Root [Verizon] confused

[justme0485]

I purchased what was supposed to have been a brand new samsung galaxy s 3 phone off ebay from this company (pupup wireless). However. I found out yesterday they root all their phones. I do not know anything about rooting or unrooting and I am afraid of "bricking" my new phone. I would like to unroot it if possible so I can get the updates through Verizon ( which the current is one called kit kat update) Is there anyway I can unroot it but have it simply done as possible?

 

[Mikestony]

Yes there is..
You'll need to find the latest software at sammobile.com and flash it via Odin.
I'm on tapatalk right now and I'm bad at posting links on it but when I get to a computer, I can link to what you need. Or maybe someone else may be able to do so before I can

 

[justme0485]

I don't know what flashing is

 

[Mikestony]

No worries. I'm afk atm but I or someone can help you with that. I'll be at the computer later today 😊

 

[justme0485]

Thats cool.. i'll just stand by until then. if it helps i found out it was rooted with some app called towelroot

 

[Mikestony]

ok...back at the computer for about 10 minutes, then I gotta go out again, sorry

Another word for flashing is "installing".
What is going to happen here, is you are going to download the .zip file for the latest firmware for VZW..4.4.2.
Then, you are going to use a computer program called ODIN.
ODIN communicates with your device and loads the firmware.

Sammobile is the website to get the firmware and the ODIN .exe file.
Firmwares | SamMobile
(some instructions listed there too)

Do you have the drivers installed on your computer for your phone? If you do, normally when you plug your phone into the computer, the computer will see it. So if that is the case, good. If you need the drivers, you can get them from here:
Support - Verizon Wireless Cell Phones SCH-I535 | Samsung Cell Phones

Make sure you do not have Kies running or simply disable, or uninstall it. Kies and ODIN don't like each other.

You will have to register for a free account at Sammobile to download the firmware .zip file, but that's no big deal.

If you feel comfy flashing (installing the firmware) go for it, otherwise I'll be back in a few hours at the computer.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask and no worries about too many questions k?

As long as you can get into download mode, it's hard to brick an S3

Download mode...
turn off phone...hold the volume down button, and while holding it down, press and hold the home button.
While holding and pressing those 2 buttons, press and hold the power button.
It will give you a warning but you want to continue into download mode.

If you want to try download mode, that's cool, and to get out of it, just simply pull the battery and reboot...no harm done

ok...I gotta run...I'll check back later...I promise

 

[jaymzway]

I purchased what was supposed to have been a brand new samsung galaxy s 3 phone off ebay from this company (pupup wireless). However. I found out yesterday they root all their phones. I do not know anything about rooting or unrooting and I am afraid of "bricking" my new phone. I would like to unroot it if possible so I can get the updates through Verizon ( which the current is one called kit kat update) Is there anyway I can unroot it but have it simply done as possible?

You could try this go settings update phone n go to update prl if that works then back out of everything and go back in and same place of settings then update profile if that works it should tell you to restart device u should be receiving ota updates from provider.
And if not then its because its your either build prop file is preventing you from doing so. I dont advise u making changes in there it can mess ur phone up n brick ur phone. I have a rooted same phone as urs on hyper drive and using boost mobile zone.apk just fine it just wont get you the next ver of android it will get me the next update of hyper drive

As always to be able to help others in ur same situation hit thank you n like if this has helped you so others will know they are getting proper help as well
Thank you n good luck

 

[justme0485]

is the ODIN program along with the firmware or do i download that somewhere else?

 

[justme0485]

Ok nm got the ODIN program on my pc and ready to go.. I have the firmware downloading on my pc do i extract it or leave it alone?

 

[fdbryant3]

If I could make a suggestion - you may wish to leave the phone rooted, especially if you are interested in being able to upgrade to Android Lollipop. The S3 is a 2+ year old phone and probably is not going to be upgraded by Samsung. On top of that Verizon is notoriously slow in upgrading even the current generation phones which means that your best bet for getting Lollipop on the S3 is going to be by installing a custom ROM like CyanogenMOD.

While this maybe something you think you don't want to now leaving the phone rooted will make it easier in the future should you change your mind (not that it is terribly difficult to re-root should you change your mind). Anyway just food for thought.

 

[justme0485]

Ok.. how would i go by in doing that? I just like that style a whole lot better than this. Also how would i turn off the damn ota installer. cause the phone automatically trys to install the update thru verizon. I am down for whatever but keep in mind I am stupid when it comes to this.

 

[justme0485]

anyone around to help me?

 

[Mikestony]

Sure, sorry I thought fdbryant would guide you seeing as it appeared that's the way you wanted to go. But no worries!
Let me ask, do you know what recovery you have?

Edit: whoops, sorry..to get into recovery--with the phone off--volume up/home and power button combo

 

[justme0485]

no i do not know which recovery i have.. Yeah i would have thought the same lol..

 

[Mikestony]

no i do not know which recovery i have.. Yeah i would have thought the same lol..

ok..see my last edit on how to get into recovery
At the recovery screen, let us know if it says something like "TWRP" or "Clockworkmod" or something else.
That should tell us how we can proceed.

Sidenote, I think I will move this thread into the root forum for Verizon...that sound cool?

 

[justme0485]

yes thats fine.. the phone won't respond to that command. I am to hold the volume up , home button and power button at same time? it's doing nothing when i do that

 

[Mikestony]

yes thats fine.. the phone won't respond to that command. I am to hold the volume up , home button and power button at same time? it's doing nothing when i do that

Pull the battery and reinsert the battery. What I do is start with the volume up button, then the home button, and lastly the power button. Keep holding all 3 down until the phone vibrates and you see a screen appear. Then let go of all 3.
It's a little tricky sometimes

 

[justme0485]

ok i got it.. but i don't see anything execpt. reboot system now, appy update from ADB, apply update from external storage, wipe data/factory reset, wipe cache partition, apply update from cache

 

[justme0485]

at the top it says android system recovery <3e>

 

[Mikestony]

at the top it says android system recovery <3e>

Ah, ok...it appears like you have the stock recovery.

You can reboot from that menu. And when you do, let's check another thing.
After rebooting, go into menu/settings/about phone and post a screenshot of the info posted there. (not the screen with your phone number or IMEI number, the other screen with "Android Version" etc).

By the way, how do you know this phone is rooted? Because they told you it was?

 

[justme0485]

I took it to a Verizon store since i was having issues trying to install a OTA update. Thats how I found out. Plus I contacted the company where I purchased the phone and they confirmed. I told them what I was trying to do. They just said for me to reset to factory settings that should fix my issue. ( ive done that twice) After that didn't work then they told me I would have to find a guide to unroot the device.

 

[Mikestony]

I see.
The android version you are on, 4.1.2 is the best version to be on when rooted.
That means your bootloader is not locked down and you are free to install a custom recovery, which will allow you to flash roms.

As fdbryant said, Verizon may be slow in updates but the rom developers usually take the updates and incorporate them into their roms.
It's also an older device so developers are slowly leaving the S3. So there is only so far you can go with keeping up with the Android versions.

Do you wish to proceed with gaining full root (installing a custom recovery, finding and flashing a rom etc), or do you wish to unroot?

 

[justme0485]

I'll go ahead with the full root- i really like the kit kat

 

[Mikestony]

All righty.
Just let it be known, attempting to root, install recovery, unlocking bootloader, flashing is at your own risk. I'm not trying to scare you, but there is always a risk
But like I've said before, as long as you can get into download mode, we can bring it back to life

In your app drawer, do you have the SuperSu app? (Super superuser).
If not, get it from the PlayStore and install it for now...
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=eu.chainfire.supersu&hl=en

 

[justme0485]

ok i installed it.. yes i understand the risk