Before Getting Started: Things You Need to Have
There are a few basics you need to get out of the way before you can start this process:
- This method will only work for a device that already has anunlocked bootloader with a custom recovery, so be sure that you have that before going forward.
- Uninstall HTC Sync. The program is great way to get the HTC Desire drivers installed, which you will need for this process, but it will interfere with the tool we will be using to S-Off your HTC.
- Enable USB debugging.
- Turn off all security settings from Settings -> Security.
- Disable Fast boot mode from Settings -> Power/Battery Manager.
- You'll also want to make sure that you are using a USB 2.0 (not USB 3.0) port for this for compatibility reasons.
- Backing up your data is also necessary, just in case anything goes wrong.
Preparing Your Framework & Kernel (Optional)
This process works best with a Sense-based ROM with an insecure kernel, and you can flash
InsertCoin in order to have both of those bases covered.
This section (Steps 1 through 6) will show you how to to get InsertCoin ready on your HTC Desire, but if you're already running a kernel with an insecure kernel, you can skip this section and proceed directly to the
Preparing Your Device & Downloading Firewater section below.
Step 1: Download InsertCoin ROM to Your Device
We will be flashing the InsertCoin ROM so that we have a
Sense framework and
kernel that fits all the needs of the S-Off tool we are going to use. The InsertCoin ROM can be downloaded directly from the
InsertCoin Team's website onto your device.
Step 2: Enter Recovery Mode
With the ROM downloaded, place your device into
Recovery mode by holding the
Power and
Volume Down buttons at the same time, which will take you to the following Bootloader screen:
Once in
Bootloader mode, use the
Volume Down key to highlight
Recovery and hit the
Power button to boot into
TWRP.
Step 3: Create a Backup
Before going any further, you should make sure to have a backup of your existing setup since we'll be performing a full data wipe in the next step.
You can do this directly from TWRP using the
Backup option. After going through the S-Off process, you can restore this backup to get all your apps, messages, and settings back as they were before.
Step 4: Wipe Data
From the main TWRP menu, select
Wipe, then
Advanced Wipe and check the
Dalvik Cache,
Cache,
Data, and
System boxes, then
Swipe To Wipe.
Step 5: Flash InsertCoin ROM
Now tap the
Home button to get back to the main TWRP menu and tap the
Install option. Select the ROM you downloaded, then
Swipe to Confirm Flash.
After swiping you will need to go through the AROMA installer to finish the flash. The installer will have extra options and tweaks that you can choose to add to your device, but those are only needed if you plan on keeping this ROM after flashing. Once the process completes, select the
Reboot option.
Step 6: Set Up Your ROM & Reenable USB Debugging
If your device doesn't boot as quickly as usually, don't panic, that is expected. Once it boots back up, go through the initial setup process one more time, as you did when first got your phone. Once your phone is set up you will need to reenable
USB Debugging.
Preparing Your Device & Downloading Firewater
Plug your HTC to your computer and open up terminal. You'll also want to download the S-Off tool
Firewater and place it on your Desktop.
Step 7: Run Firewater on Your Device
- Reboot your device using ADB.
- Once rebooted, push Firewater to your device.
- adb push Desktop/firewater /data/local/tmp
If you didn't put Firewater on your Desktop, you are going to need to change it to the appropriate directory.
- You'll now need to change the permissions of Firewater so that it can run on your device.
- abd shell
- su
- chmod 755 /data/local/tmp/firewater
After typing
su, check your device to see if your Superuser app asks for your approval.
- Run Firewater, and do not touch your device after the process starts.
- /data/local/tmp/firewater
- Now simply agree to the terms and conditions when prompted by typing "yes", then let firewater start chugging.
You're all set, your HTC is now S-Off!
Good Health & Good Luck!