Root Help Root the Droid!

[QrafTee]

so is rooting like hacking the psp with kernal or whatever the hell it was?

Uh... for the sake of argument, yes.

 

[tsaunders]

If they figure out root, doesn't Motorola/Google just need to release and update to the phone that has a different password, or can they still use the exploit?

 

[ajm144k]

If they figure out root, doesn't Motorola/Google just need to release and update to the phone that has a different password, or can they still use the exploit?

well, if the phone is simply rooted you should receive all OTAs just fine. the potential for a problem would come when you flashed a custom ROM... but any good cook will disable OTAs.

 

[DevilDroid]

Good post....BUMP....maybe this should be a sticky?

 

[Fronc]

Um, be quiet?

...

c) I find it implausible that someone would be able to point at a droid and say "oooo! lookz! A DROID! I'm going to steal it and sell it on the BLACK MARKET" when you can go get one at frickin' verizon.

Naive Definition | Definition of Naive at Dictionary.com

I would find it hard to believe that you've ever been outside.

 

[staticfive]

Naive Definition | Definition of Naive at Dictionary.com

I would find it hard to believe that you've ever been outside.

People steal expensive phones because they're expensive phones, not because they want to root them.

And don't hate on albinos.

 

[eraser]

I've been around linux systems since the 80's

From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linux

"The name "Linux" comes from the Linux kernel, originally written in 1991 by Linus Torvalds."

 

[Jedakiah]

There is still a large amount of confusion in regards to the rooting devices. Hopefully this post will clear up most of it.

Why "root" anything?
If you're wondering why someone would need root access, then you probably do not need root access yourself and could skip this long post.

If you're still curious as to why then look at it this way, do you allow your ISP to tell you what you can do with your computer? Do they get to dictate what operating system you run on the hardware you payed for? Hells no!

That's like purchasing a cup of coffee, then discovering that it is locked inside a metal container and the only way to drink it is through a provided straw. WTH? I don't want to drink my coffee through a damn straw, I payed for it why can't I just drink it the normal way?

What's the password?
There is no password involved. It's not like if we had some magical password would be able to go to Settings > Login as Root. Don't think of root access as an administrative user. Think of it as a level of security clearance. And that security clearance is simply not granted to anyone using, or any application running on top of, the stock Motorola Android OS.

How would I "root" the phone?
The only way to gain root access is for someone to find an attack vector, a hole in Motorola's "firewall", that will allow one to execute commands as the root user. Once a vector is found people will be able to grant root access to themselves and programs they select, giving them full control over the device just as Motorola intended for us not to do.

Finding the attack vector is insanely hard. But once it's found there will be many websites posting easy-to-follow instructions on how to "root your Droid".

Does rooting a device have it's risks?
Yes. If Motorola or Verizon finds out they will probably void your warranty. Luckily you generally COULD flash a default ROM back on the phone before sending/taking it in and they will be none the wiser. Additionally most people root their devices so that they can install custom ROM's. Unfortunately, anytime you flash something to ROM you run a small risk of completely bricking said device. Luckily, that risk has been mitigated with backups and other handy tools.

Does it decrease the security of the phone?
No, unless you are not very street smart about computer security, in which case yes it could. However, for those of us that are knowledgeable this can actually increase the security of our phone. For example, we can plug security holes as soon as they are found because we do not have to wait on official OS updates.

@eraser Thank you for posting that. I was going to say something, but figured I might be feeding the troll.

 

[ajm144k]

There is still a large amount of confusion in regards to the rooting devices. Hopefully this post will clear up most of it.
...

awesome post, im gonna add this in to the first post so the info doesn't get buried.

 

[staticfive]

...

What's the password?
There is no password involved. It's not like if we had some magical password would be able to go to Settings > Login as Root. Don't think of root access as an administrative user. Think of it as a level of security clearance. And that security clearance is simply not granted to anyone using, or any application running on top of, the stock Motorola Android OS.

...

root is a user account, why shouldn't it be that easy unless they disabled root entirely?

 

[PlaneGuy]

Why do you need to buy out your contract to root the phone?

 

[syntrix]

Why do you need to buy out your contract to root the phone?

minimum of a data plan on the phone required. Kill the service, you have to pay the ETF.

 

[iboombastic]

I seriously do not trust him, it would be better use to donate the money to cyanogen so he could come up with a root

 

[syntrix]

like I said before, just looks like a "bootloader" enabled feature from the last few pages, but you would need the bootloader and config for the devices, etc.

 

[hanano17]

Just posting cause I don't want anymore email notices....couldn't figure out any other way to do it lol

 

[phaze3131]

I would love root access and then an app that can be a real call blocker like Mclean for the iphone

MCleaner for iPhone??downloads best iPhone call blocking and sms reject

Don't think we have access to functionality of what to do when the phone firsts get a signal it has a call... right now the phone automatically accepts it and that sucks.

We should have 100% control and that means deciding whether we want to have our phone recognize the signal or just reject it, just like Mclean does for the iphone.

 

[PlaneGuy]

minimum of a data plan on the phone required. Kill the service, you have to pay the ETF.

What happens if you have a data plan? Does it stream out an excessive amount of data just because you're rooted?

 

[bcromwell]

Why do you need to buy out your contract to root the phone?

You don't, The is for the guy to sacrifice his phone to try to find a why to copy/modify/trace the nvram/bootrom from the phone using what appears to be a jtag port on the main board of the phone. The only way to get to the pins is to completely disassemble the phone.

 

[dr.worm]

i'm not the most tech savy person alive (somehow i'm technically in IT though) so i have a question. the only thing i can think of that would be a plus for me personally would be tethering. how does that work on a rooted phone? does that mean you can tether without having to pay VZ? so anytime i hook my phone to my computer i can get online assuming i have a signal?

 

[Fabolous]

i'm not the most tech savy person alive (somehow i'm technically in IT though) so i have a question. the only thing i can think of that would be a plus for me personally would be tethering. how does that work on a rooted phone? does that mean you can tether without having to pay VZ? so anytime i hook my phone to my computer i can get online assuming i have a signal?

You don't need to root to tether. Download PDAnet.

Rooting will allow us to flash custom roms, make modifications to the core apps, etc.

 

[dr.worm]

You don't need to root to tether. Download PDAnet.

Rooting will allow us to flash custom roms, make modifications to the core apps, etc.

thanks for the response, i found a thread talking about that app literally as i got the email with your response in it. sorry for the noobness. thanks again

 

[Fadelight]

It would allow us to clean off our phone from the unwanted facebook crap and all the other annoying programs we wouldn't use. (those of us who don't use it anyway.)

There are a ton of other reasons I have for wanting to root my phone, but that is definitely one of them. I think there are at least 5 apps on here that I don't need or want, but the phone won't let me delete them.

 

[Jedakiah]

root is a user account, why shouldn't it be that easy unless they disabled root entirely?

While I have not browsed but a fraction of the source code, I find it probable that they have done away with unnecessary protocols like user accounts.

Because we are not dealing with the command line I think it would be helpful for at least newbies to view root access as a security clearance level, and not as a user account that if only they had the password they would be able to log into it.

Tehtering
As previously mentioned you can already tether your phone to your computer without root access and without paying Verizon's exorbitant monthly fee.

However to do this you need to have software running on both your phone and your computer, and a bluetooth signal or USB cable. The advantage of tethering a rooted phone is that you can setup your cellphone as a wireless access point. Meaning you can connect to your phones internet from your laptop exactly like you would connect to your wireless router. Pretty freaking cool, especially since your wireless signal will travel a lot farther than Bluetooth and be faster.

Sadly, your internet connection speed through tethering will not be any faster than your phone's. Something to note is that paying Verizon to allow tethering might actually get you tangible benefits, in the form of increased throughput and lower latency (much faster internet).

 

[ajm144k]

in an attempt to make me and everyone else learn more, i decided to make the first post a bit more informative to the topic of rooting. (after all, who's gonna want to donate towards something they just don't understand)

but please, tell me what to correct/add in there!

 

[essplode]

When you guys mention the phone becoming bricked, you make it sound like the phone will become completely useless and unfixable. Am I just reading into this wrong?

I am new to the android platform, but when I would "brick" my blackberry I would simply just flash a default OS and be on my way and try again. Can this not be done on "bricked" android phones?