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Rooting, OS downgrades, Knox, and backup software questions

J

jetspeedz

Newbie
Hi everyone, I'm purchasing an S6 next week and I have a few questions. I'm not a Android expert, so excuse my ignorance on some of these questions. I have been a Blackberry user for over 10 years and have a samsung tablet I sometimes use so I know enough to get by.

1. From what I have read there is a Samsung Knox which is a counter that will detect if the phone is rooted and it can possibly void the warranty. I have Att and I hate bloatware on my phones, so based on a previous post i made, it appears the only way to remove these apps is by rooting. Is there a way to flash a custom rom without tripping this counter or is it too soon to tell?

2. Lets say I keep the factory OS that came with the phone and I upgrade the OS, OTA when Samsung/ATT releases the next version of android in the future, is it possible to downgrade to the older version (or current lolipop) without tripping Knox and voiding any warranty or as soon as the phone is flashed with a new OS it is not under warranty anymore?

3. If i understand correctly Knox keeps track of how many times the phone has been flashed and if it has been rooted? If the phone is flashed with an older version of android released by Samsung/ATT is it still going to keep track of this or only when it is flashed with a custom rom?

4. Lastly what is the best backup software for backing up app data? I believe I had downloaded Keiss for my tablet but that is not compatible with S6 so Smart Switch and Helium I have read are the best options unless there are others you guys recommend.

Cheers
 
Afaik the Knox "efuse" is only tripped when you actually flash non official firmware (custom recovery or a rom) so just rooting should be fine but I'm not 100% sure on that.
Unless you're rooted, I'd recommend Helium backup. Rooted I recommend titanium :thumbsupdroid:
 
I don't think so, I think it's just flashing unofficial firmware but wait until someone who knows for sure chimes in mate
 
^^good point mate. If I rooted without flashing a custom recovery the only thing I'd ever use root for is app data backups and ad blockers, certainly not anything that alters the system, its just not worth the risk without a backup made in custom recovery :thumbsupdroid:
 
The_Librarian said:
Time to avoid Samsung then and go to some other supplier who don't mind you rooting their products?

I'm off Samsung for good now, my next android phone will NOT be a Samsung.
Click to expand...
To be fair to Samsung, they've implemented this for security reasons but yeah, I'll never buy another sammy :thumbsupdroid:
 
Samsung is definitely not rooter friendly.

HTC is (if you use their bootloader unlock service it voids your warranty - but if you have a hardware problem, they don't care - and under the new UH-OH policy for free phone replacement, the head of HTC USA specifically said that rooted phones were not an issue). Rooting is easy. M8 and M9 owners report high satisfaction with their phones. (Disclosure - I have an HTC M8.)

Sony is, generally, but the non-US offerings are better.

LG isn't but like the Samsung, people manage to jump through hoops and get rooting done.

The OnePlus One and upcoming Two are root friendly, as is the Oppo. For the OnePlus you have to set up the APN properly to get LTE. http://forums.androidcentral.com/oneplus-one/480049-t-lte-not-working-oneplus-one.html

The Nexus is by definition rooter friendly and won't come with bloatware.

OP, I don't mean to tell you what to do, but I think it's in your best interest to ask if you're 100% sure that the Samsung is the right choice for you given what you're going up against.
 
Yeah you're pretty much looking at a TMO S6 if you want guaranteed root as they ship unlocked. You still have the Knox counter tho regardless, some people don't care about that, others do.

The other variants may get root idk. It may end up taking a kernel level exploit like Geohot's Towelroot to get it done. Even if it does though, I'd consider that a temp root anyway. It'll get patched in the next ota update and then what...stay behind forever while everyone else points out all the must have shiny new features of the new OTA's? Unlikely.

I went with a Sammy (S6) this time around also as a rare sidebar from my usually relentless need to hax my phones to pieces. I'm taking an operational pause :D

There's some exciting new options fringing the market right now and I think next year or even later this year will be good times. I'll probably offload this phone inside a year as I'm off contract now anyway and buying outright.
 
Hi All,

I've had my M9 for a few years and have been running stock sense without too many complaints. Lately, it runs super hot and will only hold a charge for a few hours. I've done the standard things, but they don't help. SO... I want to root it.

I'm struggling right out of the gate (as usual). I've updated Sync, installed SDK, downloaded mini adb. Enabled USB debugging. I'm trying to unlock the bootloader. When I hit power + vol down, Fastboot is not an option. What I do have is system info, show barcode, reboot to bootloader, reboot to download mode, reboot, and power down. Can I proceed with one of these options?

Thanks, Mike
 
Hey Mike :).

That kind of sounds like you might actually have a battery issue if it's running hot and not holding a charge...?

I don't know if the M9 has a replaceable battery or not, but that might be a good thing to try.

Outside of that, we've also got an M9 root area here at AF that you might look in to (or I could move your post over there to it's own thread if you'd like--just lemme know :)) for some M9-specific root advice/help.

Cheers!
 
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