the update and rooted with TWRP everything worked great EXCEPT I just realized it didn't update to 4.4, it just updated to a higher 4.2.2.
Now the update for 4.4. is downloading OTA.
Can I install this OTA, having installed TWRP and rooted? Or will that brick my phone?
I feel like you need to be 100% stock to take OTA's, no?
If so, how do I get back stock?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You'll need to flash the stock recovery back to get the ota to install. Once you're on 4.4 there's yet another 4.4 update/patch that came out a few weeks ago. Might as well Install that too before flashing twrp again.

[Q] Need Help with rooting VZM M8

I'm kinda new to this I have rooted older phones but this is my first time attempting on my verizon htc M8 I can not seem to find the unlock bootloader and the s-off to be able to root and install a GPE with OTA so that I can get lollipop on my phone. Is there anyone who can help me out and lead me in the right direction so that I can get this done my head is spinning with all the things I've read. I know weaksauce no longer works and well now that i have confirmed it does not work on my phone I'm back up against a wall. Thank you for anyone who can help me out. :good:

Assuming you are on 4.4.4: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2971591
this version of weaksauce will get you temp root. You will then need to install the sunshine.apk and pay the $25 and that will unlock your boot loader and get you s-off. You will then need to install a custom recovery and after that, boot into said recovery. You will need to install the SuperSU.zip to get permanent root. Then you should be able to flash your gpe rom zip and such. That's the broad general overview .

thanks
adavit said:
Assuming you are on 4.4.4: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2971591
this version of weaksauce will get you temp root. You will then need to install the sunshine.apk and pay the $25 and that will unlock your boot loader and get you s-off. You will then need to install a custom recovery and after that, boot into said recovery. You will need to install the SuperSU.zip to get permanent root. Then you should be able to flash your gpe rom zip and such. That's the broad general overview .
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank I figured that much but the sunsine.apk does not work yes on my vzw htc m8 because the firmware was updated and i have to wait for sunshine 3.0 to come out to be able to root thank you for the information. :good:

limonc2 said:
Thank I figured that much but the sunsine.apk does not work yes on my vzw htc m8 because the firmware was updated and i have to wait for sunshine 3.0 to come out to be able to root thank you for the information. :good:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah. Some people have been able to get sunshine to work on 4.4.4 with weak sauce 2, so it was a gamble whether or not it would work for you.

[Q] Recent buy and trying to root

I just bought this tablet and it seems to have updated itself overnight (that or my kid did it) I want to root it , but it says it's running 5.0.1 now.. if it's possible, could someone walk me through this? I've been reading thru the various root threads, and having no luck-I'm on Ubuntu latest and have adb and fastboot installed..anyone feel like helping me out?

unlock bootloader, flash TWRP, then flash SuperSU

Bogdacutu said:
unlock bootloader, flash TWRP, then flash SuperSU
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I did the above but with a slight change. I just booted CWM instead of flashing it so till running stock recovery but rooted.
I did this from 5.0.1 after unlocking the bootloader which was a piece of cake. There is a great guide on this forum.

Rooting and s-off for vzw m8 on Lollipop

Hey all,
After some browsing on here recently, it looks like a somewhat experimental exploit has been found to gain temporary root access long enough for Sunshine to do its thing. I am planning to use the "Kingroot" method to root and permanently s-off my HTC M8.
It has been some time since I seriously rooted any android phone so I wanted to compile a checklist of the steps I will need to take to fully downgrade my operating system from Lollipop back to Kit Kat once all is said and done. My questions are as follows:
-is it necessary to flash a stock 4.x.x sense rom before flashing a custom 4.x.x build?
- from a stability/performance standpoint what sense kit Kat rom do you find to be the best? I prefer sense for the great widgets and features it provides.
- is flashing a kernel necessary for going from 5.x.x to 4.x.x? I recall doing this to my OG droid several times.
- will flashing new radios be necessary or are the still included in rom builds?
- Is twrp the preferred recovery for the m8 or do alternatives exist which you'd recommend?
Please let me know of any other important steps I will need to take before attempting the downgrade. Thanks in advance.

x25064 said:
Hey all,
After some browsing on here recently, it looks like a somewhat experimental exploit has been found to gain temporary root access long enough for Sunshine to do its thing. I am planning to use the "Kingroot" method to root and permanently s-off my HTC M8.
It has been some time since I seriously rooted any android phone so I wanted to compile a checklist of the steps I will need to take to fully downgrade my operating system from Lollipop back to Kit Kat once all is said and done. My questions are as follows:
-is it necessary to flash a stock 4.x.x sense rom before flashing a custom 4.x.x build?
- from a stability/performance standpoint what sense kit Kat rom do you find to be the best? I prefer sense for the great widgets and features it provides.
- is flashing a kernel necessary for going from 5.x.x to 4.x.x? I recall doing this to my OG droid several times.
- will flashing new radios be necessary or are the still included in rom builds?
- Is twrp the preferred recovery for the m8 or do alternatives exist which you'd recommend?
Please let me know of any other important steps I will need to take before attempting the downgrade. Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Once s-off if you want stock experience, I would flash kk ruu

This should be in Q&A, not development. Maybe @moderator an move it?
x25064 said:
Hey all,
After some browsing on here recently, it looks like a somewhat experimental exploit has been found to gain temporary root access long enough for Sunshine to do its thing. I am planning to use the "Kingroot" method to root and permanently s-off my HTC M8.
It has been some time since I seriously rooted any android phone so I wanted to compile a checklist of the steps I will need to take to fully downgrade my operating system from Lollipop back to Kit Kat once all is said and done. My questions are as follows:
-is it necessary to flash a stock 4.x.x sense rom before flashing a custom 4.x.x build?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You mean after being s-off? No
- from a stability/performance standpoint what sense kit Kat rom do you find to be the best? I prefer sense for the great widgets and features it provides.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Totally personal preference. I like CleanROM
- is flashing a kernel necessary for going from 5.x.x to 4.x.x? I recall doing this to my OG droid several times.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The kernel is part of the rom you flash. You can flash a different kernel after installing a rom. Just gotta make sure it's compatible with the rom
- will flashing new radios be necessary or are the still included in rom builds?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
On HTC devices you have to distinguish between firmware and rom. The firmware is radios, hboot and such. The rom is seperate. In general you have to have 4.4 firmware to run a KK rom and 5.x firmware to run a LP rom. Although I know of people who flashed the 5.0.1 firmware and then went back to CleanROM 3.x (which is KK) without a problem. YMMV
Is twrp the preferred recovery for the m8 or do alternatives exist which you'd recommend?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Everybody seems to be running TWRP
Please let me know of any other important steps I will need to take before attempting the downgrade. Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You cannot downgrade to KK unless you are s-off. Once you are s-off, flash the firmware for the rom you want to run, then flash the rom

Thanks for the info, that is exactly what I need. I finally have some time today to give this a shot so I will report my results.

Looks like I am already running into issues with Kingroot not opening on my phone. It will install, then once selected from my app drawer it just flashes the screen with no result.

I got another version from a download list on XDA heres the progress so far:
- kingroot gains root after 2-3 tries, no big deal
- sunshine installed and given su permission
- sunshine verifies, I pay them, final tests are run and it reboots
- phone fully rebooted, sunshine asks to continue
- I hit home and minimized Sunshine, went back to kingroot, installed - reboot - Sunshine pops up, minimize, kingroot - repeat until root is successful
- maximize Sunshine from apps tray, continue - s-off successfully
- rebooted the phone into the boot menu and verified that the bootloader is unlocked and s-off has been successfully achieved
I do also concur with other postings that the modified flag has been placed when I enter the boot menu.

Also just to clarify - I CAN download RUU 4.4.3, place it on my root SD directory (FAT32), and go into hboot mode and flash accordingly? This won't brick my phone going from 5.0.1 to 4.4.3 as long as the phone is s-off unlocked?

Ok.. I flashed 4.4.3 which worked.. then went into the play store to grab TWRP - tried to install the recovery and it said something went wrong. I chose to reboot the phone into recovery to check if one was already installed (I thought RUU was bone stock..) and now I can't get kitkat to boot up.. it just goes to TWRP or gives me the red exclamation point....... not sure what to do here but I don't think adb will work since it requires drivers I can't install without the phone being fully booted up..
EDIT: Since I still had a recovery and an SD card with the 4.4.3 RUU on it, I just wiped the system and booted up into the hboot to reinstall the RUU again. Phew..
Now I'm just confused as to why TWRP did that to my phone in the first place? I don't want to install it again now because that was such a pain, but I want to get a rom loaded..

TWRP Manager sucks. The partition layout is slightly different between KK and LP and probably TWRP Manager flashed the recovery to the system partition. That's why it booted straight to recovery.
Use fastboot to flash TWRP.

Thanks man, that makes sense. I'll give it a shot tomorrow!

I was able to RUU TWRP no problem with a RUU zip I found on here. Worked like a charm.
I have to say I didn't realize how bad the official lollipop OTA is compared to running a 4.4.3 version of viperrom. It's like night and day and my battery life is excellent now. So glad the kingroot exploit worked!

x25064 said:
I was able to RUU TWRP no problem with a RUU zip I found on here. Worked like a charm.
I have to say I didn't realize how bad the official lollipop OTA is compared to running a 4.4.3 version of viperrom. It's like night and day and my battery life is excellent now. So glad the kingroot exploit worked!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for this whole thread! Your detailed process has given me the confidence to finally do this on mine, can't wait to be back to KK and have a working device again!

OTA Updates after unlock/root (Verizon)

First let me thank this community for the MANY years of great help pushing my devices to their limits. I've never register or posted because I've ALWAYS been able to find my answers with a simple search and really never have much to add.
This time I can't find a good answer. I hope this isn't too much of an amateur question.....
I purchased my Pixel via Verizon (I know....) and have unlocked the bootloader and rooted.
I really don't want to mess with custom ROM's for a while and I still want the latest stock version. How do I update to the latest version without losing recovery and root? Example: I updated to 7.1.1 the other day, then wiped, unlocked, installed recovery and rooted. I went back to 7.1 and don't know how to update to 7.1.1 again or other future versions. I hear that flashing stock rom from Google will wipe recovery and root. Is that correct?
Thanks again for all the years of sharing your experiences.

http://forum.xda-developers.com/pixel/development/tool-skipsoft-android-toolkit-google-t3482761 download that
https://developers.google.com/android/ota download OTA images
use the toolkit to sideload flash the OTA.

foolie said:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/pixel/development/tool-skipsoft-android-toolkit-google-t3482761 download that
https://developers.google.com/android/ota download OTA images
use the toolkit to sideload flash the OTA.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the reply. Follow up question after scanning the toolkit description..... I'll look deeper into it in a bit.
This will retain root? Will using adb to sideload lose root?

I think so. You can just reflash SuperSU in recovery :good:

Farmer Tony said:
First let me thank this community for the MANY years of great help pushing my devices to their limits. I've never register or posted because I've ALWAYS been able to find my answers with a simple search and really never have much to add.
This time I can't find a good answer. I hope this isn't too much of an amateur question.....
I purchased my Pixel via Verizon (I know....) and have unlocked the bootloader and rooted.
I really don't want to mess with custom ROM's for a while and I still want the latest stock version. How do I update to the latest version without losing recovery and root? Example: I updated to 7.1.1 the other day, then wiped, unlocked, installed recovery and rooted. I went back to 7.1 and don't know how to update to 7.1.1 again or other future versions. I hear that flashing stock rom from Google will wipe recovery and root. Is that correct?
Thanks again for all the years of sharing your experiences.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's not possible. If you installed the 7.1.1 update you wouldn't have been able to unlock the bootloader again. So you must have had it unlocked before the update.

aholeinthewor1d said:
That's not possible. If you installed the 7.1.1 update you wouldn't have been able to unlock the bootloader again. So you must have had it unlocked before the update.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I updated, then decided to root so I factory reset which brought me back to 7.1...... I didn't even know it wouldn't work on 7.1.1 so I guess I was lucky to have done so. I just thought it would be safer to start with a clean slate.
It wasn't until I noticed I could no longer double tap to see notifications that I realized that was only in 7.1.1 and noticed that I couldn't update to it anymore.
Edit: Maybe when I said "wiped" I should have said "factory reset".

foolie said:
I think so. You can just reflash SuperSU in recovery :good:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I figured I could do this as a last resort but would love to side load and just go about my day. Nice to know that there wouldn't be an issue, thanks.

I realize this isn't my thread, but... I flashed factory image to my Pixel but the recovery flashing failed. How can I get stock recovery back on so I can take the update?

Crowick said:
I realize this isn't my thread, but... I flashed factory image to my Pixel but the recovery flashing failed. How can I get stock recovery back on so I can take the update?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Use the skipsoft toolkit and try again with a new factory image download.

foolie said:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/pixel/development/tool-skipsoft-android-toolkit-google-t3482761 download that
https://developers.google.com/android/ota download OTA images
use the toolkit to sideload flash the OTA.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
sorry I'm a total newb, where is the sideload option? I keep looking but don't see it

mrj0087 said:
sorry I'm a total newb, where is the sideload option? I keep looking but don't see it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There's a section 'Updating instructions' in the OTA page (linked above) with instructions. Not for the faint of heart if you're unfamiliar with ADB.

It's on the toolkit options after you select your device.

Do you mean you booted into recovery and reflashed because I've actually been wondering almost exactly what you have.
I have a VZW pixel that I unlocked and rooted via adb/fastboot and I've been wonder if accepting a Verizon OTA would unroot me, and relock the bootloader. The 2nd Verizon update as we know disabled depixel and grayed out the option in dev options but do current OTA updates (not images I downloaded myself) unroot and relock which would prevent me from unlocking and getting root again