Database Info

Why Knox is probably not an irreversible e-fuse (speculation)

I find it hard to believe that this is a completely irreversible process. There MUST be a way to reset this counter, especially since it's entirely possible for there to be false positives. I can imagine sometime in the future an official update will be released that has a chance of blowing the fuse, even if applied correctly through Kies or OTA. How would they resolve that issue?
I figure that Samsung must have a way of resetting these false positives whether it's through replacing a specific chip or through flashing firmware. It really wouldn't make sense for them economically to not have a way of doing it. What would the alternative be? Trash it and make a new one? Samsung would be sued by their shareholders if this was the case.
Logic would dictate it would be more cost effective for it to be a firmware setting, possibly encrypted and extremely low level with some form of obfuscation so they can release fixes for accidental trips without having to send a recall notice.
As a side note, does anyone else feel violated by Samsung because of Knox? The fact they literally boobytrapped their devices with Knox to flag unlocked bootloaders under the guise of "enterprise security" is absolutely disgusting and pathetic. They should have released versions without Knox for the general consumers.

You can use the phone perfectly wok and without knox. Knox is a separate thing to just using the phone. It's a secure container holding secure information for people who want to user it.
Knox is something that most people will not use
Sent from my SM-N9005 using Tapatalk

alom5 said:
You can use the phone perfectly wok and without knox. Knox is a separate thing to just using the phone. It's a secure container holding secure information for people who want to user it.
Knox is something that most people will not use
Sent from my SM-N9005 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I understand most people won't use the feature, but the fact remains that there are some that will for whatever reason and if the fuse is triggered for reasons that they didn't cause, they are SOL.
The other side is warrenty. It's stated if knox is triggered, they won't honor the warranty, even if it's unrooted.

Master Thief-117 said:
I understand most people won't use the feature, but the fact remains that there are some that will for whatever reason and if the fuse is triggered for reasons that they didn't cause, they are SOL.
The other side is warrenty. It's stated if knox is triggered, they won't honor the warranty, even if it's unrooted.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is no way to trip knox unless you run a custom recovery / kernel.
Other attempts like vroot or kingoapp and whatnot are blocked and knox is not triggered.
All Samsung firmwares are recognised by knox as stock and no there won't be a firmware that will trigger it, they're not that stupid to do it.
So yeah It's an effective solution to protect the information inside the knox container from potential attacks, you root the device by gaining unauthorised root privileges and the container get's completely disabled with all of it's data.
And the Samsung Knox website does mention a fuse.
https://www.samsungknox.com/en/blog/about-cf-auto-root
"Once the e-fuse bit is burned, a Samsung KNOX-enabled device can no longer create a KNOX Container, or access the data previously stored in an existing KNOX Container. "

Skander1998 said:
There is no way to trip knox unless you run a custom recovery / kernel.
Other attempts like vroot or kingoapp and whatnot are blocked and knox is not triggered.
All Samsung firmwares are recognised by knox as stock and no there won't be a firmware that will trigger it, they're not that stupid to do it.
So yeah It's an effective solution to protect the information inside the knox container from potential attacks, you root the device by gaining unauthorised root privileges and the container get's completely disabled with all of it's data.
And the Samsung Knox website does mention a fuse.
https://www.samsungknox.com/en/blog/about-cf-auto-root
"Once the e-fuse bit is burned, a Samsung KNOX-enabled device can no longer create a KNOX Container, or access the data previously stored in an existing KNOX Container. "
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am 90% sure that someone on XDA tripped knox with a stock firmware. On phone so can't search well.
Sent from my SM-N9005 using Tapatalk

danieljamie said:
I am 90% sure that someone on XDA tripped knox with a stock firmware. On phone so can't search well.
Sent from my SM-N9005 using Tapatalk
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I remember that there was one case on S4 in the very initial stages of knox implementation. Never heard of this scenario any more after that and never saw any for note 3.

Skander1998 said:
There is no way to trip knox unless you run a custom recovery / kernel.
Other attempts like vroot or kingoapp and whatnot are blocked and knox is not triggered.
All Samsung firmwares are recognised by knox as stock and no there won't be a firmware that will trigger it, they're not that stupid to do it.
So yeah It's an effective solution to protect the information inside the knox container from potential attacks, you root the device by gaining unauthorised root privileges and the container get's completely disabled with all of it's data.
And the Samsung Knox website does mention a fuse.
https://www.samsungknox.com/en/blog/about-cf-auto-root
"Once the e-fuse bit is burned, a Samsung KNOX-enabled device can no longer create a KNOX Container, or access the data previously stored in an existing KNOX Container. "
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually, my knox was tripped flashing stock firmware - trying to go back from MJ? Firmware to MI7.... It wouldn't flash cos it won't allow you to go back so I tried the many different method suggested like deleting the modem file within the stock firmware etc.... and then suddenly knox was 0x1.
It sorted me out cos then I didn't have to carry on pussyfooting around and just do what I was supposed to. .. Flash and customise my phone the way I wanted to. So all good in the end. ?
Sent from my SM-N9005 using Tapatalk

alom5 said:
Actually, my knox was tripped flashing stock firmware - trying to go back from MJ? Firmware to MI7.... It wouldn't flash cos it won't allow you to go back so I tried the many different method suggested like deleting the modem file within the stock firmware etc.... and then suddenly knox was 0x1.
It sorted me out cos then I didn't have to carry on pussyfooting around and just do what I was supposed to. .. Flash and customise my phone the way I wanted to. So all good in the end. ?
Sent from my SM-N9005 using Tapatalk
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Click to collapse
Downgrading bootloader will trip knox. It is not allowed as you are going from a secured bootloader back to one with a loophole. Normal users will never encounter this as you cannot downgrade rom with the official kies.

alom5 said:
Actually, my knox was tripped flashing stock firmware - trying to go back from MJ? Firmware to MI7.... It wouldn't flash cos it won't allow you to go back so I tried the many different method suggested like deleting the modem file within the stock firmware etc.... and then suddenly knox was 0x1.
It sorted me out cos then I didn't have to carry on pussyfooting around and just do what I was supposed to. .. Flash and customise my phone the way I wanted to. So all good in the end. ?
Sent from my SM-N9005 using Tapatalk
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Click to collapse
as antt said, downgrading to a vulnerable firmware is also not allowed, and knox will trip if you flash it after a new secure update.
You can of course customise everything you want and do whatever, but just don't expect to have Knox anymore, and don't expect warranty.
In reality even before knox everyone knew that every root method warned about losing your warranty immediately, but people cheated and reset counters.
Now you are agreeing to the same disclaimers and you just have to live with it.

If you ever had to protect data that badly, KNOX makes perfect sense.
Sometimes people have sensitive data on their phones (we're not talking about pictures of your ****.) that needs a killswitch. If someone steals your phone, roots it, they can access the data. With KNOX, they can't. For some of us, that's relevant. (No, I'm not getting a blackberry.)
No, I don't feel 'violated by samsung'. Ever had a look at a game console, TV, fridge or any other electronic device? Hell, a car even has the principle of 'mess with the engine and we won't pay for the damage you do.'
Everything has a sticker on the side: "If this sticker is broken, warranty is void". EXACT SAME THING. Nobody complained about that for the last 25 years. This is really nothing new. Welcome to reality.
KNOX can probably be reset as Samsung can do it (We've seen it), but once the switch is triggered, the data is gone.

I feel violated! I've spent £500 on a device that by the fact it's Android, is supposed to be customisable - that's sort of the mantra of Android, isn't it?
The fact that I can only disable a few of the Samsung bloatware apps annoys the hell out of me.
If I buy a PC, I can uninstall whatever I wish, so why can't I do that on my phone? Because Samsung don't allow it as they are in the system area of the device. I wouldn't need to root in the first place if I was allowed to choose which software I want to use.
Not all of us want to screw around with the frequencies of their processor, graphics, ram etc.
KNOX is nothing more than a convenient excuse by way of 'security' for Samsung to kill two birds with one stone.
It will be hacked eventually...what is made by a human can be reversed by another, mark my words

jonboyuk said:
I feel violated! I've spent £500 on a device that by the fact it's Android, is supposed to be customisable - that's sort of the mantra of Android, isn't it?
...
Click to expand...
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You can still customize whatever you want - except selected cases (AT&T and Verizon? - where we know it is an explicit request of the carrier) the bootloader configuration will still let you install a custom recovery and custom kernel and custom ROM. And that is still very, very rare among all the non-Nexus and non-developer-edition phones in the world. That is also pretty unheard of in phones outside the Android ecosystem.
Don't get me wrong, the Knox stuff is still pissing me off a little - but on the other hand given the large amount of Samsung phones that I have seen bricked by morons I can't say that I do not understand how Samsung would like to separate things a little.

Knox is not a big deal. You can still do what you want with the phone and make the appearance and performance to suit the individual. Warranty. .... Either the phone goes wrong in the early days or it stays the long haul. ..I still have 2 galaxy s and an s2 and note 1 all working and rooted and running custom rom and kennels and no problems at all.
Worst case scenario. ..I have insurance. ..
Sent from my SM-N9005 using Tapatalk

I have a Note 3 with a funny screen (bent under the glass, hard to explain) but i am afraid to take it back under warranty, because the replacement unit will surely come with rom version mj7 or higher which reportedly has half the battery life of my current mj1, plus it's not possible to root without tripping knox.
Now, if downgrade was allowed, it would be a totally different case, I would not hesitate to claim warranty on this hardware problem.
I can live with the funny looking screen (only noticeable when the screen is turned off), I decided I will wait with the warranty claim until knox reset, or downgrade without knox tripping becomes possible, or a new firmware with at least as good battery life as mj1 comes out...
Battery life is extremely important to me, and I just love to be able to keep all features of the phone enabled (voice wake, quick glance, all location based google now features, location history, lte, nfc, etc etc) and still get over 5-6 hours of screen on time and a full 16-17 hour stand by.
It is so perfect now I am afraid to risk it, not being able to downgrade legally really limits my willingness to ever upgrade
Sent from my SM-N9005 using Tapatalk

Master Thief-117 said:
As a side note, does anyone else feel violated by Samsung because of Knox? The fact they literally boobytrapped their devices with Knox to flag unlocked bootloaders under the guise of "enterprise security" is absolutely disgusting and pathetic. They should have released versions without Knox for the general consumers.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i don't feel violated or cheated nor am i pissed at samsung.....they are not stopping you doing what you want with the phone what they are doing is telling you that if you mess with it then the secure area is fubar .....they are not saying the phone is only the secure area .........and with earlier phones the warning was the same root and your warranty is gone.......
....as for the warranty in the eu we are covered as samsung has to prove that rooting the phone has caused the hardware to fail a blanket your warranty is void won't work....eg my phone is knox 0x1 and the home button falls out .....that is not caused by rooting it is a fault and will be covered by the warranty no matter the state of knox
i am happy with the note 3 ...sure there are people complaining of this and that but that will always be the case my phone does what i want it to do when i want it to so i have no problems

ShadowLea said:
If you ever had to protect data that badly, KNOX makes perfect sense.
Sometimes people have sensitive data on their phones (we're not talking about pictures of your ****.) that needs a killswitch. If someone steals your phone, roots it, they can access the data. With KNOX, they can't. For some of us, that's relevant. (No, I'm not getting a blackberry.)
No, I don't feel 'violated by samsung'. Ever had a look at a game console, TV, fridge or any other electronic device? Hell, a car even has the principle of 'mess with the engine and we won't pay for the damage you do.'
Everything has a sticker on the side: "If this sticker is broken, warranty is void". EXACT SAME THING. Nobody complained about that for the last 25 years. This is really nothing new. Welcome to reality.
KNOX can probably be reset as Samsung can do it (We've seen it), but once the switch is triggered, the data is gone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That kind of data protection is achieved with encryption. Good reliable security solutions are open sourced, no need to use some black box, providing Samsung and their partners access to your data.
So to repeat, encrypt phone with stock android encryption, and it is ok. No it is not 100% secure, but nothing is, neither knox.
Sent from my SM-N9005 using Tapatalk

I doubt that is the case, I just got note 3 a few days ago and it's mj7 and I'm getting savage battery life even though it has only been through3 charge cycles, over 18 hours of standby and 4 1/2 hours of on-screen time and I still had 40% on the battery
vgergo said:
I have a Note 3 with a funny screen (bent under the glass, hard to explain) but i am afraid to take it back under warranty, because the replacement unit will surely come with rom version mj7 or higher which reportedly has half the battery life of my current mj1, plus it's not possible to root without tripping knox.
Sent from my SM-N9005 using Tapatalk
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Click to collapse

What are the penalties from flashing things and rooting?

I've read that the act of flashing anything unsigned (like a custom recovery) will cause KNOX to be disabled. I suppose I won't miss it, but what other penalties will occur?
There is no way to re-enable KNOX once it's disabled, correct?
Ultimately the question is: If I install a custom recovery and root the phone, can I restore it to the point that if I sent it back to Samsung, they would think that it was always pure stock?

You can't use Samsung Pay.

palmboy5 said:
If I install a custom recovery and root the phone, can I restore it to the point that if I sent it back to Samsung, they would think that it was always pure stock?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
no, the efuse burns as soon as you flash something unsigned, there's no way to reverse that by software

My understanding is that if you ship back to Samsung, wether Knox tripped or not, depending on your issue, your warranty is still good. Just make sure stock rom on it when you send it in. Knox isn't an anti warranty measure. It's in place for the corporate world to maintain control of company owned devices.

shollywood said:
My understanding is that if you ship back to Samsung, wether Knox tripped or not, depending on your issue, your warranty is still good. Just make sure stock rom on it when you send it in. Knox isn't an anti warranty measure. It's in place for the corporate world to maintain control of company owned devices.
Click to expand...
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As far as I know, Samsung won't repair your S6 when it was rooted. The burned eFuse-Chip is in fact a hardware damage caused by rooting from the user --> no more warranty by Samsung! You can check that in several reports online, in magazins and even at Samsung
So rooting your S6 means the loss of warranty (no matter what's the reason why you'll send it in), no KNOX and no Samsung Pay.
That's why I won't buy this phone, even though I love its specs and look. :cyclops:
EDIT: Just got the official answer from Samsung Support: Rooting your S6 will blow the eFuse-Chip and if it does, it's a hardware dmg caused by the user through rooting. That means NO warranty, even if your f.e. volume rockers refuse to work within the two years
I still have the mail in my inbox for those who doubt it (german language / official Samsung Support)

Your mileage may vary. In Australia this is not true. Firstly, the retailer is responsible for warranty not the manufacturer. Secondly if the is no connection between rooting and damage it is irrelevant. I got a no questions warrany swap on a rooted htc one for a microphone failure and returned a rooted s5 for a tradein to an s6. Both were contract phones via an Australian carrier. I imagine the situation is similar in the uk.

I am curious about this too. I haven't rooted my s6 just in case something malfunctions. Anyone have experience having a faulty rooted phone replaced or repaired?
I have the tmobile jump plan with insurance. If I destroy my phone I can get it replaced for $175 rooted or not.

timrichardson said:
Your mileage may vary. In Australia this is not true. Firstly, the retailer is responsible for warranty not the manufacturer.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In germany the retailer is also responsible for warranty. But, in any case, they send the "damaged" phone to a repair station licenced by samsung. And they check by default before the repair, if the device has been rooted or not. If this is the case, they refuse the repair. And here the trouble begins.
timrichardson said:
Secondly if the is no connection between rooting and damage it is irrelevant.
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Click to collapse
Exactly for this case, I asked the official Samsung support. A modification to the Software (root), means a complete loss of guarantee/warranty. Even for hardware parts or other problems, which are in no way related to the rooting (e.g. volume buttons, Home button, power button etc. ).
The destroyed eFuse-chip serves Samsung, as unequivocal proof of rooting (after it has been possible "in the past", to hide a previous root (-> TriangleAway)). Samsung has clarified this now unmistakably.
Sadly that is the reason why I will no longer buy any smartphone from Samsung. No matter how good the hard- or software will be.

I would like to add, I am member on the Tab S forum and there is a couple story's on that forum of people that had rooted their tablets had a problem which resulted in them sending them for repair under warranty which were all fixed under warranty.

maxal said:
I would like to add, I am member on the Tab S forum and there is a couple story's on that forum of people that had rooted their tablets had a problem which resulted in them sending them for repair under warranty which were all fixed under warranty.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And did they restore the flashcounter/unroot their devices before?
Under the bottom line: The "risk" (if any, samsung stated very clear xD) of having a rooted, somehow dmged S6 and the (very high) chance that there won't be a repair (by samsung/retailer), is to high for me.

Depressed T.Bear said:
And did they restore the flashcounter/unroot their devices before?
Under the bottom line: The "risk" (if any, samsung stated very clear xD) of having a rooted, somehow dmged S6 and the (very high) chance that there won't be a repair (by samsung/retailer), is to high for me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They flashed a stock rom using Odin before sending of for repair.

Depressed T.Bear said:
Exactly for this case, I asked the official Samsung support. A modification to the Software (root), means a complete loss of guarantee/warranty. Even for hardware parts or other problems, which are in no way related to the rooting (e.g. volume buttons, Home button, power button etc. ).
The destroyed eFuse-chip serves Samsung, as unequivocal proof of rooting (after it has been possible "in the past", to hide a previous root (-> TriangleAway)). Samsung has clarified this now unmistakably.
Sadly that is the reason why I will no longer buy any smartphone from Samsung. No matter how good the hard- or software will be.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is location dependent. In the USA your warranty is still valid unless the company can prove your actions caused the problem. So you could sue Samsung if they refused. This is especially true if it is a common issue.

Samsung Upgrade Program Customer (Please Read)

Hi All
So, after lengthy discussion with Samsung UK via phone & live chat, they have confirmed that if the BL is unlocked,rooted or are any signs of this, they will not accept the phone when its returned .....meaning you will not be eligible for the early upgrade option in a years time unless you pay the remaining balance of your device yourself!
i have argued that this is not mentioned in there T&C'S https://shop.samsung.com/uk/assets/samsung/pdf/sup/samsung-upgrade-programme-terms.pdf .
Anyway....just thought i'dmake you all aware.
Cheers

The bootloader comes unlocked, so I'm unsure how they're able to refuse early upgrades on that basis. The knox trip isn't surprising, although it's amusing they repair under warranty in the UK even with a tripped knox, there appears to be two contradicting policies there. Rooting isn't an issue, surely no one would be attempting to perform an early upgrade without first flashing stock back on and wiping the phone anyway.

Beefheart said:
The bootloader comes unlocked, so I'm unsure how they're able to refuse early upgrades on that basis. The knox trip isn't surprising, although it's amusing they repair under warranty in the UK even with a tripped knox, there appears to be two contradicting policies there. Rooting isn't an issue, surely no one would be attempting to perform an early upgrade without first flashing stock back on and wiping the phone anyway.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OK, my Samsung terminology may not be upto scratch, been on Sony devices lately... Anyway......
Rooting trips knox! Unless you know of a method without that happening? Even flashing stock before returning device to samsung won't reinstate knox.
To quote Samsung " if there is any evidence of root/knox being tripped, that will void warranty completley and breach the t&c's of the upgrade program, therefore we (Samsung uk) will not accept the device on return.
Cheers

AnGrY sCoTsMaN said:
OK, my Samsung terminology may not be upto scratch, been on Sony devices lately... Anyway......
Rooting trips knox! Unless you know of a method without that happening? Even flashing stock before returning device to samsung won't reinstate knox.
To quote Samsung " if there is any evidence of root/knox being tripped, that will void warranty completley and breach the t&c's of the upgrade program, therefore we (Samsung uk) will not accept the device on return.
Cheers
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Here in the UK if the device is knox 0x1 but is not rooted, they will still repair. If it is rooted, 99% of the time they will refuse. I think this is what beefheart meant

AnGrY sCoTsMaN said:
OK, my Samsung terminology may not be upto scratch, been on Sony devices lately... Anyway......
Rooting trips knox! Unless you know of a method without that happening? Even flashing stock before returning device to samsung won't reinstate knox.
To quote Samsung " if there is any evidence of root/knox being tripped, that will void warranty completley and breach the t&c's of the upgrade program, therefore we (Samsung uk) will not accept the device on return.
Cheers
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You misunderstand my post. I'm aware rooting trips knox. But my point was that no one would return a phone rooted, they would simply reflash stock which would remove it, but unfortunately the knox trip would remain, which is presumably why they refer to knox specifically rather than just root.
Also, they talk of warranty being voided. That isn't the case because I've yet to hear of a UK Samsung device since knox was introduced that was refused a repair on the basis of knox being tripped. Including the S7, only yesterday a member on here had his phone replaced due to a faulty fingerprint scanner, despite his knox flag being tripped. This must purely refer to the early upgrade program.

@CuBz90 @Beefheart
OK, Fair play troops.... Just quoting what Samsung said, I suppose time will tell when it comes to upgrade.
Cheers for explanations and comment

AnGrY sCoTsMaN said:
@CuBz90 @Beefheart
OK, Fair play troops.... Just quoting what Samsung said, I suppose time will tell when it comes to upgrade.
Cheers for explanations and comment
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Samsung chat also said the Exynos variants had a locked bootloader which is not true
Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

CuBz90 said:
Samsung chat also said the Exynos variants had a locked bootloader which is not true
Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk
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Click to collapse
Huh OK, so they don't know sh#t! Well suppose I better get this thing rooted and start building ( zip-ups) bwahaha
Sent from my Z3 Compact using XDA Labs

You get more cash selling online to someone in your town than an early upgrade anyways.
Sent from my Star-Tac

Yeah assumed this would be the case. Not fussed root doesn't bother me it stops my banking app working which I use all the time anyway.

Knox recover possible?

I'm just curious to know whether or not it's possible to restore from a KNOX trip after installing TWRP and a custom Rom. Does restoring stock Rom via Odin restore KNOX status to x0?

No. Once it's done it's done. It's a hardware fuse that blows. You can't undo that.....

Thanks for taking the time to reply. Damn that sucks. So if i trip KNOX and go back to stock Rom via Odin, will I experience tripped KNOX related errors and popups? Would Samsung Pay still be functional?

michel5891 said:
Thanks for taking the time to reply. Damn that sucks. So if i trip KNOX and go back to stock Rom via Odin, will I experience tripped KNOX related errors and popups? Would Samsung Pay still be functional?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No Samsung Pay, S Health, Secure Folder, and everything that is knox related.

I just got mine in the mail. Literally 3 minutes ago. SM-G955FD.
So aster rooting I'm definitely going to see Samsung Pay related errors and if i were to attempt to resell, those errors would be dead giveaway. Correct?
I'm debating whether or not to root and put custom Rom on it.

michel5891 said:
I just got mine in the mail. Literally 3 minutes ago. SM-G955FD.
So aster rooting I'm definitely going to see Samsung Pay related errors and if i were to attempt to resell, those errors would be dead giveaway. Correct?
I'm debating whether or not to root and put custom Rom on it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Most definitely
The phone will be missing all those features stated above and also no warranty
Will majorly affect resale price
Not really fair to resell without stating the issues from rooting

So I guess that settles it. Not going to root. That sucks. How is Samsung getting away with this ****? Apple-like behavior. I'll miss rooting; custom roms etc.

Thats whay i will sale my s8+. Thats bored whithout custom roms.
I will back to Note 5, S7 Edge. I think the "new" note 7 will come whith the same problem like the s8. Fu()/&= KNOX !

It's Samsung's loss, modding community will move away from Samsung devices if they continue this lock down crap. I got an international variant so I can root. I don't really care about Samsung pay, S health and secure folder are nice so that sucks but there are likely alternatives in the play store.

VICosPhi said:
It's Samsung's loss, modding community will move away from Samsung devices if they continue this lock down crap. I got an international variant so I can root. I don't really care about Samsung pay, S health and secure folder are nice so that sucks but there are likely alternatives in the play store.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're absolutely right. I've already started looking as other devices, the only caveat is the specs -- the hardware. They're not up to par with Samsung's technology. I hope I'm wrong about this. If i am and there are other devices that are just as good or even better, I'll jump ship.

so u cant use S health in a rooted device? like heart rate monitor and running stress test? etc?

You can use those on a rooted device by hiding root. If you go back to stock, those will not work.

Well now this is confusing me a bit. There's rooting and there's installing custom recovery. Which of the two is going to trip Knox?

michel5891 said:
Well now this is confusing me a bit. There's rooting and there's installing custom recovery. Which of the two is going to trip Knox?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Both; you need to install a custom recovery to root.
Near_07 said:
so u cant use S health in a rooted device? like heart rate monitor and running stress test? etc?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
AFAIK, S Health is the only one of the knox-related apps that can work on a rooted device. Check out this post for instructions.

zfzszt said:
Both; you need to install a custom recovery to root.
AFAIK, S Health is the only one of the knox-related apps that can work on a rooted device. Check out this post for instructions.
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Click to collapse
I'm waiting for that mothership.:crying:

Samsung had locked devices since at least the S6 using Knox. Still one of the highest selling phones out there so I doubt they will care about a few losses in sales. Provably make up more I sales gained by corporate clients.
Sent from my SM-G955F using Tapatalk

Lets be clear here, warranty is only lost in some countries, not all. In the EU its not, even if Samsung claim it is. You should be getting the seller to deal with any warranty claim anyway, not Samsung directly.
As for it being Samsungs loss, well the modding community is absolutely tiny, far less than 1% of sales, so they really dont care and lose nothing. Its a small price to pay for the potential security issues a hacked Knox can bring, for example.. Its possible to simulate knox, or 'secure folder' on a device, but in reality the phone is sending back all the information in that folder to a third party server. However to do this you have to root and flash custom software, this trips the real knox, which the device will then complain about. Tripping Knox has to be permanent otherwise it can be bypassed.

ChrisM75 said:
Lets be clear here, warranty is only lost in some countries, not all. In the EU its not, even if Samsung claim it is. You should be getting the seller to deal with any warranty claim anyway, not Samsung directly.
As for it being Samsungs loss, well the modding community is absolutely tiny, far less than 1% of sales, so they really dont care and lose nothing. Its a small price to pay for the potential security issues a hacked Knox can bring, for example.. Its possible to simulate knox, or 'secure folder' on a device, but in reality the phone is sending back all the information in that folder to a third party server. However to do this you have to root and flash custom software, this trips the real knox, which the device will then complain about. Tripping Knox has to be permanent otherwise it can be bypassed.
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1% is an over statement.
0.01% is probably still overkill.

Far less than 1%... Well, for giant company like Samsung is, thats lot of money.. But... where is Knox exactly located on motherboard? Can be regain by erasing all (nand erase all, efs, etc) and than flashing all partitions through BOX-Octopus Box and dongle????

zfzszt said:
Both; you need to install a custom recovery to root.
AFAIK, S Health is the only one of the knox-related apps that can work on a rooted device. Check out this post for instructions.
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No. Rooting has literally nothing to do with the knox counter. Knox is protection against untrusted code.
Every single snapdragon s8 s8+ and n8 of rooted with a 0x0 counter, so it's a little more than possible

Should I root (opinions)

Hi I've been rooting phones for over 10 years now but the past couple of devices I haven't due to it tripping knox etc but I miss a few things with root and looking for peoples opinions
I love having adaway and been able to fully uninstall apps I don't use
Is there much of an improvement on battery life as I have the exynos version :crying:
Also an app i haven't had chance to use is viper4android is it as good as people say and does it actually boot volume on bluetooth audio without distorting etc as that would be my main use for it
Also what exactly does tripping know destroy? I've read it affects Samsung pay and Samsung pass is there anything else
And has anyone had problems selling there device afterwards from tripping know (mainly in the uk) as I change devices quite a bit and sell them on lol
Thanks

You can use adguard if you don't want to root. I haven't bothered rooting anything for a few years now. It doesn't deliver any additional must have features i can't live without, unlike it used to.

Same boat, rooting for decades. Yet it seems a bit too immature this time on this device.
Also got the exynos junk (Iknew before getting it, but free phone from work).
I decided to go without for now.

Same here - decided to go on without root. The features I miss are - firewall (need to try knox firewall though), direct time sync (minor), some console commands to manage files, titanium backup - this is a major issue, so I can't backup OTP apps etc.

Don't root your device since that requires you unlocking bootloader to root and doing that triggers knock safety thing so it destroys knox permanently and then apps such as Samsung pay, samsung pass, secret folder, encryption and few more that requires knox to work will be unavailable, since knox chip is no longer functioning. Also warranty would be voided if you got 2 years warranty.
So if you plan to use samsung pay or any of other apps later on then avoid rooting and touching bootloader.

Jake.S said:
Don't root your device since that requires you unlocking bootloader to root and doing that triggers knock safety thing so it destroys knox permanently and then apps such as Samsung pay, samsung pass, secret folder, encryption and few more that requires knox to work will be unavailable, since knox chip is no longer functioning. Also warranty would be voided if you got 2 years warranty.
So if you plan to use samsung pay or any of other apps later on then avoid rooting and touching bootloader.
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i dont know about usa and other countries, but in europe ur warranty won't be void if knox is tripped (afaik)

Still can't do without root unless there a way to block ads while using a vpn of my choice and control a firewall. Have my Note two days now after waiting 3 weeks for it to ship from Hong Kong and first thing I did was to root.

destz0r said:
i dont know about usa and other countries, but in europe ur warranty won't be void if knox is tripped (afaik)
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Well actually to get it tripped requires bootloader unlock for root and that would void your warranty in Europe. So id knox says 0x0 it also voids warranty

Only those that care about Samsung's proprietary Knox and it's associated bloat should worry about knox being tripped. Only thing I'd probably care about is 3rd party banking apps that might not work with patch hide. If that still works or not unsure.

rooting my n9860 asap. finally just got the oem option to show up. last phone i had was a note 8 not unlockable...and had to keep it for too long, wanting root the entire time. so i'm not missing the chance to do it now. why? to try custom rom, get all bloats/google/samsung apps off the phone and stop looking at system settings that i cannot change(top reason), learn about android / do some dev on it, test root apps made by community(2nd best reason), get a recovery installed, nethunter, call recording, toolbox, run my fav firewall. probably more reasons that im not thinking about right now

mgagnequebec said:
rooting my n9860 asap. finally just got the oem option to show up. last phone i had was a note 8 not unlockable...and had to keep it for too long, wanting root the entire time. so i'm not missing the chance to do it now. why? to try custom rom, get all bloats/google/samsung apps off the phone and stop looking at system settings that i cannot change(top reason), learn about android / do some dev on it, test root apps made by community(2nd best reason), get a recovery installed, nethunter, call recording, toolbox, run my fav firewall. probably more reasons that im not thinking about right now
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im considering rooting my N9810, but im wondering if I will still receive OTA updates then? or do i have to manually flash the update with each ota?

destz0r said:
im considering rooting my N9810, but im wondering if I will still receive OTA updates then? or do i have to manually flash the update with each ota?
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You wont get OTA after rooting, since rooting requires you to unlock bootloader so then OTA won't work. Also KNOX won't function permanently once this is done too.
So think if you going to use samsung apps like samsung pay and such then avoid touching bootloader and rooting.

mgagnequebec said:
rooting my n9860 asap. finally just got the oem option to show up. last phone i had was a note 8 not unlockable...and had to keep it for too long, wanting root the entire time. so i'm not missing the chance to do it now. why? to try custom rom, get all bloats/google/samsung apps off the phone and stop looking at system settings that i cannot change(top reason), learn about android / do some dev on it, test root apps made by community(2nd best reason), get a recovery installed, nethunter, call recording, toolbox, run my fav firewall. probably more reasons that im not thinking about right now
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Is one of them being able to tether (hot spot) without the carrier detecting it

cenwesi said:
Is one of them being able to tether (hot spot) without the carrier detecting it
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I doubt it but I never tried it before tbh. I guess i should say that i might not be a good example to follow when it comes to updates. i almost never do them. because it always was a compromise one have to make if wanting to root. at least from my experience. like, keep your firmware version low or you loose the ability to root. but gain security patches. i chose my side of the fence long ago hehe