Google Pixel 2 Root Help - Google Pixel 2 Questions & Answers

Hello, XDA Developers.
I joined this forum yesterday, and to be honest, I am a complete Android noob. I got my first Android phone around 6 months ago, and, as you know thanks to the title of this thread, it was a Google Pixel 2, a solid way to dip my toes into Android for the first time, especially after being an Apple sheep for many years in the past. Anyway, I found my interest in rooting coming from me wanting to install a custom icon pack to my Pixel Launcher. I found Pixel Launcher Mods, but discovered it required root. I learned what rooting was, and how to do it. That's not the problem, though.
I've heard tons on what rooting can do negatively to your phone, but using a Google-branded phone, I'm not worried in the least about getting my phone bricked nor am I worried about blowing my warranty (since Google doesn't take away warranty due to rooting). What I am worried about is security.
I use many apps on my phone which are very personal and important, like my AMEX app, Google Pay, and PayPal. Knowing that rooting is risky in the security department, I'm very nervous to make the jump due to exposing those very applications and all of that sensitive information.
I've heard that installing Magisk and TWRP somehow keeps me safe from this kind of risk, but I don't quite understand how. I really need to understand why and how Magisk keeps me safe before I root, since I know that if I don't, I'll have insane paranoia in the back of my head, which will completely ruin my experience rooting.
I've also heard that Netflix and apps similar to it simply do not function. I am a Netflix subscriber and sometimes watch on my phone, so this is kind of concerning for me. Apparently Magisk comes to the rescue again, but I still don't know why!
One other thing (second last one, I promise) I heard was that I can get purchases in the Google Play store for free. If someone can leave a link for me on how I can do that, it would be pretty awesome.
The fourth and final 'thing' as I've been calling them, is that I won't get OTA updates. With some of my own research, I found that I actually do get these updates, however, they break my root. I've heard of things like OTA RootKeeper, but when I looked it up, all I found were forum posts from 2012, which had me slightly worried. This coupled with the fact that Android P was coming out so soon had me bear the question: update or wait?
Thank you so much if you took the time to read this long and confusing thread. I tried to lay it out in the least confusing way as possible. As you can see, I'm really new to all of this, and it would be great if you guys could help me out and answer some of the questions above.
Take care! I look forward to your responses.
- Arrow008

First of all: Good choice and welcome to the community.
1. I can't exactly tell you how Magisk would keep you safe but I can tell you that it is always in your hands to keep your device and data safe. What I mean by that is that you should use your brain while using your phone. Don't download any "fancy apps" which promise to make your battery last longer or something like that. Don't click any shady links etc.
After all you are not more vulnerable just due to rooting but apps could do more harm.
2. Netflix or other apps will work with "Magisk Hide" which is built in feature of Magisk.
3. You are talking about illegal warez which are not allowed on XDA. Anyways apps cost between 1 - 5 $ and are often on sale. So there should not be any need to tinker with warez.
4. There is a guide here to keep Root with Magisk even on OTA. But for this to work you don't have to have TWRP flashed to your device (at least that's what I think).
EDIT: I'm using different Android phones since 2011 and always rooted them and didn't ever have any problems with security.

Arrow008 said:
Hello, XDA Developers.
I joined this forum yesterday, and to be honest, I am a complete Android noob. I got my first Android phone around 6 months ago, and, as you know thanks to the title of this thread, it was a Google Pixel 2, a solid way to dip my toes into Android for the first time, especially after being an Apple sheep for many years in the past. Anyway, I found my interest in rooting coming from me wanting to install a custom icon pack to my Pixel Launcher. I found Pixel Launcher Mods, but discovered it required root. I learned what rooting was, and how to do it. That's not the problem, though.
I've heard tons on what rooting can do negatively to your phone, but using a Google-branded phone, I'm not worried in the least about getting my phone bricked nor am I worried about blowing my warranty (since Google doesn't take away warranty due to rooting). What I am worried about is security.
I use many apps on my phone which are very personal and important, like my AMEX app, Google Pay, and PayPal. Knowing that rooting is risky in the security department, I'm very nervous to make the jump due to exposing those very applications and all of that sensitive information.
I've heard that installing Magisk and TWRP somehow keeps me safe from this kind of risk, but I don't quite understand how. I really need to understand why and how Magisk keeps me safe before I root, since I know that if I don't, I'll have insane paranoia in the back of my head, which will completely ruin my experience rooting.
I've also heard that Netflix and apps similar to it simply do not function. I am a Netflix subscriber and sometimes watch on my phone, so this is kind of concerning for me. Apparently Magisk comes to the rescue again, but I still don't know why!
One other thing (second last one, I promise) I heard was that I can get purchases in the Google Play store for free. If someone can leave a link for me on how I can do that, it would be pretty awesome.
The fourth and final 'thing' as I've been calling them, is that I won't get OTA updates. With some of my own research, I found that I actually do get these updates, however, they break my root. I've heard of things like OTA RootKeeper, but when I looked it up, all I found were forum posts from 2012, which had me slightly worried. This coupled with the fact that Android P was coming out so soon had me bear the question: update or wait?
Thank you so much if you took the time to read this long and confusing thread. I tried to lay it out in the least confusing way as possible. As you can see, I'm really new to all of this, and it would be great if you guys could help me out and answer some of the questions above.
Take care! I look forward to your responses.
- Arrow008
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would also like to welcome you to the community. Good choice crossing over from Apple and you made a great choice as far as phones go. Xda is a grea place to start and there are amazing people on here that can help you get to where you want to be.
Some background on myself, I have owned an android phone since 2010 and have rooted every android phone I've had since then. Root is the way to go and it opens so many doors for android devices.
1. Don't let a security risk scare you away from rooting, as long as you are smart with your device then you will be ok. You heard right in that Magisk keeps you safe when rooting. Magisk implements security protocols that allow our devices to pass safteynet checks. Safteynet is what android uses to tell apps that your device is secure and hasn't been tempered with. Things like Google Pay use safteynet checks in order to function. Some apps also won't function if it detects Magisk on your device. This is simply because the app knows your device is rooted and doesn't want to function as it knows it has been tampered with. Magisk has a feature called magiskhide that hides itself from certain apps being able to see it. So that, in a nutshell, is how Magisk tricks your device into thinking it hasn't been tampered with. Magisk also prevents apps from getting root acces to your phones that you don't want to authorize. Everytime an app initially requests root access, Magisk will prompt you with a popup asking if you would like to authorize said access.
2. As far as security goes. Google releases security patches once a month for our devices. if you run a custom ROM then most devs will incorporate these updates in to their ROMs and push them out to users. So when you root, your device will no longer update OTA, you must do it yourself. Even if you run stock Google firmware, you must still manually push updates to your phone (plenty of guides on how to do this). As long as you stay on the most recent Google security patch, then you have nothing to be afraid of.
3. Free apps. Yes, there are illegal markets out there that upload stolen apps but these come with a high security risk and are not allowed to be discussed on Xda. When you install apps from markets like these you run a high security risk. Some apps are made to look like other apps and have different permissions and can have access to parts of your phone that you don't know about. I would never recommend installing apps from markets like these. Stick to the Play Store and support the devs.
4. Like I said in #2, you will not get OTA updates anymore since you are rooted. Yes, in the past with other devices, some devs have come out with apps that allow OTA while maintaining root, as of right now there is not such thing for our phones. Manually pushing updates to our phones is not hard with TWRP. TWRP allows you to backup everything, wipe everything, and install new ROMs/updates. When you install a new ROM it will wipe everything as far as your os goes but will not wipe your storage (pics, music, files) So when you update a new ROM I highly recommend you get an app called Titanium Backup. TB will backup all your apps+data, that way when you install a new ROM/update, all you have to do is restore the apps with TB and its like nothing changed. It can even backup things like call history, texts, wallpaper selection, wifi passwords, etc. Definitely a must have for rooted devices.
Dive in, get involved, but please do your research before just spouting off questions in this q+a thread. People are here to help you but 9/10 times your question has probably already been answered. Read the rules of Xda and happy rooting.

Related

[Q] Shouldn't Bother Rooting?

I'v jailbroken itouches several times flawlessly so the concept of rooting is not new to me. I understand what has to be done and what it does for the device, positively anyway. I'v had the G2x for about 2 weeks now and i'm thinking about rooting it, but i don't want to do it without knowing all of the cons. I know i would be voiding my warranty, and that i might not get direct updates from my service provider anymore. I'v also read a lot about people rooting it without error, but for some reason after rooting the phone crashes. i took the risk of jailbreaking my itouch because i had it for 2 years already when i decided to jailbreak it, and because it's basically still just an mp3 player. This time it would be a phone which is more important to me. im also aware that gingerbread is coming out soon, so if someone could explain to me what the negatives are or at least point me in the right direction if this thread is already answered i would appreciate it.
With my phone, unrooting is easy if you know what you're doing, so I don't worry about the warranty part. The usual horror stories about rooted phones are usually due to user error. If you don't know what you're doing and don't fully read the instructions, you can end up doing some damage that is either difficult or impossible to fix. I think some people root their phones just for wireless tether, ad blocking, screenshots, or some "root only" app they see in the market. Then they decide they want to change their status bar icons or something and flash something that was not made for their phone or the stock rom... or whatever the situation may be.
My point is, if you know what you're doing you'll be fine. You should be able to go back to stock, unrooted - I'm not familiar with your phone, so I'm speaking in generalities. There are already Gingerbread roms out for many devices that haven't received official updates yet, even for phones that will never receive an official 2.3 update.
The only downside of rooting that I can think of is that you won't be able to put your phone down. Ultimately the choice is yours. If you don't want to put the time into learning, don't do it. It's a ton of fun though, I couldn't imagine not being rooted... there's so much more available for rooted phones.
My Evo + xda Premium App = This post.

[Q] Rooting Question!

Hey so I have read a lot of the threads on rooting but I think (hope) mine is a bit original for you. I am one of those skittish goody-two-shoes type people who have a bad record of breaking their electronics. My family is updating their tmobile plan in August and I am planning on getting a lg g2x. It seems like a great phone that'll be able to keep up with the advancements of Android for a while. However I have heard the battery life is really bad (as it is for most androids) and that there are all of these great methods I could use (setCPU, Battery Calibration, etc.) and I can get rid of ads on my apps (adfree) and even use ROMs and Themes!! This sounds great EXCEPT all of the above requires rooting. So my question is, if I install Battery Calibration, setCPU, adfree, etc, while rooted and then just unroot, will they all still work??? Also, in the case that this is possible, if I have any problems with my phone and have to send it in for service, as long as it's unrooted I don't have to delete any of the apps to put it back under warranty do I? And (yes there's more) can I continuously root/unroot as I please in order to change themes and ROMs and even updating the android system once my phone is out of date (though I hope I'm not obsolete within 2 yrs) and no longer gets updates from my phone company? I know superoneclick is supposed to be really easy but as I don't have the phone yet I was wondering how fast it actually is as well.
Thanks for all of your help!!
Hmm....lots of questions young one, well 1st of all by rooting it technically voids the warranty, and yes for the programs to work properly you will need to keep it rooted because some off them actually need root access to tweak the device.
Sent from my mind
scarlet_fire said:
Hey so I have read a lot of the threads on rooting but I think (hope) mine is a bit original for you. I am one of those skittish goody-two-shoes type people who have a bad record of breaking their electronics. My family is updating their tmobile plan in August and I am planning on getting a lg g2x. It seems like a great phone that'll be able to keep up with the advancements of Android for a while. However I have heard the battery life is really bad (as it is for most androids) and that there are all of these great methods I could use (setCPU, Battery Calibration, etc.) and I can get rid of ads on my apps (adfree) and even use ROMs and Themes!! This sounds great EXCEPT all of the above requires rooting. So my question is, if I install Battery Calibration, setCPU, adfree, etc, while rooted and then just unroot, will they all still work??? Also, in the case that this is possible, if I have any problems with my phone and have to send it in for service, as long as it's unrooted I don't have to delete any of the apps to put it back under warranty do I? And (yes there's more) can I continuously root/unroot as I please in order to change themes and ROMs and even updating the android system once my phone is out of date (though I hope I'm not obsolete within 2 yrs) and no longer gets updates from my phone company? I know superoneclick is supposed to be really easy but as I don't have the phone yet I was wondering how fast it actually is as well.
Thanks for all of your help!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. If you install the root required apps, root, then unroot, they will stop working. Once an app requires root and your phone is not rooted, even if it was before but it's not now, they will not work.
2. There are many one click root apps. e.g. z4root and universal androot.
3. You will have to unroot and remove the root required apps to put it back under warranty. I say this because if you leave them, then your provider will know that you must have rooted your phone to put them on it in the first place. (It would be like sending an Iphone for servicing to AT&T with Cydia installed. They will know that you jailbroke it.
4 Superoneclick does work fast. It may take up to five minutes (depends on your phone model), but remember what I said in #2. Good luck.

To Root, or not to Root?

Right, I'm getting sick of waiting for the official JellyBean update for my S2, will it be worth it for me to root the fone myself? If so, how do I go about doing it?
Sent from my GT-I9100 using xda app-developers app
Yes it is worth it. Check the international s2 forums and search it up.
Sent from my SGH-T999 using xda app-developers app
Yes it's definately worth it to root. A little risky at first but if you get rooted, your home free and will be loading custom roms almost daily. Many apps will only run on rooted phone. Go for it!
mr
yes it`s worth it.so you can install custom roms.good luck.
It's only "worth it" if you have a reason to.
It's like... "is it worth buying a 30 gallon aquarium for $10" ? Sure, if you actually want a 30 gallon aquarium, it would be - but if you don't, it's just going to sit there unused and taking up space (and in the case of root access, opening up potential vulnerability).
Some people are flash-happy, but I only update mine maybe every few weeks because it's kind of a pain. And I only rooted and flashed a custom ROM on my tablet because it's no longer supported by the manufacturer - meaning a custom ROM was the ONLY way to get updates. I rooted my phone because I wanted to install Google Wallet and that required some work-arounds since my carrier is blocking it.
If you get into unofficial ROMs of updated Android versions, unless it's a leak, there are often problems - various things won't work, bugs, et cetera. It can still be fun, but don't expect it to be perfect.
Find something that you want to do with your device that requires root access and then worry about it.
Banksy1892 said:
Right, I'm getting sick of waiting for the official JellyBean update for my S2, will it be worth it for me to root the fone myself? If so, how do I go about doing it?
Sent from my GT-I9100 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you own an Android device, chances are you’ve probably heard of the term “rooting” or “rooted.” If you have and are wondering if it’s for you, this post is perfect, as we break down the major pros and cons of rooting your Android smartphone.
Before we go any further though, what exactly is “rooting”? Rooting refers to gaining access to the "root" user or command prompt of your Android phone. Root access gives users full access to the device and allows for other low-level tasks to be run. Rooting an Android phone is similar to "jail breaking" an iPhone or the "unlocking" of a Windows Phone.
When you root your Android device, you gain access to the entire file system, with full admin rights. You can customize your own boot image, create a full backup of your phone, or install a full-blown Linux distro. Basically, you can do whatever you want.
So, should you root your phone? For me, the answer to that question is a resounding yes, but before you decide, read on to see our list of the major pros and cons of rooting.
Pros of Rooting
Some of the best reasons to root your Android phone include:
1. "Tethering" your 4G/3G internet connection to a laptop computer or tablet via USB cable, Hotspot or Bluetooth. While I don’t recommend this, you will essentially be able to tether for free without paying your carrier a fee.
2. Installing custom themes, mods, and ROMS. This is probably the reason most people root their phone. The ability to deeply customize your own device and upgrade software is very appealing to a lot of rooters.
3. Backing up all the data and apps on the device.
4. The ability to install any application or game, including those "blocked" or Tegra-only games.
5. The ability to underclock the processor to conserve power. This is huge for a lot of people as Android devices are real battery hogs. I have been able to squeeze out days of battery life on a medium-sized battery by underclocking, which is pretty significant.
6. The ability to remove bloatware from your carrier-branded Android device. We all know that carriers love putting quite a bit of crap on their phones and rooting is one way to get rid of it.
Cons of Rooting
Some of the major reasons not to root your Android device include:
1. If the rooting process fails you may permanently "brick" your phone, rendering it unusable for anything other than, well, a brick. Basically, your phone will be useless.
2. Rooting your phone typically voids any manufacturer and carrier warranties. This is pretty crappy, honestly, but some OEMs won't cover certain things. It is really up to the manufacturer. You could lose out big, though, if something major breaks and you have to pay the full repair price.
3. Other drawbacks are more specific to what is done after the device is rooted, such as burning out your smartphone CPU due to overclocking, wearing out the SD card prematurely and burning out pixels in the screen. Additionally, the potential monetary costs that your carrier might apply if they see you've downloaded several gigs of data to your laptop could be big.
4. Rooting usually causes general instability of your Android smartphone. This is a given, as you are basically beta testing modifications and ROMS before they become daily drivers. Expect great performance, but a lot of bugs.
So, is Rooting really for You?
If you're a hacker or tinkerer and don’t mind bugs, I’d say yes. If you’re not, I’d say hold off and make sure it’s really what you want. You must remember that with most phones, once you root, you can’t go back. It is very difficult, in most cases, to completely reset your device to factory conditions, which is definitely something to consider before you decide.
However, if you’re like me--happy with your device as is, but just love pushing the envelope--I'd say wait until your warranty expires. After your warranty runs up, which is usually a year after purchase, there is really nothing to lose.
If you have any additional pros or cons to rooting, leave them in the comment below.
If your warranty is over, definitely root.
Galaxy s2 is a pretty safe and easy device to flash. No need to mess with bootloaders and all. There are many guides in the forum, check them out. If something does go wrong, you will most probably find the solution in this forum itself.
You might might end up waiting indefinitely for the official update for your country from samsung. Flashing it yourself will keep you up to date.
But its time consuming if you are new to all this. There is a LOT to read. I know because I was there. It was after a lot of reading that I felt confident enough to root my phone. But now I flash a little bit to often!
Try a custom ROM based on the latest official samsung. I use NeatROM Lite 4.3, based on LSD. Stable, fast and bloatware free. There are a lot of them, pick the one that suits your need. Or if you're feeling adventurous, try most of them like I did!
Help With Rooting My Verizon Galaxy S3
I Am New To Rooting And I Would Like To Know If It's At All Possible To Install Android 4.2 On My Verizon Galaxy S3, I Feel My Phone Is Very Sluggish And I Would Like To Uninstall All The Bloatware On The Phone. Any Positive Help Would Be Greatly Appreciated Thanks In Advance!
Root
I was feeling the same way on my Atrix HD. Now i am glad i did it, its worth doing, you have greater access to apps, programs, and other things. IT was also simple to me.
#newbie
Harley Malvado said:
I Am New To Rooting And I Would Like To Know If It's At All Possible To Install Android 4.2 On My Verizon Galaxy S3, I Feel My Phone Is Very Sluggish And I Would Like To Uninstall All The Bloatware On The Phone. Any Positive Help Would Be Greatly Appreciated Thanks In Advance!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Google is your friend, try using it.
Root!!!! I rooted my s2 the first day of having it. Best thing ever. I only update every 2 months or so, make sure bugs are out. I am on ga10 right now which 4.1.2. Even did it to the wife's phone. Original software is not good and slow updates. I am planning on rooting whatever new I get.
definetely root, because with root you can use many hidden capabilities like reverse tethering, free wifi tethering and so on

[Q] Why Root the One plus one?

Hi all
i Just got my one plus one last week
it was amazing , it was snappy , the screen is gorgeous , and the CM is plain great , albeit many apps did find unresponding oddly enough
i've had many phones in the past that are not so great x10 mini , x8 , galaxy ace, galaxy nexus
all of which are miles away when compared to the one plus
and since they are so freaking lag i decided to root them and gave them root and changed their bootloader
but from one phone to the other all of them seems to die out in about 9 months after i root them , and i don;'t know what i did wrong , most of them are dead because i fried the motherboard or something
still why would you root the one plus when it's already so fast ? i am considering rooting mine but i am really scared i might kill it
First, rooting doesn't make it faster or slower. Also, it doesn't broke the phone neither now or in 12 month time.
Second, you need root for some in depth access on your phone, or some programs like Titanium Backup may require root to work.
Third, the rule of the thumb say, if you don't need it, don't do it!
greenify, adblock, titanium more than enough reasons to root.
I go by the old saying "If you have to ask, you'll never know"
Generally anyone who's asked me if they should root their phone, or install 3rd party firmware, my answer is no. It has to be something you want to do and something you're willing to accept the risk doing. I'm a flashaholic. I flash a new rom every few days, or update existing ROM i have. I'm never content with the status quo on my phone and devices and always play. I accept the risk of running into a situation where I go to make a call, watch a movie, or open a email and my phone locking up due to running bleeding edge untested code. Mind you I can always recover from bootloader and know how so I know I won't permanently screw a phone, just until I can flash a older rom, or recover with a PC. If you have to ask, it means you're not sure about what you're getting into. If you fall into this situation I would refrain from asking others and instead read around in the 1,000's of posts in this OnePlus forum and decide for yourself.
Not that being said, root is simple. It's a more of a "Set it and forget it" type of deal, at least until a OTA update arrives. Custom roms is where the aforementioned comes into play mostly. If you want to start getting into the Flashing world with Android its the place to start. Myself I read and read after I got my Galaxy S4, first real Android phone, and went straight to CyanogenMod with it. Skipped rooting.
WoodburyMan said:
Generally anyone who's asked me if they should root their phone, or install 3rd party firmware, my answer is no. It has to be something you want to do and something you're willing to accept the risk doing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
He may not be aware of what can be accomplished with root access and find the profits interesting. He doesn't necessarily know if he wants to do if he doesn't know it exists/is possible.
I don't want to flame or anything, but since you've been around for almost 3 years, you should really know better.
Firstly, rooting does not fry your motherboard. Seriously, why would you think so?
The fact that your previous phones became slow after a short while is because you probably got them stuffed with bloatware and have not maintained your phone in a healthy way.
As to why you should root your phone,...
Well, most apps that help you maintain your phone and keep it as optimized as possible require root.
This kind of proves my previous point regarding the speed of your previous phones.
I would start reading some more and eventually you'll be able to answer your own question.
Good luck!
Well that's easy, if your not interested in using apps that need root access there's no use in rooting your device. It's nothing magic which will make your device fly or make a cup of coffee for you.
Why not?

Question Unsupported Countries and Root

Hey guys i need your advice.
Tomorrow my Pixel 7 pro arrives and i am living in an unsupported county. I have read a lot of guides about the root etc. i just want to verify that i will be able to use the full features of the device if i rooted....like call screening, 5g etc. and how risky is to be rooted nowdays because last time i root my phone was 10 years ago....if after the mandatory things i don't install any app outside of the store and don't grant access root will my device be safe ? thank you
try hentaios In the latest update it was activated 5g in unsupported countries
m3ath said:
try hentaios In the latest update it was activated 5g in unsupported countries
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
HentaiOS for Pixel 7 Pro? Is it on Telegram or another third-party place?
ekin_strops said:
HentaiOS for Pixel 7 Pro? Is it on Telegram or another third-party place?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yes for 7 pro and 7
They have a channel in Telegram
I am certainly not an expert. I remember the days of flashing roms. I used to sometimes flash multiple roms a day.
Now most of the features I used to use custom roms for are already in Android.
Also if you have a Pixel you have a pretty clean version of Android.
So I don't really see the point. Maybe in your situation because you are using the phone in an unsupported country you might be able to enable some features but I would think the network bands are hardware based and either your carrier is compatible with the Pixel or not?
IMHO I would not root or install custom software on a brand new phone like a Pixel or other flagship. It generally voids your warranty and if you soft brick the device and can't revive it what do you do? Also with root you have huge security vulnerability. Pixel is supposed to be one of the most secure Android phones so why would you get rid of that benefit?
Also updates would be a pain.
If I had a free cheap phone from a carrier with a crappy version of Android that I would risk rooting and maybe installing a custom ROM but I just don't see the need on a Pixel??
robbbzilla said:
IMHO I would not root or install custom software on a brand new phone like a Pixel or other flagship. It generally voids your warranty and if you soft brick the device and can't revive it what do you do? Also with root you have huge security vulnerability. Pixel is supposed to be one of the most secure Android phones so why would you get rid of that benefit?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1) It doesn't void your warranty on the Pixel.
2) Root isn't a security vulnerability in and of itself but the unlocked bootloader can be if someone gets ahold of your phone. Seeing how the filesystem is encrypted though, it's not so much a risk to your data as it is to the person being able to steal the phone easier.
3) Most other phones have largely been locked down so a lot of us get the Pixel *because* it can be rooted.
robbbzilla said:
Also updates would be a pain.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not too bad. Pixel Flasher makes the whole process easy. Plug into the computer, launch Pixel Flasher, download the update, click the patch image button so it makes a Magisk image, select that image, flash. It's all done with a user friendly GUI. While it's not as straightforward as updating directly on the phone, it also installs faster, so it's a worthwhile trade off.
EtherealRemnant said:
1) It doesn't void your warranty on the Pixel.
2) Root isn't a security vulnerability in and of itself but the unlocked bootloader can be if someone gets ahold of your phone. Seeing how the filesystem is encrypted though, it's not so much a risk to your data as it is to the person being able to steal the phone easier.
3) Most other phones have largely been locked down so a lot of us get the Pixel *because* it can be rooted.
Not too bad. Pixel Flasher makes the whole process easy. Plug into the computer, launch Pixel Flasher, download the update, click the patch image button so it makes a Magisk image, select that image, flash. It's all done with a user friendly GUI. While it's not as straightforward as updating directly on the phone, it also installs faster, so it's a worthwhile trade off.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good to know. I thought enabling root level privileges would cause system wide insecurity.
As I prefaced my comments I am no expert and it has been a long time since I rooted my phones.
That is why it is good to ask questions and learn about the state of things now.
I didn't know that you could root a Pixel device and not void the warranty. I am used to the Samsung lock down.
Also with Pixel or with previous Nexus device it was always fun to see what new features Google would add in a new update/feature drop so I never felt the need to root a Pixel phone.
However if you like rooting and can do so without much risk then why not? I can see the fun in trying different software and gaining better control over your device.
robbbzilla said:
Good to know. I thought enabling root level privileges would cause system wide insecurity.
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Seeing how you still have to authorize the use of root and Magisk even has added support for fingerprint verification to do so, it's not much more of a risk than having an unrooted device really.
robbbzilla said:
Also with Pixel or with previous Nexus device it was always fun to see what new features Google would add in a new update/feature drop so I never felt the need to root a Pixel phone.
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You still get this stuff when you're rooted and even on most custom ROMs for Pixel. The only downside comes from apps that don't want to play nice. As long as I can use Google Pay, which I'm able to do after using the SafetyNet fix mod, I don't mind having to use the web browser for a banking app here and there (and right now there's only one that flat out won't work, Security Service FCU, so I'm not too put out by it).
It's a pain in the ass to enable carrier features like VoLTE, VoNR, etc. Pixel features like call screening require phenotype edits, which are also a pain in the ass.
G_Vasi said:
Hey guys i need your advice.
Tomorrow my Pixel 7 pro arrives and i am living in an unsupported county. I have read a lot of guides about the root etc. i just want to verify that i will be able to use the full features of the device if i rooted....like call screening, 5g etc. and how risky is to be rooted nowdays because last time i root my phone was 10 years ago....if after the mandatory things i don't install any app outside of the store and don't grant access root will my device be safe ? thank you
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One bit of warning/caution, I've seen/found a lot of users on this forum who are in other countries (maybe unsupported) biggest issue would be NFC pay & banking apps not working. I personally have only seen a few select apps stated on this forum that can't be launched due to root detection that SafetyNetFix and Zygisk DenyList/Shamiko wasn't able to successfully hide, but there are some -- I myself have Wallet, Gpay, 4 banking apps, Xfinity apps, working while I've discussed with some other users the same banking app not working for them -- that, no matter how much users tried, they were unable to get it working. Supposedly there are combinations of root hiding methods and modules that have blocked mostly all of the stubborn apps, but then there seems to be some apps that merely just having an unlocked bootloader is enough to restrict their use.
So if this might be your situation where you have certain apps (most likely banking) that you can't really live without and/or use daily/frequently but they are known to not run on a rooted & unlocked bootloader device, that's the only real downside to rooting.
Other than that, I believe obtaining root on our device benefits so much far outweighing the risks. If certain things stop working, usually there are workarounds to get them to work or alternatives. If anything, particularly in your case, I don't believe you can get those features of 5G and call screening and camera sound and VPN and whatever other feature is restricted in an unsupported country without root....
So there are them pros & cons...
Thank you for your answers guys.....I also think that pros are more than cons....as far as I know and from the ways I found here my Bank apps will work normally.....and also I found a tutorial here that say it will enable all the Pixel features in unsupported countries so hopefully it will work...if by any case anyone tried it I would like to hear the feedback especially for google screening.

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