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[Q] Z3 Root Reality Check

I've been watching the developer board regarding the root and locked bootloader issue, and I've spent hours researching this and have yet to find a solution that's known to work without loss of something, likely a permanent or semi permanent loss. My device is a Z3 model D6616. I'm unhappy with the phone for several other reasons, but haven't owned an un-rooted phone for some time, and prefer keeping this phone if I can root it successfully. Root with stock firmware is my objective and am only interested in responses from people that have themselves rooted (and dealt with bootloader issues) a Z3.
- Root phone installing current T-mobile stock firmware.
- Known loss of function: Sony DRM dependant features/funtion only (from memory, mostly related to camera low light performance and DRM playback issues)
- Other loss of function experienced with stock features, or any other problem with any other app. Especially concerned with root dependant features of Play apps? Also ad blockers?
- Waranty loss (potential) and loss of OTA updates understood.
- Feature/function loss with workarounds or fixed that survive power cycle?
- Expect permament bootlocker inability to relock
- A link to the specific process you used, any problems you encountered whatever the cause. For example it usually takes me at least 3 attempts to root using any complex process, and I always read through 5 times before starting and download every needed file and program in advance.
Again: Sony Xperia z3 D6616 T-mobile
Firmware: 4.4.4 23.0.3.1.123
Software: D6166 R16B
In the past, I've had the most problems when an understood part of a process is not explicitly stated, or I've ignored or misunderstood a step. Plugging and unplugging from usb to PC a typical example. I don't have the technical know how to critique or ignore, so always attempt to follow all instructions without variance. I've had some problems, and most were solved by starting the process again. I hesitate to ask for help since the last time I did that I was attacked for witholding information when asked if I had backed up the phone. Since i didn't have access to the PC at the time of the question I honestly answered I didn't know (since I had attempted to but couldn't confirm). If you've ever answered a question here implying the request or requester is stupid or dishonest, I'm fully aware of my ignorance and my own integrity, and other personality traits, so please ignore this request, which accepts my lack of knowlege and has no tolerance for your issues not previously resolved through your own peaceful and respectful process.
Please only respond if you have personally rooted this specific phone model. If you have not, but know someone who has, please ask them to review this post and respond.

Nobody has rooted this phone without unlocking the bootloader. If you unlock to root, you will permanently lose DRM keys from the TA partition with no way to recover. No current root method works on 4.4.4 on the Z3. No one knows when or if an exploit will be found. We all want root. If you want it now, unlock the bootloader. If you can wait, wait. It's your call either way. As soon as a root method surfaces, best believe it will be in these forums. I'll be waiting with you...

First of all, check *#*#7378423#*#* to see if you bootloader can be unlocked or not.
Coz I think 6616's bootloader is unlockable.

freddy1991 said:
First of all, check *#*#7378423#*#* to see if you bootloader can be unlocked or not.
Coz I think 6616's bootloader is unlockable.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is true. D6616 owner here, T-MO not unlockable yet :/ eagerly awaiting root as well as I really enjoy the z3, maybe even more than my Nexus 6 (gasp, blasphemy!)

Thanks For the Responses
freddy you addressed my concern, exactly. My phone reports:
Rooting Status:
Boot Unlocker Allowed: No
Although variants of the z3 have been bootlocker unlocked and rooted, I have not found a clear claim that was successfully done with D6616 z3. Since I'm a new T-mobile customer, this and their attitude about it are a poor way to start. I have a HTC phone I haven't returned, maybe I can get them to take the Z3 back instead. While I have benefited from and appreciate the great work so many people have done to make our phones usable and available to us, I've seen how carriers, mfgs, and users push good phones to market crippled by junk and unecessarily locked down. it's time to consider the mamufacturers that have been successful building good phones and selling in places like China at much lower prices.
Regarding any loss of DRM, I couldn't care less. This phone takes worse low light photos and video than my rooted Samsung G3, making it functionaly useless to me. Add to that the lack of a rational UI for telephony and IM, and done with Sony.
To be clear, if the bootloader can be unlocked and the phone can be rooted and you have done this yourself, please post.

Well...
I think there is no way you could unlock the bootloader of 6616.
The only way is to wait for the root on locked bootloader.
Check here http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2940539
But that means you have to stick in the .93 firmware, even if the exploit is also usable for Z3.
Or return your 6616 and buy a 6603 or 6653 variant.

BREAKING NEWS
http://forum.xda-developers.com/crossdevice-dev/sony/giefroot-rooting-tool-cve-2014-4322-t3011598

Man, No bootloader unlock = Useless phone

HORiZUN said:
BREAKING NEWS
http://forum.xda-developers.com/crossdevice-dev/sony/giefroot-rooting-tool-cve-2014-4322-t3011598
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nope.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=58468332&postcount=815

I'm similarly confused about this whole thing, this new Giefroot program means we can all potentially get root for our devices, but we still lose the DRM keys right? So that means we can never have the Sony camera/image processing processes back again right?

Thwwack said:
I'm similarly confused about this whole thing, this new Giefroot program means we can all potentially get root for our devices, but we still lose the DRM keys right? So that means we can never have the Sony camera/image processing processes back again right?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
NO
Unlocking the bootloader = loss of DRM
Rooting that does not involve unlocking the bootloader means you keep the DRM keys

gregbradley said:
NO
Unlocking the bootloader = loss of DRM
Rooting that does not involve unlocking the bootloader means you keep the DRM keys
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, I'm new to Android and this is all over my head. To clarify, Giefroot does this without unlocking the bootloader?
It's all pretty frustrating, I gotta say... I'd love to install Cyanogenmod on this, but losing key features on the device is a pretty harsh trade off.

Thwwack said:
Thanks, I'm new to Android and this is all over my head. To clarify, Giefroot does this without unlocking the bootloader?
It's all pretty frustrating, I gotta say... I'd love to install Cyanogenmod on this, but losing key features on the device is a pretty harsh trade off.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, giefroot does not unlock the boot. There is only one way to do that and that is to obtaining the code from sony and fastboot it either manually or using flashtool.

Delete

Help a Xperia noob out with some questions please :L

So this is my first xperia device since the Xperia Arc was released way back when, and I have been using HTC phones. Which are WAY different in terms of Rooting / Unlocking / Etc.
So long story short, What I want to know is what Can I currently do to the Xperia Z5? I see there's no custom ROM's yet which is expected , but I see mixed results about unlocked BootLoader & Root , the main thread says that a bootloader hasn't been achieved, yet there's a few root methods which have been successfully completed , requiring an unlocked bootloader, so naturally you could see the confusion..... Can someone point a SONY noob towards the right direction in terms of bootloader unlock / rooting? Running the E6653 ( not sure if there's variants )

Basically you currently need to unlock the bootloader to to get root. And doing so loses some features which u may possibly never get back. So most people are currently waiting for another way around to be figured out
Sent from my Xperia z5 using Tapatalk

well ****...
Ben36 said:
Basically you currently need to unlock the bootloader to to get root. And doing so loses some features which u may possibly never get back. So most people are currently waiting for another way around to be figured out
Sent from my Xperia z5 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My heart literally dropped as I read this..... Because I already unlocked the bootloader. I'm assuming it's the bootloader unlocking that destroys some features? If so , which ones?
And how can I tell if they were actually destroyed / bootloader unlock actually worked

Unlocking the bootloader on Xperias will delete the device's DRM keys. These keys are unique per device and once gone are gone forever. They're needed for Image enhancements like X-Reality/Bravia/Super-Vivid and some camera features too - low light and noise reduction algorithms I think. Sound improvements (ClearAudio+...) too.

ricodredd said:
Unlocking the bootloader on Xperias will delete the device's DRM keys. These keys are unique per device and once gone are gone forever. They're needed for Image enhancements like X-Reality/Bravia/Super-Vivid and some camera features too - low light and noise reduction algorithms I think. Sound improvements (ClearAudio+...) too.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well crap lol, is there any way to actually make sure that the DRM's were deleted or if the bootloader unlock was actually successful? I still have a few days to swap the phone out if anything goes wrong ( Bell wouldn't be able to tell a bootloader unlock ) , I haven't had enough play time with the phone before the process to actually see a difference with the camera, I read somewhere that if TrackID works, than it's not unlocked, is that true?

Need help to get this on my Xperia Z5 (E6653)

Hey everybody I really want to install this on my Xperia Z5 and I'm a total newbie in Android Development, rooting and stuff.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/xpe...-n-style-xperia-x-systemui-v1-themes-t3368086
This one is for Z5 and I really like to have this on my phone, The difference of this with the other ones in "Cross Device Development" is that it doesn't require root, I don't want to root my phone nor unlock my bootloader and I think I can't cause in Service Menu; bootloader unlock is not allowed as I'm on Vodafone UK.
This mod requires Deodex and then flash via recovery, What I'm asking is that doesn't installing a recovery or to deodex using it require root?, correct me if I'm wrong but it appears that there's already a recovery available on the Z5 if so can I flash that using Sony's own recovery?
In short is there anyway to install this on my Z5 Without rooting?
Cheers mates!

Daniel Craig said:
Hey everybody I really want to install this on my Xperia Z5 and I'm a total newbie in Android Development, rooting and stuff.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/xpe...-n-style-xperia-x-systemui-v1-themes-t3368086
This one is for Z5 and I really like to have this on my phone, The difference of this with the other ones in "Cross Device Development" is that it doesn't require root, I don't want to root my phone nor unlock my bootloader and I think I can't cause in Service Menu; bootloader unlock is not allowed as I'm on Vodafone UK.
This mod requires Deodex and then flash via recovery, What I'm asking is that doesn't installing a recovery or to deodex using it require root?, correct me if I'm wrong but it appears that there's already a recovery available on the Z5 if so can I flash that using Sony's own recovery?
In short is there anyway to install this on my Z5 Without rooting?
Cheers mates!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, you can't. You can't flash anything not-sony-signed on stock phone.
Locked bootloader with stock kernel is completely closed and protects system partitions.
You must unlock you bootloader to do anything you can find in these forums. Absolutely no other way.
If you wish, you can try searching on Play store an app (launcher) that emulates Xperia X home launcher. If there's any, it will be limited in comparison with the solution provided in the thread above, as it will not change System UI elements.
Regarding unlocking, please enable "OEM unlock" in developer settings (tap many times on "build number" in settings -> phone info ). Try again to check your Unlocking possibility in service menu.

Thank you, thank you very much for your reply, The Xperia X launcher is already available on Beta Home Program, however it's the lockscreen I really really like, such a shame that you can't get it without root.

Unable to get OTA updates on Xperia Z5

Hello! I'm new here and actually the main purpose of my registration on this wonderful website is the amount of helpful and skillful people I saw in various threads I read before, giving me hope for the solution of my problem.
As stated in the title, I'm currently unable to get OTA updates on my phone.
Some time ago I unlocked the bootloader (so my bl is unlocked now) in order to have my Z5 rooted. Apparently something went awfully wrong while flashing the TWRP or perhaps I was just awfully stupid and missed a step... Anyways I ended up without any OS and started searching on the web for some solutions.
I came across FlashTool and XperiFirm, then downloaded and flashed the (at the time) latest firmware, which is the one i currently have (Service Menu shows "GENERIC_32.2.A.0.224"). So now my phone seems perfectly fine: stock rom, no custom recovery (as far as I know), no root privileges. The only problem it shows is the fingerprint hardware that stops working every once in a while; something a simple reboot fixes.
But I have been unable to update since then, with my "software update" tab showing no available updates (nor could I get one via Sony PC Companion, furthermore getting errors while trying fo repair software) while under "diagnostics" it clearly says "new software available".
I just want to get everything back as it was before, and to get my OTA updates to work; I'm not interested in custom ROMs or custom recoveries or SU.
I apologize in advance in case an identical thread had already been opened and closed; I hope you guys can help me solve this mess I did.
Thanks a lot

I found out my problem is connected with the DRM Keys loss caused by unlocking the bootloader. I'll try this out: http://forum.xda-developers.com/xperia-z5/development/root-automatic-repack-stock-kernel-dm-t3301605

scacio said:
I found out my problem is connected with the DRM Keys loss caused by unlocking the bootloader. I'll try this out: http://forum.xda-developers.com/xperia-z5/development/root-automatic-repack-stock-kernel-dm-t3301605
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Once you have unlocked the Bootloader ota updates don't work EVER only manually flashing the ftf via flashtool will get you updated. If you unlocked the Bootloader without backing up the drm/ta keys then re-lock the Bootloader ota updates will Not work. If you unlock the Bootloader and then re-lock with previously backed up drm/ta keys ota updates WILL work.
The drm fix does NOT replace the missing drm/ta keys it merely tricks the device into thinking that those required for x-reality, low light conditions, and noise reduction in the camera are there to reactivate those features.
Also DO NOT try to use a other Xperia devices drm/ta keys on your own unless you want a permanent paperweight.
Sent from my Xperia XA using XDA Labs

Ah, so I should have backed those up before unlocking the bootloader. It seems I'll have to spend a few minutes on flashtool every once in a while to get updates, nevermind.
Anyway is it worth it to try this DRM fix? I did not notice any changes to the quality of the camera.
And another noob question: if I flash this "modified kernel" will my device be wiped? Or I just flash it, reboot the phone and enjoy DRM features?

Just a quick update to let you know, I have installed the drm fix and rooted, the funny thing is that now I receive ota updates.. But of course I'm unable to install them. Not that I want them anyway, so no problem. I have reconsidered the potentiality of a rooted device and started to appreciate the benefits; thanks for the help

Locked Bootloader, Config Says "No" Can't Unlock, But Have Root... Am I stuck?

Locked Bootloader, Config Says "No" Can't Unlock, But Have Root... Am I stuck?
Hey everyone,
Well, I had to pull out my previous phone, my Tmo D6616 Xperia Z3. I replaced it when the battery was all bloated and could explode, etc. I replaced it with an LG G5. And, I have the horrible GPS issue with my G5 that just doesn't work well at all. This bugs me. I travel with my family enough that I use it and has caused some wrong turns, etc. I want to replace it, but don't see any good deals in my situation since I have no number to port-in or a new person to bring on the plan.
So, here I am checking on what I can do with my Z3. I've replaced the battery, got a new case, and also replaced the screen protector... just like a brand new phone, except the ROM is really outdated. It is currently on the latest OTA from Sony, Android 5.0. I did check to see if there is a more recent stock ROM and there isn't.
I want to install a new ROM, in which I should be able to backup the TA partition since I am rooted.
When I do the *#*#.... code, then check to see if the bootloader can be unlocked, it says no. Because of that, am I out of luck?
Am I able to use root to unlock the bootloader and install another ROM?

Same question here...
johnathanamber said:
Am I able to use root to unlock the bootloader and install another ROM?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I also want this answer.

If it says "no" to unlock the bootloader, then you can not unlock the bootloader.
You can, however, use root and recovery.
Check out https://forum.xda-developers.com/z3/general/guide-rootrecovery-how-to-root-install-t3017056. Just stick it to xperia Roms. Search the forum, I think Marshmallow is the latest.
As far as I know, other Roms than Xperia are not recommended for a locked bootloader. But there are other, xperia roms, for a locked bootloader Z3.
Good luck.

DolDrum said:
If it says "no" to unlock the bootloader, then you can not unlock the bootloader.
You can, however, use root and recovery.
Check out https://forum.xda-developers.com/z3/general/guide-rootrecovery-how-to-root-install-t3017056. Just stick it to xperia Roms. Search the forum, I think Marshmallow is the latest.
As far as I know, other Roms than Xperia are not recommended for a locked bootloader. But there are other, xperia roms, for a locked bootloader Z3.
Good luck.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was able to get recovery installed, thanks for that. I am not so sure about the MM rom, however. I haven't seen one for the D6616. That would at least make it a little better to work with.